So, i play this game:
Duchess, Moat, Native Village, Loan, Philosopher's Stone, Scavenger, Silk Road, Treasure Map, Mint, Pillage, Copper, Silver, Gold, Estate, Duchy, Province, Curse, Potion
I look at the board. There is Silk Road. I like alt-VP cards and tend to want to go for them whenever i can. I see no engine potential here, so maybe i can get there somehow. Then, there is also Philosopher's Stone. I also tend to want to play with cards like Phil. Stone (that don't appear very often and even if they do, there is usually a more viable strategy to go with). So, i try to figure out: Can Phil Stone work here? No, +buy, no gainers, but there's Duchess. Then i think: "Hmm... i could bloat-up my Deck through Duchy-Duchess. And the Silk Road can be supported by the Duchies i want to buy in the first place! That could work."
So, i set out to bloat-up my Deck through Duchy-Duchess, thinking like this: "I don't know if i'll be able to grab enough Provinces via Phil. Stone, but even if i don't, i will get enough VPs from Duchies and then Silk Roads will be viable."
I think my opponent misplayed a lot in this game; he tried to go for some engine-hybrid thing that proved to be fail on this board. No card could support this at all and it was clear win for me in the end:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20140226/log.50d50910e4b0e06e52ee3be2.1393457192923.txtBut i have a few questions:
1) If i was playing with a higher-skilled player that would go for a decent big-money strategy, with Treasure Maps/Pillages + Scavenger for example, would my strategy still be viable? I think that Pillaging a lot would kill my Phil-Stone strategy, or at least slow me down enough.
2) I think, on turn 11, i should 've bought a second Scavenger over 4th Phil.Stone. Because Scavenger was really bolstering this strategy a lot. But i was afraid of terminal collision, so i didn't. Although i'm pretty sure i should.
As an aside, during this game, i actually found out that Scavenger is REALLY good with Phil. Stone: It helps find the Phil. Stone more often and it ensures it gets its maximum value (by top-decking it on discarded Deck). Both of these effects are of great importance in P.Stone decks.
3) I opened Potion. For Phil. Stone. This is usually not correct. But the way i wanted to play this, i think it was correct. I wanted to grab some P.Stones at first and then power them up through Duchy-Duchess. Early on, they were worth $1-2, but that was enough to get me to Duchy.
4) Would this strategy still be viable if Silk Road was not on the board? I mean, i hit the Duchies hard. That's serious VP amassing. And i do that while still being able to grab Provinces.
I did go for this strategy under the safety belt of Silk Road existance, but the way it played out makes me think that maybe i didn't even need Silk Roads at all. Or maybe, it's just because my opponent played this badly.