Trying something else

Again there are busy weeks and weekends, but at least one game could be done. As announced, I switched to other factions for this to make comparisons between Druze and the opportunities other sectors may have.

The first game in this short series was fought with Military Orders against Dashat in Firefight. So I stayed in the 'hard to play' bracket, but had access to more camo and higher BS.

Military Orders
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GROUP 1 7
CRUSADER MULTI Rifle + Light Flamethrower / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 31)
PEACEMAKER Heavy Shotgun + AUXBOT_3 / Electric Pulse. (0 | 21)
AUXBOT_3 Heavy Flamethrower / Electric Pulse. (- | 4)
KNIGHT OF SANTIAGO Lieutenant (Specialist Operative) Spitfire, Nanopulser, E/M Grenades, D-Charges / Pistol, DA CCW. (1 | 43)
ORDER SERGEANT Combi Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 13)
ORDER SERGEANT MULTI Sniper Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (1.5 | 21)
ORDER SERGEANT Heavy Rocket Launcher / Assault Pistol, Knife. (1.5 | 15)
ORDER SERGEANT Paramedic (MediKit) Combi Rifle / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 15)

GROUP 2 7
SPEC. SERGEANT (CH: TO Camouflage, Infiltration, Forward Observer) Combi Rifle, Antipersonnel Mines / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 27)
BULLETEER Spitfire / Electric Pulse. (1 | 23)
MULEBOT (Minesweeper, Repeater) Electric Pulse. (0 | 8)
MULEBOT Hacker (EVO Hacking Device) Electric Pulse. (0.5 | 25)
FUGAZI DRONBOT Flash Pulse, Sniffer / Electric Pulse. (0 | 8)
PATHFINDER DRONBOT Combi Rifle, Sniffer / Electric Pulse. (0 | 16)
DART Submachine Gun, Viral Tactical Bow, Antipersonnel Mines / Pistol, Shock CC Weapon, Knife. (0 | 34)

5.5 SWC | 300 Points

Open in Infinity Army

It was far away from what I am used to with MO. Normally, I have a LI-list with a Magister/Teuton-deathstar and some other hitters around. And most important: I avoid ALEPH, so I never tried Dart. She is quite powerful and too optimized in my eyes. But to make the most of it for comparison, she was tried for the first time. The rest should copy my actual Druze-list as good as possible. A cheap-defensive link, which turns into a killingmachine in turn three, REMs to slow things down and some infiltrators for midfield-stuff. The Hunzakuts were now Dart, the TOFOOS and to some extend the Crusader -It is all about psychological warfare!
I got better equipped infiltrators, higher BS on my gunfighters and two 2W guys by loosing some tricks and tools (EM-grenades) and a few orders.

Dahshat Company
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GROUP 1 9 1 1
BOUNTY HUNTER Submachine Gun, Akrylat-Kanone / Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0 | 12)
BOUNTY HUNTER Submachine Gun, Akrylat-Kanone / Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0 | 12)
BOUNTY HUNTER Submachine Gun, Akrylat-Kanone / Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0 | 12)
BOUNTY HUNTER Submachine Gun, Akrylat-Kanone / Breaker Pistol, Knife. (0 | 12)
BRAWLER (Multispectral Visor L2) MULTI Sniper / Pistol, Knife. (1.5 | 28)
VALERYA GROMOZ Hacker (Hacking Device UPGRADE: Expel) Combi Rifle + Pitcher / Pistol, Knife. (0.5 | 21)
ZÚYŎNG (Fireteam: Haris, Tactical Awareness) Combi Rifle + 1 TinBot B (Deflector L2) / 2 Breaker Pistols, Knife. (0.5 | 34)
RUI SHI Spitfire / Electric Pulse. (1.5 | 20)
McMURROUGH 2 Chain Rifles, Grenades, Smoke Grenades / Templar CCW (AP + DA). (0 | 32)
FANOUS REMOTE Flash Pulse, Sniffer / Electric Pulse. (0 | 8)

GROUP 2 5 3
FANOUS REMOTE Flash Pulse, Sniffer / Electric Pulse. (0 | 8)
FANOUS REMOTE Flash Pulse, Sniffer / Electric Pulse. (0 | 8)
SAITO TOGAN Combi Rifle, Smoke Grenades / Pistol, EXP CCW, Knife. (0 | 39)
GHULAM Doctor Plus (MediKit) Rifle + Light Shotgun / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 16)
GHULAM Lieutenant Rifle + Light Shotgun / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 12)
LIBERTO (Minelayer) Light Shotgun, Chain-colt, Antipersonnel Mines / Pistol, Knife. (1 | 10)
NASMAT Electric Pulse. (0 | 3)
LIBERTO Submachine Gun, Chain-colt, D.E.P. / Pistol, Knife. (0 | 8)
WARCOR (360º Visor) Flash Pulse / Stun Pistol, Knife. (0 | 3)

5 SWC | 298 Points

Open in Infinity Army

Don't ask me for the correct distribution among the groups. One camo stayed unrevealed, so I am not that sure, it was the second Libertos - could have been something else. But the ABH-core, the Rui Shi and McMurder are there, which shows all this list should do: Shoot things down with smoke and a buffed Rui Shi, while McMurder supports this and the Brawler MSR scares things away.

