View source for Vayl, Consul of Everblight

{{Legbox|{{Legion}} {{Blighted Nyss}} [[Warlock]]}} [[Category: Model]]
{{4U}}

''As consul Vayl has achieved a position of regal authority, answering only to Thagrosh and Everblight himself and empowered to explore her mystical arts. She picks and chooses which conflicts require her personal intervention by peering into the mists of the future with her divinatory powers. Vayl has begun to unravel the mysteries of the athanc, and it was by this study that she modified her oraculus to resemble that perfection and then split it into three.''

=Basic Info=
{{Infobox-Model
| name  = [[Vayl|Vayl2]]
| image = Vayl2.gif
| base  = Small
| spd   = 6
| str   = 5
| mat   irrelevant 
| rat   = 7
| def   = 15
| arm   = 14
| hp    = 14
| fury  = 8
| wbp   = +28
}}

* {{Warlock}}

===Feat - Dark Miracles===
This activation, Vayl can cast each of her spells once without spending fury.
{{Tipbox|"Her spells" includes all the animi she has access to, not just the spells on her card. However if more than one beast has the same animus, she gets to cast the animus for free only once in total (not once per beast).}}

=== Abilities=== 
* {{Gunfighter}}
* {{Cold Immunity}}
* {{Quick Draw|10"}}
* {{Serenity}}

===Weapons === 
{| class="wikitable"
{{Ranged|Oraculi|10|8|
* {{Magical Damage}}
* {{Reload|2|spend fury|fury spent}}
* {{Spellbound}} }}
|}

===Spells===
{{Spellbox|
{{Admonition}}
{{Boundless Charge}}
{{Chasten}}
{{Deadly Storm}}
{{Icy Grip}}
{{Occultation}}
}}

===Theme Forces ===
* {{Children of the Dragon}}. She gains [[Tactician]] <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Blighted]]<nowiki>]</nowiki> in this theme.
* {{Oracles of Annihilation}}. In this theme she can start the game with friendly upkeeps in play. Also, enemy models that end their activation within 2" of her suffer [[continuous corrosion]].
* {{Primal Terrors}}
* {{Ravens of War}}


=Thoughts on Vayl2= 
===Vayl2 in a nutshell===
Vayl2 is an offensive spellcaster. Her main schlick is threat range manipulation and DEF de-buff with the ever present threat of long range spell assassination to keep the enemy honest. With the right tools she can still quite reliably deliver an alpha strike, and thanks to the Oraculi, ''anything'' that can be hit by ranged attacks, can become her arc node. This allows her to set up threat vectors with peerless versatility, and often, kill the enemy caster. With ''Gunfighter'' she can now charge, but that shouldn't be used to anything but to willingly fail charges and get out of killboxes.

===Feat thoughts===
Vayl2's seemingly basic feat belies it's actual power. At full camp, she can launch up to five unboosted Chastens and a Deadly Storm, which against a low camping caster, can be very frightening despite the middling POW of each spell. For hardier targets, she can drop an extra spell to make some of the nukes boosted.

Of absolute importance is the animi - as she can cast each animus she has access to for free under her feat. This is ''huge'' for making her assassination potential even more potent. In a single turn, she can throw all the offensive nukes above (in whatever combination of boosts or not), ''and'' potentially:
* Slipstream a beast that you cast Boundless Charge on for free
* Give herself Far Strike to make a channeller from further away (make sure you resolve Slipstream first!)
* Place a defensive buff on herself (Dodge, Spiny Growth, etc - make sure you took your Far Strike Oraculi shots first!)
* Wraithbane a target that has to go toe to toe with an ARM buffed heavy, possibly the one that's also got Boundless Charge
It's not quite as amazing as it could be since Legion lacks some of the more powerful non-self animi that other factions have (Rush, Rage, Primal, and whatnot), but the fact that it allows her to cast these for free at all makes her feat turn incredibly efficient. 

As far as timing of the feat, Vayl should just consider doing it whatever turn you expect to get the most out of it. Use it right after the lines clash when you can potentially recast Admonition effectively, while throwing a few extra Boundless Charges out on your second wave, or go all in for a mid-late game assassination. There's a lot of flexibility with getting all the extra spell casting she can get done.

A note on wording: Arcane Suppression does not add the +1 Fury cost to Vayl's "free" feat spells, as it is free not in the sense of costing 0 Fury, but "free" as casting "without spending Fury". The wording also allows you to circumvent any "no Fury spending" restriction, but not the "no casting" restriction, like [[Severius1|Sevvy1]]s feat.

