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Messages - Polk5440

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1
Tournaments and Events / Re: Anything in Chicago?
« on: March 26, 2019, 01:43:57 pm »
I am not in Chicago full time anymore, so I don't check very often, but I haven't seen anything that is Dominion-specific in the area in quite a while. Library hours/open gaming nights would be the best chance. Those obviously are not events/tournaments, though.

2
Dominion Articles / Re: Glossary Update
« on: March 26, 2019, 11:16:29 am »
Stop Card: A card that does not draw any more cards from your deck, like Giant or Gold.

Striking the second sentence, I feel like this does get most of the way there and is not misleading. I am still open to other wordings, as this seems to have more gaps than other definitions. Also open to removal, if this entry is just not as helpful.

Pseudo-Trash:  Remove cards from your deck without trashing them. For example, Island sets aside cards.

I am happy with this definition and example, but if people are confused by it or don't see the benefit of including it, I can remove it. It's on the bubble for me. There are now lots of cards that can pseudo-trash, which is why I thought it was worth including. Island, Native Village, Archive, Haven, Annex, etc. can pseudo-trash other cards. Reserve cards can pseudo-trash themselves.

Milling Provinces was also on the bubble, but the other side of it. AJD's proposed definition would also need the addition of remodeler so that's a two term requirement. Dud and payload: I didn't think a Dominion specific definition is any clearer than starting with the English dictionary definition of these words and then looking at context, so that's why I didn't include them. Open to inclusion if people can come up with helpful, simple definitions.

3
Dominion Articles / Re: Glossary Update
« on: March 26, 2019, 11:04:26 am »
Can't we just point people to the wiki entries for all of these?

The glossary is meant to be a quick reference for terms used a lot in the blog posts on the front page using one-two sentence summary definitions that gets people most of the way there in understanding what the word/term means.

If this goal is not successful for certain words/terms, then yes, wiki is better. (And then people can edit/add to the wiki.)

4
Dominion Articles / Re: Glossary Update
« on: March 22, 2019, 09:23:36 pm »
Stop Card: A card that does not draw any more cards from your deck, like Giant or Gold. If Actions are limited, this may or may not include terminal draw.   

I don't understand the last sentence. Can Smithy be a stop card?

Probably not based on the first sentence of the definition, as written, because Smithy draws 3 cards. So I see why that's confusing. It can be like a stop card if you expect to draw and play many more cards, but you have only one action left, so playing Smithy would end your Action phase. If you have Actions to spend, this is a non-issue and Smithy is not a stop card in any sense.

As the glossary is going for simplicity, how about just striking the second sentence completely?

5
Dominion Articles / Re: Glossary Update
« on: February 28, 2019, 06:14:15 pm »
Shouldn't "Rush" be included on this list? It's listed as one of the 5 main deck archetypes throughout the wiki (and you've already included the others).

I can add it, yes. I had forgotten about it, actually, because it seems like people don't talk about rushes very much anymore.

6
Dominion Articles / Re: Glossary Update
« on: February 26, 2019, 09:33:55 pm »
I have updated the OP considering your comments and labeled it Version 2. Hopefully I have fixed the typos, as well, but please double-check!

Still considering adding: Draw Card, Terminal Space, Build, Gainer. (If you would like these added, any suggestions for a good definition?)

Still considering removing: Village Idiot.

7
Dominion Articles / Re: Glossary Update
« on: February 26, 2019, 07:38:12 am »
Trash-for-benefit is a particularly thorny one, and I think different people have different definitions. (My personal definition is "a trasher that gives variable effects based on some feature of the trashed card, which is usually its cost, but can also be its types or its on-play effects".)

I think this is the same idea, but worded differently? I wanted to emphasize that while trashing itself is usually a good thing, it's not the "benefit" we usually think of when talking about trash for benefit. The benefit is usually something in addition. Your definition is clearer about where the benefits come from. Maybe I am missing a nuance, though.

How about this:

Trash-for-Benefit:  Any card that gives a benefit from trashing a card, other than the benefit of removing cards from your deck.  The benefits are usually variable effects based on some feature of the trashed card, like its cost, but can also be its types or its on-play effects. Apprentice draws additional cards, Salvager gives coin, etc.

8
Dominion Articles / Glossary Update
« on: February 25, 2019, 11:09:33 pm »
The glossary on the front page is in need of some updating. It still references some first edition cards, for example. Below is the proposed updated version.  Note, I am going to delete all the abbreviations that are on that page, as well, unless there are strong objections.

