Lighthouse LOCATION: While Lighthouse is in play, any player who plays an attack that is not successful loses all Standing Defenses and may not play a dodge during his next turn. Lighthouse is one of only two Locations in Watcher's Chronicles. The other is Watcher Regional HQ. However, Lighthouse is a far more complicated Location to use, and allows for more varied strategies. To use Lighthouse successfully, it's nature must be understood. What does it do, and how does it work? The Standing Defense-loss ability is pretty straightforward. The moment it is determined that you miss an attack, and Lighthouse is in play, discard all of your Standing Defenses that you have in play. This includes not only Guards, but Continuity, Master's Stance, Higher Ground, Master's Guard, etc. Lighthouse does _not_ prevent you from playing Standing Defenses, or force you to discard them from your hand (like Dangerous Ground). The "undodgeable" quality of Lighthouse is a little trickier. First of all, remember this: Lighthouse does _not_ modify any attack(s) you or your opponent makes. Thus, Alertness/Dodge is useless. Lighthouse's effect is akin to Challenge/SE (CotW #31), which _prevents_ you from playing dodges. When do you determine if you can play dodges? You check during your defense phase. If Lighthouse is in play _and_ you missed at least one attack last turn, you cannot play a dodge. If Lighthouse was in play last turn and you missed an attack, but Lighthouse is no longer in play, then you may dodge normally. No Location has an effect if it is no longer in play. If Lighthouse modified your opponent's attack on his turn, then it would be relevant. However, it does not do that. If Lighthouse was _not_ in play last turn and you missed an attack, but you yourself put Lighthouse into play on your turn, you can't dodge. Obviously, you don't want to put Lighthouse into play. However, you may not have a chance. If you need to play Lighthouse to remove a more hindering Location (say, Ruins or Desert or Battlefield), then you're stuck with it. So that's how Lighthouse works. This understanding is key to putting it to use for you, and prevent it from backfiring. The first question, as raised by several of our reviewers, is: does Lighthouse help non-attack decks? As far as I can tell, no. Lighthouse penalizes someone who attacks you, but _only_ if you are willing to attack yourself. Very few non-attack decks want to play even a single attack: this gives their opponent a chance to play a non-Guard defense from his hand. Non- attack decks typically cycle out attacks without playing them, through the use of Elizabeth Vaughn, Holy Ground/SE, and Heroic Deed/Save the Day. So an attack deck using Lighthouse is only going to be hurt if it goes up against another attack deck. Non-attack decks might use Lighthouse as a placeholder, simply to remove Locations while hindering them as little as possible. However, Watcher Regional HQ or (in some cases) Rooftop would probably work better for them. So, does Lighthouse help attack decks? Well, yes and no. Obviously, it's a hindrance to dodging. Duncan and Amanda don't get much benefit from it, and Nakano and Connor are hurt almost as much. However, they already get big benefits from another Location, Dead End Alley, so they don't really need the help. Lighthouse is also a hindrance to keeping Guards in play. This means it tends to substantially reduce the effectiveness of Kastagir and the power of his Master's Guard. The Personas that Lighthouse help are those that are relatively light on dodges. That includes Kalas, Slan, Kern, and the Kurgan for starters - their only dodge is Back Away. The WC Personas Annie and Fitzcairn have Back Away and the relatively weak Evade. While Evade has some strengths (you can dodge and still attack), it doesn't give the 9-grid coverage useful in avoiding Slashes, ranged attacks, hidden attacks, and Annie's Master's Attack. Annie does have a de-powered version of Duck, but as a 6-grid dodge it is not the most effective of cards. So being unable to dodge isn't going to hurt these six Personas. The remaining Dodge/Back Away Personas (Richie, Nefertiri, Luther, Khan, Katana, Xavier) can be hurt, and may not wish to use Lighthouse. However, remember that the vitally important Reconnaissance can let you ignore the effects of Lighthouse long enough to play a dodge. If preventing your opponent from dodging and keeping out Standing Defenses helps you more than it hurts you, you should consider using Lighthouse. Deck design is of key importance when using Lighthouse. There is very little reason to put Guards in if you are going to use Lighthouse, for instance. If you typically rely on Guards for extra coverage after Power Blowing, against the hidden counter-attack, just use extra Alertness/Hidden instead. If you dare, use