Unmatched
Tomoe Gozen
Overview
Tomoe Gozen was Japanās most fearsome female samurai. Tomoeās significance wasnāt that she was a female samurai, which was not unheard of at the time, but that she was an exceptionally skilled warrior. She was as beautiful as she was deadly, and her stories became so legendary that the line between truth and myth has become blurred. Many ballads and tales were written about her exploits, one of the main sources of information being the Heike Monogatari. These stories and ballads describe how she defeated renowned enemy generals and charged into battle against all odds only to arise victorious. Truthfully, we donāt even know if Tomoe Gozen is her real name. āTomoeā could have been used to describe the pattern of her armor, and āGozenā was a generic title given to women of honor. Whether some of her stories are myth or historically accurate, no one can argue against the legacy of her courage and brutality.
Tomoe Gozen is included in Unmatched: Sun’s Origin
Hero Stats
Health:Ā 14 / Attack: Ranged / Movement: 2
Special Ability: Attack of Opportunity
When an opposing hero leaves Tomoe Gozen’s zone, deal 1 damage to that hero.
Strategies and Tips
Tomoe Gozen is a ranged fighter who likes to stay close to her opponents, fearing no attack from an adjacent space. Many of her strongest card effects require her to be adjacent to an enemy fighter, so you may have a harder time activating these effects against other ranged fighters. Her special ability more than makes up for this weakness though, discouraging any ranged fighter from fleeing from her zone, giving her an opportunity to attack up close and personal.
Primary Strengths
High value attack cards
Powerful defensive card effects
Special Ability
Primary Weaknesses
Effects that cancel her card effects
Heroes with multiple heroes and no sidekicks (Cloak & Dagger, Raptors)
Strong defense values and effects
Tip #1: Control the Battlefield
Tomoe Gozenās special ability gives her a unique method of controlling the battlefield. Not only is she a ranged fighter, but your opponents are immediately discouraged from approaching her knowing that leaving her zone will cost them health. Her special ability activates when your opponent leaves her zone for any reason. Be it by maneuvering, a scheme or after combat effect, or even if the enemy hero is removed from the board all together. The only stipulation is that it only affects heroes, not sidekicks. With this knowledge, your position dictates where on the battlefield your opponents can maneuver. Keep attacking them from a distance and try to create an opening for them to attack you from an adjacent space, or for you to move in and attack them from an adjacent space. The following is a key card to help with her positioning:
Lord Kisoās Final Stand is the only scheme in her deck, and it allows Tomoe to move up to 3 spaces, even through sidekicks. Then you can choose one of two options: Either Tomoe recovers 2 health or gain 1 action. The only downside to this card is that you cannot move through enemy heroes, but the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages. This card was clearly designed to get Tomoe out of pins set up by Oda Nobunaga, but this is just as effective against any other hero with sidekicks.
Tip #2: Refuse to Retreat
Your opponent cannot fear your range and special ability forever. Eventually they will make a move to attack you. Even if they are a ranged fighter they may keep their distance, but entering your zone leaves them just as vulnerable to you as you are to them. You want your opponent to either attack you from an adjacent space or make it so you can get to an adjacent space of theirs within one action.
Deeds of Valor is a defense card with a value of 2 that makes it so that Tomoe Gozen cannot take more than 2 combat damage during combat. This is a massively valuable defense card as it sets your opponent up for an attack on your next turn while risking very little of your own health.
Refuse to Retreat is her second defense card that immediately makes it so Tomoe cannot leave her space for the rest of the turn. After combat, if the opposing fighter is adjacent to you, your opponent discards 1 card. This card has a few different utilities, the most important being that your opponent cannot use a card effect to force you to move out of your range of attack.
Tip #3: Witness My Last Batte
There are annoying ranged fighters that will make it difficult for you to attack when adjacent. Luckily, Tomoe has just the card for this situation:
A Warriorās Way is an attack with a value of 2 that allows you to move the opposing fighter up to 3 spaces after combat. Then, if they are a hero, place Tomoe Gozen in a space adjacent to them. This is perfect for attacking a ranged hero like Medusa or Robin Hood who cower behind their sidekicks, making your approach difficult. You can move them out of your zone, deal 1 damage from your ability, then teleport directly adjacent to them to start your next action or end you turn.
Once you are adjacent to your opponent you can deal some devastating damage:
Five Against Thousands is an attack with a value of 4 that lets you discard a card from your hand after combat in order to put this card back in your hand. If you have no better cards to attack with, this makes for a solid back-to-back attack.
Witness My Last Battle is Tomoeās most devastating card. This attack has a value of 7 with the trade-off being you have to be adjacent to your opponent, play the card face up, and after combat end the turn. It will be hard for any opponent to stop this card though. With such a high base value and no effects worth canceling, they will have to use their highest value defense in order to not take a ton of damage.
Final Thoughts
Tomoe Gozen is easily my favorite ranged fighter in all of Unmatched as of this release. She is practically a melee fighter with ranged capabilities. Her special ability gives her excellent control over the battlefield, and your opponentās mind is likely to be left too occupied trying to outmaneuver this ability to consider the other powerful cards you have at your disposal. While she does have strong defense options, most of them rely on the card effects to be useful, so she is still vulnerable to characters that can ignore or cancel these card effects. Regardless, her strengths outweigh her weaknesses, making for a dynamic fighter at range or up close.
