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The following is from the Sin city dispatch a blog by a AT-43 fan who also goes by the name "Sin city snow man" on the R forums here is his awesome report on the ONI

Intelligence Report
Taking a Closer Look at the ONI

We also have a little bit of a surprise here at the Dispatch. Thanks to our friends in France, we have some more detailed information on the ONI including some of their special rules. So without further ado, let's take a closer look at the Zombie Horror that is... the ONI.

The mercenary forces of ONI belong to the human species, the newcomer in the universal war. Its zombies know no fear, on the contrary; it is the other species of the galaxy which are afraid of them! Its powerful combat vehicles are armed with the best technology ONI purchased, stole or looted from the battlefields all over the universe.

Super Zombie Reanimators

The Super Zombie Reanimators are the largest unit in the army box, weighing in with a total of twelve Reanimators. Among their special abilities are Nerves of Steel (not surprising for zombies) and they suffer from Zombie Syndrome, which requires that they spend 1 LP to activate (not sure on the translation there...). ***Edit: It's looking like the Zombie Syndrome special rule actually means that a unit that shoots at the zombies has to pay 1 LP. I am guessing that this is to represent the leader yelling "The head! Shoot at the head!"*** Then there is the zombie gun. Esh...

Okay, this is an indirect fire weapon with Accuracy 3, an Attack Rate/Re-Roll of 1/1, AoE of 4, and a Pen/Damage of 4/1. Doesn't sound too bad, but there's more! It also has the Contamination ability. Sounds fun, don't it? Any enemies killed by this weapons are replaced with zombie detonators, forming a new unit whose card is added to the activation sequence in the next turn. Guess this explains the Reanimator part of the name...

The unit also includes a Zombie Master which gives the weapons of the unit the contamination ability. Yeah, that's right. As long as the master is alive, the whole unit can potentially create massive numbers of zombies. Thankfully, this is offset by a fairly low Armor of 5 but I can still see these guys being very difficult to deal with.

This is a ** unit that costs 500 points and includes two zombie gunners, one medic, one zombie master, and is lead by a Shomyo.

Zombie TacArms Alpha

This unit of three armored zombies, though their armor is not as heavy as the TacArms of other armies. Only an Armor 9 for these guys, which seems low but considering the figure is mostly bare flesh in kind of makes sense.

Equipped with a Zombie Gun (same lovely stats as above...) and basically a UNA laser gun, these beasties look like they are going to be some pretty solid all round fighters. They also have Nerves of Steel and Zombie Syndrome abilities, just like the Reanimators. They are a *** unit that costs 300 points and is lead by a Samurai.

Zombie Detonators

Well, we had to get to these guys eventually, especially since more than half of the army can create more of them! They have a very low Armor 4 and no ranged weapons. Instead, they have two sets of claws and fangs so they really do just want to run up and give you a kiss. In addition to the unsurprising Nerves of Steel and Zombie Syndrome, they also have Bioexplosive. This lets you sacrifice each of the Detonators when you activate the unit, resulting in an explosion with an AoE of 2 and a Pen/Damage of 12/1.

Not surprisingly, Detonators are only a * unit and only cost 175 points for eight of them. Of course with all these Zombie Guns you are going to need a lot more then eight, but it's definitely a step in the right direction.

Medium Destroyer

This is the "smaller" of the two vehicles that come in the army box. With a Movement of 30 and an Armor of 14, this is pretty fast for a type ** AFV with respectable armor to boot. On top of the Destroyer is a Medium Graser with an Accuracy of 7, Attack/Re-Roll of 2/0, and Pen/Damage of 15/2. A very respectable punch as it is, but there's more! Yep, the Destroyer also has the Mechanic ability so that it can repair itself or other vehicles within 2.5cm at either the beginning or end of its activation.

Weighing in at 325 points, it is also pretty inexpensive compared to most AFVs of its type. The one disadvantage is there is only one weapon but the frame has one extra damage box compared to most. Combine that with the Mechanic ability, and you are looking at one tough little package.

