I have decided to continue my tactics articles by going through the warcasters/warlocks that are new to MkII. If I'm lucky, and don't run out of steam, I'll also go through ALL FOUR Minions warlocks!
First off, the statline! Her whole statline is pretty average, except for her RAT, at a very respectable 8. She also has fairly good defenses at DEF 16, ARM 14. Her ranged weapon is one of the best of any warcaster, competing against Seige and eSorscha (among others). RNG 14, POW 12 weapon master can really deal some serious damage to whoever she shoots. Turning the card over, we see that she has Arcane Precision, granting her some anti-stealth if she forfeits movement.
Spells
Sloan has a very respectable spell list, with a full 6 spells. Most of her helpful spells only affect one model or only her battlegroup.
Arcane Blast - One of two magic missile spells. Generally, Kara Sloan will go dozens of games without casting this spell. She has a lot of ways of taking out targets that would normally be targeted by this spell. However, it's there just in case.
Deadeye - Boosting the first ranged attack roll for a whole unit? Yes, please! Ideally, to get the most out of the spell, this should be cast on a unit, such as Long Gunners, Gun Mages, or Rangers. Because this spell isn't an upkeep spell, you can cast it on two or more units, if desired.
Dust to Dust - Another obligatory magic missile. See above.
Fire Group - RNG 18 Defenders? RNG 16 Hunters? Why not!?! This spell is likely to be most useful on the first few turns when your enemy is still moving up to engage.
Refuge - This spell is like Bushwack squared. It lets you move, shoot, then move again. While your primary target will most likely be Kara Sloan herself (to keep her safe), this will also work on a Defender or another 'jack that's gonna shoot.
Return Fire - This spell is only useful if you can predict who and what is gonna get shot. While it might be useful to cast if you have just one focus left, sometimes camping focus isn't a bad idea either. This might be worth using on a 'jack with a heavy ranged weapon, to discourage shooting it at all. The one drawback to this spell is that you have to get shot at before the effect to happen. Just remember, whether or not the opposing ranged attack hits, you still get to take a shot.
Feat - Firing Squad
This feat comes in two parts. The first part is giving boosted ranged attack rolls to EVERY friendly Faction model in the control. This means you don't have to worry about casting Deadeye. This also means that you only need to allocate focus for boosting damage (and taking extra shots if you have a Charger).
Part two essentially lets every model in the battlegroup, including Kara Sloan, take another ranged attack, providing all initial ranged attacks hit. And with all boosted attack rolls, most, if not all, shots will hit. It is because of this section of Sloan's feat that allows her to take three shots in one turn (with Reinholdt granting the third).
Warjacks
Ideally, Kara Sloan's battlegroup should consist of warjacks with ranged attacks to take advantage of her feat and Fire Group. Because the units that Sloan normally brings are good at taking out other infantry, I would look for ranged 'jacks that can take out heavies.
Units
As mentioned above, there are several units that are benefitted greatly by Kara Sloan, namely the Long Gunners, Gun Mages, and the Rangers. They will generally fill the same role, but do it differently. This is just down to preference, in my opinion.
I think that a tarpit/melee unit would also be very useful to Kara Sloan's army, because the worst thing that your opponent can do to you is run to engage so you can't continue to shoot them. I'm inclined to suggest the combination of Sword Knights plus Journeyman Warcaster. With Defensive Line and Arcane Shield, the 10 man unit of Sword Knights will be sitting at ARM 19, for only 9 points. However, if you don't mind going outside of the Faction for them, Boomhowler and Co. are great for this role. They benefit from Deadeye, and if you take them with Captain Jonas Murdoch, they also benefit from the feat. They will also be 9 points, but you won't have the Arcane Shield. However, a 4+ tough is awesome.
Solos
Surprisingly, Kara doesn't need a lot of solo support to perform. First and foremost, however, is Reinholdt, who should have the title "Kara Sloan's warcaster attachment" instead of Gobber Speculator. It is this clever gobber that allows Sloan to take three shots with her rifle on her feat turn.
In terms of other useful solos, Eiryss, either form, is great for ensuring the assassination. Journeyman Warcaster is great if you need the +3 ARM. The Squire is great for that extra bit of control area and focus on the feat turn.
Example List
Captain Kara Sloan
-Defender
-Hunter
Journeyman Warcaster
Arcane Tempest Gun Mages
-The Dude
Black 13th
Rangers
Sword Knights (max)
This list incorporates a little of the strategies I have mentioned above. Using the Sword Knights as a tarpit/screening unit, the Gun Mages and Rangers can take down incoming infantry while the Defender and Hunter can soften up approaching warjacks and warbeasts.
If you are so inclined, you can swap out the Journeyman and the Sword Knights for Boomhowler and Co.
Well, thanks for reading! Stay tuned for the rest of the warcasters that were released with MkII!
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