Heroic Heroes: Top 10 Heroes for Heroic Resolve

 Good morning gamers,

So far in this series on heroes, we've looked at Heroic Accuracy and Heroic Channelling and who are the best heroes (for Good and Evil) to call these heroic actions. Today, we're returning to a very niche heroic action - and the heroic action that is the hardest to deny your opponent the benefits of: Heroic Resolve. This heroic action isn't held by most heroes - and some armies have only a single model with access to it. With the limitations that come with it, is it worth using? Well, that's what we'll discuss below!

What Does the Heroic Action Do?

Heroic Resolve is declared in the Move phase and allows the hero who calls it to grant friendly models within 6" (and the hero himself) to get a free die to resist magical powers during the round. In trade, the hero may not move. In order for this heroic action to take effect, the hero needs to just not die during the Move phase (which would require some kind of impact hit or throwing weapon charge).

For you rules-smiths out there, it is unclear to me whether a model that calls a Heroic Resolve can be moved by an enemy model (either with a Command/Compel or with a special rule like a Fell Light is in Them or the Eldamar Madrigal). We have no FAQ on it, but we do have an FAQ that says the following with regard to Heroic March:

Q: If a model has declared a Heroic March, can they be Compelled/Commanded to charge an enemy model? (p.70 & 97) 

A: No. A model that has declared a Heroic March may not charge that turn, even if moved by another model.

It stands to reason that if Heroic March says a model can't charge and rules that might make that happen are not allowed to make you charge, a model that calls Heroic Resolve would similarly be immune to rules that would make them move. It does seem a bit broken that it would stop things like a Hurl or Barge though, so it probably merits an FAQ submission. For the purposes of this article, I'm assuming that this heroic action grants immunity to spells/special rules that would cause them to move in the Move phase (where the action would be more-or-less voluntary), but not immunity to spells/special rules/brutal power attacks that do an involuntary move (like Hurl, Sorcerous Blast, or Call Winds).

Heroic Resolve is a rare heroic action and has a very niche use: giving you a better chance of resisting enemy magic. If you face armies that have area of effect magical powers (or Sorcerous Blast), this can be a great way to make sure your troops have some kind of resistance to the magical power (though one die to resist a spell that is cast on a 4+ or 5+ isn't a reliable defense). Paired with Resistant to Magic (which would grant you two free dice to resist magical powers), you can provide a real deterrent to enemy casters who are determined to score some quick kills with their magic. While shutting down area of effect spells is great, keeping a hero from being Transfixed (or a warrior from being Compelled towards an enemy hero for a heroic combat) can also be mitigated more by calling a Heroic Resolve.

One final note: last December, I did a post on the best anti-caster models in the game and one of the categories that helped you get on that list was access to Heroic Resolve. If you'd like to see the list of models that have Heroic Resolve (might have had one or two new ones that have been added since then), check it out here. Alight, let's look at some of the nuanced conditions for using this heroic action.

When Do You No-Kidding-Actually-Use-It?

Heroic Resolve appears to be straight-forward in its use, but the actual choice to use Heroic Resolve requires some planning:

• Because the hero who calls Heroic Resolve can't move, the hero needs to not want to charge this turn (so heroes like Eowyn who have Resolve would need to choose between charging and resisting magic better - you brought the throwing spears, right?);
• While the hero can't move, heroes who can call Resolve while carrying a ranged weapon are still allowed to shoot that turn, so at least they can do something (and suffer no move-and-shoot penalty, for what it's worth);
• Your opponent, of course, needs to have magic in his force AND the magic has to be threatening to the model that calls it or friendly models that are nearby when the hostile spell is cast; and
• The hero calling the Heroic Resolve will need to be free to call it - Heroic Move is a pretty useful heroic action and many heroes call this heroic action instead (and since you can't call two heroic actions with the same hero in the same round, you'll need to choose).

While all of these are important considerations, if you're facing an army with lots of area of effect damage in it (Elrond, Arwen, and Radagast as one example), your choice might be made for you. Let's look at ways you can waste the heroic action - and there are a few key ones.

How Can You Waste The Heroic Action?

The first and foremost way to waste a Heroic Resolve is if your opponent doesn't have magic in his army. Assuming you don't make this mistake, you can still waste the heroic action by calling Heroic Resolve and your opponent decides to not cast magic against anyone in range. Like we discussed in our post on magical protection spells, using a spell like Fortify Spirit or Protection of the Valar is great, but your opponent will look for alternative targets. In most scenarios, you won't be able to keep all of your important models together, so someone will be vulnerable.

Another way to waste this heroic action is for your opponent to say, "Okay, we won't cast any offensive magic this turn." This might be his chosen course of action if a) he's running a spell-caster who can cast augments as easily as damage/neutralizing spells (like the Necromancer or Gandalf), b) his casters have limited Will (like Arwen or Barrow-Wights), or c) if the spells that could be cast aren't "really needed" yet. In any of these situations, your opponent can choose to "just not do it."

