Big Pants Outcasts! Crew progression, battle reports, and maybe more...

SirRocketPants · September 11, 2017

Today I bring to you Colette vs. The Viktorias! Who said girls can't fight?!?

I'm bringing all the newbies out for a test run :

From left to right: Johanna, Trapper, Viktoria of Ashes, Ronin, Viktoria of Blood, Bishop, Convict Gunslinger.

Viktoria of Ashes has Sisters in Fury, Sisters in Spirit and Synchronized Slaying. Viktoria of Blood has Oathkeeper and Mark of SheZ'Ull. Bishop has Scramble.

6 SS cache.

On the other side of the board we have :

Colette, some mechanical pigeons, Orians, Coryphees (omg I hate those things), Angelica, and The crazy lady on a bicycle... sorry, I really don't know what she is called anymore.

Colette has Nothing up my sleeve, Cabaret Choreography and Audience Participation. Angelica has Well Rehearsed. 6 SS cache.

Deployment : Standard

Strategy : Extraction

Schemes : Claim jump (Colette)

Eliminate the leadership (Viks)

Leave your Mark (Viks)

Recover Evidence

Inspection

I don't know what Colette's second scheme was as she didn't score points on it.

I deploy first... very well though through deployment... everyone as close to the 6 inch line as possible :

Colette hides behind a building :

So I read the opposing crew's cards a little before the game... Apparently I can't charge anything as everything has disguised or worse even for the coryphees... this means my Viks threat range is drastically reduced and I'm hoping my Trapper and convict gunslinger do same good. But the coryphees have +2 armor and happen to deploy on the other side of the boar from the Viks and Bishop who could ignore it.... we'll see how it plays out.

I wait for some general moving up the board to use the Trapper's (0) action to move up 4 inches and be in range of the Orian. (I have forgotten the Trappers hidden deployment skill in 6/6 games so far...).

Both shots connect and Trapper scores first blood

She also valiantly moves up the board with her reposition trigger.

You can see Bishop ran up the field for 15 inches. Threatening the flank and getting into position to get me Leave your mark points.

Apparently this pigeon is planning on blowing up in my face next turn? Well Vik of blood has it lined up for a charge... I think we all know how that's gonna go...

Everyone is moving into place around the extraction marker.

Second turn starts with bicycle girl charging Bishop and doing some damage/applying burning.

But in the end it doesn't go her way.

In the top left you can see where the coryphee ends up after she inflicts some serious dmg to my convict gunslinger but not killing it.

In the bottom you see Colette hiding behind a tree next to a scheme marker.

I ask my opponent if Colette put up her no charge aura and she says no...

My eyes light up... at that point Vik of blood was on the other side of the pipeline. Colette is about 20 inches away and out of line of sight... but that just won't do. Here you see Vik of blood after she gets positionned by Vik of Ashes who walked - placed blood with sisters in spirit - and added 2 dmg to all sisters' damage tracks by casting sisters in Fury.

Blood pops Oathkeeper for maximum activations and maximum killiness.

The charge goes off.

(I should mention that at this point, my opponent's hand is empty... they used their cards to prevent Johanna killing their corypees, etc... and thought Colette was safe where she was and wouldn't need cards).

First hit is for severe - 8 damage. Reduced to 6 by SS.

Second hit is for moderate... at this point my opponent does a huge mistake. I didn't realize it then, but if she had stoned for the mask trigger on df, she could have reduced the dmg to 0 by discarding that scheme marker and would have lived.

Instead she now has to sacrifice the Orian you see close by to take her place.

But Vik of Blood has her oathkeeper 3rd AP... she walks up to Colette, and uses her melee expert AP from being in line of sight of Viktoria of Ashes...

Colette get's 100% to 0 in 1 activation...

I think this was a really unfortunate moment as Colette could have lived stoning for a defensive suit and if I had realized it I would have pointed it out to my opponent. Now whit her master essentially having done nothing all game, it's going to be a very lopsided battle.

Last activation on turn 2. Angelica attacks my Gunslinger, I ask if it's a shooting action - yes.

Awesome, Angelica misses, I get the defensive trigger and shoot back... Mouahahahaah Red Joker... oh what? It's a Ca with a gun symbol... damn it I don't actually get to shoot back? I'm sad now.

