Soldiers of Valhalla - nominations and discussion

[Scytale]

Yes, what is the current availability of the figure?

[dok]

well, when submitted 6 weeks ago, there were 34 on abprices. Now that's down to ~20, but I'm guessing some of those are 'scapers. A basic Google search turns up another 18 or so. I could dig a little more; I bet you could find 60-70 out there. It's a cheap figure so stocks are pretty fluid.

[superfrog]

Jarek Guy by fishguy

VC first brought life to the original designers’ concept of the Mariedans, a ragtag group of rebels that fight the Soulborg uprising on Alpha Prime. Not much definition has been given to the faction yet, and Jarek Guy provides a glimpse into the high-tech heroes of the Mariedan resistance.

Balance

Jarek Guy compares pretty evenly to Sgt. Drake Alexander (RoTV) at least stats-wise. Other than Drake’s one extra attack and 10 additional points, they are identical on the right side. Jarek Guy receives some help from the M-43 Resistance Fighters’ Guerilla Tactics movement “bonding”, and has a defensive power that can get him out of some tight spots. Drake has one of the best defensive powers in the game with Thorian Speed, and a bit of movement flexibility with Grapple Arm. Jarek also has a special attack that adds some versatility to his uses.

Creativity

The Mariedan faction was open to developement, and really needed a unique hero in the 80-130 range to provide the component of a more cohesive army. Jarek Guy, althoug h relatively stats-wise, is still plenty creative. The exosuit power provides a nice balance with the relatively weak 5 life and 3 defense, and his short-range special attack is different from existing powers.

Theme

Jarek Guy looks different than the existing Mariedans, who mostly embodied the sense of ragtag fighters, with the B-11's being a bit more soldierly and uniformed. But 'Scape draws from all time periods of its different planets, so I don't see any problem with a different age of Mariedans, either past or future, being summoned, and Jarek must have been from a different age of Mariedans, when they had higher technology and more power.

Playability

Ah, the section that really matters the most to many readers…

Jarek Guy fills a great hole in Mariedan armies, allowing more thematically sound builds. He is set at a middle price range, and he performs just about as expected. Exosuit works just often enough to keep him alive, sometimes allowing him to stay in the fight much longer than other similar heroes. But if the rolls aren't there, he'll fall just like many of his counterparts. The M-43's help out with movement bonding, allowing him some cover as he moves up, without using OM's and wasting precious front-line attacks. His attack of 5 is enough to crack most squad figures' defense, and to put some hurting on opponent's heroes. But he's not too strong, as tying him down and keeping him away from the action is effective in bringing about his demise. That allows for an interesting interplay between you and your opponent as you get both front-line attacks from M-43s and have Jarek track behind, waiting to strike when he gets an OM. The grenade power was used occasionally, and sometimes he would even bomb an adjacent figure, which happens relatively often with only 3 range. He never seemed overpowered, but also never seemed underpowered. He is one of the stronger units to come through the SoV,, but definitely not game-breaking.

Summary

I genuinely enjoyed playing Jarek Guy, and I'm glad he was re-worked and re-submitted. I look forward to his wider use in the community. His powers work in fresh ways, and he is not out of place with the Mariedans. Jarek Guy is a great addition to the Mariedan faction.

I vote to induct Jarek Guy into the Soldiers of Valhalla.

[Ixe]

I believe some congratulations are (nearly) in order for fishguy and SoV both. Great review, superfrog! I'm excited to give Jarek Guy a go as well.

[johnny139]

Pretty exciting - the first new SoV figure in over a year! A new Mariedian is always an interesting prospect...

[Scytale]

Congratulations to fishguy! Jarek Guy has received four Yea votes (Scytale, capsocrates, vegietarian18, and superfrog) and has been inducted into the Soldiers of Valhalla!

The unit will proceed to C3V Editing and Art before final release.

[Dad_Scaper]

Congrats, fishguy! I went to boon your nominating post, because I think this is a great custom, but vBulletin remembered that I hit it already. Oh well.

Good for you!

[Scytale]

Originally Posted by dok

well, when submitted 6 weeks ago, there were 34 on abprices. Now that's down to ~20, but I'm guessing some of those are 'scapers. A basic Google search turns up another 18 or so. I could dig a little more; I bet you could find 60-70 out there. It's a cheap figure so stocks are pretty fluid.

It is up to the submitter, not the Judges to prove sufficient availability. Information about how the unit plays and what it adds to the game would be appreciated as well.

With the assumption that some of the 34 from before were 'Scapers, the availability is good enough for me. But I'm pretty lax; I doubt 20 will be enough for the others.

to review Warden 722

[Son of Arathorn]

Prince Al'kahora, by capsocrates

Prince Al'kahora brings an odd little package of offensive capabilities to the game, and possesses little else to his royal name. Let's see if this Prince can live up to his title.

Balance
It's difficult to find an apt analogue to Prince Al'kahora. The 80-point mark is mostly occupied by cheerleaders and common squads, with few solo melee heroes in the mix. While Kumiko and Martial La Hire similarly offer offensive quirks and solid stats, Al'kahora deviates from each with subtle tradeoffs. The Prince lacks Kumiko's special attack, but has a better chance against high-defense figures. Al'kahora also lacks Martial La Hire's 4th defense die, but is faster and more offensively versatile. Prince Al'kahora rests comfortably at 80 points, not about to outshine his peers, but nothing to sneeze at either.


