Rules Question - New Player
n107
Newly Immortaled
Posts: 32
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Post by n107 on May 18, 2012 4:29:18 GMT -5
Another question if I may:
Xavier St. Cloud's ability says that he can make an additional 1 point center attack if he doesn't play a special. Does this mean the attack is done without a card or do you have to play the center attack card but it only does half damage? If no card is required, is there anything you need to do to keep track of it? The reason why I'm confused is the 1E Handbook says the attack can be hidden. How can you hide an attack that doesn't have a card and what would be the point in hiding it if the attack is known by everyone?
Lastly, not a question but a call for advice: Can anyone give me tips on deck building? I'm just looking for what people think is a good balance of attacks, defenses, specials, etc. Also, what's a good deck size? This nearly-unlimited deck size is throwing me off a bit compared to other CCGs I played in the past.
Keep in mind I only have cards from the original Series release with just a handful from Movie and Watcher's Chronicles so I don't have anything too fancy.
Thanks.
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Post by prowler7 on May 18, 2012 5:55:28 GMT -5
Xaviers 1 Point Center Attack doesn't require a card, you just announce that you are making that attack due to your ability. It can be played Hidden (although you have announced it to your opponent so they KNOW what is coming) so that it qualifies for any special bonuses you may have in play regarding Hidden attacks.
As far as deck building - Since you are only using the first couple sets from 1e, you are pretty limited in what you can build, given the cards you have said you possess. There are a coupe schools of thought on deck building - Speed Kills and Size Matters.
Speed Kills - These decks rely on getting off their theme quickly and beating their opponent before he can get his own theme rolling. These decks tend to be smaller, in the 44-55 card range
Size Matters - These decks rely on their size to provide amply defense and toolbox for any situation and are meant to out last their opponent. They generally have a loose theme built around near unsurmountable defenses, Deck sizes range from 70-150 cards.
First off, you need to choose which school you subscribe to, and then go from there. In either case, you need a theme (the combo your deck is built around) and a persona to execute that theme to the best of its ability. The ratio of cards (Attacks/Defenses/Specials) is dependent upon your theme and school of thought on deck size. Smaller decks tend to be balanced, trying to integrate their theme into the required Attacks/Defenses so that no extra cards are needed or stuck in your Hand unusable. Larger decks tend to gear heavily on defense and special cards, which is where their strength lies.
Hope that gives you some insight and a place to start.
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n107
Newly Immortaled
Posts: 32
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Post by n107 on May 18, 2012 6:36:03 GMT -5
Yes, those are some good ideas to start with as I build the decks. I should also mention that the only decks I'll be playing against will be ones I create since no one else around here has any Highlander cards. The only chance I have to play is to make decks and have a friend use it against me. Because of that, I sort of want to make all the decks pretty balanced against each other. It likely wouldn't be fair if there were nuances to each deck and I knew them all through and through while my opponent has no idea what's going on.
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Post by headswillroll on Jun 2, 2012 12:48:28 GMT -5
I just posted a response earlier in another thread about deck building ratios for newer players if you want to check it out. Might I suggest that after your friend helps you by playing a few games, invite him to use your stuff to build himself/herself a deck of thier own using anything from your arsonel prior to you building your deck. I used this concept with my kids playing WildStorm and Star Trek 1ed, and they loved it. It gives them the ability to snatch and use the power cards they have had played against them before and it also challenges you because your options have been limited. Hope it helps.
HWR
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n107
Newly Immortaled
Posts: 32
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Post by n107 on Jun 4, 2012 7:16:07 GMT -5
I just posted a response earlier in another thread about deck building ratios for newer players if you want to check it out. Might I suggest that after your friend helps you by playing a few games, invite him to use your stuff to build himself/herself a deck of thier own using anything from your arsonel prior to you building your deck. I used this concept with my kids playing WildStorm and Star Trek 1ed, and they loved it. It gives them the ability to snatch and use the power cards they have had played against them before and it also challenges you because your options have been limited. Hope it helps. HWR Thanks, I will look for that post of yours. However, my "friends" aren't the kind who would actually build a deck. I'm lucky I can get them to play a game (and sometimes it feels more like I'm "unlucky" that they play). But thanks for the suggestion.
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n107
Newly Immortaled
Posts: 32
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Post by n107 on Jul 3, 2013 9:48:21 GMT -5
Back from the dead with more questions:
Xavier's Persona also lists that he can have double the number of plot cards (or something to that effect). What exactly does that mean? Does it mean he can have two of the same card out at the same time? Two different plots going at once? Or is there a limit to the number in the deck that I don't know about?
Secondly, when an event is played that deals damage to the opponent, when do you reflect that damage in the ability? Is it immediate or do you wait until their next Adjust Ability phase?
