So I've been playing with AZ more and I've noticed a trend in our games, and I was curious to see if anyone else mirrored our experience.
In general we win way more games that we lose so I would never say that AZ isn't a viable character, however games where AZ is fielded run way way long. More often than not AZ is helping the team by yoyoing health to draw damage from the villain, however very rarely does he have the tools to really contribute to winning (as opposed to contributing to surviving). Not only that, but I find that AZ turns involve a lot of convoluted math that slows down the game to yield a relatively simple result ( "2 cold damage to 3 targets, take 6 fire damage, fire damage is reduced to 5. Now deal 5 cold damage to yourself which bumps up to 7 for a net gain of two HP" as opposed to a card that just says "do 2 damage to 3 targets, gain 2 health")
If math is slowing you down, use a calculator?
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I always put damage counters on Coolant Blast and Thermal Shockwave as they 'charge up'. Of course Absolute Zero's turns (when he is working) are never going to be as fast as, say, Legacy or Haka.
What you describe is why we never play AZ. A good game for him is one in which he manages to not slow the game down for everyone else too bad.
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Heres my input as a big AZ user:
I think AZ can commonly take a while to build up because he needs his modules most of the time. Your also right when you say he can "tank" some boss damage, especially when your able to play hoarfire to really heal up. As for his damage, its really hit or miss per game based on what cards you draw.
He does shine when you have 2 impales on the boss + Coldsnap + Focused Apertures in play, all without the need for modules involved. The rest of his damage is based on either one-shots or when your ready to "nuke" the boss with Thermal Shockwave. There can be a lot of math involved, but the more you play him, the more you get can plan ahead and get an idea of what your damage will be. Its a lot of math cause he has a lot of options on where he can direct his damage.
I really like AZ but i do agree with ya spiff, i see him as less viable with 2 heros in play, but the more heros in play the better he becomes, hes like a "support" damage dealer. I guess thats why its a "3".
2 heroes? Technically you should always roll with at least 3. Some stuff breaks with only 2 heroes and it's not really balanced around it. Any sort of support character becomes unviable, too. Legacy with only two heroes would be a waste of space.
I like AZ, and I feel like if you play him well he contributes a ton. It's just that to do that, you need to be willing to beat yourself up. His HP can flux up and down drastically over the course of a game, which I actually find really exciting when I'm playing him.
I'll totally agree that's he's exceptionally mathy though. His turns are not as convoluted or lengthy as a fully set up Argent Adept's, but especially if you've had a drink or two all that arithmetic soaks up some time just on computation.
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The thing I find most interesting is the fact people consider Hoarfire a way of healing a lot. I personally see it as a way to dish out a lot more damage. The initial Cold damage would hit the villian for 3, then I would hit myself for 3 fire, thus shooting out 3 more cold at the same villian. I would then hit myself for the 1 cold and 1 fire, nice trade to dish out 1 more point of cold to someone else. Then using Thermal Shockwave depending on my health and how much fire I intend on taking, I would either hit myself for 1 cold and hit 2 others, or just hit 3 with it. going the healing myself route I would of dealt 9 damage of cold that turn, thus being able to hit myself for 9 and dish out another lovely 9 cold to an enemy. Dealing total of 18 points of damage in that 1 round, while only being 11 less than what I started. Now not hitting myself and hitting 3 targets will make it where I would deal myself 10 fire, creating a nice hunk of ice dealing 10 cold. So in other words a total of 20 points dished out and being 13 points less than I was prior.
In my eyes Hoarfire and Frost-Bound Drain are essentially the same card, besides the fact the Hourfire has a added line of text at the bottom. Then again I guess you could also just end up healing yourself with that card as well...
Personally I like Fanatic playing embolden on AZ while he has Thermal Shockwave and Coolant Blast in play. Going that route and taking the example of where you heal with Thermal Shockwave, you would have been dealt a total of 13 fire damage since just your turn, thus Coolant Blast would deal 13, that would of been 31 points of damage dealt and 11 damage taken in a single turn.
Of course an tank AZ isn't a bad thing, I thought I might point out how he can deal a little bit more damage.
I have grown to appreciate Absolute Zero to a point after playing this game for a little over a year, but I do find it interesting how often his usefulness is justified through scenarios in which he has no less than four cards on the field. With other Heroes, that kind of set-up would be a bonus rather than a requirement for their success.
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Yes, AZ asks for a lot of math. I agree it may be too much for many players - especially because AZ really shines when you can optimize the damage/healing economy with precision. So yes, it is a hard, and somewhat slow to play, hero.
It is also one of my favorites - it took me a lot of games, but, ho "Bob", how powerful he is in most games, even without modules... He uses very different tactics, depending on the cards you have in hand at the beginning of the game, sometime becoming a tank, sometime burning his HPs as fast as he cools the villain, sometimes just sitting there while everybody freezes. There is not one way to play AZ, but a lot - just like any other hero in SotM, in fact... And just like all heroes, there are times where he finds himself completely useless.
Also, he is one of the few heroes (with Nightmist, for instance) who can survive when everybody else is incapacited, and win.
But yes, playing him takes time and a lot of calculations - I wouldn't recommand him to all players. But he his such a cool (!) hero.
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No less than 4 cards you say?
Thermal Shockwave and Isothermic Transducer. That will deal 6 damage everyone round and taking 3, not too bad if you ask me.
Isothermic and Focused Aperatures. 1 to himself and 2 to fows. Not the best but will at least deal a little damage.
Isothermic and Cold Snap. That'd be either 2 damage to 1 target and 1 to all other targets.
Isothermic and Impale. 2 the person with the attached card and can deal 1 to the same or another target.
Even just Isothermic will make is one-shots useable. Sure Hoarfire will deal you an extra point of damage, but at least you smash up the enemy a little bit, right?
Ronway speaks to my point...it's not that AZ isn't powerful, it's that AZs turns take so much longer than other characters turns, thus slowing down the game. The person figuring out their wacky math combos feels clever, the other 3 people at the table feel bored.
As much as I can, I "pre-play" my turn with AZ as much as possible before it's actually my turn, and try to have him near the end. I don't know if it's accurate, but I like being able to just run down the damage. "A takes 2, B takes 2, C takes 2, AZ takes 6, A takes 7. Power - AZ heals 2". If other players are busy adjusting hit points, everyone has something to do.
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What I do is I have 2 extra sets of dice for him, besides his HP. One counts the amount of fire damage he takes (which resets at the end of your turn) and one counts how much cold damage he does (and resets at the beginning of your turn.) That way, when I go to use Coolant Blast or Thermal Shockwave, I just look at the set of dice and say "oh, 13? ok. I do the villain 13 cold damage, plus buffs." It makes things go a lot smoother.
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Yeah, I tried that too, last time I played him - it greatly helped not having to remember a big long list of numbers :).
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