Can one play too safe? Yes, I think so.
Showing posts with label online CCG. Show all posts
Showing posts with label online CCG. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Sunday, June 21, 2015
Spellweaver - Shenanigans ON TRIAL! Ep1-9: To The Limit
Assassins abound as Sam gives me pointers and I learn the difference between "playing" a creature and "putting it on the field".
Wednesday, June 17, 2015
Spellweaver - Shenanigans ON TRIAL! Ep1-8: Meet Sam!
Viewer interaction can be fun. Today we meet Sam, who has a YouTube channel featuring Spellweaver, SolForge and Robocraft.
Monday, June 15, 2015
Sunday, June 14, 2015
Saturday, June 13, 2015
Spellweaver - Shenanigans ON TRIAL! Ep1-6: Many Elves
Game six features an opponent with a similar deck - can I emerge victorious?
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Spellweaver - Shenanigans ON TRIAL! Ep1-5: The Birds & The Trees
This match spotlights several cards that can dominate the board in many trials.
Monday, June 8, 2015
Friday, June 5, 2015
Spellweaver - Shenanigans ON TRIAL! Ep1-2: Questionable Plays
Here's game one using the trial deck drafted in the previous episode. There were a lot of cards I haven't used much yet, so I make a lot of questionable plays as I learn how they work together.
Thursday, June 4, 2015
10 Win Trial!
 |
| My first 10-win trial deck. Pretty OP! |
Suffice to say, Spellweaver and Hearthstone have at least one thing in common: When drafting, always pick Fireball!
Spellweaver - Shenanigans ON TRIAL! Ep1-1: The Draft
A recent trials run I had while streaming. Here's the draft - the games are on the way!
Also, trials are currently FREE until the end of closed beta! I'm taking that opportunity to get more familiar with trials all week (so expect a lot of streaming the next few days).
Also, trials are currently FREE until the end of closed beta! I'm taking that opportunity to get more familiar with trials all week (so expect a lot of streaming the next few days).
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
Opening 30 Spellweaver Packs!
A clip collection from a semi-recent stream where I opened 30 Spellweaver packs. Pack Hype!
Sunday, May 31, 2015
Introducing Spellweaver - F2P Digital Card Game!
Spellweaver is a free-to-play digital card game that's going into open beta June 15!
If you'd like to know more about the game, check out their site: http://spellweaver-tcg.com
I'm livestreaming Spellweaver throughout the week on my Twitch channel, usually starting after 5pm ET.
Friday, March 6, 2015
Blackrock Mountain and Spellweaver Beta
Of the five cards shown, Hungry Dragon seems to have the most overall potential to join constructed decks and Dark Iron Skulker will likely be a great utility minion for rogues. Rend Blackhand feels a little clunky due to its low health for a 7-drop, and sadly will never see play as long as Dr. Boom goes unchecked.
While Blackrock Mountain sounds like a load of fun, I'm not quite as excited about it compared to when Naxx was announced. I still feel a long ways off from getting all the GvG cards I really want, and the constructed meta settled down way too fast for such a large influx to the card pool.
I've already mentioned a number of cards that perhaps seem a little strong in previous posts, but that's only part of the problem. Most of the other cards throughout the Goblins vs Gnomes set feel so sub-par in comparison that they're not worth playing. Who really wants to open a pack and find Hemet Nesingwary as their legend? Looking through the GvG set, it's fairly easy to identify most cards as either 'playable' or 'trash'. There's only a handful of cards that fit the 'situationally good' slot such as Kezan Mystic, which is a shame. This unfortunate mix is why the meta already felt stale about a month after GvG's release. I find it hard to believe that the 31 new cards from the next expansion will do much to keep constructed play fresh for long, which is why my excitement level for Blackrock Mountain isn't as high as it could be.
Friday, March 28, 2014
Full Huntard Update
There's been several clutch topdecks for matches I really shouldn't have won, but that's the nature of card games.
