# Is dark elfs a good army for a new player?



## Sprints54 (Jan 11, 2011)

Thinking of getting into fantasy, been playin 40k for a couple of months and love it. My friends want me to get into fantasy and I was thinking about dark elves. Would they be a good army for me to start with?


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## WinZip (Oct 9, 2010)

I play as DE and love them  they have on of the best magic phases (besides lizardmen) and the have some neat units. the only problem with dark elves is that they have low strength and toughness, which is why buffing units with your magic (lore of shadow will help with this) or using cauldrons of blood will help you greatly. Also using lore of shadow or metal makes your DE army more survivable because they nerf the other players army.


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## Raizer Sabre (Nov 8, 2010)

i would suggest having a look at this and see what you think http://www.heresy-online.net/forums/showpost.php?p=230468&postcount=5


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## Tim/Steve (Jan 25, 2009)

DE are an excellent army to get started with- they're good at almost everything and have good choices... as WinZip said they get let down by their frailty (they tend to die easily). This isnt much a problem for a good player who can combine their army into 1 force (magic, shooting, manouverability and combat- the 4 aspects of the game- all supporting each other)... but get it wrong and you'll lose a lot of your army very quickly.

Every army has a vulnerability- normally being poor/very poor in 1 or 2 of the aspects I mentioned above (eg my ogres- good at manouverability and combat, bad at magic and abysmal at shooting)- but DE's is one of the best all round set ups and gives you the ability to practice each part of the game (I was longing for some shooting so I go a WE army- now I get to fire... yay!)... about the only thing DE dont have is good artillery (bolt throwers aren't as good as they once were) and certainly nothing like a cannon... but then only empire and dwarves can really pull that sort of thing off.


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## Masked Jackal (Dec 16, 2009)

As said, Dark Elves are one of the most versatile forces around, which is a great attribute for a beginner. As well, there are very few choices that can't really be made to work, and the folks here, as well as at other sites like Druchii.net are hard at work coming up with ways to use all of them!

However, if you are not somewhat cautious, you *will* lose. These sorts of elites require the proper application of force, and while they are reliable in their given jobs, they're too fragile to just throw away. Still, any army will be trounced in the hands of a beginner, and a little difficulty now may pay off well later.

Finally, there are a good variety of plastic kits for Dark Elves, though a bunch of stuff is still in metal. In general, it'll be a bit more expensive than some other armies, but it won't reach horde-level, and the range is generally fantastic, both on just looks, and for conversion. I'd say to buy the army book, borrow some models from friend, and try out a game or two. =)


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## olderplayer (Dec 11, 2009)

One of the advantages of starting with DE as an army is that you have access to nearly all aspects of the game but have to learn to be smart and deploy and move your units wisely. A DE army is near the top tier and is a competitive army in tournaments and can be adjusted to beat any specific army you might be facing in one-off competitive games (like a might empires campaign) without being overpowered (like daemons of chaos). You have good fast cav and flying skirmishers, okay core infantry with some of the best shooting infantry in the game in repeater crossbowmen. You have good character choices and can consider running two lords (a lvl 4 and a dreadlord) at 2400 points and above. You don't have high S and T (other than the hydra) and have to buy armour or mount troops to get a decent armour save but your characters do have access to some of the best magical armour and talismen in the game. You have access to some of the best magic banners available (banner of murder, sea serpent banner, and banner of hag grief). You have access to a death hag and cauldron to selectively boost the killiness or ward save a key unit of your choice and masters that are decent for BSB and leading troops. You have a lot of good magic choices but no access to the best lore in 8th edition (Lore of Life) for DE (Life can restore wounds, regrow units, and boost toughness); and your options for boosting your magic are also very good with a sac dagger and with the power of darkness spell automatically given to all of your casters. The only thing really missing form the DE options list is a good cannon or stone thrower war machine. Thus, a DE army has to learn to pick its fights and make wise choices in the magic and shooting phases and be fast and flexible.


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## Masked Jackal (Dec 16, 2009)

In addition to the metagame notes that olderplayer provided, key to Dark Elven victory is proper application of force. Shadow spells, proper kitting of units, and Cauldron support can make one or two fights very one-sided. Kill a key part of your enemy's army quickly, then unravel the whole thing.


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