TEXT: The Craftworlds
  Craftworlds, though spacecraft,
  are vast beyond
  comprehension. They are not merely huge capital ships
  ploughing through space with a surrounding escort of
  smaller vessels. They are not even akin to vast cities, as
  some of the largest star forts of the Imperium might be
  considered, but rather are immense spacefaring worlds
  accompanied by vast armadas, the likes of which might
  otherwise be set aside to defend an entire system or even
  sub-sector. Whole battlefleets cluster around key points
  and stations all across the thousands of miles of the
  craftworld’s exterior as smaller, nimbler craft rush and
  surge across its surface in a constant shimmering patrol.
  Beneath this dizzying tide of vessels, under clear
  crystalline domes through which ground and stars might
  gaze upon one another, the Eldar live their lives aboard
  these spaceborne worlds. Since the Fall of their race and
  the decline of their empire, those Eldar who seek to
  continue their ancient way of life have done so aboard
  these craftworlds, on an aeons long course across the
  galaxy, as much in flight as in search of any kind of
  destination, for the Eldar race is a dying one, and even the
  exodus of these great craftworlds will do little to avert
  that.
  The Webway
  With such gargantuan vessels at their control, it may seem
  surprising that the Eldar rely upon a fleet at all, but the
  craftworlds should not be considered ships in any real
  sense of the word. Mobile they may be, but their own vast
  size makes them far too massive and cumbersome a
  proposition to involve directly in any fighting. Instead a
  craftworld’s army must be delivered to distant battles by
  means of the warfleets of the Eldar, and more specifically
  by the Eldar’s ancient Webway.
  The Webway is a legacy from the days when the Eldar
  ruled the galaxy from the many trading ships which would
  later form the beginnings of the craftworlds themselves. In
  these merchant vessels the Eldar journeyed across the
  galaxy through a series of intricately connected warp
  tunnels, returning to real space by means of warp portals
  or ‘wraithgates’ which the Eldar had seeded across the
  stars. By means of this Webway the Eldar could move
  almost unhindered throughout the galaxy. It is still this
  same ancient system which the Eldar use when moving
  their armies to war.
  The Webway is not perfect, however, and the birth of the
  Great Enemy, Slaanesh, did much to make its use
  hazardous to the
  Eldar.
  Many portals had to
  be
  permanently sealed to prevent the forces of Chaos spilling
  from the Warp, and the millenia of struggle which the
  Eldar have since endured continues to diminish the once
  great extent of their Webway.
  The Craftworld at War
  It is possible for an Eldar to simply traverse the Webway on
  foot, moving directly from a craftworld to a wraithgate on
  some far distant world. Such portals, however, are
  invariably far too small to quickly deploy an entire army,
  and hence such methods are used by few amongst the
  Eldar – only the Rangers, the Harlequins and other distant
  wanderers tread these slender paths.
  On occasion however, the Eldar’s destiny will draw them
  to fight on a world disconnected from the Webway by the
  millenia of tragedy which have befallen the Eldar. The
  Eldar warhosts may be dispatched aboard vast wings of
  Eldar attack craft – Vampire Raiders and the like – which
  are able to ferry susbstantial forces rapidly via the Webway.
  At other times, a force so vast may be required that the
  aircraft and skimmers of the Eldar army itself are
  insufficient. It is at such times that the Eldar battlefleets
  will be readied.
  The warhosts of the Eldar will assemble aboard the fleet,
  which will then depart the craftworld, itself using the
  webway. As such, a craftworld’s docks are not really simple
  holding areas for its fleet, but rather they are immense
  wraithgates attached to the craftworld itself from where
  the fleet may enter the Webway. Such a fleet is then able to
  exit the Webway by another point elsewhere in the depths
  of space using are the largest of the Eldar’s wraithgates –
  portals so sizeable that whole fleets may emerge from
  them when activated.
  6
  DOOM OF THE ELDAR
  Although Eldar Corsairs are a constant threat to merchant shipping, they very rarely pose a major
  threat to Imperial battlefleets. The same cannot be said of the dozens of fleets of Eldar ships that
  protect each Eldar Craftworld. Each of these Craftworld warfleets is a deadly and highly potent force
  that is capable of laying waste to an entire sub-sector.
  by Matt Keefe
  Fan03_06-19  3/4/04  7:29 Page 6
  
  These journeys may bring a fleet into orbit directly around
  their chosen destination, or it may be necessary for them
  to emerge some distance away, but either way the pace of
  which Eldar vessels are capable of moving means they will
  descend upon their target very swiftly indeed. Eldar fleets
  employ the Webway in this manner in order to launch
  horrifyingly sudden attacks upon unsuspecting enemy
  vessels, emerging from the Warp while their enemy
  remains unready and ill-prepared for battle.
  When it is the Eldar’s will to attack a world, the emerging
  fleet will take up position around their chosen planet as
  quickly as possible. The largest craft in an Eldar warfleet
  possess internal wraithgates, through which they can
  swiftly deploy their armies to the ground while at the same
  time providing orbital support and further landings from
  their notoriously fast attack craft. If the world to be
  attacked no longer possesses any viable warp portals, the
  Eldar will instead descend upon it in a howling flock of
  Vampire
  Raiders,
  Phoenix bombers and
  Nightwing
  fighters, tearing apart their enemies so rapidly that
  defence is all but an impossibility.
  A craftworld’s course is also aided greatly by the many
  wraithgates spread across the stars. As a craftworld’s Seers
  scrye out its course, small shoals of Shadowhunters move
  far ahead through the Webway, hunting out potential
  enemies and scouring the way clear. If encountered,
  enemy fleets or patrols who may present a danger to the
  craftworld’s safe passage will likely find themselves the
  unsuspecting targets of the Eldar’s powerful warships
  long before even becoming aware of the craftworld’s
  imminent arrival.
