Warhammer 40K Meta Hotness: Aeldari Hail of Doom
It is hard to pick a true single unit for Aeldari right now as their 40K Meta Hotness really is just – Hail of Doom. Let’s talk.
One of the best rules in 40k right now is the whole – “roll a 6 to hit causes an auto wound and that wound is counted as a 6″. We have two armies that utilize it right now, and both interactions are about as broken as you can get in the current edition of late 9th Edition 40k. Heck, it is so broken that it has been nerfed a few times on other armies that had it. Plus, it most likely will be one of the rules that don’t make it in the next edition. Each release of this rule has not been good for the game. Especially when they stack those counts as 6’s to wound on top of powerful abilities.
Hail of Doom 101
Hail of Doom is an Eldar Subfaction trait that gives your Shuriken weapons the upgrade of having the ability that a roll of a 6 to hit causes an Auto Wound. On top of that it also causes that 6 to hit to equal a 6 to wound as well. As you know, Shuriken weapons that roll a 6 to wound count as having their AP value increased by 2. A lot of weapons already have an AP value of -1 so this pushes it to a -3 as well as allowing it to bypass Toughness values as well. So now having a ton of small shots allows you to “open” up any enemy easily and quickly.
Oh, And They’re Fast
The other big thing that Aeldari have to utilize this powerful rules interaction is they are extremely fast. They can blaze around the board, pepper the enemy with a ton of firepower, and just “ignore” a lot of your rules in the game. While they are fragile and do not like being shot back their design is to hit you first and overwhelm you in futuristic ninja stars fired from all their Shuriken family of weapons.
Tons of Hail of Doom Platform Options
Of course Aeldari have a ton of options to have these Shuriken weapons all over the place. They have decently costed bikers in units of 9 with these weapons. They can all take the Shuriken Cannon if they want a 2-damage gun to allow them to have 27 murder shots hitting you at 24″ away. There is no place to hide from these guys as they stalk the tabletop like some kind of futuristic shark of premeditated ninja star murder.
Heck almost everything they have can get equipped with this type of weapon. While we are talking about bikes a bit those fun Dire Avengers who happen to have a plastic kit can move up and pepper you full of annoying fragments. Those guys are always at the cusp of being annoying so throwing Hail of Doom on top of their output just lets them – burn thru your units like they weren’t there. It’s like everyone has a super Uzi from one of those 80’s movies that can burn thru a sweet little car as the enemy tries to get away from their Eldar action-hero.
Shock and Awe
This army rule just allows the Aeldari to move, damage anything, and dance away like deadly ballerinas in a John Wick movie. The entire army can be set up to just play the roll 6’s and win games set of rules that it can be frustrating to face. On top of just all of this damage they also have some of the best casting in the game to help mitigate anyone that gets too close and touches a unit or two. Hail of Doom is just one of those rules that give too much to an army that is already shooting way too many high-quality shots.
Hail of Doom Example List
Gord Weppler got 2nd place at the Fools Errand up in Calgary, AB this past week. It was a 56 player event, and he went undefeated. Good job, as while the army is powerful it does have some bad matchups especially with the DA army throwing a ton of no-LOS shooting to ignore their ability to hide from the enemy.
++ Arks of Omen Detachment (Aeldari – Craftworlds) [92 PL, 2,000pts, 3CP] ++
+ Configuration +
Arks of Omen Compulsory Type: Fast Attack
Craftworld Selection
. *Far-Flung Craftworld*: Hail of Doom
Game Type: 5. Chapter Approved: Arks of Omen
+ No Force Org Slot +
Seer Council (Unit) [3 PL, 65pts]
. Warlock Skyrunners: 5. Quicken/Restrain
. . Warlock Skyrunner: Witchblade
Seer Council (Unit) [3 PL, 65pts]
. Warlock Skyrunners: 4. Protect/Jinx
. . Warlock Skyrunner: Witchblade
+ HQ +
Farseer [5 PL, 105pts]: 1. Fateful Divergence, 5. Focus Will, Warlord, Witchblade
Farseer Skyrunner [6 PL, 135pts, -2CP]: 4. Crushing Orb, 4. Executioner, 5: Mark of the Incomparable Hunter, Stratagem: Champion of the Aeldari, Stratagem: Relic, Witchblade
. Kurnous’ Bow
Farseer Skyrunner [6 PL, 135pts, -1CP]: 1. Guide, 2. Doom, 3: Falcon’s Swiftness, Stratagem: Champion of the Aeldari, Witchblade
+ Troops +
Guardian Defenders [4 PL, 90pts]
. 10x Guardian Defender: 10x Plasma Grenades, 10x Shuriken Catapult
Guardian Defenders [4 PL, 90pts]
. 10x Guardian Defender: 10x Plasma Grenades, 10x Shuriken Catapult
+ Elites +
Dire Avengers [7 PL, 155pts]
. 9x Dire Avenger: 9x Avenger Shuriken Catapult, 9x Plasma Grenades
. Dire Avenger Exarch: Shredding Fire, Two Avenger Shuriken Catapults
Dire Avengers [6 PL, 130pts]
. 9x Dire Avenger: 9x Avenger Shuriken Catapult, 9x Plasma Grenades
. Dire Avenger Exarch: Two Avenger Shuriken Catapults
Dire Avengers [6 PL, 130pts]
. 9x Dire Avenger: 9x Avenger Shuriken Catapult, 9x Plasma Grenades
. Dire Avenger Exarch: Two Avenger Shuriken Catapults
+ Fast Attack +
Vypers [3 PL, 45pts]
. Vyper w/ Shuriken Cannon: Shuriken cannon
Vypers [3 PL, 45pts]
. Vyper w/ Shuriken Cannon: Shuriken cannon
Windriders [12 PL, 270pts]
. 9x Windrider – Shuriken Cannon: 9x Shuriken Cannon
Windriders [12 PL, 270pts]
. 9x Windrider – Shuriken Cannon: 9x Shuriken Cannon
Windriders [12 PL, 270pts]
. 9x Windrider – Shuriken Cannon: 9x Shuriken Cannon
++ Total: [92 PL, 3CP, 2,000pts] ++
Aeldari Go BBRRRTTTT!
Aeldari going as gangster as they can with Tommy Guns everywhere and bullets for days. I do wonder if there is a Craftworld whose only job is to make Shurikens for everyone? Just like the Bullet Town in Mad Max we have Craftworld Shur-Ken out in the far reaches of space that is just churning out those ninja stars all night and day.
I hear you like Ninja Stars so how about a Million in your face!
