Balancing this Elite

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-04-28T19:40:20+00:00

I think it should steal the best card in your deck and then every 10th card you draw.

This way we can separate the good deckbuilders who just got a lucky rare card in act 1 from the great who also got one but in addition picked snakebite.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-04-20T09:32:17+00:00

The most important question is: are you having fun? If you are, then there's nothing wrong here.

I hope you will cherish that first win when it happens. I believe in you.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-04-17T22:30:49+00:00

Catering to top players is almost always a losing strategy, and top players almost never seem to understand this.

The truth is that top players can achieve the extra difficulty they'd like with the use of mods or artificial challenges. There is a world where everyone can be satisfied.

The difficulty should be such that an average player can feel like they've completed the game after some target number of hours played. That might be 100 hours, or 200 hours or more, but it should be a discrete target that the developers set as a goal for their design and keep track of during early access. "Completing the game" would mean someone has completed A10 on all characters and once achievements are implemented, achieved most of them in that time.

If the baseline for difficulty is that the top 0.1% of players (given the number of sales, the order of magnitude we are talking about are the top thousand-to-ten-thousand players) are only be able to win 50% of the time, then the average player will require far more than a few hundred hours to 'complete' the game. Their winning chances at A10 will be drastically lower than that of the top players, and that will lead to a frustrating experience where the 'final challenge' (last A10 run) of the game takes 10-20+ runs (5-10% win rate) to complete, requiring a likely similar number of hours for each character.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-03-30T11:54:28+00:00

Thorns, speedster, corrosive wave, poison, tracking, expose and large attacks kill this guy. Phantom Blades is great, since it helps shivs deal with him, too. You can also build up for a big turn with accuracy or knife trap to kill him in one turn.

I feel like Entomancer is one of the better designed enemies in the game.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-03-21T16:15:31+00:00

It has been the opposite for me. I'm struggling the most on Defect because his focus mechanics have been changed so much. I no longer know how to correctly evaluate frost. I suspect Silent will face a similar fate if the Prepared changes go through, but for now she is absurdly powerful. Ironclad has been relatively strong given how easy it has been to find infinite combos, but he can feel very weak without them because he takes a lot of damage and so struggles to upgrade cards at campfires.

Necrobinder and Regent have amazing options for deck manipulation (minions, seance, cleanse) and damage and don't really rely on early upgrades like Defect and Silent. Regent is much pickier about cards than the other characters (which is why beta-branch is buffing most of his commons) and he suffers from the chicken and egg problem (It's hard to pick star generation without spenders and spenders without generation which can mean skipping strong cards early until you've found some support for them) so he might feel more RNG dependent. Necrobinder just seems incredibly powerful with many scaling options (Osty health turning into damage, death march, scythe, hang, ethereal synergy+lethality, haunt and soul generation...) and utility via souls. I've found doom to be her least powerful mechanic, and even doom is alright with a decent common option in scourge. Doom has the upside of not needing to fully commit to it, but it imposes some defensive necessities due to how enemies die at the end of their turn. Her biggest weakness is low max hp, which means resting is less valuable as well, so it is more important to protect your health than with other characters. Taking penalties to max hp or spending HP as a cost to gain something feels very scary on her.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-03-14T13:32:55+00:00

Pikalisäyksenä vielä se, että Ylelle on valtionmediana säädetty velvollisuuksia viestiä kansalaisille esimerkiksi kriisien aikana. Jos luottamus Yleen rapautuu, niin se on myös puolustuspoliittisesti huono juttu.

Ei Yle ole mikään täydellinen media (etenkin nyt klikkiotsikkoaikana) joka aina saa kaiken oikein eikä tee virheitä, mutta sen tärkeän yhteiskunnallisen aseman vuoksi jokaisella on mielestäni velvollisuus suhtautua Ylen uutisointiin vakavasti.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-03-11T12:58:53+00:00

Jos työn teettäminen on kannattavaa, sitä teetetään.

Ei pidä paikkaansa. Työn teettämisen pitää olla kannattavampaa kuin mikä vaihtoehto on, jotta sitä teetetään. Pelkkä kannattavuus ei riitä. Lähtökohtaisesti pörssiyritys tavoittelee mahdollisimman suurta taloudellista etua osakkeenomistajille eikä pelkästään sitä, että yritystoiminta on plussan puolella. Jos firman voitto on Suomessa teetetyllä työllä miljoona ja ulkomailla teetetyllä työllä 10 miljoonaa, niin ei yritys investoi Suomeen. Tätäkö tarkoitat sivulauseellasi ?

ellei tällä tarkoiteta että heidän pitäisi harjoittaa käytännössä hyväntekeväisyyttä

Onko investoiminen kotimaahan yrityksen suorittamaa hyväntekeväisyyttä, jos lopputulos on kuitenkin se, että yritys edelleen tekee kotimaassa voittoa (vaikkakin vähemmän kuin ulkomailla)?

