Sega Genesis - Compatibility Issues Across Models

When you buy a console, you might expect every game to work perfectly on it.  In most instances you are covered, but some consoles tend to be a little picky about the games they can play for obscure, rather than obvious, reasons.  Here let's look at the Sega Mega Drive and Genesis and see what kind of compatibility issues you can encounter when playing games on them.


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You say "obsessed" as if it is a bad thing.

The Art Of Video Games: Super Smash Bros.

Image used for criticism under "Fair Use."

"I've heard legends of that man,
Alone he rushed into his enemies,
How he saved his homeland,

I've heard legends of that man,
He ran the breadth of the land, 
Ruining all he touched to rubble,

I've heard legends of that man,
I've heard legends of that man,

Revered by many, I too, revere him,
Feared by many, I too, fear him,

Now, that man,
Is near to me,

Now, that man,
Stands by me,

Now,  friends are with me,
Some, once heroes,
Some, mortal enemies,

And as we face one another in battle, 
We shine ever brighter."

The Super Smash Bros. series, whatever iteration you've played, serves as more than just a fighting game, but as a tribute to all that Nintendo has accomplished thus far. Nintendo is to video games what Disney is to animation. Both excel at crafting revolutionary entertainment for audiences of all ages, with reputations of high quality and satisfaction. The characters brought about by these companies have also entered the public consciousness of storytelling and art. Many, need no introduction.

The lyrics you've just read belong to the theme of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, a version of the series for the Nintendo Wii. The song was composed by the ineffable Nobuo Uematsu of Final Fantasy, whose lyricism has graced "Aria di Mezzo Caraterre", "The One-Winged Angel", and "Liberi Fatali." His theme brings a rather mature and exalted mood to the game. The roster of Nintendo characters aren't simply ones who have been made up on the spot, but world-famous icons who's feats have entered the annals of video game history, Mario, Luigi, Kirby, Link, Samus, Pikachu, Donkey Kong, Zelda, Fox McCloud, Bowser, Pit, Peach, Marth, Ganondorf, Mewtwo, and even R.O.B. The Robot. The song is reminding players that they are fighting with and against the characters who've helped to craft video games as we understand them. That is something to be both honored and feared. Manaav Goyal of Always Nintendo, has spoken on the variety of interpretations in these lyrics,

"The story behind the song is one that can be interpreted in many ways. A clear one is that the lyrics are in the point of view of one of the fighters in the game, stating how these are noble heroes, who I am willing to fight with and against.  Another interpretation could be that the song is about the fierceness of the fighters in the game. The song is in E major, which as stated by Austrian composer Anoton Bruckner, "is frequently associated with contemplation." This statement mirrors the song well, as the story does follow a man observing his relationship towards the champions, and what they truly are to him."

As far as fighting games go, and I've played my share, the Super Smash Bros. series is something special. For one, there is no bar of HP that determines how many hits one can take. Rather, each hit you take racks up a percentage, the higher your percentage, the more likely you are to be thrown out of the arena. The battle is won by the person who can throw his opponents out of the area x number of times (depending on the number of lives one has). So the game becomes a strategy of knocking the others out of the arena as fast as possible. This can helped or stalled by the various arenas, which include the Mushroom Kingdom, Pokemon Stadium, and Hyrule Castle. Numerous items can also be picked up or thrown, from Pokeballs, to Fire Flowers, to Hammers, to Ray Guns. Pokeballs being my personal favorite, if only for their random variety. Though what truly makes Super Smash Bros. worthwhile, and arguably one of the finest fighting games out there, is the multiplayer option. Games can devolve into a four way battle royal, in which it can be difficult to tell who is hitting what and where. This chaos can allow for a number of things to happen, and at times, the winner won't always be clear cut. I have to admit that I usually button mash when I play, which can be fun at times, but strategy is what will save you in the long stretch.

