The Book of Rat Swarm

[tcglkn]

C3G PLAYTEST FEEDBACK FORM

NAME OF THE TEST UNIT Rat Swarm

- THEME TEST/ Check to see if there are any powers or stats on the test unit card that does not accurately reflect the theme or likeness of what the character would and could do. Also consider destructible objects, and whether or not this characters powers should affect them.
Pass

- MIRROR TEST/ Check to see if the unit were played against itself, if there would be any loops that would upset the balance of the Game.
Pass

- BONDING TEST/ Compare the unit card with all possible currently existing Bonding abilities to make sure there are no continual Bonding possibilities that do not stop appropriately or do not stop at all. This is to prevent loops in Bonding.
Pass

- SYNERGIES TEST/ Compare the unit card with all possible currently existing synergies to make sure there are no factors that could break the game by making any unit too powerful or too weak.
Pass

- POWER CHECK/ Consider the test unit and all existing units and all glyphs to compare to and check for any powers that could be over amplified and break the game. Each power must define when it takes place, who or what it affects, and What are the stipulations on the power if there are any.
Pass

- FUN TEST/ Consider whether or not the design was fun to play.
Fail

- FUN COMPETITIVE TEST/ Consider whether or not the design was fun to play against.
Pass

- DRAFTING TEST/ Consider whether or not this design is worth drafting.
Fail

- USAGE TEST/ Consider whether or not all of the powers on this card were used or at least usable.
Pass

- STRATEGY TEST/ Consider whether or not the design offers any real strategy or interesting tactics to the overall game.
Pass

Heavy Hitter or Mid-Level Hero Test
- Does it pass, Yes or No? Fail
- What should be the unit's point value? 10 points or less.
- Give a brief overview. Rats are weak in almost every way.

Spoiler Alert!

TEST 1
Map: Custom w/ Heavy Snow, Normal Ice
Units: Rat Swarm x4 VS Jubilee (60)
Winning initative and getting to the high ground first made all the difference here.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Jubilee with no wounds.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Jubilee with 3 wounds (2 from Plague, 1 from a normal attack)

TEST 2
Map: Custom w/ Heavy Snow, Normal Ice
Units: Rat Swarm x6 VS Angel (90)
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Rat Swarms with 2 remaining. (All wounds due to Plague and I rolled 18s-20s)
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Rat Swarms with 4 remaining. (2 wounds due to Plague and 2 due to normal attacks from height.)

TEST 3
Map: Custom w/ Heavy Snow, Normal Ice
Units: Rat Swarm x6 VS Captain Cold (90)
The Frozen Molecular Field and Cap's SA destroyed the rats here.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Captain Cold with no wounds.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Captain Cold with 1 wound from Plague.

TEST 4
Map: Custom w/ Heavy Snow, Normal Ice
Units: Rat Swarm x7 VS Dagger (105)
Dagger's SA is a goo Rat killing SA.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Dagger with 2 wounds from Plague.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Dagger with no wounds.

TEST 5
Map: Custom w/ Heavy Snow, Normal Ice
Units: Rat Swarm x8 VS Pyro (120)
Pyro should go into the exterminator business, he killed tons of Rats with his SA and anytime they did engage him, he Engulfed them in fire.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Pyro with 2 wounds. 1 from Plague and one from a normal attack.
Who won and how many wounds did they have? Pyro with no wounds.

[tcglkn]

So far I've only run about half the HH tests that I want to, but I really feel like they aren't even worth 10 points.

You can only move one per OM, they only move 4, they have awful attack and defense and Plague is tough to hit. SAs mow them down and they just all around aren't that great.

I think replacing Scatter with this would make them better at 10 points:
SWARM
After revealing an Order Marker on this card or a Rat Swarm you control rolls defense dice against a normal attack from an opponent’s figure, you may move any 2 Rat Swarms you control up to 4 spaces each.

Or at least changing Scatter to work against Special Attacks and call it Scurry.

[Griffin]

I vote for this

Originally Posted by tcglkn

SWARM
After revealing an Order Marker on this card or a Rat Swarm you control rolls defense dice against a normal attack from an opponent’s figure, you may move any 2 Rat Swarms you control up to 4 spaces each.

I would like to vote for that. This was a great idea tickle, and immediately after testing, this was your immediate gut instinct, which is usually the best one. It is the most like Scatter, but it also gives you that control you need on your turn.

[tcglkn]

No feedback guys? I was hoping to get some while I went out to dinner with my sister so I could finish this initial tonight or at least make more progress on it.

[IAmBatman]

I like the Scurry change better because it keeps the Pied Piper connection more valuable.

[IAmBatman]

Also, it looks like they did well against Angel and poorly against everyone else ... and everyone else had a special attack.

[tcglkn]

Originally Posted by IAmBatman

Also, it looks like they did well against Angel and poorly against everyone else ... and everyone else had a special attack.

Well he was also the only melee only Hero I tested them against. So he had to get on the same level as them to attack. I like going with Scurry and making it work against SAs.

[IAmBatman]

Originally Posted by tcglkn

Well he was also the only melee only Hero I tested them against. So he had to get on the same level as them to attack. I like going with Scurry and making it work against SAs.

Yeah, that too, which is all the more reason they need to be able to move when hit by specials.

[Good Pig]

A partial quote would make that just wrong.

[SirGalahad]

A problem with it working against special attacks is that area of effect attacks could trigger multiple Scurries, which could get some affected figures suddenly out of the area of effect.

[tcglkn]

Originally Posted by SirGalahad

A problem with it working against special attacks is that area of effect attacks could trigger multiple Scurries, which could get some affected figures suddenly out of the area of effect.

Good call, I wonder if we couldn't put something about after resolving the attack instead?

[Good Pig]

Scurry sounds good.