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“Marquis of HanShou 汉寿亭侯(hàn shòu tíng hóu)”
Who is he?
Even if you cannot identify him through his new appearance, you should have noticed the Red Hare 赤兔 and the Green Dragon Crescent Blade 青龙偃月刀. Bingo! He’s our loyal “second brother”, the warrior saint in legend, the bearded gentleman in history, Guan Yu.
Wait a minute... The frame of this card is blue? Is this like 徐庶Xu Shu, who has a blue frame but still belongs to 蜀 Shu? Oh my god he doesn’t even belong to Shu Kingdom any more? Why was his allegiance changed to 魏 Wei? Designer’s mistake? Printers ran out of blue ink? Don’t panic, Guan Yu never betrayed his only ruler and "Elder brother" 刘备Liu Bei. Want to know what’s going on here? Keep reading and find out!
Why is he an SP character?
Just like the SP Sun Shang Xiang 孙尚香, SP Guan Yu was created for the completion of the whole Three Kingdoms’ story. This SP version is designed to represent Guan Yu’s life experience under Cao Cao 曹操’s military. In return for being treated respectfully after being captured by Cao Cao, Guan Yu fought for Cao Cao against Yuan Shao 袁绍 for a short while, and was very successful! So successful in fact that Cao Cao really wanted Guan Yu change his allegiance. Guan Yu, of course, refused because of his loyalty to Liu Bei. It was actually Cao Cao who gave him the title of Marquis of Han Shou whilst under his service. After some time Guan Yu left Cao Cao with nothing but his Red Hare and Green Dragon Crescent Blade, riding through thousands of miles to finally rejoin his brothers. This special experience also explains why he let Cao Cao escape after the huge loss at Battle of Red Cliffs 赤壁之战. For more info, just check Ricky’s write up of Guan Yu (蜀Shu) under the “Most famous achievement” section.
Character ability1: “Warrior Saint 武圣 (wǔ shèng)”
Every card with a “heart” or “diamonds” suit (effectively all red-suit cards) can be used as an ATTACK 杀card.
Character ability2: “Single Calvary 单骑(dān qí)” [Awakening ability]
At the beginning of your turn, if your number of on-hand cards is larger than your current health units, AND the RULER for the game is Cao Cao, you must reduce your maximum health by 1 unit. You then permanently acquire the ability “Horsemanship 马术”
(Recall: Horsemanship 马术 = You will always have -1 distance in range calculations).
Additional info based on changes:
I guess it would really take some time for the players to get used to his new allegiance, because he cannot use ATTACK 杀 for Liu Bei any more! However, he can now react to both “Royal Escort” of Cao Cao and “Exalt the Powerful” of Cao Pi 曹丕.
Wiki Link:
- Guan Yu Wiki
How to obtain this character?
He is not available on SGS online yet. For obtaining a card, purchase ZYZ magazine issue #8 (August 2011).
Contributing Writer:
- Cherry Cat
SP characters are really nonsense..not much to talk about
ReplyDeletehis second skill is trash...
ReplyDeleteI agree
ReplyDeletemost useless character in the game with Gongsun Zan?
ReplyDeleteGongsun Zan is probably the worst character, but I think that Ma Su, Zhou Yu, Xu Chu, and Cao Ren are vying for the next lowest position. This version of Guan Yu is better than these characters in my opinion, but not by much.
ReplyDeleteMa Su is really useful, I have no idea how you're using him if you think he's awful.
ReplyDeleteZhou Yu is all offense, which makes him very vulnerable, but also is useful especially with 5 people instead of 8.
Xu Chu is situational but can deal a ton of damage with the right cards and support.
Cao Ren obviously is pretty useless unless he is defector. Once you are defector you look at him more favorably.
But yes you are right Gongun Zan is just terrible in almost all circumstances.
I think the makes of SGS are just terrified of making Guan Yu overpowered so he's neutered.
If he came with -1 horse or if he could use 2 attacks per turn, he might be more worthy of his historical importance but as of right now hes awful because you are never in need of a ton of ATTACKS.
Ma Su is POWERFUL. Especially when on a 1 vs 1. I won with Ma SU as a defector. Kept looking at the King's card. Made him powerless.