Super Smash Bros comes from the mind of Masahiro Sakurai, who also directed the Kirby series. Satoru Iwata, the current director of Nintendo, reflected on the creation of the series with Sakurai in an interview. The prototype was initially called Dragon King: The Fighting Game, the idea of using Nintendo characters came in when Sakurai realized that for the 64 console, a degree of character development was needed. Since Nintendo already had a set of popular characters, Sakurai thought it expedient to select from them instead of making new ones from scratch. The usage of Nintendo characters was initially met with resistance by fans, since making these beloved heroes fight one another didn't sound very appealing. History has proven otherwise. Even non-Nintendo characters who have appeared on Nintendo systems were later added to the roster, Sonic, Mega-Man, Solid Snake, and Pac-Man. Sakurai has emphasized how Super Smash Bros is supposed to resemble a once-in-a-lifetime experience, a game that changes every time you play it, as he said, "The appeal of Smash Bros. lies in the fact that it offers ever-changing entertainment born of chance and player improvisation..."

Nintendo has come a long way since its humble beginnings in 1889 as a company that sold hanafuda playing cards. With their leap into video games during the 1970's, well, you know: Donkey Kong, NES, Super Mario Bros, Nintendo Power, Duck Hunt, Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Punch-Out, SNES, Super Mario Bros. 3, StarFox, Game Boy, Pokemon Red and Blue, Nintendo 64, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, GameCube, Fire Emblem, Game Boy Color, Super Metroid, Pokemon Silver and Gold, Game Boy Advance, Final Fantasy VI, Nintendo DS, Mario Kart, Chrono Trigger, Nintendo Wii, Twilight Princess, et cetera, et cetera.

It is also said that the word "nintendo" means "leave luck to heaven", well, maybe there's something to that.


Bibliography

Goyal, Manaav. "Behind the Notes: Super Smash Bros. Brawl Theme." Always Nintendo, June 21, 2014. Web. http://alwaysnintendo.com/behind-notes-super-smash-bros-brawl-theme/

Sakurai, Masahiro. Interviewed by Satoru Iwata. "Iwata Asks: Dragon King: The Fighting Game." Nintendo. Web. http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/#/wii/ssbb/6/0

Sakurai, Masahiro. Interviewed by Satoru Iwata. "Iwata Asks: Super Smash Bros Brawl: Once In A Lifetime." Nintendo. Web. http://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/#/wii/ssbb/6/2

"Super Smash Bros. Brawl Main Theme - Lyrics." YouTube, June 29, 2014. Web. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtyQ7HqHlqs

Yorg 0.11 Released, Now With Split-Screen Multiplayer!

Yorg, the Panda3D based arcade racer has been updated to version 0.11 which includes some long awaited features. Most notably split-screen multiplayer:

Really cool is also the new controller support and awesome particle effects (a pet-peeve of mine in previous versions ;) ).
Add to that some significant performance improvements due to an update to the latest version of Panda3d.

Read the full release announcement on the Yorg website here. And download it from itch.io.

Comment on this in our forums here.

This post was retrieved from freegamer.blogspot.com.

HEAVEN'S DAWN

Heaven's Dawn by the Taiwanese developers at Art 9 Entertainment is perhaps one of the rarest games I've ever played. This traditional point-and-click adventure was only ever translated into English for the Australian and New Zealand markets and judging by the dearth of information out there sold very little. Despite its Eastern roots, this tale of high-fantasy feels far more western than its origins would have you believe.

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PUBG Mobile 0.12.0 Update

What's next after PUBG mobile 0.11.5 update? Yeah, it's 0.12.0 update! This update will also bring some new guns, new features, new attachments, and many new features. So let us have a look at those features.

1. MP5K (Gun) :

           MP5K is a new SMG gun coming to PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update. This gun will be available only on Vikendi map and will replace Vector from Vikendi map. This gun will require 9mm ammo. The MP5K is highly versatile with single, burst and full auto firing options. It can support all attachment types. View the video to know more about it.

MP5K 

2. Skorpion (Gun) :

          It is a full-auto weapon pistol that works on 9mm ammo. Its capacity can be increased from default 20 rounds to 40 rounds using a standard extended magazine. It can be switched from single fire to full auto. The only disadvantage is that it has lower per bullet damage than other pistols. If you want to use this weapon, you have to wait for PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update.

Skorpion

3. Competitive mode will be re-added:

         This mode was once available in PUBG but later it was removed. Now on public demand, they are bringing it back on PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update. Those players who don't know what it is or recently started players, let me explain it to you. So basically, it is an arcade mode where there are no bots i.e. all the players are real. 
         The minus point of this mode is that it takes 10 minutes or more, depending on the number of players, to load. This mode is perfect for those who hate bots or for pro players who want only real players to kill.

