Janos Public Playtesting

[kevindola]

-Figure Photo

Spoiler Alert!

The figure used for this unit is a Starfinder Battles figure from the Starter Pack: Heroes Pack set. The model name is Lashunta Mercenary Commando.

Version 2: 6/13/22 (Life Reduced to 5, Tracking Fire Attack Reduced, Rygarn combo removed)

-text version of card

Spoiler Alert!

NAME = JANOS

GENERAL = EINAR
SPECIES = KULTHUL
RARITY = UNIQUE HERO
CLASS = EXPLORER
PERSONALITY = DISCIPLINED
SIZE/HEIGHT = MEDIUM/4

LIFE = 5
MOVE = 5
RANGE = 6
ATTACK = 3
DEFENSE = 3
POINTS = 110

TRACKING FIRE SPECIAL ATTACK
Range 5. Attack 2 + Special.
Attack a figure with 2 attack dice. Janos must attack the same figure one additional time with 4 attack dice, if possible. If he cannot, he may attack a different figure with 2 attack dice.

EXPEDITION
After revealing an Order Marker on Janos's card and taking a turn with Janos, if there is only one revealed Order Marker on this card, you may take a turn with up to two other Mercenary or Explorer Heroes you control.

R&C

Q: If Janos is killed or negated during the first bonus turn taken using Expedition, can I take a turn with a second hero?
A: No. You choose the second hero to activate after the end of the first hero's turn. If Janos is destroyed or negated, the power cannot activate.

-Combinations and Synergies-


Synergy Benefits Received

• C'Rik - Holographic Projectior 15

Synergy Benefits Offered

• Sacred Band - Disciplined Army Bonus
  
  
• Expedition - Explorers and Mercenaries
  • C'Rik
  • Bambina
  • Maekor
  • Wastewalker Gage
  • San Tiim

[Zeldarck]

For the first power, can it chain? If he attack a figure, it die, so he can attack a new one with 3, does the power trigger again and oblige him to attack 2 times this figure?

[Sir Heroscape]

Originally Posted by Zeldarck

For the first power, can it chain? If he attack a figure, it die, so he can attack a new one with 3, does the power trigger again and oblige him to attack 2 times this figure?

no, the most he'll ever get is 2 attacks

[Muskie]

Army: Janos, C'Rik, Etiana, red antsx5

Army: Grundermund, Childrenx4, Hornwrangler

My approach was to flood the board with ants and then bring in the Mercenary Explorers, and it worked pretty well. Ants were ants, but I want to focus on how the team of three did.

After two three rounds of ants vs. Children, Tiamat Charged with Grundermund to get to my heroes. I had set up order marker 1 on Janos so all three heroes could activate (5 attacks on Grunder if run correctly). OM 2 was on ants to do some board clean up, and then 3 was on Etiana so I hoped to get her shot and another attack from either of the other two.

Well, I lost initiative (even with Dagmar) and Grunder attacked and ate Etiana. Luckily, Janos and C'Rik killed Grunder on order marker 1. The ants then pinned down the remaining children and Hornwrangler, which gave me enough time to advance Janos and C'Rik for clean up (plus a couple of hits on Horn from the ants).

Overall, I am very excited about how this group could work. It is one of the times that I see a group of heroes that could go toe to toe with squad armies and do some damage. The dynamic between the three takes some thought, but I think it works really well. I did not add in Byrikon, but he would have been a 4th character in the mix. Great potential.

[Blue Trails]

490 points
Map: WYRMWALK
Glyphs: Lodin (north), Kelda (south)

Army 1 (Western Start Zone): Janos, C'Rik, Byrikon the Hiveless, Rygarn, Deathreavers x3, Marcu Esenwein
Army 2 (Eastern Start Zone): Children of the Dark Star x3, Gräbermund, Agga-Zemir

Which units survived?
Janos (1 wound)
C'Rik (3 wounds)
Byrikon (1 wound)
Rygarn
8 Deathreavers
Marcu
1 Child of the Dark Star

General Battle Report/Flow of game (be as detailed or general as you like)

Spoiler Alert!

