Thoughts on the New Orc Bard Hero?

[SirRick]

Well the Bard's card specifically mentions using a shield goes against his extra defend die power, so it doesn't really matter.

For the Druid, it's up to interpretation, but I think the druid is supposed to be able to use it. Shields can be wood or metal. I think it doesn't really matter in that case since she can use metal weapons so why not a metal shield? I feel the metal armor refers to the helmet, chain mail, and plate mail, since its metal stuff you wear on your body.

Everyone's interpretation is different however. I just wish Hasbro had some clarifications with the new heroes just so everyone is on the same page.

[Kurgan]

Pretty much all shields would have some metal parts in them, but would mostly have been made of wood and leather (hides, etc) based on the medieval setting. Of course what counts... I mean would we say the character couldn't wear a cloak if it had a metal clasp, or if pins or metal buckles were used to hold their clothing together? Are they actually allergic to metal or is it just too heavy for their build? Then again I guess we can't think too hard about it, because a lot of the limitations in HeroQuest don't actually make sense (unless you invent some magical excuse), even in the context of fantasy. They're designed that way on purpose for purposes of balance and gameplay variety.... to the advantage or dismay of the player choosing them!

[Kurgan]

Someone has finally done it.. a classic version of this new hero... whether we want him or not!

Here on Thingiverse

[KentKaliber]

THIS has me confused:

"You prefer to stay light on your feet so when you are wearing non-metallic armor and carrying no shield you have 1 extra Defend die."

So when you START the Game with the Bard, do you roll 2 Defend Dice or 3 Defend Dice?

[Sotiris]

So when you START the Game with the Bard, do you roll 2 Defend Dice or 3 Defend Dice?

3 dice. Two from basic defense plus one from the ability.

[Kurgan]

So when you START the Game with the Bard, do you roll 2 Defend Dice or 3 Defend Dice?

3 dice. Two from basic defense plus one from the ability.

Incorrect, since he doesn't start with any armor.

The bonus occurs if he ADDS the Bracers (the only non-metallic body armor in this version of the game other than Wizard's Cloak artifact which only the Warlock or Wizard can wear) but doesn't also carry a shield... THEN he gets 4 (base defense = 2, + 1 for the bracers + 1 for the bonus).

The bonus means he saves the 125 gold that he would otherwise have to spend on a shield and could potentially get the defense while wielding a two handed weapon (Staff or Battle Axe which can't be combined with a shield).

It's a little confusing the way they worded it, but that seems to be the intention.

[HispaZargon]

Inn member Camous also provided an explanation about Bard's armour rule in this post from the errata thread.

[KentKaliber]

THANK YOU for this ---- I tell you some of the new Characters and New Quest Books have really CONFUSING / VAGUE wording!!

[Kurgan]

The Druid is a bit confusing too, the clarified card seemed to just make sure people weren't buffing their long range attack but it ended up implying some other things they probably didn't intend.

[HispaZargon]

Well the Bard's card specifically mentions using a shield goes against his extra defend die power, so it doesn't really matter.

For the Druid, it's up to interpretation, but I think the druid is supposed to be able to use it. Shields can be wood or metal. I think it doesn't really matter in that case since she can use metal weapons so why not a metal shield? I feel the metal armor refers to the helmet, chain mail, and plate mail, since its metal stuff you wear on your body.

Everyone's interpretation is different however. I just wish Hasbro had some clarifications with the new heroes just so everyone is on the same page.

Pretty much all shields would have some metal parts in them, but would mostly have been made of wood and leather (hides, etc) based on the medieval setting. Of course what counts... I mean would we say the character couldn't wear a cloak if it had a metal clasp, or if pins or metal buckles were used to hold their clothing together? Are they actually allergic to metal or is it just too heavy for their build? Then again I guess we can't think too hard about it, because a lot of the limitations in HeroQuest don't actually make sense (unless you invent some magical excuse), even in the context of fantasy. They're designed that way on purpose for purposes of balance and gameplay variety.... to the advantage or dismay of the player choosing them!

About the Shield material, official Zargon twitter account fortunately confirmed on 15/Apr/2022 that it is made of WOOD so may not be affected by Rust Spell (more info in this post).