Arias Vayu

Another Summon, I wanted to finish this as a counterpoint to painting my first Al-Djinn and the second. I had actually started Arias Vayu before both the Al-Djinns, completing the Elemental Crystals first, then started tackling the bulk painting on the main mini at a later date. Of course things didn't work out as planned, and the Al-Djinn's have been finished for a while. Suffice to say, I found parts of this unit very tricky, fiddly and frustrating to paint, and I also struggled the skin, which I tried to do with a different colour to my usual choice to create a sense of difference. All of which means that while I may double up on many or most Summons, I have absolutely no plans to paint another Arias Vayu. Ever. And yes, that is despite the fact that I do think it is a lovely model!

The five minis (Arias Vayu and the Elemental Crystals) are treated as a single unit for rules, although the Elemental Crystals are treated as distinct and separate models. Obviously I have not yet tried out Arias Vayu, but I suspect there will be a little bit of understanding required of best strategy needed to get the most out of this particular unit. At 55 Levels, the indication is that Arias Vayu is one of the more potent Summons, yet there is an inherent unpredictability at the same time.

Arias Vayu is able to (randomly) call upon one of five abilities of the Elemental Crystals each Turn, so positioning is key to minimize the impact of pure luck; Gnosis is pretty much a must-use with Arias Vayu, I think, to help try and achieve favourable results, and a unit like High Saint Eleinai (Church Leader) can really help here with her ability to use Gnosis after a die roll is made.

I need to get more Summoners painted up to make the most of the growing array of Summons I am painting, but i have been saying that for several months now. Covel and Belith seem increasingly much-needed! Embarrassingly, both have been part done for months.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 163 (added: nothing new but I have two minis on pre-order)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 62 (58 different units)
Painted Units Percentage: 38.0% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 152 units (including 2 LE minis; including September as he still is due for presumably imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 38.2%
Year to Date Target: 21 of 27 units (3 per month target; 75%)

The Colonel

The Colonel is the head of Les Jaeger, and a man whose power and influence extends across the entire world.

The Colonel is the third member of Team Les Jaeger that I have painted, and leaves just one more mini (Kirsten) to finish the whole Team; Team Les Jaeger is currently the only Team comprising 4 units.

In game terms, The Colonel is formidable prospect, with hand to hand and ranged Attacks, as well as the option to steal Life Points from allies and a defensive Action, meaning he is potentially quite durable. However as a member of Team Les Jaeger he gains Arbiter status, adding bonus Actions to his Team. Looking at the Team, I really cannot see a good reason to not invest the 5 Levels Advantage Card cost to get the benefits. He also has the Initiative ability which helps with the Initiative Roll each Turn.

This mini has been assembled for several months, and I think it would have remained unpainted had I not finished painting Reindhold so close to having some time off work. I had some motivation and was able to get him finished over three to four sessions. I may go and do a little more tot he flame to create greater hot to less hot contrast. Please forgive the ropey photography.

This takes me to four Anima Tactics units for the month, and with a few days left I hope that I can get at least one more done before the end of August. It will help me recover some of the deficit that has built up!

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 163 (added: nothing new since the last unit, but I am hoping for another couple of releases soon...)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 61 (57 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 37.4% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 152 units (including 2 LE minis;including September as he still is due for presumably imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 37.5%
Year to Date Target: 20 of 24 units (3 per month target; 83%)

Stealth

Figure 1

Stealth is an Action common to many Prowlers in Anima Tactics, and allows them to become Hidden, therefore staying out of danger until they are hopefully ready to attack. Basically it is hard to attack Hidden units until they reveal themselves.

A lot of models with Stealth, particularly among Azur Prowlers, also have powerful Actions contingent on them being Hidden.

However, this is where things become tricky for the player managing units with Stealth. For a start, Stealth requires Upkeep, meaning that assuming a move plus Hidden-based Attack plus Upkeep, will mean that the Prowler probably has no AP left for Dodges etc. after they have Attacked. There are exceptions like Kagemaru whose AP limit is 5 and who can maintain Hidden if using basic Attack or Charge.