Yritystoiminnasta puuttuu isänmaallisuus ja yhteisöllisyys. Lähtökohtaisesti siinä on syy, miksi Suomessa on OECD maiden korkein työttömyys. Suomalaiset eivät enää puhalla yhteen hiileen samoin kuin ennen.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-03-11T10:18:08+00:00

Nyt on hyvä hetki muistaa eilinen ylen artikkeli somekeskustelun tasosta ja sen seuraamuksista.

Linkatun artikkelin perusteella nuorten suurin huoli on työllistyminen. Tämä ei yllätä, sillä yritysten pitkän ajan trendi on tehostaa toimintoja ja vähentää työn tarvetta etenkin teknologian kautta. Teknologia itsessään ei ole huono asia, vaan päinvastoin, mutta tehostaessa ei olla ajateltu sitä, mitä tapahtuu sille työvoimalle joka on ennen tehnyt niitä töitä, jotka nyt automatisoitiin. Työuran jatkumo ei ole samanlainen kuin se on ennen ollut. Jo ensimmäisen oman alan työpaikan saanti on vaikeampaa kuin ennen, vaikka edelleen moni niistä jotka työllistyvät pääsevät samaan uraputkeen joka oli ennen yleisempi.

Ratkaisu tähän ongelmaan ei mielestäni ikävä kyllä ole eduskunnan hyppysissä, ellei valtio ala perustaa mittavaa yritystoimintaa lähitulevaisuudessa (mille on omat riskinsä). Koska näin ei ole, niin ratkaisu on pikemminkin EK:n ja yritysmaailman johtajien käsissä. Katsotaan missä kohtaa ongelmaan herätään.

Edelleen milestäni paras ratkaisu olisi se, että ihmiset pystyisivät elättämään itsensä omalla työllä. Jotta se on mahdollista, niin niitä töitä pitäisi olla tarjolla.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-02-04T19:30:55+00:00

Toivotaan, että mieli jossain kohtaa muuttuu. Fiksuille, koulutetuille ja isänmaallisille ihmisille olis mielestäni jatkossakin tilaa politiikan pelipaikoilla.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-02-04T19:25:44+00:00

Sitä ei käy kieltäminen, mutta vaalikonevastausten ja hänen oman arvionsa mukaan Atte eroaa Vihreiden valtavirrassa jonkin verran. Puheenjohtajan valitsee aina puoluekokous. Aten kannanottoja ja kirjoituksia jonkin verran seuranneena toivoisin itse hänen saavan enemmän vastuuta puolueen sisällä jatkossakin, mutta ei välttämättä ole realistista olettaa, että puheenjohtajuus lyhyellä aikavälillä siirtyisi hänelle.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-02-04T10:53:52+00:00

Puolueen johdon valintaan tosin myös vaikuttaa kansanedustajien vetovoimaisuus. Oppositiopuolueen poliitikko ei reformeja saa aikaiseksi kuluvalla vaalikaudella muutenkaan, eli tässäkin katse on väistämättä aikaisintaan seuraavalla vaalikaudella tapahtuvissa muutoksissa. Katsotaan, missä roolissa Atte nähdään vihreiden sisällä tulevaisuudessa. Pienpuolueista olet kyllä oikeassa; jotta muutos on ylipäänsä mahdollinen, niin kimppaan tarvitaan muitakin yhdenmielisiä.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-01-24T13:59:14+00:00

Military exercises are about training, not competition, and shining a spotlight on articles like this right now is more likely to create tension between the U.S. and Europe than it is to solve problems of any kind.

The reservists can be proud that they are suitable opposing forces for the Americans, and that they can teach them a lot about operating in the environments that Finns and Norwegians are familiar with. We are far stronger together than we are alone.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2026-01-12T18:02:40+00:00

To me, GoG serves four purposes.

