Musings on McMourning and Dead Rider

[SoulG]

So, I bought McMourning today and tried him out. Not his box, just him. I was... pleasantly surprised at his effectiveness. It was an interesting transition going from Kirai (a support master) and Seamus (a tank) to McMourning (a Glass Cannon).

Some things I noticed:

1. 6 Cache. I checked my list 5 times, not believing I had everything I did -and- a 6 Cache.

2. He needs that Cache. He goes through damage prevention flips like it's water and he needs them to take out more defensive models.

3. He brings the punch. Seriously, all the punch you really -need-. The crew needs to bring the objective-grabbing. McMourning is happiest when he's butchering something, and thus he'll need a more supportive crew.

Now some things with Dead Rider. I bought him about a week ago and he is RAPIDLY becoming a staple in my line-up. He's part beatstick, part punch-delivery system, part super-Belle, all for 10ss. I can't imagine not taking him for anyone but Kirai in > 30ss games.

I also kind of discovered a Yo-Yo effect with him. Have him Mounted Combat something like McMourning up. Have McMourning use Scalpel Slinging to push another 6", then have a Belle use Lure twice to move him out of danger (preferably behind the Dead Rider).

It's a nice thing that's basically the opposite of what he does with Nicodem (draw a model into the kill-zone).

[fritz the cat]

the cache is absolutely killer, I just started using mcmourning and their jaws are always agape at how much stuff I can fit in, as to the glass cannon aspect I've had alot of luck screening/hiding mcmourning until the time is right. And once hes stuck in if they dont kill him in one go, hes back to full health (also kind of mean, once he gets stuck in and starts killing/cutting up parts he starts summoning more models into the mix)

[Buhallin]

I'm always surprised when people describe McMourning as a glass cannon/fragile. He heals so incredibly easily that an opponent basically has to kill him in a single turn (or activation, if he hasn't gone yet that turn) or he's likely to be back up to full health. The only real difference between your tank (Seamus) and your glass cannon (McMourning) is an extra point of Hard to Wound and Hard to Kill. The first minimized the chance to cheat from a few sources (typically Great Weapon master like Lillith or Lady J) and the latter is a stopgap holdout at best. I honestly cannot think of a single game where I've seen McMourning die.

On the topic of his cache: I actually find his high cache causes me problems on a regular basis. Because you can't exceed 8 in a Scrap, you have a very narrow window for building your crew. And I almost never actually have 6 SS - the reality of his cache is that it's pretty standard, and you start with a few body parts.

But that's an annoyance... I actually think McMourning gives Kirai a run for her money as our best master, and he's consistently underestimated. I can't figure out why, honestly... As near as I can remember, I've never lost a single game with him.

[fritz the cat]

Mcmourning is the first good use ive had for molly aswell +3 walk for him is huge, and ive had good synergy using one crooligan spamming mist to hide him while the other 2 ran up field. late game the one that was back would warp to one of the forward crooligans, or it would create a nice safe haven for them to jump back too.