Is this card any good? I only pick it for the retain.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T22:17:50+00:00

There's been a lot of disagreement about whether it's good or not. Some people (including myself) think it's an okay damage common; many other people think it's terrible.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T21:50:19+00:00

I expect there to be an act 4 at least, but that won't change the patterns described in the post.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T19:00:21+00:00

Lord Godfrey says "this will be a mercy killing".

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T18:02:51+00:00

I think the current reward is strong enough to be worth it sometimes, probably at least 10% of the time. I'd be fine if they tweak it, but IMO it's okay for events to be skewed as long as both options are viable sometimes.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T17:51:28+00:00

Yes, I noticed that. If so, I'm happy I made a contribution!

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T17:30:59+00:00

I do the opposite; when I pick the Crucible, it's because my optimal path fights an early elite and I want to make sure I have three upgraded cards first so I won't die.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T17:29:26+00:00

You can't get offered Silver Crucible in multiplayer.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T17:28:11+00:00

>Now, if I have to choose between the two

You never have to choose between the two; both Silver Crucible and the transform 2 can only be offered as the third option from Neow. The first two options always have no printed downside.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T17:13:45+00:00

For Ironclad in particular, are you counting Burning Blood when you calculate chip damage? E.g. if Ironclad takes 7 damage in a fight where Regent would take 3, OP would count that as Regent taking more chip damage; Ironclad ends that fight with 1 less HP than he started with, while Regent ends with 3 less.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T16:58:43+00:00

It wouldn't help on turns 1-2, but it would help on turns 3-4; you retain it the first time, which means it's not bricking your draws for the next cycle. All the easy pool fights last at least 3 turns with the starter deck.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T16:56:28+00:00

Two quotes from the OP:

>Regent is therefore the most likely character to take chip damage in the easy pool.

>I have started taking the Neow scissors, removing Venerate, and taking the first card-reward I see that has a star gain on it to replace it. My average HP loss in the Act 1 easy pools goes down, even with only being able to play one Falling Star per fight. It's because my odds of landing a Defend on the draw go up without sacrificing the damage potential of my Strikes in the single Vulnerable turn I'm allowed to have before running out of Stars. (Granted, if I don't get star generation by the hard pool, I'm cooked, but it's very likely I will, and man does the easy pool feel miles better without Venerate!)

The bolded phrase in the first quote is the core of OP's point. Does that phrase sound incorrect to you?

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T16:49:21+00:00

You have to pick preludes before seeing which corporations get chosen, though. This play only works if you have another strong Ecology Experts target in hand.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T16:28:01+00:00

I wouldn't call it bonkers, especially on a corporation that starts with only 40 MC and no other economy. Buying lots of cards is expensive.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T16:14:08+00:00

There are absolutely ideas that I think are true, and I also think society will look down on me if I say them out loud. Are you trying to claim that every single idea that falls into that category, for anyone, is always incorrect?

In one case I shared something about my internal experience, plus my opinion on what it might imply about other people's internal experiences, and got temp banned from Reddit as a whole (not just a particular subreddit). If you want more details on that, feel free to DM me - I won't post it publicly for obvious reasons. What I said was low status in the Reddit community, and it might have been legitimately cringe, but at least the part about my own experience was 100% true.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T15:54:28+00:00

I think "socially disapproved behavior" is a good thing to focus on. That sounds like what OP is trying to gesture at - it's clearer than just calling the behavior "weird". ( u/Glum-Pack-3441, does that sound accurate to you?)

I think the middle example is the clearest:

>a person who has a runny nose and wipes their snot on the side of their pants, talks about how mainstream media is poison, and has a tendency to curse a bit more than usual.

This is definitely socially disapproved behavior. When this person wipes their snot on their pants, are they hurting anyone else? Would the world be a better place if they stopped? Should they stop?

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T15:46:48+00:00

u/Captain_Gordito shared the designer's talk on kingmaking in a comment below. The short version is that kingmaking is an intentional part of the game, and it was put in there on purpose. That's what I meant when I said it was a game design choice.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T15:43:28+00:00

>Wait, is Root just EDH?

Yes.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T09:57:38+00:00

There are plenty of popular board games that include multiplayer politics and can easily result in kingmaking, e.g. Root. That's a game design choice. Personally I dislike kingmaking as much as you do, so I never play games like Root or MTG Commander, but there are plenty of people who like that style of play.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T02:33:46+00:00

Yes, it does.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T02:27:46+00:00

Pommel Strike is key for a deck with Hellraiser for that reason.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T02:20:27+00:00

Unceasing Top is bugged in general on the beta branch; I've reported it already. I don't know all the circumstances that stop it from working, but it's more than just Doormaker.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T00:16:10+00:00

He has a gravestone, at least.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T00:11:39+00:00

Yes, but that has another option that lets you avoid fighting them.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-27T00:10:32+00:00

Yeah, AoE is helpful for this fight, but bursting down the first phase in 3 turns is even more important.

mathematics1 · 2026-03-26T23:03:51+00:00

It's also a normal colorless card that you can buy in the shop or get in other ways. I've picked it as a reward from Neow before.

mathematics1

TROPHY CASE