  The Eldar Warfleets
  The sheer size of a craftworld means that each individual
  vessel possesses several full battlefleets, stationed at
  convenient points along the craftworld as it journeys
  through space. Each fleet might typically number from ten
  to twenty warships and is commanded by an Eldar
  Admiral, though it will inevitably also rely greatly on
  advice and counsel from the craftworld’s Seers. The
  vessels themselves are crewed by those Eldar who have
  chosen the Path of the Mariner, symbolised by the blue
  and white feathered birds of Eldar myth who guide the
  Eldar southward and westward over the seas. Helmsmen
  and Wayfarers, dedicated specialists within this path, each
  provide their own valuable skills as part of a vessel’s crew,
  allowing the Eldar to navigate the Webway with a mastery
  unknown to most.
  The Shadowhunter patrols usually remain independent of
  these battlefleets, moving to and fro about the craftworld
  as they please. These smaller vessels lack the dedicated
  crews of the larger capital ships and are often crewed by
  those Guardians who were once embarked upon the Path
  of the Mariner. The compact size and customary agility of
  these sleek escorts allows them to approach much closer
  to the craftworld than would be expected for true
  spacecraft. Shadowhunters put these unique traits to good
  use as they defend the craftworld’s delicate wraithbone
  exterior from encroaching asteroids or space junk which
  might be attracted by the force of gravity, blasting such
  interlopers into pieces small enough to rain harmlessly
  down on the craftworld below. At other times the
  Shadowhunters can be seen playfully stalking the Eldar
  fighters which patrol the craftworld’s lower atmosphere,
  tracking and chasing the smaller vessels with a precision
  unthinkable for escort sized vessels. As need dictates,
  small groups of Shadowhunters will eschew their normal
  role, band together and join their larger counterparts in
  defence of the craftworld.
  7
  The new Eldar fleet in all it’s glory 
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  ELDAR LEADERSHIP
  All Eldar ships add +1 to the Leadership score generated
  on the Leadership table on page 10, giving them a
  Leadership value between 7 and 10.
  Due to their unique method of movement, the Eldar may
  not use the following special orders: All Ahead Full, Burn
  Retros, Come To New Heading. Note: because Eldar ships
  cannot use All Ahead Full special orders, they also may not
  ram.
  ELDAR SHIP MOVEMENT
  The movement rules below replace the normal movement
  rules for Eldar ships. Assume anything not modified below
  applies normally to the Eldar. Eldar ships move in their
  Movement phase and in the Ordnance phase of their own
  turn. Note that they do not move in the Ordnance phase
  of the enemy’s turn.
  Before an Eldar ship moves, it may turn to face any
  direction. It always turns before it moves and then
  remains facing in that direction until the start of its next
  move.
  Work out the speed an Eldar ship can move at after it has
  turned. Its speed depends on its facing towards the
  sunward table edge. All Eldar ships have three speeds (for
  example, 10/20/30). The first is used if the sunward table
  edge is in the Eldar ship’s front fire arc; the second is used
  if the sunward table edge is in its rear fire arc; and the
  third is used if the sunward table edge is in its left or right
  fire arcs. If the sunward table edge lies on the line
  between two fire arcs, the Eldar player may choose which
  he uses.
  Eldar ships have no minimum move distances. They move
  from zero up to the maximum distance allowed by the
  direction of the sun. After their initial turn they travel in a
  straight line and may not make additional turns as they
  move.
  A Hellebore class escort has Speed 10/20/30. At the start of
  its move, it turns in the direction shown, so that the
  sunward table edge is in its left fire arc. This gives it a
  speed of 30cm. It can then move up to 30cm straight
  ahead.
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  CRAFTWORLD ELDAR SPECIAL RULES
  8
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  As noted above, the Eldar move twice in each of their
  turns. The second move is made in the Ordnance phase
  after any ordnance is moved, but apart from this all the
  rules described for Eldar movement will apply.
  BLAST MARKERS AND GRAVITY WELLS
  Eldar are affected by Blast markers in the same way as
  other ships without shields – they will take a point of
  damage on a D6 roll of 6 and reduce their speed by 5cm
  that turn. Gravity wells allow Eldar to curve their normally
  straight line move around the planet and so the ship may
  make a free turn towards the planet at the end of its move
  (since it can turn in any direction at the start, there is no
  additional benefit at the start of its move).
  HOLOFIELDS
  Against attacks that use the Gunnery table, the holo-fields
  cause one column shift to the right, in addition to any
  other column shifts for range or Blast markers. Against any
  other form of attack (lances, torpedoes, etc), roll to hit an
  Eldar ship as normal, but the Eldar player may then make
  a saving roll for his holo-fields:
  Note that holo-fields do not negate hits from moving
  through Blast markers, exploding ships and celestial
  phenomena. They do, however, work against ordnance
  hits, hit-and-run raids, boarding actions, ramming or Nova
  cannon.
  Eldar Weapons
  Eldar ships carry three main weapon systems which are
  described below:
  Pulsar Lance
  Pulsar lances fire volleys of high energy laser bolts. These
  count as lance shots, and hit on a 4+ no matter what the
  target’s armour. However, if a pulsar lance shot hits, then
  you may roll to hit again and you may keep on rolling to
  hit until you miss or the lance has scored a total of 3 hits.
  Weapon Batteries
  Eldar weapons batteries are short-ranged weapons that
  unleash a torrent of fire. They employ sophisticated
  targeting systems which make them very accurate even at
  extreme angles of attack. To represent their accuracy,
  Eldar weapons batteries count all targets as ‘closing’ on
  the Gunnery table, no matter what the target’s actual
  aspect is. This aside, all the normal rules apply.
  D6
  Result
  1
  Hit! Score a hit on the Eldar ship
  2-6
  Missed! Place a Blast marker in contact with
  the ship.
  9
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  10
  Eldar Critical Hits table
  EXTRA
  2D6 DAMAGE RESULT
  2
  +0
  Infinity circuit damaged. The ship’s
  infinity circuit, which aids control and
  internal communications, is damaged by
  the hit. The ship’s Leadership is reduced
  by -1 until the damage can be repaired.
  3
  +0
  Keel armament damaged. The keel
  armament is taken off line by the hit and
  may not fire until it has been repaired.
  4
  +0
  Prow armament damaged. The ship’s
  prow is ripped open. Its prow armament
  may not fire until it has been repaired.
  5
  +0
  Mast lines severed. The systems that
  allow the ship to alter the angle of the sails
  and turn swiftly are broken by the hit.
