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[manthos88]

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.txt



But 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.

[Aidan Millow]

Looking at the log I'm (unfortunately) pretty sure that this was just your opponent playing badly. Not only does every pillage play cripple a turn but I'm pretty sure that scavenger BM is just plain faster than your strategy.

[manthos88]

You think? Well, my problem is that i don't really know how the various strategies play out in theory. I only find out in practice. Maybe you are right about this, but at least i had a plan B: Silk Roads.

[Smartie]

In my opinion, it seems like treasure maps and loan could be a potential method to get the provinces! But to me silk road does work really well if you have (i) Ironworks/armoury, (ii) Useful victory cards (e.g. Nobles, harem) or (iii) Multiple buys. This may not be the board optimal for silk road I feel

[Asper]

In my opinion, it seems like treasure maps and loan could be a potential method to get the provinces! But to me silk road does work really well if you have (i) Ironworks/armoury, (ii) Useful victory cards (e.g. Nobles, harem) or (iii) Multiple buys. This may not be the board optimal for silk road I feel

I share that feeling.
Also i figured that sometimes Poor House and Secret Chamber are nice support for Silk Roads. Both guarantee at least 4$, no matter how green your deck is (discard attacks and Horn of Plenty aside).

[manthos88]

I may be wrong about this, but in my mind, a Silk Road enabler is anything that can get you a lot of Duchies and some Estates (if there are not other Kingdom-Victory cards). And this is why i went for this strategy.