shang

[Bumpasses]

is he/she/it worth the 3 points in a 50?

Still learning, but like most list builds seems like I could put that 3 points towards something else.

The ekstra card when pulling a new hand is nice, but outside of that I dont see a lot of benefit.

What is the general consensus on shang?

ty

-j

Edited January 3, 2014 by Bumpasses

[Sklertic]

Remember you do not get an extra card, you have to discard one as well. But I think he's worth it in some games. The heal is alright, and rush of magic is really good. I usually take him.

[BaconMcSandwich]

It depends on what else I take and what I'm trying to achive. I've used him a few time in M2E but rarely in 1.5. He's probably slightly better if you go outcast becuase one of the upgrades lets you take a +ve to healing flips.

[Arli]

Unless I am mistaken, you cannot take him as an outcast because he does not have the Last Blossom. I could be mistaken though.

[crossandswitch]

He's Misaki's totem so is also Dual-Faction 10T/Outcast.

I like taking Shang, not only is the card cycling facility fantastic when aiming for triggers, plus you have the healing capability to save misaki's stones for other uses. Not to forget the cheeky possibility of double damage flips or blasts.

Edited January 3, 2014 by crossandswitch

[Fetid Strumpet]

I'd take him for rush of magic alone. With everything else he has just as a bonus. The issue with that is that it isn't flashy, and unless you draw, specifically from his ability, a high card, he can FEEL like he isn't doing anything. I rate deck cycling very highly though, although I know others don't.

[Misery Rex]

I always take Shang with Misaki, as stated card cycling is really nice. Over the course of a game that is five crappy cards put in the discard pile.

Secondly, Misaki can be squishy and having a separate model spending AP to take some wounds off is really nice.

Lastly it is a cheap activation to give Misaki a greater range of tactical options.

If a three point upgrade did all of that it would be an auto-include.

For 6% of your total points Shang is a steal.

[4LeafClover]

I too really like Shang! The card cycling is nice, and after one good game with him my opponents shoot him up to stop my card cycling which really just means Misaki gets into combat with more wounds

[Serigala]

I'd agree with whats been said about the extra card. Everyone can pay 2 cards for a soulstone each turn, but with her bonuses Misaki doesn't really want to be holding ss, so spending 3ss from your hiring pool (rather than from your cache) for 5 cards is a preferable option.

An extra activation is also great as is healing. What's not to like?

I appreciate that the thinking process tends to be that dropping a cheap model and a SS or an upgrade might get me something really useful, and the games is now designed to create those difficult decisions, but making your strngest models better seems to me a better use of resources in most cases then one extra model which is so so.

[DeleteAccount]

I haven't used it much, but I can see the potential, just really miss something to help it keep up with Misaki to keep the healing going, but that's my only real qualm with it.

[MasterDisaster]

Most of my local gamers slate Shang saying he is easily thw worst totem there is... I strongly disagree. Rarely do I take Misaki without him. Shang's offensive ability may not be all that however I take him purely for the Heal and Rush of Magic abilities. Misaki is fairly squishy, hence the hit and run tactics she often employs so in the event she takes a hit or two Shang can be there to back her up. In a 50ss game I'd say a 3ss investment for those two abilities alone is worth it. All of this is only true however if I'm playing Misaki as 10T. If she's going Outcasts I often don't bother with Shang nearly as much, I take a Freikorps Librarian instead. The offensive and support abilities are much better and aren't limited to just Misaki. A Librarian combined with Survivalist (Upgrade) makes Misaki quite difficult to shift.

Edited January 28, 2014 by MasterDisaster

[Sharp_GT]

Consider Shang a 3ss upgrade to Misaki that heals, buffers your activations, and gives you extra cards. As Misaki's defenses revolve around her high Df/Wp stats and a trigger she wants those extra cards, big time! Also consider that you are usually trying to fill Misaki's lists with as many SS as possible, leaving only the 2ss from her cache so she get to her and +:crows quickly; with this in mind a 3ss model can often fill an awkward gap.

[EnternalVoid]

See this might be where some people's playing style differ. Personally I don't take Shang, generally I have found I prefer those points spent on minions. Sure the healing can be useful, healing of any nature is, but generally when I play her I find myself trying to get more minion and signifiant models. Also I rarely take her with low SS, generally having around 5-6 for a pool at the beginning of the game. I take the bonus she has when she is low as a desperation measure rather than a buff, I prefer to have stones then not as they can do stuff like buy cards, help win initiative, or to ward off assassinations.

[MasterDisaster]

Also consider that you are usually trying to fill Misaki's lists with as many SS as possible, leaving only the 2ss from her cache so she get to her and +:crows quickly; with this in mind a 3ss model can often fill an awkward gap.

I actually don't agree with this. I always try to field Misaki with a larger cache (5+ SS), yeah it's nice to have the defense flips and crows however without stones the game can become a lot more difficult. I prefer to have more SS so I can draw more cards at the beginning of each turn, stone for suits, damage prevent etc. Should Misaki run out then great but I don't think burning away your entire cache ASAP purely for one ability on Misaki's card is ever worth it in the long run.