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101
Dominion Articles / Governor
« on: June 10, 2012, 09:11:23 pm »
It’s probably hubris to choose Governor as the subject of my second forum article--because the Governor is quite a tricky customer--but I feel pretty confident with the card, and I see a lot of players make basic mistakes with it that can be avoided. So, here is an article about Governor. (Disclaimer: I am not saying that I am the definitive authority on Governor. I intend this article to be a jumping-off point for further Governor discussion.)



Governor should be called Jack-of-All-Trades, because it does so many different things for you. (And Jack should be called Governor, because it exerts dictatorial control over your deck.) As the most interactive card in Dominion, Governor presents a fundamental challenge: How do I make this card benefit me more than my opponent? Note that the dilemma doesn’t make Governor bad; in fact, it’s a powerful and versatile card that rarely gets ignored. But if you’re not careful about your choices, you will undoubtedly help your opponent more than you help yourself.

Governor is one of those self-synergy cards--indeed, it does basically everything you could want from a card, except attack your opponents--so you typically want as many of them as possible. Governor is seldom passed up entirely, but there are a couple of $5 cards that you would want before your first Governor. These include the $5 cursers, and maybe something like Haggler, so you can buy Gold and gain Governors.

But once you’ve gotten mandatory purchases like Witch out of the way, you usually want lots and lots of Governors. More Governors mean more Gold, more draw, more remodeling, and ultimately, more Provinces.

There are 2 important things to keep in mind as you build your Governor deck: 1) Governor loves money but hates Copper, and 2) Governor is non-terminal in all its functions, so you can afford at least 1 strong terminal.

Clearing out Coppers is very important. Later on, Coppers will stand between your Governors and the Golds they want to Remodel, and all the extra Silvers from your opponent’s Governors means you will never lack cash, anyway. So Moneylender and Spice Merchant are great, because they rid you of Coppers without crippling your purchasing power--and you need to buy Governors fast. (Moneylender yields more net cash, but Spice Merchant moves through your deck faster and can serve as an important source of +buy later, so they are both great.) And mass Copper trashers like Chapel are great (a 5/2 start with Governor and Chapel is basically as fast a game of Dominion as you could ever have), but a well-timed Mint is also excellent.

As for your terminal, it should obviously be a discarding Attack if one is available. You will also desperately want an extra +buy to mitigate the risk of drawing a huge hand without any Governors.

It’s also worth keeping in mind that Governor works quite well with other cards that accomplish the same functions. Hoard can gain you Gold, and Laboratory and Stables can give you draw. Of course, these things compete at the same price level as Governor, and you don’t really want them unless the Governors are out, and if the Governors are out, it’s almost certainly about time to Green, so the window of opportunity there is slim. However, Governor goes very well with other cards that accomplish its remodel function, namely Remodel and Expand. (And later, if your opponent uses the trashing ability, these 2 cards are conveniently priced to convert into victory points for you).

So when do you do what? Let’s look at Governor’s 3 different functions.

You Get a Gold; Your Opponent Gets a Silver

When you first begin acquiring Governors, this is the first thing you should do with them. Governor decks want to be brimming with Gold so that later you can remodel a bunch of them into Provinces all at once. The Silvers will boost your opponent’s purchasing power, but they also get in his way if he is trying to build a low-treasure engine. Of course, given the availability of Governor, trying to construct a low-treasure engine is probably a losing move anyway. In all likelihood, your opponent is also pursuing Governors (and giving you a fair amount of Silver, too), in which case the free Silvers are mostly a welcome addition to the deck, but will get in the way of connecting Governors and Gold.

How much Gold do you want? It depends, but remember--ideal play would be turning each and every one of them into a Province, and using any leftovers to buy the last Province or a Duchy. This means you are going to be using Governor to gain a Gold at least 4 times, but probably (hopefully) more. This is one of many reasons why you will want as many Governors as you can get your hands on.

