HoSS Playtesting thread

[Porkins]

We need your help to bring the Star Wars galaxy to your Heroscape table!

Jedi Temple (Public Test Tracker and Designs)

Available units:

Acklay
- Splash
- Ryno
-
B2 Super Battle Droids
- Zetsubo
-
-
Nexu
- Zetsubo
- Ryno
- Splash
-
Zam Wesell + ASN-121 Assassin Droid
- Ryno
-
-

SECRET DESIGN! (Submit at least 3 playtests to unlock)
- toyhandle
- Zetsubo
- Splash
-



HoSS Playtesting Guidelines

1. See the list above to see which figures are eligible to earn reward points.

2. Post in this thread that you are signing up for a playtest and the figure you are signing up for.

3. Send a PM to Splash, mac122, or Porkins to claim your playtesting slot. They will send you the text for card to be tested.

4. Figures must be playtested against official classic Heroscape units and released HoSS designs to ensure compatibility and balance. Since publicly released C3V and SoV cards have been tested against Classic Heroscape cards, these may also be used in testing.

4a. To paraphrase the C3V: You do NOT need to have the actual figures to use during your playtesting. What we most want are eyes on the design and balance of the units.

5. We recommend using BoV approved and C3G competitive maps. These maps are generally symetrical and have been extensively tested for balance.

6. Preferably, playtesters should use the Official Playtest Form to present test results. When playtesting, please make notes of any important or odd events: extremely good or extremely bad dice rolls, abilities that worked every time or never, abilities that were not used, etc. Blow-by-blow battle reports are not required on the playtest form.



Here is an example of a superb test:

Originally Posted by Fi Skirata

Spoiler Alert!

NAME OF THE TEST UNIT Chewbacca


ARMY CARD TEXT
Paste the text for the version of the card used in the test.
Chewbacca
Rebel Alliance

Wookiee
Unique Hero
Smuggler
Loyal
Medium 6

(Chewbacca card text censored until release)


THEME TEST
Check to see if there are any powers or stats on the test unit card that do not accurately reflect the theme or likeness of what the character would and could do. Also consider destructible objects, and whether or not this characters powers should affect them.
Pass, seems thematic to me.

MIRROR TEST
Check to see if the unit were played against itself, if there would be any loops that would upset the balance of the Game.
Pass.

BONDING TEST
Compare the unit card with all possible currently existing Bonding abilities to make sure there are no continual Bonding possibilities that do not stop appropriately or do not stop at all. This is to prevent loops in Bonding.
Pass.

SYNERGIES TEST
Compare the unit card with all possible currently existing synergies to make sure there are no factors that could break the game by making any unit too powerful or too weak.
He didn't break the game by helping Raelin (see below) which was the main concern.

POWER CHECK
Consider the test unit and all existing units and all glyphs to compare to and check for any powers that could be over amplified and break the game. Each power must define when it takes place, Who or What it affects, and What are the stipulations on the power if there are any.
Pass.

FUN TEST
Consider whether or not the design was fun to play.
Pass, definitely fun to imagine ripping off knights arms !

FUN COMPETITIVE TEST
Consider whether or not the design was fun to play against.
Pass, though a strong figure, he's not impenetrable when you use the right guys (Master of the Hunt ).

DRAFTING TEST
Consider whether or not this design is worth drafting.
With Raelin... the answers YES!

USAGE TEST
Consider whether or not all of the powers on this card were used or at least usable.
Pass, they were all used at least once.

STRATEGY TEST
Consider whether or not the design offers any real strategy or interesting tactics to the overall game.
Pass, a nice bodyguard unit that normal 'scape really doesn't have.

OVERALL SUMMARY
Describe your overall impressions of the design and how it plays.
Chewie was nice, if a little hard to take down (just his wookiee character showing through). I think him, Han and Vader are going to be the scariest figures of the release. When you see Vader it will be like seeing Krug. Han is a wild card that can make you second guess yourself... or laugh in the face of your opponent when you kill him in round 1-2. Chewie means that whatever hero you wanted to kill first, is probably here to stay.

____________________________________


Army Test 1: Does it pass?
Create a competitive army with the design and play it against another competitive army of the same or similar point cost.

