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« on: July 06, 2013, 01:12:59 pm »
I'm not sure on what criteria I should rank these cards on. I'll just try to rank them by my favourites, but that's proven to be a challenge as well. I'll mention now that I'm not that much of an pure engine fanatic, and my favourite kinds of decks are ones that merge big money with engine.
10. Promos
9. Hinterlands
8. Prosperity
7. Alchemy
6. Seaside
5. Guilds
4. Base
3. Cornucopia
2. Intrigue
1. Dark Ages
10. Promos: I find most of these cards to be pretty stale, with the exception of Black Market. Funny story, there were a few IRL base only games where we used the blank cards as Black Markets, based solely on my description of the card. I forgot about the detail that it gives +2$ though. Playing as essentially a Ruined Market didn't stop it from being purchased though.
9. Hinterlands: I like the idea of on-gain effects, and you have cards like Haggler and Border Village can really give you a power trip as you gain all those cards. However, I have a hard time immersing myself into the world of Hinterlands. Actually, I really don't understand the world of Hinterlands much at all. I just know what's in there.
8. Prosperity: This really takes Dominion to another level. Overpowered Platinum, nasty Goons, shiny Grand Markets, and the King's Court itself. The cards don't tend to be too fancy, but they're solid. This set has the problem where getting the strong cards before your opponents often results in an unshakeable lead.
7. Alchemy: I'd probably put this one rank lower if I played with this set IRL. I imagine things get really slow. This set is full of things that look broken but usually aren't, like Alchemist, Scrying Pool, Golem, University, Apprentice, and Possession. But their cost and slowness brings their power to a fairly balanced level, so that's cool. Apothecary ain't too shabby either.
6. Seaside: This set is very solid in terms of the strength of the cards in it. Pirate Ship, Treasure Map, and Treasury are the only cards that really make me roll my eyes when I see them. One criticism I have to give it is how slow the powerful attackers make the game. games where Sea Hags, Ambassadors, and Ghost Ships duke it out can get dreadful. Luckily, you have cards like Wharf, Lookout, and Tactician that give you a way out.
5. Guilds: The coin tokens are another thing that can give you such a power trip, and many of the cards use it. This expansion does a lot to boost and help optimize the many familiar strategies with the transformation of spending power to coin tokens. The set also adds a few new, coin token specific strategies. The overpay mechanic turned out to be something that isn't too hard to wrap your head around either. Still, I can't help but feel that the set is a bit lacking on its own.
4. Base: Hey, This is what got me into Dominion in the first place. This set has some of the best cards, but also a lot of the worst cards. For such simplicity, the Base set just feels comfortable and familiar. Dominion games would start feeling empty without such classics as the Throne Room, the Militia, the Laboratory, the Witch, and the Chapel.
3. Cornucopia: The variety theme really works for me. I'm not so sure how good Tournament is for the game, but the other cards give you so much to do, and you have cards that reward you for the variety. There's also Hunting Party, which is just the magical card you always wanted in an engine. I do agree that the set has a high concentration of power cards. Things just get crazy in a Cornucopia heavy game.
2. Intrigue: Gosh, I'm starting to realize just how many of my favourite cards are in this set. I'd find myself really missing cards like Wishing Well, Upgrade, Bridge, Minion, Duke, the Dual-VP cards, and even Shanty Town if I had to stop playing Intrigue. Also, my all around favourite Dominion card, Steward, is in this set. It still has the same problem as the base set, where there are Witch Tier cards mixed with Scout Tier cards. There tends to be better synergy amonst the cards in this set, weak though some of them may be.
1. Dark Ages: I remember looking at the Dark Ages previews and thinking that this was going to be the best expansion. This expansion offers so many different strategies to try and so many combos/nombos to discover. The winning strategies are a lot less obvious than usual in Dark Ages. Overall, there's lots of fun to be had with powerful one-shots, Knight wars, Procession card climbs, Altar sacrifices, and more. Shelters are cool too, and help balance some of the power cards like Ambassador, Hunting Party, and most importantly Rebuild. I like how game warping Rebuild is though. It's the largest set, so it has an unfair advantage. The notable negatives of Dark Ages are the casual player unfriendliness, partly due to cards that actively hurt you when used incorrectly (Rats, Procession, Death Cart, Poor House, Wandering Minstrel) as due to cards that are highly situational.
