Summoning

Genma can have up to 3 Summons

One of my favourite aspects of the Anima Tactics game is Summoning. For those not too familiar with the game, some creatures can be Summoned temporarily to the battlefield.

The advantage of doing so is their (Summons) relative cost is less than it may otherwise be, with the trade-offs being they are time-bound for how long they will appear, and that they have to be Summoned - both of which can be mitigated (more later).

Summoning
A Summoner has a Summoner Level (usually 1-3), which limits the number of Summons it can call on during the game.

The Container Advantage Card increases Summoner Level by one.

Each Summon has a cost, in Action Points (AP) that the Summoner spends as an Action to bring them into play.

Valis Ul Del Vilfain can Summon for free if she is contact with an enemy.

Belith reduces the cost of one her Summons by one.

Covel reduces the cost of his Summons by one to a minimum of one. 

When a Summon arrives, it is placed within the Summoner's Control Zone (CZ's are usually 8 inches) has its normal recovery value in AP (usually 2-3 AP).

Covel's CZ is 12 inches for Summoning.

Summons arrive with Bind Points (usually 1-2).

The Familiar Advantage Card allows one Summon to appear with an additional Bind Point.

Stability
At the start of each Upkeep Phase (so at the start of the Turn following the Turn when the creature is Summoned), the Summon loses 1 Bind Point.

Genma can add Bind Points to friendly Summons and remove then from enemy Summons.

If a Summon has no more Bind Points and is in the Summoner's CZ, the Summoner can make a Stability Roll to see if it stays, otherwise it is removed.

The Seal of Bones Advantage Card adds +1 to Stability Rolls.

Summon Death
A Summon that is 'killed' causes a Shock check (but not Summons lost to Stability Rolls).

Covel as Optional Leader is effectively immune to Shock checks.

Al-Djinn

A little more Anima Tactics painting in the past few days, I started this and another Al-Djinn at the same time, getting the basics on each done to cut down on painting time (although this one was finished first as they don't have identical paint schemes).

"You called, my master?" Al-Djinn are described as spirits whom dared to defy the gods, imprisoned and isolated as punishment for their foolishness. Constrained by the bonds imposed by their imprisonment, they can still use their great powers to alter the destiny of the world.

In game terms they are one of the trickier Summons to use I suspect. That is largely due to their Action that allows them to copy the abilities of another unit. They had a rules adjustment with the 2013 Saga III & IV Update, reducing the maximum Level of a unit they can copy, as well as a Level cost increase for the Al-Djinn themselves, which reinforces that they were probably overdue for rules re-balancing.

The other tactic to use with an Al-Djinn is to create Ash Slaves: Level 20 or 25 Agents (their Level is dependent on whether your take the lesser of greater Al-Djinn option). Each Al-Djinn can create and maintain up to 3 concurrent Ash Slaves. This can allow the Al-Djinn player to exploit the opportunity for extra units to block Charge lanes, protect other units with Intercepts, add a little extra Attack capacity, or protect objectives.

I want to get more out of Summons in games, which means there are a few units I want to get painted before too long (Covel, Belith and Saint Hazael come to mind as Summoners, and I need to get to work on my Alius, Holy Soldiers too; I have started work on Arias Vayu).

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 160 (added: nothing - but still waiting on 2 minis)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 56 (54 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 35.0% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 151 units (including 2 LE minis; added September as he still is due for imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 35.7%
Year to Date Target: 15 of 18 units (3 per month target; 83%)

Wissenschaft Party (update I)

Since my Wissenschaft units have grown in number since my first Wissenschaft Party post, it was high time to do another!

With the 9 units here, that comes to 400-420 Levels, plus whatever Summon is chosen for Valis Ul Del Vilfain. Not really enough to field 500 Levels yet (allowing 2 Leaders; Valis is an Optional Leader for +5 Levels), so I think if I was going 'big' it would be for a 400 Level game, which would allow 2 Organization Advantages to be taken.

A 400 level list I would choose would likely be:
Organization Advantages: The Process; Lost Loggia
XII (60 Levels) - Piercing Weapons (5 Levels); Primal (5 Levels)
Lorenzo (45 Levels) - Orb of Power (5 Levels); Nephiros (5 Levels)
Rayne (45 Levels) - Clock of Cronos (5 Levels); Elemental Weapon (5 Levels)
Alessa Raincross (40 levels) - Supernatural Weapon (10 Levels); Gnose (5 Levels)
Kira (40 Levels) - Gnose (5 Levels)
Valis Ul Del Vilfain (55 Levels) - Familiar (10 Levels); Supernatural Devourer (5 Levels)
+ Summon Hamadria (Greater) (25 levels)
+Summon Wrath of Nature (Greater) (50 Levels)
Wissenschaft Agent (40 Levels) - Elemental Weapon (5 Levels); Piercing Weapons (5 Levels)
Team Assault Group (5 Levels)

There is a little bit of compromise there (taking the Agent), but the list includes Team Assault Group, which means that for a small outlay 3 units gain bonus abilities.

