It seems like it should be meta-defining, but it's not quite. Highlander Hunter already runs 6 secrets, and it's hard to imagine running much more than that. It's a fantastic card that should have a place in that deck, but having reached legend with it when it was new to the meta, I think a big skill-test with that deck is when and how to play each secret. I'm not sure if cheating them out randomly actually helps despite the card draw. I think it fits better in a mid-range secret deck that maybe runs 2-4 different secrets, but multiple copies of some of them.
I think you could build a Waxadred deck with the same end-goal as a Chef Nomi deck. If you can Necrium Blade/Vial 2-3 times and reach the end of your deck then you essentially have a permanent board of 7/5s threatening your opponent. Plague of Death is the only board clear that deals with it effectively.
I'm not disagreeing with the deliciousness of your suggestions, but at a certain point it's no longer a grilled cheese, but just another sandwich. The beauty of a great grilled cheese is how few ingredients you need. IMO Brode was already pushing it with that mustard. I will, however, always defend a couple of tomato slices.
My thoughts immediately went to the single-player adventure, and I wonder if there's a way the community will decide which faction wins based on aggregate stats from the single player campaign.
Something I'd really like to see on this site is an article talking about the various games, the player bases, how long matches take, how long match-making takes, card economy etc. I don't want the site to go all-in on ES: Legends, Shadowverse, Faeria, Gwent etc., but it might be nice to find out the status of these games from time to time. I don't know of another site or resource that really compares/contrasts all the MTG/Hearthstone imitators. I remember a few years ago I tried getting into Hex, and it was one of the most inaccessible games I've tried. I know nothing about Eternal, but I'd be curious about its history to date, player-base, etc.
This is the article I've been waiting for, and your summary is very much in-line with how I read it. I played Magic 20 years ago, and was excited to try out MTG: Arena. Then I got mana-screwed. Over and over and over again. Even if you don't get completely screwed, if your opponent curves perfectly, and has a 1-2 land advantage through the mid-game, there's nearly nothing you can do. Same with drawing dead lands in the late game. It flooded me with unpleasant memories of playing the game 20 years prior. It's still the Ur-CCG, but I'll take the RNG of Hearthstone over the Magic mana-system 100% of the time.
I also remember being an expert (among my friends) of the spell stack and order of operations in Magic. Making that smooth was one of the most impressive things about MTG: Arena. Waiting on the phases was certainly no worse than the Hearthstone players that take 60 seconds to play a single vanilla minion on turn four.
The genius of this game seems to be streamlining and rethinking the spell stack and really the entire turn structure. Having both players getting to play slow spells regardless of who has attack initiative is brilliant. Also, while I'm a little rusty on Magic, the Burst vs. Fast explanation makes more sense to me than the Instant vs. Interrupt. Fast spells certainly have more restrictions on when you can play them than Instants which makes for less phases overall. Add in the restricted unused mana pool, and the best of Magic & Hearthstone's keywords, and I'm legit pumped.
You were very upfront about this in the transition, and I like the philosophy behind it. I'm interested to see you guys cover this game as it launches even if I never play it. I followed Artifact's launch - very skeptically - and it's good to know what's going on in the industry. If it's a dud, I expect coverage will stop. If it develops a solid player base, I may try it out.
One thing I especially appreciate is that the site hasn't gone all in on MTG. 1) The antiquated mulligan system and getting mana-screwed drives me as insane today as it did when I quit the game for the first time in 1997 (I am old). 2) It's just soooooo much. It's too much. It's huge. And other sites are out there doing a spectacular job of covering it. I don't think the game is going away (I didn't realize until 2010 that the game was MORE popular than when I had quit in '97), but I like that this space isn't compelled to cover it, let alone every card release.
I would be interested in articles that covered the state of digital CCGs once a quarter. Player-bases and stuff like that. Popular streamers for different games. That's where I can find out if there's anything groundbreaking or new with MTG: Arena. Kripp sometimes still features a game of Shadowverse or ESO Legends. Are those worth playing every now and again? Did Gwent ever become a thing? What weird thing is Noxious up to (other than writing kick-ass articles for this site). Are Amaz and Toast playing HS this week?
