Most interesting/fun master Yan Lo vs McCabe

[Regelridderen]

So which of the two crews do you get the most fun out of? Yan Lo or McCabe - I’m trying to decide where to go next? 

[Cursed25]

I really liked Yan Lo before the nerf! He was one of my favorite tanky crew! Now with the Manos and Chiaki changes/nerf I find him less fun to play the way I was playing him because it's way less strong! (making Izamu unkillable and sending him fast to the front line while Yan is powering up!)

 

So I would choose McCabe! a really mobile crew that can hit hard from the beginning and they have some nice shenanigans while also having excellent schemers! Also McCabe is the bane of crews that like to bubble!

[Wakefield]

It's McCabe. Just...just saying. It's McCabe. He's a monster. Fast. Fun. Good in almost any scenario. Not that I'm biased. But I'm biased. He's more fun just to pick up and play into any scenario. 

[Maniacal_cackle]

Yan Lo looks quite fun to me.

Crazy combos, immense depth, and a wide variety of tools you can pull out.

Not sure how he plays in TT though.

[Nikodemus]

Yan Lo is fun. Even with the nerf. Always felt a bit silly using Manos' reliquary. New crewbox coming december/january.

Yan Lo's powering up mechanic is cool as long as your games don't get cut short. His attack action to place next to a model and then push said model 2-10" is oddly pleasing. Lots of eastern themed models in the keyword, in case that's a pro or a con for you. What I enjoy is the general tankiness and mobility inherent in the crew.

But I've not played McCabe so I can't really compare. I bet there's cool stuff to pull off with artefact shenanigans. Plus you get to paint a horse. Not too many models in Malifaux let you do that. And he leaves a door open for Explorers, and they seem to be getting some neat stuff in the future so... Possibilities, possibilities.

[Higgybeans]

I would say McCabe because I have him (used to play him in guild, sad about the betrayal ), I haven't seen him in the new edition cards yet because I don't have enough support. But he was a very fun crew to have!

[DonQOT]

It's nice to hear that both of these masters are still fun, as they were my core in 2e. I'm still getting my act together rebuilding my crews after all my Guild models became completely worthless with McCabe leaving the faction (BUT I AM NOT SALTY ABOUT THIS AT ALL.) and my friend who shared a good portion of his Resser models with me for Lo moved halfway across the country, so I don't have a working crew for either yet. 

Glad to see that they are still having some success and are still fun to play. Guess I better brush up on my TT models. 

[Modernpenguin]

I've played Yan Lo since 2nd, and McCabe I picked up here in 3rd. 

When you say fun, I think both of the mechanical aspect, but also how their lore/theme fits into the way they play on the tabletop. 

Its a bit hard to say. McCabe is a powerhouse, with extremely powerful scheming options, and giving fast out like it was no-ones business. Also, his slowing/staggering gun is just downright nasty. I feel like most of the time I play McCabe/luna/sidir/huckster + versatile/OOK. So the theme isn't as strong with him (I don't feel like he fits the eastern aesthetic, even if it makes sense lorewise), but he is still very fun to play. The artefact juggling is quite the mental excersise sometimes as well, if you are into that! 

Yan Lo on the other hand is also powerful (though not as universally powerful), and he plays really well into his theme of undying sorceror-supreme. He mostly plays within keyword. He likes long slow games, where he gets increasingly more unstoppable.. This sometimes leads to almost video-game like situations where the enemy tries to defeat the big bad evil boss, before he gets too powerful.  The power up mechanic is fun, and there is some fun nuance to be had when choosing upgrades to fit your situation. Yan lo is more versatile though, since he can both deal damage, heal, move both allied and enemy models around the board, as well as ressurect his dead ancestors. 

Also it depends on the models you have already? McCabe loves jorugomu and samurai, so if you already have asami there are  some savings to be had. 

TLDR: Yan Lo for versatility and most fun mechanics, McCabe for most powerful mechanics, and being fast like the wind. 

[DonQOT]

9 hours ago, Modernpenguin said:

When you say fun, I think both of the mechanical aspect, but also how their lore/theme fits into the way they play on the tabletop. 
 

That is what I mean by fun. I like interesting mechanics and especially when they evoke the thematics of master and crew.

It sounds like Yan Lo is relatively similar to how he played previously, though I need to get a handle on his new nuances. McCabe being a powerhouse in faction seems funny to me, as I recall him being more of a versatile support engine with his upgrade tossing.

I'll miss the kamaitachi as it was for all the upgrade shenanigans TT used to be able to get up to, but at least my old masters haven't changed too much...except for Mccabe's lose of Guild (WHICH I AM STILL NOT SALTY ABOUT, STOP ASKING).

[Maogrim]

I feel you on it being a little weird that McCabe's Wastrels don't invoke any of the Eastern aesthetics that you'd asssociate with Ten Thunders. The same holds true for Jakob's Honeypot. And that's the only keyword in Ten Thunders that's actually Ten Thunders only and doesn't have any overlap into other factions. 