===Spell thoughts===
* '''Admonition''' - Keep a beast relatively safe from enemy charges  with this. Loses some traction against units who can sneak behind a beast and prevent landing zones, but on something with wings it's harder for an enemy to play around. Be careful to not fall for bait - some opponents will try to trick you into using Admonition early, and then sending the real threat after you once you've moved.
* '''Boundless Charge''' - The Pathfinder aspect is a little lost on Legion (except for Typhon), but the additional movement and free charge are more than valuable enough. Additionally, it's not an upkeep spell and has no casting restrictions, so if you're feeling gutsy up to four models can benefit from this spell a turn.
* '''Chasten''' - Upkeep removal, tied to damaging models. It is not always easy against high ARM targets, but it removes only ''enemy'' upkeeps and animi, so your Icy Grip stays on the target. Its low COST means you can cast it a few times a turn, and on feat turn a barrage of Chastens is surprisingly scary for many enemy casters to weather.
* '''Deadly Storm''' - Your stronger nuke. Be vary of the cloud effect it leaves behind. See tricks and Tips for a run-down. If you didn't bring a [[Succubus]], it can be worthwhile to cast this on an expendable friendly model in order to place the cloud exactly where you need it to break LOS. Vayl herself is immune to Deadly Storm's cold damage as a nice bonus. 
* '''Icy Grip''' - A nice MAT fixer, which due to the model/unit targeting restriction becomes an effective de-buff tool against warcaster / warlock units too. Usually the first thing you cast for free on feat turns when you're going for the assassination - except if your target is a battle-engine warlock. Great against jamming units, as they tend to run up to your lines, if they cannot charge you, and units with magic ability, as a magic attack is a special attack. As it is an enemy spell with no restriction upon formations, fell free to cast it onto out-of-formation models too; the entire unit will be affected by it.
* '''Occultation''' - Always a great spell, with plenty of viable targets. When there's no better target during your feat, place it on yourself.

===Drawbacks & Downsides===
* Vayl2 is very squishy - in fact squishier than Vayl1 as she lost perma-concealment but retains the same DEF and ARM values.
* No offensive buffs for her army, and no DEF or ARM buff either.
* Supporting her army can drain even her exceptional FURY stock. Camping enough transfers is tricky.
* Vulnerable to anti-magic tricks (especially Arcane Vortex), and charge denials.

===Tips & Tricks===
* Don't bother triggering Admonition vs a model with Countercharge. Because if you do, they'll trigger the countercharge and get ''two'' charge attacks vs you. 
* Remember place effects (like Slipstream, Telekinesis, or Leap)  won't trigger Admonition.
* It is easy to forget Serenity, but can be valuable, if the enemy tagged your nearby warbeast with attacks that can put excess Fury upon your already loaded beast. 
* Quick Draw is an extremely corner-case ability, since guns outside pistols usually shoot farther than hers. Also, Far Strike lasts for one turn, so you cannot rely on the extra distance against pistol shots and the like. However, once per round you can use it against a Gunfighter attack (as you have Gunfighter on yourself too).
** Oddly enough, Quick Draw works on Spray attacks too.
* When using Deadly Storm as an assassination tool, make sure you cast it last. Vayl doesn't have Eyeless Sight, so dropping a cloud on your target's head is a poor tactic. Even worse if your target has Prowl, and your channeller is standing more than 5" away - you just managed to give your opponent a free Stealth.
** There's one scenario where you intentionally want to place it on an enemy - and quite a corner-case to be honest. If the enemy caster is being blocked by a model with Prowl (like a [[Witchwood]] the cloud triggers Stealth, and now, for your non-eyeless models it won't block LOS outside 5".
* In case of mirror matches, you can expect some interesting interactions with Arc Nodes/Channelers and Eyeless sight. Arcing through Eyeless Sighted models will not exempt you from the attack roll modifiers, like concealment, or cloud, as Vayl herself is not ignoring these modifiers. It also won't cancel the auto-miss effect on her shots, if the target stands more than 5" away from the channeler. Read more on the [http://battlecollege.org/index.php/Category:Channeler clarification page].
* When playing into Lamentation/Arcane Suppression, consider casting Chasten first into the model, who has these spells on itself. Damaging it will cause these spells to be immediately expired, so you can cast the rest of your spells for their normal cost.  
* As a footnote, she is among the 12 current casters and locks, who have Cold immunity, making her an ideal choice against several Khadorian or Trollkin lists, and Goreshade (especially his 4th incarnation).


=List Building Advice =
===Strategy===
Hit first, hit hard. Vayl2's games are usually make or break on delivering the alpha strike. Between Slipstream and Boundless Charge she can construct ridiculous threat distances, basically adding +4 to the threat range of the wrecker models in her army. If that fails, she still has assassination in her pocket through Spellbound and her feat, but against certain enemies (usually those with lots of mage resistance through spells like Lamentation, or Arcane Vortex) this is not an option. Anyone else must constantly be on the lookout for the threat vectors, as apart from a few exceptions, every model on the board, friend or foe is a potential arc node for Vayl.