Map: Sirocco
Units:
Army 1: Chewbacca + Raelin (SotM) + Kozuke Samurai + Tagawa Samurai Archers x2 + Marcu = 500 points
Army 2: Sir Gilbert + Knights of Weston x3 + Master of the Hunt = 495 points
Results: Marcu Esenwein 6/6 + Kozuke Samurai 1/3

Spoiler Alert!

Round 1:
Raelin and Chewie start up the cliffs while the Archers follow. Sir Gilbert and four knights go up the same cliff.

Round 2:
The archers kill a knight. The Master of the Hunt moves toward Raelin. The archers kill another knight and wound Gilbert. Sir Gilbert engages them but fails to damage. The archers put another two wounds on Gilbert. The Master of the Hunt attacks Raelin and gives her a wound.

Round 3:
Chewbacca shoots the Master of the Hunt with Bowcaster and gives him two wounds. The Master of the Hunt attacks and gives Chewbacca two wounds. Chewbacca gives the Master of the Hunt two more wounds. Sir Gilbert attacks an archer but fails, taking a wound through Counter Strike. Two knights move up the side of the hill and attack Raelin and Chewbacca. One gives Raelin another wound while the other fails. Chewbacca attacks the knight and kills him. Master of the Hunt gives Chewbacca two more wounds.

Round 4:
Sir Gilbert disengages and avoids a disengagement strike (he has his lucky Lionhead shield forged by the famed blacksmith Rocktroll ) and uses Jandar's Dispatch rolling a five! Two knights move up using that plus their normal and attack Raelin and Chewbacca, sadly doing no damage (seriously ). Chewbacca kills a knight. Sir Gilbert moves adjacent to the one knight and kills an archer while the knight wilffs. Another knight also moved up behind them. Chewbacca kills another knight with a roll of five skulls. Sir Gilbert gives Raelin a wound and calls the other knight up, who in turn gives Chewbacca a wound. The archers attack but do no damage.

Round 5:
The Master of the Hunt attacks Raelin but fails. Chewbacca attacks the adjacent knight but fails. The Master of the Hunt puts two wounds on Raelin. Chewbacca kills the knight. Sir Gilbert gives Raelin the last wound to take her out, which is taken by Chewbacca and kills him . The knights move forward. OM 3 lost on Chewbacca.

Round 6:
Sir Gilbert kills Raelin and four more knights come forward. The archers kill Sir Gilbert. The knights move up and kill an archer. The archers kill a knight with counter-strike. The knights kill two archers. The archers fail.

Round 7:
The archers attack and fail. The knights attack, killing one archer and one knight falls to counter-strike. The archer attacks but fails. The knight attacks and is blocked. The archer kills the knight, leaving only one left.

Round 8:
The Master of the Hunt moves in and kills the infidel archer! The Kozuke Samurai move up, two using Charging Assault to get adjacent to the Master of the Hunt and the last knight. They put one wound on the Master but fail against the knight. The Master kills a samurai. The two remaining samurai kill the knight. The Master of the Hunt kills a second samurai. The last samurai attacks, but fails.

Round 9:
The Master of the Hunt attacks, but is blocked. The samurai attacks and slays the Master of the Hunt.

Notes:
The Chewbacca/Raelin combo did seem powerful, but not unbalanced. I made the choice to have Raelin only move five spaces so Chewie could keep up. His Wookiee Life Debt served more as a deterrent (like Shoot First), making figures want to kill Chewie first and not Raelin. Army 2 however, attempted to attack them both fairly equally so that they would fall around the same time. Then, when Chewie activated WLD it was to much for him and he died. In the end though, I don't think Raelin would have lasted as long without him. I also think that Army 2 would have had a good chance and in hindsight I wouldn't have moved my last couple knights up there, but rather cleaned up the hills with the Master of the Hunt and then pulled then knights in when the Master fell.

Also, Chewies kills add up to 163.3 points. While others seemed to have an issue with survivability, I think he worked fine. Five life is formidable, and if he gets height he is hard to beat (4 defense with height, 5 if you add in Raelin). I think his primary role is bodyguard, have him protect weak but useful figures like Leia and Padme who will have to be out in the thick of it for their bonus to be able to be used. Him + Leia and a few squads of Rebel Troopers could be a very deadly mix, especially with easily gain-able height, the enemy would have to come to them and once they break through your ranged squad you hit them with some Bowcaster action (Chewie shouldn't leave his charge after all).

