M2E+Hoffman

= = toc = __Overview__ =

C. Hoffman, (who we all currently presume as a bald, british, wheelchair bound pseudo-psychic is "Charles" Hoffman), is a heavy duty support master who takes good models, makes them great, and then allows them to take more actions. The way his abilities work typically lend him to a game of activation order and crew selection as a primary goal- as making sure you have the right team for the job is half of the challenge. His crew is typically heavily armored, and through a slew of tactical actions, Hoffman is able to keep them working at optimal efficiency until long after they should have been scrap.

= __Mobility__ = Hoffman was always a weak boy, stricken with polio from an early age. To combat his crippling debilitation, Hoffman created a mounting system in most of his constructs after his power awakened coming through the Breach. These are all the fluff explanations, but the in-game solution is an ability called **Magnetic**. He's got a Wk of 4, no charge value, and he may not declare more than two Walk actions in a turn. With a effective maximum move of 8, he's just always getting left behind, right? Wrong. Any time a friendly Construct is within 3" of him and declares a Walk action, he may push into base contact with them after the action is complete.

While this can make Hoffman extremely mobile, it also limits the mobility of the model he's tagging along with. Note that it is a push, and not a place - this means you'll want your magnetism target to walk in straighter lines, and round off corners a bit, to keep him from getting stuck on scenery or losing line of sight.

This does however allow him to spend the whole game //never// using his paltry 4" walk. When you play C. Hoffman, you ride in style.

= __Offense__ =

The Basics
C. Hoffman is, at heart, a support master. He is typically as good as the constructs he's chosen to surround him. He has the ability to grant AP and movement or **Fast** to Constructs around him, and if things get really tough, he can try and slice through his enemies with his trusty **Soulstone Torch**.

Soulstone Torch
C. Hoffman spends all day using his torch to make and modify guild constructs - which means he's got some hours behind the use of his torch. He can probably toast and butter his bread with the thing at the same time. It starts at Ml 6 with a Ram built in, which is pretty good for a Master caliber attack. Its damage track is respectable at 3/4/6, giving it a solid minimum damage, and a great top end. He's also got the //Exploit Design Flaw// trigger which allows him to ignore **Armor** - great for any pesky robo-rebellions, or when he's fighting against his arch-frenemy Victor Ramos. Cutting through **Armor** is one of this attacks main boons, as he can make his robots take attacks that are at better damage tracks. Being able to burn a Soulstone for the suit makes it relatively reliable, but its uses are definitely limited.

Machine Puppet
This is probably one of the main offensive abilities that Hoffman has - it allows a friendly Construct to take a (1) action (without allowing triggers). It's very open, meaning it doesn't say melee or shooting attacks, it's any one action. That could be Focus, a move, an Interact - this can be great for just about anything, and it allows any piece of Hoffman's hardware to increase their output by 50% or more (by generating more AP). He also has two triggers on this tactical action, both of which have some great uses:

// Take New Position (Ram/Mask) // After succeeding, push the target up to 2" in any direction before it takes the action. Are you in a bad position? Hunter wants to shoot, but he's engaged? Out of line of sight? Maybe you're trying to beeline the opponent's deployment zone for Breakthrough or Entourage? Give 'em an extra bit of juice and push a bit before they take that action. This also means that Hoffman can give them a push, they can take a walk, and (presuming they're still within three inches of him), he can then push up to their position. He can essentially give himself a (target's walk + 2) push.

//Repeat Program (Ram/Ram)// After succeeding, the target suffers 2 damage which may not be reduced and gains the **Fast** condition. So you've got a model that is in a great position to make a lot of attacks against a high priority target. Their health is full, they got **Armor** to spare, and you can even give 'em a heal if you're feeling saucy, but what's better than using a (1) AP spell to give them an AP, and then grant them **Fast** so they can take //another// AP. This means that that model is effectively getting to take **Reckless** twice. Sure it's a Master's AP that's allowing them to do that, but two for the price of one is pretty solid, and this means that Hoffman can effectively influence multiple battlefronts at once, spending resources where they're most needed from a mobile command station.

