If you had to choose five adjectives to describe your faction, what would they be?Arrogant - The Dark Elves see all others as inferior, and would be as concerned about the consequences of their actions against their slaves and those they raid as they would be about an insect they had trodden on. Put simply, they believe that everything and everyone else exists to serve their desires, and that the proof of this is in their ability to dominate, enslave and destroy those other things and beings. The truly callous nature of the Dark Elves is the result of their sense of entitlement and utter disregard for any other race except as means of bringing them amusement.
Martial - The Dark Elves depend on the subjugation of others to do menial tasks, things which the Dark Elves properly consider to be beneath them. This is not to say that they are only warriors; no doubt, there would be traders and merchants, artisans and priests, governors and performers. However, those other professions rely on the slave trade, which in turn requires capable fighters able to sustain that trade. Necessarily, this requires a strong military and a focus on the role and path of the warrior as an essential role for their own citizenry. Although there would no doubt be Dark Elves who were not soldiers, every Dark Elf would have learned how to fight, at least in self-defence. While some (possibly most) may favour manipulation, all would be capable combatants by the standards of other races. In addition, the great achievements of Dark Elf history and their continued existence as a distinct society are based on their military prowess, and such skills would be seen as greatly important (even if they were not necessarily to be called upon frequently) by all Dark Elves.
Wronged - At the heart of Dark Elf civilisation is a genuine conviction that they have been cheated of their rightful place in the world, by the High Elves and by capricious fate. The true ruler of their kind has been rejected by those who presume to know better what is right for the world. They have been driven from their own lands by those they called kin. They and their ancestors truly did save their people, and arguably the whole world, from destruction during the first wars against Chaos, and they did so precisely because they were peerless and merciless warriors. It is immaterial to them that they have been responsible for many of their own woes; this is the result of a lack of appreciation from those lesser beings. That history entitles them, in their view, to be the rulers of the world. In that sense, the Dark Elves are little better than spoiled children, the schoolyard bullies who have always had it their own way and cannot handle it when the world moves on and leaves them behind.
Devious - A people who lionise the role of the warrior, and who depend on that prowess to sustain their civilisation, know that victory is more important than concepts like honour or fairness. To that end, any method is permissible to achieve their goals: poison, treachery, illusion, blackmail, psychological warfare and conspiracy are no different to any other weapon. A fair fight is something to be avoided where possible; even being forced into a fair fight suggests that the participants either had no choice but to take that step or could not have prevented it. Beating an opponent weakened by poison, previous combats or a long chase is arguably a greater victory for a Dark Elf who was the architect of their weakness - it shows that they forced their victim to dance to the Dark Elf's tune precisely as intended, which is as great a display of superiority as the final strike of the blade.
Aspirational - In a sense, this ties into the arrogance and deviousness as well. However, all Dark Elves would be aiming to improve their lot in life, whether it be in terms of wealth, marriage, political position, strategic alliances, perfecting their skills, or shaping their reputation. Their drive to do so would stem from a need to not only believe in their own superiority but be able to demonstrate it regularly. That could take many forms - dominance on the battlefield, bringing in particular slaves or beasts for trade or amusement, defeating a rival in trade or politics, or simply throwing the biggest bacchanal in living memory and plumbing depths of hedonism as only the truly indulgent can. Whatever a Dark Elf sees as their purpose or reason for being, they would believe (and may want others to believe) that no-one else could possibly be better than them at doing it, and the drive that comes with that degree of obsession is what keeps them genuinely dangerous to the other races (and to each other).
What special characters do you feel represent your faction the best?Malekith, the Witch King - he is the reason for their dispossession, their rightful (and eternal) ruler, and he epitomises everything that a Dark Elf should be: powerful, clever, an accomplished warrior and sorcerer, ruthless and dismissive of the sufferings of those he considers his inferiors. He is clearly the source of many (if not all) of his own woes, yet he still genuinely believes that he has been deprived of his rightful station as ruler of all Elvenkind through the treachery of others.
Shadowblade - a true master of his arts, he encapsulates the treacherous nature of the Dark Elf race almost perfectly. Fast, lethal, dangerous despite being more fragile and lightly armoured than most of his victims, and so good at reading the flow of events (and battle) that he is always exactly where he needs to be.
Kouran Darkhand - he adds a necessary dimension to the Dark Elves, which is the capable second-in-command kept sufficiently loyal by reward and opportunity. He is also one of the best fighters in the Dark Elf kingdom (WS 9). His fluff about combining his formal training with "gutter brawling" accurately describes what I think Dark Elf fighters should aspire to:
victory, by any means necessary.
What is your least favourite thing about the fluff for your faction, or the thing you would be most happy to lose?The over-emphasis on murder and slaughter, especially of their own kind. It's fine for the Dark Elves to be untrustworthy, treacherous and murderous in general, but they need to have a functioning society (even one that depends heavily on slave labour).
In that sense, I would really like to see a shift towards the circumstances described in the 8th edition book about the "laws" of Har Ganeth and the intrigues of Hag Graef. In short, there are a lot of things which are crimes, and are punishable by death. Overt action against another Dark Elf is likely to get the perpetrator killed, possibly even if they are successful. They might be able to buy the protection or intercession of Malekith (or the ruler of their city), but it would take desperation or brazenness to seek that permission while admitting to such intent. Nevertheless, everyone in any position of influence (or who seeks such a position)
is still plotting against other Dark Elves, planning to advance their own interests - but only so that their opponents react and overreach, and can be legitimately dealt with in "self-defence" or put to the sword by the rulers of Druchii society.
As far as units I'd be most happy to lose... probably Warlocks. There's no need for them if the Prophecy of Demise and/or a Malekith-like figure doesn't also exist (and also because they're ludicrously OP). I like the models and their abilities, make no mistake, but I don't see the need for them. In the same vein, I wouldn't care too much if we lost Bloodwrack Medusae as individuals. The Bloodwrack Shrine makes far more sense to me, as an expression of Dark Elf dominance, but the individual Medusae would be far too much of a liability for any half-decent commander to allow near their forces.
"The wrath of a good man is not to be feared. They have too many rules."
"Good men don't need rules. Today is not a good time to find out why I have so many."