Yan Lo works as 10T?

[Bram_halen]

As the title says.... Yan Lo in my experience isn't a good Master for 10T. I tried to make a good list with him: Full Ancestors and some mix with my other 10T miniatures and the result was always the same. This Master in paper can do a lot of things but when you are playing the game something it's wrong with him and his crew.

Does someone can make Yan lo crew work? Maybe it's my play style, I don't really know... but for me, it will be sad if Yan Lo finally ends in the closet....

[tomjoad]

Well, #1 thing I'd say is that going Full Ancestors is a bad idea most of the time. I find myself rarely taking more than two. The trick with Yan Lo, in 10 Thunders anyway, is to Lightning Dance a lot. Put enemy models next to either Izamu or Yin to lock them down/hurt them. Put them next to somebody out of the way to prevent them from scoring or shooting. Leave Yan Lo next to two or three enemies to maximize Misdirection. Put an enemy Master/Henchman (especially one who's already activated) next to The Lone Swordsman and let him crush them. Just spend as many AP as seems reasonable on Lightning Dance. That's the only way I've found Yan Lo really works for me.

[dgraz]

I play Yan Lo as 10T. He may seem a little weak, but I've had good success with him. And....I run him all Ancestors. All of them, and usually a Komainu or two depending on upgrades).

I prefer all the Ancestors because no matter what dies Yan can bring it back. They're all named models and pretty tough even without upgrades...the only one that I try to keep alive at all times is Toshiro because I want him to keep his summon upgrade.

[Rathnard]

I've been running Yan Lo with Yin, Sensei Yu and a variety of solid minions. I've found that one Ancestor is more than enough and between Yu and Yan, you don't really need much more crew support (hence no Chiaki). 

 

Yan's upgrades are generally Misdirection, Fortify Spirit and Brutal Khakkara. The first two keep him alive and fighting and the Khakkara's been surprisingly useful. Normally his Spirit Barrage is a better attack but sometimes you need that 2" engagement range, min 3 dg or the threat of damage on disengaging.  

 

Unless you're taking Izamu, i don't think you need Reliquary. The rest are either very hard to kill (Yin) or aren't normally in the front lines anyway (Toshiro, Chiaki).

 

Other than that, just focus on using Lightning Jump to pull key models out of position, heal/buff friendlies as necessary and most importantly, get Yan Lo right in their face. He's like the Tyler Durden of Malifaux - let him jam up your opponent and take the hits while your own crew does its job.  

[Myyrä]

Shadow Emissary is really great with Yan Lo. Getting Brutal Khakkara's Ml to 6 is pretty great as it makes Yan Lo into a real melee threat. The Emissary itself hits really hard too, and you can even bring it back with Reliquary if it happens to die.

[PraetorDragoon]

The immortal Dawn Serpent is a fun tool for Yan Lo to use. Combine him with Toshiro and you have a pretty powerful minion.

as tomjoad said, Lightning Dance. Swear by it, Live by it, Dance your opponent squishy models in the clutches of your scary models. Yan Lo with both Spirit and Bone Ascendant can live suprisngly long. Misdirection is a great upgrade, as is Fortify Spirit, which I have found new respect for. Reliqunary I take when i have 2-3 Ancestors, for only 1 it usually isn't worth it. 

Finally, you can take Onryo in your crew, which give you access to Adversary, which any model can benefit from if you time Transcendance right. Spirit Jorogumo with Armour +2? that is pretty sweet. 

[Bram_halen]

I used to play with Jacob, Lucas, Misaki and now I've purchased the Brewmaster. I like the play style of YanLo, it's different than the others and maybe I played the wrong strategies/schemes with him but I always defeated.

My current list for Yan Lo it's this one:

Yan Lo with Reliquary and his totem, Toshiro with command the graves, Chiaki with his upgrade, Yin, Izamu and one Ashigaru. First problem: few models. Second one: Slow..... 

My rivals used to made his schemes before me, they ara capable of stop my models and kill me some of the models before I can do anything. With reliquary I usually try to summon the dead ones and summon ashigarus/komainus with Toshiro to increase my crew but...usually doesn't works.

