Reznik v Stryker, Thoughts

I got another training match in, this time dialing it back to 25pts for my cohort.

The lists were:
pStryker
-Ol' Rowdy
-Lancer
-Charger
10 Sword Knights
Rhupert the Piper
Arlan Strangeways
Squire

VERSUS!

Reznik
-Vanquisher
-Reckoner
6 Exemplar Errants
-Officer, Standard
4-man Choir
2 Vassals of Menoth
The Book

The scenario was Mosh Pit, with a hill in the middle and me going first.  There was a hell of a scrum, and at the end, there were a few Errants, a few choir boys, a vassal, and a dead Reznik.  I had Stryker, Rowdy, Arlan, and a depleted Squire on the board with Rowdy presiding over Reznik's spaghetti-sauce-like remains.

Thoughts On...
Stryker
On paper, I wasn't too impressed with him; he struck me as a buff-bot.  With the bloody Witch Hound and immunity to knockdown book in the back, Earthquake didn't feel like a hell of an option.  Still, Arcane Shield was an MVP on Rowdy, and Snipe on a Charger makes it a hell of an assassination threat.  Stryker's major contribution, other than a timely Earthquake when he switched over to the Continuous Fire passage during my feat turn, was repeatedly disrupting things with his sidearm.

Ol' Rowdy
Arcane Shield and Rowdy's natural ARM19+1 make him stupidly durable.  Past that, the focus efficiency and Grudge make him nice.  He basically did ALL the heavy lifting for jack-killing, and was able to go after both of them thanks to Stryker disrupting both of them.

Lancer
I'd grabbed him because of Earthquake, and because Sword Knights + Reach Jack = Happy Stabbing Action, in theory.  In fact, this guy almost knocked the cortex off of the Reckoner (...then a Vanquisher boosted a hit on him and ripped the shield off...).  He did boost one Earthquake onto a knocked-down sword knight, knocking both of the guy's jacks over.

Charger
This guy was ALMOST the star.  Add snipe, and hilarity ensues for potential assassination attempts.  He almost nailed Reznik TWICE; the first round he had a full focus load and knocked about 10 boxes off with the first shot, then...wiffed.  Then, wiffed again.  Then, took one more shot, missed, and Reznik went ARRGH ENGINE OF DESTRUCTION and I didn't have a Charger any more...

Sword Knights
Cheap bodies FTW.  I might've buffed them, but Blessed on the crossbows of the Errants (and that 'fire' thing from the Vanquisher) meant they ran up, killed some Errants, and then pretty much died.

Arlan Strangeways
All things considered, this guy was workable enough.  He's gold when, y'know, you have a caster without a ton of focus.

Squire
Um.  Why WOULDN'T you bring this?

The Piper
Fearless + Tough for the win.  I like the Pathfinder option, but fearless + tough is always useful and makes the Knights last a little longer.

Reznik
Engine of Destruction is painful.  Iron Aggression is stupidly efficient, and if your battle plan involved upkeeping spells or allocating focus, he can screw it over. Hell, casting spells on warjacks is a bad idea period with this guy.  I forgot how nasty Engine of Destruction could be, and if he'd had a way to give Reznik pathfinder, I might very well have lost this game as he would've gotten the jump on Rowdy and possible killed him.

Reckoner & Vanquisher
Honestly, disrupting one of these all game long and beating the other to death kinda neutralized them. Well, then Rowdy beat the CRAP out of them.

Errants
They spent the game killing Sword Knights.

Choir, Vassals, Book
It's solid Menoth support.  Shocked?  Shouldn't be.

Overall
I'm impressed with both Stryker and Reznik.  Are either of them top-tier?  Not necessarily.  Still, I'm impressed with Reznik's ability to seal the deal himself; if he's within a foot of you and has a charge lane, you're probably going to die.  Stryker's pistol was one of the bloody MVPs of the game, allowing me to get 'jack superiority in the mosh pit and let an ARM23 Ol' Rowdy go through a pair of heavies.  Past that, infantry died/was irrelevant.  All things considered, it was fun just because it was one of those epic slug-fests.

Moonlighting with Mercs: Merc 'Modules' and Units, the Cores You'll Build Around

This is, at the moment, the last article I plan on doing for mercs.  I've spent five posts explaining what mercs will work for which factions, and the compatibility of the respective warcasters.

This time out, I'm going to focus on the units (and their support) themselves, and discuss what you get from each of them.  I mean, you need to know who does what, right?

The Steelheads
Work For: Cryx, Cygnar, Menoth, Khador
The Steelheads have a little bit of everything: you want melee troops, you get Halberdiers.  You want guns?  Riflemen.  You want Cavalry?  You got Steelhead Cav, and a cav solo in Stannis Brocker.

The cheapest entry comes with the Halberdiers: They're a 4/6 cost unit for 6-10 guys.  They have low-to-average stats across the boad, with DEF/ARM13, and a piddly-looking MAT5.  Note that they do have Powerful Charge and Set Defense, so they can give and take some love to open an engagement.  Note also they have reach and are dirt cheap.  Combined Melee Attack lets you hit high-DEF targets, or tag-team larger stuff.  Importantly, they're cheap.  If you want just to hold another guy up, 1-2 units of Halberdiers flood the boad with bodies, and if you throw Alexia & the Risen behind it, you're basically dumping 11-17 points on a LOT of delaying tactics.

