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Fragasnap

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Dominion: Avarice (1.1b)
« on: March 21, 2015, 08:14:40 am »
+4

    The nights have seemed long recently.  Maybe that's how they should feel: In the dark with no one to distract you from your sins.  Maybe the noise from those torture devices doesn't help.  It was only a little assassination.  And that extra slice of cake, too.  Anyone would have done the same in your position.  You have a family to think about, after all.  Everything will be better tomorrow.  You did fund those missionaries out to whatever those heathen lands to the north were.  Or was it the east?  You'll just have your historians scratch out what you did to the marquis and everyone will remember you as a saint.  Nothing could possibly go wrong.


    Dominion:
Greed Avarice is a fan expansion that has been in the making since the release of Dominion: Guilds in 2013 between myself and Lamestar, a friend of mine. It adds 25 new Kingdom cards to Dominion, including 22 Actions, 2 Treasures, 1 Victory card, and 1 Reaction.  Heavily featured are cards with "In games using this" effects, that introduce blanket changes to core elements of gameplay.  Dominion: Greed is a fan expansion and cannot be played by itself; to play with it, you need the Basic cards and rulebook (Dominion provides both).

Some Kingdom cards have Edicts.  The Randomizer card is an Edict (and the Kingdom card has a blue stripe labeled Edict to remind).  In any game where the Edict is chosen, its Kingdom card should be included and vice versa.  Edicts apply effects to all players, even if no players buy or use the card, and continue to affect the game regardless of the state of its partner pile.  Edicts have no bearing on the inclusion of other Landscape cards such as Events, Landmarks, and Projects.  Include as many Edicts as there are Kingdom card piles that call for them.  Kingdom card piles with Edicts
It is recommended to use reminder tokens: In games using Architect, Countess, Fletcher, Opium Den, or War Flag, the cost or effects of some cards change, which make placing reminder tokens onto relevant supply piles helpful. The reminder tokens are not intended to do anything themselves except help players remember these effects.

Change log:
Quote from: Greed 1.0
  • Theme changes due to new official cards:
    • Blacksmith→Country Blacksmith
    • Idol→Brazen Bull
    • Inventor→Visionary
    • Patrol→Salon
    • Scholar→Servants
  • Removed: Friar; proved too weak, a bit out of step with the release of Landmarks, and generally better implemented by Shepherd.
  • Brazen Bull only gives Curses to players who cannot reveal 3 cards that are Actions or Curses (from unconditional).  You can sometimes outpace Brazen Bull, but probably not so well if you are buying Brazen Bulls.
  • Missionary optionally discards or trashes a non-Victory card (instead of mandatory unrestricted trash).
  • Salon now costs $3 (from $4) and gives +1 Card before discarding a card if you don't trash (from +$1).
  • War Flag now costs $6 (from $7) and its Attack is contingent on feeding it a Treasure or trashing itself (from an Attack identical to Legionary with no cost).  Trashing War Flag to buy another War Flag is a fairly common move as its In-games-using-this effect causes this to clean your deck.
  • New cards:
    • Charity School: A Laboratory with a +Buy at $3, the catch being that extra Buys turn into Curses because of its in-games-using-this effect.  A cute inter-set nombo with Street where you get 2 Buys every turn.
    • Commission: A sifting Throne Room.  You have to discard down to 4 cards, but could in-so-doing play a single Action 4 or more times!
    • Courier: Hit yourself with a Knight-styled effect to get a big amount of money. Use the +Buy it gives you to top-deck the new card with Courier's In-games-using-this effect.
    • Kitchen: A Laboratory at $4 that Enchantresses your next Action.  It is worse than discarding a card, I swear.
    • Séance: A terminal-Gold Curser.  It hits yourself with a Swindler-like effect so long as you aren't milling Victory cards.  The in-games-using-this makes its Cursing and self-Cursing much weaker as it gives everyone free Harbingers.
    • Usurer: A Super Grand Market at $4 that restricts your next Buy, but you have to unlock it with other cards.

Quote from: Avarice 1.1a
  • Set name changed to Avarice (from Greed).  This is to go hand-in-hand with a major change of In-games-using-this effects to Edicts (and also for internal reasons that are amusing only to me).
  • Majority of artwork is refit to higher quality.  All art is now properly credited (previously missed source on some free domain art).
  • The majority of In-games-using-this effects are turned into Edicts: They are implemented differently here in that they are necessarily married to a Kingdom card, so the randomizer that includes the Kingdom card is itself the Edict with which it is paired.  This change generally cleans up the text boxes of those cards.  Servants, Prospector, and Frontier retain their In-games-using-this as they refer to themselves specifically.
  • Removed: Visionary; too difficult to both amass Visionaries and be in a Kingdom where gaining so many $4-cost things was good.
  • Countess cost down to $3 (from $4).
  • Courier now trashes a card from hand or digs to find one to trash (instead of doing the Knight thing).  It gives +2 Buys (from +1 Buy) and +$5 (from +$4) when you trash something, and nothing if you fail (from +$2).
  • Fletcher now gains a non-Victory card costing up to $4 (from up to $3), and can only gain a second copy and an Estate if the pile is sufficiently large.  Its Edict now applies to all cards with types other than Action, Treasure, or Victory (from Attack only), so many more cards are pulled into its price range.
  • Missionary's Edict triggers on trashing any Action (from Missionary specifically) so as to use an Edict instead.
  • Street cost up to $4 (from $3), draws +3 Cards (from +2 Cards), and makes you discard a card if you don't have a Buy to lose (from doing nothing in that circumstance).
  • Usurer wildly simplified into an activated Conspirator that either explodes or restricts your buy.  It is paired with an Edict that makes Silvers give a +Buy so you'll never be in a Kingdom where you can only pop the Usurers.
  • Cards generally updated to Menagerie standards.  I stand by the "you may X. If you do Y." wording.

