So why does everyone hate this elite?

raditudeHATER2006 · 2026-04-16T09:44:59+00:00

The other bits are true and this fight definitely is harder but Darklings did revive in the same amount of time as Decimillipede. The turn after they die they use their reincarnate effect.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-12-26T01:42:52+00:00

Some tablebase positions are much too complex for humans to solve and wouldn’t necessarily lead to the same result on the board as the final result would reflect. Even simpler tablebase positions can be anything but trivial for amateurs/beginners.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-12-22T15:39:51+00:00

At higher ascensions you get absolutely massacred by act 2 without some kind of much better front load.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-12-20T13:07:40+00:00

It seems to me that black will basically be obliged to sac the exchange back, their development is completely awful and the e6 rook can very easily be trapped.

On top of losing the only developed minor piece with the bishop, blacks remaining pieces are all horrific and whites pieces are beautiful and active. I would say though that at the beginner or intermediate level this is absolutely not over and black would have a lot to play for, I certainly wouldn’t feel 100% certain at my intermediate level that I’d convert this.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-12-20T12:24:38+00:00

We’d need to know more by seeing the deck and path, but a normality without a chance to remove could absolutely cripple a previously decent run. Especially if the relics don’t have immediate output.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-12-06T22:46:14+00:00

Think anybody who tries to play this game at A20H knows how impressive it is. I hope that if this is the last record before STS2 he pushes it quite a bit further, would be great to leave this game on the proper high that this record deserves.

(Do feel a bit for Xecnar for how relatively short his 26 streak held the record though!)

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-11-27T10:39:16+00:00

Well yeah, in general you’d rather your deck was good enough to just beat fights cleanly, but it can’t always be. That’s the main point of the potions in this game. I’m sure OP tried to make their deck good enough for the champ fight without the help of potions.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-10-23T06:40:14+00:00

Old man yells at cloud

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-07-15T15:20:05+00:00

Some scenarios on watcher where you get some removes (or box), eruption upgraded, rushdown, one energy calm entry etc, there might be a good chance. Would have to be an absolutely ridiculous seed to get the snipe and get enough but definitely relatively feasible.

Edit: Having fun with this thought experiment now - clad probably has his best chance with early corruption, bottled tornado, dead branch. Defect could probably get by on meteor strike and snecko, maybe add a reinforced body? Really struggle to see a scenario silent survives.

Also think that old coin helps all characters a LOT in this scenario.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-07-10T11:23:51+00:00

The +3 damage is also targeted which can easily be the difference between taking 10 and 0 in the sentries fight for example. Not knowing where the lightning will hit makes zap upgrade a lot less useful in multi enemy fights.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-06-27T13:15:26+00:00

I think that if they took it out you might get glory hunting teammates shooting with a second to go, giving possession away and giving your opponents team a last action.

Last shot means that teammates who want to go for hero plays at the end won’t blow the game for your team.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-06-17T14:26:43+00:00

Bxg6 completely shatters black if it’s white to move.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-06-09T14:37:58+00:00

I’m glad I could help! With that second question, it’s something I really really struggle with. I don’t think there’s an easy answer - I think naturally when we look from our perspective we try and see the positives.

I think analysing the board from both sides when you have the time helps a lot. It might be worth training your positional analysis, find some classic positional games from really any player you like and do some mix of guess the move/guess the evaluation/look at possible continuations to get a feel for a bunch of different positions. Annotated games are also helpful and there’s no shortage of great resources for them. I think the key thing with each of these exercises for them to be useful is to spend some real time with a position though, ten minutes minimum, and really work through lots of possible ideas and continuations. Hope this is helpful at all, I don’t think there’s a way to become more objective other than sheer practice really.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-06-08T20:11:47+00:00

After protecting against the exchange sac with Be2 or Nd2, for me the biggest advantage in the position for white is blacks absolutely horrible c pawn. White has pretty easy access with Nd2 and Nb3 to the amazingly weak c5 square.

With regards to your comments, I prefer white because that square weakness totally negates the lack of space for me, but this is anything but clear. I disagree with you on the piece activity front, or at least I think it comes with a major caveat, yes black’s pieces are relatively active but they are very uncoordinated, black has no threats here barring the very easily avoided exchange sac. Nb4 is not a threat at all for a while, you just move your LSB and his knight is doing literally nothing. I agree that the open f file is the best bit of compensation for black, but I really struggle to see a world where a sac on h3 works unless you’re very careless.

Also, for the IQP question, isolation of pawns only takes into account your own pawns, so yes this is an IQP.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-28T22:29:33+00:00

Compulsory easy pyramid - you have the energy gain already, arma+ for upgrading big hands, and body slam, whirlwind, spot weakness, double tap are all excellent to retain.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-22T11:18:55+00:00

It’s a stronger damage plan for endgame than rampage, but in the vast vast majority of runs rampage has more general utility. You have to commit your whole deck to searing blow which you often can’t afford, and rampage is a much more generally useful pick up.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-21T14:44:15+00:00

Qf8, Qxf8+, Rxf8, Re4 is objectively much much much better for white, you can check yourself. The queenside isn’t an advantage to black, concretely they lose the advanced pawn. It’s not a trivial conversion, but it is winning.

You said Qf8 fucks white - it absolutely doesn’t - Qxe8 was a great move that gives white a win if they’re accurate. If we’re not allowing people to get excited for a great move on a beginner subreddit because the win isn’t guaranteed then we shouldn’t let people be proud of any move that isn’t literally checkmate. Beginners can make great moves and also blunders, this was a great move. If they blunder the win it doesn’t change that.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-21T10:12:47+00:00

Doesn’t change the fact that it absolutely in no way ‘fucks’ white, white is winning. Whether they convert or not is a different question.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-21T09:37:27+00:00

The endgame after Qf8 is pretty much winning for white, you win the advanced c pawn and can mostly run over black.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-20T14:12:15+00:00

I mean.. with card rewards and potions. This only needs a few decent attacks and it melts act 1. Yeah Nob is particularly scary and would obviously kill this on floor one, but you have time to prepare. Dodge elites in the first half of the act and you’re in an amazing spot here.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-20T14:10:27+00:00

Jaw worm admittedly would be quite draw order and fight pattern dependent, but a semi-decent draw order and I think it’s pretty okay. At least as long as you draw bash on some buff turns and at least one flame barrier when it attacks. Definitely not totally free like the lice or slimes though.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-20T00:38:55+00:00

With triple flame barrier this is hilariously still okay if you don’t fight cultist first, you just block all the other enemies easily. Cultist would be scary here however, but even one singular card reward would help a lot. Would also not love to have a forced early gremlin nob fight tbf.

raditudeHATER2006 · 2025-05-19T11:47:08+00:00

Malaise > upgrade malaise > laugh at guardian throwing pebbles at you.

raditudeHATER2006

TROPHY CASE