Clayton Pierce by Discord group
A leader for the cowboys of Heroscape has long been requested for inclusion into Valhalla Customs. Though this desire has been far from unanimous; some don't like the idea of "factionalizing" all of Heroscape, myself included. At the very least, though, a sheriff leading a posse is very thematic and very Heroscape.
Balance
I don't know how to theoryscape Clayton. While his stats are subpar for the price, obviously his value is in his powers. While controlling leader figures are nothing new, the Sheriff goes about it rather differently than others, relying on everyone else to do their own thing outside of the once-per-round moves and attacks. Balance here has to come down to actual play experience, but even that is questionable due to the varying power he can demonstrate with new Lawmen. From my testing, the point value seemed passable without raising any red flags about future synergies.
Theme
The design team aimed for two very clear themes: the posse and the shootout, and nailed both of them. The once-per-round movement with Sheriff's Posse definitely gives the feeling of leading an old west posse. The oddity of the figures having to end their movement near him is made up for with how it plays; it wouldn't feel nearly as thematic if Clayton could hang behind and send out his lackeys. It really feels like he's leading them. On top of that, while a Shootout power could be implemented in different ways, this version has a great thematic feel of a western gunfight. Theme is spot-on in gameplay.
Creativity
This design one went round and round for a while, and is still on the wordy side, but Mr. Pierce does manage to feel different and interesting compared to Heroscape's other leader units. Ultimately it's just a leader that gives other units bonus movements and attacks, but the timing is different, and there is value in putting order markers on other Lawmen. I should clarify: whether or not the design
appears unique is actually irrelevant; the design
plays uniquely, and that's what matters.
Playability
Obviously you want to make the most of Clayton's abilities when using him, which makes army building strictly limited at this time with only three other Lawmen in existence. And two of them very similar, no less. That's just how things are, at least for now.
Which makes Sheriff's Posse of limited usefulness, at least on smaller maps. That's not to say it isn't appreciated though; like Orc Battle Rush, that initial movement is huge, especially when trying to get a crew of Lawmen heroes into position. In theory with more Lawmen you could use Clayton as a midway launching point to high ground, though the limitations of Shootout make that mostly undesirable. However, the ability to move Clayton back first to "call in reinforcements" as part of Posse could be both thematic and helpful, some day.
Shootout is actually rather interesting. Often enough you do use it on the first order marker to have the greatest impact on the round, but that isn't always the best option. If there aren't many enemies in range, or you still need to get your own figures up on height, it may be better to hold off for a later, more impactful turn. Of course, that does come with a risk. I quite liked the decisions it caused, and it was extremely helpful in making the team effective despite their limited individual capabilities.
As I was testing, though, something started to nag at me, and it grew worse and worse as I continued to test. Here are the Move/Range/Attack/Defense stats for Pierce and the other Lawmen:
5/7/2/2
5/7/2/2
5/7/2/2
5/6/3/3
There is a simple similarity between the existing Lawmen. Their statline helps make them feel similar, despite not being synergistically bound. Clayton Pierce doesn't fit the mold. These things can, of course, be explained away: he has a stronger, less-range gun, he's more nimble than the others, etc. The problem I had is the more I played, the more I had to keep repeating these justifications to myself. He really is the odd man out, despite being the leader.
I know I'm being somewhat hypocritical about this. Deadeye Dan doesn't follow the statline, nor does Garrett Burns or Josie Whistletop (though, in my defense, none of these are Lawmen). Dan's sniper rifle is obviously different, but I don't know what's special about Garrett's high-powered gun or Josie's crap range. But all of these at least also share the Defense 2 value. If it was just one of Clayton's stats, it wouldn't bother me, even if it was Defense. But having all of them different than the other Lawmen just felt wrong, even though the differences have value to the design.
Summary
I didn't want the Lawmen to get a leader unit, but Clayton Pierce proved me wrong. The moveout with Sheriff's Posse is thematically on-point, and Shootout is both thematic and provides a meaningful tactical choice. I really like what he brings to the table. But he just doesn't feel like a Lawman with his stats (Defense especially). He's a real lead-by-example kind of guy, which makes the differences stand out all the more. I think Clayton is one step away from being the cowboy leader the game wants, and would like to see him back with adjustments. Or pass as he is, if the other Judges don't have the same hangup I do.
I vote
Nay to induct Clayton Pierce into the SoV.