Baldwin IV Testing

I got Baldwin IV today:

So I tested his squad solo on an easy stage, here's what his halo looks like:

So, my overall impression of him is that he is a good hero.
The obvious swap-out is with Saladin, so I will discuss his and Saladin's comparison.
First of all, here is his skill:

REASONS TO USE BALDWIN IV:

• Better attack boost, 38% at Lv10 VS Saladin's 33%.
• Boost lasts for as long as he is alive, unlike Saladin's which fades away after a while.
• Can boost more than just the units in a row if he kills his enemy quickly and moves to a different row. (can technically boost your entire army this way)
• He has cavalry troops if you are looking for those. (I foresee Shock Cavalry working well with him, enemies with lower defense against your troops with higher attack sounds like a good combo)

REASONS TO USE SALADIN:

• More consistent boost, if Baldwin gets killed the boost is lost, but if Saladin dies the row still has the boost.
• Infantry troops if that is what you are looking for.

OVERALL:

Overall, I'm using Baldwin IV simply because he works with my rally better, but Saladin isn't necessarily a bad choice.

However, there is a very interesting aspect of Baldwin IV's skill, and that is the fact that Baldwin IV restores 5.5% HP every time a friendly unit (just from his squad I think) is killed. With a squad of 25 troops, thats 25 * 5.5 = 137.5% of his HP that can be restored over time as his troops are killed. This will DEFINITELY help keep him alive. Saladin's more consistent boost is not necessarily going to be more consistent if Baldwin can stay alive. Putting Philinus close to Baldwin IV couldn't hurt either.

So my overall judgement is going to be that Baldwin IV is a better hero.

HOW TO USE BALDWIN IV:
I would definitely suggest putting him in the 4th row of a pike lane. This way, he gets to the frontline just after your frontline and the enemy frontline collide, so he won't take as much damage.

Remember, the longer he lives, the longer your troops get that boost!