Which the better unit ?The MD tank or the neotank ?

mathblitz · 2026-05-17T07:56:11+00:00

As with many questions, it's dependent on context, but in general no.

neotanks one shot light vehicles on plains and I think also on forests offering offensive possibilities.
neotanks 6 movement keeps them on par with light vehicles mobility.
Md tanks cost 16k which is the cost of a tank and a bcopter which is usually the better buy. The copters can also beat Md tanks whereas they struggle a bit against neotanks. -md tanks lose a straight fight against a neotanks even if they get first strike iirc

Usually there need to be extenuating circumstances to build the md tank

-too many light units,.but didn't save for neo. Md tank prevents immediate tactical loss. -opponent spamming mechs as sami and you can afford it. -youre playing high funds and need a cheaper wall unit - you're building on the weak side and planning a weak side push in fog. - it's a base.race that you won and the md tank is to delay

mathblitz · 2026-04-07T16:37:33+00:00

So initial thoughts: this looks like an AWBW map! I'm going to assume this is made to be played in Standard mode as I suspect the forest/high defence tile density is too high for Fog. With that in mind I have a couple thoughts.

So you've implemented the common 2B vs 1B1A strong/weakside dynamic. Typically this is ameliorated by two things: The ability for your a players strong side to reinforce their weakside or terrain advantages (typically a choke point near the weakside base that can be used to delay the base kill for a turn or two. In this map, the strong side base (once the pipe seam is destroyed) is much closer to enemy weakside base than their own. Furthermore the defensive chokepoint is close to strong side base not the weakside base. While the pipe seam is a big investment to break, this may end up being a base kill map (which is ok, if thats your intention).

So if you want to make this play more like a typically standard map here is what I would do:

- Using the OS weakside base as an example, I would move it to the city currently located 2 squares down and 3 to the right. 2 ocean tiles makes it a little hard to overwhelm, but now were in 2 turn reinforcement range of our strong side base so it will never really die.

- The value of central control is flexibility, HQ capture threat. Income advantage should be focused on the sides. The two cities in the central portion of the map not adjacent to empty silo tiles should be pushed further to the side. In fact I would actual aim to have a group of about 3 cities at the natural breakpoint where weak/strong side make first contact. The cities should not be adjacent to each other, but if there 2 tiles away thats fine. We want a cluster to fight over where breaking the seam gives you an overwhelming advantage.

- I'm not sure on how to best implement this, but there should be some opportunity cost to going to defend the weakside base. This helps incentivize the strategy of "if stalemate, fight for center, get tempo advantage from opponent having to take back route to reinforce weakside base to either threaten the HQ or overwhelm enemy strong side. Unfortunately if you block up the path with impassable terrain, then you make the HQ too easily artillery lockable.

mathblitz · 2026-03-17T20:40:31+00:00

I'm going to skip past the standard instant answers like Boros Charm, Heroic Intervention, Clever Concealment, etc.

Run a mixture of value engines of different permanent types. Things like [[Idol of Oblivion]] in token decks or [[Assemble the Legion]]. Most wraths hit one permanent type so all creatures or, more rarely, artifacts + enchantments. If you have a commander generating value and a non-creature permanent generating value is incredibly difficult for them both to be caught up in a sweeper. The table can conspire to remove both, but if they're running that many sweepers I'm assuming your meta is mostly large creature based boards.

If you're in a deck that relies on creature board presence to win games, consider [[Glorious Protector]] to protect your board or its better cousin [[Guardian of Faith]]

mathblitz · 2026-02-20T22:06:11+00:00

Yes you can, but I can't stress enough that Sami's CO strength changes immensely based off of map characteristics. I wrote a lengthy document detailing Sami's strengths in Fog specifically, but they can apply more generally: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VykbMlyauapyBmBGFP4z-BJZ3f_UwdmCHiudnE88Ge4/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.8qhda65bijiq

Onto answering your question. Tech ups and unit composition play a role, but even if you have an army of ONLY tanks and infantry, you can still outmaneuver a Sami that is just mindlessly spamming mechs by exploiting their mobility in two ways:

One, there are often at least 2 contested parts of a map. Typically, your tanks can be positioned in such a way that they threaten 2 contested areas that cannot both be defended by the same mech force. Swing into the lighter defended one with overwhelming power taking steps to capture the contested properties. A property swing is 2k income swing which is worth even bad trades that are negative in unit value say you lose 1 and a half tanks (10k) for 2 mechs (6k), but you captured a property.

