Expanding 10T?

[Hargrave]

I just got into the game after a few demo games, and took the nightmare McCabe box as an impulse buy. I'm realizing now that Thunders sound more my speed than guild, and even though the mounted guards are awesome, I wanna focus on that side of McCabe. What would y'all recommend buying to expand on his box into Thunders?

Currently thinking Rail Crew and Obsidian Oni might be a good bet (especially with Miss Fire coming in with the Wild Ones), but I'd like to hear input/opinions.

Thanks!

[Eclipse]

Some of McGabe's most popular choices in out TT are the Dawn Serpent (give it Reactivate and toss it the Badge of Speed), Thunder Archers (they can really use the Glowing Saber!), Illuminated (pretty hardy minions with solid attacks). You can take the Mounted Guards in Ten Thunders due to McGabe's Infiltration ability as well. Many people take either Austringers or 3x Guild Hounds with him to Ten Thunders anyway. Some newer models should work well with him too, such as the Shadow Emissary (extra upgrades tossed), a Wandering River Monk (Nimble and Reactivate from the Badge of Speed again), Jorogumo (any upgrade, really - Badge or Elixir especially). The Kamaitachi should be a nice alternative totem for him in some cases. His lists are not big on Enforcers and Henchpeople, but can support them fairly well too - for example Izamu would love Nimble and Unimpeded just as much (or the regeneration on top of his scary, well, armor). Hope this helps!

[Pyrflamme]

People also are hot on Katanaka Snipers in general, which are some of the best shooters in the game. Toshiro + Komainu is also a good buy, particularly if you're planning on running Rail Crew. A Fast Rail Worker under Toshiro's aura is a thing of beauty.

[Hargrave]

Thanks! I'll definitely look into Toshiro, Komainu and snipers/archers to start. Jorogumo and Kamataichi are definitely on the list too.

[Jude]

Looking into getting a second (or maybe third) master box is probably a good idea. It gives you the option to play different masters, even though it will take several games which each to start to feel like you have gotten the hang of them. It's also a cheap way to get some more models in general, pretty much every box has at least something that is competitive and all of them will be useful when starting out.

The problem with Ten Thunders is that every new master you buy can act as a gateway drug into buying other factions. So your choice kind of depends on how monogamous you feel like being. There are a lot of choices that work well with any other Ten Thunders master, and McCabe does a good job of making about anything good. I started by trying to buy something that covered all of the major roles and then diversified from there. Brothers are great defensive pieces that get a lot of love. Having a sniper on the board helps a lot of situations. Wandering River Monks once you can get them are great scheme runners. We have several larger beatstick and or tarpit models. Kang, Izamu, Loneswordsman, Yin, Toshiro and pretty much any of the others are all solid choices, just kind of depends on which direction you want to go.

Hounds are a great investment for McCabe though, so don't neglect those.

[Hargrave]

I was kinda wondering if any other master boxes would be a good idea, which is why I mentioned rail crew (Mei Feng) and the obsidian oni, since the oni, workers and Kang could work together. But if you'd recommend a different one (or two) I'd be happy to have more to look into! And yeah, the reason I chose 10T is honestly that I'm horribly indecisive on picking a faction, so I figured this would be the one with the most variety. I do actually own Yin (most of my demo games were ressers).

[Jude]

Really, there isn't a bad choice. Just pick based on playstyle/looks coolest/other faction you might want to play. Really whatever criteria weighs highest for your enjoyment.

I have been following the game since a little before 2E but life with school and work and stuff wouldn't let me have time to play. That whole time I really liked Arcanist and knew I would play them when I finally could. Now that my life has calmed down and allowed me to play I've been buying nothing but Ten Thunders, so I can understand your feelings. I will still dive heavily into them but not until after I get more Thunders(and Kirai, Tara, Levi, and Hamelin), so it might be a while. But that is kind of the good and bad about Ten Thunders is that if you might end up buying everything.

