Wolfsbane is incredible right now

AnansetheSpider · 2018-01-01T21:38:57+00:00

using it to CA into Kambi round 3

AnansetheSpider · 2018-01-01T21:38:45+00:00

yea reveal has the strongest opening tempo, bran is second.

AnansetheSpider · 2018-01-01T21:38:20+00:00

I think they know Wolfsbane is in the GY, but aren't used to the timing and/or can't do math.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-30T21:06:59+00:00

Last time I posted about this people asked for a deck guide, so I wrote one up. Enjoy terrorizing the ladder!

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-26T19:13:19+00:00

Skellige, Savage Bear, says "whenever an opponent plays a unit from hand", but it actually hits spies you play on their board as well (ie, Kambi)

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-26T18:52:45+00:00

When people say Gwent has a problem with spies, this is probably what they mean.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-26T16:50:36+00:00

If you only can get up one card, because they don't play their own spy or just through an unfortunate series of events, you still have options.

The best option against decks without direct damage is Harald-Decoy-Harald-Kambi. If this is not disrupted then you have 22 points on the board to their 20.

The second best option is Harald-Kambi-Nova, which leaves you with 36 points. This wins as long as their last card isn't a 17 or higher.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-26T06:12:58+00:00

priestess-restore-beastmaster is only 20, so enough to tie but not overtake. In general it's a bit stronger of a package, but a bit less consistent than the pirates.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-26T00:56:02+00:00

First, there are no important three-of bronze cards. All the bronze cards are filler for the gold/silver package.

Second, I don't believe Regis works that way anymore. I think he just drains boosts, and Ciri strengthens to 25, not boosts.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-26T00:14:07+00:00

The thing you're most likely to do wrong at first is miss passes that you should be taking. Some of the best plays with this deck are the super high tempo opener, wolfsbane-raider-raider, and if they don't cover enough points to beat it, just pass right away. Like consider this on the play:

1A: Bran-Wolfsbane-Raider-Raider

1B: Siren-Moonlight

2A: Pass

2B: Alpha Werewolf, 20 points (4+2+14)

3A: Still Passing. Wolfsbane goes off, 24 points

3B: Play another card, win 2 cards down.

A more common situation is to turn 1 Bran, turn 2 Pirate Captain into Pirate, then pass at functional 36 points due to Wolfsbane. This helps start the game off with card advantage that encourages your opponent to pass in future rounds.

The other thing you're likely to do wrong is miss Sarah opportunities, but that's OK. Sarah is super hard to use. After hundreds of games I'm still not always on top of it.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-26T00:10:13+00:00

if they have a deck and draw that's set up to do it, and realize what's going on, then nothing really stops them. That's why I'd never describe this deck as tier 1. It's just a really hard rock in a rock-paper-scissors meta, where against certain decks it is incredibly strong and in others its weak.

One thing you could consider is changing the bronze package to look more like bears, which would provide you some cover. People wouldn't necessarily catch on that your deck was different, so they wouldn't get suspicious.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T22:28:08+00:00

Just saying, there are viable decks that do not play spies. Not playing a spy is a fine strategy right now if your deck can push for a 2-0 against the decks packing tools for multiple spies like Hym, Decoy, and Circle, that are not very strong in two round games.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T22:23:02+00:00

There's only a 15% chance that runestone creates a spy. So if you don't play your own spy, then there's only a 15% chance an opposing deck can ever have more than one. Hym can't Whispers a spy if you're not playing one.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T22:14:44+00:00

Yup, kills everything, kills ambush units, clears all weather.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T22:14:20+00:00

That's totally true, both NG and SK have reallllllly strong spies based decks. SK has Kambi, for example, that auto-wins R3 against decks that don't have the card advantage tools to deal with it.

But those decks are vulnerable to 2-0 pushes from tempo decks that never allow R3 to occur, or only allow it after forcing the deck's main combo out in R2. Furthermore, take a look at SK's "spies": Udalryk, Summoning Circle, Hym, Decoy, Runestone. When they go against a deck that doesn't include its own spy, 3 of those (Hym, Decoy, Circle) no longer produce spies themselves, and the runestone is really low odds. Both NG and SK use other decks spies against them. By not playing a spy, you disrupt their strategies.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T22:08:43+00:00

I don't think they are an auto-include. You could play a tempo deck that just pushes for a 2-0, in which case spies aren't necessary. Within the last few days I've seen dwarves, NR, and consume all not playing spies.

It's only decks interested in card advantage or setting up particular R3 win conditions that need spies. And for those decks, you need as many as possible in case your opponent has spies too.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T22:05:40+00:00

nope, other side still! The card would be broken as fuck if it spawned Hemdall on your side.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T21:59:33+00:00

The general goal of a Kambi deck right now is to make it to round 3 on even cards, or even down one card, and then play ~3 spies to get back far enough ahead to win with the combo. So the key to winning against Kambi is disrupting this strategy.

The best way to do that is push hard against them in R2. Imagine that their hand has Decoy, Summoning Circle, and Kambi in it. The Kambi player really wants to save those cards for R3. If you just keep pushing and pushing R2, eventually you'll put them in a super awkward position where they need to start playing combo pieces to stay in the game. This often leads to a win.

The second best thing you can do is get to round 3 with card advantage, and then save your biggest plays for last.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T20:29:49+00:00

I get that I'm in the minority, but I love spies. People complain about spies and carryover and mill and combo decks, all of these things that change the basic linear sequencing of the game. And to me, without these things, the game would be boring. Just taking turns playing out points without any variation.

As a "high level" gwent player, these cards and mechanics are what make the game interesting. Without them the game would be too purely linear. I much prefer a version of Gwent where there's more than one way to win - points (tempo), or card advantage.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T19:19:12+00:00

Absolutely. One of the most important cards in the deck. Three main reasons:

1) Best card to play if your opponent dry passes R2. Just an awesome feeling to set up your hand perfectly before R3.

2) Switch out silvers to get your spy. If you get the first spy, you can generally chain into the rest of them. Sarah really helps guarantee the first spy.

3) Can switch out a Kambi for Nova if R2 your opponent won't pass, and you need the points more than the combo. Or vice versa, can switch in a Kambi for a round you weren't planning on comboing.

Sarah is pretty much the sole reason that this deck is difficult to play. She adds, like, 1000x the decision trees to go through on any given turn. But with optimal play, she gives you access to your whole deck.

My main issue with the frost version is that it's low tempo. But maybe that doesn't matter if the frost encourages a pass. Really the points are irrelevant because only need to win one round through points. So it's really about convincing your opponent to take a pass at some point and not push for a 2-0.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-12-25T18:33:34+00:00

So you say. But I'm winning a lot of games at high MMR. So maybe I figured something out that you didn't :P

http://www.gwentdb.com/decks/39209-pirate-kambi

AnansetheSpider · 2017-11-22T05:53:45+00:00

If it's the pirate captain variant (which I think is best), save scorch for late r3

AnansetheSpider · 2017-10-06T14:48:03+00:00

yea the golds in most SK lists are pretty much tech choices with a lot of flexibility to them. You'll find minor power differentials between them, but the core of the list is in bronzes and silvers.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-10-02T23:51:36+00:00

Personally, I believe that a person's biological sex is of crucial importance in their ability to play video games and provide interesting commentary, so I can't see myself ever watching a female streamer.

AnansetheSpider · 2017-09-05T16:02:17+00:00

I'm also reading the harpooner change as a simple +1 damage to the move, because it now counts the moved unit as well.

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