tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44537706984974838332024-03-13T10:29:08.915-07:00Mr D. - Teacher-Gamer BlogAs a Middle School Math and Technology teacher on Whidbey Island, and a gamer, LARPer, and Level 2 Magic Judge, this is where my two worlds collide.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.comBlogger52125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-3275094098742012182016-10-28T09:27:00.002-07:002016-10-28T09:28:22.350-07:00Making Money on Rotation - RTR Edition<span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It was just over two years ago that we saw the release of Khans of Tarkir, the addition of Onslaught Fetches into modern, and the rotation of Return to Ravnica out of standard. This represented the rotation out of the second set in the Magic Boom era of the early 2010s which is generally considered to have begun with Innistrad. Historically there rotation has been considered the best time to pickup eternal playables for long term gains a couple of years after rotation. </span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Innistrad stood as a fairly major aberration as far as the unprecedented growth of Magic colliding with a printrun that struggled to keep up with demand. The following sets saw a much greater print run and a generally more stable power level of cards. Return to Ravnica represents the first block in the Magic Boom era that was printed to meet the rising demand levels. Surprisingly, four years after release. Boxes of RTR still run at approximately the same price as they did while they were in print.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The question I want to address here is if there is still money to be made in purchasing cards at rotation. The current changes to Standard rotation matter only a little when looking at this overall perspective since cards will still be rotating out. <b>S</b>omeone picking up Snapcaster Mage and Liliana of the Veil at rotation could have easily seen a 150% gain. I believe that the future sets will have far more in common with RTR than they had with Innistrad with regards to print quantity. For comparison we’ll be looking at three different groups of cards. Rotating standard staples, eternal staples not relevant in standard, and casual cards.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rotating Standard Staples</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While looking back to the end of 2014 may not be the joy of anyone who was involved in standard at that point. We have a pretty clear picture of the metagame throughout the Theros Block revolving around three colors, and three decks. Theros was the age of Mono-Black Devotion, Mono-Blue Devotion, and Esper Control. By the end of the block we actually did begin to see the growth of a few other archetypes that were a derivative of these decks (Azorious Control and Orzohov Midrange) there was only ever fringe decks that existed outside of these colors such as R/G Monsters.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Interestingly enough the majority of these decks were heavily based on devotion cards from Theros block and only somewhat reliant on cards from Return to Ravnica outside of the Esper Control deck. The key cards from RTR for these decks include standard wonders such as Packrat, Nightveil Specter, Desecration Demon and Underworld Connections which have all fallen to essentially worthless in the modern era as they had no application outside of standard.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The cards in the Esper Control build were somewhat more durable but have suffered a number of other setbacks. Jace, Architect of Thought received a duel deck printing and has only been a rare occurrence in the sideboard of Modern decks essentially killing it’s value. Sphinx’s Revelation dropped off sharply and sees occasional play in Legacy. Of the heavily played RTR cards it seems that only Supreme Verdict managed to maintain significant comparative value. It has managed to spike to match it’s standard high price of almost $7 dollars and is now worth around $5 compared to its rotation price of $3 making it a fair investment but not a particularly good one.</span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><u><b><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lands</span></b></u></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Shock Land cycle in RTR block was a significant reprinting that likely pushed sales heavily throughout the print cycle. Not surprisingly these remain some of the most valuable cards from the block. Perhaps more surprising is the limited gains these cards have had. Near rotation the majority of the shock lands were available for between 7-10$. At peak supply they were between 4-7$. Comparing Steam Vents’ rotation price to the current price we see only about a $2 gain from 10$ to 12$. While there was a spike putting it into the $15 period, but even this 50% gain requiring perfect timing is pretty insignificant considering the price of the card and the time it would have to be held. </span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This same story plays out pretty similarly for the other lands with several not even receiving such significant gains. The land cycle still represents the best investment of standard cards for long term holds but the belief that they would become $20 within a year seem to have been largely unfounded. We see only moderate gains two years out and in several cases cards have trending downwards for the past few months, even though it has been modern PPTQ season. While I wouldn’t advise against picking up your playsets of lands like these around rotation. I have my doubts that it’s the best place to sit investment money. </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sideboard Cards</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One other area to look at are the Standard sideboard cards, several of which have found a home in sideboards of eternal decks. Cards like Rest in Peace and Pithing Needle maintained fairly low prices throughout Standard being available for a dollar or less at rotation. Now these cards have seen a significant rise with Pithing Needle at around $2.5 and Rest in Peace around $5. Additionally, Cyclonic Rift has seen a bounce from around $3 to about $6 for a decent double up. Much like Stony Silence out of Innistrad, sideboard cards don’t tend to hold significant value in standard but have a lot more potential to grow outside of standard. To me this signifies that in the future I’d be interested in looking into sideboard cards with eternal playability as significant post rotation gainers.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cards Not Relevant in Standard</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There’s this weird issue in standard where there are some really powerful cards that don’t find a deck to slot into in the format. These cards often times make an immediate impact on Modern or Legacy without being relevant in the standard metagame. This isn’t for cards like Snapcaster Mage which have a broad impact on multiple formats. The best example of this kind of card is Abrupt Decay. While clearly a powerful card, the impact on Legacy has been much more significant than the impact ever was on standard. </span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Abrupt Decay represents one of the best opportunities from RTR block for significant profit after rotation, but there’s a difficult twist. From a standard low price of $5.5 the card had gone up to $12 at rotation with the birth of Abzan as a viable deck in Modern. While the card continued to spike to a price over $17 it has since cooled off significantly and finds itself back under the $10 range. Once again, a card seems to have dropped below its rotation price after a significant spike. Is there long term upside in Abrupt Decay? My feeling is probably not. It’s a card that is likely to be reprinted in Modern Masters 2017 which could put it around the $5 mark for the foreseeable future. While it is clearly a powerful card, the opportunity to cash in on it didn’t come at rotation and left fairly early. Most of the upside is gone at this point.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Another card with a somewhat similar trajectory is Voice of Resurgence. As the only notable card in Dragon’s Maze it has managed to hold its price despite being played very little in any format. Modern Zoo decks seem to be the main home for the card where it presents a certain level of protection against mass board clear but for the most part it is bolstered by being the only relevant card in a much maligned set. With a significant initial price of over $40 the price leveled out to around $18 for quite a while through rotation. It saw a significant spike back to the $40 price range as a response to the eldrazi menace and since has tapered off to around $27. Right now it’s not something I’d want to be holding long term as it is ripe for a reprint and it’s only real value comes from being the only decent mythic in bad small set. </span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">RTR block, overall didn’t add much to the overall Eternal metagame outside of these few cards. Unlike some sets where key commons or uncommons become eternal staples, there is very little attractive from this block to look at as long term holds. While some of the eternal playable cards offered the potential for a mid-term gain about a year out, none of them are places I’d currently want to have my money tied up. Other cards that see eternal play like Boros Charm, Experiment One, </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Casual Cards</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There hasn’t been huge casual appeal out of RTR. One card that looked poised to become huge was Sylvan Primordial which received a Commander ban insuring it would never hold significant value. Interestingly enough, it never actually held significant value. It sat under $1 for pretty much its entire life in standard. The one shining star of casual appeal has been Chromatic Lantern which is pretty much a staple of every multicolor commander deck. From a $4 rotation price to a $8 price today, this card pretty much emblematizes a perfect rotation investment. There’s a couple other slow growth, casual cards that are approaching double up territory including Worldspine Worm couple Thespian Stage. But for the most part there isn’t a lot of appealing cards for casual play out of these sets.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Conclusion</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Moving forward it looks like rotation is not the top time to pickup long term specs. The vast majority of cards from RTR with long term value experienced a significant drop in price during peak supply in the 6 months following release. For most of these cards, this was the ideal time to pick up these cards. It would have provided two different times to out them at a profit. First is during a spike in the new standard season, the second was during a spike about a year after rotation. </span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Overall, I have gained a fear of trying to pick up cards at rotation for near market price. The inevitable trajactory for the majority of these cards seems to be down rather than up. I’m especially not interested in cards that were standard staples at rotation as most of them have dried up into to nothing and the few that held value often times have ended up at below rotation price.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If I were going to invest in cards for the long term, I likely would be looking at powerful sideboard cards that see play in modern and I would be looking to pick them up at peak supply rather than rotation. I’d also be looking at incredibly cheap casual cards with long term appeal or playability in numerous decks. </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Specs to Look At over the next couple of months</span></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ceremonious Rejection - Uncommon - Kaladesh</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is an incredibly powerful card with long term appeal. It’s also unlikely to see a reprint in a non artifact/eldrazi set. This makes it both an eternal playable as well as a difficult card to reprint. These will be left around after drafts, pick them up.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Thalia, Heretic Cathar - Rare - Eldrich Moon</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">At just over $2 for an eternal playable card that probably isn’t getting any cheaper, isn’t seeing major play in standard, this is a pretty good deal. Could this be $4 in four years, easily. Could it be $8 at rotation, definitely if there’s a deck. Seems like a good buy.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Out of Favor Man Lands - Rare - SOI</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While these will probably drop as we move towards rotation, it turns out rotation is suddenly next fall instead of in spring. This gives these cards another chance to spike before rotation as well as being a decent hold long term. Lumbering Falls is a $1.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Kaladesh Fast Lands - Rare - Kaladesh</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wouldn’t look at picking up these cards just yet. I’d say after Aether Revolt and before Ahmonket spoilers is your ideal point, that should be peak supply.. I’m not in at $5 on these cards but I think that they’ll continue to work their way down and there’s likely to be one or two that are out of favor at any given point. At $2 I think you buy them all and at $3 you should be good for a few playsets.</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Radiant Flames - Rare - BFZ</span></b></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-5772f0ab-0bca-e4a5-6538-cb5238f5d196" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.6667px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This card is essentially free at 50 cents. As a decent sideboard card it’s worth questioning whether this will ever take the place of Anger of the Gods as a sideboard card in Modern. The flexibility as well as the lack of double red in the casting cost means that it is a likely option. It can also wreak havoc against token strategies while not blowing up all your own creatures. With the number of three color decks in modern it feels like a home could exist for this card but it hasn’t proven itself yet.</span></b></div>
<span style="background-color: white;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /></span>Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-41727165204933335412016-07-07T18:53:00.001-07:002016-07-07T18:53:39.220-07:00An overview of MTG Finance and SpeculationSo, unlike many people. I'm going to actually answer the individual's rather reasonable question because he's asking something that is pretty obviously known and he'll figure out with a few months anyway.<br />
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Magic: The Gathering is based on a totally unregulated marked which is almost entirely at the mercy of the company that prints the cards, Wizards of the Coast, a division of Hasbro.<br />
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Cards are printed for play in four major formats, one which rotates every 18 months, one with every new card since 2003 (Modern), one with cards from the inception of the game with a firm list of restricted very powerful cards (Legacy), and one in which most every card ever is legal (Vintage).<br />
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Card prices fluctuate based on the release of new cards, the various power levels of cards in these formats, and their rarity. Such that a card worth $0.30 today could quickly rise to as much as $10 over a few years. But such a quick rise is based on it's play and availability.<br />
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The exception to this is cards placed on the Reserved List between 1996 and 2002. Wizards of the coast has repeatedly expressed that they are not going to reprint any of the cards on the reserve list. There is argument as to if there is any legal precedence for them violating this decree but it's been 20 years and it hasn't happened yet. Meanwhile, the prices of many cards on the reserve list continue to rise. These cards conceivably could be reprinted but it would cause a major disruption in the market and a loss of millions of dollars in value.<br />
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Even with reserve list cards the rise is based on power level and use in the Vintage and Legacy formats. Among these are the famed Power 9 cards which are generally held for collection purposes rather than plying purposes, though there are locations where events are played with these cards. It's unclear exactly what kind of price the market will bear for these cards. Black Lotus's have seen consistent increases as a collectors item and it is unclear of exactly what the plateau is. Meanwhile, lesser cards such as revised Dual Lands have seen fairly steady increases from the few dollars a piece in 1996 to ranging between $100-$300 today.<br />
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My basic advice in anyone looking at investing in Magic cards is that either you need a lot of understanding of the game to make sense of the waxing and waning of cheaper cards, or you need a lot of money to invest in reserve list staples. So far there hasn't been reserve list staples that have ever seen a significant loss in price with the exception of sudden price rebalancing where a card may spike to double it's current price then drop to settle around one and a half times once people decide to bring more copies to the table.<br />
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Currently it's fairly easy to spike the market on certain cards in which there's moderately low supply. A $300 card today could become a $900 card in a few weeks if all available copies are made unavailable. But also be aware, you can't just offload the new cards at $900 immediately. Your only reliable buyers are the vendors such as Channel Fireball and Star City Games may only end up offering you $400 on your $900 card. If you show up with 50 of them, they aren't likely to be buying.<br />
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The honest picture here is that you can work the Magic market to your favor and there's some old cards that you can directly effect the price on. I'm not sure what buying up fifty $15k Black Lotuses will do long term. It's likely to cause a spike to $20k but that doesn't mean you'll find fifty buyers at that price. If you do pick up a bunch and hold them for five years, history has shown that they will increase in price. But how much, how fast, and if you're better off sticking that into Tesla stock isn't totally clear.<br />
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If you have any other questions please feel free to contact me at casuallyinfinite at gmail dot com.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-60912384540480338982016-05-01T09:32:00.003-07:002016-05-01T09:34:38.001-07:00The Broken Promise of SA 2.0<span style="color: white;"> I want to note that I wrote this over a year ago when I stepped down from the Rules Team at SA. I was asked to wait to publish it because of some of the details it contained. There were attempts to revise it into a conversation between two people regarding the subjects it presents. It's been over a year at this point; I feel I've waited enough. It hasn't been revised or updated from the point of view of approximately October of 2014. I know that some rules have been changed, revised, and updated. But I feel that the underlying issues are likely to remain.</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"> In full disclosure, I probably won't ever be returning to SA. I've taken a role on Plot at SPITE which provides a very similar factional town feel to SA. While some of the same issues are present in SPITE, I feel that the leadership of the game is much more willing to address these issues rather than try to sweep them under the rug.</span><br />
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<span style="color: white;">----</span><br />
<span style="color: white;"><br /></span>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There have been some outstanding successes and some dismal failures found within the rules set. From a designer/developer perspective, I want to walk through what worked and what didn't in order to really show where the system remains strong and where it needs to continue to be refined. As I step away from the Rules Team I want to note that I feel the rules are in no way complete, stable, or solid. But continued progress on the rules hasn't really been a priority for the organization.</span></div>
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</b> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Successes</span></div>
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</b> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Energy Economy</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The infinite energy complex is dead. This has radically altered the game and finally disconnected the close interaction between Shifters and Wraiths. Honestly, at this point, the two really don't have a whole lot to do with each other. This is as it should be and I think the game is better for it. This was really what the game needed. It was the biggest and probably the most shocking change to the game.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The addition of nodes has also created several interesting zones in the game. In my original write up of the rules I had people spending 10 minutes regaining energy at a node rather than 1 minute. I'm still not sure of the right decision here, but the nodes are clearly the right idea to create a game zone with interesting areas as well as handle the external sources of energy for these PC groups.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> While I consider the nodes a success I'd probably start messing with the amount of energy they provide. My experiences indicate that the target of 40 energy is probably too high. A 20 energy character could blow their entire energy pool three times per game without having any problems. This ended up being an easier game of resource management than we had intended. I might go so far as to cut this number in half and only have 20 floating energy. I feel this would do a better job creating a higher level of threat. This would be easy to handle by giving sorcerers 10 energy at sunrise, dropping haunts to one of each type, and cutting four of the shifter glades.</span></div>
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</b> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Character Creation</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> We really opened up the options in character creation. Bringing in a handful of merits, lores, and clear rules on purchasing learned powers has given players the option to build more diverse characters at character creation. This comes at a significant cost but I feel it has helped experienced players enter the game with richer characters, ultimately making the game richer. Choices such as playing a Brujah that learned Valeren, while costing more XP, is a much richer addition to the game than just another Salubri.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I've been excited to create and play new characters under this system and I've seen a number of people excited by the potential as well. I think this was a strength because it opened the box in a game that felt very boxed in at new character creation. There was fear that opening up BSD, Baali, and other “bad guys” as character creation would create a griefer issue. This fear has yet to be realized as I don’t think it really exists. The few PCs we’ve had in game that took these options have generally been clever, or devious. Overall I feel that new characters have become more exciting, which is why we’ve had so many of them.</span></div>
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</b> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Agg Damage</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> This was one of the most heavily contested changes we brought in. It has created a very interesting level of depth into the game. I don't feel like this has really been explored as deeply as we had hoped but I feel that it is working. Someone throwing agg causes a big change in how PCs deal with a problem. From what I've seen the added math of agg hasn't been a problem and it has given ST a big tool for challenging players. While I think ST is yet to really make appropriate use of the ability to deal agg, I still think the concept has served to be quite a success.</span></div>
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</b> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Combat Feeding</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Vampires are still an incredibly powerful force in the game, especially when dealing with other vampires. Their power level drops drastically when dealing with Non Vampires and their ability to be an all game all-star has been seriously diminished. The new rules for feeding have allowed for successful feeding by vampires in social settings, the agg has made it undesirable, and has removed it as a combat technique. Feeding being removed from Wraiths has also had a significant effect on making damage the biggest way to deal with combat encounters rather than draining. It has also removed the parasitic relationship between wraiths and the living. Now, wraith are more able to be either friendly or not with the living based on their character concepts.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sort of Successes</span></div>
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</b> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Powers</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I feel we clarified and fixed a number of broken powers but some still remain. We may have gone too far with obedience, making it a very weak power. Cloak seems more properly balanced and Presence has received a major functional upgrade. The removal of Regenerate and the old Majesty, as well as the burn out rules, has altered the survivability of certain PC groups while drastically increasing the survivability of certain NPC groups. Killing someone remains expensive but very feasible. I’m happy with the direction here but feel the continuous tweaks are required. Horrid Reality remains incredibly powerful, as does Venom Blood while Daze seems much weaker than previous incarnations.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rituals</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I think we started off on the right foot with rituals. The new requirements add a lot of direction to the game and removing the silly limitations from the previous version has made rituals a big part of the “end game” of SA. Unfortunately, many of the rituals aren’t really completed, balanced, or well honed. Rituals were the last thing completed by the Rules Team as the new rules went into effect but they weren’t as well reviewed as other sections of the rule book. Some of the potential of the rituals is fantastic but I don’t feel that ST has done a great job getting the new rules for rituals into the players hands. There’s rituals to make a caern, the process for hiving a caern has changed, there’s a ton of cool changes that players haven’t adapted to yet because they haven’t seen the rituals yet. The Rituals are good in concept but not really well written or balanced.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Spirit Rules</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> You guys don’t know it yet but the spirit rules are awesome. They’ve been ratcheted up to 11 and can provide a great source of challenge for Shifters looking for a fight. Again, like rituals, much of this hasn’t been realized by the playership because of how ST has handled spirits. At some point there’ll be an ST that realizes the tools that are there and makes the game fantastic for shifters.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Failures</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Tags/Conversion</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> While most of conversion went over pretty smooth, the tags at conversion proved a major debacle. I’m relatively sure there is items that are running around that should never have existed. The system was designed so that no fetish is capable of swinging Fire without paying energy, no weapon longer than a dagger could be both silvered and made into a fetish. I’m not sure where the communication broke down here but I don’t think that tags ended up converting into the same rules set we had created for them to exist in. </span></div>
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</b> </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Willpower</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I feel like the change to the reliance on willpower hasn’t worked as intended. Personally, I love being able to take every mental thrown at me, at least for a few seconds. The majority of the playership doesn’t do this. Willpower is still a default response to a mental attack. What really happened was that the majority of old players and staff made characters with 8+ willpower under the new rules system. Honestly, I think this was bad for the game. Keeping willpower at 6 xp made it to cheap not to buy. I think I would have liked to have seen a tiered system for purchasing willpower where your second point costs six XP and your 10th point costs 15 or so xp. Currently, the 2 willpower for the cost of a learned level 3 power isn’t balanced. Willpower is just too useful not to have lots and I don’t think the game is actually more fun when you have lots of willpower. My priest has one willpower, and I’ve never spent it.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Adoption and Enforcement</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I’ll be honest here, I don’t think the rules have been adopted yet. I feel that this problem is two fold but most of the issue falls on the problem of enforcement. SA is the only LARP I’ve ever played with such a low level of rules knowledge among its players. It’s also the only LARP without some level of in game rules enforcement. I’m pretty sure the two are linked. Every other LARP I’ve experienced handles this much more professionally than SA. Attempts to correct people on incorrect rule usage is met with hostility on pretty much every level. I would say that overall the majority of the players don’t have a passable grasp of the rules. I see so many rules broken every event that I’m not even sure where to start to fix this, but I will say the biggest transgressors are ST. ST violates so many rules and tenants of the game that in any responsible LARP the individual members would likely end up banned from play. This isn’t a new problem, it existed under the old rules set and was evident in the example of ST killing a PC by misusing a power, then informing the individual how a power worked incorrectly.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> When creating the rules, the rules team believed that having a clearer and more coherent rules set would encourage better rules knowledge. This clearly hasn’t been the case. Even though the rules are much more consistent than ever before, there has been little to no change in rules knowledge among the playership. In a LARP I don’t expect perfect rules usage. I’ve forgotten to do the 10 seconds of RP before Possession, gotten the stages of death incorrect, misread how a power works, miscounted energy usage, swung my weapons too fast, and used Gauntlet Walk too fast after attacking. Errors happen, it’s a part of the game, especially in the heat of battle, and I’m the person who knows the rules best. The game has lots of rules and it gets confusing. But what I don’t see is a community of people working together to enforce the rules. Instead there is an overall casual approach to the rules which causes a “rules optional” environment to develop.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> At the last game the number of rules violations by ST in the combat at the tree was amazing. Some of these were on issues they had been previously warned about. Some were on “secret ST” powers, but none were acceptable. At this point, due to my own experience, I have absolutely no faith in ST to follow the rules of the game as they have been written down.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> One thing I’ve been pushing for a number of years is the existence of some sort of Rules Marshall program at SA. Most other games have people that are responsible for rules oversight which may or may not be the same people as the ones that are coming up with the rules. Currently in SA it is impossible to give a rules correction to someone without it coming off as an attack. The lack of an impartial arbiter of the rules increases the difficulty of bring about any sort of expectation that the rules exist to be followed. I’ve seen instances of two people taking different interpretations of the rules and sticking to their own understanding regardless of what they are being told. With a small rules team, it simply isn’t possible that there will be a rules member there for every improperly used rule.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The final piece of this is that people need to get off their high horse about not wanting to interrupt a scene when someone has broken a rule. Nothing is more jarring to people who know the rules than someone breaking them. Signature calls become part of the music of the game and someone randomly inserting illegal power usage or incorrect signature calls breaks that down immediately. It is better to have a game in which someone can instruct another player that their call is a flub, stop for a moment to explain a rule, or raise a flag when someone repeatedly breaks rules than to have a game where the immersion is so special that it is not worth following the rules of the game. I view the rules as the contract between all players and staff in a game. While you may occasionally make a mistake, the expectation needs to be that you aren’t allowed to break the contract. If you do, there needs to be people standing watch to make sure it’s followed.</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ST Rules</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The blame on this particular issue doesn’t quite lie with any one person or group. The big issue here is that the ST rules were never completed. What ST has been using for the past year is a mashup of rules I wrote for Magic Items, Shifters, Vampires, and Spirits, and what Trevor put together for Mages, Fae and Demons. The rules I put together were never reviewed in a meaningful way and most of Trevors were just quickly glanced over. This means that the entire ST book isn’t really balanced in any meaningful way.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> However, this isn’t the greatest failure in my mind. The biggest failure lies in the hand off from the rules team to the ST team in creating guidelines that fit within the rules system we had created. My original desire was to put together a real Storyteller Guide which included how powers were intended to be used, taught, viewed by the world at large. Also instructions on how common certain subfactions should be in the game world. Instead of creating a basic set of instructions and guidelines, we gave the STs some pretty powerful tools and just trusted that they knew what we meant -- they didn’t.</span></div>