Heavy Battletank Vlad and Shogun Bokor

This is the personal vehicle of Shogun Bokov, the hero included in this army box. With a Movement of 25 and Armor of 16, this vehicle is another nimble "little" tank. Plus is mounts a heavy maser cannon with an Accuracy of 7, Attack/Re-Roll of 2/1, and a Pen/Damage of 17/3. That's six points of damage from one shot, assuming that you are firing in the direct fire mode. It can also be fired as an indirect fire weapon in which case it gains an AoE of 3 but keeps the other characteristics.

The Battletank also has the Mechanic ability (just like the Destroyer) and Bokor has the Interference ability which lets you choose one of your opponents card in their activation sequence and move it. Nothing like having your carefully laid out plans changed at the last minute.

As an added bonus, Shogun Bokor is also no slouch outside of Vlad. Equipped with a Sniper Rifle with an Accuracy of 10, she also has Triple Lens Optics which give her the Detection ability and also lets her ignore Camouflage. Always nice to be able to lead from the back, especially when you are leading a horde of zombies. And all this can be yours for only 690 points. Pricey, but definitely worth it from the looks of things.

The Parting Shot...

And there you have it! Still no official release date on the ONI army box but considering there are now pictures of the contents floating around, I am thinking that it will be very soon! That's all for now but be sure to come soon for more AT-43 goodness. Until next time, may all of your dice come up Dragons!



Automatically Appended Next Post:
http://www.figouz.net/AT-43/Army_Box_Oni.php



see lots more pictures of the box at link

I hear you already have a hard copy of the Army Book, Gordon.

Cairnius wrote:I hear you already have a hard copy of the Army Book, Gordon.

Sort of! ....In a effort to drive fans into a real brick and mortar store some retailers who carry the full line where sent a pdf not sure if its the final copy but it is in full color as a way to generate interest and a bit of a buzz. its been funny watching the rumor mill spin.

This seems like an army that just might tempt me away from 40K. I just hope those zombies are more durable than the spearmen that came in the CaoR starter game box. (Of course, I've been told I just got unlucky in that respect.) The Ram army for Confrontation also looks pretty good from what I've seen.

Saint Anuman wrote:

Cairnius wrote:I hear you already have a hard copy of the Army Book, Gordon.

Sort of! ....In a effort to drive fans into a real brick and mortar store some retailers who carry the full line where sent a pdf not sure if its the final copy but it is in full color as a way to generate interest and a bit of a buzz. its been funny watching the rumor mill spin.

If it's the same PDF we Sentinels got, then it's the final "to print" book. With the same translation mistake that will be in the printed version because the books were already printed by the time RE told them about the Translation mistake(ONI Mercs are odd numbered PLATOONS, not odd numbered UNITS as it states).

And people wonder why I spent time as a Sentinel...

I want to know about the "regular" Oni infantry units, the guys who look like they're out of Gin-Roh. When are they coming out, how do they work, etc.

Am I going to get lynched if I show up at Adler Hobby some Saturday after Oni comes out, Gordon, with a fistfull of zombies to throw at people? Or shall I just not identify myself as Cairnius the Apostate? *grin*

Cairnius wrote:I want to know about the "regular" Oni infantry units, the guys who look like they're out of Gin-Roh. When are they coming out, how do they work, etc.

The living ONI Infantry are both Type **. One's the ONI Korps UN, armed with Laser Rifles and having Laser Guns as their Special Weapons. The other is the ONI Korps TH, armed with Sonic Rifles and having Sonic Guns as their Special Weapons. Statwise, they're similar to Steel Troopers and the OKUN fill pretty much the same exact role.

I'd suspect if we ever see more Type ** units for the ONI(I doubt it highly), we'll see Oni Korps RB with Gauss Rifles and Gauss Guns, ONI Korps KA with Jungle Rifles and Jammers, and Oni Korps CO with Quantum Rifles(or maybe even Quantum Pistols and Blades) with Quantum Snipers.