The Riflemen could use a range booster, but they're hideously accurate with Combined Ranged Attack and Combined Arms.  They are expensive at 6/9, but the accuracy is what saves them.  You are not likely to miss if you team up for your shots.  I would consider these guys behind a unit of Halberdiers, because these guys are pretty terrible in melee.

If you don't need in-faction buffs, the Cavalry can hit hard when combined with Halberdiers.  You get Reach and two swings out of each guy.  While the MAT5 and PS12 look piddly, factor in Flank with Halberdiers, and suddenly you've got MAT7 weaponmasters cranking out two attacks each.  Add in a sidearm and Assault, and you can do some serious damage on a charge to a number of targets.

Finally, there's Stannis Brocker.  IF you're going to take more than one Steelhead unit (and you're not just doubling up on Halberdiers as fodder) then consider him to help you with traffic issues.  He's no slouch in combat on his own, but Tactician (for ignoring each other for LOS and moving through each other) can be a big boon when it comes to getting your sell-swords into position.

Steelheads in Summary
These guys aren't what you're looking for if you MUST have access to faction buffs.  Why?  Either you're taking one unit of Halberdiers as fodder (and, well, come on.  At 6, they're cheap.  At 8, they're comparable to everyone else...) or you're looking at Halberiders + more expensive guys; Rifleman for a regular battle line or Cavalry for a nasty 1-2 hit.

An exception to the above is Reznik's tier in No Quarter, as you can get the Attendent Priests for free.

Also, these guys work for EVERYONE (other than Retribution).  From a money standpoint, these guys offer good bang for the buck.  You're looking at ~20ish points to take Halberdiers and either Rifleman or Cav + Stannis Brocker, which leaves you room for support/battlegroup in a 35pt list.  Not bad at all.

The Sea Dogs
Work For: Cryx, Cygnar, Menoth, Khador

Are pirates your thing, instead of organized mercs?  Then you can get some Sea Dogs.  While the Steelheads are pretty self-contained (self-contained accuracy via CMA/CRA, only Cav really wants other guys for suppot), the Sea Dogs just get nastier as you start adding in solos.

You start with an infantry unit, the Sea Dog Crew.  It's 5/8 for some guys with so-so stats.  They have SPD6 (nice), MAT5/RAT4 with a PS8 Melee weapon and PS10 pistol (laughable), DEF13 (average) and ARM12 (bad joke).  They can help each other out with Gang, for +2 to hit/damage, and they can use the pistol in melee.  Sound comical, right?

Well, you can get more guys with the Sea Dog Rifleman.  They're a point a piece, but instead of the pistol they have a RNG14 Rifle with CRA and Take Up.  You can get a few more bodies.  Not bad, right?  Still going 'So What?'

Now, let's go get Mr. Walls.  He's 2pts and attaches to a Sea Dog Crew unit.  He's got Gang, and slightly better survivability in melee due to Tough and an angry monkey. (No, really.)  He brings two wonderful things to the unit:
1) Tactics: Advance Deploy
2) No Quarter: mini-feat good fo Pathfinder, Terror, and Fearless.

So, Mr. Walls lets you start out further, and get there faster, AND respond to your enemy's deployment.  Now we're starting to see something...

Now let's go grab Lord Rockbottom.  He's got a neat Spray attack and Commander.  However, he also has a fun little ability called 'Paymaster' and he can use it to help a Sea Dog unit in his command range 5x per game.
1) Money Shot: +2 to ranged attack/damage rolls
2) Payday: BOOSTED MELEE ATTACK ROLLS and Overtake
3) Walk It Off: Tough for a round

For two points, Mr. Rockbottom is making our Sea Dogs a bit terrifying...he's solved their melee issue, and can even make them a little more frightening at range, OR he can make them stick around longer.  Too bad you can only use one Incentive per unit per turn.

Now, if you've decided to make your Sea Dogs Tough, you can pay 2pts for Bosun Grogspar, and make them immune to knockdown.  Also, you can take Doc Killingsworth for 4+ tough on your pirates.  First Mate Hawk is a guided-missile Solo that can give Sea Dogs fearless in her CMD9 range.  I suppose you could also take Bloody Bradigan for a weaponmaster with Fearless, Tough, and Critical Knockdown.

So, what's the module cost?
Sea Dog Crew [8]
-Doc Killingsworth [2]
Lord Rockbottom [2]

Minimally, 12pts.  I would probably add Hawk and as a minimum (14 points) and debate whether you wanted to add Grogspar and/or the Doc.  Alternatively, you can take a Press Gang which goes down to 4/6 and gets Tough in exchange for losing the pistols (but keeping AD by having it naturally) and being able to replace their losses.

Alternatively, you could grab the full suite of Solos (10), a full-up unit of Sea Dog Crew with Mr. Walls (10) and a full unit of Press Ganger (6), which is a fun 26pt chunk (though if you're going that far, I'd just consider playing Talion Charter or something...).  I think you're more likely to run about 16pts with a Sea Dog Crew and supporting solos.

