Editing The 9th Age/Tactics/Highborn Elves (section)

==Unit Analysis==
===Characters===
'''High Prince''' 245pts. Incredibly killy big boi.  You'll want one to kick ass and take names.  Because of his high offensive skill and lightning reflexes you'll be hitting other lord level characters on 2+.  You will need to dip into his special equipment and honors to keep him alive (he only gets a 4+/6++ with mundane equipment, 2+/6++ with a horse).  If you have 5 points to spare, give him a bow.  He has the maximum possible to-hit in the game and being able to ping off wounds at 30" when he otherwise isn't doing anything else is totally worth it.

'''Commander''' 130pts. The kid brother of the prince.  One less attack and slightly worse offensive/defensive skill (will still hit same priced characters on 2+).  You'll probably be taking one as BSB. They have the same survival problems as the prince.

'''Mage''' 225pts. The elves are good at magic and this guy proves it.  He is an Adept by default and with Master of Spellcrafting he functionally has a +1 to cast all non-bound spells.  Can choose from Cosmology, Divination, or Pyromancy. Currently, because of Asfad Scholar upgrade giving +6" range, you will usually want to choose Divination, as it's buffs combo incredibly well with your units and 2 missiles Divination offers, usually hindered by their range, are incredibly versatile and pose a threat to anything without 1+ save. Also, the attribute spell, combined with Martial Discipline and high leadership let's you play without a BSB ( LD 2d6 + Minimised on break/panic is almost the same as 2d6+ Reroll). Pick whatever combination you think suits your matchup best.

====Character Mounts====
'''Elven Horse''' You know it, you love it.  A surprisingly fast mount with +2 armor and better agility than most core choices for other armies.

'''Giant Eagle''' Same speed as horse with less armor and more attacks.  If you want it, take it in the special section.

'''Griffon''' 1" slower than the horse and no armor bonus, but with 3 more attacks, devastating charge, and lightning reflexes.  Take it on a character to hunt wizards and warmachines, or just take out some punks on a flank charge.

'''Young Dragon''' Baby dragon, still a dragon.  Is listed as large cavalry so gives your character +1 armor.  If you want your character tankier, take the young dragon, if you want it killier, take the griffon.

'''Dragon''' Your big boy dragon.  Is the same dragon listing as most other army's dragons.

'''Ancient Dragon''' Hot damn.  This monster will trash other big models, but watch out for its large base size.  You're going to be sinking a lot of points to get this puppy on the table and it can get bogged down by a lot of models and other monsters.

'''Reaver Chariot''' When you want a horse but two of them.  Boosts your character to resilience 4, so can be a surprisingly tanky option.

'''Lion Chariot''' Still moves 8" and has lions pulling it.  2 of them!.  That's 4 attacks before you even get to the crew of the thing.  It can only be mounted by a character with the Royal Huntsman honour.

'''Sky Sloop''' Only mountable by a character with the Fleet Officer honour.  You get the 1+ to hit with the sky reaper, but it's not worth all the points it takes to get one.  Just take it in the Naval Ordinance Section.

===Core===
'''Citizen Spears''' Your cheapest unit.  Base 250 for 20 + 13ppm.  With fight in extra rank and lightning reflexes, you'll be trashing other core units with even minimum sized units. Hordes of Citizen Spears are scary powerhouses (max size 50 models).

'''Highborn Lancers''' Dropped in price for Base 210 for 5 + 34ppm.  If your running an aggressive list, or even just need some extra units to clog charge lanes, these beefy boys have you covered. (still not considered good enough).  The issue with lancers in the current version is that they fill the same roll as Knights of Ryma and the Knights are better at that roll.  For only 125 points more than lancers Knights of Ryma get +1 to dis/def/off/str/ap/agi, +1 attack on the charge, a 6++, and a 2++ against flaming attacks which protects them against alchemy, the most common counter to heavy cavalry.  That said there are still a few niches that lancers fill better, namely being core.  HbE only have 2 core entries that don't also eat at Queen's Bows so if you want a shooting heavy list that maxes out your Queen's Guard you will be limited in your core choices, lancers are a solid choice to fill out core and are not bad by any means.  Besides filling out core, Lancers make (debatable) better character bunkers, they are cheaper to fill out bodies on a bigger unit and each model is still fully effective whereas knights of Ryma lose that second attack on the charge if they are pushed back in the ranks, not to mention the lower unit size cap.  Lancers can also be used as beefy chaff or a fast moving anvil to position around, thanks to martial discipline lancers can play bait just as well as reavers (reavers do get vanguard though) and they can sit and take a charge, something that would melt your reavers.  So are lancers a viable pick?  Sometimes, most of the time Knights of Ryma will get more bang for your points, but Lancers are cheaper and more forgiving to use.

===Core + Queen's Bows===
The following units count towards both categories, keep that in mind if you want Queen's Guard or Grey Watchers.

'''Citizen Archers''' With Base 160 for 10 + 15ppm some great archers.  30" range and 3+ to hit.  Take as many as you like and they will make their points back.  They only have light armor, so don't expect them to do too much in melee, but they have a decent offensive/defensive skill and lightning reflexes mean they can hold their own against some common flankers.