Remote Mines
C. Hoffman has an upgrade that essentially takes any Scrap on the board and turns it into a weapon. This is truly effective against Construct summoning style masters, such as Ramos or Collodi who want the Scrap to stay on the board so they may resummon their Minions. Detonate has a Ca of 6, and a TN of 12 which means it succeeds at a 6 up, and causes a 3" pulse that makes models take a TN 12 Wk duel or suffer 3 damage. It's got a Mask trigger that allows him to blast another one. Scrap on the field is also used for things like **Update Hardware**, or **Improvised Repairs**, but if you've got a good cluster of enemies (i.e. Gremlins), or need to keep Scrap out of your enemy's hands (Ramos), then this can be a surprisingly effective use of some bits of metal.

= __Resilience__ = Hoffman's resilience is sort of a one two punch. Firstly he's got his outstanding healing ability (It's all built on his upgrades, so you've got to watch for that), and secondly he has a defensive trigger that allows him to prevent as much damage as a construct within 4" has **Armor**. His Df sits at a three, so bare he's pretty easy to hit. Having a construct that carries him around that has a lot of armor both provide him with movement and the resilience of the **Armor** of that model, that can't be ignored by armor bypass. He does have to watch for models that disallow defensive triggers, like the Guild Executioner.

His Wp sits at a respectable 6, but doesn't have the protection trigger, so he is fairly susceptible to Wp attacks. It will be harder to hit than his typical defense, but he has less ways to mitigate the damage.

(Df) Protected
Hoffman can steal the armor of nearby constructs, not to say that he //has// **Armor**. The Tome is already built in, so, as long as he isn't within a suit stripping aura, it always happens. Since it acts like armor, it can't reduce it past 1, so you'll still be taking damage, but he can have quite a bit of armor under the right circumstances. Again, it isn't //actually// **Armor**, so things like the sister's mark that ignores **Armor**, or other things like that, don't.

(Upgrade) Improvised Repairs
It's important to note that Hoffman himself is a Construct - which means he can be affected by the heal. Scrap is a resource usually only generated by the death of a Construct, which means if you wait for that it's already too late. Luckily, Hoffman is a resourceful chap, and can make his own Scrap in a number of ways. More on this subject in a bit.
 * Improvised Repairs**, on the Field Mechanic upgrade, allows him to make a healing pulse which reads, "All friendly constructs within 3" of the Scrap marker heal 1/2/3." As normal with multiple models healing, each model makes its own healing flip.

(Upgrade) (0) Frantic Repairs
On the "Arcanist Assets" upgrade, this (0) action provides a couple of benefits at a decent cost - they discard an upgrade, generate a Scrap marker, and then either the target or Hoffman heal 2 damage. The scrap may be placed within' 8" of Hoffman, so this combos quite well with the **Improvised Repairs** ability. You can also use **Frantic Repairs** on Modification upgrades that Hoffman has put onto models (more on that later). This may also be used to generate some Scrap early in the game by having an Enforcer or Henchman take a dummy upgrade (such as Plant Evidence) and use your (0) action to discard it at the start of the turn. Though the only real reason to do so is to gain forward placement on the Scrap, as **Shakedown** (his built in 0 action) is relatively easy to get off, and generates Scrap in base to base with a target within 12".

Vulnerabilities
The name of the game is, Hoffman is as strong as the constructs that are around him. This is his biggest strength, but also one of his biggest weaknesses. By forcing him to be near enough to his models to gain benefits, as well as the limited range on his beneficial spells, if he somehow gets separated from the pack, there could be some dire consequences. Removing him for the 4" aura for //Protected// would take away his damage mitigation, as well as his ability to hitch a ride. He doesn't have a charge rating, and has limited walk, so without **Magnetic**, his movement is sub-par, and if he can't loop people in, his weaker stats start to show as well.

The necessity of the death ball tactics also means he's pretty susceptible to area attacks, such as pulses, whirlwinds, and blast templates.

Hoffman is also a Construct himself, so anything that affects Constructs specifically will affect him as well. I'm looking at you, **Relic Hammer**.

= __Tactical Actions and Abilities__ = This is sort of where Hoffman shines - he has a number of abilities that allow him to be more effective, it's also where his order of operations game really comes to life.