What's the full list of all the Oni units? I'm wondering how much there is to see that we haven't seen pictures for yet, i.e. how many Oni units will be left to be released after the first wave besides their "regular troops?"

Type * Inf(these are the only types that can be created with Contamination)
Zombie Detonators*
Zombie Contaminators(melee Zombies with the Contamination ability)

Type ** Inf
Super Zombie Alpha*
Super Zombie Beta(twin Shotguns)
ONI Korps UN
ONI Korps TH

Type *** Inf
Zombie Tac Arms Alpha*
Zombie Tac Arms Beta(Laser Gun/Sonic Gun)
Zombie Tac Arms Gamma(Laser Gun/Mortar Gun)

Type * AFV
Light Destroyer(Medium Laser Cannon)
Light Enforcer(Light Dual MG)

Type ** AFV
Medium Destroy(Medium Graser)*
Medium Enforcer(Light Dual MG, Transport)

Type *** AFV
Heavy Battle Tank*

Anything with * after the name is in the Army Box.

Is it just me, or is that a very short list of units? Not very many different molds either - Zombies, Super Zombies, Zombie Tac Arms, Soldiers, and it's pretty much the same vehicle mold all around just with different weapon sets/paint jobs. Then the three officers.

That's really EVERY unit in the book, P?

Geez your picky -_-

Cairnius wrote:Is it just me, or is that a very short list of units? Not very many different molds either - Zombies, Super Zombies, Zombie Tac Arms, Soldiers, and it's pretty much the same vehicle mold all around just with different weapon sets/paint jobs. Then the three officers.

That's really EVERY unit in the book, P?

LunaHound wrote:
Geez your picky -_-

I kind of agree with Cairnus on this one. I expected at least a 4th hero and the lack of Support Units(especially as the Cogs got them) makes them feel off when compared to previous books. I think they may be leaning on the Mercenary aspect a bit much, but with the fact that it IS every other/even numbered platoon(s) and not even numbered UNITS like the English book has written incorrectly(Translation problem caught too late to change), it's not even that useful unless you routinely play 3k or higher(albeit the game tends to play best at 2.5-3k).

Can't anybody just wait for the five years or so that it takes R to get around to releasing everything? Geez, you'd think people were used to their anemic and extremely unreliable "Release plans" by now. I would be flabbergasted if they come out with another army for AT-43 in my lifetime.

warpcrafter wrote:Can't anybody just wait for the five years or so that it takes R to get around to releasing everything? Geez, you'd think people were used to their anemic and extremely unreliable "Release plans" by now. I would be flabbergasted if they come out with another army for AT-43 in my lifetime.

Krygs are being released in 2010. But that's IT. The 8th race isn't happening ever. Never. Also, RE isn't going to take 5 years to finish releasing stuff. At least that's the gist I got at GenCon.

Platuan4th wrote:

warpcrafter wrote:Can't anybody just wait for the five years or so that it takes R to get around to releasing everything? Geez, you'd think people were used to their anemic and extremely unreliable "Release plans" by now. I would be flabbergasted if they come out with another army for AT-43 in my lifetime.

Krygs are being released in 2010. But that's IT. The 8th race isn't happening ever. Never. Also, RE isn't going to take 5 years to finish releasing stuff. At least that's the gist I got at GenCon.

I've never heard of the Krygs. And who are the 8th race? Are there even 8 races? It sounds like they've already declared that AT-43 has an expiration date. How pessimistic.

warpcrafter wrote:I've never heard of the Krygs. And who are the 8th race? Are there even 8 races? It sounds like they've already declared that AT-43 has an expiration date. How pessimistic.

When AT-43 was changed from being Alt-WW2, it was decided there would be 8 Races/Armies total, end of story(They wanted a smaller limit than the Cluster Feth Army amount that is Confrontation). The 8th race has been canceled(the translators were told the name but nothing else but they won't share the name), the Krygs have already been started on(they're mentioned in the Red Blok and Karman army books, BTW). There's no expiration date, just no set decision on releases past next GenCon.

