Preceptor
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So I recently finished putting together my Zoraida/Collodi crew, and after a few battles, thought I would post some of my observations. First, I'll go Model by model in the crew, and then secondly I'll talk about how the crew works as a whole.
Zoraida-[i][u]
The Hag is the one who brings them together and keeps them together. She specializes In acting indirectly. The main offensive punch from Zoraida is of course Obey, but this is far from the only trick in her bag. Bewitch is especially handy with Strategies/Schemes that require you to eliminate specific models, as the inability to cheat can spell swift death for almost anyone. Crystal ball is one of the best deck manipulation spells out there IMHO, but unless you're trying to bring out aZoraida I don't think that it's worth cheating (ymmv, specifically because with the exception of a late-game summoned teddy my way of playing Zoraida's crew focuses on a huge force of small models, meaning that less hinges on a single flip that would benefit greatly from this ability). If you at any point find yourself using Zoraida's melee attack, you need to go back to playing Perdita with all of the other tactically bereft short-bus kids. The damage isn't HORRIBLE, but the cb is, and the point of Zoraida is enemy manipulation, so don't even think about it.
When it comes to movement, HOLY CRAP! By looking at her and the way her crew works, you wouldn't think that speed was her thing, but you would be dead wrong. All of her mobility comes from one handy little ability called (0) Raven, which changes her walk to 10 Fly. Because she has Casting Expert, this means that you can use Raven, fly 20 inches, and still get off an Obey.
As a minor side note, Zoraida also has the ability to use a 2 action to create Wicked Dolls out of thin air. I have only used this ability once, and that was just a means of finding a 4th scrap counter for my weaver widow (I'll explain later).
Defensively, things are a bit trickier, but not bad. 1st off, any attack or spell that isn't focused or channeled gets an automatic negative twist, which is pretty handy. Second of all, She has a (1) spell called Repulsive that pushes every model in a 6 inch burst to the edge of the burst radius. Overall though, her defense comes mostly from mobility and proximity to friendly models.
Interestingly enough, I have gotten a fair amount of mileage out of her Voodoo Doll. For those unfamiliar, when the voodoo doll is summoned (a 2 ability), you pick an enemy model in Zoraida's LoS. From that point on when she is in base with the Voodoo Doll she can ignore range and LoS when targeting that model with a spell, and in addition any spell cast on that model by Zoraida gets a positive twist. Oh, and every turn, the model the voodoo doll is connected to gets hit with Poison 2.
She has a few more triggers and minor abilities, but none of them are really game changers.
Basic tactics with Zoraida- Summon Voodoo doll, obey like crazy. Keep in mind that you can obey friendlies, and that often times this will be your best option, as it allows you free castings of spells outside of the model's normal activation. Specifically Collodi comes to mind, because there are few things better than spending 1 AP to give my crew an extra 3. If it looks like someone's coming after you, Raven and Fly away. It might seem like I'm oversimplifying it here, but in reality that's about 90 percent of using Zoraida effectively.
Collodi-
The Evil Pinnochio, the puppet who pulls the strings. One of my favorite models in the line, and devastatingly effective as well. Funnily enough, he doesn't do much. You can go an entire game without him walking even once, yet in that game he'll have gone from one side of the board to the other, and back again.
First up, his offense. His offense doesn't come from him, but from the 4 marionettes that he brings with him to the table. His own attacks aren't bad, but pale in comparison to handing out Fast to 4 models, and melee expert to another 3. First up is a (2) ability called Puppet Show. It is a 4 inch burst that gives all friendly dolls Fast. Cast properly this means that all of your marionettes, and the wicked doll staying near them to provide poison to their attacks will all have an additional general action point. Next up we have a (1) spell called Breathe Life that gives 2 dolls plus any additional masks that you might flip or cheat either melee, casting, or ranged expert. Because he has casting expert himself, this means that he can use both of these in the same turn. Barring any unusual circumstances, this should be where his AP goes in any given turn.
Collodi's movement is based on his marionettes. The marionettes have an action that allows them to move, and then push Collodi into base contact with them. This means that for collodi and his marionettes, 30 inches of movement and still having AP left for a couple of attacks is not uncommon.
His defense, like most of the things on his card, relies on the marionettes. any time an attack hits Collodi, he can dish that attack off onto one of his marionettes. I don't find myself using this all that often, because either the opponent tries to hit me with blasts (which is his and the marionettes most glaring weakness) or I kill them off before they have the chance to attack (if the crew doesn't have to move, it is possible to pull 16 attacks each with a positive twist, so there are many times when plowing headfirst into the enemy and throwing down all of my AP into killing some big baddy is a wise move).
Basic tactics with Collodi- Buff the marionettes, and let them do the heavy lifting. Use your insane mobility to achieve objectives. Beyond that, I've come to the realization that with Collodi there are 2 major ways to handle his order of activation. By Activating him and the marionettes early you can drain your opponents hand through weight of attacks. With the marionettes' attacks being paired it means that there will be a fair amount of times when your opponent will have to cheat down their high cards to avoid getting clawed to death. This leaves them with a depleted hand when it comes time for zoraida to obey a critical model in a critical turn. The other tactic is to activate collodi and the marionettes late in the round, when the opponent's hand will be a bit more sparse, and thus less able to fend off all of those claw attacks.
(I'm going to post the rest of the crew, and strategies, tomorrow, but it's time to hit the hay right about now)
-Androcles
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's in my life! 