Feedback/Redirect Power
Hoffman has two ways to place people in what I like to call "The Loop". The loop is Hoffman's way of creating fully optimized units, and why his support is more than just healing and extra ap- power loop reads: "At the start of a duel, this model may use the printed numerical Df, Wp, Ca, Sh, or Ml, (Ignoring suits) from another friendly model with Power Loop instead of it's own". This means that as more people get looped in, each of them becomes the best of them. Hoffman is at Df 3? Loop in a Guardian and he's at df 6. The guardian is also at WP 6 now, as the loop goes both ways.

There are three ways to be put in the loop. You may start in it (Hoffman and the Mechanical Attendant just get to be in it always), you may be affected by Hoffman's Feedback Ability which allows him to choose one model to be in the loop at the start of his activation, or you may be invited to the loop by Hoffman's spell "Redirect Power". Ca 6 (r), with a TN14, you need an 8 up, and the range is only 4 inches (death ball!). And his automatic one is a target within' 3". Once you're in the loop, you stay in the loop until Hoffman's //next// activation. This is when Hoffman's flowchart meta game starts to happen. More on this in the tips and tricks section.

Empower
Empower reads, "The model gains +1 casting for each other friendly Construct within 4". It's got a cap of plus two, but it essentially makes all of his skills skills easier to cast. Machine puppet moves from a 6 up to a 4 up, redirect power goes from a 8 up to a 6 up, and Shakedown goes from a 4 up to a 2 up. At which point every card you can ever get is a cheatable card. Since none of these abilities require a opposed duel, the number of unusable cards in your deck gets slimmed by quite a bit.

Tap Power
Another of Hoffman's order of operations tricks, the On Site Assimilation upgrade has a classic Hoffman ability, "Tap Power". It allows him, when he is activating, to volunteer a construct within' 3 to gain slow, giving him fast. It's another resource allocation ability, but there are tricks to using this ability optimally as well. A model may not be given slow more than once, so if you plan your activation orders very precisely, you can give a model slow after they've activated to gain fast, then at the top of the next turn give them slow again, to gain fast again. 2 for the price of one. You can also give them the AP back through the use of the Machine Puppet's Repeat Program trigger. So, if you're willing to give one of those ap back you can net one free fast. This takes quite a bit of planning, but can give Hoffman some serious power turns, and if you keep activation order in mind, you can mitigate the negatives.

Update Hardware
Hoffman's unique ability, and his limited upgrade slot, is his other amazing support ability. He may give out to friendly constructs "Modifications"- Special upgrades that only he may give out, and the only restriction is they be a construct. Minions may be upgraded this way. There are a few restrictions: there are only four upgrades available, each mod may only be placed on one model, and each model may only have one mod. Once a model with a mod dies, it may be re-installed elsewhere, but once it's on a model it can't be placed on another until the first model dies, or has the modification removed (another case for Frantic Repairs- you may use it to discard the mod, heal the target, and then later install it elsewhere).

The current mods are as follows: //Hydraulics-// Takes a scrap to install it, and gives the target model Nimble. //Programmed Directive-// Doesn't require a scrap, and allows the model to take (2) interact actions as (1) interact actions, and (1) interact actions as a (0) interact action. You may also discard it to lose the Insignificant ability, though if you do you have to sacrifice the model at the end of it's activation. //Targeting System-// Doesn't require scrap, and allows the modded model to discard the upgrade at the beginning of it's turn to gain a ram to it's shooting or melee attacks for the duration of the activation. //Patchwork Plating-// Requires a scrap to install, but increases the models armor by +1. This stacks with existing armor, and is a great mod for your protector model, as their armor is your armor.

Divvying out modifications, and what models to give them to, is another case by case example, but there are a few that stand out- more in the tips and tricks section.

Shakedown
Hoffman's resource creation ability- it's low cast, so even by himself he can cast it at a 4 up. All this remarkable (0) action does is create a scrap marker in base to base with a target models. This can of course be used for any number of things- place it next to a model, then use it to install Hydraulics or Patchwork Plating, Place it next to a model, then use it to heal all models within 3". Place it next to a model, then immediately blow it up to cause walk duels with the remote mine ability. It doesn't say "target friendly construct", so you may shake down an opponent's construct, and the explode it.