You Get +3 Cards; Your Opponent Gets +1 Card

Here is where most Governor-related mistakes are made. Remember that Council Room, which also gives your opponent +1 Card, is a decent-ish $5, rather than a great $5. Using multiple Governors for multiple cards is even more worrisome, because though you may make good use of your huge hand, your opponent also has a huge hand to make use of--and he got his for free. Wharf is the best $5 non-Attack precisely because you get to start your next turn with 2 extra cards. With Governor, you can accomplish that for your opponent by default. In fact, the +cards function of Governor is where the relative benefit to your opponent is undoubtedly greatest.

Thankfully, there are ways to mitigate this benefit. If you intend to end the game (or have a good chance at it) by drawing cards, then your opponent will never actually reap the benefit. (And because of this, the final Governor turn is often a go-for-broke, all-or-nothing, end-the-game-or-die scenario.) But an easier way to fix this is to simply play a discard Attack at the end of your turn. Keep in mind that this doesn’t entirely solve the problem: Your opponent still gets to hold onto his best 3 cards out of however many you gave him, and if he’s smart, these will include a Governor and discarder of his own. But at least he doesn’t get to start with an 8-card hand.

Often times, you will find yourself betting on drawing the discarder with your Governor. This is one reason Governor is really a difficult card--it demands expert memory of what’s left in your deck. You might mitigate the risk here by doubling up on your discarder. You would do that anyway if it’s Goons, but in the case of Militia, consider a second or third. Remember that the additional Silvers from your opponents Governors will more speedily dilute your Action density.

Eventually, you want to play Governor for cards in order to draw many more Governors and Golds, and squeeze several Provinces out of your turn. And you do that by utilizing the final function of Governor.

Trash a Card and Gain a Card Costing Exactly $2 More; Your Opponent Trashes a Card and Gains a Card Costing $1 More

In the end, Governor is a fancy Remodel that goes to great lengths to put the cards you want to remodel into your hand. But if you’re using this function of Governor to do anything but gain Provinces, you are probably making a mistake. Trashing Coppers and Estates is a huge misuse of your Governors. You missed the opportunity to gain a Gold, and you gave your opponent a free trash. Early on, an exactly +$1 trash is situationally better than an exactly +$2 trash, because a +$1 trash just kills Coppers outright, and turns Estates into Silver. Governor is an elite $5 card. You insult it by using it to clear out your riffraff.

Using Governor to remodel Silvers into more Governors is a more sensible use of the power, so long as you have enough cash to buy another one without the Silver, or you didn’t have enough to buy one even with the Silver.

So what do you do with Governor’s remodel ability? Trash your Gold into Provinces, that’s what. The great thing here is that whereas you need $16 and another buy to snag 2 Provinces, you only need 2 Governors and 2 Golds--or 1 Governor and $11, including at least 1 Gold--to make 2 Provinces. Border Villages and Hoards, but also Nobles, Harems, and Farmlands, are also good contenders for remodeling, given their availability. And your Silvers can become Duchies.

You need to watch out for your opponent’s $4s and $7s, though. Caravans, Farming Villages and Spies get turned into last minute Duchies. King’s Courts and Expands (both cards that work extremely well in Governor decks) become Provinces. Fortunately, you trash before your opponent gets the option to do so, meaning if you can both get the last Province, you get it first.

Putting It All Together

Much of the difficulty of Governor arises from predicting when you need to go for Provinces. A strong enough Governor deck can grab 3 or even 4 Provinces in one fell swoop, or the last 2 Provinces and enough Duchies to end it. But you only want to give your opponent the benefit of a huge hand if he will never get to play it. The timing is tricky.

Let’s say you’ve bought a bunch of Governors and gained a bunch of Gold; your opponent just snagged his first Province. Your hand is Governor-Gold-Silver-Silver-Copper (a decently likely hand). You could 1). Buy a Province and gain a Gold, 2). Remodel a Gold into a Province and buy a Duchy, 3). Draw for more cards.

If you choose the third option, you absolutely must draw another Governor, or a source of +buy. If you draw Gold-Gold-Estate, you have actually decreased your options since your starting hand--because you no longer have Governor--while boosting your opponent’s hand. This is why Governor strategies necessitate keeping careful track of what’s left in your deck. If you are unlikely to draw more Governors with more Gold, don’t bother hitting the card option.

It’s also critical to keep track of the score, because in a Governor game, the penultimate Province is certainly not the second-to-last Province. If you leave your opponent 2 Provinces, there is a good chance he can end the game.