Quote from: Avarice 1.1b
Release of Allies
  • Theme changes due to new official cards:
    • Courier→Gravedigger
    • Marquis→Scutagium
  • Countess cost down to $2 (from $3).
  • War Flag's Edict updated to use an on-gain trigger due to complete deprecation of on-buy triggers.
  • Set is expanded to 400 cards.  New Cards:
    • Barkeep: A terminal Gold with a Buy, unless you have $ in which case he takes them and gives you a bunch of cards like a super Workshop.
    • Philosopher: A devastating Attack regardless of hand-size that knocks out everything with types other than the normally playable things.  The discard is relevant even of Victory cards because its Edict requires you to have chaff to discard to stop yourself from getting Cursed.
    • Sluice: A Victory card that pulls Estates out of the trash.  Its worth 4VP on its own if the Province pile is emptied, so 2.5VP per card (unless there aren't Estates in the trash, obviously).
    • Visionary: A super-Kiln, gaining whatever you want and to the top of your deck, but with the worst part of Outpost attached.
    • 20 Landmarks:
      • Blood Money: Curse anyone by trashing valuable stuff.  A big buff for trash-for-benefit or an excuse to trash weird things you might not normally.
      • Blueblood Legacy: All the middle cards become terrible for your score.
      • Campaign: Make sure you gain Actions as the game ends.
      • Charity: Stop playing high-cost cards to cash in VP.
      • Day of Mourning: Everything is Hideout.
      • Fissures: Opposite to Wolf Den, repetitive cards become bad... even Victory cards.
      • Grand Migration: A major nerf to Copper-trashing as it gives the player to your left +Cards.
      • Hidden Kingdom: Avoid Provinces for a huge 22VP stipend.  Then again, you're normally allotted 24VP from Provinces...
      • Land Grab: You can get +Buys from getting Victory cards.
      • Market Closing: An end-game Mission to produce as much $ as possible.
      • Old World: Get lots of Victory cards and lord the size of your Dominion over other players.
      • Ossuary: VP for keeping a bunch of cards with copies in the trash.  A Duchy starts in the trash for good measure.
      • Precipice: A reverse of Tower, VP for having cards from non-empty Supply piles.
      • Revolution: The losing player gets the Estate pile (kind of).
      • Royal Nursery: Throne Room for Victory cards, we just determine which one it affects at the start of the game.
      • Sacrament: A little VP mini-game for Curses, or else nullifies the VP value of losing the Curse split.
      • Sprawling Conquest: Provinces come with more Victory cards.
      • Supply Line: VP for alternative Treasures.  Some bonus VP for Silvers as well (since it will often not matter otherwise).
      • Town Well: The Estate version of Fountain.
      • War-torn Land: VP for Attacks and fewer for those precious Provinces.
[/list]
« Last Edit: December 19, 2022, 01:31:17 pm by Fragasnap »
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Fragasnap

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Re: Dominion: Avarice (1.1b)
« Reply #1 on: March 21, 2015, 08:14:50 am »
+6

Quote
Alehouse
Types: Action
Cost: $5
+3 Cards. You may discard 4 cards. If you do, +3 Actions.

Quote
Arcanum
Types: Action
Cost: $5
+1 Action. Reveal your hand. If you revealed any Curses, trash one, gain a Copper, and then +1 Card. Otherwise, gain a Curse and, if you do, +4 Cards.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, when you trash a Curse, return it to the Supply.

Quote
Architect
Types: Action
Cost: $2
+1 Action. Reveal your hand. The player to your left chooses one that doesn't cost $5. Trash it and gain a card costing up to $2 more than it.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, Copper costs $1 more.


Quote
Barkeep
Types: Action
Cost: $5
If you have at least $3, pay all your $ and gain 3 differently named cards each costing up to $6. Otherwise, +1 Buy and +$3.

Quote
Brazen Bull
Types: Treasure, Attack
Cost: $5
$2. Each other player may reveal 3 cards from their hand that are Actions or Curses. If they don't, they gain a Curse.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, the VP value of Curses is multiplied by the number of Treasures costing at least $5 in your deck.

Quote
Charity School
Types: Action
Cost: $3
+2 Cards, +1 Action, +1 Buy.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, at the start of your Clean-Up, gain a Curse for each unused Buy you have.
*-Note that we subscribe to the Adventures school of Events, wherein you cannot buy Events that do nothing.

Quote
Commission
Types: Action
Cost: $5
+2 Cards. Discard down to 5 cards in hand. You may play an Action from your hand once per card discarded.

Quote
Countess
Types: Action
Cost: $2
+2 Cards. At the start of Clean-Up, if you didn't buy any cards this turn, gain a Duchy.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, Victory cards cost $1 more.

Quote
Country Blacksmith
Types: Action, Reaction
Cost: $3
Reveal any number of Treasures from your hand and discard them. +2 Cards per card discarded.
When you gain a card, you may reveal this from your hand. If you do, exchange the gained card for a Copper to your hand.

Quote
Fletcher
Types: Action
Cost: $4
Gain a non-Victory card costing up to $4. If there are at least 5 cards left in its pile, you may gain another copy and an Estate.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, cards with types other than Action, Treasure, and Victory cost $1 less.

Quote
Frontier
Types: Victory
Cost: $5
5VP.
In games using this, at the end of each turn taken by the last player in turn order that is not an extra turn, they put a Frontier from the Supply into the trash.

Quote
Gravedigger
Types: Action
Cost: $3
You may trash a card costing from $3 to $6 from your hand. If you don't, reveal cards from the top of your deck until you reveal such a card, trash it, and then discard the rest. If you trashed a card, +2 Buys and +$5.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, when you gain a card, you may spend a Buy. If you do, put the gained card on top of your deck.

