Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Hello ive recently started an Eldar army and after reading through the codex i decided to buy the avatar and the farseer and warlocks, are these good HQ units and if not what advice would anyone give?

thomasjones256 wrote:Hello ive recently started an Eldar army and after reading through the codex i decided to buy the avatar and the farseer and warlocks, are these good HQ units and if not what advice would anyone give?

I don't play eldar but from what i know is that the Farseer is a great HQ. He can buff your own units and weaken enemies. The avatar i never really seen used or read its rules so i dont know. So at most levels play the Farsser as your HQ and spec him up to wait he is going to do ie is he your support farsser or will he be a killy one?

We as Eldar have some pretty good HQ choices and aside from the Autarch you've bought the most used ones. The Farseer is one of the best psychic models and is always described as a "Force multiplier", he takes a psychic power (or two) and uses it to make othet units better at what they do. Guide makes them shoot better, Doom makes your enemy take wounds more often and Fortune gives your units more survivability.
Warlocks are usually bodyguards for a Farseer and together they are described as a Seercouncil. Both on foot and in a transport they are a very tough unit to crack since they all have a 4++ save and the farseer usually makes that rerollable, combine that with always woundig on 2+ and having S9 against vehicles the potential of this unit is obvious.
The Avatar is also pretty good but isn't used as much as the Farseer, he isn't very mobile and thus is mostly used in so-called Footdar lists. This does not make him a bad unit, just a less versatile one.
I always have an Autarch in my lists aswell but that is purely for his bonus to reserves, these guys can be kitted out in a variety of ways and can be adapted to any kind of playing style you can think of with Eldar.

Eldar special characters are a mixed bag, the Phoenix Lords are very expensive but they don't really back that up in a game and imo usually underperform although I have to admit that YMMV. I've never used Yriel so I'll refrain from any comments about him. Eldrad is a different story altogether, that man is a Farseer on super drugs and gives you awesome psychic bang for your buck. Is is very expensive and I would advise to only use him in games of 1500+ points.

Hope this helps a bit, feel free to ask more!

This is a pretty solid choice for the start. Especially when you haven't fully mechanised your army (yet) and field stuff on foot the Avatar can really perform.

Farseers are a no-brainer, they're versatile and very efficient for their points.

I would probably think about buying Eldrad Ulthran next, he's really worth his points - as long as those points are not like 25% of your whole army. In small games he usually is too much of a target and dies too easy in concentrated fire (compared to other expensive HQs).

I like the Phoenix Lords, but that's just me. Used properly they can really do something, but you'll have to set that up and work in synergy with other units. For a generic list I wouldn't take them. But if I know who I am up against I really like to add a Phoenix Lord for fun. Asurmen can work against Orcs for example. Bladestorm with the DA unit he is in to reduce an Orc mob and then assault to kill off the rest including the big nasty one. Still a bit expensive. But fun

Autarchs are great if your strategy involves reserve/deep striking/flanking. I haven't tried Yriel so far, cause he is neither fish nor fowl for me.

Eldrad, Farseer and Avatar in this order with exceptions.

Eldrad; for what you get he's a decent Farseer with a nice selection of options the additional power per turn is the main point to him. His combat ability however is somewhat deceptive, he should not be in a position where he has to use it.

Farseer; simple why these are usually considered the best option, they're a force multiplier. Eldar specialise depending on squad, the farseer multiplies the effectiveness of these squads.

Avatar; generally I'd say to not take it, however it is more than a nice model as it makes a somewhat decent addition to a Footdar list. The main reason being the fearless bubble he projects around him, while he may have semi decent combat abilities he falls flat against more specialised melee units, additionally as a monstrous creature he'll find it hard to not attract fire. This gives him the added ability to act as somewhat of a decoy if used carefully.

Autarchs are for reserve lists that really rely on specific units coming in at the right time, after it's on the field they become less useful and their effectivity drops off as the game continues.

Yriel is fun, a gimmick, but a fun gimmick. He'll usually want to break off of the squad he's in to charge in and assassinate with his monocle, he's somewhat decent in melee as well.

Seer Council, basically the advantages of the Farseer, but chucking in an anvil to protect the seer and to also add in some extra tricks.

Jetbike Seer Council, the death star of the Eldar. Same as the Seer Council, but fast and slightly more durable.