Intense duel over who goes first on turn 3.

Coryphee vs Ronin... I Flurry and manage 1 hit for moderate 2 dmg ignoring the +2 armor... damn those + flips.

She red jokers me and I thank the hard to kill gods for protecting my ronin.

The convict gunslinger rapid fires into angelica... gets the red joker on dmg for the first hit (who said there is no justice in this world?).

Finishes her on the second shot.

Vik of blood tries to be funny and uses 1 AP to poop out a leave your mark scheme marker before making her way to where the action happens... I'm sure we won't regret that, right?

Especially since Bishop and her 3 activations are already in place to place all the scheme markers I could wish for with nobody to contest it.

We get to turn 4 and I draw a horrible hand of cards... highest card is a 6... I stone for cards... 1 and 1... really... ?

So with those amazing cards in hand... Johanna and the Ronin both flurry the Coryphee... ++ flips on damage are great and all, same for ignoring armor... but when 6 attacks net you 0 hits it doesn't do much.

Here is a picture shaming the ronin and Johanna for their failure after the coryphee walks away unharmed and forms a coryphee duet...

Thanks for that scheme marker blood... now I have to use a Master AP to walk a quarter of an inch in order to be in range for sisters in spirit...

Anyway...

Things work out... Viktoria of blood has to walk into melee with the coryphee. We all know how that's gonna end.

My opponent has nothing left on the table at this point.

So this game ended up pretty one sided at 10-1 score in the end.

The no charge rule definitely slowed down the Viktoria murder train, but in the end for extraction you have to come to the same place on the map and there is going to be some fighting. It didn't seem like Colette's crew would stand a chance in that.. even with the annoying coryphees.

So far I'm not really seeing the downsides to the murder first scheme later philosophy.

I guess if you can actually prevent your crew from getting murdered while scheming it could work... But there are a lot of schemes/strategies that seem to force you to go to the same place than your opponent which plays into the murder crews hand.

Sorry... I guess I don't have much more of an analysis for this game. Except Murder seems better than scheming...

A big thanks to my opponent who kept a great attitude even though things really weren't going her way this game. It was a fun game

Let me know what you all think about the game? How would you have played this? What was wrong about our crews? What do you think about playing against murder crews... ? I don't want to ruin everyone's fun by murdering all their stuff by the end of turn 2 but that's what seems to be the Viks one and only play style so far...

Adran · September 11, 2017

You may well find that starting out, Murder everything seems effective, but as time goes on, people learn how to score whilst you murder everything, and you can't catch the points up. At least thats how I found it to be.

Firstly, Colette should totally have arranged to use her other DF trigger on the first Charge attack. It guarantees that you won't get to get the second Charge attack against her, and almost ruins the whole activation of the VIks. Especailly if she can get the place to put her somewhere that forces you yo lose LOS between Blood and Ash so lose ml expert. Using Colette is quite hard because she plays a huge positioning game. For example in a game like extraction if you want you can get 0 models into the extraction zone until Colette has the last activation on her crew and she can prompt 3 models into the zone. Makes it quite hard for you to stop them scoring.

Miss fire and the Duet are both an absolute nightmare for the Viks. They can do damage to them with little chance to prevent, and it doesn't take much damage to take out either sister.

SirRocketPants · September 11, 2017

Wow... I hadn't even seen the part of the second trigger that says she can reposition 6 inches... yes. that would indeed have been a very different outcome if she had just stoned for it on the first attack instead of stoning for damage prevention she would have completely negated any damage from the first 2 attacks and possibly also prevented me from reaching her with oathkeeper and the melee expert attack.

fernslayer · September 11, 2017

I also had Claim Jump. Forcing me to be spread out hurt. Most of the synchronization for Colette is within 8" . I was totally dumb and forgot about being able to use a SS for my other Defensive trigger. I also have an ability on the front of the card that as long as I have at least 1 SS I get an Artificial SS that allows me to basically once a turn get a free SS.... . I had a lot of fun though! I really am sorry I kept you from charging most of the game though.... sorta... .

SirRocketPants · September 17, 2017

Hello y'all!

