Lsrwolf wrote:
Now I was not around to follow whether and how much debate there was prior to the Eldar nerf bat
Huge debate. More than 2 years worth. That was following plenty of objective evidence of Eldar armies consistently being above average in dozens of tournaments (and certain configurations being consistently well above average).
You've commented on the Spirit Stone removal multiple times. To give you some background on that, they were added due to concerns about longer games and lack of Eldar staying power, in particular for use in scenarios (which should be a tiny consideration in a GT list). That happened within a couple months of the list being finalized, while several of the more active playtesters were coincidentally absent, so they received little testing. Most importantly, there were no accompanying point changes*. If ever there was a blatant reason for a nerfing, that's it.
Quote:
I'd like to believe that any unit is eligible for objective examination when tabletop experiences indicate an examination may be in order.
They are always up for examination, but Rough Riders have been covered multiple times in the past and the results have been consistent through every debate - a few people think they are overpowered, a few people think they are fine, and the consensus develops that while they might be *slightly* overpowered, they are close enough for a niche unit.
If you feel strongly that is wrong, it's easy enough to generate lots of data. Run GT games against forces that have lots of Rough Riders and post the results. If RRs consistently turn the tide of games in favor of the IG, you'll find it easy to sway people to your opinion.
As a side note, if you want to compare units for balance, the best comparison is within an army list. Internal balance is always the most consistent in terms of the abstract factors to consider. If you are going to do cross-army comparisons, you have to take a huge array of factors which aren't easily quantified into consideration. For example, comparing RR to Eldar units as you did above means taking into account better SR, possibly better Initiative, Farsight and differences in deployment options (wraithgates and air assaults).
*except possibly Falcons, which were in flux right up to the end - my memory fails me