Soldiers of Valhalla - nominations and discussion

[Dysole]

~Dysole, eager to see the Rockbiter hit the table

[Scytale]

The Diorite Defender has received 5 Yea votes to review (Scytale, superfrog, Vydar_XLIII, wriggz, and Dysole) and moves forward in the process.

[superfrog]

Originally Posted by superfrog

Drow Assassin by Leaf_It

The Drow looked like they might play a big role in 'Scape starting with BftU but they never quite lived up to the hype. Does adding an assassin cut them a new path towards viability?

Balance

25 point common heroes are, well, common in Heroscape. There currently are 7 such figures (4 classic and 3 VC) that fit the description. All are melee except the Tombstone Gunslinger. Most have some kind of activation synergy (Rogue bonding for the Beakface, Death Knight bonding for the Dumutef, Master of Shadows for the Binder, Beast bonding for the Swog, and Outlaw Band for the Gunslinger).

A quick look at the stats each one has seems to put the Assassin in good company. Many 25-point figures have better stat lines, with 3 or 4 defense being a common advantage, and several others having 4 attack or the ability to get 4 attack.

The Drow Assassin has two things to set her apart from the other common fillers here: First is her self-bonding capability and second is her ability to throw 6 guaranteed attack dice without bonuses.

In fact, using her double turn potential gives the Drow Assassin 6 attack at a threat range of 13 (not counting switch possibilities). This is definitely an outsized damage output. Isamu, notably, can also throw 6 attack dice but only against Jandar targets. The Drow Assassin can throw 6 attack dice against any target without prior positioning plays. The next cheapest figure that has that solo attack potential is Pel the Hill Giant at 95 points.

And, of course, the threat range of 13 is super good. About the only comparable play is Alastair's Overextend Attack which gives him an effective threat range of 11 (and Alastair is much better at taking LEAs).

So. A little on the high side of balanced as far as potential attack output goes, we'll see what the gameplay says.

Creativity + Theme

Nice tight design package here. All the powers support the theme of taking a single powerful opportunistic strike. Each one is relatively clear and simple to understand, or reused wholesale from other previous cards (looking at you, Hide in Darkness).

Playability

I played this figure in two basic army compositions: either ~4x mixed in with ~3 squads of Drow, or splashed at 2-4x in an army that was in dire need of a can-opener.

With the Deepwyrm Drow, I really really enjoyed playing the Drow Assassin. The switching ability was fun to pull off and allowed the Drow player to take some risky shots without sacrificing board control. In general, the Assassins are only useful for a single high attack per round, and they usually die right after, so it's always interesting to plan ahead for when you want to pull the trigger and shoot the Drow Assassin into the fray.

I came into this review fresh off of the Yokai, who had several noticeable weaknesses but one specific strength: the ability to assassinate a key figure by bum-rushing for an attack of 6. The Drow Assassin can do that as well, especially with a line of Deepwyrms out front for easy shadow shifting. This made them good Raelin assassins, good Kurrok/Xundar assassins, and serviceable assassins for most any bonding hero.

The other way I ran Assassins was by splashing them into armies with low attack (usually 2-4 assassins alongside 2-attack figures. This made OMs more tricky but for the most part you can just bide your time until your Assassins are one of the only army pieces you have left. Starting about mid-game, putting an OM or two on the Assassin card helps keep the pressure on the opposing team.

Nobody wants to open up their valuable figures to 6 dice (or 7 with height), so even the threat of Assassination will greatly impact your opponent's positioning through the game. Usually this materializes into at least one big attack of 6 but occasionally 2-3. If your opponent plays to avoid that it really slows any game down to the point where it becomes less enjoyable to play since neither side is putting out much offense.

One other point that works in the Assassins' favor is that as common heroes they share a single card. If one Drow Assassin gets tied down or even killed, the OMs are still valid for any other Drow Assassins you have in your SZ. Very hard to neutralize the entire threat at once. And it often doesn't matter as the Drow player which Assassin you need to activate, 13 threat range can get to a lot of places.