Quote
Historian
Types: Action
Cost: $5
Draw until you have 6 cards in hand; you may set aside up to 2 cards as you draw them. When you finish drawing, trash the set aside cards.

Quote
Inquisitor
Types: Action, Attack
Cost: $3
Choose one: Discard a card and each other player gains a Curse; or trash up to 2 cards from your hand.

Quote
Kitchen
Types: Action
Cost: $4
+2 Cards, +1 Action. The next time you play an Action this turn, get +1 Card and +1 Action instead of following its instructions.

Quote
Leper Village
Types: Action, Attack
Cost: $3
+2 Actions, +1 Buy, +$1. Each other player with at least 4 cards in hand discards a card.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, at the end of each of your turns after the first, +1 Card.

Quote
Missionary
Types: Action
Cost: $2
+1 Card. You may trash or discard a non-Victory card from your hand. +1 Action per $1 in its cost.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, the first time you trash a Silver or Action each turn, you may gain a different Action costing $5, putting it into your hand.

Quote
Opium Den
Types: Action
Cost: $5
+1 Buy. You may trash a Silver from your hand. If you do, +$6. Otherwise, gain both a Copper and a Silver to your hand.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, when you gain a Gold, put it on top of your deck and gain an Estate.

Quote
Philosopher
Types: Action, Attack
Cost: $4
+1 Buy, +$2. Each other player reveals their hand and discards each card with a type other than Action, Treasure, or Attack.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, when you gain a card other than Copper or Curse, you may discard a card. If you don't, gain a Curse.

Quote
Prospector
Types: Action
Cost: $4
+$2. Trash a card from your hand. If you have no Treasures in hand, you may reveal it and gain a Gold.
In games using this, when you gain a Gold, each other player may gain a Prospector to their hand.

Quote
Salon
Types: Action
Cost: $3
+1 Card, +2 Actions. You may trash a card costing at least $3 from your hand or else discard a card. If you trash a card, name a card, reveal cards from the top of your deck until you reveal a copy of the named card, put it into your hand, and discard the rest.

Quote
Scutagium
Types: Action, Attack
Cost: $5
+2 Cards, +$2. Each other player gets +1 Card. Discard any number of cards. For each card discarded, each other player discards a card to a minimum of 3 cards in hand.

Quote
Séance
Types: Action, Attack
Cost: $5
+$3. Reveal the top card of your deck. If it isn't a Victory card, trash it, and gain a differently named card with the same cost. Each other player gains a Curse.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, when you gain a card costing at most $2, you may put a card from your discard pile on top of your deck.

Quote
Servants
Types: Action
Cost: $0
+1 Action. Draw until you have 4 cards in hand.
In games using this, directly after resolving an Action, if you haven't gained a Servants this turn, you may gain a Servants and play it.

Quote
Slave Trade
Types: Action, Attack
Cost: $4
+1 Card, +2 Actions. Gain a Copper to your hand. Each other player gains a Copper.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, at the start of your Clean-Up, you may trash a Copper from your hand for every 2 differently named card you have in play.

Quote
Sluice
Types: Victory
Cost: $4
1VP. Worth 3VP more if the Province pile is empty.
When you gain this, gain an Estate from the trash.

Quote
Street
Types: Action
Cost: $3
+2 Cards. Cards cost $1 less this turn. If you have any Buys, -1 Buy.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, at the start of each of your turns, +1 Buy.

Quote
Tanner
Types: Action
Cost: $4
Reveal the top 5 cards of your deck. Put the revealed cards costing at least $2 into your hand and the rest back in any order.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, once per turn, directly after you shuffle your deck, gain a Copper.

Quote
Usurer
Types: Action
Cost: $4
+1 Card, +1 Action, +$2. Choose one: Trash this; or your next buy this turn must be a card that costs $3.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, when you play a Silver, +1 Buy.

Quote
Visionary
Types: Action
Cost: $5
+$2. Gain a card costing up to $5, setting it aside. When this leaves play, put the set aside card on top of your deck. You only draw 3 cards for your next hand.

Quote
War Flag
Types: Treasure, Attack
Cost: $5
$3. Either trash this or discard a Treasure, then each other player discards a card for each coin in its cost then draw until they have 3 cards in hand.
Quote
EDICT In games using this, when you gain a card costing at least $5, if you bought it, trash a card you would discard from play this turn.
« Last Edit: January 05, 2024, 11:42:14 am by Fragasnap »
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Fragasnap

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #2 on: March 21, 2015, 08:15:18 am »
+4

Quote
Street
Types: Action
Cost: $3
+2 Cards. -1 Buy to a minimum of 0 Buys. Cards cost $1 less this turn, but not less than $0.
In game using this, at the start of each of your turns, +1 Buy.
Quote
Fletcher
Types: Action
Cost: $4
Gain up to 2 cards that aren't Victory cards, each costing up to $3. If you gain 2 cards, gain an Estate.
In game using this, Attacks cost $1 less, but not less than $0.

These first two cards are rather situational.

Street costs you your possibly precious resource of +Buys.  You can use it as the draw of your engine, but you have to have some way to get your Buys back, because it is entirely possible to leave yourself with no buys remaining at the end of your turn.  Maybe you don't need +Buys anyway...  Even if the board has no support for Street though, now you have 2 Buys every turn. Would a 3/2/2 opening be good here? Maybe that engine is looking a little better since you can definitely get that Province with another engine component...

Fletcher is a deceptively powerful Workshop variant.  With a couple of the right cards, you can quickly build up an engine and setup to pile-out the game afterwards.  Even without those, gaining 2 Silvers and an Estate might not always be a bad option. With Fletcher in the Kingdom, you can expect Attacks to come out hard and fast: Any $5 Attack is suddenly within reach of any opening and $4 Attacks can be gained rapidly by Fletcher itself.
« Last Edit: September 16, 2016, 01:31:28 am by Fragasnap »
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LastFootnote

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #3 on: March 24, 2015, 12:33:15 am »
+8

Sorry it took a while to respond to this. I've been busy at work (which is where I usually do my card critiques).

