Unit Strategy Review: How to use Finn the Viking Champion

[Fezzikthedoor]

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Unit Strategy Review
Unit: Finn the Viking Champion
Author: Fezzikthedoor (with thanks to my Sewing Circle)

The three Viking heroes—Finn, Thorgrim, and Eldgrim—are some of the most perplexing heroes in all of HeroScape. These three are the only units in the game whose death can cause a direct benefit to the rest of your forces. As a player, you cannot help but be torn between the desire to have a Viking earn his point cost by destroying the enemy and the perverse need to see him destroyed so that another unit can get a small enhancement. With Finn the decision to use him is a particularly hard one. He has average stats overall, his aura is difficult to use effectively, and the temptation to kill him as quickly as possible by walking him into lava is an awfully strong one! Then, when the unit you have enhanced is killed you feel as though you wasted your points. Don’t worry; this schizophrenic attitude towards Finn the Viking Warrior is perfectly normal since he is the only figure (so far) that denies a single chess category. Let’s find out why.

Here are those average stats I mentioned:

Analyzed Statistics
Cost - 80 - Pawn/Bishop Class Unit
Size - Medium - Vulnerable/Concealable
Life - 4 – Below Average
Move - 5 – Average
Range - 1 - Close Range
Attack - 3 - Average
Defense - 4 – Average
Attack Aura 1 – Requires Adjacency/Range of 1 – Low Tactical Advantage
Warriors Attack Spirit – Unit must be destroyed – High Tactical Advantage

In-Depth Analysis

Each unit is complex, and must be well analyzed to be truly understood. For Finn, let’s begin with his cost. By cost, we refer mostly to the value in points, but also to its importance in your army. To simplify analysis, Agatagary has created several categories of cost, based off of chess, for comparison and nomenclature. For reference,

Pawn class (expendable, units that can be useful, but are not worth enormous trouble to protect)
Bishop class (more useful than a pawn, but still somewhat expendable)
Knight class (units that are interestingly powerful and can have a significant impact on the game in of themselves. It is advisable that they be kept alive, but if absolutely necessary they may be sacrificed)
Rook class (units that almost inevitably have a significant impact on the game, and whose death should be avoided as much as possible)
Queen class (devastatingly powerful or important units that should be protected at all costs)

Class:
Unlike any other unit, Finn the Viking Champion can truly be said to belong to two different classes—he may be played as either a Pawn or as a Bishop, and either approach can be seen as equally valid. If you wish to have him act as a Pawn to gain the benefit of his Warrior Attack Spirit as quickly as possible you will select a dangerous target, charge him straight ahead, and try to do as much damage as possible before dying. That is the definition of a Pawn. You may also use him as a Bishop, positioning him in such a way that he leads a valiant charge against winnable odds, backed up by melee units who will be able to make use of his Attack Aura. If they triumph, they select another vulnerable target and if he falls, so be it; you still gain. The way that you treat Finn should be dependent upon the battlefield situation and the composition of your forces.

To examine the Finn’s core stats, we will break them up into two categories – offensive ability and survivability. We will start with his offense.

Offense:
Finn’s offense is not that spectacular. His average attack rating of 3 will allow him to threaten most squads and some heroes, but certainly won’t be a game changer. He is restricted to melee, and while a 5 movement (giving him a total Threat Range of 6) will get him to the fight in a timely fashion, he won’t be setting any land speed records. As a Human Champion he does benefit from other unit’s Human Champion Bonding, which will help you if you decide to play him as a Bishop.

Survivability:
This Viking’s survivability is just high enough to be frustrating if you are using him as a Pawn and just low enough to be agitating if you are using him as a Bishop. His defense of 4 means that you will have to have poor luck or face a strong attacker to take damage; unfortunately, since he only has 4 life points he won’t last long in a serious engagement or if swarmed. In other words, he’s too strong to lie down and die but too weak to take a beating. Either way, you look forward to using his…

Warrior Attack Spirit:
Before we can discuss how to use Finn, we must examine in-depth the ability that makes him a dual-classed unit—the Warrior Attack Spirit. You should decide how you’re going to use Finn before you draft him (don’t worry, chances are he won’t be a first pick) so that you can create an army that includes at least one squad or hero that will be ready to receive his spirit. Since you only get to place this enhancement one time, it is critical that you have a unit that is worthy of it.

To begin, the Warrior Attack Spirit requires that Finn be removed from play either through damage received or an automatic destruction power. The affected unit must be unique, although either heroes or squads can benefit. It is important to note that unlike his Attack Aura, Warrior Attack Spirit can be applied to either ranged or melee attacks. This leaves a long list of potential beneficiaries. What should we look for then in the unit or squad to whom his spirit will be bequeathed?

First, we should avoid instances of offensive overkill. As tempting as it is to have an attack rating of seven, eight, or nine, adding an additional attack die to the likes of Braxus, Jotun, Krug, Su-Bak-Na or Sgt. Drake Alexander is simply a waste. There are precious few situations where you will need one more potential skull0 when these units already have a damage range of 6-8.

