So let’s start with Theron, he did not need to be changed in anyway after the season 3 faq, but he got a minor buff and minor nerf. He lost 2hp, and the forest can now be placed anywhere that isn’t touching other terrain (let’s just call Snipe turning back to non-opt Arrow to the Knee, a wash).
This is why I love Theron so much, he has good defensive stats at 4/1 16 boxes, he brings access to cover for himself or other players on the team, he hands out snare like candy, has control character plays, and has a great counter attack against 1” melee models. Yes, that is pretty much saying I like everything on his card.. Because I do! Theron is extremely versatile because he can be an absolute beat stick in combat, and can also be a pseudo striker because of his double dodge on 2 hit. He can shut down super solo captain/players and just be an overall pain from debuffing the enemy.
Hunters now have a second captain instead of a cheerleader! Skatha is so over the top now, and the changes to her card leave me speechless. Her biggest issue in Season 3 was the fact that her movement was 5”/7” for a “striker”. All she needed to be actually playable was to increase her movement, and they did. She is now 7”/9”, with placeable fast ground to possibly make her 9”/11”. They didn’t stop there on making her quicker, they made Blessing of the Moon Goddess a 1 cost buyable << from a <. WOW! It didn’t stop there either, they changed her legendary to go from a pulse that gave models a possible < on an attack to, a < on every attack while within 6” of Skatha! She still has Snowball so she can dodge herself or teammates forward, so her team or herself are fast!
She is crazy good at chasing the ball down and scoring, or just going to score if she has the ball to start her activation. She also has 2 dmg on 3 hits like Theron, but she is Tac 5, though Hunters have access to Singled Out, and Eye Spy for a possible +4 Tac, and access to Harrier. She can mix it up in a fight if set up well, but she would much prefer other players to fight while she goes and scores goals.
The Hunter captains compliment each other so well, and ask very different questions when it comes to the pregame draft part of the game. They feel very similar to how Shark/Corsair felt in Seasons 2 and 3. Very flexible, able to ask questions, and able to answer questions.
Let’s talk squaddies next. I’m going to start off talking with Seenah. He no longer hugs players, but it now rips players faces off without breaking a sweat. He brings an influence to the team now, lost Furious, but gained Feral. The part where he becomes bonkers good is his playbook coupled with Isolated Target. Seenah has access to a possible +4 tac and +2 dmg against a model. He is tac 7 with a 6 long book where each success is another dmg. He doesn’t even need the buffs besides Isolated Target to take another player out. He also became a 3/0 defensively which makes him a lot harder to take out. Don’t get me wrong, he will still go down in a scrum, but he is such a great late turn beater.
Vet Minx is the next squaddie I want to talk about. She is my favourite squaddie in the game. She is 7”/9” with a 2” melee so she gets to where she wants to go. It is very hard to hide from Minx. She gets +1 defence against damaged targets, and she places traps which hand out 1 dmg and snare, so she should almost always be 5/1 unless your opponent can heal away the damage, but then they aren’t clearing the snare which is fine. If they charged and are damaged she is a 6/1 when you Defensive Stance! Ok, now her playbook. It is amazing! Her money result is 2 successes where she has Mom 2 dmg, and a Non-Mom Tackle. This is what makes her the Swiss army knife of the hunters team. With the beat down buffs of Singled Out, Eye Spy, and Harrier she can put out some serious hurt. She could also threaten the ball extremely well. She has scored me a ton of goals, stolen the ball off of players who are nowhere near her and gotten the ball back to my team so I can be in control of it and deny the opponent the chance of scoring. She generates momentum quite easily, and needs to be played like a yo-yo to be effective. She may be tough to take out 1 on 1 but don’t let her sit in the other teams lines for too long to have a scrum formed around her.