I think "in games using this" is a fine avenue to explore. It might be nice if those Kingdom cards had a new type and a bright color, just to remind you that they're always doing something just by being in the Kingdom.

Back in the day, I was thinking of making a set with penalty cards as the main theme; when you buy one of these cards, you gain a bad card, and then most of the cards would care about the bad card. There are a lot of reasons I haven't pursued it, but one is that penalties are generally unpopular. It's fine to have a few cards with penalties, but these days I'm leery of it being a major theme for a set.

When you do make cards with penalties, I think it's important that the card has a big effect so that it still looks worth buying. Street and Fletcher aren't wowing me in that regard. Street reduces costs, but it reduces your buys; the exact opposite effect that you want with a cost reducer. The +2 Cards just isn't making up for that. If the concept of the card is –Buy (and starting your turns with an additional buy), then I think you're better off choosing a bonus that isn't diametrically opposed to the penalty. I like Street's "in games using this" clause. I don't think it needs to be paired with –Buy to make it interesting, but obviously if you want –Buy, that's the rule to pair it with.

I like Fletcher's rule as well, but again the action effect seems lackluster. Yes it's nice with Attack cards that normally cost $4. But even with that, it seems like gaining 2 cards each costing up to $3 is a fine $4 card even without the penalty of gaining an Estate. Maybe I'm underestimating it, but it seems weak. I'd rather see it be more straightforward. Like, "Gain 2 differently named cards each costing up to $4. Gain a Curse."
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LastFootnote

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #4 on: March 24, 2015, 11:12:27 am »
+5

Oh, one other thing I meant to say: I'm looking forward to seeing more cards from Dominion: Greed.
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ConMan

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #5 on: March 25, 2015, 01:08:48 am »
+2

Sorry it took a while to respond to this. I've been busy at work (which is where I usually do my card critiques).

I think "in games using this" is a fine avenue to explore. It might be nice if those Kingdom cards had a new type and a bright color, just to remind you that they're always doing something just by being in the Kingdom.
I agree in general, although I'd suggest that it can be difficult if you don't have anything to remind you of those effects if the Supply pile is empty. For example:

Baker - gives you the coin token at the start, so you don't have to remember it later
Duchess - if they're not available, you don't have to remember that you can gain one with a Duchy
Embargo - leaves tokens out

Some of the effects here, especially ones where specific types of cards have altered costs, will probably need a token or something to mark them. This is actually one space where it makes a lot more sense to do online, since on Goko the cards with altered cost would have a visual representation (the cost written in red rather than black).
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GendoIkari

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #6 on: March 25, 2015, 10:29:29 am »
+2

Young Witch doesn't give any reminder about which card is the Bain.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #7 on: March 25, 2015, 10:48:42 am »
+2

Have you considered using a "while this is in play" or "while this is (publicly) visible" clause instead of "while this is in the game"? As well as not possibly making players remember the modifications if the piles run out, it would give more tactical decisions. Another option is to include a card with each pile of relevant kingdom cards that simply states the rule.

I imagine this would particularly be an issue with Black Market.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #8 on: March 25, 2015, 12:07:28 pm »
+2

Some of the effects here, especially ones where specific types of cards have altered costs, will probably need a token or something to mark them. This is actually one space where it makes a lot more sense to do online, since on Goko the cards with altered cost would have a visual representation (the cost written in red rather than black).

I think the best thing would be to have a reminder card you put sideways under the pile. That reminder card could have the bright colored border and you'd always see it on the sides of the pile. Then it could have just the rule text so that it would be visible if the pile ran out.

Young Witch doesn't give any reminder about which card is the Bain.

Actually, the Cornucopia rules say to use Young Witch's randomizer to mark the Bane pile.

I imagine this would particularly be an issue with Black Market.

You do "Setup" rules for cards that are in the Black Market. I think it's reasonable to interpret "In games using this" as only games where the pile is actually in the Supply.
« Last Edit: March 25, 2015, 12:19:30 pm by LastFootnote »
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Fragasnap

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #9 on: March 26, 2015, 07:46:42 am »
0

I think "in games using this" is a fine avenue to explore. It might be nice if those Kingdom cards had a new type and a bright color, just to remind you that they're always doing something just by being in the Kingdom.
A type would just be silly, but I did consider giving each "in games using this" effect a chartreuse background as a reminder. I was ultimately leery of doing so for its inconsistency with Duchess.

Quote
Street
Types: Action
Cost: $3
+2 Cards. -1 Buy to a minimum of 0 Buys. Cards cost $1 less this turn, but not less than $0.
In game using this, at the start of each of your turns, +1 Buy.
Street reduces costs, but it reduces your buys; the exact opposite effect that you want with a cost reducer. The +2 Cards just isn't making up for that. If the concept of the card is –Buy (and starting your turns with an additional buy), then I think you're better off choosing a bonus that isn't diametrically opposed to the penalty. I like Street's "in games using this" clause. I don't think it needs to be paired with –Buy to make it interesting, but obviously if you want –Buy, that's the rule to pair it with.
A -Buy is not necessary to make a "2 Buys per turn" card interesting, but it makes the 2 Buys significantly easier to remember. Having a "+Buy in games using this" slapped on to any card that combos with +Buys (or is totally irrelevant) would make the "in games using this" harder to remember since there are already a lot of cards that combo with +Buys (or do not care at all). As you stated though, giving out a -Buy nearly requires +Buy be present as well, and this "in games using this" effect is a good work around.