Stamina instead of Continuity to reduce your dependence on Standing Defenses even further. Lighthouse can also set up ranged attacks, particularly Shooting Blade. For Pistols, you want to have your opponent attack so that you can use Back Away. However, you don't want your previous attack(s) to miss so that you can still use Back Away with Lighthouse out. Take a break from attacking them from a turn, or use Reconnaissance. So which Personas should use Lighthouse? Thanks to several recent changes like the addition of Lunge and the restricting of Ancestral Blade to 1, Power Blow strategies get a boost. Lighthouse make them even more powerful. If the opponent misses an attack, they can't dodge your Power Blow, and they lose any Continuity/Power Blocks they might have. Plus, the heavy-duty Power Blowers-- Kern, Slan, and the Kurgan--are three of the Personas mentioned above who have very little to lose by being unable to dodge. Kalas has little to lose due to Lighthouse. Additionally, if an undodging opponent uses Holy Ground to weasel out of an attack, Kalas can Stalk/Head Shot them next turn. Personas who have other means to avoid damage can avoid the penalties of Lighthouse when they miss an attack. Luther has Endure Pain and Disappear, while Fitzcairn can Exert to prevent damage. Nefertiri, if she relies on the six maximum Holy Ground/SE for protection and to force her opponent to card cycle, can also benefit. One oddball strategy is for an aggressive Katana deck to use Lighthouse. The two things that typically thwart Taunt are either a Guard already in play, or a 9-grid dodge drawn from an Exertion. Katana waits until his opponent attacks and misses, then launches a Taunt-assisted attack. The opponent loses any Guard they had in play, and can't play dodges from the Exertion. Katana also has Master's Attack, which benefits from Lighthouse. Another odd but occasionally effective strategy is for Kastagir to use this Location. Yes, his Master's Guards take a beating. However, if an opponent misses an attack, Kastagir can play Charm and launch a Power Blow via Master Swordsman. They can't dodge, and they don't have any blocks. Whoops. Again, Kastagir's Master's Attack benefits from the anti-dodge property of Lighthouse. So overall, Steve gives Lighthouse a _7_. It's not an absolute preventative, but with certain Personas and strategies it can give you a powerful boost. With stuff like Master's Attack (either version), it gets downright obnoxious. What Our Other Raters Say: Jeff - Abstain Rick - It's putting the emphasis back on the swordfight. But be careful, this card could end up backfiring on you. I would generally recommend playing this card on a turn when you don't attack. Hank - Lighthouse is one of only two new Locations in Watcher's Chronicles, and is definitely a Location designed for swordplay. A missed attack results in a loss of both Guards and Dodges, so it seems pretty dangerous for _both_ players. Still, a swordplay Location is a plus in my book. Alan - Lighthouse is an excellent Location for those decks that are adequately equipped to defend against oncoming attacks, since a successful defense will result in being able to get an undodgeable attack. Mix well with Power Blows, Extra Shot/Combination, and watch the fun! One of my favorite swordfighting locales. Jim - This is a Location I'd avoid when using an attack deck as _any_ failed attack will cause you to lose all Standing Defenses and keep you from dodging during your next turn. This is a good Location when using a balanced deck that relies equally on direct damage and swordfighting. If your opponent attacks and any attack fails you can go on the offensive and attack. If your opponent succeeds with all attacks or does not attack, use direct damage cards (or ability loss cards). This is a good Location for Katana, Kastagir, and Xavier. Amanda should usually avoid this Location. Wayne - Abstain Prodipto - This is a terrible location for any attack-based deck. It is most appropriate for direct damage type decks, particularly as an end-game tactic. It can also be useful for mixed attack/direct damage decks. This is a bad location for Connor, Nakano, and Duncan, but Amanda suffers the most from it. Any Amanda deck needs to have location defense against this card. IMHO, this card takes a lot of the Sword out of Swordmaster. Allen - Lighthouse tries to be a Catwalk on Steroids, since it prevents the play of all dodges, but what it really ends up doing is discouraging attacks altogether. Best used in decks that're heavy on cheese or play without any dodges of their own. Unfortunately, decks without dodges tend to emphasize standing defenses, and decks heavy on cheese won't be able to maximise their opponent's inability to play dodges. I'd avoid this one. Ratings Overall: Steve 7 Jeff N/A Rick 6 Hank 7 Alan 7 Jim 6 Wayne N/A Prodipto 4 Allen 2 Average: 5.57 ------------------------------------------------------------------
