LO Wood Elves Tactica: 2006 - 2008

[DavidVC04]

This thread represents the work of LO Wood Elves members over a period of about a year and a half. Members wrote articles and posted them for feedback. Once complete, the articles were moved to the Fantasy WIP Tactica forum. When completed at last, this thread was assembled.

We hope that this tactica can continue to grow with new FAQs, army book releases, and rules changes. Section 12 is dedicated to addendum articles written to address these changes. If you wish to add an article, simply post it here, allow for community feedback, and then contact a moderator about moving it.

1. Characters
1.1. Lords
1.1.1. Highborn
1.1.2. Spellweaver
1.1.3. Treeman Ancient
1.1.4. Mount: Forest Dragon

1.2. Heros
1.2.1. Noble
1.2.2. BSB
1.2.3. Spellsinger
1.2.4. Branchwraith

1.3. Kindreds
1.3.1. Wardancer Kindred
1.3.2. Eternal Kindred
1.3.3. Alter Kindred
1.3.4. Scout Kindred
1.3.5. Wild Rider Kindred
1.3.6. Waywatcher Kindred

1.4. Special Characters
1.4.1. Orion
1.4.2. Drycha
1.4.3. Naestra & Arahan
1.4.4. Skaw
1.4.5. Ariel
1.4.6. Durthu

2. Units
2.1. Core
2.1.1. Glade Guard
2.1.2. Glade Guard Scouts
2.1.3. Glade Riders
2.1.4. Dryads

2.2. Special
2.2.1. Eternal Guard
2.2.2. Wardancers
2.2.3. Wild Riders
2.2.4. Warhawk Riders
2.2.5. Treekin

2.3. Rare
2.3.1. Waywatchers
2.3.2. Great Eagles
2.3.3. Treemen

3. Magic Items
3.1. Magic Items

4. Spites
4.1. Spites

5. Wood Elf Magic
5.1. The Lore of Athel Loren
5.2. The Lore of Life
5.3. The Lore of Beasts

6. Deployment
6.1. Retreating Fire Line
6.2. Denied Flank

7. Use of Terrain
7.1. Effective Treesinging
7.2. Woodland Ambush
7.3. Use of Non-Forest Terrain

8. The Opening Turns
8.1. The Opening Turns

9. The End Game
9.1. The End Game

10. The Principles of Attack
10.1.1. Enemy Type: Gunlines
10.1.2. Enemy Type: All Cavalry
10.1.3. Enemy Type: Hordes
10.1.4. Enemy Type: Undead
10.1.5. Enemy Type: Magic-Heavy
10.1.6. Enemy Type: Armored Infantry
10.1.7. Enemy Type: Skirmishers
10.1.8. Enemy Type: Monsters
10.2. Effective Flanking
10.3. Fast Cavalry
10.4. Using Skirmishers
10.5. The Multi-Charge
10.6. Dealing with War Machines
10.7. Using Psychology

11. The Principles of Defense
11.1. The Principles of Defense

12. Addenda

[DavidVC04]

Highborn - Lord of the Forest
Contributor: TheCuttingEdge

Strengths

• High Leadership
• High WS and BS
• Impressive Initiative
• Good choice of mounts (Notably the Forest Dragon)
• An array of tactical uses based on equipment/kindreds
• Frees Eternal Guard from Special choices if the General

Weaknesses

• Low Toughness
• Generally Low Armor Save
• Extra VPs if the general: He'll be a target
• Average combat ability compared to other armies' Lords

Item/Spite/Kindred Combinations and Uses: This area mainly deals with tactics for a Highborn, for more information on Items, Spites and Kindreds, refer to their entries in this tactica.

Armor-Eater: Bow of Loren, Arcane Bodkins. This is highly recommended to be used by a Highborn of the Alter Kindred. Race around the field, staying out of danger, while peppering your enemy with shots that ignore armor saves. When needed, this guy can charge into combat to support other units. Other good choices include the Glamourweave, Annoyance of Netlings or the Briarsheath; just remember the latter won’t save you from most war machines, and he should never go into combat alone unless it’s a small, weak target.