O.S.A. On Sight Assimilation
This is an interesting ability, as it's also only as effective as the models around Hoffman. It's on the On Site Assimilation upgrade, and is a 1ap spell, range 8, that allows him to target a non leader construct. This is friendly or enemy, and has a wp resist. If he succeeds he may take a (1) ap or (0) ap action that doesn't list a model by name, then takes that action without declaring triggers. You can only do it once per turn. This can allow you to take another model's 0 action as a one action, for example, taking the Peacekeepers (0) that has a scheme marker clear pulse. You may also take the attack of another model, but you'll usually be taking an 1ap ability from an enemy, because if it's friendly, you may as well be trying to machine puppet them and let them do it themselves.

= __Tricks and Tips__ =

Feedback Loops
The feedback loop is an interesting beast. When planning a crew and a turn there are a few things to keep in mind. First and foremost- what types of actions are the models you intend to loop in going to be taking the most? As constructs, the answer will more than likely be DF, WP, and ML. Hunter and Ryle are the outliers with their SH attacks. What this means is if you have a model with an amazing melee attack that has a low ML score to balance it's high damage, and amazing triggers, then you can make that attack even more amazing with the looping of a model with a weak melee attack that's been balanced with a //high// ml number-

Case in point. The guardian has a flatblade attack. it's damage is relatively low, and it's range is pretty good. But it's also got ML7. The Rail Golem has an amazing attack that does great damage with a high threat range, and the ability to allow him to take and retake the attack with his locomotion ability. He's got a positive twist to the attack which makes it a little more reliable, but he's only ml 5, which means he's average, on par or one behind typical Df. Loop both of them together, and suddenly the Rail Golem is swinging ML7 with a positive twist, and wrecking face.

The Guardian is also bringing DF 6 to the table, so as a loop model he's usually high priority, as he gives both the best attack rating in faction as well as a higher than average DF, allowing Hoffman to sluff off more attacks, without having to resort to the Protected trigger.

The other thing that must be said about the feedback loop is a quick look at the order of operations, or "flowchart", style of play. For the example, let's say it's turn two. Turn one was spend positioning and upgrading- Machine puppet to get into position quicker- the threat of battle looms large at the top of turn two, and Hoffman wants his boys at their fighting best. He will activate very early in turn two, potentially first, divvying out powerloop to get his crew optimized. He may give some machine puppet actions, drop some scrap, and end his turn. The newly optimized crew will then run around with the best of all of their stats in combination- hard hitting, hard to hit, pure efficiency. But as we said before, power loop doesn't go away at the end of the turn, it goes away at the beginning of Hoffman's next activation- so at the start of the next turn, the crew will run around still optimized, and Hoffman will sit back and sit on his hands to keep the loop from going away. In turn three, he may activate very last- at which point he will NOT re power loop people, he'll spend the turn healing, people, re-upgrading, taking machine puppets to give his friends more AP. At the start of turn four, he'll try and activate early, and re-loop all of the robots to allow the cycle to start again. This lets power loop be twice as effective, while allowing Hoffman to use the AP to loop people in half as much. Efficiency. Activation order. Flowcharts.

Empowered Empower
Empower give Hoffman +2 to his casting so long as two constructs are around. That makes his spells extremely reliable. But what if it's not reliable enough for you? You're greedy. But I can't fault you for that, when we're seeing Sonia going to CA 9, we start to get jealous. Well I have good news for you- there's a model that's hireable through "Arcanist Assets" called a metal gamin. The metal gamin brings a lot to the table! He has additional mobility, armor, a fierce head butt, and the ability to give a model (that maybe didn't make the cut for the loop) some additional DF. But at the top of the list of his benefits is he has a spell called magnetism. That spell is at CA 8. Which means if you loop him in, and have two constructs around you, you're effectively at CA 10 for all of your spells. Don't cry O.P. Broken, he's not going to be able to use this to target anyone with any crazy damage spells, but what it will do is allow you to cast Machine puppet for a 2up, Redirect power at a 4 up, and Shakedown on a black joker. At this point, all of his beneficial spells become SUPER reliable, though it will take an ap or the auto loop slot to keep him running that efficiently. When I do run the metal gamin (and I do like it...), I also often nominate him to be my slow power tap model. If he's got slow, he can still catch up to the unit with magnetism (which I can mitigate the damage from with some quick heals), and his one ap. At which point he's mostly a 4 stone model to place scheme markers, tie up enemies, and grant fast/CA8 to a nearby Hoffman.

Modifications
Of course, what you modify, when you modify, and who gets what will depend upon your matchup, your schemes, and your strategy, but there are a few choices that really stand out.

