M2e Colette

[Jordon]

I wouldn't necessarily call individual Corphee fragile. They do suffer from hard counters, but against the average, they can be a huge problem to deal with. It also comes down to how you use them. 

They are finesse models, not beaters. Use their speed to isolate targets and pick fights you know you can win. If they do happen to get into a fight with a tough model, they have ways to deal with it. Blinding combines amazingly well with the Coryphee's Always in Motion ability and Swirl of Motion trigger. This combo essentially neutralizes non ranged threats. Also don't discount the ability to use soulstones, as armor +2 with prevention can keep them standing for a long time. If all else fails, they can run away like champs. 

 

[Adran]

Typically I find they die to ranged models with high severe damage and/or armour ignoring, and that the Focus the sniper has used to get the range means that if they hit, they can easily cheat enough damage to kill. 

Hans and Nino, and the Pathfinder can do it, and then trappers and snipers can with the right suit. 

Melee its typically armour ignring models, or relic hammers that worry me. And to be honest I will normally bond in the first turn, before these matter, but the ranged stuff can kill one back in my deployment zone if I'm not careful, so may have to combine on the first activation

[Breng77]

I agree lots of ranged models end up hurting, quite a bit, and once they have taken any damage it becomes an issue.  Are they the least survivable model, not at all.  But for 7 stones they go down pretty quickly.  To use stones you need a trigger.  They have terrible willpower.  I find people focus on them really quickly because the duet is so good.  As such I usually merge turn 1.

[Jordon]

Another issue could be terrain. If you don't have adequate LOS blockers, then ranged crews will have wreck your day. They can't hit what they can't see. 

Also Colette with her prompt/disappearing act along with the speed of the Coryphee means you can get the Coryphee in the opponent deployment zone turn 1, no problem. Most ranged models suffer once engaged so it's not terribly hard to just engage them. Or even just engage a scheme runner or two, having to force a ranged model to randomize will often make the ranged model choose an easier target. Sometimes the safest place to be is engaged with enemy models (in the case of ranged heavy crews)

In the case of those pesky armor ignoring melee models, I recommend prompt. Send a Coryphee up and get Colette to prompt it three times. It's rare for a model to stand up to that kind of abuse. Especially if you use a dove for the positives to damage flips, good luck surviving that. Colette is the queen of applying pressure where you need it most. 

Again I'm not saying they don't have bad matchups, because they do. But for every bad matchup for a Coryphee, there is an equal amount of situations where Coryphee are amazing counters to whatever your opponent is bringing. 

[Breng77]

I like them well enough I just generally think the duet is better.  With it having higher WP and positive damage flips, and a self heal.  I will often final act prompt both my coryphee turn 1 have them run in hit a few things then merger before they die and hit something else.  Very little can withstand 2 charging coryphee, that reactivate then merge into a duet.   Typically can get 7 regular coryphee attacks and 2 more from the duet.  Then once the duet is engaging with the opponents crew it just causes havoc.  In fact I often add Myranda to the reactivating mix, then becoming a Cerberus.

[Nexus]

14 minutes ago, Breng77 said:

I will often final act prompt both my coryphee turn 1 have them run in hit a few things then merger before they die and hit something else. 

You can only do the Final Act trigger once per turn.  
Only one of them can get it. 

[Breng77]

Aha...good that I only just started trying out said list.  It will still work pretty well with just one, as you can still likely get 2 charges and an extra swing prior to merging.

[Nexus]

15 hours ago, Breng77 said:

Aha...good that I only just started trying out said list.  It will still work pretty well with just one, as you can still likely get 2 charges and an extra swing prior to merging.

Yeah, the Prompting itself can still give you all kinds of fun even without the trigger. 

[Breng77]

Yeah prompting a coryphee can move it 10". So you have a 19" charge threat with each coryphee, then the reactivating coryphee can swing one more time then merge for 2 more swings (or a new charge). So it is still 6-7 good attacks.  

[WLSFK]

I'm just starting a Dark Carnival crew because I really like the look of them, plus Cooper is an awesome twist on Colette.

