Star Wars Galaxy of Heroes Character Reviews: Letter "A" Units

A not very long time ago, in cell phones that aren't too far away..

It is a time of bliss and harmony for the residents of planet Earth: mobile game Galaxy of Heroes has released. Players get to assemble their custom teams of Star Wars heroes and villains to compete in 5 on 5 battles in a variety of game modes. The game is free to download, and consistently adds and updates characters - an experience that grows and adapts alongside its players. But newcomers and veterans alike may wonder: which characters deserve to have valuable resources expended on? To answer their pleas, a young internet writer explores each contestant's strengths and weaknesses in a desperate attempt to restore peace to the virtual galaxy..

Note: Consult the table at the bottom if the page to learn about the different types of abilities!

Overly dramatic intros aside, we're reviewing alphabetically, so today we'll glimpse at battlers beginning with "A", starting with Jedi Aayla Secura.

Inspiring Strike (Basic): Attack a foe with a chance to call an assist. If the assist is a Jedi, they deal extra damage. The assist chance is smaller than I'd like, but it's great when it activates, especially if you're using a Jedi team.

Survivor (Special): Aayla strikes a foe and recovers health equal to part of the damage dealt. One of my least favorite specials; there are far better ways to heal characters and much stronger attacks.

Superior Riposte (Unique): Grants Aayla a chance to counter-attack when struck, grants her extra critial hit percentage, extra counter damage, and lets her stun enemies whenever she lands a critical. This drastically increases her otherwise poor offensive capabilities.

Jedi Valor (Leader): Gives Jedi allies extra tenacity and recovers some health when they resist a debuff. A decent leader ability if you're using a Jedi team.

Overall: 7/10. Aayla works great with Jedi or critical-oriented squads, and her passive is her main draw. Otherwise, there are probably better characters for your team.

Quick Shot (Basic): Attacks a foe with a chance to gain some turn meter. The chance isn't too great, nor is the turn meter gained, making this a fairly subpar attack.

It's A Trap! (Special): This amusingly named special removes all debuffs from your entire team, and heals each ally for every debuff removed. An excellent way to reinvigorate your fighters.

Tactial Genius (Special): The next ally to use a Special instantly gains 100% turn meter and recovers some health. A cool way to grant an extra turn and health to a team member.

Rebel Coordination (Leader): Rebel allies gain extra tenacity and speed. Also, if a Rebel ally uses an ability that doesn't attack, they call a Rebel assist. Trust me, if you're using a Rebel team, you want this ability.

Overall: 10/10. Ackbar's leader ability explains how the ragtag Rebels managed to overcome the mighty Empire. Even if you're not using Rebels, Ackbar's still a potent support unit.

Energetic Slash (Basic): Deals damage and recovers some health; more health recovered on a critical. Not fond of this basic; the health recovered is low.

Protective Manuever (Special): Strikes a foe. If they have more than 50% health, partially heal your entire team. If they have less than 50% health, deal extra damage. Considering Ahsoka's basic already heals her, this special is pretty disappointing.

Daring Padawan (Unique): Ahsoka gains extra health, speed, and critical chance. When she gets hit by a critical, she loses one of these boosts, but she can regain them if she delivers a finishing blow. This passive helps, but I don't like how its boosts are only temporary.

Quick Steps (Leader): Jedi and Nightsister allies gain extra evasion and gain extra turn meter when they evade an attack. Honestly, even for Jedi and Nightsisters, there are probably better leader abilities.

Overall: 3/10. As much as fans like Ahsoka's character, she just isn't very good. Her mediocre attacks, temporary passive, and subpar leader ability just don't add much to your team. To make matters worse, many characters have attacks that do extra damage to Jedi. Let's hope our favorite Twi'lek will get buffed in a future update.

Deft Bladework (Basic): Attacks a foe with a chance to inflict both Healing and Buff Immunity. A great basic attack.

Reckless Assault (Special). Attacks all foes. For each critical hit, chance to give all allies Offense up. For each non-critical, chance to expose Anakin. An interesting, risky move that can boost all your fighters but may leave Anakin vulnerable.

Righteous Fury (Unique): Whenever an ally falls belows 50% health or dies, Anakin gains turn meter and extra damage on his next attack. An awesome passive that speeds up and strengthens the future Darth Vader.

Always on the Offensive (Leader): Jedi and Clone allies gain extra offense and critical damage; other allies gain half the amount. Whenever an ally misses, they gain advantage for two turns. An excellent leader ability with a variety of boosts.

Overall: 9/10. A once-poor character who was bolstered thanks to fan request, Anakin is a great addition to any team.

Cruel Strike (Basic): Strikes a foe with a chance to stun them. Stunning enemies forces them to skip a turn, making this a great basic.

Strike Fear (Special): Dispels buffs on all enemies. Asajj recovers health dependent on how many buffs are removed. An interesting move. I wish it recovered your entire squad's health, but it's definitely great against buff-heavy teams.

Endless Wrath (Special): Deal damage to all foes. If at least one enemy dies, reset all of Asajj's cooldowns. A decent attack that lets Asajj attack all enemies and potentially reset cooldowns.

Rampage (Unique): Whenever any unit (ally or foe) dies, Asajj receives extra strength and critical chance for her next attack. A helpful way to increase this Nightsister's damage output.

Nightsister Swiftness (Leader): Nightsister allies gain extra speed and have a chance to remove turn meter when they attack an enemy. A good leader ability - if you're using a Nightsister-focused team.

Overall: 6/10. A tough character to score, Asajj comes with two specials as well as a passive. No one ability stands out as excellent, but her variety gives her an answer to almost any problem. Her leader trait greatly helps Nightsisters, though there aren't many of them to be found in the game.

Hopefully you've learned some tips about using today's "A" characters. Feel free to vote for your favorite of the bunch, and consult the chart below if you'd like a quick explanation of the different types of abilities. I'll see you when we cover the galaxy's "B" fighters!