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So after a lot of pestering from myself and my best mate, as well as her ridiculous desire to paint models better than I, my girlfriend has started up in 40k, playing Eldar.
I know that's not technically the easy beginner's choice, but she likes the style and background of them quite a lot, and I'd rather she just went for that.

Anyway, getting to the point here,
I've been playing 40k for several years, but I really have no experience playing using Eldar, and I want to teach her what to do in the right way.


Basically I would just like to know a quick run-down of what some typical Eldar tactics include, and what sort of units are regarded as worth taking, and which ones are a little.....less.
So please, share your knowledge with me,

Many thanks.

http://www.fritz40k.com/
You cant go wrong by starting with this guy.

In a nutshell? Support, support, and more support. Glass cannon. Pick whichever phrase you want to describe the Eldar, but they are all about synergy. There is no unit that can run around and wreak things like a Grey Hunters unit or whatever the new meta unit is. Combining the units together is what makes Eldar hit like a truck.

So advice for starters?

First - pick a route you want to go. Bikes, foot, mech. One and only one, cause mixing and matching is not where you want to be.

Second - pick a style. You want to put out 5000 Str 6 shots a turn, rerolling to hit and ignoring cover 50% of the time? Want to roll around and smash anything that comes within 12" of you, and make lascannon squads shoot in vain? Want to play the sit back and rain hell game? Speed game? Whatever she feels best with in terms of aspect is best.
(I.E., if she likes the Saim-Hann, speed, and wild attack fluff, go with a jetbike set up -- others on the forums will help you hammer out those details -- if she likes Ulthwe, you have a foot army that mangles in close range. Does she just like the vehicles? Mech list it is.)

Lastly, get a functioning list in the forums before you go out and buy stuff. Have a codex, and write out list after list until you are happy and it passes some judgement here. Eldar are friggen expensive so it sucks to buy a unit only to have it be useless in your army.

Interesting, I think I'll have her try out a few different things and see which play style she likes the most, then go from there.
Appreciate the responses.

Yeah, Eternity pretty much nailed it on the head.

Another tactic to avoid with Eldar is 'This looks neat!' and you find out it sucks in game, no longer in the game, or a Forgeworld product that alot of people don't like. It can be hard to avoid when the person got into the game based off of what the models looked like.

What I would also do, to help your GF along, is play several 400pt Combat Patrol games (try these Adepticon rules ) using proxies. You can then playtest what a unit does as well as get her to learn the rules to best determind what to build/buy/make for her list. You can then work your way up to 1000pt battles, then 1500pts, then 1850pts or whatever your local meta is. If anything, set up situations, like let her charge a Marine Assault Squad with Harliquinns and play it out. Then assault her, then have her get overwatched in the open, then in cover, ect. Let her beat up tactical marines and then let her beat up a foot Vet IG unit and then terminators to show the difference. For example, lets say she really likes assault lists. Well, every list needs troops, right? Look at a Storm Guardian squad with a Warlockand and make a couple of builds to try them out. Then do a Dire Avenger Squad and make the Exarch with Shimmer Shield/PW and make that weapon a sword (or a Ax if you want AP 2) or whatever she wants it to be modeled. See how she likes them with Defend and without. In other words... play play play.

Eldar can still be a very effective list, but they are a 'finess' list. When they get a Codex upgrade, I think it will be alot like the Chaos Codex upgrade.... pretty much the same with a few new things added in and a tweak here and there (specially in the psychic powers probably). There are also some great videos out on Youtube for tips and tactics as well as '6th ed reviews'. Checking out the Bat Reps can be a option as well.

Good luck and have fun!

I think that's a really good suggestion, just going to try out lots of different units and situations of gameplay with her and we'll see which units she wants to end up specializing in. I sense quite a lot of model proxies being used for the next few games, but hey, it's still better than going out and buying some ridiculous unit that won't work well at all for how she likes to play.

I am a huge proponent of ambush eldar in 6th edition
Eldar are the second fastest army in the game, after only dark eldar, but unlike dark eldar we have an hq who boosts reserves, and our individual units are tougher making lone operating units on the flanks more viable.

Generally what I have found works best is to reserve around 50% of my list with units like jetbikes, warp spiders and warwalkers. Come turn 2 everything is coming on on a 2+, deepstriking/outflanking behind the enemy or to the sides, matching up my big hitters like warp spiders against their fire support. Meanwhile the units in my deployment zone fall back or up the side leaving my opponent's anvil units uselessly in the middle.

It takes practice and personal retraint because I have found eldar relatively weak in direct confrontations, but it feels really great to pick apart your opponent's army from all angles while their tough units are left struggling to find targets.

For that style list I recommend units like warp spiders, autarch, war walkers, farseer on a bike, guardian jetbikes, fire dragons in wave serpents, maybe dire avengers in falcons, and maybe swooping hawks.