Kabalite Warriors

"WHO WOULD LIKE TO SUFFER TODAY?"

Kabalite Warriors are your basic Dark Eldar foot soldiers and are analogues of the Eldar Guardians. Unlike their Guardian counterparts, they are actually front-line warriors as their namesake implies. Thus, they are arguably more Awesome than your typical Elfdar. Kabalite Warriors usually comprise most of the manpower (delfpower?) during a Dark Eldar raid.

Life in the Dark City is defined by constant backstabbing while trying not to end up as either fodder for the arenas or as material for some Haemonculus' next project. As a result, most individual Dark Eldar citizens have bigger brass balls than you'd find on half of an entire Eldar Craftworld. In short, Dark Eldar society is very dangerous, and because of the need for some measure of safety almost all citizens of Commorragh attempt to become Warriors in one Kabal or another.

Kabalite Warriors are individuals who have excelled enough to be noticed by a Sybarite. They are then granted increased status and inducted into the warriors of the Kabal. The Kabal furnishes weapons and armor in return for lifetime service to the Kabal. Despite this, the new warrior generally has no loyalty to the Sybarite, seeing him or her as just another stepping stone to power in the Kabal. And for those who wonder what the hell a Sybarite is, they are the squad's best warrior and thus its leader. New Sybarites are often decided by warriors of a squad killing their superior officer in order to take their title.

Equipment

The standard Kabalite Warrior is very lightly equipped, carrying only a Splinter Rifle for armament. Unfortunately for their foes, the Splinter Rifle is quite decent as far as basic weapons go, being a 24" range rapid fire weapon that always wounds living targets on a 4+. The squad's more experienced Warriors are also sometimes assigned powerful support weapons such as Splinter Cannons, Dark Lances, Shredders and Blasters. The Sybarite has a splinter rifle as standard, but also has access to a wide variety of other options including the Splinter Pistol, Blast Pistol, power sword, agoniser, and/or Phantasm Grenade Launcher.

In terms of protection, Warriors benefit most from armor that allows speed and agility. Thus their armor is a thin, light-weight flexible bodysuit, pressurized to allow Warriors to traverse the vacuum of space. Just like standard-issue Eldar suits this armor responds to neural impulses from the wearer and hardens when struck in combat, allowing for a reasonable level of resistance to basic attacks. The lightness and flexibility of this armor allows Warriors to fully utilize their superior speed and reflexes in combat. However, simply wearing armor is too tame for most Dark Eldar. Therefore the plates of their bodysuits are often fitted with barbs and hooks that dig into the user's skin. In typical Drukhari BDSM fashion, rather than being a painful distraction this actually sharpens and maximizes their senses. In some cases the armor is only staying on its wearer because putting it on requires the use the hooks on the inward-facing parts of the armor to pierce the skin.

More practical Warriors will sometimes make use of wraithbone components salvaged from Eldar aspect warrior and guardian armor, up to and including complete stolen suits. The Warriors seldom stick to a standardized uniform beyond a general color scheme and the symbol of whatever Kabal they choose to fight for, so many of them turn up with differently-stylized wargear. Some are scaled back with less plating, some feature different adornments, others may have more or less conventional armor designs, and so on.

Warriors have been significantly buffed in the 9th Edition Drukhari codex. Each Warrior now has 2 attacks and a 4+ armor save; the rest of their statline has remained the same.

Kabalite Warriors

With the release of Kill Team: Soulshackle, Kabalite Warriors have been expanded with several variants. These are:

Archsybarite

The big man himself.

The Archsybarite is the leader of the group. Akin to a Dark Eldar's version of a Field Sergeant of the Imperial Guard Infantry Squad. These guys are one step up from your typical Sybarite and because of this, they are only in charge in leading a specific kill team for really important shit. As they are considered the highest ranked vanilla troop in Dark Eldar society, Archsybarites are armed with hard-to-get weapons such as a Venom Blade and a Blast Pistol.

Of course, like all ranks in Drukhari society, being a Archsybarite doesn't typically last long; either the Archsybarite him/herself gets promoted by slitting the throat of a superior, or they themselves gets their throat slit by his lessers.

Their Corsair counterparts are the Felarchs.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Archsybarites are big boss of the group. While not much different than their agents, they do come with a rather vast array of weapons to consider for whatever build you want. They come with a unique action that lets them gain 1 CP each turn if they decide not to take the first chance they can to use a ploy, which helps encourage you to consider more long-term planning and working around your enemy's schemes without throwing the first punch.

If you're planning on more firing lines, you can be boring and stick with the Splinter Rifle and Array of Blades given to any other agent. Fortunately, you do have the corsair's aim action, helping add Balanced to the rifle.

Going further to melee gives you more interesting options. The Power Weapon gives you a reliable weapon with impressive crits thanks to Lethal 5+, the Venom Blade's damage is fixed to 4 damage either way but has Lethal 4+ to overwhelm enemy defenses, and the Agonizer provides an interesting option with Brutal to negate defenses and Lethal 5+ for more crits, letting it trigger Reap 1 more often on top of the high damage. Meanwhile, your sidearms in melee are stuck to either the basic Splinter Pistol and the Blast Pistol. The Blast Pistol is a bit of a dodgy option not only because of the weapon restrictions for the army, but also the fact that you're firing it at a 3+ BS instead of the Splinter Pistol's 2+.

