Annerios' Custom Units

[Larry_lovage69]

My Girlfriend LOVES Stephen King's book she will love Roland...very cool

[Annerios]

Originally Posted by Larry_lovage69

My Girlfriend LOVES Stephen King's book she will love Roland...very cool

Thanks, I have the modded figure for him on my desk. I'll post a photo when he is done being painted.

[Rhydderch]

Hey Annerios: I was looking at the Sardaukar again and think they could use a tiny boost when compared to the Krav Maga and the Microcorp. The Krav Maga have imo a much better defense ability (since the triangle requires all 3 Sardaukar and limits your movement options) and similar stats. They can also gain height advantage with their ranged attack unlike the Sardaukar whose ranged attack is locked at 3. Similarly the Microcorp have two defense abilities, the ability to move in water and can also get up to 4 attack with height advantage.

So maybe you could play with their abilities. I think the Sardaukar triangle could use a boost. Maybe they could receive 2 extra dice instead of 1 when in the formation. Also I'm not sure if you specifically wanted the Lasgun to be a special attack or to take height advantage out of the picture, but you could make the card more similar to other HS cards by giving the Sardaukar 7 range and 3 attack with an ability like Carr's Sword of Reckoning. Did they ever name the martial art the Sardaukar used? Wikipedia lists it as the Weirding Way but that sounds.... well, weird :P Here is the link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...l_martial_arts

Anyway these are just some thoughts I had. These changes might increase the cost of the Sardaukar by a few points but I figured you might still be interested. And btw what figures did you mod for the Sardaukar again and how much work did it take? I like the look and feel of the squad but I'm not sure I'd be able to make one that looks as good as that.

I still need to find good figures to use as a Sardaukar-style squad =)

[reapersaurus]

I'd just reduce their points to around 70 or 80 points.
You're right - they are no match for the Krav or even the Microcorps. Good call, Rhyd.

[Annerios]

Originally Posted by Rhydderch

Hey Annerios: I was looking at the Sardaukar again and think they could use a tiny boost when compared to the Krav Maga and the Microcorp. The Krav Maga have imo a much better defense ability (since the triangle requires all 3 Sardaukar and limits your movement options) and similar stats. They can also gain height advantage with their ranged attack unlike the Sardaukar whose ranged attack is locked at 3. Similarly the Microcorp have two defense abilities, the ability to move in water and can also get up to 4 attack with height advantage.

So maybe you could play with their abilities. I think the Sardaukar triangle could use a boost. Maybe they could receive 2 extra dice instead of 1 when in the formation. Also I'm not sure if you specifically wanted the Lasgun to be a special attack or to take height advantage out of the picture, but you could make the card more similar to other HS cards by giving the Sardaukar 7 range and 3 attack with an ability like Carr's Sword of Reckoning. Did they ever name the martial art the Sardaukar used? Wikipedia lists it as the Weirding Way but that sounds.... well, weird :P Here is the link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...l_martial_arts

Anyway these are just some thoughts I had. These changes might increase the cost of the Sardaukar by a few points but I figured you might still be interested. And btw what figures did you mod for the Sardaukar again and how much work did it take? I like the look and feel of the squad but I'm not sure I'd be able to make one that looks as good as that.

I still need to find good figures to use as a Sardaukar-style squad =)

The Sardaukar are simply converted and repainted Heroclix AIM Agent figures. They are dirt cheap too. I went for a "look" based on the description in the books and from their depiction in Lynch's film. I hated the way their uniforms looked in the Dune mini-series, so that was not a reference.

This unit has seen various incarnations. The idea was to make a tough squad of human hand to hand fighters with flexibility to have ranged attacks as well. I did not make them incredibly tough (although if you look they are way up there as one of the most powerful HS hand to hand squads), because as depicted in the novels, the Fremen are actually tougher and I hoped to make a Fremen hero or squad. They used to be a common unit too, but then I switched to unique because I was not planning to make more figures and thought I could then increase their values if needed.

Their defense is not high, because they are not supposed to have access to the personal shields (since they are carrying lasguns, which when fired at a shield would cause a nuclear explosion) and to stick somewhat with their description as " their training emphasized ruthlessness and near-suicidal disregard for personal safety." That implies aggressive tactics with not that much emphasis on defense. The triangular formation is referenced directly in the novels as one of their fighting tactics and is rather unique, so it has to be included to make them accurate, IMHO.

