Outcasts Crew Box Reviews

[TableTopical]

I recently started a blog, and one of the things that I want to do is to try and write some relatively quick overviews of the crew boxes. In the future, I'm hoping that I can write some more in depth articles for the masters as I get more comfortable with them. These are mostly meant for people just starting the game.

Misaki Box Review

Tara Box Review

What do you ladies and gents think? I'm up for any constructive criticism or ways that you think I could improve the articles.

Thanks!

Ken

[yanlosbeard]

I have to comment that I am a little surprised by your choice of Masters.

I am a new player myself, so cannot comment in terms of real gameplay experience, but when looking at the Outcast Faction, the advice that I was given by veteran players was that Tara and Misaki were definitely NOT good choices for a beginner. Tara has unusual mechanics, and has to manage a reduced control hand when using the Void creatures that come in her crew box. And I was told that if I was thinking of choosing Misaki, to go down the Ten Thunders route because some of her preferred support pieces are exclusive to Ten Thunders,  making her a much weaker Master in the Outcast faction.

Again, I don't really have the practical knowledge to have formed an opinion of my own, but in my experience the advice from veteran players has been unanimous: Misaki and/or Tara are not the best Masters to choose when starting Outcasts.

In the longer term, will you be looking to write similar articles for some of the Masters that are considered more beginner-friendly (e.g. Viktoria, Von Schill)?

[I'm a Teapot!]

In my experience some players might wanna start with complex masters because the simple ones dont fit their general playstyle. I started with Tara because i loved the theme of a Time manipulating master and i have to say i got crushed super hard in my first few games (knowing nothing about card mechanics or the potential of focusing with a 2/4/7 dmg track). 

So a starting guide to those more complex masters is a good thing in my opinion. Maybe an added section about key things to keep in mind when playing Tara or Misaki as a last section is more important for those master as it would be for the Freikorps.

If I was forced to play Von Schill or Viks to start Outcast, i'd skip the faction because i just dont like the simple beatstick crew. 
So thanks for the blog! I can only say if u wanna start Tara or Misaki cause u like their flair - Do it! 
Even if it has a rough start, it doesnt get bore with them =) (Both Masters have so much Potential)

+ Misaki in Outcasts is underrated. It might be worse in case of a cruise missile build than in TT but it has much more potential in some other aproaches. (Hand pressure, survivability, certain combos)

Misaki and Tara just have different playstyle option in their different Factions. Explore those Playstyles, pick ur favourite and enjoy them.

 

 

[TableTopical]

Thanks for taking a look at the articles!

2 hours ago, yanlosbeard said:

I have to comment that I am a little surprised by your choice of Masters.

I am a new player myself, so cannot comment in terms of real gameplay experience, but when looking at the Outcast Faction, the advice that I was given by veteran players was that Tara and Misaki were definitely NOT good choices for a beginner. Tara has unusual mechanics, and has to manage a reduced control hand when using the Void creatures that come in her crew box. And I was told that if I was thinking of choosing Misaki, to go down the Ten Thunders route because some of her preferred support pieces are exclusive to Ten Thunders,  making her a much weaker Master in the Outcast faction.

Again, I don't really have the practical knowledge to have formed an opinion of my own, but in my experience the advice from veteran players has been unanimous: Misaki and/or Tara are not the best Masters to choose when starting Outcasts.

In the longer term, will you be looking to write similar articles for some of the Masters that are considered more beginner-friendly (e.g. Viktoria, Von Schill)?

I mostly chose these two boxes because they were the first 2 that I picked up after returning to the game after taking a long break (I used to play back in first edition). I saw the recommendations to stay away from these two masters, but I don't mind getting my face stomped in for a few games while I learn a more mechanic intensive master. What really drew me to them was the theme anyway!

I plan on doing these reviews for all of the Outcast masters I can, and then maybe expanding out to other factions. I might have other people write the articles for masters that I'm not super familiar with (Although these are pretty basic, so I think I can get enough information from PullMyFinger and here if I need to). 

1 hour ago, Drunken Kung Fu Kid said:

In my experience some players might wanna start with complex masters because the simple ones dont fit their general playstyle. I started with Tara because i loved the theme of a Time manipulating master and i have to say i got crushed super hard in my first few games (knowing nothing about card mechanics or the potential of focusing with a 2/4/7 dmg track). 

So a starting guide to those more complex masters is a good thing in my opinion. Maybe an added section about key things to keep in mind when playing Tara or Misaki as a last section is more important for those master as it would be for the Freikorps.