They are classified as a Combat, Marksman and Scout unit.

Kabalite Agent

Should not be confused with your typical Warrior.

Kabalite Agents are warriors in Dark Eldar Kabals who act as the brutal enforcers of their commanding officers. They are typically armed with Splinter Rifles and various blades.

Yes, we know. They look and function almost exactly the same as a standard Kabalite Warrior. They only differ by function. Warriors are there to assist in a raid and to act as disposable meatshields by contract. Agents on the other hand, act more like bodyguards or police officers. So whilst a Warrior is often on the offense, the Agents are always on the defence. Because of their comparatively simplified role, Agents actually carry less weapon choice then their more common Warrior brethren.

Their Corsair counterparts are the Voidreaver Warriors.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Kabalite Agents are your workaday grunts for the kabals. They are about the same as their Compendium equivalents with the added bonus of having stronger melee weapons (3/4 damage over the Compendium's 2/3 with Rending) and the Corsair's ability to spend an action to aim their Splinter Rifles for Balanced on top of the Lethal 5+. While the rifle's basic damage output is underwhelming, Lethal helps out by letting you score more crits.

They are classified as a Marksman and Scout unit.

Kabalite Gunner

The first DEldar Heavy Weapons Guy.

Kabalite Gunners are the first set of Heavy Weapons Guy for a Kabalite Kill-Team.

Acting as weapons specialists in their Kill Team squads, Gunners often wield Blasters and Shredders to rip apart light infantry during a boarding action. They are more mobile than their heavier siblings, and are there if a particular Dark Eldar wants both speed and firepower to lay as much waste on the battlefield as Eldarly possible. They are often paired with the Heavy Gunner so both these guys can cover each other's weaknesses.

Like the Agents, Gunners have a more simplified role than a conventional Warrior, acting more of a defensive role than an offensive one. This means that they are only allows to have the aforementioned limitations of two weapons.

Their Corsair counterparts are the Voidreaver Gunners.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Kabalite Gunners are your standard Dark Eldar heavy weapons guys. As aforementioned in the fluff, these guys come only with two options for guns, but GW made the stupid decision to lock you to only one gunner. The Blaster is limited by the limited by the army's limitations, is a very powerful gun with AP2 to rip through high defenses. The Shredder isn't as potent, but it has Blast to cover crowds and has Rending to guarantee more crits.

They are classified as a Marksman and Scout unit.

Kabalite Heavy Gunner

The other DEldar Heavy Weapons Guy.

Kabalite Heavy Gunners are the second set of Heavy Weapons Guy for a Kabalite Kill-Team.

As their name implies, these guys carry an even bigger gun than a typical Kabalite Gunner. Heavy Gunners often wield Dark Lances and Splinter Cannons. Pretty fucking overkill if you ask us, especially when considering that they will most likely be facing GEQs and MEQs. They are less mobile than their lighter siblings but they pack a ridiculous amount of punch. Wherever they fire, that target drops dead. They are often paired with the normal Gunner so both these guys can cover each other's weaknesses.

Like the Agents, Heavy Gunners have a more simplified role than a conventional Warrior, acting more of a defensive role than an offensive one. This means that they are only allows to have the aforementioned limitations of two weapons.

Their Corsair counterparts are the Voidreaver Heavy Gunners.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Kabalite Heavy Gunners are the other option for heavy weapons. Like their lighter siblings, these guys only have two options for guns, both with Heavy so they aren't able to move around while shooting. The Dark Lance is the deadliest of your guns with its incredible damage and AP2, but taking it means you can't take either the Archsybarite's Blast Pistol or the gunner's Blaster and Unwieldy means it can't be used for Overwatch. The Splinter Cannon has Fusillade to split its fire across multiple foes.

They are classified as a Marksman and Scout unit.

Disciple of Yaelindra

The poison crackhead of the group.

The Disciples of Yaelindra are Kabalite Warriors that travels the path of Yaelindra (Who the fuck Yaelindra is, we have no idea. Although some theories pertain that Yaelindra may be a Dark Muse that may overlap with either Lhlilitu or Saimesh due to similar properties).

As followers of Yaelindra, they are specialised in all things toxic, poisonous and venomous. In battle, they are known to inject unfortunate victims with abominable toxins coming from either their Stinger Pistols and Torment Grenade.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Disciples of Yaelindra are specialized units that comes with some some special Torment Grenades, which forces enemies within 2"/circle of the blast zone to roll a d6 (+1 if the enemy has a 4+ save or worse, -1 if they're not visible) with a 3+ poisoning them, not only dealing them 2 mortal wounds but also treating them as Injured for all the penalties that provides.

Also comes with a Stinger Pistol, which is unconventional in that its BS is determined by the target's save, dealing a MW if you roll below the enemy's save and 3MW if you roll a 1, meaning that this will fuck over daemons like no tomorrow and seriously trouble genestealers. If the pistol manages to kill someone, it deals splash damage that deals d3 MW to anyone within 2"/circle of them, which can make for some decent payoff - especially if you can chain up some kills.