Over-all, he seems balanced. I'll see how he does on the next test but he certainly isn't over-priced. He may need to be upped 5-10 points, but again I will wait till the next test to check that.

Army Test 2: Does it pass?
Create a competitive army with the design and play it against another competitive army of the same or similar point cost. Only HoSS designs that have passed playtesting and finalization can be used in this test.

Map: Sirocco
Units:
Army 1: Chewbacca + Raelin + Rebel Troopers x2 + Blade Gruts x1 = 400 points
Army 2: Marcus + Stormtroopers x3 + Death Knights = 400 points
Results:

Spoiler Alert!

Round 1:
Stormtroopers move up one side of the cliff on the right, the Rebels move up on the other side (same cliff).

Round 2:
Marcus moves up closer to the Stromtroopers. Raelin and Chewbacca move up adjacent to the Rebels. The Stromtroopers kill a Rebel. The Rebels kill a Stormtrooper and get Hold Steady. The Stormtroopers kill a second Rebel. The Rebels kill a second Stormtrooper.

Round 3:
The Rebels fail to hit anything. The Stormtroopers fail to penetrate their defenses. The Rebels kill a Stormtrooper. The Stormtroopers kill a Rebel. The Rebels kill a Stormtrooper. The Stormtroopers fail their attack.

Round 4:
The Rebels fail to do any damage. The Stormtroopers kill a Rebel. The Rebels kill a Stormtrooper. The Stormtroopers kill a Rebel (one left). The Rebel fails to kill the Stormtrooper. The last Rebel is silenced by the Stormtrooper.

Round 5:
The Blade Gruts move up. The Stormtroopers retreat back to Marcus. Raelin and Chewbacca move up to a slightly better spot. The Death Knights move up. The Blade Gruts encircle Raelin. The Death Knights move closer.

Round 6:
The Death Knights move in and attack an orc but fail. The orc attacks and fails. The Death Knights slay the orc. Another orc moves up and attacks, but fails. The Death Knights kill that orc. A third orc moves up and fails to penetrate.

Round 7:
The Death Knights kill the third orc. Chewbacca moves up and kills a Death Knight with Wookiee Rage. The other Death Knight attacks but fails. Chewbacca kills the Death Knight. OM 3 lost on Death Knights. Chewie moves forward and kills a Stromtrooper.

Round 8:
Chewbacca kills another Stormtrooper. The Stormtroopers shoot Chewie to no avail. Chewie kills a third trooper. Marcus moves up and attacks Chewbacca, but fails. Marcus gains three wounds.

Round 9:
Marcus attacks Chewbacca and gives him a wound. Chewbacca fails to penetrate Marcus's defenses. Marcus fails when attacking Chewbacca. Chewie gives him a wound. Marcus gives Chewie two more wounds. Chewbacca gives Marcus two more wounds.

Round 10:
Chewbacca kills Marcus. The Stormtroopers attack Chewbacca and do no damage. Chewbacca kills a Stormtrooper. The Stormtroopers attack and do no damage. Chewbacca attacks a Stormtrooper but fails. The Stromtroopers give Chewie a wound.

Round 11:
Two Stormtroopers break away and head for height. Chewbacca kills a Stormtrooper. One Stormtrooper gains height and shoots Chewie, giving him a wound. Chewbacca kills another Stormtrooper. The Stormtroopers shoot but fail to penetrate. Chewbacca comes up and kills a third trooper.

Round 12:
The last Stormtrooper rolls 1 skull and manages to kill Chewbacca, who wilffs. OM 1 lost on Chewbacca. The Stormtrooper moves towards Raelin. OM 2 lost on Chewbacca. The Stormtrooper shoots Raelin, but does no damage.

Round 13:
The Stormtrooper runs forward and shoots Raelin but again fails to penetrate. Raelin engages him and attacks, but is blocked. The Stormtrooper gives her a wound. Raelin attacks, but is blocked. The Stormtrooper attacks but is blocked. Raelin attacks but is blocked. The Stormtrooper fails his attack.

