New FAQ:
Question: Dude, I've been matched against top players in all three of my rounds! What gives?
Answer: Of 81 participants who have actually played a match, 38 of them are in the top 100 on the Isotropish leaderboard (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/leaderboard/). Do the math.
It's not good when you get thrown high skill boards against someone who is better than you. :) Well played SCSN, I didn't have a shot today!
New FAQ:
Question: Dude, I've been matched against top players in all three of my rounds! What gives?
Answer: Of 81 participants who have actually played a match, 38 of them are in the top 100 on the Isotropish leaderboard (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/leaderboard/). Do the math.
If it wasn't obvious I was joking. ;_;
New FAQ:
Question: Dude, I've been matched against top players in all three of my rounds! What gives?
Answer: Of 81 participants who have actually played a match, 38 of them are in the top 100 on the Isotropish leaderboard (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/leaderboard/). Chances are good that everyone will play at least one top-100 player. And that's a good thing!
(Edited for better tone.)
Game 1: Archetype 11, AdamH 11You could have bought Colony in turn 19 by TR-IW for 2 Silvers.
Kingdom: Great Hall, Trade Route, Ironworks, Plaza, Smithy, Throne Room, Margrave, Mountebank, Altar, Possession, with Colony/Platinum
Game 1 video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xef-HCZo60
Game 1 log: http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130826/log.5085f5130cf270038ff92212.1377555398257.txt
I open 2/5 on a Mountebank board, which sets the tone for most of the game. It appears he's playing some defense, and also wants to do some Ironworks/Great Hall stuff. I decide to punish him for opening Ironworks/Trade Route (not so good for getting to $5) by junking him profusely, which seems effective so he goes for a quick 3-pile ending. Unfortunately, I nab a Colony just before and we have a tie score, but I win on turns.
I opt for Torturer big money. He opts for Militia and Courtyard big money. I am shocked I lost this so convincingly. I really thought I had the better strategy. But my Torturers collided turns 7, 10, 14, 15, and 20; maybe 2 Torturers and a Courtyard would have been better. Maybe attacks don't matter so much in big money? Or I don't know my big money strategy rankings? I would like some input on this simple game.
jaybeez defeats Polk 4-2.
This is a series where I just don't think I could have played any better (given my current skills) and really felt like my luck run a little too dry. jaybeez played very well and took advantage of some great opportunities. I apologize I wasn't more gracious in my loss -- that match left me a bit frustrated. Good playing, jaybeez, and I hope to have another chance at playing you in the future! Good luck in future rounds!
Game 1:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.50ba29b8e4b015dcbac5f45a.1377655392130.txt
This was probably one of the more exciting games of the match even though we went for nearly identical strategies -- engine to Goons megaturn. The only major difference in strategies was I opted for Rabble over Governor on my first $5 (turn 5) while he picked up Governor (turn 4). I picked up Governor turn 6. My thinking was that since drawing was super important, I didn't want to give the draw externality so early in the match. I think I also more effectively used Hermit early to trash Estates and pick up Menageries and a Crossroads. Turn 7 was Goons, turn 8 Mint (trash 5 Coppers). I felt really good about this deck.
Then he's able to Mint away almost all of his Treasures on turn 11, and my deck doesn't fire as well as I would have hoped on turns 12 and 13. Here is where I maybe lost the game. I was up a little in points but was concerned about piles. Unless he got a near perfect turn, he couldn't end the game in one turn. Maybe I should have taken the time on turn 12 to pick up a couple of more Governors.
Anyway, he's able to get another big turn and out into a lead where I cannot catch up by emptying piles, and my deck is not built to handle so much green. I lose.
Game 2:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.50ba29b8e4b015dcbac5f45a.1377655914829.txt
I go Double Jack and pick up two Minions as well. Sea Hag is on the board, but we both avoid it. He opts for Golem. While he accidentally trashes a Nomad Camp at one point, I think this actually helps his deck.
He breaks PPR (I think incorrectly) and I win by buying out the last Province.
Game 3:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.50ba29b8e4b015dcbac5f45a.1377657246301.txt
Let the frustrations begin. We both open Ambassador-Ambassador. Both of mine end up as the bottom two cards in my deck missing the reshuffle. I lose the Ambassador war so badly there is nothing I can do in this game. On to game 4!
