Space Crusade: Eldar Attack
Space Crusade: Eldar Attack Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contents
- 10 finely detailed Citadel miniatures: 1 Eldar Exarch, 9 Eldar Warriors
- 16 Eldar weapons: 9 Shuriken Catapults, 2 Las-Cannons, 2 Shuriken Cannons, 2 Missile Launchers, 1 Shuriken Pistol, 1 Force Wall base, 1 Psychic Screen base
- 12 Eldar Equipment Cards
- 10 Eldar Exarch Skill and Equipment Cards
- 4 Eldar Order Cards
- 22 new Alien Event Cards
- 1 die-cut sheet containing: 1 Force Wall, 1 Psychic Screen, 8 Blip tokens, 1 Eldar Warrior Reference Chart
- 1 gameboard section
Assembly Instructions
First remove the plastic figures from their sprue. Take the Eldar Warrior figures and insert them into the plastic bases provided. Then insert the plastic weapon pieces into the holes in the front of the miniature as shown in Figure 1.
Next, carefully punch out the card pieces from the die-cut sheet. Take the Force Wall card piece and insert it into the oval plastic base as shown in Figure 2. (The Force Wall comes into play when the Eldar player uses the Force Wall Generator card.)
Then take the Psychic Screen card piece and slot it into the second base as shown in Figure 3.
The booklet's "Eldar history and background" section (page 4) is flavour text and is not transcribed.
Eldar in Space Crusade
Eldar Attack provides players with a new race of warriors to battle the forces of the warp and gives an opportunity to play Space Crusade with two players on a more even level. The struggle between the Eldar and the Forces of Chaos makes an ideal two-player game although the Eldar can also be used in the main game.
Eldar Characteristics
| Eldar Warriors | |
|---|---|
| Armour | 2 |
| Move | 7/3 spaces |
| Life Points | 1 |
| Hand to Hand Combat | 3 light weapons dice |
The Eldar are a very graceful race combining speed and artistry with deadly fighting skills. They move faster in combat situations having a movement of 7 spaces. However, those Eldar carrying heavy weapons lose this rapid movement and can only move at a rate of 3 spaces per turn. Their heightened reactions and formidable close combat weapons give them an edge in hand to hand combat, allowing them to roll three light weapons dice.
Eldar Squads and Tactics
All Eldar are trained as Warriors from a young age, even though many may one day follow a different profession. Although they are essentially a peaceful race, in times of war the Eldar don their ritual armour and are transformed into highly effective killing machines.
The standard weapon of Eldar Warriors is the Shuriken Catapult. A full squad of ten Eldar will also carry up to six heavy weapons, including Shuriken Cannons, Missile Launchers and Las-Cannons and will be led by an Eldar Exarch. Eldar Warriors have good ranged and close combat capabilities too and are able to fight very effectively in either situation.
All Eldar are psychically adept to a limited extent, but only a few have the strength of will needed to develop psychic mastery. These Eldar are known as Seers, and they control their powers with the aid of special runes made from Wraithbone, a solidified form of warp energy. They also make use of Spirit Stones which contain the spirits of dead Eldar Seers who protect the wearer from the dangers of the warp.
Eldar forces are often backed up by special Seers known as Warlocks, who use their powers to watch over the warriors, casting the runes to determine the best course of action and engraving runes of protection and guidance on their equipment.
Eldar Weapons
Shuriken Catapult
This is the Eldar Warrior's standard weapon. The catapult fires a burst of small star-shaped projectiles with a mono-molecular cutting edge, using a gravity based firing mechanism. An Eldar using a Shuriken Catapult may roll 2 light weapons dice.
Shuriken Cannon
This is a larger and far more powerful version of the standard Shuriken Catapult. It has a far greater rate of fire and its projectiles fly at a higher velocity. The Shuriken Cannon's great rate of fire allows it to score several hits on a single target. As a result, an Eldar firing a Shuriken Cannon may attack three times using one heavy weapons die and one light weapons die against up to three targets, resolving each shot separately. These attacks may be divided up before and after the attacking Eldar's movement – for example he could fire two shots, move and then fire once more.
