Dominion Strategy Forum

Dominion => Puzzles and Challenges => Solo Challenges => Topic started by: Ozle on March 18, 2012, 12:56:10 pm

Title: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 18, 2012, 12:56:10 pm: Time Limit: Midnight GMT Tuesday
Victory: Gain the last Province, you must also have 11 Estates in your deck
Kingdom: Hamlet, Crossroads, Dutchess, Chapel, Cellar, Pawn, Courtyard, Native Village, Lighthouse, Haven
Colony and Platinum: No
Bonus Point: Have an empty Curse Pile

Todays theme is based on $2 cards, including Estates.

Have fun!
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Rabid on March 18, 2012, 01:10:56 pm: Hamlet, Crossroads, Duchess, Chapel, Cellar, Pawn, Courtyard, Native Village, Lighthouse, Haven, !Colony, !Platinum
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: kn1tt3r on March 18, 2012, 01:53:51 pm: Man, this challenge is a headache...
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 18, 2012, 02:06:06 pm: Thats why you have over '2' days! (Seeing a theme here?)
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Razzishi on March 18, 2012, 02:33:06 pm: The goal is to do this in as few turns as possible I assume. Looks like I'll get a really good long try at this one for once :)

edit: Cards on your Native Village mat count as being in your deck, right?
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 18, 2012, 02:55:01 pm: Yep, and Yep. (its my understanding at the end they get added back into your deck before you count them)
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 19, 2012, 10:04:17 am: Interesting, just one entry so far, usually i get a bunch in a couple of hours after I post! Must be a tricksy one!
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: DG on March 19, 2012, 01:04:23 pm: It's not just a matter of trickiness. The best solutions are usually the least likely draws. For example, if the best continuation in this set starts by opening duchess/chapel, buying a gold turn 3, discarding an estate with the duchess, then trashing 3 copper with a chapel; you might not win by starting with anything else. The improbability of that draw just wastes your time getting there.

I'm submitting a solution right now that could have finished a turn earlier if my final turn's draw had been on the previous turn. How long should I spend replaying that game to just get that better draw?
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Thisisnotasmile on March 19, 2012, 01:09:12 pm: I am about to do this one time and submit the result whatever it may be. Wish me luck.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: olneyce on March 19, 2012, 01:25:23 pm: I'm not really competing in these challenges but I've glanced at them. This one seems like the most fun. Just did a test and finished in xx turns. Curious to see how that compares.

One comment: I'm sure the Native Village mat counts, but why would you WANT to leave the cards on the mat? Your last turn should probably include putting all the green back into your deck for a monster Crossroads-draw, no?
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Thisisnotasmile on March 19, 2012, 01:28:44 pm: You might draw Gold-Gold-Silver-X-Y where neither X or Y are Native Village. You'd just buy the Province and leave the rest on the mat.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: kn1tt3r on March 19, 2012, 01:38:24 pm: Quote from: olneyce on March 19, 2012, 01:25:23 pm
...
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Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 19, 2012, 02:03:25 pm: Guys, if you could not put actual turns taken in the thread. Otherwise it gives other players a ballpark figure to aim at (even if its on the the low/high side)

The part of not knowing what everybody else is doing is part of the game.

Cheers
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: kn1tt3r on March 19, 2012, 02:06:49 pm: Quote from: Ozle on March 19, 2012, 02:03:25 pm
Guys, if you could not put actual turns taken in the thread. Otherwise it gives other players a ballpark figure to aim at (even if its on the the low/high side)

The part of not knowing what everybody else is doing is part of the game.

Cheers
Sorry, you're right. Edited my post.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 21, 2012, 10:13:49 am: Bit busy at work today. Will update results at about 7pm. Next challenge will go up shortly after and will last until Friday
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: pecoho on March 21, 2012, 11:01:12 am: how can I join this challange?
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: theory on March 21, 2012, 11:13:35 am: Quote from: pecoho on March 21, 2012, 11:01:12 am
how can I join this challange?
Just do it, and then send the log to Ozle by PM.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: greatexpectations on March 21, 2012, 11:29:07 am: haven't participated yet, but i do like the idea of these challenges. if Ozle intends to keep this going for a while it might be worth creating a new dedicated subforum.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: philosophyguy on March 21, 2012, 11:51:00 am: I think a separate forum for these challenges is a great idea. It would make it easier to find them, and it would make it possible to divide out the actual challenge thread from a thread debating the specific strategies for the challenge.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 21, 2012, 12:02:32 pm: While We are on this subject....

Im a bit concerned im spamming this forum with these so I'm thinking of regulating them a bit more, say three per week. Although how long I'd go without running out of ideas, still got a few left, but will space them out with a few standard, 'buy provinces in x turns' I think

Also, unsure of whether we want the leader board as is, or start afresh monthly
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Thisisnotasmile on March 21, 2012, 12:14:27 pm: Quote from: Ozle on March 21, 2012, 12:02:32 pm
While We are on this subject....

