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[thirtyseven]

What helps you improve as a Dominion player? Besides studying the game (reading this forum, watching videos...) and playing more games, I mean.

For example, I think providing my own commentary out-loud as I'm playing (imitating WW, Qvist, Robz88, etc. when they record games) helps me analyze boards better and keeps me focused on the game better. I've only done this a couple of times though. Have you tried this, and if so do you find it helps?

[Davio]

For me it's mostly experience I think.

When you play enough games you start seeing patterns emerge between trashers, gainers, drawers, etc.
But oddly enough, this pattern recognition (and not looking at the entire board) can also be a reason that you might hit your ceiling.

I also started seeing my deck in a sort of Matrix style flow, I knew without thinking about it which cards I had seen, which were in my deck etc and for my opponent too, I'd think: "his X must be coming around now", and often I'd be right. This helps tremendously with cards like Possession.

I didn't have to add individual Treasures anymore, I instantly knew the amount I had to spend, even with Bank.

I don't want to say that I was becoming the almighty Dominion God who could see the game on a whole other level, but as you progress as a player and start getting more and more experienced, tedious tasks like tracking cards and adding numbers becomes second nature, so you can divert more attention to the current game state and how to work from there.

I'm sure experienced players will recognize this.

[dondon151]

I just solitaire a lot. I think solitaire and studying game logs is far more effective than experience at getting to a high level of play quickly. The remaining few levels come down to experience.

[Drab Emordnilap]

I also started seeing my deck in a sort of Matrix style flow, I knew without thinking about it which cards I had seen, which were in my deck etc and for my opponent too, I'd think: "his X must be coming around now", and often I'd be right. This helps tremendously with cards like Possession.

I have this happen sometimes. My mind will tell me "Yeah, this hand's going to get Militia'd." And then it does.

[DrFlux]

- solitare and simulations ARE really useful -- especially when you get some cool interaction or something that works better or worse than you expect. Its important to answer whether the interaction was due to luck or poor-play, or can it be repeated.
- I always have a plan (well, at least when I play my best). Try to identify the key strategies on the board before you buy anything. How will you beat your opponent if they go for a similar strategy? If they go for a different strategy? Roughly after each reshuffle, reevaluate the game. Is it going how you expected?
- Pacing- How long is the game going to go? Are you going to win the long game or the short game, and if so how do you speed up or slow down the game ending?
- Visualize the endgame BEFORE you get there - Is it going to come down to trading provinces? A long slog, grabbing all the points you can get? A megaturn, grabbing one province and piling out? Figure out what will give you an advantage at that point - perhaps extra buys if there's megaturn potential, or buying a province a bit earlier than normal if there are no extra buys.

I try to talk to my opponents about strategy as well. I'm often a little disappointed that many don't seem to be interested in this, but I find its great when I can get others' perspective.

[Kahryl]

I cheat. I start the game with a coin above the "5" on my keyboard. When I buy a card with +2 actions, I nudge it one key to the left. When I buy a terminal, I nudge it to the right.

[chwhite]

Councilroom data plus scads of experience is what did it for me.  I suppose it's possible that I've improved since CR went down, but probably not by nearly as much (and not at all on Dark Ages, since I haven't been to Goko in awhile).

The "Popular Buys" page, in particular, was revelatory.

[Mic Qsenoch]

I think you improve the most when you play actual games against an opponent. I think solitaire games aren't that useful because attacks are so important in Dominion. I mean, playing a bunch of solitaire games with Goons won't tell you much about how those games play out with opponents. Solitaire is nice for practicing some engine building.

I'm mostly opposed to solitaire because it misses out on what I feel is a key aspect of Dominion strategy: in a game of Dominion you are NOT playing one deck, you are playing X decks, where X is the number of players. It just so happens that you have the most control of your own deck. Attacks and interactive cards highlight this aspect, but it applies even in Big Money mirror matches. Every decision you make should depend on all the decks involved in the game. You can't develop this kind of intuition playing solitaire.

The help threads can be useful, if you know who to listen to. Two people who respond a lot, and I think give really great advice are DG and dondon. Also, -Stef- isn't as prolific, but he is the best Dominion player in the world, so I usually listen to him. There are lots of others too (jonts, Rabid, HME), I can't make a comprehensive list. Don't believe everything you read in a help thread.

Don't waste too much time looking at game logs. Not very useful unless you replay the whole game turn by turn in your mind. You could just be playing another game of Dominion.

[dondon151]

I think you improve the most when you play actual games against an opponent. I think solitaire games aren't that useful because attacks are so important in Dominion. I mean, playing a bunch of solitaire games with Goons won't tell you much about how those games play out with opponents. Solitaire is nice for practicing some engine building.

