Craftworld Altansar
Lost in the Eye of Terror for millenia, Altansar Craftworld was rescued from the Eye of Terror by its only surviving son, the Pheonix Lord Maugan Ra. As Abaddon's 13th Black Crusade crashed against the walls of Cadia, Maugan Ra led his handpicked Dark Reaper disciples into the Eye of Terror and located his lost Craftworld. Though they've returned to the galaxy, the Eldar of Altansar are viewed with distrust by their kin, who wonder how they've avoiding the corrupting touch of Chaos...
Seriously, with a backstory like that, how could I not like it? No fake biker tough-guys, no militarily-obsessed xenophobes, no mostly-dead automatons, no uptight religious codes, and no freaky mysticism...just a group of survivors, distrusted by their kin, who somehow managed to survive untold millenia in one of the most hellish places in a hellish galaxy. No limitations on units, tactics, or backstory...how cool is that!
WIP Army List
Obviously, this will change subject to playtesting, but here's my thoughts at this time (and the build plan I'm working on).
HQ: Eldrad
Yes, he's dead. He's simply just too good to pass up. If necessary, I'll convert and paint up an Altansar-counts-as-Eldrad; surviving in the EoT had to have something in their favor.
HQ: Maugan Ra
Hey, its Altansar. I almost have to have a Maugan Ra model, for display purposes if for no other reason. Especially if I can get it done by July, I want to try Maugan Ra in 40K 4. I have a feeling that by the GT, I'll switch to an Avatar, but that'll depend on whether I can get a hold of one of the FW models.
Elite: Harlequin Troop - Shadowseer, 7 Harlequins, all with Kisses, 1 fusion pistol
Looks like an interesting painting challenge. I may need to pick up a few extra kiss-equipped Harlequins and do some arm swaps.
Troops: Dire Avenger Squad - Exarch /w power weapon, shimmershield, defend, bladestorm; 9 Dire Avengers
Troops: Dire Avenger Squad - Exarch /w power weapon, shimmershield, defend, bladestorm; 9 Dire Avengers
Blackmoor's been talking these guys up, and a local Eldar player almost stopped my Stealer Shock cold with one of these squads. Impressive.
Troops: Guardian Jetbike Squadron - Warlock /w singing spear, destructor; 3 Guardian Jetbikes, 1 shuriken cannon
Troops: Guardian Jetbike Squadron - Warlock /w singing spear, destructor; 3 Guardian Jetbikes, 1 shuriken cannon
Anybody who knows my playing style knows I love maneuver. Can't beat these guys for flexibility on paper. We'll see how they play out.
Heavy Support: Dark Reapers - Exarch /w Tempest Launcher, Crack Shot; 3 Dark Reapers
Probably the choice I'm least enthused about. But I've got Maugan Ra, Eldrad's re-deploy means they quite useful in a lot of different ways, and the tempest launcher+crack shot has always intrigued me. In 40K 5, replacing them with Pathfinders seems like a good idea, but we'll see.
Heavy Support: Fire Prism /w holofield, spirit stones
Heavy Support: Fire Prism /w holofield, spirit stones
I hate doing what everyone else does, and the Fire Prism seems like a tank I could love to use. Only having one gun is worrisome, but since I'm looking ahead to 40K 5, I don't feel like doing the work to magnetize shuriken cannons.
Full Army Photo
Coming when its done!
Unit Photos
Maugan Ra
Dire Avenger Squad 1
Dire Avenger Squad 2
Dark Reaper Squad
Why I Started This Army
Well, last year I managed to win the 'Ard Boyz semi-finals at Pandemonium in Detroit. As a result, I got to pick an army, for which GW would assemble roughly 3000 points worth and send to me.
Orks were out, as I had no desire to paint/assemble that many models, and as it was pre-the new codex, I was afraid GW would use it as an opportunity to unload models they no longer wanted to keep in stock. Dark Eldar don't really suit me, Necrons bore me, any other MEQ armies were not my cup of tea, and I've already got IG, Daemonhunters, Tyranids, and Chaos...and I was trying to get rid of my Chaos army. Tau were out, because my AdeptiCon team (Dakka Detachment One) was in the process of building a 4000 point Tau army
...which left me with only two choices. Eldar and Witchhunters. With Witchhunters, I was afraid of getting lots of units that I didn't want and couldn't unload (like penitent engines, Sisters Repentia, and Arco-Flaggellants) so I chose Eldar...and requested that it not be a Iyanden Eldar (although in retrospec, that would have been cool).
So a few weeks later, my doorbell rang, and a big box appeared on my doorstep. I received:
- 2 Farseer/Warlock Boxes
- 2 Harlequin boxes
- 2 Shadowseers
- 2 Deathjesters
- 2 Boxes of Dire Avengers
- 4 Boxes of Guardians
- 4 Boxes of Rangers
- 2 Boxes of Swooping Hawks
- 2 Boxes of Warp Spiders
- 2 Boxes of Shining Spears
- 2 Falcons
- 2 Wave Serpents
- 1 Wraithlord
Well, I took the box, set it in the corner of my workspace, and promptly forgot about it (4000 points of Tau, remember...). Now that AdeptiCon is done, I've got time to start my new project, and the Tournament Circuit provides enough motivation. Based on a conversation with Jon (yakface) at AdeptiCon, I really want to try and have this army be the best-painted army that I can make it. So taking my time, making sure everything is as perfect as possible, and trying to achieve a yakface-level attention to detail. (For an example of his attention to detail, check out his Hive Fleet http://www.dakkadakka.com/wiki/en/Hivefleet_yakface.
Additionally, since I received the box from GW, I've picked up the odd Eldar model here and there. So I can add to the list above:
- Eldrad
- Maugan Ra
- 1 Box of Dark Reapers
- 1 Apocalypse Wild Rider set
- 1 blister of Fire Prism parts
Most of these were opportunistic E-bay purchases.
Anyways, I'm still working on an Army List. I hope to have a 1750 point army painted by July, for a mini-Tournament Series going on here in Michigan. The trick is, that since the tournament series starts in June, it will use 40K 4 rules throughout, even though 5th Ed. will be released in July. I figure I'll use my Stealer Shock in the June events, and then switch to Eldar as soon as they're done. If I can't get it done by then, my next deadline is October, for the Chicago GT.