Guest posts by Demongod

13

Card Ideas and Art / Balance suggestions

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:28 pm »

My opinion of these balance suggestions:

Nova/Supernova
I think you nerfed them too much. Having to pay 2 quantum to get 10 random quantum is pretty bad. I liked the old Nova better and I see no point in changing it because I don't consider it to be overpowered at all.

Same thing with Supernova. If you make it random AND make it give less quantum, that's a pretty big nerf.

If I were Zanz I would make Supernova cost 3 quantum and that's it. Maybe even 4.

Bone Wall
I like it.

Otyugh
I like it.

Pulverizer
I'd like to see the ability cost 3 quantum. 1 permanent destruction per turn should cost a lot imo.

Heal
I like the card but the name should change if it functioned like that. I don't see "heal" removing poison. If it only healed 30 and nothing more, it would make more sense.

Jade Staff
Hmm.. I personally wouldn't do anything to Jade Staff. Healing 8 HP per round sounds a bit high for a card that costs 2 quantum.

Miracle
Ok, I'm totally against this. The coolest part of Miracle is when you play it when you have only 1 HP left. "It's a Miracle!!!". This new card would heal 1 HP in that situation. I would probably make it heal 60 and remove all poison.

Hourglass
I don't think Hourglass needs a nerf. It's not that powerful really. That nerf would weaken Time decks a lot.

Sundial
I like it BUT I would put the hasten ability back (2 quantum in both versions). I don't think cards should be nrfed by taking abilities away when you do it in others ways as well.

Vampire Dagger
Yeah, that looks pretty good.

Phase Shield
I like the effect but I'm not sure about the cost. Nerf might be too big. Maybe lower the cost by one?

See this is the thing--all, or at least most, are simply nerfs to PvAI decks.  As for pulverizer costing any more than one, that's ridiculous.  Why?  Because it requires two colors.  If you cast it with earth and used earth, then it should cost 3.

14

Card Ideas and Art / Balance suggestions

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:28 pm »

Repeat after me:

The computer

does not

mind being

beaten.

I've seen you rant about this before.

People want it nerfed because it's overpowered compared to other cards and forces almost every single PvP deck to have permanent destruction cards (which we only have two, Explosion and Pulverizer).

I don't know how anyone can say with a straight face that Sundial is not overpowered. I mean a card that costs nothing, with 2 turns of stasis and ability to draw more cards.

And I'll continue to rant about it.  Why?  Because cards that actually force your opponents to play against *you* rather than play solitaire are *good*.  Furthermore, sundial without draw is pretty bad.  Sure, it stalls.  But unless you actually have a way of doing something with that stalling, then it's a dead card in your deck.

Finally, how hard is it to change your mark to fire if you're playing an aggression deck, so you can splash explosion, which deals with so many other things?

15

Card Ideas and Art / Brain Freeze

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:28 pm »

Don't have any photo-editing software sorry >_<

16

Card Ideas and Art / Brain Freeze

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:28 pm »

http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/5828606/2/istockphoto_5828606-brain-freeze.jpg

There's a pic on that link.  Sorry I can't find anything better.

17

Card Ideas and Art / Brain Freeze

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:28 pm »

4 Water

If a player draws two or more cards this turn, that player's creatures cannot attack.

Upgrade:

4 Water

If your opponent draws two or more cards this turn, your opponent's creatures cannot attack.

Cannot be destroyed or stolen.

Pretty simple.  If you abuse card draw, this screws you.  If you don't, this card is worthless.

Edit: modified slightly.

18

General Discussion / What the game mechanics should be

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:28 pm »

Stacking bonewalls: yes.  Why not?  This way, if you punch through all of them, you punched through not one, but two cards.
Firestorm hitting immaterial: ever played warcraft 3?  Know what ethereal is?  Can't be hit by physical stuff.  But magic?  Ouch.
Reflecting poison: Yes, very much so.  I have no idea why poison doesn't target.  Shouldn't reflect miracle though.  That'd be dumb.

Canceling critter ability: absolutely.  This is just dumb that you lose the quanta and the ability.  It's bad coding, bad implementation, and makes the whole game look like some moron put it together because he could, rather than someone trying to make a polished product.