Commander: This one makes use of the Highborn's excellent Leadership. Kit him out depending on what secondary role you would like him to play; The Rhymer's Harp if he is joining Eternal Guard for a ward save that won't fall to magic (and of course to make them stubborn), The Bow of Loren and Arcane Bodkins are good if you put him on a flying mount, which gives you 20" movement to both line up those shots and get that Leadership to where its needed most. Depending on whatever you'd like to give him, just keep him close to other units so that they gain a Ld boost that will make your guys stick around. This use of a Highborn also requires your care as he will be your army general, and those extra victory points will tempt your opponent.

Asrai Warmaster: Who said Wood Elves don't like combat? Put this guy in a unit to even the fight! Depending on preference, you could give him tricksy items such as the Moonstone of the Hidden Ways to jump a Wardancer unit to where your enemy least expects it, have him bear the Dawnspear to minimise return casualties (a real treat for a mounted Highborn), or anything in between! You'll find the Annoyance of Netlings is once again an optimal choice, so that your confidant opponent will regret that challenge. The Fimbulwinter Shard will make you all that harder to hit (just avoid your forest spirit friends), the Helm of the Hunt adds more punch to your Warmaster on the charge, or forego that for the Oaken Armor to have an Undying Lord. Kindreds of choice are Wardancer and Wild Rider, but remember both of these kindreds restrict your item choices, so you may want to just leave him undivided (in a non-Chaos way, honest!)

Silent Hunter: While less used than the previous setups, a Highborn is just as capable of skulking around in the trees as he is to gloriously lead your assault. Why not make him a Waywatcher or Scout kindred and use stealth as your weapon? The Highborn could even just use his presence to make your opponent think twice about coming for that unit of Scouts, although he may just make your enemy want them more! The Bow of Loren can be used again here, with Arcane Bodkins or try the Starfire Arrows to sow disruption in the enemy ranks. Another, more unique choice could be the Blight of Terrors for a shock trooper against low - Leadership armies, Remember both Kindreds require you to be on foot, deny you a Great Weapon, and the Waywatcher ability Lethal Shot cannot be used with a magic bow or arrows, though you may shoot with your normal longbow on any turn to regain this ability if necessary.


Mount Tactics & Principles

Elven Steed: Usually chosen out of necessity (Wild Rider Kindred), Elven Steeds aren't the great choice they used to be, with the recent FAQ released by Games Workshop stating that these are no longer make your Highborn Fast Cavalry. But if you need a cheap, effective mount, this is the one for you. Remember that this mount can't catch a bullet for its rider and the entire model is removed if struck with a Killing Blow.

Great Stag: With high strength and its own wounds to bring to the yard, the Great Stag is the business for a Wild Rider Highborn. As a forest spirit, its attacks are magical and it has its own ward save. Remember it has a larger base size though, and will take up more of a unit's frontage.

Great Eagle: While offering next to no protection to its rider, the Great Eagle is good to get your Highborn to the part of the battle you need him most, allowing a 20" move that ignores terrain and still allows shooting. If you want to make this pairing survive longer, try the Stone of the Crystal Mere or just keep them out of sight.

Forest Dragon: The big daddy of mounts, this guy takes everything you know about Wood Elves and cans it. With a very healthy stat line, plus Terror and flight to boot, you wish he was cheaper so you could field him all the time. Taking a Hero slot and a considerable chunk of your points, you'll find he is a better choice at games of 3,000 or more points. While you may take him at 2,000pts, misuse of mount and rider at this point level will be fatal.

While care must always be taken with Wood Elves, especially generals, there aren't that many was to misplay a Highborn. Stick to the principles of Wood Elf combat, and if he's alive at the end, you've done fine.

[DavidVC04]

The Spellweavers
Contributors: Skarsgard

Strengths

• Ability to cast spells
• Come with a bow
• Good leadership
• Can choose from three Lores

Weaknesses

• Expensive
• Takes Highborns and Dragons out of the equation

Uses & Composition

The Spellweaver has several options open to it. First you may choose to make it a Glamourweave Kin, making it a Forest Spirit with all the benefits associated with that. If you choose to upgrade the character this way then you must purchase an elven steed or Unicorn for it, enabling it to join Wildrider units for extra protection. This Kin is excellent in “pure” Forest Spirit armies as it lends some variety to an otherwise bland list.
The Unicorn also provides it with some hitting power; it could conceivably take on warmachine crews and lone wizards. In addition to some close combat power the Unicorn provides magic resistance.
The other option is to upgrade it to a level 4 caster. If you are planning on having a magic heavy list then the upgrade is almost mandatory.
Using the Spellweaver really depends on what Lore you have taken. The ranges of the Spells will be a large determining factor. All the considerations for protection of Spellsingers also applies to the Spellweaver. I will highlight two common uses of the Spellweaver.