I'm stubborn and I will play it again a couple of times with my sort of miniatures and your advices but well, I'm not very convinced how does it will work...

 

[Rathnard]

Personally, i think it's a mistake to take all the Ancestors. They're all mid-high cost models, leaving you with a crew that's both outclassed in activation count and in most cases, poorly equipped to achieve / deny all your objectives.

You really need to drop at least two of those Ancestors and replace them with a bunch of cheaper minions, like Komainu, Ashigaru, Onryo, Wastrels, 10-T Brothers... basically anything cheap and able to help you with whatever your strat and schemes are.

If you're having a problem with mobility, consider taking Sensei Yu, some naturally fast models (eg. Torakage, Tengu etc), or even just some good shooters, like the Samurai or especially the Katanaka Sniper. The latter might not help you achieve your own objectives but they do provide area denial, which makes it harder for your opponent to achieve theirs. 

[Rurouni Benshin]

I played Yan Lo as TT once, and it was with mixed results, although I attribute that more to my inexperience more than anything.  I ran 3 Ancestor models with him (Izamu, Yin and Toshiro), but I did bring along some cheaper minions to help with Scheme running (IIRC, I brought 2 Onryo and 1 Punk Zombie).  In hindsight, I probably could've done without Toshiro, since I didn't have that many minions close by him to take advantage, which also would've meant I'd need a replacement for the Punk Zombie.

I'm sure I could've brought better models, but as a TT Master, I'd be more than willing to give him another shot. 

[ToddTen]

Well, #1 thing I'd say is that going Full Ancestors is a bad idea most of the time. I find myself rarely taking more than two. The trick with Yan Lo, in 10 Thunders anyway, is to Lightning Dance a lot. Put enemy models next to either Izamu or Yin to lock them down/hurt them. Put them next to somebody out of the way to prevent them from scoring or shooting. Leave Yan Lo next to two or three enemies to maximize Misdirection. Put an enemy Master/Henchman (especially one who's already activated) next to The Lone Swordsman and let him crush them. Just spend as many AP as seems reasonable on Lightning Dance. That's the only way I've found Yan Lo really works for me.

All of this, and I can add bring Toshiro and 1-2 punk zombies, take that enemy you need to get rid of, lightning dance him next to the punks, have toshiro (and/or Yu) give out fast to the zombies, and watch them blender whatever it is. 4 attacks each on double positive flips. 

[ToddTen]

... Also, check out the schemes & stones podcast who did a whole hour+ long show on talking about Yan Lo and how to use him. It will help you out. And as many here have said, you will hear the same thing there - you are running too many ancestors. Yan Lo + 1-2 ancestors (generally 2), and then add in what is needed from there. 

[AverageBoss]

I like running Yan Lo with full Ancestors and Ama No Zako. She brings a few extra tools to the table like hazardous terrain and obey.

[Moondog]

Well I have to say of all my masters Yan Lo is the one I do best with. Here is my general "go to crew" which I'll take for schemes and strategies that allow the bulk of my crew to stay together.

50ss:

Yan Lo (+Reliquary)

Soul Porter

Ashigaru x 4

Chiaki (no upgrade)

Izamu (no upgrade)

Toshiro (+Command the Graves)

The plan is simple. To begin with in the early turns Yan Lo is positioned within 8" and LOS of as many Ashigaru as possible. The Ashigaru are in front of the whole crew. This is to maximise chi when the Ashigaru start to go down. Yan Lo needs to get as much chi as possibly and attach ash and spirit ascendant upgrades ASAP. Once he has these he can just cause chaos as I'll be lightning dancing him around and he's pretty solid to take down. I've had opponents start to try and kill him and then totally give up because he's just solid with incorporeal and impossible to wound. If they get a combat monster into close combat with him he can just lighting dance out. I've had opponents just ignore him because he's hard to pin down and tough to kill with those two upgrades, and if this happens you've got a nice advantage!

I would say no more than three ancestors because you need a decent amount of cannon fodder to ensure you aren't be out activated and to ensure you have cheap stuff that can die and give Yan Lo chi. Try and choose ancestors that complement each other. I don't use Yin because I like Ashigaru and she has little synergy with them. I like to think my ancestors work well together for the following reasons -

*Toshiro buffs the cheap minions and raises them again allowing more chi to be collected when they die (again!). Toshiro is therefore a key piece.