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Post by thestrangedude on Jul 3, 2013 11:30:54 GMT -5
I think I can answer the first part. Normally you are allowed six cards of the same title in your deck with plots each part of the plot has the same title so you could have 2 complete 3 part plots of the same name in your deck (for 6 cards of the same title total). Now xaviers ability allows you to double the number of plot cards so instead of 6 or the same title you can have 12 ie 4 complete 3 part plots.
The second part if I'm reading it correctly then all damage/ability loss is applied at the ability adjustment phase of the player receiving the damage.
Hope that helps
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n107
Newly Immortaled
Posts: 32
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Post by n107 on Jul 4, 2013 9:41:46 GMT -5
Thank you. That makes more sense now with Xavier.
And am I right in thinking that "damage" and "ability loss" are two different things even though they have the same result? So a card that prevents damage can't help you against something that only causes "ability loss", correct?
On another note, I'm just playtesting these decks that I just threw together as I haven't had a chance to really play the game with anyone yet. Two nights ago I tried out the decks I made for Xavier and Connor. It wasn't even a fight. The Xavier deck, utilizing a lot of his specials, completely devastated my Connor deck. I tried making some tweaks, giving it a new strategy (utilizing the limited range of cards I possess) and I tested it again today. Connor lasted longer, but it wasn't much better. Those Xavier cards that do damage, create unblockable attacks, etc. just tear down Connor's ability too quickly and, soon, he doesn't have enough options in his hand to mount a comeback.
I'm thinking I will add in more "regain ability" cards, if I have them but are there any tips/strategies when going up against a deck such as that? I'm obviously very unskilled when it comes to deck design but I'd like for each deck I make to have a theme/combo that would at least give them all a chance against each other. As I've mentioned earlier in this thread, my decks are only going to be facing each other as there are no other players with their own cards here. And I don't want to have one extremely powerful deck that just makes it pointless for my friends to choose any other.
(For reference, I'm only working with cards from the original set along with some Personas/Specials from a few later expansions which were kindly given to me by a couple members on this site).
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Post by prowler7 on Jul 4, 2013 22:49:05 GMT -5
Yes, Damage and Ability Loss are two different things. Effects that target one do not work on both.
You are using only 1e cards? Most of the time Xavier will beat Connor if you are only using those early edition 1e cards. Without a lot of Focus and a good theme himself, Connor doesnt stand much of a chance. Using cards from later on (Masters Focus, Masters Block, Masters Attack) he can start making a dent in things, but only if Xavier attacks. A much better opponent for beating Xavier is the old favorite Slan "Renee Delany" deck (hard for Xavier to play his cards when he cant play Specials and is constantly defending Power Blows).
Hope this helps
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n107
Newly Immortaled
Posts: 32
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Post by n107 on Jul 5, 2013 4:03:15 GMT -5
Thanks for the reply and the comments about Connor. He does seem extra weak especially compared to Xavier. I just made a few more modifications to his deck and tried him again against Xavier. Once again, Xavier whittled Connor down to 8 Ability against his 15 rather swiftly but then Connor bounced back with a series of Power Blows and put a strain on Xavier's endurance. Finally, in the end, they both hit 0 Endurance but Xavier's Attack Phase came first so he lost. (Is that correct? It is whoever begins their attack phase at 0, right?)
I might tweak the Connor deck a little bit more now that I see what is working well. Plus I need to take into account any more comments/suggestions this post may bring.
More questions:
There is a Situation card called "Master". First, does it count as a Master card (like Master Block, etc.)? Secondly, it says you may now make 3 or 5 card Exertions. Is that only for Exerting to look for an attack/defense? Or can you make a 3 card Power Blow exertion with it?
Next, there are a few special attacks called "Pistol" (not from the original set). The ones I have are restricted to 1. Does that mean one for each location it hits or only one Pistol total in the deck?
Also, I'm a little confused on the differences between "Restricted" and "Reserved" cards. Basically what are they for the purposes of building Richie's deck? Is it any card with a number on it, such as the Pistol? Or is it any card with the sword icon?
If I have a Guard up and an opponent hits that location with a power blow, can I keep the guard up and make the exertion to block it? Likewise, can I just throw out a Stamina on the Guard to block it as well?
If I use Extra Shot to make a second attack, can I exert on that bonus attack to make it a Power Blow?
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Post by thestrangedude on Jul 5, 2013 4:04:13 GMT -5
Xavier can be a bit of a pain in the arse even when you have access to all the cards but this goes double when you only have access to just the tv set. Xavier relies on lots of 'cheesy' damage tactics that have little to do with sword fighting where as Connor is the consumate swordsman (with very few tricks with only the TV set as all his masters cards and tricks only turn up in the Movie and Gathering Edition). If you can try to get hold of a few generic cards from the later sets (Alertness has versions that allow you to block unblockables and another to dodge undodgeables).Of course most of the guys here are probably far more handy in providing honed tournament style decks I'm far more of a fluffy thematic large decks person.