Game 4:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.50ba29b8e4b015dcbac5f45a.1377658289235.txt
I am proud of my opening plays here. Watchtower. I get a Nomad Camp and hit the $6 on turn 3 getting an Altar. I am able to load up on Minstrels and Torturers. He goes for a similar strategy (we have our eyes on Horn of Plenty).
Then turn 11 is a total dud. Given everything in my deck, this was not good luck to get any engine pieces. Maybe I brought it on myself with the HoPs too soon? I don't know. I don't think so, though. After his next turn cashing in his HoPs, I thought the match was over. I nearly resigned, but then realizing since the last turn was so bad, this has got to be good, right? I gain a 5th HoP from Altar just in case and sure enough, I am able to overdraw, get the fifth HoP and empty Duchies and Torturers with one HoP left over for a Province and the win. That was close!
Game 5:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.50ba29b8e4b015dcbac5f45a.1377658797855.txt
I opt for Torturer big money. He opts for Militia and Courtyard big money. I am shocked I lost this so convincingly. I really thought I had the better strategy. But my Torturers collided turns 7, 10, 14, 15, and 20; maybe 2 Torturers and a Courtyard would have been better. Maybe attacks don't matter so much in big money? Or I don't know my big money strategy rankings? I would like some input on this simple game.
Game 6:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.50ba29b8e4b015dcbac5f45a.1377659518062.txt
I am first. There is Cultist. What happened? We split the Ruins. How? I do not know. We both get Sea Hag. He flips my Sea Hag and is able to transition into Develop-Rats-Duchy. He's really just going Duchies and a third pile to end the game. That was my intention, but I was the one who fell behind, so I couldn't follow. I tried Ironmonger, Baker, and Hamlet with Develop to get an engine going and get Provinces and hope for the best. Instead I got the worst and lost.
It was a good match. We had a good variety of kingdoms, and I enjoyed playing against a high quality opponent.
Good luck in future rounds, jaybeez.
Courtyard BM is really quite good among BM enablers. On the simulator, courtyard-BM beats torturer-BM by about 55-35, so convincingly enough as far as BM mirrors go.
I think your Rabble should just have been a Governor. Rabble's attack isn't that great here and using up a terminal slot for draw when the only village is Crossroads is just really suboptimal. Well Ironmonger too. But the point is, that terminal slot is crucial early, I think you want to focus on playing Goons as your terminals--because you can, you don't need to use up actions to draw. And Governor's drawback is greatly ameliorated by Goons, so I think Gov really outclasses Rabble here.
And when I had that big T11 where I minted away all TEN of my Treasures, my 5 Governors enabled that. At that point you had one Governor. I think that's the difference here, my draw was way better. You got to a multi-Goons turn first but I had the drawing power to enable the huge Mint turn and then continue to draw through the greening. Which, by the way, was interesting: I wasn't really planning on greening (or buying Coppers) thinking I'd just pile out Governors, Ironmongers, and Menageries or something. But then you started to green and buy Coppers for points and I felt I had to follow you since the piles were low and I needed to keep my score near or above yours.
Also it's funny, I had kind of forgotten about Mint until you bought yours. There was a lot going on in this game, only the Tribute and Pirate Ship piles went untouched. But Governor-Goons always makes for crazy-feeling games I think.
QuoteGame 6:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.50ba29b8e4b015dcbac5f45a.1377659518062.txt
I am first. There is Cultist. What happened? We split the Ruins. How? I do not know.
You go first but we pursue virtually identical strategies through about T12, so it's not so weird that we split the Ruins evenly. I'm helped by a phenomenal draw on T7, I have all three of my Cultists in my opening hand, and one of them I had just bought on the previous turn. But if I had gotten those three Cultists on three consecutive turns instead (T7-9) or two on T7 and one on T9 or something, actually the split would have gone the same way--and given the draw from my Cultists and the size of my deck, such an outcome is not unlikely.
Since all the effects happen simultaneously when Cultist is trashed, shouldn't I be able to choose to gain a $6 and a $4 and topdeck them, then draw them and the next card with Cultist's on-trash effect?