Conversely, adding an extra attack die to a unit that has a sub-par attack rating is likely a misuse of the power too. In general, an attack rating of 2 and sometimes 3 is just too low. While it may be nice to boost the Zettian Guards or Grimnak into an Average attack, those units are simply not empowered enough to change their effect on the game.

Units that are mainly supportive in nature, such as Hatamoto Taro, Acolarh, Kyntela Glyn, or Raelin are a poor choice because they shouldn’t even be counted upon to hold their own in battle. In much the same way, units who rely upon a special ability more so than their offensive capacity to deal wounds or incapacitate, like Sudema or Grimnak, are not the best place to put this wandering spirit.

Finally, a squad or a unit’s survivability should be taken into consideration. Since they only possess one point of life, most of the unique squads can be taken out of the running (although not all, as mentioned below). So too can the assortment of heroes who possess only one, two, or in some cases three points of life. This will eliminate all the Deathwalkers, Warden 816, and Isamu, to name a few. If the unit has a defense so low that they won’t be around long enough to take advantage of the extra attack die they should also be disqualified.

So who in the world does that leave us? For squads, I would recommend using the Warrior Attack Spirit on the Krav Maga or Nakita Agents. With the former, three attacks at 4 is quite powerful, especially combined with a very respectable range of 7 and a movement of 6; as most of us know, it doesn’t take much to get height advantage with this squad. The Nakita Agents have one less point in movement and range, but their Gorillanator Movement Bonding helps make up for it. And, of course, Stealth Dodge will help insure that the Krav Maga Agents are using Finn long after he is dead, and Smoke Powder 13 will do the same for the Nakita Agents.

There are still several heroes to choose from—many of them good choices—but the two best in my opinion are Syvarris and Cyprien Esenwein. With Syvarris, it goes without saying that combining the best range in the game with an extra attack die and double attack is a recipe for inflicting major suffering on the enemy. With height advantage his attack jumps to 5 and, should you gain control of an attack Glyph…well, chances are you’re going to cause some heavy casualties and a fair amount of foul language.

Controlling a Warrior Attack Spirit-enhanced Cyprien Esenwein against anything but a Soulborg-heavy army would be pure regenerative mayhem. His 6 life points allow Cyprien to take a beating, and rolling 4 attack dice per turn will increase his chances of slaying a unit and getting to use Life Drain. Should the battle turn against him Stealth Flying and a movement of 8 allows him to retreat until conditions are more suitable. Combined with Chilling Touch, Finn’s extra attack die could help to make Cyprien near inviolable.

Strategy:
When playing Finn as a Bishop unit you will want to make use of his Attack Aura 1 for as long as possible. To do this, you will want to draft at least one squad of melee units (since the Attack Aura only affects units with a range of 1) to accompany Finn into battle and give him support. As you might suspect, a squad that has Human Champion Bonding is ideal for this, and the Knights of Weston are most likely the best choice available. Although painfully slow without Sir Gilbert’s use of Jandar’s Dispatch, the Knights of Weston will still allow Fin to get a first strike before they maul the target with their attack of either 3 or 4. Their defense, like his, will allow them to hold their own for a short time against all but the hardest hitters. If Finn should fall his spirit will live on and the knights can always follow another Human Champion.

In fact, if one is building a Knight themed army around Sir Gilbert, it is not a bad idea at all to include Finn. A commander can alternate between the two heroes, moving them as needed, and when confronting a large, dangerous foe, have the Attack Aura of both heroes influencing the troops. Attack Aura 1, after all, is stackable. If you were somehow able to coordinate it (and I must admit that I am at a loss as to how to realistically do so) you could even throw Concan into the mix to give a bonus of +3 to one lucky melee unit. Like placing the Warrior Attack Spirit on Jotun, though, I think this would just be overkill.

Finn the Pawn, on the other hand, doesn’t have to worry about such troublesome things as tactics or support. As a Pawn, you can do one of two things. First, you can use Finn like a bully. Find the weakest character around—hey, Arrow Gruts, I’m talking to you—and clean his clock. The other player might let you get away from this for a while, but sooner or later he’ll send in a unit that you can’t push around. In quick order you’ll have that Warrior Attack Spirit working on another unit.

Or, if you choose, you can pick the biggest and strongest unit on the other side and make a beeline for it. Against a ranged unit like Major Q9 your defense and life just might hold out long enough to make it there and do some damage…and if not, who cares? Maybe its time to cut Jotun down to size, or teach that pesky dragon what a blue sword is really good for. Again, if you do some damage, that’s great. If not, well, it’s not really a suicide run if you don’t die, now is it?

