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Author Topic: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play  (Read 5803 times)

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Offline Starrok

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Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« on: April 13, 2013, 05:31:04 PM »
I am considering ordering those two models, because I both like how they look and the originality of their (theoretically) gameplay. But they cost quite a bit, so first I'd really like to know if anyone used them in tournaments, how they played, and whether they are worth the money. Can anyone give any input on this please?

Note: I mean a harsh, 'power-play' environment with focus on victory.
« Last Edit: April 13, 2013, 05:32:32 PM by Starrok »
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Offline Koval, Master Verispex

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #1 on: April 14, 2013, 02:29:58 AM »
Quoted from the other thread on Reapers, because this happened in a tournament setting:

I've had two used against me at the same time*, for whatever that's worth, and I can tell you that they're absolutely brutal against an army that relies on vehicles, especially transports. The fact that it's not a tri-lance Ravager is irrelevant when it's still busting Chimeras and giving Leman Russes no end of grief. Needless to say I didn't want to let them live very long at all, but the trouble is that it's very hard to do that when they're shutting my tanks down and forcing transported anti-armour units to walk.

On their own, they're gimmicky, but two at once, or one paired up with a Ravager, can be extremely brutal.


*This happened at the 2012 40KO Tournament in Wiltshire. The mission was Purge The Alien, with my Guard versus Mutley's Dark Eldar, and although I got to inflict an extremely punishing first shooting phase on him, he made up for lost time very quickly with those two Reapers. In the end the score was barely 9-8 to me, and that's only because I shot down his Tantalus in Turn 1 so that it couldn't be a bigger nuisance.

Offline Starrok

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #2 on: April 14, 2013, 04:11:39 PM »
Thanks a lot for the input. I wonder, how well it works against armies that don't have much vehicles? (As usually in a tournament you don't have a chance to change a roster from battle to battle)

And, I wonder if anyone at all ever used the Tantalus?
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Offline Khain Mor (/kharandhil)

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #3 on: April 15, 2013, 06:30:52 PM »
Even One reaper still does OK, he's anti tank like a ravager, but in a different way. I do admit, from what I've heard having several is even better, however I've never seen this, all the DE armies with a reaper, only had 1. I've seen and read several battles with them, they did ok, and cost is ok, biggest obstacle is the price obviously, but it's not that expensive you know, compared to most forgeworlds. I've seen quite a lot of reapers because of this reason, he's very commonly seen, because he's effective and not that expensive.

The Tantalus is another thing. More expensive, again, biggest obstacle, but like the reaper, very useful in most armies. I do recommend to put him in the back or even in reserves, somehow people think it's a baneblade with huge firepower, but it isn't actually, it's a fraking transport for Khaine's sake. I do admit the firepower is useful late game if there's any infantry left.  It's sad how people like to destroy it on turn one though ><, it's not such a big problem, since thye use ridiculous firepower for it usually, but it's anoying to see a cool model go down fast.

Both skimmers are seen quite a lot, very accepted in the dark Eldar community, I will admit i''ve rarely seen them in tournament enviroments, sometimes there's good reason, since not all tournaments accept forgeworlds... In normal games you see they quite a lot though, surprisingly a lot of people have them.

so In short, Tantalus gets shot down fast. People think it's big, it's dangerous, but it isn't actually lol.
The reaper, quite good, better in double/triple, but I think the main reason why he performs well, is because most people who face it, don't know it. Once they face it, they won't forget the experience though.

I was planning to buy some, but lost my job, ran out of cash, till I get a new job, i'll have to wait T T. I also want to test these babies myself, though I want them mostly because they look awesome. Unlike the FW raven though, they have an OK cost and they are certainly useful in battle. I still don't get my FW insists stubbornly on the FW Raven's DL to be twin linked, all the other flyers who have 2 DLs, they're not TLed ><.
The last stats could be ok if the cost wasn't over the top.



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Offline BoyWonder

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #4 on: April 19, 2013, 03:00:18 PM »
I have personally thought about fielding the tantulus, for my squad of grotesques. I personally am shying away from urien, but it is looking like a massive point sink either way I go. I really feel like grotesques got shafted by raiders.

