Eldar a good starter army?

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**Hückleberry**

My buddy is looking into getting his first 40k army and has asked me what I would suggest as a good starter army. He doesn't want to play space marines because when I took him to my local GW store 8/10 people playing there had SM. He liked the fluff and look of the Eldar models but as I have no experience playing them I figured I'd ask how steep the learning curve is for someone new to 40k...He does have gaming experience just not with 40k. thanks in advance

Hücklberry

**MechaEmperor7000**

Eldar is not for a beginner. Each model has a specific role to fulfill on the table and you have to be able to handle losses to a elite unit. They have the survivability of guardsmen, but the numbers of Tau or even Scout Marine armies.

**chaos0xomega**

Just ecause they aren't for beginners, doesn't mean that a beginner can't do well with them. That being said, the learning curve isn't so much 'steep' as it is expensive. Eldar are one of those armies where you need to invest a lot of money into several key units to cover all your bases.

**MechaEmperor7000**

It will be a climb though, and I tend to ease in friends with more straightforward "point and shoot" armies.

**chaos0xomega**

Unfortunately, the only real viable point-and-shoot forces left in the game are IG and SM.

**MechaEmperor7000**

until Necrons come out (hopefully sometime next year). GW lately hasnt given any love to the non-imperials.

Orks are not exactly point and "shoot" but works on the same basis. Unless you run Kommandos or the Shokk Attack Gun, you prettymuch only have "run towards the enemy" or "sit back and get shot at" as options. They require a bit more tactical know-how than standard marines (with a 6+ save, you're gonna wanna learn how to hug terrain), but not nearly as much as the Eldar. They also come in the starter set and most people wont call cheese on you for using orks.

**Hückleberry**

Yeah I usually suggest an army that has a set purpose(shooting,assulting) I will let him know about the Eldar. I don't think he will mind losing games till he gets the hang of it. After all experience is the best teacher imo.

**MechaEmperor7000**

In the end, he should play what he loves regardless of any tactical reasons, since this is a game after all. However my first ever starter army was Chaos Space Marine and, even 5 years later, they have yet to win a game. I got eased into Tyranids later, whom have the same assaulty-ness, but are mroe suited to my style. I now enjoy playing with my army and is decently good enough with them that I havent lost a single match yet.

**chaos0xomega**

Ah, I forgot about the Orks. Yes, they are rather straightforward, but have a significant time/money investment due to their horde stylings.

Personally, I started w/ Tau when 4th first came out. I managed to win my fair share of games with them, but they were better off in those days than they are now. I followed up with Necrons, who were much, much better off in those days than they are now (but still a lot of fun). I then moved onto Tyranids and Eldar. My Tyranids don't get used much (need to invest more into them both time and money-wise), but I love my eldar.

**Hückleberry**

Yeah part of the fun for me is the fluff and painting and assembling models I like to look at it. Well we all gotta start somewhere! Thanks for the input guys i'll have my friend read this thread when I see him next time.

**GalacticDefender**

chaos0xomega wrote:Unfortunately, the only real viable point-and-shoot forces left in the game are IG and SM.

Well, there are Tau... Although they do require some difficult tactical planning, they aren't too hard to master, contrary to what everyone says.

**Mukkin'About**

Hey man, I firmly believe that you should collect what you want. Eldar look petty damn cool. they will probably get a new codex in a couple of years anyways. plenty of time for your buddy to practice and paint!

**chaos0xomega**

GalacticDefender wrote:
chaos0xomega wrote:Unfortunately, the only real viable point-and-shoot forces left in the game are IG and SM.

Well, there are Tau... Although they do require some difficult tactical planning, they aren't too hard to master, contrary to what everyone says.

...I said viable... as someone who has played Tau for years, I can tell you that no beginner is going to have an easy time with them. Even using their 'cookie cutter list' is not going to guarantee putting up a good fight like in most other armies.

**Hückleberry**

Mukkin'About wrote:Hey man, I firmly believe that you should collect what you want. Eldar look petty damn cool. they will probably get a new codex in a couple of years anyways. plenty of time for your buddy to practice and paint!

pretty much what I told him on the phone last night

**MechaEmperor7000**

Using a Cookie cutter list will not allow you to win. Playstyle is a very important factor. Someone who's accustomed to charging units into combat will be more vigilant of charging opportunities and choose more runs than shooting, whereas a dedicated shooter will be on the lookout for key points to peg the opponent with a high-AP blast template. Then there are subsects of these styles, such as rapid fire, long range sniping, etc.... This is partily why SMs are forgiving, in that their tactical squads can conceivably do good in any of these areas while highlighting the ones the player doesnt like. He can then "graduate" to one of the more specialized armies to maximize his favourite tactics.

**zonino**

As a player who, when starting new picked Eldar, I cannot recommend it at all. That's not to say Eldar are bad, it's just they require so much finesse that it could put off new players.

Of course if your friend can make it with Eldar, he can make it with anything.

**rivers64**

Eldar are awesome, just difficult to win with.