Signorina Arianna SITUATION: While Signorina Arianna is in play, you may make an additional Exertion each turn if that Exertion is used to search for an attack or defense. This card seems fairly straightforward. No one wants to make extra Exertions. Even if your deck is specifically designed for making Exertions, there's a good chance you'll lose a few cards that you really rather wish you might have kept. Alex Johnson, Archaic Collection, and Forgery/Kalas can help you get some of them back. However, Exerting almost always costs you something useful. The question is, is what you're getting in return (Situation removal, Power Blows, forcing your opponent to Exert as well) worth it? But if you have to Exert, then Arianna helps to make sure you do it the way you want. Game mechanic observations: exerting for _an_ attack or _a_ defense is very specific. Cards that let you Exert for multiple attacks or defenses (Battle Rage, Toadies, Berserk, Bloodlust) are _not_ considered a legitimate Exertion for the purposes of Arianna. This is the same reason Kastagir's power, which is similarly worded, does not work in conjunction with such cards. Also, Arianna's effect uses the word "additional." The second Exertion she grants _must_ be used for an attack or defense. The Kurgan, for instance, can't Exert for a defense or Power Block on his defense phase and then Exert for a Power Blow on his attack phase. Since an attack must (currently) be played before an Exertion is made to make it a Power Blow, he can't Exert for a Power Blow, and then use Arianna to make a second Exertion for an attack. The primary question about Signorina Arianna isn't how she functions, but how the Exertion rules work. We will touch on this further in our Kern Persona of the Month feature in December. However, keep one thing in mind: you cannot "extend" an attack or defense Exertion with other Exertions. You can, however, keep Exerting for an attack or defense as long as you don't play anything from the first Exertion. So if Kern has one attack slot available to him, he may only Exert _once_. He may not Exert for and play attacks, then Exert again. He can extend the first Exertion, using card cards like Bowie Knife, Heather, Tessa, and Collect. But he cannot "stack" Exertions. Kern _can_ make an additional Exertion for attacks _if_ he has additional attack slots. So if Kern can make two attacks, he can Exert for five attacks for the first slot, then Exert again for more attacks for the second slot. Anything that extends Kern's Exertions will extend _both_ of these Exertions. Kern can also make an additional Exertion for attacks if he gets attacks in the first Exertion, but cannot or chooses not to play them. The same applies for defenses. You may only Exert to play a single defense. If the defense you need isn't in your first Exertion, you may keep Exerting until you find what you want, or you run out of additional Exertions. Again, something that extends an Exertion will let you make your defense Exertion larger. The above is all based on input from TCG and the FAQ. It is also a reversal of the material in Card of the Week #19, which dealt with The Prize/Extra Exertion. That material will be updated for archival purposes. So we begin to see that Arianna isn't quite as powerful as she might first seem. She won't let Kern get bigger single Exertions. Rather, she is a fairly reliable generic way to Exert twice per turn if you choose, and _if_ one of those Exertions is for an attack or defense. In the case of defenses, she can help to assure you get what you want. If you're unlucky defending against that Head Shot, then you can try Exerting again for the defense you need. Signorina Arianna will not help Katana to Exert for a Power Blow and to remove a Situation: neither one of those is the type of additional Exertion she grants. If you want to do that, use The Prize/Extra Exertion. Of course, that benefits both players. Arianna is also helpful against multi-attack sequences. While you can only make one Exertion for a defense against a particular attack, you can make multiple defense Exertions against multiple attacks, one per attack. Exert for a defense against the second attack that you couldn't stop, and then the fifth in a Bloodlust 15-attack sequence. You must specify which attack you are Exerting for a defense against, however. Once you play a defense from an Exertion against a particular attack, you can't go back and play a different defense against that attack from a subsequent Exertion. So Arianna helps out in an emergency Exertion situation. If you plan to deliberately Exert for attacks or defenses, or both, you should use Arianna. This means that she