Competitive mode

4. Canted sight (attachment) :

        It is a secondary attachment that allows the player to quickly switch between the 1x Canted sight and the other scope used. It is already launched in PUBG PC, Xbox and PS4. To know more about Canted sight you can visit my post about it. 
                 It was planned to release in PUBG 0.11.5 update but later it was postponed to PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update. 

Canted Sight

5. Death Cam (feature) :

          Death Cam is a new feature coming to PUBG mobile   0.12.0 update. If you are playing the game and suddenly someone kills you then this Cam will allow you to view the scene i.e. after your death you can use the feature to know exactly who killed you, what gun the opponent used and other information. The main reason behind the adding of this feature is that many players were reporting the presence of hackers in the game. So PUBG added this feature to know whether there was a real hacker or not.

Death Cam

6. Bug tracking system :

       Lagging is the worst enemy for online players. PUBG Corp. understands it and is trying its best to remove lagging as much as possible. 
    For this, PUBG is installing a software called Bug tracking system. This software will scan the game, detect any bug present in the game and will report it to the PUBG developers. The PUBG developers can, then work on that bug and remove it. This is just a concept for now but we hope to find it in the PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update.
  
7. More chats are added : 

    If you are bored with existing chats like "Help!", " I got supplies!" etc. then in the PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update you will be able to add some more chats in both male and female voices. And you can irritate your friends as like I do with my friends. 

Chats in PUBG

8. The White Eagle : 

       You will be able to have the White Eagle as your companion in the PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update. The Eagle will follow wherever you go. 

The White Eagle

9. Scope colors :

       The PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update will let you change the color and shape of the pointer of a gun. People who were bored red color can change it to several colors including white, sky, pink, black and others.

Scope colors

Release date:

        There is no officially confirmed release date for PUBG mobile 0.12.0 update, but the expected date, as of my prediction, is 20-25 April 2019. I repeat again this is my prediction and not officially confirmed. Once the date is officially confirmed, the date will be posted on our facebook page. So please like our page to get future updates.

Enough reading! Now it's your time to tell me your opinion about these updates. The comment section is below.

Ep 32: The Year Is Dead. Long Live The Year Is Live!

Ep 32: The year is dead. Long live the year.

https://soundcloud.com/user-989538417/episode-32-the-year-is-dead-long-live-the-year

Chris Arnold and I talk about the year that was and the year that is to be.

Join the conversation at https://theveteranwargamer.blogspot.com, email theveteranwargamer@gmail.com, Twitter @veteranwargamer

Try Audible for your free audiobook credit by going to http://audibletrial.com/tvwg

Music courtesy bensound.com. Recorded with zencastr.com. Edited with Audacity. Make your town beautiful; get a haircut.

Weekend Gaming Update 4/22/2019

   Friday night watched a great episode of Dragons and Things on Twitch while I painted minis. I don't think I have mentioned Dragons and Things here, which is a shame. It's a live play stream of a bunch of crazy people playing Pathfinder. It's a lot of fun, and they interact a lot with the viewers, which is what drew me to it so much in the first place. Anyway, from 6:00-10:00 Pacific that's what I am usually doing (which is 8 to midnight for me).

   Played a game of Infinity with my buddy Zach and his son. Went to a local-ish game store to play, Montag's Games. I ought to do a Store Report on them, but I may have already. They've just moved into a new space, though, so it may be time for an update.

   I finished the following minis over the weekend:

Reaper Bones Mechanical Monkeys

These are destined to serve Otto Maton if he ever reappears...

 Reaper Bones village woman with her rugrats.

 Frostgrave Soldiers (Archer and Infantryman)

These are painted for the witch, specifically, but could be used for anyone really

More Frostgrave Soldiers (Tracker and Man-at-Arms)

More Frostgrave terrain

Closer up

So, knocking a few things out. Which is good, considering what's on the way soon...