At 300 levels I would choose something like:
Organization Advantage: Lost Loggia
XII (60 Levels) - Piercing Weapons (5 Levels); Primal (5 Levels)
Lorenzo (45 Levels) - Orb of Power (5 Levels); Nephiros (5 Levels)
Rayne (45 Levels) - Clock of Cronos (5 Levels); Elemental Weapon (5 Levels)
Valis Ul Del Vilfain (55 Levels) - Familiar (10 Levels); Supernatural Devourer (5 Levels)
+Summon Wrath of Nature (Greater) (50 Levels)
Celia (45 Levels) - Clock of Cronos (5 Levels); Piercing Weapons (5 Levels)
Team Assault Group (5 Levels)

Some Recent Gaming

Well, after a while I managed to get some Anima Tactics gaming in over the past two days, reminding me that I really do love this game a lot!

Day 1: Two Games
A couple of games were to introduce fellow blogger Simon to the game; we won one, lost one each. There was a little rules-rustiness on my part while teaching Simon, but things were hopefully fairly smooth and the essentials were there, about positioning and managing AP to make best use of Actions to attack your enemy.

My Black Sun had their first outing too (used by Simon while I fielded Church to give Alis Testarossa a run out), and they were brutal. Immediately I have a healthy respect for even a couple of the rank and file Type-005's (with Assault upgrade) buffed by a Type-009 (upgraded to Type-010: Commander) with Elite Squadron Advantage Card. Raziel Archetypum is a bit of a brute.

Day 2: Two Games
Black Sun vs. Wissenschaft (300 levels) followed by Church vs. Wissenschaft (also 300 levels). I won the first with Black Sun and lost the second with Church (Rob played Wissenschaft both times).

Moments of the day were the Type-009 using Implosion to devastating effect against Team Assault Group (taking out XII and injuring Lorenzo). In the next game Alessa Raincross laying down deadly fire with her Dark Sniper Action provided iconic moments, as did Kira doing hit and run with Impure Shot and Valkyrie, while Rayne managed to unleash Never Ending Illusions to whittle Azriel into submission.

I now have a healthy respect for Stealth units able to attack at far range after Alessa Raincross ruthlessly took care of Lostaroth Marchosias just as he was powering through his Slaughter Token build-up.

After the games against Rob, I feel Black Sun need a unit to make choosing a 300 level party less reliant on taking both Arkham and Kingsley Warlock, and for my Church, they need some harder hitting options too. I also want to start getting a few more units painted for all Organizations that are 25 Life Points and above (where available!) as they add a different aspect to the game. Units that fit the bill would be Macbeth (Empire), Maria (Church), Konosuke or Morrigan (Samael) and my first Gear for Wissenschaft.


Thanks to Simon and to Rob for the games, and to Rob for the pictures. Hopefully I will get more gaming in this year, not just for Anima Tactics, but for a variety of games.

Some Upcoming Anima Tactics Minis

The Bearer

A little break from posting newly painted units after Alis Testarossa (but fear not, the painting queue is rightfully full!).

Anima Studios and Cipher Studios/Ninja Division have posted a number of preview images of Anima Tactics minis in the past couple of days.

Click on images to enlarge.


The Bearer
A special very limited backer reward mini from the Gate of Memories and Gate of Memories: Extended Campaign Kickstarter projects.

I really cannot wait for this one, especially after seeing the sculpt. I can only hope that the other planned KS minis that are linked with the campaign  are half as good.
Current KS fulfillment ETA is November 2014.


October
First seen a while ago (and I had a preview here).
A Dark, Empire unit.
The mini is reportedly due in July 2014.

Nimrod
Also seen recently in work in progress form (click for link), when the name he was being worked on under was apparently Shadowhunter (since changed).
A Dark, Church, Prowler, apparently able to Attack and Charge against Hidden units; I really, really could have done with him against Alessa Raincross equipped with Nue (Advantage Card) in a recent game! He will certainly move up the painting queue to counter situations of Stealth sniping from Alessa and others.
The mini is reportedly due in August 2014.