//** Patchwork Plating- **// This is usually best served on a model that a) will be your protector, and b) already has some armor on. For instance, if you're gonna be moseying around with a Peacekeeper bodyguard, drop patchwork plating on him, and roll around with armor+3. This means all damage will be a 1 until you break the 5 damage mark. Even Seamus' flintlock will be doing 4 damage on a severe. Other notable choices: Give Howard Langston a fresh coat of steel for Armor +2, he's already //got// nimble. Give the rail golem armor +3.

//Warden-// Wardens have an ability that gives then a ram if they're attacking an activated model- this allows them either impressive double ram criticals, or the "Restrain" or "Send Flying" triggers. This makes Wardens want to activate later in the turn, playing into the Flowchart game, but if you give them targeting systems, they gain the flexibility to use the triggers earlier, or even potentially get a triple ramp crit strike (making their melee damage 5/6/7). Whoof. //Ryle-// He's got critical on his fist, so making his fists do 4/6/8 automatically for a turn would be pretty boss, but it also makes Raking fire more sure for that turn, which could prompt a lot of extra SH attacks, and if you've looped in a construct with higher than average shooting, that could turn pretty ugly. //Peacekeeper-// He's got one ram built into the attack for crit- why not give him a turn where that's two? For one turn his damage could be 5/6/8, with flurry. Push him into place with machine puppet, and let him go to town.
 * // Targeting Systems- //** The ram trigger is nice, but who is it nicest for? Howard Langston is the best option ever- he'd get auto decapitate, which would be so broken! So broken, the dev team decided to make sure that didn't happen. The fine print on T.S. now reads, "This Upgrade may only be attached to //GUILD CONSTRUCTS//." Okay, the caps were my addition for clarity, but yes, auto decapitate with ML7 and Flurry was a little much... So who wants it now, then?

//** Hydraulics and Programmed Directive- **// This trick is a little more situational, but Watchers have an amazing speed of 6, with flight. This makes them some amazing scheme runners by themselves, and given modifications from Hoffman's arsenal, they get just silly. Hydraulics allows them to generate an extra move each turn which a) gives them an 18" movement max, and also allows them to either nimble, scheme, move, or nimble move scheme, or even scheme, nimble, scheme. This makes breakthrough, line in the sand, or power ritual much easier to accomplish. The same goes for programmed directive- It allows you to do all of the above except the 18" move- as you can take 1 interacts as 0s. This one is great for things like plant explosives (as long as you can avoid ending in engagements), or deliver the message (fly 6" over a wall, and then 1 AP deliver).

Soulstone Use
Hoffman has an initial cache of 3, which is respectable, but his uses for them are relatively limited. Not to say he won't use them- he's just only got a few reasons to need them.

//Triggers-// I find one of my two main uses of his soulstones are for the days that I absolutely need "Take new Position" or "Repeat Program" from Machine puppet, or "Power Overload" on either Redirect Power, or Update Hardware to go off. If I don't have the suit to cheat for redirect power for two looped for the price of one, I may burn a stone to add it in so I can spend more time healing, upgrading, or puppeting. These are usually about AP management, or additional movement for machine puppet to get the most out of each of those AP spent.

// Prevention- // Specifically against WP damage- like I said, if your DF is being targeted, armor will wick away most of those wounds, and you'll find yourself healing back up quickly with a cast or two of improvised repairs. But a WP attack like Pandora or Kirai, or Bishop even, will leave you hurting with little recourse. Burning a stone for prevention will keep you up longer.

// Card Draw- // For when you draw three aces, and you aren't playing power. Even without a Metal Gamin buffing your cast, you've still got a use for midrange cards, but sometimes you're not even drawing those. If you're sitting on a terrible hand, a stone for some certainty kind be a nice boon.