I have to agree partially and disagree partially. Mic is certainly correct about what solitaire does and doesn't teach a player how to do. You don't learn how to time Duchy purchases, control the piles, play against attacks, etc. in solitaire.

But I disagree with your first sentence. I think of solitaire as like going to school. I believe that players need to develop a strong base for the fundamentals before they can get the most out of learning how to play against an opponent. If you simply get thrashed time and time again, you don't really improve all that quickly. You can't tell if your losses were due to poor execution, poor choices, or bad luck.

The other thing about solitaire is that it really reinforces your knowledge about how to play with certain types of cards and how they interact in a way that's beneficial to you. Every game of Dominion may be different, but not all games are dissimilar, and we as a community have gone pretty far in classifying cards and decks into archetypes. An example that supports my point is Geronimoo's article on the First Game kingdom: studying that kingdom lets you understand the importance and synergies of basic engine card archetypes, but you can't possibly grasp all of that from even many random matches.

So that's my two cents. Mic is a better player than I am but, you know, how else does one such as myself get to level 39 with ~200 Iso games under my belt. I guess the point is that you can hone your skill to maybe level ~35 by studying the game diligently, and experience takes you the rest of the way.

[Forge!!!]

Similar to solitairing, I always wonder how much playing the same game multiple times would help. I feel like when I play a game once, I look it over again and I think "I probably should have bought more crossroads" or "I needed to build up my economy more before buying all the engine pieces", and I learn a little bit that I try to apply to the next game, however far down the road that is. But it never really gets hammered into my brain, and especially if it's an engine, you can't really learn HOW to build it just by looking over a log. You need to play it a couple times to figure out what's best and for it to really get stuck in your memory. But on iso you always play different games, and IRL the idea of playing with the same cards again seems to be everyone's idea of the opposite of fun. I guess I should solitaire more...

[sparky5856]

Realizing that the most fun engine for the kingdom is not necessarily the best engine for the kingdom is the hardest obstacle for me >_<

[^_^_^_^]

Having someone or someones  critique my games. This reveals things that I've overlooked, looked at incorrectly, or never looked at to begin with. This also helps me understand how my higher level opponents might look at a certain card or engine as opposed to how my lower level opponents look at a certain card or engine.

[jonts26]

If anyone ever wants to talk strategy with me, I'm all for it. I usually don't start the conversation unless there's something really special going on, but I like talking about dominion just as much as playing it.

But PLEASE don't try to start a conversation after the game is over. I'm already pushing the return button by the time I see your message. Start talking as the game is winding down.

[DrFlux]

I think you improve the most when you play actual games against an opponent. I think solitaire games aren't that useful because attacks are so important in Dominion. I mean, playing a bunch of solitaire games with Goons won't tell you much about how those games play out with opponents. Solitaire is nice for practicing some engine building.

I'm mostly opposed to solitaire because it misses out on what I feel is a key aspect of Dominion strategy: in a game of Dominion you are NOT playing one deck, you are playing X decks, where X is the number of players. It just so happens that you have the most control of your own deck. Attacks and interactive cards highlight this aspect, but it applies even in Big Money mirror matches. Every decision you make should depend on all the decks involved in the game. You can't develop this kind of intuition playing solitaire.

The help threads can be useful, if you know who to listen to. Two people who respond a lot, and I think give really great advice are DG and dondon. Also, -Stef- isn't as prolific, but he is the best Dominion player in the world, so I usually listen to him. There are lots of others too (jonts, Rabid, HME), I can't make a comprehensive list. Don't believe everything you read in a help thread.

Don't waste too much time looking at game logs. Not very useful unless you replay the whole game turn by turn in your mind. You could just be playing another game of Dominion.

I don't play a ton of solitare games, I play more real games. But sometime you hit a new opening like Trader-Chapel, or Loan-Trade Route with peddler on the board, and you want to know how good it actually is after one game. Taking a break from grinding out matches to test that question can be really useful. Solitare goes really fast, and 5 or 10 games can give you a much better idea of how an opening plays out than just one.

On the same topic, having people you can play REAL test games against can be really useful.

[Ozle]

Ketamine

[thirtyseven]

More questions about what helps you play:

How many games per "session" is ideal? I'm guessing it varies per person, and that there's a happy middle between "just warming up" and "ok I'm getting fatigued/unfocused enough that I should stop." And I know the "Should I keep playing until I win?" question has been debated before with arguments on both sides..