'''Sea Guard''' Where to start with these. Base 280 for 15 + 24ppm. Essentially Citizen Spears + Bows, +1 defensive skill.  They have Steady Aim (can shoot from the third rank and no penalties for stand and shoot) and Cover Volley (can stand and shoot at units charging nearby allied units).  So they have the possibility to be very scary, but you have to play around it. They are point efficient models.  Still not as stabby as a spear elf or as good range as an archer, but they can do both and that alone makes them worth the cost.

'''Elein Reavers''' Add bows if you want them. Base 180 for 5 + 19ppm, but should be 185, 20ppm. They may be nimble but without bow's, they're worse Lancers that take up your queen's bows allowance too. They are the light Vanguard cavalry that gets flanks.

===Queen's Bows===
'''Queen's Guard''' Base 135 for 5 + 28pts. The best shooting unit in the game bar none.  Why they have a 20 model per army cap.  They have 2+ to hit with str4 ap1 flaming arrows.  You can give them spears if you want to make them scarier to charge.  If you're taking them it's worth the 1 point/model.

'''Grey Watchers''' Base 135 for 5 + 21pts. Where Queen's Guard are your balls out damage, Grey Watchers are your support archers.  When a unit is hit (not wounded) by Grey Watchers, they must take a resilience test for each hit.  If they fail any of those resilience tests, that unit suffers -1 to hit (shooting and close combat) for 1 turn.  Dakka a unit to discourage a charge or make it more difficult to deal with your reavers.  If your playing them behind your front line, take shields for survivability.  If your scouting them, take paired weapons and rush them at the enemy war machines or mage bunkers.  Fae Miasma makes them surprisingly tanky in close combat.

===Special===
'''Sword Masters''' Base 125 for 5 + 20pts. A minimum sized unit of these is throwing out 10 Off6 str5 ap2 attacks at Agi 6 (11 with a champion).  Their Offensive skill and Sword Sworn means they'll be hitting most units on 2+. These are your bunker busters, they'll eat through enemy units before they can even attack.  They only have heavy armor, so don't expect them to take much in return.

'''Lion Guard''' Base 215 for 10 + 27pts. They throw out str6 ap3 attacks with multiple wounds (2) against large/gigantic Creatures (but not large infantry).  They have valiant to so they won't run if they get charged by a monster and become stubborn if a high prince general is rolling with them.  Your jack-of-all-trades unit, will do reasonably well against whatever you throw them at.  They will dunk on monsters.

'''Flame Wardens''' Base 320 for 15 + 26pts. The tank option.  They have 4++ and fight in extra rank.  A minimum sized unit of them can take whatever your opponent throws at them and be able to give some back in return.

'''Knights of Ryma''' Base 340 for 5 + 45pts. Like hitting them with a truck.  Devastating charge (+1 attack) means on the charge a minimum sized unit throws out 10 str6 ap3 attacks (11 with a champion).  They can keep going in melee, only str4 ap1, but you should plan on breaking enemies with the charge.  Also 2+/6++ heavy cavalry.  Hot damn.

'''Reaver Chariot''' Base 110 for 1 + 95pts. Come in units up to 4.  If you wanted Elein reavers but didn't want them to eat up Queen's Bows, take these.

'''Lion Chariot''' 205pts. Use them as the shock cavalry against monsters.  A nutty amount of str5 ap2 and str6 ap3 attacks for one model.  Take one and clog charge lanes with it.

'''Giant Eagle''' base 100pts for 1 + 30ppm. They can come in units up to 5.  Fly the same speed as your horses.  Use them as chaff instead of Reavers if you want them. ''May the Egles sacrifice stop the peasants' advance.''

===Naval Ordinance===
'''Sea Guard Reaper''' 180pts. Can fire as a shots 1 str 3(6) ap 10 multiple wounds (d3) bolt thrower or a shots 6 str 4 ap 2 volley gun.  Incredibly flexible warmachine at a very low price.  Take a few if you have points to spare.

'''Sky Sloop''' 250pts. Has the Sky Reaper, a shots 4 str 5 ap 2 volley gun on a fast flying chariot.  Where your Reaper is the static monster deterrent, your Sky Sloop is your roadblock and infantry mulcher.  Str 5 AP 2 is high for this army and being able to position it in awkward places makes it hard to avoid.  Also, the fact that this is a chariot with a giant eagle and a decent number of impact hits makes it a scary prospect to have one of these looking at you.

===Ancient Allies===
The category your dragons and griffons come out of, but also includes the

'''Phoenix''' The statline of your baby dragon, as fast as a giant eagle.  Come in Fire or Frost flavors and they have options for a warden to ride it. The warden doesn't add much in attacks or defense, but the phoenix has a better chance of passing its rebirth roll with a warden on top.
*Fire: 375pts. Your woodchipper.  It gains grind attacks and sweeping attacks, meaning whatever it does it is burning bad guys.  With grind attacks and stomps it is slapping out 4+2d6 attacks every round in melee.
*Frost: 310pts. Your anvil.  It gained Supernal in .205, so this bird will not run no matter how combat goes.  Use its speed to run into a unit and hold it into place for a support charge.  Be aware that with the unbreakability of supernal, it also gained unstable, so it's losing HP in place of running for the hills.  You can use the hereditary spell to block the HP loss from unstable, so make sure you have a mage to support the frosty if you want it to live to the end of turn 6.