[Astroking112]

The intent with Rats or other figures standing in the way is that since the opposing figure is no longer unengaged when they move adjacent to them, the Yamagumo Snare no longer affects them (and so they can still circle engaged figures as well). I don't think that it's super clear from the wording, but this was my best attempt at "classic HS" language leaning on stuff like the Kozuke precedent. As a result, it actually isn't very advantageous to use with Spiders, since melee figures would probably want to come in and kill the spiders anyway.

Originally Posted by TheAverageFan

Part of the reason her worth is hard to say is that the range of her power depends on the Move value of the affected unit. Vipers and Spiders can get up to 9 Move pretty easily, they’d really get caught like flies on sap. Whereas units like the AE would basically be completely unaffected. It is fun to theorize about

Definitely. The earliest drafts had Yamagumo Snare at a fixed range. This limits the applications more, but I found that combining a range limit with the conditional "can end their move adjacent to Ogumo" got a little wonky and confusing, since technically it could stop figures immediately in their tracks if they enter the range without being able to finish the move to get to her.

Stuff like the Airborne Elite (or worse, the Granite Guardians and Wildwoods) were the other main reason to experiment with limiting it based off of the figures' movement rather than a static aura. Figures with 3 or less move just might not be able to make it adjacent to Ogumo in one move if the aura is at 3 spaces, and anything less than that doesn't feel worth investing an Order Marker to activate.

There is also the problem of walking over lava. I could see an argument being made that a figure "can" try to move through lava and roll a 20 to reach her... The intent of the wording is that they're under no obligation to do so unless they have a valid move around the lava, of course. Wording this power in general is a nightmare.

I suppose that it would be possible to scrap the "lure" aspect of the power altogether and just go for a very mean Whirling Vortex:

YAMAGUMO SNARE
If there is at least one revealed Order Marker on this Army Card, then when an opponent’s small or medium figure moves into a space within 3 clear sight spaces of Ogumo, that figure must end its move there. Figures can never move through any figure affected by Yamagumo Snare.

That kind of works (and it's breaking a lot less new ground for sure), but I don't love how it loses out on the theme of Ogumo drawing figures in. It would also necessitate losing the ranged attack, because otherwise Ogumo could literally kite for days. It also turns her into another melee-punishing figure, which I'm not a big fan of. I really like the idea of a figure that bothers ranged figures more than melee, especially in an army with stuff like Masha Shingai.