Psyduck defeats dudeabides 3-0
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.506b5cfc0cf21d2313f966fe.1377631286811.txt (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.506b5cfc0cf21d2313f966fe.1377631286811.txt)
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.506b5cfc0cf21d2313f966fe.1377632762121.txt (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.506b5cfc0cf21d2313f966fe.1377632762121.txt)
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.506b5cfc0cf21d2313f966fe.1377634564405.txt (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130827/log.506b5cfc0cf21d2313f966fe.1377634564405.txt)
I think my opponent buys way too many Tunnels instead of more Warehouses to support them. I get an Adventurer, which is actually quite nice here.While I agree I got too many Tunnels, I feel your Adventurer plays were really lucky. You played it 4 times to get 6 Gold and 2 Copper in total, while on each play your deck contained more Copper than Gold and additionally, while you had just one Tunnel most of the game and two at the end, half of your Adventurer plays revealed one.
I still need to work on recognising engine viability.
Did you ever meet Marin?I still need to work on recognising engine viability.
I literally can't think of a single player who doesn't :D
I have never played him. Stef told me he was really really good but had a tendency to go for engines even when they were completely impossible, so it seems like he too fits the description?
I have never played him. Stef told me he was really really good but had a tendency to go for engines even when they were completely impossible, so it seems like he too fits the description?
http://forum.dominionstrategy.com/index.php?topic=2230.0
We both use Contraband to trash down some Coppers....
| Game 1 (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377795748742.txt): | Kingdom (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/kingdomvisualize?logurl=http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377795748742.txt) | ragingduckd - 0, | A Drowned Kernel - 1 |
| Game 2 (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377796954774.txt): | Kingdom (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/kingdomvisualize?logurl=http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377796954774.txt) | ragingduckd - 1, | A Drowned Kernel - 1 |
| Game 3 (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377797711981.txt): | Kingdom (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/kingdomvisualize?logurl=http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377797711981.txt) | ragingduckd - 2, | A Drowned Kernel - 1 |
| Game 4 (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377798603238.txt): | Kingdom (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/kingdomvisualize?logurl=http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377798603238.txt) | ragingduckd - 2, | A Drowned Kernel - 2 |
| Game 5 (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377799516563.txt): | Kingdom (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/kingdomvisualize?logurl=http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377799516563.txt) | ragingduckd - 2, | A Drowned Kernel - 3 |
| Game 6 (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377800576070.txt): | Kingdom (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/kingdomvisualize?logurl=http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377800576070.txt) | ragingduckd - 3, | A Drowned Kernel - 3 |
Another monster board... Menagerie with Candlestick Maker, Storeroom, Scheme, Peddler, and a village! I'm not sure what this looked like from ADK's perspective, but his engine never managed to get running. We were basically mirroring until T6 or T7, when my deck started to take off. I don't think this was actually about the extra CM or Scheme that I bought, so I suspect he caught some poor draws.
Game 6 (http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377800576070.txt): Kingdom (http://gokologs.drunkensailor.org/kingdomvisualize?logurl=http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.5101a6c4e4b02b7235c3860f.1377800576070.txt) ragingduckd - 3, A Drowned Kernel - 3
With AHoppy on vacation out of the country and extremely short on availability, I am well on my way to the pinnacle of mediocrity: three draws!
Game 2:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130828/log.505c6645a2e6c78ad2ed5ad3.1377735617693.txt
I open double Ambassador and get lucky enough to get the Walled Village on turn 3 and my Sage, which helps me play 2 Ambassadors frequently. He opens WV/Ambassador. While that's one of the better Village openings you can do, I still think Double Amb is safer here. So I went with Double Amb by the logic I'd be able to remove 2 and buy Fool's Gold, which does indeed pay off a few times. Later I pick up a Saboteur to keep the few high cost cards he has from helping him out. Eventually this turns into a massive slog, as I don't have any cards that can really pile the game out in a hurry. I'm sure there are better plays than what I did. I build up an insurmountable lead and he tries to get Sabs as a last ditch effort, but it's too late. After a grueling game, I finally line up 3 FG to get the last Province. This game is proof that Walled Village is a better card than people give it credit. I would rather have had it than nearly any other Village in the game here.