Basically, continue to be picky about what games you go all-in on, but always feel free to engage in world-building beyond HS.
This is a reasonable response that probably meets most of our expectations, but that doesn't make it good or moral.
I've been genuinely inspired by the international solidarity shown by the Hearthstone/Blizzard community. This is somewhat unconnected, but I remember feeling a similar sense of awe and pride several years ago when MMA (a South Korean SC2 player) got a chanting ovation at an early MLG tournament in Columbus, OH. It was this crystallizing moment where it was clear that the fans and community had created something way bigger and more meaningful beyond the company or tournament organizers. I had long known about Brood War's popularity in SK, but I hadn't considered how powerfully these games had connected people from around the world.
Human rights are constantly under attack, whether it's China subjugating Hong Kong, the genocide against the Kurds, or refugee detention camps around the world. There are countless examples, and it's overwhelming for any one person to consider. I certainly turn to video games as a distraction and off switch to the constant flood of the world. However, I do find time to volunteer and organize in my community, and the only thing that makes it possible or bearable is connecting with other people.
I'm generally talking about connecting IRL, but THIS is also one of those communities. I haven't played Hearthstone in days, but I've been checking OutOfCards daily. I hope I contributed to a dip in their daily player rates at the same time casters and employees were bringing their more direct power to bear. Let's be frank: Blizzard Activision is NOT Blizzard. They still make great games, and employ many great people, but it's never going to have that "family" feel from the mid 00s again. It's a massive multi-national that is going to side with profits, shareholder value, and market share over employees, customers, and purported values whenever there's a conflict.
Yet their games are completely dependent on the community. A remarkably organized community. There will undoubtedly be future opportunities to bring pressure on Blizzard over human rights and free expression with China. It may seem small - a proxy battle for geopolitical issues way beyond our control. But think about what this means for blitzchung. Our collective action of international solidarity armed an activist for freedom and democracy with $10,000. Let me tell you as an activist in the U.S. - that can go real far, from mutual aid, to paying organizers, to buying food and supplies for volunteers.
Feel good about this. Feel your part in it. Feel part of the community that made it happen. Carry that energy forward into other projects in your life. Hope is a discipline. Practice whenever you can.
I've been planning on taking a break from Hearthstone for awhile, and this seems like an opportune time. I'll still visit OoC each day to see the latest.
Given what we know about how far out they plan expansions, I have a feeling huge changes are in the works for the April rotation. That's my key takeaway here. It's not going to be limited to Priest.
Minor site feedback: When you have two headers of the same color it's hard to differentiate sections. "Brann Bronzebeard" and "Wee Minions" look too similar even with different sizes. I generally love the site design, but it might be nice to have an extra color in the scheme for long lists like these.
I know it's only a week away, but is there more fun datamined content coming or is this the bulk of it? New treasures? Bosses? Bob? Tavern Brawl chalkboards? etc?
I hit Legend for the first time in my five years of playing last month with Highlander Hunter. One of the variations I really, really liked was removing Siamat. Sometimes Sandbinder is just a bad 4-drop, but drawing Zephrys 100% of the time won me lethal after lethal (both same turn and next turn). It's hard to argue with the 35-2 run above, but I wonder if the Highlander Warrior would benefit from a similar change.
I'm surprised the Quest Paladin decklist is so unchanged from the first week of the expansion. It feels like there should be a better version because it's so, so weak to aggro. If it was more consistent though it might become too dominant.
Can someone explain how Phase 2 works a little bit better? Are they still playing Arena? Are they drafting decks in Arena and then recreating them in the collection to play Conquest?
It seems like it should be meta-defining, but it's not quite. Highlander Hunter already runs 6 secrets, and it's hard to imagine running much more than that. It's a fantastic card that should have a place in that deck, but having reached legend with it when it was new to the meta, I think a big skill-test with that deck is when and how to play each secret. I'm not sure if cheating them out randomly actually helps despite the card draw. I think it fits better in a mid-range secret deck that maybe runs 2-4 different secrets, but multiple copies of some of them.