Today I was at the store again. Originally a tournament was planned by our henchman, but because of low turnout, we just decided to play a couple of friendly pickup games.

I think I have enough energy to post the first game tonight. Next one tomorrow.

Deployment : Corner

Stratergy : Interference

Schemes : Claim Jump

Frame for Murder (Zoraida... actually I'm not sure, but I assumed she'd take it and put it on a willow wisp... was I right Scott?)

Leave your Mark (Viks)

Undercover entourage (Zoraida) (Viks)

Tail'Em

So I'll start this off by saying I hated the schemes for my crew... I wanted to not take frame for Murder for a change. And Undercover Entourage... Tail'Em... what the heck are those things? Claim jump is inefficient and I don't have low quality AP to do it...

So my plan is to whirlwind of death the viks across the board and put undercover entourage on Ashes as I felt she was more likely to still be alive at the other end.

My list is : Both Viks, A&D, Vanessa, Johanna, Ronin, Trapper. 4SS cache.

Viktoria of Ashes has Sisters in Fury, Sisters in Spirit and Synchronized Slaying. Viktoria of Blood has Oathkeeper and Mark of SheZ'Ull.

I decided to take away scramble from A&D and take out the student to fit Johanna instead.

My Opponent's list : Zoraida, Bad JuJu, 2 Silurds, Doppelganger, Nurse, 2 willow Wisps. 7 SS cache.

Zoraida has Powerful Control, Poisoned Fate and Animal Shape.Bad JuJu has eternal Fiend.

My opponent wins the deployment flip and makes me deploy first.

You should notice the trapper on the left. For the first time ever I remember his hidden deployment skill! I have to get this historic moment on picture... hmmmmm... maybe I should just take a close up pic of the corner with the majority of my crew? Na... it'll be fine, it'll be a clear picture, right?

My apologies for the crappy picture:

Let's focus on my awesome deployment of the trapper... ok?

Scott's deployment:

He realized at the last moment that Zoraida was sitting at home on his gremlins shelf... So we have a sexy Zoraida stand-in for today.

Everyone shuffles around and gets in position for turn 2.

I have Ashes in position to pull Blood and have her in position to charge most anything.

I realize this is really quite risky as I put myself in the threat range of my opponent's models. Here Zoraida hasn't even activated, she'll be much closer by the end of the turn.

So next turn I have to hope for a win on initiative (and he has doppleganger) and even then my first activation pretty much has to be the Vkis' chain activating and doing serious damage or I'll be in a very bad spot.

I have to try to stay back a little more and keep my options open I think.

Here you see end of turn 1, Zoraida charges my A&D into Trapper who lives with 1 box thanks to Armor...

That obey is pretty scary... and A&D on top of almost killing Trapper is completely out of position for next turn...

Luckily I flip a 13 on initiative and get to chain activate Viks. Blood pops Oatkeeper and walk + charges. So she gets 3 attacks as she is in line of sight of Ashes for melee expert.

I read Zoraida's card and purposefully kept 1 low card to be able to cheat in weak damage, and not get my activation ended on the first activation... Still... I don't get my +flips to attack and will take 2 dmg every time I cheat fate because of her different abilities...

I hit and get a positive damage flip and chose a weak (5 damage) on my first attack as my opponent flipped the defensive trigger. Zoraida stones and takes 4 I believe and is left on 6 wounds.

My next attack lands and I get a positive flip to damage again, but Zoraida hits the defensive trigger again.

But...

I red joker the damage... Zoraida tries to prevent damage... gets a 1...

My activation is ended... but I kill her, so all is good.

BTW... anyone knows if Red joker means 11 or 13 dmg for blood? It wouldn't have mattered here, but I'm not sure if this ability means that I get +2 to my damage track and so for red joker I get +4 (because weak and severe are both at +2), or do I just get a single +2 to whatever the final damage I inflict is?

At this point Scott lost his master after the first activation on turn 2. He reveals that he had undercover entourage on her (so he'll get 0 on that, I just got 3 on eliminate are the leadership, he has no more master and his request is not very fighty)... we decide to end the game here as it would be more interesting to play another game rather than going through the motions to finish this one as I am pretty much guaranteed to win at this point.

