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Author Topic: Interview with Donald X.  (Read 2127189 times)

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hsiale

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #725 on: February 21, 2013, 04:41:17 am »
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Cards that give +2 actions are referred to as "villages" but only part of them are named "Some Village". I tried to find a reason behind which are and which are not, but all I tried failed (cost 4 or less idea was disproven by Wandering Mistrel and Border Village, +1 card idea was disproven by Fishing Village and Bandit Camp, and so on). Is there any way you use to decide if a +2 actions card should be named "Some Village", or is it just chance?
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #726 on: February 21, 2013, 04:46:07 am »
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I presume that Bandit Camp and Hamlet are close enough in that they are dwellings (but Nomad Camp!), Crossroads only by some stretch. For Bazaar, Donald already said that he took the name b/c the card art was available. Bazaar is my pet peeve in naming inconsistency. Every market should net a Buy.
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Donald X.

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #727 on: February 21, 2013, 04:55:02 am »
+1

Cards that give +2 actions are referred to as "villages" but only part of them are named "Some Village". I tried to find a reason behind which are and which are not, but all I tried failed (cost 4 or less idea was disproven by Wandering Mistrel and Border Village, +1 card idea was disproven by Fishing Village and Bandit Camp, and so on). Is there any way you use to decide if a +2 actions card should be named "Some Village", or is it just chance?
The original idea was "groups of people" rather than villages specifically. You have people, doing things for you - some nobles, some bandits, maybe a whole city of people. Wandering Minstrel wandered into that name, as a card that wasn't always a village, and it never sounded inappropriate to me. Obv. the "village" identifier does good work. Possibly if I were doing it again I would rename Festival, Nobles, Bazaar, and Wandering Minstrel, although I'm still pleased with Squire and Madman and Necropolis and Crossroads and University and Trusty Steed and Inn and Fortress and Bandit Camp, in addition to City and Shanty Town and Hamlet. And I still like Ruined Village's exception. And then like Ironmonger and Tribute, they're not bothering anybody.

@iopfanes: Yes Bazaar was because we had extra Market art to use.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #728 on: February 21, 2013, 08:19:47 pm »
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t does distinguish me from other Donald Vaccarino's, that's nice.


Why would you NOT want to be confused with this guy!
http://www.facebook.com/donald.vaccarino
Dude that's the wrong Donald. This is the Donald you are looking for.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #729 on: February 21, 2013, 11:44:50 pm »
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What's your favorite card art? Least favorite? Are there any cards that looking back, you would keep it the same mechanically but change the name?
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Donald X.

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #730 on: February 22, 2013, 01:54:37 am »
+1

What's your favorite card art? Least favorite? Are there any cards that looking back, you would keep it the same mechanically but change the name?
There are only a few Dominion artists that I wouldn't ask to do an entire game of mine, if I were making those calls - there is a lot of good or great art. I'm not so comfortable singling out the worst artists, but as it happens I think I can stomach saying that either Shanty Town or Pearl Diver is the very worst. A lot of people don't like Kalusky's Dominion art; it's nice to have a variety of styles but that stuff is just too cartoony in this context.

I also don't like it when the picture has something that physically doesn't work or make sense, which there are a few of. I try to catch that stuff in the sketches, but I don't always get to see them and it isn't always clear from the sketches.

Like I said there is a lot of great art. I will single out Marcel-Andre Casasola-Merkle and Claus Stephan as favorite artists. As an example of really nailing a tricky concept, I will single out Ill-Gotten Gains.

Aside from those villages I just mentioned, there are probably a few things from the first couple sets I would rename; I spent more time on names later. Harem I would probably call Farm, although I would try to fit in some other card called Harem. I might move Smithy to a Workshop-type card; I don't know what I call Smithy then. Feast isn't great, although if I don't do the card that problem goes away.
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Davio

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #731 on: February 22, 2013, 03:42:59 am »
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Well, the art on IGG suggests that the person buying/finding it is Cursed, not the other way around. :)
Kind of like...... Blood Money!  ;D Or is the extra Copper a Curse?

I think Harem is the worst, unsurprisingly also by Kalusky. Those are some ugly women and the red haired one is so out of tone. Is she the patroness or does she live there as well? I like the composition, but the coloring and cartoony style are just way off.
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Donald X.