Game 2:
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130828/log.505c6645a2e6c78ad2ed5ad3.1377735617693.txt
I open double Ambassador and get lucky enough to get the Walled Village on turn 3 and my Sage, which helps me play 2 Ambassadors frequently. He opens WV/Ambassador. While that's one of the better Village openings you can do, I still think Double Amb is safer here. So I went with Double Amb by the logic I'd be able to remove 2 and buy Fool's Gold, which does indeed pay off a few times. Later I pick up a Saboteur to keep the few high cost cards he has from helping him out. Eventually this turns into a massive slog, as I don't have any cards that can really pile the game out in a hurry. I'm sure there are better plays than what I did. I build up an insurmountable lead and he tries to get Sabs as a last ditch effort, but it's too late. After a grueling game, I finally line up 3 FG to get the last Province. This game is proof that Walled Village is a better card than people give it credit. I would rather have had it than nearly any other Village in the game here.
Pirate Ship looks important here for killing FGs.
With AHoppy on vacation out of the country and extremely short on availability, I am well on my way to the pinnacle of mediocrity: three draws!
If your opponent is barely available due to being on vacation he could have asked for a buy. Not doing so should mean that you get the win.
destierro-GwinnR...3:1
I don't saved the logs and can't find them now, but here are my german videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUmkGcgrtjQ&feature=c4-overview&list=UUf7aAB3ssfYS0ltCozgByhA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYINtFNxcp4&feature=c4-overview&list=UUf7aAB3ssfYS0ltCozgByhA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVU4-aQlJIM&feature=c4-overview&list=UUf7aAB3ssfYS0ltCozgByhA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHHhKH_DBT0&feature=c4-overview&list=UUf7aAB3ssfYS0ltCozgByhA
ragingduckd vs A Drowned Kernel: 3-3 tie
WalrusMcFishSr 3.5- 1.5 Twistedarcher
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130828/log.5068c69551c38622de84eb0e.1377719983278.txt
Walrus 33- TA 31
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130828/log.5068c69551c38622de84eb0e.1377720718630.txt
TA 22- Walrus 35
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130828/log.5068c69551c38622de84eb0e.1377721179259.txt
TA 48 - Walrus 48
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130828/log.5068c69551c38622de84eb0e.1377721728081.txt
Walrus 13 - TA 18
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130830/log.5068c69551c38622de84eb0e.1377888561447.txt
Walrus 37 - TA 27
Quotehttp://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130828/log.5068c69551c38622de84eb0e.1377721728081.txt
Walrus 13 - TA 18
A Swindler-heavy game. His Ironworks is much more effective than my Talisman at picking up Ironmongers. In fact, that makes perfect thematic sense--why didn't I realize that before? How Ironic.
A Swindler-heavy game. His Ironworks is much more effective than my Talisman at picking up Ironmongers. In fact, that makes perfect thematic sense--why didn't I realize that before? How Ironic.
Game 4 Destierro 47-35 http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130829/log.50a06f0fe4b0638b8d8e5da1.1377844806321.txtThis is pretty neat. Usually I think of skipping Sea Hag when there's another strong opening card that can help get into the engine better, but you don't usually think of even Silver/Silver being better. But with both of you going for fat-deck strategies, the Sea Hag doesn't get played a lot and the Curses don't get seen a lot, so even double Silver is better than Hag!
I see Sea Hag. I ignore Sea Hag. Wharf / Counterfeit / Masterpiece BM is so strong here. Mainly the wharves, which Gwinnr decides not to pick up until turn 10, when I already had 4 and 2 counterfeits. My lighthouse maybe should have been a silver, but looking at the log it actually blocked a curse, so good enough.
Robz888 wins 3.5 - 2.5 over TheMirrorMan. This was one of the tensest tournament rounds I have ever played. All very interesting games and razor-thin margins of victory. I do think luck decided a lot of these games, unfortunately.
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130831/log.50785f090cf28ed55d9d72bf.1377968256148.txt
Transmute, Black Market, Lookout, Sage, Wishing Well, Feast, Procession, Worker's Village, Apprentice, Adventurer
Actually, this was the only not very interesting game. My strategy was fairly unfocused; there's just so little going on here. Of course the power vacuum makes Black Market a compelling purchase. He manages to pull Sir Michael (the discard Knight) from the BMarket which is sort of super strong since I have no Knights to counteract. I think that basically decided the game.
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130831/log.50785f090cf28ed55d9d72bf.1377969320111.txt
Crossroads, Hamlet, Black Market, Scheme, Bishop, Throne Room, Bazaar, Ghost Ship, Hunting Party, Minion
A more interesting game, although Black Market luck decided it once again. Our strategies do diverge from the get-go, though. He opens Bishop/Silver. I don't think I like that--the trashing will help me, and hitting $5 is so important! So I'm BM/Silver. He does hit $5 though, and gets into gear pretty quickly. Luckily, I pull Goons for the BM deck, and my deck comes roaring back. I really, really make use of the extra buy VP chips (I'm getting like a Duchy's worth of extra points every turn), and he's in a bad way by the end.
