News: No news is good news...

Login  |  Register

Author Topic: Building an Exodite army with Codex: Eldar – Part 1 –Aspect Units  (Read 3921 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Daeron of Lorien

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 9
  • I *LOVE* 40k Online!
This article is part of a series demonstrating how to create an Exodite army using the new 7th editions codices and Ally rules.

The units will be presented in the order they appear in the codex and if I have not written an Exodite equivalent unit for that entry, I will try to explain the challenge I faced.  Maybe the reader can see something I missed and add even more Exodite flavor to the codex.  If the unit is one I use as-is, then it will be listed at the end of the unit list with some general comments as needed for that unit.

One final note, as I explain the backstory of the unit, you will see a mix of traditional Exodite fluff coupled with my own interpretation to match the story of my own Maiden World.  My intent is not to rewrite the fluff but to simply write my own story for a single Maiden World located on the Eastern Fringe in Tau space.  It should serve as a starting point for the reader to launch out on his own interpretation or craft it to be more in line with the traditional Exodite fluff.

Special Rules
The Ancient Doom rule is very appropriate for Exodites as well as Eldar so this one translates well.  Since all of the Eldar non-wraith units in the codex have fleet, it was simple to merge that rule with Battle Focus to create the “Jungle Born” special rule.  It is nothing more than the two combined but it sounds a lot more Exodite.  Remember part of the illusion is the language you use during the battle.

Exodite Weapons
The Exodites are Eldar and left their homeworld equipped with Eldar tech so it is fair to use the standard Eldar weapons, especially the shuriken pistols.  However, much of the Exodite fluff refers to them using wraithbows.  The only problem I had with this is the 12” range of most of the Eldar infantry weapons.  Being an archer myself, I decided that the best way to incorporate bows is to treat all 12” ranged weapons as wraith crossbows and anything longer ranged as wraithbows.  This matched history in that not only did crossbows require less training, they were a shorter range weapon.  Now the Guardian troop equivalents could use wraith crossbows while the more skilled warriors used wraithbows.



Dire Avengers – Dragon Guard
The idea of Aspects still has some relevance within the Exodite story but the fluff does not include Aspects on the Maiden Worlds nor is the timeline of the founding of the various aspects in relation to the Fall easy to nail down.  For me, the most elegant solution was the creation of professions and knightly orders.  Some of the others came more easily but I settled on the Dire Avengers being used to represent the Dragon Guard, Exodites pursuing the path of the warrior, not in service to their clan but to the service and protection of the Dragon King. 

Since what I could find out about the timeline of this aspect seemed to indicate that it was established well before the fall.  I liked the idea of ‘elite’ unit that looked different than the rest and used special weapons so I decided that these warriors would be best modeled using the standard Dire Avenger models with a variety of elven heads.  Several of the Warhammer elf kits have helmeted heads that provide a good feel so I have not settled on the best one for me yet.

Within Exodite society, warriors are drawn from every clan and for my society, I decided that the Aspect Exarchs would represent nobles who were not psykers.  These noble knights would lead their squads just as the nobles would lead the civilian warriors.  As a leader, they would often have access to different weapons.

Howling Banshees – Velosaurs
The first time I tried writing an Exodite version of this unit I keyed on their ability to run an additional 3” which meant that they were faster.  Coupled with the effects of the Banshee masks and I thought it was a reasonable unit to base my Dragon knights on.  Using Dark Elf Cold One Knights but with swords and handbows from a Dark Elf Corsairs kit would provide the right weapons load out on a dragon that gave them the ability to run faster than their foot bound kin and strike fear into their opponents than may cause them to strike later in the close combat. 

Putting the Cold Ones on 25mm bases to match the Howling Banshee did not look as balanced but got the job done.  However, the more I realized that the only way I could represent a dragon lance was by giving the Exarch an executioner, I realized that the unit does not really march the fluff well.  Worse, the relatively poor armour save made what was supposed to be a code unit in an Exodite army unlikely to survive their first combat.