The debate persists as to how things will end up for the hunter, because there's a good deal of whining about how broken they currently are. After going up six ranks for only a couple hours of play, I'd have to agree they are incredibly powerful. If hunters aren't broken, they're about as close as you can get.
That said, it still does take a bit of skill to excel at ranked play - you simply cannot go face all the time or you will lose. You cannot put your brain on autopilot and play this deck (or any other) to success. If you want to win at a game and not have to think at all, Hearthstone is not the game for you.
I'm not sure if I'll get higher than Rank 5 this season since it's almost over, but it's been an interesting journey. If things don't change, I'll stick with this deck to see how far I can go next season. Otherwise, I have another deck I've been testing that's just as annoying and nearly as effective using a different class and cards. We'll see how things play out in the next week or so.
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Going Full Huntard
(aka If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.)
I've been stuck around Rank 11 the last few days with my Meta Shammy deck, primarily due to the increase in aggressive, low-cost hunters. I've even swapped in Far Seers for health and Feral Spirits for taunt, but it felt like a lost cause. I figured the best way to see what I was doing wrong was to see what my opponents were doing right, and began investigating.
I found a streamer named GaaraBestShaman that ranked from 25 to legendary with hunter playing a deck he called "KFC RUSH". The highest cost card in the deck is Leeroy Jenkins, and the mana curve is more of a spike. Take a look for yourself - after a a couple of slight modifications I've named this "Full Huntard".
With a deck like this, you might assume you always go for face and ignore the opponent's minions... but that's not always the case.
When you can trade up without it being 2-for-1 you probably want to, especially if it's for something like a Knife Juggler. You'll find yourself trading against warlock zoo sometimes, and that's alright if you have another Unleash waiting in your deck.
While Buzzard/Unleash is there, you're typically not trying to max out the number of hounds created and deck yourself (unless of course it means lethal to the opponent). More often you'll Unleash for 3-4, hopefully with a Timber Wolf to allow for trading up.
Hunter's Mark is primarily used to kill big taunts, but may sometimes be needed against other threats you can't deal with easily (Fire Elemental, Ogre, Ragnaros, etc.). Arcane Shot is mostly used to remove pesky minions (Knife Juggler, Flame Imp, Arcane Golem), but can be the damage needed to finish your opponent.
Argent Squire, Leper Gnome, and Loot Hoarder are cheap, efficient minions to do damage in the early game. You can safely play these right away against anyone but rogues, druids, and mages (though Argent Squire is still an ok early drop even then). Stonetusk Boar is a deceptively good card in this deck due to beast synergy and charge.
Two each of Explosive and Freezing Traps serve as board clear, stalling, and giving your Eaglehorn Bow extra charges. Freezing Trap is great if the opponent has one minion on board and doesn't run charge - you can safely play minions without fear of attack (unless they use spells or weapons).
Kill Command, Eaglehorn Bow, and Arcane Golem have a wide variety of uses. While going for face with them all the time is the dream, it's likely you'll need to use them sometimes against 3+ health taunts. Leeroy is hopefully a finisher alongside Unleash the Hounds, and should be saved for the victory if possible.
As for weaknesses, this deck has a tough matchup against heavily-armored warriors and heal-spam priests. You almost need to save Kill Commands for face damage just to mitigate the health/armor gain, but these decks also run large minions that you'll have to deal with.
Defender of Argus can sometimes make your Explosive Trap useless, and Feral Spirit can slow you down when played at the right time. Against other hunters, it's most likely a race to see who gets their Eaglehorn Bow first.
Gaara says this deck isn't easy to play, and that's true if you happen to be a complete moron that can't hit big purple buttons at the right time. Otherwise, only a minor amount of skill is required - pretty much what you'd expect from any decent deck. I've gained three ranks since going Full Huntard, and I admit it's not that hard to do.
