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So, I have been COMPELLED to try an attempt at a competitive DE list, since wide discussion online and within the group I play with (frontline gaming guys, socal guys) Dark Eldar is being called the current worst codex in 7th. While to a point I agree with this, I feel it in my nature to try and prove otherwise. So I have 2 lists for your viewing pleasure.

HQ haemonculus, webway portal, liquifier gun 120
CAD 2: x4 medusae, venom, extra cannon 165

Troops
x5 kabalite warriors 40
x5 kabalite warriors 40
CAD 2: x5 kabalite warriors 40
CAD 2: x5 kabalite warriors 40

Fast Attack
x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120
x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120
x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120
CAD 2: x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120
CAD 2: x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120
CAD 2: x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120

Heavy Support
Ravager 110
Ravager 110
Ravager 110
CAD 2: Ravager 110
CAD 2: Ravager 110
CAD 2: Ravager 110

TOTAL: 1825

-or-

HQ
Haemonculus, webway portal, liquifier gun 120
x4 medusae, venom, extra cannon 165

Troops
x10, kabalite warriors, raider, splinter racks, night shields 165
x10, kabalite warriors, raider, splinter racks, night shields 165

Elites
x5 trueborn, x4 blasters, venom, extra cannon 180
x5 trueborn, x4 blasters, venom, extra cannon 180
x5 trueborn, x4 blasters, venom, extra cannon 180

Fast Attack
x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120
x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120
x5 scourges, x4 haywire cannons 120

Heavy Support
Ravager 110
Ravager 110
Ravager 110

TOTAL: 1845

Well anyone saying DE are the weakest codex needs to look at the Harlequin codex. DE have some top tier options though they tend to require their Craftworld brothers to help them to the top tables. Very few codexes work standalone at the moment. However looking at both lists I have some concerns.

This is for the competitive meta right? So can you deal with multiple Imperial Knights? List 1 probably with 24 Haywire shots. Though once the fragile Scourges are down it is game over for you. So you will struggle to deal with 2 Knights in a mech army. What about multiple Wraith Knights? Heck even 1 of the gits?

List 2 mixes in blaster born and maximises more poison volume and thus helps more against both but you still have much the same issues. Invisistars will run over you. Gladius will lose 4-5 razorbacks if you get the Alpha then the game is up. Skyhammer hammers you.

I suppose what I'm saying is I just don't think either list has the tools to deal with the top tier lists. The Medusa are great but pricey and realistically won't help against what you need help against. I would cut back severely there.

If you're taking Ravagers, then some DLs help against the things you need to be able to hurt. Whilst blasterborn add target saturation. They are just soooo many points for a DE list. I would concentrate more on MSU to maximise firepower and minimise casualties.

Or look into Covens as they bring something different. Gladius rules MSU at the moment and leaves DE well behind on that front.

Look into Razorwing Jetfighters. I brought two to NOVA and they made up their points every round. It also gives you an out to enemy flyers. Imp. Knights also struggle against multiple flyers. Deathstars are not an issue with DE if you're playing ITC and the 2+ reroll is dropped down to 4+

Scourge are dirt cheap and on paper look great. They never do what you want because nobody is running Land Raiders and big things anymore. Yes, you can glance something to death but it's 4 shots per squad, 1 or 2 will miss and the ones that do hit strip a couple hull points, then they die. I like them, and will play them but never 6 Squads of them.

Your main issue is going to be light armor in masses. Without taking Scatbikes, it's going to be difficult popping those vehicles.

So, I have been COMPELLED to try an attempt at a competitive DE list, since wide discussion online and within the group I play with (frontline gaming guys, socal guys) Dark Eldar is being called the current worst codex in 7th. While to a point I agree with this, I feel it in my nature to try and prove otherwise. So I have 2 lists for your viewing pleasure.

We'll first we need some details. No first ,your bros are wrong (that title belongs to blood angels). And now we need some details..
Are you looking to build a pure DE force and what is the meta? I'm assuming the usual FLG density of terrain with BAO style missions and armies right?

Here's the thing with dark eldar from my experience. The army is great at pulling most of the dirty tricks in the book, better than most, and it has some nice synergies BUT you have to know the rules and your opponents rules well or the best list doesn't mean jack all. They are also an army that doesn't do 'unknown meta' or i.e. TAC as well as some of the top tier dexes do. These combined lead to misconceptions of being a weak army.