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130831/log.50785f090cf28ed55d9d72bf.1377970180115.txt
Courtyard, Lighthouse, Warehouse, Navigator, Spy, Wandering Minstrel, Golem, Library, Venture, Nobles
I lose this game, but I would play it exactly the same if we did this set again. The engine just looks so weak to me without +buy or gaining, and Venture should be pretty good for the Courtyard BM play. Well, I never got a Venture, just because I never hit $5 until Duchy time, but I don't think that's such a big deal. Hate to blame shuffle luck, but all my good cards clumped at the end of my last shuffle, and that allowed him to go Province-Province-Province. Maybe you guys can tell me if I am wrong, and the engine is actually better?
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130831/log.50785f090cf28ed55d9d72bf.1377970737437.txt
Courtyard, University, Steward, Bridge, Remodel, Talisman, Bazaar, Jester, Rogue, Grand Market
I love sets like these. I notice the Bridge/University for GMs interaction right away, and I plan to build my deck for that purpose. He focuses more on Rogues, which could just be a symptom of his draws. Anyway, I really prioritize Steward trashing, I draw my Bridges at the right times, and my engine goes off big time. I drain GMs, Bazaars, and $0 Courtyards all at once to end the game in a decisive win. I played well, but I also drew really well here. Think his Rogues wouldn't have helped him enough here, though--you really want to be playing more Bridges and Courtyards.
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130831/log.50785f090cf28ed55d9d72bf.1377971395561.txt
Doctor, Masterpiece, Swindler, Conspirator, Farming Village, JackOfAllTrades, Throne Room, Inn, Mandarin, Adventurer
I get the 5/2, which is sort of manifestly worse here, I think. Should just be a Jack game. Again, there IS an engine here with Conspirators and Inns and Throne Rooms, but without +buy or gainers, it just seems too slow to me. So I'm Jack/nothing to his Jack/Swindler. I actually don't like the Swindler here against Jack. And then he ends up going for the engine anyway, which delights me. Well, maybe I underestimated it. What he CAN do is definitely Province every other turn (on the other turns, he buys Inn to set himself up). And he Swindles a bunch of my Silvers into Masterpieces, which is quite bad. But, I have enough of a lead that all he can do is take the tie.
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130831/log.50785f090cf28ed55d9d72bf.1377972078694.txt
Poor House, Apothecary, Mining Village, Rats, Remake, Apprentice, Baker, Counting House, Outpost, Hoard
I see Remake, but then I see that Poor House obsoletes it here. Well, there's Rats, but is Remake/Rates really a thing? I think not. Then I notice Apprentice, and Apprentice/Rats is definitely a thing. The Baker token makes it sort of interesting, what order to do what. The presence of Shelters makes an opening Apprentice a little less appealing. I go for that anyway. He opens Baker instead. Yeah, Baker is pretty good, I've found. I spike an early $6 and grab Hoard--Gold trashing with Hoard and Apprentice is really nice. My Rats come a little unevenly, but soon I have it under control and my deck is going nicely. He has a bunch of Bakers, and that's good, too, but what I am doing is just a tad better. I play my last three turns very cautiously, taking Duchies instead of risky trashes, because I assume he can't Province-Province (he is too reliant on Baker tokens). That works out, I trash my Hoard, and win.
Kirian, whats the policy on freezes? My game just froze, said opponent has connection troubles. I'm afraid I'll time out because it was going into my turn.Note for onlookers: we ended up replaying the game. (It was early on in the game, so the outcome was uncertain. I was maybe a little behind.)
Replaying is probably the best thing for a freeze, anyway; it's reasonably safe to assume that no one here is going to try to scam their way into the top of the tournament by DCing multiple times in multiple rounds, especially since abuse would be reasonably obvious (game logs) and would get that person smacked by me.I dunno, sometimes the game may be all but decided when a freeze happens, and in that case it seems best to give it to the likely winner. I figure in most cases the players will be able to agree on a reasonable action, but if not then posting the log for opinions might be the best way to proceed.