Overall on Sea Dogs
These guys can pull off some sick layering of buffs.  This is really one of those situations where you can't evaluate the piddly Sea Dog Crew in a vacuum.  On the flip side, the instant you start losing your solos, you start watching capabilities go goodbye.  Still, it's a characterful module with some sick shenanigans when it all comes together AND you can use it with pretty much everyone.

As an added benefit, you can run a lone unit and make use of the Ranking Officers on the cheap, getting even more buffs out of the deal, unlike the Steelheads.  On the downside, you're looking at a lot of abilities to track, but they're all pretty sick.

The Nyss Hunters
Will Work For: Cryx, Cygnar, Khador, Retribution
If you're going to take just one unit as a core, these are by far some of the most versatile ones you can take.  They're expensive at 10pts for a full-up unit, but look at what you get: Pathfinder, Hunter, Combined Ranged Attack, Weaponmaster melee weapons, DEF15...bottom line?  You pay for what you get, and it's pretty nasty.

They can also use a variety of support, if you've got it.  If you can shield them from blasts (IE: Rahn's Force Field, Murdoch's Dig In) then you can make the enemy deal with DEF15, which isn't easy.  If you can extend their range, you'll get more mileage out of their bows.  The other big thing that comes to mind is a melee accuracy buff; MAT6 can miss at times and is more suited to hunting lumbering heavy warjacks than anything else.

As they're likely to be your main/only unit, you can also readily hand out that Ranking Officer attachment.

Overall
Nyss Hunters can do just about anything you ask them to out of the box.  They only get nastier with support, but real support is saving them from blast damage/auto-hitting stuff.

Ogrun Assault Corps
Work For: Cygnar, Menoth
Based on the 6/9 cost, these guys are competing for your 'only unit' slot.  On the bright side, they're pretty versatile: POW12 AoEs with CRA (so you can actually get some stupidly-nasty blast damage), and POW12 melee hits with CMA.  Add that on top of a DEF12 (average) and ARM15 (not bad) 8 wounds, and you've got a pretty middle-of-the-road multi-role trample roadblock.

Of course, this 'middle of the road' thing they've got makes them prime candidates for support.  On the bright side, they'll take almost anything.  An ARM buff is nice (and both employers can provide it).  Menoth can hit them with Ignite to drive them up to effective PS14 in melee, so you can do fire support and then do damage in hand-to-hand.  Cygnar can improve their ranged capability via Deadeye or Snipe.

Based on the cost, you can again hand them a ranking officer, as they're probably your main/only unit.  They may or may not need it, but the support from an Attendent Priest is pretty swell, and Murdoch's Assault and Dig In can give you more ranged fun AND keep you from blocking LOS.

Overall
These guys are versatile.  They'll make use of just about any buff you can hand them, though they honestly kind of want those buffs because they are VERY middle-of-the-road.

Boomhowler & Co
Works For: Cryx, Cygnar, Khador
Want a troll tarpit?  That's what these guys are.  They're famous for having a 4+ Tough roll, even though Boomhowler techincally has two other Fell Calls that most people forget. (Well, ok, Rage Howler probably gets the least love, but it still has a place if you can buff Boomie's ARM).

On the one hand, you can run these guys sans support just to clog up the enemy's lanes.  That's kind of the default use.  Cygnar can buff ARM (and DEF with Murdoch's Go To Ground), and Khador can buff DEF.

On the flip side, Cryx can readily help their damage output, as these guys top out at a POW12 hit unless you do Combined Melee Attacks.  Come on, it's the faction of Debuffs. 

Overall
These guys are a fine tarpit for their employer, though they'll pull double-duty if you can help their damage output.

Croe's Cutthroats
Work For: Cryx, Khador, Menoth
Like Poison?  That's what these guys do.  Their primary defense is Stealth and hitting first.  As their primary defense is Stealth, Ranking Officers are much easier to pick off (...since the Cutthroats don't block LOS unless you could shoot said Cutthroat) and are thus probably not desirable.

You could try to help their durability, but unless you're buffing DEF with something like Iron Flesh, it's probably not going to help.  It's a shame Defender's Ward requires a ranking officer, because they'd love DEF15, and ARM13 would be nice against blast damage.

The other issue the Cutthroat's have is accuracy.  They're already expensive at 7/10.  I can think of two gys that can help their accuracy issues without a ranking officer:
1) Harkevich has Fortune; re-rolls on RAT5 can threaten most infantry/heavies reasonably well.
2) Scaverous has Telekinesis.

Honestly, Scaverous is the big winner with Croe's.  Why?  Telekinesis can get you the rear arc bonus, which translates to +2 to hit AND +1d6 damage.  It's frankly disgusting.  I'm not saying that Scaverous is the ONLY guy I'd play Croe's with, but he can make them sick.

Of course, pKreoss' feat means that you're missing on snakeyes, so he could use these guys as an assassination vector.  It feels distinctly un-Menoth, but what the hell.

Overall
DEF buffs, blast damage mitigation, and accuracy are what Croe's want.  Of note are Harkevich, Scaverous, and pKreoss, as all of them can help Croe's hit, and the last two can make them serious assassination threats against living casters.