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #732 on: February 22, 2013, 04:04:24 am »
+2

I think Harem is the worst, unsurprisingly also by Kalusky. Those are some ugly women and the red haired one is so out of tone. Is she the patroness or does she live there as well?
She's Valerie! And Navigator is Dale. And Pearl Diver is Wei-Hwa, who won a tournament at the Gathering of Friends for that privilege.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #733 on: February 22, 2013, 04:37:55 am »
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So you're going to do a Secret History of the Card Art next?  :D

But poor, poor people. All of them on cards by Kalusky and Wei-Hwa is even on one of the most useless cards.  :'(
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #734 on: February 22, 2013, 05:03:16 am »
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So you're going to do a Secret History of the Card Art next?  :D

But poor, poor people. All of them on cards by Kalusky and Wei-Hwa is even on one of the most useless cards.  :'(
PD isn't useless, it's the card I have the highest win rate with!
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #735 on: February 22, 2013, 08:35:07 am »
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On the subject of art:


Does the tree growing out of the roof (and nothing below it where it'd be if you follow the trunk down) on that card bother you?
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Davio

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #736 on: February 22, 2013, 08:46:22 am »
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Nah, it's clearly an antenna.
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Donald X.

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #737 on: February 22, 2013, 09:17:41 am »
+6

Does the tree growing out of the roof (and nothing below it where it'd be if you follow the trunk down) on that card bother you?
Feel free to talk about any such things you can find; it's not so awesome for me to badmouth my games, when you think about it, especially the parts that I didn't do.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #738 on: February 22, 2013, 09:52:23 am »
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I just looked through the art, and saw that the ruined versions were each made by the original artist.  Library/Ruined Library, Walled Village/Ruined Village, Grand Market/Ruined Market, Mine/Abandoned Mine, and even Estate (Base Cards)/Overgrown Estate and Village/Pillage.  Are there any other pairs like that?
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Donald X.

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #739 on: February 22, 2013, 10:16:54 am »
+3

I just looked through the art, and saw that the ruined versions were each made by the original artist.  Library/Ruined Library, Walled Village/Ruined Village, Grand Market/Ruined Market, Mine/Abandoned Mine, and even Estate (Base Cards)/Overgrown Estate and Village/Pillage.  Are there any other pairs like that?
Native Village / Pirate Ship / Island are all Vohwinkel and connect up to make one big image. Scrying Pool shows Village but is a different artist. Hermit/Madman are the same artist, Urchin/Mercenary are the same artist, and of course those relate. The Sirs have male artists and the Dames have female artists.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #740 on: February 22, 2013, 05:38:49 pm »
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Have you read much of Arthur Conan Doyle's works?  He seems to use a lot of the more interesting vocabulary in Dominion such as Counting House and Ill Gotten Gains.  If not, what do you enjoy reading?
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #741 on: February 22, 2013, 10:53:09 pm »
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Can we see the 'one big image'? Especially for those of us without Seaside :(
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #742 on: February 22, 2013, 11:04:17 pm »
+2

Can we see the 'one big image'? Especially for those of us without Seaside :(

It's the front of the Seaside rules
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Donald X.

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #743 on: February 23, 2013, 05:22:07 am »
+2

Have you read much of Arthur Conan Doyle's works?  He seems to use a lot of the more interesting vocabulary in Dominion such as Counting House and Ill Gotten Gains.  If not, what do you enjoy reading?
I read some of the stories and maybe one of the novels in my youth; I don't really remember them.

Counting House is from a nursery rhyme, Sing a Song of Sixpence. When your first language is English, you get some English culture. Ill-Gotten Gains is an idiom; it's old-timey so maybe it's also specifically English. Anyway the game is set in Europe in the middle ages, so it specifically has some old stuff. And it's fun to give a card a name like Margrave.

I haven't read much non-online stuff in the last few years; I enjoy reading wikipedia. Pre-Dominion I read more sci-fi/fantasy than uh not those things. I will recommend some stuff.

Short stories:
- In the Penal Colony by Franz Kafka
- The Death of Dr. Island by Gene Wolfe
- Uncle Wiggly in Connecticut by J.D. Salinger
- Repent, Harlequin, Said the Ticktockman by Harlan Ellison
- The Secret Miracle by Jorge Luis Borges
- The Wind-up Bird And Tuesday's Women by Haruki Murakami

Novels:
- Little, Big by John Crowley
- Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe (starts with Shadow of the Torturer)
- Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami
- The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers
- Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
- Permutation City by Greg Egan

Nonfiction:
- Guns, Germs & Steel by Jared Diamond
- Labyrinths of Reason by William Poundstone
- Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas R. Hofstadter
- Trouser Press Record Guide 4th edition by Ira Robbins

Humor:
- Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams
- Without Feathers by Woody Allen
- Deeper Thoughts by Jack Handey

The Anubis Gates is my go-to recommendation; it's just a crowd-pleaser, the Raiders of the Lost Ark of sci-fi/fantasy.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #744 on: February 23, 2013, 05:42:09 am »
0

Have you read much of Arthur Conan Doyle's works?  He seems to use a lot of the more interesting vocabulary in Dominion such as Counting House and Ill Gotten Gains.  If not, what do you enjoy reading?
I read some of the stories and maybe one of the novels in my youth; I don't really remember them.