Combat in the Dune universe, despite what the video games depict, mostly centered on hand that hand combat when it occured. So, while they have guns, they are not the unit's main focus. That is why I capped the lasgun attack at 3. Those guns are described as firing continuous beams from what I remember, so they would be tricky to wield anyway.

I think since they are unique, taking them to 5 attack would not be bad and increasing the defense in the triagular formation by 2 dice would be good. That formation is rather hard to pull off and makes them a target for units like the AE and Mimring.

They have performed well in playtests, but I also felt that perhaps they need a little boost to make them more fearsome. I'll try out some of these ideas next time we run a playtesting game.

By the way, the "weirding way" in the Lynch movie was some completely goofy thing made up for the film. It was a "voice command" type of power having nothing to do with martial arts. I think they depict it more accurately in the mini-series, particularly in the battle between Paul and Feyd. The Bene Gesserit are particularly deadly because of their use of this skill. They are like mysterious, kung-fu nuns!

[Rhydderch]

Hey Annerios: Thanks for the information on the Sardaukar. As I've mentioned before I read the first Dune book awhile back but do not remember it so well. And yeah I had guessed you made the Lasgun attack a special attack for a reason but figured I'd throw the suggestion out there anyway.

Also good to know the Weirding Way was introduced in the movies. I did not remember it in the books and felt it sounded off - Herbert usually gave his creations cool names such as Bene Gesserit.

I'm not sure about the 5 attack - especially if you intend to create a Fremen squad. I think 4 is fine. I would just up the triangle bonus to 2 dice. I think its appropriate since the formation is hard to use and as you said makes the Sardaukar a good target for figures such as the AE and Shotgun Sullivan.

Oh and to address your comment Reaper: I think it fits the Sardaukar better to give them a boost since they were once the most elite squad of fighters in the Dune universe - which means some of the best from a selection of both humans and aliens. I'd guess they would beat the Krav Maga or Microcorp in a fight, though its hard to tell since the HS universe isn't very well fleshed out right now.

Now onto a slightly off-topic discussion: I think it would be fun to let the Sardaukar have their shields =P Just imagine what happens if you make a unit of 2 Sardaukar. Send the first in and shoot him with the other... hehe. Not reasonable for HS since you would wipe the board but it is funny to think about since those two figures would basically be a portable nuclear bomb =P

[Annerios]

Originally Posted by Rhydderch

Now onto a slightly off-topic discussion: I think it would be fun to let the Sardaukar have their shields =P Just imagine what happens if you make a unit of 2 Sardaukar. Send the first in and shoot him with the other... hehe. Not reasonable for HS since you would wipe the board but it is funny to think about since those two figures would basically be a portable nuclear bomb =P

That would make for a good frustration move when you are losing. I think someone had something similar on a Predator unit card a while back.

The Predator triggers the self destruct and a mini nuke clears out the game board. Although, apparently heroes hiding behind rocks and trees (like Dutch) emerge unscathed.

[Annerios]

For you Stephen King Dark Tower fans, here is Roland Deschain, "The Gunslinger":



I added him on the first page next to his card. It is a complex mod of a couple of HS cowboys and a Heroclix figure.

This is a younger Roland from before the timeline in the novels; probably as he will be depicted in the new Marvel comic series.

[Fallen Templar]

dude is that a custom figure it's amazing

[Rhydderch]

Thats a sweet figure Annerios! Very nice job. If HS had given us figures that looked like that I might've actually liked all those cowboy heroes. Very very cool. Now when are you gonna send me one in the mail? =P

[Annerios]

Originally Posted by Rhydderch

Thats a sweet figure Annerios! Very nice job. If HS had given us figures that looked like that I might've actually liked all those cowboy heroes. Very very cool. Now when are you gonna send me one in the mail? =P

:P

Thanks! Roland was a bit of a pain to make, but he is mostly made from HS cowboy parts. It is essentially Guilty with Deadeye Dan's head and a duster taken from a Heroclix Punisher figure. Add a little putty and some paint.

Roland is one of my favorite King characters, so I knew I had to make a figure for him.

I'll have to take some photos of him in battle.

[Rhydderch]

Will you make an updated card with the figure too? He seems to warrant it. Ok I see you changed the target pic but will you add the figure to the main picture area?

Also what exactly is the rationale behind the "Death, But Not For You..." ability? Does he trade places with someone whenever he goes through a dimensional door? Sorry if I sound ignorant but the Dark Tower series is one I have not read.