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<span style="color: white;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> This issue first came apparent with the power Tainted which adds the Tainted meta call onto every attack. This was intended to be a power that indicated “this creature is just plain dirty” and that you really can’t get into any kind of altercation with it without coming out tainted. Though it was a level one power in a BSD tree, I had always envisioned it as fairly uncommon among NPCs. Being the big ball of ickyness is great for that one guy in the group or a decently beefy bad guy, but I had never thought that we’d see put out on every bane as happened in the first few games. To their credit, once we informed ST of this they toned it down significantly.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br class="kix-line-break" /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Though the Tainted power was the first instance of this, the pattern of using powers as was not intended was repeated again and again by ST. This isn’t really their fault as we never gave them any direction, but it has created a number of issues that have been terrible for the game. Another example of this is the commonality of Gaultlet Walk on spirits. Gauntlet Walk is a fairly rare level three power. It isn’t something that lots of spirits should have, or want. In fact there is a power that is available to spirits that NEED to do things in the realm which is available to spirits, it is Appear, the wraith power. Even Appear I’d expect to be a very uncommon power among spirits. There’s no reason for spirits to be in the realm any more than there is reason for Vampires to be in the umbra. Unfortunately, seeking to create threats to the town, numerous spirits were given the Gauntlet Walk power. It only took two games before the veil in Seaton Carou was as shredded as Ushaw Moore. It was shredded by STs partially because of this oversight.</span></span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> One of the things we talked about commonly while working on the rules set was making sure the rules prevented ST from griefing the playerbase. It was commonly discussed and believed that the rules set needed to decrease the options for ST to play unfair with their NPCs. Powers like Stonehand Punch replacing Realm Strike existed solely because of the lack of trust the Rules Team had in making the game enjoyable if they were able to attack the realm from the umbra in a meaningful way in which their could not be an form of return fire. Even though this limitation exists, STs have been caught multiple times trying to break this rule and beat on PCs from the Umbra. It seems even when it’s against the rules, they still want to grief PCs.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> What I think is needed here is a ST book that actually gives directions on how to use the rules to tell a story. The ST rules should be more like a Dungeon Master’s Guide and less of a Monster Manual. The last edition I handed over while on rules team included restrictions on how many of various subfactions ST were permitted to send out in a given event or year. This is to prevent the issues we’ve seen like using mages and fae as bruisers in order to ramp up difficulty of an encounter. It should also prevent the extensive use of special NPC snowflakes (like Rokea) as a lazy plot devices. I have little faith that these changes will be used and implemented but I do feel they are incredibly necessary.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The other part of the ST book needs to be a guide to inform STs on how to make meaningful and powerful characters, how to run a game that preserves the veil, and how NPCs should treat things like someone wanting to learn their gifts. Unfortunately, these things have previously been left up to ST discretion which creates massive inconsistencies ranging from totems demanding the death of someone for teaching tribal gifts to NPCs handing them out for free. While some feel that these world consistency points don’t really fall into the realm of the Rules Team, I feel it is necessary that those who put powers into trees have some say in what they mean being there.</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Conclusion</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> While there is clearly a lot of potential in the rules set, I can’t say that I’m really happy with the result. I feel that much of the potential has yet to be realized and that the game we’re currently seeing isn’t any better than it used to be under the old rules set. It feels newer and there’s a few shiny new toys but considering the damage done to old characters in the conversion, I don’t feel we came out very far ahead. The game can now be more meaningful, impactful, and contain sharper edged stories but only if ST pushes it in that direction. I’ll be honest, I feel the location reset did more for the game than the rules change at this point.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Finally, I don’t feel that players can trust ST to follow the rules. This is huge, but their violations have been so consistent and egregious, working against both the letter and spirit of the rules set, that I don’t feel that they deserve the privilege of having hidden rules. Because of this I’ve linked the latest version of the ST rules as I’ve stopped working on them since leaving the rules team. These rules will surely change and be overruled, but based on progress on them over the past year, it likely won’t be anytime soon.</span></div>
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YnAkL0_tJ_vg4H-uVHZvejCaGPMpCOCKDiRgoff2TfE/edit?usp=sharing" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 14.666666666666666px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SA 2.0 ST-Temp Rules</span></a></div>
Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-38049396380244492662015-05-06T14:57:00.002-07:002015-05-06T14:58:15.546-07:00Magic Judges - The Things We Say <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">I want to say before anything else that I’ve received huge amounts of support within the judge community. Every judge I’ve met has been awesome, skilled, entertaining, and unique. I have honestly felt support from the judge program like few other groups I’ve ever been in. It resembles my cohort in my Masters Program in the way we all pull together, but even more supportive as we are working on a communal goal (running a strong event) rather than an individual goal (graduating).</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">In most communities disruptions come not from intentional malice, but from how people choose to act, unknowing of how it affects others. The hurtful things we do and say are most commonly not intentional. I want to bring up two instances of significantly hurtful things that took place at a GP last year. These hurtful things were done by two awesome people. My intent isn’t to call these people out for their actions, but instead to help us notice how much little things can affect how people, especially newer judges, perceive the actions of others. I want to note that I’ve had other positive interactions with the judges in the following examples and I try not to let the interactions in these examples cloud my view of them as both people and as judges, but I’m not perfect either.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">Just to set the scene here, I’ve been a L1 for about 6 months, I’ve worked four Comp REL events including PTQs, a SCG Open, TCG States but this is my first GP. I managed to squeeze in to work a couple of days on sides, I’m crashing with another judge and I’ve even managed to make a couple of the judge events before the GP. I’m assigned to on demand events and registration for the event and just enjoying the scene.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #cccccc;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As sides wind down one evening I get pulled from the on demand events and handed off to the </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">team sealed</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> single elimination “grinders”. As a get directed to the flight I’m on by the team lead I have approximately the following conversation:</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">Me: As far as matches going to time, let me make sure I’ve got this right. When a match goes to time, there’s five extra turns, but because this is single –</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">TL: Wait, what level are you?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">Me: Level 1.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">TL: Next time lead with that. The way the end of round works is… (Then proceeded to explain the entire thing to me)</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">I just want to point out two things in this back and forth. The first, and probably most important, is that I wanted confirm my understanding was correct (which it was). I wasn’t seeking someone to explain to me how it was supposed to work; I was looking for an opportunity to confirm that I had it right (which I did). As most school teachers know, if a student says they’ve got it but can’t explain it back to you, they don’t really have it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">The second thing is that all asking my level did to me is reinforce the feeling that I was out of my depth here (which I wasn’t). This is a fear many L1s have at big events. I’m curious how differently the interaction might have gone if my response was “I’m a L2 but I’ve never worked a single elimination, timed, team sealed event.” In the end, my judge level shouldn’t dictate my ability to ask if what I know is correct. Nor should it dictate your answer to that question. If I’m right, then I should be confirmed, if I’m wrong I want to be taught. Instead I left the situation feeling like the kid who’s parents forced his older brother to drag him along to the bowling alley being told I need the bumpers put up.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">The second instance was the following day and is in some ways less directly judge related but ended up with a very similar feeling for me. I was firing on demand events and an off duty judge approached for his event. I knew he was a judge because I’d seen him around over the course of the week but hadn’t ever been introduced I also knew, by the people he associated closely with, he was a notable fixture in the judging community. I had five of my eight players for the event so I had a one in three shot of getting his name right. I did what I always do when players walk up in this case and asked “Are you Brendan, or Jason, or…” My comment was met with a visible and audible sigh as the judge turned away from me and approached a judge that would recognize him. From their conversation I was able to pick up the judge’s name and mark him off on my list as present for my event.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">Again, the message I received was here was loud and clear, “you don’t belong here.” I realize in perfect hindsight that the best way to handle this situation would have been for me to introduce myself noting that we hadn’t been introduced but that’s not normally how I proceed when I’m checking names to fire an event. It seems to me it would have been pretty easy to just tell me the correct name so I can get it checked off on my list.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">I don’t believe the slight was intentional but these are two of the three moments I most clearly remember from judging the event several months later. Writing about this event still affects me emotionally. I was so excited to be judging my first GP, a goal I had set for myself at the beginning of the year and had spent countless hours working towards. To twice get the message from higher level judges that I didn’t belong or wasn’t part of the in crowd was incredibly hurtful.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">I’m not entirely sure how my involvement in the judge program would have changed had it not been for the single comment of another judge that weekend. As I was packing up to leave after my shift a local judge told me “You’ve done a really good job this weekend and a lot of important people have noticed.” This is the moment of this GP that I run over and over in my head. This is the moment that drove me to go for level 2 and apply to the next GP. This is what locks people into the judge program.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;"><br /></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #cccccc;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-4f2bd726-2b36-78bf-fff7-648020756b1b"></span></span><br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: #cccccc;">It’s really important that we realize how impactful our comments and actions can be, especially when interacting with newer members of the judge community. From the outside the “GP Judges” appear as very elite and closed off group. I’ve been fortunate enough to learn that this isn’t the case, but I wonder how many judges we’ve lost because they got the message that they aren’t cool enough.</span></span></div>
Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-18202087150383066542014-07-29T17:41:00.004-07:002014-07-29T17:41:43.026-07:00Understanding Audience SizeI'll take a stab at some number theory here for size of groups. As a school teacher in a very small school district I've had the experience of having class sizes ranging from 5 to 34. As a conference presenter I've worked with groups of up to 100. There are some very specific things to take into account at various sizes.<br />
<br />
2-3 Accountability Groups<br />
I use this term because groups of this size are fantastic at holding others to deadlines, getting people to open up about their own faults and issues, and are a great tool for growth. They are often times Mentor/Mentee relationships or a meeting of colleagues trying to work on a very particular project. If you're trying to get work done, groups this size are ideal<br />
<br />
<br />
4-7 Dinner Party<br />
Groups that are bigger than a small gathering don't have the intimacy for people to open up to the same level unless they have been taking place for quite a long time. At most a situation like this can end up breaking up into a couple of conversations. Most classroom techniques have a lot of trouble at this size. A single speaker with 4-5 people listening is awkward. Breaking up into roleplays is also odd because either you have everyone doing them while the rest of the group watches, or you have two or three roleplays going on at once. This size group is best for brainstorming and having open discussion of a topic.<br />
<br />
8-12 Workshop<br />
At this size you can easily have people break up into small groups for individual work or roleplay without things getting weird. Speaking to a group this size as a classroom doesn't work great but is feasible. Having something for people to do in groups of this size is necessary. At the very least taking detailed notes, writing down answers to questions, or having some form of team work helps a groups this size move forward. Discussions at this size tend to be dominated by a few key people unless you have some sort of system in place that gives everyone the chance to speak. Wraparounds, where everyone shares something in turn, works great at this size<br />
<br />
13-40 Classroom<br />
When you get much above twelve it can be difficult to keep everyone actively participating in whatever is taking place. The classroom structure often times includes breaking people into small groups in order to achieve meaningful discussion. Question and answer works at this size but don't mistake that kind of interaction for true discussion. Some form of presentation followed by individual or small group work is generally needed to make the best use of this size. Sharing work from the group works to some degree but is difficult to make meaningful without a group meeting more consistently.<br />
<br />
40+ Conference Presentations<br />
Once you break the 40 line you have no ability to monitor what people are doing. You can't really stop the show to get feedback and make adjustments. There's likely to be too many questions for you to ever answer them all. This is where conference presentations differ from the other setting sizes. You're goal is to inform and inspire your audience to take certain steps in the future. You're focused purely on the takeaway with full knowledge that nothing will be completed during the presentation. Audience participation is still important, but audience input generally won't shift the direction of anything. You ask questions that you already know the answer to in order to keep the audience involved, not to gain any specific information.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-15742636083492233772014-05-15T09:06:00.002-07:002014-05-15T09:06:56.847-07:00Letter Read at the Lopez Island School Board Meeting on 5/14<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would
first off like to thank those of you who have spoken out in support of the
Technology Program here at Lopez Island School. Whether by email, in person, on
Facebook, or hugs, I thank everyone who has taken a stand about the value of
the technology education.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While I’d naturally like to give a diatribe
about the value of technology in education, I have little doubt that the
members of the board already know and agree with the role technology should be
playing in our schools. Instead, I’d like to tell you a story about a day in my
job. During the evening previous to this day I had received an email from Bill
informing me that Stephanie’s monitor had gone out and asking me to take a look
at it first thing in the morning. As I entered school I went to Stephanie’s
computer and solved the problem immediately. This was prior to taking my
daughter down to kindergarten and before anyone was even in the district
office.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Upon reaching the kindergarten class and
seeing my daughter off to school, I was pulled into the elementary office where
they were having internet problems. After troubleshooting in the elementary
office I headed down to the server room to restart the wifi controller which
seemed to be the source of the problem. Once everything was settled and
internet was restored, I got a call from the kitchen telling me that they were
experiencing problems on the lunch counter computer. This computer is wired so
the wifi controller couldn’t have been the cause. It turns out that somehow the
wired connection on their computer had been disabled, so I simply re-enabled it
and got the lunch counter going again. I then sat down with the kitchen
computer which had been replicating several new kinds of adware and was unable
to access any kind of internet browser. I solved this problem too, all before I
got back to my classroom to turn on my computer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tell you this not because I feel overworked
or want to be appreciated for what I do. I tell you this because each one of
these problems required a direct, hands on solution that could not have been handled
by remote support. These kinds of problems are common everyday issues in any
school. We cannot expect every teacher to be a technology expert and we cannot
expect other teachers or administrators to step away from their job to provide
technical support. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Imagine the situation where our support was instead
based in Anacortes and would have to arrive from the mainland the following
day. We have a full day with Stephanie’s monitor not working, the kitchen doing
all finances by hand and unable to make their daily reports, and no internet
available in the elementary classrooms, offices, or principal’s office. The
money saved by keeping these individuals up and running <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">far</i> outweighs the cost of my time. This was all done and I still
taught my classes on this day. As a note, this isn’t a random mythical day. It
was last Wednesday, shortly after I was informed by the Superintendant that the
technology program was being gutted.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am here to ask that the current technology
program be allowed to remain as it is. It provides much needed support for our
staff and education for our students. This is the time to be growing our
technology program, not decreasing it. The expectation of our students entering
either college or the work place is that they are computer literate. The belief
that our students will learn what they need on their own or at home simply
isn’t true. Children today will be directly affected by the choices they make
online for the rest of their lives. Failing to provide them with a suitable
education with regards to their involvement in the internet is simply an
unconscionable choice.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d ask you to think back to something you
did in your teenage years. Something, perhaps, that you are not proud of. The
members of the school board have the luxury of this only being a memory in the
minds of those present at the time. This is not the reality our students live
in. Imagine instead that your friend with you took pictures, posted them
online, and it became the top hit when someone searched your name, even today.
The actions of our students online can be like tattoos or scars they carry for
the rest of their lives. If we are giving each of our students access to a
tattoo gun, we best be assured they know how to use it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The state and federal government have been
very clear as to the direction of technology in education. The common core
standards for Language Arts state that children in the 6<sup>th</sup> grade
must be publishing their work online. We are facing the impending Smarter
Balanced Assessments that will first test the digital competency of a student
before it can accurately assess mathematics and literacy. Where do we expect
our students to gain the skills necessary to navigate these assessments? How
can we test students on machine they are entirely unfamiliar with and expect
them to succeed?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the two years I’ve been here, we as a
school have made great steps forward with regards to technology education. Our
first through fifth graders are learning to type, creating presentations,
word-processing thanks to the work of Lisa Shelby bringing technology to the
forefront of the elementary school. Most of our secondary teachers are posting
due dates, assignments, and lessons online for students who were absent or
otherwise missed these important details. We have established a course in 6<sup>th</sup>
grade in which students learn about cyberbullying, internet safety, 3D design,
programming, email usage, typing, website creation, blogging, and digital
citizenship through simulation. In the digital video class students have found
a voice to air their opinions to the community as activists and artists. Our
juniors and seniors have learned how to control their online image and prevent
damaging information about them from becoming public. Finally, they produced an
online portfolio presenting their crowning achievements from their high school
career to be made available to parents, grandparents, college admissions
officers, and future employers. By cutting the technology program, you are
saying that this is not the kind of education our children need. By reducing
technology education you are placing our students at a serious disadvantage
compared to students graduating from other schools.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My final point comes in the part of four
questions. Without this position how can we make sure technical support is
available to students and teachers at all times during the school day? Who will
be responsible for making sure our school moves forward with 21<sup>st</sup>
century technology? Who will make sure that our students are protecting
themselves and their reputation online? Finally, if we don’t take the
responsibility to make sure our students are computer literate aren’t we
further punishing the students in our community who are already at the greatest
economic disadvantage?</span></div>
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<br /></div>
Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-20277365736919585582014-04-29T12:26:00.000-07:002014-04-29T12:33:29.781-07:00Journey Into Nyx Winners and Losers<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=tf_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mrdtegabl-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B00J9NU34W&asins=B00J9NU34W&linkId=2LI2IHVCH55D5AUT&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"><br />
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Check out my new article over at <a href="http://brainstormbrewery.com/casually-infinite-jou-standard-winners-and-losers/">Brainstorm Brewery</a>.<br />
<br />
What gains and what loses in Standard.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=tf_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mrdtegabl-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B00I0025FU&asins=B00I0025FU&linkId=3PQQQXREOEH64ONK&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"><br />
</iframe><br />Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-65058270828722317882014-02-07T17:48:00.000-08:002014-02-07T17:51:39.115-08:00Born of the Gods Limited Set Review - Multicolored and ColorlessThe other color set reviews can be found at the following links:<br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/for-me-one-of-best-ways-to-make-profit.html">Black</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-red.html">Red</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-green.html">Green</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-white.html">White</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-blue.html">Blue</a><br />
<script src="http://deckbox.org/assets/external/tooltip.js"></script><br />
<br />
For me, one of the best ways to make a profit and still enjoy playing Magic is to win events. In Limited events that means knowing what is good in a format and being able to able to accurately assess the value of cards. Everyone puts their own value on certain types of cards. Some favor removal over any creatures, others take any decent creature over removal. Some like expensive or late game cards and others prefer value for early tempo. While I can't adjust for your play style I can tell you what I happen to think of certain cards.<br />
<h2>
Limited Rating System</h2>
Everyone who evaluates cards uses a different system. Mine is 1-10 because I feel like it creates the easiest and most recognizable system. Using grades tends to provide some false associations; B- is a pretty lame grade in school but a pretty good card in magic. I also don't like using the 1-5 system because I'd rather say something is a five than a two point five.<br />
<br />
10 - First pick and must play even if you have to splash it.<br />
9 - Game winning card every time it hits the table.<br />
8 - Bombs, top tier removal, and otherwise game defining creatures.<br />
7 - Powerful creatures or amazingly efficient creatures, conditional removal.<br />
6 - Solid creatures, expensive or highly restrictive removal, big play enchantments and artifacts.<br />
5 - Core cards in your deck, on curve creatures, decent cards.<br />
4 - Fallback cards that you'd rather not have in your deck but can fill in if needed. Cards that are too situational to main deck.<br />
3 - Bad cards, cards that have too much risk and little reward.<br />
2 - Really bad cards that barely do anything at all and aren't likely to impact the game in a meaningful way.<br />
1 - A card with zero meaningful impact on Limited games of Magic.<br />
Add-on Ratings<br />
S - Sideboard cards. These will often be brought out of your board and are worth picking up over other things of their level because of their impact against certain match-ups.<br />
+ - Better than the average card in this category but still not worth the step up to the next level.<br />
<h2>
Multicolored Uncommons</h2>
It’s worth noting that Multicolored cards generally require you to be in the two colors to establish an accurate value. Splashing for them is frequently dangerous and not advised in most circumstances. Also pack 1 pick 1 is a rough time to grab a multi-colored card because it sticks you into a single color pair on your first pick.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ephara%27s%20Enlightenment">Ephara’s Enlightenment</a> – 5 <br />
Uncommon<br />
I feel like this is a tricky way to trigger heroic several times, but definitely not a bad one. On the first shot you get heroic and a +1/+1 counter. When you cast another creature you get to put it back on the next turn. The added benefit of flying means that I think this card is playable and will pull its weight. I like that it gives counters because they stick around even if something happens to the enchantment. Plus gaining evasion on a heroic guy is a nice bonus.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fanatic%20of%20Xenagos">Fanatic of Xenagos</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
As a 3/3 for three with additional damage the turn you play him or a 4/4 he’s a pretty swanky three drop. A 3/3 with haste would probably cost you more so you’re already getting a bonus. This is just a really solid creature regardless of how the tribute goes. Either way he’s still a guy you want in red green.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Kiora%27s%20Follower">Kiora’s Follower</a> – 6+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Already being a bear we know she’s playable. But this card is beyond all accounts amazing. While at first glance this looks like a ramp card, the fact that it stays relevant the entire game makes it incredibly strong. On turn three you’re untapping a land for a four drop, on turn eight you’re untapping your Kraken to block with, or gaining another trigger on your <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Retraction%20Helix">Retraction Helix</a>. My god this does everything.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ragemonger">Ragemonger</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Considering that minotaurs never really did it for me in <i>Theros </i>I’m reluctant to say this guy sounds good. Having more three drop minotaurs will probably help and making your others easier to cast seems pretty nice. If you already have one on the board your next is only a two drop and all further minotaurs only cost colorless mana. This makes for an interesting minotaur ramp. But I still don’t see this as the tribal that is going to carry you through. Most of the minotaurs in this set are either rare or not that impressive.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Reap%20What%20is%20Sown">Reap What is Sown</a> - 5<br />
Uncommon<br />
Hmm. With <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Travel%20Preparations">Travel Preparations</a> I got to do two creatures for one less mana, then I got to do it again to two creatures which were possibly the same for one more mana. This means the creature that it matters for grew twice and maybe I can make an irrelevant card more relevant by putting two 1/1 counters on it. This doesn’t do that. At best it is a bad <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Glorious%20Anthem">Glorious Anthem</a>. Instant speed is nice but you’ve really got to line up your blocks perfectly to make it work. I guess it’s playable as a combat trick and heroic enabler.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Siren%20of%20the%20Silent%20Song">Siren of the Silent Song</a> – 6 <br />
Uncommon<br />
Considering <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/liliana%27s%20Spectre">Liliana’s Spectre</a> is a pauper staple I can see this card going far in limited. The repeated discard effect on a flier can decimate an opponent’s hand pretty quickly. Even if you only get two or three discards you’re gaining huge card advantage. Paying three for a 2/1 flier isn’t great but they tend to be able to get in when nothing else can. <br />
<h2>
Multicolored Rares</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Chromanticore">Chromanticore</a> – 2<br />
Mythic<br />
Just no.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ephara,%20God%20of%20the%20Polis">Ephara, God of the Polis</a> – 6+<br />
Mythic<br />
Ephara is actually one of my favorite gods because her ability is just plain useful. She is one of the few gods that actually takes steps to help you reach devotion. If you’re in blue and white you could do far worse than an enchantment that lets you draw a card every time you play a creature. Eventually that leads to turning her back into a creature and that’s pretty nice.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Karametra,%20God%20of%20the%20Harvest">Karametra, God of the Harvests</a> – 5<br />