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Post by prowler7 on Jul 5, 2013 5:52:30 GMT -5
Finally, in the end, they both hit 0 Endurance but Xavier's Attack Phase came first so he lost. (Is that correct? It is whoever begins their attack phase at 0, right?) Yes, that is correct. More questions: There is a Situation card called "Master". First, does it count as a Master card (like Master Block, etc.)? Secondly, it says you may now make 3 or 5 card Exertions. Is that only for Exerting to look for an attack/defense? Or can you make a 3 card Power Blow exertion with it? Yes, any card with Master somewhere in the title counts as a Master card. Unless stated otherwise, when it says you can "make x card Exertions" then it counts for any kind of Exertion. Next, there are a few special attacks called "Pistol" (not from the original set). The ones I have are restricted to 1. Does that mean one for each location it hits or only one Pistol total in the deck? They are Restricted to 1 per location on the grid Also, I'm a little confused on the differences between "Restricted" and "Reserved" cards. Basically what are they for the purposes of building Richie's deck? Is it any card with a number on it, such as the Pistol? Or is it any card with the sword icon? Restricted means it has a number on it so you can only include up to that number of the card in your deck. Reserved means that only that Immortal or Weapon Of Choice may use that card (unless you include it in your deck using an Allowance card). For the purposes of Ritchie, he can include 1 Reserved card from each Immortal in his deck. So, he can include 1 Immortal specific card with a Sword icon on it from each Immortal. If I have a Guard up and an opponent hits that location with a power blow, can I keep the guard up and make the exertion to block it? Likewise, can I just throw out a Stamina on the Guard to block it as well? Yes, you can keep the Guard up and use that to defend the Power Blow so long as the Guard covers all of the attack. You can choose to Exert for the Power Block, play a Stamina card, or take the 2 points of Power Blow damage. If I use Extra Shot to make a second attack, can I exert on that bonus attack to make it a Power Blow? You get 1 Exertion per turn. If you have not made an Exertion yet, and there is no effect preventing you from Exerting or making that attack a Power Blow, then yes you could Exert to make that a Power Blow. Remember, save all Exertions until you have played all cards from your Hand in that phase, once you make the Exertion you can no longer play cards from your Hand in that phase.
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n107
Newly Immortaled
Posts: 32
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Post by n107 on Jul 5, 2013 7:19:53 GMT -5
Thanks, thestrangedude and prowler7 for the replies and especially the answers. I'm grateful to you guys for the quick and helpful responses. It's good to know that I'm not playing wrong (at least not for those questions).
I, too, wanted to make more "thematic" decks, using specials/plots that seem to fit the character rather than just make a mechanical deck. However, after seeing the brutal beating Connor took at the hands of Xavier, I had to tweak the deck outside of the theme just so it'd be usable.
Now I think I need to test all my decks against Xavier simple because he seems to be the man to beat. If one of them ends up trouncing him (now THAT would be impressive) then I'll need to adjust and keep testing.
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Post by thestrangedude on Jul 5, 2013 7:40:53 GMT -5
We faced a similar problem when making our thematic decks as we found that certain cards while not thematically correct were almost a must take in every deck (most specifically Police). The more sets you have to draw from the more balanced the personas become especially as extra generic counters or deterrants to strategies got introduced. One set has a card called Rules of the Game (3 variations one effects events that cause damage, one effects ranged attacks, the last effects Allies) all of which fit in with conner and the event one certainly gives Xavier pause for thought. I think there are also cards which reflect damage caused by events but can't for the life of me remember what they are called.
Xavier is good but he isn't great some of the later immortals make him cry.
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Post by prowler7 on Jul 5, 2013 10:00:40 GMT -5
I know you are using old 1e cards, but you may want to look into investing in some 2e stuff. It can be had cheaply and there are a LOT more toolbox cards that can help with the theme problems you two are talking about.
For instance - Instead of relying on cards like Police, there are dual use cards like Focus/Police that can be played as either a Focus OR a Police. There are also dual cards for dealing with Objects, Locations and Plots.
The biggest problem with Plots in 1e was that parts 1&2 did nothing and you had to try desperately to keep them out so you could spring part 3 on them and actually get something accomplished. In 2e ALL parts of the Plot do something in game. In fact, with some Plots parts 1&2 are better than part 3.
Nearly all of the Immortals in 1e were remade/added on to in 2e, and there were very few immortal specific cards that CANT be used in 1e.
Since new cards arent being made, I dont have a stake in selling cards. I am pointing these things out because I have found that 1e was greatly improved with the addition of 2e cards and the Type One rulebook.
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