AoS: Witch Aelves Are Bonkers
The Daughters of Khaine make Witch Aelves worth their price tag. And that is scary!
Witch Elfs are considered the straw that broke the camels back for Dark Elves back in the day. $60 for a box of 10 in 2013 was just too much. But that was then…and today, Witch Aelves (aka Dark Elf Witches) are back with a vengeance on all those that doubted them. They hit like a brick of blades and can murder-ball just about any other unit in the game with a handful of models and a dash of luck. Let’s talk how.
The Blood-Pain-Train-a-la-Daughters-of-Khaine
Witch Aelves Rules via Games Workshop
These are the rules for the unit – they are free online from GW and these are the same stats as the ones in the Daughters of Khaine Book. So let’s go through this really fast:
Sacrificial Knife: Base 2 Attacks
Paired Sacrificial Knives: Add 1 to the Attacks
Frenzied Fervour: If the unit is within 8″ of a Daughters of Khanie Hero, add 1 to their attacks.
We’re already at 4 attacks per model and we’re just getting started.
Let’s toss in some Witchbrew courtesy of a Hag Queen on a Cauldron of Blood:
And because it’s a Haq Queen, it’s also a Daughters of Khaine Hero. And ALSO it’s got another interesting ability – Idol of Worship:
An extra point of Bravery might sound random, but that’s also where Mindrazor comes in from the Lore of Shadow:
Now, you still get a -1 Rend on TOP of all that other stuff, but if you are fighting against a low Bravery unit you’re now getting an extra attack as well.
But Wait, There’s More
Draichi Ganeth is on of the sub-factions you can use for your army. They have a nasty ability called Bladed Killers that simply Adds 1 to hit rolls for Draichi Ganeth Units in the combat phase if they charged.
The Hag Queen can also use Praters of the Khainite Cult. One of those prayers is Catechism of Murder which allows a Daughters of Khaine unit within 14″ to get even crazier. Every hit roll of a 6 (after re-rolls, but BEFORE modifiers) cause 2 hits instead of 1.
And finally, we can’t forget about the Blood Rites Table and the multiple ways you can get a bonus to that as well. If you do it right, by turn 2 you can get Zealot’s Rage which also allows you to re-roll 1s for you hit rolls. Heck, if you had another Priest use the Sacrament of Blood prayer and your Warlord was a True Believer, you can do that turn one!
So What’s The Damage?
Sacrificial Knife: Base 2 Attacks
Paired Sacrificial Knives: Add 1 to the Attacks
Frenzied Fervour: If the unit is within 8″ of a Daughters of Khanie Hero, add 1 to their attacks.
Witchbrew: Re-roll failed Wound Rolls, immune to Battleshock
Idol of Worship: +1 Bravery
Mindrazor: Rend -1, Possible +1 attack per model
Bladed Killers: +1 to Hit Rolls
Catechism of Murder: Natural 6’s (after re-rolls, but BEFORE modifiers) cause 2 hits instead of 1.
Blood Rites: Re-roll To-Hit Rolls of 1.
So you have upwards of 5 attacks per model that now effectively hit on 2s, re-roll 1s, and natural 6s cause 2 hits each! Oh and they are -1 rend. I’m kind of glad they only wound on a 4+ now because however you slice it, a pack of 10 will get 40-50 attacks (note: that’s not HITS, that’s just attacks – 6’s are 2 hits each) depending on the victim target unit’s Bravery stat!
Oh, and there is one last dirty trick to pull. Martyr’s Sacrifice is another prayer of the Khaine Cult that will make your opponent NOT want to swing back. For every model from the target unit that dies during the combat phase, roll a die – on a 5 or 6, the attacking unit suffers 1 mortal wound once it’s done with all of their attacks. Brutal!
On our Twitch Channel, we had 8 Witch Aleves, kill a STONEHORN in one turn of combat. These ladies are terrifying – as they should be! Oh, and a minimum unit of 10 is 100 points. And they are Battleline. So yes, they are indeed BONKERS.
Are you worried about the Witch Aelves? You might want to start thinking of how you’re going to counter them…