Under the assumption that a -Buy could be compelling, why give it an opposed benefit? The answer is because -Buy will be one of two things: Either directly opposed to its benefit (since Dominion is all about buying cards) or else a total wash. Putting a -Buy onto an Expand, Chapel, or Workshop would hardly even matter because you would be substituting your Buys for that effect and you do not have to care. The effect simply has to be something opposed to the -Buy for the -Buy to matter.

To that end, Street manages to be a simple cost reducer that functions quite differently than either Bridge or Highway: Bridge needs +Actions and +Cards for a big turn, Highway needs +Buys for a big turn, while Street needs +Actions and +Buys for a big turn. Because of the relative rarity of gratuitous +Buys, Street's better uses are often not seen in mega-turns unlike its peers. In the presence of +Actions and a Workshop-type, Street is surprisingly fast since, unlike Highway, Street increases your hand size as you play, making it less likely to stall out as the deck's size increases (and you're likely gaining some sort of splitter with it to power your draw engine), but when you can get a large number of +Buys, you might be able to get a multi-Province turn with 2-4 Streets played. More interestingly, the first does not necessarily imply the second.

There are certainly a good number of boards in which Street itself is not useful, but that simply allows its "in games using this" effect to take center stage instead. Because of the quite large effect that has on the game, it is fine if Street itself is rather niche.

Quote
Fletcher
Types: Action
Cost: $4
Gain up to 2 cards that aren't Victory cards, each costing up to $3. If you gain 2 cards, gain an Estate.
In game using this, Attacks cost $1 less, but not less than $0.
Street reduces costs, but it I like Fletcher's rule as well, but again the action effect seems lackluster. Yes it's nice with Attack cards that normally cost $4. But even with that, it seems like gaining 2 cards each costing up to $3 is a fine $4 card even without the penalty of gaining an Estate. Maybe I'm underestimating it, but it seems weak. I'd rather see it be more straightforward. Like, "Gain 2 differently named cards each costing up to $4. Gain a Curse."
I did describe Fletcher as a deceptively powerful Workshop variant. To understand why, look no further than Stonemason. Stonemason is strong in its ability to multiply buying power for Actions, but is especially notable for how rapidly it can pile out a game--even in 2-player. Considering that, Fletcher is quite comparable to Stonemason in its ability to force a 3-pile ending.

In a game with Fletcher and $2 or $3 cards that are desirable in multiples, not only can those cards pile out fast, but the Estate pile can be drained simultaneously. Monitoring the Supply piles is incredibly important in Fletcher games, since a player who is ahead can possibly pick up two or three Fletchers and start emptying $3 piles 3 cards at a time while gaining Estates to try to maintain their lead (which is what makes Estates a more compelling gain than any other junk). Sometimes though, there are no $2 or $3 cards you want in multiples, in which case you would only buy Fletcher as a Workshop- if at all and can use it to pick up an Estate in absence of +Buy by taking Silvers.

Fletcher has been nerfed more than any other card in Greed. In its inception, it could be used to gain copies of itself and had no qualifier put on what types it gained. Piling out on Fletcher\Estate\Anything was so fast that basically nothing else was possible. Because of those games, I am hesitant to change Fletcher to anything that can easily gain copies of itself (even if it is gaining Curses to do so) since the games will be more likely to boil down to incredibly dull Workshop rushes.

Have you considered using a "while this is in play" or "while this is (publicly) visible" clause instead of "while this is in the game"? As well as not possibly making players remember the modifications if the piles run out, it would give more tactical decisions. Another option is to include a card with each pile of relevant kingdom cards that simply states the rule.
I did not consider this limitation because of Young Witch's similarly untraceable effects. I usually have randomizers sitting on the table when I am playing games, and even when they are not, the "in games using this" effects of the majority of cards are such a major strategic consideration to the game state that players very, very rarely forget them.
It would honestly be harder to remember the "in games using this" effects if they changed in the middle of the game.

I imagine this would particularly be an issue with Black Market.
You do "Setup" rules for cards that are in the Black Market. I think it's reasonable to interpret "In games using this" as only games where the pile is actually in the Supply.
To do otherwise would be ridiculous, especially since, by the strictest rule, the deck for Black Market has one of every Kingdom card that is not already in the Supply, which means every "in games using this" effect would apply in every Kingdom with Black Market in it.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #10 on: March 26, 2015, 08:55:49 am »
+1

Have you considered using a "while this is in play" or "while this is (publicly) visible" clause instead of "while this is in the game"? As well as not possibly making players remember the modifications if the piles run out, it would give more tactical decisions. Another option is to include a card with each pile of relevant kingdom cards that simply states the rule.
I did not consider this limitation because of Young Witch's similarly untraceable effects. I usually have randomizers sitting on the table when I am playing games, and even when they are not, the "in games using this" effects of the majority of cards are such a major strategic consideration to the game state that players very, very rarely forget them.

The difference is that the Bane only comes into play when a Young Witch is played, and it has it right there on the card that others can reveal a Bane, all you need to do is remember what the Bane is and even then it's a card that the players chose to add. That's a lot different from remembering that you have an extra Buy every turn etc.

Quote
It would honestly be harder to remember the "in games using this" effects if they changed in the middle of the game.

Maybe, maybe not. It was just a suggestion.

I think at the end of the day, I (and probably others) would be likely to quite often forget that I had an extra buy etc, just like I often forget to buy Peddlers when I can. I guess as the designer you can either be okay with that and put the onus on players to remember, or try to give as much help as is reasonable.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #11 on: March 26, 2015, 08:59:02 am »
+1

I imagine this would particularly be an issue with Black Market.

You do "Setup" rules for cards that are in the Black Market. I think it's reasonable to interpret "In games using this" as only games where the pile is actually in the Supply.

