Starting with the Imperial Secret Service
List 2: The Crane Agent comes to town
This list features one of the ISS famous weird links. The ISS is able to linkteams that consist out of different units; the Pheasant and the Bao, the Crane Lieutenant and the Celestial Guards.
What you need:
Starter Boxed Set
Celestial Guard Boxed Set
Kuang Shi Boxed Set
Ninja Blister
Crane Agent Blister
The List
Imperial Agent Crane (Multi Rifle)
Celestial Guard (Combi Rifle)
Celestial Guard (Kuang Shi Control Device)
Celestial Guard (Spitfire)
Celestial Guard (Hacker)
Wu Ming (Forward Observer)
Ninja (Combi Rifle + DA CCW)
Kuang Shi (Chain Rifle)
Kuang Shi (Chain Rifle)
Kuang Shi (Chain Rifle)
The Crane Agent was considered overcosted and without purpose in 2nd Edition. N3 changed the profile a lot and now it has become an admirable unit. More on those changed can be found here.
In order to link with the Celestial Guards, the Crane has to be a Lieutenant. The Crane is an amazing Close Combat monster, CC22, Double Action Close Combat Weapon, and Martial Arts Lv3 and Kinemtika Lv2. Dayumn. You don’t want to engage this monster in close combat, as he’ll most likely just chop the head of everything without so much as an effort.
If you even make it into CC with this beast. Dual Nanopulsers make short work of anything that comes too close, and if they’re out of range for the templates, they can just shoot the oncoming soldier with the multi rifle.
The Crane has the Sensor trait, and can auto-reveal any camouflaged model in its zone of control, due to the +6 modifier on a WIP of 14! This Sensor trait also gives it the ability for Triangulated Fire, ignoring any modifier that happens before taking the shot.
Add to all this the decent statline of a Heavy Infantry and you understand why the Crane will be feared by your opponents. I am not even mentioning the link-bonusses he gets from the cheaper Celestial Guards.
The Ninja is one of the clandestine units of the ISS. Officially, they do not exist, and the ISS officially never uses the expertise of the Ninja. However, sometimes a Ninja is all that it takes to finish the job.
The Ninja is one of the few ways for the ISS to have a different angle of attack. Outside of the Ninja, the ISS lacks Infiltrating options, and only have one not very reliable AD option in the Garuda.
The Ninja is an infiltrator and TO Camo unit, which allows you to deploy it in Hidden Deployment (the model or token won’t show on the board until you want them to). CC23, Martial Arts L3 and Kinematika Lv1 makes the Ninja a feared close combat unit, and the ability to remain hidden until you want to show them allows the Ninja to cross the distance between himself and his target with ease. This one comes equipped with a Double Action CCW and a Combi Rifle, but you can take Shock or Armour Piercing for the same price. Whatever you fancy!
Fairy dust is an entire Order and will kick the Hacker out of the Link.
Smoke is a fine thing, but the kuang shi have to act before the smoke-lgl, still vrry usable, but you have to be carful with the kuang shi.
Sprinkle dust as a first order and form a link afterwards. And same goes for the Kuang Shi, have them start as a link, and you will negate their impetuousness in your first turn. Lots of ways to get the most out of what you bring. 🙂
Yes you can Do that, but It will also cost you a command token…
Could always just take a Wu Ming fire team with a Tinbot. Hell, Tinbot, FO, and HMG/MULTI Rifle + LGL is a fine budget fire team that can get a lot done. Especially in an ISS list.
I also didn’t see you mention anything about Wu Ming being sans-Cube, Scorch! Huge deal when CA players in your meta try to spring Sepsitor on your precious fire team. Same thing goes for the Su Jian.
Add in some Quack Sheep and their handler, a Zhanying Hacker (I know, no model but we can proxy), and a Dakini Paramedic.
http://goo.gl/nD2j8H
3 specialists isn’t terrible for 200pts in ITS, but it’s hard enough to do so and stack a HI fire team. Especially, since the Wu Ming has 2 juicy ARM3 BTS3 PH13 wounds to get through.
Cheers
Good and tough list, GhostWolves. The ones in the article are just one of the countless options available! 🙂
True, there is a cost. But I see no reason to save 4 of them for a ‘later moment’ that might never come! 😉
That’s why I love Infinity. No two lists have to be the same. We both offered something interesting and playable. This is what makes Infinity unique and fun. The list is a small facet that can show off a players skill.
Agreed! 🙂 These articles are meant for the new players, in a way of showing the flexibility you can bring! 🙂
last night i played with one of your lists. Since i have problems with list building in IS. I used list based on Su Jian. Only things i have changed where 1 celestial guard hacker instead of regular one and i have added Ninja Hacker. Changes where made as we played for 250 pts. During my 2nd and 3rd ,I have made bad tactical decisions (like going in h2h with Armored Brigade and getting hit by combi rifle from last specialist from my enemy) Should have just shoot that guy (last specialist) and i would have win that game, as my opponent didn’t had sized any objectives by that point. Kuang Shi, they ended up dead in my 2nd turn, but they returned themselves but killing around 100 points [great unit]. Next on my list to try is your list with Crane (as i love that model). Over all very good army list (sujian one) thanks a lot for your effort of helping noobs like me 🙂
You’re welcome! 🙂 It was a joy coming up with some lists. I’m a big fan of the Ninja Hacker in N3, but I feel it’s too expensive for a 200 point list. Good choice to pick that one if you expand the list to 250 points!
And you took out 100 points with a couple of Kuang shi? That’s not bad! 😉 Points well spent!
Enjoy your game with the Crane list. 🙂 I’m still waiting for the model myself.. 🙁 LGS is a bit slow.