Upgrading Ototo

[Shintoninja]

I finished painting Ototo today and am still planning on making him a large part of my crew. 

Any suggested upgrades or combos I should be aware of?  

I only have upgrade cards from the Crew box an no inatment knowledge of Malifaux.  I know there are upgrade cards sets but want should I be looking for.

As for combos I bought Tengus just because and I have been thinking of running a Ototo/Tengu regeneration combo.  Nothing fancy but it is what I got. 

Have any other suggestion for this Tetsubo welding gaint? 

[Nikodemus]

I wrote my reply on the thread that had the picture. Then it went away when I tried to post grumblegrumble. It was a cool pic too.

There's two upgrade decks: generalist upgrade deck and generalist upgrade deck 2. Both are fun to have but if on a budget go for GUD1, as that has many faction staples.

Recalled Training (1ss): discard to gain +flips to everything until end of turn. Simple and effective. Might take a bit of manoeuvring to get most out of it but it's worth it.

Death Contract (1ss + 0ss decoy): when this model is killed the killer must discard 2 stones or 2 cards or die. Oh and it and decoy are both face down so opponent doesn't know who's holding what. Doesn't make Ototo better and there can be better holders for it, but I like having this in a crew and Ototo is often focused on. If he's going to die might as well take something with him.

Few upgrades I've been theoryfauxing (most games recently have been in an Ototo-less campaign so no field testing for me):

Call the Thunder (1ss): (0) to force simple duels or suffer slow, competes with his heal but if you have other sources of healing it might be worth it. Doesn't seem very reliable but for a (0) I can't say no to slow or card drain.

Equality (GUD2, 1ss): when enemy scores VP you get to pick 1) place a scheme marker, 2) heal a bit or 3) draw a card. Just seems like a solid upgrade to have. Heal and card draw is never bad and one key marker can net you that all important VP to win the game.

The Peaceful Waters (GUD2, 0ss): nearby Low River Monks gain a heal action. You could give this to Ototo and hire a monk to follow him around. Though if you're planning on bringing a midfield support model it might be a better carrier for this upgrade.

Smoke Grenades (GUD1, 1ss): attacks from more than 6'' away suffer a -flip. Since Ototo is a melee only model this should help keep him alive longer. Can also discard to place some blocking markers.

Next is a leader only upgrade which bears mentioning:

On Wings of Wind (GUD1, 2ss): (0) to push a nearby friendly model (Ototo!) and pushes the leader three inches end of turn. This is a really important support upgrade to consider especially if you're not getting Sensei Yu (Shenlong crew box) or Shadow Emissary. Less AP spent walking is more AP spent bashing skulls. And Ototo's skull bashing skills far exceed his walking.

[Cadaverousbirth]

Ototo with McCabe is pretty fun. Regen, Armor, Nimble, and the Sabre all help old Otos stay around, get around, or hit things even harder. 

Recalled Training is usually stapled to him, but for Show of Force Call the Thunder and Equality are great choices. 

[Kbonn]

I'd say the bigger deal is putting Ototo with the correct lists, Masters/other models that can help him.  He's slow, and easy to hurt, but hard to kill.  So models that can move him around and/or heal him.    For example, Shen can help him a lot.   A list with both Sensei Yu and Yan lo is great.   Shadow emissary can move him around and give him fast (ditto shen/sensei).  McCabe can also push him and give him nimble.  In a slower list, Mei can help protect him from ranged threats with venting steam.

[newsun]

Call the thunder makes him brutal against slow targets, this is another reason McCabe is good with him as his net gun hands out slow. Might want to get another model our two to hand out slow, then fill list to complete the mission.

Also the 3"engagement means he can tie up a pretty big area.

With flurry he also likes being in position to maximize his damage output, so movers like yu and emissary are great too.