Draw Steel sticks out from the crop of Dungeons and Dragons rivals because of its combat philosophy. For as much as I have a soft spot for DnD, the inevitability of combat boredom happens all too often. Chalk it up to experience, but once everybody’s used their cool abilities, I’ve always found 5e games turned into a slog. In contrast, Draw Steel focuses on making combat faster and harder the longer it goes on, and the classes support this style.
And so it’s surprising just how different the newest class is.
The Summoner Class in Draw Steel does exactly what it says on the tin: summon stuff. Unlike DnD classes that summon minions like Wizards in the school of Necromancy, however, Draw Steel fully embraces the gimmick. Dubbed a “Master Class,” Summoner adds a layer of complexity to Draw Steel that the game hasn’t seen before.
In Matthew Colville’s video about the Summoner, he reveals his mustache, alongside plans to raise a Securitron army against the enemies of New Vegas.
He also breaks down the basics of the Summoner, from its four subclasses to its gameplay loop. Just as the DnD races have unique features, so too does the Summoner’s minions.
The classic Necromancer comes courtesy of the Circle of Graves, specialized in hardy, undead minions. The Circle of Blight summons fragile demons who get free strikes against foes when they die. The Circle of Storms summons elementals that affect the environment, be it massive boulders or wind paths. Finally, Circle of Spring summons fey spirits who can block enemies while alive and heal friends upon death.
To oversimplify the Summoner’s gameplay loop, you basically become a mini Director, Draw Steel’s title for the Game Master. You control squads of minions, each with their own stat block and summoned via their main resource, Essence. To show you just how numerous these minions can get when compared to DnD, a Necromancer will have five skeletons active before their turn even starts.
I highly recommend watching the full video to see all the wacky nonsense a Summoner can get up to. I love everything about this new class, even though I know I’d get turn paralysis handling ten things at once. Still, there are players out there so good at Draw Steel who I’m sure are eager to turn the game into Warcraft III.
You can purchase The Summoner Class for Draw Steel here.
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Source: Wargamer