Later I realized that I could still use this unit and modeling approach to represent lighter dragon riding scouting units that one fan based codex called Velosaurs.   The lower armour save and non-lance weapon loadout matches a light recon force very well.  The modeling approach can stil start with the Dark Elf cold ones but there are several other dragon riding elf models from other manufacturers that could be used to make the unit look more lightly armoured.  One I have my eye on now is a pair of Sidhe dragon riders available through Brigade Models.

For this unit, the noble knight would have access to the Dragonlance (Executioner) which has a distinct Exodite flavor.  However, here, the Tiskele can be used as well in its normal form being an exotic weapon suitable for use by light, fast troops.

Striking Scorpions – Exodite Hunters
The first incarnation of the Exodite version of this was the Sundered Knights, the Dragons Knights who lost their mounts in combat.  The fluff actually matched the Striking Scorpion’s fluff and way of fighting very closely but going from a 4+ armour save to a 3+ armour save was hard to explain.  Even the addition of a dragonskin cloak over their regular armour seemed a bit of a cheat.

In the end, I settled on Exodite Hunters so they are an occupational unit instead of being a knightly order.  The Striking Scorpion rules include all of the abilities you would expect from a hunter and I decided that since they are going to have to deal with vicious predators in their travels, they would opt for some serious armour.

Their trademark weapon is a set of hunting darts that are thrown right as they charge their prey or are charged by a predator.  This is a good story to convert the mandiblasters into an Exodite weapon.
The Scorpion Claw is an iconig weapon of the Exarch in this Aspect but does not really fit an Exodite theme (in my opinion).  Since the claw is a pairing of the pistol and a strong close combat weapon, and replaces the pistol, its effect on the Exarch’s stats is really just the doubling of hit strength in close combat.  He retains the additional attack he had form the pistol and melee weapon.  This means that to model its Exodite equivalent, you simply need a vicious looking melee weapon and the pistol/handbow.  I call mine the Dragon’s Claw and based it on the medieval war hammers that used a beak to pierce the armour of the opponent.  The weapon is part of the Dark Elf Corsairs kit.

Fire Dragons
The Fire Dragons are the latest unit to find a home in the Exodite army. Fluff about drake arrows that could pierce enemy vehicle armour were an inspiration but the shorter ranged of the fusion guns ruled out wraithbows out of consistency.  I already planned on using Dark Elf crossbowmen for the Guardian units so it was hard to use the same model for two types of units.  I recently found some older plastic ark Elf Warrior regiment kits and decided that they would be perfect for the basic guardian while the newer Dark Elf Dreadspear kit, with their fancy new crossbows and model count of 10 was a perfect fit for the elite Fire Dragons.

The Exodite Crossbow is a short ranged weapon made of wraithbone that fires psychically charged bolts.  Because the Fire Dragons focus their combat on fiery anti-armour tactics, their bolts burn hotter than those of other crossbow wielding Exodites.  This gives their weapon a capability unique to their unit.

I kept the name the same simply because it already sounded like an Exodite name.  As in the case of other noble knights, I attributed the increased range for their weapon to their mastery after years of practice.

Swooping Haws – Raptor Knights
The Swooping Hawks lept out of the screen when I was looking at the Warhammer Wood Elves.  Their Hawk riders would reflect very well except for the difficulty in packing them tightly into close combat. Of course, you don’t really want them in close combat so I was not too worried. 

With the standard model being equipped with a bow, it matched well with the wraithbow representing the longer ranged Lasblaster, Hawk’s Talon and Sunrifle.  Here again, the arrows fired by the Raptor Knights’ bows are psychically charged and deliver a potent blow to the target.
The standard Raptor Knight’s Wraithbow (Lasblaster) is crafted from pure wraithbone and psychically attuned to their bearer. Hurling shafts of psychically-charged wraithbone over great distances, wraithbows are deadly in the hands of a highly skilled marksmen and the Raptor Knights have mastered it.

