Player's Handbook Heroes, Series 2: Preview 1

In just under a month, Player's Handbook Heroes, Series 2 boosters will be gracing the shelves of your Friendly Local Game Store -- and that means 18 new figures for your skirmish game.

When deciding what purpose the PHH series of figures should hold within the "grander scheme" of the D&D Miniatures Skirmish Game, the DDM Guild has decided they should be exactly what's written on the box -- heroes. Figures that each have a chance of pushing and prodding the game in different directions, or whose personality pops off the stat cards and into how you play warbands with them at the table.

To that end, let's kick off our previews of the next set with two Champions of Dragonlance's Krynn that I expect to see in many warbands in the coming months.

The first 'hero' to be previewed is more of an anti-hero: the Dragon Highlord. While there were 5 Dragon Highlords serving under Takhisis, the figure itself is Unique. You decide which Highlord (though this figure looks remarkably like Duulket Ariakas in his prime) by which Dragon you choose to mount him on using the Dragon Rider power.

With his Coordinated Assault power, the Highlord can harness the offensive power of his Dragon for a significant alpha strike potential. Blessing of Takhisis means that an allied Dragon has one more use of its Breath Weapon than your opponent might expect.

However, its really as a Champion that the Dragon Highlord excels. With a chamption rating of 4, he's an expert tactician who frequently fights where and how he wants to. The Highlord also knows the enemies' tactics, and can duplicate them perfectly, if needed. Finally, the Highlord can keep his Dragon allies mobile, moving them every time they're exposed and taking damage -- usually directly towards the enemy.

Who then can oppose such an aggressive and brutal Champion? Perhaps the humble Qualinesti Defender. With a Champion rating of 3, the Defender frequently fights on her turf, but is still willing to stray from her Wild homeland.

Using her Heroic Challenge, she can temporarily shut down an enemy Champion, but only at the cost of not guiding her own allies, who are most frequently a cohort of archers, or a perhaps her own winged mount.

Next week, we'll meet a quick-fingered Gnome and the Shifter he just can't hide from. See you then!

D. Garry Stupack is a shadowy figure who endlessly campaigns to bring back Thieves' Quarter.