Again... I have to say the Viks seem like they probably aren't the most fun master to play against... even if you protect against them, if you leave 1 opening you might as well have done nothing because they'll just take that one opening to walk in and kill everything in range.

I'll upload our next game tomorrow.

Freman · September 17, 2017

You get +2 to whatever the final damage is. 11 in this case.

Freman · September 17, 2017

Viks are a glass cannon. If you land them then they'll annihilate things, but if you don't they'll die pretty easily.

For myself I'm going to try running.

Ashes, Fury, Spirit, Survivalist

Blood, Shez'uul, Soaring Dragon

Emissary, Conflux of Avarice

Student of Conflict

The Emissary gives Blood the trinket Memento, so she has Companion and can chain activate off anyone in the crew. I like the yoyo style of play where Ashes is the thrower and Blood the yoyo. Throw her out, slice and dice, reel her in. Companion, rinse, repeat. If it looks like Blood will be hit in the following turn, kill, drop two cards and bury.

Mutter · September 17, 2017

Thanks for the report, even if it was very short, and congrats.

Typical day for the Viks then, eh? Where is that stand-in model for Zoraida from? I think I recognize her, but have no idea where from ...

thatlatinspeakingguy · September 17, 2017

32 minutes ago, Mutter said:

Where is that stand-in model for Zoraida from? I think I recognize her, but have no idea where from ..

It's a Performer I really like the darkened color scheme on her! She looks like a vampire's bride!

Mutter · September 17, 2017

Right, it's the limited edition one, correct?

I have her somewhere in a box, still waiting on for a decision from me whether I'll use her or lose her ... ^^

Freman · September 17, 2017

I'm going to use the young Zoraida model from her avatar.

SirRocketPants · September 17, 2017

4 hours ago, Freman said:

The Emissary gives Blood the trinket Memento, so she has Companion and can chain activate off anyone in the crew. I like the yoyo style of play where Ashes is the thrower and Blood the yoyo. Throw her out, slice and dice, reel her in. Companion, rinse, repeat. If it looks like Blood will be hit in the following turn, kill, drop two cards and bury.

Hmmmm.... I don't really understand how you can throw her out and reel her back in? I can see doing 1 or the other, but not both in a turn... Could you go into detail?

I need a couple more models painted, but I'm planning on putting soaring dragon on blood, and runnings her with Scion and the effigy.

First turn Scion walks 3 times at the end of the turn (maybe I'll even add scout the field for technically 4 walks...), pops Vik... She charges and kills things.

If Scion ever burries, ideally the effigy can use his 0 to pop Vik and chain activate her.

Maybe it's too gimmicky... But I wanna try. 😀

SirRocketPants · September 17, 2017

OK... here we go for game number 2.

Deployment : Standard

Strategy : Squatter's rights

Schemes : Claim Jump

Eliminate the leadership (Both)

Accusation

Hunting Party (Both)

Hidden Trap

My list is the same as last game... because I'm lazy and... that's the only reason actually...

My list is : Both Viks, A&D, Vanessa, Johanna, Ronin, Trapper. 4SS cache.

Viktoria of Ashes has Sisters in Fury, Sisters in Spirit and Synchronized Slaying. Viktoria of Blood has Oathkeeper and Mark of SheZ'Ull.

My opponent wants to try something new. Neverborn is his 3rd faction and there is a lot he hasn't really played much with.

His list : Dreamer, 2 Daydreams, Teddy, Doppelganger, Beckoner of Evil, 2 Illuminated. 5 SS cache.

Dreamer has sleep cycles, growing up, and aether connection, Teddy has a thousand faces (which by the way... what an awesome upgrade).

This time I win the deployment flip and my opponent has to deploy first :

I deploy most of my crew facing the illuminated and thinking it will force dreamer to go to that side of the board too to deal with them too leaving trapper alone to flip both swatters right markers on his side of the board wile supporting the fight from a distance and denying my opponent from getting more than 1 point (from killing the ronin) in case he took hunting party... honestly I was pretty happy with the deployment.

