Soldiers of Valhalla - nominations and discussion

[Scytale]

Originally Posted by Lyrgard

We would like to know if this sort of power would be welcomed or frown upon.

That would probably be ok with me personally, depending on how it's implemented.

[Super Bogue]

Shaitahnby Son of Arathorn

Balance: There are no units with Shaitahn stats (4/5/1/3/5). Dund has another point of Move, but he is a terrible comparison since he is widely regarded as one of the most overpriced heroes. Sir Gilbert is an obvious comparison. Gilbert has two more points of Life and one less point of Defense. Also Jandar’s Dispatch is the most similar power to Undead March. What Shaitahn lacks in life he can make up for with Rejected by Death. Soul Weapons and Attack Aura 1 are equal though different in usefulness. Thus the question becomes is Undead March 15 points better than Jandar’s Dispatch? It is certainly more consistent but Jandar’s Dispatch has the potential to be much better (very low chance for rolling 5 or more Jandar symbols but it still exists). However, it does come at a much higher price. Shaitahn has to forego his turn entirely. Also the group of figures it benefits (Death Knights of Valkrill, Tomb Skeletons, and thralls) is much weaker than the group that benefit’s from Jandar’s Dispatch (4th Massachsetts Line, Airborne Elite, Dzu-Teh, Knights of Weston, MacDirk Warriors, Omnicron Repulsors, Omnicron Snipers, Sentinels of Jandar, Tarn Viking Warriors, and Templar Cavalry). Undead March is a better power due to consistency but not by much. Pass

Playability: The powers are clear. The stats are appropriate. It is a medium figure that is visually distinct… I guess. I haven’t picked up the figure yet. I used the Death Knight from Savage Encounters as my Shaitahn. I realize it would cause a bit of redesign and retesting, but I think the Firbolg Skeleton from the Dungeon Crawler’s Kickstarter would have been a better miniature. But this one appears to be fine.
As far as how he performs on the battlefield, I like him. As Scytale previous wrote, Undead March and Rejected by Death create a tactical tension on how to use him. That tension is eased or increased by your army. He works in a variety of armies. Death Knights with or without Skull Demons or Taelord, Thralls with or without Nicholas, and even Tomb Skeletons. He doesn’t make any of those tournament winning armies, but he does make them better. Pass

Creativity: Does Shaitahn add something new to the game? Most definitely, he is the leader of the Death Knights. He also fits well in Thrall or Tomb Skeleton army builds. The tactical tension between Undead March and Rejected by Death is excellent.
One thing that I would nitpick with is his class. Leader is fine, but somewhat bland (which may be why Son of Arathorn chose it). Lord or Duke would have given a synergy to the Skeletons of Annellintia. Not really helpful since he can’t move Utgar’s undead with Undead March. Death Knight would have been my choice. Pass

Theme: If Heroscape has continued in production then I am certain that a Death Knight leader would have been produce. I really like that he is a hero for Unholy Bonding without replacing or diminishing what Taelord can do for the Death Knights of Valkrill. Would that Death Knight leader from the designers of Heroscape looked exactly like Shaitahn? Probably not. Pass

Overall, Shaitahn is well designed hero that compliments a variety of armies. He is interesting to play but not annoying to play against. He adds value to the VC cannon. I vote YES to inducting Shaitahn into the Soldiers of Valhalla.

[caps]

Balance- Kheris has a very high potential for damage output. When he has decent luck he can chew a big hole in his opponent's army. He's particularly intimidating against melee armies, where Deflection can make him almost too scary to attack.

Playability-
Appropriate Stats: Kheris' stats are right-on.
Visual Distinctness: Kheris looks like the Nhah Scirh while standing out in his own way. I love this sculpt.
Powers: This is where my biggest hangup is with Kheris. Slayer Jump and Deflection are both clear and understandable. Nhah Scirh Shield is clear and understandable, but it seems to be adding gimmicks for the sake of complexity. I see what the creators were shooting for thematically, but ultimately it doesn't feel worth what it does. A simple reuse of the Microcorp's Stealth Armor would have been a much better choice here. Alternatively, the designer(s) could have opted to allow the power to only react to attacks, cleaning it up and possibly even allowing it to be merged with Deflection. Which brings me to my other big hangup I have with the powerset: the funny interaction between Deflection and Nhah Scirh Shield. I can understand it, and I can keep track of it, but it feels weird. There are quite a few steps to get from the first roll of attack dice to the last roll of Deflection dice. At the end of the day, this card just has a level of awkwardness and complexity that just doesn't pay off.

Creativity- Whatever you want to say about Kheris, you can't say he isn't doing anything new. Each of the powers is original and creative.

Theme- The theme for Kheris as a kick-butt slayer and assassin is spot-on.

--

I like a lot of things about this unit and really wanted to be able to induct it, but my default vote is always "nay." A unit has to persuade me that it deserves to be added to the canon. In most areas Kheris came close or even surpassed that mark, but his complexity-to-payoff ratio was too far off for me to make my vote a "yea."

I vote Nay to induct Kheris Fehn into the Soldiers of Valhalla.

[orgsbane]

I have a question. After reading through the rules I couldn't find anything, so here it goes: Would a officially licensed character be considered? (AKA Doctor Who). I mean, it is the battle of all time, right? just the Doctor's sorta thing that he'd be interested in. My initial thought was no, but I figured I would check anyway.

[caps]

Originally Posted by orgsbane

I have a question. After reading through the rules I couldn't find anything, so here it goes: Would a officially licensed character be considered? (AKA Doctor Who). I mean, it is the battle of all time, right? just the Doctor's sorta thing that he'd be interested in. My initial thought was no, but I figured I would check anyway.

Nope. No officially licensed characters.

[orgsbane]

Originally Posted by capsocrates

Nope. No officially licensed characters.

Figured so. Thanks!

[superfrog]

From the OP:

-Theme-Does it fit in the HS universe?

I would not really think that officially licensed characters belong to this project or in the canon. I look for cards that follow a HeroScape general and fit in with the other units of that general thematically, or fit in with that general's motif. Doctor Who, to me, would not fit.

[Soundwarp SG-1]

I'm assuming that is a no to doing characters from other franchises at all, not just a no to actually getting permission to do Dr. Who or whatever from their owners right?

'Officially licensed' is really not the right term for an unofficial fan project that doesn't have the license for anything.

[superfrog]

Yes, we aren't looking for Doctor Who characters, whether we have their permission or not...

[Kinseth]

Question - Would it be acceptable to use a miniature that usually comes unpainted(It is plastic) but you can order from the Company as painted if you want?(For a hefty fee.)

[caps]

Originally Posted by Kinseth

Question - Would it be acceptable to use a miniature that usually comes unpainted(It is plastic) but you can order from the Company as painted if you want?(For a hefty fee.)

We generally look at the source of painted minis as the primary source before considering unpainted versions, so it would depend on the price and availability of the painted mini.

[Sir Yeshua]

Dang it, and I was all excited 'cause I thought that another review had been posted...