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Hello Dakka!
Some of you might have read my "which army to buy"-thread in General Discussion. I playtested Eldar yesterday with the following list and probably want to do it again today at 500pts. This list was build rather quick and I'm sure there's space for optimizizization.

HQ
Farseer (Doom, Fortune)
110 (?)

Troops
10x Dire Avengers (Exarch(dual catapults), WS with TL starcannon)
262

10x Guardians (EML)
100

Heavy Support
Shadowweaver
30

I would like to keep a farseer as the HQ choice and his powers are rather flexible, I think. As I said in the other thread, I'm thinking of buying Eldar as my first real army - I haven't bought anything other than 4 guardians until now, so feel free to change and critize away!

I like the guardians as a cheap and versatile firebase, holding the home objective, while the WS carries the DAs around trying to close in with the enemy and grab mid-field objectives. The shadowweaver really was a point-filler, I'm sure there are ways to free up points here and put them where they are more useful.

Thanks for reading and in advance for answers,
Witzkatz

Postscriptum: Important addition! If I really decide to buy Eldar as an army, it'll be around 750pts for starters, so I would be happy to hear how you would arrange an army around that point level, too.

Well, at the 500 pt level there is almost no room for tactical flexibility.

A Farseer with two psychic powers needs spirit stones to do so. Doom is good against the unit shot by the Avengers. But what would you like to fortune? Avengers die from bolters anyway.

I'd take the following list:

Farseer w/ doom - 80

10 Dire Avengers - 120
Serpent w/ stones, shuricannon - 110

10 Storm Guardians - 80
Serpent w/ stones, shuricannon - 110

Total: 500 pts

Thanks for your answer!

Your list looks nice, too. You're right that two psychic powers on the farseer might have been too much at that point level, but I wanted some versatility.

What I like about your list is the fact that both troops are highly mobile. So, theoretically, you can drive around with both units harassing the opponent left and right and slowly start returning to your home objective for capturing on turn 4, maybe. Sounds nice to me!

Shuriken cannons are S6 AP5, right? Don't have my codex with me right now. So the plan is to go the "volume of fire" way to kill 2+/3+ models?

The only thing that bothers me a bit is the lack of a real AT weapon...what if an enemy uses a dakkapred or even a LRBT on that level? The last one is not that possible, granted...

Well, we can't tell weapon stats, they are intellectual property of GW.
Serpents are really hard to take down at small point levels.
Most vehicles have AV 11 or 12 as side armor.
Thus shuricannons can penetrate or glance them by targeting their sides.

I agree that on this point level there won't be much heavy armour, but read my battle report in the battle reports forum Four XV8 missile pod suits shot around, I don't know, 20+ missiles at my WS and the best thing they got out of that was a shaken and a stunned and a shaken...or something like that. I'm just saying, maybe one bigger weapon wouldn't hurt. However, bright lances are going to be really expensive at that point level, I agree on that...

...are WS turret weapons easily magnetizable?

At work so I don't have my codex but you could decrease the avenger squad by 5 models, put the farseer with them and buy a falcon for them instead of the wave serpent. Pretty sure you'll still have the pts to get an EML to go with the pulse if you want some AT whilst keeping mobility!

A Falcon sounds nice, too, although I guess it really should get holofields on it - don't have the codex with me either, so I'll have to look this up at home.

I think a Falcon + small DA squad + farseer would be rather "scoring sorcerer shooty tank", while WS+10xDA+farseer is more "infantry with support"...but that might be just as good. Maybe I should playtest that.

A Falcon with stones and holofield is quite cheesy at the 500 pt level.
A Serpent can fulfill the same role as a flying fortress able to deliver its payload.

Sure but then he still can't kill tanks! Other way is to take less Avengers and take TL BL on a wave serpent. So depends how decent the other lists in the game you are playing. Friendly take 2 WS, if your against tougher lists upgrade to the Falc.
Either way, for a mech army, they are both going to be needed in your bigger builds. My 2k swordwind has 7 vehicles because they own... or well at least they did in last ed :( You're next 250pts is probably going to be an elite choice also in mech

For the next 250 pts, I'd take six Fire Dragons incl. Exarch with dragon breath mounted in a Serpent.