Criteria for Finalists

With all this in mind, here's the criteria we're using for our Top 5s today:

• The hero doesn't need to move to be an effective member of their team;
  
• The hero's Might doesn't compete with other uses for Might; and
  
• The models that will receive the benefit of Heroic Resolve are already pretty good at resisting magical powers (since 2+ dice is better than just one die).

Top 5 Heroes - Forces of Evil

#5: Khandish Kings (Variags of Khand)

Let's be honest: Khandish Kings shouldn't be on this list - if they aren't moving, they're not doing their job! So why are they here at #5? Like our post on Heroic Accuracy, there just aren't that many evil models with Heroic Resolve (there are five, in fact). So . . . they reluctantly claim the last spot today - don't call Heroic Resolve with them though!

#4: Suladan the Serpent Lord (The Serpent Horde, Grand Army of the South LL)

For most (perhaps all) Serpent Horde lists, Suladan is an auto-include - a 6" banner on a hero with a horse (and access to Strike and March) makes for a pretty good dude. If given a bow, he certainly has no problem sitting back and shooting instead of moving. Since most of his supporting heroes (to say nothing of his low Defense Warriors) have little to stop enemy magic, getting Heroic Resolve off is actually quite useful.

Unfortunately, Suladan's Might is in high demand: with Strike, March, and potentially the need to boost important damage rolls, you probably don't have a spare Might point lying around for Heroic Resolve. As a result, while his army can certainly benefit from it, you're probably not using Heroic Resolve with Suladan.

#3: The Witch-King of Angmar (Barad-Dur, Angmar, Mordor - but it's probably best employed from the Black Riders LL)

As the only model in any of his lists with access to Heroic Resolve, the Witch-King of Angmar is already a power-house in the magic department (especially if he has the Crown of Morgul). With 10-20 Will and a reroll from the Crown, he's pretty good at resisting magical attacks in his own right. His army, however, isn't very good (unless they are Ringwraiths) - some have Resistant to Magic (like Sauron), but most of the heroes in Mordor, Barad-Dur, or Angmar either have 1-2 Will points or would rather use their Will for something else. If your opponent has magic, the Witch-King could make your life a little easier in a turn that really matters.

The problem is that the Witch-King really likes to charge in most of the lists that he's in - whether mounted on a Fell Beast or a horse, the Witch-King has probably brought the Crown of Morgul with him and he's itching to smash through stuff. With the extra die being a marginal benefit for him, calling it really undercuts his ability to do his job. As part of the Black Riders Legendary Legion, however, he loses access to the Crown of Morgul and joins a team of Ringwraiths that benefit greatly from standing back and whittling down an opponent. With loads of Might in the Legion to call Heroic Moves (and a free channelled Transfix for each Ringwraith once per game), you can find a spare Might point to call Heroic Resolve on an important turn.

#2: The Golden King of Abrakhan (The Serpent Horde)

The Golden King typifies someone who sits in the back and just watches the battle - I mean, he's literally sitting! With a not-great combat profile, no access to Strike, and two 25mm bases for models to trap him, he's best used supporting your lines as a banner and waiting for someone to come close to failing a Courage test so he can distract them with money. As a result, his Might is pretty well preserved for Heroic Resolve.

As was hinted at with Suladan, the Golden King is also really good for protecting friendly models from spells like Wrath of Bruinen - D4 troops will MELT under that spell and having some kind of protection is better than none. With the range on Wrath of Bruinen cut to 3", it's unlikely that the Golden King will actually be in range to resist, so passing along some kind of resistance to your grunts is really helpful. His cost, though, causes him to come in second behind . . .

#1: Durburz, Goblin King of Moria (Moria)

For 70 points, Durburz is an auto-include for many players. Personally, I haven't run him with my Moria army since getting the Balrog (need more March). For those trying to do Moria spam, however, Durburz is a great include. While he has Strike, he's only F4, so he doesn't do it very well. He's also got Heroic Defense, but with only D6, he's probably moving from being wounded on 5s to wounded on 6s (which is good, but not great). Where he really shines, however, is augmenting the monsters in your army who really need magical protection (like Cave Trolls). Even monsters that are Resistant to Magic (like Dragons or the Balrog) will welcome an extra die to keep them from getting Transfixed, Drained of Courage, or (the horror) Paralyzed.

Like the Golden King, though, he also helps your grunts a lot by giving them some kind of protection. Moria - no matter how you run them - relies on a wall of Goblins to buy time for their monsters to do the dirty work of breaking the enemy (or relying on the wall of Goblins to wrap around your opponent and kill them with traps). As such, area of effect magical powers are horrible and getting some extra protection is really nice.

