Guest posts by the Sage

49

Game Suggestions and Feedback / Re: Changing ultimate spells

« on: August 19, 2010, 02:01:08 pm »

For obvious reasons this is a bad idea.
Like's compare Miracle (light user) to Miracle (rainbow user). Let's say both have played 12 pillars (12 light vs 12 rainbow). Let's say mark of light vs mark of entropy (entropy rainbow)
Light user plays Miracle -> next turn regains 13 light quanta -> this is enough to play pretty much ANY light card, including another miracle or a dragon.
Rainbow user plays Miracle -> next turn gains an average of 3 quanta for each element (4 for entropy) -> this is only enough to play weak cards (and probably nothing at all).
Furthermore, it also prevents any rainbow user from using dissipation shield if they want to use miracle or fractal. Once again, defeats the purpose of being a rainbow.
If you want a card that drains all quanta, it should be an ultimate card that USES every type of quanta (let's say 6 of each)... but I'm sure if we had that kind of card, people would complain that it is giving rainbow an advantage.

OK, say they both have 12 pillars. Rainbow can go ahead and play all he wants except light (11/12 of his cards) 3 quanta per type per turn, and will be able to afford miracle after 4 turns. And afterwards continue merrily on his way spamming shields, shards and creeps. Light will actually have to save a full turn of quantum production for miracle in advance. If he saves more, he will lose more as well.

My point is, these spells are supposed to be ULTIMATE. They do something really cool BUT drain all you have left. For a rainbow, the bonus is the same (often more considering synergies) but the penalty is only that you lose all you have left... of one of the twelve options you've got going at the same time. You play miracle AND can play 5 creatures the next turn. You fractal something AND you can still buff the resulting creeps on the same turn. I think rainbow is dodging much of the penalty of ultimate spells, without getting less benefit from these spells. I see this suggestion as a minor nerf for rainbow decks, which might actually need a bigger nerf IMHO.
Additionally, rainbow will often not have (or need) a large supply of a single quantum type. An ultimate fire card, for instance, would be disastrous for your fahrenheit and fire bolts. A rainbow deck: ah, what the hell, let's play doomsday (http://elementscommunity.org/forum/index.php/topic,11365.msg149675#msg149675) and see what happens, I have 160 hp anyway.

50

Crucible Archive / Re: Sea urchin | Sea Urchin (Elite)

« on: August 19, 2010, 01:53:19 pm »

The reason I am laboring this point is because... it is rare that someone will try and kill you with only 2 or 3 creatures. The Sea Urchin (as it is) can only ever stop 1 attack per turn. So you will need 6 in play to stop 6 attacks per turn.  And you would have to buff them repeatedly to keep enjoying this pause in incoming attacks.

Well, you can play more than one; they can stop 1 attack per turn per creature, AND they will kill.
I guess that if you want to affect up to 12 creatures every turn, you could play 6 buffed versions of these. (because it also stalls for 1 turn, you only need one every other attack).
What I could do is change it so that the CURRENT attack is stopped, and the creature is infected. This  makes sense in terms of mechanics and allows a creature to be stopped every turn instead of every other turn. It does not, however, prevent the use of abililties, which delay does.

If it were to work like an Armaggio (but take 1 damage per attacker), you could buff a Sea Urchin with a Basilisks Blood, Blessing, or Plate Armor and then it alone can stop a wave of attacks. This would give Water a few synergy options. Not to mention a very nice way of dealing with Immaterial and Immortal attackers.

This would make it better than Armagio. I think that's a bit much for a 1 creature.

My final question would be, what about Momentum creatures? Gravity Pull works like a 'Shield Effect' which Momentum ignores. I suggest - for further balance - that a Momentum'd creature ignore a Sea Urchin - my reasoning is that it is under such a momentum that a prick from a sea urchin will not stop it from attacking.

Agreed. Momentum bypasses this.

51

Crucible Archive / Re: Erosion | Erosion

« on: August 18, 2010, 11:01:09 pm »

OK, so it creates more  , that's cool. So why does it return to your hand exactly? Doesn't this + quantum pillar + water dragons do too much?

52

Crucible Archive / Re: Boiling Pot | Boiling Spring

« on: August 18, 2010, 10:57:11 pm »

I think the unupgraded is supposed to generate a pillar

Yeah, I was going to say that too, except...

Both versions of the card art say that Boil creates a tower, unupped should be pillar, no?

Someone beat me to it.