I think that would be really counter-intuitive to be able to 'use' (buy, draw, play etc) a card which has an "In games using this" clause that doesn't trigger.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #12 on: March 26, 2015, 09:19:54 am »
+1

I imagine this would particularly be an issue with Black Market.

You do "Setup" rules for cards that are in the Black Market. I think it's reasonable to interpret "In games using this" as only games where the pile is actually in the Supply.

I think that would be really counter-intuitive to be able to 'use' (buy, draw, play etc) a card which has an "In games using this" clause that doesn't trigger.

I disagree!
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #13 on: March 26, 2015, 09:22:37 am »
+2

I imagine this would particularly be an issue with Black Market.

You do "Setup" rules for cards that are in the Black Market. I think it's reasonable to interpret "In games using this" as only games where the pile is actually in the Supply.

I think that would be really counter-intuitive to be able to 'use' (buy, draw, play etc) a card which has an "In games using this" clause that doesn't trigger.

I disagree!

Do we disagree on what the word 'use' means?
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #14 on: March 26, 2015, 09:25:01 am »
+1

I imagine this would particularly be an issue with Black Market.

You do "Setup" rules for cards that are in the Black Market. I think it's reasonable to interpret "In games using this" as only games where the pile is actually in the Supply.

I think that would be really counter-intuitive to be able to 'use' (buy, draw, play etc) a card which has an "In games using this" clause that doesn't trigger.

I disagree!

Do we disagree on what the word 'use' means?

OK, perhaps these cards should instead say, "In games using this pile". That way it's different from Duchess AND doesn't have Black Market confusion.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #15 on: March 26, 2015, 09:44:52 am »
+6

I don't find Street compelling at all, or rather its on-play effects, to be exact. While I think that -1 Buy on-play combined with 2 Buys at the start of each turn is a fine idea, I cannot cotton up to "+2 Cards" as a vanilla bonus. You say it can be the draw part of your engine, but +2 Cards is so weak and -Buys is the exact opposite of what an engine usually wants.

I would much rather see it at $5 with +3 Cards, or at $4 with +$2 on top. The first would would still be a little vexing as your only source of draw in an engine but it would be a nice Big Money card. The latter could be a great payload of your engine, as it would be similar to a Gold with -1 Buy. Actually, playing only one of it would be quite strong. It might justify a cost of $5 as well.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #16 on: March 26, 2015, 09:52:15 am »
+2

I did describe Fletcher as a deceptively powerful Workshop variant. To understand why, look no further than Stonemason. Stonemason is strong in its ability to multiply buying power for Actions, but is especially notable for how rapidly it can pile out a game--even in 2-player. Considering that, Fletcher is quite comparable to Stonemason in its ability to force a 3-pile ending.

In a game with Fletcher and $2 or $3 cards that are desirable in multiples, not only can those cards pile out fast, but the Estate pile can be drained simultaneously. Monitoring the Supply piles is incredibly important in Fletcher games, since a player who is ahead can possibly pick up two or three Fletchers and start emptying $3 piles 3 cards at a time while gaining Estates to try to maintain their lead (which is what makes Estates a more compelling gain than any other junk). Sometimes though, there are no $2 or $3 cards you want in multiples, in which case you would only buy Fletcher as a Workshop- if at all and can use it to pick up an Estate in absence of +Buy by taking Silvers.

Fletcher has been nerfed more than any other card in Greed. In its inception, it could be used to gain copies of itself and had no qualifier put on what types it gained. Piling out on Fletcher\Estate\Anything was so fast that basically nothing else was possible. Because of those games, I am hesitant to change Fletcher to anything that can easily gain copies of itself (even if it is gaining Curses to do so) since the games will be more likely to boil down to incredibly dull Workshop rushes.

If Fletcher runs out piles too fast, the obvious solution is to not have it gain Estates (or Curses). Just raise its cost and have it gain at most two cards.

What I'm getting from your post is that Fletcher's "deceptive power" comes from the ability to quickly end the game on piles. That's…not fun. Not for most players, anyway. It's fun to be able to build up your deck. When the entire point of a card is to cut the game short, that's no fun. When we were playtesting Adventures, cards were scrapped or changed specifically to avoid running out piles too fast.

I agree with Co0kieL0rd about Street. Personally I would abandon –1 Buy completely, but if you really want to keep it, the bonus needs to be bigger.
« Last Edit: March 26, 2015, 10:19:49 am by LastFootnote »
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Fragasnap

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #17 on: March 29, 2015, 12:19:17 pm »
+2

I don't find Street compelling at all, or rather its on-play effects, to be exact. While I think that -1 Buy on-play combined with 2 Buys at the start of each turn is a fine idea, I cannot cotton up to "+2 Cards" as a vanilla bonus. You say it can be the draw part of your engine, but +2 Cards is so weak and -Buys is the exact opposite of what an engine usually wants.

I would much rather see it at $5 with +3 Cards, or at $4 with +$2 on top. The first would would still be a little vexing as your only source of draw in an engine but it would be a nice Big Money card. The latter could be a great payload of your engine, as it would be similar to a Gold with -1 Buy. Actually, playing only one of it would be quite strong. It might justify a cost of $5 as well.
Street's vanilla benefit cannot be considered separate its cost reduction. If you want to try to ignore its cost reduction, at least call Street +2 Cards, +$1 like it actually is when your only Action. As an opener, that effect is quite strong; sometimes better than a Silver (usually at least as good) and always leaves you closer to important early game reshuffles.

If you put Street at +3 Cards, it will be overwhelming as a singular action, likely a must-buy on any board if it cost less than $6 since that effect is nearly as good as Hunting Ground. With +$2 instead, it would only be a worse Bridge. As it is, Street is a niche card that manages to be a unique cost reducer that does not necessarily produce a megaturn when useful.