is still useful tp Kern, Mr. "Attack for Many Attacks" himself. Why? He has several other things he can and most likely will want to Exert for prior to Exerting for attacks. The secondary power of his Hogg requires an Exertion. He can also Exert to make one of his defenses a Power Block. This reduces his dependency on Ancestral Blade and Stamina (he lacks the standard Continuity), while still allowing him to Exert for multiple attacks. He can then use Flashback to make a _third_ Exertion to make one of those attacks a Power Blow. And through the use of Hogg and Rage he can make three more of his attacks Power Blows. Mix with Flashing Blade and Carl, and you have a formidable combination. What you have to consider when using Kern with Signorina Arianna is whether Flashback is a better choice. Kern's Flashback works like Duncan's: you may make an additional, 3-card Exertion. The problems are that you must first make a normal Exertion, and your second Exertion is only three cards. So if Kern must Exert for a defense or a Power Block, Flashback is a poor choice. Why? His first Exertion will be for five cards (good for defenses, excessive for a Power Block). However, his second Exertion for an attack will only be for three cards (bad). If he was using Arianna, he could exert for a defense or Power Block for five cards, then Exert for five rather than three attacks. However, if Kern were trying to Exert to use the secondary effect of Hogg, he would rather have Flashback. He could Exert for five attacks, then make a mere three-card Exertion to pay for Hogg (which can be used during the defense or attack phase, any time before damage resolution). Flashback is a discard-to-use Situation, while Arianna remains in play no matter how many times you use it. But Flashback doesn't require you to use at least one of your Exertions on an attack/defense. So it's a toss-up which (if not both) Kern should use. The Prize/Extra Exertion should also be considered. But remember that it gives your opponent an extra Exertion as well. Also, Arianna is an Ally, making her vulnerable to cards like Seduce/Fitzcairn and Watcher/Watcher Revealed. Arianna is one of relatively few Situations, IMO, that is worth Fitzcairn trying to Seduce. Why? That brings us to who else should use Signorina Arianna. Fitzcairn has the ability to Exert to prevent damage. This allows him two Exertions as well, as long as one is for an attack/defense. If he wants to prevent damage and Exert for an attack, he can do so. Katana is the third Persona with an Exertion-related Persona ability. He may not wish to Exert for attacks very often, and should hopefully not have to Exert for defenses. Still, if he must, he can do so while still removing a Situation. Arianna also lets him bypass Psychosis to some degree under these circumstances. As noted above, you can _not_ use Arianna to play Battle Rage (which is not Exerting for _an_ attack) and then Exert again for a Power Blow. As such, she is not of much use to those Personas with the "standard" Battle Rage: Duncan, Connor, Khan, Richie, and Nefertiri. Annie, with a different version of Battle Rage, can make all of her attacks Power Blows, and then use Arianna to Exert for an extra attack, giving her up to the three she can play after successfully attacked. Duncan and Connor gain some benefit when making Power Blows, although the Power Blow and Head Shot Events are still better since they don't lose cards to Exertions. In addition, Flashback/Situation is probably a better bet for Duncan. During his attack phase, Duncan has probably already Exerted, for a defense, Power Block, or attack. If he uses Flashback, the subsequent Power Blow will only use three cards instead of the five allowed by Signorina Arianna. So overall, Steve gives Signorina Arianna a _5_. She is useful in tower decks, which typically rely on a large number of redundant cards and Exertions anyway. She definitely helps Kern, being in some way superior to his Flashback. She also helps Fitzcairn, Katana, Duncan, and Connor. In general, she is a good emergency card, but other precautions can be taken to avoid those emergencies (Holy Ground, Darius'd Disappear, etc.). What Our Other Raters Say: Jeff - Abstain Rick - It's a more specific version of The Prize: Exertions but is also an Ally and a Situation. I'd just use The Prize instead since it would be more versatile and less prone to removal. Hank - I don't like decks that waste a lot of cards on Exertions, and I don't ever _plan_ on making Exertions to search for attacks or defenses, I hope to have them in my hand. As such, I've never found much use for Arianna. Alan - A particularly useful card to have if you have an Ability that relies upon making Exertions which takes the place of playing a Special (Katana, Fitz). You can still make your Exertion