Time for Minerva. Another 2” melee model for Hunters, woo! She is incredibly squishy being 4/0 with a pretty bad counter attack. I’ve learned the hard way, do not initiate a scrum with her. That is asking for her to get taken out. She sets up the scrum in combat AFTER the opponent puts a model onto your side. Otherwise she gets 2 influence and a blessing to put out Eye Spy and Harrier from as far back as possible. Eye Spy and Harrier are both triggerable on the playbook for 1 success, and she has a KD on 2 successes! What more could you ask in a model who wants to set up a scrum? She lets you use Encourage for free when you take out an opposing player within 6” of her. I initially didn’t like playing her, but with playing her a little but I have a hard time not playing her. She enables Hunters players to win fights, easy as that. 2” melee is also a rule that makes any player in my eyes attractive.
Zarola is so good, that everytime I leave her off the pitch I regret it. Midnight Offering is too good not to take. It is usually free because of a Blessing of the Sun Father, and free repositioning/threat extension are always welcome. Unpredictable Movement and Linked with Fahad shouldn’t be forgotten about and Linked can have some janky/game winning interactions. With Midnight Offering, a sprint, and her 6” kick she has a 19” goal threat. This is is just 1” shorter than Ulfr’s goal threat with Where’d They Go.
Let’s use that as an opportunity to transition the animal himself, Ulfr. He got some needed changes, but he will continue to sit on the shelf for me. He is a 4/0 with 16 health and a straight up bad counter attack (if he has already used Where’d They Go). Lone Hunter was up there with Deteriorate in Season 3 as the worst rules in the game in my mind. Deteriorate is gone and we are left with Lone Hunter… Sure it got reduced to 4” but it is still a 9” bubble on the pitch where you can’t put players. Why would I want to restrict an already small play space like that? There is so many things wrong with him still that I don’t know where he falls in a Hunters team. We have access to better overall models who nearly threaten as far as he does to score who can meaningfully contribute to other aspects of the game and don’t get worse being close to teammates. But if you do want to play with him, because come on he's an animial, Ulfr can operate on a wing alright with a Skatha football line up.
I’m going to lump the Hearne’s together. Personally I think vHearne is just better than oHearne. He has a mom Tackle and KD on 2 hits. That is what you want. He is also deceptively quick, and has a janky jumping goal run. oHearne makes you do dumb plays by flinging him forward with Theron. Sure you can teleport him next turn to get away, but every team has a way of taking out a 3/1 with no Tough Hide and a bad counter attack. vHearne is great operating on minimal influence, and helps control a scrum with KD.
Jaecar is a sad boy now with the change to his trap, and Gut n String changing. I haven’t gotten to play him in Season 4 yet but I think Seenah just took his place as the team damage dealer.
Chaska is an interesting choice. I’ve played him in a really strange team to little success but don’t boombox, it is great. He is just incredibly squishy and if you move up to boombox he is going to have a rough time, even if that boombox is free.
Egret got so much better and I have been enjoying putting her on the table for once. Against teams that bunch up I will try to find a spot to take her otherwise I think loses effectiveness. Giving her two influence to threaten a flurry and 6” dodge back to where she started is really good, and she is a serviceable striker in a pinch.
I’ve put off Mataagi till the end for a reason. In theory he is great. Ranged attack, puts out bleed, has harrier, all great things to have. Here is where practice has got me to not like him. 10 health is not what you want, it leads to him accidentally getting taken out. He has even been one shotted by a vCinder when the dice exploded. Here is where everyone tells me, but he is 6” away from models. 6” is not far enough!! He also has a flawed playbook to compensate for his ranged attack so if a model gets into him, he will highly unlikely be able to get away. Also he is not that great of a striker with a 2/8” kick. He needs to Bonus Time (usually to just get back to 2 dice because odds are he will be obscured in some way when shooting) and I don’t like giving the ball up on 75% goal runs.
Overall I think the Hunters will be everywhere, much as they were at the end of Season 3. They are clearly the best team at this point and if you don’t get to practice against them a lot, find someone who does and play against them.
Rhett T
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