Trying Out New Contrast Paints

   I usually use Vallejo paints, but I thought I would give the new contrast paints a try. I am using the Goliath gangers from the Necromunda Underhive boxed set as my test subjects.I went with flesh, because they have a good deal of it showing.

Guilliman Flesh over Flat White base

White spray, Strong Tone wash, Guilliman Flesh Contrast paint

Did this based on a Twitter post

Rear view of above.

Guilliman Flesh Contrast over flat white base

   I was skeptical but it seems to work fairly well. I usually use a black basecoat, though, so I guess the next step is to try it over with that.

The Sinking City | Review

Quick Facts:

• Release date: 27 June 2019
• Developer: Frogwares
• Genres: Action-Adventure, Survival horror
• Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, PS4

The Sinking City | Review

The Sherlock Holmes games' developer, frogwares has done a very good job this time. The Sinking City is a third-person detective adventure set in a fictional adaptation of 1920s New England, inspired by the works of influential (and, indeed, controversial) horror author H.P. Lovecraft. divers reveal an ancient cavern covered up underneath Oakmont loaded up with otherworldly statues of cosmic demons, and are driven mad by the discovery—a franticness that starts to spread through the city and awakens strange, vicious creatures the local people call wylebeasts. The game is divided between solving crimes and shooting beasts, despite the fact that the gulf in quality between each kind of play is quite wide.

The Sinking City places you in a detailed world loaded up with the incredible and absurd horrors befitting of any Lovecraftian story, yet gives a fresh however reverent take where others may have remained on the tracks laid about a century prior. So, while developer Frogwares' dig into Cthulhu legend has fantastic moments, the monotonous elements of this pulpy 1920s story can be the wrong kind of terrifying.

The Sinking City starts solid. You'll soon find yourself on a beguiling whistle-stop voyage through Lovecraft's tall stories, investigating dammed caves for lost campaigns and managing with genealogy obsessed tyrants. Rather than insensitive map markers you often need to search out street corners yourself, setting pins and connecting the dots to unravel a wider mystery. 

Robert Throgmorton, one of the first people you meet who looks like an ape. Later you find out (which sounds really fucked up) that it's because his literal father went to Africa and literally had sex with a female gorilla. This seems to be inspired by the short story Facts Concerning The Late Arthur Jermyn And His Family, where a man went to Africa, produced kids with a "white ape of some unknown species, less shaggy than any recorded variety, and infinitely closer mankind" and consequently fucked up his whole heredity from that point onwards. Apparently, Lovecraft's skill as an author did not stretch out to nuance.

As one may anticipate from a Lovecraftian game, combat, discovery, monsters, macabre and otherworldly imagery, and the visions that impelled Reed down this path in the first place progressively take a toll on both his health and sanity. This results in some disturbing psychological scenes, illusions, and psychosis. It's a real hoot.

The characters you interact with, however, are intriguing and well-acted, and I was pleasantly surprised by how unique and thematically, suitable each person is written and performed. From mob bosses to cult leaders to crooked politicians and that's just the beginning, every interaction felt interesting and helped to fill out the lived-in feel of Oakmont. unfortunately, this shed a glaring spotlight on the shamelessly recycled character models. It's particularly noticeable that the majority of the dark men you actually speak to have the same cartoonish face (he was racist for damn sure, he once described black people as "semi-human"). I found this very distracting, particularly during some of the most shocking moments that otherwise do a passable job of depicting the racial tensions of the era.

the voice acting is strong and the detective gameplay is the best aspect of The Sinking City. The "Mind Palace" makes an appreciated come back from the Sherlock Holmes games and works well here when piecing together observations and giving you more details on the tough calls you'll have to make. The greater part of the actual detective gameplay comes down to finding clues around the environment and using different archives around the city, for example, police records, the library, city hall, and different others to either find specific people or locations.

There aren't any obvious waypoints to guide you along, you'll constantly rely on your map as you search for specific street names or locations, which to be frank is really tedious and time-consuming. This is especially true in the earlier part of the game when you're forced to tromp all over the map before you've unlocked fast-travel locations. Most games would have quest objectives radiate outward from a central location, however, The Sinking City attempts to show-off its diverse neighborhoods by sending you through every one of them in turn. This felt good at the beginning as I was surprised by the different cultures and immense neighborhood within the island.  Notwithstanding, this immediately turned irritating as I looked for alternate ways around the maze of overflowed streets. I was all the more eager to sit on the long loading screens during fast travel than having to frequently plot routes that required jumping in an out of boats, staying away from infested zones, and getting around a few blocked paths.

