Beakface Rogue by
@
wriggz
and
@
Sir Heroscape
The Beakface Rogue got a lot of positive feedback last time, but now it’s back without the Beakface Archer to support it. Can this Rogue stand on its own, or does it fall flat without the original partnered submission?
BALANCE
Balance was actually a significant concern that I ran into initially, though not for the reason that one might expect. In most of my early games, I found the Rogue to be highly underwhelming. Although it can get up to 5 attack or 5 defense, it just didn’t really gel well with its existing synergies. Neither Raptorians nor Brigands actually want to be engaged to opponents, which often made Sneak Attack very hard to take advantage of.
Throwing them an Order Marker in a Raptorian build gives up a lot of positioning freedom from Flocking, lacks the utility of the Quorik Warwitch, and 1 attack of 5 is accomplished more easily with more useful benefits by the Clawfoot Interceptor (who, to be fair, was released after the submission of this unit, so I didn’t hold it against the design). I found the Beakface Rogue to be very difficult to integrate into a full Raptorian build—it was almost always the case that either another squad of Sneaks or ponying up 25 more points for a Clawfoot Interceptor would be more worthwhile, and as a standalone filler, Flocking just wasn’t a useful enough synergy to make the Rogue significantly better than one of the other filler options that can round out the army more (at least without some tougher figures to hold down engagements). The lack of the Beakface Archer was very noticeable in this regard, as the Rogue felt more than a little out of place within the Raptorian army.
But how about the Nottingham Brigands? Well, they actually fared a fair bit better with the Rogue. Thanks to Rogue Hero Bonding, risky commitments to a single Beakface Rogue turn are unnecessary. A single Rogue or two can be a fair investment for a hefty Sneak Attack when the opponent draws near, especially when there’s a decent screen to protect the expensive Brigands. Darrak Ambershard already provides this utility with more bite for just 60 points, but the differing point structures and addition of Evasive carves out a larger niche here for the Beakface Rogues.
In that regard, I eventually found the Beakface Rogue to be balanced enough to be worth taking, and fun situations did emerge with him. It definitely takes a solid screen and even then, the figure falls on the lower end of the power curve, but it’s not like the unit will always underwhelm or never have its chance to shine, which is almost as important to me as making sure that it never dominates.
THEME
The theme here is simple but strong. The Beakface Rogue is an equal mix of HeroScape rogues and Raptorians. There are a couple of potential quibbles like the name matching the class while the Beakface Sneaks and Clawfoot Interceptor didn’t or Glide feeling less impactful as a Raptorian power than Flocking, but these are largely small nitpicks that don’t detract from the design. Overall, the theme here comes across very well and the card has a strong and memorable presence.
CREATIVITY
Even though the theme is simple, I think that the design is creative. The blend of Raptorians and rogues is unique, and the choice of pairing Sneak Attack with Evasive is inspired even if it does not always lend itself to great gameplay. The design feels like a simple, classic sort of thing that we might’ve seen, and the reuse of existing powers to create something new and still so flavorful is very creative.
PLAYABILITY
As I alluded to earlier, the Beakface Rogue is actually somewhat difficult to squeeze into Raptorian builds. Even in Rogue builds, Darrak Ambershard offers similar utility, so the usefulness of
these Rogues is limited. That said, not every unit needs to be super competitive or highly efficient to be fun, and I think that the Beakface Rogue emphasizes that fact quite well. Even if there are generally better ways to spend your points in each army, it is possible to build something around these guys and have a good time. Despite the fact that they aren’t going to change the meta or aren’t likely to find a consistent role within Raptorian builds, they’re simple, thematic, and fun, and they can easily find more use in a variety of formats that take advantage of their unique strengths.
There’s also always the possibility of future Raptorians emerging to take a greater advantage of the Rogues' unique strengths, which could give them a stronger niche in Raptorian builds. That said, they don’t
need it to be fun, and they’re still a strong addition to the canon of the game as it stands right now.
SUMMARY
Despite a shaky beginning where the Beakface Rogue struggled to find its footing without its original partner, the design has proven itself a fun addition to Nottingham Brigand builds, and it has the potential to grow further as the Raptorians expand. Add that on top of a wonderfully strong theme, and it’s my pleasure to vote
YEA to induct the
Beakface Rogue into the Soldiers of Valhalla.