Finalmente um bom spotlight, infelizmente a peça não é boa mesmo.
The Civilization faction thrives on coordination, teamwork, and keeping its key pieces alive as long as possible. For the Ascendant Hellsword, picking the right allies to match with those tactics is crucial for victory.
The Ascendant Hellsword has some 'nice', devilish flavor that makes him fun to play. His ability to choose fire or cold damage when he hits with either melee attack gives him versatility, especially when encountering enemies that have resistance or immunity to one of those damage types. Infernal Slash is doubly impressive, because it lets him push his enemies away before they take damage. That makes him and his allies less vulnerable to things such as Death Burst and opens up a world of possibilities for maneuvering free from opportunity attacks. Not only that, but Infernal Slash attacks every adjacent enemy, which means the Hellsword can push away enemy bodyguards, mobs, and flankers all in one activation.
With speed 8 and flight, it isn't a bad idea to immediately send this champion after low-cost Victory Area squatters in order to gain an extra 10 VP with his Champion Power. Don't spend all of his champion points that way, however, because his other Champion Power can let you start a round with two activations instead of one. This can be decisive late in the game if it enables you to destroy a key enemy creature before it can act or to activate a major creature of your own for one last, important attack before it gets finished off.
On his own, the Ascendant Hellsword is a tough sell for a whopping 96 points. In that rarefied price range, you'd like to see a higher AC, more hit points, and more damage output. He gets a boost to his AC and Def (Ref) against ranged attacks thanks to Soul Shroud, but once the enemy's heavy hitters get toe-to-toe with him, 105 hit points will go fast. A second liability is common to any high-cost creature -- half of your warband's points can be tied up or neutralized by a single, successful attack that renders the Hellsword helpless, stunned, or immobile. Losing so much of your might for even one round can be a game-breaker if your opponent is poised to pile into the breach.
Synergies
In order to prevent your high-cost Champion from dropping too fast, you must surround him with some strong allies and minions. Flesh armor such as the Merchant Guard or the Kalashtar Bodyguard can absorb hits for the Ascendant Hellsword, leaving him free to keep dishing out Infernal Slashes. The Human Cleric of Bahamut can help him get more out of his hit points with healing. Ranged attackers are great for softening up the enemy before the Ascendant Hellsword engages them. Finally, a low-cost, secondary commander such as the Greyhawk City Militia Sergeant is great for removing some conditions that can prevent the Ascendant Hellsword from giving his all every round.
500 point play
The Ascendant Hellsword is probably a better fit for 500 point play than standard play, because he won't be the main focus of your warband. Freeing him to focus his considerable speed and power against enemy Victory Area grabbers and harassers, and to do some harassing of his own, gives this creature a chance to really shine. Most importantly, he can allow you to start up to three rounds with two activations, and it's hard to overstate how significant that can be toward the endgame.
Seg Jun 23, 2008 7:21 am