The Verdict

Overall, as much as I adore the story and atmosphere of The Sinking City, it certainly feels like a budget title at times. If you can get past the weird Lovecraftian bits, weak combat, harmless jank, tedious and time-consuming navigation, and enjoy compelling stories, exciting environments, memorable characters, and a solid detective experience that won't hold your hand and throw tough choices your way, you shouldn't pass up on it.

DE: Dark Eldar List Building Advice

Alright boys, school's in session again!

Warning: Long-ass post ahead.  Get ready to read, or not, up to you.

Alright everyone, this is the long-awaited guide for how to build Kabal and Cult lists with the new book.  This is my personal advice for building lists and I know the book is still super young, but please bear with me.  I have over a decade of competitive Dark Eldar play and have been doing this game for a long time.  I've played through the bi-polar 3rd edition book, enjoyed the awesomeness that was Phil Kelly's 5th, to the god damn terrible flavorless books of 6th and 7th.  Now I'm back after playing extensively with the 8th Ed. Index and now the time has finally come:  The 8th Ed. Codex is here.  What can I say?  I've been enjoying the hell out of the book so far.  Of course, there are some misses just like every other book, but there are also a few things that are absolutely great.  I want to tell you what those great things are.

Brainstorming is one thing, but having played 5 games already, I'm feeling damn good with what we have now compared to the garbage we had before.  For the most part, I can only speak from my experience so far using Kabals, pure Kabals, and minor using Cults.  The last game that I had was using some minor Wych support again (dual Raiders), but there's also some opportunity over the weekend to bring in my Eldar for some more rigorous games.  This Dark Eldar pain train has no brakes and I don't see myself stopping any time soon.  I'm back and excited for the first time in a long time.

Without further bullshit, let's get down to it.  This is how I think we should design a successful list.  Keep in mind again, I'm primarily a Kabal player but I dabble heavily in Cults.  Check my old school 5th Ed. articles if you don't believe me!

All in all, there are 6 key steps:

1. Define theme and list goals
2. Build a unit bucket to accomplish those goals
3. Build a skeleton list
4. Balance your list's firepower
5. Perform a firepower analysis
6. Min-max your list and adjust

Here is my recipe for success:

The FIRST thing you should do is come up with a theme and set yourself up with some list goals.  Do you enjoy shooting a lot and heavy firepower from range?  Do you like more melee and assault units?  Do you like a lot of resilience and having great attrition and durability?  Check out this earlier post of mine for ideas for how to pick a theme.  If you come to this blog a lot, it's probably because you like shooting shit to death and assaulting once in a while.

Also part of this exercise is to come up with list goals.  These goals are what you aim to accomplish with your army that is similar, but more specific than your theme.  If you chose speed and firepower for example, what units would you take to get this done?  What Obsessions are you going to focus on?  What are some of your must-have and must-includes?  Sometimes, these must-haves don't have to be completely competitive in nature.  People have pet units all the time, as in units that are not really competitive but they take them in every game because their girlfriend painted it for them, or maybe they like the fluff, or whatever else.  These are just some of your own personal must-takes.

I'll provide you with my example for list goals:

• Must be "pure" Kabal
• Must have Cunning and Agents of Vect
• Must have amazing Alpha and follow-up (1-2 punch)

Side note - Aesthetics are important:
Remember this above all else:  Build the army you enjoy aesthetically (this includes theme).  I can't stress this enough.  I've taught GW Academy for years and one of the first things I teach to anyone jumping into the hobby is to pick the army you enjoy visually and thematically.  You will be building these units, painting these units, listhammering with these units, and playing with these units for a long time.  You will bond much faster with the army if it's the same one you wanted from the get-go.  You invest a lot into this hobby and quite honestly, money is the last thing I think about.  It's the time and energy that really stands out, and that is what will drive your need to improve your game.

Still with me?  Good.

