Playing with the ISC

[Peoples Champ]

Had another game with the ISC at 100 AP. My opponent had Jokers with Vladd , Ievgeni, Grigoriy and Vassiliev. The ISC had Grey Daimyo, Black Kunoichi and Carmin Ronin. The mission were both revealed with the jokers having "the Stuff" and ISC had "Artifacts".
To be far should have been an easy one to win for me but somehow I blew it. I grabbed the artifacts first turn and just retreated back clocking up VPS. I got pushed into a corner as I was a tad too defensive. Caught Vladd with out any AP left and charged i the Black Kunoichi. Did 3 wounds in the head first hack then all I had to do was do one more wound in the head. 5 dice to roll needing only one 4 and yes you guessed it complete miss. Next turn Vladd killed the grey daimyo with some hot dice and then took down the black kunoichi. Game over..
The extra AP the Grey daimyo can give every turn is good but he himslef does not tend to do anything but die. seems crazy to sit a 35 point model at the back as I need more damage output on my opposition. I have ordered the grey shogun as he looks pretty good (and great model) so will see how he works out.

[Berf]

Good game but bad luck, I know it's tough.
Did you have any SP left when trying to kill Vladd ? Because if so, you should have perform a Slaugther Action ability with the Kunoichi ! Auto Headshot, booya !
The Daimyo is a very good support, don't underestimate the power of the 4 AP on any Drone. And a little Crushing is also very good to finish off a foe, like Vladd , or better yet, Ievgueni (he may have 5 or 6 in VIG, but Crushing ignores that and as he is not so fast, it's a very good option to finish him off).

[Peoples Champ]

(11-27-2011 11:04 PM)Berf Wrote:  Good game but bad luck, I know it's tough.
Did you have any SP left when trying to kill Vladd ? Because if so, you should have perform a Slaugther Action ability with the Kunoichi ! Auto Headshot, booya !
The Daimyo is a very good support, don't underestimate the power of the 4 AP on any Drone. And a little Crushing is also very good to finish off a foe, like Vladd , or better yet, Ievgueni (he may have 5 or 6 in VIG, but Crushing ignores that and as he is not so fast, it's a very good option to finish him off).

I did have SP left and what is a slaughter action ability?

[Berf]

The Slaughter action ability is one of the Kunoichi's abilities (see its card).
You spend one AP + one SP to perform an attack, and if the target doesn't make a Dodge reaction, it automatically hits the Head. Great on someone with no AP left
It has some drawback though. As it is an Action ability, it can only be performed during your activation, and you cannot use it and another Action simultaneously (so no Slaughter while Charging or Capturing, for example).

[Peoples Champ]

I did that but when I rolled to hit I missed with all 5 dice which was a shame as it really cost me the game.
(I presume you still have to roll to hit even when using the 'Slaughter' ability).

[Peoples Champ]

The news is all good. My ISC won their first game. It was against the jokers again. This time I went with Capture and had the grey daiymo, grey shogun and blue ashigaru. The daiymo and ashigau got wiped out pretty early but did enough to slow my opponent down. The shogun was able to capture elenia and whisk her away to the far corner with all the jokers on hot pursuit. Grigory caught up with him on turn 5 but did not do enough to take the shogun down so victory to the ISC.
My opponent has now got his hands on the resistance so we will see how that turns out...

[bruiser]

run, run as fast as you can....

[Mr Clock]

I've recently being playing an opponent who uses Jokers.
Burning weapons are deadly to ISC as the damage reduction we get from armour is useless. In all 3 games we've played so far I managed to avoid Vlad and Yuri for 2 or 3 turns, but eventually they catch up to my models and destroy them.

I can't charge them directly because he always has extra models to place in the way. If I charge the "speed bump" then next turn Vlad or Yuri move in with fire.

I also think the templates are placed too easily to avoid damage to firing/throwing faction. There should be a chance of deviation from the point of aim.

Do you have any advice on beating a faction with burning weapons?
Thanks.

[Berf]

OK, just to be sure, I assume you're talking about the Blast and/or Explosive(x) equipments, not the Burn marker effects (which don't ignore Protection), so I'll give you advices concerning that kind of Equipments.
If you want to deal with them in the most simple way, try playing the Blue Kami, as his (huge) Protection is always taken into account. So it laughs in the face of explosions and flamers. Jokers hate it
But okay, let's say you don't play this juggernaut. Here are a couple advices. First and foremost, spread you troop a little, so as not to let two Drones being caught with one template. Don't be too afraid. A Drone can usually sustain two explosions/flamer type damages without dying, and that is essential seeing as a Drone a) cannot be incapacitated, which means it can still work at full power even when engulfed in the flames, b) Drones don't fear Jokers to much aside from the explosive weapons. So stay focus on the main threat, Vladd here, who can be an easy prey for the Kunoichi and/or the Mamushi. He is also quite slow (PSD 4), so you can easily anticipate him and fight him mano a mano (the Ronin is one of the most efficient Drone here, but the Samurai, the Kitsune or the Rikishi are very good too, if you bet enough in order to be first player).
If Vladd is hidden behind his painted goons, try for some Crushing (Daimyo or Hadakauma), also don't forget the Battering ram TC (Convoy starter), a great way to Charge through a line of defense, or the Provocation TC to make him come to you. Another way to deal with those Michael Bay's fans is to scare them, and the Komuso is simply excellent at that. Vladd with two Fear markers is in deep trouble, because during one round (at least) he is completely useless (that stands for almost all of the Jokers, who hate Fear markers, because of their low PSI). Add a Gaki to lower that stat and you can watch the clowns run in circle for a long time.
Another Drone quite able to make Vladd look like a total fool is the Konchu. Between its ability to lower CBT or SPD stat, his unstoppable movement and his electric cannon which prevents any movement for the round, the steel caterpillar can be a serious pain.
Aside notes : Yuri can be troublesome, because it is extremely hard to prevent him from using his Molotov. He's fast, he's hard to catch, so assume you will 'eat' the molotov. But it's a once-in-a-game weapon, so don't panick. Just be ready for it. Also, the Molotov needs a line of sight, even if it does not target a specific fighter but just a point on the Field. So remember that the Ronin's Smoke screen blocks lines of sight (inside and through) and fighters also block them, so no Molotov right behind your back or inside the Smokescreen for example.
If you don't know Nicolaï yet, then you're lucky. This guy is the worst for the Drones, seeing he is an improved Molotov launcher (better range and once every round !). Oh and his main weapon also can pack some real damage, so be careful when facing him. Kunoichi is you're main asset here, deploy it close to him if you can, shoot twice and retreat with your special move. Two shots can take him down, easily if you passed an Enragement or Inhuman force TC beforehand. Otherwise, catch him quickly and make sure he uses his AP in order to Dodge.
That being said, don't forget that the outcome of the game depends on the Missions far more than on a theoretical way of defeating Vladd or his friends, so make sure that you're playing the right Mission considering your team. If you're playing a more defensive team (Komsuo, Ronin and Rikishi for example), you don't 'need' to search the fight. Just play an 'objective' type of Mission and wait for the clowns. Avoid playing a 'Fight' mission when they are playing one too (or the Plunder mission), unless you're sure too have the upper-hand (a fully dedicated brawl team, like a Ronin, Hadakauma, Konchu team).
Hope that helps

[Kenton]

Sheesh, as if I didn't have enough problems fighting ISC with my Jokers you go and write a tactics article on how to beat them *rolls eyes*

Good stuff.