Rounds 1 & 2:
Initiative trades from spacemen to Outsiders as both armies' squads begin to move. The Deathreavers take five turns and do their best to clog the roads and counter Agga-Zemir's creeping advance in the south, while the Outsiders largely ignore the Rats to focus on their own development, sticking the Children of the Dark Star to shadows and heights while attacking only the Deathreavers that engage Agga-Zemir and Gräbermund or contest Lodin in the north, claiming the Glyph for themselves by the middle of round two. Meanwhile, Gräbermund sees one Order Marker per round, although it is slowed by a few Rats that slip into the start zone, and Janos starts an Expedition to move up the spacemen crew during the second round. One Deathreaver is destroyed by a Child and another is destroyed by Gräbermund, but a single Child falls as well.

Round 3:
Janos takes Order Marker 1 and destroys a Child in the south using his normal attack, but his following expedition fails to deal any damage as the Children advance, moving to minimize the potential damage from C'Rik's Quaarn Assault and destroying two Deathreavers along the way. The Rats reposition themselves and destroy a Child, losing one to Gräbermund's Swallow Whole power in the process. Finally, Janos takes OM3 via Chrono Key and destroys a Child using his special attack; C'Rik engages Agga-Zemir, dealing two wounds to the Outsider, while Byrikon attacks a Child near a rock outcrop unsuccessfully. The Children then throw themselves forward, safely disengaging from two Deathreavers to attack Janos, but C'Rik's Holographic Projector saves the lead Explorer.

Round 4:
Spacemen win initiative. Janos leads an Expedition on the first Order Marker, moving out of Agga-Zemir's reach and whiffing both shots of Tracking Fire Special Attack against a Child; C'Rik disengages from Agga-Zemir to prevent the nearest Children from being able to reach Janos, foregoing attacks in the process, while Byrikon fires upon a Child and misses. Three of the remaining Children attack C'Rik and a fourth attacks a Deathreaver in position to block Gräbermund's impending advance, but only manage a single wound on C'Rik before losing all four to a second Expedition. However, this gives Agga-Zemir the opportunity to attack C'Rik, safely disengaging from a Deathreaver to do so, and deals two wounds to the Explorer. To close out the round, Byrikon fails to harm Agga-Zemir from height as Gräbermund moves onto the road, receiving a wound from a Deathreaver's leaving engagement attack and destroying a second at its destination with Rending Claws Special Attack. Janos takes a wound from lava field damage.

Round 5:
Hive-Mind Integration allows the spacemen to take initiative. Janos fires at Gräbermund with his normal attack on Order Marker 1, inflicting a wound, then leads an Expedition; C'Rik destroys Agga-Zemir with two attacks from height, dealing one wound on the first blow and three on the next as the Outsiders blanks its defense roll, while Byrikon takes lava field height and deals one wound to Gräbermund. The Outsiders' OM1 was lost on Agga, giving the spacemen a prime opportunity to move OM2 to Janos and start another Expedition that results in two more wounds on Gräbermund by Janos's normal attack and in a whiff by Byrikon. Gräbermund then charges down the road to engage C'Rik and a Deathreaver, attempting to destroy the weakened Explorer with Rending Claws Special Attack, but C'Rik's Holographic Projector repositions him between Gräbermund and Janos; the Deathreaver survives the assault, as well. The final turn sees Byrikon deal one more wound to Gräbermund, who re-engages C'Rik within six spaces of Kelda and throws out another special attack; after three attacks and a failed Spirits-of-the-Void-boosted Swallow Whole attempt, C'Rik's projector activates again, and the final attack cannot harm a nearby Rat. Byrikon takes one wound from lava field damage.

Round 6:
Spacemen win initiative with the help of Byrikon's Hive-Mind Integration. Janos guns down Gräbermund with the first shot of his special attack before it can take Kelda; with only a single Child of the Dark Star left and all numbered Order Markers placed on Gräbermund, the Outsiders concede to avoid postponing the inevitable.

How useful were playtesting units' powers and how often did they come into play?

Janos:

Spoiler Alert!

TRACKING FIRE SPECIAL ATTACK: used five times; destroyed five Children and dealt the final wound to Gräbermund.

EXPEDITION: used seven times; see C'Rik's and Byrikon's sections below for more information.

Normal Attack: used thrice; dealt three wounds to Gräbermund.

C'Rik:

Spoiler Alert!

HOLOGRAPHIC PROJECTOR 15: attempted six times; pulled Janos out of engagement with a Child, failed to protect C'Rik thrice, and saved C'Rik from two attacks by Grabermund.

QUAARN ASSAULT: see normal attack below.

PHANTOM WALK: used many times to freely reposition C'Rik and protect Janos.

Normal Attack: used seven times via Quaarn Assault; dealt six wounds to Agga-Zemir and destroyed one Child.