After I walk up some of my stuff I realize I mispositionned the ronin who could have stayed out of the Beackoner's line of sight... so she gets lured in, and attacked by everything in range... I get a feeling that Scott took hunting party and cheat a bit to keep her alive. (BTW... next turn I make the exact same mistake again.... so I guess I'm retarded?)

At this point of the game I don't know that Teddy can get pushed 3 times and get fast from dreamer... so Vanessa walks up a little too far...

This pic is just for eye-candy. I love my opponent's crew and especially the daydreams painted in the 3 primary colors... It looks great and I'm totally stealing that idea. Alps could be painted in the 3 secondary colors maybe?

So Teddy comes in and hugs Vanessa... I get really lucky flips and she survives on 1 box...

So we flip for turn 2, and again I get really lucky against Doppelganger and flip a 12... my opponent can't beat it and decides not to cheat.

I really want to activate Vanessa and kill Teddy... somehow I go full retard and come up with what I think is a cute idea but was really just the dumbest and most uncertain way to do this...

So I walk ashes around the building and charge teddy without using sisters in Fury... the plan being to chain activate into Vanessa wo'll have melee expert and that'll be enough to kill Teddy... probably... never mind blood not getting Fury this turn...

I could easily have had blood in position to just do the standard sisters in Fury then chain activate blood and guarantee a dead Teddy... but no... I want to use blood to kill and illuminated later so I try to be greedy...

Anyway... I realize Ashes won't get +flips from her because she is close to other sisters... I get a couple of bad flips... Vanessa chain activates and I forget to rearrange my first cards and command A&D who is close by in range for command construct, and Teddy at the end of it all is left with boxes... Oh shit!

Teddy is looking happy at this opportunity... He regenerates wounds and drags Vanessa with him screaming as he guts her... then he runs away behind a building and there is no way I can get to him this turn... I feel like a total scrub.

I'm sorry I didn't take pictures of what came next...

A ouple inconsequential activations later, dreamer decides he'd like to be Chompy and walks through a building, then charges ashes.

I should mention that this turn my highest car in hand was a 6 (I even stoned for cards and drew 2 twos...), so when dreamer succeeds his first attack I cheat in one of the cards in my hand which doesn't change the result of the duel at all just to get to 3 cards... I figure giving Ashes + flips to df/wp duels is my best chance to get out of this alive...

I stone and prevent all 3 damage also denying dreamer a waking stack.

Next attack I stone and prevent all of the 2 damage he did to deny another stack... at this point Chompy has no way of coming out even with the 0 as dreamer started on 1 waking (from summoning a day dream turn 1).

So I let the next attack get through and take 3 damage.

Now Blood has a clear line to charge dreamer (through hazardous terrain... she takes 4 dmg) and she ignores incorporeal (I guess I had planned it all along... baiting dreamer out with my master? You believe me right?)

Again I make several mistakes... I do not pop oathkeeper because I feel I won't need it. I later realize that statistically I definitely needed it, mostly because I en my charge close to Ashes and so I can't use my (0) to get +flips on damage, also I learn what aether connection does... and you all remember I don't have sisters in fury, so I'll be mostly doing 3 min damage and dreamer will stone 2 damage at least... that means I'll very likely not do 10 wounds to him...

Luckily, I flip a read Joker on damage again, and Dreamer goes down to my 3 attacks (Sorry Scott... I guess your masters like red jokers)

Blood flips a moderate heal that also benefits Ashes.

I'm a little bit dissapointed I don't get to see Chompy on he table or find out what he can do honestly... but I wipe my tears on the night gown of a small boy who happens to lie around on the floor... dead... huh?

The doppelganger engages A&D so he can't score Hunting party (if I had used command construct this wouldn't have happened...). But A&D consoles himself by spilling her guts all over the place to reward her for her intervention in his projects.

Blood gets lured, and shot by the beackoner (again... I have no cards this turn). Then charged by an illuminated who does severe damage 7 or so to finish her last 2 wounds.

It's turn 3... Teddy (now back to 6 health) goes first and does bad things to Ashes...

For some reason I decided to not cheat high enough to beat his 8 inch push / +flips to attack and damage... allowing him all the + flips in the world nd 1 extra attack as he can now flurry.

I realize that even with a 13 and the red joker in hand I will die... so I let it happen...

