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1

Other Games / Re: Prismata: Alpha Key Giveaway! (Magic-Chess-Dominion-Starcraft hybrid game)

« on: January 08, 2015, 05:02:53 pm »

I'd like a key!

2

Dominion: Guilds Previews / Re: Preview #2: Doctor

« on: June 04, 2013, 09:37:53 am »

In before celestial chameleon trashes the entire supply on turn 3

3

Dominion: Guilds Previews / Re: Preview #1: Baker

« on: June 03, 2013, 10:43:27 am »

I think people are underestimating the power of this card. Already, the setup rule really changes things, and I do think being able to save coin tokens can be very crucial, more crucial than some realize. And, yes, in engines, this card can work out nicely. So far, I am loving this expansion. And, I was one of the people who thought it would be possible to get tokens to spend even without mats.

Agreed. In games where you don't have spammable +buy, the ability to bank money until you can use it is really big. Potentially a really good card in slogs too.

4

Goko Dominion Online / Re: Goko Store Math: A twisted story of deceit and misincentives

« on: April 30, 2013, 08:37:32 am »

This should not be a surprise. There is exactly one reason for an online vendor to transact business in units of account that aren't USD or EUR or another real currency. It's to draw the consumer into an unfamiliar funhouse-mirror world where their marketing gnomes and pet behavioral economists can distort and confuse your perceptions and get you to waste money on things you don't want or understand. In my eyes, it's a disreputable business practice, and I avoid patronizing companies that employ it wherever possible. 

That's not true (that it's the only reason)- there is another reason, and that's in that they can sell their funky currency in amounts that persuade you to buy more of their product - same idea as buying in bulk in general.

You say "persuade," but I feel like you really mean "distort and confuse your perceptions." A company like Goko can offer any kind of bundles or discounting mechanism they want in USD. They use Gokobux to "persuade" the consumer that these deals are more attractive than they truly are.

5

Goko Dominion Online / Re: Goko Store Math: A twisted story of deceit and misincentives

« on: April 29, 2013, 06:09:17 pm »

This should not be a surprise. There is exactly one reason for an online vendor to transact business in units of account that aren't USD or EUR or another real currency. It's to draw the consumer into an unfamiliar funhouse-mirror world where their marketing gnomes and pet behavioral economists can distort and confuse your perceptions and get you to waste money on things you don't want or understand. In my eyes, it's a disreputable business practice, and I avoid patronizing companies that employ it wherever possible. 

6

Innovation General Discussion / Re: Defeating Metalworking -- Base Game only

« on: April 22, 2013, 10:13:14 am »

Sharing Metalworking is not risky.

That's not what risk means.
Using your standard draw action instead of sharing Metalworking against a player using the Wheel is risky.

Why? How are the two choices that different, except that using the metalworking has a much larger variance?

Sharing Metalworking is the stronger play.
The only "variance" is, "how many cards get scored here will 'vary'".  Your odds of winning increase when you choose to share Metalworking.  Your odds of winning decrease if you choose not to.  There's no real practical reason to view giving your opponent a free monument and losing on turn 7 as being any different from your opponent wheeling into all the pieces necessary for Fermentation/Reformation or Wheeling into Math or Wheeling any of the other strategies wheel is good for.

I don't understand the argument that sharing MW isn't risky. Your opponent could score a bunch of points and you could draw writing and code of laws. That's a risk you take when you share MW. I think you're arguing that the risks of sharing MW are less than the upsides of doing so (or the risks of not sharing MW), and that you should choose the strategy that has the best average result, regardless of whether it's risky or not. That's generally true, but it's still helpful to identify strategies as more or less risky based on how different the possible outcomes are. For example, if you're playing a weaker player or are ahead in the game, you may want to choose strategies that are worse but safer to maximize your chance of winning the game.

7

Innovation Rules Questions / Sharing bonus question or maybe iso bug

« on: March 20, 2013, 03:01:32 pm »

http://innovation.isotropic.org/gamelog/201303/20/game-20130320-115714-f196132b.html

On Turn 10, I invoke Canal Building. My opponent exchanges 0 cards in hand for the 1 card in his score pile. I exchange all my cards for my score pile. I draw nothing.

What gives?

8

Innovation General Discussion / Re: trading one iso for another iso

« on: March 19, 2013, 09:31:09 am »

Unfortunately I promised my real life friends that I wouldn't play much innovation online so that I wouldn't get any better.

I got the same thing from my fiancee. 

Love Iso Innovation though, and purchased the game last week to play IRL. WTG everyone involved!