Replaying is probably the best thing for a freeze, anyway; it's reasonably safe to assume that no one here is going to try to scam their way into the top of the tournament by DCing multiple times in multiple rounds, especially since abuse would be reasonably obvious (game logs) and would get that person smacked by me.I dunno, sometimes the game may be all but decided when a freeze happens, and in that case it seems best to give it to the likely winner. I figure in most cases the players will be able to agree on a reasonable action, but if not then posting the log for opinions might be the best way to proceed.
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130831/log.50785f090cf28ed55d9d72bf.1377970180115.txt
Courtyard, Lighthouse, Warehouse, Navigator, Spy, Wandering Minstrel, Golem, Library, Venture, Nobles
I lose this game, but I would play it exactly the same if we did this set again. The engine just looks so weak to me without +buy or gaining, and Venture should be pretty good for the Courtyard BM play. Well, I never got a Venture, just because I never hit $5 until Duchy time, but I don't think that's such a big deal. Hate to blame shuffle luck, but all my good cards clumped at the end of my last shuffle, and that allowed him to go Province-Province-Province. Maybe you guys can tell me if I am wrong, and the engine is actually better?
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130831/log.50785f090cf28ed55d9d72bf.1377970180115.txt
Courtyard, Lighthouse, Warehouse, Navigator, Spy, Wandering Minstrel, Golem, Library, Venture, Nobles
I lose this game, but I would play it exactly the same if we did this set again. The engine just looks so weak to me without +buy or gaining, and Venture should be pretty good for the Courtyard BM play. Well, I never got a Venture, just because I never hit $5 until Duchy time, but I don't think that's such a big deal. Hate to blame shuffle luck, but all my good cards clumped at the end of my last shuffle, and that allowed him to go Province-Province-Province. Maybe you guys can tell me if I am wrong, and the engine is actually better?
I agree with your assessment that the engine lacking +buy shouldn't be good enough. But I don't quite agree with your assessment of Courtyard BM. First, Venture doesn't really help at all, despite it being very good for other terminal draw BM strategies. You might think it's better for Courtyard since you can put green on top and draw through it, but that's not all that compelling, since you give up the ability to save money for next turn. And your not hitting 5 is not a freak occurrence. Courtyard is a good BM card because it makes you not hit 5 that often. You shape into 6s, 8s, and 3-4s. So having something good at 5 doesn't really help.
Also, I think your big tactical mistake was buying the third Courtyard. You don't have enough Gold in your deck to want a third Courtyard. You end up just drawing an extra one every turn and putting it back. Wouldn't it be nicer to have some actual money you could keep? By forcing yourself the return a Courtyard every turn, you lose out on the ability to use the card return to reshape you money. You're basically just getting 6-card hands every turn instead of getting effectively 8 and 4.
Rabid 3-0 Kirian
So, going up against Rabid, a top-20 player, I was fully expecting to be crushed in 3 games and maybe half an hour. Instead we had one game that was basically decided by player order (this from Rabid himself!), one nail-biter, and one tricky game that came down to PPR.
Terrible board, I think my mint buy put me a bit ahead, (3c 24s 0g, vs 7c 14s 1g).
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130901/log.50635cc651c3843e7939ece8.1378063270631.txt
This was one of the most boring boards I've ever played. Trader-BM, with some other stuff of little consequence. Hindsight shows that I actually had two chances to win--but both times I was stuck behind PPR and didn't know what Rabid was holding. As Rabid said in chat, this was really P1's game to lose.
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130901/log.50635cc651c3843e7939ece8.1378065823715.txt
This was an absolute nail-biter. I lost the game and the match, but I was able to make a top-tier player think long and hard about many of his purchases. This board has everything an engine player wants, including Vault-GM. I win the GM split thanks in part to Navigator (no, really, stop laughing), and I decide to go green probably earlier than I should have, rather than building a mega-turn engine. Rabid builds a very solid engine, but my initial greening forces him to back off of waiting to run the board, as I threaten to three-pile. The last four turns took something like 20 minutes here as we both were forced to think about scores.
http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130901/log.50635cc651c3843e7939ece8.1378066837726.txt
I figure that I have to take the long-shot, being down 2-0 and up against a far superior player... so I open Death Cart/Chapel. And do you know, Platinum on T7 and T9 feels really good, and I'm very nearly able to convert this to a win... but Rabid builds up with $5s, including Soothsayer, which puts me behind PPR and slows me down with Curses.
