Forest Elves are one of four playable factions in Armor & Ash, a two player, head to head, battle card game. Forest Elves have an affinity with Nature and, in times of need, are able to command all denizens of the forest, both large and small.
In game terms, this exemplifies itself in the Beast Lord card. The illustration for the mighty Beast Lord shows him riding atop a bear, leading a stampede of wild animals into the fray. While the Beast Lord is on the Battlefield, all allied Beasts gain an additional attack dice as well as an additional health point.
Knowing when to play the Beast Lord, and getting the most benefit from his special ability, is crucial for the Forest Elves to solidify a victory. Luckily, a common spell for the Forest Elf faction, called Answer the Call, allows you to search your deck, and even your discard pile, for up to two Beasts and immediately place them onto the Battlefield. Beasts played from using Answer the Call do not count toward the Battlefield limit on the turn they were played. This is potentially devastating for your opponent because if the spell is timed right, it means you’ll get to attack with seven units instead of the normal five units (not counting the Hero in either case) on your turn.
Now, let's learn about the Beasts and how devastating they can be for your opponent.
First up is the Clouded Leopard, a silent stalker that has the chance to gain an extra Attack dice. Combined with the Beast Lord’s power, this gives the Clouded Leopard the ability to deal four wounds instead of its base of two wounds. Although all Beasts that the Beast Lord commands have relatively low health, you’ll be able to bring back two of them from the discard pile with a well-timed Answer the Call spell.
Next we have Gray Wolves. As a pack animal, a gray wolf is rarely alone. Should one be defeated while the Beast Lord is on the Battlefield, another one will take its place. Mechanically, Gray Wolves are able to regenerate while Beast Lord is in play. This makes the Gray Wolves serve as excellent cannon fodder. And, even though Gray Wolves have a low Attack value, thematically we want it to seem like there is more than one wolf associated with each card so we gave them Split Attack. Split Attack allows one unit to attack two adjacent opponent cards instead of the normal single card.
Last, but certainly not least, is the Raging Grizzly, a powerhouse of tooth and claw. A bit stronger and more resilient that the other Beasts, the grizzly’s stats are already decent before becoming augmented by the Beast Lord. While the Beast Lord is on the Battlefield, the Raging Grizzly adds an additional wound for each 5 or 6 rolled during its attack. Thanks to the Beast Lord, the grizzly rolls four attack dice instead of its base of three, so it can certainly pack quite the punch.