Counting House is from a nursery rhyme, Sing a Song of Sixpence. When your first language is English, you get some English culture. Ill-Gotten Gains is an idiom; it's old-timey so maybe it's also specifically English. Anyway the game is set in Europe in the middle ages, so it specifically has some old stuff. And it's fun to give a card a name like Margrave.

I haven't read much non-online stuff in the last few years; I enjoy reading wikipedia. Pre-Dominion I read more sci-fi/fantasy than uh not those things. I will recommend some stuff.

Short stories:
- In the Penal Colony by Franz Kafka
- The Death of Dr. Island by Gene Wolfe
- Uncle Wiggly in Connecticut by J.D. Salinger
- Repent, Harlequin, Said the Ticktockman by Harlan Ellison
- The Secret Miracle by Jorge Luis Borges
- The Wind-up Bird And Tuesday's Women by Haruki Murakami

Novels:
- Little, Big by John Crowley
- Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe (starts with Shadow of the Torturer)
- Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami
- The Anubis Gates by Tim Powers
- Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
- Permutation City by Greg Egan

Nonfiction:
- Guns, Germs & Steel by Jared Diamond
- Labyrinths of Reason by William Poundstone
- Godel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid by Douglas R. Hofstadter
- Trouser Press Record Guide 4th edition by Ira Robbins

Humor:
- Restaurant at the End of the Universe by Douglas Adams
- Without Feathers by Woody Allen
- Deeper Thoughts by Jack Handey

The Anubis Gates is my go-to recommendation; it's just a crowd-pleaser, the Raiders of the Lost Ark of sci-fi/fantasy.

Murakami!  Bonus points for you.  1Q84 is tremendous.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #745 on: February 23, 2013, 12:07:50 pm »
+3

Well, the art on IGG suggests that the person buying/finding it is Cursed, not the other way around. :)
Kind of like...... Blood Money!  ;D Or is the extra Copper a Curse?

I think Harem is the worst, unsurprisingly also by Kalusky. Those are some ugly women and the red haired one is so out of tone. Is she the patroness or does she live there as well? I like the composition, but the coloring and cartoony style are just way off.

I don't get the hate on Pearl Diver - I think it's fine.  However, Navigator and Shanty Town are just not the right tone for Dominion at all.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #746 on: February 23, 2013, 02:29:56 pm »
0

Not sure if this been discussed further back in the thread, but are you thinking of doing anything else for Dominion after Guilds is released? This game is enjoyed so much by my family and friends that it will be a sad day when new expansions are no longer being released. Also, how do you find Dominion plays differently when playing with 2, 3, 4, and 5+ players? Do you prefer 2 player games or multiplayer games and why? Thanks!

Warrior
« Last Edit: February 23, 2013, 02:45:26 pm by Warrior »
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Davio

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #747 on: February 23, 2013, 03:35:23 pm »
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I think he said he might do more expansions if RGG wants it because he likes to make people happy, but I don't think he has any more predesigned.
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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #748 on: February 23, 2013, 04:09:08 pm »
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I think he said he might do more expansions if RGG wants it because he likes to make people happy, but I don't think he has any more predesigned.

We want the expansions.

-RGG
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Donald X.

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Re: Interview with Donald X.
« Reply #749 on: February 23, 2013, 05:04:03 pm »
+3

Not sure if this been discussed further back in the thread, but are you thinking of doing anything else for Dominion after Guilds is released? This game is enjoyed so much by my family and friends that it will be a sad day when new expansions are no longer being released. Also, how do you find Dominion plays differently when playing with 2, 3, 4, and 5+ players? Do you prefer 2 player games or multiplayer games and why? Thanks!
I would like to do a Dominion spin-off - a similar game that's different in whatever ways. It's possible I will get talked into doing another expansion someday, but I will try not to be, and it wouldn't be any time soon. The expansions, I have given this speech many times, the expansions go down in value as you do more of them; they are doing less to give you variety, they get more complex, you can only carry so much. Making expansions means not working on other projects, or expansions for those projects. OTOH it's nice to have a project you know people want.

The number of provinces per player shifts down when you go from 3 to 4, which makes games faster (in terms of number of turns), which shifts strategies. You have less ability to buy cards you want with 4-5 players; if everyone wants Fishing Villages you may find yourself opening Fishing Village / Fishing Village to get yours. Some cards change functionally with more players; Thief gains more cards, multiple Ambassador-ing opponents flood you with junk faster, etc.

I prefer 3 and then 4 and then 2 and then 5. I like the increased player interaction of 3-4 player games, and like the longer turn-wise 3-player game and reduced downtime vs. 4 players. I only play with 5 to be nice; I'm not nice enough to play with 6.
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