Cpt. Stupedendous Customs 9/5/21 SirGilbert Dragonslayer

[Captain Stupendous]

Stupe's Customs Booster 1: The Golden Legion

One of the (many) things I appreciated about classic scape was how each faction of soulborgs had a unique aesthetic and mechanical themes that made each faction feel cohesive and distinct. After finding these miniatures on Amazon, I was inspired to develop a soulborg faction for Einar. I think that using miniatures based on Japanese mecha/gundam designs is an incredibly thematic and visually interesting way to introduce soulborgs into Einar’s ranks. You can find the miniature information HERE.

Solarion VI

Text Version

Spoiler Alert!

SOLARION VI
Soulborg / Unique Hero / Soldier / Disciplined / Large 6
6L 5M 5R 4A 6D 150? Points

Defense Matrix
When a Soldier you control who follows Einar and is within 4 clear sight spaces of Solarion VI receives one or more wounds from an attacking figure, you may instead place all of those wound markers on this Army Card.

Golden Core
Solarion VI rolls 1 fewer defense die for each wound marker on this Army Card.

Flying

Solarion VI is the leader of Einar's Golden Legion of soulborgs, and serves to defend the more vulnerable members of the faction. As a design aesthetic, each of Einar's soulborg heroes has a defense value equal to its life value, along with the power Golden Core which keeps Solarion from being overpowered as a ranged flyer with 6L and 6D. Golden Core means that once a hero takes an initial wound, they'll tend to fall quickly, which is why using Solarion to soak early wounds to keep the defense of your other figures high is a worthwhile trade. With flying, 5R, and 4A, he is also theoretically a potent endgame cleanup hero, but his ability Defense Matrix means that using him in this way is unlikely to be the best use of his points. Its also worth noting that Defense Matrix works on any Einar soldier, not just his fellow soulborgs, although this is only likely to be worth using with Einar Imperium rather than the Romans, Greeks, or Redcoats.

Hyperion V

Text Version

Spoiler Alert!

HYPERION V
Soulborg / Unique Hero / Soldier / Devout / Large 6
5L 5M 1R 5A 5D 100? Points

Accelerator Gauntlets Special Attack
Range 1, Attack 2+
If Hyperion V moved only in a straight line this turn, he may use Accelerator Gauntlets Special Attack. Hyperion V can attack up to 2 times with Accelerator Gauntlets Special Attack, and rolls 1 additional attack die for each space moved this turn, up to a maximum of +4. Hyperion V cannot attack figures that he was adjacent to at the start of this turn. Hyperion V may target the same figure or a different figure with each attack.

Hyper Speed 4
After taking a turn with Hyperion V, Hyperion V may move up to 4 spaces.

Golden Core
Hyperion V rolls 1 fewer defense die for each wound marker on this Army Card.

Previous Versions

Spoiler Alert!

HYPERION V (draft 1)
Soulborg / Unique Hero / Soldier / Devout / Large 6
5L 5M 1R 5A 5D 100? Points

Accelerator Gauntlets Special Attack
Range 1, Attack 1+
If Hyperion V moved only in a straight line this turn, he may use Accelerator Gauntlets Special Attack. Hyperion V can attack up to 2 times with Accelerator Gauntlets Special Attack, and rolls 1 additional attack die for each space moved this turn, up to a maximum of +5. Hyperion V cannot attack figures that he was adjacent to at the start of this turn. Hyperion V may target the same figure or a different figure with each attack.

Hyper Speed 4
After taking a turn with Hyperion V, Hyperion V may move up to 4 spaces.

Golden Core
Hyperion V rolls 1 fewer defense die for each wound marker on this Army Card.

Hyperion V is the melee bruiser of the faction, and has the highest offensive burst potential with the possibility of making two attacks of 6 with his Accerator Gauntlets Special Attack. However, setting this attack up can be quite tricky, as it requires him to target figures that he was not adjacent to at the start of his turn while only moving in a straight line. However, his Hyper Speed 4 ability will help set him up in a position to target new enemies next turn. Hyperion's high offensive potential is balanced out by the fact that 5L 5D is actually quite fragile when paired with Golden Core, and he should die rather quickly to focused fire unless he's within the range of Solarion's Defense Matrix.

EDIT: After some testing I'm increasing the starting attack of Hyperion's Special to 2 instead of 1, as it was proving very difficult to get into a position where using the special was preferable to his 5 normal attack. The max attack of the special is still capped at 6.

Valorion IV

Text Version

Spoiler Alert!

VALORION IV
Soulborg / Unique Hero / Soldier / Precise / Large 6
4L 5M 7R 4A 4D 110? Points

Rail Gun Special Attack
Range 7. Attack 4.
When Valorion IV attacks an opponent's figure that is not adjacent with his Rail Gun Special Attack, you must choose a figure adjacent to the targeted figure, if possible. If Valorion IV inflicts more wounds than needed to destroy the targeted figure, all excess wounds count as unblockable hits on the chosen figure.

Durasteel Shield
When defending with Valorion IV, each shield rolled counts for one additional block.

