Welcome back, my padawans and disciples. Today we begin our study of the Warrior Signature Abilities (SAs) from Knights of Fate, with Unmatched Ferocity (UF), inarguably yet another step on that Quick and Easy Path to the Dark Side.
You see, just as some Force talents come with an auto-Conflict inflicted every session you possess them, part of the price you will pay each time you activate basic UF is taking +1 Conflict. You’ll also take four (you read that correctly) Strain, in addition to spending the usual two Destiny Points.
What do you get for that hefty price? The chance to make an immediate (incidental action) Melee attack, at +1 Difficulty, maximum 5/Formidable. This is a once per session ability, but, if you succeed, you can repeat the attack, at same Difficulty, by again taking +1 Conflict and +4 Strain. Practically, you will only be able to make two, maybe three, UF attacks, no matter how awesome your dice are, due to the Strain drain.
Top/10XP tier upgrades include two Change Skills, one to Brawl and the other to Lightsaber, in the center. These are bookended by two of the three Reduce Strain upgrades. Each instance you own drops the cost of additional UF attacks this session by one. Be mindful, that initial attack will still be 4 Strain. Reduce Strain will slightly increase the number of attacks you can make before Strain loss is severe. If you roll well enough to keep the streak going…
The bottom/15XP tier has Destiny, Change Target, Reduce Conflict, and the last Reduce Strain instance. Destiny, as usual, drops the DP activation cost from 2 to 1. Change Target allows you to switch targets for each UF attack made.
The final upgrade, Reduce Conflict, is actually a tradeoff. Instead of gaining 1 Conflict per UF attack, you may choose to take +2 Strain, for a total cost of 6 on the initial attack. Subsequent attacks, if any, will be 3 to 5 Strain to avoid Conflict, depending on how many Reduce Strain you have. (You must have taken at least one to reach Reduce Conflict.) This upgrade can really drive home, narratively, the difficulty and pain of the balancing act of a Mace Windu struggling to stay in the Light Side while practicing Juyo/Vaapad.
What to buy? After one or both top tier Reduce Strain, the entery points, I would pick up Destiny, for all the reasons I’ve covered before. The Change Skills are situational. If your PC is a hand-to-hand fighter (Steel Hand Adept, some Colossus builds) or Shii-Cho Knight, however, take the relevant Change Skill before Destiny. Change Target is a must as well, so a repeat attack won’t be “wasted” because your first opponent is out of the picture.
What about Reduce Conflict? If you and the GM agree, your PC’s story is a Fall to the Dark side, you may prefer to skip it. If, on the other hand, you want to experience a truly epic struggle to stay in the Light, grab it. For a Fallen PC fighting to redeem themselves, it’s a mechanic that can help dramatize the narrative.
What specializations? This SA is for Darksiders in general. It’s clearly meant to appeal to the Aggressor spec (F&D) and the Knights of Fate specs, notably Juyo Berserker with its three (count ’em!) auto-Conflict talents. Or perhaps those who want to play a so-called “gray Jedi” character from Legends. No matter your spec/s, not succumbing to the Darkside is going to be a struggle, between the UF activation Conflict and those auto-Conflict talents you probably bought.
A Colossus, Steel Hand Adept, or Shii-Cho Knight who chooses UF will need to invest 20 more XP to get the best use from it. This will buy one of the Change Skill upgrades. Some rare builds may want both Lightsaber and Brawl instances.
If you’re a Warrior who doesn’t want to rely on sheer brutality, you should take Deadly Reputation instead, regardless of your current Morality score – or the score you’re striving for. If your primary, or only, spec is Starfighter Ace, also opt for Deadly Reputation, as UF is not the SA you’re looking for, not being usable with combat skills you’re probably best at.
I’ll be spending October on Spooky Things. So the Force Wizard will return in November and December with the final two F&D SAs, Deadly Reputation (Warrior) and Peerless Interception (Jedi). Next year, we’ll check out the Force talents from the F&D and Universal trees. May the Force be with you always!
Linda Whitson
Latest posts by Linda Whitson (see all)
- Astral Projections – The Ripperdoc Is In - May 8, 2023
