So… We’re not Hassassin Bahram, or Ramah Taskforce; we don’t have Fiday (or Asawira), and we don’t have super soldiers (or motorcycle warbands.) What we do have is Holomask and Holoprojector (and Azra’il)?
Doesn’t sound very inspiring by comparison, does it? And truth be told it’s not, but I am here to tell you that it is not a faction defining skill without teeth and, more importantly, without utility; and if you want to play Qapu Khalqi Holomask and Holoecho are skills you need to get to grips with.
So what are you in for, here? I’m going to outline what Holomask and Holoprojector are and which units have access to them. I am going to pepper the discussion with tactical uses of these skills, then I’m going to talk to you about strategy, by which I mean your mindset.
Holomask and Holoprojector sit in a category of skills and equipment which have two levels of use and understanding:
Level 1 is where most people sit. It’s the level of “I guess I can pretend my Hafza HRL is a Ghulam FO?” or “I guess I can blow up a mine with my holoechoes?” This is the weak level of Holomask and Holoprojector understanding which is very easily dismissed with the reply “Big deal! I’ll shoot you anyway.” or “Okay???” It’s fine, but it’s superficial and we are the People of the Door and we can do better.
Level 2, where we want to end up, is the level that unlocks some of the real power of QK. It’s the level at which your opponent can no longer trust a single word out of your dirty, stinking, mouth. With any luck we will get to that level later.
But first! What are Holomask and Holoprojector?!
Okay, simple enough. But you see the blue text that says “Holomask State” and “Holoecho state”? They open links to this:
And that is just Holomask! Holoecho is even longer!
If you want to really dig into these skills and get to know them better – and you should, don’t just take my word for it – here are links to the relevant pages:
https://infinitythewiki.com/HoloMask_State
https://infinitythewiki.com/Holoecho_State
Tl;dr Holomask allows the user to give the appearance of being a different unit than the one it is. Instead of the unit’s own stats and equipment, when your opponent asks what it is you describe the stats and equipment of a different unit of your choice.
An important note is that it appears to have the equipment of a different unit. You can’t, for example, pretend to be a Beasthunter with Minelayer and deploy a pretend mine if the Holomask unit doesn’t have mines to begin with.
For us, this means the Hafza. Let’s take a quick look at its profile.
In the lore, Hafza are elite field commanders, leading their troops from the front with guile, skill and inspiring words and deeds. However, as the background has it, because of their skill and daring-do they became regular targets for aggression in battle, resulting in very high casualty rates. Consequently they were equipped with Holomask technology to allow them to stay amongst their troops on the frontlines, but avoid being the targets of snipers and assassins.
Sounds cool, but you can see that their profiles aren’t anything to write home about, they’re basically a slightly better Ghulam. But don’t be deceived, this is an essential unit in any QK army for many reasons. First among them is that it can be your Lieutenant. So long as your Silhouette size matches the size of the unit you wish to Holomask as, your LT can be that unit.
In the most basic terms this means your LT will always be hiding in the open. Core Fireteam of Janissaries? Your LT can be among them, hidden as just another of their kind. Want to be super spicy and pretend your LT is a corner guard Korsan? You can do that. Mostly it means hiding your LT in a fireteam because not only does this maximise their protection, but because Hafza “count as” for all non mercenary fireteams they help bestow composition bonuses on the pieces that will be doing the fighting.
As an aside, one of my personal favourite Fireteams is a 4 person Janissary Core Fireteam of 2 basic Hafza (1 as the LT,) a Janissary Missile Launcher for ARO duty, and a Janissary AP Rifle/Light Shotgun and tinbot (-3).
This gives you a Sixth Sense, Religious Troop, 2W, ARM 7 (in cover,) BTS 9 (in cover vs everything not a template,) PH 14, WIP 14, ARO piece, shooting 2 ML shots, with BS15 before any modifiers*; all for the low, low price of 103 points and 1.5 SWC… Ok, that is not cheap, but don’t let it be said there are no good ARO pieces in QK! Plus you get a lot for your point spend.
The aforementioned ARO is as good as in any other faction, a hidden LT, a sacrificial Hafza to defend against close assault, and a very competent secondary gunfighter. The value of Janissaries in QK cannot be underestimated, and part of that is due to the cheapening effect of the Hafza. But that is a discussion for another time!
*If you’re not sure what all that means, be assured they’re all good things.
Along with disguising your LT, Holomasked Hafzas can slot into any fireteam and almost always make it cheaper, without signalling to your opponent what you have done. You can do things like make a Haris fireteam of only killers, gunfighters and CC specialists that has a secret Hafza Foward Observer.
In button pushing missions, or missions where points are scored for killing specialists, this can be powerful as it may lead your opponent to think that fireteam does not present a threat or opportunity, for the purposes of scoring.
This can have knock-on effects on their deployment and play during the game, making them de-prioritise that team as a target. Consequently you can push your fireteam up the table and use your hidden Hafza FO to accomplish objectives unexpectedly. Plus it can use the Forward Observe skill to Spotlight enemies and has a Deployable Repeater, which can also catch players with TAGs and HI unawares.