Some memorable Assassinations from my testing: Warden 816, Raelin (several times), Xundar, Master Lao Xin, Tor-Kul-Na, Quahon, Nerak, Pel.

Summary

It seems to me that the Drow Assassin was slightly overtuned to make up for the Deepwyrm Drow's comparative weakness. And, by and large, I have no complaints with that build. It is enjoyable to play and requires careful development to pull off good assassination plays. But splashing 2x Drow Assassin in another army for 50 points and a very high likelihood of some very high leverage attacks just continued to stick out to me as too good. Maybe something as simple as nerfing to a +1 attack bonus or preventing the Heracles-style double activation would address my concerns, I'm not entirely sure.

If you go read the current discussion about Alastair in the Power Rankings thread, much of his value is tied up in the high-variance play of 1-2 attacks of 5 at a large threat range (or 3-4 around an initiative switch). The Drow Assassin provides similar damage potential (potentially more) at a fraction of the cost. So while I did like what the Drow Assassin brought to the table, in the end it was a bit much for its point cost, and I vote to induct.

The new version of the Drow Assassin addresses my concerns directly, and comes out the better for it.

The utility in the Drow build remains similarly fine, although the big swings are cut down slightly. But the free huge threat range 7 dice swing is gone and that prevents degenerate splashing of a few of these girls in a can-opener-free army.

You still can get some big threats if you have developed one or two Drow up to nice switching spots, but requiring a small amount of investment introduces more choice into the gameplay and nicely counters the huge potential you are setting yourself up for.

I do think the nerfs were ever so slightly more than necessary but overall the figure plays smoother and still has a fun upside.

to induct.

[Muskie]

Originally Posted by ryguy266

I would like to resubmit the Diorite Defender for SoV consideration.



Mini:

Spoiler Alert!

Mini with classic figures on a casual map:

Spoiler Alert!

(The granite guardians in this photo are 3d printed and painted)

Notable changes from the last version are the addition of Heavy Stone as a minor power/penalty, and the change to the Rock Pillars mechanic, where an OM must be revealed on a card to activate Rock Pillars.

Balance:
Heavy stone has such specific use cases that it does not affect the balance of Granite Guardians. Because Rock Pillars remains effectively the same for Granites, which is a very strong build at the right point totals, especially into melee, his cost has stayed the same, even though he is now much less useful for ranged pods.

Playability:
Granite Guardian is no longer a catch-all Marcus, at least not for non-Elementars. His usefulness has been severely limited for most ranged pods. However, the tweaks mean more creative builds are necessary to make full use of his abilities. Additionally, there are chances for opposing melee to find the cracks in the Granite wall in-between rounds, as Rock Pillars must be activated by an Order Marker.

Creativity:
Diorite's card shares much symmetry with the Granite Guardians, while at the same time providing strong leadership bonuses in a unique way. His "universal synergy" that now takes skill and creativity to use efficiently make for off-the-wall armies that feel right at home in Heroscape.

Theme:
Diorite maintains the strong theme from his previous submission with both his stats and powers. The additional garnish of Heavy Stone adds an extra flavor to the card.

A big thanks to Vydar and Scytale for their feedback on the earlier submission and assistance in reworking the Rock Pillar mechanics, and og-blaha for putting up with the many playtest games this year.

It shows the picture of the mini for this, but not the name. I looked for a little while to find it but did not. It is not listed on the first page. What is the name of the mini.

[SkyWhale]

It was listed in the end of the original submission, but is: Elemental Wall #06 from DnD War Drums

[Dysole]

Sorry it's been a minute folks. After the Haslab campaign, I fell off the wagon of testing for a while and this year ended up being busier than I anticipated, but I should be good going forward.



Shadow Wraith by @Sir Heroscape

While I don't get to make my Worm Reference ™ , it's time to play some Raid: Shadow Legends and see what new things Xundar can do.