*Chiaki can remove slow from anything summoned by Yan Lo or Toshiro (and helps remove nasty conditions on your models). She can collect chi for Yan Lo or Toshiro (always good).

*Izamu is there to scare people and he will definitely die which is why reliquary is great with him. Don't want someone going after Toshiro? Stick Izamu in the way. Don't want you opponent to drop a scheme marker there? Stick Izamu there. With reliquary I tend to be very bold with Izamu - I don't mind if he dies and therefore I'll throw him at masters and do unpredictable stuff which can sometimes hopefully throw people off guard. Also who doesn't want a 10ss model coming back into their crew after dying (and then having slow removed from it and a bonus on trigger heal from Chiaki!)?

OK so here are some things I tend not to do and situations where it went wrong for me and I learnt from experience.

*Don't leave home without cheap minions (minimum of three but preferably 4) - you won't get enough chi and you could be out-activated. Yan Lo is chi hungry the way I play him and if Yan Lo isn't chi 3 with two upgrades as fast as possible he's not going to be powerful and you will be in trouble. Also you need cheap minions to lightning dance enemies into.

*Don't leave home without the Soul Porter. He will speed your crew up and can allow you to push out of combat if necessary (I'm looking at Toshiro here because I do NOT want him dying)

*Don't leave home without Toshiro and command the graves - you need a good supply of cheap minions for both chi and also for use with lightning dance.

[Bram_halen]

Moondag I will try your crew options, sounds interesting but really closed to Turf War.

I will try too another lists with only Izamu and Toshiro, the bests Ancestors maybe, but...with what kind of minions except ashigarus o punks do I will contract for Yan Lo? 

[BigHammer]

Izamu is the one I leave behind most often. I find I get a lot more out of a dawn serpent or an illuminated, thanks to Toshiro buffing them, though I am tempted by the shadow emissary these days.

[Rathnard]

Moondag I will try your crew options, sounds interesting but really closed to Turf War.

I will try too another lists with only Izamu and Toshiro, the bests Ancestors maybe, but...with what kind of minions except ashigarus o punks do I will contract for Yan Lo? 

Choice of minion can really depend on the strategy.schemes. But generally I've been using 2x Komainu, a Katanaka Sniper, a Wastrel and/or more recently, a 10-Thunders Brother. 

Edited September 16, 2015 by Rathnard

[dgraz]

I really like Komainu and if I think I'll be facing a non-Construct crew, I always take two to guarantee that I can summon them if they die.

[Rurouni Benshin]

I just played Yan Lo for the second time (2nd time as TT Master, as well), and he did more than well.  The trick really is to just get him in range so he can enough "Harvest Chi" early on.  I didn't take all of the Ancestor models, but it honestly wasn't necessary for it to work.  I brought Sensei Yu, who honestly was the unsung MVP of my list, even though he was the only model to die.  Izamu and Yin were great at alpha striking and tarpitting the opposition, and my one Onryo did all scheme running I needed (Plant Evidence and Take Prisoner were my Schemes).

The upgrades I took on Yan Lo were Reliquary, Brutal Khakkara, and Recalled Training.  Never got to use either of the first 2 because 1) None of my Ancestor models died (even though Izamu took plenty of damage) and 2) Never got in range of anyone to hit with the attack.  On Turn 1, I used Ascendance to gain Ash Ascendant, mainly for "Impossible to Wound".  On Turn 2, I managed to kill 1 model on 2 hits (one for Severe Damage), and that managed to get my Chi up to +3.  From that point on, I didn't have to use Ascendance until the last turn for Spirit Ascendant so I could get to the model I needed to Take Prisoner easier.  At first, I thought that because I needed to use "Instill Youth" to heal my models, I wouldn't get many opportunities to use "Ascendance".  To my surprise though, I found that I really didn't need to.  By the end of the game, after using "Ascendance" for the 2nd time, my Chi was still at a +7.

So yeah... Yan Lo as a TT Master is pretty badass. 

Edited October 2, 2015 by Rurouni Benshin