  Until the damage is repaired, the ship may
  only turn up to 90° before it moves.
  6
  +0
  Mainsail scarred. The ship’s main solar
  sail suffers surface damage, reducing the
  amount of energy it can store. Each of the
  ship’s speeds is reduced by 5cm until the
  sail is repaired.
  7
  +1
  Superstructure damaged. The hit tears
  into the ship, causing a small breach.
  Excess strain on the ship’s hull could
  increase the damage. Until the damage is
  repaired, roll a dice every time the ship
  turns over 45°. On a roll of 1, the ship
  suffers 1 extra point of damage.
  8
  +0
  Mainsail shredded. The solar cells of the
  mainsail are torn to tatters by the hit. The
  ship cannot move in the Ordnance phase
  until the damage is repaired.
  9
  +1
  Infinity circuit smashed. The fine crystal
  matrix of the infinity circuit is shattered by
  the hit. The ship’s Leadership is reduced
  by -3. This damage may not be repaired.
  10
  +0
  Holo-field generators destroyed. The
  holo-field generators are smashed beyond
  repair by the hit. The ship no longer
  benefits from its holo-fields. This damage
  may not be repaired.
  11
  +D3
  Hull breach. A huge gash is torn in the
  ship’s hull, causing carnage among the
  crew.
  12
  +D6
  Bulkhead collapse. Internal pillars buckle
  and twist, whole compartments crumple
  with a scream of tortured metal, just pray
  that some of the ship holds together.
  Torpedoes
  Eldar torpedoes use sophisticated targeter scrambling
  systems to make themselves virtually undetectable until
  they strike. To represent this, defensive turrets only hit
  Eldar torpedoes on a roll of 6, rather than on a roll of 4,
  5, or 6 as is normally the case.
  In addition, the highly accurate targeting sensors on Eldar
  torpedoes allow you to re-roll the dice to hit for any
  torpedo that misses a target on the first attempt.
  Phantom Lance
  Although larger capital ships employ the powerful Pulsar
  lance, the vast energy arrays required to power such
  weaponry are far too large to be mounted on the
  necessarily swift and nimble Shadowhunters. Instead,
  smaller Eldar vessels are armed with the Phantom lance –
  a less powerful version of the same Eldar laser technology.
  Phantom lances count as typical lances in every respect
  (ie. no multiple shots).
  Aspect Warrior Fighting Crews
  Unlike Eldar Pirates, who rely on the same self-serving
  rogues who crew their ships to conduct raids and
  boarding actions, Eldar craftworld vessels are able to go to
  war carrying hosts of Eldar Aspect Warriors who form
  fighting crews aboard their ships. Many of the Aspect
  Warrior shrines excel at the kind of rapid assaults which
  are ideally suited to teleport and other hit-and-run attacks
  and hence specialise in attacking enemy vessels in this
  manner. Certain ships in an Eldar fleet are permitted to
  carry Aspect Warrior Fighting Crews as chosen from the
  fleet list. Ships with Aspect Warrior Fighting Crews add +2
  to their dice roll when fighting in a boarding action, or +1
  to the dice roll when conducting a hit-and-run attack
  (normally a teleport attack, since the Eldar do not have
  access to boarding torpedoes or assault boats).
  ELDAR CRITICAL HITS
  Any hit on an Eldar ship causes critical damage on a D6
  roll of 4+, rather than the usual 6+. Roll 2D6 on the
  following Eldar Critical Hits table, rather than the
  standard Critical Hits table.
  “Those Eldar ships were all over us. I’ve never seen anything
  move quite like them. They’d rush in and hit us with
  volleys of laser fire and missiles, and then they’d keel over
  and be away before we could engage them properly. They
  didn’t have shields like our void shields, and there ships
  were fragile too, so if we could hit we’d do them some
  serious damage. But our augers just couldn’t get a proper fix
  on them, so hitting them wasn’t easy, not easy at all. If the
  rest of the flotilla hadn’t got back when it did, I think
  we’d have been doomed.”
  Captain Steinback, After Action Report
  Fan03_06-19  3/4/04  7:30  Page 10
  
  11
  Thousands of years ago Eldar civilisation was all but
  destroyed in a catastrophe brought about by their own
  decadent hedonism, the only survivors fleeing from their
  planets in giant space vessels known as craftworlds.
  Iyanden was the largest of all of the Eldar craftworlds and
  its people the most numerous. It drifted serenely through
  the void of space, far away from the inhabited planets of
  other races.
  Then,
  from
  out of the
  darkness of
  intergalactic space exploded the Tyranids, and lyanden
  became the scene of the Eldar’s first encounter with the
  Tyranid Swarm, the all-consuming menace whose locust-
  like advance through the galaxy has since enveloped
  hundreds of human worlds.
  The first warning the Eldar of Iyanden had of their fate
  was brought by the craftworld’s far roaming Rangers,
  Eldar whose instincts drive them to a life of exploration
  and danger, and who secretly monitor the planets and
  alien races near their craftworld. The news that the
  Rangers brought was dire: a Tyranid hive fleet of immense
  proportions was heading towards Iyanden Craftworld.
  Already over a
  dozen
  Imperial
  planets had
  been
  consumed in the Tyranid’s advance and, although the
  Imperium was mounting furious counter-attacks as and
  when it could, it would be months until a major Imperial
  taskforce could be mobilised to deal with the threat. By
  then Iyanden would have been overrun.
  Farseer Kelmon, leader and spiritual head of the
  craftworld, called together the Eldar of Iyanden and
  warned them of the impending Tyranid assault. Each Eldar
  craftworld has a great hall, known as the Place of
  Answering, which is capable of holding every member of
  the craftworld. At times of crisis the Eldar meet there, so
  that all may know of the peril that faces their craftworld,
  and so that any Eldar may voice an opinion on the course
  of action that should be taken. Only once all views have
  been debated, and a consensus of opinion reached, will
  the craftworld’s Farseer decide on the course of action to
  be taken.
  The debate on the action to take against the Tyranid hive
  fleet was heated and prolonged. The more conservative
  elements of the craftworld argued for a policy of isolation,
  shielding the craftworld behind a powerful psychic shield
  in an attempt to avoid all contact with the Tyranids. The
  more aggressive elements wanted to attack the Tyranids
  immediately, dispatching the fleet to destroy the Tyranids
  before they reached the craftworld.
  Both courses of action were deeply flawed, however,
  because they took no account of the sheer size of the
  Tyranid Swarm. It took a powerful speech from the Ranger
  Irilith, who had seen the hive fleet at first hand and
  understood the terrible threat that it represented. For
  over an hour she drove home to all present that the hive
  fleet was too large to hide from, or for the Eldar fleet to
  defeat on its own. It would take the combined efforts of
  every Eldar on Iyanden to have any chance of turning back
  the Tyranids. Even then they might not succeed in
  defeating the alien menace.
  A hush fell on the Hall as Irilith finished her speech. No
  more needed to be said, for all the Eldar present now
  realised the sheer enormity of the task ahead.
  Farseer Kelmon rose and ordered that the Eldar prepare
  the defences of lyanden Craftworld. All elements of the
  fleet would be recalled, and every single Eldar must take on
  the Warrior Aspect of Warlock, Guardian or Aspect Warrior.
  The entire gigantic craftworld would be fortified, for there
  could be no doubt that the Tyranids would breach their
  outer defences and land on the ship. Help must be
  requested from the other Eldar craftworlds. The Avatar, the
  embodied spirit of the craftworld’s War God, must be
  awakened to take part in the battle. And, most terrible of
  all, all of the craftworld’s ancient spirit stones must be
  plucked from their resting places and implanted in metal
  fighting bodies to battle as Ghost Warriors. When an Eldar
  dies their spirit is released into a gem known as a spirit
  stone, which is grafted into the very structure of their
  craftworld to preserve the dead Eldar’s consciousness.
  Thus, each Craftworld is a living thing which preserves a
  little of the once great Eldar civilisation. By risking the
  destruction of the craftworld’s spirit stones, Kelmon risked
  the destruction of lyanden’s culture and racial memory. It
  was a grave chance to take, but Kelmon knew that the
  Ghost Warriors could make the difference between victory
  and defeat in the struggle that was coming.
  The first Tyranid Hive Swarms attacked Iyanden just
  twenty days later. By then the craftworld had already been
  isolated for over a week by a Tyranid psychic blockade
  which made it extremely difficult for the other Eldar
  craftworlds to send help. Apart from a few scattered units
  that made it through, Iyanden would be fighting the
  Tyranids on its own. Nonetheless, the first Tyranid waves
  were dealt with easily and efficiently by the Eldar fleet.
  The Eldar’s spacecraft were faster, more manoeuvrable
  and had longer ranged weapon than their opponents. In
  battle after battle the Eldar spacecraft destroyed the
  lumbering hive ships while only suffering minimal
  casualties themselves. For a while it looked as if the fleet
  might be able to hold off the Tyranids on its own, as wave
  THE TYRANID INVASION
  OF IYANDEN CRAFTWORLD, 992.M41
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  12
  after wave of Tyranids were wiped out. But Farseer
  Kelmon was not convinced. Already the ability of the
  craftworld’s forges to replace destroyed Eldar spacecraft
  was being outstripped by the casualties being suffered in
  the deep space battles that raged around the Craftworld.
  The Eldar fleet was being ground down in a massive battle
  of attrition; a battle that only the Tyranids could hope to
  win.
  As if to confirm Kelmon’s worst fears the next Tyranid
  wave was massive, very nearly twice the size of any that
  had hit the craftworld so far. The Eldar fleet suffered
  terrible casualties in its attempt to hold the Tyranids off,
  and for the first time was unable to stop them landing on
  the craftworld. Although the landing was wiped out
  before any serious damage was done, the Eldar fleet as a
  large-scale fighting force had ceased to exist. Still there
  was hope, especially if the wave had represented the
  Tyranid’s main assault force. Eldar spirits were raised even
  more as the next wave turned out to be tiny in
  comparison to what had come earlier. Although the
  weakened fleet couldn’t keep all of the swarms away from
  the craftworld, the landings that were made were easily
  isolated and destroyed. For a short while it seemed that
  the Eldar had weathered the storm.
  Then Iyanden was hit by two huge attacks in succession.
  The pitiful remnants of the Eldar fleet opposed the Hive
  Swarms as best they could, but were swept aside by a tide
  of alien spacecraft. Iyanden was all but engulfed as horde
  after horde of Tyranid Warriors, Genestealers, Gaunts and
  Carnifexes were disgorged onto the craftworld. Huge
  battles erupted all over Iyanden, the fighting bitter and
  close ranged with enemy forces often only separated by
  the width of a corridor of wraithbone wall, as the Eldar
  desperately attempted to beat off the alien invaders. Often
  they succeeded, but the Fortress of Tears, Shrine of
  Asuryan and, most terrible of all, the ancient Forests of
  Silence, all fell to the Tyranid hordes.
  The Eldar counter-attacked, the raging figure of the Avatar
  leading the craftworld’s Aspect Warriors and Ghost
  Warriors in
  a
  berserk
  orgy of
  destruction which
  recaptured the Forests of Silence from the Tyranids. It is
  said that the Eldar Warriors wept tears of rage and sorrow
  to see the damage inflicted on the ancient forest domes of
  their craftworld. Slowly the Eldar managed to turn the tide
  on the Tyranids and gain the upper hand, forcing them
  back onto the defensive. And then another huge Tyranid
  wave arrived, the third in succession, and the largest yet.
  As swarm after swarm flickered into existence on the
  Eldar’s scanners, Kelmon knew that, barring a miracle,
  Iyanden Craftworld was doomed...
  Over fifty years before the Tyranid assault, High Admiral
  Yriel had led the Iyanden fleet. Although he was
  considered one of the greatest Eldar naval tacticians to
  have ever lived, his character was flawed by the sin of
  pride. When Iyanden had been threatened by a Chaos
  space fleet raiding out of the Eye of Terror, Yriel had led
  the fleet on a pre-emptive attack on the Chaos fleet’s
  flagship, leaving Iyanden Craftworld unprotected. He only
  returned just in time to stop a suicide attack by a small
  flotilla of Chaos raider ships, who nonetheless managed
  to damage the craftworld. Expecting to be feted and
  honoured for his victory, Yriel was deeply angered when
  he was called upon to defend his course of action.
