The BS is actually showing up in lists for me but that's partially because I'm trying to avoid the Pango in the Zuyong Squad because he presents a weakness. The ML is the hardest for me to work into the list.
It makes for an OK solo model in vanilla. It'll still get some pretty severe competition making it into lists now that the TacAware HMG exists, though, just like the regular HMG will... In all honesty, I'm trying to make sure to get the Panggo in more often simply because it's a mobile Repeater.
Like, this was something I was looking at that uses both the BS and the ML sculpts Zuyong Core ────────────────────────────────────────────────── GROUP 1 10 DĀOYĪNG Lieutenant L2 Hacker (Hacking Device) Boarding Shotgun / Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 29) TAI SHENG Mk12, Chain-colt, Stun Grenades / Heavy Pistol, Knife. (0 | 45) ZÚYŎNG (Fireteam: Haris, Tactical Awareness) Combi Rifle + 1 TinBot B (Deflector L2) / 2 Breaker Pistols, Knife. (0.5 | 34) ZÚYŎNG (Fireteam: Duo, Tactical Awareness) HMG / 2 Breaker Pistols, Knife. (1.5 | 38) ZÚYǑNG Missile Launcher, Light Shotgun / 2 Breaker Pistols, Knife. (2 | 36) ZÚYǑNG Boarding Shotgun / 2 Breaker Pistols, Knife. (0 | 26) HǍIDÀO Hacker (Killer Hacking Device) Boarding Shotgun / Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0 | 26) SON-BAE Yaókòng Missile Launcher / Electric Pulse. (1.5 | 17) Zhanshi YĪSHĒNG Combi Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 15) MECH-ENGINEER Combi Rifle, D-Charges / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 15) YÁOZĂO Electric Pulse. (0 | 3) YÁOZĂO Electric Pulse. (0 | 3) GROUP 2 1 1 CHAĪYÌ Yaókòng Flash Pulse, Sniffer / Electric Pulse. (0 | 8) WARCOR (Aerocam) Flash Pulse / Stun Pistol, Knife. (0 | 3) 6 SWC | 298 Points Open in Infinity Army The idea being if you go first, you have the usual suspects to doorkick with, and if you need to open the way with less risk you can open with a buffed BS18 burst 2 ML that ignores cover. And if you go second you have a pair of highly dangerous MLs to contend with as ARO pieces plus some flash pulse backup.
Between all these releases we have the profiles covered. If you want multiple you can split box or just buy multiple boxes. Based on youre preferred release, if I wanted a missile id straight up fucked. Or CB would need to release a separate swc box which would be a resculpt of the relatively recent hmg.
5th link team member, when you go on offense gives you the option to leave the ML behind as just an ARO piece. Also potenial Xenotech escort for missions that need that. The idea was kinda to bring everything and then construct the link based on what you need. If you play into 0 infowar like Ariadna you can leave the Haidao behind.
How would you be fucked if CB released an extra box with 4 more bodies for a total of 9? I know there's a lot of people who'd rather make wild conversions than have multiples of the same model, and while I'm not leaning towards either side of that I'd rather not have more than one of the HMG model we have since it's so godawful for re-basing which is something I do to all my models. So while with this solution you're not fucked, a lot of other people are* * on the assumption that CB won't release another box now that they tick all options. You talk about Xenotech a lot, but that's only 5 missions out of 26. Is it really that common in your meta that you need all your lists to be Xenotech compatible? I mean, the Xenotech is the worst implemented rule CB has done in terms of creativity and content, but that doesn't make it common.
Annihilation is boring and doesn't get picked for ITS around here, Biotechvore has obvious balance issues. Grid's a poorly written mess of a skew mission and the same for Rescue and Looting and Sabotaging. Hunting Party isn't much better because of the difference in availability for the required weapon types for different factions. So for me personally when picking a mission packet they're all out of the running for a pay to enter event. So we're down to 20 missions. Acquisition Engineering Deck Frontline Power Pack Safe Area Supremacy All use the Xenotech. So 30% of the missions that are going to turn up at an event. Personally when I build a basic list it's built very generically able to at least play decently into the majority of scenarios I can think of. Then when either I know the specific mission its probably going to be tackling, also when I know what I'm pairing it with I'll start making adjustments to both lists at the same time to streamline them into their intended role. That usually means keeping the core fighting unit(s) the same and adjusting the supportive roles around it. The exception to that is if I'm playing a meme list. Then we're all in on making the meme fire effectively. Before you ask, I really don't have a fucking clue yet what to do about Transmission Matrix for IA other than don't play it if it's in the mission packet and bring Vanilla. Or just grit your teeth and hope you don't play into Nomads on it and that anybody else you can brute force your way through with the Tinbots.