ReplyDeleteI am the Anonymous from 11/24/11 3:06AM. Please allow me to defend my claims.
ReplyDeleteWhen I listed those who were vying for the 2nd worst character in SGS, I was speaking not from only my own experience, but also what I have seen online. When I am doing homework, I sometimes view matches from high level players (lv 80 - 150). In general, I have found that the teams that those characters are on are generally at a disadvantage. This is not a scientific study and I do not catalog the outcomes of each match that I see, but I would like to think that I have somewhat of a good idea about who is good and who isn't.
I will start with Ma Su, since my claim about him seems to be the most controversial. Ma Su's Winning Hearts ability seems to be a watered down version of Zhuge Liang's Star Gazing. As another Anonymous pointed out, it is better than Star Gazing in one-on-one situations, but in most cases it is weaker. Zhuge Liang can use his ability to get out of time-delay tool cards and thwart other characters, while Ma Su can only activate this power during his turn. When Ma Su is low on health (and can hold fewer cards), it is harder to store up enough cards to use it. It is for this reason that card destruction characters like Gan Ning and Zhang Liao can cripple him easily, whereas Elder Zhuge Liang does not have this problem. Also, Bottomless Tears is not as good of a deterrent as is seems to be. This power is not as good if Ma Su is a rebel or a king. If Ma Su is a rebel and someone kills him, they discard everything then draw 3 cards. Because of this, killing him is not as big of a deal. If Ma Su is a loyalist or spy, the rebels are probably more concerned with killing the king instead of him anyway. Even if one of the rebels decides to bite the bullet and kill him, it is possible that this will happen late enough in the game when they don’t have many cards anyway, so the loss won’t be that great. In fact, Elder Zhuge, Lu Xun, and Sun Shang Xiang probably wouldn’t mind killing him as the loss of their cards activates their powers. In addition, Bottomless Tears may make him a liability for his team if Diao Chan and/or Xun Yu are on the opposing team and they use their powers to make someone kill him and lose all of their cards. Zhang Chun Hua has not been released online yet, but I would imagine that she would tear him apart.
Next up is Zhou Yu. Dashing Hero isn’t a bad power, but it would be better if it was like Diao Chan’s Outshine the Moon. As a character with only three health, it would help if this extra card was drawn at the end of his turn so he can hold more cards to survive the round. Sow Dissension is not that great in many situations. Right off the bat, there is a ¼ chance that the enemy will guess correctly and get a free card. Even if they guess incorrectly, there is a possibility that the card that they choose will help them avoid damage during the round (if they get an attack or dodge, for example). I remember one instance when I was the victim of rations depleted and I got a negate from Zhou Yu’s Sow Dissension. It was well worth taking the damage to be able to draw during my next turn! I am not trying to imply that this power always gives an advantage to the enemy, but it certainly happens more often than one would think.
ReplyDeleteNext is Xu Chu. I like Xu Chu a lot, but as much as I hate to admit it, he is one of the weaker characters. For Bare Chested to work for attack cards the following conditions must be met:
1.) He must have an attack card
2.) His target must not have a dodge
3.) He must be able to reach his target
It is harder to ensure that all of these conditions are met when you are only drawing one card per turn. In order for this power to work more frequently, he must have someone like Liu Bei or Xun Yu to help keep him well stocked with cards. Having Gan Ning or Zhang Liao on your team also helps. However, in the regular mode for this game, it is not possible to guarantee that these characters will be on your team. Xu Chu is best at attacking the person to his immediate right, as they will most likely be worn down from the other characters turns. However, they will do their best to save a dodge card for Xu Chu’s turn if they are smart.
Finally, let’s talk about Cao Ren. I agree with the one Anonymous that said he is best as a spy. However, there are usually better choices even when you are the spy. It is useful to be able to hold those three extra cards, but the cost is very heavy. Whenever you become Entrenched, you are essentially removing yourself from the game for a turn. A good spy should be able to keep the game balanced. This is going to be more difficult if you are only playing for half of the game. If you want to be a defensive spy, both Zhuge Liangs, Zhen Ji, Xiahou Dun, Fa Zheng and Sima Yi are better choices because they have better defensive powers. One could make the argument that you don’t always have to use his power. This is true, but if you don’t use it, you are basically a “vanilla character” with no advantages over other characters.
