40k’s Boogeymen are back. The Battle For Salvation Grand Tournament was this weekend and guess who managed to come out on top post FAQ.
Battle For Salvation was the first big tournament held post-FAQ. Players got a chance to test all the ins and outs of the changes as well as begin to see a steady meta shift. Bottom line, Eldar were very powerful already and the cream may have risen to the top once again as they are good against Knights while being able to hold down objectives and project power all at the same time.
Results and list courtesy of Best Coast Pairings & BFS
Let’s look at what the top players brought to the table.
Sean Nayden, First Place
Sean Nayden captain of Team USA was the first place winner of the event bringing a little bit of everything Eldar has to offer. He brought a detachment of Eldar from each alignment effectively playing off of three codexes.
For Harlequins, he brought an Outrider detachment using Skyweaver Jetbikes to double down on speed and mortal wounds. (If you haven’t gone against haywire cannons in 8th, you’re lucky). Haywire cannons don’t care about the toughness or save of your vehicle. As long as they roll a 4+ to wound, you’re taking a mortal wound. GG Knight titans.
A cheap Battalion of Dark Eldar served as gas for the rest of his army and unlocked the Dark Eldar codex to his disposal. Nothing in the Dark Eldar list was super crazy, but it was a lot of bodies for cheap.
Finishing everything off, Sean took three characters, forty Guardians, and five Rangers in a Battalion of Craftworlds. This is the first time we’ve seen an Eldar list not run any Wave Serpents. Of course, Eldrad is just too good to pass up so he’s usually all over the place, and Magun Ra does the lords work against infantry.
This list had a lot of bodies that could throw out some decent firepower, had psychic coverage, and plenty of CP fuel to keep everything running! Great job Sean!
Erick Trock, Second Place
New FAQ who dis?
Imperium managed to stay one of the big dogs in the meta but with a cost. Blood Angel Captains are nowhere to be found in this list. Instead of a basic “loyal thirty-two” Battalion for CP, Erick took Catachans and actually sunk most of his points for firepower into them.
Now there is a Slam Captain-esque unit in here. Custode Shield Captains on Jetbikes. They are the “1v1 me bro” unit to this army. Their sole purpose is to bump chests with stubborn things and hopefully come out on top. Even though fly is nerfed, these Custodes seem to still have a place in lists.
Lastly, the Castellan still found a spot in the list as well. Being virtually untouched as far as points go in the most recent FAQ, players are just tasked with playing a little more reserved because of the CP cost going up on the heavy-hitting stratagems.
Kurt Clauss, Third Place
Kurt’s list was a high-toughness, mobile hitter. Bringing two Battalions with three Wave Serpents in each, he was able to race up the board and get infantry exactly where he wanted them.
He also brought a small detachment of Dark Eldar Ravagers to keep up with the rest of his list and throw some real anti-tank firepower into the mix. He also brought them as Kabal of the Black Heart to unlock Agents of Vect to disrupt some vital moments for his opponent.
Like we’ve said before, the FAQ is forcing players to explore what’s actually usable with the way FLY works now. The FAQ is doing exactly what it should be doing. The playing field is a bit more leveled out and it shook things up to keep list combinations interesting. We feel like the meta hasn’t reached its final form just yet. Players still need more time to find the next best thing post FAQ.
Regardless, BFS gave us a first-hand look at what the top players thought was good. So with that, what do you think about these armies? Does your Eldar list look about the same? Do you think GW could have touched on Eldar a bit more in the FAQ?
Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group.
About the Author: Wesley Floyd
Wesley Floyd
Job Title: Staff Writer
Joined: 2018
Socials: @RealmbrushPainting
About Wesley Floyd: Wes has been in the Warhammer hobby since 2015 and joined the Spikey Bits writing team in 2018. He is known for his satirist takes on trending topics and imaginative yet amazingly affordable hobby solutions to painting Warhammer miniatures.
Imperial fanboy, tabletop fanatic, and the self-proclaimed King of Sprues. He knows for a fact that Mephiston red is the best-tasting paint and is the commission painting equivalent of a Wendy’s 4 for $4. If you like what he writes and want to contact him or have your tabletop minatures painted (to a mostly okayish standard), message him on Instagram.
