|
| -
The Barrier Ward |
| Contraption |
 |
| Hit Points |
32 |
| Power |
Barrier |
| Armor |
None |
| Blocking |
100% All sides |
| Recovery |
2 |
| Movement |
Immobile |
| Target |
 | |
| -
The Barrier Ward |
BW for short.
The most underrated unit in the game is undoubtably the BW. It's got a lot of potential, and not just as a defensive unit.
In defense, though, it's incredibly useful. With the chanty, it can *kill* 3 knights without a problem. It can be used to barrier a precariously positioned unit and give it the chance for another attack, or for it to retreat and be healed. It can be used as part of a defensive wall of knights. Although, as stated above, even it can't save you from a witch kill on the cleric if you're playing all-out defense.
In attack, you need to be more careful. If it's positioned at the back rank, flanking the cleric, its atacking potential is limited. But if it's close to the LW, near the front but not so close as it's easily targeted by a scout, it's very useful. When the enemy has just used his LW, send up a mage and attack. Take a hit on the mage and barrier, wait until you've recovered, and attack with the mage again and retreat and heal. BWs are the only thing that can stop the old knight-kills-mage routine.
You should position your BW either on the back rank, or 2 spaces behind the LW. That way, knights can't attack it without entering LW range, scouts have difficulty getting it, and mages can't attack it without flanking or moving into LW range either. They have more attacking potential when behind the LW, but they are also easier to snipe and don't protect the cleric as well. It's up to you, but I prefer to put mine next to the cleric. |
| -
The Lightning Ward |
| Contraption |
 |
| Hit Points |
56 |
| Power |
30 Unblockable |
| Armor |
18% |
| Blocking |
100% All sides |
| Recovery |
4 |
| Movement |
Immobile |
| Target |
 | |
| -
The Lightning Ward |
While we're on the subject of wards, let's talk about the often-misused LW. People always seem to use it on my knights in a same-side turtle match. Why? My knight still has 27 HP left, and your LW is useless for 4 turns. Even worse are the people who use their LW on my LW. You can go on and on about how a witch-LW-pyro combo kills a LW, but I don't care about that. You waste a few turns doing that. Meanwhile, I'll send my knights in to kill a couple of your mages. If I feel like it, I'll barrier the LW when it's on about 10 HP, so you still can't move your mages past it and you've wasted time trying to kill something that isn't going to die.
Now, how to use a LW PROPERLY. Answer: don't use it.
It's going to be a threat unit, and a wall unit. As a wall, it's immensely useful; it can block the witch from getting your cleric (but from only 1 direction, remember... a flanking witch will still get you), and it blocks knights from getting through. That's all its use will be, though, if you insist on using it on knights or other LWs. The threat is gone as soon as it's used. You may find that you zap a knight, and then get 3 or 4 mages in your face, walloping your knight wall all over the place, and you can't do anything about it. Even if you save it, you can only use it one 1 mage, but the THREAT is still there. People won't mind losing a mage in a few turns time, but for some reason, they won't send in a mage as bait for the LW and then charge with other mages. So capitalise on this, and keep your LW ready to fire.
In an opposite side turtle match, the LW often does absolutely nothing. But it still makes people go around it. It's a psychological weapon, and often nothing more. But even psychological weapons can be useful. If it makes your opponent waste a turn going around it, use that extra turn to full advantage.
Finally, don't move a mage into LW range immediately after the LW as attacked. While your mage will indeed recover first, it will only do so one turn before the LW does, so you have to move it out straight away or it'll get zapped. If your opponent has moved a knight up next to your cleric in the meantime, you often have to choose between saving your cleric and saving your mage. |
|