Byrikon:

Spoiler Alert!

HIVE-MIND INTEGRATION: Marker placed on Janos. Used every round; initiative was won twice due to the power.

RAPID RESPONSE: never used.

Normal Attack: used eight times; destroyed a Child, whiffed once against Agga-Zemir, and dealt two wounds to Gräbermund.

Gräbermund:

Spoiler Alert!

RENDING CLAWS SPECIAL ATTACK: Used on five turns; destroyed two Deathreavers from wounds and one Deathreaver from Swallow Whole, but failed to harm C'Rik.

SWALLOW WHOLE: Attempted twice against Deathreavers and succeeded once. Attempted once against a 1-life C'Rik; failed despite usage of Spirits of the Void.

CLAMBER: Used during Gräbermund's initial movement to climb onto level 2 road near the Outsiders' start zone.

Normal attack: never used.

Any additional comments (theme, balance, fun factor with and against)?

Janos:

Spoiler Alert!

Overall, Janos was a very effective figure this game. TRACKING FIRE SPECIAL ATTACK was a potent tool that earned back Janos's price by itself, and EXPEDITION allowed the spacemen to launch an overwhelming barrage of attacks when combined with Chrono Key. He's definitely the piece that must be protected at all costs, though; I actually passed over chances to attack with C'Rik and threw the latter Explorer into danger several times just to keep Janos within Projector range.

The elephant in the room here is that Rygarn's Chrono Key gives Janos an extra use of EXPEDITION each round. I don't know if this synergy is intentional, but it turned out to be so strong that I wouldn't really want to play Janos without Rygarn. I had actually run a few solo tests since these units were revealed using the same matchup; the Outsiders nearly won one game on Highways and Dieways, likely because I misread the Children's Army Card as having 3 Attack, but they were shut out by the spacemen on subsequent games on Platypus, Wyrmwalk, and Highways and Dieways. Unfortunately, it's been too long for me to be able to forally write up any of these reports, but I thought they would make a useful footnote.

The gist of the Janos/Rygarn army was as follows: place the X Order Marker on Byrikon, place OM1 or OM2 on Janos, and float the remaining two Markers among Rats, Byrikon, and Rygarn. Then, throw out ten to fourteen attacks of 3+ dice per round while leaving an Order Marker open to reposition the Rat screen, keep Rygarn within Chrono Key range of Janos, or better your chances of winning initiative. I don't doubt that adding any ranged component would make fighting this army easier, but this was still highly difficult for a melee-focused army to crack, especially due to C'Rik's ability to drop Janos back behind his screen via Holographic Projector 15.

C'Rik:

Spoiler Alert!

C'Rik rolled very hot this game, destroying Agga-Zemir by himself and cleaning up some Children to boot. This was a solid unit that played as somewhat of an assassin-cheerleader hybrid that could slip through the mess of Rats and Children to attack where it was most needed. I mostly used C'Rik in a defensive role this game, though, relying on HOLOGRAPHIC PROJECTOR 15 to keep both C'Rik and Janos safe and using QUAARN ASSAULT to dissuade large groups of Children from approaching en masse.

Byrikon:

Spoiler Alert!

Byrikon didn't have the greatest impact this game: most of his attacks were unsuccessful, while HIVE-MIND INTEGRATION only affected the outcome of two initiative rolls. A cheap ranged bonding option was nice to have for Janos's Expedition, though, and he nearly earned back his price.

Gräbermund:

Spoiler Alert!

Thematically, the Outsiders are my favorite idea VC has produced, and Gräbermund appears to be the swingiest of the bunch. CLAMBER is a generically useful power, but SWALLOW WHOLE seemed to require Spirits of the Void for consistent use against Heroes; Gräbermund received most of the Children's Spirits for this reason. Moreover, the Outsider's normal attack never saw use, as Gräbermund possessed the valuable ability to destroy Deathreavers without triggering Scatter and never attacked anything with more than one life remaining. The unit didn't return its point investment this game, but I attribute this to a rough matchup and possible misuse. Gräbermund also seemed a little fragile for its cost, but that is to be expected given the number of attacks it faced each round after it joined the fray.

[superfrog]

Quick game:

Map: Wingspan by me

Army 1: Janos, Etiana, Wastewalker Gage (290)
Army 2: Kalagrith, Greenscales x2 (280)

Like my game against Vydar, this game was really a dicefest. The entire game was 7 turns.