Theme
Here's where things get strange. A prince in name, but functionally a knight. A human wielding a sword, who arrives on Valhalla from a planet known to harbor at least one green-skinned assassin. It's enough to make your head spin. But our impression of Arctorus has yet to be fully sculpted by its units. One part of this design which continues to strike me as at least partially out of place is his personality. I'm not certain who he's supposed to be loyal to. However, I can appreciate the ability of a unit's background to bring explanation as well as entertainment. If we can forgive Prince Al'kahora's quirks, it's because he's coming to us from a (mostly) blank slate.


Creativity
HeroScape is rife with swordsmen, from the Knights of Weston to Agent Carr to the Tagawa Samurai. However, the game has yet to focus on something quite like Prince Al'kahora: a swordsman relying solely on refined techniques to rise above his peers. Both of Prince Al'kahora's powers (Razorpetal Stance and Strike of the Puma) are tweaks on existing powers (Double Attack and First Assault 3, respectively). When they appear on this Army Card, the former undergoes a limitation which can be frustrating at times, while the latter gets a rather lethal twist. Together, each covers the weakness of the other in an enjoyable manner. In Prince Al'kahora, the designer has put together a unit which is easily recognizable as a shark, but specialized enough to warrant the label of a niche unit.


Playability
Though both new to the game, Prince Al'kahora's special powers are simple and easily understood. None of Al'kahora's master stats push boundaries for Human units, and the emphasis of Move and Attack over Defense reinforce his role as an offensive unit. Rounding out the cursory glance, the miniature used for this design is visually distinctive from existing units.

When considering the unit, it's not easy to surmount Prince Al'kahora's status as a cheap, solo, melee hero since, once Al'kahora enters combat, he won't last long under focused fire. During play, Prince Al'kahora should not wade into the fray; instead, he is to be used like a scalpel, striking with precision.

When push comes to shove, Prince Al'kahora generally cannot rely on Razorpetal Stance to recoup his points. His low defense dice and average life value are incompatible with the kind of extended melee against sturdy figures which would permit a healthy return on his 80-point investment. Instead, Razorpetal Stance best serves as a backup tool, for when he's intercepted by petty screen units on his way to a target. While he can take leaving engagement attacks when necessary, sometimes terrain or special powers prevent disengagement. Then, and usually only then, is the proper time to go for the double attack over the more devastating strike, to clear the way.

A good opening tactic is to quickly get Al'kahora into a defensive position on the edge of the battlefield (behind a ruin or on a shadow tile), then place the X order marker on him from thereon. Then, keep the X order marker on Prince Al'kahora until a valuable target (cheerleader or bonding hero) comes within reach. Activate Al'kahora, and use Strike of the Puma can give Al'kahora the edge over his target.

Or, instead of waiting to strike, Prince Al'kahora can be paired with Theracus for an early bomb. Critical units like Raelin, Lizard Kings, and Krav Maga Agents are easy targets for Strike of the Puma here. However, it's unlikely that Al'kahora will be able to make a dent without a couple of successive order markers, which means the rest of your army will be unable to mobilize quickly in the first rounds of the game.

On to modes of play where Al'kahora functions best. I found he worked well at low point totals, accompanied by a ranged core. In such a scenario, Prince Al'kahora can have a much bigger impact on the game than he might in a standard 500-point, 24-hex game, where he can be easily outclassed by more powerful heroes and hordes of common squads.

Prince Al'kahora also works nicely in a dungeon crawl. As a cheap hero capable of landing a few wounds on a key enemy hero, why wouldn't he? If he falls, it's no large loss of points, so Al'kahora is free to make for the biggest monster in the room in hopes that he will wound, if not kill it, before going down for the count.


Summary
Prince Al'kahora is an elegantly designed melee hero who will likely never ascend to the heights populated by heroes such as Kaemon Awa, Van Nessing, or Crixus. His unique thematic flavor suggests a strange background, but coming from yet-untested waters, this is an exciting prospect rather than a head-scratcher. If properly applied, he can tip the scales in your favor by threatening a key piece on the battlefield. Altogether, he presents a pleasingly simple design capable of putting pressure on an opponent at just the right time in the game.

I vote to induct Prince Al'kahora into the Soldiers of Valhalla.

[Kinseth]

Really like Prince, that is a solid figure.

[caps]

Originally Posted by quozl

I hope there's more than 15 minis available, which is what abprices shows.

abprices is a decent jumping-off point, but they are actually terrible at finding all instances of a mini across the internet. One should never give up on a mini just because the numbers for it are low on abprices.

That said, dok, we really need you to put in that extra work to show us the availability is there. Also, it is good practice to at least include a link to your original submission post if you are not going to make a new submission post.

[jedilou]

As for the availability of the Dark Trooper Phase III, I don't know if it "counts" but I found 13 available on eBay
(that is, after I bought one for myself).