When you either suspect it’s the last turn or need to make it so in order to have a good chance of winning, go for broke. Use a Governor or 2 for plus cards. Hopefully, you will draw more Governors, some Gold, and some +buy. Take a minute and think about how to maximize your points: Perhaps you buy 2 Provinces and Governor a Silver into a Duchy.

There’s one more special accomplice to Governor worth mentioning: Watchtower. Since you will be gaining a lot of Silvers and Golds, Watchtower can put them on your deck, and you can buy more Governors sooner. Governors can go on top of your deck, too. Watchtower gives a burst of speed to an already quick deck, and can give you the advantage in a Governor showdown.

It's worth mentioning that Governor is still strong in Colony games. The remodel function is weaker, because you won’t be gaining many Colonies, but the opportunity to grab a Province off a Gold here and there is nice. The Gold-gaining can keep your deck afloat, and the +card effect is arguably stronger for you than normal, because 1 extra card for your opponent is less likely to push him into Colony territory than into Province territory.

Lastly, if you want to build a typical action-draw deck with virtual money, Governor is not for you. But Governor is a strong enough card that it's presence will render the vast majority of engine strategies obsolete. Besides, your opponents Governors will really hurt you if you don't want treasure.

One more thing: Don't draw a 4/3 opening against your opponent's 5/2 opening if Governor is available. This is not the path to greatness.


Works with:
Other Governors
Gold
Farmland
Border Village
Discard Attacks
Watchtower
Copper Trashers
Possession (Give your opponent a giant hand first, then Possess him and remodel all his Gold into Provinces)

Doesn’t work with:
Non-Treasure engines
Your opponent's $4 and $7 cards
Most alternate VP strategies, particularly Silk Road and Gardens (because the prices of these cards make them easier for your opponent to gain off your Governor remodels than vice versa)

Edit 1: Added Farmlands and Possession to "Works with"
Edit 2: Fixed the order of who trashes first in the remodel scenario

102
Dominion General Discussion / Will Scout Ever Get Better?
« on: June 04, 2012, 12:59:04 am »
Take Pearl Diver. That was a pretty awful card, back in the day. You didn't mind adding it to your deck if you had to, but the benefit was so limited. But then more expansions came out, and Dominion added cards that actually benefit from Pearl Diver... like Vineyard, Scrying Pool, Menagerie, Horn of Plenty, Haggler, etc. Now, Pearl Diver is a low-mediocre $2, rather than a pretty terrible $2.

My question is: Could the same thing happen with Scout? (I ask because I consider Scout to be the worst card in the game.) Most of the cards that supposedly work well with Scout were available in the same expansion as Scout. Now we have Crossroads, which is actually quite a bit better than Scout at everything Scout wants to do. They don't even work great together, because you'd really probably rather have two Crossroads than a Crossroad and a Scout.

But, I'm imagining a future card that's like a reverse Tunnel or something. We'll call it Other Tunnel.

Other Tunnel -- Victory/Reaction -- $3

Worth 2 VP
When you draw this into your hand other than after clean-up, reveal it and gain a Gold.

That would make Scout, like, slightly better. You would even want it more than Crossroads, given the availability of Other Tunnel.

Maybe after Dark Ages comes out we will laugh at the old days when Scout was totally and uniquely horrible, because in this strange future, it has become mediocre bad.

103
What a weak spread of cards! http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201205/24/game-20120524-225837-183f45fb.html

Border Village, Coppersmith, Embargo, Farming Village, Ironworks, Scheme, Scout, Throne Room, Treasure Map, and Wishing Well

We both go Ironworks/Silver. He picked up a second Ironworks at one point, and I Embargoed the Provinces when I was ahead. That was the whole game.

I know Treasure Map is strong on a weak field, but... I didn't want to be at the mercy of the Maps with no trashing or cycling of any kind.

What would you do here?

104
Dominion Articles / Combo: Watchtower/University
« on: May 22, 2012, 04:21:06 pm »
This is my first “article,” so here goes... I love this combo, and I am sure other skilled players have used it, but I haven’t seen it mentioned much here: Watchtower/University...



