User:Juckto/Sandbox/Slayer

''An eerie glow pulsates from the Slayer's furnace, a frightful light illuminating even its eye sockets, suggesting some greater intelligence. After decades of Cryxian terror along the coasts, any greenish lights - like those found floating in the bogs and fens of Immoren - are often called "Cryxlights" by superstitious travelers.''

Weapons and Attacks

 * Death Claw (2x) - Very good P+S melee attacks.
 * Open Fist - text description
 * Combo Strike - text description
 * Tusks - A decent P+S melee weapon.
 * Hard Head - text description

Special Abilities

 * Warjack - text description

Comparison to Mk2
The Slayer got slightly cheaper, and its tusks gained Hard Head. Otherwise it's completely unchanged, and it fulfils the same role as it did in Mk2.

In Mk2 it was a decent jack but slightly unpopular since it was susceptible to having its arms shot off before it reached combat, and other in-faction jacks or infantry were nearly always a better investment for the points cost. It remains to be seen whether this is still the case in Mk3.

{{User:Juckto/Template:Mk2 info|

The Slayer in a nutshell
The Slayer is simplicity incarnate - aim at the enemy, beat face. The Slayer is a cheap helljack to field, costing as much as other faction's light warjacks. The Slayer //is// capable of sneaky tricks and dirty tactics when combined with various casters, but it will always be known as a straight-up melee fighter when simple, honest //brutality// is called for. And when isn't it?

Consider that, just by itself, with no focus, you have a helljack that: That's an incredible deal for the points cost!
 * has three initial attacks,
 * can hit most models with average rolls,
 * can kill infantry even if it rolls snake eyes,
 * smash moderate-to-high ARM targets with two solid hits, or
 * swap the 3 initials to smash very high ARM targets with a Combo-Strike.

The Death Claws are Open Fists, meaning the Slayer can make every possible power attack in the game (barring Colossal-only ones).

While there are many other helljacks based off of the Slayer chassis that have more options and special functions, they are all more expensive to field and still just as fragile.

Combos & Synergies

 * When supported by a warcaster, the Slayer can reach even higher levels.
 * Mortenebra makes this 'jack hell on wheels against living models,
 * while Deneghra1's spells like Crippling Grasp and Parasite make it lethal to even the toughest warjacks. Subtle spells like Ghost Walk allow it to freely maneuver around the battlefield.
 * Infernal Machine from the The Witch Coven of Garlghast will make a Slayer both speedier and more accurate in melee with the added bonus of possibly scaring units and solos that aren't Fearless.
 * Goreshade1's Shadowmancer spell will increase its damage output while protecting it from ranged attacks.
 * A Warwitch Siren can Power Boost it for one focus, giving it enough to charge into combat.

Drawbacks & Downsides

 * Make no mistake: the Slayer hits very hard but cannot take a hit itself. The Slayer embodies the Cryx "Glass Blade" approach to warjacks; either they hit hard and take out their target, or get hit first and are destroyed with ease.
 * A Slayer can't take a charge on the chin and still be there next turn; nor multiple ranged attacks to the face, it will die or at very least be crippled.
 * The layout of its damage grid makes it very easy for an opponent to cripple at least one arm - at which point you can't do Combo Strikes, and also half your powerful attacks are neutered.
 * The Tusks are a lot lower P+S than the Claws. Which means, if you go against a heavy target the Tusks will do little damage. If you go against a lighter target, then the Claws will be complete overkill.

Tricks & Tactics
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 * The Slayer is great as either a piece trade (tempting an enemy heavy to charge and wreck it, but be left open for your army to kill it next turn) or to be held back until the late game, when fewer models are alive still capable of tearing apart a warjack.
 * When going up against single-wound models there is a certain ARM threshold, around ARM 18-20, that you are actually better using your Tusks as the charge attack. Consider:
 * Using Claw on the charge: first claw attack completely overkills target thanks to the boost, second claw attack kills with average dice, third tusk attack does no damage. Total enemy dead _ 2.
 * Using Tusk on the charge: first tusk attack kills with average dice thanks to the boost, second and third claw attacks kill with average dice. Total enemy dead _ 3.
 * When going up against a heavy target, try to position yourself so that you have at least one infantry in range, and use your Tusk attack against that model.

Trivia

 * Originally released in Warmachine: Prime (2003)
 * Updated for Mk II in Forces of Warmachine: Cryx (June 2010)
 * Sculptor: John Winter

Theme Forces this is a member of
WIP

Rules Clarifications
WIP