Billy has been a very hard character for me to understand. I'd watched him a few times, but I couldn't quite get the gist of who the character was. I should have just played him myself, but somehow I just kept putting it off.
Not much of an excuse, I know, but it is a fact.
Eventually I gave up trying to understand him from the armchair and contacted one of my friends, Blake, who had played him. What Blake told me got me to try Billy and, while he's not my favorite character, I know I will play him again.
Not much of an excuse, I know, but it is a fact.
Eventually I gave up trying to understand him from the armchair and contacted one of my friends, Blake, who had played him. What Blake told me got me to try Billy and, while he's not my favorite character, I know I will play him again.
It's really easy to understand why I didn't get Billy, at least at first. Much as I like helping people I'm still a bit of a glory hound. I still like to get into the fray, into the thick of it all. Blame the Muay Thai training from when I was younger, but if I'm going to play I'm going to play for keeps. Billy's strengths are nothing like that. He doesn't really jump in and his cards are not designed to do that. Billy is pure support. He does not make openings, at least not like how the others do. If anything, Billy makes sure that openings are dealt with well. You have to keep your head. Think.
Billy's ability to have anybody draw and then put a card back on the top of your deck is looking less and less unique, but don't be fooled. He can make anyone do this, and that makes his ability much more flexible than it appears at first glance. Is it frequently useful to him to do this? Yes. But he doesn't always. And there are now more people who have the defensive star ability, which means that Billy can help them set up in ways that they didn't anticipate.
Knowledge is Power is probably my favorite card for Billy. It's situational, sure, but it's not that hard to get ahead when facing minions, or monsters even. At that point the Billy player really needs to speak up and go "Hey! We can use this" cause getting any card you want out of your deck can't be undersold. The problem is that it doesn't feel good to play, at least immediately. This game can really get the adrenaline pumping and you want to keep doing what feels good now. Don't fall for that feeling, it's your enemy. Stop. Breathe. Play Knowledge is Power.
Mighty Maces is one of the most satisfying cards I've ever had the pleasure of playing with. You flip that buddy off of the top of the deck? Man! High shield count with an extra energy? That shifts the tide of battle in a way that people just... sorta forget about, actually. The fact that Billy has one of the most satisfying cards in the game does not mean that he is an adrenaline machine. He's not. Mighty Maces is not a flashy card. But it is a good one. And it frequently tips the scales of any battle that its in.
Can't use the recovery action because it'll mess up your action flow? Welcome to the Triceratops Zord. Grab your stuff with the most shields and get it back on top of the deck. Combine this with any of the myriad drawing mechanics and you can get those cards right back into your hand. It's a flexible zord, able to deliver something that you need (almost) immediately. This is one of those cards that literally saves games.
Billy is the easiest character in the game to overlook. That's a shame, because Billy is extremely solid, delivering every last ounce of tactical oomph as other characters. He requires a person who enjoys mastering his adrenaline, thinking clearly, and making sure that everyone else does so as well, which I do not claim to have done very well, for the record. He's an interesting character who really doesn't get enough credit for the awesome stuff that he does. I'm not sure if that was intended to be true to life, but anyone with an ounce of knowledge about what happened behind the scenes during the filming of the original show can appreciate the irony of David Yost's beloved character being the least appreciated of the original characters in this game, while delivering enormous amounts of support.
Try Billy. Think. Breathe. And don't let the adrenaline that this game pumps get the better of you. To play Billy you must be the master of your emotions. I know I'm not. But maybe you are.
Only one way to find out, right?
A special thanks to Jonathan Ying and Blake Royall, both of whom helped me understand the character and actually give him a try. Billy was a pleasant surprise.
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