Flagellant (Butcher's Circus)

## Unique Attributes

* The only Affliction the Flagellant can receive is Rapturous, which gives +25% DMG and -20 DODGE. While Rapturous, the Flagellant will often randomly attack enemies, other party members, or even himself, among other effects. He can never obtain a Virtue, and will always become Rapturous upon reaching 100 stress.
* When the Flagellant falls below 40% HP, he receives a buff for +20% DMG and +7% CRIT.
* When the Flagellant reaches Death's Door, every other member of the party is healed for 10% of their max HP, and the Flagellant obtains a buff for +5 ACC, +20% DMG, and +20% Stun, Bleed, Blight, and Debuff Resist. Additionally, he will never gain Recovery debuffs. (He will, however, still obtain debuffs from heart attacks.)
* Should the Flagellant die, he will heal the remaining party members for 10 HP.

## Combat Skills

"Exhaustion" debuffs (From *Exsanguinate* and *Redeem*) cannot be cleared by "Clear Debuffs" skills.

(All buffs and debuffs last for 3 rounds unless otherwise specified.)

## Tactical Analysis

### Using a Flagellant

The Flagellant is notably less useful in the Butcher's Circus than in the single player campaign. The main difference is that in single player is the fact that the enemy AI will frequently attack him, even though it benefits him. But when playing against other human players, they will typically ignore the Flagellant entirely until he is the last hero remaining, significantly narrowing his usability.

If you make the choice of using a Flagellant, know that the opponent is less likely to attack the Flagellant themselves. Although you will have more free reign with him, you will need to damage him yourself to enable the use of his low-health skills. *Punish* and *Rain of Sorrows* remain as combat staples, but *Reclaim* is also a lot more useful here since you can heal your party and deliberately lower the Flagellant's health. You can also pair him with the Antiquarian, using her *Protect Me!* skill to have the Flagellant intercept attacks aimed at her. The final skill slot is at your own discretion - *Redeem* can bring another hero out of the brink of death, while *Exsanguinate* is a great last-ditch skill, especially if the Flagellant is the last man standing.

Trinkets to use on a Flagellant are usually those designed to work well with his Bleed skill set. The Crimson Hook, especially, can raise the Stress he doles out on Bleeding targets to put more pressure on the ones being attacked by *Punish* or *Rain of Sorrows*. The Exotic Snuff makes him very difficult to Stun or knock back so he is less likely to waste turns.

His personal Trinkets can encourage a potentially risky playing style - the Crown of Thorns lets him bleed himself out without needing *Claim* and the Madman Collar encourages the player to turn him Afflicted. The other three are relatively safer - the Confessor Gauntlet is great if you have a Bleed-focused team for a Flagellant to torture the opposition, the Gauntlet of Absolution makes him a very hardy unit against opposing Stress teams, and the Last Breath Collar can keep a Flagellant in the game and even bring himself all the way back to full health with a single *Exsanguinate* or *Redeem*.

### Fighting a Flagellant

Because of the unique attributes of the Flagellant while he's at low health it's usually best to either focus him down first, or take him out last. This ensures that his healing at low health or on death is wasted on a dead or healthy party. Be aware that he can abruptly heal himself out of harm's way with a use of Redeem or Exsanguinate, so you have to prepare to burst him down and secure the Deathblow before he acts.

If you leave him for last, he essentially gets free reign on your party, spreading Bleeds and Stress with his two main attacks. However, he cannot use those attacks if pushed to the back. Knock him out of the frontlines and the opponent will have to spend a turn bringing him back to the front, and this renders the Flagellant a sitting duck if you can constantly knock him out of position.

For Stress compositions, his unique Rapturous Affliction can turn him into a wild card. While he has the usual erratic behavior that comes with any other Affliction, the buffs he gets can accidentally turn the tides on your party. Try and break everyone else surrounding him before you start experiencing a berserk Flagellant first-hand.