Definitions should be as simple and straightforward as possible to help new players who might reference the glossary. If you have any additions or suggested changes on how the definitions below could be clearer, please post in this thread. Thanks!

EDIT: Version 3.


Some of the terms commonly used in the Dominion community include:

Base Cards: A set of the non-kingdom supply cards (such as Coppers, Provinces, and Curses) needed to play any game of Dominion. Purchasing a set of Base Cards makes any expansion playable or expands play of the base set to five or six players. Compare base set.

Base Set: The original Dominion, with no expansions. For example, "In the base set, Chapel is the best early-game trasher." Compare Base Cards.

Big Money:  See money.

Board:  See kingdom.

Cantrip: Any card that gives +1 Card, +1 Action; it costs no action to spend it and it replaces itself in the hand.  Usually does not refer to cards that give more than Card or more than one Action. Compare village and lab.

Colony Game:  Any game in which Colony and Platinum (from Prosperity) are available for purchase.

Combo: A small set of cards (usually two, sometimes three) whose interaction is particularly strong, especially if the cards are individually weak but together can become a game-winning strategy. Compare engine, money, rush, and slog.

Counter:  A card or strategy that acts to neutralize another card (usually an attack) or strategy, whether directly (e.g., Moat) or indirectly (e.g., Library vs. Militia/Goons).

Cycling: Moving through your deck.  Scavenger and Messenger provide an extreme example of cycling because your entire deck is moved into your discard, but cards like Warehouse and Cellar also cycle your deck by drawing and discarding cards.

Draw Dead: Generally refers to drawing an Action card when you have no more Actions to play.  In context, may refer to drawing an Action card that cannot be effectively used (e.g., Baron without Estate, Moneylender without Copper).

Duchy Dancing: When players are buying Duchies instead of Provinces, even if Provinces are available, as no one is willing or able to buy Provinces without risking losing the game.

Early Game:  The first few decisions or turns which sets up the rest of the game. Usually, the opening two hands through the first couple of shuffles.

Endgame (or Late Game): The time of the game when players are looking to score points, empty piles, or considering immediate abilities to do so.

End on piles:  Force the game to end by emptying three or more piles (four or more with 5+ players).

Engine: Deck which dramatically grows in value or lets you do more and more as it gets built. Usually characterized by drawing and playing lots of Action cards, but not always. Sometimes augmented by a descriptor of a key feature of the deck, such as a “draw-your-deck engine” or “multi-Province engine”. Compare money, combo, rush, and slog.

Gainer: A card with the ability to gain other (usually desirable, c.f. junker) cards.  Most gainers are restricted in what they can gain, such as a card that only gains silvers, or a card that only gains cards costing up to $4.

Greening:  Purchasing victory cards, usually in the endgame.

Junk: (noun) Bad cards that add bloat to a deck. Coppers, Estates, Curses, and Ruins are the usual examples. (verb) Add bad cards to a deck (preferably an opponent's).

Kingdom: The set of cards that make up the game of interest. Sometimes referred to as the board.

Lab: Short for the card Laboratory, also refers to any card that non-terminally increases your hand-size by one.

Late Game: See endgame.

Midgame:  The middle of the game. Players have decided upon a general path of deck building, but players aren’t necessarily looking to score yet and there aren’t active threats to end the game.

Mirror Match: When players pursue identical or near-identical strategies.

Missing the Shuffle: Refers to any cards that aren't included in the next shuffle. Cards that miss the shuffle are usually in your hand or in play. Oftentimes, you want bad cards to miss the shuffle and good cards to stay in the current shuffle.

Money: Narrowly, a deck where no Actions are bought at all, only Treasure and Victory cards.  More broadly, a deck that gets economy from Treasures supplemented with some Actions.  Money decks usually don’t draw much. When using Treasures and one other card exclusively, this is sometimes called Big Money + X. Compare combo, engine, rush, and slog.

Non-Terminal (or Non-Terminal Action):  Any Action card that gives at least one additional Action.

Opening:  Purchases made on the first two turns.  Usually clarified by the opening split.

Opening Split:  Treasure values of the first two hands (usually 5/2 or 4/3). Compare split piles and winning the split.

Piles: See end on piles.

Province Game (rarely, Non-Colony Game):  A standard game in which Colony and Platinum are not available.

Pseudo-Trash:  Remove cards from your deck without trashing them. For example, Island sets aside cards.