We decided to take the red classifieds, because we can. I drew Predator and HVT: Designation and thought, Predator was impossible and Designation could be done if things go well. I won the Lt-roll and took the first turn (everyone knows Dashat auto-looses by going second!) and got the south DZ in revenge. I had not checked the big building in the north-west and underestimated the ARO-potential.

With some good lines, my link went on the right, guarding the Mulebot and escorted by Dart. Pathfinder as ARO-unit in the center and all other REMS on the left with the Peacemaker and Auxbot blocking the short access there. To make things sure, the TOFOOS hidden deployed there as well. My HVT went on the far right.

The Rui-Shi haris and the ABH-core with Brawler MSR grouped around the big building in the north west, with one ABH, the Doc+ and the MSR on the rooftop. One Fanous went on the left, two on the right around that silo. On that silo a lone Ghulam layed down, guarded by two camo-markers. In the center a Warcor watched the back and an additional camo-marker deployed in the center next to the panoply. The HVT also went in the center.

I didn't want to chew through the left flank, so the Bulleteer went on the right as a backup. McMurder showed up in the bulk of bodies behind the high building. The ABHs gained some interesting stuff, but nothing too important. One guy got a bike. My Dt was my Santiago, Dashat DT was the bike-ABH.

MO 1:
No orders were removed and I had to get rid of the overwatching Brawler. I promised the best chances by my Santiago, so the MSR first cleared the mine on the right, then the link advanced and killed the Brawler in two orders (1st unconscious, second to kill him). It feld risky, but with 61% chance of success, it was the right decision. The link shuffled a bit around in a advanced position and Dart started to secure the right flank. The Libertos took one wound on her before getting shot and a Fanous was shredded by the SMG. Dart retreated a bit.

Dashat 1:
McMurder took a long run with some smoke to smoke up my link. Saito Togan appeared directly next to my HRL-OS and murdered him in CC. He then take the gamble against my Santiago and was killed. So McMurder should finish this, but only could berserk one wound on the Santiago. That had consumed all orders.

MO 2:
McMurder in CC with my Lt/Dt was a very bad situation, but at least he was alive. A single OS approached McMurder, but with CC15 even two dice couldn't beat him up, so the OS died. I changed to some easier tasks with Dart running up the right flank, punshing down the second Fanous in CC. For Predator in red I needed three CC-kills. I was not sure to kill McMurder in CC, so Dart needed to kill the hiding Ghulam Lt with her shock-ccw. She climbed up and got critted by the Ghulam. So things were back to my McMurder-problem. I coordinated the Santiago and two other OSs, getting three guys in CC with McMurder and announcing a CC with the Santiago. McMurder died, but due to berserk, my Santiago went unconcious. The paramedic did the best he can and killed him finally, after someone took something useless from the panoply.

Dashat 2:
With Saito and McMurder down, the major plan was eradicated without a plan b. The ABH-biker started, collecting an ODD and a HMG from the panoplies and started suppressing fire from the left flank. Nothing more was done this turn.

MO 3:
Now I am sure to have interpreted things around LoL wrong by thinking that I can nominate a new Lt in the same turn in which my Lt died, if it was not at the end of my turn. So we played this without LoL for me. My Crusader should finally burn down the body-bulk behind the big building, but scattered away. Since that was the only good attack-plan now, the bulleteer was send to kill at least some other guys. He scooted up the right side and shot down the Warcor and one ABH, then retreating a bit. My paramedic took new useless stuff from the panoply.

Dashat 3:
The Ghulam lt tried to shoot my Bulleteer without success, then the ABH biker came and ate it. Since he had tasted blood, he tried to eat up my left side,splitting burst between the Peacemaker and the Fugazi, which ended with a critical flash pulse on the ABH. That ended the game.

I had killed more army points (25 points difference), we tied on panoplies used and my opponent had killed my Dt and my Lt. No specialists were shot. But I had scored Predator by killing McMurder and the left OS MSR secured the enemy HVT, what made it to a 5:3 win for me. But I was sure to have it lost after my second turn and I am sure, that my rule-mistakes changed things in my favour, so it is more likely a loss.

Nevertheless this was one of my most confident games with MO. If I had gotten unlucky against the Brawler, things would have been quite difficult, because there were no other options to force down the Brawler and open up the field for me. Here were bodies missing to sneak up some other paths. With just a few sneaky units, I had to commit early to their paths. This and two or three orders lacking, were the felt disadvantages here. I payed the flexibility of my TOFOOS and the Crusader with order-scarcety and so one unit killed less per turn or not having recamoed Dart. Not that bad, because I am used to only two tasks per turn. But there is more potential with BS 14 and a spitfire or Dart. And these two units were what Druze lacks. The Santiago consumes trouble and spits damage and is mobile at the same time. My link could advance even with limited ressources in turn 1 - that would be difficult with Druze. Not speaking about the risk against the MSR Brawler (6% difference for both, the HMG is less likely to kill the Brawler and the Brawler is likely to do one wound)! On the other hand, Dart has everything you can wish for, so she goes through whatever there is on close ranges. Things are more failsafe here, what really adds towards failsafeness. I couldn't fully explore the benefits of having more visual modifiers to turn FtFs in my favour, but Dart and the Bulleteer-action gave a first taste of that Druze-disadvantage.

So after game one, I would agree that Druze are more limited and more difficult to play. You need to get good ideas AND need to be well organized, while other factions only have one thing required.
Next game will be with QK but in a very aggressive way. I am curious, how things will evolve.