Example: In the first diagram (ELDAR SHOOTS GRETCHIN), an Eldar Warrior armed with a Shuriken Cannon knows that there is an Android around the next corner, but there are also two Gretchin blocking his path. On his turn, the Eldar Warrior shoots one Gretchin and eliminates him by rolling two '1's. He then uses his move to pass the other Gretchin and come within line of sight of the Android. He then uses his next shot on the Android, scoring a '3' and a '1' and destroys it. Finally, he fires at the second Gretchin, but rolls two '0's and fails to destroy it.
(Second diagram, ELDAR MOVES & SHOOTS ANDROID, shows the Eldar moving into line of sight of the Android before firing.)
Las-Cannon
The Las-Cannon may fire two shots in one turn. Both shots must be fired either before or after the Eldar miniature moves. For example, an Eldar may not fire one shot, move and then fire his remaining shot.
Each shot of the Las-Cannon affects an area of four squares as illustrated below. But only the squares to which the firing Eldar can trace a direct line of sight will be affected.
Each time you fire the Las-Cannon, roll a heavy weapons die: each and every miniature in the affected squares will be attacked with the score rolled.
You may also decide to concentrate one or more shots onto the same area. In this case, you may roll up to two heavy weapons dice in one attack; the total scored by all dice will determine what effect your attack has in the target area.
Example: The player with the Las-Cannon moves two spaces then decides to fire his first shot at the lighter shaded area. He rolls a '2' and applies that score to each of the Gretchin in the area: he eliminates three of the Gretchin, but the fourth Gretchin is not eliminated because, although he stands within the area normally affected by a Las-Cannon shot, the Eldar firing cannot trace a straight line of sight to that particular square. Since the Eldar has already moved and there are no more targets in sight, he may not fire his second shot and his turn ends.
(The accompanying diagram, ELDAR MOVES & SHOOTS GRETCHIN, shows this situation.)
Missile Launcher
The Eldar Missile Launcher works in exactly the same way as the Space Marine Missile Launcher (see page 13 in the main game rule book).
Eldar Exarchs
| Eldar Exarch | |
|---|---|
| Armour | 2 |
| Move | 7 spaces |
| Life Points | special |
| Hand to Hand Combat | 3 light weapons dice |
| Ranged | 2 light weapons dice (may fire twice in one turn) |
The Eldar Exarch epitomises the Eldar fighting spirit. The Exarchs are held in awe by the Eldar Warriors they lead because of their single-minded dedication to the arts of combat. Swift and deadly, they make formidable opponents unarmed, and once armed with the most potent of Eldar weaponry, they are practically invincible.
Life Points
Exarchs do not have multiple life points. Instead they have a number of special Exarch cards which give them skills and equipment. Each time an Exarch suffers body damage, he must discard one card of his choice for each point of damage inflicted. Discarded cards cannot be used again during the mission being played.
Once an Exarch has lost all his cards, he is counted as having just one life point – like the rank and file Eldar Warriors – and he may be killed by taking damage in the normal way. An Exarch may replenish his cards between missions.
Exarch Skills and Equipment
Before beginning a mission, an Exarch must choose five Exarch cards from the ten available. These are:
- Psychic Focus
- Dire-sword
- Trance of Indestructibility
- Telekinesis
- Crack Shot
- Mighty Strike
- Bounding Leap
- Distraction
- Mental Projection
- Sustained Assault
All Exarchs are armed with a standard Force Sword and Shuriken Pistol combination. The Force Sword gives them a high close combat rating while the Shuriken Pistol allows them to attack in ranged combat twice in a turn. An Exarch may divide the shots before and after his move if he wishes and he may shoot at two different targets. Each shot is resolved separately.
Boarding a Space Hulk
Thanks to their great psychic powers, Eldar squads are able to move through Space Hulks unseen until they need to go into action. This is because they can create a Psychic Blinding Screen which they project from the Craftworld.
The Psychic Screen allows a squad of Eldar Warriors to move slowly through an area without being detected. However, as soon as they have registered life readings, the squad must leave this protective screen and start its mission. The Psychic Screen stays in place where the squad left it and remains there until the Eldar have carried out their mission and returned to its concealing depths.
