Chapter Approved 2018 - Elysians
Chapter Approved came out last weekend, and while there were a lot of points changes, Elysians got mostly ignored. All the entries in the entry below are either reiterations of previous changes, or there for consistency with the general Astra Militarum changes.
In saying that the changes were pretty good overall, with no point increases and some decent wargear reductions. In addition to the above changes the Officer of the Fleet got 5 points cheaper, and more significantly the Valkyrie also got 10 points cheaper in addition to point reductions for most of its weapon options. This means a minimum cost Valkyrie is now only 117pts. This is another nail in the coffin for Vendettas as a lascannon Vendetta now costs only slightly less than 2 Valkyries (2 x 117 = 234pts vs 230pts).
Auxiliary Grenade Launcher: No change, but just included here foe completeness.
Flamer: 1 pt reduction. Might make flamers a little more viable, but not a big enough change to field them if you weren't already inclined.
Grenade Launcher: 2pt reduction. Now probably taking on squads that won't be able to get orders consistently. I find a grenade launcher is better than a lasgun, but not as good as a FRFSRF lagun within 12".
Heavy Flamer: 3pt reduction.Slightly cheaper, but not enough to change your army list around.
Medi pack: 5pt reduction. Could be worth considering now. Maybe drop 1 plasma from the drop plasma command squads and include a medic instead, and get back any that die to super-charging. Worth thinking about now. And I do like medics.
Meltagun: 2pt/3pt reduction. Probably still more than they should cost due the short range, but combined with the Valkyrie cost reduction I can see these guys getting a lot more use in my list.
Missile Launcher: 5pt reduction. This is probably the one I am most excited about. Certainly worth including one in a veteran squad now. Not sure if Missile Launcher Heavy weapon squads will be worth taking due to how fragile they are, but I can easily see me including a missile launcher in with 2 mortars to provide some extra long range anti-tank, which I feel my lists are often lacking in.
Multi-Melta: 5pt reduction. Given drop sentinels are the only Elysian unit than can take these, and now are much more expensive then their AM equivalents I won't be using them.
Multiple Rocket Pod: 3pt reduction each. A nice reduction to the main weapon I use on Valkyries.
Plasma gun: 2pt reduction for veterans. Plasma guns never went out of competitive use, and them mow being 2 points cheaper is great news.
Power Fist: No change since last Chapter Approved.
So overall some great discounts and no increases. My list I recently took to a 2000pt tournament has dropped to 1926pts.
It is also clear that GW is trying to de-emphasise some of the Older Forgeworld units. The most noticeable example is the Hellstrike missile.
On FW flyers like the Sky Talon and Thunderbolt it is listed as "Hellstrike Missile" and costs 30pts per missile. However on the Valkyrie it is listed as "Hellstrike missiles" representing both missiles and now only costs 12pts, with exactly the same stats as the much more expensive FW version.
Similarly the Tauros weapons, twin multilasers and twin grenade launchers now cost much more than double their non twin-liked cousins.
The main changes to my lists will be that I will likely be including more Valkyries, possibly containing melta troops, and missile launchers will finally gain a place in my army.
In saying that the changes were pretty good overall, with no point increases and some decent wargear reductions. In addition to the above changes the Officer of the Fleet got 5 points cheaper, and more significantly the Valkyrie also got 10 points cheaper in addition to point reductions for most of its weapon options. This means a minimum cost Valkyrie is now only 117pts. This is another nail in the coffin for Vendettas as a lascannon Vendetta now costs only slightly less than 2 Valkyries (2 x 117 = 234pts vs 230pts).
Auxiliary Grenade Launcher: No change, but just included here foe completeness.
Flamer: 1 pt reduction. Might make flamers a little more viable, but not a big enough change to field them if you weren't already inclined.
Grenade Launcher: 2pt reduction. Now probably taking on squads that won't be able to get orders consistently. I find a grenade launcher is better than a lasgun, but not as good as a FRFSRF lagun within 12".
Heavy Flamer: 3pt reduction.Slightly cheaper, but not enough to change your army list around.
Medi pack: 5pt reduction. Could be worth considering now. Maybe drop 1 plasma from the drop plasma command squads and include a medic instead, and get back any that die to super-charging. Worth thinking about now. And I do like medics.
Meltagun: 2pt/3pt reduction. Probably still more than they should cost due the short range, but combined with the Valkyrie cost reduction I can see these guys getting a lot more use in my list.
Missile Launcher: 5pt reduction. This is probably the one I am most excited about. Certainly worth including one in a veteran squad now. Not sure if Missile Launcher Heavy weapon squads will be worth taking due to how fragile they are, but I can easily see me including a missile launcher in with 2 mortars to provide some extra long range anti-tank, which I feel my lists are often lacking in.
Multi-Melta: 5pt reduction. Given drop sentinels are the only Elysian unit than can take these, and now are much more expensive then their AM equivalents I won't be using them.
Multiple Rocket Pod: 3pt reduction each. A nice reduction to the main weapon I use on Valkyries.
Plasma gun: 2pt reduction for veterans. Plasma guns never went out of competitive use, and them mow being 2 points cheaper is great news.
Power Fist: No change since last Chapter Approved.
So overall some great discounts and no increases. My list I recently took to a 2000pt tournament has dropped to 1926pts.
It is also clear that GW is trying to de-emphasise some of the Older Forgeworld units. The most noticeable example is the Hellstrike missile.
On FW flyers like the Sky Talon and Thunderbolt it is listed as "Hellstrike Missile" and costs 30pts per missile. However on the Valkyrie it is listed as "Hellstrike missiles" representing both missiles and now only costs 12pts, with exactly the same stats as the much more expensive FW version.
Similarly the Tauros weapons, twin multilasers and twin grenade launchers now cost much more than double their non twin-liked cousins.
The main changes to my lists will be that I will likely be including more Valkyries, possibly containing melta troops, and missile launchers will finally gain a place in my army.
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