Unarion is Batch One, the very first Etalon. The Steward built him in the first year after the Fading from the frame of an old repair automaton and the last unfired clay of the works. The kiln could not hold an even heat yet, and his ceramics cracked in the firing. The Steward did not remake him: the cracks were filled with gold, and Unarion was put under glass in the Calibration Hall as the zero point. Every later batch was checked against him and made better

He stood under that glass for thirty nine years and never once left the vertical, so his sign is a gold plumb bob. When the Etalons began to argue about one will for all, the Steward decided to calibrate everyone to one standard, to make them all the same. The standard was Unarion, and he refused: a measure exists to measure different things. He walked out from under the glass and across the whole works, and no batch dared to stop him, because each of them had once been measured against him

He went to find the Lantern, reached the Lull and stood by it as a sentry. When his body finally cracked through, the light of his core went into the glass, like the light of every hero, and now Unarion comes to battle as an afterglow

Abilities by rank

Trait

Measure

Allies on neighboring cells are pulled up to Unarion: their armor cannot be lower than half of his, and if it is, they get the difference. He himself is anchored for the whole battle, enemy knockbacks and pulls do not move him

Awakening at level 100: the floor rises to 75% of his armor, and magic resist is pulled up the same way

Ability 1 · mana 80, starts with 40

Zero Mark

Unarion drives his shield into the ground. Enemies on the neighboring cells are Taunted onto him, and he gets a Shield

Rank	From level	Taunt	Shield
I	1	1.5 s	180
II	20	1.75 s	320
III	40	2 s	515
IV	60	2.25 s	765
V	80	2.5 s	1065

Ability 2 · cooldown 10 s, opens at level 30

Shield Sweep

Unarion swings his shield at the cell of his target. Every enemy on that cell and on the two cells to each side of it, along the ring of 8 cells around him, is Stunned: 5 cells of 8, the front, two front diagonals and both sides. It deals no damage

Rank	From level	Stun
I	30	0.75 s
II	55	1 s
III	80	1.25 s

Stars make him stronger on top of the ranks: attributes ×1.4 at ★2 and ×1.9 at ★3, the Shield of Zero Mark ×1.25 and ×1.6

Look

a wide wedge shaped upper body of large white glazed ceramic plates with thin gold trim, dark joints and short sturdy legs

a helmet with a low gold crest and a single cyan visor slit

a net of gold-filled cracks across the chest and the left shoulder: he is the only Etalon with cracks

a gold “01” on the right shoulder and a round cyan core in the chest

a tall faceted tower shield with a thick gold rim and a gold plumb bob on a chain

a short hammer with a cubic white and gold head and gauge notches on its black handle

How to play

Put him in the middle of the front line with your most fragile heroes at his sides: Measure works only on neighbors. Shield Sweep stuns in a half circle, so the more enemies rush him from the front and the sides, the better

Everything that raises his armor is shared with his neighbors, so armor items pay off twice on him. Before the Awakening he is weak against mages. Armor Break on Unarion lowers the standard for all his neighbors at once, and that is the main way to break him

Unarion