I am sorry for the long comments, but I really enjoy to talk about tactics!
ReplyDeleteWell, all the characters mentioned above are situational, and sometimes they seem to be weak only because the player was foolish enough to pick the character without considering his role and location.
ReplyDelete1. Ma Su is surely a good Loyalist. If Rebels attack him, he will fulfill his duty, and even upon his death he will expose the enemy to danger. Of course, we can talk about Elder ZGL, Lu Xun and Sun Shangxiang, but what is the probability that any of these characters will appear in the same game with Ma Su? As for Diao Chan, she is usually the first one to die, and for a good reason (second to Hua Tuo and SSX) :)
If Rebels don`t attack Ma Su, then almost nothing will prevent him from using Battle of Hearts. Rebel Gan Ning and Zhang Liao are way more concernded about demolishing Ruler`s cards than yours. The contribution of his mini-Star-Gazing may seem negligible, but it can actually be quite useful - cards with the suit of hearts are usually quite valuable (Peaches, Draw2s, Harvest). If you realize the power of Demigod Lv Meng`s skill, then you should recognize Ma Su`s power as well.
2. As for Zhou Yu, there is a reply to all claims on his skill being "hacked": his Sow Dissesion is NOT an enforced skill. Why would you ever use SD if you have a hand full of Peaches, diamond-suited cards etc? This skill is actually very situational, and you must use it wisely. The best way is to use it in order to finish a character with 1 health.
3. It is usually difficult to use Xu Chu effectively, but there is one role at a certain place where he shines - a Rebel on the Ruler`s left side. By the time your turn comes, the Ruler is usually out of dodges, and you will be more likely to land a critical hit. Just remember, that your role is to land one, but devastating attack that will either finish the game or change the tides dramatically, so it is ok if you save an ATTACK card for later. Constant DPS is Guan Yu`s job, not yours.
4. In some cases Cao Ren is better than Lv Meng. The best moment to choose him is when the Ruler is Cao Cao or Cao Pi - your skill will really become your bread and butter. Another thing about him is that Cao Ren doesn`t attract too much attention. It is usually him who save the day by giving a PEACH to the dying ally. His role is a warehouse that, unlike Lv Meng, has more opportunities to use ATTACK.
^that is really well said in my honest opinion...
ReplyDeleteIt really all depends on the situation and role you are/have, and more importantly is how good you could utilize the character's skill and abilities.
Seating matters alot too with character choosing, I believe out of the most of the defeats when people encounter when using the "worst" characters might probably be the fact that they did not pick the right character to play with respect to his seating/role.
Or simply, they are just having a bad day and did not get any suitable characters out of the 3 or 5 cards that they are to be chosen from.
So glad to see you guys' long commends here~~~even though nothing is about my article.....><
ReplyDelete"Ma Su is really useful, I have no idea how you're using him if you think he's awful"
ReplyDeleteThough I agree he's not the 2nd worst character, he's for sure by no means deserving of that comment you just put. Characters that separate themselves of being better than others are best judged not only how good their ability is but also by how consistent their powers will be useful. Ma Su is a situational character which I see only uses in 1v1 and character role as spy/loyalist bc being a king is totally worthless bc his Bottomless Tears ability doesn't even work, and as a rebel, the character that kills him still draws 3 cards. I vote him as 3rd worst character as the honors for 2nd worst goes to Xu Chu bc the situation has to be too specific for his ability to be useful. Zhou Yu and Cao Ren go next in that order bc they at least will always have cards in their hand but Cao Ren at least is better defensively and has more cards at the end of his turn and more health.
Worse Characters: Gongsun Zan < Xu Chu < Ma Su < Zhou Yu < Cao Ren
Can anyone tell me how to get QSGS ?
ReplyDeleteMuch appreciated
I'd have to argue that Hua Xiong would be right down there. This line of debate is long gone but still I think he'd have to be one of the worst as his ability is purely detrimental.
ReplyDeletemy self I think horking (dong Zhou) is the worst character in the game espically if Zhou tai is on board.
ReplyDelete