All abilities on mutants: yes.  Think about this.  If you mutate into a massive dragon with devour, that's far stronger than sniper.  As for queen, consider two boneyards active and an otyugh eating a mutant.  Not imba.

19

Card Ideas and Art / Balance suggestions

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:27 pm »

Repeat after me:

The computer

does not

mind being

beaten.


I have never in my life seen such a scrub mentality.  I mean not only are sundials/phase shields/hourglasses some of the most easily countered cards in the game, but now you have to hit everything with a nerf hammer because...

People are abusing a garbage AI?

Are you *kidding* me?

Balance is not determined vs. AI.  If so, then in starcraft, you'd consider base defense completely and utterly overpowered because the computer always all-out rushes you with mass zealots or marines or zerglings/hydralisks while you sit back and tech to whatever unit you need to mass to win the game.  The computer doesn't muta bomb, it doesn't mech/scv push, and generally plays like garbage with whatever race it draws.

As for False Gods winning 50% of the time no matter how good your deck is, do you realize what kind of an absurd proposition that is?!  At all?!  I mean really?  That no matter how good your deck is, no matter how skillfully you play it, no matter what the heck you do, that False Gods will still, because of the imbalance of them literally being two players at once (in fact a little more, considering their mark is x3, not x2, and that the mana is pooled), that you lose half the time?

Are you serious?

There's a difference between "challenging" and "frustrating".

Tell you what: when Elements actually gets a PvP scene, *then* we can discuss balance.  Balance is not AI-exploitation vs. bad AI.  Balance is player vs. player.

And honestly, if you wanted to nerf these defensive cards so badly...

Explosion--now costs 2 random mana.

DONE.

Now every color can pack sundial counters!  See?  Wasn't that so simple?

20

Game Suggestions and Feedback / Anubis Idea

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:27 pm »

I said your deck had to be worth as much as a laptop.  So consider a 60 card deck, and that a decent laptop costs $600. 

$10 on average per card.  I remember in Invasion/Odyssey type 2, a control deck which used 4x shadowmage infiltrator, 4x spectral lynx, 2x dromar the banisher, 4x undermine, 4x absorb, 4x counterspell, 4x fact or fiction, some other cards, and 4x underground river, 4x adarkar wastes 4x caves of koilos, 4x salt marsh (UB tapland), the UW tapland, and I believe 4x city of brass, along with a couple of other rare lands.

Also see: Monowhite control in Onslaught.  4x decree of justice 2x akroma 4x windborn muse 4x dawn elemental 4x wrath of god, essentially it was every single white chase rare put together with a bunch of plains and temples of the false god.  It cost a hilarious amount of money to assemble.

21

Game Suggestions and Feedback / Anubis Idea

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:27 pm »

First of all, you're using bad terminology.  Your library is your deck.  And wishes in tournament play certainly did not allow what you describe.  In tournament play, their errata was that the "outside of game" was the "removed from game" zone and your sideboard.  So effectively, with wishes, you were smushing several cards into one, since you could wish for an answer out of your sideboard against your worst matches.

Simply, MtG became too expensive to play, that's all.  Considering that the aggression deck in Mirrodin literally got *banned* from the environment, and that the better decks such as Mono-White Control were simply all the white chase rares, the idea that you had to have a deck worth as much as a decent laptop just to compete in tournaments was absurd.

22

Game Suggestions and Feedback / Mulligan

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:27 pm »

No, you lose a card for mulliganing, and that's IT.  No one time limit.  If your six-card draw is bad, go down to five.  And as much as you need to.

23

General Discussion / Poll: Most Overpowered #2

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:18 pm »

Wait a minute...so something is judged whether or not it's overpowered on how it works vs. garbage AI rather than other players?

Sundial: Destroy owns this.

Poison: Far more overpowered.  Either you pack hate which can screw you over against another deck in a close mirror, or you get destroyed in 5 turns.

24

General Discussion / Poll: Most Overpowered #2

« on: December 15, 2009, 10:10:18 pm »

Poison and upgrade prices.  Honestly.  Think about it.  6 deadly poisons+a couple of physalia activates and you've got 5 turns to live.  Unless you play light or life, you're screwed in short order.