Avatar+McMourning

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 * McMourning, Resurrectionist Avatar of Athanasia**

=Overview= The Avatar of Athanasia (aka: Immortality) has devoted himself to perfecting his master work to keep himself alive indefinitely. He has given up on the experimental summoning game to instead focus on his greatest creation - Simulacrum-29. He is now more frantic, slightly more clumsy, and has traded into his ability to heal rapidly while slicing up foes for some notable durability provided by the synergy he has with his masterwork creation.

He is still very mobile, and continued to do what he does best - deal plenty of damage while leaping gleefully about the battlefield.

=Manifesting= McMourning's Manifest requirements are: 1) McMourning kills an enemy under the effects of //Rancid Transplant//; and 2) McMourning gains 5+ body parts from ENEMY models.

It is actually possible to have McMourning Manifest on turn 2 with the assistance of a Nurse. Simply do the following:

1) //Scalpel Sling// onto a vulnerable target (the weakest target in available range) to gain +1 Body Part. 2) Use the Body Part to cast //Rancid Transplant// on the same (now damaged) target. //2.5) If you cast Rancid Transplant with a 7+ Mask, "Scalpel Magic" triggers giving you a free Melee strike on the victim.// 3) Use whatever AP you have left to carve up your victim. 4) Use your last AP to cast //Dissection// on the victim. If you kill it, you'll gain +3 Body Parts. 4.5) //If you cast Dissection with a 8+ Mask, "Scalpel Magic" triggers giving you a free Melee strike on the victim if they are still alive.//

If you have killed the target suffering from Rancid Transplant (which is going to quite likely), you have completed your requirement to manifest. Have your Nurse then inject McMourning with a //Massive Dose of Speed// (Reactivate him), and have him Manifest himself into Avatar form which removes all effects from McMourning, including the side effect of Speed (i.e.: kill him in the closing phase).


 * Note**: You may want to avoid manifesting McMourning if you have a Flesh Construct in play as Simulacrum-29 will replace it. Instead make sure to have 4 Body Parts on McMourning (you will have gained some from killing your //Rancid Transplant// victim) and discard them to bring your Bodyguard into play where he needs to be - within 3" of his maker.

=Mobility= McMourning retains his usual mobile self. He can discard a Body Part to gain //Fast//, and can still //Scalpel Sling// for a (0) action. Otherwise his stats are what they were before - an above average walk and charge.

Just remember that //Scalpel Slinging// can be used to have McMourning disengage from attacks without suffering a disengage flip.

=Offense= Being more fanatic, the Athanasia Avatar is a little bit clumsy compared to his former self. Its Cb is reduced by 1 (which is still impressive at 5), and its Severe Damage is also reduced by 2 (to 4, down from 6). Furthermore, his attacks are no longer //Precise// meaning //Armor// and //Hard to Wound// apply to his attacks. They are however Paired, meaning while he is less accurate, he does have a slightly better chance of hitting all the same.
 * Melee**

Also, being //Wicked//, any model that tries to disengage from Avatar-McMourning will suffer damage in addition to having its action canceled. Also, the very presence of McMourning now makes people go numb. His //Crawling Doom// Ability causes all enemies within 3" of himself to suffer a -1 Card Flip on their Df and Wp flips. This ability also improves his resilience (see the next section).

Despite this, McMourning shouldn't be used as recklessly as before, as his self-healing is no longer what it used to be. His new tactic revolves around getting Simulacrum-29 to provide the beat-down, while simultaneously shielding McMorning from being attacked in turn. In exchange, McMorning focuses on collecting Body Parts and/or casting spells to keep his masterwork "alive, undead, and functional."

//Scalpel Slinging// The Athanasia Avatar does retain his signature (0) action, which is even more powerful than before. If //Scalpel Slinging// is flipped with a Mask, //CutcutCUT!// will trigger to let him make a second free attack on the same target. It's almost as if McMourning used //Passion for his Work// twice, as the second attack will not produce a free Body Part (//CutCutCUT// will prevent you from also using //A Piece for Me//), but to perform a free Melee attack is often better than an extra Body Part - especially as McMourning doesn't collect them as much as before.
 * Ranged**

(1) //Rancid Transplant// The Athanasia Avatar does retain its (1) //Rancid Transplant// spell, though it no longer has //Scalpel Magic// - meaning once he casts the spell he doesn't get to make a free strike on the victim as he did before. Even so, making any target suffer from //Easy to Wound 2// for the rest of the game is a nasty effect.
 * Spells**

(0) //Cast Offs// McMourning also loses all his other offensive spells (//Dissection// and //Wracked with Pain//) but gains a rather creepy (0)-action spell. //Cast Offs// revives all non-carried Corpse Counters within 10" of McMourning to crawl 5" towards a target (that also must be within 10" of McMourning). Provided at least 1 Corpse gets within 1" of the target, the victim must win a Melee weapon Cb -> 11 (+1 per Corpse counter within 1" of the target) duel and if they fail, they suffer a 1/2/4 damage flip which cannot be cheated. It's not a lot on its own, but when cast with a 7+ Ram, the victim immediately falls back in horror at the horror - forcing them to run and lose some actions recovering.