A skilled player laughs when his opponent, who just reshuffled, buys a $5 card over a much-needed Duchy at the end of the game. Why? Because he is never going to see that card again. Decks brimming with expensive Actions and Golds don’t win games; Green wins games. Dominion is all about tempo--most of the time, you want $5 actions and Golds, and then you want Provinces and Duchies, and then the game ends.

This is why it’s generally faster to buy the cards you want rather than to buy other cards that will eventually gain cards that aren’t even that great. Concordantly, Workshop is terrible, and Ironworks is mediocre. University is better in the sense that it can gain useful $5 cards, but its awkward cost means it’s essentially more expensive than the cards you want to gain with it. At some point, the University player’s superior rate of card-gaining will kick in, but it won’t be in the critical early stages of the game. Unless the $5 card benefits from University’s extra actions--like Torturer--you really are better off reaching for those $5s with a Silver/Silver-equivalent opening rather than a Silver/Estate-equivalent opening.

Watchtower, however, massively tips the scales in favor of pursuing Universities. Watchtower’s reaction ability can place the cards you gain with University on top of your deck. Since University is a village that doesn’t increase your hand-size, you can then play Watchtower to draw the card you just gained (and a few others, too), and play it. Being able to immediately play gained cards--Wharfs, Markets, Highways, Laboratories, Witches, Governors, Torturers, etc.--is a huge advantage. Additionally, the extra draw from University--and presumably from some of the cards you are gaining--will cycle your deck faster, allowing more playing of Universities, and more gaining of useful cards. Your opponent may get a few $5 cards (and Golds) faster than you, but with Watchtower and University, you will catch up very, very quickly.

Watchtower/Potion is the opening here. The best case scenario is drawing them together with CCE, buying University, and putting it on top of your deck for dramatically accelerated gaining. But if that doesn’t happen, Watchtower’s draw ability at least improves your odds of picking up a University before the first reshuffle. As the game proceeds, you should buy a University whenever you have a Potion, racking up probably 3 or 4 of them. You will also want a comparable number of Watchtowers.

That’s really all there is to it. Other Potion-cost cards make the combo more appealing, of course, by giving you something else to buy if you tire of Universities. Since you’ll be overloaded on Actions and moving through your deck rapidly, the option of grabbing Possessions or Golems or Vineyards is a huge plus.

Finally, if there aren’t many good $5 or $4 Action cards, this is obviously a combo to avoid. But the presence of Watchtower makes University much less avoidable than it usually is, because you will actually get to play that last $5 Action card before the game ends!

http://councilroom.com/game?game_id=game-20120402-211639-3af45fa6.html
Here is a game where Watchtower/University gets me 5 Colonies and 8 Great Halls in just 15 turns. Neither of us played perfectly, but it's clear that Watchtower/University allows for a killer engine here. On Turn 8, I gain an Upgrade, a Great Hall, and 4 Highways.

http://councilroom.com/game?game_id=game-20120516-112615-69a32b25.html
And here is a more recent game where Watchtower/University allows me to overcome my opponent, who got a scarily strong 5/2 start with Governor/Duchess. (Opening 4/3 against a 5/2 Governor opponent is often GG.) Notice that I still lose the Governor race 4 to 6, but the fact that I can use my Governors quicker than he can gives me an edge. Also, notice what I do on the final turn. I need the last Province, but only have $5 in hand, plus University and Watchtower...


--
Edit 1: Added Vineyards to the list of other Potion cards with which this works.
Edit 2: Added sample games.

105
Game Reports / Harvest Time
« on: May 11, 2012, 02:23:09 am »
Ah, Harvest. One of Dominion's least-utilized cards. Really, though it's a terminal $5 card that usually produces $3, and often produces $4. It's truly a testament to how powerful the other $5s are that this card is held in such low regard.

Moving on, here's a game I just played where a Harvest-centered strategy got me 4 Provinces and 2 Duchies by Turn 14. http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201205/10/game-20120510-214854-cb36167e.html

Cards in supply: Adventurer, Cache, Counting House, Farming Village, Fortune Teller, Harvest, Outpost, Pearl Diver, Scout, and Throne Room

I am second player. We both open Silver/Silver, as there is absolutely nothing going on here. (Farming Village really makes Fortune Teller extra useless). The question is what to do with $5? The obvious thing, I think, is Cache/Counting House, which is where my opponent heads. But I am loathe to go Counting House, so I pick up a Harvest, then a Cache, and then another Harvest.

