The current power names and some of @
flameslayer93’s and other’s comments sparked my thoughts, and since it seems Vlad is still in the public feedback phase I’ll keep sharing/rambling (although admittedly I probably blur somewhat into the brainstorming territory vs. feedback territory).
Earlier on, I too had hoped that Vlad would only help his army or hurt his opponent but since it seemed he was going the direction of making every melee’s blood boil, I was resigning myself to accepting the current version.
I don’t think Vlad is quite at the Taelord level with his current melee-only buff that buffs both sides, but if there’s a desire to bring his cost down a little more, what about
:
Quote:
IMPALEMENT 13
After moving and before attacking, choose a small or medium figure adjacent to Vlad III. Roll the 20-sided die. If you roll a 13 or higher, the chosen figure cannot roll defense dice if attacked by Vlad III this turn, and if it is destroyed this turn place a Cruelty Marker on this Army Card. At the end of the round, remove a Cruelty Marker from this Army Card.
DISPLAY OF CRUELTY
Whenever Vlad III or a figure with a range of 1 within 4 clear sight spaces of Vlad III attacks, if Vlad III has at least 1 Cruelty Marker on his card, the attacking figure adds 1 to their Attack Dice.
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This puts a further limitation on Vlad in that, not only must he destroy a figure, but he must do so by way of a successful impaling. And, destroying a large or huge figure won’t trigger the extra Attack Die either.
Impalement is now no longer the same power as Whip.
The marker also takes care of memory.
Or . . . if you really want to get thematic with the impaling:
Quote:
IMPALEMENT 13
Start the game with [however many markers come with the set] Cruelty Markers on this card. After moving and before attacking, choose a small or medium figure adjacent to Vlad III. Roll the 20-sided die. If you roll a 13 or higher, the chosen figure cannot roll Defense Dice if attacked by Vlad III this turn, and if it is destroyed replace the figure with a Cruelty Marker.
DISPLAY OF CRUELTY
Whenever a figure with a range of 1 within 4 clear sight spaces of a Cruelty Marker attacks, the attacking figure adds 1 to their Attack Dice. Treat Cruelty Markers as destructible objects with 1 Life and 0 Defense.
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It doesn't necessarily limit him more, but it makes for even more interesting choices. “Do I spend an attack getting rid of my opponent’s attack potential?” or “Do I use my opponent’s cruelty against them and play a gambit to keep boosting my own offense”
It sets him apart from some other cheerleaders in that he’s setting up “hot zones” instead of being a mobile command unit, and there’s plenty of dials to turn if he’s too-effective/not-effective-enough.
Plus, I love the mental image since defeated figures are literally being represented on the battlefield which drips with theme even if the power were to change to an ally buff or opponent debuff or initiative adjustment or something entirely different instead of an everyone buff.
I do see how the current version of Vlad and Velkhor hit some similar notes and even have some reciprocal synergy but I think even with changes and tweaks, some of that feeling will be unavoidable because of their sculpts which both evoke a cruel egocentric master beyond concern for any lesser mortal.
Finally, I kind of like the idea of piked corpses causing an attack debuff on opponents as they become terrified, rather than causing extra attack die for anyone because they were incited or enraged.