Sonnia Criid... as a Melee Master!?

[TalonRaven]

So my group was having a discussion the other day, and an interesting topic came up - Sonnia Criid. One of us felt that she performs best up close and personal, engaged with the enemy in melee.

The reason? Absorb Magic.

With a built-in Rams in her Cb, she is guaranteed to pull off the trigger, meaning that you're forcing your opponent to lose one Control Card everytime she hits successfully. If you cheated to make sure the hit goes in, or to add another Rams to the Cb total, you can get a Control Card back from the Trigger. Having Rams in your flipped/cheated card means your opponent loses 2 Cards (1/3 of his control hand!) and severely limits his options. The best part is forcing your opponent to lose cards and to set up a situation where a well placed Disassemble, or even the Executioner's Decapitate, will kill off a minion or even a Master.

Some of her abilities excel when she is stuck in. Disrupt Magic means even casters trying to Focus won't be able to pull off their spells easily. Inferno is 3 Dg during the Close Phase, bypassing Df or Rst duels. Advanced Counterspell works better too, especially if the target is now within 3" of Sonnia. Except for Flame Burst, her spells can be cast in combat.

Her Df IS a problem, but being able to heal 1 Wd from Absorb Magic helps. Not to mention Guild minions like the Guardian can absorb Wds, and Sidir Alchibad can step in to force the opponent to redirect his attack. The Brutal Effigy can toss out healing on the side. Speed a problem? Guild can now hire Oiran that can cast Lure.

What do you guys think? Or are we just crazy?

Edited January 30, 2013 by TalonRaven

[icarianmirror]

I feel like her defensive options, while these can be mitigated as you say, are what keeps her from being a real power as a melee Master. That said, I think the advantage of Sonnia as a whole is that she has no real 'dead zone' - that is to say, she can be a very effective fighter at range and in melee. I see her as a Master designed to blow as much of the enemy apart as possible at range, and then as they close in become a Master who can get stuck in, switch Soulstone use from offence to defence, and still have a good shot at sealing the victory.

[underdog6750]

Another thing to remember is her disassemble trigger which can be usefull against constructs. Especially if you can force you opponent to disgard a few before hand. But like icarianmirror said its her defensive stat that is her downfall in melee so you need to be carfull of the targets you attack and leaving yourself vulnerble to counter attack.

I play sonnia more along the lines of violating things to death. My current record if violating 7 witchlings in a game. Only one of those was from a friendly model

[NeuroFire]

No, you're not crazy. One of the things I like about Sonnia is that she is effective at range and in melee. I don't have to be stressing about keeping her away from melee or having to get her into melee, because she has tools for almost all situations. True, her defense is not terribly high, but healing off the hit on her sword mitigates that problem a little. A Brutal Effigy can bring a bit more healing to the table, and be a cheaper bodyguard than the Guardian. Her avatar form not only has increased Df, but brings another healing option that is even more effective. She really is a highly adaptable master, I've tended to use her more and more.