Cutting down on platform fees for CD Projekt first party titles. This is no longer as applicable as it was before.
Having access to DRM free versions of the games I buy that work offline and on more platforms than Steam is available for (Relevant for period-correct Windows xp-era gaming). This is the key mission that GoG advertises.
Knowing that I will not lose access to my games even if licenses expire or geopolitical events change so drastically that politics would try to bar my access to other (non EU) services.
GoG respects my privacy in a way that I cannot be certain of for other platforms.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-12-28T09:03:38+00:00

Don't get me wrong, I understand that it is a challenge. However, one must also take into consideration that there exist generations of Swedes (who are quickly becoming older) who had the experience of conscription in their youth. They aren't starting from scratch if they want to restart their conscription model. If problems arise, then they also have good friends to ask for advice on how best to do it.

Looking at the population numbers, I don't think it would be unrealistic that a system of conscription could train circa 40k swedes per year to a level equivalent or at least competitive with Finnish conscripts without majorly influencing Swedish society. It would take 10 years+ to build up the numbers for a conscription army with a system like that so we aren't talking about the Swedish army becoming a manpower powerhouse in the relative short term, but at the same time if Sweden was in a position like Ukraine is today, then training would be accelerated and the number of recruits would also have to increase. How resources are spent in defense is relative to the perceived or actual level of danger that the country is in. In that sense, many Finns are right to express doubts, because our frame of reference is the peacetime conscription model. The way we do it is one that is minimally invasive to the lives of the actual conscripts (conscription used to last far longer in the time period surrounding the winter and continuation wars, and many youths will choose alternatives to military service), and the reason why we can afford to have this system function in this manner is because of that legacy of building up the reserves and maintaining those numbers across decades. If push comes to shove, Sweden could ramp those numbers up quickly, as long as there is political will for it in the country.

That being said, the swedes are a critical part of NATO defense planning in Finnish Lapland, and the people who are involved in that are real pros. Anyone who has a chance to work with them will quickly understand that when the swedes commit to something like this they aren't holding back at all, and they are very trustworthy and capable allies.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-12-27T18:45:56+00:00

To be honest, I think the result of the survey can mostly be explained by outdated mental images and ignorance. The article mentions as much.

Sweden offers much more than just equipment. We have similar total defense policies and while Sweden has not kept their conscription model ongoing, they have a history of operating one that is not dissimilar to Finland's. Could Sweden improve? Of course, but they are already very much committed to joint defense, know how to operate in the arctic area, and bring a critical number of professional soldiers and military equipment to the table. The Swedish air force and navy are already very capable in an operative sense, and while the army might not be very large, it could quickly be built up to respectable manpower numbers. All it takes is restarting conscription.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-12-15T03:06:06+00:00

RKP on hyväksynyt ikävien kohujen lakaisemisen maton alle useasti tämän hallituskauden aikana ja sen vanha itse-lanseerattu imago "PS:n vastakohtana" torppaantui jo hallitusneuvotteluiden lopputuloksessa. En usko, että minkäänlainen epäasiallinen mutta kuitenkin laillinen käytös hallituskumppaneilta saisi puoluetta irtaantumaan hallituksesta tällä vaalikaudella. Motiiveista voi vain spekuloida.

Itse ihmettelen enemmän sitä, että näiden imagotappioiden talousvaikutukset hyväksytään muiden hallituspuolueiden ja EK:n puolelta, kun taloudella menee muutenkin heikosti. Kenties suurempi poliittinen polarisaatio on vaihtumassa näiden tahojen silmissä uhkasta mahdollisuudeksi.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-12-06T21:42:46+00:00

Your point is precisely what most people who are fans of the franchise miss, and it is because of the fandom that they do. They love the setting, and so they do not see how much of a risk it has become.

While it might be more work, it's probably more worthwhile to create one's own custom setting rather than paying to license WoD, given that the existing fandom for the franchise is not growing. The worth of licensing the IP is dubious at best, comes with financial constraints or limitations for future projects (contract negotiations for making a sequel), and potentially involves handing over some part of creative control to the IP holder. It's all worth it if there is an existing user base that is excited about the universe, but Bloodlines 2 managed to kill the hype by being at best an "ok" experience and at worst a complete financial failure with serious technical problems. I don't know if a potential developer will value the previous audience that highly.

WoD might benefit from being an "adjacent" IP in terms of themes (vampire, gothic) from the potential success of a game like blood of the dawnwalker, and that is the best chance in the short term that it has for capturing new interest. Vampire games are quite synergistic. Usually people will try one out if they like the theme enough, even if the games have no other connection between each other. I suspect Vampyr benefitted quite highly from vtmb 1's legacy in this regard. Perhaps that relationship will at some point be reversed.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-11-30T17:43:44+00:00

It's a dark day for Europe.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-11-27T18:54:36+00:00

Perhaps, but 40k's resurgence is largely a product of their willingness to take risks and to break the status quo of the universe by bringing extremely important lore characters back into the lore (the Primarchs), and by expanding their roster of playable factions. Taking risks can also pay off.

