Building Your Character - Discussion on Balance and Flavor 1

Ok, so I promised I would discuss Character Building for this blog, and I'm making good on my promise. I've even decided that because of how flexible and versatile Untold is, I'm going to dedicate three posts to character building. This post is going to discuss how to build L'na Twilights (my favorite!). The next post will focus on building a Klik. And the final post will be something special. We'll be building a character based out of the "Hostile Hands: Races of New Earth" deck. All three articles will be focused on how varied and different individual characters can be, and how they can vary greatly, even when built by the same player.

So like I said, we're going to focus on building a L'na Twilight today, and more specifically my L'na Twilight Shadow. Shadow is a beast, literally, who is just as willing to confuse and confound his opponent as he is to rip them to shreds. Unlike other spellcasters in other settings, Shadow isn't going down without a fight and an army of fallen foes to escort him to the other side. So let's look at the actual cards and start talking a little shop.

Now, like I said before, I'm an experienced CCGer, and I take a decidedly CCG attitude when building a deck in Untold (because, well, it is a card game after all!). So I build everything, from characters to battle decks with a goal in mind: What do I want to accomplish with this deck? With Shadow, I want a character that will confound and confuse, daze and disorient his opponents. And then while they are too busy trying to figure out if they are sane or not, I want Shadow to move in for the decisive kill. This deck is built on 70 UP (and is the same deck I'm employing for Ashy's PBP on the forums).

The Character Deck is small, but costly. It consumes a solid 40 UP of the 70 total. Here's how it looks:
Race Card - L'na Twilight 5UP
Body 3 9UP
Mind 2 5UP
Soul 2 5UP
Bite 2 4UP
Investiture of Maoru 4UP
Invisible Hunter 3UP
Sigil of Protection 2UP
Venomous 3UP

So the QRC looks like this - VIT: 5, Body 3/3/3, Mind 3/4/3, Soul 2/3/3. That stats are solid and balanced. First, the Character deck also has a much needed "kill" card for my character with Bite 2. Then it has some solid status effects, with Venomous and Invisible Hunter. Finally, to round it out, I've of Sigil of Protection, to provide not only a spiritual defense but an extra 2 VIT. So here we are, a solid, strong, balanced build capable of taking and giving hits.

The Swap Buffer is where the L'na Twilight really shines. Shadow's Swap Buffer is 30UP, which is pretty decent, although other Twilight players might want to put more UP in the Swap Buffer. For me, 30 UP fits just right. So, here's what we're looking at for the Swap Buffer:
Banshee Scream
Confusion
Cursed Defense
Destroy Undead
Fearful Mien
Mental Susurrus
Mind Control
Mind Lash
Mind Probe
Mind Reading
Phantasm
Sleep
Soul Blast
Soul Rend
Soul Sap
Soul Storm
Supernatural Sight

Suffice it to say I'm not to discuss each and every card in detail, but every card is in there for a reason. Shadow takes a pretty direct approach when it comes to dealing with threats, but to deal with them adequately, he needs information. That's why we've got Mind Probe and Mind Reading. The other spells are meant to generally confuse and daze his opponents, like Fearful Mien, Confusion, etc. He's also got some other status effects, like Cursed Defense, Sleep, Banshee Scream. Finally, he's got some straight out destroyer cards. Shadow hates (REALLY HATES) Undead. If you follow "Shadows of the Mind", then you know why. Therefore, Destroy Undead is present. Mind Lash is a solid finisher, as is Soul Blast and Soul Rend.

So there you have it, Shadow the Lost Child of Ai. A soild build, meant for causing confusion on the battlefield and then closing in for the kill. Next week, we'll talk about how to build a fun Klik. As for the mystery character for the third article, I'm interested to know what you think I'm going to use as my Race card for it? Private message on the Untold forums or email me. Also, if you are feeling generous, I'd like to know how I'm doing so far. Is there something you would like me to discuss in this blog? Let me know.

Thanks for reading.