9

Dominion Articles / Re: Don't Play Everything!

« on: March 15, 2013, 11:53:14 am »

Another thing is to keep an eye on your cost reduction. If you play your last Highway and suddenly find you can't Upgrade your Bank into a needed Province because they both cost zero, you're going to feel pretty stupid. There are lots of little interactions like that.

Good point, bad example. Makes more sense to talk about a missed opportunity to upgrade Copper into Province at that point, if you're playing 7-8 Highways on a turn. Upgrading Banks into Provinces is a terrible use of a Highway board.

I don't know if this is right. The only reason to have Bank in a Highway/Upgrade deck in the first place is that you upgraded a copper to it on a 6 Hwy turn so you could upgrade it to a province later.

10

Help! / Re: Tried the Native Village/Bridge strategy. Didn't work. Why?

« on: March 08, 2013, 10:02:21 am »

1) Not enough Native Villages early.

Again, I was in a race for Bridges.  How do I ensure I get most of the Bridges, if I have to stop to buy Native Villages?

You're in a race for NVs too, even if your opponent doesn't realize it. Workshops can sub in for the last few bridges, but there's no substitute for villages.

11

Dominion Isotropic / Re: The Future of Isotropic

« on: March 06, 2013, 09:58:06 am »

Any chance of convincing TPTB that the best possible marketing for Goko would be a nine-day bonanza of iso with Dark Ages?

12

Help! / Re: King's Court takes over...

« on: March 02, 2013, 10:05:26 am »

Buying a province on T5 is a huge mistake. Grab your KC!

13

Help! / Re: How could I have played this Governors board better?

« on: February 26, 2013, 09:31:17 am »

I don't understand the early hamlet buys. You need silver to buy governors with.

I have an unreasoning hatred of bishop openings, so I might be wrong, but I'm skeptical of opening bishop here a little. Bishop's best use is trashing silvers for VPs in the midgame, so ideally you would buy it/upgrade into it later.

14

Help! / Re: How did I get beat on this Goons set?

« on: February 18, 2013, 03:18:54 pm »

In goons games, you should usually decide whether you are going for provinces with goons as a point-giving, attacking supplement, or if you are intending to win by racking up chips from multi-goons turns. If you want provinces, you still need treasure.  If you want multi-goons turns, you need villages. In both cases, you don't want to clog up your deck with garbage before the very end of the game.

On this board, I would try to use festival and stables to get some big goons turns together. Once your opponent starts dipping into great halls, you can pick up some tributes as well. Not promising that's correct though.

15

Help! / Re: What....what on earth happened here?

« on: February 13, 2013, 10:32:44 am »

A menagerie engine on this board is an uphill battle. You have very weak trashing, ZERO other cantrips, no villages. You have to load up on useless terminals to power up fairgrounds. Your initial plan should be some kind of BM. Once you see your opponent trying to use trade route, I would just add a second TR on T3 and cruise to victory.

16

Game Reports / Re: I was Destroyed By Saboteur, and I Demand An Explanation

« on: February 09, 2013, 10:22:03 am »

It seems counter productive to me to buy a bishop just before buying witch. If your opponent trashes a curse when you bishop, you REALLY aren't gaining any significant benefit out of it. I think you helped his strategy to work by doing this. And ironworks could have helped you as well. Ironworks could produce mining villages, that if hit with sabs could be turned into havens. The havens can be used to protect your provinces potentially.

I agree with you about the Ironworks, but I didn't buy Bishop. So I didn't help him trashes his Curses. He helped me trash some Curses.

— Robz888's turn 3 —
Robz888 plays 4 Coppers.
Robz888 buys a Bishop.
(Robz888 draws: an Estate, 2 Silvers, and 2 Coppers.)

J'accuse!

17

Dominion Articles / Re: Single tactician decks

« on: February 05, 2013, 10:23:38 am »

I would note that compatible +buy is sometimes critical for these kinds of decks. Simply double-provincing every other turn is not necessarily that great unless your deck is very quick to set up.

18

Game Reports / Re: I have absolutely no idea what was right here

« on: February 05, 2013, 10:18:45 am »

I think yariv's strategy is better here. Apothecary is anti-synergy with a library engine, and nobles doesn't work great either. Monument is very strong. However, library covers up some of bishop's weaknesses, and, with a gold-gainer on board, bishop has a much higher ceiling than monument.

Tactically, I think both of you, but especially you, need to be hitting the FVs a little harder.