Rush: A strategy that attempts to end the game as quickly as possible, typically with a three-pile ending. Compare combo, engine, money, and slog.

Sifting: Selecting one set of (usually good) cards and discarding or returning another set of cards. For example, Cartographer sifts by letting you discard unwanted cards from the top of your deck. Compare cycling.

Slog: A game or strategy characterized by decks filled with junk, willingly (e.g. to beef up Gardens) or unwillingly (e.g. because of attacks). Compare combo, engine, rush, and money.

Split Piles: Piles containing more than one differently named card, in a particular order. For example, Encampment and Plunder. Contrast with Knights and Ruins which are shuffled. Compare opening split and winning the split.

Stop Card: A card that does not draw any more cards from your deck, like Giant or Gold. If Actions are limited, this may or may not include terminal draw.   

Terminal (or Terminal Action):  Any action card that does not provide another Action when played.

Terminal Collision: Drawing multiple terminal action cards together, especially when you can only play one of them.

Terminal Draw: An Action card that draws cards but gives no additional Actions. Usually refers to +2 Cards or greater. For example, Moat, Smithy, or Hunting Grounds.

Terminal Gold: Any terminal action that gives +$3.

Terminal Silver:  Any terminal action that gives +$2.

Topdeck:  Place a card on top of your deck that would normally go elsewhere (e.g. Alchemist, Royal Seal).

Three-Pile: Ending a game by emptying a third pile, often while ahead on points. See end on piles.

Trasher (or Deck-thinner):  Any card that allows one to trash cards from one's deck.

Trash-for-Benefit:  A card that trashes, then does something (useful) based on what it trashed. For example, Apprentice draws cards and Salvager gives coin.

Village:  Besides the card of the same name, can refer to any card which allows someone to play multiple actions in a turn; most (but not all) such cards have "Village" in their names.

Winning the Split: Getting the most copies of a Kingdom Card from a heavily contested pile, oftentimes a card that all players want as many copies of as possible. For example, if you gain 6 Bridges and your opponent gains 4 Bridges, you win the split 6-4. Compare opening split and split piles.

9
Dominion General Discussion / Re: Taking Notes - Against the Rules?
« on: February 07, 2019, 12:05:42 pm »
But again, nothing in the rules says you can count things up out loud, or on your fingers—issues just as relevant to gameplay—yet the general consensus about those, unlike note-taking, seems to be that they're fine.

Saying the number of actions remaining out loud, describing what you are doing, etc. helps everyone adhere to the rules. Dominion (esp with its expansions) is actually pretty easy to accidentally break rules in person if you don't do this (e.g. playing an extra action when you don't have any left, forgetting to take two Curses when someone Throne Rooms a Witch, misplaying complex cards, etc.). Maybe saying things out loud helps you play better strategically and aids memory related to strategy, too? But the primary purpose of doing this is so everyone can actually play Dominion correctly.

I can certainly imagine a very competitive tournament environment where this talking would not be allowed, either, but there probably would have to be a ref at every table monitoring so players don't have to be tracking their opponents' turns for rule violations. High level Bridge tournaments are very strict on outlawing aids to memory and laying out exactly how communication and bidding happens. Maybe this is a better analogy than chess.

Dominion is not at this level, yet.

Taking side notes does not usually have this primary function of helping people play by the rules which is why it is usually frowned upon.

Quote
The exclusion of the Zarrow shuffle can be justified by appeal to common sense—we all know what the purpose of shuffling in games is, and that this purpose is not served by a false shuffle—but I don't think that the same can be said of the note-taking question, since either style of play results in a perfectly sensible game.

This is actually not a footnote. The couple of Dominion tournaments I have been to have included at least a passing mention of what is an acceptable shuffle because people have problems with this! In casual games, I have had to remind people to shuffle thoroughly. If you are not ok with me cutting your deck because you may have shuffled some good cards to the top or nicely distributed your Smithies by shuffling separate piles, then that's a problem (actually have seen both of these things happen and people think it's an allowed part of the game).

Note taking changes the game by reducing the memory element, just like fake shuffling changes the game by reducing the luck element.

You are correct that taking notes results in a perfectly sensible game (Online Dominion is basically this variant). But so does not shuffling randomly or starting the game by choosing your opening split (which is not even shuffling at all!). These are variants. Playing chess with notes is a variant. Playing chess with a computer aid is a variant. All of these are reasonable (and fun!) games, but they are different games, variants, and you should be aware that some people may not want to play them with you even if you prefer them.