Defense. Here we can take a Level 3 weaver with the Wand of Wych Elm and a dispel scroll. This provides a moderate level of defense on it’s own but when combined with a dispel dice generator like a Branchwraith with the Cluster of Radients, it becomes a lot better. Other options are to load up on dispel scrolls and shut down the magic phase as much as you can. It should be noted that for defense purposes, unless want to have more heroes, it is almost always better to have two Spellsingers. This is generally a waste of a Lord option.

Offense. As a part of a larger magic force including some Spellsingers or Branchwraiths the Spellweaver can add variety to your magical assault. Lore’s should be carefully considered to suit your opponent. The trouble with Wood Elf magic offense is that it is very expensive and lowers your model count significantly.



Equipment

When equipping the Spellweaver, consideration of their role is paramount. Although it can be nice to give them the Hail of Doom Arrows and Elynett’s Broach, the reality of the situation is that there are only a couple of viable options. One thing the Spellweaver makes possible is that you can buy a ward save out of your magic item allotment without rendering your magic phase impotent.

Suitable equipment for a defensive caster has already been mentioned and the choice between the Wand of Wych Elm and multiple Dispel Scrolls depends on the rest of your army. A force with a lot of magic resistance, Wardancers, Unicrons and Wildriders, would find the Wand to be a superior choice, otherwise the scrolls are better. The Divination Orb tends to be a fairly poor choice as it is only of any use against high level casters and as such would not be used in most games.

If you’re caster is an offensive Level 4 mage then some of the items you may want to consider are:

• Powerstone – More powerdice means more spells cast
• Dispel Scroll – Still need to think about defense
• Deepwood Sphere – They will only fall for it once but good for Glamourweaves
• Ranu’s Heartstone – A very good choice for the Spellweaver
• Callingor’s Stave – If you really like Treesinging, not recommended as it is useless for the other Lores
• Befuddlement of Mischief’s and Lamentation of Despairs can be handy to eat up some of you’re opponent’s dispel dice, but remember, you can only have one per character.

[DavidVC04]

Treeman Ancient – You Want to Hang a Tire Off of What?
Contributors: Cyric the Mad


Strengths

• Treesing twice per turn
• High Strength
• High Toughness
• Many Wounds
• Many Attacks
• Strangleroot
• 3+ Scaly Skin
• Forest Spirit
• Causes Terror
• Can take Spites

Weaknesses

• High Cost
• Takes a Lord and a Rare slot
• Flammable

Uses & Composition
Grab your beat-stick and dish out a healthy dose of pain to your opponents, because this guy is pure rock star. Take everything you love about your regular Treeman, and add spites and the ability to challenge enemy characters.

The only true drawbacks of this character are his cost, being flammable, and the fact that he takes two of your most valued slots. However, he is also a character, and is therefore put on the table with the rest of your characters at the end of the deployment phase. This is one of the Treeman Ancients’ true strengths – to be placed exactly where he is needed. You can safely place him to take on specific aspects of your opponent’s force without your opponent deploying his cannon immediately afterward.

Remember that this character can Treesing twice per turn – these two bound spells are very useful for forcing your opponent into an early decision regarding the use of his dispel dice.