Sam McHorne & the Devil Dogs
Work For: Cygnar & Menoth
Like Jack Marshals that can gank the crap out of knocked-down models?  Hire Sam & Friends for 5/7.  Pronto is good for melee jacks and ranged jacks alike.  You can go cheap with just a Buccaneer (bring your own knockdown!) or you can get a Mule to move up AND get the all-important aiming bonus.

Sam & Friends have average stats, short range, and are just kinda sick if you can knock the target down.  That Slug Gun may only have RNG4, but it's POW14.  CRA is kind of a joke with RNG4, but you can always get an Assault off with Murdoch.

Frankly, these guys benefit most from Knockdown effects.  pKreoss and pStryker can deliver the goods here, and once the Avenger comes out you'll be able to get Knockdown for any Cygnar caster on-demand.

Overall
pKreoss is their buddy in Menoth, and if you really want to enjoy the Knockdown effect, you're probably adding a Buccaneer (KD on demand!) a Freebooter (KILL THE KD THING!) and a Priest (Pathfinder and Defender's Ward eligibility!)  In Cygnar, pStryker for Earthquake, or anyone with Avengers.  Or, you can add a Buccaneer to make them a self-contained 10pt trashin'-things module.  Note that they are a bit niche just because they love to kill stuff on the ground, and you can't always get that lovely Knockdown.

Horgenhold Forge Guard
Work For: Cygnar, Menoth
Want Reach Weaponmasters with solid ARM?  These are the guys.  Defensive Line means they'll laugh off most blast damage.  They need it, because they're a whopping SPD4 and DEF10.  MAT7 is pretty reasonable, and they're POW11 weaponmasters with Critical Smite, so their main concern is actually getting there.

Cygnar has ready access to Arcane Shield, and with that up (and Ranked Attacks and Murdoch) you have a nice front line that can beat the tar out of the enemy when they DO get there.  Cygnar and Menoth both have access to Crusader's Call, good for +2 movement on a charge.  Note you'd need a ranking officer, and you're stuck with either Blaze or the Harbinger for it.  Still, it's a solution their SPD4, right?

Overall
Honestly, I'm most at home using these guys with Ashlynn as she has Quicken, which really solves their SPD4 issue.  Murdoch lets you used their Ranked Attacks in a Cygnar shooting army to just sit back and hit the enemy when they come in, as you can probably convince the other guy to come to you.  Otherwise, you'll need to use judicious spacing of your troops to make sure anyone going after them can only get the first few.

Wrap-Up on Merc Units
The Steelheads and Sea Dogs are the most in-depth choices you've got for merc cores.  The Steelheads are relatively self-sufficient while being able to mesh well (largely with Stannis Brocker, but also the Halberdiers+Cav).  The Sea Dogs excel at layering a truly riduclous amount of buffs on the table.  Either way, these 'cores' are almost plug 'n' play into most faction armies.  I would say the tradeoff is the Sea Dogs require the most to remember, but since it focuses around making a unit into a sick receptable of buffs, it can readily benefit from Ranking Officers.

The Steelheads and Sea Dogs can also readily morph into a merc army, as they have access to all the contracts AND at least one specialist caster.  The Sea Dogs in particular have Phineas Shae's tier list, which is kinda sick.

Past that, there are a fair number of one-unit cores you could build around: the Nyss Hunters are expensive and have a bit of everything (outside of durability).  The Ogrun Assault Corps is sort of the inverse of the Nyss Hunters, as they've got durability in lieu of agility.  The rest of the merc choices get to be pretty niche.

Moonlighting with Mercs: Menoth

Thus far, I've covered merc options for Cryx and Khador.  As the symbol to the left might indicate (along with the title) this time it's Menoth's term.

I would have to say out of all the factions, Menoth gets a rep for being the least merc-friendly, as I've heard some casters described as 'buff-bots' and this isn't wholly inaccurate.  However, it's not as simple as that.

Unit of Note: Choir of Menoth
Ok, so we're trying to play as merc-heavy as possible.  If you're taking more than one warjack, it's probably worth investing 2pts into the Choir.  +2MAT/+2 damage is pretty disgusting on things that already hit like trucks, and going up to MAT8 on most jacks is also disgusting.  Past that, there's great utility in denying the enemy chances to shoot or cast spells on the jacks.

The Attendent Priest
I have to say when this guy first came out, I think he got the most hate on forums as he was compared to Valachev and Murdoch.  There's a big difference: this guy is FA:2.  As such, you can bring TWO units to turn into token Menoth faction units.  For 2 points, he doesn't bring a ton of melee prowess, but you do get the ability to go Pathfinder at any time, which frees up the way you can approach the target.  Magical weapons are more of a bonus than a necessity, but are the kind of things you're glad you have when you need them (IE: Machine Wraiths going Ghost In The Shell on your jacks).  Denying the enemy the ability to hit you with spells is situational, but some things like Venom and Hellmouth are worth avoiding.

The Warcasters
High Allegiant Amon ad-Raza - Frankly, this guy is a battelgroup-friendly caster.  His spell list and feat mention 'infantry' only in terms of Convection, which kills an infantryman for a focus for a jack.  He also wants a large battlegroup.  Honestly, he's not really what we're looking for hee.