  Claiming that his record should speak for itself, Yriel
  refused to enter into the debate, leaving his old friend
  Kelmon no choice but to elect a new High Admiral in his
  place. Bitter with rage, Yriel vowed that he would never
  set foot on Iyanden again. He and a small band of
  followers left the craftworld and formed an Eldar Raider
  company that became the single most powerful Eldar
  pirate force operating in the galaxy.
  When he heard of the Tyranid’s assault on Iyanden, Yriel
  did his best to ignore the terrible peril that threatened his
  old craftworld. But proud though he was, righteously
  angry though he was, Yriel could not leave lyanden to its
  fate in this, its very darkest hour. Battling his way through
  the Tyranids’ psychic blockade, Yriel swept to the aid of
  his people and arrived just in time.
  Like a thunderbolt from the blue Yriel and his raider fleet
  smashed into the Tyranid Hive Swarms. He was quickly
  joined by the few remaining craft of lyanden’s fleet, and
  Fan03_06-19  3/4/04  7:31 Page 12
  
  together the combined Eldar space fleets tore the Tyranid
  Swarms apart. Two more waves of Tyranid Hive Swarms
  attacked the craftworld, only to meet the same fate. Not a
  single Tyranid ship reached the craftworld, though the
  cost to the Raiders was dear. Bloodied but unbowed the
  Raiders prepared to sell their lives to the last in order to
  turn back the next wave of Tyranids. On the bridges of the
  craftworld and of the circling Eldar ships vigilant eyes
  watched the scanners, waiting for the first tell-tale blip
  that would indicate the direction of the next assault.
  Minutes passed, then hours, and with a growing sense of
  wonder the Eldar realised that no more Tyranid Swarms
  were coming – the assault was over. The hive fleet had
  been destroyed!
  But on Iyanden Craftworld the war went on. The Tyranid
  hordes that had been fighting a tenacious rearguard
  action awaiting the aid of the rest of the hive fleet now
  turned like cornered rats and hurled themselves at the
  Eldar. Caught by surprise the Eldar staggered back,
  desperately trying to hold the suicidal Tyranid onslaught.
  The Fortress of the Red Moon fell to a surprise attack. and
  for a moment it seemed that with victory within their
  grasp the Eldar would be defeated. But, for the second
  time, Yriel led his Raiders to the rescue of the craftworld.
  Disembarking from their orbiting spacecraft the Raiders
  joined with the battered defenders of Iyanden Craftworld
  and, yard by yard, step by step, forced the Tyranids back.
  A final wild charge led by the Tyranid Hive Tyrant was
  annihilated by the combined efforts of the Avatar, Yriel
  and the Ghost Warriors, and then in a series of vicious
  one-sided battles the last of the Tyranids were hunted
  down and destroyed. The Tyranid attack on Iyanden
  Craftworld was over. The Tyranids had been defeated.
  But the victory was a hollow one. Though the Eldar had
  repulsed the invaders, the cost was enormous. Their once-
  proud world stood in ruins, and four-fifths of the
  inhabitants were dead or lay dying in its shattered halls.
  Iyanden’s mighty space fleet was a pitiful shadow of its
  former self; the blasted remains of its majestic spacecraft
  and their brave crews hanging silent and weightless in
  space. But all this could be rebuilt, maybe not for
  hundreds of generations, but one day in the distant
  future. What was lost forever were the souls of the Eldar
  whose spirit stones had been destroyed in the battle
  against the Tyranids. The massive destruction wrought
  upon the people and Ghost Warriors of Iyanden dealt the
  craftworld a blow from which its culture could never fully
  recover.
  FLEET COMMANDER
  0-1 Admiral
  You may include one Eldar Admiral in your fleet, who
  must be assigned to a ship and will replace the vessel’s
  Leadership with his own. If the fleet is worth over 750
  points, an Admiral must be included to lead it.
  Eldar Admiral (Ld 9) ..............................................75 pts
  Eldar Supreme Admiral (Ld 10)...........................100 pts
  The Admiral may purchase a fleet commander re-roll, at
  the cost listed below.
  One re-roll..............................................................25 pts
  You may include Farseers in your fleet, each of whom
  must be assigned to a ship and gives their vessel a re-roll
  which may be used on the ship, another ship in the same
  squadron or an escort squadron within 15cm.
  0-3 Farseers ..........................................................+30pts
  Any capital ship in the fleet may be equipped with Aspect
  Warrior fighting crews at a cost of +20 pts per vessel.
  Aspect Warrior Fighting Crews ...........................+20 pts
  CAPITAL SHIPS
  Dragonships
  Your fleet may include up to one Dragonship for every
  two Wraithships included in the fleet. If your fleet is led
  by an Admiral, you may include a single Dragonship as his
  flagship which does not count against this limitation.
  Dragonship...........................................................260 pts
  Wraithships
  Your fleet may include any number of Wraithships.
  Wraithship ............................................................160 pts
  Ghostships
  Any capital ship in the fleet may be upgraded to a
  Ghostship. Such a vessel may not also include a Farseer or
  Aspect Warrior crew.
  Ghostship................................................................+free
  ESCORTS
  Your fleet may include any number of escorts.
  Shadowhunter class escort ....................................40 pts
  IYANDEN FLEET LIST
  13
  Fan03_06-19  3/4/04  7:31 Page 13
  
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  14
  D
  ragonship is the collective name given to the
  larger classes of
  Eldar vessel.
  The term
  Dragonship
  does not refer to
  any particular
  armament or configuration, but rather to a variety of
  vessels adhering to the same basic principles,
  designed for the same basic roles. Within this larger
  grouping, individual configurations or combinations
  of weapons give individual classes their proper name
  – always a variation on the phrase ‘Dragon’,
  representing different aspects of the creature of the
  same name from Eldar myth. Those Dragonships
  which are piloted in large part, or even exclusively,
  by spirit stones, for example, are referred to as
  Ghostdragons, while larger vessels which have been
  designed to operate away from the craftworld for
  great lengths of time are often referred to as Void
  Dragons. Different styles of Dragonship can vary
  greatly, with different numbers of sails, different
  armaments and even variations in size.