If I was forced to play Von Schill or Viks to start Outcast, i'd skip the faction because i just dont like the simple beatstick crew. 
So thanks for the blog! I can only say if u wanna start Tara or Misaki cause u like their flair - Do it! 
Even if it has a rough start, it doesnt get bore with them =) (Both Masters have so much Potential)

+ Misaki in Outcasts is underrated. It might be worse in case of a cruise missile build than in TT but it has much more potential in some other aproaches. (Hand pressure, survivability, certain combos)

Misaki and Tara just have different playstyle option in their different Factions. Explore those Playstyles, pick ur favourite and enjoy them.
 

Good points! I also picked Tara because of her mechanics and theme (burying people and Cthulu monsters? Sign me up!). I had a bit of an advantage when restarting the game, since I played in first edition, so I may have been able to pick up the more complex mechanics more quickly than other new players.

I like the idea of adding a section of things to keep in mind! I'll add it to my list of things to improve

I agree with your point about probably switching factions (Or going back to another game) if I started up again with one of the more straight forward masters. I played Circle Orboros in WarmaHordes for a long time, so I think I am a glutton for punishment when it comes to trying to wrap my head around a playstyle.

[Seadhna]

Never tried Misaki, but Tara was my first master when I got into the game, and she's extremely intuitive to play. Pretty much proceeded to wreck face (still lost quite a few games, but not because my crew was weak, mostly because I didn't know which schemes to pick).

 

That being said, I think your reviews are spot-on.

 

What I would add would be the following: count the SS in the crew box and provide a sample crew list for 35 SS, then name 1-2 small boxes that would improve the crew up to 50 ss.

Also, list a few strats/schemes that you should never play with this master (can't think of any for Tara, she's a beast).

[TableTopical]

7 hours ago, Seadhna said:

Never tried Misaki, but Tara was my first master when I got into the game, and she's extremely intuitive to play. Pretty much proceeded to wreck face (still lost quite a few games, but not because my crew was weak, mostly because I didn't know which schemes to pick).

 

That being said, I think your reviews are spot-on.

 

What I would add would be the following: count the SS in the crew box and provide a sample crew list for 35 SS, then name 1-2 small boxes that would improve the crew up to 50 ss.

Also, list a few strats/schemes that you should never play with this master (can't think of any for Tara, she's a beast).

Thanks for the feedback! I love the idea of mentioning how many soulstones the box is in the review! I was thinking that it might be a good idea to do "After the Box" Articles that go over what models to buy next, and some of the more advanced stuff like schemes and strats. Which way do you all think is better? I want to make sure that these beginner articles don't end up being too long, and I also don't want to step on PullMyFinger's toes too much, since that is already such a great source of info.

 

[Seadhna]

6 hours ago, TableTopical said:

Thanks for the feedback! I love the idea of mentioning how many soulstones the box is in the review! I was thinking that it might be a good idea to do "After the Box" Articles that go over what models to buy next, and some of the more advanced stuff like schemes and strats. Which way do you all think is better? I want to make sure that these beginner articles don't end up being too long, and I also don't want to step on PullMyFinger's toes too much, since that is already such a great source of info.

 

"After the box" is probably the most common question people ask. Maybe with a colourful explanation on what the added model can do?

Example: I've read multiple positive reviews on Strongarm suit, but when I bought it I realized all it does is smash face. If there had been an article that said exactly that, I'd have stuck with Bishop.

 

An advanced  strat/scheme section similar to the way they do on Schemes&Stones would be awesome (basically, an experienced player lists preferred schemes/strats for the master and key crew members). Pullmyfinger stuff on this topic is either presumtious (being some contributor's personal opinion) or massively outdated, so no real competition.

[Freman]

Comparing Strongarm and Bishop, I like them both but (against models that don't ignore armour) Strongarm hangs around longer. Bishop is nice for bypassing some triggers (choosing Df or Wp) and calling the suit that bypasses hard to kill can get rid of things like Stitched who go hard to kill, and then reactivate on one wound. Bishop be like, "No, you're dead".

[daniello_s]

Bishop's 1'' melee range is a bit sad though...

[Wolfpact]

Hey, I'm just happy to be getting a free, awesome looking new addition to the Barrows gang.

Honestly never horribly cared for the face on the base Bishop, and didn't own him yet.

[Mikey_C]

On 11/30/2016 at 7:05 AM, daniello_s said:

Bishop's 1'' melee range is a bit sad though...

It's also a blessing though, sometimes having a 3" engage prevents you from dropping that scheme marker you need down.

 

[TableTopical]

While he isn't the most beginner friendly master, the article for Hamelin is up!

Hamelin Box Review

I've also started linking to all of the reviews in one central place here.

