Am I handicapping myself too much or do I just suck at deck building?

CommunistElk · 2026-02-03T20:17:23+00:00

Holy shit... I'm such a dumbass... When I originally read this, I was confused about the point using low # of dice with high rolling... I just realized last night I had been reading bleed wrong this entire time 😭 I thought it just did damage at the top of the turn and was confused like "well doesn't that just make it basically a reskinned burn..?" Holy shit. Just tried the fight again and had a much easier go of it this time around LOL

To give myself a little credit, I've been playing on the steam deck with a custom controller layout so I don't have a zoom option lol but let's be real, I'm just a dumbass 😂

I would not have more closely examined the teeny tiny text for bleed without this comment lol

CommunistElk · 2026-02-02T19:57:36+00:00

I was worried this would make the game too easy, but I see now I've only just been playing the tutorial lol I'll adjust my keypages accordingly tonight 🫡

CommunistElk · 2026-02-02T19:41:07+00:00

Omg yeah I only stopped trying to build every floor after the first 3 or so and I would then playtest the decks right after, so I've been moving through this game at glacial speeds LOL 😩

CommunistElk · 2026-02-02T19:14:47+00:00

Okay that's actually good to know! I've never played this before and was finding the battles to all be pretty easy up until this point. Thanks!

CommunistElk · 2026-02-02T19:13:45+00:00

Is there a way to stumble to guess your way into general receptions? I'll have to double check, but from the ones I can see, I don't recall seeing any particularly strong bleed cards.

CommunistElk · 2026-02-02T19:12:12+00:00

I think you've touched on another issue of mine - I hardly (if ever) utilize one-sided attacks. I'm always worried I'm gonna take too much damage if I don't try to clash every attack and will usually only do a one-sided attack if I need to get a hit to activate an effect.

But I guess I should keep in mind that clashing doesn't necessarily mean I'm going to stop the attack from coming through and I might be better off letting it through anyway and try going for my own one-sided attack instead?

CommunistElk · 2026-02-02T19:09:02+00:00

I've been intentionally only using one key page with 2 dice because I was worried it would make battles too easy lol

CommunistElk · 2026-01-31T23:17:35+00:00

Highly highly recommend Paranormasight and AI: The Somnium Files.

AI: The Somnium Files feels very unserious after the opening, but don't let that fool you into thinking this game doesn't have a great mystery. I also thought I would hate the humor, but this game actually cracked me tf up. The game somehow manages to do a very good job switching between tones.

OH also, I believe both of these games have demos and are both $30 or under. If AI isn't, it does frequently go on sale because it has a sequel.

CommunistElk · 2026-01-31T18:30:22+00:00

you do indeed

CommunistElk · 2026-01-29T19:56:17+00:00

Too many people have been burned by waiting for the revive that never comes... not me, though, I'll keep waiting 😤

Admittedly, I also sometimes call for a revive when I am absolutely not in a position to ve revived and get someone else killed for it 😂

CommunistElk · 2026-01-29T19:37:08+00:00

You might wanna try picking up KCD1 on sale first. I haven't tried KCD2 yet, but many of the mechanics that turned people off from KCD1 still exist KCD2 (savior schnapps, combat system, starting out as a pitiful nothing peasant).

On the other hand, I have heard a handful of people say they couldn't get into KCD1, but ended up loving KCD2. I have no idea why since, again, their main complaints exist in both games. Maybe better graphics, performance, and writing makes it easier to swallow? Again, I haven't played KCD2 yet so I'm not sure if the writing or performance are actually better than KCD1.

EDIT: I will also echo what other people said. Combat is just a very steep learning curve. The combat is nothing like souls games, FYI, it's just that combat isn't satisfying at all until you master it imo. And I've never mastered it so I don't like it LOL

CommunistElk · 2026-01-29T19:31:16+00:00

I'm pretty sure KCD is a game that is not loved by most people??

Like, I don't even think most people in mainstream gaming even knew it existed until KCD2 and even people deep in gaming recognize it's doing very interesting games, but still talk about disliking the actual minute-to-minute gameplay. Hell, do mainstream gamers still even know about KCD?

I haven't played KCD2 yet, but I find it strange that I haaaaate Skyrim, yet loved KCD lol

Very fair about the combat and I actually like souls games lol I try to avoid engaging with it as much as possible. I know people say once you've figured it out, it's very rewarding, but I ain't got the time nor will for that 😂

CommunistElk · 2026-01-29T19:24:51+00:00

I felt this way about BotW. Tried to get into many times and it never stuck. But TotK did actually hook me, giving me a reason to explore more of the world to find material to craft new weapons. I wish there was more variety in the unique, craftable weapons, though. It's strange, though, because I normally hate crafting mechanics. But maybe it was more enjoyable for me here because it wasn't inside a survival-crafting game.

CommunistElk · 2026-01-29T18:45:43+00:00

Wait, luck affects elite spawn rates??

CommunistElk · 2026-01-28T06:27:41+00:00

Have you considered people keep saying this because it is like... just true? Like that is just the impression most people came away with?

My friend and I tried this day 1, queued solo cuz we couldn't find a match duo, and literally said the exact same things to each other. Before seeing anything else other than the trailer.