So yeah, I'm happy with the outcome, given I was expecting to barely be able to put up a fight, as all three games were close. Good luck in the rest of the tourney, Rabid!
WanderingWinder 3-1 LoppoProbably the obvious thing is HP/Mountebank, but neither of us really go for that. I don't think it's the best thing against Mountebank, plus Ironmonger is really good. So I load up on those, mainly playing a money-based strategy with ironmongers, planning to pick up HP with the 3rd $5, but preferring gold. Loppo goes for Scrying Pool, and it seems like he skips my important cards way too often, and with as much of the deck as he's skipping and my inability to attack him as much as I would like, he seems to be doing really well. But eventually luck turns against him and my money gets a spurt and comes through. I am not sure which luck is more indicative of what 'should' have been - his good luck early, or mine late - but it's probably somewhere in between. What do you guys think is best here?
Game 1: 1-0 http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130901/log.514b5511e4b0b79c883b5e3b.1378057385735.txt
Game 2: 2-0 http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130901/log.514b5511e4b0b79c883b5e3b.1378058567155.txt
Game 3: 2-1 http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130901/log.514b5511e4b0b79c883b5e3b.1378059490991.txtLots of great 5s, duchy/duke, embargo. Cellar does a lot for me. And I think early on I am doing quite well, as cellar and stables are coming together well, he has seemingly wasted time embargoing dukes inconsequentially, etc. But I get a couple of nightmare 4-stables-and-4-green kind of messes, and his deck comes together nicely. I'm really not sure quite what went so wrong so fast. But he gets leads on provinces AND duchies, and I am totally locked out.
Game 4: 3-1 http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130901/log.514b5511e4b0b79c883b5e3b.1378060700688.txtYoung Witch/Tunnel with lighthouse pane. I think he gets fairly unlucky early on with lighthouses not doing him so many favors, and his spice merchant can't ever get him the 2 lighthouses he wanted, if I'm not mistaken. But I sort of like the more YW early, don't care about the SM much at all, and so I do like what I did a bit here. Also helps my eventual gardens, which is what puts it totally out of reach.
First of all, my hat's off to Loppo, who was just a really great opponent in getting things set up despite bad time zone problems, waiting around when Goko wasn't liking my connection on Firefox (don't know why that suddenly happened >:( ), and just generally being very nice to play against. Second, videos are all up on youtube. Okay, on to the games.
Game 3) I thought he played poorly (well, not really poorly, but the second Embargo was definitely a misplay),
Game 4) Yep, you just outplay him here. Spice Merchant just not a good purchase here, with the eventual Gardens pivot. I actually thought you got sub-optimal YW/Tunnel luck, and still did him in comfortably.
Game 3) I thought he played poorly (well, not really poorly, but the second Embargo was definitely a misplay),
game 3: I still consider WW as the grandfather of Duchy/Duke play. His article on it is still THE source of information. So i wanted to lock him out ot this option with double embargoing it. Why do you consider the second embargo there a mistake? There wasn't really anything else i wanted to embargo more than duke.
QuoteGame 2: 2-0 http://dom.retrobox.eu/?/20130901/log.514b5511e4b0b79c883b5e3b.1378058567155.txt
This was a very nice, tense game, where he gets knights going faster and I move more into an engine. I feel like he hits cards of mine, particularly key ones, way more often than he should, but maybe this is a perception bias. Anyway, we are close coming down the stretch, dancing between 'they just barely can't three pile me and have me lose' while still needing to build a bit. But then he has an atrocious misclick which blows things out, though I do find a nice little pile-out sequence to seal it totally shut. And worse, he *probably* had it, too, as he needs 7+ buys with enough money, but he is most likely drawing his deck with enough money...
But let's go back to game 2. I know during the game I really felt it was bad luck - and really, yes, I underestimate the spy attack, I am sure. And I am sure there is some perception bias, I notice every little thing that goes wrong for me. I *still* think I got somewhat unlucky, but okay, maybe this is 40% luck
But the thing is, I find more and more with the knights that 'buy all the knights first to try to eat their deck and make sure yours doesn't get eaten, do other stuff later' is actually not all that good of a strategy - you generally want to build your engine first, and THEN maybe attack them. Maybe I'm wrong with that, but it's the conclusion I am more and more coming towards.