The SECOND thing I suggest you guys do is to build a competitive unit bucket.  No, seriously, get out a piece of paper and write down all the units that have the most impact on your game.  It doesn't matter what it is, but it should look something like this:

Archon, Blaster = 89
5x Warriors, Blaster = 47
5x Trueborn, 4x Blasters = 123
Venom = 65
10x Warriors, 2x Blaster, Dark Lance = 114
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
Razorwing, 2x Dinsintegrators  = 135
Ravager, 3x Dinsintegrators = 125
...etc

These units should have their costs laid out according to the bare minimum for what you will never leave home without.  Everything else is considered EXTRA points and therefore LUXURY.  You only add points when you have your skeleton list in place.  You don't build a house with all the bells and whistles first.  You must lay the foundation with what you know for sure works and go from there.  I will always, especially to new players, recommend they write their unit costs and abilities on pen and paper over something like BattleScribe.  BS is great and I'm not a dinosaur:  I only advocate the pen and paper route because it helps build familiarity and knowledge with your units so you're not reliant on your applications.  Think about it like driving to a new place to work:  Do it enough times and it will stick; the same could be said about unit stats and point costs.  Yes, I wrote all those above off the top of my head.

Side-note: Warriors, 5 or 10?
Always take 10 unless you need the cargo space in a Command Raider (space for your HQs), intend on taking Venoms, or you don't have enough points.  Obviously, if you take a Venom you're kinda forced into a 5-man getup, but otherwise always take 10 because it unlocks the heavy weapon choice.  The only time I would not recommend taking the heavy weapon is if you need a Battalion happen with 1 more Troop choice for example.  Since you can fit 2 5-man units into a single Raider, you can spend the points to pile into the same transport.

Die, filthy Mon-keigh.

The THIRD thing you should do is build a skeleton list.  What I mean by this is to put down the list that will make your list work at a bare minimum.  For starters, I will always recommend following a Battalion layout because our Troops are actually good, and we'll want to have Archons in our list for those sick 6" bubble re-rolls.

The one thing to keep in mind here is redundancy.  You want to make sure that you're not taking 1-ofs everywhere unless you're experimenting or going for a very specific goal with a very specific combo.  Only when you can't make something redundant due to points restrictions do you hold back.  This is why most competitive lists tend to look spammy, but this truly is the most effective way to build lists that are durable and threatening.  Single targets are easy to isolate in terms of targets and you want to increase your threat level by giving your opponent a larger array of dangerous targets.  The more you make them think of the game, the higher your chance of winning.  This is because the more things there are to think about, the higher the chances they will make a mistake and therefore, make a poor decision that will benefit you.

A sample skeleton Battalion:

HQ:
Archon, Blaster = 89
Archon, Blaster = 89

TROOP:
10x Warriors, 2x Blaster, Dark Lance = 114
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
199

10x Warriors, 2x Blaster, Dark Lance = 114
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
199

10x Warriors, 2x Blaster, Dark Lance = 114
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
199

There you have it.  This is all I'm going to take to reach Battalion requirements so you can unlock that sick +3 additional CP.  You want CP to be a factor in your game, but it should not be a requirement.  You should not enter list building with a mindset that you're going to shoot for 9 or 12 CP or something like that.  You run the risk of taking a lot of ineffective units that do not jive with your theme and/or doesn't provide your army with the kick that it needs to be effective.  How do we determine what's effective and what's not?  Well, for one, look at what other people take and write about (such as this blog) and above all, experiment yourself in your local meta.  I don't know what's best for your friends or enemies, but I can sure tell you what I personally find to be great.  If we want to put some data behind this, we'll have to do a firepower analysis, which I'll talk about in a bit.

Side note - Raider vs. Venom:
There's a lot of discussions about which one is the better choice.  Frankly, this depends a lot on your meta first and foremost, but it also depends on whether or not you need the cargo space.  With the new book, the Raider got a massive points drop so it's more comparable to the Venom (who also got a points drop).  If you do some quick addition, a 5x Warrior squad with a Blaster in a Venom is 112 points vs. 132 from a Raider with a Dark Lance carrying the same units.  The only big difference there is not durability, it's actually about the armament and purpose.  The Dark Lance is an anti-tank weapon whereas the Venom is better at killing infantry.  However, a Raider has the ability to take Splinter Racks and Disintegrators as well so I would say that it's generally more flexible.  Keep in mind that unlike the Raider, the Venom does not degrade in potency once it takes damage.

