A guide to the elf fleet in Kings of War: Armada

Chris Cowburn from the Kings of War: Armada RC is here with a guide to the latest fleet to hit the seas of Pannithor. Over to you Chris...

So, the Elves are the latest fleet to set sail in Armada. But, what can you expect from them?

First of all, let’s talk about their Fleet special rules; Masters of the Sea, and Elf-Sight. Masters of the Sea allows the Elven ships an additional yellow turn at the end of the first move step, meaning they are able to manoeuvre into position for that point blank stern rake, or can outmanoeuvre the enemy when fleeing for their lives! Elf-Sight means that the Elf ships don’t suffer the -1 modifier for shooting at targets over 10” away, as well as impacting the modifiers for firing indirect weapons.

What about the ships available to the Elf fleet? Well, they have 1 XL, 2 L, 1 M as Main ships, and then 1 M, 1 S and 1 T as support.

The Valandor is the XL ship. Being the pride of the Elven fleets, this is crewed by the Legends of Adar, meaning it comes with veteran crew included in its cost. Boasting a respectable CS, and a decent array of H and L weapons on its Broadsides, it’s a ship that can deal significant damage once it closes to point blank range of the enemy fleet, especially with the Veteran modifier for shooting, boarding actions and skill tests.

The Leafblade is the L option, and has alternate parts to make the unique Pride of Adar ship. Again, boasting respectable CS, and broadsides, they can also be a threat to ships up close. These ships also contain the only C weapons available as standard to the Elf fleet, so can unleash a nasty ranging shot as it closes in, before unleashing its Broadsides. These ships also come with a Kindred Bond special rule, as does the S Support ship – the Storm Chaser. This means that while a ship is within 8” of another ship with this rule, any skill tests they make are at an additional +1 modifier.

Onto the last of the Main ships, and it’s my personal favourite – the Drakon’s Fury. This is a nasty ship, designed to sail in close and unleash a devastating point-blank broadside before sailing away. It has the Fire of Retribution special rule, which has a chance of setting the enemy ship on fire if it sustained eight or more damage from a shooting attack.

The last ship I will mention, is the Argus Squadron. As with all the other fleets, the squadrons add benefits to the rest of the fleet. For Elves, the Argus Squadron allows a ship within 3” to increase or decrease the roll on the Critical hit table by 1, increasing the chance of getting a result with a higher damage output.

What about the Fliers? The Elves come with Drakon Riders, and a flying ship called the Cloudrunner. The Cloudrunner is fast, and has the Nimble special rule, meaning it can turn after only 3” of movement, making it easier to circle around for another pass on a weakened ship. The Drakon Riders are particularly nasty when attacking, as you’d expect, and increase all damage by 1 point.

Last thing to mention is some of the upgrades available to an Elven admiral. They can take the Thrennian Sea Guard upgrade, a defensive formation which reduces the CS of an enemy ship during boarding actions among other things.

Captain wise, they can take the legendary Madriga, a special character also available in Kings of War. Her special ability allows her ship to calculate the damage caused by a shooting attack from one weapon position as if it was at point blank range.

Lastly, they also have access to the Enchanted Bolt Thrower as their magical upgrade. This one ship adds 1 L weapon to the bow position. Any hits from the Enchanted Bolt Thrower automatically causes a Critical Hit!

If this whets your appetite, buy the Elf starter and/or booster to discover the full range of ships/abilities of the self-proclaimed Masters of the Sea.