Starting each turn with 2 Buys is a mildly interesting effect, but having that slapped onto some random card makes its effect harder to remember. The "in games using this" effects in Dominion: Greed try to be related to the play of the card. For a card that starts each turn with 2 Buys, there are three options: 1) A card that is cheap and good in multiples, 2) A card that combos with +Buy, or 3) A card that gives -Buys.
In the case of 1, we are making a card that simply encourages a boring 1-card deck construction (which we have in a more interesting way in Fool's Gold already). In the case of 2, most obvious effects have been taken by the likes of Talisman, Haggler, and Hoard, such that the card would likely have to become very semantically complex to function uniquely. I believe that 3 is the most simplistic and interesting of the 3 options, especially since it is the easiest way to make a -Buy card work (I mean, you could have a Workshop card where you swap your Buy for a gain of some sort, but then the -Buy is really just a wash).

A -Buy card in the event that you start each turn with 2 Buys needs to be something you want to play in multiples for the -Buy to really become a problem, and cost-reduction is a great spam-friendly effect. If you can get to your payload card that gives a +Buy, Streets can be played with impunity because you can never have fewer than 0 Buys. After playing 4 Streets (easier to do than 4 Bridges with those +Cards, easier to get than 4 Highways since it costs so much less), one +Buy will leave you with 1 Buy. If you can find a way to get multiple +Buys (Squire maybe?) while playing Street, you can possibly get to those 3 Province turns, but that will require a unique kind of effort.

Yes though, it is only +2 Cards, +$1 on a board with no +Actions (or with +Actions and without +Buys or a Workshop of some sort). Without something that enables it, it is of minimal use, but that support is so much more common than support for Rats. Even when that support is lacking, Street still has an effect on the board because of its "in games using this".

If Fletcher runs out piles too fast, the obvious solution is to not have it gain Estates (or Curses). Just raise its cost and have it gain at most two cards.

What I'm getting from your post is that Fletcher's "deceptive power" comes from the ability to quickly end the game on piles. That's…not fun. Not for most players, anyway. It's fun to be able to build up your deck. When the entire point of a card is to cut the game short, that's no fun. When we were playtesting Adventures, cards were scrapped or changed specifically to avoid running out piles too fast.
Fletcher's point is not to cut games short nor does it--what I said was that Fletcher can cut a game short. Apologies if I gave the sense otherwise.
Of course Fletcher can be used to force some games into premature endings because of other players not monitoring piles very well. I have seen that happen just as well in Kingdoms with Ironworks, where one player gains a lot of Ironworks and then starts blindly draining away other piles. Even in 2-player games with Stonemason 3-piling is something you should always be thinking about. Other players are an important factor to pile management and one that cannot be understated.

But not every board with the current Fletcher on it ends in a 3-pile nor does necessarily every board in which multiple players buy Fletcher end in a 3-pile. Fletcher is strongest when you need to watch piles, but it is not useless otherwise. There are plenty of boards where a Workshop- would be welcomed in absence of +Buys.
Back when Fletcher could gain copies of itself practically every Fletcher game ended rapidly on piles and that was no fun, but ever since Fletcher has been unable to gain more Fletchers that has not been a problem.

The strength of Fletcher is deceptive not only because of its ability to pile out games, but also because there are more Kingdoms where 2 $3-card gains outweigh the cost of an Estate gain than you might think.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #18 on: March 29, 2015, 12:19:36 pm »
+2

Quote
Arcanum
Types: Action
Cost: $5
+1 Action. Reveal your hand. If you reveal any Curses, trash one, gain a Copper, and +2 Cards. Otherwise, gain a Curse and +4 Cards.
In games using this, when you trash a Curse, return it to the Supply.
Quote
Idol
Types: Treasure, Attack
Cost: $5
$2. Each other player gains a Curse.
In games using this, Curses are worth -1VP for each Treasure costing $5 or more in your deck instead of -1VP.

Arcanum is the self-Curser you were waiting for. It is a Laboratory that turns your Curses into Coppers or gives you Curses to be a triple Laboratory. So how do you deal with those Curses and Coppers? How can you use those big hands when you get them?
To keep Arcanum from being a silly nonterminal +4 Cards, the Curse pile can keep being supplied. With a Curser about, all the players can constantly juggle the Curses between them with good trashing. Sea Hag might not be fast enough to ever empty the Curse pile!

Idol is obviously a strong card seeing as it is a nonterminal (well, a Treasure) Curser, but in games using Idol, your Curses are suddenly totally different. Now, your Curses hurt more the more big Treasures you add to your deck. Buying multiple Idols sounds nice to give out Curses super fast, but are you sure you'll be able to get rid of your Idols since they make your Curses even worse? Will you gain enough momentum from that Gold to make buying it worth the points from those Curses? Maybe you can get rid of all your Curses anyway. Maybe with two other players giving out Curses, you can win with your 0VP Curses...

Edit: Clarity fix for Idol.
« Last Edit: September 16, 2016, 01:31:46 am by Fragasnap »
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Co0kieL0rd

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #19 on: March 29, 2015, 04:04:53 pm »
+2

Arcanum: A self-curser that returns curses to the Supply? Sounds familiar. I made a card using similar mechanics but it works totally different. I like that this idea is explored even more here. I can't assess the card balance-wise but I assume it has been tested sufficiently already. Seems fine to me and very interesting.

Idol: Another good idea to make curses more interesting. The obvious synergy here is trash-for-benefit. On a board without trashing, Idol becomes a monster and a must-buy, it probably feels like IGG but obviously plays vastly differently because getting too many Idols might backfire unto you. If you buy two Idols and give your opponent 6 curses while you only get 4 from their one Idol, you end up with -8 VP while they have -6 (not counting Golds which should probably be ignored on Idol-boards without trashers).