= __Strategies and Schemes for C. Hoffman__ =

Hoffman has some of the best physical resilience in the guild, so his strategy strong points are: **Turf War-** Put a couple tough constructs in the middle, and let Hoffman throw heals and extra AP to the models in the murderbox. **Squatters Rights-** His ability to allow people to take any 1 interact allows him to have a lot of control over squat markers. Big models placed between squat markers can be made to interact with multiple markers for just a couple machine puppet uses. **Reckoning-** This one is a bit of a mixed back- he loves running elite crews, so having fewer models that are difficult to kill by themselves, not to mention in twos, is something that is quite comfortable for him. He isn't, however, a damage power house like some other masters. Lady Justice and her crew should have no problem putting out that much damage, but Hoffman is more of a force multiplier, so while he can make sure one model that's engaged with a beater is definitely dead, he has more trouble sharing the love to multiple targets. Not impossible, just not as native to his playstyle. **Reconnoiter-** This one is definitely not Hoffman's bag- While you could choose to run a bunch of metal gamin, wardens, and hunters, the more of the constructs you get, the harder it is to keep everyone healed, buffed, and looped. More models means he's spread too thin, and less of the percentage of models are gaining mods.

As far as schemes go, he's can tailor his crew to produce any kind of result through crew selection and mods. Some of the highlights are: //Breakthrough/Power Ritual-// It will be impressive how fast the watchers get on your opponent's side of the board. And the sheer number of schemes they can drop once they're there. //Bodyguard-// He's a master with an easy heal, and the ability to give out extra armor, and Df. Bring a peacekeeper, and a guardian, keep them looped, and drop/save some scrap for heals. Save a McMourning or a Viki with the Mark, very few things are going to penetrate that shell. //Protect Territory-// Another solid bet- models move up turn one dragging Hoffman with them, and then he can machine puppet them to drop scheme markers to have the in place before the enemies can get close enough to try and jam you up. Then they stand guard, and keep them from being cleared. Worst case scenario, machine puppet can push a model out of engagement with take new position, and then use the (1) AP to drop a new scheme marker.

= __Building a Crew__ =

Hoffman's crew selection may seem constrained as he's "type" master and favors constructs, but as I said in the strategy section, more constructs are not always the answer. You'll want a good core of constructs to be the Hoffman Warmachine, like a Guardian and a Peacekeeper, maybe a Hunter to run positioning gambits and watchers to run schemes, but don't feel like you have to take constructs and only constructs.

**Construct Choices**
Ryle (10 stones)- Henchman, brother, all around good guy. Weak defensive states (4 Df and 5 Wp), he probably wants to be looped, but with armor and the grinding halt trigger, he can mitigate damage before he uses a soulstone to stop it outright. Good ranged attack, great melee attack, he can be a great offensive piece, but with a 0 action to increase mobility, or a different 0 action to allow himself to heal, he's either very quick, or very tough. Flexibility is great as well.
 * //Guild//**

Mechanical Attendant (2 stones)- always looped, so if you're looping at all he's getting bonuses. He's only got a ranged attack, so hopefully you're looping in a shooter, but he's got Scan which will allow Hoffman to target using his Line of Sight, and a 1 AP condition removal ability. He also is the only counter to pulse, blasts, and aura attacks for Hoffman, but if you know you're seeing Raspy or Sonia, he's worth his weight in stones.

Guardian (7 stones)- He's got good DF, and a great Melee attack that allows him to be amazing in any power loop. He's also got his shield that has some push abilities to clear the area, and a 0 action that gives the defensive ability, as well as having triggers to either heal or push into base to base for protection purposes. Giving any model **Defensive** **+2** without discarding a card is fantastic, to be able to heal 2 with a 7 rams (or, notably a 4 of rams if the metal gamin is looped in) is fantastic.

Peacekeeper (11 stones)- An enforcer, and a beater. Good choice for a mount, as he's armored (2, or 3 with plating), hard to wound, and terrifying living. Amazing damage, good for machine puppet attacks.

Warden (6 stones)- Save for the watcher, this is Hoffman's go-to cheap combat piece. Average Df/Wp of 5/5, they have a plus ram to duels against models that have activated. Best activated later in the turn after models have gone. Good melee and shooting attacks with great triggers. Both have critical strike for decent damage, ranged can give paralyze, and melee can push for position control.

Hunter (7 stones)- fast, and gets bonuses against unactivated models (early in the flowchart... sensing a theme?).They've got average defense and willpower of 5/5, but where they really shine is with the Chain Harpoon attack. It's got a built in drag for positional control, as well as a built in slow for AP control. They're no laughing matter in melee either, as their claws have a critical strike, and if they use their 0 action pounce on chest, they can make up to three attacks in a turn.