Round 14:
The Stormtrooper risks leaving engagement and survives, running to height and shoots the last Blade Grut, sadly wilffing. Raelin pursues but cannot break through. The Stormtrooper attacks her and fails. Raelin attacks him and fails.The Stormtrooper attacks the Grut and kills him. Raelin rolls 3 skulls and puts down the last surviving Rebel.

Notes:
First off, Chewbacca is a friggin Juggernaught! The guard Raelin (which didn't really come up this turn except for a free move) and then clean-up seemed a great strategy for him. He killed 280 points worth of figures (not that the Stormies stood much of a chance against him. He is not a weak figure and if we upped his defense I think we would find him nigh unstoppable.

Also, I can't believe that Stormtrooper lasted so long! The Stormtroopers killed both squads of Rebels + a Blade Grut + put two wounds on Chewbacca + a wound on Raelin = 187 points. This meant that they killed/wounded 15.58 or 16 points worth apiece, slightly below their individual point cost (20). So I hope that quells any of your doubts Balantai .

Army Tests Summary:Chewbacca is a beast who I am pretty sure is undercosted. His average is 163.3 + 280 = 443.3/2 = 221.65 or 222 points on average. I say we cost him at 150-160 (leaning towards 160) for the next test and see how he does then. I think this would be a good middle ground as it would make him harder to fit into armies and therefore balance things out (for instance, if he had been priced that way for this test his army couldn't have had the Blade Gruts).



_____________________________________________________________


Optional Hero Test: Does it pass?
Test the design against several different Unique Heroes that have a point cost that is the same or similar to the design's point cost.

TEST 1
Map: Sirocco
Units: Chewbacca vs. Greater Ice Elemental
Results: Chewbacca 1/6

Spoiler Alert!

The GIE managed to get to a water space when Chewie reached him. Both rolled pretty high but the GIE was healing and ended the round with two wounds on him and five on Chewbacca. Chewbacca won initiative though and rolled three skulls compared to the GIEs wilf, killing it.

TEST 2
Map: Sirocco
Units: Chewbacca vs. Deathwalker 8000
Results: Deathwalker 8000

Spoiler Alert!

Try as he might, Chewie could not puncture the soulborg's tough hide and succumbed to his wounds.

TEST 3
Map: Sirocco
Units: Chewbacca vs. Wo-Sa-Ga
Results: Chewbacca 4/6

Spoiler Alert!

Wo-Sa-Ga inflicted two wounds off the bat, but after she failed Coil she just went downhill.

Hero Tests Summary:Right now he seems to have a mixed result, not quite strong enough to puncture the Deathwalker but to strong for Wo-Sa-Ga to handle. 'Course it should be the squad tests where he shines.



_____________________________________________________________


Optional Squad Tests: Does it pass?
Test the design against several different Squads that have a point cost that is the same or similar to the design's point cost. Multiple squads can be used if necessary.


TEST 1
Map: Sirocco
Units: Chewbacca vs. Grok Riders x1
Results: Chewbacca 1/6

Spoiler Alert!

The Grok Riders dice were on fire, twice rolling three skulls. Chewbacca's Wookiee Rage activated twice on the last figure. The first time he failed but when it showed up again he was able to kill the Grok Rider.

TEST 2
Map: Sirocco
Units: Chewbacca vs. Einar Imperium x1
Results: Chewbacca 3/6

Spoiler Alert!

Chewbacca was able to shoot an Imperium on his second turn, before becoming engaged, with his Bowcaster SA. Wookie Rage activated once on the last Imperium and was responsible for killing him.

TEST 3
Map: Sirocco
Units: Chewbacca vs. Nakita Agents
Results: Nakita Agents 2/3

Spoiler Alert!

Chewbacca went into engagement to prevent Smoke Powder, but kept getting pummeled when his defense rolls sucked. When he killed the one, he moved adjacent to the other two and was killed by Engagement Strike.

Squad Tests Summary:Over-all Chewbacca seemed to assert that he is better against squads then heroes. I think he will do a lot better when he can sit and attack at range.