I went on the Mavs test server to check out those sweet, sweet new soulbound rewards cards and have pasted all of them in for you below. NOTE: The stats MAY STILL CHANGE, so please don't consider these as final. But from previous experience I think it's fair to say they're probably 80-90% there. First things first, the art is INCREDIBLE. Amazing job by Nate and the team.
Ok now for the (preliminary) stats, here we go...
6 new summoners
First thoughts:
- As expected they all have the "Conscript" ability, enabling Gladiators to be used in battle. This will definitely change the dynamic and meta of the game. In particular, it'll further encourage guild participation and play to earn those Gladiator cards.
- There's no obvious winner or loser amongst these in my opinion; the minor stats buffs/debuffs are quite well balanced.
- Would've preferred to see something other than +speed on the Dragon summoner, given we already have lots of speed in Dragon (including Quix with the minus speed).
Fire monsters
First thoughts:
- LOOK AT THE ART! Iidri is HOT (literally). Pyrwatch and Sorriel are...twins?
- I like that Ferox and Sorriel both have armor-related abilities given the new prominence of armor. Sorriel+Eternan will essentially remove all armor from opponents, so interesting to play if you expect Rathe or if there's a +armor ruleset.
- Iidri as tank with Ferexian behind her (giving her weapons training) will be amazing.
Water monsters
First thoughts:
- Kulu mastermind and the riverboat captain are just too cool... nice Pirates of the Caribbean vibes ;)
- I'm thinking of Possibilus, with Kulu Mastermind as the tank and Noa the Just behind. Noa's rust helps get rid of that pesky armor, and he gets reach and an attack from Kulu.
- Coastal Sentry also has great synergy with Possibilus thanks to the piercing.
- Musa at 3 mana with 2 magic damage and Scavenger is amazing. And don't forget dispel also got a buff (will dispel bloodlust and weapons training).
Earth monsters
First thoughts:
- OMG THE ART. Did I say that already?
- Ava as the weapons trainer, with ranged, is a bit weird. Does pair well with Fernheart, but will otherwise be a bit limited. Also not a ton of accessible monsters with no attack in Earth (Failed Summoner very expensive). Gonna have to rely on Thane to get value from that.
- Fungus Flinger also pairs very well with Fernheart. Fernheart clearly a winner here.
- Nice to see Hulk as another option for taunt besides the Slipspawn. Will be horrible take down.
Life monsters
First thoughts:
- Holy crap, a lot going on here. Aves giving weapons training, rust, and 3 magic damage? Pair that with Evelyn as a backline tank.
- Iziar having taunt and Martyr is amazing. In big mana battles, pair her with a bunch of revivers and whoever is behind her will become godly (think Captain Katie, who'll also be bloodlusting...)
- Imperial Knight, at first glance, seems a tad overpowered at 7 mana :) (shhhh...!)
Death monsters
First thoughts:
- I'll be honest, I think this is the weakest bunch so far.
- Usut looks great at first glance for reverse speed rulesets, but remember bloodlust will now increase speed even in that ruleset.
- I love revive, so Skok stands out, but 8 mana is quite expensive.
- Possessed Puppet will be difficult to use due to low health unless ruleset allows it (e.g. equal opportunity). In those rulesets, will be very powerful.
Dragon monsters
First thoughts:
- Cool to get a 1-mana dragon monster, not enough low-mana Dragons out there.
- Berix underwhelming for 10 mana; will have to see how much of that ranged he gives with weapons training.
Neutral monsters
First thoughts:
- Clockwork Aide was invented by Rathe. So was the Dumacke Orc apparently.
- Marksrat as a martyr is weird.
- Gobson bomber will only be useful when he gets pierce (level 6, so silver). But yeah, recharge so...meh.
- Nothing overpowered here IMO.