Top 5 Heroes - Forces of Good

#5: Malbeth the Seer (Arnor)

Malbeth the Seer is not a fighter, but he's certainly an auto-include for any Arnor force. With his auric boost of a 5+ save for all Arnor units within 6" of him, Malbeth is a critical part to any Arnor force. Heroic Resolve gives him yet another way of protecting his friendly models from magical powers (augmenting the 5+ save by . . . allowing models to not have to take those saves at all). Malbeth is happy to sit in the back rank and not move, so long as his position is still strong.

Malbeth, however, only has 1 Might point. This means he won't be able to help his team with Heroic Resolve more than once, but the models he helps either are Resistant to Magic (Hobbit Archers) or benefit from Foresight (making the impact of many magical powers harder to take effect). Malbeth might need the Might point (see what I did there?) to call an important Heroic Move, so there's some contention for it. These two things leave him sitting at #5 in our list today.

#4: Frodo of the Nine Fingers (Shire, Defenders of the Shire LL)

You know what's great about Hobbit models? They're all Resistant to Magic. You know what's great about Frodo of the Nine Fingers? He's Resistant to Magic AND has access to Heroic Resolve. Frodo came in at #5 in our best anti-casters, in part because he pairs Heroic Resolve and Resistant to Magic together. Like Malbeth the Seer, he only has 1 Might point, but he's less likely to need it for other things (like Heroic Moves) if you include Folco Boffin in your list (not that he's good for much else).

Frodo stands above Malbeth in this ranking system because everyone he's leading will be Resistant to Magic - two free dice to resist magical powers can keep your Shire rabble from getting torn up by a Wrath of Bruinen or Nature's Wrath pretty well. Should one of your heroes be targeted by a Transfix/Compel/Paralyze, the hero stands a good chance of surviving. Like Malbeth, Frodo has a 6" bubble that he provides to his friends (counts as a 6" banner) and if mounted on a pony, he extends that radius pretty far and shouldn't need to move for a turn.

#3: Galadriel (Lothlorien)

While Galadriel only got an honorable mention (#6) in my anti-casters post, she's easily in the top three best Heroic Resolve character in the game. While she doesn't have Resistant to Magic innately, she gains it through her army bonus (so she's always rolling one die to resist, two dice with Heroic Resolve). Pair this with a free Will point each turn (if you don't need it for casting) and 6 Will points, and she can make herself a bastion of defense against any magical threat. Any Lorien units you take in your list gain Resistant to Magic as well, which makes them incredibly good with Heroic Resolve at stopping enemy magic attacks too. The heroes in her army have 1 Will for the most part (not her or Celeborn), so they'll welcome an extra die should they be the target of a nasty spell.

If your opponent is running a lot of archers, Galadriel will probably channel Blinding Light. If your opponent has lots of magic, expect a Heroic Resolve to be thrown at least once. If your opponent has big heroes, Galadriel has the option for Heroic Defense. While there's certainly contention for her Might points, you have the opportunity to call Heroic Resolve more than once if your opponent is focusing heavily on magic. If you want to get a bit more use out of Heroic Resolve, you should instead look at . . .

#2: Gandalf the Grey (lots of lists, but specifically the Shire)

Gandalf showed up in our list of Heroic Channelling heroes and he's pretty good at Resolve too. If you're not taking Frodo of the Nine Fingers, you can bring him into a Shire list to augment those Hobbits! Astride his Cart (or a horse), you can cover a large section of your force from magic - and protect them from most archery attacks as well! Gandalf is a pretty solid choice for Heroic Resolve (whether fielded alongside Hobbits from the Shire, brave men from Lake-town, or companies of heroes from the Fellowship, Thorin's Company, or the White Council).

I know what you're thinking though: Gandalf is going to be hard-pressed to call Heroic Resolve more than once with all that channelling that he's doing. You'd be right: Gandalf is often taxed for his Might. While there is a strong incentive now to bring Frodo in the Defenders of the Shire Legendary Legion, Gandalf can be brought with the Shire generally, which means you have access to three of the best Might batteries in the game: Bill the Pony, Tom Bombadil, and Goldberry. Bill the Pony can be allied into the Shire by taking Barliman Butterbur from the Wanderers in the Wild (50 points for both of them - check out the new Quest of the Ringbearer supplement for more information) OR by bringing Samwise Gamgee and Gandalf as a Hero of Legend (no leading Hobbits, but you'll be alright). Tom and Goldberry can be added to any Shire army directly from the Wanderers in the Wild, but aren't often allowed in tournaments (so check with your tournament organizer before you settle on your list). Both of these list ideas can be seen in my post on the Shire in the List Building series.

