"No two weapons end wars faster than wit and words."
— Watcher Proverb
The Winter is a cruel thing, separating allied clans, destroying trade routes, and pushing people to make devastatingly rash decisions. We are Watchers, members of an organization dedicating to uniting our people against the only enemy that matters: the Winter. We are the voices of reason amidst the calls for blood that sound throughout the Skels. We understand that the Winter does not care about the petty squabbles of men, and in order to survive we must unite as one. We strive to act as an impartial voice of authority on all kinds of matters, from familial disputes to alliances between clans. We work only with our Winterborn charges and have complete independence, and the commonfolk respect this. From the poorest Clansman to the most powerful Warrior, all understand that a decision made by a Watcher is to be disregarded at their own peril.
From the first day we begin training as Watchers, we are granted a raven to be our companions, scouts, and spies. They serve us faithfully on our many tasks and we have an innate bond which allows us to understand them as if they were our own kin. Aside from acting as diplomats and liaisons between clans, one of our main tasks is to search for Winterborn, children born with strange runes inscribed on their bodies who are able to naturally control the Winter. The commonfolk rightfully fear their potential for destruction, and send for us to take them and do with them what we will. Unfortunately, Watchers are split on how to train these runed men. Some believe their power is best utilized by giving them guidance and training, and others believe their power is a curse that they must learn to contain. However, all Watchers who have had the arduous task of slaying a rogue Winterborn understand one thing: it is best to have them on our side.
We are diplomats first and foremost, but we have eyes and ears everywhere, and one of our responsibilities is to root out insidious plots and other dangers and stop them before they occur. When we must fight, we use mist magic to cloak our movements in fog whilst dashing across the battlefield. We carry with us crystal blades altered to nullify magic rather than amplify it, and are adept at combating wayward Winterborns, rampaging Incarnates, and dreaded Huntsman alike. We are trained from an early age to analyze even the smallest movements in our opponents, and the best among us seem to be precognizant in battle. We strive for peace, but we have enemies nonetheless, and what they don’t know is that we are always near, watching with raven eyes.
Should words give way to blows, we will strike them down with mist, beak and blade.
Watchers are a Blue and Gray Specialization.
Like Cryomancers, Watchers thrive when their foe is controlled by playing cards with Advantage. Additionally, Watchers analyze their enemies’ weaknesses, forcing them to reveal cards from their hand permanently. When a card in a player’s hand is revealed, it must be visible to all players indefinitely. Watchers utilize knowledge of their enemy by gaining Initiatives, forcing them to discard revealed cards, or dealing bonus damage to them.
Raven Eye is the Watcher ‘Ultimate’, a card they always have in play. They can play it each turn, progressively studying their foe as they clash. Once they have garnered total understanding of their foe’s strategy, they capitalize in versatile ways by gaining Initiative. Initiative may be used to either travel 1 tile, or draw an additional card.
Watchers have many instant speed cards. Instant cards may be played in response to an enemy playing a card during their turn, effectively disrupting their strategy for that turn with each instant that changes the situation. Watchers generally have a good idea of what the enemy is trying to do because they have knowledge of their cards. With this information, the perfect time to counter their strategy is knowledge they acquire naturally, rendering them deadly strategists on the field of battle.
Once the enemy has been controlled, their plans have been dismantled and their hand revealed, the Watcher’s time to strike is nigh. Armed with mist, blade, and their trusty raven companion, they can deal massive damage to enemies once they have unveiled their cards.
At this point, the enemy has been sidestepped, disrupted, and outplayed the point of exhaustion by a Watcher. All that is left is to clear the chaff.
Analyze, disrupt and execute as the Watcher!
Grab a copy of Winterstorm to play as this Specialization!