Mythic<br />
If I was in white green I’m sure I’d run her, but I can’t really be that happy about ramp starting at five mana. Plus I only get the ramp when I cast a creature after her. I think any god is probably a five regardless if you’re in the colors just because of the large possible upside, but really this one might only be a four.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Kiora,%20the%20Crashing%20Wave">Kiora, the Crashing Wave</a> – 8<br />
Mythic<br />
Having had the chance to play with Kiora a bit in constructed I think this card is amazing. Being able to blank their biggest guy while ticking up or simply providing additional ramp is very sweet. If they can’t deal with you quickly you basically get a win the game emblem in a few turns. The fact that she protects herself means that you can blank their biggest threat for as long as she lives. Even when she ends up dying after two or three turns she still feels like she’s done her fair share of work. In order for her to be a blank you need to be getting hit by two creatures you can’t deal with. At that point you’re likely to need more than a planeswalker to save you.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Mogis,%20God%20of%20Slaughter">Mogis, God of Slaughter</a> – 5+<br />
At least Mogis does something impactful when your board is empty. He’s a four mana clock that says you’re going to die in the next five to ten turns. That isn’t terrible. However, that isn’t really enough. If you have the creatures to get him turned on he’s fine, but he doesn’t do much work on his own. Better than Karametra but only by a hair.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Phenax,%20God%20of%20Deception">Phenax, God of Deception</a> – 6<br />
Mythic<br />
As an alternate win condition, Phenax is pretty impressive. With a 40 card deck he can mill through a library pretty quickly. This makes him the king of board stalls but not much else. Even if you get him turned on it’s still probably better to mill away than attack. I’d say this’ll frequently be a three to five turn clock assuming you have some sort of decent blocker on the board, which isn’t bad but it clearly isn’t a direct threat either.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Xenagos,%20God%20of%20Revels">Xenagos, God of Revels</a> - 7<br />
Mythic<br />
Is Xenagos really that good? Yes, yes he is. Even at five mana doubling the power and toughness of a creature is massive. Your 3/1 becomes a 6/4 when it attacks. You play some big six drop and get to attack with him right away as a 8/6 or something ridiculous. This has an immediate board impact and can turn any race into your favor. If you’re deep in the hole it won’t do much but an otherwise unremarkable creature can quickly become a game ending threat with Xenagos. <br />
<h2>
Colorless Uncommon</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Gorgon%27s%20Head">Gorgon’s Head</a> – 5 <br />
Uncommon<br />
Repeatable deathtouch is a pretty powerful tool. Considering you can move it around from attackers to blockers it’ll be able to pull some weight. I’m pretty sure I don’t want two of these in any deck but I’m pretty happy with one. Sometimes you just won’t have the creatures to put it on but turning your otherwise unremarkable two drop in to a Sedge Scorpion can save the day.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Pillar%20of%20War">Pillar of War</a> – 4+<br />
Uncommon<br />
With all the work <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Returned%20Phalanx">Returned Phalanx</a> did in <i>Theros </i>I’d expect this to make it into a fair number of decks. A 3/3 wall for three can do some decent blocking and it makes for an automatic target for a bestow. I think I’d rather have a creature that can attack but I can see running a couple of these to shore up my ground game early on if I felt I was lacking in three drops.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Siren%20Song%20Lyre">Siren Song Lyre</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Tapping down creatures is a really powerful effect. Paying six mana and tapping one of your creatures in order to tap down your first guy is a bit harsh. But there are times where your opponent has a card you just don’t have an answer for and this can be that answer. As an insurance policy it seems decent but I’m still worried about running it in my main deck. Without a creature to stick it on it is worthless and it basically ties up both a creature and two mana for the rest of the game when I could probably just play another creature.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Springleaf%20Drum">Springleaf Drum</a> – 5<br />
Uncommon<br />
I think this card goes in every deck. With inspired running around this gives the only free trigger for it every turn. Any creature with inspired will trigger whenever you want them to if you have this card. Plus it provides both fixing and ramp at a pretty affordable cost. I think I’d even happily run two because of how quickly it would let me start playing big creatures. As a Modern and Pauper staple card this is something that will do good work in any deck so long as you’re playing, you know, creatures. <br />
<h2>
Colorless Rare</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Astral%20Cornucopia">Astral Cornucopia</a> – 5<br />
Rare<br />
Considering that <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Darksteel%20Ingot">Darksteel Ingot</a> saw play and this is a multicolored set I can’t imagine leaving this card out of a deck just for the ramp effect. It also allows for an additional splash which is nice. But overall it’s just mana fixing and ramp combo which doesn’t do much else. I also don’t ever see casting this for six unless I’m just plain out of things to do.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Hero%27s%20Podium">Hero’s Podium</a> – 2 <br />
Rare<br />
This is a constructed card and not a very good one at that. Considering this is one of the three rares you’re likely to open and Legendary creatures only come out at Rare or Mythic most of the time the chance you’ll ever be able to use this to positive effect is pretty low. If somehow you get two legendary creatures in your deck you still need to spend five mana to cast plus another five or so mana to dig for a creature. That’s ten mana to possibly get one of your legendary creatures into your hand. It doesn’t even cast it.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Temple%20of%20Enlightenment">Temple of Enlightenment</a>, <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Temple%20of%20Malice">Temple of Malice</a>, <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Temple%20of%20Plenty">Temple of Plenty</a> – 5+<br />
Rare<br />
Considering that we’re seeing temples played in Standard even in mono-colored decks I think that using a temple to replace a Plains is just fine. If it matches your colors I’d definitely pick it up ahead of any generally playable card. Plus it’s sure to be worth between one and two tickets. Even it only matches one color I think it’s still a pretty easy pickup just for the free scry.<br />
<br />Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-21179221633485112622014-02-07T17:37:00.002-08:002014-02-07T17:50:02.427-08:00Born of the Gods Limited Set Review - Blue<script src="http://deckbox.org/assets/external/tooltip.js"></script><br />
For me, one of the best ways to make a profit and still enjoy playing Magic is to win events. In Limited events that means knowing what is good in a format and being able to able to accurately assess the value of cards. Everyone puts their own value on certain types of cards. Some favor removal over any creatures, others take any decent creature over removal. Some like expensive or late game cards and others prefer value for early tempo. While I can't adjust for your play style I can tell you what I happen to think of certain cards.<br />
<br />
The other color set reviews can be found at the following links:<br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/for-me-one-of-best-ways-to-make-profit.html">Black</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-red.html">Red</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-green.html">Green</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-white.html">White</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review.html">Multicolored and Colorless </a><br />
<br />
<h2>
Limited Rating System</h2>
Everyone who evaluates cards uses a different system. Mine is 1-10 because I feel like it creates the easiest and most recognizable system. Using grades tends to provide some false associations; B- is a pretty lame grade in school but a pretty good card in magic. I also don't like using the 1-5 system because I'd rather say something is a five than a two point five.<br />
<br />
10 - First pick and must play even if you have to splash it.<br />
9 - Game winning card every time it hits the table.<br />
8 - Bombs, top tier removal, and otherwise game defining creatures.<br />
7 - Powerful creatures or amazingly efficient creatures, conditional removal.<br />
6 - Solid creatures, expensive or highly restrictive removal, big play enchantments and artifacts.<br />
5 - Core cards in your deck, on curve creatures, decent cards.<br />
4 - Fallback cards that you'd rather not have in your deck but can fill in if needed. Cards that are too situational to main deck.<br />
3 - Bad cards, cards that have too much risk and little reward.<br />
2 - Really bad cards that barely do anything at all and aren't likely to impact the game in a meaningful way.<br />
1 - A card with zero meaningful impact on Limited games of Magic.<br />
Add-on Ratings<br />
S - Sideboard cards. These will often be brought out of your board and are worth picking up over other things of their level because of their impact against certain match-ups.<br />
+ - Better than the average card in this category but still not worth the step up to the next level.<br />
<h2>
Blue Common/Uncommon</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Aerie%20Worshippers">Aerie Worshippers</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
While some of the pieces of inspired dude factory aren’t impressive, getting a 2/2 flying bird for 2U isn’t bad. At 2/4 I feel you’re much more likely to be able to make an attack than with lower power and toughness making untapping a worshiper far more likely. Plus getting a token with evasion is far more powerful than a couple of 1/1 mans. Inspired still seems more like a bonus than a reality though and this is a 2/4 for for.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Archetype%20of%20Imagination">Archetype of Imagination</a> – 6+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Levitation is bad at 2UU. A 3/2 on top of <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Levitation">Levitation</a> for 1U more is better. But the fact that this almost makes all your creatures unblockble is huge. It does make Reach a more valuable ability in this set but suddenly picking up your entire board and being able to ship it over unhindered can easily win you board stalls. The only problem here is that if you drop him on a pretty empty board he is just a 3/2 flier. We happily paid 3UU for <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Messenger%20Drake">Messenger Drake</a> it seems likely we’d pay one more to add the Trained Condor plus effect.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Chorus%20of%20the%20Tides">Chorus of the Tides</a> – 5+<br />
Common<br />
Speaking of 3/2 fliers, here’s one that costs two less mana. This heroic ability is actually the worst heroic ability I’ve seen yet. I’d never burn the spell just to do it –but if I’m going to bestow onto my flier anyway, getting a free scry one isn’t bad. I think I’ll be happy to play chorus of the tides as blue fliers looks like it could have a solid impact.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Crypsis">Crypsis</a> – 5<br />
This still isn’t <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Gods%20willing">Gods Willing</a> but it is blue and it does untap a creature and allow you to make a possible two for one. Seems legit so long as you have bigger creatures, which isn’t blue’s strength. I feel like this is card is a fine combat trick but doesn’t handle a threat unless you have something to block with that has deathtouch. With <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Baleful%20Eidolon">Baleful Eidolon</a> or <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Dredge%20Scorpion">Dredge Scorpion</a> this card goes up significantly. But on its own I’m not very impressed.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Deepwater%20Hypnotist">Deepwater Hypnotist</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
2/1s two drops are generally fine but unexciting. The bonus of giving a temporary <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sensory%20Deprivation">Sensory Deprivation</a> on untap may be significant if you get to attack with him once, you’re likely to be able to continue doing so. Again, inspired is more of a bonus in this case, but a 2/1 for two is still playable.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Divination">Divination</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
Drawing cards in <i>Theros </i>always felt like I was just fishing for more land to be able to cast some of my bigger creatures. With a decent number of two casting cost creatures I fear that Divination may be a dangerous play in a lot of games. If you do nothing on turn two and your opponent plays a creature, then you Divination on turn three and they play three drop, you’re in pretty bad shape. That said, gaining card advantage is still going to be important in the late game.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Eternity%20Snare">Eternity Snare</a> – 6<br />
Uncommon<br />
Cantrip <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Claustrophobia">Claustrophobia</a> probably sounds better than it is. At six mana plus failing to tap the creature you’ve enchanted I’m not convinced that this card is really going to save you. It’s also not like you’ll be able to turn around and cast the card you’ve drawn until the next turn. But cantrips are still pretty nice and removal (even bad expensive removal) is still removal.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Evanescent%20Intellect">Evanescent Intellect</a> – 2<br />
Common<br />
It’s a mill enchantment aura. That is so bad. Millstone wasn’t terrible but it was a straight up artifact. I know this is intended to go on something with Inspired or heroic but it just looks terrible for either of those purposes. Maybe I’m wrong but this cycle looks like they’ll all be sitting in the sideboard and never seeing play.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Flitterstep%20Eidolon">Flitterstep Eidolon</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
1/1 unblockable for two is fine; it makes for a great bestow target to hand out some continual damage. Being able to pitch it onto your big beasty for 5U is also pretty good because you have an unstoppable threat. Overall this guy is fine but he doesn’t do much on his own. Unlike several of the better bestow cards in Theros giving a pretty weak bonus doesn’t turn your non threat into a big threat. If you have to drop this on a 2/3 for six mana you aren’t exactly thrilled with the results.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Floodtide%20Serpent">Floodtide Serpent</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
Vanilla test says fine. I honestly can’t tell if this is a drawback or an advantage. Fortunately, it’s a cost not a trigger so Missed Trigger penalties don’t apply. Technically I’d say it is a drawback but being able to pitch your unattached bestow creatures into your hand is pretty nice at the best times. At the worst times you’ve got a 4/4 blocker. <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sea%20Serpent">Sea Serpent</a> was frequently playable primarily as a strong defender and 4/4s will block a lot of incoming threats. I’m thinking he’ll see play and be an acceptable creature most of the time.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Kracken%20of%20the%20Straits">Kraken of the Straits</a> -5<br />
Uncommon<br />
A big dumb creature that can’t be double-blocked for the kill seems pretty decent. 6/6 uncommon is fine, even for seven mana. There isn’t a lot of downside here except for the seven casting cost, but when a 6/6 with moderate evasion is your reward, you’re pretty happy. Do I want more than one? Probably not, but I’m fine with the first one at the top of my curve.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Meletis%20Astronomer">Meletis Astronomer</a> - 5<br />
Uncommon<br />
1/3s for two often do much more work than we expect them to. There is a lot of 2/1s and 2/3s running around in the set which makes the 1/3 body pretty important. Again, the mediocre heroic trigger means that I’m not thrilled with blowing a spell just to trigger heroic but if you’re already going to bestow or combat trick a guy, the upside is pretty decent. I think most of the time I’m playing a 1/3 for two more than I’m looking to rip enchantments out of my library.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Nullify">Nullify</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
I’d generally run two <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Essence%20Scatter">Essence Scatters</a> if I had them. I think nullify fits into that same mold. The UU instead of 1U is a bit of a downside because often times I’d end up using my Essence Scatter on turn three or four when I didn’t have a play. I can’t really guarantee that I have the mana at that point. With so many bestow creatures floating around I think Nullify is still decent, but not impressive.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Nyxborn%20Triton">Nyxborn Triton</a> – 6<br />
Common<br />
When I look at bestow creatures the first thing I look at is what happens if I cast them as creatures. 2/3 for three is a perfectly fine minotaur that is fair but not exciting. The next thing I look at is how much longer do I need to wait to bestow it. In this case, I’m bestowing two mana later and getting 2/3 which bumps any card from just a card to a bomb. Even better, when they kill that guy I’m left with a 2/3 which isn’t insignificant. I think this Triton will see plenty of play and will always do good work on the field.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Oracle%27s%20Insight">Oracle’s Insight</a> - 7 <br />
Uncommon<br />
You know how I said that the tap ability enchantments were lame. I wasn’t talking about this card. As a note, this card almost says “Tap a creature, scry 1, draw a card” which almost feels acceptable for four mana. But instead it lets you do this every turn. This card is insane. On any target with Inspired it is just plain bonkers. If this stays on the field for a few turns, you win. Occasionally you’ll get blown out but that’s a risk with any enchantment. Don’t forget you can activate it the turn you play it unless the creature is summoning sick. Or wait until their turn. While this is a great card you need to make sure you have threats in your deck that are worth digging for. If you have the option, you may just have to take a strong creature to actually have threats instead of this card.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Retraction%20Helix">Retraction Helix</a> – 6<br />
Common<br />
This almost says “tap a creature you control and <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Disperse">Disperse</a>” but not quite. For one mana I’m a big fan. Considering this can be done after blockers are declared to remove an aura the number of tricks this card can play is fantastic. It also triggers heroic and will trigger inspired.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Siren%20of%20the%20Fanged%20Coast">Siren of the Fanged Coast</a> – 6+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Nine out of ten times, this is a 4/4 flier for five, very <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Serra%20Angel">Serra Angel</a>. That one other time this card may be pretty bad. This is one of the few cards when the either/or from Tribute may not work out in your favor. If their board is weak, you get to steal their best creature, which may not be much. Then you’re stuck with a 1/1 flier and their mana dork for five. The backfire issue is there but this is still a pretty solid card.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sphinx%27s%20Disciple">Sphinx's Disciple</a> – 5+ <br />
Common<br />
When we played <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Messenger%20Drake">Messenger Drake</a> we were at least guaranteed a replacement card when it died. This is more of a flying Scroll Thief which seems pretty good until you see you’re paying five mana for a 2/2. When the air is open this is a great card. But if there’s much of anything else up there it’s not going to do much for you. But once you pull ahead with card draw, you’re sitting pretty good.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Stratus%20Walk">Stratus Walk</a> - 5<br />
Common<br />
This is several times better than <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Flight">Flight</a>. You still get a card back which is pretty nice but I'm not thrilled with it overall. It's good for both Heroic and Inspired. But overall it is not fantastic. I'm curious if the card replacement gives it more valuable than I'm giving it but it is still just a not very good aura. I might find myself happy to throw this in to my deck as a 22nd and 23rd card simply to up my speed through my deck.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sudden%20Storm">Sudden Storm</a> - 4+<br />
Common<br />
Slow <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Frost%20Breath">Frost Breath</a> with scry. If you've got the solid aggressive deck or the big bestow creature it's pretty good as you can get in for two turns. But in most regular decks this is still just a bad card. I hate having to use cards like this to do nothing but punt for two turns.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Thassa%27s%20Rebuff">Thassa's Rebuff</a> - 4 <br />
Uncommon<br />
This card has some really good possible upside in the right deck. If you're heavy blue it's fantastic. Lots of the time your opponent can't afford to pay three more mana to cast their big spells. Used on a card on curve it is pretty nice, once you're late in the game it can just get pretty bad. All in all it's really risky. It might find a home in some Mono-Blue.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Vortex%20Elemental">Vortex Elemental</a> – 5<br />
Uncommon<br />
This looks like a bad removal to me. So long as you’re able to block something you can basically throw it back into your deck and later end up drawing a creature that doesn’t really do anything on its own. It can deal with a big threat which may mean you need to side board it in against something you just don’t have an answer for, but you are just going to see it and whatever you send back into your opponent’s library again. The forced block cost is too high to expect to be able to hit two creatures and it doesn’t do anything against creatures with any form of evasion. Bad removal is still removal. <br />
<h2>
Blue Rare</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Arbiter%20of%20the%20Ideal">Arbiter of the Ideal</a> - 8<br />
Rare<br />
Rarely do you not attack with a 4/5 flier. That makes untapping it very likely though not a sure thing. At slightly weaker than a <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Mahamoti%20Djinn">Mahamoti Djinn</a> this card is a solid bomb. If it becomes the engine that keeps on giving you’ll just keep playing creatures and you’re unstoppable. It is a bit of a win more card since you already need to be in a position that you can attack with a 4/5 flier but the fact that it likely provides back end cover when you’re attacking makes it feel really solid.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fated%20Infatuation">Fated Infatuation</a> – 5<br />
Rare<br />
While this card is great a triple blue casting cost is pretty scary to me. I’d expect to see it landing in mono-blue decks just fine but if you have to wait until 6 mana to get your third blue source, the three casting cost clone really groundbreaking. Being able to get a clone and scry two is pretty good, so is instant speed clone. I’m just not sure how many decks want to run a UUU anything.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Mindreaver">Mindreaver</a> – 4<br />
Rare<br />
While I think Mindreaver is a very interesting card, I think it falls drastically short in Limited. The fact that you don’t get to rip three off the top when you cast Mindreaver and start off with some valid targets is a really big downside, especially in limited. Plus, how many doubles do people end up with, even in draft decks. You might have a couple of two ofs in your deck, maybe you got lucky and pulled three of a common. But as it is this guy is really just a 2/1 for UU which isn’t great but works in a pinch.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Perplexing%20Chimera">Perplexing Chimera</a> – 5+<br />
Rare<br />
The number of people that simply won’t be able to follow how this creature works will be huge. I think this card belongs in the Judgebringer deck because of all the problems it causes. That said, it basically shuts your opponent down until they cast something you want. Then it shuts you down. As the last card out of your hand it is the best insurance policy around. They can’t even really kill it. Though deciding when to use it will be a huge skill play. I want this to be an 8, but it's just not.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Tromokratis">Tromokratis</a> – 7+<br />
Rare<br />
The king of board stalls, Tromokratis is really an all or nothing card. It sits like a big wall and can prevent your opponent from trying to dink away at you with a flier. Remember, all creatures means All creatures so this goes horrible with any RTR block guys with Unleash. He’s a big dumb guy that can’t be chump blocked so he’ll make an impact on the field no matter what.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Whelming%20Wave">Whelming Wave</a> – 6<br />
Rare<br />
An overloaded <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Cyclonic%20Rift">Cyclonic Rift</a> with some possible advantages looks pretty cool. Sorcery speed is a bit of a bummer but at only four mana it can fix some overloaded board states and really take some action onto a Voltron your opponent has created. It seems like I’d want this in my deck even if I didn’t have any of the left behind creatures just to solve problems I have no other answer for.<br />
<br />Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-39280838687233033312014-02-06T14:00:00.004-08:002014-02-07T17:50:18.201-08:00Born of the Gods Limited Set Review - White<script src="http://deckbox.org/assets/external/tooltip.js"></script><br />
For me, one of the best ways to make a profit and still enjoy playing Magic is to win events. In Limited events that means knowing what is good in a format and being able to able to accurately assess the value of cards. Everyone puts their own value on certain types of cards. Some favor removal over any creatures, others take any decent creature over removal. Some like expensive or late game cards and others prefer value for early tempo. While I can't adjust for your play style I can tell you what I happen to think of certain cards.<br />
<br />
The other color set reviews can be found at the following links:<br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/for-me-one-of-best-ways-to-make-profit.html">Black</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-red.html">Red</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-green.html">Green</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-blue.html">Blue</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review.html">Multicolored and Colorless </a><br />
<h2>
Limited Rating System</h2>
Everyone who evaluates cards uses a different system. Mine is 1-10 because I feel like it creates the easiest and most recognizable system. Using grades tends to provide some false associations; B- is a pretty lame grade in school but a pretty good card in magic. I also don't like using the 1-5 system because I'd rather say something is a five than a two point five.<br />
10 - First pick and must play even if you have to splash it.<br />
9 - Game winning card every time it hits the table.<br />
8 - Bombs, top tier removal, and otherwise game defining creatures.<br />
7 - Powerful creatures or amazingly efficient creatures, conditional removal.<br />
6 - Solid creatures, expensive or highly restrictive removal, big play enchantments and artifacts.<br />
5 - Core cards in your deck, on curve creatures, decent cards.<br />
4 - Fallback cards that you'd rather not have in your deck but can fill in if needed. Cards that are too situational to main deck.<br />
3 - Bad cards, cards that have too much risk and little reward.<br />
2 - Really bad cards that barely do anything at all and aren't likely to impact the game in a meaningful way.<br />
1 - A card with zero meaningful impact on Limited games of Magic.<br />
Add-on Ratings<br />
S - Sideboard cards. These will often be brought out of your board and are worth picking up over other things of their level because of their impact against certain match-ups.<br />
+ - Better than the average card in this category but still not worth the step up to the next level.<br />
<h2>
White Common/Uncommon</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Acolyte%27s%20Reward"> Acolyte’s Reward</a> - 6+<br />
Uncommon<br />
The ability to pull a two for one with this card seems really high. Even if you’re stuck blocking a bigger creature than you’re capable of killing initially it allows you remove up. This is a pretty good removal spell that could also lead to some end of game scenarios when you get hit with a big alpha strike. I think this is a solid card you’re going to want in your white decks. Removal and save your guy is pretty swanky.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Akroan%20Phalanx">Akroan Phalanx </a>- 6<br />
Uncommon<br />
Vanilla test this guy comes back decent. Paying four for a 3/3 vigilance is pretty decent, the upside if you happen to be red is pretty significant. Obviously in the RW aggro deck this guy is a pretty sweet cleanup card. I’m sure he’ll do work in any deck and may cause me to splash a single mountain if the cards fall right.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Akroan%20Skyguard">Akroan Skyguard</a> - 6+<br />
Common<br />
Everything that <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Wingsteed%20Rider">Wingsteed Rider</a> did in <i>Theros </i>will probably be done by the Skyguard. Paying one less white for one less power and toughness feels significant because without any pants to put on the Skyguard he’s not really posing an air threat. But the ability to get him into play a turn earlier and find an enchantment to get on him makes him a very strong card. Generally when my Wingsteed Riders are doing work they’re 5/5s or more so being a point of power and toughness down won’t be an issue most of the time. Evasion and heroic is a great combo.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Archetype%20of%20Courage">Archetype of Courage</a> - 7<br />
Uncommon<br />
Giving all of your creatures first strike just seems insane. Doing so on a 2/2 for 3 is fantastic. There isn’t a huge number of other cards with first strike that you’ll be canceling out with this Archetype but giving two or three other creatures first strike can turn a bad board into a good one really quickly. This Archetype won’t bring you back from the brink though. Dropping a 2/2 first strike onto an empty board is going to leave you feeling pretty disappointed.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Dawn%20to%20Dusk">Dawn to Dusk</a> - 5<br />
Uncommon<br />
With all the bestow creatures in this set I’m pretty sure you’re going to happily find a target for this card every time you cast it. If I’m going to run an enchantment removal anyway playing one that can get me a refund card as an added bonus is nice. I doubt I’m casting my enchantment removal on turn two anyway so waiting a little bit doesn’t hurt too much. It is sorcery speed but as a two for one it’s pretty decent.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Elite%20Skirmisher">Elite Skirmisher</a> – 4<br />
Common<br />
I’m not very impressed with short term heroic abilities for the most part, especially not on a three drop. 3/1 for three is pretty bad already. Having to throw a spell on him to get him to tap someone down isn’t really a redeeming quality. He does trade nicely (though at three mana it’s not really trading up) and sometimes being able to tap someone down for that final swing is important, but I’m not seeking to put him in my deck.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ephara%27s%20Radiance">Ephara’s Radiance</a> – 3<br />
Common<br />
It’s an enchantment, that gives life gain. This has two things that are significant negatives. Where’s my draw a card here? I’m not saying that I’d play it with it, but I wouldn’t feel as insulted by the power. Three life per turn is insignificant, but neither is a card, two mana a turn, and tapping a creature. This card asks a lot and doesn’t give much back.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Excoriate">Excoriate</a> – 6<br />
Common<br />
Good removal is fantastic. Exiling is better. Most creatures tap when they attack. I like removal. Removal feels awkward in this set much like it did in <i>Theros </i>making any source of removal very important. The more I read this card the less I like it. Sorcery speed removal of a tapped creature means that it has to hit you before you can kill it. Don’t get me wrong. I’m playing Excoriate in my deck, I just wish it was better.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ghostblade%20Eidolon">Ghostblade Eidolon</a> – 7<br />
Uncommon<br />