  ELDAR DRAGONSHIP  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 points
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  Choose one prow weapon for each Dragonship in the fleet.
  Choose one keel weapon for each Dragonship in the fleet.
  *Nightwings function exactly as Darkstars, Phoenix bombers function exactly as Eclipse.
  Notes: For +10 pts, a Dragonship equipped with launch bays can be equipped with squadrons of Vampire Raiders which
  function as assault boats with a speed of 25cm.
  “An Eldar rune, each of
  which has specific
  mythological
  significance, represents
  every craftworld. One
  such rune is the Shrine
  of Asuryan. Asuryan is the oldest and
  greatest of the ancient gods of the Eldar,
  the father of the gods, and the ultimate
  ancestor of all living things. This is the
  symbol of Iyanden Craftworld, whose
  name means Light in the Darkness,
  another way of referring to burning shrine
  of Asuryan.”
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  15
  ELDAR WRAITHSHIP  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 points
  W
  raithships are
  made
  from wraithbone,
  a
  material drawn as raw energy from the Warp
  and shaped into matter by psychic craftsmen known
  as Bonesingers. The Wwraithbone forms the living
  skeletal core of the spaceship around which its other
  structures are arranged. The wraithbone also
  provides channels for psychic energy. This facilitates
  internal
  communication, transmits power and
  enables the spaceship to act as an organically
  integrated whole.
  The wraithbone
  core
  of
  a
  spaceship is surrounded by a structure which is
  literally grown
  into the required shape
  by
  Bonesingers. These Eldar use their psychomorphic
  talents to shape bulkheads, walls, floors and
  conduits into a shell that completely surrounds the
  wraithbone core and forms the hull and major
  internal divisions of the spaceship. Most of a
  spaceship’s operating systems are connected directly
  to the wraithbone core. The many thousands of
  systems draw power through the wraithbone and are
  constantly monitored and controlled through it.
  Because of the unique practices of Eldar psychic
  engineering,
  Eldar spaceships resonate with
  sympathetic psychic energy. The Wraithbone core
  provides a psychic channel through which an Eldar
  can control mechanical functions. In this way, Eldar
  attuned to the very essence of their spaceship guide
  it, making countless minute adjustments to the trim
  of the great solar sails to draw every fraction of
  energy from the solar winds. This is also the key to
  the legendary elegance and almost birdlike agility of
  the Eldar Wraithships. Their pilots literally feel the
  solar wind on the ship’s sails, they sense the flex of
  the ship’s structure, the tension and movement of its
  Wraithbone skeleton. Like a hawk soaring on a
  thermal or diving to clutch at its prey, a Wraithship
  can turn in the wind, circling and swooping to hunt
  its own prey – the spaceships of its enemy.
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  Choose one prow weapon for each Wriathship in the fleet.
  Choose one keel weapon for each Wraithship in the fleet.
  *Nightwings function exactly as Darkstars, Phoenix bombers function exactly as Eclipse.
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  16
  ELDAR SHADOWHUNTER CLASS ESCORT...............................................................................................40 Points
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  Shadowhunters are commonly armed with either weapons batteries or lances. Choose one of the following prow
  armaments for each Shadowhunter in the fleet. A squadron may contain Shadowhunters with different armaments.
  Special Rules: Shadowhunters are so nimble that they can even pursue attack craft with ease, harrying the smaller vessels
  with an agility impossible for other escorts. When Shadowhunter’s direct fire at ordnance they always hit on a 4+ (rather
  than the normal 6+). The number of dice to roll is still calculated in the normal manner (ie. lances roll one dice per point
  of Strength, weapons batteries use the Gunnery table).
  S
  hadowhunters are the smallest type of vessel
  employed by Iyanden, operating in vast shoals
  which shimmer and weave a short distance above the
  craftworld’s surface as it ploughs through space.
  These Shadowhunter packs function as a constant
  patrol, guarding the approach of friendly vessels
  coming into dock, or spinning and bobbing around
  the craftworld with horrifying speed to drive off
  would-be attackers at a proximity where larger
  vessels would find it difficult to function effectively.
  Because of this defensive role, Shadowhunters have
  a very limited range, designed as they are to repel
  attackers which manage to actually approach the
  craftworld itself. Weapons and power systems on the
  Shadowhunters are
  correspondingly compact,
  making the Shadowhunter one of the nimblest and
  most agile of vessels, even by Eldar standards.
  Shadowhunters are so nimble, in fact, that they are
  capable of pursuing their enemy so closely that even
  enemy attack craft find it hard to evade them.
  During 
  the
  Tyranid
  invasion
  of
  Iyanden,
  Shadowhunters typically formed a last line of
  defence close to the craftworld, while the larger
  vessels broke down the main Tyranid waves in deep
  space. The scattered remnants of these waves which
  were able to pass the Eldar cruisers and approach
  the craftworld were then easy pickings for the
  nimble Shadowhunters. As more and more waves of
  Tyranids descended on the craftworld, however, the
  Eldar fleet was overwhelmed by sheer weight of
  numbers, forcing the Shadowhunters to disperse
  and join their larger counterparts in fighting
  desperate counter-actions in the depths of space.
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  17
  GHOSTSHIPS.................................................................................................................................................................................Points varies
  Ghostships are those vessels which, through the long slow
  dying-years of the Eldar race, have reached the point of
  near-abandonment through loss of crew. Into these vessels
  the Seers of Iyanden incorporate spirit stones – sacred
  reliquaries bearing the souls of those Eldar already lost in
  the struggle for survival. Sometimes Ghostships will be
  entirely without living crew, perhaps even embued with
  the spirit stones of their original pilots, gunners and
  navigators, continuing to guide their race through the stars
  even beyond death. Sometimes the Ghostships will bear
  spirit stones of much older Eldar, some perhaps even with
  memories of the Fall, unceremoniously denied peace by
  the desperate hardship their people still face. For the living
  crew of Ghostships, the presence of these ineffable
  ancestor-souls 
  creates 
  an
  equally 
  daunting
  and
  empowering burden of expectation.