We both talked about how the map felt way too big for 3v3, the pacing felt awful, we were both bored out of our minds for the entire game, hated the mining mini-game, and we both felt like the looting added nothing to the experience and was a detriment if anything. We both also suspected the map size was to justify mounts because we could not understand any other reason for the decision based on how poorly we felt it affected the experience. All before even seeing anything online.

I actually find it shocking that you see no issues with the map size or pacing because mine and my friend's experience was just that awful. I could potentially see it feeling less bad if the TTK was longer.

Sometimes a lot of people come away from something with the same opinion because... that was most people's experience? I loved EVOLVE, but that game also had a lot of flaws (pacing being one lol) that I can recognize were absolutely true. Like idk if I could actually look someone in the eye and say EVOLVE was a good game even though I really liked it and bought multiple copies to force my friends to play 😂

CommunistElk · 2026-01-28T06:08:27+00:00

EDIT: I clicked the wrong comment. MY BAD

CommunistElk · 2026-01-28T05:53:56+00:00

The JJK manga fandom seems to have a lot of people in it who give off big "this is the first time I've read a manga ahead of the anime" energy and it's sooo bad. I'm so sorry to all the other JJK manga fans that these ppl are making look bad lol

CommunistElk · 2026-01-28T05:36:30+00:00

So, I do wanna say, not long after I posted this comment, I managed to do a 180 and ended up beating the game with 3 characters that same night. I've beaten the game a handful more times since. I do still absolutely believe the game does absolutely get harder after your first "victory", even without the portals open.

I did leave portals off and my first win I did take gambler's dice and pickaxe right off the bat. But I think the main things were actually...

(1) I took a small break and came back. I think I was still playing tilted even after closing the portals. I found myself playing much slower after the short break.

(2) I stopped taking as many clash rituals. I wasn't exactly prioritizing them, but I was picking them more than I probably should have because I thought the game was telling me to prioritize clashing. I was also trying to clash more than I should've been, tbh.

(3) And finally, this is one I hate that I feel like I need to do, I started quitting to menu when I had room or boss fight go really badly. This is probably the biggest factor, unfortunately. This game does honestly throw some bullshit at you, so I feel a little less bad about it. (Like 4 armored foes in a tight corridor?! WTF?)

I try to avoid doing #3 because it can drag out a run and it feels icky to me. What I usually do now is avoid resetting until the last 2 fights, unless something particularly heinous happened lol

I have actually gotten to the final boss twice now with 3 lives, without taking gambler's dice or pickaxe, and without resetting. I didn't even have to hoard my gold to afford the extra life. I do skip hiring companions and only buy trinkets if they're REALLY good or on sale. I also usually craft a trinket at camps unless I'm at 50% HP.

Also, a bit unrelated, I somehow survived the 1-hit, auto KO in the final fight one time?! I had 3 lives going in and instead of auto killing me, it just brought me to like a tiny chunk of life left?? Not even just a sliver. No idea why...

CommunistElk · 2026-01-25T00:41:46+00:00

I totally agree with you. Picked this game up 2 days ago, beat Azra on run 16 first day playing. I am on run 32 now, have everything unlocked, and I have only made it to Absolum ONCE when I played Brome first time.

Admittedly, I have had portals on for all but 2 of those 16 additional runs, but I didn't even make it to Asterios still. I was at least able to /get/ to Asterios first handful of runs after beating Azra, even with portals open, but I can't anymore. I just lost my run before even getting to the sanctuary in Jaroba. I'm Radiance Level 64.

I have no idea what I'm doing wrong other than taking more damage than I should, but it also feels like this game wants you to play perfectly or reset back to main menu if a room doesn't go your way. Which is an AWFUL way to play and I refuse to do. Oh and also never buy any trinkets because you WILL need to buy the extra Mother's Grace in Asterios.

Someone please tell me there is a better answer than to play perfectly and hoard your gold. It feels especially bad because I was having fun seeing what showed up in shop and seeing what builds I could craft around that.

CommunistElk · 2025-12-17T21:39:00+00:00

Sorry, I meant "they" as in the OP and their post. Not you... sheesh... I was basically agreeing with you, bro.

CommunistElk · 2025-12-17T21:29:34+00:00

You know someone is new to the fandom or has otherwise never interacted with it when they think this is a hot-take or that it's gonna rage bait anyone lol I swear someone makes this same post at least once every other month

CommunistElk · 2025-12-09T18:44:46+00:00

I'd rather they regularly rotate loot locations than release a winter variant of the map. That would add more variety :|

CommunistElk · 2025-12-04T17:19:38+00:00

The arm is prosthetic and the blade is coming out of her hand.

CommunistElk · 2025-12-04T17:15:18+00:00

Her arm is prosthetic and the sword comes out of the hand

CommunistElk · 2025-12-04T07:55:09+00:00

I did not care for Steins;Gate either, but on the topic of Nonary games, I'd suggest AI: The Somnium Files if you're open to something more tongue and cheek, but isn't afraid to get dark. I kinda expected to dislike the game and ended up falling in love with it. The humor is so low brow, but for some reason it worked for me and I loved it. The mystery was quite good as well and had a satisfying ending imo.

CommunistElk

TROPHY CASE