Spites:
The Treeeman Ancient can take up to 100 points of Spites, and I recommend loading him up. He can add some survivability to Spites, and some just make him even meaner. An ancient cannot, however, take a spite that entails a bound spell. As he has one bound spell already (treesinging), additional ones are not available. Here are some favorites:

• A Murder of Spites – A rude surprise when added to the already formidable CC ability of this character
• Annoyance of Netlings – A Treeman Ancient with this spite becomes a general-hunter. Very few enemy characters can take this guy on in CC. Regardless, choose your battles carefully. Taking out the enemy general will hardly seem worth it if your Treeman Ancient loses combat and flees – set up support appropriately.
• Cluster of Radiants – The Treeman Ancient lends some durability to this extra dispel dice
• A Muster of Malevolents – Add some unexpected ranged power

Tactics
Like with most Treeman, the Ancient is an absolute powerhouse in close combat. However, like everything else in your army, sending him unsupported against a ranked unit can easily be suicide. With his respectable starting Unit Strength, he can stand some punishment, and his Stubbborn ability makes him less likely to run, but given the points investment in this character, he should not be thrown away recklessly.


Despite his 5+ ward save, warmachines and high-strength ranged attacks are still of concern for this character – a well-placed boulder or cannonball can ruin your day pretty easily. With that in mind, have a distinct purpose in mind for this behemoth from the beginning, and keep him protected until you’re ready to unleash.

[DavidVC04]

The Forest Dragon
Contributors: Skarsgard

Strengths

• High Strength
• High Toughness
• Many Wounds
• Many Attacks
• 3+ Scaly Skin
• Fly
• Causes Terror
• Breath weapon

Weaknesses

• High Cost
• Needs a Highborn
• Uses additional Hero slot
• Fragile Rider
• Limits Kindred available to Highborn

Uses & Composition
The Forest Dragon provides a unique asset to the Wood Elf list, a flyer that can do almost everything a Treeman could do.

The Seed of Terror. With its ability to cause terror and fly the Forest Dragon is perfect for causing panic in your opponent’s army. The mobility allows you to get behind units, threatening others and causing terror checks where possible.

Pick off the Stragglers. The Forest Dragon allows you to take on small unit’s front on with relative ease; prime targets are archers, detachment and warmachine crews. Even small cavalry units are fair game as generally both the dragon and rider can have a lot of fairly high strength attacks.

Flanker. The Forest Dragon has unit strength greater than 5. This is a great boon as it means the Forest Dragon and Highborn can hit a ranked up unit in the flank/rear and have a good chance of winning due to negating the enemy units rank bonus.

Support. The mobility of the Forest Dragon allows it to respond to changing battlefield situations rapidly and support another unit in a charge. It also allows the Wood Elf player the opportunity to move their general and leadership bubble to crucial combats as it is better to test on Ld10 than Ld8.

Fire Support. Depending on the role of the Highborn the unit can sit back and snipe at enemy units and use its breath weapon on anything that tries to get to close. Between the Highborn and Dragon they could inflict a lot of damage on a unit, potentially forcing panic checks.

Warmachine Hunter. The Dragon is perfect for taking out warmachines that may be posing a problem to your army. The speed of the dragon means that you can almost guarrantee a second turn charge on the hapless warmachine crew. Sometime just the terror aspect alone will be enough to have them running.

Keeping the rider alive. The Highborn is, oddly, the weakest link in the equation when it comes to the Dragon. Keeping the Highborn alive is paramount as the dragon may slip from your control when the rider dies. The biggest threat is from shooting so items like the Stone of Crystal Mere and the Glamourweave are invaluable to their survival. Other items that can help are the Annoyance of Netlings which protects just the rider, the Fimbulwinter Shard which makes them harder to hit and the Rhymer's Harp can give a true ward save to both the rider and the mount.

The Sisters of Twilight. The sisters can come mounted on a Forest Dragon and they are discussed in detail in the tactica provided by Remind.

Tactics

A large majority of the tactics of the Dragon depends on how the Highborn is configured. Essentially the Highborn determines the Dragons battlefield role. Any of the roles above can be accomplished with even the most generic Highborn as long as they take certain things. Even for a sniper Highborn a non-magical spear is almost a must, the extra bonus to strength on the charge could make all the difference. Light armour and shield will help against the shooting attacks, as well as the randomisation between the rider and mount. The high toughness and scaly save will protect it from most missile fire but beware warmachines. One well placed cannon ball could end it all. A major consideration when taking the Forest Dragon is the points it will use up and how it will limit what else you can have. It should be considered carefully and put into the context of your list.