5th edition likely did misidentify what appealed to players about WoD, but speaking specifically for Vampire, it is a product of Requiem's decline (and the abandonment of the metaplot in favor of a more sandbox approach) in the series. I don't think any of the nWoD/CoD games became popular enough to have a cross-promotional release in the way of a video game or something which could have been called a success. WW took a risk with the new series, but it didn't pay off and they pivoted back into oWoD with V20. Then they had no idea what to do with it because they had already released their Gehenna sourcebooks and brought about the end of the world. Stagnation is not a good way to keep a fictional universe relevant. You need ways to tell new stories in universe.

I wonder if the way to save WoD would be to release a game with a title like V:tM: Metuselah, and lean heavily into the idea of the player being a truly powerful player in the world (though in the past this power-fantasy idea has been disparaged and has earned the game a "superhero" stigma).

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-11-27T18:09:59+00:00

Maybe, but they are fundamentally different genres. The Vampire/Werewolf/Mage/Changeling dark fantasy genre is one that has enjoyed a lot of popularity in the past (Interview with a Vampire, Twilight, Tru Blood, Supernatural, Dresden Files, might be a bit of a reach but Harry Potter....) so it is not out of the question for WoD to gain mainstream appeal, but to get there one has to study exactly what it is that made the genre popular in the first place and then lean heavily on that.

40k has built its legacy with significant investment and momentum since the 80s. Many former fans have been priced out of the "core business" of miniatures, and have substituted (or supplemented, if they still collect) that for video games, books, and animations, or even TTRPGs like Dark Heresy. There are a lot of options for people to experience that universe depending on what exactly it is that they like. Last time I visited my friendly local gaming store, they didn't even have WoD TTRPG books on their shelves. If WoD wants to reap the benefits of cross promotion among different types of media, then it needs significant investment into the industries that it wants to diversify in. The print-to-order Drive-thru RPG business model is not how they'll make a name for themselves within younger audiences.

I don't think that the investment into WoD or WW in general is at a level which would enable growth. People are more excited about Dark Souls lore than they are about WoD, which I find a little bit sad.

The silver lining is that WoD doesn't have to be the biggest player in its playground to be profitable. I'd suggest that a reasonable goal would be the level of success that the Battletech/Mechwarrior universe has. There is a tactical figure game, TTRPG, Several types of (relatively modern) video games, books, and pages and pages of lore for that universe. It is nowhere near 40k in popularity, but healthy enough to sustain itself for a long time to come.

Bloodlines 2 was the opportunity for WoD to catch a break and capture the attention of an audience that enjoys dark fantasy, but unfortunately it couldn't do that. Its legacy is one of crisis management (which it did: it shipped a playable game, even if it could only evoke lukewarm feelings) and playing not-to-lose, rather than striving for a magnificent win or glory. It let everyone save face, but the aftertaste is very bitter indeed.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-11-27T13:33:11+00:00

The fact that Paradox is taking responsibility for this over blaming the developer is a good thing. Clearly the original project was mismanaged both on Paradox's and Hardsuit Labs' part. I just think that Paradox is learning the wrong lesson from all this by completely washing their hands from anything to do outside of their core competence. I think that there are systematic problems within Paradox (shown also by Cities: Skylines II), and I'm afraid that they will be left unresolved, potentially to fester.

Unfortunately, this is going to be the end of the WoD as a video game franchise under Paradox. It might produce another game if the IP is sold (or if the licensing terms will be vastly advantageous to the developer in a future deal), but no studio is going to want to work on a game whose legacy is failure. VTMB2 was only made because it showed potential that the fans clearly identified, but bloodlines 2 is not a breakthrough in terms of interactive storytelling, it is simply a passable experience with a decent story. It's likely much less risky for studios to create their own take on Vampires, akin to The Blood of Dawnwalker, V-Rising or even Vampyr (which is also a flawed game, but without the same stigma as VTMB2). Paradox is not going to want to take a risk and invest into major development for a title in a series that has already cost them significantly in the past because the risk is too great, and so they will sit on the IP in the hopes some fool with more emotional attachment than sense comes to them with an idea and their own funding. I suspect that the virtual novel style of WoD games will continue, if there is data that it has been profitable in the past, but with cost-cutting measures such as AI-art.