Does who you play matter? I almost always play without regard to level. I don't seek out high level, low level, or closest-level-to-me opponents, I just play whoever I get automatched with. Is this okay or would I improve better faster if I only played opponents within 5 or 10 levels of me?

[dondon151]

Does who you play matter? I almost always play without regard to level. I don't seek out high level, low level, or closest-level-to-me opponents, I just play whoever I get automatched with. Is this okay or would I improve better faster if I only played opponents within 5 or 10 levels of me?

Probably. Say that you're playing someone who has no idea what he's doing. You might as well be playing a random solitaire match. You're not going to learn anything about head-to-head play this way.

[thirtyseven]

Oh yeah, and to give another answer my original question, playing with point tracker (or at least tracking points in your head) helps. I insist on playing with point tracker, which unfortunately makes me a worse player when I play in real life. Most games are so close that you have to ask yourself "Can I end the game or do I have to delay?" and point tracker answers that question for you.

[sparky5856]

Oh yeah, and to give another answer my original question, playing with point tracker (or at least tracking points in your head) helps. I insist on playing with point tracker, which unfortunately makes me a worse player when I play in real life. Most games are so close that you have to ask yourself "Can I end the game or do I have to delay?" and point tracker answers that question for you.

Does keeping track of your opponent's score withOUT the point tracker make you a better player in any way? (And I mean in your head, not with pen and paper.) I mean, you need to be able to keep track of everything your opponent buys to tweak your strategy accordingly. Point tracker is nifty, but if I'm relying on it, I really haven't been paying attention to what my opponent has bought have I.

I just played a game where I my opponent bought the first 4 provinces and kept all his estates; I trashed all of mine. I built a double-Province engine and calculated by victory to be by one point, and I was right. Would it had mattered if I wasn't keeping track of the VP? I would think absolutely. But, would it have mattered if I used the point tracker instead of keeping track of the scores in my head? Is there any preference between one or the other? That's my question.

(You can always use pen and paper as a point tracker IRL if you want.)

[Beyond Awesome]

Oh yeah, and to give another answer my original question, playing with point tracker (or at least tracking points in your head) helps. I insist on playing with point tracker, which unfortunately makes me a worse player when I play in real life. Most games are so close that you have to ask yourself "Can I end the game or do I have to delay?" and point tracker answers that question for you.

Does keeping track of your opponent's score withOUT the point tracker make you a better player in any way? (And I mean in your head, not with pen and paper.) I mean, you need to be able to keep track of everything your opponent buys to tweak your strategy accordingly. Point tracker is nifty, but if I'm relying on it, I really haven't been paying attention to what my opponent has bought have I.

I just played a game where I my opponent bought the first 4 provinces and kept all his estates; I trashed all of mine. I built a double-Province engine and calculated by victory to be by one point, and I was right. Would it had mattered if I wasn't keeping track of the VP? I would think absolutely. But, would it have mattered if I used the point tracker instead of keeping track of the scores in my head? Is there any preference between one or the other? That's my question.

(You can always use pen and paper as a point tracker IRL if you want.)

Goko has helped me with this. No point counter. Sometimes, I am off a little, but I am getting better at paying attention to the cards because of the lack of point counter.

[thirtyseven]

Oh yeah, and to give another answer my original question, playing with point tracker (or at least tracking points in your head) helps. I insist on playing with point tracker, which unfortunately makes me a worse player when I play in real life. Most games are so close that you have to ask yourself "Can I end the game or do I have to delay?" and point tracker answers that question for you.

Does keeping track of your opponent's score withOUT the point tracker make you a better player in any way? (And I mean in your head, not with pen and paper.) I mean, you need to be able to keep track of everything your opponent buys to tweak your strategy accordingly. Point tracker is nifty, but if I'm relying on it, I really haven't been paying attention to what my opponent has bought have I.

I just played a game where I my opponent bought the first 4 provinces and kept all his estates; I trashed all of mine. I built a double-Province engine and calculated by victory to be by one point, and I was right. Would it had mattered if I wasn't keeping track of the VP? I would think absolutely. But, would it have mattered if I used the point tracker instead of keeping track of the scores in my head? Is there any preference between one or the other? That's my question.

(You can always use pen and paper as a point tracker IRL if you want.)

I don't think it makes you play better, but when I play IRL I never manually keep track of points, because I'm usually just playing casually with beginners and might not have pen & paper around anyway, so I think it would just be overkill to manually track points. If I were playing a serious game, though, maybe I'd request point tracker. It just seems more awkward to use IRL though. That's why part of me doesn't like that I've grown complacent with Iso's point tracker.