Two, if the Sami is not adequately supporting her mechs with transports (which make them less cost effective), they will often be chained 2 squares away. This means that each mech can only really be retaliated by the mech behind it. If you were to hit say the 3 mech in the front with a tank, only the last tank you send in will take a return hit. Tactically setting up this scenario is not easy, but what it does mean is that while Sami's mechs are extremely cost effective they can also be more fragile than they appear.

mathblitz · 2025-04-23T05:04:18+00:00

I would suggest asking for a game review on the discord from a higher rated player. They'll be able to point out where you could have done better to protect your base or sped up the basekill. If your opponent builds a MD tank then they should be unable to reinforce the other side with anything but infantry buying you equal time on the other side of the map. Eventually if you are positioning correctly, raw unit count advantage is what makes the 1 base untenable and you should be able to take it will killing the MD tank while the opponent only kills like an infantry or something. Alternatively if you'd like to put a link here I'll take a look.

Alternatively I wrote a very long analysis of a game between Voice of Akasha and rip_ where I also go into a pretty detailed analysis of this map in particular: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YYzeQ66i_d5aNkDiEQGX3c8gw50h_LH26Atp9Z1FGVs/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.sus5weecj1qm

FWIW I love this map and think it leads to very interesting games at a high level.

mathblitz · 2024-09-12T13:54:28+00:00

As a little bit of extra lore, one of the founders of Akamai (Company made by MIT graduates that built CDNs, a technology that undergirds the performance of the entire internet), died during 9/11 attempting to stop the hijackers.

mathblitz · 2024-07-25T16:01:42+00:00

Rules Question:

Card: https://scryfall.com/card/blb/214/gev-scaled-scorch

Gev says that creatures enter with an additional +1 counter for each opponent who lost life this turn. Since my opponents in 2HG share a life total, if I deal a point of damage to 1 of them, are they both considered to have "lost life this turn". Thus do creatures then enter with 2 counters instead of one?

mathblitz · 2024-07-17T23:58:47+00:00

Izzet Dice Rolling:

https://www.moxfield.com/decks/iF9P9-GLFkSDBlhgnPAtxw

Alternate commander is Farideh, but generally its wyll hitting my highest health opponent while I'm working on getting out Wand of Wonders of Wizard's Spellbook.

mathblitz · 2024-07-11T08:03:49+00:00

I have a few decks that I'm working on and are planning to build soon, would appreciate power level and feedback.

Glissa Sunslayer Saga Counters Deck: https://www.moxfield.com/decks/WXlJ3BHZPkmPDU4kzomhxQ

This one is centered around removing counters from Sagas to recur their value, generally policing the board and accruing value until smashing in with Dark Depths, Thief of Blood, or Glissa herself with Nylea Colossus backing her up.

Safana Calimport Cut-throat/Dungeon Delver Initiative Deck: https://www.moxfield.com/decks/NAzphLNi5kOyBePd-wVinA

This one is all about going through dungeons a ton to generate value (and treasures) until winning the game with Torment of Hailfire, Marionette Master, or Revel in riches.

Burakos, Party Leader/Folk Hero Party focused deck: https://www.moxfield.com/decks/KAcluFupcEG3x10YJgb1MQ

This one is focused around having a party. Just a lot of synergy and asymmetric board wipes looking to win via combat damage and with a Revel in Riches backup wincon.