for your Ability (or if you're forced to, due to a Nemesis) and still defend against that oncoming attack/Power Blow. For other Personas, it becomes useful when you have to make an Exertion for a defense/Power Block, and still want to make an attack/Power Blow. Jim - Signorina Arianna is a potent Ally for Kastagir, Kern, and Duncan. She is of limited use for other immortals, but is useful in emergency situations. She is good to team with Avery Hoskins when using an Endurance burn deck where you want to force lots of Exertions. Ariann is great for the end game when you need to Exert to avoid Head Shots or Exert to find attacks. If you chose to use SA, I'd suggest including Courage to pull cards from your Exertions, especially Courage/attack to avoid losing your Special Attacks during the Exertions. Wayne - Abstain Prodipto - This is a great card for Kastagir and, in fact, most attack- oriented decks. Kern, Duncan, and to a lesser extent Connor will benefit from this card as well. Otherwise, Signorina Arianna is fairly limited, and valuable to only a narrow strategy. Allen - A very powerful card in the right hands, or under the right circumstances. Defensively, this card can save your life against Katana: Taunts, hidden attacks, and even those random, lucky Head Shot. Offensively, Kern and Battle Rage/Bloodlust players can avoid being hampered when forced to power block. A definite must-have card in these classes of decks. Ratings Overall: Steve 5 Jeff N/A Rick 4 Hank 3 Alan 6 Jim 5 Wayne N/A Prodipto 4 Allen 7 Average: 4.86 ------------------------------------------------------------------
Watcher: Revealed EDGE: Watcher Revealed Play this card in conjunction with any Ally, or on any Ally in play. That Ally is now considered a Watcher and can be affected by cards that affect Watchers. If the Ally remains in play, leave this card in play with the target Ally as a reminder. This card is another new concept for Highlander introduced in Watcher's Chronicles. Watcher/Revealed "modifies" a card already in play, giving it an additional property. There are cards that modify attacks, but this is the first and only card that modifies a Situation. But first, let's look at game mechanics questions. There are several. Watcher/Revealed is a "Watcher" card - a card with the sole title of Watcher. Just because a card has "Watcher" in the title does not make it a Watcher card. Thus, Watcher Field Agent, Watcher Database, Watcher's Oath, Watcher's Chronicle, and Watcher Regional HQ are not Watcher cards. You can play Watcher/Revealed in conjunction with _any_ Ally: Situation, Event or Edge. If you're playing an Ally/Event, it is now considered a Watcher. Do you want to do this? See below. The effects of Watcher/Revealed last only as long as the card is in play. As soon as it goes to the discard pile, the enhanced card is no longer a Watcher. When played in conjunction with an Ally/Situation, Watcher/Revealed remains on the table. This means both it and the Ally it is enhancing are Watcher cards in play. If you manage to do this six times for all six of the Watcher/Revealeds you are allowed, you could conceivably have 12 Watchers in play at one time! However, if the Ally leaves your control, it is still a Watcher. Thus, Fitzcairn can Seduce your Avery Hoskins/Watcher and increase the number of Watchers that he has in play. Due to the Sweeps Phase rules, during your turn you can play Watcher/Revealed on an Ally/Event or Edge that your opponent played on his last turn. That card is "in play" and therefore a legal target. Is there an advantage to this? See below. So that's what you can do with Watcher/Revealed, and how it works. What advantage can you gain from this? Well, in our Christmas issue we'll look a bit more at the other Watcher- related cards. But there are a few things we can look at here. As far as using Watcher/Revealed on an Ally/Event or Edge . . . not much. Doing so on your own cards makes them vulnerable to Watcher/Counter. If you play Renee Delaney she can't be affected by Watcher/Counter. If you play Renee Delaney and make her a Watcher, she can be affected. Duh. There is only one Event/Ally that currently gains an advantage from becoming a Watcher. That is Kirk Matunas. The James Horton pre-game card increases the damage of any Watcher/Event that already does damage by one point. Three Watcher/Revealeds and three Kirk Matunas add up to a big eight points of damage. Of course, if you're out of TCGs and your opponent does a Do It Yourself, you could have problems. Ironically, this trick works in reverse, in conjunction with the Sweep Phase. If your opponent plays Kirk Matunas(es), they remain on the table until his Sweep Phase. Their damage doesn't resolve until your Ability Adjustment Phase. Play Do It Yourself, and then crank up their damage with your own