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“Spear-Ready, Horse-Mounted 横矛立马 (héng máo lì mǎ)”
Who is he:
If you don't know Zhang Fei, you must be completely new to ROTK (in which case, you can read about him here). The hairy one gets a makeover, but thankfully his facial hair is just as overwhelming. I would have thought Zhang Fei is one of the last to need a revamp. His old character was simple, brutal, and very flexible. I think the new complicated mechanics are to Zhang Fei what variable acceleration technology is to a food blender: unnecessary.
Still, i'm sure some out there would appreciate the more complex nature of the newer characters, and hopefully this new update would appeal to you.
Why is he an SP character?
There is only one reason I can think of that warrants an SP version of him. His ability was too simple (ie: had too few words), and was too clear-cut. Ambiguity is vogue now, and if don't have to re-read the ability description at least thrice, it's clearly out of fashion.
Character ability 1: "Indignation 嫉恶 (jí è)" [Enforced ability]
When you use red-suited ATTACK 杀 cards, the damage caused is +1.
Character ability 2: "Battle Cry 大喝 (dà hè)"
During your action phase, you can pick a player to points duel. If you win, all DODGE 闪 cards of that player that are not hearts-suit become ineffective till the end of the turn. You can pass the points duel card of that player to any player whose health is not more than yours. If you lose, you must display your hand of cards and select one card to discard. Limited to once per turn.
Ability's relation to story:
The words “嫉恶” originates from the phrase 嫉恶如仇 (abhor evil as a deadly foe). It refers to Zhang Fei’s personality. When Zhang Fei saw wrongdoings, he would get enraged easily. There have been numerous instances where Zhang Fei lost his cool and did some pretty impulsive things, whipping an official and even fighting Guan Yu 关羽 just to name two.
“Battlecry” referred to Zhang Fei’s contribution in the Battle of Changban. This section has been written extensively in the original Zhang Fei post as well as in DISMANTLE 过河拆桥.
Incidentally, 大喝 (Battlecry) and 咆哮 (Barrage) have similar meanings in chinese. In the game, “Battlecry” is more likely referring to the whole action of Zhang Fei in the Battle of Changban. If Zhang Fei wins, Zhang Fei literally stunned his enemy. His ATTACK is less likely to be dodged, and he can take this chance to protect his comrade (by giving a card to him). If Zhang Fei loses, he is at a disadvantage, so his enemies can see through his intention (reveal on-hand cards) and one card needs to be ‘dismantled’ by Zhang Fei himself.
How to obtain this character:
Purchase the 15th issue of Zhuo You Zhi magazine (April 2012) to get this limited character card as a free gift! (Coming soon to Sino-Games.com)
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ReplyDeleteSeems all right, but I'll stick with my Berserking original. Don't fix what isn't broken. :)
ReplyDeleteThese SP characters are getting ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteI agree with YOKA that many of the original characters in the game have fallen by the wayside as more complex characters are introduced, but I can't say that these SP characters are really correcting these deficiencies to produce a more balanced or interesting game. On one hand, we have SP Zhao Yun and SP Pong Tong who (in my opinion) are ridiculously overpowered, almost to the point where they should be banned from competitive play. On the other hand, we have SP Cao Ren and SP Zhang Fei, who are better than their originals, but don't have that special "wow" factor that would make somebody want to try them. The only SP character released this year thus far that I feel doesn't fall into either of these categories is SP Diao Chan. Her "Soul Surrender" ability is very interesting and inspiring to use, but it isn't overpowered either. Ironically, even though Diao Chan is my favorite SP character, her original version seems to work just fine with the newly released characters and does not need any correcting. Don't get me wrong, I still love this game, I just wish that YOKA would put as much effort into these SP characters as they do for their regular expansions.
ReplyDeleteHear!!! Hear!!!
DeleteI wish the SP Da Qiao (my fovourite character) is as amazing as SP Diao Chan be =w=
DeleteDo SP characters replace the original ones? Or do you play with both on the deck?
DeleteAre SP characters used on tournaments?
Wow pretty buggy character :/.
ReplyDeletewhat if the victim flip the judgement of Eight Trigrams? (Red instead the Dodge)
ReplyDeleteYes, but it is effectless.
DeleteThe dodge of EIGHT TRIGRAMS is regarded as colourless, which has no effect. You can still activate the DODGE-triggered ability, but it is not considered that you have dodged the ATTACK.