Offline Khain Mor (/kharandhil)

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #5 on: April 19, 2013, 03:30:04 PM »
Thought the same on Urien, then I saw him in Battle and I changed my mind immediately. He's extremely awesome, on the the best cc fighters of the codex. With his grots he's a monster making a trygon a lil puppy.
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Offline BoyWonder

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #6 on: April 19, 2013, 09:21:24 PM »
Thought the same on Urien, then I saw him in Battle and I changed my mind immediately. He's extremely awesome, on the the best cc fighters of the codex. With his grots he's a monster making a trygon a lil puppy.

Urien with a retinue of 7 uber grots and a Tantalus come in at a whooping 710 points.  This would be an absolute deathstar unit, but I am not sure 710 points could be justified.

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #7 on: April 20, 2013, 01:13:52 AM »
710 points on one unit plus transport is rarely justified for any army, never mind Dark Eldar. The Tantalus isn't a Land Raider and you risk losing your deathstar due to the "big thing = kill it" factor.

I will admit that I lapsed into "big thing = kill it" on the one occasion that I faced a Tantalus, on the basis that A) I didn't (and still don't) know all of its capabilities, B) it was being used to transport an Archon and a load of Incubi that I didn't want anywhere near my Chimeras (but which still ended up getting one of them), and C) owing to a large amount of cover both in and near my opponent's deployment zone, it was the one vehicle my Vanquisher could actually see to shoot anyway. :P


In any event, you don't want a deathstar unit, you want something that'll survive into your opponent's turn and then kill what it's fighting so that it doesn't get shot to pieces. Feel No Pain only goes so far.

Offline BoyWonder

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #8 on: April 20, 2013, 09:54:29 AM »
I think if I was going to do such a stunt I would keep the tantalus in reserves and use retro fire jets to deepstrike on the enemies front door step. That could be a back breaking move.

Offline Khain Mor (/kharandhil)

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #9 on: April 22, 2013, 05:31:33 AM »
I said Urien + grots, where did you get he number 7? Besides, the tantalus is a unit on it's own once on the table, unlike other transports, it can serve as a single usuable unit.

The normal Urien comes with 4 grots max, but even 3 is fine. embarqued in a raider, expensive, but close to unkillable unit. One of the grots is upgraded, usualyl it's that one that stays alive with Urien. These things have 3 wounds, big End. This unit depends mostly on Urien for kills, not on the grots, they act as a shield ,a rather aggresive shield, but still a shield.

7 grots, is just wtf...nobody uses 7 grots. It's like using 10 scourges with 4 heavy weapons, nobody does it, though possible in theory.

A 710 pts unit is only justified in Apoc, but even in Apoc I wouldn't use such a unit (talking about the Urien + 7 grots)
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Offline BoyWonder

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #10 on: April 22, 2013, 09:43:57 AM »
Well I guess the tantalus is a no go. To bad they couldn't make it better its a beautiful model.

Offline Khain Mor (/kharandhil)

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #11 on: April 22, 2013, 02:54:35 PM »
It is common used and seen, but not with the 7 grots lol.

Put any other normal unit in it and it's fine, excatly because fo the point I already mentioned: count it as a unit on its own. It has 12 killer shots, might even take down some of the more fragile vehicles, don't count it as a normal transport, it's clearly isn't. The special attack it can do with it's vanes is also pretty ok, better armor, certainly enough pros for this vehicles, however like I said, it's focussed a lot, best to be put in reserves, if this skimmer comes in late, usually it can take down all remaining enemies and won't be shot down.

From what I remember such a transport capacity can be used to transport 2 unit or more, I do remember reading the apoc rules or something about it.
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Offline Revener

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #12 on: April 27, 2013, 08:39:21 AM »
I 've met someone that play with 7 grots on foot. They got their asses handed to them buy my Wrack unit :)
Anyway......

Offline BoyWonder

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #13 on: April 27, 2013, 11:03:42 AM »
I 've met someone that play with 7 grots on foot. They got their asses handed to them buy my Wrack unit :)

The person you played against must have had the worst dice roll in history.  I love wracks as well as grots, but it is unlikely a wrack squad will wither down a grot squad in cc, unless you pumped them full of holes before your wracks assaulted them.

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Re: Dark Eldar Reaper and Tantalus in tournament play
« Reply #14 on: April 27, 2013, 02:28:41 PM »
of course I did :)
Anyway......

 


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