Another application for a Hafza of any type, though the FO and HRL are good choices, is as a fire lane blocker. This is a tactic where you deploy a Hafza of your choice as a lone Djanbazan with AP Sniper Rifle. Djanbazan operate best in a fireteam, with the bonuses to BS and B values, however a lone Djanbazan sniper can present a real problem to advancing warbands.
Their MSV2 means smoke throwing is ineffective and the AP Sniper profile, while not as threatening as the Multi Sniper Rifle found in other factions, is still an existential threat to many Warbands. By deploying a Hafza in this way you save on the points cost of a Djanbazan while retaining the behavioural effect on your opponent.
Alternatively you can deploy a Hafza HRL in a Djanbazan core, if you expect to face Albedo or White Noise in your meta or vs a specific opponent. In that way you can lull your opponent into spending orders on White Noise in order to sneak past your “MSV2 ARO” that will simply not work as intended.
There is nothing quite like watching your opponent set up White Noise, or running an Albedo unit across the board, in the expectation of gliding right past your Djanbazan core team, or imposing a -6 modifier on your solo Djanbazan, only for them to come face to face with an unaffected BS12 or 15 Heavy Rocket Launcher. (This tactic brought to you by QK veteran Danger Rose!)
An important note: The fire lane blocker tactic is named intentionally. This tactic will not work in a sniper nest covering large portions of the table. In that instance your opponent will likely bring maximum firepower to bear and your Hafza will not stand a chance. This tactic is to be used with caution to protect narrow fire lanes, usually on flanks where warbands can use their speed and smoke to get forward.
Notable mentions go to the Spitfire and Heavy Rocket Launcher Hafza. SWC weapons are always useful and for Hafza in Core Fireteams who can benefit from an inflated Ballistic Skill they can present a real threat to many targets. However, don’t get carried away. They are still 1W, 2ARM Line Infantry in all but name and will die just as easily. Use with caution.
So that’s Holomask and specifically the Hafza. It helps to make your fireteams cheaper and conceals their true nature, allowing you to affect how your opponent deploys and acts during play.
However, there is another unit that has Holomask in Qapu Khalqi: The Bashi Bazouks.
Bashi Bazouk means something like “damaged head” or “without leader” in Turkish, which is appropriate for this unit on two levels. They are pirates, pure and simple. Freebooters who are specialised in boarding actions. They’re braggards, liars, and petty criminals, interested only in having a good time at the expense of others, and lining their own pockets. They are ungovernable, but also unrestrained in their behaviour, making the double entendre of their name supremely fitting.
As you can see, there is a lot more going on this profile, although they are about the same price as a Hafza. This is due in part to them being wild and wreckless Irregular Troops, which we will discuss later.
Bashi Bazouks have an even less inspiring stat line than the Hafza (this is Haqqislam, after all – As a lesser power in the Human Sphere we are not blessed with many stat line monsters) with a very un-Haqqislam WIP of just 12 to represent their undisciplined and chaotic way of war. However, they have some interesting weapon and equipment load outs, and where they really shine is in the combination of Holomask, Holoprojector and Parachutist.
We already know what we can do with Holomask. It is there to mislead your opponent into making a sub-optimal gameplay choice. Using it well can make them focus on, or effectively ignore, areas of the table of your choosing.
Unfortunately Bashi Bazouks cannot join fireteams. What they can do is combine Holomask with Holoprojector and Parachutist to devastating effect.
Holoprojector and the Holoecho State.
If you have not jumped into the Holoecho State entry in the Infinity Wiki, linked above, here is roughly how it works:
During deployment you can place up to 3 Holoechoes (or copies of the same model) on the table within Coherency of at least one of the other Holoechoes (that is, within 8”) and must remain so for the duration, or else the Holoecho will vanish at the end of the order in which it left Coherency.
The player must note down, in secret, which of the holoechos is the real unit.
The Holoprojector bearer and all the Holoechoes act at the same time and perform the exact same skill as each other. While in Holoecho state, and in active turn, the unit can use the Surprise Attack (-3) Special Skill for Face to Face attack rolls.
If the Holoprojector bearer is outside the LoF of enemy Markers or Troopers, then the bearer may automatically activate this State during the States Phase, placing the other two Holoechoes in Silhouette contact with it.
During their Active Turn, Troopers with Holoprojector may revert to Holoecho State by expending an Entire Order while outside the LoF of enemy Markers or Troopers. The player will place the other two Holoechoes in Silhouette contact with the Holoprojector bearer.
Most importantly: Holoechoes are considered real Troopers in regard to providing AROs, checking LoF, and activating Enemy weapons or pieces of Equipment (Mines, CrazyKoalas, etc.). Each Reactive Trooper must choose only one of the Holoechoes activated by the Order as their target, but they are not obliged to choose the same target.