I wouldn't expect the two to synergize really, because Cache is giving you non-unique cards for the Harvest. And yet here's how my Harvest plays broke down:

For $2 -- Twice
For $3 -- Thrice
For $4 -- Twice

Well, that's decent, isn't it? Anyway, I'm sure my shuffle luck was pretty good here, but I thought the result was interesting and worth posting.

106
This was a real blast, with all the expected participants: City, Colony, Goons, King's Court, Native Village, Platinum, Quarry, Salvager, Stables, Tactician, Tournament, and Tribute    http://councilroom.com/game?game_id=game-20120421-174404-2481d051.html

My opponent and I both opened Quarry, Silver... and I just got way, way, way luckier. There was nothing he could have done.

Anyway, I took all the prizes except Bag of Gold, and I actually made good use of them. I could King's Court Salvager to grind up those extra Estates from Followers into Money and Buys for my Quarries and Goons. Diadem worked nicely with my 10 Level 2 Cities. And Princess was just the icing on the cake. I scored some 160 points on my last turn, ending with 200 points exactly. It could have been a lot more, had I bought more Goons. But that Diadem was worth, like, $20 or something, which was neat.

A hearty thanks to my opponent, Crunchums, who played out the whole thing with a pleasant and supportive attitude. I truly appreciate it!

107
http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201204/20/game-20120420-143017-b84b82b0.html

I get the Mountebank/Secret Chamber opening, while he has to go Feast/Lookout. I figure I am in good shape. Well, everything goes wrong. My Mountebank misses the reshuffle. He gets $5 twice, really quickly, and I lose the curse war 7-3. I know I should have gotten a second Mountebank, but I don't draw $5 after that first one until Turn 6, when I get a Gold. He already has 2, and it just didn't seem worth it.

Oh, and observe my turn 15, and weep:

Robz888 plays a Lookout.
   ... getting +1 action.
   ... drawing 3 cards.
   ... trashing an Inn.
   ... discarding a Province.
   ... putting a card back on the deck.

I put back a Silver. But seriously, I have 7 Curses in my deck, and 2 Lookouts, and I can only ever get rid of one of them thanks to Expand. Great.

In the end, I buy the last Province and lose 26-54.

108
Game Reports / Throne Roomed Familairs Beat Jack
« on: April 04, 2012, 12:34:36 pm »
http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201204/04/game-20120404-092323-6b47cab7.html

cards in supply: Bridge, City, Familiar, Horse Traders, Jack of All Trades, Noble Brigand, Pearl Diver, Potion, Royal Seal, Throne Room, and Trading Post

My immediate reaction is that there's nothing special going on here, so I open with Jack to guard myself in case he goes Familiar and I figure double Jack might be the best thing here anyway. He does go Familiar, which is fine by me. Familiar should do even worse against Jack than other cursers, because it takes a couple turns to actually get off the ground with them.

Long story short: he gets 2 Throne Rooms, which drastically accelerates his cursing. In fact he gives me ALL 10 Curses on Turns 8, 9, 11, and 13. He is also accumulating Cities, and I really have no choice but to a grab 2 of them myself on turns I don't have enough for Provinces. He also takes bridges, earns a quick megaturn, blows past me in the score, and that's game. A good win for him!

109
Dominion Isotropic / Ozymandias II?
« on: March 25, 2012, 03:55:51 am »
I went to check the leaderboard, hoping I might have finally cracked Level 40 (darn, one spot away!) http://dominion.isotropic.org/leaderboard/

The new top player is Ozymandias II, who rose 19 levels in one day and is now ranked higher than, I think, any player ever.

???