Feora, Priestess of the Flame - We could call her a super-solo and be reasonably accurate.  She has one buff, Ignite, which is +2 damage and critical fire for friendly models/units, so that works for mercs.  Past that, her spells and feat are about spell denial, movement denial (wall of fire) and setting things on fire.  She'd be happy to have self-supporting infantry, because frankly she's not going to help them herself unless you count setting stuff on fire.

Feora, Protector of the Flame - Like the prime version, her only buff is Ignite.  She'll be taking a jack or two to benefit from Escort, and be moving up the field.  She probably wants a Redeemer for the rocket volley, but past that she would be fine with self-supporting infantry.  You do miss out on Inspiration: Flameguard, though.

The Harbinger of Menoth - Parade Float Girl has one faction-specific buff in Crusader's Call (good for +2 movement on charges).  Combine that with a wonderful movement-denial feat (POW14 fire hits for getting closer to her with her mighty 20" control area) and if you're willing to take a couple of priests with your melee guys, you'll enjoy her.  She also buffs accuacy with guided hand, good for an additional dice on melee attack rolls.  The only thing you really miss out on with mercs is Martyrdom, but it's also something of a trap, since she's ALSO a large base with DEF14/ARM14.

The High Reclaimer - Honestly, this guy COULD run with attendant priests, but if the enemy ever KO'ed them, you're screwed.  Why?  Reclaim.  You need lots of friendly faction models, as when they die he gets souls which turn to focus.  I'm not sure I'd really want to risk this guy with merc infantry just to watch the enemy gun for/kill my Priests, and hose me up.  Why is this a worry?  He's FOCUS 5, and while he can deliver an army via Burning Ash clouds, you'll spend the game hoping your priests don't bite it too fast.

The Testament of Menoth - Revive and Reclaim both specify Faction, and like the Reclaimer, your feat is faction-specific.  You stand to lose a LOT if your priests get splattered, and you don't even have a good way to make clouds.

High Exemplar Kreoss - This guy's got a nice cross-section of spells/abilities going for him.  Want a buff?  Defender's Ward, for +2DEF/+2ARM, but you have the 'Faction' tag in there.  So, get a priest.  Past that, you've a pair of so-so offensive spells, and then the ability to shut down spellcasting and/or drop upkeeps.  Just remember that Purification kills your own upkeeps as well.  If/wehn your first Defender's Ward target dies, you can always make a jack more durable, or shore up Kreoss' own so-so DEF14/ARM15 stats.  And, of course, his feat is army-friendly.  This guy is definitely up for some merc work.

Grand Exemplar Kreoss - Unlike his prime version, this one's not so friendly with mercs.  Inviolable Resolve and Sacrosanct both require faction targets, and you get the most mileage out of them on units.  More so than that, his feat loves Faction models; they get an extra melee attack and hit automatically.  Frankly, this guy is like the Reclaimer/Testament in that you probably COULD roll an army with priests, but losing them before his feat is gonna cost you some serious offensive potential.

High Executioner Servath Reznik - This guy has a special place in the black void I call a heart: he knows exactly what he is, and rolls with it.  He's kind of like eFeora in that you've got Ignite and some battlegroup buffs.  If you like Steelheads, then Reznik's tier list in No Quarter 35 deserves a mention; he allows for small-based Steelheads (and Stannis Brocker) and gives them free attendant priests.  Let Steelheads deal with enemy infantry/lighter targets while Choir-backed, Iron-Aggression'ed jacks beat hard targets, and you've got a decent list.

Grand Scrutator Severius - Defender's Ward, Eye of Menoth, Vision and Death Sentence (re-rolls versus a target model/unit) all require friendly Faction models.  This guy's nasty, but his buffs suggest a Menoth-pure army is the way to go.  Like others, you can try this with Priests but be advised that if the enemy kills your priests, you're basically down to Ashes to Ashes, Immolation, and buffing the 1-2 melee jacks you brought.

Hierarch Severius - Amazingly, this guy's a bit more friendly towards mercs.  The only requirement for Faciton models is on his buff of Holy Ward (+2DEF, untouchable by spells), and the rest is a self-buff, enemy debuff, or battlegroup buff.  You're committing to an Arc Node, though, and should probably consider Blessing of Vengeance.  Still, he can work with one priest, and not lose too much if/when the priest bites it.

Vice Scrutator Vindictus - This guy is also fond of Faction models.  He can dump Pathfinder and Defender's Ward on friendly faction models, and his feat is a great way of saying 'Go Ahead.  Hit My Guys, I Dare You'.  The problem is that an enemy can defuse your feat by killing the priests quickly, and then you'e so-so after that.  That, and he likes Holy Zealots, so all in all Vindictus probably isn't the top choice for a merc-heavy list.

Thyra, Flame of Sorrow - Her money-making buff, Carnage, stipulates that you have to be a Faction model to get the +2 to melee attack rolls in her control area.  Her feat also requies friendly faction models for the 2" place, which is sick.  Silence of Death and Occultation are friendly-model spells, at least.  Sadly, killing your priests is a great way to screw you over, so expect canny enemies to try just that if you look to rock Thyra.

