Friday 12 April 2013

Eldar - what are we expecting on release day compared to other 6th ed releases?



Well it seems to be pretty likely that Eldar will be showing up in a few months time based on the predictions of certain in-the-know posters on the usual sites. Speculation on releases for me was always one of the more fun parts of the hobby and, sadly, it has suffered in recent years due to info clamp downs. Can we spot a pattern to releases though which help us predict what units are likely to come along? Let's take a look:


This is a quick tally of what we've seen with the last 4 releases in 6th edition. At first glance, Tau got the most love with 13 releases and Daemons the least with only 9. (the other two 10 each) This must be taken in context though. It has been many years since Tau saw a release and several of the items on the list are repacks or remakes of existing models. The Daemons had releases end of last year hence the low amount of models in their release (dare say they're waiting to unveil greater daemons later) and both DA and CSM were in the starter set and hence had model releases (some overlap though) late last year. Bearing this in mind, Eldar have more in common with Tau as they haven't seen releases in a fair time, the last being the fire prism and support weapon in mid 2010. 

So what to expect? Codex is a given, though psychic cards may not be. Eldar are likely to have access to many of the core disciplines, but hopefully they will still get their own psychic power deck and retain some unique abilities. Rumours have been abound for a while about exactly what models to expect - some more reliable than others in terms of the bearers track record. 2 of the 4 releases have contained a large model, which is hardly concrete. 3 of the releases have contained a flyer, which is almost a guaranteed. Two releases took the opportunity to update something previously in finecast/metal to a plastic kit (raptors/pathfinders). Of course, most kits have had multi-build options included. Lastly, 3 of the 4 battleforces have been repackaged for release.

Here are a few ideas of mine (speculation alert) as to what we are likely to see:

Codex: Eldar book
Eldar psychic power deck
Flyer dual build kit
Wraithknight (large kit rumoured)
Falcon/Firestorm (dual kit redo of falcon including AA option)
Jetbikes (3-pack like DE - options for shining spears remain as FC upgrade)
Wraithguard (5-pack with CC variant)
Battleforce - repackaged same as most other releases with different contents)
Autarch (plastic blister pack)
New phoenix lord (finecast)
New special character (finecast)

These are my best guesses as to what may make the shortlist. I have most confidence in the flyer and jetbikes as far as models go. The falcon/firestorm would make sense and there were rumours pointing to the large wraith construct. Inevitably there will also be several FC blisters released and probably one plastic to continue the trend. As for the wraithguard, who knows. Other candidates include storm guardians and warp spiders due to difficulty and the age of the models. 

So there we go. We may only be 6 weeks from finding out for sure so let the speculation begin!

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