@camelotcrusade:
I tested it quickly just to verify, and I can't seem to be able to "Backstab" any other objects; I tried on both wasp nets and ice walls ("Murder" doesn't work either). To be more specific, I can't backstab my own ice ball, but enemy Assassins can.
All the in-game evidence I have seen suggests the Ice Ball is really handled as a unit, not an object or an obstacle. It even has its own unit info screen complete with all its stats, which says it's a Level 3 unit (an 800+ HP lvl 3 unit!), of the "Neutral" class, and that it has the built-in Ability "Ice Creation" (just like the Ice Spider).
Overall it works as it's supposed to, even though a few things aren't very consistent, like the fact that it can be poisoned (it has a high poison resistance, but still, poison shouldn't affect animated ice at all, which was true in The Legend). I also strongly suspect it has some kind of in-built "Target" effect, although you can also cast the "Target" spell on it (even without casting Target, most enemy stacks will attack it over flesh and blood units, even ones they could finish off in one blow).
The backstab thing is a bit different: it's not just that it's not logical that a ball would have a "back", it's also that your unit has a secret weak spot which you cannot see, let alone take measures to protect, but the enemy assassins always know where it is, and can target it. So it's a bit "unfair", and looks like an unnoticed issue rather than a deliberate game feature.
Mind you, it's not a big deal, far from it. WotN's Ice Ball is insanely badass and powerful as it is, and I'm loving it! The original KBTL one was already great, then the AB/CW was unfortunately weakened to the point that I no longer used it. But what we have now is by far the fiercest version of the Ice Ball ever. Besides, it's not like I was up against Assassins all the time.
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