Sin City Dispatch #20: "You Were Warned"

Hello everyone and welcome to another vengeful issue of the Dispatch!

In this issue we will be taking a closer look the Retribution of Scyrah concept art along with the latest pictures of their warjacks. The time of Retribution is close at hand so sit down and strap in because we are about to hit the ground running!

Incoming!!!
Upcoming releases for Warmachine

A couple of months ago, Privateer Press really started to push their new faction for Warmachine, the Iosians. This September the force book is slated to hit the shelves, making this the first of the new Mark II Warmachine Force Books. That's right, all of the stats in this book will be done for Mark II but PP has once again thought ahead and will be releasing their Mark I stats in No Quarter #25 so that we can start throwing down with these bad boys right away. So what do they look like? Here is a shot of the cover.

Though opinions seem to range to both end of the spectrum on these, I am finding that I like them more and more each time I look at them. In fact, I am officially throwing it out there now that I am going to take this as my second Warmachine faction after Cryx. Mwah-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!

In addition to the cover artwork, PP was quick to release pictures of two of the warcaster minis, along with pictures of the light and heavy myrmidons and concept art for several of the units. Here are each of those along with the flavor blurbs that were posted on their homepage, followed up by my wild speculation about what some of the in game effects might be.

"Dawnlord Vyros views the military might of the new Retribution as a sword in his hands, one sufficient to sunder any obstacle. He has the loyalty of the Dawnguard and the volunteered assets of dozens of other houses. The dawnlord has a reputation as a bold and forthright general who leads by example. Even pursuits such as falconry Vyros extends to applications in war, linking his mind to his hawk’s to look down from above and survey the battlefield."

I must admit that when I first saw this mini I really wasn't too excited about it. The sword just looks too big and the way that his head is positioned just looks kind of awkward. I have actually thought about trying to put a helmet on him instead of the bare head (novel idea: a warcaster with a helmet!) but we'll have to see once I actually have the mini. As far as fluff, he sounds pretty cool. Heck, it sounds like he might not even need LoS given the bit about the falcon. Depending on what kind of offensive spells he has, that could come in very handy.

"Kaelyssa is the foremost strike force commander of the Retribution’s mage hunters. Her sergeants claim she can hear the heartbeats of the enemy and taste their movements on the wind. Those wizards caught in her sights are left defenseless as their own magic is negated or turned against them. To Kaelyssa her calling is a dangerous but thrilling endeavor, and with every mission she extends the depths of her formidable talents.

If Vyros is the general of the Iosian forces, then Kaelyssa definitely sounds like she is the assassin. A mage hunter and a warcaster? Now that is one hell of a combination!

"The legendary Dawnguard have ever defended the security of Ios by eliminating threats to the kingdom as soon as they are identified. Here's a sneak peek at the Dawnguard Invictors releasing this September for the Retribution of Scyrah."

From this, I can only assume that the Invictors represent the rank and file unit of the army. I am thinking something like Trenchers with better armor.

"Dawnguard sentinels charge into the enemy as an overwhelming tide of cleaving blades. These heavily armored knights use their great swords to expertly carve through any adversary willing to stand against them. Sentinels embody sheer determination in flesh and steel and view themselves as the timeless essence of their order."

Where the Invictors are the line troopers, the Sentinels will be the hard hitting heavy close combat troopers. "Expertly carve" makes me hope for weapon master while "sheer determination" sounds like it might be fearless. Kind of like Bane Thralls now that I think of it, but without Dark Shroud.

"Companies of riflemen have joined the Retribution in number and serve as the long-reaching line for the army abroad. They wield heavy rifles capable of delivering punishing firepower against the human armies that so greatly outnumber them. Rather than haphazardly firing into the enemy, a rifleman is trained to take careful aim and regard each trigger pull as a prospective kill."

The Riflemen instantly made me think of Long Gunners which would be awesome. Given the size of the rifle and the cylinder located by the trigger, I am thinking that these guys will pack a serious punch and maybe even be able to make multiple shots. I can't see Pathfinder with that much armor but if their range is comparable to the Long Gunners it won't be much of an issue.

By themselves, these troops seem like they are going to be a pretty fearsome opponent. Then you throw in the warjacks...

"The Chimera has an unsettling appearance as its active power field makes its form blur and fade. Once it nears the enemy, a Chimera becomes a delivery device for its warcaster’s most powerful arcane powers, channeled across its arc node. The Chimera will strike and kill with its scything arm-mounted glaives, then vanish as nearby soldiers turn to desperately engage it. With a flicker of blended light it appears behind them to deliver arcane death."