  These spirit stones bring sentience to the living, but
  otherwise unthinking, wraithbone from which all Eldar
  vessels are constructed – a curious amalgam of the living,
  the inaminate and the undying. The spirit stones allow the
  Ghostships to function with an impossibly tiny number of
  crew and, when combined with the living wraithbone of
  their vessels, make Ghostships exceptionally resilient.
  Their formless thoughts are far harder to destroy than the
  frail bodies of living pilots, able to simply flit from one
  transient vein to another. They are at complete freedom
  within these wraithbone skeletons, diverting both reliance
  and function to almost any location on the ship should any
  given system become damaged. But the reliance which the
  Eldar of Iyanden have to come to place upon Ghostships is
  not without difficulty. Spirit stones are already ancient and
  possess the temper of souls that should already be at rest,
  seemingly winsome and vacant, distant and unresponsive
  if left to simply wander the infinity circuits away from the
  will of the living Eldar Seers who bind and direct them in
  unlife.
  In order to function, a Ghostship must always be
  commanded by a Spiritseer – a powerful Eldar psyker who
  has chosen to dedicate his powers to communing with the
  dead. Spiritseers are some of the most lonely and sinister
  continue to give special orders to other ‘crewed’ vessels in
  the fleet (until, of course, you fail a Command check with
  one of them as well).
  Deathless: Ghostships require none of the more delicate
  systems required to support a living crew, and the ease
  with which the interred spirits move throughout the
  wraithbone arteries of the vessel means that even when
  badly damaged the vessel is still able to function effectively.
  By the normal fragile standards of the Eldar, Ghostships
  present a fairly sturdy proposition. Ghostships, unlike
  other Eldar vessels, only suffer a critical hit on a roll of a 6
  (not a 4, 5 or 6 as is usually the case with Eldar vessels).
  Uncrewed: Since Ghostships are piloted by the spirits of
  long-dead Eldar warriors, their crews are either small or
  non-existent. For this reason:
  • Ghostships may not contain Aspect Warrior fighting
  crews.
  • Ghostships may not be armed with launch bays.
  • Ghostships may not launch boarding actions, or hit-and-
  run attacks of any form.
  • Enemy boarding a Ghostship gain a +1 modifier in the
  boarding action, in addition to other modifiers.
  • Enemy making a hit-and-run attack against Ghostships
  add +1 to their dice roll.
  Ghostships roll only half the normal number of dice when
  undertaking damage control in the End phase (before
  halving it again for Blast markers, if appropriate).
  members of a craftworld, required, as they frequently are,
  to spend periods of time alone aboard Ghostships,
  surrounded by nothing more than the souls of the
  reluctant dead.
  USING GHOSTSHIPS
  Ghostships do not represent a particular class of vessel,
  but rather they are those vessels which are substantially
  controlled by spirit stones, having only a small or even
  non-existent living crew. The use of Ghostships is strongly
  disliked by the Eldar, since it requires disturbing the spirits
  of the dead and forcing them to return once more to battle
  that they might aid their living kin. It is for this reason that
  the vessels are known as Ghostships, representing an
  undeniably powerful entity which straddles the boundary
  between life and death, yet equally represents a force that
  the Eldar would be wise to leave undisturbed in all but the
  most dire of circumstances. The Tyranid invasion and the
  ensuing decimation of the population make Ghostships an
  abhorrent necessity to the Eldar of Iyanden, however, and
  they are
  a
  far more
  common
  component of the
  Craftworld’s fleets than the Eldar would wish.
  Any vessel in an Iyanden fleet may be converted to a
  Ghostship. Ghostships use the following special rules:
  Leadership: Ghostships have normal Eldar leadership.
  Special Orders: Ghostships are able go onto special
  orders in just the same manner as other vessels, however
  there is always a danger that the spectral and deathly
  manner in which these vessels interact with the real
  universe will distract them and turn their attention away
  from the battle at hand. If a Ghostship fails a Command
  check for a special order, it not only fails to go onto the
  special order, but may also do nothing this turn. If the
  failed check is as a result of attempting to go onto Brace for
  Impact orders at another point during the turn, the
  Ghostship may do nothing during its next turn instead.
  When you fail a Command check for a Ghostship you may
  not make any further Command checks for other
  Ghostships during the same turn. You may, however,
  “The mind of the Farseer is utterly inhuman in its depth
  and complexity. Without mercy or moral feeling his
  consciousness stands upon the edge of spiritual destruction.
  That he does not fall must be the result of constraints and
  balances which only an Eldar could understand. To a mere
  human it is another reminder that we are but children in
  comparison to that ancient and powerful race.
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  18
  Direct attacks against a craftworld are exceedingly rare not
  least because, despite their immense size, craftworlds are
  extremely elusive prey, rarely sighted by non-Eldar.
  However, when the Tyranid swarms of Hivefleet Kraken
  descended upon the galaxy, they did so in such numbers
  that Iyanden could not help but cross their path and in so
  doing find itself in the greatest peril of its history…
  FORCES
  Both fleets are of equal points. The defender (Eldar) does
  not spend extra points on planetary defences – these are
  included in the special rules for the craftworld instead
  (see below). Since the attackers are Tyranids, they do not
  gain any extra transport models (since all Tyranid ships
  are ‘transports’ in effect), but if you want to replay this
  scenario with another attacker, they may take two free
  transports for every 500 points (or part) in his fleet.
  BATTLEZONE
  A craftworld assault normally takes place in the system’s
  primary biosphere, outer reaches or in deep space, since
  these are the regions through which craftworld’s most
  commonly travel. Declare one table edge as sunward and
  set up other celestial phenomena as normal.
  THE CRAFTWORLD
  In this scenario, the craftworld is considered to be the target
  of an attack, in the same manner as a planet would be in a
  planetary assault. The Tyranid assault of Hive Fleet Kraken
  targetted Iyanden, which is a very large craftworld (about
  25cm in diameter). However, if you are refighting this
  scenario with another craftworld as the target, or if you
  want to introduce some degree of randomness into the
  game, you can always vary the size of the craftworld, or roll
  on a dice: 1 = small (no more than 15cm) , 2-5 = medium
  (no more than 20cm, 6 = large (no more than 30cm).