While somewhat inferior to //Scalpel Slinging//, the advantage of //Cast Offs// is that McMorning doesn't need to move too far away from his bodyguard (while //Scalpel Slinging// can potentially split the pair up).

=Resilience= McMourning has gained +1 to his Df and +2 to his Wp but has lost //Organ Donor//, which essentially allowed him to re-heal all damage he took while carving up his foes. While he does still heal having gained //Regeneration 1//, it's certainly nothing compared to what he could do before. Then again, it does mean he doesn't need to be directly in the fight anymore.

As mentioned earlier, his creepy doom also assists in his defense. He gains a +1 card flip to his Df against Melee attacks (but not ranged attacks) which does make him somewhat more evasive.

Avatar McMourning works best when near his massive creation, as his Bodyguard significantly improves his damage absorbing abilities. While he is within 3" of his Bodyguard he gains //Armor 1//, and whenever he is attacked he can choose to have either //Bulletproof 1, Hard to Wound 2,// or //Hard to Kill// (all of which Simulacrum-29 possess - the brute quite literally gets it the way of the attack). This synergy makes McMourning a tough little cockroach to stamp out.

McMourning's main resilience comes from 29. Use its size to shield the doctor from harm. Any damage it takes McMourning can heal up quickly with his //Perfect// spell, or by using //Walking Morgue// to discard Body Parts. While McMourning is still savage in Melee, he's playing a more supportive/assasin role now. He survives by shielding himself with his big guy, attacking only when opportunity arrises to help deal a finishing blow.

=Soulstones= McMourning still requires his Soulstones. Mainly due to the fact that, while his Df and Wp have gone up (so he doesn't need them for that anymore), he no longer can heal himself. Thus you will want them around to help fix the doctor up on the times his bodyguard is flanked (or even killed) and the Doctor is taking some hits.

=Tricks and Tips= While it's possible to Manifest McMourning on turn 2 with an (all) action, should you be able to complete both Manifest requirements (gain 5+ body parts, and kill a target suffering from //Rancid Transplant// - which is possible if you use //Dissection//), you can discard a Body Part to gain //Fast// and use //Scalpel Slinging// to get yourself into a decent position (right in an opponent's face) and still spend 2 AP to Manifest.

Always keep McMourning near Simulacrum-29. If separated by more than 3", McMourning's defensive abilities drop somewhat notably. Should McMourning use //Scalpel Slinging// (and the temptation will be there), be sure to use //Companion: Simulacrum-29// to have his Bodyguard catch up almost immediately and block charge lanes. Don't worry if the big guy is in your way on the next turn. Just reverse the activations next time to have Simulacrum-29 move first (getting out of his master's way) and moving him to where McMourning will end up.

Use McMourning in Melee ONLY if he will kill his target or if your enemy is heavily reliant on ranged attacks (chances are the big guy will take the shots, and McMourning will rip up the enemy if they try to disengage out of melee). Otherwise, keep him behind 29 and keep the big guy alive.

Don't forget you can choose which defensive bonus McMourning gains when attacked while within 3" of Simulacrum-29. If being shot at, go for //Bulletproof// (given he already has //Armor//, it means the damage will be reduced by 2 regardless). If in Melee, opt for //Hard to Wound//. If on the verge of death, choose //Hard to Kill// (if you can survive the attack, your //Regeneration// will let you recover somewhat to use //Hard to Kill// a second time).

=Avatar and their Crew= As mentioned above, having a Nurse is quite useful to have when you intend to have McMourning go to his Avatar state in turn 2. It may be good to keep her staying //Harmless// and walking up the field until McMourning needs her to give him his "Manifest Medicine". After that, she can head off and start overdosing enemies with //Pain Killers// and //Sedatives//, or hang by her master and his monster to provide a //Bedside Manner// or //Attendant// to keep their defenses up. There is a decent chance you may need to ask your Nurse to perform surgery on the Doctor as he won't be healing himself up as much as he once did before.

Once McMourning goes into his Avatar state, you won't need to worry too much about Body Parts (the do become a little redundant). As such don't worry about cheap cannon fodder. Bring some decent heavy hitters that can survive the brawl and deal plenty of damage, and/or some swift minions (usually the Necropunks) to secure objectives. Always remember you crew should be designed to completely your mission - not to take out the enemy (unless of course that IS the mission).

=Playing Against the Avatar of Athanasia= McMourning and Simulacrum-29 may lack ranged attacks, but shooting them won't offer much. When side-by-side, the Doctor basically has //Bulletproof 2// (//Armor 1// and //Bulletproof 1//). Mind you, confronting them in Melee isn't a great deal either as both are Melee Monsters.

McMourning may be a bit more evasive than before, but he heals MUCH slower. He's also quite durable when near his bodyguard. Thus the real Achilles heel is in separating the pair from each other. It's not easily done, but if achieved McMourning will become significantly easier to kill (losing his //Armor// and his defensive options gained from Simulacrum-29).

Once the pair are divided GO ALL OUT TO TAKE THE DOCTOR DOWN!

McMourning will typically be putting 29 between himself and the enemy crew. Know this and seek to outflank it.

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