But A&D avenges her... and poops out an abomination.

I decide to finish Teddy rather than an Illuminated in order as I figure eliminating the last real threat in his crew will give me free reign in the last two turns and guarantee me winning.

Here again I make a mistake... I just want to make ronin as hard to kill as possible, so I want to go defensive, and walk on the other side of the Illuminated that activated earlier to prevent the other one charging me... so I should have gone defensive, then walk, instead I walk and plan to go defensive later... I fail the horror duel (needing a 5 and flipping a 4 -_-) and would need to cheat a 13 to succeed (as my hand is 1, 2, 13, red joker). So I just end her activation.

Trapper shoots into melee to snipe 1 of 2 day dreams engaging Johanna, so that she can kill the other one with 1 AP and flip the marker with her other AP.

I randomize into the day dream I meant to hit (because trapper is awesome) but have to cheat in the red joker to hit it... Johanna then kills the other one and my plan works, so it was worth it though.

At this point Scott reveals he did in fact have hunting party, and looking at the points, we figure there is no way he can win this and we end the game at the end of turn 3.

Anyhow... it was a good game.

I'm making a shitload of mistakes, but I feel like I'm learning a lot and the Viks explosiveness compensates for my shitty skills.

Right now my Viks are 8/8 and they are feeling anxiety because they feel pressure to perform... so Scott has promised me to end that issue by bringing his Gremlins next time and crushing all hopes and dreams out of my poor girls...

Let me all know what you think.

Especially if you have advice on how to not be a noob.

I promise next time I'll bring a better camera and then you can tell me how pretty all my miniature people are.

See you then

Freman · September 17, 2017

10 hours ago, SirRocketPants said:

Hmmmm.... I don't really understand how you can throw her out and reel her back in? I can see doing 1 or the other, but not both in a turn... Could you go into detail?

I need a couple more models painted, but I'm planning on putting soaring dragon on blood, and runnings her with Scion and the effigy.

First turn Scion walks 3 times at the end of the turn (maybe I'll even add scout the field for technically 4 walks...), pops Vik... She charges and kills things.

If Scion ever burries, ideally the effigy can use his 0 to pop Vik and chain activate her.

Maybe it's too gimmicky... But I wanna try. 😀

It's more, Ashes pulls Blood up with Spirit, buffs her with Fury, and then Blood companions, charges, kills, buries, then Student unburies her setting her up for the next turn.

SirRocketPants · September 22, 2017

So I'm painting my desolation engine and abominations and thinking about my next purchase...

I played a couple more games where the viks tabled the opposing crew on turn 1.... I feel like I need a different master to make sure my games are a bit more fun for my opponent TS as well as myself.

So I'm gonna get Tara... But as I'm a slow painter with little free time I want to optimize the models I get.

So themostexcellentandawesomeforumever... What do I need most?

More voidlings for void spam?

Killjoy for burry stuff?

Aionus because the model is cool and other reasons?

The emissary so I can go mad trying to put that thing together and because it also works with the Viks?

A death marshal (I'd need to get my hands on the female limited edition...)

Something else?

I already have the Malifaux child, Scion and hodgepodge effigy sitting on my paint desk.

Please guide me with your infinite wisdom oh you themostexcellentandawesomeforumever.

Thank you.

SirRocketPants · November 5, 2017

Hello all.

It's been a while.

I've had few chances to play games these last couple months... didn't take pics on a couple of games... only took a few on a couple of others (turns out it's easy to forget to take pictures when a game gets tough and you have to think...).

Here is a few pictures anyway... just fr eye candy. A game vs Tara and one vs Zipp :

Otherwise I got a few games on Vassal in testing GG18... I'll probably make a separate post about that.

So I'm still learning the game whenever I get a chance and having a blast.

I hope to get another IRL game in tomorrow and will try to get pictures and a battle report to post from that.

I figured that until then.... since the title of this thread says something about crew progression, I'd post some of my crew progression

First... I have to apologize ...I aparently have no idea how to take pictures... I actually have a pretty good camera... but... yeah... I don't know what the 15million options do anyway...

If anyone has an easy to follow guide to photography... especially for miniatures... that would be awesome.

So here is what I have for now anyway...

Family pic: