40K: Ranking The Craftworld Attributes
All five of the Craftworld Eldar Attributes are out – let’s see how the compare to each other!
Now that all the Craftworld’s Attributes are out we’re going to take the plunge and rank them vs each other. We’re not including any of the unique stratagems however – we’re just looking at the Attributes. This is not a ranking of who will be the best over-all, we don’t have all the info to do that…yet.
So with that said, let’s dive into the Eldar Craftworld Attributes!
#5 – Saim-Hann: Wild Host
Saim-Hann is #5 on our list as the weakest attribute. I know what you’re thinking, “If I build a Saim-Hann Army with all Scat-bikes this thing is great!” And yes – it’s very thematic. Re-rolling failed charge rolls for units is nice, but why are you charging into close-combat with all those jetbikes? Are you suddenly using Shining Spears? “Oh..yeah – I don’t even know what that unit is, but I’d just use Saim-Hann for the second part of the ability!” Yeah – that’s the point. It’s really only useful for a small subset of units in the ENTIRE book. That means if you’re specialized, you’re fine – if you didn’t this isn’t that beneficial to you. That is why it’s ranked last when compared to all the Craftworld Attributes.
#4 Iyanden: Stoic Endurance
Hey look – the Eldar have been hanging out with Commissars! But really, this attribute seems a little underwhelming because, sure, it really helps out folks who want to run full sized Guardian Squads. And I know that losing a Wraithguard model to a morale test isn’t fun…But it’s not like the Eldar are really hurting in the Leadership department. The second part of the ability is really, really powerful for a unit like the Wraithknight – We acknowledge that! For other units…it really only applies to units with the damage table and that’s your vehicles. Sure, they will get to function at full capacity longer so it’s not terrible, but it’s not super impressive either. And If you want to run a Wraithguard heavy force (which is kind of the theme) then you’re sort of missing out, aren’t you?
#3 Biel-Tan: Swordwind
Swordwind is probably the most generically offensive attribute of all the armies. We were going back and forth on this one in particular because Aspect heavy armies are going to love it (looking at you Dire Avengers). Also, if you’re running a lot of quick vehicles with Shruiken Cannons – watch out. For the most part, you’re probably hitting on 3+ already and now you don’t need to spend a psychic power to get a re-roll, you can weaken your target. Re-rolling 1s is pretty solid and it can impact the entire army (well, anyone with a shuriken weapon). The additional 1+ Leadership is just a nice bonus, too.
#2 Ulthwe: Foresight of the Damned
Everything in your army has a 6+ “Feel No Pain” save. That’s just going to make your somewhat fragile army 16.6% tougher. The only reason it’s not #1 is because it doesn’t stack with other abilities that do the same thing (like in so many OTHER instances). Would that have broken the game? We don’t know! But it would have made Ulthwe even tougher.
#1 Alaitoc: Fieldcraft
Fieldcraft is a blanket -1 to hit your army at ranges over 12″. You know what army can dance around other armies and make themselves really tough to pin down? You guessed it: Eldar! And that’s not taking into account Battle Focus or things like that. Anytime you can give your opponent a -1 to hit you, you’re going to increase your survival rate more so than getting a 6+ save. Think about it, you’re stopping them before they even get to roll to-wound, which is much better than after they have already shot and wounded. Getting into a long range fire fight with Alaitoc is going to be a quick trip to Deadsville.
That’s our ranking for all the Eldar Attributes – what do you think of this list? How would you stack-rank the Attributes? Let us know in the comments below!