That said, I'm relatively sure hunter nerfs are coming soon - whether it's to Unleash the Hounds (again), Explosive Trap, or something else I'm not certain. Something about it sure feels broken, though it does allow players with a modest budget to compete against decks running way more legendaries, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.
I've been stuck around Rank 11 the last few days with my Meta Shammy deck, primarily due to the increase in aggressive, low-cost hunters. I've even swapped in Far Seers for health and Feral Spirits for taunt, but it felt like a lost cause. I figured the best way to see what I was doing wrong was to see what my opponents were doing right, and began investigating.
I found a streamer named GaaraBestShaman that ranked from 25 to legendary with hunter playing a deck he called "KFC RUSH". The highest cost card in the deck is Leeroy Jenkins, and the mana curve is more of a spike. Take a look for yourself - after a a couple of slight modifications I've named this "Full Huntard".
When you can trade up without it being 2-for-1 you probably want to, especially if it's for something like a Knife Juggler. You'll find yourself trading against warlock zoo sometimes, and that's alright if you have another Unleash waiting in your deck.
While Buzzard/Unleash is there, you're typically not trying to max out the number of hounds created and deck yourself (unless of course it means lethal to the opponent). More often you'll Unleash for 3-4, hopefully with a Timber Wolf to allow for trading up.
Hunter's Mark is primarily used to kill big taunts, but may sometimes be needed against other threats you can't deal with easily (Fire Elemental, Ogre, Ragnaros, etc.). Arcane Shot is mostly used to remove pesky minions (Knife Juggler, Flame Imp, Arcane Golem), but can be the damage needed to finish your opponent.
Argent Squire, Leper Gnome, and Loot Hoarder are cheap, efficient minions to do damage in the early game. You can safely play these right away against anyone but rogues, druids, and mages (though Argent Squire is still an ok early drop even then). Stonetusk Boar is a deceptively good card in this deck due to beast synergy and charge.
Two each of Explosive and Freezing Traps serve as board clear, stalling, and giving your Eaglehorn Bow extra charges. Freezing Trap is great if the opponent has one minion on board and doesn't run charge - you can safely play minions without fear of attack (unless they use spells or weapons).
Kill Command, Eaglehorn Bow, and Arcane Golem have a wide variety of uses. While going for face with them all the time is the dream, it's likely you'll need to use them sometimes against 3+ health taunts. Leeroy is hopefully a finisher alongside Unleash the Hounds, and should be saved for the victory if possible.
As for weaknesses, this deck has a tough matchup against heavily-armored warriors and heal-spam priests. You almost need to save Kill Commands for face damage just to mitigate the health/armor gain, but these decks also run large minions that you'll have to deal with.
Defender of Argus can sometimes make your Explosive Trap useless, and Feral Spirit can slow you down when played at the right time. Against other hunters, it's most likely a race to see who gets their Eaglehorn Bow first.
Gaara says this deck isn't easy to play, and that's true if you happen to be a complete moron that can't hit big purple buttons at the right time. Otherwise, only a minor amount of skill is required - pretty much what you'd expect from any decent deck. I've gained three ranks since going Full Huntard, and I admit it's not that hard to do.
That said, I'm relatively sure hunter nerfs are coming soon - whether it's to Unleash the Hounds (again), Explosive Trap, or something else I'm not certain. Something about it sure feels broken, though it does allow players with a modest budget to compete against decks running way more legendaries, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Meta Shaman Control Deck
First off, let me praise one of the best removal cards in the game: Earth Shock. Why? Here's a list of troublesome things you can easily kill with no repercussions:
- Argent Squire
- Bloodmage Thalnos
- Leper Gnome
- Loot Hoarder
- Scarlet Crusader
- Twilight Drake
If you have one spell damage, add to that the following:
- Argent Commander
- Edwin VanCleef
- Questing Adventurer
Not to mention all the other things that could use a good silencing! This is by far an amazing card that can really help to thwart your opponent's plans.
