Dark Elven Strategy

A Guide to Dark Elf Strategy in WBC3

First choose a Hero

When playing Dark Elves you are best to use a character who has skills in summoning. The best ones are: Daemonslayer, Archmage, or Summoner. You are also best off with a dark elf because, as summoning is their racial magic, you'll end up starting with a few points in Summoning.
(You can also use a necromancer, lichelord or deathknight if you prefer necromancy to summoning but it will take a bit longer to build them up to useful skills.)

Next pick the dark elf army.

Sure it's what you start with if you're a dark elf. However if you go to the doomwood on the campaign map you can join their war against the dwarves and make them an ally so any race who are not enemies of the dark elves can gain them. Of course if you are playing multiplayer just pick them.

Your best unit is the sorceror. Once upgraded with black ward 1-3, sorcery 1 & 2 and darkbolt they are ferocious units. Anyone coming too close gets a pillar of fire, and the darkbolt is the best magic attack. If you need to fill mines they can summon zombies.

To back them up you need dark riders, dark infantry, skeletons, assassins or queen spiders to keep the enemy from getting too close. Phoenixes and Imps can add their firepower.

spiders are only useful as scouts or a nuisance.
Spider Priestesses are not as useful.
Dark archers are weak, though they have a poison attack, and die too easily.
Harpies are Ok as divebombers but useless against other air units.

Dark Elf strategy

OK the game has started first you need to take over mines for resources. Have a wisp handy or summon a quasit (or zombie) to build your keep. The most important resources are crystal, stone, gold and metal, in that order. As soon as you've taken over the mines use summoning magic to put as many quasits (or zombies) as you can into the mines. Build your keep up to level three as fast as possible. Ignore the rune of cielos and gallery for archers - they're crap anyway and you don't need them.
Build at least two trees of pain and set them to magic guardian on your hero. Build one or two crypts and have them build skeletons. Make them either guardian to your hero (if you need numbers) or rampant if you need to scout the map. (If you build two you can set them one each). Make sure you hit the upgrade to turn wisps into ancient wisps ASAP, because as well as being builders ancient wisps also count as crystal mines. Keep them around your base, but try not to lose them.

As soon as you can hit keep level three. Research the rune of manos then the rune of animos. Have your ancient wisps start building Voids. Not only can these buildings upgrade your sorcerors, but each one can fire a black bolt. They are cheaper than towers and if you start building a wall of them around your base they will both defend it and also increase your army limit. I like to build them in a loose checkerboard pattern about three deep if possible.

You also need a reformatory so you can fill your mines with thralls (if you haven't already filled them with quasits or zombies.)

Change your tombs so that they build queen spiders as well as/or instead of skeletons. Be careful of the vast numbers of spiders that spawn. They can be useful to deny areas to lone scouts but die too easily against groups or strong units. If you have too many set them to rampant or scout.

Set your Trees of Pain to build sorcerors and dark riders. The sorcerors are one of the best units in the game. This will be the core of your army, along with phoenixes, around your hero. Try not to lose your sorcerors. If threatened withdraw. The dark riders will attack and draw enemy attacks but a fusillade of black bolts from your sorcerors will take down enemy units and buildings very quickly.

Phoenixes can be used to take over mines that are not defended but a swarm of them around your hero will also be devastating. Set your brood to guardian on your hero.

When attacking a base use your hero to convert buildings as this lets your troops concentrate on enemy towers and units.

[Tetsuri]

?? is this for campaign? If so, spider priestess in the retinue pretty good. Get her to level 15, she can defend alone and summon tons of spiders before you can even bumrush to keep 3. With summoning, I can even ignore ancient wisps or building any other unit.

[EbilSteebi]

Very well thought out. I'm impressed.

[Fendelphi]

The Bard has Leadership(flat buff throughout the battle), Wealth(combined with Ancient Wisps in your retinue, you have all the gold and crystal you will need for Sorcerers) and Divination(can cut the cost of choice research to help economy, and boost xp without having to be near units).
The stronger retinue due to Diplomacy helps with your early game by protecting the base or add additional economy. This allows you to progress fairly fast to tier 3 buildings, which is where the class combination truly shines.
Due to being Bard("leader/hybrid" class) you also start with 50 more hits than a caster class.
The entire setup is about getting to level 3 as quickly as possible, while securing your base and ressources, and to boost your win condition(Sorcerer spam).

I do think that, overall, a Dark Elf Archmage is a stronger hero for the Dark Elf army(does not rely on Sorcerer spam), and possible one of the strongest heroes in the game.

[EbilSteebi]

Had not tried a High Elf leader, due to their racial animosity, but you do make a good point.
Not sure what you mean about the Bard though.

[Fendelphi]

If you want to focus on spamming Sorcerers as much as possible, consider a High Elf hero as base. Their Arcane Rune skill gives +5% health per rank and makes the rune cheaper. At 10 skill points, your Sorcerers start with 135 health, even at level 1. Combined with healing magic/resurrection, your investment in them will keep on giving.

To reach that stage faster, a class that can assist in early economy or for defending your base/mines is pretty good. Another consideration is a secondary magic sphere to fully utilize the Dark Elf armies research upgrades, since you might not always be in need of casting healing spells.
In my opinion, the Bard fits perfectly.