53

Crucible Archive / Re: Sea urchin | Sea Urchin (Elite)

« on: August 18, 2010, 10:12:29 pm »

I have 2 Sea Urchins in play. Both Upgraded.
One has 0/7 (I plate armored him)
Other has 0/1 (I couldn't afford plate armor)
My opponent is attacking with:
One 5/5 Elite Cockatrice (with Adrenaline)
Three 2/2 Elite Skeletons
What happens next?
a) Two skeletons take 1 poison counter. Urchin One takes 1 damage. Urchin Two dies.
b) The Cockatrice takes 3 poison counters. Urchin One takes 3 damage.
c) Each Skeleton takes 1 poison counter, the Cockatrice takes 3 poison counters. Urchin 1 takes 6 damage?

d) One enemy steps on Urchin 1. It loses 1 hp; enemy delayed and infected.
One other enemy steps on Urchin 2. It losts 1 hp (dies); enemy is delayed and infected.
If either enemy was the cockatrice, it is delayed, so the adrenaline attacks do not take place.
Either way, each urchin is stepped on only once per turn.
On the next turn, 2 enemies will be delayed, and only the third will attack, stepping on Urchin 1.

If this is the case. I don't truly understand the benefit of this card. Especially considering that a Plague, or a Retrovirus can poison EVERY enemy creature, air-born or grounded - for very little cost.

Basically, it's dirt cheap creature control with buff potential. Unupped plague costs 4 . Upped retro or plague still costs 2 . Also, death is all about killing creatures and already has cheap ways to do so. This is water. =)
The buffed Urchin works on creatures that your opponent hasn't played yet, meaning you can use it pre-emptively.
It applies stasis AND deals 1 damage per turn (stasis meaning an extra damage).

As a 1  cost card, I'd prefer the unupped to freeze (because it's lethal). Toadfish only works in an air duo, but I guess ice lance might be better overall since it also costs 1 and has faster damage potential.
Admittedly, the upped is only better than the unupped when buffing, making it less suitable for a water mono.

So, in that case.
A Sea Urchin works like a Armaggio?

It's not like Armagio; if you've buffed the upgraded one, it still affects only one creature per turn.
I have to admit that overall it's more likely to be (slightly) UP than OP at the moment. The grounded part makes it not stop dragons, which is a shame (but I can't imagine something that sits on the ocean floor stopping a dragon because it steps on it.
If the community thinks this card is UP (see poll), I might consider still increasing both creatures to 2 hp (which doesn't help the unupped much, but doubles the unbuffed upped).

I understand the tendency people have to make any new card idea higher in power than most existing cards, but I'd prefer something that fills a niche, adds an interesting flavor/game mechanic, but does not increase the overall power (except by adding card options and thus flexibility).

54

Tournament Archive / Re: Western Tournament - August 21st - Starter deck

« on: August 18, 2010, 01:14:46 am »

To be honest, the metagame of creating a good deck is the better part of a tournament. Even for a total noob, this is pretty lame...
I would much prefer 'deck obtainable only by selling cards from a starter deck and buying others with the resulting cash.

55

Duo-Decks / Re: Unupgraded deathstalker T50 grinder

« on: August 17, 2010, 10:53:57 am »

Actually works very well but I always get to much  and not enough 

You (I =) could remove some black holes and add some poisons. Or replace some pendulums with gravity pillars.

56

Crucible Archive / Re: Sea urchin | Sea Urchin (Elite)

« on: August 17, 2010, 10:37:02 am »

im not sure if its a mistake but isnt the upgrade the same thing?
Even though it takes 1 damage it would still die..... just like how the first one is destroyed.

I understand your confusion, because the difference is quite subtle.
They are not quite the same; the difference lies in the fact that if you use heavy armor/bless/momentum/chaos power/basilisk blood, the unupgraded version will still die when stepped on. The upgraded version will live, allowing it to infect and delay another creature on the next turn.

57

Game Suggestions and Feedback / AI improvement

« on: August 16, 2010, 07:03:42 pm »

I'm thinking this might be a permanent (sticky) topic for game improvements?

In this case, I think the AI needs to learn to deal with neurotoxin.
Consider this screenshot:


Oxoxen's deck would have decked me out easily, if it weren't for the fact that he just kept on playing cards and adding poison counters.

58

Issue Archive / Re: Pendulum 6 card limit bug [confirmed]

« on: August 16, 2010, 06:15:22 pm »

If I try to have more than 6 gravity pendulums, I get the same issue. However, I can have more dark pendulums?!

59

Duo-Decks / Re: Unupgraded deathstalker T50 grinder

« on: August 16, 2010, 04:38:14 pm »

It's nice when they antimatter them, and they still add poison counters. =)

60

Game Suggestions and Feedback / Re: Changing ultimate spells

« on: August 16, 2010, 04:25:19 pm »

Thanks for your opinion on this idea. (corrected)