I have seen many bad card ideas doin' funny stuff with curses (including my own early ones). These OTOH are actually pretty good IMHO.

About Street, I guess you're right. I'm probably underestimating the card. I was aware of the cost reduction but just thought "you wouldn't want to play many Streets because you lose so many buys" disregarding the fact that buys cannot be below 0 and the buy gets deducted the time you play it, not for each Street in play. It's probably a well thought-through card.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #20 on: March 29, 2015, 08:25:07 pm »
+3

I don't understand idol. Is the new curse vp meant to replace the normal -1? Or is it an additional -1vp? And it's still extremely strong... As a non terminal curser, you should just be buying them up. So what if having them makes curses worse for you? That only matters if your opponent is also cursing you. Which just means that you have to go for this card every time it's available. Who cares about the vp penalty; curses hurt way more by clogging your deck.

*Edit* I see you mention 0VP curses, so obviously it's not meant as an additional -1VP. I think the wording could be ambiguous though. One one hand "worth X" should simply set the value, like you want. But because it's negative, the minus sign can make it look like it's subtracting from the worth of curses.
« Last Edit: March 30, 2015, 11:46:08 am by GendoIkari »
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #21 on: March 31, 2015, 09:52:10 pm »
+1

The "in games using this" effects in Dominion: Greed try to be related to the play of the card.

What's the relationship between the passive effect and the on-play effect of Fletcher?  They seem unrelated to me.

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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #22 on: March 31, 2015, 11:21:55 pm »
+1

The "in games using this" effects in Dominion: Greed try to be related to the play of the card.

What's the relationship between the passive effect and the on-play effect of Fletcher?  They seem unrelated to me.

It encourages gaining Attacks, because you can get $4 Attacks with it but not $4 non-Attacks.
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #23 on: March 31, 2015, 11:36:04 pm »
+2

The "in games using this" effects in Dominion: Greed try to be related to the play of the card.

What's the relationship between the passive effect and the on-play effect of Fletcher?  They seem unrelated to me.

It encourages gaining Attacks, because you can get $4 Attacks with it but not $4 non-Attacks.

That seems like a stretch.  The passive effect alone encourages gaining attacks; the on-play doesn't really factor into it IMO.  I'm probably less inclined to gain attacks with it because most attacks are terminal and Fletcher is terminal, and doing that is just asking for trouble.

Edit:

The $4 attack cards are:

Bureaucrat, Militia, Spy, Thief, Cutpurse, Pirate Ship, Sea Hag, Young Witch, Noble Brigand, Marauder, Sir Martin, Tax Man

Of these, the only one I can see spamming is Spy.  I guess I might also go Fletcher for Bureacrat in a Gardens game.  For the rest, if I want them, I would just buy one or two directly rather than gaining them with Fletcher.
« Last Edit: April 01, 2015, 01:39:37 am by eHalcyon »
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Re: Dominion: Greed (beta)
« Reply #24 on: April 03, 2015, 09:27:16 pm »
0

Arcanum: A self-curser that returns curses to the Supply? Sounds familiar. I made a card using similar mechanics but it works totally different. I like that this idea is explored even more here. I can't assess the card balance-wise but I assume it has been tested sufficiently already. Seems fine to me and very interesting.
Self-cursing is a very difficult thing to balance and Arcanum really is no different. The design trick is in how much or little Curses can hurt a deck in any given game: in some games with strong trashing or precise trashing the Curses don't matter; in others with no trashing Curses are the worst thing ever. To fix that, Arcanum non-optionally trashes Curses that it possibly has given you (since its trashing is clearly the weaker option of the two if you bought it in the first place). There are certainly boards where it does basically nothing (need good payloads or +Buys), but when you need to get some cards to collide, a nonterminal +4 Cards is hard to argue with, even with that penalty.
In games with Cursers, Arcanum can be quite powerful with a bit of luck as a Laboratory that is also giving you more ammunition as you dig for your Curser, but you have to deal with the incoming Coppers and the times you can't afford to gain an additional Curse when it misses.

As a non terminal curser, you should just be buying them up. So what if having them makes curses worse for you? That only matters if your opponent is also cursing you. Which just means that you have to go for this card every time it's available. Who cares about the vp penalty; curses hurt way more by clogging your deck.
To be fair, the majority of the time when one skips a Curser it is only because there is a better Curser available, especially in 2-player.
Winning a 2-player Curse split 3-7 for taking 2 Idols looks pretty nice, but a 4-6 split isn't enough, so filling yourself up with Idols is risky depending on the Kingdom. The question is more whether or not you can get rid of your Idols (or Curses) so that the Curses won't be compounded too much than whether or not Idol should be bought. In multiplayer, the dynamics of Idol are often much akin to three-player Witch\Moat games.

*Edit* I see you mention 0VP curses, so obviously it's not meant as an additional -1VP. I think the wording could be ambiguous though. One one hand "worth X" should simply set the value, like you want. But because it's negative, the minus sign can make it look like it's subtracting from the worth of curses.
I have had enough players initially parse it as -1VP more for each Treasure costing $5 or more in your deck, so I will make it unambiguous. Corrected above.

The "in games using this" effects in Dominion: Greed try to be related to the play of the card.
What's the relationship between the passive effect and the on-play effect of Fletcher?  They seem unrelated to me.
The operating word is "try." Fletcher gains cards at a fixed price point and reduces the cost of certain cards which is at least a passive relationship. As you stated, Fletcher\Spy is an especially nice combo since it gives you Estates and a way to deal with them.
Granted, it is not a strong connection: Spy, Marauder, and two other cards from the set are probably the only $4 Attacks one would often gain using Fletcher.
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Dominion: Avarice 1.1a, my fan expansion with "in-games-using-this" cards and Edicts (updated Oct 18, 2021)
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