Slayin' ain't ez.  For Dark Eldar, it is.

Now that you have a skeleton list established, the FOURTH thing I would do is to balance your firepower.  What do I mean by this?  I mean you should always build for balanced lists.  Don't go too heavy in any one direction (anti-tank vs. anti-infantry), try and balance it out so you can fight a multitude of different foes.  I like to think of this balance as the PUG-ready list.  This meaning that you can show up at any local game store and throw down the gauntlet for who wants to take a beating at 2K points.  You should then feel confident that no matter what the other dude puts on the table, you should feel like you have a decent chance to win if you're playing right.  I'm not even going to talk about potential mismatches where you show up and want to play with like a 7/10 power level list and the other dude has 9 bubble-wrapped Ravagers or some other shit next to his Adepticon Tryhard trophy.  No, we want to build lists that are nice and balanced against similar-minded opponents.  That's where the true challenge of the game is at.

So what does this list expansion look like?  Something like this:

2000 // 8 CP
Black Heart Battalion +3 CP

HQ:
Archon, Agonizer, Blaster, PGL = 94
Archon, Agonizer, Blaster, PGL = 94

TROOP:
7x Warriors, Blaster = 59
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
144

10x Warriors, 2x Blaster, Dark Lance = 114
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
199

10x Warriors, 2x Blaster, Dark Lance = 114
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
199

10x Warriors, 2x Blaster, Dark Lance = 114
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
199

10x Warriors, 2x Blaster, Dark Lance = 114
Raider, Dark Lance = 85
199

+++

Black Heart Spearhead +1 CP

HQ:
Archon, Blaster, PGL = 92

HEAVY:
Ravager, 3x Dinsintegrators = 125
Ravager, 3x Dinsintegrators = 125
Ravager, 3x Dinsintegrators = 125

+++

Black Heart Air Wing +1 CP

FLYER:
Razorwing, 2x Dinsintegrators = 135
Razorwing, 2x Dinsintegrators = 135
Razorwing, 2x Dinsintegrators = 135

What I did here was:  Look at my skeleton list and build on what was missing.  I calculated the points there and added in competitive units from my unit bucket that covers my list's weaknesses.  I wanted to add more killing power through ranged attacks so I added Ravagers and Razorwings.  I'm on a Dissie kick right now because of their killing potential (and I recommend them too!), but I also caution that we should balance that around with some Dark Lances.  Lances are better against heavier targets, but you can always supplement that shooting with a high volume number of Dissies.  Again, this is a meta call:  If your meta is saturated with IG Tank spammers running dirt-cheap Brigades, show up with a list with 20+ Dark Lances and feel no pity.  You shouldn't anyway!

Add the core elements from the unit bucket first before adding on anything else!  All the PGLs, Agonizers, and even extra 2 Warriors that started from a unit of 5 in a Command Raider is LUXURY.  It is not part of what you consider a core part of army construction and should be purchased only when you have spare points.  A mistake that I see people do after so many years in the hobby is going upgrade heavy on a single unit.  DO NOT do this!  Buy everything barebones for it to be fully functional (as in, does it fulfill the role you bought it for), then add on the upgrades only after you've done this with everything else in your list.

Pro-tip: Always buy PGLs on your BS2+ Archons and Succubus first.  All you need is for them to hit and you're golden.  Why not hit with the best chance you have?

Side note: Dissies vs. Dark Lances:
I like data and mathhammer for determining which targets you will frequently encounter and which weapons you should take to deal with them.  Generally, the Dissies are much better now for the cost than they were before, but you will still need Dark Lances to punch through that T7/T8 and to deliver those killing blows with burst damage (6 on a D6 for example).  Check out the calculator that I linked to analyze what targets saturate your meta and prepare for it accordingly.

Take no prisoners.