At the beginning of a mission, the Eldar player should place his Psychic Screen entrance piece on the entrance board designated in the mission. On his turn, the Eldar Warriors move straight out of the Psychic Screen, beginning their move on the square in front of the screen.
From the moment the first Eldar has moved out of the Psychic Screen, the Alien player may place any Blip tokens he wishes onto that board.
When an Eldar squad has completed its mission, each and every Eldar must move back through the Psychic Screen in order to end the mission. No other figure may move through a Psychic Screen.
Eldar Campaign Game
Due to their sophisticated nature, the Eldar do not tend to bestow awards such as medals or badges on successful Exarchs. A promotion structure is something alien to the Eldar. If an Eldar Warrior has proved himself brave, he earns himself honour rather than promotion. A normal Eldar Warrior will by no means automatically go on to be an Exarch, for only those Eldar who can turn all their inner thoughts and concentration to the art of war become Exarchs.
Exarchs therefore advance in terms of recognition and respect, rather than rank, although they do gain more skills and are presented with ancestral weapons by their Warlocks.
However, to represent the growing recognition and respect an Exarch will receive in Space Crusade, the following table of recognition levels and rewards has been included.
| Recognition Level | Equipment Cards | Exarch Cards | Order Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| AVENGER | 4 | 5 | 1 |
| EXECUTIONER | 4 | 6 | 1 |
| DARK STALKER | 5 | 6 | 2 |
| NEMESIS | 5 | 7 | 2 |
| AVATAR | 6 | 7 | 3 |
Once an Exarch has become known as an Avatar, he can progress no further. If he gains any more recognition he must leave to join one of the higher spiritual groups or follow one of the other Warrior paths. At this point, your Exarch must leave the game and you must begin with a new Avenger Exarch.
Each Eldar Warrior is worth 5 points to the Eldar and the Alien's Combat Effectiveness Rating score. Any Eldar with a heavy weapon is worth 10 points, as is an Eldar Exarch.
Eldar Missions
Eldar Attack is specifically designed to allow a two-player game of Space Crusade where the balance of power is evenly split between the Eldar player's ten warrior squads with their heavy weapons and the might of the Alien player. In each of the two-player missions, the Eldar player receives the full ten-warrior complement, while the Alien player receives alien forces in the same way as the Space Crusade main missions.
The missions in this book are set out in the same way as those in Space Crusade except for a few additions:
- Each mission will list the weapons available for the Eldar squad. The Eldar player can only select weapons for his squad from this list.
- Each mission map will show the Eldar symbol next to one of the four gameboards. The Eldar player sets up his Psychic Screen on the space shown by the Eldar symbol on the Mission map.
- There is a new pack of Alien Event Cards. These are designed for use with one-to-one Eldar missions but can be used in multi-squad missions as demonstrated in Mission Four of this book.
The Eldar player gains points in a mission in exactly the same way as normal Marines do. At the end of a mission they should refer to their own Combat Effectiveness Rating Table which appears on the back cover of this book.
Missions to Recover Equipment
Some of the new missions involve finding and recovering certain pieces of equipment. The two Equipment tokens are marked with the word "Equipment" on one side but look like ordinary Blip tokens when placed face down on the gameboard. In the missions concerned, the Alien player may secretly position an Equipment token on the gameboard and move it up to five spaces in a turn in the same way as ordinary Blip tokens. Once the equipment token is revealed, it may no longer move.
When an Eldar or Marine player lands on an Equipment token, he may place his Warrior or Marine miniatures over it and move the Equipment token simultaneously. If that figure is killed, the token remains face up on the board where it finished, until another Eldar or Marine picks it up by landing on it.
Eldar Combat Effectiveness Table
Printed on the back cover of the booklet.