Im a bit concerned im spamming this forum with these so I'm thinking of regulating them a bit more, say three per week. Although how long I'd go without running out of ideas, still got a few left, but will space them out with a few standard, 'buy provinces in x turns' I think

Also, unsure of whether we want the leader board as is, or start afresh monthly

If these are going to be a (semi) permanent thing, I'd say keep two leaderboards; an all-time leaderboard and also one which refreshes every now and then. There are quite a few people who haven't participated yet but have expressed an interest in joining in in future, and they're going to be disadvantaged on an all-time leaderboard. Having one where they (and any new forum members) could participate from the beginning would be pretty cool.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 21, 2012, 05:30:51 pm: Ok, this rounds results are as follows:

Lots of points going about here as it seems it was close (apart from 1)

So, gaining 1 point Each, two new people to the leaderboard, so lets have a round of applause for...:
Razzishi      24   http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/18/game-20120318-132800-f7e91cbd.html
Toskk      24   http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/19/game-20120319-152335-ad8d8d0f.html

Gaining 2 points, a whopping 4 people
DG      23   http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/19/game-20120319-070349-139f446c.html
RisingJaguar   23   http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/18/game-20120318-102439-01d2c21b.html
jonts26      23   http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/19/game-20120319-225524-43eb9ac0.html
Chwhite      23   http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/20/game-20120320-022417-b92aebae.html

And in first place....again. 2 turns faster than everyone else!
Fate      21   http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/20/game-20120320-071616-4bfecc6f.html

And obviously the true champions, the bonus point winners this time were....oh, just one: This isnotasmile!

So, the leaderboard now looks like this:

Fate: 13
Jonts26: 10
CHWhite: 9
DG: 8
Magnetar: 7
Thisisnotasmile: 6
Wandering Winder 3
RisingJaguar: 5
Rabid: 2
jtotheonah 2
TitanDrake 2
Voltaire: 1
Lespute: 1
kn1tt3r 1
Razzishi 1
Tossk 1

Next will be up tomorrow and last till Friday Midnight
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: blueblimp on March 21, 2012, 07:03:10 pm: I just gotta note that Fate got first place with the assistance of a turn 3 Chapel. (RisingJaguar got one on turn 5, and I think everyone else ignored it.) This is pretty advanced stuff here. I'm impressed.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 21, 2012, 07:11:58 pm: I too was surprised everyone else out of the top 7 ignored it. But then it took me 28 turns in my 3 goes...
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: blueblimp on March 21, 2012, 10:25:30 pm: Do you take user submissions for kingdoms? Since I just got this kingdom randomly on isotropic, and it's wild:

Black Market,Chapel,Explorer,Ghost Ship,Horn of Plenty,Royal Seal,Smithy,Tactician,Throne Room,Watchtower

I'd love to see how fast skilled players can burn through this.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Fate on March 21, 2012, 10:33:28 pm: Quick commentary on my solution. My first tries ended up quite a bit higher, but these two tricks helped me alot.

1. It is pretty well established (councilroom) that in a standard game chapel after turn 2 is much less effective. However, these puzzles are not standard games and not being able to trash the estates really changes how the card works. In this case you need to establish a bit of an economy before you thin your deck, otherwise it takes much longer to get your buying power up to provinces with all those green cards in the way. (I will admit that I made sure that I got a gold on turn 3 or 4 and if not I would just restart. I really didn't want to have too many silvers)

2. It is important to buy one hamlet early, while you are still thinning your deck, so that you can take advantage of the plus buys to get enough crossroads and additional hamlets in your deck on your none province buying turns later on.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 22, 2012, 04:58:54 am: Quote from: blueblimp on March 21, 2012, 10:25:30 pm
Do you take user submissions for kingdoms? Since I just got this kingdom randomly on isotropic, and it's wild:

Black Market,Chapel,Explorer,Ghost Ship,Horn of Plenty,Royal Seal,Smithy,Tactician,Throne Room,Watchtower

I'd love to see how fast skilled players can burn through this.

I do take ideas yes, although usually by pm (don't want to give players any head start if they read the kingdom beforehand)

Your board looks fun, but I'd have to take out black market, as it's a bit swingy
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: blueblimp on March 22, 2012, 11:46:01 am: Quote from: Ozle on March 22, 2012, 04:58:54 am
Quote from: blueblimp on March 21, 2012, 10:25:30 pm
Do you take user submissions for kingdoms? Since I just got this kingdom randomly on isotropic, and it's wild:

Black Market,Chapel,Explorer,Ghost Ship,Horn of Plenty,Royal Seal,Smithy,Tactician,Throne Room,Watchtower

I'd love to see how fast skilled players can burn through this.

I do take ideas yes, although usually by pm (don't want to give players any head start if they read the kingdom beforehand)

Your board looks fun, but I'd have to take out black market, as it's a bit swingy

Can't take out the Black Market, as it's the Tactician/Black Market/Horn of Plenty combo that makes the board really crazy (plus Chapel is available to set everything up).
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Deadlock39 on March 22, 2012, 11:47:47 am: Perhaps, just disallow buying cards out of the Black Market since the contents can't be controlled.
Title: Re: Solo Challenge 6 - Little and Often
Post by: Ozle on March 22, 2012, 12:04:57 pm: I see what your saying, but am trying to not over restrict things. But will keep this one in mind