Watcher (4 stones)- Not a lot of combat potential, and low stats (Df/Wp 4/5, 4 wounds), mean that if this little guy gets shot, it's going to hurt, but moving from cover to cover, and with 6" flight, they can usually stay out of sight and out of mind. The go-to objective runner for Hoffman (and maybe the guild...), this is as close as we're going to get to the likes of the silurid or a necropunk.

With the Arcanist Assets, Hoffman can hire any construct with the M&SU characteristic.
 * //Arcanist//**

Joss (10SS) Henchman. Good for scrap creation, with creative salvage and a good melee beater with his ability to ignore armor, hard to wound, and hard to kill. He's got choke slam which is more useful here because Hoffman can use machine puppet to place him before his turn starts, making it less situational. Lots of damage, with a chance to paralyze? Yes please.

Miss Step / Howard Langston (12SS)- Nimble, Terrifying, and amazing stats. If you're looking for ML7, you can get it here without hiring a guardian. More survivable in a Hoffman crew due to readily available healing, and another armor if modified, (s)he's a good choice for chariot due to a walk of 5 with a nimble action. Terrifying living, this and a peacekeeper back to back will make many living models wee in terror.

Metal Gamin (4SS) Df/Wp 5/4 with **Armor +2** - this model has already been spoken about for its primary benefit, the Ca 8 it brings with **Magnetism**. Good filler for that fact, and it's a cheap tough significant model that can ride along.

Steam Arachnid, Arachnid Swarm (4 and 8 respectively) - the arachnids are good fillers, but Metal Gamin are hardier. The spiders are nice for their ability to reduce enemy armor. In a pack they might be worth it early for activation control, then once they start getting hurt, swarm them together for a swarm. The swarm are much hardier, and can be healed both by Hoffman's heal, and by their own 0 action, self repair. The Devouring Swarm ability brings some welcome scheme marker removal.

Large Arachnid (6SS) - An alternative to the Warden, these are a little more defensible, and tougher- with an additional wound. They also bring Creative Salvage for additional scrap markers, Unimpeded for better movement (though their walk is only 4), And a sawblade that can either temporarily take away armor, or add burning. they have a (0) action that discards a scrap marker to give them a positive twist for the rest of the activation- which is probably easier to use in a Hoffman crew with the amount of scrap being tossed around.

Rail Golem - Content here

Mobile Toolkit - Content here

//**Non-Construct**// Every now and again, Hoffman likes to bring along a real friend, not just a metal one. While there are many great options for one off models, there are a few that stand out-

Sidir Achibal - He brings some interesting things to the table. For one, he's a real shooter with his mini gun, so he can threaten at range, unlike some of the Hoffman models, he also has the ability to try and hand out slow from range which is great (team him with a hunter, and hand how slow like candy). But the big reasons he piqued my interest are the Promises Upgrade, and the By Your Side Upgrade. By your side give him the ability to protect Hoffman by becoming the target of an attack. This is last ditch, as you'll usually just be letting the armor soak it, then healing himself, but there may be times (like WP attacks, or the Viki/McMourning problem). Promises, however, is where things get really interesting- it reads all models in the aura get a positive twist to WP and Melee duels, so long as they have an upgrade. Well, the modifications count as upgrades, so this makes it so anyone with a mod and a melee attack just got paired. What's scarier than a peacekeeper with an extra ram to his attack and ml7? A peacekeeper with an extra ram, ml7 and an positive twist to attack!

The Ortegas- Francisco really gets around. The one time I had to play Reconnoiter with Hoffman, my best option felt like this: A 3-4 person construct crew (a guardian, 2 wardens, and Hoffman), and a Family death squad (Francisco, Santiago, Abuela and a Latigo Pistelero). They can operate on their own quite successfully, and are quite murderous when they need to be. They may also be the missing link in the reckoning crew, as Hoffman and co can probably kill one thing, and Santiago and Abuela can probably kill another at range.

=Upgrades:= Hoffman's Upgrades are all pretty fantastic - I rarely don't max out my upgrade slots. The question will more often be what not to take.

Arcanist Assets (1ss) //Frequently Taken//
Allows for the hiring of up to four Arcanist M&SU constructs. You want Howard or Joss? You have to take this. It also allows (0) Frantic Repairs which allows you to heal the target 2, discard an upgrade (if you want to swap a modification), and place a scrap.