Golden Core
Valorion IV rolls 1 fewer defense die for each wound marker on this Army Card.

Previous Version

Spoiler Alert!

VALORION IV (draft 1)
Soulborg / Unique Hero / Soldier / Precise / Large 6
4L 5M 6R 4A 4D 110? Points

Rail Gun Special Attack
Range 7. Attack 4.
When Valorion IV attacks an opponent's figure that is not adjacent with his Rail Gun Special Attack, you must choose a figure adjacent to the targeted figure, if possible. If Valorion IV inflicts more wounds than needed to destroy the targeted figure, all excess wounds count as unblockable hits on the chosen figure.

Durasteel Shield
When defending with Valorion IV, each shield rolled counts for one additional block.

Golden Core
Valorion IV rolls 1 fewer defense die for each wound marker on this Army Card.

Valorion IV provides the long-range artillery piece for the faction, with his Rail Gun Special Attack acting as a devastating counter to groups of low defense common squads. Durasteel Shield, a renamed version of the Sentinels of Jandar's Shields of Valor, gives him much greater durability and allows him to continue blocking attacks even after he has taken one or two wounds. It also synergizes extremely well with Solarion's Defense Matrix, since taking a wound and reducing Valorion's defense by 1 is twice as impactful as lowering Solarion's defense by 1. His relatively high normal attack also poses a threat to unique heroes as well, as with height and Marcus Decimus he can be attacking with 6 dice at 6 range.

EDIT: I just increased the range of Valorion's normal attack from 6 to 7 to match the range of his special, as it felt unthematic for the "sniper" of the faction to only have 6R with his normal.

Golden Centurions

Text Version

Spoiler Alert!

GOLDEN CENTURIONS
Soulborg / Unique Squad (2) / Soldiers / Disciplined / Large 6
1L 5M 5R 2A 7D 90? Points

Jump Jets
Instead of their normal move, any or all Centurions may use Jump Jets. Jump Jets has a move of 4. When counting spaces for Jump Jets, ignore elevations. A Centurion may jump over water without stopping, pass over figures without becoming engaged, and over obstacles such as ruins. A Centurion may not jump more than 25 levels up or down in a single jump. If a Centurion is engaged when it starts to jump, it will receive any leaving engagement attacks.

Heavy Cannon Special Attack
Range 6. Attack 4.
After attacking normally, up to one Golden Centurion that did not move this turn may attack with Heavy Cannon Special Attack.

Previous Versions

Spoiler Alert!

GOLDEN CENTURIONS (draft 1)
Soulborg / Unique Squad (2) / Soldiers / Disciplined / Large 6
1L 5M 5R 3A 7D 90? Points

Jump Jets
Instead of their normal move, any or all Centurions may use Jump Jets. Jump Jets has a move of 4. When counting spaces for Jump Jets, ignore elevations. A Centurion may jump over water without stopping, pass over figures without becoming engaged, and over obstacles such as ruins. A Centurion may not jump more than 25 levels up or down in a single jump. If a Centurion is engaged when it starts to jump, it will receive any leaving engagement attacks.

Heavy Cannon Special Attack
Range 4. Attack 4.
After attacking normally, up to one Golden Centurion that did not move this turn may attack with Heavy Cannon Special Attack.

Centurion VIIa and her "brother" VIIb comprise the elite soulborg squad known to Einar's forces as the "Golden Centurions." @flameslayer93 provided the excellent suggestion for Heavy Cannon Special Attack. With the potential to make three attacks of four dice, they are probably the most consistent source of damage available to the faction, and with 7 defense and the ability to be kept alive by Defense Matrix, opponents will probably think twice before targeting them for an attack. This should help them survive longer than other 2 man squads and allow them to serve as potent offensive threats well into the midgame. The tension between either developing them with Jump Jets or using their Heavy Cannon each turn also provides some interesting decisions for the player controlling them, and also is a great thematic connection to their sculpts.

EDIT: I've made a couple significant changes to the Centurions that were intended to make the faction as a whole more interesting to play. First, their normal attack was dropped from 3 down to 2, as I found that with height the opportunity of getting 3 attacks of 4A was too good to ever justify placing OMs on Hyperion or Valorion outside of unusual situations. Secondly, the range of their SA was increased from 4 up to 6 in an effort to increase the number of situations where players face a meaningful choice between using Jump Jets or using the SA. At only 4R, the Centurions were unlikely to have a target for their SA unless they were in near optimal position anyway. The additional range increases the likelihood that they will have available SA targets before they get onto height, forcing the player to choose between developing the Centurions or have increased offense for the turn.

Overall I'm very excited with the potential that this faction has as it develops. At this time I am still pondering what the best point values for each figure should be, and as playtesting progresses I will likely update this with small tweaks as I don't yet consider these designs to be "finalized." I'd also like to update this post with bios as I have time to write them. As always, any comments or suggestions are much appreciated! I've also included some more photos of the miniatures alongside other soulborgs in the spoilers below.

Spoiler Alert!