Hydra

[pr0t0typ3]

Hydra
Beast Fighter

Visualization: Basic Hydra style. Three heads.

HP: 56
Power: 18
Armour: 12%
Movement Range: 3
Recovery Time: 4

Attack Pattern:
~Fires 3 Energy blasts in three directions. One per head.
~Range is 3 squares per head.
~Unblockable.
~LOS Applies.

[x][o][o][x][o][o][x]
[o][x][o][x][o][x][o]
[o][o][x][x][x][o][o]
[o][o][o][o][o][o][o]
[o][o][o][o][o][o][o]
[o][o][o][o][o][o][o]
[o][o][o][o][o][o][o]

Basically, you pick one direction. The attack fires in that direction and the two surrounding it.

For example, if you selected the middle [x] line, the attack would go down that line as well as the two surrounding [x] lines. It would also work if you chose a diagonal as the central attack.

Special Abilities:
~Recovers 3 HP for every recovery period (A play on a Hydra's regeneraton)

Blocking: 40% (20%)

Additional Information:
~Counts as two units
~Does not step aside for friendly units to pass

[kensai]

As a first criterium of a new unit, three tests might be considered.

* Is the unit roughly equal in usefulness to a Knight?
* Is the unit original and interesting?
* Does adding the unit bring new strategic choices to a player?

A triple yes would show a unit to be balanced, new, fascinating, and necessary whereas "No" answers to any of the three indicate the unit might be unbalanced, boring, or obsolete.

Imagine an armored Hydra and an armored Dragon, wading side by side into the enemy position with twin Clerics supporting them and an occasional arrow fired to disrupt Chanties and Frosties..?

Hydra v1.0 looks quite a bit like the Dragon Tyrant. Both are big lizards with a gazillion HP, good blocking, and average armour. On the other hand, the Hydra however does not fly, but it has three unblockable attacks. And a side block percentage that both looks odd (why would a creature that has three heads be less perceptive on sides than a creature with only one?), not to mention that it violates the principle of side block chance = frontal block chance / 2.

The idea of a three-pronged attack looks interesting and a Hydra might thematically fit well, even though the mythical creatures so far are fairly generic, that is, not specific to a certain lore, whereas the Hydra is from the Greek mythology. Nothing wrong in that - it's just that this would be a first.

Adding regeneration would make the unit more powerful still.. enough that it requires some serious balancing features, such as dismal recovery time, even less mobility or something original.

It could however have one improvement too. Why would the central need to fire straight and the other two diagonally? Should this not also be feasible?

[o][X][X][o]
[o][X][o][X]
[o][o][X][X]
[u][o][o][o]

[Bottle]

If each attack deals 22 damage, this is too powerful. It's like effective power 44 (most of the time, you can get 2 good hits in). Make it worth 2 units, and tone down the power a little, and it's a reasonable idea. Say 18 power per head.

[pr0t0typ3]

Originally posted by kensai
It could however have one improvement too. Why would the central need to fire straight and the other two diagonally? Should this not also be feasible?

[o][X][X][o]
[o][X][o][X]
[o][o][X][X]
[u][o][o][o]

Yeah, I was doing this late last night and just wanted to put the preliminaries down. I missed a lot. Basically, it can fire a 3 pronged attack. The direction you aim will determine the two side attacks, so your illustration is correct and has been included.

Originally posted by Bottle
If each attack deals 22 damage, this is too powerful. It's like effective power 44 (most of the time, you can get 2 good hits in). Make it worth 2 units, and tone down the power a little, and it's a reasonable idea. Say 18 power per head.

I missed the fact that it cost 2 units. This has been included.
The power doesn't seem that bad when you consider a DMW can hit for 4 unblockable 24 power attacks, however since the Hydra can take more damage, I'm considering this.

~Power down to 18-20.
~Recovery up to 4.
~Blocking eliminated. (How would it block anyways?)
~However, to implement the 'regeneration' idea, instead of regenerating heads, what if it regerated HP. 2-3HP per recovery turn.

[pr0t0typ3]

Changed and Bumped.

[Omega_Paladin]

NO! Don't get rid of the blocking! Without blocking this unit sucks. Maybe it could step back or something to block?

[pr0t0typ3]

I'll drop attack to 18 and put 40% block. Actually, I'm not sure if 18 or 20 power is more balanced...

[pr0t0typ3]

Bump

[Khelek]

...the hydra had nine heads.
Not that I suggest giving this one that many.

[Asmodeus]

Did I miss osmething or can it attack the same target 1-3 times like attack 3 times with 20 power is 15+15+15 = 45... RUN!!!

Maybe it could put it 3 heads together in sort of like a wall shape to protect it's body...To block

[Bottle]

You missed something. It deals 18 damage to three separate spaces.

[pr0t0typ3]

In terms of max attack power:

Pyro: 15 power x 5 spaces = 75
DMW: 24 power x 4 spaces = 96
Dragon tyrant: 28 power x 1 space = 28
DSM: 27 power (max) x 5 spaces = 135
Hydra: 18 power x 3 spaces = 54
OR
Hydra: 20 power x 3 spaces = 60

So, it has the possibility to deal less than a Pyro, DSM and DMW. It can take more hits, but that's why it counts as 2 units.

Max power is almost double that of Tyrant, but it has less HP, Armour, Movement, etc.

[P3NGUIN]

i think that having both a dragon and another unit that counts as 2 could be way 2 effective if u use a stone golem because they dragon is powerful and hard to kill with the extra 30 armor and then with this it would serve as a great advantage. you should give it more recovery time and count it as 1 unit and make other changes

[sooner4life]

raise attack to: 20

raise armour to: 15%

make the attack pattern less confuseing

then it will be great

[Bottle]

Both of the last 2 suggestions should be ignored.

P3NGUIN, the whole idea of this unit is that it's something different to the rest. Reducing all it's abilities and making it cost 1 unit would be a bad idea, it would lose it's originality. It already has 4 turn recovery; that means it can be killed by 2 knights before it even gets to attack a second time. And remember, if you have this and a dragon in your stone cluster, and say two scouts, that leaves room for only 3 other units. The mandatory cleric makes that 2. It leaves you a bit shorthanded.

sooner, if it had 20 power it would be doing too much damage. A Dragon can do 28 unblockable every 4 turns. On average, this would hit 2 units, so it does 36 unblockable every 5 turns, which is fair. Increase that to 40 and it might be too powerful. Also giving it the armor (effectively) of a dragon as opposed to that of an assassin would make it too powerful too.

[sooner4life]

i guess your right bottle

even though i hate to edmit it

[pr0t0typ3]

The attack pattern is only confusing because of the way I posted it.

[x][o][o][x][o][o][x]
[o][x][o][x][o][x][o]
[o][o][x][x][x][o][o]
[o][o][o][o][o][o][o]
[o][o][o][o][o][o][o]
[o][o][o][o][o][o][o]
[o][o][o][o][o][o][o]

Basically, you pick one direction. The attack fires in that direction and the two surrounding it.

For example, if you selected the middle [x] line, the attack would go down that line as well as the two surrounding [x] lines. It would also work if you chose a diagonal as the central attack.