However you choose to get extra Might, Gandalf can be refueled to provide extra magical protection more than once - and that solidly places him in second place. This post, however, got me thinking: is there a list that can combine Gandalf the Grey AND Galadriel so they can take turns calling Heroic Resolve? A 26-model, 700-point list might look like this (note, this uses my preferred Wood Elf Warriors, but you can trade out the throwing weapon guys one-for-one for Galadhrim Warriors with shields):

• Gandalf the Grey on horse
• Samwise Gamgee
• Bill the Pony
• Galadriel
• 9 Wood Elf Warriors with throwing daggers
• 4 Wood Elf Warriors with throwing daggers and Wood Elf spears
• 1 Wood Elf Warrior with throwing daggers, Wood Elf spear, and banner
• Galadhrim Captain with Elf bow
• 8 Wood Elf Warriors with Elf bows

In this list, you've got a lot of shooting (everyone except Bill and the wizards can shoot) and you've got potentially two bubbles of magic and archery protection. As such, your opponent has to come to you (might be a good case for Galadhrim Warriors instead of Wood Elf Warriors) - and when he does, he's in for it. The nice thing about this list is you probably don't need to Channel Blinding Light with Gandalf - he can focus on Terrifying Aura while Galadriel gets Blinding Light up! With up to 4 Heroic Resolves, you're looking at some nasty surprises for enemy magic.

As wonderful as Gandalf is, he's not #1 today. Why? Because unless you pair him with someone like Tom Bombadil or Bill the Pony, he's just not going to have enough Might to call a Heroic Resolve AND cast his spells. So who sits at #1? As if you had to ask . . .

#1: Aragorn - Strider (lots of lists, but specifically the Grey Company)

Yep, this series is going to be pretty boring as far as who was going to compete for #1 for the Forces of Good in nearly every single post - with Heroic Channelling and Heroic Accuracy behind us (King Aragorn doesn't have it), Aragorn's got it all. With a free Might point each turn, the question is this: what version of Aragorn uses this heroic action the best?

I'm going to get this out of the way from the get-go: I don't like the Grey Company Legendary Legion very much. All-hero armies are best when mounted - and this all-hero army isn't mounted. All-hero armies are best when they have heroes who can get +1 to wound without penalty - and for the most part, this army can't do that. Yes, you've got some really good hitters - Aragorn and Gimli are easily the most powerful damage-dealers in the group, with Elladan and Elrohir being over-qualified for slots #3 and #4. Halbarad, Legolas, and even the Rangers of the North that are in the list are no slouches in the wounding department (2 Attacks at S4). The list can do damage, but it's not going to do a lot of damage.

So what does it do well? Well, with the exception of Gimli, everyone in this list can shoot at enemy models from 24" away with a 3+ shoot value (Legolas can hit on a 2+). This is the all-hero army that likes to shoot - and that's really the only thing they do well! Aragorn and Gimli (and to a lesser extent the twins) are perfectly fine getting into combat and tearing up the enemy, but for as long as possible, they want to be shooting. Who should they hit? Anyone. What do they not want to face though?

Any all-hero army (with the possible exception of the Breaking of the Fellowship Legendary Legion) doesn't want to face magic casters. The most dangerous armies, of course, have multiple magic casters. Aragorn is the only model in this list with 3 Will points; the rest all have 1 Will point (Rangers of the North) or 2 Will points (everyone else). If a single caster gets a spell off on a 4+, you might need to spend 2 Will to stop the spell from going off - and if you fail, you're toast (no more kiting/shooting, no making Strikes if you're charged). Aragorn is perfectly happy standing still in this legion and shooting - and since he's standing still, he might just call Heroic Resolve.

Now lest you think that the Breaking of the Fellowship version of Aragorn would be better (they're all getting 2 free dice anyway - why not take a third one?), the deal-breaker was the fact that the Grey Company could stand and shoot while calling Heroic Resolve. The Breaking of the Fellowship has Legolas for long-range shooting and the Hobbit heroes and Gimli for close-range shooting. Aragorn and Boromir have no shooting capabilities at all - they want to be moving. As such, we give today's prize to the Grey Company (but don't worry, Breaking-of-the-Fellowship-LL-fans, that version of Aragorn will get his time in the sun soon enough)!

Heroic Resolve

While incredibly niche, there are many armies that rely on magic to augment the damage of their troops (or do damage that supplements the damage of their troops). Not being able to move might be a hindrance for some heroes, but not others - and the ones in today's post seem to be the most likely to use it (albeit usually once).

In our next post, we'll be turning our attention to my favorite specialized Heroic Action: Heroic March. A go-to action for many factions (especially those of the Dwarf-Goblin-Hobbit variety), Heroic March allows you to get some extra movement out of your troops (either to get to an important part of the board faster OR to skip a turn or two of enemy archery by closing faster). However you use it, you know you want it - so who's the best at Marching your army to victory? Find out next time - until then, happy hobbying!