Legion
This one has been known about for some time, even if the mini has only just been shown. It had been suggested that Legion would be released in 2013, but now it looks like a release date is forthcoming.
I am mindful this is clearly a CAD render and not a cast mini, so I have some reservations. I will get it, but how much I like Legion is really going to depend on 3 things: How many parts he gets cut into? Will the textures like scales etc. be rendered and cast well-enough? Will Cipher Studios relent from previous practice and release a big model in resin as the best medium for it?
Rules-wise, the cards for Legion were spoiled last year, and if there are no changes he is a real  beast at 100 Levels (currently the highest in the game); 50 Life Points; 5 Armor; Attack 7 and Damage 8. The main caution for me is the wording on some of his abilities - it is unknown if that has been rectified or not.
Legion is a Dark (again!), Warrior/Leader, Samael unit
The mini is reportedly due in September 2014.

Anaximenes
I don't know anything about this one, but I am guessing maybe a Wanderer of some kind. A fun looking mini to me!
The mini is also reportedly due in September 2014.


If the release dates hold true, I can see me assembling an order for later in the year from the USA (since distribution is still limited at best in the UK).

Alis Testarossa

This mini has been in the painting queue, part-done, for quite a while now, so I am happy it is now finished. I am also chuffed as it takes me past 300 Levels of Church units.

Her background describes Alis Testarossa as a scion of a  prestigious dynasty, one the most influential noble houses of Argos, the rebellious and stubborn Alis was always a source of problems because of her impetuous behavior. Aged thirteen Alis began to manifest supernatural talents, and was sent by her family to the tutelage of the Church where she joined the Knights of the Saint Order.

Alis Testarossa benefited from a cost reduction in the Saga III & IV update, and at 35 Levels is one of the least expensive Warrior units in the game. She is not the hardest hitting, but with Speed 8/12 (meaning she Runs or Charges 12 inches), the option to sacrifice LP to gain Flight, and an Action that removes her from the board to be placed in contact with any enemy unit in the following Turn as a Charge, which means she can be the scourge of back-line units, which tend to be weaker support types, or of units that have exhausted AP so have no Dodge.

There really is only one Advantage Card choice in my opinion, which is Raphael's Gift. The reason being that three of her four Actions require her to be Flying, and to be Flying costs 3 LP per Turn. Raphael's Gift partially off-sets this, allowing her to recover 2 LP. That said, I expect she will still be a little tricky to use, so maybe she will get some game time in the next few days....

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 160 (added: High Arbiter Aizen; and female Azur Agent)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 55 (53 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 34.4% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 151 units (including 2 LE minis; added September as he still is due for imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 35.1%
Year to Date Target: 14 of 18 units (3 per month target; 78%)

Interview With Carlos B. Garcia (Anima Studios/Anima: Gate of Memories)

Carlos B. Garcia is the man behind Anima Studios and the Anima raft of games (including Anima Tactics). He recently launched the Anima Gate of Memories: Extended Campaign on Kickstarter, as a supplement to the original Anima: Gate of Memories Kickstarter campaign.
As the Anima Gate of Memories: Extended Campaign heads into its final days, Carlos kindly answered some questions on reddit (see here for key answers relating to Anima Tactics), and agreed to answer some questions posed by the Anima Tactician - read on!


1. Hi Carlos; can you say when you first started work on the very first concepts for the Anima project?

I think that I started the concept of Gate of Memories about five years ago, when I began to imagine how would be to bring the world of Gaïa to videogames.

2. What have been your main influences on the world design for Gaia?

There are so many influences that I really don’t know where to start. I think that I could say that my original inspiration was Final Fantasy VI and Berserk from Kentarou Miura, but with the years there are too many things to start a real list.

3. Anima covers a number of gaming platforms; how did that decision take place?

Because I really wanted that everybody, regardless the platform they own, could have fun with Gate of Memories and enjoy its story.

4. Gate of Memories had a successful Kickstarter campaign; what prompted the decision to have the second ‘top up’ campaign?

We were able to do the game, and we were really happy with the results so far, but there was so many additional things that we wanted to tell you and we couldn't due to our budget constraints…
When we understood that, after having the whole base done, we just needed a little more to finish it, we decided to start a second campaign to make Gate of Memories even better, a gaming experience that everyone could enjoy.

5. Is there one thing you are most proud of in Gate of Memories?

I think that my favourite part of the game is the combat and the personalization of the skills. With only three people developing it, I am really proud of what we have done so far.

