Hey, my thoughts are that the bash & barge attacks while tactically usefull are not used mostly due to low power. I would suggest adding an "anvil" effect to bash cards as follows: Gold card: add +2 or 3 dmg when target is against blocking terrain Silver: add +1 or 2 dmg as above Bronze: add 0 or +1 dmg as above Also barge needs 1 or 2 more dmg pts imo, ideally a discard move card effect or perhaps cantrip. I heard that it was stronger but got nerfed? Why so much... Anyway, Great Job with the game Blue Manchu team, hope you continue to provide the goods and work towards a true balance in MP. Peace (except on the board ofc).
I agree that bash is pretty bad. Pushing the enemy for one square is only useful in defence and pretty lackluster when compared with most other effects. The worst part is that if you have too bashes in hand you might not even be able to use them both because the first one pushes your target out of reach. When you talked about "Anvil effect", I first assumed you meant Stun which is why I insta-voted "Yes". But if you only mean the secondary effect, I would have to say "No". I think that the secondary effect of Anvil Strike is way too complex and weird to be put on multiple cards. But bash that caused Stun on the other hand is something that would be really cool because it would be a great way for warriors to counter wizards even other warriors. But the reason I like it the most is that it makes sense. When you get hit in the head with a big hammer, you will get stunned. Many games has this similar mechanic and Card Hunter should take notes. Related to this, I would also like to see a similar card like "Crippling Strike" that did the exact opposite of Stun: Halt, idea of course being that you hit the opponent in the leg, making movement impossible. Both of these would of course be very powerful so some serious balancing would be needed. P.s. I looked in the wiki and it seems like my second idea has already been implemented: Tripping Sweep, with the only difference that it has a duration of 2.
It needs some kind of buff. I think "Stun" would be too powerful and the wall thing too map dependent, but I support the idea.
Well, regarding the stun effect, it would overpower bash cards, quick run + bash and you're pounding away freely. I think that my idea of adding dmg when against blocking terrain also makes sense as when you slide something that doesn't have anywhere to go it crushes into a wall thus sustaining additional dmg. The stun would be to good to come true imo, maybe on the powerful bash but I think it'd still be too much. I was hoping to empower the regular bash or strong bash cards a bit. As you say, currently bash is annoying in attack because you move your target away, only usefull in defence on a priest defending against close combat warriors for example, but step attacks or blocking terrain behind the enemy make it useless compared to a good slash or bludgeon. The real power is that you can free up a Victory Location with it, but that's just not enough looking at some bash weapons. The bruiser skill helps but really bashes need a bit more. So using blocking terrain to your advantage with bash seems logical and not too powerful.
Yeah, but the fact that you need two cards, one being a gold card, makes it a less awesome combo. Also having Stun does not mean the opponent can "pound away freely". You can still use movement cards, maybe even step attacks, although I'm not 100% sure about the latter. And like I said it would need some serious balancing. I didn't suggest we simply replace Bash with Stun and assume it's balanced. I also don't agree that Stun would be "too powerful". Anything can be balanced imo. Stun is not something that is fundamentally op and could never be balanced. All it needs really is decreased damage. And lets not forget that it also has to go through blocks like all other attacks. The reason I would like to see Stun more is that currently warriors are too damage orientated. For example their class traits are really boring and unimaginative. It would be cool if they could play other roles as well, besides simply hitting people in the head for damage. Warriors need more finesse and the ability to shut down opponents. Yeah, it could make sense if you really think about it, but it's also kind of weird. I think that having map terrain increase your damage is a really special kind of effect that should not be a generic warrior ability. It's just way too complex and very different from how things usually work in fantasy games.
There is a limited cabability for warriors in respect of flexibilty, for example cards like advanced battlefield training, shield other, or even warr items with forgetfullnes. There could be more, true, but that's a different story and well, warriors are there to inflict dmg right? I am saying that some cards in the game which are clearly loosing to other attack types could be boosted in an easy way and one that does not make them much stronger. Regarding stun - it's already there: STUNNING BLOW , so why not just make some items that have it instead of changing bash to stun?
Agreed that the anvil ability is too complex to be common. Stunning too good. Maybe a tiny encumber that only lasts the turn (so, encumber 1 duration 1). Also, barge doesn't need an upgrade IMO. The 2-square push is huge.
I have been experimenting with Bash in SP lately, and indeed that is often the worst thing about it. I wonder if the cure would be - I know this goes against the grain of simplicity of interface - you can choose whether your Bash tries to move the target. This would instantly make Bash stronger by giving you an extra option, and at the same time does no extra damage, so is unlikely to cause balancing issues. Or... suppose the 'Slide Back 1' in Bash was replaced by 'Slide 1', so you can bash someone in the direction you want. That would be TOO strong, I think. So... let's invent a new option 'Slide Away 1'. This is the same as Slide 1, but it must either leave the target where it is, or move it further from the attacker. You can control where the target goes to some extent, but you cannot bash it towards you. Thematically, this fits with Bash, and it improves Bash and makes it different from the other attack types. I think this could be a good way to make Bash interesting and effective.
IMO, the problem of bashes (including the relatives) is that they are usually on warrior weapons. Probably they can be good on divine weapons to push a closing warrior away. However, I don't know under what circumstance would my warrior want to push an enemy away, and use one more move cards to get closer. (edit: I just noticed KarbonKhan had mentioned this.) Maybe simply change the Slide to Move could solve the problem because we can choose whether to move the one square or not.
Give it halt rather than stun. Bash is not a good counter to warriors. 1) Step attacks, 2) Low attack, lose man fight, 3) playing bash shows your hand, easy to make the decision to ignore your basher. Giving it stun would make bashers op.
Is this a Loner thing, or does it have broader uses I haven't picked up on? I really don't see grounds for the silver rating.
It's far from the best silver (I'm looking at you Nimble Strike) but it's just huge utility. You can push an enemy out of stab range, you can maneuver someone onto or off of a victory square or terrain—it's basically a wizard card that shows up on a weapon.
I voted them to stay as is because I find that they are well balanced as is. I personally like to have a few Bash cards in my deck when up against strong melee opponents. The slide 1 ability can be useful for a variety of things besides getting out of a deadly situation and thereby casing a considerable amount of damage as well. It can even be used to hit your fellow character of a dangerous tile.
