The idea for this post crystallised while I was listening to the excellent Rage Quit Wire’s episode on the Classes of Godtear. Unfortunately I was in my local supermarket at the time and that thought replaced remembering to buy clotted cream, so I hope you enjoy this more than I did my dry scone.
I want to talk about the most misunderstood class in the game; Slayers.
Dice being fickle means Slayer's can't reliably knock out a champion every turn. Even when they do knockout a champion if their banner is down it produces no net gain in battle ladder steps. Worse still as no model is ever out of the game, knocking out a key model in Godtear isn't the permanent advantage it would be in another game.
On occasion a champion can be knocked out and just stand up and do what it was going to do anyway. This means banners are everything in Godtear, they are the only reliable route to scoring (no dice needed) and consequently their placement dictates the flow of play.
So how do Slayers fit into this picture?
Slayers are more scalpel than battle axe; aiming to manage an opponent's wounds. Holding that final blow until the moment the knockout will be most devastating. This timing is aided by most slayers having access to attacks which do a fixed number of wounds, and/or wound enemies during the plot phase.
I want to talk about the most misunderstood class in the game; Slayers.
On occasion a champion can be knocked out and just stand up and do what it was going to do anyway. This means banners are everything in Godtear, they are the only reliable route to scoring (no dice needed) and consequently their placement dictates the flow of play.
So how do Slayers fit into this picture?
Slayers are more scalpel than battle axe; aiming to manage an opponent's wounds. Holding that final blow until the moment the knockout will be most devastating. This timing is aided by most slayers having access to attacks which do a fixed number of wounds, and/or wound enemies during the plot phase.
I've lost plenty of games taking a knockout too early, squandering the steps I needed next turn, or denying the wrong activation. Timing your blows with a Slayer is vital. Generally I won't aim to knockout a champion unless it generates a minimum nine step swing on the battle ladder, or gives me the steps I need to win the turn. The rest of the time I use this mobile class to claim and stomp banners while chipping away at enemy champions.