19

Dominion General Discussion / Re: Village

« on: February 04, 2013, 12:02:54 pm »

Yeah, I'd go big money too.

I wouldn't touch Cities unless the opponent(s) started emptying out piles. I doubt that would happen.

Buying a couple of Shanty Towns would be good, though. That's worth an extra draw. Start off with one and then buy a second one when the deck gets larger. I wouldn't even feel bad about buy Shanty Towns with other villages, since I'll get to the point where I have no action cards left in my hand except for a Shanty Town.

I wouldn't mind stocking up on Mining Villages. It's a one-shot Silver, but I may draw another coin card with it. If it can bootstrap me to Gold, that'd be great.

Bandit Camp would be tempting but probably a trap. It replaces itself, but I could have bought a Silver or Mining Village. I think I would avoid it.

Bazaar has a good chance of being worth at least a Silver. Might be worthwhile early on, but when the Bazaar starts drawing your Provinces, regret may set in. But hey, if you happen to chain four Bazaars together, it'd be fun. Then again, that could have been four Silvers in a row.

I generally suck at playing big money, but if I could rack up some good money, then Hamlet or Worker's Village would be good for +Buy, but I'm not sure I'd get that much money unless I racked up a lot of Spoils, Bazaars, and Mining Villages. And the opportunity costs for those cards aren't that great. 

The other villages I would forego in favor of Silver (or Gold). When greening, I might be tempted to buy a Border Village and take a Duchy with it, but I don't know that I'd gain any real advantage by taking the village. Might as well just skip to the Duchy.

It would look really neat, and it'd be amusing to watch some players fall into that trap (kind of like the Pitcher plant), but I would find this setup to be pretty boring.

I think BV/duchy is strictly worse than just buying the duchy because you might draw the border village with a mining village and have imperfect info about whether or not to trash the MV.

20

Help! / Re: Aargh.

« on: February 03, 2013, 01:27:07 pm »

With all the good $5s, I prefer silver to loan. Bishop/loan is awful for economy.

21

Dominion General Discussion / Re: The Dominion Cards Lists 2013 Edition: $4 cards (Part 2/5)

« on: January 30, 2013, 05:21:13 pm »

Walled Village continues to be way below the other villages for some unknown reason -- people just don't "like" it I guess...

I'm guessing because it's less flexible—you might buy Worker's Village or Farming Village or Fortress or Mining Village when you don't need +actions, but need +buy or top-deck filtering or something you can save from the trash or one-shot virtual coin. Walled Village is just a village that's slightly better at being a village, not a village that does something else in addition to being a village.

Sure, these are great reasons for it to be the lowest $4 village. But really, doesn't most of the value of all of these cards come from just being villages, in which case, why is there that big a gap? That's the question I have.

I think the gap is there because Walled Village doesn't do anything aside from being a village, and it's better than the vanilla Village only when you didn't need a village. In most engines, I would buy Fishing Village over Walled Village all day. I agree that the gap is too big, though.

So a village you can topdeck repeatedly is terrible (compared to village), but a woodcutter you can topdeck once is good?

22

Dominion General Discussion / Re: Random city question

« on: January 30, 2013, 05:12:55 pm »

If you search "level 1 city" and "level 2 city," it's pretty obvious that the 1/2/3 system is how everyone actually talks. I have no idea who's voting in this poll.

23

Game Reports / Re: Looking for Comments: 3-player Estate-Duchy-Province pile out

« on: January 29, 2013, 11:52:39 am »

I'm not too familiar with 3player games.
I would've opened horse traders/silver, skipped ambassador and let the other players give me lots of cards to bump up gardens to even more than 5 points. You played amb 4 times only and put 6 cards back. These 6 cards + cards you can buy with horse traders' +buy should've been enough to get you to 60 cards.
I don't like venture at all since you get coppers from your opponents.
So I'd get some horse traders, some monuments, some silvers and then go gardens and see if I can grab some duchies.

Are monuments a good addition? HT gives you draw when someone plays an amb, probably gives you more econ than monument in a messy deck, and the extra buy is likely worth almost as much as the VP chip.

24

Help! / Re: Fell behind on Quarry/Market board

« on: January 27, 2013, 05:05:20 pm »

Is market/quarry even good? It seems like Embassy BM should be much faster.

25

Dominion General Discussion / Re: Single Strategy Board?

« on: January 27, 2013, 04:57:18 pm »

I would be surprised if the warehouse and cartogs add anything to a chapelled deck. Your deck should be fairly thin to start with, and any bonus from playing your margs more should be offset by drawing your extra actions dead.