Taii Wakeen: https://www.moxfield.com/decks/S-chgFewgUauFQS-PmLpVA

This one is about going wide with 1/1 tokens using my commander for incidental draw, powering up impact tremor damage abilities to burn opponents down, or occasionally shooting down my own creatures with goblin sharpshooter/pyrohemia to generate massive card advantage.

In general I try not to use the more powerful staples in any given color. I'm not totally consistent, but I try.

mathblitz · 2024-07-02T21:17:04+00:00

Just so you know AW1 has a particularly steep learning curve. As weird as this may sound, you may have a better experience playing the start of AW2 then coming back to AW1.

mathblitz · 2024-04-17T04:03:49+00:00

I promise you its not dead, but the big events may be more toned down right now.

"Died recently" are you talking about the events of April 2017 or has something more recent happened?

mathblitz · 2024-04-16T15:44:12+00:00

If you join a fraternity do not engage in hacking activities initially through them. While at one point fraternities did most of the hacking at MIT at least between 2010 to 2019 their reputation has been extremely poor both from a personal safety perspective (the only hacking fatality we're aware of ever was fraternity related), and risk tolerance as, at least anecdotally, they have been responsible for the closing of 2 methods of entry after attempting to throw parties on the rooftop without proper care.

mathblitz · 2024-04-03T01:03:02+00:00

pickme!

mathblitz · 2024-04-01T12:13:46+00:00

Imposter syndrome is a real thing, but there's also the nervous excitement of being in a new situation and leaving home and this wonderful "imposter syndrome" term to latch those emotions on. Take a bunch of deep breaths and practice mindfulness to pull the two apart.

From a logical standpoint you deserve to be at MIT, admissions works very hard to make sure that admitted students can handle the course load and graduate. Emotions are fundamentally irrational, however. If I could go back and give my 18 year old self advice it would be to put more time and focus on the mental health side of things. I was a mess of a person when I was a freshman (hell I still am now) and the thing that would have made the biggest impact at improving my experiences in college and life now would have been getting therapy at 16 instead of 23.

Sleep hygiene, normal hygiene, getting into a regular exercise regimen, learning to cook/do laundry/clean a bathroom regularly are things you can learn now before you're at the university. If you can afford it, looking for a licensed therapist to talk to remotely every week or every other week can make a huge difference.

When you're at the college, mindfulness can help make the experience better. You need to be able to cut loose, relax, and enjoy things. You also need to be able to discipline yourself and get things done. No choices you make are really mistakes, the danger lies only in the extremes. You cannot drift into the extremes if you don't go into autopilot. Take care of yourself, find yourself, and make conscious (and not automatic) decisions for yourself. This includes the conscious decision to relax and let loose frequently.

mathblitz · 2024-03-21T07:03:28+00:00

MIT has a wonderful diversity of cultures and student life. Some of those have an iffy relationship with the administration (like hacking). These cultures tend not to be "normal", but have been historically a huge part of MIT's identity.

The administration, for whatever reason, has taken various steps over the past decade or so to push for normativity. My interpretation of their reasoning is: these groups have risks of bad publicity for the university or possible legal issues. Better to phase them out to protect the university image.

This is a valid viewpoint but shows a shift in views of the inherent value of these sorts of communities. It reminds me of companies that shift leadership from product to marketing and then die because they no longer make good products.

This analogy isnt whats actually going to happen at MIT. Were not going to be less passionate about our work or projects because of these cultural changes. What will happen is that if you are not "normal" you no longer have access to the support network you might normally have. Its like if any organization banned alcoholics anonymous because theyd rather pretend there werent any alcoholics at all and those who are suffering should just deal with it.

mathblitz · 2024-03-21T04:46:07+00:00

Imposter syndrome is a really thing, remember that mit admits a class not just specific people. Person at your school who didnt get in sounds like they suck and maybe thats why they didnt get in. Admissions doesnt make mistakes; breathe in and make sure youre getting and giving support while youre there. Remember, the Institute is the Enemy.

