Pistol Wraith

The fallen nation of Llael holds many of these ghostly gunmen, known to haunt lonely crossroads awaiting the chance to snatch life from any who carry a pistol. Their connection to the abyss is deep, and those who somehow survive the first shot from a pistol wraith find themselves slowed by the chill of the grave. Their reactions slow, and they can only watch in horror as the wraith grins and cocks the hammer back with the inevitability of death.

Basic Info

Abilities

• Template:Undead
• Template:Incorporeal
• Template:Gunfighter
• Template:Body Count
  • Template:Strength of Death

Weapons

• Wraithlock Pistol (x2) - 10" range, POW 12 ranged attacks
  • Template:Magical Damage
  • Template:Death Chill

Theme Forces

• Cryx
  • Template:Ghost Fleet
  • Template:Infernal Machines

• Other Factions
  • Infernal players can use this model in the Template:Hearts of Darkness theme, but only if Mortenebra is leading the army.
  • Mercenary players can use this model in the Template:Operating Theatre theme.

Thoughts on Pistol Wraith

Pistol Wraith in a Nutshell

The Pistol Wraith is a ranged combatant, useful as a harassment piece that picks off isolated troopers/solos.

Since they rely on Incorporeal to survive, and they lose that when they shoot, they are often best placed at the flanks to limit how many enemy models can counter-attack them. Thanks to Incorporeal, they can advance through terrain with terrifying pace.

If you get some souls your Wraith goes from dangerous to deadly. But trying to gather souls by attacking enemies, in order to make subsequent attacks more powerful, can be risky as turning Corporeal exposes yourself to counterattack. It's much better to feed it with a Soul Trapper.

Template:FH4
Chain Attack got better since the errata in 2015, as you no longer need to hit with a third shot to invoke Stationary upon the targets. As ever, boosting is advised if you absolutely need something stationary this turn. Just remember, lots of stuff can shake stationary, so make the most of the sitting duck while you still can.

Though it is difficult to have 2 or 3 soul tokens from previous turns to boost all the shots, consider, that Cryx has some of the best debuff tools in their arsenal, and can bring the target's DEF way down (and your Chain Attack percent chance goes way up). An Icy Grip or a Crippling Grasp can make out of a DEF 14 warjack a more-than-likely sitting duck. Couple it with pDenny's feat, and not even DEF 16 targets (like warnouns) are completely safe from your Wraiths' predation.

Colossals, Gargantuans and Battle Engines, are immune to Stationary. Casters, Beasts and Jacks can shake it off, but it requires FOC/FURY that your opponent would rather use elsewhere. Marshalled jacks, on the other hand, do not have focus to shake Stationary and are juicy targets for the Pistol Wraith. Solos, UA's, and Leaders usually have no way to shake Stationary off and are theoretically a good target, but few of them are tough enough to survive the first two shots anyway.

You can use the Chain Attack effect to shut down your enemies' plans about moving their key models out of activation, due to means like Counter Charge, Counter Slam or Admonition. Most importantly, is that the chain attack can help set up an assassination that would otherwise be made difficult by a model with Shield Guard or Guard Dog.

Combos & Synergies

• Another Pistol Wraith! One is good but two is more than twice as good!
• You can inflict Stationary on an enemy target over two rounds, by using one wraith the first round while the other stays Incorporeal and safe.
• Working together they can kill four troopers per turn, potentially clearing a "safe zone" around themselves to limit the number of counterattacks while they're Corporeal.
• Anything that can give its target ARM or DEF debuff.
• Soul Trappers - boosted shooting can be very effective, but loading up the Pistol Wraith in the first place isn't necessarily easy.
• Models with non-magical AoE ranged attack (Harrower, Bloat Thrall) can use the Pistol Wraith as a beacon to kill models with Stealth. Put the Pistol Wraith near the models to kill (best if it's a unit) and don't attack to let him remain Incorporeal. Then shoot at him with the AoE powered model. The Pistol Wraith won't be affected by the shot, but the other models will get the blast damage. As stealthy models usually have low ARM, they will probably be wiped out.

Drawbacks & Downsides

• Anything that ignores Incorporeal—stay away from enemy arc nodes!
• After attacking, it is ripe for retaliation—if you left unspent soul tokens on him after an attack, it rarely lives to spend it next turn.
• The stuff that is easiest to, hit with the Chain Attack is generally either immune to Stationary (Colossals, Gargantuans, Battle Engines), or can shake it off relatively easily (heavies with low DEF).

Tricks & Tips

• If you declare a charge, then all your initial attacks need to target models in your melee range, even if your first shot kills your one and only target. Thus, be smart with your charges—either finish your move with two targets in range, or charge someone who is going to take two shots to kill.
• While in Incorporeal form, feel free to advance to the back arc of your enemies, and let loose those shots from there for extra accuracy. Watch out for magic attacks, though.

Other

Trivia

File:MiniCrate LadyWraith.jpg

Lady Wraith; Minicrate Exclusive.

• Released in Warmachine: Escalation (2004)
• Sculptors: Grègory Clavilier (original), Jeff Grace (alternate Sculpt)
• Template:LES