The Holocron of Wampa Cavern

[Yodaking]

The Holocron of Wampa Cavern

Adventure Pack 1: The Battle of Hoth

A HoSS Competitive Map

Original design by THIS

PDF

Required sets and items: 2 BftU, 2 TT, 1 Glyph of Brandar, 2 Wampa Uncommon Heroes

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Map Bio - Hoth was not entirely unknown to the galaxy at large, it was occasionally visited by pirates and smugglers who took advantage of its remote location. These hideouts were often eventually discovered and attacked by rival criminal groups or the Galactic Empire itself.

During the Galactic Civil War the Rebel Alliance established two bases on Hoth, first came Gamma Base and then later Echo Base. Both times the bases were discovered by the Empire and a resulting battle ensued. In the aftermath of these conflicts, not everyone was able to escape the planet's surface and instead were forced to flee into the icy plains of Hoth, to seek shelter in underground caverns.

Unfortunately for these survivors, the caverns they discovered were not always uninhabited. Those seeking shelter, as well as those in pursuit, would be wise to fear the Wampas, whose space they have inadvertently invaded.
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-Set Up-
• Place a Wampa figure on each of the Green Start Zone spaces. Wampas placed on the Green Start Zone spaces are not in any army. At the beginning of the game, Wampas are hidden and cannot be attacked or targeted for any special power. Any figure adjacent to a hidden Wampa is not engaged with that Wampa. Hidden Wampas never make leaving engagement attacks.
• Place a Glyph of Brandar power side up on the glyph location at the center of the map. At the end of your turn, if you control the Glyph of Brandar, you may take temporary control of one Wampa figure and take a turn with that figure. At the end of that turn, you no longer control that Wampa.
• Once a turn has been taken with a Wampa, that Wampa becomes active. Active Wampas can be attacked or targeted for special powers. Active Wampas always make leaving engagement attacks. If a Wampa is destroyed, it is removed from the battlefield.

-Special rules and Clarifications-
Due to the low ceiling being covered in icy stalactites and the generally confined space available in the Wampa Cavern, the following rules apply:
• If an army contains a huge figure, that figure may not leave the Start Zone.
• Figures may not use special powers which cause them to leave the ground such as Flying, Stealth Flying, Stealth Leap, Force Leap, Grapple Gun, Grapple Arm, etc.
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-Strategy, Tactics and Tips-
• TBA
-Heroscapers Community Contributions-
• First playtest: Yodaking Test 1, Test 2
• Second playtest: Porkins Tests 1 & Test 2

[Fi Skirata]

Design needs to be removed from the Holocron title.

[kevindola]

At the end of your turn, if you control the Glyph of Brandar, you may take temporary control of one Wampa figure and take a turn with that figure. At the end of that turn, you no longer control that Wampa.

I think this should be clarified slightly. If you are controlling the glyph, is the intention you should get one use of the Wampa per order marker or per turn. Could Kurrok utilizing 3 elemental get 9 wampa attacks per round? Or a bonding unit get 6 uses out of a wampa per round? (I know the text says 'turn', but I wanted to make sure bonding and multiple turns per OM were considered when using that text.)


Follow up clarification. I move Chewbacca via Wookie Life Debt onto the glyph of Brandar. Do I then get to use a wampa or not?

[Porkins]

The intention is that at the end of a player's turn (not a figure's turn) that player would then take a turn with a Wampa if said player controls the Glyph of Brandar. So in the example cited where Chewie grabs the Glyph with his Life Debt movement bond, then yes, at the end of the player's turn, then that player would activate the Wampa.

kevindola or anybody, do you have a suggestion for a better way to word it?

[kevindola]

If you paid attention to the online HoSS tournament at all, you could pick up that the majority of the participants did not think this map was fit for use in a tournament due to the Wampa glyph being much too powerful. I can pull up additional details about the subject games if you like, but suffice to say the general feeling was that this scenario doesn't work in a traditional tournament setting. Too much of the impact was placed on initiative, and the wampa was just too powerful an obstacle to overcome. Along with its powerful 5 or 7 attack, the fact that the majority of the time it was placed into the opponent's startzone really hindered any board control they could attempt to get. Making it typically a landslide for whoever got the Wampa first, because they could sit and take board control while utilizing the Wampa as a hero bashing screen.

This is not to say that the map itself has an issue geographically. I found that the map was fantastic movement and strategic wise, it was just the tournament readiness of this map in regards to its special glyph. (Maybe this map scenario is fine for a scenario specific game)

Here is one suggestion I would make. Taking control of a wampa should be done at the start of a turn instead of the end.

Here's how I would change the rules (at least a step in the right direction in my mind)

• Place a Glyph of Brandar power side up on the glyph location at the center of the map. After revealing a number ordered marker on a figure you control and before taking a turn with any figure you control, At the end of your turn, if you control the Glyph of Brandar, you may take temporary control of one Wampa figure and take a turn with that figure. At the end of that turn, you no longer control that Wampa.


This change will allow your opponent to have the opportunity to kill the figure on the glyph before they can use it. It will also delay Wampa usage by a minimum of 1 turn. Both effects will go a long way to making the glyph less broken. If it's still too strong there are other additional options:

-A Hero must be on the glyph
-Figure on the glyph forfeits their turn to use the Wampa
-figure on the glyph must be the figure revealing OM to use Wampa
-Wampas may only move on snow or ice spaces
-d20 roll to activate
-you can either move or attack with wampa (not take full turn)
-opponents may MOVE the other wampa that is not taking a turn


Just some of my thoughts.

[Porkins]

We did it that way (at the end of turn) so that the Wampas would see more action. I agree that the map itself is really a great map. For tournament play, this map should probably just be played without the Wampa scenario.