Hello, and welcome to another tactical tidbit by Skari from Art of War. In this article, I will guide you through the darkest of alleyways within the Dark City.
This is a detailed breakdown on the Drukhari! We shall look at one of their main strengths, where they are in the current meta, and some tips that will inspire you to move forwards into the future with this faction.
We shall begin this dive into the faction with some of the Drukhari strengths. The Dark Eldar are a high-skill army. Thinking ahead is necessary. They are a very hard-hitting army with crazy mobility, though in most instances (not the Coven), they are a “glass cannon.” This term means they can kill things but die very easily in return. Terrain and movement are your friends. The many different overlapping rules can be harnessed within the faction’s three main branches (Kabal, Coven, and Cult) into one cohesive force that stresses using many elements together as one rather than focusing on a single component.
credit to warhammer40k.wikia.com
Movement – Vect Says, “Yes!”
This is the main strength of the Drukhari. Movement is one of the only variables you can control within the game of Warhammer 40k. Therefore, having the speed and mobility of the army becomes a key strength to harness. Most armies will be built around units in transports that move incredible distances (14-16″), allowing them to hop all over the table and take objectives. Their vehicles can spread across the table and converge in one spot on an unsuspecting enemy bringing all the guns down to bear on them.
Being able to pick your battles and threaten most things on the table from any location is a great trait to have for the army. The fly keyword on their fast-moving vehicles makes them hard to pin down, allowing your firepower and movement only to be reduced as you lose miniatures.
Meta Meta Meta – Versatility in a Changing World
The Dark Eldar are a very versatile army, and this makes them relevant in the current meta. One of the things to keep in mind about the Drukhari is that their codex is sort of three in one! The Kabal, Cult, and Coven elements of the army all play differently. As the meta changes, the various choices that you have access to become relevant at different times. If enemy armies become more killy, we have the resiliency of the coven to fall back on, if you are playing in missions that require many units for objectives all over the place the army can change to include many small units of troops for that. If you need close combat, Wyches, and Grotesques, Talos, and even Drahzar are all great options.
This makes the army very adaptable to the meta as it shifts. However, you need to have a good understanding of what the units can do and their pros and cons (one of the many reasons to get coaching!). Keep up with the meta constantly to remain relevant and competitive.
Key Weaknesses
You need to hide. Drukhari requires proper use of terrain to survive. If a very shooty army can see your transports and units, they don’t tend to survive very long. This reality means we have some rough match-ups against Tau and other gun-line armies on open tables. There are ways to mitigate these match-ups. However, they are on a very case-by-case basis. It is important to remember this: all your models will die, every single one of them. The trick is controlling when and where they die during a game, not IF.
Drukhari can also be rather frustrating to learn. If any of you have watched some of my battle reports on YouTube or live streams, it can seem like I make the faction look easy, but 12 years of playing a single faction will do that! However, it was not an easy road, and I have had to take my fair share of punches. Because it is a hard army to master, you could become discouraged when you have to play your friend’s Iron Hands gun-line for the 50th time. You have to try many different things to succeed, and this can be mentally overwhelming. The army requires a lot of brainpower, and sometimes this can be that… frustrating. I have found it very rewarding in the long run, however.
Tips And Tricks – Moving Forward
The Drukhari army has many options for the competitor and the collector. The minis look fantastic! However, it is one of the armies that I feel benefits from having many different options. Taking a mix of Kabalites, or Coven and Wych cult all together increases the strength of the army itself! This does make it harder to play, as there are many different moving parts. As I say when I am coaching: practice, practice, practice! Get reps in and play many games against as many opponents as possible.
Don’t be afraid to ally if you want to be competitive. The Aeldari soup options (Harlequins and Craftworld armies) can also really increase the relevance of some of the Drukhari options, especially having access to strategems such as Vect. This means that you can expand not only your collection but also your tactical options across all these books. Even the Ynnari characters can make an appearance sometimes! However, all these different tactical choices are for another time.
I hope you found this interesting. What do you think are the strengths and weaknesses of the Drukhari? Reach out to me for coaching or list building advice here. Thanks a lot for reading. I shall see you on the next Skari Tactical Tidbit!
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