The Heavy Wraithbow (Hawk’s Talon) Is used by some Noble Raptor Knights.  The heavier draw imparts more energy to the shaft, increasing its power on impact.  Other Noble Knights simply choose to use Sun Shafts (Counts as Sunrifle) These are special wraithbone arrows that strike with a bright flash that blind the opponent.  They replace the normal wraithbone arrows and are used with the standard wraithbow.

Dark Reapers
One heavy weapons system that was brought along with some of the Exodites is what is now known within the craftworlds as the reaper missile launcher.  This ancient weapons system has been recognized as a critical element in the defense of Lorien against enemies equipped with heavy armour and vehicles. For this reason, the production of these weapon systems was quickly authorized by the early dragon kings and continues to this day.  Each house is responsible for training clan members in the system’s use.   

Unlike their craftworld counterparts, these Dark Reapers are not a warrior aspect, nor are they a knightly order like other specialist troops.  Instead, the warriors that are equipped with reaper missile launchers are simply specially trained Exodites.  The nature of the reaper missile launcher system is that it is not simply a point and shoot weapon, but a sophisticated weapons package that includes advanced target tracking ideal for use against enemy vehicles.  As a heavy support weapon, it also attracts a great deal more enemy fire.  For this reason, heavier armour is required to increase the operator’s chances of survival.

I am still thinking on the name for the unit but since the Aspect gets its name from  the weapon system, I don’t see any reason it should be different with the Exodites.  The only difference would be the way their armour is detailed.  With some careful painting and detailing, an Exdoite flavor can be incorporated into the existing models instead of going for an all-out conversion.

Warp Spiders -  Web Knights
Of all of the units in the codex, the Warp Spiders were the most difficult units for which to create an Exodite story.  I decided that Lorien had many connections to the webway and these could be exploited by enemies to overrun the maiden World.  It was important to protect these from falling into enemy hands.   So a group of warriors were taught the secrets of the webway and how to create portable Webway Stones that could open webway portals when needed.

Being warriors of the webway, it made sense that their weapons were based on webway portal technology so the Rift Projector was born.  Instead of being a monofilament weapon, tese are able to project an unstable webway portal.  With a weapon like this, the wariors target enemy units and vehicles and rip them apart as pieces of them are pulled into the webway through the rift that was created.  This weapon bears some similarity to the Distortion Cannon but are much smaller and somewhat weaker.

The key feature of these warriors is their webway stone so a prominent gem on the model is crucial.  I have settled on using the Warhammer High Elf Phoenix Guard models with different helmeted heads.  The Rift projectors will have to be converted from other Eldar or Dark Eldar weapons but the Phoenix Guard hand positions for their polearms is a reasonable match for holding a rifle type weapon.

As the Warp Spiders have no Special Character, an Autarch with the Jump Generator and the same weapon can stand in as a more generic ‘aspect leader’.

Shining Spears - Royal Lancers and Terradon Knights
There are two approaches for modeling Exodite ‘jetbikes’.  The first is as a Royal Guard of jetbikes that differ from Shining spears only in minor details or paint job.  The second approach requires some conversion.

Lizardman Terradon riders, especially the old metal ones, are perfect for this unit.  Using the jetbike rider figure and the Shining Spear upgrade kit, it is a simple matter to create the knight.  However, to model the Twin-linked Shuriken Catapult, you would need to strap a crossbow to their back.  To reinforce the Twin-linked aspect, you can use two bolt magazines next to one another instead of the typical single one.

Taking this second approach gives you a type of dragon rider with a lance which is the closest you can come to a classic Exodite dragon knight using the Eldar codex.

Conclusion
As you can see, there are many units in this codex that can be interpreted as Exodites.  The fact that the Edlar often aid the Exodites means that you can start with an Edlar army and add a couple Exodite models for some variety.  Over time, you can add more units or make an entire Exodite only army from this codex. 
As I mentioned in my first article, there have been many other articles written on using the Eldar codex for the Exodites but by beginning with this review, it will be easier to see how the other codices can be used to add even more of an Exodite flavor to this standard approach to modeling Exodites.

 


Powered by EzPortal