110
Game Reports / Gardens/Silk Roads/Vineyards loses to... Library?
« on: March 16, 2012, 08:46:11 pm »
This one totally mystified me: http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/16/game-20120316-173123-82f2f329.html

cards in supply: Chapel, Develop, Fishing Village, Gardens, Hamlet, Library, Lighthouse, Moneylender, Potion, Silk Road, and Vineyard

I said to myself that this was a textbook case for an alt-VP game. Vineyards will love Hamlets/Lighthouses/Fishing Villages. Gardens will love all those extra buys from Hamlets. And Silk Roads will love the Gardens and the Vineyards. Great! I opened Fishing Village/Hamlet, picked up a single Potion, and started grabbing Gardens at $4, FVs at $3, Hamlets at $2, Coppers at $0, and Vineyard with $P. I planned to switch over to Silk Roads near the end, but thought a 3-piles ending might happen first.

My opponent opens with Chapel, and I thought he was pretty much dead right there. It certainly meant he was leaving Gardens and Silk Roads alone, and I didn't see any amazing engine that would get 8 Provinces quickly. I was totally, laughably wrong.

With just 2 Fishing Villages, 1 Chapel, 1 Library, and 1 Gold, my opponent totally crushed me, buying all 8 Provinces in 19 turns. He bought one every turn, turns 9-14, and then again on 17 and 19. I wasn't even close, since none of my Green cards had "leveled up" yet.

Clearly, I misjudged this one. What do you think? Was my plan doomed from the start? Unusual luck for my opponent? Library+Chapel+FV a secret unstoppable combo? (And hats off to my opponent, Strombo. I don't think he/she will be a level 21 for very much longer...)

111
Dominion Isotropic / Isotropic down?
« on: March 14, 2012, 11:24:12 pm »
Is something wrong with Isotropic? When I try to sign in it tells me "Something's Wrong," and I can't get in. Anyone else having problems?

112
Game Reports / One Copper left in the Supply (!)
« on: March 05, 2012, 11:18:21 pm »
This is the closest I have ever came to running out the Coppers--just one darn Copper left in a 2 player game. http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201203/05/game-20120305-200329-bfdc6a8c.html

It was perfect storm of mutual prolonging the game. We rushed IGGs, but started buying Victory cards and didn't actually touch the last 2 IGGs. My opponent picked up Gardens, and eventually had enough Secret Chambers that he was strategically aligning the top of his deck so that my Noble Brigands would cause him to gain Coppers, which helped his Gardens. I did a better job of reaching for Provinces, and some Farmlands, and we both got Duchies.

Circumstances kept breathing new life into the game, as I would catch up, and then his Gardens would reach the next level (point tracker was on). Then I turned to Nobles. Then I had to stop buying Coppers when I had less than $5 because I was behind and it was getting close to being a third pile gone. Has anyone ever bought Secret Chambers because the Copper supply was getting too low and you couldn't end the game?

With 1 Copper left, I had to gamble on buying the last Duchy and putting my Gardens over the edge--close, but just missed. My opponent wins 61 to 59.

Check out those decks. Coppers: 32 for him, 27 for me. 1 short!

113
Variants and Fan Cards / Fan card: Emerald Mine
« on: March 04, 2012, 07:25:47 pm »
I remember when I first played Dominion--I loved Mine! It seemed so good! Too bad it usually isn't. So I've been trying to come up with a sort of better/different Mine-type card:

Emerald Mine -- Action -- $5
Trash a Treasure card or a Victory card from your hand. If you trash a Treasure card: Gain a Treasure card costing exactly $3 more, and a Victory card costing exactly $2 more. If you trash a Victory card: Gain a Treasure card costing exactly $1 more and put it into your hand.

It's similar to Mine, and it costs the same, though it's not "strictly superior," because it does not trash a Treasure card into a better Treasure card and put it into your hand. And it's certainly worse at trashing Coppers than even Mine is, because it turns them into Silvers and Estates that don't even go into your hand. Yuck.

On the plus side, it does something Mine can't do--trashes Estates into Silvers, and that Silver you do get in your hand. It also trashes Silvers into Golds and Duchies, and Golds into Provinces (AND Platinum, if it's a Colony game). So it sort of has the Treasure-gaining plus Remodel aspects of Governor, with the handicap of not being a drawer and a non-terminal the way Governor is. But Governor is an excellent card, and Mine is terrible, so maybe this could be something in between. It might be good for alternate VP strategies with Silk Road and Duke.