10 Warrior Squad
| Points Scored | Award |
|---|---|
| 25 or less | You have disappointed your ancestors and disgraced yourself. You must abandon the Path of the Warrior and commit yourself to a less demanding Path. In your next game you must start off with a new Avenger Exarch. |
| 26–40 | A brave performance but you have not impressed your ancestors. You must do better on your next mission. |
| 41–60 | An impressive performance – the soul gems sing your praises. You gain one level of recognition. |
| 61 or more | A momentous victory for the Eldar race. You gain 2 levels of recognition. |
5 Warrior Squad
| Points Scored | Award |
|---|---|
| 15 or less | You have disappointed your ancestors and disgraced yourself. You must abandon the Path of the Warrior and commit yourself to a less demanding Path. In your next game you must start off with a new Avenger Exarch. |
| 16–30 | A brave performance but you have not impressed your ancestors. You must do better on your next mission. |
| 31–50 | An impressive performance – the soul gems sing your praises. You gain one level of recognition. |
| 51 or more | A momentous victory for the Eldar race. You gain 2 levels of recognition. |
Mission One
Mission 849/2 – Sector 66 – Retrieval
The remains of a lost squad of Eldar Warriors have been detected by our psi scanners in sector 66 of Space Hulk code name Denubius. You must enter this hulk, locate any Eldar Runic weapons hidden therein and return them to the Craftworld.
The Primary Mission token will be awarded to the Eldar player if he finds the Equipment token and returns through the Psychic Screen with it.
Eldar Equipment: 8 Shuriken Catapults, 1 Las-Cannon, 1 Shuriken Cannon, 1 Missile Launcher.
Blips: All Blip tokens and the Equipment token, except the Androids and the Dreadnought.
Reinforcements: All Reinforcement tokens except the Dreadnought.
(The mission page shows the gameboard layout, with the Eldar Psychic Screen entrance, the Equipment token location and the Eldar symbol. The map diagram is not transcribed.)
Mission Two
Mission 683/34 – Sector 357 – Retreat Through Enemy Lines
During your mission, a warp storm has disrupted your Psychic Screen. Craftworld Saim-hann has generated a new screen but it can only be projected into the next sector. You must fight your way through growing Alien forces to the new Psychic Screen.
The Primary Mission token will be awarded to the Eldar player if he gets to the Psychic Screen with at least five men including his Exarch.
Eldar Equipment: 4 Shuriken Catapults, 2 Las-Cannons, 2 Shuriken Cannons, 2 Missile Launchers.
Blips: All Blip tokens.
Reinforcements: All Reinforcement tokens except the Dreadnought.
(The mission page shows the gameboard layout, with the Eldar Psychic Screen entrance and the Eldar symbol at the far end of the map. The map diagram is not transcribed.)
Mission Three
Primary Mission
Mission 877/4 – Sector 391 – Search and Destroy
Our Pre-Cognitive Psychics have predicted the appearance of a Warp Entity which takes over intelligent machines. These are aboard a Space Hulk travelling towards populated space. You must board this Hulk and neutralise the creature before it grows by destroying any Androids or Dreadnoughts on board.
The Primary Mission token will be awarded to the Eldar player if he manages to destroy all eight Androids and the Dreadnought.
Eldar Equipment: All weapons available.
Blips: All Blip tokens.
Reinforcements: All Reinforcement tokens except the Dreadnought.
(The mission page shows the gameboard layout and the Eldar symbol. The map diagram is not transcribed.)
Mission Four
Primary Mission
Mission 647/5 – Sector 99
An ancient and invaluable warp tunnel navigational computer has been detected on board Space Hulk 669 code name Demonicus. This technology will provide its captors with a great advantage – the ability to reveal long forgotten warp tunnels – and bring great honour to those who capture it. You must be the first to find this computer and return safely with it.
The Primary Mission token will be won by the player who captures the Equipment blip and returns to his base with it.
This mission is designed for five players and introduces the Eldar into multi-player Space Crusade. One player is the Alien player, three others take one Marine Squad each and a fifth takes a five-man Eldar squad with one Exarch and four Warriors. The game is played as normal except that the Alien player may take one card from the top of both Alien Event decks at the beginning of his turn.
Eldar Equipment: 4 Shuriken Catapults, 1 Las-Cannon, 1 Shuriken Cannon, 1 Missile Launcher.
Blips: All Blip tokens and the Equipment token.
Reinforcements: All Reinforcement tokens.
(The mission page shows the gameboard layout, with the Eldar symbol and the four base entrance symbols along the bottom edge. The map diagram is not transcribed.)