Waldo's Weekly - Meet Old Hob!

[Hobby Wyrd]

Hey Wyrdos!

Waldo’s been waking up on the wrong side of the bed this week. He’s been spending all his time shuffling around in his slippers with a little cup of coffee trying to be nefarious… but we feel his heart’s really only half into it. While we help Waldo get back into impish spirits, let’s take a look at another cantankerous creation in Ashes of Malifaux!

The Plague Picker constructs were built to safely gather and dispose of corpses en masse. Unfortunately, they were mostly decommissioned due to their lack of distinction between the living and dead. Old Hob is one who escaped capture. He wanders happily through the Quarantine Zone, investigating whatever captures his cyclopean eye and childlike fancy. Hob’s still a multi-ton killing machine… woe befall anyone who gets in the way of his fun.

Old Hob

Old Hob is one of the new Versatile models from the Ashes of Malifaux release. As a Versatile model they bring a little bit of something to a lot of different Crews. In general, Old Hob is great in situations where you need a sturdy model to hold an area of the board. Df 5 with Armor +2 and a possible self Heal means that they’ll be hard to remove once they dig in. Old Hob is also amazing at area control with the Territorial Trigger which prevents them from being moved and the Construction Claw Action which Places the target.

In Corpse Marker Focused Crews

In Corpse Marker focused Crews like Seamus, McMourning, or Reva, Old Hob fits in perfectly. Old Hob is a wonderful source of Corpse Markers. Their Construction Claw Action has the Dismember Trigger and they Drop a Corpse Marker whenever they take damage thanks to It’s Raining Corpses. The fun doesn’t stop once they Drop Corpse Markers. Old Hob can throw them around the board with the Hurl Corpse Action which can do a surprising amount of damage with a Stat 7 on its Attack and the Collision Trigger.

In non-Corpse Marker Focused Crews

In Crews that are less focused on Corpse Markers, Old Hob still brings a lot of value. Armor is not a defensive tech that Resurrectionists are known for (outside of Von Schtook) so a large Armor +2 model is something that opponents will rarely tech against. Old Hob can remove a lot of Corpse Markers with the Corpse Picker Action, which is important against Crews that rely on Corpse Markers, like Nephilim. They’re also an interesting pick into Schemier Crews when hired along with a Gravedigger as It’s Raining Corpses will Drop a lot of Corpse Markers to use with the Gravedigger’s Field of Corpses Ability. Even without a Gravedigger, the Corpse Picker Action’s Leftover Parts Trigger can Drop a Scheme Marker for a surprise VP.

In Gaining Grounds 4

In Gaining Grounds 4 Old Hob has a lot of options. While they are viable in most Strategies, Raid the Vaults is the one they excel at. They are a first-rate midfield threat that allows the rest of the Crew to target backfield Strategy Markers. They’re also a model that is hard to deal with as the Territorial Trigger stops enemy effects from moving or Burying them. This means that once they put up Territorial, the only way to stop them from counting towards Raid the Vaults is to kill them. Beyond Raid the Vaults, they are a solid counter in Stuff the Ballots because a 2” or 3” Melee range (with Territorial) can engage a lot of enemies.

Old Hob is valuable in Schemes that revolve around damage and Markers. Old Hob works well in Sweating Bullets as they can engage Masters or Henchmen and survive the encounter. They’re useful in Death Beds as they can Drop Corpse Markers right next to enemies. They’re even good into Information Overload, as paired with a Gravedigger, they can flood the board with Scheme Markers.

That’s all for this week, Wyrdos! How are you liking this enduringly rusty machine? Tell us how you plan to wield Old Hob in the comments!

[Paddywhack]

Love the look of the model. Temper Tantrum seems nasty in a RedChapel crew....