Blue Trails's Customs (Updated 11/19/2022 - Outsiders)

[Vydar_XLIII]

Originally Posted by Blue Trails

Original figure image credit goes to Paizo, Inc.

The figure used for this unit is a Starfinder Battles figure from the Planets of Peril set. The name of the figure is BMC Mauler. The figure's base is single-spaced.

Character Bio:

Spoiler Alert!

The Nephyrian projects were a line of early Soulborgs constructed from schematics for Mariedian war machines and sympathetic to the Mariedians' right to survive. Many projects allied themselves with the Marideians when their fellow Soulborgs began killing indiscriminately, effectively dooming their entire line to eradication by their peers, but Ullar has summoned several of the deviant Soulborgs to the aid his armies on Valhalla. Although the general has been historically reluctant to look for allies on Alpha Prime, reports from the archmage, Sonlen, during the Ticalla campaign have been able to challenge Ullar's perception of Soulborgs as rigid, unfeeling, and inadaptable, and PROJECT: Cloudcover has proven capable of protecting Ullar's most vulnerable troops from their foes' cruel missiles.

Card Text:

Spoiler Alert!

NAME = PROJECT: Cloudcover
GENERAL = ULLAR
PLANET = ALPHA PRIME
SPECIES = SOULBORG
UNIQUENESS = UNIQUE HERO
CLASS = SCOUT
PERSONALITY = REBELLIOUS
SIZE/HEIGHT = LARGE 5

LIFE = 1
MOVE = 6
RANGE = 7
ATTACK = 3
DEFENSE = 5
POINTS = 70

SUPPRESSING FIRE 7
If an opponent's figure within 7 clear sight spaces of PROJECT: Cloudcover targets any other non-adjacent figure you control with a normal attack, roll the 20-sided die. If you roll a 16 or higher, no dice are rolled for this attack, no defense dice are rolled, and the attacking figure receives one wound.

STEALTH FLYING
When counting spaces for PROJECT: Cloudcover's movement, ignore elevations. PROJECT: Cloudcover may fly over water without stopping, pass over figures without becoming engaged, and fly over obstacles such as ruins. If PROJECT: Cloudcover is engaged when it starts to fly, it will not take any leaving engagement attacks.

Designer's Thoughts:

Spoiler Alert!

This unit is intended as an anti-range support piece with endgame usability. SUPPRESSING FIRE 7 synergizes with Range-despising units such as slow melee figures, the Venoc Vipers, and the Warriors of Ashra, while the combination of 6 Move, 7 Range, and STEALTH FLYING give PROJECT: Cloudcover a formidable threat range. However, the unit loses much of its value against melee-heavy armies, and 1 Life makes it highly vulnerable to poor rolls and certain wound-inflicting powers.

Perhaps I'm biased due to his command of Jotun, the Vipers, and several high-Move units, but I've always considered Ullar to have significant thematic notes of freedom and liberation; in fact, if I had made the decisions, both the Gladiator and Mariedian factions would follow Ullar. Therefore, a fast unit using a spaceship miniature seemed a natural fit for an Ullar Soulborg, and I couldn't resist tying it to the Mariedians through its bio. Depending on how far I want to take the idea, I might look at the other two ships from the same Starfinder set in the future.

I'm a big fan of the theme here. And I really like this as a design for the fleet-scale Starfinder minis. Without seeing the mini in person, it seems like the scale is right for it could be some kind of hover-soulborg.

A couple of notes/thoughts...

Scout doesn't sit right with me for this design. This feels much more of a Protector to me. You trade Venoc Warlord synergy for Zogross Hardscale synergy, but I don't think you need synergy with the former, and the latter can always use a boost (even if it isn't ever really going to be relevant).

Typically, names of D20 powers reference the roll to succeed, not the aura size. (EX: the Mind Flayer Mastermind's power is ENSLAVE 17 not ENSLAVE 4.)

Regarding SUPRESSING FIRE 7 16; an aura 7, 25% chance to negate attacks and auto wound is VERY powerful. Especially on a 70 point figure with 5 defense. As the power stands I can see it being very oppressive when paired with 10th Regiment and even worse with Raelin. Most normal ranged attacks are between 5 and 7 range, meaning if positioning is optimal, it would be impossible to target P:C. I would suggest lowering the aura, probably to 4 and maybe include an off-turn movement power. That way the power isn't a blanket cover and positioning becomes more important.

This also has the side-effect of making the stealth part of STEALTH FLYING useful. You also might need to rebalance the life/defense stats as part of this.

You could also limit the auto-wound a bit, perhaps only on a 20.

SUPPRESSING FIRE 16
If an opponent's figure within 4 clear sight spaces of PROJECT: Cloudcover targets any other non-adjacent figure you control with a normal attack, roll the 20-sided die. If you roll a 16 or higher, no dice are rolled for this attack, and no defense dice are rolled. Additionally, if you roll a 20 or higher, the attacking figure receives one wound.

OFF-TURN MOVEMENT POWER NAME
When a figure you control that began it's move within 4 spaces of PROJECT: Cloudcover and ended it's move farther than 4 spaces away. You can reveal the X Order Marker on this Army Card to move PROJECT: Cloudcover 2 spaces. PROJECT: Cloudcover must end this move within 4 spaces of that figure.

Alternatively, I think it could be really cool if you cribbed the Nakita Agents' SMOKE POWDER 13, instead of SUPRESSING FIRE. Possibly doing the name Cloudcover more justice. (Although, take this suggestion with a grain of salt if it isn't the direction you want to go.)

CLOUDCOVER 16

When another figure you control within 4 spaces of PROJECT: Cloudcover is targeted with a normal attack from a non-adjacent figure, you may roll the 20-sided die. If you roll a 16 or higher, figures you control within 4 spaces of PROJECT: Cloudcover no longer have any visible hit zones for the duration of the targeting figure's turn.

Overall, I think the current version is a great design but is too powerful. It needs some balancing to bring it down to the appropriate power levels.