Wasn’t <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Two-Headed%20Cerberus">Two-Headed Cerberus</a> 1RR? This guy is 2W and comes with bestow. Six is a lot to pay for bestow, but when you’re adding double strike you’re probably getting what you pay for. Unfortunately when he falls off you need to find something else to give him to really make him shine, but double strike is a super powerful mechanic that demands an answer.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Glimpse%20the%20Sun%20God">Glimpse the Sun God</a> – 4+<br />
Uncommon<br />
I think this card is playable but I have trouble seeing it as very good. Cards like <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Frost%20Breath">Frost Breath</a> don’t always get played because they really demand an aggressive deck in which the tapping card is a finisher. I haven’t seen that early aggressive deck out of <i>Theros </i>block like I did out of <i>Innistrad </i>or <i>Zendikar</i>. Most decks in <i>Theros </i>got really aggressive early with cards like <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ordeal%20of%20Thassa">Ordeal of Thassa</a> on a weak creature outpacing the opponent. Tapping down their creatures doesn’t matter if yours is already bigger.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/God-Favored%20General">God-Favored General</a> – 4<br />
Uncommon<br />
Without finding a good way to tap this guy I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do with him. I don’t want to fall into the trap of playing him and <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ephara%27s%20Radiance">Ephara’s Radiance</a> to try to get off a combo that gives me two 1/1 soldiers and three life for five mana every turn. Even if I can attack with him the turn on turn three, I basically need to blow my entire turn four to get two 1/1 soldiers. I want this guy to be good so bad but at 1/1 I don’t feel like I have enough ways to tap him to make do good work.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Great%20Hart">Great Hart</a> – 4<br />
Common<br />
2/4 for four has never been good. But it is a creature that fits into the curve. Pillarfield Ox barely made it into decks in M14 which had very few good white creatures. I see some better white creatures in Born of the Gods so I assume that the elk-ox probably will see some play but never happily.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Griffin%20Dreamfinder">Griffin Dreamfinder</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
There is so much to like about this card it’s a shame that he’s just not very good. Paying five mana for a 1/4 flier isn’t going to impress me, especially with double white. Getting an enchantment card back from your graveyard isn’t nothing though, especially when it comes with a fine beast to place it on. Turning the 1/4 into a 3/6 makes for a pretty serious air born threat. Considering that <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Auramancer">Auramancer </a>can do some work maybe we’ll see this guy make a showing. But five mana is a lot more than three.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Hold%20at%20Bay">Hold at Bay</a> – 3<br />
Common<br />
This is not Gods Willing. It never will be. It’ll save your creature or counter some damage to the face, but much like life gain you don’t win by preventing damage, you win by doing it.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Loyal%20Pegasus">Loyal Pegasus</a> – 5+<br />
Common<br />
2/1 flying for one is pretty amazing really. Any aggro strategy is going to love this guy. But if he’s your only guy in the air he can’t actually block anything flying and can’t attack. I think you’d be happy to run 4 of these, but less happy to run one. You just really need to look at your overall strategy for attacking early to see where if the Pegasus fits in.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Mortal%27s%20Ardor">Mortal’s Ardor</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
Combat tricks for one are pretty good. But I like them when they look more like Giant Growth. I also don’t feel that lifelink is great on a combat trick. You generally use tricks to squeak out a card. Rarely is it for big damage. So a +1/+1 for one just isn’t very impressive.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Nyxborn%20Shieldmate">Nyxborn Shieldmate</a> – 4<br />
Common<br />
It’s <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Holy%20Strength">Holy Strength</a>, only it’s not. Honestly I think <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Divine%20Favor">Divine Favor</a> is probably a better card. Being left with a 1/2 when someone drops your enchanted creature isn’t really a bonus. I actually think this card is pretty bad. As a three cost bestow I’m not impressed, as a creature I’m not impressed. I don’t really want him in my deck. Unless I've got my hoard of Skyguards to bestow upon.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Oreskos%20Sun%20Guide">Oreskos Sun Guide</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
Bears are bears. Bears that gain you life when they attack are better bears. Bears look like they’ll play a role in this set because there’s a number of low casting cost creatures. The only problem is, few of them are any good. If you get in with Sun Guide a couple of times it makes for a pretty good card. But most of the time he’s just going to be a bear.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/ornitharch">Ornitharch</a> – 6+<br />
Uncommon<br />
3/3 flier for five is decent. 5/5 is great. Getting two 1/1s isn’t bad either. This is one of the tribute cards that actually feels like a tossup. If your opponent has other fliers you’ may find yourself getting blocked out and having the extra two birdies won’t matter much. If your opponent has removal to get rid of you, you’ll be one big creature. But either way, they better have an answer because you’re getting five power in the sky.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Revoke%20Existence">Revoke Existence</a> – 4S<br />
Common<br />
I’m debating if this card is worth trying to run main deck. There aren’t the artifacts to make it matter but there are lots of enchantment creatures. It looks like about half of the creatures are enchantment creatures. Running one enchantment removal in <i>Theros </i>was fine and I think that this is likely to be a good choice. But it is still slow and only kills enchantments. It’s no Doom Blade.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sunbond">Sunbond</a> – 4<br />
Uncommon<br />
Four mana enchantments ask a lot. This is <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Mark%20of%20the%20Vampire">Mark of the Vampire</a> territory. Gaining life wasn’t super easy in <i>Theros </i>and I don’t expect it to be getting much easier. Without a lot of creatures with lifelink I’m not sold that I want Sunbond in my deck. Unless I have a handful of <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Hopeful%20Eidolon">Hopeful Eidolons</a> or a couple of <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Gray%20Merchant%20of%20Asphodel">Gray Merchant of Asphodel</a> but even then, this is a four mana enchantment that doesn’t do anything. On the flip side I’m sure I’ll get blown out by this card more than once. When things come together on this card it is unstoppable.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Vanguard%20of%20Brimaz">Vanguard of Brimaz</a> – 6 <br />
Uncommon<br />
Everything I don’t like about <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Akroan%20Crusader">Akroan Crusader</a> seems to be fixed in his newest incarnation. A 2/2 for two is much better than a 1/1 for one. Crusader ended up decent because of the number of possible bestow targets, plus Dragon Mantle and Titan's Strength. I think Vanguard will do well also.<br />
<h2>
White Rares</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Brimaz,%20King%20of%20Oreskos">Brimaz, King of Oreskos</a> – 8+<br />
Mythic<br />
Brimaz is nuts. First off getting a 3/4 vigilance for three is the best deal in the set. We were excited to see <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Boon%20Satyr">Boon Satyr</a> at 4/2 flash for three. Here we’ve got vigilance plus pumping out guys, guys with vigilance. When I compare this guy to <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ajani,%20Caller%20of%20the%20Pride">Ajani, Caller of the Pride</a> I see a lot more problems for an opponent from Brimaz. Three turns later you’ve done up to 15 damage and have a swarm of little catlings.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Eidolon%20of%20Countless%20Battles">Eidolon of Countless Battles</a> – 8<br />
Rare<br />
While the floor on Eidolon is pretty low, getting a 1/1 for three, if you have any kind of board presence this card gets dangerous quick. At only a four bestow cost (we’re talking <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Hopeful%20Eidolon">Hopeful Eidolon</a> speed here) you’re guaranteed a +2/+2 with a likelihood of seeing +4 or +5 pretty easily. The best thing is that even if your opponent kills the creature, you get all of the bonus minus one in the creature when it falls off. This is the closest we’ve seen bestow and casting cost on a card before. I don’t think we’ll see this being cast as a creature very often.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fated%20Retribution">Fated Retribution</a> – 4<br />
Rare<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Planar%20Clansing">Planar Cleansing</a> was basically playable in <i>M14 </i>at six casting cost and triple white. This is instant speed but seven mana is a ton to ask in limited. The scry is a nice bonus but I don’t think this will be making it into most decks. Generally problem creatures come in the form of some guy Voltroned up with bestow creatures. This just kills all your creatures and gives them a swarm of guys that fall off. I don’t think it solves any real problems and I don’t expect it to find a home.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Hero%20of%20Iroas">Hero of Iroas</a> – 6+<br />
Rare<br />
As a 2/2 heroic for two I’m pretty happy with this hero. I see the decreased cost in auras as a bonus, possibly a significant one, but not an overpowered one. This card seems good, but not broken. It basically provides a little ramp into your bestows and is a solid early creature on top of that. I think it might be a toss up between this and Skyguard for the evasion.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Plea%20for%20Guidance">Plea for Guidance</a> – 4<br />
Rare<br />
Six mana tutors seem excessive. This card feels a lot like <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Opportunity">Opportunity</a> without the instant speed. You can pull up your two best bestow creatures this way but you’re spending the entire turn to do it. You’ll probably spend your next turn casting one of them and the following turn casting the other. Of course, at that point you’re probably going to win the game. But you’ve had to tap out for three turns in a row to get there. Maybe the format will end up slow enough that this card will matter. We don’t get the big monstrosity creatures in <i>Born of the Gods </i>like we did in <i>Theros </i>so maybe you’ll get to the late game and not have anywhere to better to spend your mana.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Silent%20Sentinel">Silent Sentinel</a> – 6<br />
Rare<br />
Like many bombs, the cost is the primary consideration. Paying seven mana for anything is scary. Only getting a 4/6 is a little sad. But once the air is clear you’re likely to start causing some real damage. Well, kind of likely. You see you need enchantments in the graveyard, which by seven mana isn’t really hard to do. But enchantment creatures can’t come back bestowed, which is most of your enchantments. That doesn’t mean the card is bad but I think I’m likely to be underwhelmed whenever I finally get this card onto the field. It’s big, has evasion and a good ability, but there’s many other cards that I feel will help me win earlier on.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Spirit%20of%20the%20Labrynth">Spirit of the Labyrinth</a> – 5+ <br />
Rare<br />
This is clearly a constructed card. It is entirely possible you’ll be rare drafting it anyway as it can cause some significant problems for most of the big decks in standard and brings a pretty solid 3/1 body to the table. In limited the ability is basically useless. You may blank someone’s <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Divination">Divination</a> but you aren’t going to do things like shut down a <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sphinx%27s%20Revelation">Sphinx’s Revelation</a>. That said, a 3/1 for two is really solid and will make any deck happily.<br />
<br />Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-78389601637114568302014-02-06T13:31:00.001-08:002014-02-07T17:50:29.042-08:00Born of the Gods Limited Set Review - Green<script src="http://deckbox.org/assets/external/tooltip.js"></script><br />
For me, one of the best ways to make a profit and still enjoy playing Magic is to win events. In Limited events that means knowing what is good in a format and being able to able to accurately assess the value of cards. Everyone puts their own value on certain types of cards. Some favor removal over any creatures, others take any decent creature over removal. Some like expensive or late game cards and others prefer value for early tempo. While I can't adjust for your play style I can tell you what I happen to think of certain cards.<br />
<br />
The other color set reviews can be found at the following links:<br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/for-me-one-of-best-ways-to-make-profit.html">Black</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-red.html">Red</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-white.html">White</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-blue.html">Blue</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review.html">Multicolored and Colorless </a><br />
<h2>
Limited Rating System</h2>
Everyone who evaluates cards uses a different system. Mine is 1-10 because I feel like it creates the easiest and most recognizable system. Using grades tends to provide some false associations; B- is a pretty lame grade in school but a pretty good card in magic. I also don't like using the 1-5 system because I'd rather say something is a five than a two point five.<br />
10 - First pick and must play even if you have to splash it.<br />
9 - Game winning card every time it hits the table.<br />
8 - Bombs, top tier removal, and otherwise game defining creatures.<br />
7 - Powerful creatures or amazingly efficient creatures, conditional removal.<br />
6 - Solid creatures, expensive or highly restrictive removal, big play enchantments and artifacts.<br />
5 - Core cards in your deck, on curve creatures, decent cards.<br />
4 - Fallback cards that you'd rather not have in your deck but can fill in if needed. Cards that are too situational to main deck.<br />
3 - Bad cards, cards that have too much risk and little reward.<br />
2 - Really bad cards that barely do anything at all and aren't likely to impact the game in a meaningful way.<br />
1 - A card with zero meaningful impact on Limited games of Magic.<br />
Add-on Ratings<br />
S - Sideboard cards. These will often be brought out of your board and are worth picking up over other things of their level because of their impact against certain match-ups.<br />
+ - Better than the average card in this category but still not worth the step up to the next level.<br />
<h2>
Green Common/Uncommon</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/archetype%20of%20endurance">Archetype of Endurance</a> – 4+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Eight mana asks a lot. In a set without other hexproof it really asks too much. Generally the biggest issues with hexproof come from smaller creatures that have been bestowed up. Green doesn’t really have answers to these problems other than bigger creatures. Removing hexproof doesn’t really do anything. Giving all your creatures hexproof is kind of cool but not something that makes a creature with an additional two mana over a <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Craw%20Wurm">Craw Wurm</a>.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Aspect%20of%20Hydra">Aspect of Hydra</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
The biggest problem with this card is that it will occasionally do nothing. When all you have is your one or two drop on the board you’re not getting a very big bonus. However, it can also do amazing things on a developed board. Unfortunately, this means that it is no <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Giant%20Growth">Giant Growth</a>. Generally I want to use my giant growth on turn three or four for a decent trade up to clear out the biggest problem on their board. I can’t really gurantee that I’ll be able to make use of this that early in the game, especially if my two drop comes from a different color. It seems when I want to use this it doesn’t do much, though it still can neutralize a threat late game, if my board isn’t empty.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Charging%20Badger">Charging Badger</a> – 4<br />
Common<br />
Beware the 1/1 for one. Trample is a good ability but 1/1 just doesn’t cut it without some serious bestowing going on. Just because you can play him on turn one doesn’t really give you any advantage because you probably don’t have anything to bestow him with until turn three to five.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Culling%20Mark">Culling Mark</a> – 2<br />
Removal requires a lot to make it bad. This requires that you have a bigger creature (or one with deathtouch), be attacking, and the target be untapped and not have a quick tap ability. That just feels like too many restrictions. I don’t think this card is terrible and it will solve some problems, but it won’t solve the problems you really want it to.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Graverobber%20Spider">Graverobber Spider</a> – 6<br />
Uncommon<br />
Oh, <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Giant%20Spider">Giant Spider</a>, what you been eating? Giant Spiders are fine limited cards. This has the ability of gaining a <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Rootwalla">Rootwalla</a> like bump which is just upside. Again, I think 2/4 is a pretty solid number in this set which may push the value up even higher.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Karametra%27s%20Favor">Karametra’s Favor</a> – 5 <br />
Common<br />
Did I say I didn’t like this cycle. Well this one hardly counts since it’s a cantrip. It’s also color fixing, something that feels pretty sparse with the exception of <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Springleaf%20Drum">Springleaf Drum</a>. Having to have a creature you’re willing to tap for the mana is a little sad but it gives you your card back which is a big bonus. Considering you’re probably going to throw this onto your worst creature it won’t be terrible if your opponent burns removal to get rid of your one or two drop.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Mischief%20and%20Mayhem">Mischief and Mayhem</a> – 4+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Combat tricks are fantastic when they hit two creatures in heroic -- oh wait. This is not a combat trick. This is a heroic enabler at sorcery speed for five mana. So we’re looking back at overrun here. If you have the guys with evasion this could be a quick 10+ damage to your opponent’s face which can turn the game around. But if all it does is lead to chump blocking you haven’t done much. I might run one if I don’t have any real cards to play but the lack of surprise is disheartening.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Mortal%27s%20Resolve">Mortal's Resolve</a> – 5 <br />
Common<br />
This feels like a slightly more expensive <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ranger%27s%20Guile">Ranger’s Guile</a> but indestructible does give additional upside. You can prevent a kill spell and still be a quality blocker. It feels like I’d have use for one or two in my deck just to guarantee my threats aren’t taken out but I definitely wouldn’t want more. It also doesn’t stop everything which is always concerning.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Nessian%20Demolok">Nessian Demolok</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
The floor on this guy is still a 3/3 for five that destroys a meaningless land. The upside is taking an enchantment with you. This is one guy that I think frequently won’t see tribute. Unless your opponent has a game winning enchantment on the board or some big bestow creature he’s going to just take out the biggest bestowed creature or a land. If your opponent has missed a land drop this creature becomes fantastic. They either need a way to deal with a 6/6 or they’re set back a land which will prevent them the chance of finding one. So a great creature on curve and not the worst draw late in the game makes it pretty good.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Noble%20Quarry">Noble Quarry</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Lure bestow is pretty interesting. Considering that this ends up getting all of your creatures in to hit two turns in a row it seems like a pretty decent card. Drop it on your weakest creature and swing in full board. Then do it again next turn should end the game. However, lure cost four and had targets like <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Thicket%20Basilisk">Thicket Basilisk</a>. Paying six is a lot more and I don’t feel like you have fantastic combo targets to throw this on.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Nyxborn%20Wolf">Nyxborn Wolf</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
If <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Regathan%20Firecat">Regathan Firecat</a> was playable at 4/1 for three adding bestow and losing a power should also be fine. Giving a creature +3/+1 is pretty significant and still ending up with a decent sacrifice blocker afterwards is solid. Bestow costs are a little higher than ideal but we’ve seen that <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Boon%20Satyr">Boon Satyr</a> is a big card, this is like his little cousin, who may be a little bit slow.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/peregrination">Peregrination</a> – 4<br />
Uncommon<br />
I like ramp cards but by the time I’m playing a four drop I really want more than just ramping. Getting a land onto the battlefield, one in the hand, plus scry is a fair amount of ramp but spending turn 4 doing nothing other than playing lands is a bit concerning. I prefer to see cards that do less on turn one and two or have effects like this attached to a 2/2 creature so at the very least my board can develop while I’m digging for land. I’m also sad that this doesn’t turn creatures into birds.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/pheres-band%20Raiders">Pheres-Band Raiders</a> – 6<br />
Uncommon<br />
What I like about this card is that I’m going to be attacking with my 5/5. If they can’t stop it I get another 3/3. Paying six for the 5/5 is fine, the bonus if it just gets chumped is fantastic. I see this as a totally acceptable win condition if your opponent doesn’t have an answer. Sometimes he’ll just run into two creatures and kill them but then your other smaller guys can get in for attacks. The fact that he has to be blocked makes him pretty solid.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Pheres-Band%20Tromper">Pheres-Band Tromper</a> – 6<br />
Common<br />
A <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Canyon%20Minotaur">Canyon Minotaur</a> with upside is good by me. I figure he’ll frequently have some trouble growing but if he does he’s likely to continue growing. I’m pretty happy with this as a four drop. If my opponent hasn’t put anything significant down it’ll cause a problem. I’m also happy to bestow onto it because it’ll continue to grow when it is able to attack.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Raised%20by%20Wolves">Raised by Wolves</a> – 5<br />
Uncommon<br />
When this card lands, it’s big. Two creatures, heroic activation, +2/+2 on the target. However, if you get blown out by removal, it is a huge loss. Also that +2/+2 probably won’t stick around forever unless you protect mama and papa wolf. I do feel that as an awkward <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Moan%20of%20the%20Unhallowed">Moan of the Unhallowed</a> on the battlefield it is playable. But the potential downside is so big I’m a little concerned.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/satyr%20wayfinder">Satyr Wayfinder</a> – 4<br />
Common<br />
If I find a way that I want a bunch of cards in my graveyard I’m still not sure what I’d do with this guy. This is a replacement for Mulch, only it is not in a graveyard set. It’s not even ramp and is only sort of fixing. I just don’t see the combos with anything but <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Graverobber%20Spider">Graverobber Spider</a> being very good. Where’s my <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Spider%20Spawning">Spider Spawning</a>? However, if it's my only option for mana fixing, it is a card. But I can't verify it's better than a land.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Setessan%20Oathsword">Setessan Oathsworn</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
If you’ve got the deck this card is ok, but without significant heroic enablers a 1/1 just isn’t going to cut it. While the other multiple counter heroic cards in Theros could grow to become quite powerful they tended to start from a more significant initial point than 1/1. If you top deck this it doesn’t do anything, If you play it on turn three you need to wait another turn before it can really impact the board. It’s not terrible but you really need the right cards to make it work.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Setessan%20Starbreaker">Setessan Starbreaker</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
Considering the power of bestow in the set this is the card you want to deal with it. If it destroyed an enchantment I’d by super excited but only being able to handle auras limits the uses significantly. But it does rip an arm or a leg off of Voltron and leaves behind a body to help out afterwards.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Skyreaping">Skyreaping</a>– 4S<br />
Uncommon<br />
Green needs ways to deal with flying. This deals with some fliers. I’d probably rather have Plummet which I still wouldn’t main deck.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Snake%20of%20the%20Golden%20Grove">Snake of the Golden Grove</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
4/4 for five that gives you four life upon entering the battlefield is pretty handy. You’re paying one more mana for the four life and otherwise getting a Rumbling Baloth. I can’t imagine that your opponent would ever pay tribute. If they do I’d be concerned because they’re probably going to kill you next turn.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Swordwise%20Centaur">Swordwise Centaur</a> – 5 <br />
Common<br />
This is not <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Kalonian%20Tusker">Kalonian Tusker</a>, nor is it <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Garruk%27s%20Companion">Garruk’s Companion</a>, but what it is lacking from either of those two cards isn’t enough to make it a bad card. It’s be better at 3/3 or with trample but it is fine as it is. It will run into problems with 2/4s but for a two drop it’s better than bears.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Unravel%20the%20Aether">Unravel the Aether</a> – 4S<br />
Uncommon<br />
This solves bestow problems and god problems. As a simple solution to a god it is actually pretty good, but it doesn’t mean you won’t meet the same problem next turn. I don’t think I’d really run this unless I ran into a problem I just didn’t have an answer for. It seems too risky to main deck since I don’t feel like we have as many enchantments as we did in <i>Theros </i>but you're still probably safe with one.<br />
<h2>
Green Rare</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Courser%20of%20Kruphix">Courser of Kruphix</a> – 6<br />
Rare<br />
This is a surprisingly strong card. Getting a 2/4 for three is no small gain but being able to play your top deck lands is pretty awesome. The downside of your opponent seeing every card that goes into your hand is less significant when playing big creatures is your real goal. I like the body and cutting you land draws in more than half late game means you get to keep getting value when a 2/4 isn’t that powerful. He also comes down on turn three and stops all those pesky X/1 and X/2s.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fated%20Intervention">Fated Intervention</a> – 5+<br />
Rare<br />
Five mana for 6 total power and toughness is solid, especially if you’re getting it at instant speed. This is actually a lot like Briarpack Alpha with more green and a longer board presence. The additional advantage of scrying if you just need to drop the card isn’t bad. Triple green scares me a bit in limited in a five drop because all too often I just won’t be able to cast it on turn five.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Hero%20of%20Leina%20Tower">Hero of Leina Tower</a> - 7<br />
Rare<br />
Heroic X is insane. I don't see how you can ever block this card or attack into it when your opponent has mana open. Just the threat of activation on this is insane. That doesn't even take into account what ever you might be pumping it with. Oddly this makes cheaper pump spells way better than expensive ones. But the ability to grow unstoppably makes this the best one drop in the set.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Hunter%27s%20Prowess">Hunter’s Prowess</a> – 6+ <br />
Rare<br />
Single target <a href="http://overrun/">Overrun</a> for five mana sounds bad, but considering that it almost guarantees card draw I’m willing to forgive it. This isn’t the cross the board sweep that Overrun is but it’s hard to imagine the downside of dealing a bunch of damage with your creature and getting some cards in return. You’re still looking at a card that does nothing on an open board which means this isn’t <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Hunter%27s%20Prowess">Opportunity</a>, but occasionally it may be better.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Nessian%20Wilds%20Ravager">Nessian Wilds Ravager</a> – 7<br />
Rare <br />
6/6
for six is always ok. ETB that kills another creature always worked
well for <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Shadowborn%20Demon">Shadowborn Demon</a>. Ending up with a 12/12 if they don’t want to
lose their best creature is also just fine. The only problem I see here
is no evasion. With trample that 12/12 would be a brutal threat but if
your opponent can just chump block with 2/1s until they find an answer
it’s not as significant. Still, big creatures tend to do well in
limited.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Scourge%20of%20Skola%20Vale">Scourge of Skola Vale</a> – 6<br />
Rare<br />
2/2 trample for three is acceptable but unimpressive. The ability to eat other creatures is fantastic. Going to have to chump block anyway, go ahead and much up. They can’t really kill this through direct damage because you’ll probably just eat something else. As you munch up dinner you’ve got trample to move along with. Considering the threat the <a href="http://Blood Bairn">Blood Bairn</a> ended up being in <i>M14</i> I can’t imagine this being bad. The only difference is that you don’t have the threat of activation on attack since you have to tap to grow him. I think this is a card that will very quickly demand an answer and be a fantastic blocker until then.<br />
<br />Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-75930082902869392782014-02-04T09:48:00.000-08:002014-02-07T17:51:04.959-08:00Born of the Gods Limited Set Review - Red<script src="http://deckbox.org/assets/external/tooltip.js"></script><br />
The other color set reviews can be found at the following links:<br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/for-me-one-of-best-ways-to-make-profit.html">Black</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-green.html">Green</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-white.html">White</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-blue.html">Blue</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review.html">Multicolored and Colorless </a><br />
<h2>
Limited Rating System</h2>
Everyone who evaluates cards uses a different system. Mine is 1-10 because I feel like it creates the easiest and most recognizable system. Using grades tends to provide some false associations; B- is a pretty lame grade in school but a pretty good card in magic. I also don't like using the 1-5 system because I'd rather say something is a five than a two point five.<br />
<br />
10 - First pick and must play even if you have to splash it.<br />
9 - Game winning card every time it hits the table.<br />
8 - Bombs, top tier removal, and otherwise game defining creatures.<br />
7 - Powerful creatures or amazingly efficient creatures, conditional removal.<br />
6 - Solid creatures, expensive or highly restrictive removal, big play enchantments and artifacts.<br />
5 - Core cards in your deck, on curve creatures, decent cards.<br />
4 - Fallback cards that you'd rather not have in your deck but can fill in if needed. Cards that are too situational to main deck.<br />
3 - Bad cards, cards that have too much risk and little reward.<br />
2 - Really bad cards that barely do anything at all and aren't likely to impact the game in a meaningful way.<br />
1 - A card with zero meaningful impact on Limited games of Magic.<br />
Add-on Ratings<br />
S - Sideboard cards. These will often be brought out of your board and are worth picking up over other things of their level because of their impact against certain match-ups.<br />
+ - Better than the average card in this category but still not worth the step up to the next level.<br />
<h2>
Red Common/Uncommon</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/akroan%20conscriptor">Akroan Conscriptor</a> – 6<br />
Uncommon<br />
