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Last trip to the FLGS I picked up a package deal GW sells with a Falcon and 8 Guardians.  I also got a Guardian weapon platform to make it 10 guys and the mandatory platform.

Then, when I got around to actually building my list, I couldn't see any good reason to take Guardians.  Their range is miserable, their shooting is only BS3, they don't take much to kill, and no matter what weapon you take with them, it's only one weapon, and it costs a good chunk too.  Marines get a Lascannon for 15 points, and they're BS4.

Granted Heavy Support slots are at a premium in Eldar lists, and Troops aren't, but War Walkers field any heavy weapon you want for a whole lot less than Guardians do.

Anybody see a good use for Guardians?

Defenders, probably not. They are a bit more resilient then warwalkers (avatar, warlock or farseer can make them even more so) but are still pretty expensive in an army full of expensive stuff. Maybe in a foot list like what Therion was considering they could work (avatar granting fearlessness and farseer and warlock retinue doing what they do) as they'd take advantage of fearlessness and walk along with the council. Any other build is better off taking heavy weapons elsewhere.

Storm Guardians lost out too (no more 6 mans in falcon, no more serpent horde, no more cheap haywire gernades) but they still have a place if you want to go heavy mechanized, as even with a destructor warlock they are cheaper then dires avengers. I suppose you could do the same with defenders but there's little reason to get a weapon platform super close to an enemy.

Yeah, I left out the Farseer powers as far as making the Guardians more effective, but no matter what you do, they still only shoot 12", and that blows.

I suppose Storm Squads with Fusion Guns are fairly cheap, and they let you field Fusion Guns without using (relative) precious Elites slots, but close combat oriented Guardians seem... slowed...

Given proper placement they can still outshoot Marine LasPlas units.

Use their ability to move and shoot:

- Begin behind cover, so the Guarians allways shoot first.
- Keep a distance of > 24" and you will play two starcannonshots at BS3 vs one Lascannonshot at BS4.

When Guardians manage to keep their distance they get relatively durable, since you get a lot of wounds for a low cost, and many long range weapons ignore armour and to a lesser degree toughness.


Also you can use them to charge against IG or the like with the help of FoF.

Minimum sized squads with Scatter or Starcannon are best. The Starcannon doesn't do the same job it used to, but killing a few Marines or a couple of Terminators over the course of the game is a good thing. They are significantly more durable than War Walkers against heavy weapons. Anything moving close to them for Bolter goodness (unless it's in a Pod) should get hit first with your Shuricats/heavy and then jumped by at least one Eldar assault unit.

That said, with the overall cost increases in the codex, with Dire Avengers being better now, and with Jetbikes being a decent price and Troops, I think I'm going to go from using 3-4 Defender units in every game (from 1999 to last week) to using 1-2, plus Dire Avengers and Jetbikes.

I think gaurdians, especially defenders have a place. Statistically, defenders are better when an assault is anticipated (and if your within shuricat range with the defenders, assault is emminent.).

Although fusion guns and flamers are a neat prospect, compared to the move and shoot of defenders, they come up lacking.

Guardians definitely have a point in Cities of Death.  They are good, relatively cheap units that with proper warlock support are perfect for holding buildings.  I'm working on a COD Eldar list w/ two squads of Defenders (w/Starcannons) + Warlock w/ Embolden.  Then a squad of Storm Guardians w/ Destructor and 2 fusion guns.  In the close confines of the city terrain, backed up by Farseers w/ Doom + Fortune.  These units will all be ideal for the defense/counterattack element.

The new en vogue Eldar lists seem to all spend the max amount on Falcons/Prisms w/ Harlies and Dragons. Throw in an Autarch and Farseer on Jetbikes and a couple of units of Dire Avengers in Wave Serpents.  In that list jetbikes are better than guardians. Still, I think that just because this seems to be the optimum tourney configuration for eldar doesn't mean that other lists are no good.  The eldar are much more flexible now and can win with other builds and aspects.  They may not be as perfect as snakes on a plane, but they can still do their jobs.

In general it appears to me that minmaxing in Eldar armies is less effective than mixing units, so guardians have a role in diversifying the types of units.

For example, if I have a choice of taking 3 vypers or 1 vyper and a guardian squad (about the same point cost) I'd prefer having two kinds of units. You get more guns with 3 vypers, but vypers are all vulnerable to the same kinds of things, things that guardians are less vulnerable to. If you have more different kinds of units, you have more options and it's harder to get a bad matchup.

A large guardian defender squad with a warlock + conceal is good for hiding your farseer in the middle of the table. That way you can "doom" enemy units fairly easily and the unit is about the same cost as a jetbike for the farseer + a min jetbike squad.

I NEVER play a game without guardians and the more the better. I generally run a block of about 17 w/scatter laser coupled with a conceal warlock and singing spear. To even make their worth better, i always keep them as a support unit for my avatar. A fearless giant unit with a doom/guide farseer lurking nearby can be pretty impressive. The fact that they can fleet now makes them great. My army is a mobile move quickly across the table force. That unit combo is able to handle just about anything that comes their way. They have great anti-troop potential and are fairly resilient (never underestimate a 5+ invulnerable) and are able to take out light to medium vehicles with their str6 scatter and heavier ones with the spearlock. The avatar is also great for anti-tank and anti-infantry as well.

 

I watch here and all I ever see is people going on about how much they suck. I couldnt disagree more. They are severely underestimated and they add points to your comp score in most cases. They rarely dont make their points back. The enemy has to deal with them and a unit that large can be quite an obstacle, and if the enemy is shooting at them, your other pricey elites can get into the game more. Asd far as troop choices go, they are by far my favorite and the most common in my army. Granted, I like dire avengers too, but like any eldar aspect, they are a surgical tool, not a blunt instrument like marines. They have a very distinct niche and if not used properly get chewed up due to smaller unit sizes and they are prime targets now due to the fire they can dish out.

My general army list uses troops as such...

2 guardian blocks

1 dire avenger unit

1 minimum size pathfinder unit

I generally have lots of troops on the board and still have points left over for my more specialized units. People have to realize that eldar are a difficult army to use well and it takes time to figure out each units niche. Guardians are he most elastic as far as what they can do.