Menite Labor Pool

Steelheads - The small-based ones and Stannis deserve special mention with Reznik, as he keeps them in-tier and gives them free Priests for support.  Past that, the Steelheads are a workable self-sufficient set of bodies, and with Defender's Ward the Halberdiers get kinda disgusting at DEF15 ARM15; they're a pain to hit and probably won't care about blast damage.

Blythe 'n' Bull - Not sure I'd waste an attendant priest on them (as you're buffing two models) but if you want Remove From Play in your army, they'll do it for you in melee.

Croe's Cutthroats - Being Stealthy, they're kinda gonna leave the Priest unscreened outside of 5".  They get special mention in conjunction with High Exemplar Kreoss, as knockdown mitigates their RAT5 on poison weapons nicely.  Cutthroats + Kreoss + Living Models = Hilarity for you.

Sam MacHorne & the Devil Dogs - These guys are built to kill anything they can knock down. Note that while Pronto is a nice drive on melee jacks, merc jacks don't benefit from the choir.  However, the defensive stats on these guys are comparable to Steelheads, and Defender's Ward would make this unit annoying to deal with.  You could always use something like a Talon or Buccaneer as a setup for other hitters, though.  The Choir is the one thing that holds me back, though.

Kell Blailoch - he's a magical sniper rifle.  There's no way to get solos in-faction, so bear that in mind when you have buffs.  The magical weapon may not be 100% necessary, but it's there if your particular build could use it.

Anastasia di Bray - Get close to the warcaster and let everything move up/attack?  It'll make opponents think a bit about how they move their caster, and at least it works on all friendly models.

 Madelyn Corbeau - Movement shenanigans for hire, for a single warrior model.  Situational at best.

Rhupert Carvolo - Pathfinder, or Fearless/Tough, or +1DEF/Terror?  Bloody useful, he is, especially since you're probably rolling with some infantry.

The Eiryss's - Curiously, some folks (IE: Harbinger, Kreoss) would probably take the Prime over the Epic, since the Epic's big selling point is being able to drop animi/upkeeps.  The original does have more versatile ammo.

Orin Midwinter - More denial if you can hide him, and a bit of lightning on the side.  Just be sure not to shut down your own spellcasting as well.

Taryn di la Rovissi - You lose out on her ability to screw with screens via Shadow Fire, and I find that to be her major selling point.  Otherwise, she's a pair of magical ranged attacks that can melt jacks (auto d3 to hull boxes isn't terrible, though the POW10 shot is unlikely to do much otherwise).  However, Menite jacks tend to, y'know, hit like trucks.

Rutger Shaw - He really wants to run a melee jack, and I can't help but think Choirs make menite jacks do it better.

Gorman di Wulf - Who doesn't love this guy's utility?  Seriously.  Walking debuffs 'r' me is his name, and as an added bonus he's immune to fire, which Menoth loves.

Privateers - Again, the whole package is ~16 or so points for Sea Dogs and supporting solos, or you can roll with Press Gangers.  The downside is that you can't bring solos into Faction status, so that limits some of the buffs.  Still, these guys can work as a decent melee core, and DEF15 from Defender's Ward and the like is obnoxious.

Aiyana & Holt - You won't need to bring them to faction status, honestly.  Their damage buff is never a bad thing, but their ability to grant magical weapons does overlap with the Attendent Priest.

Dirty Meg - She wants a melee jack.  You have access to choirs.

Horgenhold Forge Guard - They get a mention with the Harbinger due to Crusader's Call, and with Ranked Attacks, you can even put guns behind them.  When it has to hit like a truck, call Horgenhold.

Herne & Jonne - Want AoEs?  Menoth has sources too, but these are mercs, if that's what you're looking for.

Ogrun Assault Corps - They're generalists, with nice AoE guns and a decent POW12 axe.  Casters with Ignite might look at these guys for their infantry, since POW14's respectable enough and they can take some abuse with 8 wounds apiece.  Also, being medium bases, they can hide the priest a bit better.

Overall
All things considered, Menoth DOES have some neat suppot pieces that stipulate faction-only, like the Covenant.  You're going to miss out on some support if you go merc-heavy, but frankly that goes for ANY faction that goes merc-heavy. 

That being said, the Feoras and Reznik are top for merc compatibility, as they do not require attendant priests.  Reznik even has a Steelhead-friendly tier, for that matter. 

The Harbinger, High Exemplar Kreoss, and Hierarch Severius can work with the addition of Priests. 

Amon ad-Raza is a battlegroup-only guy, and the remainder of the casters are really, really hoping the enemy doesn't wise up and kill the Attendant Priests, as that costs you a lot of capabilities.

The Reznik's New Tier

The whole reason I own some Menoth figures is because I like Reznik. He's got a nice, simple, three-step approach to life:

1) Find a Heretic

2) Wrack or Burn Heretic

3) Profit! Return to step 1.

He's got a lovely new Tier list in NQ 35. I've given it a spin, and am reasonably impressed with it.

What's (new) in the box?!

Apparently, Reznik's on cleanup operations for the Protectorate as they wander through Llael and make sure they have a kind, loving, loyal populace that believes in the Creator of Man.