On Sight Assimilation (2ss) //Infrequent//
Gives you the Tap Power ability which allows you to give slow to a friendly construct to gain fast. It also gives you the (1) O.S.A. ability that steals a 1 or 0 ap action, and allows Hoffman to immediately cast it. Good for abilities like the Peacekeeper's scheme clear, or Ryle's 0 action heal.

Field Mechanic (2ss) //Very Frequently Taken//
Allows for Update Hardware, the modification Upgrade. There are very few times I wouldn't bring this upgrade, as the modifications are an upgrade avalanche. Also allows for Improvised repairs, the healing pulse from scrap.

Remote Mines (2ss) //Infrequent//
This is the upgrade that competes with OSA. It depends on if I'm expecting hoards or construct summoners. Remote mines usually wins out, because of Improvised Genius, which says this model may not be moved or pushed by the action of abilities of enemy models, which means he can't be pushed or lured away from the safety of his construct fortress. (1) Detonate is just a nice bonus- a 6 up (without empower or a metal gamin) makes TN12 walk duels off scrap tokens, which by themselves are low, but with a 3" pulse you could catch a lot of models (a Collodi crew for instance).

Pnuematic Upgrades (2ss)
Content -

Improved Harness (1ss) //Frequently Taken//
This gives Hoffman Armor +1, and an aura that makes it impossible to ignore armor on friendly constructs. It also gives a 0 action that gives Hoffman a 6" place.

Tessellating Magnet
Added for discussion's sake- I've never taken this ability, as if they're ending within four, they're already close enough for a lot of the aruas and spells. But there may be a time that you can't quite reach, or a metal gamin (with a walk of four) could walk four, and then get to push another four as a free action, leaving Hoffman un-magneted. Food for thought.

= __Starting Hoffman__ =

Hoffman's 2E box contains a Guardian, Mechanical Attendant, a Watcher, and 2 Hunters - a fantastic start to a solid Hoffman Death Ball. If you want to stay within faction, you'll want to follow up with Emissary and Ryle or Peacekeeper.

If you don't mind expanding to Arcanists as well, another good alternative is to get the M&SU starter box. Along with the Hoffman box, you'll have a Guardian, a Watcher, 2 Hunters, Howard Langston, and Joss to beef up your elite status.

Starting Difficulty
Hoffman's choices aren't terribly difficult to make. You have a lot that you can do, but mostly what you're doing is making key models better, and act more, and if you have a handle on how to prioritize your goals on the board, Hoffman can make those goals happen very efficiently. The nuance to playing him, and what will take a few games to learn, is the best order of operations. Knowing what you need to do is easy, knowing the best time to do it is where it gets more challenging.

= __Playing Against Hoffman__ = As stated above, C. Hoffman's greatest strength is also his greatest weakness. He operates best while surrounded by strong models, made stronger by the miracle of technology. But he's also like a computer programmer in that if he's separated from that technology he doesn't know what to do with himself. Pushes, pulls, and model swaps (a la tangle shadows) can put him off his game very quickly. He's also got a lot of bunching issues, so unless he's brought the mechanical attendant, pulses blasts and auras can have an overwhelming effect on him. If he has brought the attendant, it's a priority target if you're planing on blasting.

Many of his models have low defense but high armor, and the ability to gain more (grinding halt), so anything that ignores armor becomes very important. Don't try and kill Hoffman with those targets around, as his armor isn't actually armor, but cut down his shields, and he'll be lost. And sad. Attacking willpower is also a strong choice, as the Hoffman's armor trigger is only on DF.

Look for the loop lynch pins- there will be models that are hired specifically for a stat or two. If you can remove that stat from the loop, then the whole crew suffers. Prime suspects: Guardian, Metal Gamin.

KILL THE WATCHER. If there's Watcher, and if he took the time to give it Hydraulics or Programmed Directive, it's probably going to be the easiest lynch pin to deny points. Make him take the long way around. Try and smoke him out.

To summarize:
 * Unless using WP, target Hoffman's loop constructs, and guard models first.
 * Try to bring models that cut through armor.
 * Try to take advantage of blasts and pulses, as bunching will occur.
 * Watch for models that are primarily focuses on schemes.
 * DON'T FORGET YOUR STRATEGY AND SCHEMES!

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