Bushido: Shiho Clan Terrain Pack
GCT Studios geben Einblicke in das Terrain Pack für den Shiho Clan.
The Footsoldier’s Bane!
Since the dawn of war, traps and other such weapons of that ilk have been the bane of the footsoldier’s existence, and in Jwar, it’s no different. Traps are a vital part of any guerilla forces’ arsenal and can be fashioned from what they find around them or what others have left behind. Rebel forces are usually dirt-poor, so utilising what nature provides for free has given rise to devilish yet ingenious ways to cause harm, fear, and death. The trap is the perfect weapon for smaller armies that are always on the run, as once they are in place, you can up and go, and that trap will sit there as dangerous as a coiled snake until someone sets it off. They cause fear to the soldier who must spend their days on foot, either on patrol or moving from one position to another. If an area is known to be heavily trapped, it almost acts as a deterrent for the aggressor as they will tend to avoid it entirely or find another way to combat the unseen threat.
Terrain also features very highly in the rebel forces’ battle plans, and they will use it to their full advantage when tangling with their foe, which is far superior in number. The Shiho are ambush-orientated and can disappear as quickly as they came, leaving the Takashi confused and confounded and unsure how to fight such a stealthy opponent.
Some eagle-eyed players (pardon the pun) have noticed that in the store, there is a pre-order for the Shiho terrain. This pack represents four special terrain cards from the Shiho Special Card Pack. Jason will be going over each of them, so you’ll know what they look like for modelling ideas as well as what they do on the table.
Hidden Eyrie
Just like their namesake, The Eagle Clan make use of treetop hiding places from which to ambush their enemies. This terrain links with a core element of Shiho gameplay, so it should prove popular. It also breaks a significant rule of terrain Special Cards so let’s see how that works!
This was a problematic terrain piece to write, as it came with one obvious problem. We wanted Shiho models to be able to deploy from here to add a little more unpredictability to their Flanking models; however, what happens if you choose to flank from the Hidden Eyrie, but then it gets destroyed before you can deploy there? These sorts of questions keep us up at night. Limitations in card size and the amount of text that would have been needed nearly led to it being scrapped but then… what if it can’t be destroyed?
That decision cuts the text right down and makes for a working terrain piece. However, a permanent terrain item the Shiho player can tailor to suit their plan is potent. To balance it out, it went from 1 Rice to 3 Rice and gained deployment restrictions. 3 Rice is a lot, so you need to make excellent use of it and not squander the opportunities it presents.Wooden Stakes
Ah, the old stake in the ground trick, eh? It’s as old as time and never goes out of fashion. Because the Shiho use the Sagoya swamps – the site of their last battle – as their base of operations, they find it virtually impossible to keep horses and thus find themselves at a disadvantage when coming up against cavalry. To remedy this, they have come up with anti-cavalry devices that work efficiently and can be moved from one place to another as quickly as they need them to be.
The Shiho troops practice crossing them, so they are not hindered, but others attempting the same feat will find themselves slowed. Enemy cavalry stops dead in their tracks. This card will become more and more useful as further cavalry models are released; I’m sure Master Ekusa is already unhappy (Or rather Sam the Tortoise is).
(Miniature does not come with the base or bird pictured. A wooden base will be supplied.)
Hidden Tunnel Entrance
Every rebel force utilises tunnels, be it jungle, mountains, or even urban conurbations; rebels need a way to move about, fast, and undetected. Already a favourite with the ninja of the Kage Kaze Zoku, this terrain allows for rapid redeployment of a Shiho model.
It is handy and crafty and can be used when a model is cornered and about to die and wants to leg it or pull enemies out of position while the Shiho control the objectives across the table. The Hidden Tunnel Entrance gives you many options an opponent may not be able to predict.
(Front and back of the same miniature pictured)
Straw Soldiers
The idea of setting up a straw soldier to fool the enemy into thinking they are outnumbered is as old as the hills, and Hiroto puts it to good use against a new generation of Takashi.
While “Knocking down a Strawman” is easy to do, the benefit of these models is undeniable in zone control games. Often the Shiho will get an easy early lead and can follow by attacking whichever zones are least well-defended using their movement abilities.
Expect enemies to remove these as soon as possible, but even then, the distraction and activations it takes are more than worth the Rice Cost.(Front and back of the same miniature pictured)
Quelle: GCT Studios
Cool. Einfach nur cool.
Hoffentlich kommen da auch für die anderen Fraktionen noch solche Packs.
Was ich so gesehn hab werden die Sachen aus Resin sein.
Macht nix… hat beim Jung Drachen auch funktioniert.