Act of Treason on heroic seems pretty nice. It can certainly turn your game around if you have a sac outlet. There doesn’t seem to be a ton of sac outlets though so it’s not going to make Red/Black the same kind of thing it was in <i>M14</i>. Still, a card like this being on the field will make them pretty concerned about playing some sort of big bad creature because you’re likely to just steal it and smack them in the face with it.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Archetype%20of%20Aggression">Archetype of Aggression</a> - 5<br />
Uncommon<br />
Trample isn’t really the best skill. With the other Archetypes granting skills like flying and deathtouch, trample isn’t too impressive. This being a 3/2 for three helps that some. But with double red and not being a creature that can make very aggressive use of trample himself I’m forced to just feel like this one doesn’t meet the mark of several others. I’d rather see a bigger creature with trample because three power doesn’t feel very trample to me.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Bolt%20of%20Keranos">Bolt of Keranos</a> – 6<br />
Common<br />
I dub thee Lightning Scry. However, I think <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Magma%20Jet">Magma Jet</a> was better; so was <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/lightning%20strike">Lightning Strike</a>. Conventional wisdom is that scry is worth 1/3 of a card. The question here is if it is worth one more colored mana. I don’t think it is worse than most other iterations of direct damage but this is limited and three damage is still pretty useful.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Cyclops%20of%20One-Eye%20Pass">Cyclops of One-Eyed Pass</a> - 5<br />
Common<br />
Is there a Cyclops of Two-Eye Pass? Just curious. Considering the vanilla nature of this creature, it’s a hard one to evaluate in many ways. Much like <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/regathan%20Firecat">Regathan Firecat</a> on its own all it can do is trade with some other big dumb creature. But with the right pairing it can pack a world of hurt. Sometimes you won’t be able to do anything with him because you’re staring down a 2/1 on the other side of the table but four mana for five power is never terrible.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Epiphany%20Storm">Epiphany Storm</a> – 3<br />
Common<br />
I love looting, I’m less fond of discard first looting. The idea of it being on an aura makes me want to cry. Along with the rest of this cycle, I think these cards are just plain bad. The effect here is good. But you’re basically paying two cards for the first one. Then one for each additional card you draw. Generally you’re seeking card advantage, not card disadvantage. Not to mention the likelihood of losing your target primarily out of spite.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/everflame%20Eidolon">Everflame Eidolon</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Firebreathing">Firebreathing</a> is a pretty good ability in limited even though it’s a pretty bad card. Being able to stick it onto any guy is pretty nice. Being a bestow with a three mana cost is even cooler. The great thing about this card is you can put it on a random guy and pump it up to trade up; then you can pump it up to trade up a second time. Or you can put it on a flier or first strike guy and get in for solid damage repeatedly. The low bestow cost and the fact that even a 1/1 firebreathing is useful for trading makes this a solid card I want in my deck.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fall%20of%20the%20Hammer">Fall of the Hammer</a> – 6+<br />
Common<br />
Considering that <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Prey%20Upon">Prey Upon</a> was a solid card in <i>Innistrad</i>, I feel this can only be better. It’s a fight, without getting hit back. Great quick kill spell to handle a creature or to finish off a creature you need to kill. Again, useless when you’re board is empty but assuming you aren’t losing by a ton this is a great card. It can also just be a big finisher with your Voltron up. I still think it should have been named Junk Shot since it's basically fight without your opponent fighting back.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fearsome%20Temper">Fearsome Temper</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
+2/+2 and some sort of evasion for three is ok. Being able to shut down a blocker can be useful at times but I’d much rather be bestowing than putting this on a creature. It’s not terrible but it is pretty expensive to shut down a couple of creatures and get in for damage. With so many bestow options, a straight up enchantment just feels too risky.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Impetuous%20Sunchaser">Impetuous Sunchaser</a> – 3+<br />
This card is so close to being amazing, just one power off. 1/1s for one are generally bad. Adding flying doesn’t make it a win and neither does haste. The downside of a weak creature attacking each turn is pretty significant. This card is goes beyond undesirable cards into the unplayable realm. As a target for bestow it is acceptable since it has flying, but who cares if my 1/1 has haste.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Kragma%20Butcher">Kragma Butcher</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
Considering that <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/felhide%20minotaur">Felhide Minotaur</a> was acceptable, if unexciting we can only see good things for his butcher brother. He feels like <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Minotaur%20Skullcleaver">Minotaur Skullcleaver's</a> slower and number cousin. But Skullcleaver did great work in Theros, I think we’ll see the butcher hacking up his fair share of meat. I’m happy to put him in my deck.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Lightning%20volley">Lightning Volley</a> – 4+<br />
Uncommon<br />
This could be good card but I feel that it is asking a lot, too much in fact. I’d need three untapped creatures on and four mana at the end of my opponent’s turn to make this as useful as <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Flames%20of%20the%20Firebrand">Flames of the Firebrand</a>. I don’t see it likely that I’m going to get four mana worth of damage out of this card most times I cast it. I’ll probably end up using it as an expensive <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/shock">Shock</a>. At one or two mana I’d really heavily consider this card, but at four I feel it is pretty high priced. I wouldn’t be thrilled with this unless I’ve got some deathtouch. It could be sided in against a deck with a ton of X/1 creatures but I'd still rather just play a something like a 2/4 at this point.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/nyxborn%20rollicker">Nyxborn Rollicker</a> – 4<br />
Common<br />
+1/+1 just isn’t very much. A 1/1 creature just isn’t very good. There may end up being some magic number that makes having a 1/3 creature become a 2/4 kills half the creatures in the format. But I don’t think that this is likely to make this card worth running. It’s not totally useless, but it’s not a card that will turn the tides of the game nine out of ten times. Maybe as a heroic trigger this will have a large enough impact to make a difference but I’m not seeing the red heroics I want to make this playable.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/pharagax%20giant">Pharagax Giant</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
While a 5/5 for five is a pretty good deal, I can see times where people take five damage to the face to avoid you throwing down a big creature. Either way this is a decent creature. <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Canyon%20Minotaur">Canyon Minotaur</a> plus <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Lava%20Axe">Lava Axe</a> is great for one more mana. For a common, five mana 5/5 is pretty efficient. You probably won’t want to fill your deck with these guys but having two near the top of your curve seems like solid threats.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Pinnacle%20of%20Rage">Pinnacle of Rage</a> – 5<br />
Uncommon<br />
So far I haven’t been impressed with rage cards from Theros block. They tend to be expensive and not that great. This is two lightning strikes in one spell at sorcery speed for two more colorless mana. It’s not a great deal. Sometimes you just need some more removal to clean up smaller threats. It is important to remember that this card won’t kill a 6/6 and you need two targets for it. Sometimes it is just an expensive <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/bile%20blight">Bile Blight</a>.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Reckless%20Reveler">Reckless Reveler</a> - 5<br />
Common<br />
While there aren’t a lot of artifacts in this set, a 2/1 for two has never been terrible. If you end up against someone running a <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Gorgon%27s%20head">Gorgon's Head</a> or <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Siren%20Song%20Lyre">Siren Song Lyre</a> this will be a decent way to combat it. Plus 2/1 creatures frequently end up outclassed at the end of the game, burning it to get rid of a <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Springleaf%20Drum">Springleaf Drum</a> isn’t horrible if your opponent is getting his inspired on.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Rise%20to%20the%20Challenge">Rise to the Challenge</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
What was it about <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Thunder%20Strike">Thunder Strike</a> that wouldn’t fit into this set? I suppose in Standard you can now play eight of a card you’d never even consider putting in your deck. While this isn’t a bad card in limited it is fairly risky. It’s less risky than it was in <i>M14</i> because <i>M14</i> had so much good removal. With less quality removal you’re more likely to get your kill. I’m ok playing these here but I’d rather have an actual threat.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Satyr%20Nyx-Smith">Satyr Nyx-Smith</a> – 6<br />
Uncommon<br />
I feel like haste is what really makes this card work. It basically gives you a 2/1 and a 3/1 for six mana, which isn’t terrible in limited. It also has the chance to produce more. Because you can lay this down when you’re guaranteed to be able to safely attack it seems more valuable than several of the other token producing uncommon. Plus getting five power out of one card can cause some real problems for your opponent the following turn, even if this smith dies quickly.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Scouring%20Sands">Scouring Sands</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
Electrickery with scry attached is a pretty sweet deal though sorcery over instant is not. This card may make all X/1s far worse than they previously appeared. With so many decent creatures with one toughness this spell looks like a must play in many decks. I guess we now know that the magic number on toughness is specifically not one.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Searing%20Blood">Searing Blood</a> – 6+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Expensive <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/shock">Shock</a> with a potential upside is an interesting card. Getting to kill a creature plus three damage to an opponent makes this a five damage spell for two mana. It seems pretty good. Double red will be a little annoying but I think there’s more than enough targets in the set to make it good. Don’t forget that if you have to block with a creature to use this you’re still getting upside with the damage.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Stormcaller%20of%20Keranos">Stormcaller of Keranos</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
While 2/2 haste for three has been acceptable, it has never been exciting. The problem with them is that they always get outclassed in the late game. However, unlimited scry without tapping is pretty amazing. Late game the scry is amazing, early game the haste is acceptable. I feel that makes this a pretty solid card that I want in my deck. I’ll probably even take two. Being able to spend extra mana to avoid unneeded land drops is pretty awesome. However, you need to be in color to make this work. There always is some downside.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Thunder%20Brute">Thunder Brute</a> – 7<br />
Uncommon<br />
5/5 haste trample is pretty good. It can cause massive when it hits the board. 8/8 trample for six is also pretty fantastic. Assuming the game can frequently make it to the late game this guy is sure to make a bashing when he gets cast. Because of trample I expect to see this guy as a 5/5 haste pretty much all the time, because if you can’t deal with a 5/5 haste trample there is no way you’ll be able to deal with an 8/8 trample.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Thunderous%20Might">Thunderous Might</a> – 4<br />
Uncommon<br />
Still no draw a card. That’s too bad. You are most likely to get +2/0 to +5/0. +5/0 is pretty good if you can drop it on something with evasion or flying, but this doesn’t grant any form of evasion. I have a hard time seeing this be really useful. It’s also dangerous because it is an enchantment and it is based on your devotion. Too often someone can kill a creature that gives devotion they can end up with a three for one on a well timed block. It’s not a terrible card if you can stick it on something with first strike, but overall I’d rather have something less fragile in my deck.<br />
<h2>
Red Rare</h2>
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fated%20Conflagration">Fated Conflagration</a> – 5<br />
Rare<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Lava%20Axe">Lava Axe</a> a creature or planeswalker, but not a player doesn’t seem fantastic. I figure that two colored mana is worth a bit more than trading in a single mana in casting cost. The fact that this goes off on creatures of planeswalkers at instant speed is nice but you have to be really deep in red to play this card. Late game I don’t even expect five damage to solve every problem I’m likely to encounter. I feel like I’m going to play this card but never end up casting it.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/felhide%20spiritbinder">Felhide Spiritbinder</a> – 7<br />
Rare<br />
Unlike many creatures with Inspired this one passes the vanilla test. 3/4 for four is a perfectly acceptable creature in limited and one that is likely to get in to attack. The ability to make a copy of the best creature to send back in when he untaps makes this a really big threat. Even if you’re just copying him you’re getting in for six damage. I like this minotaur a lot. If you include some of the other minotaur buffing creatures he can become an even more formidable threat.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Flame-wreathed%20Phoenix">Flame-Wreathed Phoenix</a> – 8<br />
Mythic<br />
This is just bad decisions all around. A 3/3 flier that goes back to your hand is just fine for four. A 5/5 flier for four is fantastic. This is a no lose card. There’s no good choice unless you’ve got the removal spell in your hand. Just a solid card and problematic for your opponent no matter which way you look at it.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Forgestoker%20Dragon">Forgestoker Dragon</a> – 7+<br />
Uncommon<br />
This is an interesting take on <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/flameblast%20dragon">Flameblast Dragon</a>. Rather than getting the Fireball effect you get to ping any creature for 1R when it attacks. Assuming you have the mana to cast him you basically can ping for three each turn. Flameblast was a powerhouse in the fairly aggressive <i>M12</i> format and I think we’ll see Forgestoker do similar work here. I feel that the six casting cost for a 5/4 is a little higher than I’d like but it’s a pretty typical dragon.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Oracle%20of%20Bones">Oracle of Bones</a> – 4+<br />
Rare<br />
This is a really interesting card that is likely to be really to be mediocre in limited. With the unlikely chance that you’ll be sitting on a decent instant or sorcery you want to cast for free, I think that this card will pretty much always be a 3/1. Maybe you’ll get a free <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Searing%20Blood">Searing Blood</a> but this card is going to ask you to play expensive damage spells you probably don’t really want in your deck. If you can pull in enough good sorcery and instant spells in something like a red/blue combo deck you could probably get significant use to make your opponent consider taking the tribute. But 3/1 for four is pretty bad. (It may be that the risk of tribute is so significant that people will always take the buffed creature and this will be a better card than it appears, but I think in limited I’ll always take the 3/1).<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Satyr%20Firedancer">Satyr Firedancer</a> – 4<br />
Rare<br />
This is sort of an inverse Guttersnipe but not one that I think will really do the trick. It allows you to get double value out of burn spells. There aren’t enough burn spells to make me want to play a 1/1 for two. Maybe someday I’ll draft five Searing Bloods, Pinnacle’s of Rage, and one of these guys… who am I kidding. If this was a build around it’d need to be uncommon. I think I’ll just pass over it every time I see it unless it becomes a valuable card in Burn.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Whims%20of%20the%20fates">Whims of the Fates</a> – 2<br />
Rare<br />
Cards like this are for fun kitchen table games and making people cry in EDH. This is not a reliable or fun limited card. With huge risk no matter how you cut it you’re going to pay a bunch of mana for something that will either win you the game, lose you the game, or do nothing. But which of those it will do is entirely out of your control. It does bring up fantastic match discussions about how you should pile (odds say all in one pile) but beyond the philosophic discussion, this is just different version of <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Scrambleverse">Scrambleverse</a>.<br />
<br />
<br />Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-84261551264256690592014-02-03T15:37:00.000-08:002014-02-07T17:51:31.320-08:00Born of the Gods Limited Set Review - Black<script src="http://deckbox.org/assets/external/tooltip.js"></script><br />
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<br />
<br />
For me, one of the best ways to make a profit and still enjoy playing Magic is to win events. In Limited events that means knowing what is good in a format and being able to able to accurately assess the value of cards. Everyone puts their own value on certain types of cards. Some favor removal over any creatures, others take any decent creature over removal. Some like expensive or late game cards and others prefer value for early tempo. While I can't adjust for your play style I can tell you what I happen to think of certain cards.<br />
<br />
The other color set reviews can be found at the following links:<br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-red.html">Red</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-green.html">Green</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-white.html">White</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review-blue.html">Blue</a><br />
<a href="http://teacher-gamer.blogspot.com/2014/02/born-of-gods-limited-set-review.html">Multicolored and Colorless </a><br />
<br />
<h2>
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"><b>Limited Rating System</b></span></h2>
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper">Everyone who evaluates cards uses a different system. Mine is 1-10 because I feel like it creates the easiest and most recognizable system. Using grades tends to provide some false associations; B- is a pretty lame grade in school but a pretty good card in magic. I also don't like using the 1-5 system because I'd rather say something is a five than a two point five.<br />
<br />
10 - First pick and must play even if you have to splash it.<br />
<br />
9 - Game winning card every time it hits the table.<br />
<br />
8 - Bombs, top tier removal, and otherwise game defining creatures.<br />
<br />
7 - Powerful creatures or amazingly efficient creatures, conditional removal.<br />
<br />
6 - Solid creatures, expensive or highly restrictive removal, big play enchantments and artifacts.<br />
<br />
5 - Core cards in your deck, on curve creatures, decent cards.<br />
<br />
4 - Fallback cards that you'd rather not have in your deck but can fill in if needed. Cards that are too situational to main deck.<br />
<br />
3 - Bad cards, cards that have too much risk and little reward.<br />
<br />
2 - Really bad cards that barely do anything at all and aren't likely to impact the game in a meaningful way.<br />
<br />
1 - A card with zero meaningful impact on Limited games of Magic.<br />
<br />
Add-on Ratings<br />
<br />
S - Sideboard cards. These will often be brought out of your board and are worth picking up over other things of their level because of their impact against certain match-ups.<br />
<br />
+ - Better than the average card in this category but still not worth the step up to the next level.<br />
</span><br />
<h2>
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"> Black Common/Uncommon</span></h2>
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"> </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"></span></div>
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"><a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Archetype%20of%20Finality"><span id="goog_844130279"></span>Archetype of Finality<span id="goog_844130280"></span></a> – 6<br />
Uncommon<br />
Deathtouch is a very powerful ability and giving it to your entire board can be pretty powerful. Doing so at six mana with a 2/3 makes me a little nervous but I still think that this is a good card. Suddenly your 1/1 tokens are killing machines. It makes you way more likely to get in with one or two little guys for damage on a stalled board while still keeping back your more powerful defenders. Without other creatures you’re getting a weak and expensive <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Thicket%20Basilisk">Basilisk </a>but at least it makes a significant board presence on its own.<br />
<br />
</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"></span></div>
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"> <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Ashiok%27s%20Adept">Ashiok’s Adept</a> – 4<br />
Uncommon<br />
While a 1/3 for two mana will frequently find a home, a 1/3 for three is much worse. I have trouble finding ways to make this Heroic activation worth it. I suppose pumping your guy for extra damage and making an opponent discard a card is pretty good. Getting a free discard off a bestow is also fine. But I generally don’t want to be throwing my bestow cards on a 1/3 anyway. Maybe I’m wrong and discard will be a thing, but I’d much rather have a <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Disciple%20of%20Phenax">Disciple of Phenax</a> and I didn’t always play them.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Asphyxiate">Asphyxiate</a> – 5+<br />
Common<br />
This is a very weird card. While <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/assassinate">Assassinate </a>makes a certain amount of sense, everything about Asphyxiate feels unintuitive. I feel like there will be a number of times where this is cast on a creature, that simply taps itself in response. It is also basically countered by a <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Springleaf%20Drum">Springleaf Drum</a>. This makes it very conditional removal with some creatures it just can’t kill. Also that thing that is beating your face in every turn, it’ll never kill that because it’s always tapped when your turn comes around. I think I’d rather sit on the additional three mana and play <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sip%20of%20Hemlock">Sip of Hemlock</a>.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Bile%20Blight">Bile Blight </a>– 7<br />
Uncommon<br />
Instant -3/-3 for two black is pretty good. The chance to nail a second creature as well makes this fantastic. While doubles aren’t as common in limited as constructed, getting a two for one out of this card will occasionally be doable with tokens running around. Even at just one creature it is still better than Phareka’s Cure.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Black%20Oak%20of%20Odunos">Black Oak of Odunos</a> – 4+<br />
Uncommon<br />
When it comes to ways to activate Inspired I think this is one of my favorite. If you can pull in a bunch of good Inspired cards you can tap any number of them at the end of your turn to get activation off, one mana each. Suddenly a card like <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Icy%20Manipulator">Icy Manipulator</a> is looking really good but in the right deck you may still a lot of value off of this card. Other decks aren’t too likely to want it since a wall without power is just a brick dummy.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Claim%20of%20Erebos">Claim of Erebos</a> – 4<br />
Common<br />
This is still a bad cycle of enchantments. Ping for two isn’t terrible when it comes on a creature but when it is its own card I’m worried. This would probably be better if it was just an enchantment that did two damage per turn like Mogis.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Drown%20in%20Sorrows">Drown in Sorrow</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
Bigger <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Mutilate">Mutilate </a>with scry allows you to play some bigger black creatures with ways to deal with all the one, two and several three drops. As a turn three board sweeper this is pretty strong. The scry as an additional bonus makes this a pretty solid card. Of course, it will kill your own creatures if you’re not careful but you’ll probably be able to get a two for one if not better.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/eye%20gouge">Eye Gouge</a> - 4<br />
Common<br />
-1/-1 is frequently enough to do the last shot on a creature making this card a usable combat trick. But I didn’t always want <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Weakness">Weakness </a>in my deck and this seems far worse than that. If you happen up against a couple of cyclops (cyclopi?) maybe you side it in for the extra possible value. It’s not totally unplayable but I’m sure there’s something better you can put in your deck.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Felhide%20Brawler">Felhide Brawler</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
It’s a bear with an upsi… no wait. It’s a bear with a downside. At least it can still bash in for two. That’s a good thing. I feel like with this downside it should be a single black, or something. Not really the two drop I want but a two drop none the less.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Forlorn%20Pseudamma">Forlorn Pseudamma</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
It’s a 2/1 for four that’s lame. But it’s got intimidate which makes it less lame. Add on it makes guys when it untaps and it’s actually pretty good. I’m in favor of any inspired guys with evasion or a way to tap themselves. Intimidate is pretty good evasion. You’ll probably have to side him out against another black deck but he is a creature your opponent can’t really afford to just ignore on the board even in black matchups.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Forsaken%20Drifters">Forsaken Drifters</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
It’s a mill card. No, it’s a self mill card. This really isn’t <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Armored%20Skaab">Armored Skaab</a> in a graveyard centered set like <i>Innistrad</i>. So it just screws you when it leaves. Why isn’t this <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Vampire%20Warlord">Vampire Warlord</a>? That card had some practical uses for the same power and toughness at one more casting cost. After seeing <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Boon%20Satyr">Boon Satyr</a> as a 4/2 flash for three it’s hard to be excited about paying four for one that mills you when it dies even at common.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Grisly%20Transformation">Grisly Transformation</a> – 5+<br />
Common<br />
Intimidate cantrip enchantment, interesting. Considering this set has heroic and inspired this seems pretty solid. If you drop it on either creature you’re getting your card back plus making your creature unblockable. <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/aqueous%20form">Aqueous Form</a> saw a lot of play even though it carried all the risk of this card. I think Grisly Transformation will be a decent play in most decks.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/marshmist%20titan">Marshmist Titan</a> – 5+<br />
Common<br />
I have a difficult time placing this card exactly. The body is good and assuming you can have as little as two devotion on the board you’re still paying for something that is on curve. If you don’t have many other black permanents than you’ll want to leave this titan at home but if you’re already playing black you’ll probably be able to drum up at least a couple devotion. I’d love to see the game where this guy can come down on turn four and start beating.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/necrobite">Necrobite</a> – 6<br />
This is removal, plain and simple. All you need is a blocker, any blocker with power. It does run the risk of losing a two for one if someone hits your blocker with removal, but there isn’t that much great instant speed removal in this set that I’d be super worried about it. This card will deal with problems you otherwise can’t.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Nyxborn%20Eidolon">Nyxborn Eidolon</a> – 4<br />
Common<br />
It’s <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Unholy%20Strength">Unholy Strength</a> only much much worse. 2/1 for two is understandable but having to pay five to bestow in order to get two power feels pretty lame. Remember what we got for five in Theros? +1/+1 and deathtouch plus a deathtouch guy when that creature died. This just doesn’t compare.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Odunos%20River%20Trawler">Odunos River Trawler</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
How come black’s <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Auramancer">Auramancer</a> is better than Auramancer? While Auramancer is playable in this set with the enchantment creatures and such, the chance of getting two auras back for one creature is pretty amazing. It’s also just one white so if you pick up a couple of trawlers you can just throw in a plains for possible additional value. At worst you get an Auramancer, at best you basically get two.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sanguimancy">Sanguimancy</a> – 4<br />
Uncommon<br />
Considering the difficulty of getting your devotion to black very high in a non mono black deck, this is clearly a much worse card than <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Gray%20Merchant%20of%20Asphodel">Gray Merchant</a>. It also doesn’t add any devotion itself meaning you may find times you draw it late in the game where X may be zero. If this was 2B I’d be all over it but at a higher cost of five mana, I’m less enthused. If you’re heavy into black I’d probably look at it again but for one more mana we had <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Opportunity">Opportunity</a> which guaranteed four cards and was at instant speed.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Servant%20of%20Tymaret">Servant of Tymaret</a> – 4+<br />
Common<br />
Again, the 1/3 for three isn’t very good. Making it a 1/3 with a lifelink ping on untap and regeneration makes this guy a pretty good target for a tap aura. He can insure his own survival. Losing a Regeneration shield also taps him making him an acceptable chump blocker. Overall I’m still not sure I actually want this guy in my deck but I could see him ending up in there.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Shrike%20Harpy">Shrike Harpy</a> – 6<br />
Uncommon<br />
This will be a 4/4 flier for five unless your opponent has some mana dork to give up. Maybe your opponent has some creature that has passed usefulness that is worth pitching but either way, it’s a really solid card. Big air born creatures are always solid and this does well as a weak <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Sengir%20Vampire">Sengir Vampire</a>, which is always a decent card. Paying five for an <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Diabolic%20Edict">Diabolic Edict</a> and a 2/2 flier in one card is fine.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Spiteful%20Returned">Spiteful Returned</a> – 5+<br />
Uncommon<br />
I think this is a win more card. On its own you’ve got a 1/1 for two that hits like a 3/1. On another creature that’s going to get in for damage you’ve got a 3/1 bestow which is pretty okay but not fantastic. It also doesn’t allow you to suddenly trade up your creature to handle a big threat. I think this is fine but as far as bestow abilities it is not amazing.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/warchanter%20of%20mogis">Warchanter of Mogis</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
A little expensive for a 3/3 it cost is fine for a 3/3 intimidate which it can certainly become after surviving one round of combat. This makes it a solid but overall not highly impressive card. Being able to give intimidate to another creature is a nice little trick, but not one that really gives much power. Plus, unlike most intimidate creatures, you still need to get it in without dying the first round and if you have to hold it back you’re stuck without intimidate for until you can get back in for an attack.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Weight%20of%20the%20underworld">Weight of the Underworld</a> – 5<br />
Common<br />