The release schedule is what made me decide to quit playing. To launch another army while the previous one isn't close to being done really irks me.

My gut feeling is that Rackham Entertainment is just capitalizing on design work that was done prior to the financial restructuring. Clearly Cogs and Oni had been on the books for some time as they're mentioned in the fluff. Same for the Krygs.

I wish there was some sort of objective measure to see how AT-43 was doing now that the Army Boxes are out. Over on their official forums there doesn't seem to be a high influx of new members who actually post, it's the usual voices carrying the conversation. Here on Dakka Dakka this forum got changed to AT-43 in no small part due to all the ruckus I caused back in what feels like forever and which kicked off a flurry of game discussion when all the Sentinels came over here, but there's not much talk over on Warseer.

On the surface, it doesn't feel like much has changed, really. I do get the feeling when P tells his story that RE doesn't expect AT-43 to go for much longer, that there's an end to the business cycle already planned...but then I look at Confrontation and the fact that they're releasing anything for it, and that suggests to me that RE intends to try sticking around.

I don't get why they waste their money on Confrontation, however. THAT game seems all but dead.

This seemed like a positive post but its not long before that dakka negative vibe starts Im not looking for fan buys buy alot of you guys post from "the dark side) its sorta a bummer when a thread starts positive and gets dragged down Im kinda wondering if that bad vib hasnt in some way made the fans of the game not hang out here like they used to, Please dont take this wrong Im just asking questions not pointing fingers and relying the "feel" I get from the At-43 posts read on this forum.
peace love and smily faces!

Steve

Empire1 wrote:This seemed like a positive post but its not long before that dakka negative vibe starts Im not looking for fan buys buy alot of you guys post from "the dark side) its sorta a bummer when a thread starts positive and gets dragged down Im kinda wondering if that bad vib hasnt in some way made the fans of the game not hang out here like they used to, Please dont take this wrong Im just asking questions not pointing fingers and relying the "feel" I get from the At-43 posts read on this forum.
peace love and smily faces!

Steve

Unfortunately, it's not just this forum. The official forums are starting to have that vibe as well since the employees of RE, once so active in the community, stopped seeming to show up with any regularity.

I wish there was some sort of objective measure to see how AT-43 was doing now that the Army Boxes are out.

I would imagine that this is the sole interest of RE's new overlords, and I agree with you that the design output we are seeing now has most likely been around since before the buy-out (or whatever term best applies to that).

These Army Boxes will no doubt be crucial to the longevity of the game, and I would imagine that RE have adopted a very firm "wait and see" attitude to the game line; if it works we may yet get to see a 2nd Edition, if not ... well, that does not bother me too much, as I can still use what I have.

I think the ONI looks to be a very strong product because of its versatility, and could be the one that opens the way for further expansion. I hope so, but I'm just happy to finally get the chance to hold in my hands the models for which I have been waiting so long.

As for Confrontation, who knows? Rackham's business practices have always baffled me, but that's a whole other thread, and one that has been done to death on several forums already.

I was not around during the pre-plastic days of Confrontation and I don't have that immediate bias, and so I think that many of the designs are quite nice. Not the new Dirz or Wolfen though. The Army (Box) of the Ram may sell well on the basis that the undead are suitably generic to be used in many different systems. I'm interested in it, but for use with different fantasy rules. The engine that drives AT-43 simply does suit the fantasy genre; it just did not feel right. Then again I have never found any fantasy system that I did like.

Long story short, it looks like RE will be putting my money in their pockets for a while yet. Apologies if I have drifted too far off topic.

The Ram look amazing and may well change some people's minds about the pre-paints for Confragadoodle(I know some people were wavering at GenCon). The Gargoyles with their translucent wings are great.

Like the ONI, the Ram change the way people will play. For instance, like the ONI Zombie Master, Skull Warriors give the unit they're with new abilities and, like Cog Heroes, you can bring all four types in every single unit if you want to pay the cost.