[Hargrave]

6 minutes ago, Jude said:

Really, there isn't a bad choice. Just pick based on playstyle/looks coolest/other faction you might want to play. Really whatever criteria weighs highest for your enjoyment.

I have been following the game since a little before 2E but life with school and work and stuff wouldn't let me have time to play. That whole time I really liked Arcanist and knew I would play them when I finally could. Now that my life has calmed down and allowed me to play I've been buying nothing but Ten Thunders, so I can understand your feelings. I will still dive heavily into them but not until after I get more Thunders(and Kirai, Tara, Levi, and Hamelin), so it might be a while. But that is kind of the good and bad about Ten Thunders is that if you might end up buying everything.

Yeah, I like Neverborn, Ressers and Arcanists (though they seem like they don't get much crossover between masters to me). But the variety in Thunders and having a lot of good units for any master kinda pulled me in (the nightmare box helped on that front too). I guess along with McCabe, the most standout masters to me are probably Shenlong and Asami . I missed Asami, but I have a thing for jacks of all trades, so I guess I'll try to build for McCabe and Shenlong.

[Pyrflamme]

I think Mei is a good second to McCabe, but really, I think all the other starters offer good stuff. If you get Toshiro early, I might think about Yan Lo's box to get Ashigaru for Toshiro to summon, plus I think Yan Lo is a lot better than most give him credit for (and the Shadowy Emissary offers him a lot). Lynch is a great master and McCabe would love having an Illuminated or two around, particularly with Master Queeg now being a thing. Misaki is a great assassin and under McCabe, throwing a Saber to one of her Tokarage and having it Saber an enemy at ++ to attack and + to damage is awesome.

Shenlong likes the other stuff more than people want his High River Monks I think, but Sensei Yu is a very cool henchman.

As I said, I think Yan Lo might be good for practical reasons, but really there's a lot of good stuff in all the 10T starters.

[Hargrave]

Yan Lo is pretty rad. I have no idea how to play him, but I honestly like every Ten Thunders master now that I think about it, with Lynch sadly at the bottom... Though actually, I bet Shen would like Mei's Rail Workers too.

[Pyrflamme]

Double post, but the thread didn't tell me about the 2 new replies.

Samurai are also an appealing prospect for Shenlong. They don't need to discard a card to take the Defensive Stance action, so you can spend your (0) on Defensive action to buffer their somewhat anemic Df 5, or you can get Focus +2 for a shot - not as good since they already get to attack, but at least you can get a straight or plus flip on damage.

[Tokapondora]

If you're just getting into TT/Malifaux, don't get Yan Lo or the Brewmaster - both their crews are very low on TT models. I have to say though, I find Lynch like the second most fun master in Malifaux (behind Brewmaster). And those Illuminated are absolutely amazing. If you're getting McCabe, you're getting a crew good at schemes. Lynch will give you a crew amazing at pure unadulterated PAINNN (also while not amazingly powerful being able to cheat face-down makes for a very fun game).

But if you absolutely insist on no Lynch, Shen's a good bet though a bit difficult to start with. Just get some Dawn Serpent/Jorogumo, TT Brothers (Sabring TTB are pure evil), and the Emissary for McCabe and a set of Snipers and Izamu if you go Shenlong too.

[Hargrave]

I don't absolutely insist on no Lynch, he just looks a bit less fun. Maybe I'll have to check out his card again. Thanks for all the advice, guys!

[OneLittleThunder]

If you're just judging Lynch by his card, you're missing a lot of what makes him cool (IMO of course). His totem is a 0-cost, incorporeal, mind-controlling beatstick of doom that Lynch can bring back from the dead, and his upgrades turn his already-potent card manipulation techniques up to 11. Try to get a look at his rules in the book or check out someone else's cards if you can. 

[Wolfpact]

My first Master was Lynch - though admittedly, as 'Born.