Balance

The Shadow Wraith is as cheap as the Binder but makes up for it by only having a base defense of 2. The attack is the same as the Fiend and the Hound but with no additional offensive capabilities. The figures gives a bonus to defense but it doesn't stack limiting the power. The movement power is very strong and it being on one of the weaker units stats and power wise is a good decision. All in all, nothing screams out unbalanced and the choices all seem restrained. Given that the shadow faction is looking to grow and the potential for abuse with Azazel make restrained choices good ones.

Theme

While the figure doesn't look like it gives a defensive boost, Deepened Shadows is evocative enough of a power name that I understand why the power is a defensive boost. Shadow Phase movement ability seems to indicate a Shadow that is able to control the element of shadow and twist it for its own purposes. The mini being humanoid in nature and a more flowy sculpt play into this effect. There's a number of possible designs that I could have seen working for this sculpt, but the design matches the sculpt well enough and the power names fit well enough to build a picture of exactly what makes this unit this unit. Thoroughly appreciate the theme here.

Creativity

Raelin has been in the game since the start and she's shown the power of defensive boosts. A fragile army like the shadows could absolutely use a defensive card as that role has yet to be filled. The adjacency boost and the phase ability work together to make a unit that provides a defensive boost but in a way that fits with the shadow's army intention of being constantly in motion and repositioning. The more I talk about how all this flows together, the more I like it. The Shadows as a faction feel cohesive and making a figure that helps them with defense boosts without sacrificing the feel of freedom of movement that pervades the shadow faction is really well done.

Playability

Being a defensive unit I tried to first see what happened if I played a more pod based strategy both in an Azazel build and in a Raelin build. The Shadow Wraith can certainly make both strategies a bit better but their own defensive capabilities are low enough that an opponent has plenty of options for assaulting a pod (especially because going with either Azazel or Raelin eats up points that could have been spent on more Shadows).

I threw a number of tests in this direction just to be sure there wasn't going to be any problems with either combination and I left walking away with the impression that it's a viable strategy but I don't think it's the best usage.

I'm still not sure I figured out the optimal breakdown of shadows (although it does feel like they're still missing a piece) but the Wraith allowed me a wealth of choices each game. Placing your figures to take advantage of Phase, killing something and then Phasing a Wraith there, plopping a wraith in a key defensive slot, using wraiths Phase to boost Fiends and Hounds rolls, and just the choices on which ones both to bring and use left me with a lot of options. Nothing ever felt unbeatable and the attack of 3 meant that taking a turn to reposition with them usually was still productive. The Shadow army struggles the faster it loses figures as in most cases it's hard to justify taking the attack with Xundar even when you only have a few Shadows left. Being able to boost the Shadows survivability is a must. I think they're probably like the Binder in that you really don't want too many of them, but they're a solid addition to the faction offering lots of choices in gameplay and rewarding good forethought and positioning.

Summary

Like I alluded to above, I think the Shadow army is still missing a piece (or maybe two) to allow it to be a more competitive build. A number of roles come to mind and those could be tricky and some might even get degenerate with Azazel if you're not careful. The Shadow Wraith is not degenerate and has lots of interesting tactical options. Furthermore, the defense boost means that future stronger shadows can be mitigated by giving them lower defense to compensate and the shadow wraith's own boosts will allow them to compete. On top of that it fits the theme of the other shadows quite well with the whole package flowing together in ways I didn't really appreciate until I started thinking about it in depth.

I vote YES to induct the Shadow Wraith into the SoV.

~Dysole, glad to have gotten one of these out

[Muskie]

Originally Posted by SkyWhale

It was listed in the end of the original submission, but is: Elemental Wall #06 from DnD War Drums

thanks, fiend!! See you at the holiday tournament!

[superfrog]

Wulfing Hunters by Shiftrex

Balance
2-man squads are tough to evaluate, but these have some of the traditional helps: a defensive power and a development power, to go along with high attack potential. Those all really enforce the hunting theme. I think the best comparison is actually the Beakface Sneaks. While their free movement powers are quite different, they both are two-man squads with bonus ranged defense. Wulfings have +1 to attack and defense which makes them definitely more worthwhile, probably worth around the extra 20 points.