I've read through this thread and the PMF articles, and want to ask about what my best crew could be while staying within the theme of messed-up evil carnies? I won a Willie as a prize, and have the DC box. I was thinking of getting the Mech Rider and putting her spear on the back of the saddle with a wavy flag, and maybe making a Captian model from the TTB Male kit with a top hat or something. Willie doesn't need any conversion really to fit in cos he looks mad enough. Angelic would also fit the theme well. Only three flying monkeys (Doves) come in the box, so I'll need a few more maybe?

What else might I need or want to convert for this crew?

 

WLSFK

[Rautenfreund]

3 minutes ago, WLSFK said:

I'm just starting a Dark Carnival crew because I really like the look of them, plus Cooper is an awesome twist on Colette.

I've read through this thread and the PMF articles, and want to ask about what my best crew could be while staying within the theme of messed-up evil carnies? I won a Willie as a prize, and have the DC box. I was thinking of getting the Mech Rider and putting her spear on the back of the saddle with a wavy flag, and maybe making a Captian model from the TTB Male kit with a top hat or something. Willie doesn't need any conversion really to fit in cos he looks mad enough. Angelic would also fit the theme well. Only three flying monkeys (Doves) come in the box, so I'll need a few more maybe?

What else might I need or want to convert for this crew?

 

WLSFK

as The flying Monkey is Rare 3 You do not Need more of them. I like the firestarter as a model to fit in this theme (especially the Alternative one). Howard Langston is a must have in any freak show I think.

 

brgds

raute

[Jordon]

I think you could either take a sabertooth cerberus as the "lion" that is pretty iconic to a circus. Alternatively you could convert a slate ridge mauler to have a tutu and put him in the show. 

[Bengt]

45 minutes ago, Jordon said:

Alternatively you could convert a slate ridge mauler to have a tutu and put him in the show. 

And a fez of course!

[Mxbedlam]

I did my Cerberus as a lion and replaced Joss' axe with a chair and whip as a lion tamer. My december acolyte is a dart gamer barker and for Johan I built a strength test machine on his base.

 

[madaxeman]

Some thoughts from literally my first game with Colette (Colette (Doves, +1 card and the other one), Cassandra (her own one and a rather redundant Warding Runes), Angelica (PP), Hank (IE), Performer, Metal Gamin (as it was that strat where you all pile into the middle and move the marker).

• PP Trapdoors is really important. Don't put it on a model that will get killed !
• How easy is it to spam markers?! Even not knowing what I was doing I can see already how you would expect to always score 3+3 for schemes if there are two marker-ey schemes in the pool (which there always are), so your game plan is probably to be looking for 2-3 VPs in the Strat to win the game.
• Colette can get left behind the rest of the crew. I need to work out how to keep her closer to the action. Performer lure?
• I'd almost be tempted to conjure up 3 doves in her first activation, for activation control. Prompts can save for turn 2, as then you probably know where the enemy crew is going to be, and you have activation control back. 
• Decide if your Doves are giving the buff to friends (so start in the backfield near to them) or are exploding/doing marker tricks (so need to be upfield) 
• Cassandra should move early to put up Southern Charm.

[Mxbedlam]

Keep in mind she can Disappear herself up the board.

[Boomstick]

I've been trying to branch out from Prompting as often (don't get me wrong, it's good, but my roommates were getting incessant in their complaining), and have been using Disappearing Act more often (much to the roommates chagrin, but they have no one to blame but themselves). Last game I admittedly overextended with Colette, which Lilith took advantage of by vining her over near Bad Juju. I responded by flying a few doves nearby. My last activation was to walk with my second Coryphee, Dance Partner to Colette. Won initiative, Dove'd +dmg on the Coryphee, companioned, Coryphee took out Juju. Game ends, I reveal Undercover Entourage on Colette, and win.

[madaxeman]

Having played a couple more games with Colette now, it seems clear to me that there is a really important sequence of activations to work through for her crew, in order to get the most value out of the various abilities and free moves. 

Does anyone have a sort of standard-ish step-by-step activation plan for the first turn or so they could share - kinda like the Ramos spider factory plan?  

[Boomstick]

I haven't come up with an order of operations as cut and dry as Ramos' spider factory for her; instead I see it as several macros to choose from according to when it is in the game, what the board looks like, and what she wants to accomplish that turn (and often the next).