  Craftworlds follow all the rules for planets, since their
  immense size means they create their own gravity wells, etc.
  Small craftworlds have a gravity well of 10cm, medium
  craftworlds of 15cm and large craftworlds of 20cm.
  The craftworld is placed no more than 150cm from one of
  the short table edges. Whilst craftworlds do actually travel
  through space, their progress is so remarkably slow that
  during the course of a battle they will exhibit no noticeable
  movement, and hence the models themselves do not move,
  in just the same way as planets do not move during a battle,
  despite their actual movement in orbit of the nearest star.
  Craftworlds are not surrounded by moons or rings, and
  do not have planetary defences. Instead, individual areas
  of the craftworld provide defences, by means of pulse
  laser arrays aimed into stay, attack craft patrols and so on.
  In the particular case of Iyanden, these roles are fulfilled
  by two areas – the Fortress of Tears, and the Fortress of the
  Red Moon. Whilst other craftworlds may vary in their
  defences, you can safely use the following rules as
  standard for all craftworlds.
  Fortress of Tears & Fortress of the Red Moon
  Both these fortresses are designed to repel invaders from
  Iyanden, utilising powerful but indirect plasma shots to
  disrupt and scatter any enemy which manage to evade the
  craftworld’s cruiser patrols. At full effect the fortresses are
  designed to act as defence for the entire eastern and
  western halves of the craftworld respectively. Each time
  an Assault Point is ‘landed’ on the craftworld (ie, a new
  Assault Point is scored), roll a dice. On a score of a 4 or
  more, one of the fortresses damages the attacking wave so
  heavily that the landing is essentially ineffective and no
  Assault Point is scored.
  The fortresses also allow the craftworld to repel ships in
  low orbit. During the Eldar player’s Shooting phase, the
  fortresses unleash one pulsar lance shot against each
  vessel on the Low Orbit table.
  However, there is always the danger that the fortresses
  themselves will fall. During each End phase, roll one dice
  for each Assault Point already scored on the craftworld. If
  any of these score a ‘6’ the fortresses are damaged, and
  the chance of destroying enemy Assault Points, or scoring
  a hit on ships in low orbit, is reduced by 1 (ie, to a 5+ the
  first time, then to a 6+, then they are destroyed
  completely). No matter how many 6s are rolled, only a
  single –1 reduction can apply in each End phase.
  SET-UP
  The defender can choose to place ships and squadrons
  either on patrol or on standby in high orbit, or within the
  craftworld’s gravity. Roll a D6 for each defending
  ship/squadron (except Shadowhunters, see below) on
  patrol: on a 1-3 the attacker may set up the ship/squadron,
  on a 4-6 the defender may set it up.
  150cm
  Defenders
  Deployment
  Defenders Deployment
  30cm
  CRAFTWORLD ASSAULT
  Fan03_06-19  3/4/04  7:31 Page 18
  
  19
  ships and planetary defences. Deduct -1 Assault Point for
  every 500 Victory Points (rounding up) scored by the
  defender. Look up the adjusted Assault Point total on the
  table below:
  Total assault 
  points
  Result
  0-1
  Defender’s Victory
  The attacking forces achieved almost
  nothing. The pitiful amount of assaulting
  troops that reached the craftworld will
  be quickly annihilated.
  2-5
  Defender’s Marginal Win
  The assaulting forces are prevented from
  making a substantial landing on the
  craftworld.
  Nonetheless,
  enemy
  detachments will now have to be hunted
  down and destroyed.
  6-9
  Attacker’s Marginal Win
  The assault dropped enough troops, etc,
  to capture a large part of the craftworld’s
  resources. Ongoing battles for control of
  the world will rage for months, even
  years.
  10+
  Attacker’s Victory
  The attackers succeeded in sweeping
  aside the defending forces and staging
  decisive landings at key points all over
  the craftworld. Within a few weeks of
  mopping up, the attackers will have
  complete control of the planet.
  Ships on patrol may be set up anywhere that is not within
  30cm of a table edge or within an area of celestial
  phenomena. The defender always decides the facing of
  ships, regardless of who set them up. The attacker deploys
  his fleet within 15cm of the short table edge furthest from
  the planet. You will also need a separate low orbit table.
  Shadowhunter Patrols
  Shadowhunters are quite simply the most nimble patrol
  vessels in the galaxy, and so must always be set-up on
  patrol, but no dice roll is required, and they are always
  deployed by the defender.
  FIRST TURN
  The players roll a D6. Whoever got the highest may take
  either the first or second turn.
  SPECIAL RULES
  Attacking ships must move within 30cm of the craftworld
  table edge (which obviously replaces the planet edge) on
  the low orbit table to send troops to the surface and
  bombard enemy positions. Remember that, since the
  attackers are most likely Tyranids, you should follow the
  special scenario considerations for Tyranids, as presented
  in Armada. However, should you wish to vary the
  attackers, the following basic rules apply:
  For each turn an attacking capital ship spends within
  30cm of the craftworld edge, the attacker scores 1 Assault
  Point. For each turn an attacking transport spends within
  30cm of the craftworld edge, the attacker scores 2 Assault
  Points. A ship deploying troops or bombarding the
  craftworld may not do anything else that turn.
  GAME LENGTH
  The game lasts until one fleet is destroyed or disengages,
  or the attacker has scored 10 or more Assault Points.
  VICTORY CONDITIONS
  Add up the Assault Points earned by the attacker and add
  +1 to the total for every 500 Victory Points (rounding
  down) scored by the attacker for destroying or crippling
  Matt is preparing for Editorial duties
  on issue 4, as Andy will be out of the
  office for a while. This is on top of
  working on version 2 of BFG!
  Expect to see more Doom of the Eldar
  next issue including Yriel’s flagship! 
  www.BattlefleetGothic.com
  Author
  Further
  Information
  Website
  A group of Shadowhunters give chase.
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Warhammer/40k/Battlefleet Gothic/Supplementals/BFG_Doom_of_the_Eldar.pdf