 

A lot of his potency is in his personal upgrades, and he has a lot of subtleties.

 

..or he just flat-out erases things with damage that ignores threshold of success - tie or better and things die.

 

And Illuminated are just absurdly good bruisers.

[Tokapondora]

There's just something about doing 22 damage in one activation after which you still have 6 cards above a 7 to carry into the next round that makes you feel funny inside in a way other masters can't.

[clockworkspide]

1 hour ago, Wolfpact said:

My first Master was Lynch - though admittedly, as 'Born.

 

A lot of his potency is in his personal upgrades, and he has a lot of subtleties.

 

..or he just flat-out erases things with damage that ignores threshold of success - tie or better and things die.

 

And Illuminated are just absurdly good bruisers.

I see people saying this and I just don't get it.  Unless you're never using a card all turn and abusing Stitched Together's card draw, how are you killing anything with Lynch?

[Hargrave]

Alright, you crazy kids and a look through his upgrades and Huggy convinced me. I'll focus on alt-McCabe and Lynch for the time being.

[Tokapondora]

Just now, clockworkspide said:

I see people saying this and I just don't get it.  Unless you're never using a card all turn and abusing Stitched Together's card draw, how are you killing anything with Lynch?

Step 1; Be sure to flip a lot of cards. I've found shooting Yin behind hard cover does wonders with the Illuminated if you can take a turn. Also Samurai exist. Also TTB. Also the Shadow Emissary with Tides of Fate. 

Step 2; Bring Yu so you can mulligan a nice total of 6 cards around so you always walk around with a decent to amazing hand - end of turn one especially you'll always find yourself having to discard cards instead of draw them for the next round. Also fast Huggy/Lynch are scary. 

Step 3; Try to activate Lynch at the end of the round with at least 4 cards (You'll return around I'd say 2 aces on average, and then some other cards that were either too low to use or high enough that you saved one for Lynch), then draw 2 cards. Then Mulligan for that final uberhand. Then do around 4-10 damage with the Final Debt and either chip that last sliver of health down with Play for Blood or burn rams with your Holdout Pistol for a nice minimum of 4 damage. Even if you're ramless and they're behind triple mega super hard cover for  you can Final Debt for decent damage and Play for blood two-three times for around 8-10 damage.

Also don't forget Huggy who for a 0 cost Totem is essentially designed to be the other half of Lynch.

[yipiyip]

1 hour ago, Tokapondora said:

Also don't forget Huggy who for a 0 cost Totem is essentially designed to be the other half of Lynch.

This, very much this. Any master with a zero cost totem or henchman in their box that can only be taken with them is essentially a two-part master. This goes for Lynch, Viks, and anyone else I don't own who follows this rule. You have to look at both stat cards, combined, to realize the beauty of it. Imagine if instead of one master, you had two masters, slightly weaker but granting you an extra activation (that sweet, sweet AP) to more than make up for what may, at first, seem a lackluster stat bar and ability set.

As for master boxes or models to buy, I also would suggest going with what looks like it would be fun for you. If that's rules that seem sleek, models that look amazing or dual factions that come off as fun, just buy whichever you want and you can't really go wrong imo. But as stated before, Brewmaster and Yan Lo are not really full of 10T models, so not a good choice for expanding your core faction I'm afraid. Also, summoning masters in general are portals to throw your money into, I'm warning you. Oh Nicodem, why have you forsaken  me  my wallet?

[D-solad0r]

Since Jorogumo release I've been waiting for play something like this:

50 SS Ten Thunders Crew
McCabe + 7 Pool
 - Glowing Saber (2)
 - Badge Of Speed (2)
 - Promises (1)
Luna (4)
Yamaziko (7)
 - Smoke & Shadows (1)
 - Smoke Grenades (1)
Jorogumo (9)
Jorogumo (9)
Torakage (6)
Guild Hound (3)

 (exported from CrewFaux)

Maybe change Luna for Kamaitachi for heals and a Jorogumo for the shadow emissary for get another Lucas' Upgrade.