10
Dominion General Discussion / Re: What does it mean?
« on: February 05, 2019, 03:04:09 pm »
I liked the write up.

One thing caught my eye. You say "we labeled 'cycling' as something specific — anything that helps you play your best cards more often". I am surprised. Certainly cycling implies you play your best cards more often. But by making it an equivalence rather than an implication, are you also saying trashing is cycling? Drawing is cycling? Trashing and drawing help you play your best cards more often, as well. But I don't think they are cycling. I agree with the majority of responses that cycling is referring to the mechanical effect of moving cards from your deck to your discard.

You could borrow a term from economics: "Velocity". Usually this is in the context of "velocity of money"; how fast money flows through the economy. You could refer to "velocity" of a card, the number of times per turn a card is played. At the start of a game, you would see your opening buys once every two-three turns, so velocity would be 0.3-0.5. Playing a card once a turn would be a velocity of 1. Cycling, trashing, and drawing all increase velocity.

Although this is probably all too complicated. "Play your best cards more often" is a good strategic goal. Cycling helps you do that. Trashing helps you do that. Drawing helps you do that. Attacking slows down your opponents' abilities to do that. Maybe there doesn't need to be a term for that.

11
General Discussion / Re: Maths thread.
« on: January 19, 2019, 05:50:39 pm »
Forward to today, I've been reading "Linear Algebra Done Right" and it immediately did what both lectures I visited didn't manage to. In the book, vectors are elements in F^n, not relative to anything. Matrices are something separate. There is a function M taking any linear map and the basises of two vector spaces and returning a matrix. Matrix multiplication is defined in the usual way, but there is no multiplication of a matrix with a vector. Instead, there is another function which takes a vector and a basis and returns a n*1 matrix representing the vector relative to that basis. That matrix can then be multiplied with another matrix following matrix multiplication as usual.

I find that super awesome, so I wanted to share it.

That's the textbook we used in Linear Algebra in college! I loved the book but had completely forgotten that bit! The book sets up a great theoretical environment for Linear Algebra.

12
I personally have more fun playing with friends in person, as well, but I haven't gotten to do that much since my move. I also choose kingdoms semi-randomly, and I like swapping out limited numbers of cards between games.

I think online has a big advantage in competitive play, though. Speed, fairness, and rules being consistently and correctly applied are big deals. My limited in person tournament experience does not give me confidence in people's ability to truly shuffle their decks. And there is a lot of shuffling in Dominion.

13
Dominion General Discussion / Re: Patron and "reveal"
« on: December 21, 2018, 01:00:02 pm »
Now imagine you are an average family gamer who plays the game only a few times a year.

Why do I even have expansions for a game I play only a few times a year?

Why do I even have expansions to games I still have in shrink wrap? -- Said someone who is definitely not me.....

14
Introductions / Re: Question from newbie
« on: December 20, 2018, 02:24:59 pm »
And also I would really like your opinions on some of my articles.

General Discussion is the place for getting discussion going on any Dominion topic you would like. If you would like feedback on articles you write, the Articles Subforum is the place to put them. Original content usually gets the best response. From time to time there has been cross-posting between here and other places, like Reddit, for example, with mixed response. Not sure how links to blogs that generate revenue should be handled. If it's literally just a link to posts to promote your site, it might actually be best posted in Advertisements.


15
Game Reports / Re: What's More Expensive Than Alchemist? Nothing
« on: December 06, 2018, 12:23:22 pm »
 ;D Nothing stops Chariot Race dead like keeping an expensive card on the top of your deck.

16
With the expansions you have, you can't go wrong with adding Intrigue or Hinterlands. Alchemy doesn't give you as much bang for your buck, so you have to really want those cards first for some reason. Possession is not that reason.

... if it isn't a very interesting game, Rebuild makes it faster.

For certain definitions of interesting, I suppose.

17
General Discussion / Re: Maths thread.
« on: November 14, 2018, 01:08:22 pm »
The hard part is the requirement for whole number solutions. Standard algebra techniques can easily get you a real answer. Even a real, positive answer.

For example:
Let  b = p = 1. Now there is a cubic equation in one variable.

a^3 - 6a^2 - 11a - 4 = 0

The rational roots theorem gives possible rational roots of +/-1, +/-2, or +/-4. Checking, -1 is a root. But (-1,1,1) doesn't look good as a solution to the original equation; we get a division by zero. Moving on, dividing out (a+1) gives

(a+1)(a^2 - 7a - 4) = 0

The quadratic formula gives a = (7 +/- sqrt(65))/2. Take the positive root.

