Jarek Guy by
fishguy1
The C3V created Heroscape's first Mariedians, the people oppressed by their own creations, the Soulborg. Jarek Guy is a Mariedian warrior from an earlier time period than the M-43 Resistance and Kira Jax, using technology probably not readily accessable to the scrappy resistance.
Balance
Jarek Guy is solid all-around: 5 move, a strong 5 attack, a decent 5 life/3 defense backed by a handy Exosuit, and a multi-target ranged special attack. The 100pt price tag isn't punishing either. A simple comparison is Crixus, another 5 life/3 defense hero with a defensive power, who at 10 points less lacks an explosion special attack but benefits from bonding and Spartacus. There are quite a few other comparison points as well, such as Drake (RotV), Agent Carr, Major X17, Alastair Macdirk, Heirloom, etc. Overall 100 points is in the ballpark.
Theme
Jarek Guy doesn't look like the other Mariedians, other than the obvious two arms, two legs, and a head. The difference doesn't particularly bothers me, though. After all Humans in Heroscape vary quite widely, from Vikings to Samurai to Agents to whatever, so why not Mariedians? Jarek's armor has a bit of a Soulborg feel to it, in my opinion, which fits for a race that built the Soulborg.
I'm not entirely thrilled with the choice of general. I'm ok with it as it matches the other Mariedians, but an armored sci-fi soldier doesn't with my vision of Aquilla. Feels more Vydar-ish to me. Not a deal-breaker for me regardless.
Creativity
Nothing new here, combining something similar to the Microcorp Agents' Stealth Armor and something similar to the Airborne Elite's Grenade Special Attack. I appreciate the general simplicity, though I would have slightly preferred simply reusing Stealth Armor instead of creating something slightly different.
Playability
Jarek Guy is sort of a jack-of-many-trades but master of none. Or rather, not really good at any one. His potent 5 attack would suggest an assassin role like Drake or Agent Carr, but a lack of a movement power really prevents him from performing that role well. An explosion attack might suggest that he's an effective squad killer, but the painfully short range on Plasma Grenade Special Attack and the fact that Jarek can be hit by it makes it incredibly situational. The 5 life/3 defense + Exosuit combination might even lend the Mariedian hero value in the defender role, but defensively he isn't
that great, and blocking with a single figure is rarely effective.
But being able to do so much is useful, right? Well yes, but he's normally not all that good in any role, and most armies would rather put in a unit that does something the army needs well than a unit that does a few things sort of ok. Just ask Sharwin Wildborn how often she appears in the tournament scene. That doesn't mean Jarek is worthless though; in the right places he fits in quite well and provides quite a bit of value.
One such place is alongside a team of heroes in a dungeon crawl scenario. The best dungeon crawl teams are usually composed of heroes that fill various roles, healer, heavy-hitter, defender, special attacker, etc. Losing a hero that fills a key role can be crushing for a team, so it's useful to have a hero that can step in and fill various roles adequately. Jarek is a decent heavy-hitter by himself, and can also clear out goblins with a well-timed Plasma Grenade and even hold a line for a while if need be.
Another place where Jarek does well is alongside the M-43 Resistance Fighters. The M-43s don't (currently) synergize with any other defenders, heavy-hitters, assassins (well, Kira sort of is), or powerful special attacks. Jarek Guy isn't great in any of those roles, but the bonus movements the M-43s provide via Guerilla Tactics help him get into position to get the most out of his activations. As I mentioned before, getting him to effectively assassinate a key figure or blast a group of squaddies is difficult; he becomes much more valuable when he does not require order markers to get into position to take advantage of key moments. He works surprisingly well as a defender for them too, as he is often tough enough to take a few hits when out in front. And while he's there, the occasional order marker can allow him to put some hurt on high-defense figures that come his way. In essence, being a jack-of-many-trades is useful in an M-43 army because he can fill in multiple valuable roles with minimal order marker cost.
Summary
Jarek Guy is a solo hero that isn't really great at any one thing, and as such will likely disappoint players more than thrill them. But in the right armies Jarek can provide a good deal of value, stepping in to fill a necessary role, whether that's a multi-hit special attacker, a heavy hitter, or just someone to take some hits.
I vote
to induct
Jarek Guy into the SoV.