The sales srategy is all cash cow no crop, its a poor marketing plan and might kill Rackham. Rackham might die, might not, but they still have time to get it all together.

Collapsing the AT-43 range to seven races is a start, collapsing the Confrontation range is an even bigger priority.

However if worst comes to worst and AT-43 is orphaned there is enough of a community for an AT-44 fanfix. The game has so much potential it wont be allowed to die.

IMHO, a game dies the second you can no longer purchase it in stores. That which is produced and which sees new product is alive and relevant. Anything else is history.

Orlanth wrote:However if worst comes to worst and AT-43 is orphaned there is enough of a community for an AT-44 fanfix. The game has so much potential it wont be allowed to die.

The best thing to do if it happens is to probably get a group together to put out a fan-made "2nd Edition" for free on the internet. New Terrain rules, new custom units, fix some of the translation problems, etc.

Honestly? Best to get started now, maybe, based on the information out there.

Platuan4th wrote:

Orlanth wrote:However if worst comes to worst and AT-43 is orphaned there is enough of a community for an AT-44 fanfix. The game has so much potential it wont be allowed to die.

The best thing to do if it happens is to probably get a group together to put out a fan-made "2nd Edition" for free on the internet. New Terrain rules, new custom units, fix some of the translation problems, etc.

I have been thinking of exactly this, when time comes would you like to playtest?

Orlanth wrote:

Platuan4th wrote:

Orlanth wrote:However if worst comes to worst and AT-43 is orphaned there is enough of a community for an AT-44 fanfix. The game has so much potential it wont be allowed to die.

The best thing to do if it happens is to probably get a group together to put out a fan-made "2nd Edition" for free on the internet. New Terrain rules, new custom units, fix some of the translation problems, etc.

I have been thinking of exactly this, when time comes would you like to playtest?

I thought Cairnius have made one and was almost completed 2 months ago?
i have been waiting to how that went.

On a side note ,
I dived into AT-43 for the miniatures / models . If RE dies one day ,
it doesnt effect me one bit ( no rage from me , only sadness if i cant get anymore
nicely designed minis in the future )

And when ONI comes out , thats when i'll start my Space Marine army aswell .

Orlanth wrote:

Platuan4th wrote:

Orlanth wrote:However if worst comes to worst and AT-43 is orphaned there is enough of a community for an AT-44 fanfix. The game has so much potential it wont be allowed to die.

The best thing to do if it happens is to probably get a group together to put out a fan-made "2nd Edition" for free on the internet. New Terrain rules, new custom units, fix some of the translation problems, etc.

I have been thinking of exactly this, when time comes would you like to playtest?

Yes, and I'll help out in any other ways I can(I've been working on Scratch built Red Blok Support Weapon artillery since we already have the base rules in the books on how they'd work).

IMHO, a game dies the second you can no longer purchase it in stores.

I think that is very much in your own humble opinion, but to each his own, and I mean that with no disrespect. I have a mountain of old games, long discontinued, considered defunct or forgotten by many, which I still play. I have a family and a group of friends that I play with, and for us the playing is the thing, rather than how current the rule-set is. If a game is fun, it should retain its charms even in isolation, as long as the players are enjoying it.

I have said before that I play a variety of games, so I do not particularly understand the militancy with people align themselves to one system or other. If nobody wants to use a particular rule-set with the figures, then there is nothing stopping people from trying another. I have personally developed a loathing for most GW miniatures and rules, but that is a case of over-exposure over a very long period, and if somebody suggests using other rules for my old grey-painted marines, I'm happy to try it.
I've been playing Heroquest (if anybody remembers it) for the past twenty years, and it's still popular with my gang, from the adults down to the children.

As I have already pointed out the ONI sculpts are very versatile, so even if AT-43 fizzles out, I still believe that the actual models themselves will still be popular. And as has been mentioned previously, fans may continue it on; you'll never have consensus on further rules development (which it does need), but you cannot even get that now for most "official" rule-systems.

I acknowledge that every group is different, so as I said, to each their own.