They are classified as a Staunch and Scout unit.

Elixicant

The meth-head with a 'doctorate degree'.

The Elixicant is the closest thing the Dark Eldar get to a medical profession – gets in on the action by pumping arcane narcotics into bodies ill-suited to their effects, wracking lesser creatures with agony.

Elixicant, due to being 'medics' (Medic being used in the loosest sense of the term), may find their future careers servicing the Haemonculus covens. Their deep insights over the biology of various creatures makes them a valid unit in a kill team. Although knowing Dark Eldar, their sense of 'healing' may involve whipping his/her's compatriots in the ass with a barbed whip.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Elixicants are the closest you'll get to a medic, stocked with all sorts of drugs but won't get the Medic keyword for better recoveries. Aside from their Splinter Rifle, they also have a super short-range Stim-Needler that's harmless but has Lethal 3+ to trigger Stun to rob enemies of attacks.

Taking the Elixicant gives your entire army the option between hooking them up with Hypex (for +1"/triangle of movement for zooming) or Painbringer (for a 6+++ save), both of which can be quite helpful for the army and last for the entire game. That's not all, as they can use their syringes to give an ally within 3"/square dither a dose of a different drug or heal them for 1d3+1 wounds.

They are classified as a Staunch and Marksman unit.

Flayer

The DEldar's very own Khornate Berserkers.

Not too be confused with the Necron Flayed Ones.

Flayers are the close-combat monsters of the kill team. They are Warriors who have mastered the art of RIP AND TEAR, and have proven themselves to be one step beyond even the likes of other Kabalite Warriors.

Their style of combat bleeds into their personalities as well. Flayers are Drukhari who just finds venoms too slow and fussy, so they opt in for the old fashioned way with a pair of Barbed Pain Sculptors to get shit done.

Their Corsair counterparts are the Kurnathis.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Flayers are dual-wielding melee butchers. The fact that they reduce any damage they suffer by 1 makes them a bit tankier, but they're still Eldar at the end of the day. Their Pain Sculptors are quite decent as melee weapons with Relentless, but their big draw is the ability to capitalize on one crit, turning it into a pain token they can then feed to a friendly operative within 6"/pentagon.

If you're wondering which to pick between the Crimson Duelist and the Flayer, consider what you're up against. If you're not worrying about anything with high defenses like shields or deadly weapons like power fists, you might be better suited to use a Flayer to help feed pain tokens for your teams. Take the Crimson Duelist if you need to overwhelm enemies quickly.

They are classified as a Staunch and Combat unit.

Crimson Duelist

The other deranged CQC clown.

Crimson Duelists are the other close-combat monsters of the kill team. Whereas the Flayers are more brute force. Crimson Duelists are more finesse in their skills of butchering their targets into living, meaty chunks.

They wield some esoteric and hard to counter weapons to suit their profession. The most notable being their Razorflail, which allows them to effectively ignore any defensive weapons and shields. However, unlike the Flayer, they aren't completely useless in range, as they are armed with a Splinter Pistol if they are caught in a situation where close-combat is no longer viable.

Their Corsair counterparts are the Shade Runners.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Crimson Duelists are the other close-range butcher. Comes with a splinter pistol and razorflail, a surprisingly powerful weapon with both Brutal to overcome parries but also Flail, which makes it super-defensive by making each parry block two hits. What makes this all even more terrifying is the unique action they have that lets them fight an enemy twice so they can make short work of any foe. This then leads to their Brutal Display ability, which triggers when they kill an enemy to scare someone within 6"/pentagon, blocking them from performing objective actions.

They are classified as a Scout and Combat unit.

Skysplinter Assassin

A boy and his birb.

The team pet of a Kabalite Warrior kill team. The Skysplinter Assassin comes with a single trained Razorwing as the team's eyes and ears. The Razorwing itself is not harmless, as its razor-sharp feathers and talons allow this bird to peck their targets to death.

As effectively the long-range sniper of the team, the Skysplinter Assassin himself is armed with a Shardcarbine. The two work effectively together; the Razorwing scouts ahead and acts as a distraction to the target, whilst the Skysplinter Assassin takes aim and blows their heads off.

Their Corsair counterparts are Kurnite Hunters.

On the Kill-Team tabletop, Skysplinter Assassins are your basic goons equipped with a razorwing to point out key targets and peck them to death. Like the Corsair's bird-tamer, they can spend an action to mark a foe, but this is far simpler - all you need is to find an enemy that's visible and less than 2"/circle higher than them. The effect's the same though, treating an enemy that isn't behind heavy cover as having the Engage order. If you don't mark an enemy, you can use it as a rather flimsy ranged weapon that fortunately comes with Silent, Indirect and No Cover so you can shoot while hiding behind cover. The agent comes with a Shardcarbine, a variant of the Splinter Rifle that trades the extra damage on a crit for Ceaseless and MW2.

They are classified as a Scout and Marksman unit.

Gallery

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