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Ok I've finally gotten to start building my High Elves Army and want to go over a few points.

For now I'm going to be around 1000 points and will eventually get up to 2000.
At 2000 I'll get Teclis for sure, insane not too.

I'm pretty sure I will run a Mage as my hero. I'm thinking of making him Lv. 2 and giving him the Seerstaff of Saphery. I would pick Flesh to Stone and Throne of Vines as spells in most cases. Though Fireball and Flaming Sword might be fun to try out.

As for core I'm having a time here. I think Sea guard are really cool, but are they really worth their points. Spearmen are really good for their points, I'm pretty sure I would run them in 5x4 blocks. Is the ability to Stand and Shoot worth the extra cost? If I run flaming sword, then I would think that it would be.

I was going to originally use Archers, but I'm pretty sure I'd rather have sea guard instead of them.

So far my special unit will be 10 to 20 Swordmasters. I might later get some Chariots and probably some white lions.

As for tactics, it would seem that HE are best when they stay on the defensive and just rely on their magic. If this is the case, should I run another mage, I would have to be higher in points to do so. Is there a good combo to use if you run 2 mages?

Oh great, another "That Guy".

I think you'll get more mileage ghost archmage. He's a lot tougher to kill, so he'll survive the first brush with anything.
Once you start running teclis, it's only a matter of time before people adapt and take those teclis killing units.


-Matt

I would advise against teclis if you intend to actually play against people. He will win you games but will kill you in sportsmanship and thus people won't play you again if they play you to begin with.

Don't be a min maxer. This isn't warcraft, you don't have to rock best in slot units. Take what appeals to you, as long as it isn't teclis. He's the only thing right now that is just overpowered, and I play HE's.

A lv4 with the book of hoeth is a good replacement for him as it's more balanced for almost the same cost.

Teclis sure is a very powerful Lord. If your regular opponents do not field cheese, I'd advise against using Teclis, as he is just too powerful for a friendly game. However, when your opponents are bringing double Hell Pit Abomination, double War Hydra, Tzeentch Chosen, than they shouldn't have a problem with you fielding Teclis.

As for your Core: Archers are terrible. Sea Guard shooting isn't really worth it either. I'd probably adivse you to take Spearmen only.

Swordmasters, White Lions and Phoenix Guard are all decent choices, which obviously fill different roles. Take whichever you like most. I'd advise unit sizes of 20 or so, as shooting and magic will otherwise decimate your unit before it can reach combat.

Speaking of which, you may want to consider adding an Eagle (or in larger games: multiple Eagles) to hunt Warmachines, tie shooting units up in combat (so they cannot shoot) and general annoyance.

"I think you'll get more mileage ghost archmage. He's a lot tougher to kill, so he'll survive the first brush with anything."


What is a ghost archmage? I'm not familiar with this setup. I like the sound of it. I'm guessing it's cheaper than Teclis also.

I forgot to mention Eagles. I figured one would be good, so I'm guessing 2 would be better in higher numbers.

My main opponent runs WoC: Khorne type and Orcs/Goblins.

more newbie high elf questions:

I just picked up island of blood and a battalion (omg I know so original, but still.) and wanted to make some decisions about my models before I start gluing them together and making my choices permanent.

I'm going to insist on taking at least 1 unit of archers, because I like the ranged support. Should I give them a musician or a battle standard? it seems like I should be keeping them in the back, but then again perhaps it's best to be prepared for close combat anyways?

also, are shields worth it on every spearman model? only some in a unit? should I run no spearmen at all and go all lothern sea gaurd?

The shields are the big one for me right now, I can always slap bows on their backs later, can't unmodel them with shields :(

Sir Blayse wrote:What is a ghost archmage? I'm not familiar with this setup. I like the sound of it.

I want to say it's an Archmage with the Folriath's Robe.

Spearmen automatically have shields, the ward save is worth giving the sea guard the shields for the 1 extra point per model.

When I use ranged units, I run them with a champion and a musician (for fast reforms). If you find the need to standard bearers to win CC....you have an entirely different problem, the problem of "Why are your archers in CC?"

Why would you get shields on only a few models? If there are only a few, your gettng the ward save is very circumstantial, and for fragile units like High Elves, any protection is good protection.

I have a question of my own, does the Shield of Saphery spell and the shields stack the ward save? The the shield and hand weapon grants a 6+ ward save in CC, and the spell grants a 5+ ward save. Does this make it a total of a 4+ ward save in the end?

Sea guard don't get the ward save, because they must use the spear. The only ward save that stacks is MR and the mark of Tzeench, because in both cases the rule specifically says it does.
A lot of people swear by massed long bow/bow fire; I think a lot of it depends on what else is in the list and your style of play. I personally like to have a mix of units and styles.

The ghost mage is the guy with:
Folarith's Robe (immune to non-magical attacks)
Talisman of Saphery (magic weapons count as non-magical).
It's 80 points of gear, so you've got 20 points left.
I'd either take:
Jewel of Dusk (+1 power die)
Silver Wand (knows 1 more spell)

With the Jewel, and upgraded to a level 4, he's 355 points; 120 points cheaper than Teclis.

Turning off magic weapons and being immune to magical attacks means you only have a few things that can hurt you. Daemons, Wights, Wraiths, Forest Spirits, and spells.
+1 to dispel (for +5 total) and drain magic does a pretty good job at helping against the magic issue; and few spells single out characters.

-Matt

Wow, that is impressive.

Huh, well, they still get the improved armor save for that extra point. I'd still its worth that.

Also, that seems to be a pretty powerful mage combo, I can't see it being used in friendly games if you want to people to play aginst you, but still, nasty.

Thanks so much for the advice, and yes I was confusing seagaurd with spearmen on the shield issue. On the issue of bows. I hear shadow warriors are rubbish? Are they not a helpful ranged support unit?

For Core choice it's basicly like this:
Longbows have a 30" range, the long game is the reason you take them, and you should keep them as close to 30" away as possible for the whole game. If that sounds like your kind of game, that's what you should run with. They also make a nice side option where you are planning on deploying on the back table edge.

Spearmen are even better for high Elves than everyone else, because they can attack in 4 ranks with special rules, or in 5 ranks with a horde. You want to see something funny? Block a group of Chaos Warriors/Chaos Knights/Anything with a bunch (50) of these guys and throw a Mindrazor on them from lore of shadow. Watch some limp wristed high elves make 51 str 8 attacks, with rerolls for misses. nothing like scoring 30 wounds in a combat round at a -5 armor save. Even unsupported Spearmen can realy shine in melee by virtue of high elf rules and numbers. But Melee is all you get for those points. Spearmen are best used to deny areas to lesser forces as in holding flanks, for flank charging, or as a speedbump to bog down or wear down a greater foe. They take more tactical thought to get the most out of, but are very solid and useful.

Seaguard's strength is that they can do both of these things but with only a 24" range. you can use them exactly like spearmen and volley fire for respectable support and shaving ability, and you can willingly block your opponent while you do so (like you can't with Archers) depending on a stand and shoot, spear and high elf melee rules, and so forth. Thier points are paid for flexibility, and in my choice they constitute the best choice (for me) because I can use my Core for anything i want per game.

But it's ALL about what you want to do with your army. Consider these aspects carefully and decide what best fits into your battle plan, then consider what armies and what setups can capsize your plan, and choose what will give you the best utility.