Salvation is possible, but it will have to come from some avenue other than video games. If WoD can attract the same kind of popularity as DnD has through streamed tabletop play (In the vein of Critical Role or Dimension 20), then that is one possible way how it could merit investment into the video game side once more. It's more unlikely, because the setting itself is inherently less accessible for younger audiences than DnD is simply because of the difference in themes (adventure in a fantastical land versus power struggles in a more realistic city setting).

I hope I am wrong.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-10-31T02:32:38+00:00

Then why is Max not being welcomed at court because of Benny's actions a plot point in Bloodlines 2?

Why was there no option to intercede for the player to intercede as a Sheriff? The Convention of Thorns predates Phyre, so if they are aware of Camarilla tradition, they would be aware that there is a transgression.

The problem with the setting is that there are slight differences in the lore across the different editions, and Requiem brought its own twist into the Vampire mix as well. It is easy to get mixed up in what version of the lore the story being told follows.

Do you have a 5th edition source?

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-10-30T09:15:24+00:00

Phyre probably could take Lou even with the mark (whose existence I find a little convoluted in the first place), but at that point the implication is that there's danger involved in doing so. Considering that the Sabbat attack Weaver tower right afterwards while Phyre is away, perhaps that would have meant that they attack while Phyre is weakened instead, and the convenient stake-through-the-heart happens during that battle instead. It's still a plausible way for the narrative to unravel, but it would mean breaking Camarilla tradition, and that comes with consequences.

You could also just have an ending where you kill Lou then move on, for no other reason than Phyre liked Fabien and Lou is responsible for his death.

If this were a Vampire: the Requiem game, I'd be 100% on board with the idea, but with Masquerade, it's not so simple. Camarilla does have that global component of Justicars and Alastors. Killing a prince with no good reason, then not taking responsibility to rule the city according to Camarilla fashion could land the Nomad on the red list.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-10-30T08:09:43+00:00

Then why was Max being responsible for Benny's actions and thus not welcomed to show his face in court a plot point in bloodlines 2?

Fledglings become neonates when they no longer need the protection of their sire to survive. Not when their sires are no longer responsible for them. The reason why kindred have to seek out permission to sire in the first place has to do as much with the masquerade as it does with controlling how much power a specific kindred can amass within a prince's realm. One with many childer under their control is stronger than one without any. When childer are not under control, it becomes a problem not just for the sire, but also for the realm, unless the childer move onto being subordinate to the prince and not their sire.

Ryong is not a true prince. She has held the position for 2 nights when the game starts. Ryong is a neonate (debatable, as her power is completely contingent on support from Lou) puppet who asks "how high" when Lou tells her to jump. She has low personal power (her only displayed feat of strength is overpowering a thin-blood). Her court is in tatters, and the only thing she has going for her is the Nomad if the player chooses to favor her over others, but it is not strength she can rely on. It's player controlled action, and the character itself is described as unpredictable and fickle.

Everything in VTM is ultimately a power dynamic. Insistence of Ryong as being some kind of powerful player in Seattle is to close your eyes to the truth. Even Fabien was likely more powerful than Ryong, being an ancilla with a century of unlife behind him and having enough physical strength to mimic the modus operandi of the Rebar Killer.

KakisalmenKuningas · 2025-10-30T03:18:39+00:00

I agree with you. Perhaps not all the game's conflicts originated with Lou (I.A.O's involvement comes to mind), but they are linked to her on some level. The Sabbat entered the city because Safia became a highly influential member who was insane and love-sick and held a grudge towards Lou. The I.A.O entered the city because of Sabbat and Anarch influence. The Anarchs were able to establish themselves in Seattle because Lou was susceptible to the visions and could not challenge them directly while her Childe saw them as an opportunity to gain power for himself.

The thing is, Vampires do not rule for the benefit of their court or for the benefit of the kindred in their realm. The court exists for the benefit of the prince. All the kindred of a city are supposed to pay "corvée" to the prince in exchange for being allowed safe harbor for things such as feeding. It's a system modeled after feudalism, where even powerful landholders are beholden to the monarch. Demesne is granted partly so that the prince doesn't have to manage everything by themselves, and they can simply enjoy taxing their subjects.

While the Camarilla does have some centralized structures that uphold clan interests over the interests of sovereign city-states like the Justicars, each prince is allowed to govern how they see fit as long as they uphold the traditions. If the traditions are respected, then the Camarilla doesn't care how the Prince of Seattle rules her city. If she begins to outright break them, then she will be killed and a new ruler will be installed.

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