I guess this is okay. It’s a long term <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/weakness">Weakness</a> or a kill spell on a two toughness guy. My only dislike here is the cost. At four mana I’d expect something bigger. I suppose it’s nice that it’ll stick around on a big creature, but this clearly isn’t <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Dead%20Weight">Dead Weight</a>.<br />
</span><br />
<h2>
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"> <b><span style="font-weight: normal;"><b>Black Rares</b></span></b></span></h2>
<span class="cardHoverImageWrapper"> <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Champion%20of%20Stray%20Souls">Champion of Stray Souls</a> - 8<br />
Mythic<br />
This feels like the ETB engine that just won’t stop. Cycling your Gray Merchant for another one, or two for two is just plain mean. Also his return from the graveyard effect is going to make this 4/4 a real problem to deal with. I think he qualifies as a total bomb in limited since he will never go away and he lets you swap all your out of date creatures for the best creatures you’ve already lost.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Eater%20of%20Hope">Eater of Hope</a> – 7<br />
Rare<br />
Big demons are rarely disappointing unless they make you sac your own guys. This one doesn’t make you, it lets you. Still, sacrificing two insignificant creatures to destroy any creature is an amazing bonus. The 6/4 flier isn’t bad either. This looks like a tough card to answer all the way around. Seven is a bit expensive but being able to off other creatures makes it feel worth it.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fate%20Unraveler">Fate Unraveler</a> – 6<br />
Rare<br />
When I read the text on this card I assume that I’m not really going to like it. But paying four mana for a 3/4 is pretty decent. Black doesn’t normally get creatures this efficient without a drawback. And it’s not a drawback, it’s a significant upside. On a lesser creature I’d be significantly less impressed but on top of being a meaningful body on the field you’re going to be automatically pinging for at least one every turn. Plus it’ll punish people that like draw heavy decks.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Fated%20Return">Fated Return</a> – 5<br />
Rare<br />
Wow, the effects of this card are awesome but seven mana is just plain brutal. Getting the best creature that’s died so far on your side with indestructible is really cool, assuming you have a way to get a good creature into the graveyard. Even by the time I hit seven mana I’m not guaranteed to have anything bigger than 3/3 in the yard. This feels like a really risky play that will occasionally pay off. It’s not terrible to have at the top of your curve but it doesn’t really solve any of your problems if the biggest threat in the game is still on the battlefield.<br />
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<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Gild">Gild</a> – 8<br />
Rare<br />
Unconditional creature removal that exiles, not destroys is fantastic. It’s not <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Swords%20to%20Plowshares">Swords to Plowshares</a> but it’s probably the closest black is ever going to get. I’m not sure what’s up with the extra mana token but if it lets me cast my six drop instead of a five drop I’m on board. I’m not even that broken up about the sorcery speed. This is a big black answer to any problem sitting pretty at four mana. I’m a big big fan.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/herald%20of%20torment">Herald of Torment</a> - 7+<br />
Rare<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Nimbus%20Naiad">Nimbus Naiad</a> saw tons of play and this is much better. A 3/3 flier in black for three is already way ahead of curve. Having the bestow for five that gives +3/+3 and flying is fantastic. The downside is small enough that if you play it on a creature you’ll win so fast it just won’t matter. Getting another creature off the ground will guarantee you enough damage that you’ll always be happy to play this.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Pain%20Seer">Pain Seer</a> – 5+<br />
Rare<br />
Mini Bob, the lesser <a href="http://deckbox.org/mtg/Dark%20Confidant">Dark Confidant</a> is not really a limited card. Considering the danger of paying CMC for cards in limited I don’t feel like this card will be a massive advantage to a deck. I’m pretty sure I’d play him anyway. But I feel like he often times will be a bear with a dangerous upside. I’m also not sure how often you’ll be able to tap your 2/2.</span>Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-4017714914358980082013-04-29T08:20:00.001-07:002013-04-29T08:20:19.432-07:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog Post #16: New Merits - Last Blog Post<h3>
Merit System</h3>
The current system with a limit of two merits works with the current limited list of merits. But we wanted to open up more merits without limiting people just two. So the system has changed a little.<br />
<br />
First off all humans get a free merit. They may pick this merit as their basic subfaction choices (gifted kinfolk, ghoul, sorcerer, etc) or they can spend it on something else.<br />
<br />
Secondly there is no limit on merits. Merits, however, will cost 3 xp plus 3 additional xp for each merit you currently have. Meaning your first merit is 3 xp (free if you're a human), your second is 6xp (even if you're a human), your third is 9xp, etc.<br />
<h3>
New Merits</h3>
DOOMSLAYER <Dark Arcanoi tree> (Wraith only)<br />
You may use the chosen dark arcanoi without being in catharsis. You may exchange this merit for another one if you ever check your character in with 10 angst.<br />
<br />
FOMORI (Human only)<br />
You have been possessed by a bane spirit. Pick one innate fomori tree, you receive the first power in this tree at no cost. Additionally you gain a derangement. If you pick the Toad tree you must also gain an mutation. While this merit is active you are permanently tainted.<br />
<br />
GHOUL (Human only)<br />
A human will automatically gain this merit if he is given 2 points of blood from a vampire in the same feeding. You gain Celerity, Fortitude, and Potence as innate trees. You get one level in the Potence tree. Your energy type becomes vitae. Being given health by a vampire instead will give you energy. If you go through an entire event without consuming at least two blood from a vampire in the same feeding this merit goes dormant. To reactivate this merit you must consume two points of blood from a vampire in one feeding. While this merit is active all sorcery trees and gifts go dormant as well. If purchased at character creation you get faction knowledge vampires at no cost.<br />
<br />
HEALTHY<br />
Your maximum health is increased by one.<br />
<br />
HIDDEN AMARANTH (Vampire only)<br />
You always answer the Sense Amaranth power with “0”.<br />
<br />
INVESTMENT<br />
You have a small income source from a job, small business or benefactor. Most of your earnings go to supplies but you gain 3 pence at check in each game. This merit may be purchased multiple times.<br />
<br />
KINFOLK (Human only)<br />
Select a tribe from the Shifter section as your sub-faction. You may not purchase gifts and your energy type does not change. You may start the game with knowledge appropriate to your tribe. At check in you may switch this merit for Gifted Kinfolk at no cost or put your name in for the drawing to become a Shifter.<br />
<br />
KINFOLK, GIFTED (Human only)<br />
Select a tribe from the Shifter section as your sub-faction. Your energy type becomes gnosis. Select a level 1 gift from the homid or your tribe power tree. These are your two innate trees. You may not purchase the Sorcerer merit. You may start the game with knowledge appropriate to your tribe. If you purchase this merit you may not become a Shifter.<br />
<br />
LOST SOUL (Shifter or Vampire only)<br />
You have the option to become a wraith at the next event after you become dead though your faction is normally prohibited from doing so. You may not have this merit at the same time as Mortwight.<br />
<br />
MORTWIGHT (Human, Shifter or Vampire only)<br />
Upon becoming dead you immediately become a specter. You need to carry a wraith character card with a set of starting character stats that has been approved by a Character Guide. Upon your death, drop all items with in-game value on the ground, immediately put on a white headband, and begin play with your second character sheet. Your spectre persona may only take dark arcanoi as innates, but you may spend XP on it as normal during check in. Just keep in mind that your reign of terror is likely to be a short one. You may not have this merit at the same time as Lost Soul.<br />
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ORACLE<br />You receive one prophecy at check-in. <br />
<br />
PALE AURA<br />
Your answer to the Sense Faction power is Human. For the purposes of Sense Energy you are considered to have Vitality as your energy type.<br />
<br />
SORCERER (Human only)<br />
Select two power trees from the Sorcery section as your innate trees. Your energy type becomes essence. Select a level 1 innate power. You may pay 3 pence at check-in to create a focus. You may not purchase the Gifted Kinfolk merit.<br />
<br />
STRONG WILL<br />
Mental powers last half of their normal duration on you.<br />
<br />
TAINTED SOUL<br />
You are permanently tainted.<br />
<br />
TASTE OF OBLIVION (Wraith only)<br />
Whenever a character attempts to use Usury to drain health or pathos from you, say "Taste of Oblivion! Unresistable Catharsis!" That character then immediately goes into catharsis, gaining an angst as normal, but may then proceed with draining. Spectres are unaffected. This merit is only active while you are tainted.<br />
<br />
UMBRAL AFFINITY (Shifter only)<br />
Stepping sideways when not at a Gaian node takes you 30 seconds of meditation instead of 60.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-58298512323540191832013-04-22T14:27:00.000-07:002013-04-22T14:27:29.028-07:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog #15: New Bad Things for Bad People, and some more good.We wanted to share some of the new powers that we'll be rolling out for characters interested in things like Wyrm Powers, Dark Thaumatergy, and Dark Arcanoi. We felt the need to increase the offering of evil of to increase it's draw to a wider range of characters. This allows us to make sure that some of the primary canon powers were well represented in the game.<br />
<br />
As a note we aren't happy with some of the names of the powers but haven't gotten to the stage of rewriting the names yet. We're still focused on making sure the powers work as intended. Again, I'm not posting the trees that things come from but if you do some canon research you may be able to figure it out. We'll start out with the treats for bad people (not exclusive to NPCs) and then share a few more of the great new powers available for conventional starting characters.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Some new stuff for bad people.</h3>
<br />
HELLBORN INVESTITURE (Passive)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: None<br />
This power removes fire as a form of aggravated damage from the character.<br />
<br />
HIDDEN TAINT (Passive)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: “No Effect” to Wyrm’s Voice and Sanctuary<br />
A
character with this power will answer “No” to any use of Sense Taint
power on them. Additionally, he is immune to the Wyrm's Voice and
Sanctuary powers.<br />
<br />
LEECH OF FEAR (Passive)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: None<br />
Each
time you use the Dreamshape power on a target, your maximum energy is
increased by one for the remainder of the event. This bonus can only be
received once per target per event.<br />
<br />
VULNERABLE (Status)<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
Call: “Vulnerable”<br />
Any damage the target takes is aggravated damage.<br />
<br />
WYRM’S HERALD (Passive)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: “No Effect” to Sanctuary<br />
You
are immune to the Sanctuary power and you may spend willpower to break
from the Wyrm’s Voice power even if permanently tainted.<br />
<br />
WYRM’S VOICE (Mental)<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “Wyrm’s Voice”<br />
A
target that is tainted must follow all commands given by the caster to
the best of his ability. A character who is permanently tainted may not
break this power with willpower. Targets that are not tainted are immune
and state “no effect”.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Some new stuff for good people (who might want to do bad things) </h3>
<br />
DECAY (Damage)<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “Decay”, “Agg 1”<br />
The caster touches a target with her hand. Every 10 seconds, the caster causes one aggravated damage to the target. A character who is dead that suffers damage in this way immediately becomes decaying and turns to ash (goes out of game). This power ends immediately if the caster is no longer touching the target or moves his feet.<br />
<br />
RELEASE SPIRIT – (Touch)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: “Release Spirit”<br />
After 10 seconds of honoring a spirit you may activate this power and the spirit will immediately become Decaying and turn to ash (go out of game). The caster then gains 1 willpower up to their maximum willpower.<br />
<br />
SENSE SPIRIT (Sensory)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: “Sense Spirit”<br />
This power may be activated after staring intently at a target for 10 seconds. The target must state OOG their spirit power level. Targets that are not spirits respond “No Effect”.<br />
<br />
SONG OF RAGE (Mental)<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “Song of Rage”<br />
After the caster shouts out a war cry he may activate this power. While under the effects of this power the target may choose to frenzy without losing virtue. While in frenzy provoked from this power the target gains Augment 1.<br />
<br />
CRAVING (Touch [Condition])<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “Craving <single word>”<br />
After speaking with the target for one minute the caster may activate this power. The word mentioned becomes the target’s primary desire.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Coming Soon</h3>
<br />
In the next post I'll be talking about some of the new merits and character creation rules we're looking at in order to open up some concepts that are currently prohibited by the character knowledge rules (ungifted kinfolk). This will be my last Dev Blog post, as we will release our in process document of the rules after the May event. Then there's not much left to spoil to you.<br />
<br />Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-79136685285753915052013-04-14T13:07:00.002-07:002013-04-14T13:07:44.759-07:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog #14: New Good Things for Good People<h3>
<b>Preamble </b></h3>
In order to bring in some diversity to trees we wanted to add in some powers to make each tribe, discipline, and arcanoi more unique. This allowed us to try to bring in some of the great canon powers that are somewhat missing. It also allowed us to remove some of the powers which had been subbed in because it was slightly similar to another power that was remaining in the game. We also took the opportunity to remove some powers that had some serious rules issues in a LARP setting.<br />
Below are a couple of rules that have been added to facilitate some of these changes:<br />
<br />
<b>Condition</b><br />
Conditions are long term effects such as poisons or illnesses that will remain until treated or the end of the event, a player may decided to have the condition continue from event to event if they like. If you are affected by a condition you will need to follow the rules element as well as roleplay in the suggested manner. You are free to describe your symptoms in an in-game way.<br />
<br />
<b>Mass meta call</b><br />
Mass attacks affect everyone within mental range of the caster.<br />
<br />
<h3>
<b>New Powers</b> </h3>
ENTRANCEMENT (Mental)<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “Entrancement”<br />
The target is oathed to the caster for the duration of the power. This power will end if the caster makes any attacks against the target. The target of this power may spend willpower to break from the mental effect even though they are under the effects of an oath.<br />
<br />
FAST HEALING (Passive)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: None<br />
This power increases the caster’s Regeneration rate by 1. If he does not have regeneration from his faction he will gain Regeneration 1.<br />
<br />
HALLUCINATION (Mental)<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
Call: “Hallucination <description>”<br />
The target has a hallucination that fits with the description in some way. The <description> is limited to three words.<br />
<br />
JUGGERNAUT (Damage)<br />
Cost: Energy equal to the <number> of the damage attack call.<br />
Call: “Juggernaught <damage call>”<br />
The caster may add the Juggernaut meta onto a single damage call. Juggernaut attacks are considered successful attacks and cause damage even if blocked.<br />
<br />
MASK OF A THOUSAND FACES (Mask)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: None<br />
The caster may put on any type of mask they desire. Additionally, a character with this power is no longer required to wear makeup requirements of their sub-faction. Also, a character with this power may identify himself under a different name without a full face covering (see disguising rules, p.XXX).<br />
<br />
PENCE FROM HEAVEN (Other)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: None<br />
You get 3 additional pence at check in.<br />
<br />
READ MAGIC (Passive)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: None<br />
A character with this power may read the rules portion of any ritual scroll or tag and take the information in game.<br />
<br />
RESIST GAUNTLET (Self)<br />
Cost: 2 energy<br />
Call: “Resist”<br />
This power allows the caster to resist a single attack with the “Breach” meta call.<br />
<br />
RESIST TAINT (Self)<br />
Cost: 2 Energy<br />
Call: “Resist Taint”<br />
The caster may use this power any time they would become tainted or poisoned to not be tainted or resist the poison effect.<br />
<br />
SANCTUARY (Mental)<br />
Cost: 2 energy<br />
Call: “Mass Sanctuary”<br />
All tainted targets must attempt to remain 10 feet from the caster and may not make attacks against the caster. This power has no effect on targets that are not tainted.<br />
<br />
SILVER ARMOR (Passive)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: None<br />
Silver is no longer considered a source of aggravated damage for this character.<br />
<br />
TRUE FORM (Mental)<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “True Form”<br />
The target must remove any mask they are currently wearing and cease using the Cloak power. For the duration of this power the target may not wear any mask or use the Cloak power.<br />
<br />
VISIONS (Other)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: None<br />
You receive an additional prophecy at check in.<br />
<br />
WOADLING (Touch)<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “Woadling”<br />
The caster must paint a Gaian symbol on the target. The target may resist the next status attack that hits them. Future uses of this power require a new symbol to be drawn.<br />
<br />
WOUNDING LIES (Mental)<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “Wounding Lies”<br />
Each time the target makes an untruthful statement per character knowledge, he suffers one aggravated damage that cannot be resisted and cries out in pain.<br />
<br />
Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-84814301120804570132013-04-08T15:55:00.001-07:002013-04-08T15:55:57.641-07:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog #13: Clarifying and Rewriting Powers, TwoJosh had complained that there weren't enough powers. So I'll include some more here. 10 this time instead of five -- but the first two don't really count. Enjoy.<br />
<br />
We've discussed the two below. So they shouldn't be a surprise.<br />
<br />
FORM OF VAPOR (Mask)<br />
<br />
Cost: None<br />
<br />
Call: “Form of Vapor”<br />
The caster puts on a silver or black cloth face covering. While this power is active he may resist Damage and Status attacks for 1 energy. He may not make any damage attacks or status attacks and may not drain or block with boffers. This power may not be activated within 10 seconds of making an attack.<br />
<br />
GAUNTLET WALK (Self)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Umbra” or “Realm” state your destination.<br />
The caster may spend 1 energy to travel from the realm to the umbra or the umbra to the realm immediately. This power cannot be used within ten seconds of making an attack.<br />
<br />
<br />
-- In the attempt to make escape and defensive powers very effective over the short run but not over-powerful in the long run you'll see some changes in anything that gives an immunity to a whole attack type like form of vapor, hasty escape, hero's stand and form of war.<br />
<br />
HASTY ESCAPE (Self)<br />
<br />
Cost: None<br />
<br />
Call: “Hasty Escape”<br />
The caster crosses their arms over their chest. He must immediately leave the area of any combat as quickly as possible and may not return while the power is active. He may not voluntarily end the power until he has left the area and may not make any attacks while under the effects of this power. While this power is active the caster may resist damage and status attacks for 1 energy and is immune to draining.<br />
<br />
<br />
HERO’S STAND (Self)<br />
<br />
Cost: None<br />
<br />
Call: “Hero’s Stand”<br />
The caster plants one foot in place. For 10 minutes he may resist damage and status attacks for 1 energy. Once the 10 minutes expires, or If the caster lifts his foot for any reason, the caster will immediately drop to 0 health.<br />
<br />
-- Go crazy then go to take merciful sleep was always a really weird thing. Making horrid reality a powerful but effective defensive/offensive mental make's more sense and still gives the flexibility needed to still make the power fun. <br />
<br />
HORRID REALITY (Mental)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Horrid Reality <description>”<br />
The target must roleplay as if they are dying in the way described. The <description> is limited to three words. For the duration of this power the target may not attack.<br />
<br />
-- Meditate had become one of the most powerful attack powers due to it basically being the same as merciful sleep when used on an enemy. It really isn't supposed to be a power you use on your enemies that are trying to kill you. So we wanted to make it something you use on a friend. It can also be used to diffuse situations as it gives a specific advantage to people who stop to meditate.<br />
<br />
MEDITATE (Touch)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Meditate”<br />
If the target roleplays meditation for 60 seconds without walking, speaking, attacking or being attacked, the target may resist the next mental power used against them (and only the next mental power used against them) without spending willpower. If they choose not to resist the mental this power is still expended.<br />
<br />
-- Thieving talons is the most errataed power in the game. We've given more rulings on this power than any other, including obedience. We needed to simplify the effect and get it to not be a level three power that lets you have every other sensory power in the game. The canon of this power is tricky since it technically allows you to take someone's power and then they can't use it. I don't think that's the direction that we want to go but controlling it to be more manageable is necessary.<br />
<br />
MIMIC (Touch)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Mimic <power>”<br />
The caster is able to activate the damage, status, and mental power named for 10 minutes so long as the target has it listed on their character card as a gift. If the target does not have the power listed on their character sheet as a gift they state “no effect”. Only one power may be mimiced at a time. If this power is resisted, the caster believes the target does not have the power mentioned.<br />
<br />
-- The definition given for obedience has been a level 4 power in a level 2 slot. There's a few things here that needed limitation. Obviously obedience was never meant to be a 10 minute "do what I say". But the rules allowed for that and it became the only major use of for it. Making it a reasonable power meant limiting what could be said with it. In canon it's generally only applicable to one word. We also wanted to avoid the stupid things like "obedience hop" making forcing someone to hop for 10 minutes. It still needed to be flexible but didn't need to be godly. The perform an action once is a good limitation on that.<br />
<br />
OBEDIENCE (Mental)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Obedience <action>” or “Obedience <action> <noun>” (The action and noun are spoken IG)<br />
The target immediately carries out the action to the best of her ability as directed in the call. The power ends immediately once the action has been performed one time. The target may attack and defend themselves as normal. This power may not be used to cause a target to harm herself.<br />
<br />
-- Paralyze is often viewed as what made status attacks so unstable. It's also the power that makes Resilience mandatory at higher power levels. If you can be paralyzed you're able to be taken down. There's a few defenses that could still be used to try to keep you alive but you were basically hosed. Most paralyze powers in canon more of a mez than a stun (to use the common MMO terms). It's still very useful, but no longer an instagib. It also is not the default status you want to use no matter what. Status attacks like Venom don't go away when struck making the use of paralyze tactical rather than expected. <br />
<br />
PARALYZE (Status)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Paralyze”<br />
The target is held in total paralysis unable to do anything other than use regeneration. This power ends immediately if the target is attacked or damaged.<br />
<br />
-- Bind foot had some very specific limitations. We wanted a more general power with a more specific name. This also gives more of the impression of something grabbing your foot like shadows or briars.<br />
<br />
ROOT (Status)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Root”<br />
The target’s feet are stuck in place, he is unable to move either foot. This power ends immediately if the target takes damage from any source. Umbrabound creatures in the umbra may use this power across the Gauntlet by saying “Breach” before the sig call.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-79328272432624131202013-04-02T12:55:00.000-07:002013-04-02T12:55:20.212-07:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog #12: Clarifying Powers, oneI've been crazy busy the past couple weeks and I think I'm behind on getting promised posts out. I'm going to do this one in a big fun way. I'm going to just list some of the rewrites we've done to powers and talk about why we went in that direction. Some of these powers had an unintended side effect use that went beyond their intended use that wasn't intentional. Not all the wording has been finally polished but it should clarify how the power can be used. Take a look:<br />
<br />
BEAST MIND (Mental)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Beast Mind” and “predator” or “prey”<br />
The target must roleplay as an animal that is either a predator or prey based on what signature call was used. While under the effect of this mental, the target may not use language, whether verbal, written, or telepathic.<br />
<br />
--Using Beast Mind as an in combat/incapacitating mental was never the intended use. While making someone flop like a fish was funny, it doesn't really fit the theme of the game. Specifying more generally to give a target a bestial mind is more the intended effect.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Cloak (Self)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Cloak”<br />
You may spread your hand out in front of your face to indicate that you are no longer visible. You may not use this power within 10 seconds of having made an attack. This power will end if you speak, interact with any object or person, make an attack or lower your hand from covering your face.<br />
<br />
-- Cloak has basically become a power that can kill anyone without cloak sight. A cool down timer would decrease its effectiveness for disappearing style combat but retain its escape and sneak up ambush features. Incidentally, this also gave a slight nerf to cloak sight as someone trying to use cloak to get in free hits would require significantly more time kill you making cloak sight valuable but not a must have survival power.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Cloak Gathering (Touch)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Cloak Gathering”<br />
<br />
While using the Cloak power the caster may hide a target person or item by touching them. The target becomes Cloaked as per the Cloak power. This power ends immediately if the caster and target are no longer touching or if the caster is no longer cloaked. <br />
<br />
-- Rolling Cloak item and cloak gathering into a single skill made it more suitable for a level 3 power. It also opened up a slot at level 2 in obfuscate which we really really wanted to fit some other canon powers in there.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
CONDITIONING (Other)<br />
<br />
Cost: 4 energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Conditioning <Mental Power Call>”<br />
Immediately after having a conversation with a target for at least 60 seconds you may add the “Conditioning” meta call onto any mental attack that does not use the “Mass” meta call. Powers with the conditioning meta call can’t be resisted or broken with willpower.<br />
<br />
-- The 1 hour nature of conditioning never really fit it into the level 3 slot. It was a thing that could be used occasionally but the nature of most powers is that they last about 1-3 minutes to get their full effect. It also led to the possibility of some crappy things you have to do for an hour. We wanted to make it the top of dominate. Something that was very vampire and very dominate. Now things like "don't talk to vampires or bad things may happen" has some real backing.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
DISQUIET (Mental)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Disquiet”<br />
This power will immediately end frenzy in the target, this is an exception to frenzy’s regular immunity to Mental Attacks. Additionally, a target will not be able to frenzy for the duration of this power.<br />
<br />
-- The calming influence of Disquiet never really had support from the rules. The powers from canon that disquiet come from tend to force someone out of a frenzy and keep them there. Making it a mental effect that not only ends frenzy but prevents it from happening can make it useful for the calming an friend that is teetering on the brink supporting the RP that some people are already doing.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
FABRICATE ARMOR (Other)<br />
<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
<br />
Call: “Fabricate Armor”<br />
The caster spends one minute roleplaying building invisible armor on the target. The target then receives 4 additional armor points that do not require a phys-rep. These armor points are the first to be used when the target is struck for damage. A character may only have one fabricated suit of armor at any time. If the power is used again when the armor has taken damage but has not been destroyed it will only refill to a maximum of 4 armor.<br />
<br />
-- I'm not aware of anyone who liked the tag part of Fabricate Armor. Most people who used it regularly kept a card in their pocket rather than visible so item sense never really worked on it anyway. Also the math on it was always wacky. It cost a lot of energy to build up and that would never work under the new energy system. Taking it down from 6 to 4 is balanced by the cost at a single energy. This makes it equivalent to a preemptive healing touch.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-58125422412911167782013-04-02T08:57:00.001-07:002013-04-02T08:57:14.156-07:00Neverwinter Beta: Mixed ReviewOverall I enjoyed my time in beta. I didn’t run into any major issues
that would make me feel like the game wasn’t close to release. This is a
major plus as a number of other games I’ve beta tested didn’t feel like
they were ready for the public to consume. Most of the issues I
encountered were in the realm of things that hadn’t been implemented yet
rather than things that overall felt missing. So overall nice job.<br />
<br />
Good Things<br />
<br />
1. Customization in Character Creation<br />
I really liked how much customization there was in character creation
but I wasn't overwhelmed by the options. There was even a fingernail
setting. The one thing I felt was missing was a decent green for my
half-orc. Even a dark green. Instead everything ended up to human, even
the grayer options. My Horcs are green, let them be green.<br />
<br />
2. Action RPG<br />
Most of the time action RPGs end up on consoles in games like Gauntlet,
or the old DnD PS2 game. Having a good action RPG work online is
difficult but I feel that it was pretty well done here. I enjoyed
learning to dodge with their system and having enemies attacks be
obvious when they show up made for a different kind of play than most
MMORPGs I've been involved in. Playing was also way more active than
games like WoW or SWTOR. I'd liken the style closer to what I'd expect
Diablo online to be like.<br />
<br />
3. Foundry<br />
Although almost all of the foundry content I went through was TERRIBLY
bad I'm excited to see what the future has to hold with this. If I
devote serious time to this game, the foundry will be why.<br />
<br />
<br />
Bad Things<br />
<br />
1. Healer Aggro<br />
WTF. I couldn't heal anyone without getting someone to want to kill me.