I think you could build a Waxadred deck with the same end-goal as a Chef Nomi deck. If you can Necrium Blade/Vial 2-3 times and reach the end of your deck then you essentially have a permanent board of 7/5s threatening your opponent. Plague of Death is the only board clear that deals with it effectively.
I'm not disagreeing with the deliciousness of your suggestions, but at a certain point it's no longer a grilled cheese, but just another sandwich. The beauty of a great grilled cheese is how few ingredients you need. IMO Brode was already pushing it with that mustard. I will, however, always defend a couple of tomato slices.
Anti-stream-sniping. Now we know how they're paying Kripp for his consulting services on the Battlegrounds Alpha.
Heavy card. Replaces SW:D in Galakrond decks.
Dumb question, but I'm having trouble telling from the golden artwork if this is a Warlock class legendary or a neutral legendary. Can anyone clarify?
My thoughts immediately went to the single-player adventure, and I wonder if there's a way the community will decide which faction wins based on aggregate stats from the single player campaign.
Something I'd really like to see on this site is an article talking about the various games, the player bases, how long matches take, how long match-making takes, card economy etc. I don't want the site to go all-in on ES: Legends, Shadowverse, Faeria, Gwent etc., but it might be nice to find out the status of these games from time to time. I don't know of another site or resource that really compares/contrasts all the MTG/Hearthstone imitators. I remember a few years ago I tried getting into Hex, and it was one of the most inaccessible games I've tried. I know nothing about Eternal, but I'd be curious about its history to date, player-base, etc.
This is the article I've been waiting for, and your summary is very much in-line with how I read it. I played Magic 20 years ago, and was excited to try out MTG: Arena. Then I got mana-screwed. Over and over and over again. Even if you don't get completely screwed, if your opponent curves perfectly, and has a 1-2 land advantage through the mid-game, there's nearly nothing you can do. Same with drawing dead lands in the late game. It flooded me with unpleasant memories of playing the game 20 years prior. It's still the Ur-CCG, but I'll take the RNG of Hearthstone over the Magic mana-system 100% of the time.
I also remember being an expert (among my friends) of the spell stack and order of operations in Magic. Making that smooth was one of the most impressive things about MTG: Arena. Waiting on the phases was certainly no worse than the Hearthstone players that take 60 seconds to play a single vanilla minion on turn four.
The genius of this game seems to be streamlining and rethinking the spell stack and really the entire turn structure. Having both players getting to play slow spells regardless of who has attack initiative is brilliant. Also, while I'm a little rusty on Magic, the Burst vs. Fast explanation makes more sense to me than the Instant vs. Interrupt. Fast spells certainly have more restrictions on when you can play them than Instants which makes for less phases overall. Add in the restricted unused mana pool, and the best of Magic & Hearthstone's keywords, and I'm legit pumped.
You were very upfront about this in the transition, and I like the philosophy behind it. I'm interested to see you guys cover this game as it launches even if I never play it. I followed Artifact's launch - very skeptically - and it's good to know what's going on in the industry. If it's a dud, I expect coverage will stop. If it develops a solid player base, I may try it out.
One thing I especially appreciate is that the site hasn't gone all in on MTG. 1) The antiquated mulligan system and getting mana-screwed drives me as insane today as it did when I quit the game for the first time in 1997 (I am old). 2) It's just soooooo much. It's too much. It's huge. And other sites are out there doing a spectacular job of covering it. I don't think the game is going away (I didn't realize until 2010 that the game was MORE popular than when I had quit in '97), but I like that this space isn't compelled to cover it, let alone every card release.
I would be interested in articles that covered the state of digital CCGs once a quarter. Player-bases and stuff like that. Popular streamers for different games. That's where I can find out if there's anything groundbreaking or new with MTG: Arena. Kripp sometimes still features a game of Shadowverse or ESO Legends. Are those worth playing every now and again? Did Gwent ever become a thing? What weird thing is Noxious up to (other than writing kick-ass articles for this site). Are Amaz and Toast playing HS this week?