===Theme Thoughts ===
{{Header|[[Children of the Dragon]]}}

* [[Blackfrost Shard]] - Vayl2 desperately need damage buff, and your best source is this unit. They can often end up as your only units in [[Oracles of Annihilation]] for scoring circular zones in steamroller scenarios or if you simply want to go beast heavy.
* [[Blighted Nyss Raptors]] with Occultation are a thing of beauty. Fast, mobile, strong, and hard to shoot cavalry are a great asset, and Raptors fit all of these molds to become an impressive flanking force in the early game, and give a Vayl list some weapon master muscle in the late game.
* [[Azrael]] and [[Zuriel]] - the cornerstones of the [[Children of the Dragon]] theme force. Azrael also offers protection against Fire through his animus, which stacks nice with your stock Cold Immunity.
* [[Typhon]] - mends the (irksome) lack of Pathfinder, and enables you up to 8 attacks with him.
* [[Ice Witches]] - A Puppet Master can often be crucial for your assassination runs. The Witches Ice Cage is yet another MAT fixer for the rest of your army.

{{Header|[[Oracles of Annihilation]]}}

* [[Blackfrost Shard]] & [[Ice Witches]], mentioned above, can also be in this theme.
* [[Proteus]] - A charge can often result in 4 snacked enemies, starting from 14" away.

{{Header|[[Ravens of War]]}}

* [[Blighted Nyss Raptors|Raptors]], mentioned above, can also be in this theme. 
* The [[Hellmouth]] can really disrupt enemy formations, and with Boundless Charge, your alpha strikers can play very safely back if desired. The Hellmouth tentacles are also incredibly useful as Oraculi targets for channelling, especially the fresh bodies as they can be placed out of melee and run to desired locations. Plus, they cannot be killed by Oraculi shots due to Impervious Flesh.

{{Header|[[Primal Terrors]]}}

* [[Hellmouth]], mentioned above, can also be in this theme. 

{{Header|Minions}}

* [[Eilish_Garrity,_the_Occultist|Eilish]] - An alternate Puppet Master source, if you're not taking Ice Witches.

===Battlegroup ===
* [[Nephilim Bolt Thrower]] - A near-auto include in her lists, as Far Strike helps the application of Spellbound Oraculi shots from a safe distance. Also useful, if the target stands beside the caster, slightly closer to you, than the warcaster. Since you can arc spells only in LOS, use Thunderbolt to push a model slightly back, then tag it with the Oraculi for arcing onto the caster (or, in the best case, into its back arc). This can be used to best effect with knockdown immune models, since a critical hit will make the model KD, and cannot be used for arcing. 
* [[Seraph]] - An extra 2" movement on top of Boundless Charge yields a great movement potential.

* [[Nephilim Bloodseer]] - Crucial hit bonus through Telemetry, not only for you but for the rest of your spellcasters ([[Throne of Everblight|Throne]], the BFS, or the [[Hex Hunters]] as well. Also, it can be a third source for a Slipstream animus beside the Seraph and Vayl, quite possibly speeding up your entire frontline beasts.
* [[Angelius]] - A Boundless Charge'd, Slipstreamed Angel can punch a hole in a heavy jack or beast from ridiculous ranges. If desired, a follow-up Repulsion and Admonition can help give it a lot of breathing room the following turn.
* [[Archangel]]  - Threats as far as an Angelius but hit much, much harder. Don't be fooled though, a concerted effort can still delete him from the table on the following turn if you don't tie up or cripple other threats.
* [[Mechanoshreder]] - boundless charge stacks with the animus vs construct models, also on feat turn you can consider the animus as an extra free charge for 1 warbeast regardless of target
* [[Raek|Raeks]] can get frighteningly far out with Vayl's control range combined with their Extended Control Range, and can threaten backline support and divert enemy resources. They also can keep casters honest with the threat of headbutts making assassinations all but inevitable.

=Other=
===Trivia===
Released in [[Hordes: Domination]] (2011)

===Video Battle Reports ===
* [https://youtu.be/u0J9uRfAZIk 2019.04 Connor's Retribution Analysis], vs [[Vyros2]]
* {{VBR}}

===Other Legion Models===
{{Index Legion}}

===Rules Clarifications ===
{{RCBox2|Name = Feat : Dark Miracles
|list=* Vayl can cast each animi for free, once no matter the number of warbeasts carrying the animus. ('''[http://privateerpressforums.com/showthread.php?252975-Vayl-2-Feat-and-Animi&p=3605202&viewfull=1#post3605202 Infernal Ruling]''')
}}

{{RC Magical Damage}}
{{RC Reload}}
{{RC Spellbound}}

{{RC Warlock}}
{{RC Gunfighter}}
{{RC Cold Immunity}}
{{RC Quick Draw}}
{{RC Serenity}}

{{RC Admonition}}
{{RC Boundless Charge}}
{{RC Chasten}}
{{RC Deadly Storm}}
{{RC Icy Grip}}
{{RC Occultation}}