Alyce, Waifs and Raptors oh my

[Eisenhorn]

So I had my first game today with Leveticus and was hoping to get some feed back on a tactical conundrum that I ran into.

During the game the guild player used his Guild Austringer to snipe one of my Waifs from a range of 18 inches. What is the best way to deal with this type of long range model that ignores both cover and LOS. I have seen several people say that it’s a good idea to keep Alyce near by to protect the waif but I can’t figure out how she could have prevented my waif from dying. Thoughts, idea, suggestions? The list I ran was...

Levi

Alyce

STA x 4

Canine Remains

Also I realized after the game and browsing on here that I played the game with Levi’s V2 card… yeah the one where you REPLACE the waif not sacrifice it (yes I played with the replace rules and yes it was a real challenge to keep making waifs). Anyway I was a little disappointed with this discovery because I just bought the set three days ago and it came with the out dated card. How do I go about getting the current V3 card. Thanks.

[LoboStele]

You can get the V3 card from Wyrd's website here, and the card only costs $0.50, but you have to pay the $8 shipping. So I would consider ordering some other stuff at the same time. The better option is to find some other local people and all order some stuff together. Or, it's possible if there is a local henchmen, check with them first and see if they have any extra cards left over from the exchange program back at the beginning of the year.

Anyways, the Austringers....yeah, pretty much a bane of Levi's existence. Your best bet is to try and keep your Waifs as far away as possible. Unfortunately, they will be attacking at a 7 against your 3 Df, so you will want to keep high cards on hand for cheating their Df, to make sure the Austringer's don't have a straight flip for damage. They only do 1 Dg on Weak, so they have to get Moderate for it to be worth it.

Secondly, Levi can EASILY waste an Austringer with 2 spell attacks, using either Necrotic Unmaking or Unnatural Wasting. So the trick is to try and wait until after the Austringer has activated, and then move a Waif forward, from somewhere outside of 18" to somewhere closer. That should put you to about 12-14". Then during the next turn, Levi can walk for free, and maybe use another 1 action to walk again, putting you well within 10-12". Then kill the Austringer and/or turn him into an SPA.

It certainly isn't easy though, and a solid Guild player will really make it tough to get the Austringers. Honestly, I have no idea how Alyce can help protect the Waifs in a situation like that. Your best bet is typically to try and wipe out the Austringer as soon as possible.

You might also consider taking a Guardian in your crew. You can use the Protect spell or Shield Wall to help keep your Waifs alive easier.

[Necromorph]

Yeah like Lobo said, Austringers will make you want to stop bringing Levi against Guild. There isn't much he can take with the exception of Hooded rider or Jack Daw that have the speed and survivability against guild shooting to get back there and kill them.

Guardians are a good way to make sure at least 1 waif survives, but it's still no guarantee. Silly how a 5ss model can cripple such a powerful master. One of his Avatar form abilities in book 3 better be that he doesn't need waifs anymore, lol.

[Buck Dog]

What Lobo said x2.

I am definately going to pick up a Guardian for my Levi crew. Sure its an expensive insurance policy and I doubt I will use it every game, but it is handy to have in your locker.

[Rathnard]

Levi's V3 card should be available for Download via the "Oucasts" file on the sidebar, under V2 statcards. It wont be all nice and printed, but it'll save you having to get the card from Wyrd.

The Austringer's 18" attack is a (2) action, so they'll only get one shot at it each turn. It's unlikely they'll miss, but as Lobostele said if you can force them into a damage flip then there's a decent chance they'll flip weak damage and fail to kill the waif. It's probably worth suggesting that you put the Waifs on defensive stance at the first opportunity, and save one high card per Austringer for cheating that Df flip.

The Austringer can't use his Raptor if he's in melee, so if you can grab a quick model like a Necropunk or Watcher you could engage the Austringer and force him to spend an AP before using his attack (giving him an effective 12" range).

Another random thought - take a few extra cheap minions (canine remains?) to turn into Hollow Waifs if your existing ones have been killed that turn. Ideally you want to turn your opponents minions into Waifs, but if the created waif is unlikely to survive the turn or you'd rather have it summoned in a safer position, it certainly doesn't hurt to have a canine remains handy in the back lines for that exact job.

A guardian would be a good bet, but it needs to activate before the austringer to be able to protect any waifs. Worst case scenario is that the austringer will activate first and kill your waif, but if you have the second waif and it's also near enough to the Guardian, you can at least protect that one instead.

[dakrulz55]

well you could be silly and guard levi witht he guardian and if it comes down to it just absorb the eot wd he suffers if both waifs are put dwn. but sillyness aside you could bring a belle or two to pull stuff around like your waifs or thier austingers. also with v3 getting a second waif is important as it makes a single austinger less crucial, but it will still limit the mobility of levi.

Edited July 10, 2011 by dakrulz55

[Eisenhorn]

Thanks for the tips guys. The guardian is a good idea but he does seem kind of expensive to have just loitering around acting as a deterant.

[LoboStele]

Oh duh, Defensive Stance is a GREAT idea in that matchup. I always forget about that ability.

[Necromorph]

Trust me, defensive by itself isn't all that useful...maybe 1/10 times. Their combat is 4 higher than your df...they can flip much lower than you and still tie/beat you even if you have a 13.

The real problem is the guild stalling (not sure how your guild players play). They know that they don't want to get close (12") to you because levi will take them apart. So they sit back, and force you to make a move. If you don't, then you basically sit there and get hit by austringers at 18". If you sit too long, they'll start targeting your higher cost models with the bird-chucking bastards, and if you make a move they kill your waifs. Maybe the guild players at my LGC just play like d!cks and just hide behind their austringers while they soften you up instead of playing a real game, but I've played against the austringers long enough to know that there is little outside of chancy gambles that will save your waifs; guardians are probably the best option...combined with defensive, haha. Either that or the game will be a big ol' stalemate as noone wants to enter the other's range.

Edited July 10, 2011 by Necromorph

[Rathnard]

Trust me, defensive by itself isn't all that useful...maybe 1/10 times. Their combat is 4 higher than your df...they can flip much lower than you and still tie/beat you even if you have a 13.

In the case of Waifs vs Austringers, the aim isn't to win the Df flip, but to to give you the best chance of the final difference being less than 6 and force a on the damage flip.

Honestly, I think if you're facing Austringers then the best option might be to do what you can to protect the waifs (Guardian, Df stance, necropunks leaping into their melee), but just rush them with your crew regardless. Levi will probably kill anything in sight and the plethora of living models in most guild crews will give you the corpse counters to make fresh waifs if it's needed.

I'm not pretending that Levi vs Austringers is an easy matchup, but unless you can fulfil your strategies/schemes from the back of the board, rushing your opponents crew is probably your best solution.