The FIFTH thing I do at this point is to double-check my math and weigh in your firepower.  You do this by performing a firepower analysis of what you have on the alpha with respect to the range band.  You do this by listing out all your weapons (including ranges if you want), their Strength/AP/Damage if you don't know them by heart, and the BS that they're shot with.  You don't need to write absolutely everything, you only need to write what you think is the most relevant.  It should look something like this:

Firepower:
15 Disintegrators at BS3+
9 Dark Lances at BS3+
9 Blasters at BS3+
3 Blasters at BS2+
3 Razorwing Missiles at BS3+
41 Splinter Rifles at BS3+

For me, I've been playing this damn army enough to know all the stats of these by heart, but if you want to get more elaborate you should follow my formula above.  Write out all the stats, on paper (it will help you remember) with how many, from what range, at what BS, and what their stats are.  This will also help you during deployment so you know what you can realistically dish out from your total THREAT range, which for shooty armies, is your move + your weapon's range.  Don't forget that most of our shit is open-top and our guys inside should factor into that equation as well.

This exercise right here is also a damage/gear check.  Just like a raid boss in an MMORPG, you should have something that tells you if you're putting out enough damage for the points.  If you're at 2K points and not within half of what I'm throwing out here, you know that you're at a huge disadvantage if I'm going first (Alpha).  This can also tell you if you're CP whoring and your list is actually "ineffective" at putting down shots down range.  From all the games I've played in 8th, I can tell you that the damage and lethality of the game is a lot higher than it was in the previous editions.  Everything tends to die really quick and there's a much larger emphasis on getting those potential backbreaking blows in the first couple of turns.  This is why the firepower analysis with respect to range bands is important:  You need to know what you can do on your first turn from as far away as you can (because you're wearing T-shirts flying around in paper planes), and what you can do as a follow-up strike when you get near your opponents.

The example here is that by looking at the firepower analysis above, I know that:
I can open at 36" range (14"+36" for 50" threat from my vehicles, with my Razorwings being pretty much unlimited range) with 9 Dark Lances at BS3+ if no one moved, less if I moved due to -1 to Hit for guys inside moving vehicles, 15 Dissies, 3 Razorwing missiles.  I know that if I move all my Raiders up into max range, and my opponent also moves up, potentially next round I can bring 12 additional Blasters into play in addition to X amount of Splinter shots.

This right here is how you should think about playing out your game.  I'm not saying go full rainman on your opponent and trip out midgame, I'm saying that you should be aware of all your weapons ranges so you can better prepare for the next turn and maximize your damage potential.

Pro-tip:  If you're up against a list with higher "alpha damage" than you, it's best to deploy defensively and seek shelter and line of sight blockers.  Alpha damage is someone's killing potential in that first volley of the game.  You want to be highly aware as a Dark Eldar player if you're at a disadvantage here.  You literally afford to eat shit like the other races.  Likewise, you should also be aware when you have the firepower advantage.  This means you can afford to be more aggressive (for that 1-2 punch) if you're the one with the alpha advantage.

Cult of Strife is just.. beauty and pain incarnate.

The SIXTH AND FINAL thing I do now is:  Count up the CPs AFTER the army is complete and see what more I can squeeze out of them.  This is the min-maxing portion and where I spend 70% of my list construction time.  This is because a lot of this comes from experience building lists as a primary aspect of my hobby, but also because a lot of this comes from post-battle reports where I sit back and think really hard about what changes I want to make.

For example, I ran a very similar list during my first game with the new book and that's with a Venom.  However, after playtesting, I found the Venom to be kinda lonely and didn't really serve too much of a service except for the Blaster guy inside.  I thought this through and came to the conclusion that I would rather have another Archon to unlock a Spearhead Detachment to bring my total CP up to 8 from 7, at a cost of a few Poison shots for sure, but I gain a better BS2+ Blaster, another PGL, and another 6" bubble.  The costs were very similar: 112 vs. 92, so the 20 extra points for me was even more worthwhile because I gained a CP at a net "loss" of a few Poison shots.  This is also when I go back and tweak those "luxury" upgrades to different units or replace them with things I feel works better against my opponents.

Welp, I think that's it.  Just keep in mind that this is not meant to be a definitive guide to the Dark Eldar book in the new edition, but it was more like a brain-dump of how I go about building lists that so far, has been working great for me.  Of course, feel free to let me know what you guys think, and I welcome you all to learning the game with me in the next couple of weeks!