On the Docket for the rest of this week:

• "Beyond the Box" Article for Tara - I like how the article name flows!
• Add soulstone ranges to each of my crew box reviews (Including Hamelin's... woops...)

For the Beyond the Box article I think I'm going to stick to just discussing models to expand to 35 and 50 points (Like Seadhna recommended), and general tactics rather than going into Strats and Schemes (Since those might be getting updated in GG2017). I can go back in once GG2017 is out and either add them in, or just make a third article that focuses on that.

Outside of the crew box, anyone want to weigh in on the models they like or fun tips and tricks with Tara? I would love to include some of your mad skills in my article later this week.

[Freman]

Just as an aside, Hamelin can only hire one The Stolen (the rules for Totems say you can only hire one, and The Stolen don't have a special rule on their card that allows you to hire more) the Rare 3 limit is there for his summoning of them.

I would say that Brotherhood of the Rat is a vital purchase with Hamelin, along with some models on 40mm bases to represent Rat Kings (I use Wyrd's Twisted Apparitions). Basically his summon cycle is gutted without them. That and summonable 8 stone Minions are nice to have, to the point that it's somewhat unfair to any opponent who wants scheme markers on the table.

[TableTopical]

32 minutes ago, Freman said:

Just as an aside, Hamelin can only hire one The Stolen (the rules for Totems say you can only hire one, and The Stolen don't have a special rule on their card that allows you to hire more) the Rare 3 limit is there for his summoning of them.

I would say that Brotherhood of the Rat is a vital purchase with Hamelin, along with some models on 40mm bases to represent Rat Kings (I use Wyrd's Twisted Apparitions). Basically his summon cycle is gutted without them. That and summonable 8 stone Minions are nice to have, to the point that it's somewhat unfair to any opponent who wants scheme markers on the table.

Valid point with the Stolen. I've updated the post to be more clear. I think I'll maybe do a review of the Brotherhood of the Rat box, and then stress it's importance a bit more in the Hamelin article.  

Thanks for looking over the article!

[Seadhna]

On Tara's models:

1. Learn to love your Wretches. They're great toolboxes that do so much for their points it's not funny. Just remember to keep them safe until you run out of cards. 

2. Scion of the Void is a beast. Having a durable beater for a low cost can work wonders, and her (0) teleport is crazy good. You can also heal her up with wretches!

 

3. Among thematic models, Aionus hits the hardest. His triggers are something special too (like the unconditional bury on Severe). Don't forget he can a) tear buried enemies to shreds

b)move all scheme markers in the game

c) is the coolest sculpt ever

 

4. Hannah is my go-to "slow expensive melee beater"

counterspell/nether fluctuation saves multiple models from things like Lure or Decapitate or Assassinate

the Ancient Tomes upgrade is a cheap way to score Take Prisoner or Exhaust, and it's got a good chance of going off. 

She's also a must when going with Karina (seriously, even with Arcane Reservoir i've spent entire games without a single high crow in hand).

 

5. Desperate Mercenary.

A cheap way to cycle through cards is beast-bombing the Merc withKnowledge of eternity

sure, he's Sh 4, but 3 [+] shots with Fast from Tara are fun to do. Make that 6 Sh 2 shots if multiple enemies are in range. Drain your opponent's deck of all good cards!

[SoylentRobot]

I dont think enemy models need to be Blighted to get a rat out of them when they die near Hamelin? IIRC, the wording is "when an enemy model or a model with the Blighted condition" so only friendly models need to be Blighted to get a rat.

[TableTopical]

4 hours ago, Seadhna said:

On Tara's models:

1. Learn to love your Wretches. They're great toolboxes that do so much for their points it's not funny. Just remember to keep them safe until you run out of cards. 

2. Scion of the Void is a beast. Having a durable beater for a low cost can work wonders, and her (0) teleport is crazy good. You can also heal her up with wretches!

 

3. Among thematic models, Aionus hits the hardest. His triggers are something special too (like the unconditional bury on Severe). Don't forget he can a) tear buried enemies to shreds

b)move all scheme markers in the game

c) is the coolest sculpt ever

 

4. Hannah is my go-to "slow expensive melee beater"

counterspell/nether fluctuation saves multiple models from things like Lure or Decapitate or Assassinate

the Ancient Tomes upgrade is a cheap way to score Take Prisoner or Exhaust, and it's got a good chance of going off. 

She's also a must when going with Karina (seriously, even with Arcane Reservoir i've spent entire games without a single high crow in hand).

 

5. Desperate Mercenary.

A cheap way to cycle through cards is beast-bombing the Merc withKnowledge of eternity

sure, he's Sh 4, but 3 [+] shots with Fast from Tara are fun to do. Make that 6 Sh 2 shots if multiple enemies are in range. Drain your opponent's deck of all good cards!

