"I was hoping for Kenobi..." - The Barracks

With the new Kenobi series dropping on Disney+ here in a few weeks it feels so timely that AMG dropped the reveal for Shadow Collective Maul! That means the next couple of weeks we'll be diving into Obi-Wan and Maul both, so be prepared!

The Unit

Pros:

• The keywords of Separatist Maul!
• An extra Merc in your squad!
• Juyo Mastery starts on!
• Still the best saber throw in the game!
• Access to (all of) Maul's command cards!
• Cheap for a force user!
• Flexibility!

Cons:

• Starts at 5 health (tied for lowest of the Jedi/Sith units)
• One less Training slot
• No native surges*

*no native surges yet

170 Points - 10 points more than his separatist counterpart but worthy of such an increase, Shadow Collective Maul is a formidable foe. His card remains the same in all things except losing a Training slot, but he gains a Command slot and an Armament to make up for it! This Maul is nasty, arguably more so than his CIS counterpart, so be prepared to see him on the table (or to bring him yourself).

Offense: The same lightsaber as CIS Maul, it retains its status as best saber throw in the game and with Juyo Mastery starting on his offense is only getting better. New command cards provide an even greater suite of offensive options, so Maul will keep being in your face all the time.

Defense: Starting a wound down is no fun, if only there were a way to mitigate it... Beyond the healing from his new command card, this Maul is about as defensive as the CIS one, only gaining benefits from command cards. Starting a wound down means you may be able to catch him off guard and burn him down quick without a chance to heal, but a good Maul player will just use this drop in health to their advantage. It's red dice, so you've got a defensive 50/50 shot without any surges, but that just means "don't get cocky kid".

Upgrades:

Armament:

The elephant in the room is obviously The Darksaber. This upgrade fundamentally changes how you play Maul in four key areas:

1. Treat your rank as Commander - With The Darksaber you can unite the warring factions! Thematic and good, this allows you to make Maul into a ~200 point commander after upgrades but he will be a formidable force.
2. Cunning - With 6 command cards, this means you can get so much milage out of cunning. If you play your hand right, you can go first every turn, and with the way that Shadow Collective is turning up you may be able to have enough activations to secure a few last-firsts.
3. Surge: Crit - This is a big deal, natural surge to crit is something everyone is jealous for. Who needs Jedi Hunter from At Last when you can just have surge: crit?
4. Sidearm: Melee, Ranged - Here's the kicker. No more throwing your saber, now it's just The Darksaber. The damage is generally the same (I have no source for this other than the initial Reddit post and a hunch, I am not a math man) but the potential damage is lower since there are fewer dice. This keyword takes The Darksaber from an auto-include to an actual nuanced decision, weighing the pros and cons.

Force:

It'd be stupid to not take Saber Throw if you're running Op Maul. If you have The Darksaber this may change, it becomes a three black rather than four red, which is quite a difference.

If you're running commander Maul, this may be the way to go. A guaranteed one damage that refreshes when you recover is solid. With Juyo you can have Master of the Force 2 in a way if you run Choke and Push (or any other exhaustible force upgrade).

A staple for force users, but Maul can make special use because he can force push between his "charge" attack. This makes his range huge and his threat level deadly. Take this, then everything else can come later.

Speedy Maul is something that CIS Maul doesn't have the liberty to take most of the time, but with The Darksaber you can afford this. This makes your threat range even larger and you can surprise your opponent from out of nowhere.

Command:

Your Command slot will most likely be a Vigilance slot, it is just super good with force users that have Deflect, and if you don't use it on yourself you can use it on Pykes that got an independent Dodge. Vigilance is that good. An honorable mention is Improvised Orders (depending on what is available to Shadow Collective).

Training:

Tenacity is the natural choice with Maul's tendency to want a damage on him, and with Wound 1 you turn this on immediately. Cheap and an efficient boon to damage, this is what you'll take most of the time.

Without a second training slot, this takes the backburner. I like Offensive Push especially if you're going to be recovering fairly often. Another offensive boon, this is a solid choice.

A new training! This card looks nasty on so many units, but on Maul it's iffy. With The Darksaber you're probably not bringing Saber Throw as often, so this isn't going to work, but when staying an Operative this can be a defensive and offensive tool. This card is bonkers, and it will make some already good units even better, so be prepared to see it.

Command Cards:

All of these cards come with the stipulation that you must nominate Shadow Collective Maul as the commander. A typically inconsequential part of playing command cards, nominating SC Maul means no bringing this with CIS Maul, so only one of them has 6 cards.

His Eminence - 2 Pip

This is a combination of a bunch of other cards and I am here for it. If Maul is your commander then you may not have a commander for your corps units to rally around, so this can be insurance if things get dicey. Beyond that, its a free dodge token and can suppress people you're engaged with too, so overall a decent card.

Seize What Power We Can - 3 Pip

This card is a trap! Overall a good card, nice offensive and defensive bonus with the tokens, but don't throw yourself in the middle of a bunch of units just to hope this goes off. They have to spend the tokens for you to get more, which means they're getting the benefits of those tokens. It is good at a baseline, so don't force it, but if you can get a benefit then be thankful you did!

Witch Magick - 3 Pip (but a 1 Pip when building your command hand)

This card is nuts. A free recover is sick, removing poison and immobilize tokens is great (looking at you Burst of Speed), but you get to heal 2 as well. When you start with one wound, this can be a life saver. This card also gives you a full command suite as a counter to At Last. This card is a massive draw for Shadow Collective Maul, so be prepared to see it when you want to the least.

Conclusion:

Maul is an amazing Operative and Commander, and as we learn more about Shadow Collective he just seems better and better. An exciting new release, Maul will make a splash for sure! Let me know what you think about Maul in the comments below, and I'll be back next week with more Star Wars Legion content!