Thoughts?

114
Game Reports / Hey, Develop worked here
« on: February 15, 2012, 07:07:43 pm »
http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201202/15/game-20120215-155627-822d997e.html

I don't really expect this Kingdom to ever appear again, due to the long list of relevant cards: Develop, Grand Market, Throne Room, and Royal Seal. I bought Develop because it was the only way to deal with Sea Hag's curses, and I've heard good things about Develop with Grand Market. Royal Seal and Stash were the only $5s, so my opponent and I both dipped into the Royal Seal pile pretty frequently.

On Turn 8, I used Royal Seal to buy another Royal Seal, even though I had enough for a Gold. Why? I only had 4 cards left in my deck, and I knew Develop was one of them. So my $5 Royal Seal goes on top of my deck, and next turn, Royal Seal gets Developed into a top-decked Grand Market and Throne Room, which is just so awesome.

Game ended on piles (Curses, Grand Markets, Royal Seals), and I won, largely by having pulled this move off first, I think.

115
Game Reports / Scrying Pool vs. Pirate Ship
« on: February 13, 2012, 04:00:22 pm »
Here's a game I just won: http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201202/13/game-20120213-125122-f90084ba.html

Scrying Pool makes me very nervous, as I don't consider myself very good with 'em. But my opponent opened Pirate Ship, and I figured that with him trashing some of my Coppers, Scrying Pool would be really strong here--plus there were good Actions to load up on, Native Village, Stables, Oracle, Smithy, and Cutpurse. No extra buy, though.

I got decently lucky in that most of his initial Pirate Ships miss entirely--of course, I was loading up on Actions, so I'm not sure that was unexpected. Anyway, everything goes according to plan, he knocks me down to just 3 Coppers, my Scrying Pools go great, I keep him under attack with Oracle and Cutpurse, and I score an easy win.

My question is this: If he hadn't opened Pirate Ship, should I have still bought Scrying Pool? Or done something fairly conventional with Stables, or Smithy/Big Money, or Oracle/Big Money?

116
Game Reports / Slaughtered by Pirate Ship, Rescued by Adventurer
« on: January 08, 2012, 08:29:17 pm »
Here's a recent game where I was sure to lose, due to my own mistakes and my opponent's lucky Pirate Ship. Instead, I won narrowly, with a card that rarely does much good: Adventurer. http://dominion.isotropic.org/gamelog/201201/08/game-20120108-165548-cd187470.html

I opened Envoy/Silver, and planned to pick up Farming Villages, Markets, and Gold. Fairly conventional. My opponent went for Pirate Ships, which struck me as a mistake, because Markets are of course a great way to accumulate +$ without buying Treasures. Unfortunately, I bought Gold anyway, and paid for it. The first two Pirate Ships hit my Gold and my Silver, we split the Markets 6-4 in my favor (which isn't nearly favorable enough), and I wasn't able to play my Farming Villages and Envoy in a beneficial order.

Fortunately, Adventurer helped me draw enough Treasures to eek out Provinces on two occasions (I treated my Adventurer like a Silver that couldn't be trashed by Pirate Ship). It was enough to get me a narrow win--probably the only time I've ever been happy to have Adventurer in my deck.

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Variants and Fan Cards / Fan Expansion: Strife
« on: December 12, 2011, 02:49:57 am »
Hello all. Here's my first attempt at crafting my own expansion. I call it Dominion: Strife. The theme is warfare, natural disasters, tyranny, etc. Stemming from that, quite a few of my cards are Attacks, though I don't expect them to be overpowered. Only two of my cards give your opponents curses, and neither does so reliably. I also tried to introduce Attacks that interfere with your opponents' buys (like Embargo). Going along with that, there are a couple new Reactions that handle Attacks well.

I would really appreciate feedback--please point out imbalances and things you don't like! I will certainly be editing these cards after I hear from other people.

Executioner -- $6 (Attack)
Each player gets +3 cards and puts a card from his hand on top of his deck. Then, each other player trashes a Victory card, or reveals a hand with no Victory cards.

Martyr -- $6 (Action)
+2 cards, +2 actions, +$3, +1 buy
Trash this after playing it.