I guess by now people have understood that, what one thinks its a bad profile, is not the same with what other posters think? No two players play the same or use the same tactics, all profiles have viability and can and should be eventually released as models, maybe it is not the one one prefers, but it is not a universal preference.
I really like the decision to put a missile launcher in there. As it has also a light shotgun, that loadout is useful at range and up close. Maybe the boarding shotgun could be easily converted, as I also don't see them in my lists yet.
Personally, I've been using the Haidao MSV2 for the past two weeks (I love it) and the Zuyong BSG works as a filler/close quarters shooter in that link. Just because I can't field a second Haidao per the wildcard thingy.
So I did my first game with IA: IA testing ────────────────────────────────────────────────── GROUP 1 10 MÓWÁNG (NCO) Spitfire, Flammenspeer / Heavy Pistol, Knife. (2 | 54) SON-BAE Yaókòng Missile Launcher / Electric Pulse. (1.5 | 17) HǍIDÀO Hacker (Killer Hacking Device) Boarding Shotgun / Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0 | 26) ZHANSHI HMG / Pistol, Knife. (1 | 19) ZHANSHI (Forward Observer) Combi Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 12) ZHANSHI (Forward Observer) Combi Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 12) PANGGULING FTO (Repeater) Light Shotgun / Electric Pulse. (0 | 13) MECH-ENGINEER Combi Rifle, D-Charges / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 15) YÁOZĂO Electric Pulse. (0 | 3) LIÚ XĪNG (Specialist Operative) MULTI Rifle, D-Charges / Pistol, CC Weapon. (0 | 38) Zhanshi YĪSHĒNG Combi Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 15) GROUP 2 4 1 DĀOYĪNG Lieutenant L2 Hacker (Hacking Device) Boarding Shotgun / Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 29) RUI SHI Spitfire / Electric Pulse. (1 | 20) PANGGULING (Minesweeper, Repeater) Electric Pulse. (0 | 8) WÈIBĪNG Yaókòng Combi Rifle, Sniffer / Electric Pulse. (0 | 16) WARCOR (Aerocam) Flash Pulse / Stun Pistol, Knife. (0 | 3) 6 SWC | 300 Points Open in Infinity Army Pretty simple, more or less universal 2 group list - a core team of 3 zhanshi, missile bot and FTO baggage bot, Mowang as a main beatstick, Liu Xing and Rui Shi as the reserve ones. And of course Zhanshi HMG can shoot something turn 2-3. A lot of specialists of all colors Transmission Matrix vs Onyx Contact Force Opponent choose deployment because of Transmission Matrix scoring rules, I still took first turn, because Onyx does extremely painful alpha strikes and I want none of that. The next satellite tournament in February is going to have SoF enabled, so opponent took full advantage of it and brought the complete powergaming goodstuff.pdf package of mercs - 3 Yuans, Krakot, 2 Warcors and McMurrough. 21 models in total! My Datatracker was Mowang, who I put in a duo fireteam with the KHD Haidao. His datatracker was McMurrough (which was incorrect, since he is irregular, but I remembered it only today :) ) I took Haidao KHD expecting to fight the dreaded Kerr-Nau - aiming to surprise him with the fact that Maestro cant kill the NWI trooper. Instead there was a lone EVO bot who I fried with the first or second order on Haidao/Mowang duo (repeaters in Transmission Matrix are brutal). Then I started moving out with NCO - killed a warcor and then triggered Noctifier in the open - whom, of course, I expected. Since Noctifier was outside the good ranges of spitfire, I threw the Flammenspeer into it (not to kill but just to force the FTF), but we both missed. Next order Mowang was in 24" so he was able to wound Noctifier, forcing it to go dogged. Hacked the sniper Unidron with Daiyoing, put assisted fire on my linked missile remote and eliminated the immobilized Uni. Then I considered hotdropping a Liu Xing (since there was no enemy hacker to mess with it), but opponent expected him and put his defenses inward, not grouping the units closely. So instead Liu walked out from the side, killed the Krakot and got into suppression to meet Mcmurrough. Rui Shi used last orders in the second group (+ converted warcor order) to get into position and go in suppressive fire, also awaiting big dog man and his flying firends In the Impetuous phase McMurrough charged the Liu Xing, throwing smoke - here we forgot to add -3 mod for suppression so we thought