There are some Malifaux players who come into new
crews/factions with a good base of knowledge from which to build. They’re
prepped and ready. They know their crew and what they can do. They’re prepared
and when they play, if they make some mistakes, they do more things right than
they do wrong. For top-end players, you may not even know they’re trying a new
crew if they don’t tell you.
I am not
one of those players.
As some may
remember from my first efforts with Collodi, I tend to muddle about in the dark
with my first games and learn by failing. It was this in mind that I went into
my first game as a Ten Thunders player. I signed up for the most recent iteration of the
facebook Vassal League a month or so ago. I had to forfeit the first round, as
my opponent lived in Europe and I was in the midst of the move from Blacksburg
to Iowa. The next round had me facing Oliver from the UK, a lovely chap who came in 2nd
in the Welsh GT. He was bringing Resurrectionists, and I was pretty sure we
were playing Guard the Stash, so I figured it was a good time for some Jacob
Lynch-Cheating Bastard Action. A standard set-up of Mr. Lynch, HD, 2x
Beckoners, and 2x Stitched Together would be joined by Mr. Graves to knock
people away from Stash markers and Yin with Smoke Grenades to improve our
staying power. This seemed like the correct call when my opponent revealed he
was bringing Kirai. Since I don’t have what it takes to alpha-strike, I knew I
would have to score early and try to endure and deny. With a Lampad coming from
the other side, I figured I probably would have a chance to score set-up on it
before (hopefully) killing it at the start of the next turn. And I had
Lynch-Hungering Darkness-Graves-Yin to score Punish the Weak. It was gonna be
tough, as I have no experience against Kirai, but I thought I had a good plan.
Of course,
then I sat down to play the game and realized it was actually Symbols of
Authority, not Guard the Stash.
All-in-all,
the game was a comedy of errors for my side. I mean, I ran my crew well. We had
revealed each other’s crews early in the week, so I didn’t think it would be right
for me to change mine after I discovered the mistake. That meant I was not
going to be scoring anything for Symbols most likely, but I could perhaps
hunker down and limit the other crew’s ability to score any of mine. I’d have
to get it with schemes to succeed. The gameplan for set-up didn’t entirely work
out, as Oliver is much more cagey with his Lampad than some others and kept him
hidden through all of the first turn. I
ended up scoring two from it later on when the fire ghost finally appeared, but
by that point I’d been picked down enough that the Lampad couldn’t be killed.
My Stitched Together were rockstars, dropping severe damage gambles left and
right to keep me in business. But, ultimately, my unfamiliarity with
Kirai/Ikiryo/Seishin interactions doomed me. Between Huggy and Lynch I probably
wasted about 4 AP worth of actions trying to do things that were impossible
(Paralyzing Ikiryo/Trying to Kill Seishin for Punish/Trying to do damage to
Kirai when Seishin were nearby) and, when you’re playing a good crew piloted by
a good opponent with as big a disadvantage as I put myself in with my crew
selection, there was just no way to win the game. Additionally, I left Woke Up
With A Hand to see if I could get by with 52 Pickup and have a bit more
flexibility in when he activates, which I think was a mistake. And most
inexcusable, I let Huggy die with his Recalled Training still attached. My
ancestors have been shamed. In a way, I’m actually pretty proud of ONLY losing
8-4.
So I
definitely have some things to learn. But, I think the crew itself played
relatively well. In a Guard the Stash game, I may even have been in a place to
compete for a draw despite the in-game errors. I’ve discovered the worst
situation for an opponent when inside the CB bubbles is to be winning on the
initial flip with a low card, as you’re now stuck having to decide whether to
cheat or risk me jumping over them with a moderate, which has to suck. My opponent, for his part, didn't seem phased by it and did what I think you have to do, cheated the important stuff and didn't sweat it otherwise. I
discussed with Oliver in game that I like using Huggy as an anchor as you do in
this crew, rather than the fire and forget missile that he was in Rising Sun
Lynch. As Oliver points out, he’s still very vulnerable to getting ganked by
casters targeting Df, but I prefer keeping him on the board for as long as I can rather than intentionally throwing him away. This crew fits
well with my style. Plus, it changes things up from what an unfamiliar opponent
might expect when you declare Ten Thunders, namely the alpha-striking
Emissary/Yasunori combo. This is not that crew, and the things you might bring
to counter that crew aren’t going to be effective against mine. So, all in all,
I’m encouraged despite the failure.
***
Earlier in
the week, I messaged my friends in the Wandering River Dojo to ask for what
models would be considered REQUIRED to add to my Ten Thunders collection. As a
reminder, this is what I have now. I’m not looking for new masters at the
moment, just things to add to the toolbox. Essentials, if you will. This was
what they came back with.
Number one
with a bullet was the Shadow Emissary, and it’s easy to see why. The thing is a
workhorse. Handing out Fast to any model with an upgrade is pretty good, since
the models with the upgrades are also usually pretty good. Increased mobility. Some intermediate
ranged damage. So, so, good, and that’s not even looking at the Conflux
upgrades. With those, you can bring in another item from McCabe’s loot bag or
give the Emissary a pseudo-Lure action with Lynch. And if you don’t want to use
the Conflux, you can always give it a Recalled Training. Good stuff.
A Teracotta
Warrior and/or Ten Thunders Brother would probably go here, but I’ve got one of
each of those already, so next was Yasunori. Again, no surprise there. He’s the
best hitter the faction has. He’s infamous for his ability to force opponents
to change their set-up to avoid his mauling their way through the center of
their crew at the end of turn 1/start of turn 2. He gets a ton of attacks with
his triggers, and he’s a scary model. He's bad enough that he got a nerf in the last Gaining Grounds that resulted in a collective shrug from most of the Malifaux community, followed by their continuing to use him in exactly the same way and with the same frequency they had previously. That said, everybody sees him coming, and
I’ve not used him. In a way, I might be better served not using him and
sticking to stuff I know. Otherwise I run the risk of opponents bringing tech to counter him, which is a problem when I don’t have the experience to counter the counters.
As a
counterpoint to Yas, Phiasco (sensei of the Dojo) suggested including the Lone
Swordsman. He’s less of a point investment than Yasunori, so you don’t have to
throw all your eggs in one basket when you use him. He doesn’t have Yas’s speed
or multiple attacks, but he can still throw out a lot of damage. Also, one of
the Thunders’ weak spots is countering armor from the opponent. It’s not really
reliable, but at least the Swordsman is able to use a trigger to get through
it. And I do like the ability to take a second activation in a turn to kill an
opposing model or, on the last turn, perform those last-minute desperation actions
to win the game.
Last was a
Charm Warder. Disguise on your master is real good. Disguise on a
model that lasts the whole game if the Charm Warder dies is even better. #analysis. A +
flip to Df/Wp after activation. Versatile attack that can work around defenses
like Incorporeal or having a combination of high/low Df/Wp. Scheme negation. The
full toolbox of abilities that this model brings is crazy at 5 stones. There’s
very little reason not to bring one for most games, at least in my view.
Those models
are on the way. Next weekend I have the season opener in Des Moines, so it’s
gonna be a rush to get them assembled and try to slap some paint on them.
Additionally, I have the next round of the Vassal tournament against Rich D.
Nave, who will have a (now-nerfed) Nicodem waiting. This will be a rematch of a game I asked for when writing the Nicodem article a while ago, so my fun with the undead
continues, it seems. More on this in next week’s blog post.
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