You can verify ((7 + sqrt(65))/2, 1, 1) is a solution to the original equation. All three variables are positive and real. But one is irrational.


It's the whole number restriction that puts this into number theory territory and makes this really difficult. The Quora answer linked above does a really nice explaining the (higher) math involved. Wow, is it difficult!

Two side notes: It's not clear why this equation would have such a large "smallest" answer, but if the right hand side equaled 2 instead of 4, the very nice (1, 1, 3) works, no problem. Additionally, the insight that there are whole classes of problems that are "hard to solve, easy to verify" is the basis of a lot of cryptography.

18
Dominion General Discussion / Re: Engine Building Help
« on: November 07, 2018, 09:07:18 am »
There is not a great general answer here because it's tough to see how you fell behind without looking at a specific game. There are a few areas I would think about, though:

1. Trashing. Were you slower because you did not trash fast enough? Get rid of Coppers, Estates, and other junk as fast as you can. It's possible to over trash, yes, but in my experience, people who struggle with getting a fast engine deck going don't trash fast enough.

2. Attacks. Were you slower because your opponent was attacking you (Curses, discarding) but you were not attacking him?

3. Multiple gains/buys. Were you taking advantage of opportunities for multiple buys/gains to build your deck faster?

4. Have a goal in mind. What is it you are trying to do? Which cards help you get there?

For more reading, here's a decent intro article from the blog, if you are curious.

https://dominionstrategy.com/2017/11/06/dominion-101-what-is-an-engine/

Suggestions to get better:

1. Play more and experiment. Think about where you can improve after every game. Were you really playing the same strategy as your opponent? Try playing the same kingdom again.

2. Watch some YouTube videos of high level players to see how they handle deck building.

19
The simplicity; I love it!

20
Dominion General Discussion / Re: Sloggiest cards?
« on: September 11, 2018, 11:31:28 pm »
Do the guests know Dominion and its expansions well?

When playing Dominion with new people I try to avoid introducing lots of complicated cards and mechanics all at once because the amount of time spent reading and digesting what all the cards do adds up quickly. I think playing very slowly because of analysis paralysis tends to be a worse experience than sloggy games where every turn is actually fairly short.

I also like only swapping out only two or three cards for new cards when moving on to game 2 rather than generating a whole new kingdom. That way they don't have to keep digesting all new cards every game. 

21
Dominion Articles / Re: Gear
« on: August 19, 2018, 05:12:35 pm »
I'm not convinced all your points are valid.

For example, why is it good to save an unplayable terminal Action until next turn, when you could have played it this turn had you not played Gear?

Several reasons. For example, you draw it dead so you couldn’t have played it or you have more than one other unplayable in your hand. It’s also possible the value of the action is much higher next turn. For example, you play Village-Ghost Ship and have to choose between Gear or another Ghost Ship. It’s  correct to play Gear over Ghost Ship and save the second Ghost Ship for next turn instead of playing it now because you will attack on both turns rather than just this one.
If the other terminal action is dead, so is Gear; Gear can't save you from drawing something dead!

Yes, it can if you draw it dead with Gear. 

22
Dominion Articles / Re: Gear
« on: August 19, 2018, 09:11:00 am »
I'm not convinced all your points are valid.

For example, why is it good to save an unplayable terminal Action until next turn, when you could have played it this turn had you not played Gear?

Several reasons. For example, you draw it dead so you couldn’t have played it or you have more than one other unplayable in your hand. It’s also possible the value of the action is much higher next turn. For example, you play Village-Ghost Ship and have to choose between Gear or another Ghost Ship. It’s  correct to play Gear over Ghost Ship and save the second Ghost Ship for next turn instead of playing it now because you will attack on both turns rather than just this one.

23
Dominion General Discussion / Re: Most hated attacks?
« on: August 17, 2018, 02:09:43 pm »
Possession. Not an attack, I know. And yet....

24
Sorry I'm still a newbie of Dominion. I've only been able to play twice.

Advice: Play more games! You want to be confident enough to handle rules questions and issues, should they arise.

25
Dominion General Discussion / Re: Question- What is an Engine
« on: July 26, 2018, 01:18:38 pm »
I, like, literally wrote an article with this exact title

In case anyone is interested, here's the link for the article.

Here's the discussion page, too. Lots of good stuff.

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