Basically, continue to be picky about what games you go all-in on, but always feel free to engage in world-building beyond HS.
This is a reasonable response that probably meets most of our expectations, but that doesn't make it good or moral.
I've been genuinely inspired by the international solidarity shown by the Hearthstone/Blizzard community. This is somewhat unconnected, but I remember feeling a similar sense of awe and pride several years ago when MMA (a South Korean SC2 player) got a chanting ovation at an early MLG tournament in Columbus, OH. It was this crystallizing moment where it was clear that the fans and community had created something way bigger and more meaningful beyond the company or tournament organizers. I had long known about Brood War's popularity in SK, but I hadn't considered how powerfully these games had connected people from around the world.
Human rights are constantly under attack, whether it's China subjugating Hong Kong, the genocide against the Kurds, or refugee detention camps around the world. There are countless examples, and it's overwhelming for any one person to consider. I certainly turn to video games as a distraction and off switch to the constant flood of the world. However, I do find time to volunteer and organize in my community, and the only thing that makes it possible or bearable is connecting with other people.
I'm generally talking about connecting IRL, but THIS is also one of those communities. I haven't played Hearthstone in days, but I've been checking OutOfCards daily. I hope I contributed to a dip in their daily player rates at the same time casters and employees were bringing their more direct power to bear. Let's be frank: Blizzard Activision is NOT Blizzard. They still make great games, and employ many great people, but it's never going to have that "family" feel from the mid 00s again. It's a massive multi-national that is going to side with profits, shareholder value, and market share over employees, customers, and purported values whenever there's a conflict.
Yet their games are completely dependent on the community. A remarkably organized community. There will undoubtedly be future opportunities to bring pressure on Blizzard over human rights and free expression with China. It may seem small - a proxy battle for geopolitical issues way beyond our control. But think about what this means for blitzchung. Our collective action of international solidarity armed an activist for freedom and democracy with $10,000. Let me tell you as an activist in the U.S. - that can go real far, from mutual aid, to paying organizers, to buying food and supplies for volunteers.
Feel good about this. Feel your part in it. Feel part of the community that made it happen. Carry that energy forward into other projects in your life. Hope is a discipline. Practice whenever you can.
The next step is players pulling out. Is this controversy affecting other games like Overwatch and SC2? Are they having the same discussion?
I've been planning on taking a break from Hearthstone for awhile, and this seems like an opportune time. I'll still visit OoC each day to see the latest.
Given what we know about how far out they plan expansions, I have a feeling huge changes are in the works for the April rotation. That's my key takeaway here. It's not going to be limited to Priest.
Dino Tracking is absolutely busted. I can't wait to play with that Hero Power.
Minor site feedback: When you have two headers of the same color it's hard to differentiate sections. "Brann Bronzebeard" and "Wee Minions" look too similar even with different sizes. I generally love the site design, but it might be nice to have an extra color in the scheme for long lists like these.
The quests would also be pointless since the adventure hero powers are generally much, much stronger than the quest replacements.
I know it's only a week away, but is there more fun datamined content coming or is this the bulk of it? New treasures? Bosses? Bob? Tavern Brawl chalkboards? etc?
I hit Legend for the first time in my five years of playing last month with Highlander Hunter. One of the variations I really, really liked was removing Siamat. Sometimes Sandbinder is just a bad 4-drop, but drawing Zephrys 100% of the time won me lethal after lethal (both same turn and next turn). It's hard to argue with the 35-2 run above, but I wonder if the Highlander Warrior would benefit from a similar change.
I'm surprised the Quest Paladin decklist is so unchanged from the first week of the expansion. It feels like there should be a better version because it's so, so weak to aggro. If it was more consistent though it might become too dominant.
Can someone explain how Phase 2 works a little bit better? Are they still playing Arena? Are they drafting decks in Arena and then recreating them in the collection to play Conquest?