It's just a strange fact that 25% of the masters in the Asian faction are white English-speaking males. 

And you can't really say that Ten Thunders is more about crime than Asian aesthetic, because that doesn't quite fit the bill with Asami, Yan Lo or Shenlong. 

[DonQOT]

I feel like the white guy proxy/patsy is a pretty big trope in hong kong gangster flicks and the like, so I never thought they were that out of the core theme. Plus making Thunder just 'the asian faction' wouldn't sit right with me.

There is also the holdover from when TT's core gimmick was infiltrating all the other factions, it would be pretty hard to do that if their agents could be screened out by something like the Chinese Exclusion Act.

I always rather liked the tangential connection of their masters, the shadowy web of influence willing to use any and every resource from weaponization of their own ancestal practices to squeezing Occidental debtors to do their bidding. Though perhaps we digress too much from the topic.

McCabe and Yan Lo are still some of my favorite Masters and get the dubious distinction of my affection.

[Maogrim]

Very well put, good Sir. 

I shall henceforth fully agree with your view on this specific topic, albeit still holding a watchful eye due to your continued and seemingly rather passionate imvolvement with that other Society. 

[DonQOT]

I'd have figured a thunder minion would be used to split loyalties.

I served the Oyabun for a long time before the dilettantes showed up and I still intend to do so, in favorable weather at least.

But in truth my doggo loyalties are only to belly scratches, treats, and walkies. Whoever provides the best of these, I am there loyal lapdog. 

[Modernpenguin]

8 hours ago, DonQOT said:

I feel like the white guy proxy/patsy is a pretty big trope in hong kong gangster flicks and the like, so I never thought they were that out of the core theme. Plus making Thunder just 'the asian faction' wouldn't sit right with me.

There is also the holdover from when TT's core gimmick was infiltrating all the other factions, it would be pretty hard to do that if their agents could be screened out by something like the Chinese Exclusion Act.

I always rather liked the tangential connection of their masters, the shadowy web of influence willing to use any and every resource from weaponization of their own ancestal practices to squeezing Occidental debtors to do their bidding. Though perhaps we digress too much from the topic.

McCabe and Yan Lo are still some of my favorite Masters and get the dubious distinction of my affection.

I still stand by my point. The issue is not that the lore does not fit him (it makes sense!), its just that his mechanics on the table encourages versatile or OOK hires, rather than in-keyword hire. I love the fantasy of an adventuring band of misfits and ruffians, being under the thumb of a powerful organistation (be it explorer or ten thunders). Its just a damn shame that a lot of his hires aren't that good (ruffians/cryptologist especially), since it breaks the immersion a bit for me. 

About ten thunders being the 'asian faction': As far as I know, they are a crime syndicate based in the three kingdoms (being japan/china/vietnam), so it would be weird for the faction to not be predominately asian based. Hence why every versatile model is asian based (except maybe fuhatsu and lust?).  

I digress as well, but my point was just that I would love McCabes models to be a bit more thightly knit together, than they are currently, as for now it feels like McCabe is putting 'looking for hired help' posters at every bar in little kingdom! 

[Maogrim]

1 hour ago, Modernpenguin said:

I still stand by my point. The issue is not that the lore does not fit him (it makes sense!), its just that his mechanics on the table encourages versatile or OOK hires, rather than in-keyword hire. I love the fantasy of an adventuring band of misfits and ruffians, being under the thumb of a powerful organistation (be it explorer or ten thunders). Its just a damn shame that a lot of his hires aren't that good (ruffians/cryptologist especially), since it breaks the immersion a bit for me. 

About ten thunders being the 'asian faction': As far as I know, they are a crime syndicate based in the three kingdoms (being japan/china/vietnam), so it would be weird for the faction to not be predominately asian based. Hence why every versatile model is asian based (except maybe fuhatsu and lust?).  

I digress as well, but my point was just that I would love McCabes models to be a bit more thightly knit together, than they are currently, as for now it feels like McCabe is putting 'looking for hired help' posters at every bar in little kingdom! 

Actually, the more I think about what just wrote the more it seems fitting to play McCabe with Versatiles. Other famous adventurers like Indiana Jones or Nathan Drake would go on their treasure hunts with very few core friends who accompanied them every time while there would always be some guy or gal tagging along just for one or two adventures. So McCabe hiring guides, muscle or specislists for certain gigs seems appropriate.

And as far as I'm aware Sidir makes it into basically every McCabe list and there are fairly many people playing Hucksters and Desper. From what I gathered over at the Preppy Society Rough Riders and Jessie seem to be decent as well.

So basically Ruffians are the only Wastrel models no one touches which is, admittedly, a shame since they are cool sculpts with lots of character.

PS: Fuhatsu is definitely Japanese. And I'm not sure about Lust either, but the way her skin and cheek bones look in the art makes me think she's Asian as well.