Or, the bogeyman (Reznik) comes along to pacify your village. And by 'pacify' I really mean BURN EVERYONE THAT DOES NOT AGREE WITH THE NICE MAN.

Tier components:

Much like his old tier, but you are allowed Steelheads, Kell Blailoch, Stannis Brocker, and Vessels of Judgement.

Tier 1: Deliverer Sunburst Crews gain advance deployment. Honestly, I like AD on my artillery for two reasons: 1) free move up, and 2) lets me react to where the enemy places their infantry.

Tier 2: field 1+ small-based steelheads; get free Attendant Priests. I think this goes a way towards shoring up Reznik's relative lack of support for infantry (outside of Ignite, I suppose). Hey, giving your guys Pathfinder, Magic Weapons, or Immunity To Spells. Get your guys where they need to be faster.

Tier 3: 2+ vassal solos; you get your upkeeps (Ignite and Iron Aggression) out on the first turn. There are a couple of perks for this: if Reznik has more than two warjacks, one's not running on turn one if you want Ignite out. You can get all your jacks upfield with a run, and get Reznik to run and camp some focus.

Tier 4: 3+ heavy warjacks in your battlegroup; you get +2" to your DZ. Hey, get all your happy stuff upfield faster, and AD your incendiary ballistae up further.

What To Do With The New Toys

The cheapest you'll get a tier four list at is 18 points, assuming a minimum Halberdier unit, two Vassal Mechaniks, and three Crusaders.

The biggest decision you'll want to make is how many Steelheads to bring. Your screening unit choice is a happy little Steelhead Halberider unit. From there, you can go with the 'steelhead module', a full Halberider unit, a full Rifleman unit, and Stannis Brocker. That means your Riflemen can fire through your Halberdiers like they aren't there.

Alternatively, you can crack out Flameguard Cleansers (still in the tier) and their sprays ignore the melee bonus. Even if you're engaged, the burnin' boys can take care of the problem. The difference: you're relying on your halberdiers to KO high-DEF targets with directed attacks and let the Cleansers BBQ heavy infantry; the Rifleman can reliably hit solid defense (with CRA and Combined Arms) but become pretty incapable against stuff the Halberdiers have engaged.

It's 19pts for the aforementedion Steelhead 'module' but you DO have a mobile support unit with Pathfinder capabilities. Alternatively, I'd look at Halberdiers + min cleansers + 2 Sunbursts for 18 points. Or, you can just go for the minimum and drop six points on some Halberdiers.

Frankly, I'd suggest a pair of Vassals, just because I dig these guys, and Reznik loves him some jacks.

Jack-wise, I'd probably open with a Reckoner (because it's just plain fun). I'd consider a Vanquisher for the ranged element, or maybe another Reckoner, just because of its combination of reach and SPD5. If you really want an Arc Node, I'd probably go with the Guardian just to keep another heavy in the mix. It's not TERRIBLE, but I admit that we have some solid choices.

Overall

While this list requires infantry just as his last one does, I believe it does a much better job of supporting your infantry and giving you options. Previously, you were going to dump at least ten points into a couple of flameguard cleansers, and your only real option for melee infantry is Cinerators, which are slow and expensive, but do screen reznik.

At 35, I've had fun with the list, but only went up to tier 3. It included:

Reznik

-Vanquisher

-Reckoner

Full Halberdiers + UA

Full Rifleman + UA

Min Choir

Stannis Brocker

2 Vassals of Menoth

Not bad, I think, but I think some of thei nfantry would have to give in order to fit everyone, but I like having some accurate ranged support.

First Impressions: High Executioner Reznik

Ok, so there's been a slight vacation from blogging. I am not dead; just got busy with the whole 'holiday' thing followed by a dose of 'work travelling' think.

I've got some makeup posting to do from some of the games I've played, so this'll be the first of a couple rapid-fire posts.

I'm not gonna lie; I'm a fan of Reznik's fluff (what there is of it, anyway). He's pretty much a machine of heretic-punishment; go forth and wrack the unbelievers. A lot. Oh, and kill it with warjacks, if you're not going to do it yourself.

Reznik's Stats and Gear

Reznik is reasonably straightforward. SPD 5 is a bit slow, but he can fix it. MAT 7 isn't too shabby, either. His DEF of 14 is so-so at best, and ARM 17 is at least solid. Between the defensive stats and a medium base, he's not that easy to hide and not too hard to hit. He's also got a whopping command of 7; I guess when you kill and burn people (especially your own) you're not that inspiring of a figure. Focus 6 is average, and Terror is a neat flavorful extra.

The only piece of kit Reznik's carrying is a PS14 reach sword with the requisite magical weapon. If someone's silly enough to have an upkeep on the target, you get an extra dice of damage on them via Purgation. Also, if you kill a warrior model, you can get a free Wrack once a turn. Hey, that wrack on the back isn't just for show, y'know.

Reznik's melee prowess is better than it looks on paper, though, as he has Engine of Destruction. For 2 focus, he goes up to SPD 7, MAT 11, and PS18. This means he's got a base threat range of 12", so you can conveniently measure your charge range with your control area.

I find that Engine of Destruction is somewhat counterbalanced by the whole 'medium base + DEF 14 + ARM 17" thing, though, so you should probably be careful when using it.