Acidic Swamp Ooze is pretty important in this meta - Eaglehorn Bow, Truesilver Champion, Fiery War Axe, and even Jaraxxus' weapon are very commonly seen. Hold ooze against weapon classes unless you're certain they're not running them.
The midgame is where things really get going with this deck. Yetis, Argus, Sen'jins and Harvest Golems allow you to make good trades and wreck when combined with Flametongue Totems. That said, you're most likely going to be playing board control until you can pull off a finisher with Ragnaros or Bloodlust.
If you don't have the legendaries, you can replace them with Argent Commanders, Earth Elementals, or any other reasonably big and scary minions.
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
Huntard Budget Burst Deck
I decided to test the effectiveness of Starving Buzzard by building what at first looks like a really dumb deck.
As you can tell, it relies on the Starving Buzzard + Unleash the Hounds combo, which at first sounds like a horrible idea. The fact of the matter is that many decks rely on some kind of silly combo to be efficient, so why not give this a spin? Turns out it fairs pretty well.
The trick here is to hold back the big play until about turn 6 or so, allowing you to cast Buzzard + Hounds + a wolf and/or boar as needed. By this point you should be able to draw at least 3 cards from the combo and start cleaning the opponent's board with some beasts left over.
There will be times where you already have a decent hand and do not want to draw, in which case the Scavenging Hyena can be made instantly huge from the hounds instead. You do have to be careful sometimes with buzzard in play - I've decked myself once already (though was able to win that turn).
Freezing Trap, Animal Companion, Emperor Cobra and Kill Command can be used for early removal or tempo if necessary, though it's often better to hold back the last two for bigger removal or burst damage.
I've been beating Paladin Giant Control and both Murloc and Giant Warlocks without issue, which is great considering the control decks are typically chock full of epics and legendaries (which this deck has none of).
Warrior rushdown tends to be a difficult matchup, due to most of their minions having 3+ health and battlecries that you don't want them to replay due to Freezing Trap.
Because of Buzzard and Hyena, Snake Trap is an obvious addition if you have it/can craft it. Savannah Highmane and Stampeding Kodo aren't necessities, and may actually be slowing the deck down when you could just run more cheap beasts. I may test that at some point...
As you can tell, it relies on the Starving Buzzard + Unleash the Hounds combo, which at first sounds like a horrible idea. The fact of the matter is that many decks rely on some kind of silly combo to be efficient, so why not give this a spin? Turns out it fairs pretty well.
The trick here is to hold back the big play until about turn 6 or so, allowing you to cast Buzzard + Hounds + a wolf and/or boar as needed. By this point you should be able to draw at least 3 cards from the combo and start cleaning the opponent's board with some beasts left over.
There will be times where you already have a decent hand and do not want to draw, in which case the Scavenging Hyena can be made instantly huge from the hounds instead. You do have to be careful sometimes with buzzard in play - I've decked myself once already (though was able to win that turn).
Freezing Trap, Animal Companion, Emperor Cobra and Kill Command can be used for early removal or tempo if necessary, though it's often better to hold back the last two for bigger removal or burst damage.
I've been beating Paladin Giant Control and both Murloc and Giant Warlocks without issue, which is great considering the control decks are typically chock full of epics and legendaries (which this deck has none of).
Warrior rushdown tends to be a difficult matchup, due to most of their minions having 3+ health and battlecries that you don't want them to replay due to Freezing Trap.
Because of Buzzard and Hyena, Snake Trap is an obvious addition if you have it/can craft it. Savannah Highmane and Stampeding Kodo aren't necessities, and may actually be slowing the deck down when you could just run more cheap beasts. I may test that at some point...
Thursday, February 13, 2014
How To Play Around OP Cards
Kripparian put out a video recently that quickly explains some of the more commonly seen class cards that tend to wreck in arena, and how to play around them. I think it's worth a watch, particularly for players just getting started.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)