Lu Duan holo echos aren't for ambiguity. Unreliable shell games aside, their primary strength is for popping enemy deployables at zero risk.
Plus Surprise Attack, never hurts to stack another -3 on an enemy, and baiting your opponent to Delay so you can safely Move-Move into position.
As a practical example that I've mentioned a few times, I recently had a game vs Shasvastii -- I went first, and the DZ was a bit sparse, so the Speculos were able to lay out their mines in positions to catch my ISS links. I decided to reserve my Lu Duan as soon as I saw the first mine go down, and in the very first order I was able to safely detonate both Speculo mines with the Echoes. I had another game recently where I pushed up with it and got an opportunity to plant some Deployable Repeaters around as well, which really changed the dynamic of my opponent's Steel Phalanx list (Zhanying hackers in a Hsien MMR link, unreal how that 6S on the Zhanying remains consistently relevant). I ended up throwing that game, but I am regularly impressed at how the Lu Duan continues to perform if it gets even a handful of orders. Unquestionably the better of our two attack remotes in N4.
So we will get our new and shiny crane multirifle with hacker option? Next year in a imperial service box, together with the heavy shotgun su Jian, the marksman hsien, and some bao? :D
I still do think next year Yu Jing will get something big. Either a new action pack or one of the two player sets. If they do, I can almost guarantee a Crane in it. I think it will be either totally ISS or mostly.
Maybe even work in a TAG there. ISS is, after all, one of the only two non-Ariadnan (which now have one in half of their factions) factions in the game to not have a TAG. Hell, it'd be nice if there was one already just sitting there. Watching. Waiting. Ready to embody the Emperor's justice...
I'm not gonna say shit because the last time I predicted we were gonna get something based on CB stuff leaking, we got fucking Uprising instead....
Speaking of, what I shall not name, this is pie in the sky hope but it would be cool if the next set was JY vs. NA2 Ikari/Druze. So far they had YJ vs Haqq and PanO. Haqq and Aleph get theirs this year, Ariadna and Nomads were before. That leaves, CA, O-12, NA2, Tohaa. Of those, CA just got a massive influx on figs the last few years. O-12 could use more fleshing out. NA2 could be almost anything. Tohaa could make a big comeback too. Edit: What I could see if it was ISS vs. NA2. I call it Cops vs. Robbers! Exclusive figure to box: A new troop or something used by both. Ninja, Wu Ming, ABH, Tao Wu, MBH The below are based on no new troops. But in all likelihood they would come out with at least one for each. ────────────────────────────────────────────────── 7 CRANE AGENT (Lieutenant, Sensor, Triangulated Fire, X Visor) MULTI Rifle, Nanopulser(+1B) ( ) / Pistol, DA CC Weapon. (+1.5 | 46) KǍNRÈN Boarding Shotgun / Pistol, Monofilament CC Weapon. (0 | 23) CELESTIAL GUARD Combi Rifle / Pistol, CC Weapon. (0 | 13) CELESTIAL GUARD (Forward Observer) Boarding Shotgun, Flash Pulse / Pistol, CC Weapon. (0 | 14) ZHÀNYING Heavy Machine Gun, Chain-colt / Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-6). (1 | 26) MIRANDA ASHCROFT MULTI Rifle, Nanopulser / Pistol, Monofilament CC Weapon. (0 | 24) CSU (Specialist Operative) Rifle, Light Shotgun / Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-6). (0 | 11) 1 SWC | 157 Points Open in Infinity Army The below is Ikari, However all of it can be used for Druze. Many of them can be in other NA2 and QK as well. ────────────────────────────────────────────────── 6 1 1 ARSLAN (Lieutenant) MULTI Rifle, Light Shotgun / Viral Pistol, CC Weapon. (0 | 36) ARMAND (Minelayer) MULTI Sniper Rifle, Nanopulser, Shock Mines / Breaker Pistol(+1B), Shock CC Weapon. (1.5 | 38) BOUNTY HUNTER Combi Rifle / Pistol, PARA CC Weapon(-6). (0 | 15) BRAWLER (Hacker, Hacking Device) Submachine Gun ( ) / Pistol, CC Weapon. (0.5 | 17) BRAWLER (Engineer, Deactivator) Rifle, Light Shotgun, D-Charges ( | GizmoKit) / Pistol, CC Weapon. (0 | 19) YUAN YUAN Chain Rifle, Smoke Grenades / Pistol, DA CC Weapon. (0 | 8) DRUZE Combi Rifle, Chain-colt / Viral Pistol, CC Weapon. (0 | 24) 2 SWC | 157 Points Open in Infinity Army
Technically there have already been some single ones with Spiral and JSA. So it's not out of the realm of possibility for a 2 player. But there's not much left for them to do. The only other choices are O-12 and CA. Unless they do one of the others that was already with YJ or one that already was in a 2-player not long ago. CA has only been in one but I can't imagine one being right after the big Morats additions and changes. It could be O-12. They could add a bunch of new troops and add profiles that haven't come out yet. However, only CA and O-12 have only been in a 2-player set once. So it's possible for ISS Action pack and a CA vs. O-12 2 player set. Icestorm: Nomads vs. PanO Red Veil: YJ vs. Haqqislam Cold front: Aleph vs. Ariadna Wildfire: Shasvasatii vs. O-12 Kaldstrom: YJ vs. PanO Crimson Stone: Nomads vs. Ariadna 2022: Haqqislam vs. Aleph
A nice surprise! Madtraps available again and two versions of Tian Gou. They actually look pretty cool to me! I just wish they were more useful. In WB they don't count as any fireteam troops making them mixed. In Vanilla there's better troops to take for the points.
I would get them just because they look pretty cool. Also, I want more Madtraps. They are perfect for Cyberpunk and Stargrave too.
Yeah. They definitely didn't make them to sell fast. They should treat them like Halfza in QK. Even if they did, I'm not sure I would take them. I took them all of the time before the FT changes and they did almost nothing most of the time. I think I used the Jammer twice. I think both time lost the FtF roll. Good rules can sell crap figs. Bad rules will not sell good looking figs. It's going to be a long time before I can afford to buy miniatures anyway!
Easy fix, drop the FTO shit: nobody wants a camo-less, 1W, BS12, solo operative, with no mimetism that starts in your DZ. This is a straight recipe for trash. Drop the Holoechoes, same reason, they can fuck off nobody wants this. Holomask stays Delete the Red Fury profiles. Same reason, plus no models for it anyway. Now start sticking Koalas and Parrots all over the other profiles. Boom, instant value for a link team and a hidden Parrot/Koala/Madtrap threat in a link team waiting to be deployed is actually valuable. 360 visor can stay as tax I guess. Personally I'd fuck it off as well but whatever.