R1OM1: Janos won initiative and moved up.
Kalagrith and 3 greenies moved up.

R1OM2: Gage moved up.
Kalagrith flew in for a 5v3 normal attack on Janos that was blocked. Greenscales got a 4v3 and a 3v3 on Janos that went for 5 wounds.

R1OM3: Janos hit Kalagrith with Tracking Fire for 2 wounds, and triggered Expedition. Gage Chainsawed Kal and a Greenscale, only killing the Greenscale. Etiana got height and missed her attack.
Kalagrith 5v3 to kill Janos, Greenscales get 4/4 and 3/4 against some bad shadow-boosted defense from Gage to kill him.

R2OM1: Kalagrith uses Scorched Earth on Etiana for 2 wounds, Greenscales finish her off. gg me.

Janos did ~46 points of damage and facilitated 20 more points. Some very disparate dice decided this game for sure.

[SchismaticSounds]

edit: kevindola. Below card is now outdated

Prototype Card

Spoiler Alert!

[kevindola]

Newest version of card updated. Changes to life, attack on special, and rygarn combo removed.

[Blue Trails]

550 points
Map: ZEPHYR
Glyph: Wannok

Army 1: Janos, C'Rik, Byrikon the Hiveless, Kolbjorn, Deathreavers x3, Arktos
Army 2: Gorillitroopers x4, Laglor, Marcu Esenwein

Which units survived?
Byrikon (2 wounds)
Kolbjorn
3 Deathreavers
Arktos

General Battle Report/Flow of game (be as detailed or general as you like)

Spoiler Alert!

Round 1:
Primadons win initiative. Deathreavers fan out while blocking access to level-4 height. Gorillitroopers slowly advance towards the hilly region while Laglor takes a perch near a jungle piece. Janos uses Expedition on OM3 to move the Mercenary-Explorer trio north.

Round 2:
The spacemen win initiative via Hivemind Integration and send some Deathreavers into engagement with the Gorillitrooper frontline; a single attack from height is unsuccessful. The Gorillitroopers destroy a rat as Janos leads his Expedition further into the crags, then fire on Janos and C'Rik to deal one wound to the former and two wounds to the latter as C'Rik's Holographic Projector fails to activate. Kolbjorn's Call to the Hunt moves the revealed OM2 from Janos to Arktos, allowing Janos to use Expedition again on OM3 and destroy a Gorillitrooper with his Tracking Fire Special Attack. The Gorillitroopers return fire, but C'Rik's Projector pulls Janos behind an outcrop to prematurely end their assault.

Round 3:
Primadons win initiative and send a pair of Gorillitroopers up the hill, using their Autocannons to gun down C'Rik in spite of his Projector and fire ineffectually at Janos. Deathreavers flow forwards to clog the Primadons' side of the map's central, level-2 plateau but cannot reach the two aggressive Gorillitroopers in time to prevent them from rushing the spacemen and dealing two wounds to Janos. The lead Explorer promptly destroys his assailant and uses Expedition to allow Byrikon to whiff against a Gorillitrooper. Janos then miraculously survives another 5-die Primadon attack before heading a second Expedition with the aid of Kolbjorn; one Gorillitrooper falls to the first shot of his SA and a second falls to Byrikon.

Round 4:
The spaceman army wins initiative and uses a squad of rats to engage Laglor and claim Wannok, nibbling a wound into the Alphallon in the process. The Gorillitroopers use Autocannons to unsuccessfully attack Janos, who destroys one via Tracking Fire. Laglor destroys a Deathreaver at the cost of two wounds from Byrikon, allowing a Gorillitrooper to engage the Insect Explorer and tragically miss his attack roll before dying to Janos. Marcu receives a wound from Wannok.

Round 5:
Primadons win initiative and destroy two Deathreavers, while Byrikon's failed attempt at a Rapid Response results in a single attack that inflicts a wound on Laglor; the Primadon Hero, who has received Order Markers 2 and 3, takes another wound disengaging a Deathreaver but destroys Janos with a well-placed Autoloader shot. Kolbjorn moves two OM's from the newly deceased Explorer to Arktos, enabling the wolf to reinforce Byrikon's position as Laglor destroy a rat. Marcu receives a wound from Wannok.

Round 6:
Kolbjorn creeps out of his start zone via Fearsome Stalker. The spacemen win initiative; Byrikon leaves his perch to destroy Laglor and waste the opposing army's first Order Marker, then immediately reverses course while taking a potshot at a 'Trooper. The rest of the round passes in a mutual volley of missed shots between Byrikon and the Gorillitroopers. Marcu is wounded by Wannok's power.