Plunder -- $6 (Treasure)
+1 buy
Worth $2. While this in play, treasure cards cost $2 less, but not less than $0.

Barbarian Horde -- $5 (Attack)
+1 buy
Add a token to the Barbarian Horde mat. Each other player reveals the next 3 cards of his deck and trashes a Treasure card corresponding to the number of tokens on the mat, or reveals no such card and gains a curse:
1-2 tokens: Copper
3-5 tokens: Silver
6 or more tokens: Gold
You get +$ equal to the combined value of the trashed Treasure cards.

Beggar Prince -- $5 (Attack)
Each other player with 4 or more cards in hand discards a Treasure card or reveals a hand with no Treasure cards. If any Treasure cards were discarded this way, you get +$1. If any of those treasures were coppers, you also get +1 card, +1 action.

Plague -- $5 (Action)
+2 cards
Choose a supply pile where cards cost $7 or less. Trash up to 3 cards from it.

Propagandist -- $5 (Attack--Duration)
+$2
While this is in play, keep the most expensive card you bought on this turn in front of you until the start of your next turn. Each other player must buy or gain at least 1 copy of the card you bought, if he plays any cards that enable him to do so during his next turn.

Agitator -- $4 (Action)
When you buy this, all other players with 5 or more cards in hand discard a card.
When you play this, remove it from your deck and add it as the top card in any supply pile. The cards beneath it are not available until it is bought. If no player buys it by the start of your next turn, remove it from the pile and trash it.

Haunted Village -- $4 (Action)
+2 actions
Reveal the next 3 cards in your deck. Choose one and put it into your hand. Discard the others.

Profiteer -- $4 (Duration)
+$1
While this is in play, after your buy phase has ended you may reveal any Treasure cards from your hand. Put them in front of you, face-up. At the start of your next turn, add them to your hand.

Tyrant King -- $4 (Reaction)
+$3
You can't play any more cards this turn (including Treasures).
When another player plays an Attack card, you may reveal this from your hand. If you do, you are unaffected by the Attack and must play this card during your next turn. You may not play any cards that could make it impossible for you to play this card.

Vassal -- $4 (Duration)
Choose two: +1 card; +1 action; +$1; +1 buy; +1 VP; +$2 on your next turn. (The choices must be different.)

Witch Hunt -- $4 (Attack)
+$1
Trash an Estate, a Curse, or a Copper. If you trash an Estate, each other player gains a Curse. If you trash a Curse, each other player gains an Estate. If you trash a Copper, each other player gains a Copper.

Banish -- $3 (Action)
+1 card, +1 action
You may move a card from your hand costing $4 or less to the island mat. If you do, each other player may trash a card of that type from his hand. If any player does, you get +$1.

False Prophet -- $3 (Action)
Name a card. The player to your left either reveals that card, or reveals a hand without that card. If that card is revealed, you gain its effects as if you had played a copy of it.
If the player to your left does not reveal that card, you gain a curse and get +1 card, +1 action.

Serf -- $3 (Action)
+1 action, +2 cards. Discard 1 card, or trash it.
When you play this, you have 1 fewer available buys.

Spoils of War -- $3 (Victory--Treasure--Duration)
Worth 1 VP
Worth $2 now, and $2 on your next turn.
When you play this, it stays in play until your next turn is over.
You may only buy this if you have an Attack card in play and no player revealed a Reaction card in response to it. (Setup: If this pile will appear in the game, and there are no Attacks or Reactions in the supply, add an Attack and a Reaction at random. Then remove one of the other piles at random.

Treaty -- $3 (Reaction--Duration)
+$2
When another player plays an Attack card, you may reveal this card. If you do, you are unaffected by that Attack.
If you revealed this card in response to an Attack, it stays in play until another Attack is played. The next time any player (including you) plays an Attack card, all players are unaffected by that Attack.

Inquisitor -- $2 (Attack)
Choose one: +1 card; or +1 action; or +$1; or +1 buy
Each other player reveals his hand, keeping it revealed until the end of your turn.

Sacred Relic -- $2 (Reaction)
Trash a card from your hand.
When another player plays an Attack card, you may reveal this from your hand. If you do, +1 VP.

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