However, if you have an idea of what you can expect then DE can build to crush meta lists pretty handily, or in other words be the spoiler. You can have a good idea what you will lose to by nature but if you encounter certain armies they will hate facing you because they literally had no idea.

So fill us in. Also your current list looks like it just skims the surface brother but it misses some of the nuances of those units that you would later find and regret in-game.

First off, disclaimer I will not be building this army(or atleast not for a while). This was more an exercise for myself to see if it was possible. I play ITC, in the socal area, so a lot of the tournament go'ers and winners that play ITC (BAO, LVO, etc) are in my meta.

The medusae, I get, that was more a for funsies. I personally have had great luck with scourges, but YMMV. Knights I am not worried about, wraithknights I am. I am also interested in keeping this mono DE, not a huge fan of the mess that allies are at present so no allying in craftworld for me.

@fling it now: you are right, harlies on their own are pretty bad, I would say they have the worst standing at present, but their codex is also half the size of most.

List 1: I could pull all the medusae and give all the ravagers lances? That would give more anti vehicle AND something else to deal with wraithknights. I know they are widely discussed as bad now, but I have also thought about being back beast squads and using full razorwing flock squads to counter wraithknights. Just hit it with an immense amount of rending.

List 2: never used blasterborn, just seemed like a place where I could fit in more antitank/wraithknight

Ok so a conceptual list building exercise, pure DE.

I'd suggest CAD + RSR. The CAD is for Obsec but also rerolls on strategic. RSR for FA slots.

HQs can go a few ways. Either WWP delivery for TB or court in which case I'd actually opt for single sslyth's in each slot.

The disi ravagers are a good call as they force jink and erase meq.

Scourges suffer too much from diminishing returns with haywire. 1-2 units is where I'd start. Anything more needs to have melta or blasters.

Trueborn are overpriced for what they do except in the instance of imperial knights. So I would either forgo those altogether and deal with them via extreme MSU or at most fit 1 unit for WWP delivery (if you even take an HQ).

The razorwing suggestion isn't a bad idea actually for a couple reasons. They answer flyrants and bikes and they also have necrotoxin missiles which with fleshbane allow them to threaten wraithknights better than much of DE weaponry.

From there I would recommend 2 x 3 units of mandrakes to push back scouting armies and combined with sslyths allow you to deploy in cover while reserving your higher value stuff vs things like DPA and skyhammer. Lone fiends in some number work decent for this also although at some point these types of dudes become dead weight.

Which leads me to reavers. MSU reavers do a lot of work for dark eldar. With decent terrain and possibly stealth they are rather nasty at countering scatbikers, wrapping transports and auto destroying the contents, killing skimmers and so on.

So basically I would focus on extreme MSU revolving around disi's, dark lances, bikes and a smattering of scourges with single cell units to camp in cover GtG to survive things like skyhammer until the cavalry arrive. Think lictor shame in a way only mechanized.

Wraithknights are a problem even with darklight, necros and rending. And well 6s from disis if it comes to it.

The only other thing I can think of if you wanna get cute is throw 100 pts at a court of lhamaeans. 30 attacks ID on 6s might drop a wounded knight since they bypass FNP doing d3 wounds. Not something I've tried but could be funny. The rest stands.

So you've probably moved on from this endeavor but if not heres a sample list I'd probably start refining from:

2 CAD 1850

HQ
7 court- 2 lhamaeans, 5 sslyth, raider- dc, sr 215
2 CAD 1 court- 1 lhamaean 10

Elite
3 mandrakes 36

Troops
5 warriors, blaster, raider- dl 115
5 warriors, blaster, raider- dl 115
2 CAD 5 warriors, blaster, venom- 2 sc 120
2 CAD 5 warriors, blaster, venom- 2 sc 120

FA
3 reavers, caltrops, blaster, champ- warlord 83
3 reavers, caltrops, blaster 73
3 reavers, caltrops, blaster 73
2 CAD 5 scourges, 4 hwb 120
2 CAD razorwing jetfighter, 2 dl, sc, 4 ntm 150
2 CAD razorwing jetfighter, 2 dl, sc, 4 ntm 150

HS
ravager, 3 dark lances 125
ravager, 3 dark lances 125
2 CAD ravager, disi cannons 110
2 CAD ravager, disi cannons 110

Total- 1850

The list has most of the tools I want to have a decent shot at dealing with things like flyrants, WKs, IKs, bikes spam and light mech spam. A second unit of HWB scourges would be nice and maybe correct over the second flyer. I opted not to because they are dead weight against scatbike lists and nids among other things. Anyway thats my take.