Some magical equipment to consider are:

Helm of the Hunt – For an aggressive setup
Dawnspear – For extra protection in combat
Stone of Crystal Mere – Protection from warmachines
Hail of Doom Arrows – Face it, a first turn charge is unlikely

[DavidVC04]

Noble - Champion of the Asrai
Contributor: TheCuttingEdge

Strengths

• High WS and BS
• Variety of tactical options
• Leadership on par with Lords of other armies
• Mount Choices
• May be placed with Eternal Guard to make them Stubborn

Weaknesses

• Low Toughness
• Generally Low Armor Save
• Average combat ability

Items/Spites/Kindred combinations and uses: This area mainly deals with tactics for a Noble, for more information on Items, Spites and Kindreds, refer to their entries in this tactica.


Lone Hunter: As the name states, this Noble doesn't care much for the safety of a unit. Commonly, this Noble either rides a Great Eagle or is of the Alter kindred. This Noble usually always carries the Hail of Doom Arrow, with his other choices being items like the Briarsheath or the Helm of the Hunt. Deck him out with armor, shield, and a Great Weapon (unless on the Eagle, give him a Spear instead), and sick him on weaker units like your opponents lone characters or fast cavalry. His worth comes down to your choice of targets for him: the Hail of Doom should be causing a Panic test! After that, use his single shot to destoy soft annoyances such as Night Goblin Fanatics that are in your way. With high movement, he should be nipping enemies in the flank or rear.

Deadeye: This Noble either sits with your Glade Guard or rides a Great Eagle. With his Hunter's Talon and Pageant of Shrikes, he targets enemy mages within units or snipes off war machine crews. Decent rolls permitting, this guy can get his points back in the first two turns. Only weaknesses are a lack of combat prowess and he will experience difficulty agains Toughness 4 or better targets such as Beastmen, Dwarves and Ogres.

Assassin: The character hunter. Mounted or of the Alter Kindred and carrying the Spear of Twilight, he jumps on a unit, dispenses Killing Blow to a character, and escapes with a 3d6 flee movement. This Noble need not fight alone, and could join a cavalry unit, most notably the Wild Riders. This may change the result from Kill and Flee to Kill and Chase!
Other item choices would be once againthe Helm of the Hunt as long as he isn't a Wild Rider to increase WS and Attacks to get that deathblow, or the Briarsheath if he works alone. Beware characters with Unit Strength 3 or better and most of all Challenges! The former being immune to Killing Blow and the latter denying your clean kill by being stuck with a unit champion instead.

Support: The suppor choice can only be summed up by asking what you want your Noble to do if he isn't one of the above roles. Stand with the Glade Guard bearing the Resplendence of Luminescents to obliterate ethereal and demonic creatures in a hail of magical death. Accompany the Wardancers carryinga Hail of Doom Arrow and Helm of the Hunt to add Str6 attacks and a stand-and-shoot for a nasty suprise! Ride with the cavalry bearing the Dawnspear for the increased Strength on the charge and reducing your enemy's chances to hit back to keep those Riders around longer. Hunt with the Waywatchers while holding a Blight of Terrors sow major disruption among the enemy. Finally, just make a nuisance of yourself by taking a unit to another part of the board entirely with the Moonstone of the Hidden Ways to leave your doomed enemy to his fate against the fury of the trees.

Mount Tactics
Elven Steed: The cheapest mount for a Noble. It offers him no protection beyond the +1 to his Armor Save for being cavalry, and is not fast cavalry like the Glade/Wild Riders. But if you're strapped for points, He'll do the job. Just keep him in a unit.

Great Stag: Available only to a Wild Rider Noble, the Great Stag means the Noble can ride alone or join his fellow Wild Riders with his decent Strength and number of attacks. Careful though, he takes up quite a bit of space so he can be targeted by more enemy models in combat.

Great Eagle: Probably the best choice for you mounted Noble. On the Great Eagle he may feel somewhat naked, but you enemy will pay him less mind than if it was a Highborn flying around. If you are flying around his flank and rear march blocking and he turns around, you can just escape and punish him for such foolishness by charging his now exposed rear with you combat units.

