I've played a unit like that before in a game made by a different company. The difference there was that, besides the enemy not being able to shoot back during your own turn, but also that the template didn't have to be centred on where you landed. As much as the two systems are not similar, the fact that it's nearly guaranteed for the Infinity version to be tied to where the Liu Xing lands is going to be very limiting. I can not stress enough how much tactical inflexibility this means and how dangerous this makes the Liu Xing to use. Conceptually and essentially regardless of what the rules say specifically, making good use of the Liu Xing is going to be hard and I'd argue that the greatest value is going to be forcing your opponent to take that into account. Much like Van Zant's ADX, the danger isn't actually going to be ExplodeX, but the threat of ExplodeX which will put the enemy facing their troopers awkwardly. However, the explosion needs to be strong enough to be a real threat. So that the enemy will think it's bonkers. "Invincible Army announcement post mortem" more like it? WIP is never irrelevant for a HI that specialises in hunting in the opponent's DZ. If they survive landing you betcha the enemy is going to use hackers to hunt them down.
It sounds like you've already made your decision on the sectorial and everything else CB has done. I'm good.
Oh, btw, as IJW noted elsewhere: normal Hacking Devices will get an ARO when you announce the use of AD. They won't be able to IMM-1 your Liu Xing on landing. Nor Dodge the template :)
Nobody with half a brain is going to deploy their hacker near other models to get goomba stomped. They're also going to deploy at least 1 gun watching him to take advantage of free shots at your Shooting Fart if it drops on the lone model. Your garden variety list has 3-5 repeaters spreading 17" diameter hacking bubbles across its deployment zone between Flash Pulse, Baggage, and Combat remotes. Deployment zones are pretty much off limits as a drop zone for you if they're not Tohaa or Ariadna.
That helps mildly, but it's countered by moving the hacker away from other models and placing some guns watching him to get free shots at the combat jump if you go after the hacker. You still have the same problem of the DZ being riddled with repeaters and trying to subsequently activate. There is one bright upside though, Hacker LTs like Barids and Interventors are quite vulnerable to a suicide attack. That is actually cool.
I'm just saying for the sake of comparison. Not that I want to be negative about something. I'm disappointed so far but they can still make it up with the other new things. I ado agree that Veteran counts for something too. And as @Mahtamori said the WIP will count for Reset. I forgot about him being hackable.
I'm gonna have to disagree with you there. In my opinion, the explosion is exactly what makes this guy so damn scary, and everything else he does after is just a bonus. Enemy has a defensive link on a building? You can splatter at least 3, almost guaranteed Camo infiltrator making your life difficult? Just stomp him into the ground The flexibility you gain from literally being able to drop a template anywhere you want on the board is crazy. Maybe it's because i play Ariadna mainly so I'm particularily terrified of the implications here. Also, I'm assuming it works just like regular explode, but instead of happening at the end of the order when the model goes unconscious, it's after it lands, just pop a DMG13 shock template
9 times out of 10 I would not go for the hacker, and even then, how would my opponent know I'm about to drop a stompy boi? Your meta may vary is all I can say. Only a couple of people in my area use hackers at all, and the ones who do barely if ever use repeaters
The explodes is one of the things I DO like. Actually other than the 1W+NWI+Bioimmunity, I think he's fine. Well a little lacking on options too at the moment, hopping for more to show up later. I'll admit I got mored irked too when I saw the PanO vid this morning and they show their new guy with double the amount of options than the Zhencha.
I find it amusing when people say things like "drop the template wherever you like" or "suicide bomb on their Lt" while the Shooting Star has PHY 12, as in TWELVE. Now even with assisted landing, which makes it more expensive, is far from a guaranteed drop.
We're assuming they're competent and will position with the knowledge of the potential threat and execute counter measures appropriately. The same way a competent player will not deploy with his rear table edge unguarded against USAriadna or Vanilla Ariadna. We're assuming 10/10 times, you will never ever be given a free drop on the hacker for no reason other than you decided your hacker offended you and deserved to be a free kill. So you're telling me your Pan-O players don't use Bulleteers, your YJ players don't use Rui Shis, your Nomad players don't exist, and nobody uses the cheap 8pt bots ever. You don't see Haqqislam players bring 3 Flash pulse bots for cheap orders and ARO laughs, or anybody else who gets multiples of those.
Well, we don't yet know if the Explosion is subject to limitations regarding targeting camo markers, even though it's probably reasonable to assume it is not limited in such a way. Clearing marker clusters or groups of Saladins is going to be useful. I can't say I've seen many groups where a single template can touch more than two models unless it's temporary. Most often people will learn that templates can happen and they'll spread out. That does mean that it's more possible for the Liu Xing to pick one or two off without having to get LOF. Additionally, against units that fail their Guts there is a good chance that they'll rush out of the zone and round a corner directly into LOF of your long range cannons - though... you can't really count on Guts Rolls, now can ya? If you're worried about templates, however, I could send you a few lists that should terrify you more than a few Liu Xing - mainly because those damned mercs can drop template after template until their orders are gone. Your markers are safer from those, most likely, but still. Which is another reason why I say that the threat of the template is probably going to be more potent than the template :)
I think what @Mahtamori is suggesting is that placing the explosion template could be tricky depending on how it's placed. Consider: There is a big difference between "place your AD template. Any enemy trooper covered by the template are hit by an explosion." and "place your AD template, place your Shooting Star, then center an explosion template on the shooting star." Also worth noting is that the AD template needs to be placed in an area with no obstructions that is large enough to fit the whole template. That can be a tall order for some roof tops or tricky corners. That's mitigated significantly in the current ITS by the by the removal of the template from the AD process, but who knows if that's going to stick around.
I can seriously say out of those, only the Yu Jing players ever use Rui Shis. As a matter of fact, before I decided to shelf my nomads there were only a couple of people who bothered with hacking even in passing
It's not dropping on the hacker itself, it's the fact that your 8 point Fugazi corner guard all of a sudden becomes an incredibly prickly obstacle, since you can't get within 8 or else you're sucking down a normal roll hacking attack while you attack the Fugazi. I stopped trying to use the AHD Fraacta because of this situation. And your opponent can easily place their hacker in a position (back to a wall) where you can't drop in on it without giving it the option to make a normal dodge or whatever.
I think your local meta needs to be taught a lesson on exactly how disgusting remotes can be, especially the various linkable combat remotes. Unidrons remain the premier and most disgusting defensive link team ever conceived.
I would also not drop it on a link team with Sixth Sense. Scenario: Drop down, they dodge with no negatives because of SS and turn around, Next order he shoots with burst 2 shotgun, they shoot with 6 shots of whatever. And the one thing I would love to do it too, Gao-Rael Sniper, would just have his Pokémon eat up! “Oh I failed my dodge? No big. Fido will take care of it.”
A little late, but worth mentioning a lot of Engineers in this game aren't just battlefield mechanics. They can be the demolition specialists who can also can sling a wrench as Yuriko, Kosuil, and Kurgat demonstrate.
