Aeslin


 * Aeslin, Neverborn Henchman**
 * UNDEAD, FAE **

=__Overview__= Aeslin is the Henchmen that comes in Titania's The Queen's Return boxed set, and like Titania distributes and spends friendly scheme markers to pull off a number of interesting tricks. toc

=__Mobility__= She has a moderate to average Walk and Charge, but doesn't have any abilities like Unimpeded, or any powers that will help her move faster on her card. She needs to rely on others to get upfield faster than average.

=__Offense__= In addition to her two attacks, Aeslin is a Casting Expert, which gives her one addition action to use on either of these two attack actions. Aeslin can be equally effective either close up, or at range, but it's easier to place scheme markers up close with **A Wicked Silence** than at range with Rot and Rend, though as a henchman she can spend soul stones to get the trigger required for placing schemes at range.

//**A Wicked Silence:**// This is identical to Titania's melee attack of the same name. It does not have a damage flip. Instead, it places a friendly scheme marker in BtB with the target model, and does two damage to it. It goes against the enemy model's WP, so can cause additional effects from other models. The attack has one trigger that requires an additional mask (either from the draw, cheat, or a soulstone) that lets Aeslin push herself 4". The easiest trick is to charge, make two attacks, place two schemes, and then push 4" back to safety. Note that the scheme markers are not being placed with an Interact, so these markers can be placed within 4" of each other. These scheme markers can then be spent for other abilities like the **Into Thorns** trigger of **Rot and Rend**, or the **As Leaves On The Wind** tactical action.

On a Book you can place a scheme marker in base contact with the enemy model, so if you want to spend the stones or cheat the books from your hand, you can place two markers, and then spend them, with Rot and Rend at range instead of up close. If you flip, cheat, or spend a stone to get an extra mask, you can push the target 6" towards Aeslin. If you add a crow to the result your opponent is forced to discard a card, or the target of this attack gets Slow. If you happen to be using the Gorar, it means your opponent can be forced to discard cards rather than risk you turning the Slow into Paralyzed.
 * Rot and Rend:** This can be used as either a ranged or close combat casting attack, and as a ranged attack, it has an average range. The **Wild Magic** ability on the front of Aeslin's card prevents randomization when this attack is used as a ranged attack, but requires a scheme marker near the target. This attack has a modest damage track of 2/3/4 and four triggers, and it's really the triggers that make this attack useful. With the single mask baked into the Ca value you can discard up to two friendly scheme markers within 2" and LOS of the target model to increase damage by one per scheme marker spent. With Casting Expert, this means that Aeslin can charge, place scheme markers with A Wicked Silence, push away, and then use her bonus casting action to cast Rot and Rend with the damage bonus to do up to 2+2+4/5/6 damage.

=__Resilience__= Aeslin has moderate DF, good WP, average wounds for henchman, and is Hard to Wound. She can be mildly difficult to bring down, but a heavy hitter with high damage on it's lowest damage flip will still take her down with some ease. Her ability **The Curse of Autumn** will add some slight defensive boost, because it can inflict slow on enemy models that begin their activation while engaged by Aeslin. Tricks like pushing a hard hitting model close up before its activation, so it can use Flurry during it's own activation can get shut down like this. Aeslin is the ideal target for the Taproot upgrade, because Titania will want other upgrades for herself, and Aeslin can play back from the other fae models and let them benefit from Taproot. Taproot lets you, on a mask on either Df or Wp win or lose, spend a friendly scheme marker within 3" to push any fae within 10" and LOS 3". Aeslin is in LOS of herself for this effect, so also benefits, though you might need to cheat or spend a soulstone to get the mask.

=__Soulstones__= Aeslin is going to use Soulstones to get extra suits to get triggers on Rot and Rend, and possibly also the push trigger of A Wicked Silence. You may also need to use stones to keep her alive if you're using her to shut down enemy summoner models with her **As Leaves On The Wind** tactical action. If you've pinned down a model like Nicodemus and prevented him from cheating his casting flips, your opponent is going to put a high priority on murdering Aeslin.

=__Tricks and Tips While Joining a Crew__= Aeslin has two (0) tactical actions, each of which has excellent utility.


 * As Leaves on the Wind:** It inflicts a negative flip on enemy Ca actions made within 6" of Aeslin. This is a very effective means of shutting down summoners, who lose the ability cheat the card they want out of their hands.


 * Bound and Rooted:** It stops enemy models from moving, pushing, or placing your own models while they're within 6" of Aeslin until the end of the turn. This turns off a LOT of tricks, more than can be cataloged. This second ability makes her an ideal model for the Taproot Upgrade, which provides all Fae within 10" and LOS a Df/Wp trigger that, on a mask win or lose, lets them discard a friendly scheme marker to push 3". An opponent's best option for denying you that benefit is to push your fae models more than 3" from your scheme markers. Taproot takes away that option.

=__Tricks and Tips While Leading a Crew__= Aeslin is a good all arounder, and reads like a lesser version of Titania with less mobility, and less offensive punch. However, for games too small for a Master, you could do worse. It's just that she's competing against the 400 pound gorilla that is Nekima for that spot. As a henchman hardcore leader, if you put Taproot on her and take at least Thorn and Tooth, she's respectable, since she's not competing with the master or other henchmen for the soulstones.

Strategies and Schemes
Aeslin is, like all of the Fae models, pretty good at generating scheme markers in unusual ways. Ways that let you pile up lots of scheme markers right next to each other. Thanks to her casting expert ability, she could drop up to three scheme markers right next to enemy models in a single activation, and if she's working alongside Titania and her Knights, then you can end up coating the board in piles of friendly scheme markers. Any schemes that involve planting schemes next to enemy models, or on the enemy side of the board (she can drop schemes next to enemy models at range early in the game) is going to go well for her. This makes it possible to score a number of points at range early in the game with schemes like Plant Explosives. Aeslin also has a good amount of utility for shutting down your opponent's attempts to fulfill their own schemes, because on any turn she can either inflict a negative flip on nearby enemy Ca actions, or prevent friendly models from being moved, pushed, or placed by enemy attacks. If your opponent obviously plans to use Lure to pull your enemy models into position to fulfill a strategy or scheme, they'll have to eliminate Aeslin first. She also makes a decent sucker for Frame for Murder, since your opponent either has to kill her, or put up with her inflicting negative flips on their Ca actions.

Building a Crew
Aeslin combines well with other models that plant and spend friendly scheme markers like the other members of the boxed set she comes in, and doesn't do well with models that either stop you from planting scheme markers, or only discard friendly scheme markers without helping to add them. Parker Barrows would enjoy playing against her and all the fae, as he actually WANTS enemy scheme markers on the board to spend.

Starting Aeslin
=__Playing Against Aeslin__= Like most of the Fae, if you stop her from placing her scheme markers, a lot of her power and utility will go away. If she's got taproot, and is in a crew with two or more of the other knights, put a priority on killing her, because killing Tooth, Claw, or Thorn can be difficult when they can always spend a scheme marker on Df flips to evade follow up attacks after the first.

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