Wargear: Blades, Armor, and Technology of the Eldar
The eldar possess a wide array of powerful ranged weaponry, but this does not mean that they have neglected close-ranged combat. Over the millennia, they have developed a number of mighty close-combat weapons, some of which may well have inspired similar human designs.
Like humans, the eldar are known for using chainswords and power weaponry. Unsurprisingly, their weapons tend to be much lighter and better-made than their Imperial equivalents, magnifying the user’s strength to a much greater degree.
The psychic might of the eldar means that they field a wide array of force weapons on the field of battle. Farseers and Warlocks both use ancient witchblades, which can cleave armor as though it didn’t exist and slay even the mightiest of foes. Warlocks are also known for wielding a weapon called the Singing Spear, which has similar properties, but can also be thrown and guaranteed to return to the wielder’s hand via their psychic link with the weapon.
Eldar who have lost themselves on their chosen path of war become Exarchs, embodiments of their Aspect until death. Exarchs are equipped with the most sacred wargear of their Aspects, including a wide array of melee weapons too numerous to list here without slipping into tedium. Most of them are some variation of power weapon, sometimes combined with ranged weaponry to give the Exarch incredible flexibility on the battlefield.
The greatest of all eldar melee weapons is carried by avatars of the god of war himself. Varying in form between sword, axe, maul, or spear, the Wailing Doom is a weapon of tremendous power capable of firing an energy blast equivalent to that of a meltagun. The Avatar of Khaine that wields the Wailing Doom is the most hallowed warrior of the Craftworlds, a being to be honored and feared even by its allies.
The eldar protect themselves with bodysuits that link to the wearer’s own mind to inhibit movement as little as possible. The armor is reactive, stiffening in response to strikes to protect the wearer; Aspect Warrior armor is supplemented with molded plates to provide greater protection. The heaviest armor is worn by Exarchs, though even their armor is light compared to that of other species. The eldar are also known for using a wide array of force fields.
The eldar have their own variety of grenades, most used by the wing-wearing Swooping Hawk Aspect Warriors. Plasma grenades are used for the same purposes as Imperial fragmentation grenades, and the haywire grenade is used to disable enemy technology with an EMP pulse.
Perhaps the most dramatic piece of eldar technology, though, is their control over gravity. No longer bound by even that basic physical force, the eldar have put this to use, for all eldar vehicles are capable of flying above the battlefield like death-bearing eagles. These vehicles, though generally lightly armored, are fast, deadly, and capable of wreaking devastation on the battlefield…