In addition, these units are usually quite fragile with low to middling Life Points and usually no Armor. Therefore, when they Attack from Hidden, they need to time it right  to minimize risk afterwards. This is compounded by the fact that when a model Attacks from Hidden, the Hidden status is usually lost; therefore resuming Hidden through Stealth means paying the full AP costs, and requires the unit to be outside enemy Control Zones.

Figure 1: If The Type-004: Hellhound wants to Seek (try and find Hidden models in its Control Zone), it would only be able to find Kyler since Juliette Kaim is out of LOS. The Hellhound is a better choice than Arkham to Seek as it gets a bonus for being a Prowler.

If both Kyler and Juliette Kaim wanted to use Stealth, only Juliette could so because she is out of LOS.

The game management around Stealth is one of the things that I like about Anima Tactics; each Organization favours certain troop types, which in turn creates certain play-styles. Azur certainly has a dominant Stealth-based play style among its earlier models, although as their line-up has been expanded that has changed.

The Next 10 (6)

It has taken approximately four months to finish the latest ‘Next 10’. It isn't for want of motivation, but purely other commitments that have impacted on my painting time. However, with Reindhold done, that gets me to the magic 60 units painted.

Thankfully the rate of releases is so slow for Anima Tactics, that I don’t envisage getting too far behind any time soon! That said, I would sooner I was painting around three or so units per month. I hope to get one or two done next week, and there are a few that are not far from completion so that should be a realistic proposition.

My painting across all the ranges I like has dwindled this year. So far I have managed only 25 minis across all ranges (well slightly more than that, because I have painted 4 out of 5 models that comprise a single Anima Tactics unit, but until I finish the remaining model, I won’t show them off – I count all 5 pieces as a single mini for my totals). I am promising myself a strong finish to the year in the last two months.

I am pleased with the mix of this batch; 5 Organizations represented, as well as my first Gear (Gear Mk. Trithemius) and 3 Dark Summons. As for what is next? Stay tuned!

Reindhold

Fast on the heels of the Gear Mk. Trithemius comes Reindhold, my 60th Anima Tactics unit! Alfred Reinhold Webber is a descendant of one of the oldest and most influential noble houses of Togarini (a land of Gaia), and a captain of Les Jaeger. Reinhold wields powerful psychic powers, and is able to move mountains with the power of his mind.

In game terms, Reindhold is a little unusual. Most of his Actions are Effect based, meaning they cannot be Dodged, although Resistance applies. That said, his Damaging Effect is restricted to 6 Life Points Damage, so he has his limits. He also has a Paralysis causing Action, as well as another that can move enemy models, useful with models who have yet to Activate or are in tricky positions to reach. He can also move scenery, but I never like those kinds of Actions in games, since scenery sizes vary so much by gamer’s collections, and also because a beautifully crafted board with fixed scenery renders the Action useless. A minor criticism though.

Reindhold is a member of Team Les Jaeger, and the second member of the Team I have painted after Kyler; I still have to complete Kirsten (part-painted) and The Colonel to finish the group. Azur will take a bit of working out in terms of effective game-play I think, so I may hold off playing them until I have Team Les Jaeger and an Arbiter at the very least. So quite a way off then! When I do finally get around to using Reindhold, Advantage Cards that make sense are Clock of Cronos or Fate Clock for the extra AP; Control Bound to boost the Reindhold’s Effect values (making Resistance rolls harder against his Actions); or maybe Presence (extending Reindhold’s Control Zone, therefore his range with abilities). He is also one of the units that benefited from a cost reduction with the 2013 Update.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 163 (added: nothing new....yet!)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 60 (56 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 36.8% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 152 units (including 2 LE minis;including September as he still is due for presumably imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 36.8%
Year to Date Target: 19 of 24 units (3 per month target; 79%)