Creativity and Theme
Stealthy is a nice re-use from the Darkprowl Thrall, but my favorite power here is the Stalkers power. It's a new mechanic (responsive movement) and executed here pretty well. Overall, the theme package is quite strong on the card and conveys hunting quite convincingly...

Playability
...until you get it on the table. Two big things stood out to me as awkward while playing these guys. First is the incongruence between the two free movement powers: one gives you three spaces of movement (applied individually to up to two figures), the other gives you two spaces of movement (applied to four figures no matter what). In practice, this was awkward to remember, and didn't seem to serve any gameplay purpose. Making both moves three spaces would have smoothed out the feeling of the card and tightened the powerset.

What exacerbated the memory issue, in my experience, was that Strike and Fade was difficult to use. It felt quite athematic that it didn't have a disengage clause, and because of the low-figure nature of 2-man squads, taking LEAs is only a last-resort move. So the only times I could use it was when single-engaging squad figures, which just feels like a waste of 4 attack (or feels extra bad when you miss).

As Scy said in his review, it's difficult to fully utilize the card: reading it suggests anti-hero but playing it feels vaguely anti-squad.

If a few things were cleaned up on this card (disengage at least in Strike and Fade, maybe all the time; and matching the fixed movement lengths) I think it would be a great hunter card to splash at 2-4x in lots of builds. As is, it doesn't get there for me.

to induct.

[Scytale]

The Wulfing Hunters by @Shiftrex have received 2 Nay votes to induct (Scytale and superfrog) and are removed from the process.

[SkyWhale]

I would like to submit my repaint of the Marro Drudge, the Shards of She-Kal-Ra, for SoV consideration.



CARD TEXT:

Spoiler Alert!

GENERAL = UTGAR
PLANET = MARR
SPECIES = MARRO
UNIQUENESS = UNIQUE SQUAD
CLASS = SHARDS
PERSONALITY = TRICKY
SIZE/HEIGHT = MEDIUM 4

LIFE = 1

MOVE = 6
RANGE = 7
ATTACK = 3
DEFENSE = 3
POINTS = 80

SHARED MIND
You may always attack 3 times with the Shard of She-Kal-Ra. Any Shard can attack up to 3 times. When attacking with a Shard of She-Kal-Ra, roll one less attack die for each time it has already attacked this turn.

SHE-KAL-RA's INFLUENCE
Anytime you roll the 20-sided die for the Army Card of a Marro or Wulsinu figure adjacent to a Shard of She-Kal-Ra you control, you may reroll the die. You must use the result of the new roll. If you roll a 6 or lower, destroy the Shard of She-Kal-Ra. You may only use She-Kal-Ra's Influence once per turn.

Bio:

Spoiler Alert!

The air turns fetid as hounds sprint into the fray, crazed looks in their lidless eyes. A maddening chitter follows soon after with drones flooding the battlefield. Their moves are calculated and connected, working as one mind. When only stragglers are left amongst the ruins, the triune of metal masks appear. These three house the remaining essence of mighty She-Kal-Ra. His old body may be gone, but his mind is ever-present in the era of the Overlords.

Comparisons to Drudge:

Spoiler Alert!

Thank you for your consideration!

[Dad_Scaper]

Interesting. The repaint looks awesome.

Do I understand correctly that each one can attack 3 times, without reference to attacks by any other? Or does the squad as a whole get 3 attacks, with a diminishing attack die, when it's the same one repeating?

Thanks for sharing the custom, Skywhale!

[SkyWhale]

Thank you! I'm really happy with how the paint job turned out!

Originally Posted by Dad_Scaper

Do I understand correctly that each one can attack 3 times, without reference to attacks by any other? Or does the squad as a whole get 3 attacks, with a diminishing attack die, when it's the same one repeating?

The intent is that you get 3 attacks from the squad as a whole, with a diminishing attack die from the same one. This makes for interesting decision points when only one Shard is in position to attack a target you really want to destroy, and allows you to have 3 attacks even when only a single Shard is left standing.