"Blur and fade" sounds an awful lot like some kind of Stealth to me which on a 'jack is just nasty. Then consider the fact that it also mounts an arc node. No ranged weapons but with that combination, who needs 'em?

"The Griffon is a sleek and fast myrmidon, designed for swift flanking maneuvers. Its power field enables the Griffon to become near-weightless for short intervals, allowing for long, loping strides before it strikes home with its powerful halberd. By judicious use of this field the Griffon can negotiate marshy terrain, dense undergrowth or other obstacles."

This beastie will definitely have Reach with that halberd and the added armor of a shield (both pretty obvious just from looking at it), plus it sounds like it will have some kind of Pathfinder ability. Overall, it should be a tough customer with a serious threat range.

"The Gorgon exists to dictate the flow of battle by depriving the enemy of mobility. Its integral force cannon unleashes blasts of energy capable of forestalling an enemy’s forward momentum. Its more powerful fields require close proximity, and the Gorgon will rush forward to seize even larger and more powerful ’jacks or myrmidons to pin them in place. While its force-locked prey struggles to extract itself, the Gorgon deals punishing blows with its arm-mounted glaives."

Hmmm... kind of sounds like TB... onna 'jack! Probably nothing that sick but there are 'jacks out there that can force opponents back, such as the Revenger with its repulsion shield. This sounds like it might be a similar mix but worked into a ranged weapon. Then there are the "more powerful fields" which sound like some kind of a twist on a head/arm lock but look ma, no hands! It will be interesting to see just how this one will work because it sounds like it could be pretty nasty. Not the worst of the light myrmidons, but still pretty nasty.

The next three are especially interesting since they are the first of the new plastic warjack kits. What makes this one so interesting is the fact that all three of the heavy myrmidons can be made with this one kit. Not quite sure how the pieces attach but it sounds like it might be possible to mount some rare earth magnets in some key locations so that you can swap bits around to effectively "build" whichever one of the three you feel like using at the moment. Won't know for sure until I have the mini in my grubby little hands, but the possibilities sound very interesting. But enough of this, lets take a closer look at them.

"House Shyeel has brought the power of its formidable myrmidons to the Retribution, fighting machines enhanced by sophisticated arcanika systems. The Hydra stores energy in its arcane batteries to unleash a torrent of crushing blows or a singularly powerful blast."

Sounds kind of like your standard two handed 'jack until you get to the "singularly powerful blast" part. Since the light myrmidons have no obvious weapons, it could be that this blast is some kind of a ranged weapon. Maybe mounted in the forearms? Regardless of what exactly it means, it sounds like this might be like the Slayer for the Retribution.

"The Manticore is equally as formidable in melee or at range, thanks to kinetically augmented attacks and its Cyclone Cannon."

Well, this sounds like it is meant to be the "'jack" of all trades. Oh yeah, the hits just keep on coming... :) The close combat weapons are pretty obvious but I am not sure just where the Cyclone Cannon is supposed to be mounted or for that matter what it might be capable of. Yet another one that goes onto the "it will be interesting to see" list.

"The Phoenix enters battle in a blaze of blue-white flames as liquid fire ignites along its massive thermal blade."

Now this one just sounds like a world of hurt. Liquid fire? Massive thermal blade? Sounds like this one might have some kind of fire effect and hopefully it will also have Reach. Then again, the Deathjack still doesn't so sometimes you just never know. I do have to wonder what the things on its back are. The front looks vaguely similar to the device mounted on the shoulders of the Chimera. You know, the one with the arc node? Could this be a heavy with an arc node? Can you say ouch?

And there you have it... well, so far anyway. There will no doubt be more to come since the Retribution book will probably be packed with all kinds of nasty things. After all, the faction books for the other armies will have all the information from five other books plus more information. Makes me think that all of this is just the tip of the iceberg.

Overall, I am really interested in this faction. It really seems like it will have more of a military feel to it (wow, ranged weapons? what do those do!) and I like the look of most of the minis as well. They are very different from everything else in the IK universe but that kind of makes sense to me. After all, the Abyss and the Stormlands were created by the fall of the Lyoss Empire, the ancestors of the Iosians. If they could do that hundreds of years ago (even if it was a horrible accident) imagine the kind of power they must have had access to today.

If only it was July so I could get my hands on that No Quarter...

The Parting Shot...

And there you have it! This issue didn't go quite the way that I had originally intended but with all of the new information that was coming out on the Retribution I decided that I just had to get my two cents in. Until next time, may all of your dice come up Dragons!