So, the ILO. The dreaded, useless, completely and utterly pointless Wrath Jack Marshall we have recieved. It's gotten blasted all over these forums, for being as useless as the Cephalyx, or worse.
Well, I say *&^% that. I've used him recently, and here are my thoughts.
Stats: Solid. Good enough arm to make him a nuisance, speedy to keep up with our jacks, has a decent POW spear with reach. Magic Ability 7. 8 Boxes. He's a medium base, but his abilities help that.
Attacks:
Fell Staff - solid P+S, reach. Great to net a soul. Also has magical weapon, so situational but never a bad thing.
Special rules:
Commander - Eh, not overall useful in a dead faction, but great with our living units. He's got a decent CMD score to help those Satyxis stick around.
Jack Marshal - No drive, but you get a boosted melee/ranged attack or damage roll, or extra attack.
Undead
Circular Vision - 360 LOS with Reach is area denial. Boosted POW 13 damage rolls are solid and can ding stuff up. Don't forget the free strike triggers while the model is still in melee range so you'll get a soul if you kill a trooper.
Soul Matrix - Yes, he collects souls. But this ability is sheer money. Against some stuff it's useless, BUT if you can get the ILO and his pet/s into enemy troops you can stack some souls to help your jack take out heavies. Can be used for boosting attack/damage or buying additional attacks.
Spells:
Cloak of Darkness - gives himself and jacks he marshals in b2b stealth. Added survival utility.
Dark Fire - RNG 10 POW 12. Nets a soul regardless of proximity to other models. Feeds his soul matrix ability once you get close.
The model is also fantastic. Assembly generally sucks, because of the way PP designed the figure, but it's an awesome sculpt.
Jack Marshal Options:
Remember you cannot marshal a character jack!
Reaper - This is my go-to. If I am taking an ILO, it's with a Reaper. Sustained attack + Soul Matrix can really push this thing to the limit. Secondly, it benefits from stealth for a short while til it is comitted. The driver with soul matrix and boost from jack marshal can definately kill casters. Just make sure you boost the to hit roll for the first driver attack.
Scavengers - I've run a pair with the ILO and they work well. Finisher and sprint is really useful. They benefit also from the stealth and free boost to either damage or to hit, but I generally boost damage as it has above average MAT.
Leviathan - The stealth option greatly increases the survival of our ranged jack. Marshalling keeps the burden off our caster, as the levi likes to take multiple shots at enemy heavies. Secondly, you can really put the pain in from range if the ILO can net a few souls.
Desecrator - I've used this as a ranged option with p/e Goreshade. It works well as it essentially gets 2 free boosts not counting soul matrix per turn. Crit Shred is likely with the auto boost from the ILO, giving you another free attack with the affinity. It also gets really nasty with the scather, as it only effects enemy models. Shoot the scather, drop the aoe, and run the ILO in to tie stuff up. If they stay, they die, and the ILO gets souls. If they leave they take a free strike, giving souls (hopefully) and more attacks for the Desecrator. Good synergy here!
So, in conclusion, this is the stuff I've used him with. I think he's actually very good. In the games I've played him, he's done exceptionally well with a reach jack and does decently enough with the rest. I haven't tried him with our melee heavies yet, but that is forthcoming.
Questions and comments welcome!



Reply With Quote