6. Do you have any expectations of what fans of the different Anima games will enjoy most in Gate of Memories?

I hope that they will enjoy the whole game, but in special its storyline.

7. How have you been finding running this Kickstarter?

As always, doing a Kickstarter is a unique experience; you meet wonderful people who really support you.

8. Is this Kickstarter different to the last experience?

Yes; but I think that it is due to the fact that it is a second campaign; that teaches you a lot of things about what you must do.

9. What is the greatest lesson that the whole Anima project has taught you?

Having people who love your stories and works is the most wonderful experience in the world.

10. Finally, as this is a blog focused on Anima Tactics, is there one Anima Tactics secret or future plan that you could reveal to readers?

Very soon you will have a wonderful surprise in AT. Have a little patience.


Thanks very much to Carlos for taking time to answer the questions.

Some Information From Anima Studios

Special Celia model

Not a mini this time (but after finishing Lilian Virgil, I have made some progress on a unit that has been part-done for quite some time, as well as a couple of other units), instead time for a quick summary of some information revealed when Carlos B. Garcia (Anima Studios aka AS below) recently conducted a question and answer session on reddit.

The session was focused on the whole gamut of Anima Studios projects (the Gate of Memories video game, the rpg, card games and minis game), but I thought I would pull together some of the questions and answers relating to Anima Tactics in particular.


Stuff Revealed:
In response to perceived game imbalance between Organizations, AS does not feel this is the case, but does state there will be another addendum ‘very soon’, which will affect Abilities as well as Levels.

Besides The Bearer, Ergo Mundus and Nameless, there will be another unnamed character translated from the video game (Gate of Memories) into the minis game.

AS hopes that the next Anima Tactics book will be out in 2015.

Iosara (Empire - I have not yet painted this unit) is a deliberately androgynous character; his / her current body is genderless.

The leaked ‘Celia’ miniature is a ‘secret’ for now. (see picture).

Note that a former Cipher Free Agent has suggested elsewhere that the Celia model in the picture was planned for a special project that did not happen. There has been speculation for a while that Cipher are planning an Anima Tactics Kickstarter; could that be the case and could this mini be involved?

There are no plans for more Organizations at present, but Tol Rauko will be added at a later time, after the next book.

Aeons (very powerful Summons) will be covered in the next Anima Tactics book, and Void Summons will be in the next book also.

Lilian Virgil

Woo-hoo, another one done! I am not thinking my slump is completely broken, but getting a few minis painted in the past few weeks (across a couple of game lines) is a step in the right direction. In around a week's time I should be able to crack into painting a couple more I hope.

Lilian Virgil adds to my Empire ranks which is good, pulling me towards having a third Organization with more than 300 Levels of units available (with Church not too far off either - one more model would do the trick there). She is also one-half of Team Weapons of Azrael, with the other being Macbeth (who is in the painting queue). Although not the most powerful of Warriors, also being a Mystic allows Lilian Virgil to take the Control Bound Advantage Card which increases the Effect value of her primary Attack (a bad thing for enemies, as they roll against Effect using their Resistance). In essence Lilian is a kind of utility fighter, with a State-inflicting Attack called Sacred Seal; this inflicts Seal naturally), a Healing ability and an Action that reduces the cost of Charges for Party members within her Control Zone. She is not the most powerful of units, but certainly offers a few options, and she gets a lot better if working as part of her Team.

She is described as a talented fighter talent who combines sacred powers with martial skill to serve the Empress.

I hope to get Macbeth finished soon (which will likely mean that I actually paint something completely different instead!), and if I can get one or two Church units painted soon too, that would be ideal. I still have a number of units in advanced stages of painting that I just cannot seem to get myself to finish. I also hope to get some more games in later this month.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 158 (added: nothing, but I still have 4 minis on back order....)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 54 (52 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 34.2% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 151 units (including 2 LE minis; added September as he is due for imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 34.4%
Year to Date Target: 13 of 18 units (3 per month target; 72%)

Flight

Figure 1: Elhaym, Maiden of Light wishes to engage Damaris!

Flight is an Innate Ability that modifies how a unit may move.

Basically it allows a unit to ignore movement penalties for terrain and move through/over other models without impediment. It also means they cannot be Intercepted when Charging except by other Flying units!

Figure 1: Elhaym, Maiden of Light wants to Attack Damaris. She has 4 AP left, so she could Charge (ignoring the Hellhound as she moves over it) using her Flight, or could Move (1 AP; again ignoring the Hellhound) then use Wings of Withdrawal to Attack and hopefully move again. Ether way the Hellhound cannot Intercept, since it does not have Flight.