Regardless of whether I was in combat or not. Healing aggro seems to be
greater than visual aggro range so if I was healing before the next
attack I'd just get jumped again. This is just going to need some kind
of fix in the near future for the game to really be enjoyable long term.<br />
<br />
2. Narrow Classes<br />
I felt that the combination of limited class choice along with narrowly
defined classes really limited my interest in investing in a particular
class. With only 5 available classes and incredibly limited
customization within each one, I'm not really that impressed by my
options. Maybe once all 20+ DnD4 classes are available I won't feel that
way. But when I compare my options to DDO I'm WAY more pigeon holed
than I want to be.<br />
<br />
3. Limited attack options<br />
When I play an MMO I generally have 4-5 hotbars open with 10-12 spaces
on each. DDO limited me to what ammounts to a single hotbar with very
limited space for my abilities. I basically get to choose my 2 free
attacks, 3 10-20 second cooldown powers and my "daily". This isn't
really a spread of options. I can't investing a ton of energy into a
character who can only have 8 different attacks at a time. Also with the
encounter powers, they were entirely on cooldown timers as a cleric so I
was just spamming them every 12 seconds. It worked out OK but I'm not
sure my interest in doing this will last.<br />
<br />
4. Respawn times<br />
In the shared instances respawn times were very short. I hate this.
There was always stuff to kill but clearning a path through and stopping
to try to heal up would often times get you respawned on. I'm not a
fan. Most of these zones could have delt with the same number of enemies
and a 10-15 minute respawn timer rather than a 2-3 minute timer. Or
even better yet, the use of off stage respawns like I saw in the intro
quest (zombies were appearing up on a hill you couldn't get to and
running down at you) would be great. I always hate the idea of orcs
randomly appearing where I'm standing.<br />
<br />
5. Class Weapons/armor<br />
This is really a pet peave of mine. When items drop and they are almost
all class specific I get really annoyed. I understand the existence of
light, medium, heavy armor in a game and there being some things you
just aren't proficient to use. But when the nice leather boots that just
dropped I can't put on because they're Rogue only, I just get annoyed.
This is even worse for weapons. If only 1/5 weapons fit my class and the
rest are all junk regardless of how "good" the weapon may be why should
I even bother. It might not be smart for me to put on the two hander
with my cleric, but considering how often I'd wade into battle, let me
do it anyway. Being stuck with a holy symbol didn't make me feel like a
cleric. It made me feel dumb.<br />
<br />
Overall<br />
I just found out about the foundry in STO and Neverwinter last week so I
was really happy to get into the beta and give Neverwinter a try.
Although, without the foundry, I doubt this is a game I'd really be very
interested in. The limited class options combined with the lack of
flexibility in builds for my character made the game feel like something
that wouldn't hold my interest at all. To be honest I felt myself more
interested in going back and playing STO because at least the game let
me define my own role as I leveled. I'm really interested in seeing what
the Foundry can bring to the game as it was my main interest in NWN and
NWN2. But how can the foundry be totally sufficient for a game that is
basically lackluster. The game is better than Diablo III, it could
provide some fun as something to play with some friends, but I'm not
sold that this is really the next game for me. It's free to play which is always a bonus, so I'm sure to give it a try. But I doubt the upper levels will keep me attached unless the foundry locks me in.
Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-84517361440378533262013-03-14T11:12:00.002-07:002013-03-14T11:12:51.374-07:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog #11: Blood Oath<h3>
This is What I'm Not Writing About </h3>
I had originally started writing a post about the powers used to kill people dead. Unfortunately there's some discussion we're still having around certain powers that need to be resolved before that post can be completed. Specifically we're working with the concepts surrounding Element 1, 2, and 3 in the game. Currently the replacing nature of element attacks makes element 3 superior in almost every way to element 1 and element 2. (As a shifter I prefer element 2 simply because of the lack of solid level 2 powers available compared to level 3 powers).<br />
Really, no character benefits from having both element 1 and element 3. Also, the choice nature of element is horribly uncannon. I rarely see element used for anything but fire even though the specific gift or power that the power represents if often times specifically another element. For Black Furies it represents Wasp Talons, for Corax it's Hummingbird's Dart. Also powers that should specifically have elemental restrictions (such as something from Rego Aquam or Creo Ignam which under the current system allow people to go Darth Vader on someone) don't really have rules to restrict them making any restriction a significant nerf rather than something that helps define flavor of an attack.<br />
In attempting to balance this out we want to split out attacks that generally do Agg (fire), attacks that always do Agg (A new <type> of damage called Agg), attacks that do agg to a specific faction (silver, sunlight, stygian steel), and attacks that don't generally do agg to anyone (water, stone). I'll say that balancing this with the new energy limitations has been a significant challenge and we're not there yet. But that's not what I'm here to tell you about. I'm here to talk about blood oath.<br />
<br />
<h3>
One of the Weirdest Rules at SA</h3>
The current blood oath rules represent one of the weirdest and most awkward rules in all of SA. I'm specifically talking about the 5 blood is too much rule. Now this rule has a lot of history as to how it came into being. There's much of that history I don't even know. But currently 5 blood in one sitting creates a blood oath that lasts for 24 hours. This means that vampires will routinely share 4 blood (also blood vials are 4 blood) and then stop specifically to avoid getting oathed. This represents a number of problems from a canon perspective. In canon a blood oath is formed by drinking a single point of blood from a single vampire on three different occasions. Then bam, you're oathed. Drinking from another vampire at all is considered very dangerous and is often times used as a punishment.<br />
Additionally the regular sentence for blood oath is 1 year to life, in SA 24 hours is the timeline. Looking at the rules for blood oath this makes sense. It's a relatively easy thing to get out of if you don't want to be bound because it basically makes you the total slave of your regent. Blood Oaths can very easily strip away the playability of a character turning you into an unwilling butler. Because of this the 24 hour timer makes sense for the current rules set but the current rules set doesn't do a great job matching canon.<br />
<br />
<h3>
The Problem with Canon</h3>
One of the issues that you encounter using canon as a base line is that canon isn't really designed for LARPs. Where it has been converted to Minds Eye Theater it's designed for a slower pace, rock-paper-scissor's LARP where everyone can pull out their character sheet. So there's a number of things that are just plain difficult to do in a LARP setting. One of which is to take OOG notes. While teaching allows for a somewhat sensible pause to find a pen and write down what is being taught, blood oaths don't always offer the same flexibility. If we tried to move to a 3 sip total system (or 3 sips within a year) someone would need to track this. I've seen notable issues at LARPs where people were arguing about if this was drink two or three, when the last one was and if it still counted. One thing we don't have much of in SA is across game tracking. There's a couple of questions about taint, what you were taught, some stuff like that. But nothing as stat intensive as tracking one drink from Cecily, two from Morosa, two from Brennis, one from... you get the point.<br />
In the end if we wanted a more canon system we'd need to keep it manageable for players. Also the length is another issue. While a year in a tabletop game is fine, it feels excessive in a LARP. Especially considering that in a tabletop game you can leave, go to France and meet fine and interesting people there. In a LARP you can go to Durham but what happens in Durham, stays in Durham. Finally, if we wanted it to be more canon it needed to be more adoration less slavery. The do every command the person wishes is a bit overboard. You should want to please them, but becoming under a long term "Obedience: Do as I say" isn't generally the best form of character development. This doesn't mean that the teeth need to be kicked out of a blood oath but some toning down and ramping up seemed in order.<br />
<br />
<h3>
One Event</h3>
Time periods in SA exist in a number of exponentially increasing increments. Most all aspects of the game fall into one of the following time periods: Immediately, 10 seconds, 1 minute, 10 minutes, 1 hour, at sunrise/sunset, or one event. There's some slight variation on length as some powers may last until sunrise or sunset or until the end of an event. But generally speaking these are the timeframes the game is based around. (As a side note a power tends to last for anywhere from half to double of it's stated duration on average considering counting speeds). I'd like to note that 24 hours isn't really one of these timeframes. It exists currently in the single case of Blood Oaths but once you reach this kind of duration it is better to revert to something that is more clearly delineated. For length of a blood oath the duration of these that makes the most sense is in the event magnitude. But tracking 6 events (one year) becomes a significant difficulty, especially since the question of alternate characters and missing games makes it a murky question.<br />
In the end the best way to handle this in a way that players can track without difficulty is to make a blood oath last for an event. But the possibility of ongoing blood oaths needs to be real to give them a strong canon feel. So rather than focusing on the duration of the oath, we made a rule that focused on the way to get rid of it. An blood oath lasts until a thrall has been played for a full event without consuming any blood of their regent. This gives ample opportunity for the oath to be upkept while preventing it from simply being dodged by playing other characters. It does mean that if an oathed character attends an event and their regent doesn't they can become free of their bondage. In a LARP setting this seems fair for the characters on both sides of the oath.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Three Drinks?</h3>
The three drinks rule from canon is a real problem especially at a LARP. With an endless time frame it works fine but I've already discussed how this becomes a problem. When we look at time frames the only real one we have to work with is one event or sunrise/sunset. Trying to remember if you drank at the last event or not is too problematic to include. If we're going to cut down the time, in order to make blood oaths remain viable we'd also need to cut down the drink requirements. The problems with one drink have been apparent, especially if we're moving to a sip system. However, two drinks is a manageable number within a single event.<br />
Canon would dictate that these would need to be on different nights (resetting at sunrise, or sunset). One option was to have the "day" reset at both sunrise and sunset to open up the number of opportunities for creating a blood oath. The concern with this was that it would make oathing an NPC virtually impossible. The majority of NPCs see a couple of hours in game per event. Our game doesn't make following them home, going to their house and finishing the oath after sunset an option. If oathing an NPC was to be a functional possibility it would need to have a shorter gap between drinks than any measure of days.<br />
This brought us to our other time period options. With the number set at two drinks, immediately felt way too short. You could just grab someone and feed them once, stop and feed them again. This lacked some of the planning, plotting, RP and scheming that should be involved in bonding a target. 10 seconds and 1 minute faced the same problems as immediately. 10 minutes or 1 hour seemed to be closer to the right number to place as a gap between drinks in order to form a bond. With several NPCs staying IG for not much more than an hour it could make it incredibly difficult for someone to catch an NPC before they head off if you had to wait an hour. This left 10 minutes as the most reasonable time frame. It's enough time that if you're using force to create the bond you could have killed the person anyway and it is short enough that you probably don't need to watch the clock to have another chance to pull off the oath. Most importantly, it's long enough to require a good scheme as to how you'll pull it off.<br />
<br />
Final decision: 2 drinks within the same event, but not within 10 minutes of each other.<br />
<br />
<h3>
But What Does it Do?</h3>
Considering that we had added steps back into the oathing process we could have steps of oath mean something. This means that one drink brings up that feeling of affection and interest (possibly making the final step easier to pull off). It brings the canon back to the power of a vampire's blood drawing you towards them.<br />
We also moved more canon with the power that the oath holds over you. No longer do you obey every command, you simply can't break powers with willpower that your regent uses on you. So you can get dominated around like a slave, but it's costing the regent energy to do so.<br />
<br />
<i>All of the following effects apply to a Thrall:<br /><br /> Thralls always see their regent in the best light possible. Any negative characteristics are overlooked, and the best of intentions are always assumed. The thrall has a very deep affection and respect for the regent that may or may not manifest as romantic love.<br /> Thralls may not use willpower to break from any power used by the regent.<br /> A thrall will never willingly harm their regent. This means the thrall will not attack the regent, and will make every effort to ensure that the regent does not come to harm. If a thrall thinks that staying close to a regent and fawning over them would be dangerous for the regent, they will keep their distance, and so on.<br /> A thrall will do everything within their power to protect their regent. This includes defending them from attacks, lying for them, and volunteering any information they think will help protect their regent.<br /> If a thrall comes under the effect of a power that forces them to act in a fashion contrary to the oath, the power takes priority over the oath.<br /> When the oath expires, the former thrall still sees their former regent in a positive light, and assumes that all emotions and actions they performed were of their own free will. It requires a great deal of evidence for a former thrall to see their actions as anything other than their own choice. The change in view from thrall to former thrall is seen as natural, as if the former thrall’s infatuation with their former regent had simply faded.</i><br />
<br />
As you can see these rules are still very favorable for creating thralls and the increased duration makes it a very nice thing to have. But it gives the thrall a bit more flexibility as to how a thrall will play his character. Overall we like this approach because it's more canon, more fun, and doesn't require that weird 4 is fine but 5 is bad thing that is currently floating around at game.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-66028636345168642992013-03-11T15:57:00.001-07:002013-03-11T15:57:31.423-07:00DRM: We brought this on ourselves The recent release of SimCity points to the final determination of the next era in video game releases. While Diablo 3's "always online" approach frustrated some people with the requirement of handing over control of your game to Blizzard, the Diablo franchise has a long history of online play with Battle.Net. Along with other Blizzard titles, the intention of the game was designed as a multiplayer experience, with a single player option. While Diablo 3 requiring connection to Blizzard to play isn't exactly what we wanted, we can accept that in some ways it does make sense.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSqg5f7T_MNi3dZA9xNa2U34A5X7LkpcPPPUFmc3-qTqOAIW3iCdCt3fK0EhXAGkMjD4vu7JHgLDu2IuCWVZBjDc9rtfoHTpf4eNcvz_CwKWBr92en0oU-mHQfl1ygBielUxLpHKZa8r0/s1600/DiabloIII.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSqg5f7T_MNi3dZA9xNa2U34A5X7LkpcPPPUFmc3-qTqOAIW3iCdCt3fK0EhXAGkMjD4vu7JHgLDu2IuCWVZBjDc9rtfoHTpf4eNcvz_CwKWBr92en0oU-mHQfl1ygBielUxLpHKZa8r0/s200/DiabloIII.png" width="143" /></a><br />
Not so with SimCity. The 2013 release of SimCity is the first in a long franchise of Sim games with any kind of online or even multiplayer experience. Sure, Sim's Online came around, but one MMO does not an online franchise make, (see Final Fantasy as an example). Even though back in 2003 with SimCity 4 people begged for the ability to make the game multiplayer with competing or cooperating cities working in tandem, SimCity was always a single player experience. For me Sim games were always the strange past time I'd slip into in hotel rooms or on airplanes. When you're stuck somewhere wasting time you can still get a feeling of accomplishment from increasing your population, earning a few thousand simoleans, or taking a look at an old course you built in SimGolf.<br />
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But the new SimCity follows Diablo 3 in making a game with a notable single player experience and taking it all online. Even before the arrival of the connection issues that have plagued the game in the first week since launch the interwebs have been furious with this approach to Digital Rights Management by Electronic Arts. In late 2012 when news of the "always online" setting of SimCity was announced, city builders were crying foul. Not surprisingly all of the pleading with SimCity 4 for a multiplayer experience was quickly forgotten as this new deal with the devil emerged. We wanted multiplayer, but not corporate control.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVvJCJv4rxj3tT2sr5JDFpgUgRwUmvTlkaiPIOAMuYqRFR50ctnJIRTwNSbOt8-ZP8YgD0vDG2ILUHv4RvBT5r2TwiKM5IhUGSjxum4oWgFflizXn0DnjXvORQ89Ix-m3sxXwh-8Wp_YA/s1600/simcity.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVvJCJv4rxj3tT2sr5JDFpgUgRwUmvTlkaiPIOAMuYqRFR50ctnJIRTwNSbOt8-ZP8YgD0vDG2ILUHv4RvBT5r2TwiKM5IhUGSjxum4oWgFflizXn0DnjXvORQ89Ix-m3sxXwh-8Wp_YA/s200/simcity.png" width="140" /></a> In the end, SimCity has released with an "always online" system and has been plagued with connection issues during it's first week of release. While this is an endless frustration for single player gamers it comes as no surprise to MMO gamers who have a long experience of unstable launches, even for solid games due to connection and stability issues. With this the big question is "What does the multiplayer option bring to the game?"<br />
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So far the answer is not much. You can sort of work with people in your region and share some resources and services. You can get fire helicopters that will fly to other cities when there's a fire. You can play in a region with your friends and visit their city (a cool little limo shows up in their city with your name on it). There's also the ability to sell certain resources and power to the global market in an expanded way from SimCity 4. But these are pretty trivial changes especially considering that the cities in the same region don't back up against one another like they did in SimCity 4. All this points to the real reason for an "always online" release, DRM.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Digital Rights Management</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHievfu8r31JeRlVX5dwwPwca4EVTTjxlRgM_-OfvaDI6i4nY46TsyJGZnbpHunldXId4IroDNUVxuCXMr-Fdq6GtEqBplzSvTG0KMOVB4Cog5szc20T43NVbMgTZwJUUKcW9-w7VtL74/s1600/600full-guild-wars-cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHievfu8r31JeRlVX5dwwPwca4EVTTjxlRgM_-OfvaDI6i4nY46TsyJGZnbpHunldXId4IroDNUVxuCXMr-Fdq6GtEqBplzSvTG0KMOVB4Cog5szc20T43NVbMgTZwJUUKcW9-w7VtL74/s200/600full-guild-wars-cover.jpg" width="142" /></a></div>
In the gaming world digital rights management (DRM) is generally considered the symbol of evil corporate overlords squeezing every last penny out of consumers. Really it's a bit more simple than that. From a corporate perspective with regard to games DRM manifests as a method in which the company hosts servers on which the game is played. This sort of environment is no surprise for MMOs in which the servers provide for the shared experience and provide a level playing field between gamers. It's kind of like the bowling alley keeping your scores and handicap on record so you can't set up a bunch of plastic pins in your bathroom and bowl a 300 game. This isn't the only kind of DRM that exists, but so far it's the only kind that gamers have previously encounter regularly. For most MMOs you end up paying a monthly fee, or under the free to play model you get limited access unless you pay a monthly fee. Though some games have broken out of the subscription or micro-transaction model, like Guild Wars, the online and multiplayer aspect of these games justifies the need to use the companies servers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPENpNvTiOozLeKaVRLkm5yEqtu3ktSnDG6oOVSxx0PenhJti_Kry7KEqybGNe0FCpaE9-FoDGp06xXxB8anVa6GWMN_D-EQlWZfUWVBT8IiHyjD7OGi9CrT5chnx-vz_wzt0fa7uPhaM/s1600/SimCity_4_cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPENpNvTiOozLeKaVRLkm5yEqtu3ktSnDG6oOVSxx0PenhJti_Kry7KEqybGNe0FCpaE9-FoDGp06xXxB8anVa6GWMN_D-EQlWZfUWVBT8IiHyjD7OGi9CrT5chnx-vz_wzt0fa7uPhaM/s200/SimCity_4_cover.jpg" width="138" /></a> With SimCity it doesn't seem necessary as everyone is primarily looking for a quality single player experience. The addition of multiplayer "features" that don't add substantially to game play means that from a players perspective the online experience is more likely to be a negative one, than a positive one. This is significantly compounded by the connection issues people have been suffering through in the first week of the game's release.<br />
<br />
So why would EA do this? The answer is simple, piracy. The Sim games are among the most commonly pirated games for the longest period of time. The 2003 release of SimCity 4 is still easily available, as is SimCity 3000 and 2000. Even some of the remakes of SimCity classic can be found online. The replayability of these games encourages people to look them back up five years later to play around some more. The sheer number of Sim games that our generation has played but never bought is staggering. In the end, we've brought the DRM model on ourselves.<br />
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<h3>
Copy Protection</h3>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKBNi6C7-_zz_y6Dx2bHnd-a6DL49o9vlh4ikWHJWzEKN_ebS1cHuZQFi4_EFa1Y8Opbt04LcTLpCglZbgSANGjwkPb2QRGefuSYD2XHoL3Y6bxicCytekovixxw4fJ50t5BC85Ou0Eko/s1600/simcity_redsheet.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKBNi6C7-_zz_y6Dx2bHnd-a6DL49o9vlh4ikWHJWzEKN_ebS1cHuZQFi4_EFa1Y8Opbt04LcTLpCglZbgSANGjwkPb2QRGefuSYD2XHoL3Y6bxicCytekovixxw4fJ50t5BC85Ou0Eko/s320/simcity_redsheet.jpg" width="206" /></a></div>
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While DRM is a dirty word in most consumer circles, copy protection has a long history with SimCity. I remember the original Macintosh SimCity which came with a two page dark red document with city names and small icons you had to match up and enter in the code in order to play the game. If you lost the red paper, you couldn't play the game. The paper was specifically designed to be unphotocopyable (we tried, even in color) and long enough to dissuade copying by hand. Other early games had you type in the 8th word on the 43rd page of the rule book when you started the game. No rulebook, no game. More recent releases moved to the "CD in" model in which you had to have the CD in your computer in order to play the game.<br />
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All of these methods of copy protection have been defeated by video game pirates who have cracked the code of the game to allow it to run without a CD or have used virtual drives to tell the computer that they have the CD when really they don't. There are websites with the old table from the original SimCity and the manuals of old have been scanned and made available for all to see. The only set of games that haven't been able to be cracked are the always on MMO style games. In a age of game downloads rather than purchased boxed sets, using account management inherent in the game purchasing software just makes sense. If the company controls the system, they can verify one account logged in per purchased game, and no one can steal it.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijZmggw2NOJrdnygHV5Grbyp2X55a3Q9ecdTFNOoJ4-2GnMdmxkSgD8PjfveJJNoSPXqnpTE2Y33BCGGgXAKmU2ONM_xeSLX_3Oc-yP-vf8CCcQKHteeQatsEDI91AcNg9b4zVOcRA7IE/s1600/SimCity_Classic_cover_art.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijZmggw2NOJrdnygHV5Grbyp2X55a3Q9ecdTFNOoJ4-2GnMdmxkSgD8PjfveJJNoSPXqnpTE2Y33BCGGgXAKmU2ONM_xeSLX_3Oc-yP-vf8CCcQKHteeQatsEDI91AcNg9b4zVOcRA7IE/s200/SimCity_Classic_cover_art.jpg" width="171" /></a> There are tons of other issues that come with server base games. Servers go down, they're unplayable in a internet dead zone, and most importantly, at some point the company will stop providing the service as the game is no longer profitable for them. No longer do you own a game. You've more bought a lifetime subscription card at the local batting cage which will last until the ownership changes, the place closes down, or the machines get upgraded to no longer accept the old cards. These are the issues being raised by gamers worldwide about the new SimCity release. But in the end, we've made it in a companies best interest to have complete control of their game. It can't be stolen, loaned to a friend, installed on multiple home computers, and, eventually, it can be taken out of service forcing you to purchase a newer version of the game.<br />
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As gamers we hate that it has come to this, but really this is a problem that our generation has cultivated and exploited for too many years. While SimCity's rocky launch points to all the problems with this system, I don't think we're going to see it going away any time soon. The answers we're hearing from Maxis and EA are more servers and solving stability problems not moving to offline play. In the future we'll see more server stability at launches, but not more offline games. DRM is the future that we've made for ourselves by twenty years of playing too many free games, working around copy protection, and filesharing. It's time we own up to it and admit that if we want to play big title games in the future, we're going to have to play them on company terms and corporate servers.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-74677071007549084632013-03-07T10:02:00.000-08:002013-03-07T10:02:12.864-08:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog #10: Status Attacks Dealing with status attacks has actually been one of the most difficult aspects of the new rules set. Status attacks are sort of a weird in between in the game. They're attacks that like damage effects are targeted at the body, but work more like mental attacks as far as how they cause the player to react. The hybrid combination of effect and target really places them in the middle of nowhere as far as the rules go.<br />
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<h3>
Currently</h3>
Resisting status is done with Resilience, which for 2 energy you can resist the attack in whole. This makes resilience not only a great power, but a must have power. Being hit with paralyze is an assured way to drop any target without resilience. There's a couple ways to become immune to status attacks such as form of war and form of vapor, and you can also pick up an additional resist with the merit Hardy. Even if you do have one of these, you probably still need resilience to avoid getting chumped.<br />
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<h3>
Problems</h3>
The problem we found was both that Resilience was too good, and status attacks were too good. Not having Resilience was basically a death sentence. Having resilience basically made all status attacks useless. This led to people either ignoring status as an attack method all together or making a single status attack to see if their opponent had a defense and then being disappointed with the result. If it was resisted, status was ignored and people moved on. If it stuck, they probably won the fight.<br />
