40K: Aspect Warriors – What’s Gone Wrong
The Eldar Aspect Warriors are the feared leading edge of the Craftworld at war. But boy do the Aspect Temples need some help.
Lets take a general look at the aspects as they stand now, and what we hope to see in the new codex:
General Traits
For the most part, all the Aspects share the basic BS4/WS4 S3 T3 I5 Ld9 statline. You get differences in armor and equipment, but we are talking about highly skilled, fast, reliable (high leadership) units here. Guardsmen they are not.
In general the Aspects have a very spartan set of equipment, lacking in general “generic” equipment such as combat blades, pistols, or general purpose grenades. Note that in past editions, the Aspects used to have lots of this basic equipment, and the trend in 6th so far has been to load down units with more “generic stuff”. Take a look at what Tau FireWarriors or CSMs carry into battle these days. I would hope for default plasma grenades, and a pistol.
Dire Avengers
The standard de-facto aspect has been more hampered by the limitations of the Shuriken Catapult than anything else. An improved sidearm, and a teensy point reduction should keep the Avengers in the fight.
Fire Dragons
If there is any Aspect you see more of than the others, its these guys. How can you go wrong with an entire squad than melt down MEQs, terminators, or vehicles with equal ease. They rarely survive the battle, but then again, neither does their primary target. These guys are probably don’t need a point drop, but a cheaper costed flamer option to match their Exarch could be neat and match their fiery fluff.
Striking Scorpions
They looked so good on paper, but it’s just not cutting it anymore in 6th. These guys need Fleet of Foot, and either Infiltrate or Scout by default. They are overcosted and cost almost as much as Khorne Berzerkers – but wont ever come out on the winning side of that fight.
Howling Banshees
What used to be one of the most feared eldar Aspects is now largely relegated to the shelf. This is the Aspect who most needs to be able to assault out of transports – or some rule to bypass overwatch. Simply put Banshees who have to walk across the battlefield are dead meat. They can be deadly if they get there, but they can’t right now.
Shining Spears
Terribly overpriced and bearing the awkward Laser Lance. They are certainly faster in 6th, but the small squad size combined with the high cost makes them extremely vulnerable. A hefty point trimming and either a more fearsome anti-vehicle loadout, or some type of drive-by attacks (like the Dark Eldar Reavers) would enhance their usefulness.
Warp Spiders
One of the few Eldar Aspects combining speed and armor – the Warp Spiders are a highly useful tool. A slight point reduction and some type of upgrade to the bland incarnation of the Deathspinner is in order. If there ever was a weapon that deserved either templates, rending, or fleshbane – it’s this one. Warp Spiders should be the one Aspect that gives large unarmored blobs like Ork Boys, or Guardsmen nightmares.
Swooping Hawks
Fantastic fluff, and nice models, but they have never quite made the grade since the Rogue Trader days of fly-by grenade attacks. This is unit that should have mobility like no other (even jetbikes), long distance anti-light infantry firepower, and some nasty tricks up their sleeves to deal with flyers. If the last thing many a zooming Heldrake ever hears is the ‘beep-beep-beep’ of half a dozen haywire grenades being attached to its body – I will sleep well indeed!
Dark Reapers
The Eldar have plenty of other ways to deal with MEQs, that are better than Dark Reaper fire. These guys need a total rework back to their Devastator-equivalent role, with some anti-flyer options thrown in to boot. Always few in number and priced highly in all editions, the Reapers need devastating lethality to justify their ease of being killed.
~Fellow Autarchs, what’s your take on what the Aspects need?