The Noble's versatility means he can fit into any role a Wood Elf general needs. Find what complements your army's strategy, and don't be afraid to put him out there if thats what his job is. You'll be scared to do it because he's only one model, but when he turns a battle to your favour, you'll marvel the results as he is only one model!

[DavidVC04]

Battle Standard Bearer
Contributors: Skarsgard

Kindred: For starters the BSB cannot be a member of any of the Kindred. So no Wildrider or Wardancer BSB’s are possible.

Combat Resolution: A BSB provides a bonus of +1 to CR for the unit they are with. If using a Warbanner this is increased to +2 to CR.

Used In: In most cases the BSB will feature in two types of armies. First, the multiple Treeman armies to help with the Stubborn break checks. Secondly, in an Eternal Guard army where the addition of the BSB to the unit makes it Stubborn. It may be used in other types of armies but these two are the main ones.

Tactica:

Treeman Armies

In Treeman armies the BSB is basically running around by themselves and hovering near the Treemen to give them the re-rolls for break tests. The Treemen are used to shield the BSB from any incoming fire and from potential enemy charges. It works quite effectively especially in a list with the Treeman Ancient. The character can be give protection in the form of a Wardancer unit. This gives the BSB protection from shooting, magic resistance (if the spell targets the unit) and Immunity to Psychology. It also gives the BSB protection in combat if required.

Eternal Guard Armies

The BSB is either the sole character or accompanied by a Highborn. The Highborn can be fitted out in various forms but the most common is Rhymer’s Harp and Annoyance of Netlings. This not only gives the BSB (and indeed the unit) a ward save but allows the Highborn to take out any characters that may want to target the BSB. The BSB in these units is generally best placed on one of the corners and this will limit the amount of attack that they will face. If the BSB is alone then it is still best to place them on the corner with some form of protection (Amber Pendent and Biting Blade are one example, Stone of Crystal Mere is another), the unit champion can take any challenges and the BSB can take care of any rank and file in base to base with them. Remember the role of the BSB is to make sure that the unit doesn’t run, not to win the combat.

Standard Armies

Sometimes a BSB can be handy irrespective of the army. A BSB can add a bit of punch to Wardancer units, in particular with a Warbanner. The +2 to CR, not including wounds inflicted by the BSB can help win many combats. For players who tend to use Glade Riders agressively, the BSB with Warbanner mounted on an Elven Steed, will add a lot of punch to the unit. However, this unit is very fragile and vulnerable to shooting. But +3 to CR, 2 from the BSB and 1 from the unit banner, can be very tempting. Units of Glade Guard can also benefit from the BSB, this is mainly to help combat the normal range of archer "hunters" that tend to be low on static CR.

Flying BSB

Another interesting option is to have the BSB mounted on a Great Eagle. This unit has 5 strength 4 attacks and can spell the doom for any small unit. It also allows you to get the re-roll of break tests where you need it. This BSB is fairly easy to keep hidden but is very vulnerable to shooting if you make a mistake as they cannot join a unit.

Equipment

The equipment that you give the BSB will depend in a large part on what you have in the rest of your army. In Treeman armies it may have little to no equipment as you are not expecting to fight, in Eternal Guard armies it may have a lot of protection or offence depending on what else you have. It is to be noted that seldom do people include magic banners on a BSB as they cannot take magic items if they do. Banners are covered in the Magic Item tactica. If you do take a magic banner, ensure that you have protection via a Highborn or another Noble.

Per the 2008 FAQ from GW, you can take a magical standard and a spite, which means the ever-envied combination of a BSB with an Annoyance of Netlings and the War Banner is now street legal. Enjoy, and remeber to thank the opposing player after the game, but don't feel compelled to apologize for spanking his sorry ass.

Some “standard” fits are:

1. Hail of Doom Arrows and Asyendi's Bane (Surprise packet on a Stand and Shoot)

2. Oaken Armour (Regeneration save to make it more survivable)

3. Amber Pendent and Biting Blade (Kill the enemy before they strike, good vs High Elves)

4. Amaranthine Broach or Stone of Crystal Mere (Protection in the form of a ward save)

5. War Banner and Annoyance of Netlings (Don't forget to challenge and take light armor and a shield, too)

There are many possible combinations but these are the most common encountered.