Watcher/Revealeds. Does Watcher/Revealed help you against your opponent's Ally/Events or Edges? Well, no. Code Red returns all Watchers "in play" to their owners' hands. So you can make an opponent's Elizabeth Vaughn an Watcher, and then play Code Red. But Elizabeth's effect has already resolved. In fact, any Event that you remove from play because it hasn't been "swept" yet still has an effect. By the same token, Watcher/Agents Threatened makes everyone discard all Watchers they have "in play." But since a Watcher/Event/Ally has already established its effect, removing it from play (before the Sweep Phase would do so anyway) is of no help either. So using Watcher/Revealed on Events, except for Kirk Matunas, doesn't help much. That leaves playing it on Situations: your own or your opponent's. Making an Ally/Situation a Watcher makes it vulnerable to the cards listed above. This can be good (if you use Watcher/Revealed on your opponent's cards) or bad (if your opponent is using those cards). Is it a good idea to add Watcher/Revealed to your deck for use against your opponent? Well, perhaps. Watcher/Revealed requires that your opponent _use_ Allies. If they're not, you either have to ditch it, store it via Dojo, or use it on your own Allies to get rid of it. Keep in mind that many Ally/Situations are transitory. Carl, Rachel Ellenstein, Jack Donovan (with errata'd text), Dugal MacLeod, Garfield, Dr. Anne Lindsey, Hideo Koto, James Horton, and Joe Dawson are either discard-to- use, or easily removable through other means. Some of the other Ally/Situations are not the most powerful cards in the game. Tessa, Heather, Brenda Wyatt, and Linda Marcus come to mind here. So Watcher/Revealed against an opponent, used in conjunction with Code Red or Watcher/Agents Threatened, can give you some heavy-duty Situation removal. But it's an iffy proposition. Using Watcher/Revealed to enhance your _own_ Allies, however, works well in conjunction with a new Location: Watcher Regional HQ. This lets you choose to draw a card at the beginning of each turn, for each Watcher you have in play. As noted above, you can conceivably have twelve Watchers on the table at one time. Although ten, since you'll probably use Watcher/Treatment, is more likely. So overall, Steve gives Watcher/Revealed a _3_. Yes, it has a few limited uses. So far, though, I'm not big on Allies. Most of the existing ones are either not powerful enough, or too ephemeral for me to want to try tricky stuff to take them out faster, or keep them in longer. There are just too many useful Watcher cards (Counter, Treatment, Rearm, Involvement) for me to want to use up my allotment of six on Watcher/Revealeds. What Our Other Raters Say: Jeff - Abstain Rick - Any Ally that also becomes a Watcher is now more vulnerable to other cards. Is that a good thing? The only bonus I see would be with Watcher Regional HQ in play. Wouldn't this card count double? Hank - Pretty interesting use of an Edge card, unique in that it can be played on a card already in play. Cards that modify cards in play, for a length of time, remind me a bit too much of Magic. However, I can see how a Watcher deck (for instance, one using the Watcher Regional HQ) might want more Watchers in play, and this use of an Edge does add a new dynamic to play. Alan - A card which can be used to advance your own strategy, or hinder your opponent's. Play on your own Situation: Allies (Carl, Signorina Arianna, etc.) then play Watcher Regional HQ. Or, play on your opponent's pesky Situation: Allies, then play Code Red, and watch all of your opponent's Allies return to his hand. Jim - This is a great card if you are using an anti-Watcher deck or if you play in an environment were lots of Watchers are used. The uses are too limited for my tastes as you need to have a good number of anti-Watcher cards in your own deck and your opponent needs to be using Allies. Although, neither of these are uncommon practices you can end up with lots of useless cards in your deck if both conditions fail to hold true. Wayne - Abstain Prodipto - This card is of limited use as well. It's good for an anti-Watcher deck. However, otherwise it's fairly valueless and mostly hand clutter. It is advisable to have a few Allies of your own to use this with, but its best value is to eliminate other player's Allies. Allen - If your opponent is using lots of Allies, Watcher Revealed helps you use Code Red to slow down his game. This is a "conditional" use, however, and I try to avoid conditional cards. For your own use, Watcher Revealed can help you cycle your hand if you are able to keep Watcher Regional Headquarters and lots of Allies in play. Generally, it's not a card I would use otherwise. Ratings Overall: Steve 3 Jeff N/A Rick 4 Hank 7 Alan 5 Jim 5 Wayne N/A Prodipto 3 Allen 5 Average: 4.14