Whether you are using Finn as a Bishop or as a Pawn, don’t forget the mental effect that the Warrior Attack Aura has on an enemy. Like an invisible shield, it will seem to protect him from the opposite army if any other target presents itself, for who wants to help empower the enemy? As silly as it may seem, you can play this aspect of the unit up by mentioning it to your opponent from time to time. Phrases such as, “Hurry up and kill him already,” and, “Please attack him; I dare you,” while not the height of good manners, can make the opponent second guess himself. The fact that you really do want Finn to die at some point makes these taunts all the more biting; it may also help relieve some of the frustration you feel from using Finn at all. If your opponent does avoid him, as is sometimes the case, make him pay for it by tying up important units and doing as much damage as possible.

In some rare cases Finn may survive until the late game before he is destroyed. This usually happens if you have had good luck using him as a Bishop class unit or if your opponent has made some serious tactical errors. If you have already lost the primary unit or squad you had planned to enhance, simply pick the best of what’s left—sometimes even a unit like Acolarh or Guilty McCreech can tip the battle in your favor with the Warrior Attack Spirit. Near the end of a game you can generally ignore the caveats mentioned above when looking at the survivability of the enhanced unit. If the game is almost over anyway, do all you can to win it!

Units to Avoid:
Deathreavers: The Deathreavers are the greatest threat to using Finn effectively in either of his roles. If you are trying to keep him alive to use his Attack Aura, their Scatter ability makes the bonus almost impossible to use. If you are trying to take advantage of Finn’s Warrior Attack Spirit it can take a long, long time for the rats to kill him, assuming the enemy even bothers to attack you. If he doesn’t, you can turn this to your advantage and leave the engagement, which will let you either seek out a new target or get the damage you are looking for. If you allow yourself to remain tied up with the rats, though, your opponent will be moving the rest of his forces into place. Generally, if you see a wave of Deathreavers coming towards you, find a better way to dispose of them.

Morsbane: As we saw in his Analyzed Statistics, Finn’s stats are purely average and his true benefit comes from his two special abilities. If you have the misfortune of having those abilities negated by the Rod of Negation, Finn is just another overpriced melee fighter. The odds might be in your favor against negation, but avoid Morsbane all the same.

The Shades of Bleakwoode: All the reasons you put Finn in your army are all the same reasons to stay as far away as possible from the Shades of Bleakwoode and their Soul Devour. As with Morsbane and negation, the odds of becoming possessed by a Shade are low, but it can happen. Even worse, now one of your enemies will end up with the Warrior Attack Spirit.

For additional information see the Book of Finn the Viking Champion

[jdozs]

outstanding review fezz. I look forward to more of these. I kind of wish they were included in the "books" that way they would be in one nice place. I'm anxious to see what you write for dund as the only strategy I've got for him is " sit....good boy....gather dust....not today boy....."

[Fezzikthedoor]

jdozs: These reviews are collected in a sticky at the top of the page. If you click on it, I think you'll be pleasently surprised regarding your dust-lovin' doggin.

[Firemaster]

Originally Posted by Fezzikthedoor

jdozs: These reviews are collected in a sticky at the top of the page. If you click on it, I think you'll be pleasently surprised regarding your dust-lovin' doggin.

Yep, just look here and you will also see that I have just added Finn to the list as well.

[sachsen]

Originally Posted by jdozs

outstanding review fezz. I look forward to more of these. I kind of wish they were included in the "books" that way they would be in one nice place. I'm anxious to see what you write for dund as the only strategy I've got for him is " sit....good boy....gather dust....not today boy....."

Dünd has already been reviewed by Agatagary:

http://www.heroscapers.com/community...ad.php?t=10568

[jdozs]

sorry sometimes I overlook things on the boards but never do I overlook a bonding moment.

[morgonis]

i generally dont mix good and evil when i make my armies but i am considering a finn, thor, eld, Cyphien, Sony + filler army all of a sudden...thor, fin, eld all ebing suicide runners of course and pictureing a +1 Att, Def, Move Cyph is just drool worthy.

[Taeblewalker]

Originally Posted by morgonis

i generally dont mix good and evil when i make my armies but i am considering a finn, thor, eld, Cyphien, Sony + filler army all of a sudden...thor, fin, eld all ebing suicide runners of course and pictureing a +1 Att, Def, Move Cyph is just drool worthy.

[The Super Atheist]

how about just throwing him into lava?

[Fezzikthedoor]

Have you enjoyed this guide? Think you want to write one just like it? Well, DON'T! At least not without asking. Agatagary put together a very nice format, and we're trying to maintain a very high and polished level with them. If you want to do a guide to a character, by all means do so, but please do it via a different method.

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Thanks. Hope everyone has enjoyed the guides so far, and we're gonna keep on cranking them out, hopefully with the same high quality.

[War Solves Everything]

These are awesome. They take some of the barely drafted figures, and explain how to use them.

[kenjib]

Finn and Thorgrim are some of my favorite glyph holders. He has bonding to get him there and then if you put Finn on an attack glyph or Thorgrim on a defense glyph, for example, you have a win-win situation all around.

(I'm going to cross-post this in the Thorgrim article too)