Thanks for all of the tips! I'm constantly finding new uses for the void wretches, and the fact that they're incorporeal opens up a lot of tricky moves that can catch an opponent off guard! I also really enjoy Hannah for all of the reasons you mentioned. I just got a Librarian, so I'm excited to play her with her big robotic sister

1 hour ago, SoylentRobot said:

I dont think enemy models need to be Blighted to get a rat out of them when they die near Hamelin? IIRC, the wording is "when an enemy model or a model with the Blighted condition" so only friendly models need to be Blighted to get a rat.

You are correct! This is what happens when I don't have a peer checker! I'm fixing the article now.

[TableTopical]

By popular demand, I've done a review of the Brotherhood of the Rat models. I may have went a bit overboard in the descriptions, but this is what happens when I don't have a master to write about!

[Freman]

Just in your "What's in the Box" section you wrote that the Rat King can be sacrificed to summon two rats, although in its later description you wrote (correctly) that it's sacrificed to summon a Rat Catcher and a rat.

I keep forgetting the Voracious Rats ability. Being able to summon free rats by killing an enemy model (or a blighted friendly model) within six inches of Hamelin or a Rat Catcher is pretty funny, especially if you have enough models around to summon another Rat King. Oh I do love Rat Kings.

[TableTopical]

19 hours ago, Freman said:

Just in your "What's in the Box" section you wrote that the Rat King can be sacrificed to summon two rats, although in its later description you wrote (correctly) that it's sacrificed to summon a Rat Catcher and a rat.

I keep forgetting the Voracious Rats ability. Being able to summon free rats by killing an enemy model (or a blighted friendly model) within six inches of Hamelin or a Rat Catcher is pretty funny, especially if you have enough models around to summon another Rat King. Oh I do love Rat Kings.

I'm glad you guys are reading through these enough to actually catch these mistakes! 

I can totally feel your pain with Voracious Rats! I'm particularly bad at anything that requires me to remember things outside of my activation (I think I'll steer clear of becoming a pro Jack Daw Player with all of those auras in his crew...)

[Freman]

I now find myself with 6 painted masters, only Parker (almost done) and Misaki to go. Of course Misaki including her Lost Blossom models is a mini-Ten Thunders faction.

Still have to paint all Jack's non-Outcast tormented models too.

[SoylentRobot]

Jack is my favourite Outcast master out of all the ones i've tried (havent played Tara, Viktoria or Misaki yet), definitely give him a go if you havent already

[TableTopical]

23 hours ago, Freman said:

I now find myself with 6 painted masters, only Parker (almost done) and Misaki to go. Of course Misaki including her Lost Blossom models is a mini-Ten Thunders faction.

Still have to paint all Jack's non-Outcast tormented models too.

I wish I was even close to that with my painting!

13 hours ago, SoylentRobot said:

Jack is my favourite Outcast master out of all the ones i've tried (havent played Tara, Viktoria or Misaki yet), definitely give him a go if you havent already

You guys are like the little devil on my shoulder whispering 'Buy more models!'. Now that you mention it, I've liked jack's aesthetic since i started playing back in 1e...

Maybe I'll do Jack's crew box review next and get nice an comfortable with the cards to see if I would like him..

[Freman]

He's a very synergistic Master, although if you slap Bigger They Are on him he can also turn into a beater with his ability to attach an upgrade to the model he's attacking.

I'm painting the Crossroads Seven now, and they'll slot into my carry bag with Jack. The Creeping Terror, combined with all their auras, is nasty.

Thinking about it, Pride (being an Outcast) can carry TCT even in a non-Jack led crew, and if you have a Guilty to make a model Tormented (like Hamelin) all their Auras and Pulses suddenly have a +1 inch range. It would be finicky to make it worth the 14 stone investment, but I'm sure there's some way of exploiting it.

[TableTopical]

7 minutes ago, Freman said:

He's a very synergistic Master, although if you slap Bigger They Are on him he can also turn into a beater with his ability to attach an upgrade to the model he's attacking.

I'm painting the Crossroads Seven now, and they'll slot into my carry bag with Jack. The Creeping Terror, combined with all their auras, is nasty.

Thinking about it, Pride (being an Outcast) can carry TCT even in a non-Jack led crew, and if you have a Guilty to make a model Tormented (like Hamelin) all their Auras and Pulses suddenly have a +1 inch range. It would be finicky to make it worth the 14 stone investment, but I'm sure there's some way of exploiting it.

I've now moved Jack up on my Amazon wish list.. Look what the two of you have done...