Important note: Because Holoecho is a marker state the reactive player is able to delay their ARO until you have declared your second short skill, which does undermine some of the strength of Holoecho. However you are still able to manipulate when and how your F2F rolls play out. *Thanks to Theronth for reminding me of this important caveat!
Okay, that is a lot and it’s nowhere near all of the text in the Holoechos State Wiki entry, but I think it covers the key info. Basically, your Bashi Bazouk can deploy, at the start of the game or as a Parachutist later on, with 3 models or markers to represent it.
This means when offering up a F2F with your opponent you are creating an unequal encounter where you know exactly what you are aiming for, but your opponent has to guess between up to 3 different options.
You may be able to avoid AROs entirely if you present 2 or more of your Holoechoes for a F2F and your opponent picks the wrong target. This can allow you to get free shots, move to a more advantageous position, complete a classified, or place an E/M mine to make a subsequent F2F even more difficult for your opponent.
And don’t forget: Surprise Attack! Remember that basic stat line? Well, that’s not such a big issue when you are imposing a -3 to your opponent’s F2F roll and you have arrived on an unobserved table edge and can create advantageous attack angles.
You might only be BS11, but if they are out of cover and are dodging on -6 because of Surprise Attack and not having you in their Zone of Control or Line of Fire, then your chances of success are greatly improved.
In addition the weapon load outs of the Bashi mean that it is possible to offer a credible threat to much more expensive and powerful units which they will not know about until it’s too late. Taking an AP rifle and Breaker Pistol to attack HI, TAGs, or Ariadnan ‘Podes out of cover can create excellent trades. Even if you are only able to wound or kill one powerful and expensive unit that can still be a good trade for your 15 point irregular pirate.
Bashi Bazouks are also good for clearing the way for other troops, too. Remember level 1 understanding of Holoprojector? Well, just because it’s basic doesn’t mean it’s worthless. Deployment Zone minelayers are popular defensive pieces, and with good reason. Fortunately for the Bashi Bazouks they do not present a problem as you can run your Holoechoes into the mine’s trigger area and neutralise it without any risk to your piece. You are then able to attack the soft underbelly of the DZ, or simply create space for another piece to move into that area.
There is another application that sometimes crops up in online discussions that is worth addressing.
Because you get 3 Holoechoes, and the Bashi Bazouk is AVA 4, you can theoretically field 15 markers in your DZ before you have put any other models down. Add to that the AVA 4 Hafza and it is possible to put down 19 identical models during deployment, not including the other units in your army. The idea here is to overwhelm your opponent with targets, including up to four surprise HRL’s to discover, thus increasing their cognitive load and forcing mistakes.
While this is theoretically possible, in practice it is weak in a couple of ways. Your opponent knows that most of the markers are fakes. They also know that a maximum of 4 of them have the ability to meaningfully attack them at range. For a good player this will not be a hindrance because they can simply move up their best gunfighter and invite AROs. There is a certain amount of shenanigans to be had in delaying revealing your AROs, but fundamentally a top gunfighter will simply put them all down without breaking much of a sweat.
The second way that is a weak strategy is that actually fielding that many identical troopers or markers (unless you have a huge model collection) is prohibitively expensive and time consuming.
Strategy.
Finally I want to talk a little bit about strategy, or perhaps it is better termed “mindset.” Holomask and Holoecho are bluff skills. Neither the Hafza or the Bashi Bazouk are threatening in and of themselves. They get their power from misdirection and exploiting soft targets and unexpected attack vectors. This means that two things must be in your mind when choosing, and then using, these units. You have to play fearlessly to get the best out of them and your opponent can always simply call your bluff.
Holomask and Holoecho encourage a certain élan in your style of play, you have to be bold, carefree, and have a good poker face, particularly with the Bashi Bazouk, to make it all work. Your opponent can’t know what you are thinking, so you have to play in a way that betrays no anxiety about which unit is which, or what things you have hidden up your sleeve. This means you have to be particularly clear eyed about what you are trying to achieve.
Outside of QK I have encountered people using Bashi Bazouk to holomask as an LT option to lure attacks away from the real LT. In Qapu Khalqi this becomes a deep shell game where multiple Holomask units can be diverting attention here, there and everywhere. But beware: Too much trickery and you may lose track of what you’re trying to achieve and you may force your opponent to fall back on brute force in the face of too many option. This will always win out against subterfuge such as Holomask and Holoecho.
If you simply throw them into the fray without consideration for their strengths and weaknesses they will fold like so many old newspapers. In a way they embody so much of what I like about Qapu Khalqi, and Haqqislam more generally. They can be tricky to use, and tricky to appreciate, but they have hidden depths and are an unsolved part of the game that has potential to throw your opponent off balance and win you games in unexpected ways.
The uses I have outlined above are just the ones that have occurred to me through my play experiences. I encourage to you experiment with these units and see what other applications you can develop for these, at times, maligned skills.
Feel free to leave your Holomask and Holoprojector reflections in the comments so you can add your distinctiveness to my own!
May Allah the Great and Merciful guide your steps in (tabletop) battle.
Husam Operative Diomedes x
Islamic Space Pirates 
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