Hero Collection II: Rogue Heir of Elethorn (Oct-Dec '22)

[SirRick]

I can’t remember where I read it, but I thought it was confirmed at some point the Rogue is supposed to be able to use all the skills in one turn if you want or are able to.

[Kurgan]

I would agree that all of the Rogue Skills "stack" meaning as long as he meets the requirements he can theoretically use all three of them every turn. That's how we played him and it was fine. His double attack trick doesn't work with any but those two low level weapons, so it doesn't scale up in later adventures. A free hit with a dagger against a Polar Warbear is nice though.

I have to keep reminding myself that his skills do NOT require him to have the Bandolier (unlike the Guardian Knight who can't use two out of his three skills if he lacks a Shield).

[Kurgan]

Another potential loophole addressed...

Let's say some person says that since the Bandolier automatically gives you a dagger when you lose the dagger from it, say by throwing, that they can march into the Armory between quests and sell back a dagger for 12 gold... and then pull another dagger out of the bandolier to sell that for another 12 gold... etc. (INFINITE GOLD HACK!). NO. You can sell your other equipment and you can sell the Bandolier itself, not the Daggers it "produces." Maybe that dagger is the same one it just magically is restored once thrown? (But the Armorer isn't fooled by it magically teleporting out of his hands and back into yours.. NO SALE!).

[HispaZargon]

I have to keep reminding myself that his skills do NOT require him to have the Bandolier (unlike the Guardian Knight who can't use two out of his three skills if he lacks a Shield).

Yes, they are skills of the Rogue, owning a Bandolier or not.

Another potential loophole addressed...

Let's say some person says that since the Bandolier automatically gives you a dagger when you lose the dagger from it, say by throwing, that they can march into the Armory between quests and sell back a dagger for 12 gold... and then pull another dagger out of the bandolier to sell that for another 12 gold... etc. (INFINITE GOLD HACK!). NO. You can sell your other equipment and you can sell the Bandolier itself, not the Daggers it "produces." Maybe that dagger is the same one it just magically is restored once thrown? (But the Armorer isn't fooled by it magically teleporting out of his hands and back into yours.. NO SALE!).

Hahaha, very good observation... no doubt some Hero players would think to do it. This is another example that indicates that any vague concept like 'infinite' could potentially lead to problems in HeroQuest.

[Kurgan]

"Ah the enchanted re-spawning dagger... I'll need the Bandolier that goes with it to purchase the matched set, now where is it?," says the savvy Armorer as he waits patiently for the hero at his counter.

[QorDaq]

Another potential loophole addressed...

Let's say some person says that since the Bandolier automatically gives you a dagger when you lose the dagger from it, say by throwing, that they can march into the Armory between quests and sell back a dagger for 12 gold... and then pull another dagger out of the bandolier to sell that for another 12 gold... etc. (INFINITE GOLD HACK!). NO. You can sell your other equipment and you can sell the Bandolier itself, not the Daggers it "produces." Maybe that dagger is the same one it just magically is restored once thrown? (But the Armorer isn't fooled by it magically teleporting out of his hands and back into yours.. NO SALE!).

I agree that the bottom line here is that the Daggers cannot be sold ad infinitum. And there are various ways the EWP could explain it.

Without going too far off into the weeds, my take is that mechanically, the Bandolier is a ranged weapon with the distinction being that the "Ammo" is Daggers. Crossbows do not require ammo-tracking, nor can you sell your crossbow bolts. So to me the same rule applies here without an explanation beyond not allowing exploits.

It's a fair point of discussion though, since I suppose it could come up during a game.

[Kurgan]

Good point. And if someone else picks up the Bandolier they get only the Bandolier but can't use it since it's the Rogue-only equipment item (could sell it back between quests).

Having two Bandoliers wouldn't benefit the Rogue any, it's just a spare, like having two Longswords or two Crossbows.

[wallydubbs]

Although the Rogue's story seems to connect with the Mage of the Mirror quest pack I don't see him being very helpful when up against Giant Wolves or Ogres.
I just ran the Rogue through Melar's Maze,finally discovering the benefits of his skills. Originally I ran a campaign reporting on the Druid's pros and cons as a starting hero, I wasn't impressed. You can find this on Thoughts of the new Druid Hero. Starting a campaign and after losing ab Elf, Warlock and Wizard I think the group of heroes are settled on as a Barbarian, Elf, Druid and Rogue.
Since the Rogue was the latest to join after an unexpected death of the Wizard due to a Wandering Monster and placement as last in turn order, the Rogue started off on Prince Magnus'Gold. His card says his starting weapon is just a dagger so I surmise the Bandolier must be bought. So he did NOT start off with it. After Prince Magnus' Gold the Druid gave her Dagger to the Rogue,allowing him to use 2 daggers and the Ambidextrous skill. It was in Melar's Maze that I realized how his skills can be combined:
Combat Mobility gives him a constant Veil of Mist ability (which kinda diminishes the Veil of Mist ability), which he was able to use, after falling into a pit trap, get on the other side of the skeleton and attack.
Ambidextrous, having the 2nd Dagger he was able to make 2 attacks.
Opportunistic Striker came in handy giving him 2 combat dice for a single dagger.
There were even times when all 3 of these of the skills were used in the same turn. While the other heroes were fighting the undead the Rogue just passed through both hero and monster to turn up on the other side with an Ambidextrous Opportunistic Strike! And after finding a Heroic Brew he was able to perform the same combat strike again!
These were all very useful skills, and once he buys a Bandolier he'll be able to throw infinite daggers, and a short sword would give him a stronger opportunity to strike. I can see this hero growing into these weapons and getting the bracers to reach his maximum potential.

As much as I realize the potential all these skills have, I don't see him being all that useful against the bigger monsters. For 1 or two BP monsters, I see him being useful against, but he's practically chip damage against the bigger guys.
I haven't gotten that far, but thinking ahead, that's what I can see.

[Kurgan]

Since I'm using a different way of handling multiple attacks than Avalon Hill suggests (that is: they want one attack to be unblockable, while I combine them into a "big attack"), I've effectively nerfed my Rogue. But then I'm allowing him to wear a helmet (sources point to him not being intended to wear one).

[wallydubbs]

I ran the Rogue, Barbarian, Elf and Druid through the Castle of Mystery and it shows that the Rogue can't do it solo. In the Castle of Mystery heroes are practically expected to get separated. The Rogue's Opportunistic Striker skill was very limited and he only managed to kill a Dread Warrior because the Druid ended up in the same room and he got to use it.
The Barbarian and Elf were fine with their armor, but as the Druid and Rogue can't wear any their defense was very limited. Rogue nearly died but had a healing potion, but it was brutal. After being reduced to 1 BP he lucked out and ended up back at the staircase, so he stayed there for 4 or 5 turns until the other heroes cleared out some rooms.

I realized the Rogue is heavily dependent on the other heroes to get his opportunistic strikes in and without them he doesn't really need his battle mobility.
But one discovery I realized when it comes to his Ambidextrous attacks is that the card doesn't specify that his 2nd attack needs to be on the same monster. This attack didn't end up killing a monster, but I see the ability to do so could come in handy later on.