Another problem was with the tiered nature of status attacks. For the most part it made no sense to use any other attack than paralyze if you had it because it basically equated a win in a fight. Other status attacks simply didn't measure up. This meant that they didn't have utility, they simply had superiority by getting the best power and ignoring the rest.<br />
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<h3>
Trials and Tribulations</h3>
I want to give some idea of the number of different things we tried for status resist to give a picture of the experience we went through. We tried lots of stuff.<br />
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1. Resist with health - We tried what it looked like if you resist status by paying 1 health.<br />
The thought here was that we could differentiate it from damage and mentals by making the pool it drains from separate. Unfortunately, this didn't work. It did make people more likely to take low level mental attacks but it was still an auto resist for paralyze. Basically status attacks ended up just being throwing a packet for 1, which wasn't much fun for either side.<br />
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2. Break with Resilience - We tried to see what it would look like if you broke a status for 2 energy much like our current rules for breaking a mental.<br />
The though was that people would at least take the effects initially then break out once it really mattered. In reality, every status got broken all the time. Status became less useful than it currently is because everyone could afford to break it and it really didn't feel right for status.<br />
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3. Free resist for people without resilience - The idea here was to make it so people could pay a lot (5 health) to resist a status attack without needing a power.<br />
This was also pretty lame. It did succeed in giving people without resilience an out but it didn't feel good for either side. Both the attackers and defenders were nonplused by this scenario.<br />
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4. Free status attacks - We added some status attacks that didn't cost energy.<br />
This worked surprisingly well. Having some weak, level one status attacks that didn't cost energy helped make the auto resist mantra die out. If someone can just pepper you repeatedly with a status attack, you're likely to stop and take it rather than fighting against it. It still makes Paralyze an auto resist but it does help the spread of powers where there's times you'd throw the freebie rather than spending the energy on big attacks.<br />
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5. Side effect on resist - We looked at having resilience ding you somehow.<br />
The big question here was how. I creasing the cost was one way to add more ding, but that's not really helpful. We found -1 damage to actually be a decent counterbalance to resisting. It made aggressors weakened even if they were able to resist status attacks. It also made the new avoidance rules slightly more powerful as an attacker that was swinging 2 could be dropped to 1 with a status attack. That significantly decreases the damage they're capable of putting out.<br />
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<h3>
Combined Approach</h3>
In the end combining 4 and 5 seemed workable. Having variable cost powers means that people can push in with status attacks and still see some results even if their attack is resisted. What it ended up doing was making it so that if you have a status attack it is definitely worth throwing one at a target in combat. If they resisted you still got some bang for your buck. We basically made it so that if you use resilience you take a status effect that decreases your attack damage by one. We also made this a free status attack replacing wither.<br />
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WITHER (Status)<br />
Cost: None<br />
Call: “Wither”<br />
The target's maximum damage with boffer attacks is reduced by one. Umbrabound creatures in the umbra may use this power across the Gauntlet by saying “Breach” before the sig call.<br />
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However, we still had the problem with some of the bigger status attacks. Paralyze was an auto resist but it left the downside, but we had just made tossing the first status attack into combat more worthwhile. If you didn't have resilience, you were more likely to be chumped. This meant we had to tone down some of the bigger status attacks so that they weren't an immediate win/lose power. Instead we wanted to make them powers to control the flow of the fight, not simply dominate it. The big powers that needed to be clarified were Paralyze, Body Wrack, and Venom Blood. We wanted these to impose significant restrictions, but not be an auto-win for a fight. Because even if your opponent resists the attack, you're still getting some effect.<br />
Pay some special attention to how each of these powers works and think about when you'd use each one. There's some very subtle changes that makes each of these powers very unique. <br />
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BODY WRACK (Status)<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
Call: “Body wrack”<br />
The target must take a knee while screaming out in pain. The target may not make status, mental, touch, counted touch, or packet damage attacks. Umbrabound creatures in the umbra may use this power across the Gauntlet by saying “Breach” before the sig call. <br />
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PARALYZE (Status)<br />
Cost: 1 Energy<br />
Call: “Paralyze”<br />
The target is held in total paralysis unable to do anything other than regenerate. This power ends immediately if the target is attacked or damaged.<br />
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VENOM (Status)<br />
Cost: 1 energy<br />
Call: “Venom”<br />
The target must roleplay being ill and may not make any attacks. <br />
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DISABLE (Status)<br />Cost: 2 energy<br />Call: “Disable”<br />For the duration of this power the target may not expend energy for any reason.<br />
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Now for the teacher part in me. I'm curious to see how people are putting all of the rules we've shown so far together. You'll notice we increased the cost of disable to two energy. There's a very specific reason we did this based on previous posts. Can anyone tell me why?Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-64097637539178852013-03-05T09:39:00.000-08:002013-03-05T09:39:00.014-08:00Understanding Literacy in the Digital World<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikTS9VQRgRtMXOqDFSkRbThmVfCzcTNBatTJ5ghzGbjKdWnwj_hMkGADYI4-tYLEfCOvgvQr0DfAFKnDyakZVA0dtrGFes6lFnOeAa8EqqBWE4tdw1ehia0NYPbxpK3lajbsMO2B9E-q0/s1600/ncce_2013_logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikTS9VQRgRtMXOqDFSkRbThmVfCzcTNBatTJ5ghzGbjKdWnwj_hMkGADYI4-tYLEfCOvgvQr0DfAFKnDyakZVA0dtrGFes6lFnOeAa8EqqBWE4tdw1ehia0NYPbxpK3lajbsMO2B9E-q0/s200/ncce_2013_logo.jpg" width="188" /></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The recent NCCE
conference was full of experienced computer professionals. Much like a college
library, it was full of students bustling about sharing their favorite texts,
discussing their recent readings, and people searching for answers to difficult
questions. Access to the riches of a library is generally reserved for those
who are able to read. Much the same could be said about the riches of the
internet and digital literacy. George Couros’ Keynote address focused on the
very concept of digital literacy and how to spread it throughout a school
community.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The keynote address
brought together a number of ideas that I had been working through in my own
mind with a very clear and succinct thesis. Digital literacy much like reading
literacy, must be taught in a literate culture. Just as we expect teachers to
model effective literacy techniques to budding readers, we must expect teachers
to display effective digital literacy techniques to students if we expect them
to grow up as digitally literate individuals. This poses a significant
challenge as a number of students already seem ahead of their teachers as soon
as a technological device is placed on the table.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The focus of this
struggle is that students already exist in many domains that many teachers have
not yet ventured into. Communications such as texting, facebook, and twitter
are a mainstay of student interaction that vast numbers of educational staff
avoid. The cause of their aversion is that they are not fully digitally
literate. Digital literacy in today’s world is far more than being able to
operate a computer and perform its basic functions. Digital literacy must include
not only how to read and write, but also how find the book and where to place
the writing.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One aspect of
literacy that is not taught very frequently is the aspect of publishing your work.
Publishing feels like some distant process that only writers do and it is long
and difficult. Most commonly, students feel that their work isn’t good enough
to be published. However, the digital realm is heavily predicated on people
publishing their work. Work in this case can range from something as simple as
a 144 character tweet, to a paragraph facebook post, to a blog post, to an
entire ebook or website. While our conventional systems for teaching reading
and writing are sufficient, only sharing student work with their teacher is a
digitally illiterate act.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What the keynote
address made me realize is that the online portfolio concept that my school is
using only addresses a small part of the need of students to become digitally
literate. In the current model students in their junior and senior year gather
and produce a website that represents some of their best work. They then give
commentary on the work they’ve done. While this is fantastic that students are
sharing their work with the world, starting at 11<sup>th</sup> grade is far too
late. Student websites should be started in elementary school where students
can share and store the totality of their school work. They should be
constantly building and refining the website as a method of sharing their work
with the world. Only through constant interaction with the internet can we hope
for students to learn to be truly digitally literate. In order for this to
happen, teachers should be doing the same with their work.</div>
Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-5585217438062873572013-02-20T21:55:00.004-08:002013-02-20T21:58:01.743-08:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog #9: Deliveries and EffectsIn case you couldn't tell, the change to combat speed is a really big thing. This is something that is going to bleed over into numerous areas and alter combat significantly. One thing that I want to make clear is that the one successful strike per second applies to Damage, Status, and Mental attacks. But fortunately this isn't the only way we have in place to prevent machine gunning these things.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Damage Attacks</h3>
There are two kinds of damage attacks, packet and boffer. We want to clarify that these two will work the same way with the single exception that packets are thrown, and most boffers are not. This means the both packet and boffer damage attacks can be blocked with weapons and shields. We also wanted to clarify the way calls are made. We've broken the call into three parts which I will discuss in no particular order here. First, we all know the damage <number> part. This states how much damage is being caused by the attack assuming it successfully hits. Second we have the <type> of damage which indicates if the particular attack will be considered aggravated damage to the target.<br />
Finally we have added a new part called the <meta>. While an attack will have only one number and one type, it can have a number of meta calls. The primary disadvantage of meta calls is that they will take much longer to make the attack. Meta calls already exist in SA but they don't really have a clear designation in the rules. Powers such as Umbra Strike, Breach, and Balefire already use a meta call. Some <meta> calls can be applied onto other types of attack powers such as status and mental. We're specifically breaking this out so that we can have a clear list of what we can expect to fall into this category. Below are a few examples of some <meta> calls:<br />
<br />
Disarm - A disarm attack that strikes a targets weapon causes him to drop the weapon if he does not resist the attack.<br /><br />Tainted - If this attack is not resisted immediately the target will become tainted.<br /><br />Unresistable - This attack can not be resisted. Targets that are immune will still state “no effect”. <br />
<br />
You may notice Disarm up there as a meta call. This change means that a character using the fatal flaw power would add the "Disarm" meta onto their attack call. If the attack strikes a weapon the defender will be forced to drop the weapon. If it strikes the defender's body they would instead take damage from the attack. So you might see an attack call of "Disarm Silver 1". With avoidance this attack could be resisted even if it only hit a weapon.<br />
Damage attacks are currently primarily resisted with the avoidance power. This is somewhat of a mainstay power that is really vital to long term survivability of anyone who is seeking to engage in heavy combat. One issue with the current iteration of this power is that it doesn't scale at all with the difficulty of an opponent. Avoidance allows me to resist a damage attack for 2 energy regardless of if the attacker is swinging for one regular point of damage, or eight points of fire damage. The issue with this is that a character with 20 energy can take 15 hits of an opponent swinging 2, or 12 hits of an opponent swinging 8. The totem swinging 8 is not really a bigger threat even though they happen to swing 4 times harder than the ghoul with might.<br />
<br />
It's worth noting here that PC's damage range is typically around 1-3 damage per swing. There are people who can hit for four and five damage per swing, but these are exceptions and they have put notable experience and IG effort into doing so. Most new or moderate characters we expect to swing for 1 or 2 damage, elder vampires and crinos ahroun three, alphas and werewolf elders four or maybe five if the moon is just right. <br />
<br />
We wanted each of those points to be more significant and bring in a more substantial reward for increasing damage. Avoidance is now looking like the following:<br />
<br />
Avoidance - (Self)<br /><br />Cost: Energy equal to the <number> of the damage attack call.<br /><br />Call: “Resist”<br /><br />You may resist a single damage attack and any meta calls associated with it.<br /><br /> So in our above example with the Disarm Silver 1 attack it would only cost a single point of energy to resist the attack. However, when facing a totem level character you might have to pay six or eight energy to resist the attack. Suddenly the 20 energy character can survive 4 hits from the totem who is essentially their god instead of 12. However, for the character swinging 2, things remain the same. It is still 15 hits to take an opponent down. I use the totem example as an extreme case. The difference between the 15 hits for an opponent swinging 2s is now 10 hits for an opponent swinging 3s, 8 hits for an opponent swinging 4s, and let's not forget 30 hits for an opponent swinging 1s. Also each hit can come no faster than once per second, so you gain a lot of survivability by not taking all 15 of those hits in the first three or four seconds of combat.<br />
There were initial concerns about the math of this system. But we realized that after very little practice we all fell into the same routine of handling it. Mentally we counted our energy on top of our health for one big pool. If I have 10 health and 15 energy then I have a pool of 25 possible damage to take. If I get below 10 I need to start taking the damage, but the math stays the same. If I use a power it deducts one from the pool. This actually made handling the fairly easy. <br />
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<h3>
Mental Attacks</h3>
Mental attacks are a huge part of the game, huge. For me the fact that I can use a power on a target and the player has to play that they don't know what happened is the largest difference between SA and lesser LARPs. Unfortunately, they are often one of the most commonly misplayed parts of the game when it comes to combat. In spite of several clarifications the exact rules for using mentals in combat remain difficult for people to follow. We wanted this to change mostly so more people understood and could follow the rules. We wanted to avoid the confusion that was currently taking place and we also really wanted to get rid of the OOG touch thing that never made any sense. If we're attempting to play a WSYWIG game, we shouldn't run around touching people and saying it is OOG.<br />
Our solution was to establish a mental range. The range we decided on was about ten feet. The "about" is a very important piece of this picture. We did NOT want people stopping the game to measure. We also don't have a problem with 10 feet occasionally being 12 or even 15 feet. We hope that it will be pretty obvious when a target is at 20 feet and not a viable target. About 10 feet is conversational range or close combat range, but not hiding behind my battle line distance. We want you to be able to target any person who is within about 10 feet.<br />
However, if I'm surrounded by four bad guys who are all trying to get swings in at me and I shout "snarl" (which under the current SA rules is not a legal attack in this situation) the four bad guys shouldn't have to go OOG to decide who I was attacking. So as an additional requirement, you need to have the attention of your target and your target (the player) must understand that they are being targeted. This means that a character can't ignore me to avoid mentals, and neither can a player. If they're actively ignoring me then they probably realize that I'm targeting them. Now there happens to be many ways you can indicate a target IG. First off you can still touch them. If I tap you on the shoulder and say Horrid Reality, it is obvious who I am targeting. But this touch is IG. You can also point, with your finger. But this will only work if the player is facing you. You can also call out IG something to grab their attention. "Hey, you in the stupid red hat with a big ostrich feather. <Terror>". In combat if someone runs right up to you, looks right into your eyes, and says "Monsters", you'll know what to do.<br />
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Our testing showed this worked really well in the most chaotic of combats. It also means that if someone is being extensively pummeled by numerous people, your mental probably won't be able to land unless you run up and get right in their face. For casual situations it also worked great because you didn't have to deal with the awkward OOG touch.<br />
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But this wasn't all we wanted clarified. The ability to hand out mentals at longer range had to be tempered and balanced. One thing we also weren't fond of was that your willpower rating seemed to simply be an indication of how many mentals you would need to be hit with before one would effect you. Most people resist mental attacks immediately before even considering the situation. This causes an strange chain mental attack to get through someone's willpower so your mental would actually do something. In a limited energy environment this would be a problem. We also felt there were mentals that opened up good RP opportunity being resisted because people didn't want it to become a threat later on. We really wanted mentals to be effective to guide people towards things they aren't incredibly opposed to and willpower be used to avoid those things that they feel too greatly violated their characters desires. We felt that requiring the resist up front was actually what was causing the bulk of the problem.<br />
What we wanted was we wanted willpower to Break mentals, not resist them. This specifically would allow for characters to take the effect and only worry about breaking it if it put them in a really bad of a spot. It made characters with extensive willpower very difficult to control and it gave some opportunity to people that were under the effects of a mental. The less wholesale nature made for much more interesting situations. No longer could you trust that the obedienced opponent was really on your side for good, he might break out of it. The beast minded guy would behave oddly for a bit but when five other guys came in to take him out he'd suddenly snap out of it realizing his life was on the line. Overall we saw that most mentals would stick for at least 20-30 seconds before being broken, rather than being resisted straight away. This rewarded mental attackers by getting some payout for using their power. It also got rid of the ability for mental attackers to just chain cast their mental until a target stopped moving. If you hit me with merciful sleep 5 times, I'll take it, then resist, get up and keep on running. It only takes 1 willpower after the last one sticks for me to get free.<br />
It was also much more fun to get hit with a mental power. With terror I'd run for a bit, decide I wanted to be back in a fight, burn the willpower and return after around a minute. With obedience I'd start off obeying the command but when it was starting to look like it might get me killed I'd decide that I was done with this particular command and break it. My initial reaction became to roll with the mental until it put me in a really bad spot. So instead of being instantly resisted, it became a great opportunity for RP.<br />
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I know there will be some concern that this change might decrease the power of mentals overall. In a few ways it is definitely true. No longer will you be able to chain mentals at a target. No more 5 snarls to insure that the target takes one. But I think we can all agree, this was cheesy anyway. There's also no more guarantee that a person who runs off after being terrored won't come running back in another minute. But again, otherwise the would have resisted the power immediately and they wouldn't be running off at all anyway, or they would have just broken the power in the first 5 seconds anyway in which there's really no change. This change also clears up the issue with knowing if your target has resisted the attack or not. The normal response will be to take a power for at least a little while except in the most extreme circumstances such as debilitating effects such as merciful sleep and horrid reality. At which point we're really not experiencing any change.<br />
Also the little things are more likely to stick. Passion will be more useful, as will things like induce sin, because if I end up in a situation I'm not fond of I can break out of it. but otherwise I'll roll with it for a while to see where it goes.Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4453770698497483833.post-89347129172195788862013-02-14T14:11:00.001-08:002013-02-14T14:18:17.894-08:00SA 2.0 Dev Blog #8: The whole dying processI wanted to break down the entire dying process just to give a clear picture of what it will look like under the new system. I included a chart below because that became a thing recently.<br />
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Alive<br />
You have health, you have maximum health, you're alive.<br />
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Incapacitated<br />
You have 0 health. You have been incapacitated. You are unconscious.<br />
If you have a regeneration rating it will automatically trigger at 1 minute and you can spend energy to heal. Characters may choose to move to dead at this point (NPCs with no friends).<br />
If you don't have a regeneration rating or you don't have energy to activate your regeneration, after 10 minutes you are now dead.<br />
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Dead<br />
If your maximum health is 0 or you've been incapacitated for 10 minutes you are now dead. Dead is an interesting state. First off your maximum health immediately drops to 0 if it wasn't already. You can be targeted by insight and you can be resurrected (even if you're not human). There's a couple of other powers that can target dead people, but we'll talk about those later. If you're dead, you're in a pretty bad spot, you don't want to be here.<br />
If you are dead for 10 minutes you become Decaying.<br />
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Decaying<br />
Decaying is when you can drop your tags and get up. Depending on what you are, you may not have to do so yet. A decaying vampire or wraith goes OOG immediately. A decaying shifter or human may continue to play a body for as long as they want, or until a power destroys their body (spoiler). Once you hit the decaying stage your character is gone and can not be brought back.<br />
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Look here. I made a chart:<br />
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I'm also going to take this opportunity to show off some of the new formatting we're looking at for powers. While the majority of powers will continue to cost 1 energy, we wanted to clearly spell out what will not. Touch is a "new" category of powers that require touch to activate and are resisted with willpower. Touch powers are not considered attacks, unlike mental, status, and damage powers which are considered attacks.</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">Resurrection - (Touch)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Cost: 1 Willpower</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Call: “Resurrection”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">After the caster spends 1 minute meditating while touching a dead character he may activate this power to bring them back to life. A dead target will have their maximum health returned to 1 and be healed a single point of health. An incapacitated or conscious target will be healed 1 point of health.<br /><br />Insight – (Touch)<br />Cost: 1 Energy<br />Call: “Insight <question>”<br />The caster touches a target that is dead. The target must answer any questions the caster asks truthfully per character knowledge. This power ends when the target becomes decaying or when the caster is no longer touching the target.<br /> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><br />
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<h3>
Why the changes to the above powers?</h3>
The infinite timer on Resurrection had some major concerns from a rules perspective. First off it encouraged people killing a target near the end of an event where the chance for resurrection was low. This artificial timer didn't sit right. Also, we wanted resurrection to be cool and not just a human thing. Shifters are alive and can be resurrected. There was some big war about that or something. We figured that the dead state gives a time period in which someone could be resurrected without becoming a burden. Another fear we had was a character staying IG as their character's body all night in hopes of being resurrected. While I'd admire the hardcore aspect of this, I don't think it's actually something we want in the game. This gives a clear path from which a character moves from living to incapacitated, to dead, to gone in a clear and concise way.<br />
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Insight has been heavily used as the best truth telling method of the game. The line I've heard repeatedly is "beat them down and insight them". While the energy restrictions that exist in a limited energy system would limit it's abuse the one question one answer system still isn't great. We wanted to take this power back to where it belonged. In canon the power was really used to extract information out of a dead body, not a live one. If you came across a corpse you could get info out of it (usually only about how it died). We wanted to keep some of the original investigative nature in insight but we wanted to up the ante on it. As it is written in the new system, if you want the truth, you need to get it from their cold dead eye. You also get tons of info for a single energy point. Marc DeArmondhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06470494983430457563noreply@blogger.com5