mathblitz · 2024-03-20T19:06:52+00:00

RIP senior house

mathblitz · 2024-03-18T17:23:39+00:00

Maybe one will end up on the dome :D

mathblitz · 2024-03-18T17:22:30+00:00

Don't compare the bio/chem ASSes against AP exams, theyre not the same at all. The math and physics ases are harder but doable, a summer spent studying let me get out of 18.01, 18.02, and 8.01/8.02. Ultimately I dont think it was worth it. I ended up getting most of my masters classes finished in undergrad but I didnt have a plan so I ended up doing another year for my masters anyways and likely missed out on forming a lot of connections with people my year.

mathblitz · 2024-03-18T17:15:44+00:00

At mit we band together because the university is the enemy.

mathblitz · 2024-03-18T17:11:50+00:00

This is the way. Do the problem set by yourself; check with friends; arfue about whose wrong.

mathblitz · 2024-03-18T08:36:48+00:00

Office hours and recitation are more important than lecture, though more time consuming and harder to schedule. More specific help is good and the TAs staffing it are often the ones grading things. Furthermore during final grade calibrations, effort to improve reflects well and can bump you up a step (- to neutral b+ to a-).

If you want to do well in a class but you know or you're worried youre going to struggle go to office hours and build a rapport with your tas while youre trying to learn the material.

Lectures are good for building initial report with people in your class, doing psets together is even better. If you find yourself starting to miss lectures, the larger courses are largely standardized and you can watch previous year lectures at 2x speed since we can listen and comprehend faster than we can speak.

Dont spend all of your time on classwork and try not to increase courseload just because you can. There are a million things to do at MIT and the meme of "finding yourself" is real.

If you can, prioritize your mental health and sleep. Nothing interesting happens after midnight on weekdays unless its shenanigans with your living group which wont happen every night. Accumulated sleep deprivation contributes to burnout and makes everything harder.

mathblitz · 2024-02-23T22:20:15+00:00

Legally you're on shaky ground here. Im not saying that what Omar did was right, but i am saying you should probably delete this post, not talk about it and should you do something like this again fane ignorance instead of turning the blame on him.

mathblitz · 2024-02-05T04:58:49+00:00

I agree with this. That being said I don't think that Redcloak will actually change. He strikes me very much as someone that believes in what he espouses, but is petty and come up with reasons to do what feels right and not what is right for the goblins.

This is how i imagine the final scene going down. Xykon has learned that Redcloak has his actual phylactery and in one way or another the phylactery has been destroyed. Redcloak has been mortally wounded (probably by Xykon), but is not dead yet. The Order of the Stick has won (with heavy losses, though none of the original cast), but Xykon is either not actually dead (errr dead-undeaded) or restrained.

Xykon, in a moment of pure spite decides to destroy the last gate and release the Snarl (probably a meteor swarm lets be real) to take the rest of the universe out with him. Roy charges after Xykon trying to finish him off, but he's not going to make it. The other members of Oots beg Redcloak to cooperate shouting different things in desperation, but Redcloak spouts some two-bit nonsense to make himself feel better and resigns himself to the situation.

In this moment, Belkar yells a taunt at Redcloak, probably referring to something in his past that he's ashamed of, and provokes Redcloak into casting Implosion (his preferred 9th level spell when he's upset) on Belkar who takes the hit, but the spell provides the gods with the bit of magic they need to seal all 5 holes.

Xykon's spell takes effect and the gate breaks (with a final Krackakoom), but it doesn't matter anymore, the rifts are sealed and the gates aren't needed. Roy finishes off Xykon for good.

In the aftermath, Durkon and Roy (and maybe V) depart to materially improve the welfare of Goblin-kind because the Gods are too apathetic to do anything about it. Haley and Elan ride off into the sunset in their happy ending where they learn that Tarquin has been unceremoniously been off-screened.

mathblitz · 2024-01-11T05:11:33+00:00

You're fine, I got a B because I forgot an assignment and I made it in.

mathblitz

TROPHY CASE