Round 7:
Kolbjorn takes level-2 height. The Primadons win initiative, exchange another futile barrage with Byrikon, and squash a rat. Kolbjorn Calls Arktos to the Hunt on OM3 for better firepower, leading to a destroyed 'Trooper. Wannok wounds Marcu.

Round 8:
Kolbjorn moves to the level-2 plateau. The Primadon army wins initiative and destroys two Deathreavers with a Gorillitrooper, but the resulting Scatter movement allows one rat to reach and wound Marcu while two others engage this lone 'Trooper. Marcu destroys a rat, healing one of his wounds, but he immediately and unceremoniously receives four more from Arktos and perishes. Wannok destroys the last Gorillitrooper

How useful were playtesting units' powers and how often did they come into play?
Janos:

Spoiler Alert!

TRACKING FIRE SPECIAL ATTACK: used five times; destroyed five Gorillitroopers.

EXPEDITION: used seven times; see C'Rik's and Kolbjorn's sections below for more information.

Normal Attack: never used.

C'Rik:

Spoiler Alert!

HOLOGRAPHIC PROJECTOR 15: attempted five times; protected Janos from a Gorillitrooper's attack and pulled him out of another's range, but failed four times.

QUAARN ASSAULT: see normal attack below.

PHANTOM WALK: never used.

Normal Attack: never used.

Kolbjorn:

Spoiler Alert!

FEARSOME STALKER: used thrice to steadily establish a late-game presence.

GIANT SLAYER: inapplicable to this game.

CALL TO THE HUNT: used three times to move a revealed Order Marker from Janos's card to Arktos', thereby doubling the rate at which Janos could use his Expedition special power. Used once to save two Order Markers upon Janos's demise and twice to let Arktos take over for Byrikon, destroying a Gorillitrooper and Marcu Esenwein.

Any additional comments (theme, balance, fun factor with and against)?
Janos:

Spoiler Alert!

In comparison to a past iteration, TRACKING FIRE SPECIAL ATTACK's weakened first shot felt more like a formality then a respectable attack, accounting for only one of the five Gorillitroopers Janos destroyed. I never expected to attack multiple figures with this special attack, enabling a conservative playstyle that often positioned Janos with line of sight to only one viable target. I instead viewed it as a simple modification of the unit's normal attack: a trade of 1 Range for 1 Attack die with an extra step that grants a small chance to score a "free" wound.

The synergy between Janos's limited EXPEDITION and Kolbjorn's revamped CALL TO THE HUNT was not immediately apparent to me, but I couldn't resist trying to recreate the Rygarn-Janos engine once I realized the interaction's potential. Janos was able to establish a firm hold on the map's heights for the entire game, as the ability to lead two Expeditions per round while leaving a third Order Marker available for repositioning a rat screen translated to superb board control. The change in prerequisite from having no unrevealed Order Markers to having a single revealed OM somewhat restricted Janos's Expeditions by requiring a commitment of multiple Order Markers to his card, but this was offset by the flexibility of Kolbjorn's unlimited-range OM removal ability.

C'Rik:

Spoiler Alert!

C'Rik's utility was limited by an unfortunate blanked defense roll that incurred 3 wounds in the early game. Although the unit was destroyed shortly thereafter due to my slight overextension, HOLOGRAPHIC PROJECTOR's successful protection of Janos from three Gorillitrooper shots warrants praise nonetheless.

Kolbjorn:

Spoiler Alert!

The unit's updated CALL TO THE HUNT power felt like a massive improvement over its previous incarnation, whose odd timing gave Kolbjorn's opponent an easy opportunity to react to the movement of Order Markers. I admittedly drafted the unit solely to utilize a certain combination of powers, but the opportunity to save "lost" Order Markers was a pleasant benefit, as was the ability to devise contingency plans to eliminate the risk associated with gambling on Byrikon's Rapid Response. Moreover, although he never received a chance to attack or use his GIANT SLAYER power, Kolbjorn remained a powerful factor in this game due to his ability to enable Janos's double EXPEDITION habit. I note that this use seems thematically jarring, though, as the act of "calling Arktos to the hunt" without giving him any way to participate in said hunt is counterintuitive. FEARSOME STALKER saw use only in the endgame, but free movement is always a positive.