As you can see, posibility is endless.

[Pyrflamme]

8 hours ago, Tokapondora said:

Step 1; Be sure to flip a lot of cards. I've found shooting Yin behind hard cover does wonders with the Illuminated if you can take a turn. Also Samurai exist. Also TTB. Also the Shadow Emissary with Tides of Fate. 

Step 2; Bring Yu so you can mulligan a nice total of 6 cards around so you always walk around with a decent to amazing hand - end of turn one especially you'll always find yourself having to discard cards instead of draw them for the next round. Also fast Huggy/Lynch are scary. 

Step 3; Try to activate Lynch at the end of the round with at least 4 cards (You'll return around I'd say 2 aces on average, and then some other cards that were either too low to use or high enough that you saved one for Lynch), then draw 2 cards. Then Mulligan for that final uberhand. Then do around 4-10 damage with the Final Debt and either chip that last sliver of health down with Play for Blood or burn rams with your Holdout Pistol for a nice minimum of 4 damage. Even if you're ramless and they're behind triple mega super hard cover for  you can Final Debt for decent damage and Play for blood two-three times for around 8-10 damage.

Also don't forget Huggy who for a 0 cost Totem is essentially designed to be the other half of Lynch.

I've also grown more keen on 52 Pickup. It serves only one purpose and requires you to be slightly closer than his other abilities, but throwing out 2-8 damage, no duel required, on a Brillianced Target is just insane. I took first place in a tournament about two months ago and in the first round I played Lynch. Killed Lilith and Nekima in one turn by Play for Blooding Nekima, Final Debting her to death, then Play for Blooding Lilith, then throwing four aces at her for 8 damage (had previously pinged her a bit with an Illuminated, she was at about half health, the extra ace was just to cut off any soulstone shenanigans short of a RJ).

[OneLittleThunder]

On 8/12/2016 at 11:48 PM, Tokapondora said:

Step 3; Try to activate Lynch at the end of the round with at least 4 cards (You'll return around I'd say 2 aces on average, and then some other cards that were either too low to use or high enough that you saved one for Lynch), then draw 2 cards. Then Mulligan for that final uberhand. Then do around 4-10 damage with the Final Debt and either chip that last sliver of health down with Play for Blood or burn rams with your Holdout Pistol for a nice minimum of 4 damage. Even if you're ramless and they're behind triple mega super hard cover for  you can Final Debt for decent damage and Play for blood two-three times for around 8-10 damage.

Point of order: The Final Debt target needs to have Brilliance, so I usually wind up having to do Play for Blood first (you can bring in Beckoners to give out Brilliance more easily, but I usually don't find it necessary). If I need to finish off something Hard to Kill after 2 from PfB and 4+ from FD, 52 Pickup works well, or you can always use the pistol or another PfB if you have the AP to spare.

[InvokeChaos]

Just a quick note on the Lynch side of things. You don't need to hold cards in hand for him, that's just kinda gravy if you can. His gun does a good chunk of damage and Play for Blood is practically a guaranteed 6 points of damage if nothing else. 

But I also tend to abuse focus mechanics so my hand isn't as critical. I also like to activate lynch early, erase something, then have my hand for the rest of the round. Play for blood into a 6 card final debt as first activation is 8 damage, and very likely to hit because it's cast 8/7 respectively. Another play for blood usually finishes something off, or a shot from his gun. There's also the idea of just walking him up and play for blood two targets to send huggy in for destruction with an illuminated.

There's also the samurai, torakage, lust trick for Lynch to draw tons of cards, but that's really gimmicky (though fun).

On to the topic at hand, Misaki is also a really good master to get alongside McCabe. Torakage are just flat ridiculous with the glowstick of destiny. Plus Misaki is a fun Master to play, and Yamaziko is way underrated, IMO.

Shen's box is another stellar purchase.