Spells and Abilities

I've already mentioned engine of destruction, and it's a lovely little smashing tool.

Hex Blast

Every caster apparently needs an AoE. Hex Blast drops upkeep and animi while being an AoE 3, POW 13 shot with a range of 10. Considering it's 3 focus, you won't be using it a whole lot, but you at least have the option.

Ignite

You'll probably throw this out in the first turn or two. It's a flat +2 damage buff with a side of critical fire.

Iron Aggression

Here's your bread-and-butter spell. Target warjack becomes your primary wrecking ball. Boosted attack rolls, free runs/charges/slams? Yes, please. This comes out on turn one, and stays on your primary wrecking ball. This warjack will only need to spend focus on extra attacks, and that just gets horrifying in a hurry.

Perdition

This one's iffy, and Reznik wishes he could use it better. If you damage an enemy model, a warjack of yours gets to advance (limit: once per turn) for free immediately. The downside? You're FOCUS 6, and it's RNG 10 POW 10. I'd like it more with a Hierophant backing it up, since you'll probably want to boost either the hit or the damage roll, and suddenly it's half your focus right there.

Witch Hound

Did someone tag your battle group with a spell? Someone gets to advance. Yeah, this is a nice extra, since it lets you sing the no-shooty hymn. It also makes spell assassination much more difficult (barring Scourge, which won't let you get out of the way if it hits) since you'll probably back out of range. Additionally, it keeps the enemy from readily pulling your slow warjacks out of position with Force Bolt.

Feat: Judgment Day

Everyone in the control area loses all their focus and fury. No one can upkeep spells in his control area. If you think you want to cast a spell, you catch fire. It's either a setup for assassination (lose your overboosted field; lose your ability to transfer) or forces a warlock to cut for fury the next turn. It's also not something that magic-heavy armies like, as things like the Battle Mages and Druids don't like being on fire very much.

An Army with Reznik

Reznik likes himself some warjacks, though there's probably room for an infantry unit or two.

Warjacks with Reznik

I'd look for quality over quantity with warjacks. Get yourself a nice beat-stick, ideally at least one with reach. The Reckoner is a prime candidate, with SPD 5 and reach. The Templar has reach and beatback, so while it's only SPD4 it can at least get smoe movement out of the deal. With a shield, it also hits ARM21, so it can potentially survive a beating. The Vanquisher gives you the lovely Flame Belcher, in case you need help with infantry.

The Avatar, of course, would love itself some Iron Aggression as well, since it's got the SPD5 and reach.

You probably don't need an Arc Node with him, since the only spell you'd be arcing is Perdition. For those 6 points, you could take a Crusader as a melee backup jack.

Units with Reznik

Bring a Choir. Full stop, end of story. Reznik can make warjacks sick with Iron Aggression, and will have a couple of solid heavies with him.

Reznik's only support for a unit is Ignite. Given his medium base, I'd think about taking a unit of medium-based Exemplars. Cut off the enemy's trample avenue, and hamper LOS as well. Is it perfect? No, but you can at least get some PS14 Weaponmasters out of the deal.

The only other thing that comes to mind with him? Keep an eye towards infantry-clearing if you aren't bringing a Vanquisher.

Solos with Reznik

Vassals are a good first step with Reznik, since he's a jack buddy. Wracks are also a decent idea, just to get him a little more focus. Reclaimers are a thought, IF you're bringing plenty of infantry. However, you'd be spending more points on infantry and less on jacks.

Paladins make fine objective-holders, especially if you bring the Vilmon(ster).

If you want to make use of Perdition, I'd consider a Hierophant. He'll grant you a +2 RNG bonus, but more importantly he'll give you the 1 focus discount on the spell, so you can spend 2 focus and get that boosted shot off. If you're feeling ballsy, you might also be able to cycle Iron Aggression between a pair of warjacks for a total of 3 focus (1 to upkeep, 2 to cast after the discount). It's something to think about against higher-DEF opponents.

If you want to assassinate with Reznik, look for the movement-shenanigans solos. Madelyn Corbeau can give you a nice 2" of non-linear movement.

Gorman di Wulf is worthy of notice, if for no reason other than the smoke cloud as a means of screening the caster.

Impressions on how Reznik Plays

First turn? Cast Iron Aggression, run warjacks. Contemplate pulling focus from a Wrack if you need it to get Ignite out. Then, hand out focus to fuel your psychotic coal-powered crushing machines until

Use the no-shooty hymn for the first turn or two, then switch to 'battle' once you can start hitting things. Think twice if your enemy has some kind of uber-nasty debuff.

If you have a Hierophant, keep an eye out for Perdition targets.

Screen Reznik with infantry unless you find an opportunity to assassinate with him.

Find the best way to put a warjack into the enemy warcaster with Iron Aggression and a full focus load.

Keep an eye on the scenario; more to make sure you don't lose as opposed to a quick scenario win.

Overall

Reznik's fun to play if you like to see your heavy warjacks make things dead. If you can get into melee with the enemy, then you can turn them into paste. Reznik's not really fine-tuned into scenario wins, but would LOVE to put either himself or a fully-loaded warjack into the enemy leadership. If that's how you want to roll, that's what Reznik will do for you.