that the roll of 18 on the werewolf was a success, but it shouldn't have been one. Of 3 Yuans only 1 managed to land - near the Mowang, over the wall, thanks to Daiyoing disrupting the jump. McMurrough killed Liu Xing in close combat, and then it took him an entire group pool to set up smoke to escape multiple AROs on the way to Designated Target HVT. He exchanged chain rifle shots with 3 normal rolls from Rui Shi, of which he lost one wound. Out of charging HVT or Daiyoing he chose the former and put two chainrifles into it and Haidao in a suicide attack - Haidao dodged but HVT failed and McMurrough took two missiles to the face. Yuan-Yuans also ate a lot from his order pool - he decided to bind Mowang in CC with two of them. Thankfully, I packed the Weibing sensorbot in the list and thankfully Liu Xing went to dead thanks to NWI, so the slot in first group was free. 4 orders went into moving and doing triangulated fire on Yuans, so the Mowang-Haidao Duo was left with 6 regular orders and 2 LT ones for NCO. It was enough to do a Data Scan on an unconcious Yuan, get rid of Maakrep, warcor, Ikadron and flashpulse bot, move Haidao in the control zone of the central antenna and taking one last shot at the enemy HVT - who crit dodged! yikes. Last Yuan got evaporated by the missile launcher and the Unidron team moved to kill Mowang - unfortunately Daiyoing couldn't slow it enough with Gotchas. Mowang won one ftf with heavy pistol, getting Uni to go dogged, but then plasma carbine got him. Opponent then had no orders to threaten Haidao or arrange defense, so it was alright At the end of second round I controlled 3 antennas to 1 of his, did the Classified objective (which had bonus point on it, thanks ITS X) and had a full fireteam and Haidao on 9 orders (+tokens to fill it) to kill his HVT and the remaining Unidrones, so we decided to end it because it was late. --- Thoughts: 1) As expected, NCO on Mowang is extremely good - and while Mowang himself may be just a better Ratnik/Daiyokai/worse Kriza, order compression is important. 2) Duo with a wildcard on Mowang is also fantastic - you can deliver a specialist to do missions without wasting orders or paying a lot for Zhencha. Kriza + Hollow Man works similarly and is also great, although it is a bit more restricted if you want to use Kriza's LT order. 3) Since Rui Shi here in IA is not as effective due to the absence of smoke, I used it purely as a defense against warbands and it worked ok.
Played a few games with IA today myself, Zhencha Assault Hacker and a Weibing were surprise standouts. The Zhencha was able to cling to the outside of a catwalk to quickly flank a Dakini link and dismantle them from behind with shotgun and wifi, and the Weibing turned out to be fantastic for fishing out Camo hackers, which would then be victimised by a Zhanshi link including a Zhanshi Hacker, Haidao KHD and Shang Ji Tinbot. This put non-Killers at -9 on their hacking attempts, and allowed for SSL2 mass Brain Blasting in ARO. Good fun.
I like your approach to that mission and I'm glad to hear that Transmission Matrix is possible to win with a HI faction. Your opponent not having any decent hackers helped I guess. What bothers me though is, that you could build nearly the same list with Vanilla, loosing the linkbonus on the 5man, but gaining the options for cheaper orders, smoke, ninjas, helots, krakots etc. Thats really my biggest concern at the moment, that imho the strongest synergie (Mowang NCO with Daoying LT2) could easily be played in Vanilla too. I fear that the awesome 5x ZuYong link is stopped too fast on a mission like TM.
The implication is that they might not release an extra box, or it may be a long time. So on the one hand, I want a missile and now have to do an elaborate conversion regardless of my preferences. You would have options regarding having multiple hmgs and combis. Whether it's do some arm swaps (distinctive from actually converting), or just have the same model. One of those places is significantly better than the other.
I don't think anyone is kidding themselves that every profile will get a sculpt psy. It's not really practical. Having a good spread to alter with arm swaps, I feel is the best compromise.
I don't get why you reacted so particularly negatively to the idea of a generic Zuyong without prominent or with optional main weapon, in that case.