Generally first turn I spend dropping a lot of scheme markers and moving up a little bit. This leaves plenty of markers to remove to pay for practice production throughout the game, as well as fallback failsafes for Colette's Df trigger/Disappearing act back to your deployment zone. If I take a mannequin I always activate it first so it can activate Magician's assistant, and move it to where it will best follow the performers around as they place schemes. I generally do all that first, so by the time I get to activating Colette and my heavy lifters my opponent's initial aims are (hopefully) starting to take shape. First turn, in fact, I usually wait for Colette to go last so everything else is in position and she can make/positon a few doves for next turn, or prompt to capitalize on my opponent overextending or similar (I have a few super aggressive players in my meta, so pushing an acolyte out of a baiting position and getting a third shot is always great).

After that it really depends on my scheme pool. Next turn might bring a PP marker placed off a dove followed by some disappearing acts to develop towards a hard to reach spot to simplify scheme running or towards some lonely opponent models to wipe them up quick. Or it might be continue to push up slowly with a lot of markers to really dig in defensively (works well with the aggressive players, they tend to overextend and get frustrated when I'm not running towards the center fight they want).

I do tend, the first turn or two to either do a Cassandra/Colette shuffle with prompts/understudy, or, the simpler version, I've found, is to hit Colette with Cassandra, and Now You See Me up the board.

One of the things that makes Colette harder to play against, in my opinion, is the fact that she doesn't have a set order of things she does and instead plays to how the board sits at a given moment. Don't get me wrong, Ramos is amazingly solid, but unless he has something odd going on, he generally makes spiders, brings up arcing screen (maybe twice), and magnetizes to a hurt spider to make sure he has scrap for next turn. It's straightforward and rough for an opponent to deal with, but it's predictable. Colette (especially once you've graduated from Prompting all the time) comes at the opponent sideways.

[retnab]

Hey all, so I've been looking through the Crossroads Seven and was wondering how the members would do with Colette?  Envy's an obvious one, +1T to his Sh with scheme markers nearby (and its Colette, scheme markers will be nearby), but I was really taking a look at Gluttony too.  With the Rhythm To Those Who Hunger and Colette and co.'s ability to throw scheme markers around (Practiced Production, Mannequin's Magicians Assistant, Mechanical Rider's Sh trigger, Union Miner's False Claim) it feels like you can really mess with your opponent model's placements.  Plus Cassandra can Understudy the Rhythm to get even more of the Condition around!  What do you all think?

[admiralvorkraft]

Gluttony has a lot of potential, plus he's got one of the better auras so long as Exhaust/Catch and Release/Mark For Death aren't in the pool because he denies most models the chance to avoid that damage.

[orkdork]

On 4/8/2016 at 8:54 AM, Breng77 said:

a list I just tried with devastating effect was the following.

Colette 4 cache

-practiced production 

-seize the day

-cabaret choreography 

myranda

-imbued energies

2x coryphee

december acolyte

performer

malifaux raptor

3x mechanical dove.

This is a monstrously good list, FYI. There are very few masters than can put together a single list this flexible and powerful.

(Of course, lists don't need to be all-comers, which is part of what makes Malifaux such an awesome game).

[DeadManTalking]

A super killy list I've recently used to devastating effect.

Colette: 3ss, arcane reservoir upgrade, + initiative flip, and ss manipulation

3 doves

Malifaux raptor

Hannah

Myranda: imbued energies

Killjoy: imbued energies

Turn one you draw as many cards as possible and only need to prompt once giving myranda reactivate. Myranda reactivates last walking into postion then shapechanges dropping off a Cerberus and killjoy, also allowing you to draw 4 more cards and then you kill whatever you want. Even most masters will be hard pressed to survive that amount of damage output.

 

[Boomstick]

Anyone pit our favorite Showgirl against Nellie, Titania or Zipp yet? On paper they look to be a rough match up for anyone wanting to do interact/scheme marker things. 

[Adran]

I'd be more worried about Parker than Titania or Nellie, as he does stuff with our markers once they are down, rather than just getting a small boost when we drop the marker. (And possibly slightly easier scheme removal on Titania). Against Zipp I think you just need to do your stuff not near Zipp. And He can't be everywhere at once.