Implementing Artillery in Heroscape

[Knight of Scape]

Will do!

[Kroc]

Originally Posted by MI_Tiger

True, but I like the high risk / high reward powers. I would envision an attack of 5-6 which is offset by the risk of losing the unit.

5-6A + Long range? You gotta be kidding. There is no way a unit like that could cost enough to make it balanced. The end of Heroscape and the beginning of Artilleryscape.

Also with 5A the chance of blowing up is 3%, 6 it is 1.6%, this is an acceptable weakness. So if you go that high for attack then the problem doesn't exist.

Please think carefully about this. We all know that range is already key, what is its only weakness? 3A is high for a ranged unit.

Now you want a unit with range higher than anything in the game, and more attack dice than almost anything in the game?

[MI_Tiger]

Originally Posted by Kroc

5-6A + Long range? You gotta be kidding. There is no way a unit like that could cost enough to make it balanced. The end of Heroscape and the beginning of Artilleryscape.

Also with 5A the chance of blowing up is 3%, 6 it is 1.6%, this is an acceptable weakness. So if you go that high for attack then the problem doesn't exist.

Please think carefully about this. We all know that range is already key, what is its only weakness? 3A is high for a ranged unit.

Now you want a unit with range higher than anything in the game, and more attack dice than almost anything in the game?

You're right - with 5-6 Attack, there is too small a chance of misfire to be a real balancing factor. But it could work well at 4A. That has roughly a 6% chance of misfire - it won't happen often, but it is a real danger.

I don't think the relatively high attack is as unbalanced as you do, primarily because the unit has only 1 attack per Order Marker. Even if it was an auto-kill (and 4A is far from auto-kill), it can only hit 1 figure. Compare a long-range 4A to Dead-Eye Dan's special attack - DED has a 50% chance to kill a squad figure (or put 1 wound on a hero) with no chance of defense. Per Sisyphus' probability tables, an attack of 4 has roughly a 50% to put at least 1 wound on a D4 figure with an average damage of just under 1 wound. The artillery attack is better because it has the chance to inflict more than 1 wound, but not that much better. I don't think it would be too difficult to determine a reasonable cost (maybe double DEDs?).

The long range attack would also be offset be the relative immobility of an artillery piece.

I'm not saying artillery is necessarily a good idea (in fact, I don't think I would include one in my army if it only had 1 attack), but I definitely think it is do-able without being unbalancing.

[Quack188]

I made a trebuchet recently and have it on two spaces. I've got a seperate army card for it, but to use it you need to have a figure adjacent to it. I gave it 'Carry' like Theracus just so the figure would move with it, not actually being carried by the weapon. I don't remember the stats for it exactly at the moment but it had about 10 range and 2-3 attack, and the defense was the same. I gave it a special attack that if a unit was about 5 spaces away you could target it, roll the d20 and depending on what you rolled, you could attack two figures directly behind the targeted figure. Hitting all three of them. I thought it would make sense since you're throwing a boulder.

My friend had a cannon from Warhammer converted to Scape as well. It has 3 figures mounted with it. You have to roll the d20 to determine how far you can move, if at all.

I like the idea of having weaponry like this. I can see how it could make the game kind of boring, but maybe you could limit how many each person could have. One each perhaps?

The artillery would allow field conditions were the units are preplaced on the map as either LOS blockers or tactical point on the map that players would want to hold.

I think what Toad Rocket said would be a good idea. That would make for an interesting game.

[Agent Mike]

Maybe the cannons should have ammo, much like the Airborn Elite (the grenade marker). That might discourage players from sniping people the whole game...

[Kroc]

Originally Posted by MI_Tiger

You're right - with 5-6 Attack, there is too small a chance of misfire to be a real balancing factor. But it could work well at 4A. That has roughly a 6% chance of misfire - it won't happen often, but it is a real danger.

I don't think the relatively high attack is as unbalanced as you do, primarily because the unit has only 1 attack per Order Marker. ... Per Sisyphus' probability tables, an attack of 4 has roughly a 50% to put at least 1 wound on a D4 figure with an average damage of just under 1 wound. ...

The long range attack would also be offset be the relative immobility of an artillery piece.

I concede the argument. Very well put, yes I can now see a 4A with healthy range and the "destroy if you whiff all attack dice" special. Coupled with limited movement (and range that doesn't put a standard BOV map under threat) I can see such a unit having a place in the game. And as was said earlier this would be the ultimate way to destroy a turtle strategy.

I would mention that 4D is rather high, I think the average is well below that. But coupled with very limited movement (say 3, that would be about right) and possibly a "move OR attack" special I can see this being a rocking and not too costly unit.

However, like you, I wonder how much tournament play this would have.