Virtual Card Discussion and Playtesting

Leon
Posts: 312
Joined: Tue Mar 13, 2007 12:18 pm

I still do not understand why there is any need to mess with the basics of the game in creating Virtual cards. With this I mean the faction battling.

The idea of the Virtual cards is improving the game by improving some of the least played cards that are around and introducing new missions and strategies, not radically changing the rules.

I think the faction battling goes way beyond any of the other new things in the game. The idea of the faction battling should in my eyes be reserved for some separate dreamcard expansion if it is used at all, since the changes are too radical. As a separate expansion or scenario or so it can be used occasionally, but I do not want this incorporated in the game as a whole. It probably will not keep me from trying out virtual cards, but the few cards about faction battling do come close to having the effect of repulsing me from the virtual cards as a whole.

As it is factions are a solid source of points and I do not mind that they do not have too much effect once they are in play. Some more effects like the Umbarean Corsairs (V) could be nice, but that is it. If you want to play battles with armies there are dozens of other games around, Middle Earth CCG focuses on a some characters and the part they take in the larger story of Lord of the Rings.

For the rest of the virtual cards there are some that I find awesome and some that I will probably still never use, but I think nearly all of them are nice improvements of the old cards. At the moment I will not play a lot of games but I will try to use virtual cards once I start again and I will comment here on the results and try to suggest new cards as well.

The conclusion of this whining of mine is that I love the virtual cards as a whole and hate the faction battling cards.
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Nerdmeetsyou
Posts: 667
Joined: Mon Mar 12, 2007 6:30 pm

I totaly agree...

I think this should be left aut of the game.
maybe someone could make a szenario game about this if it's liked by a lot of people...
BUT
I think that there are at least as many people who would hate this kind of change.... and I even think it would be most people...

AND one of the important things...
It would keep a lot of people from using the V cards...
or accepting them to be played against them...
and that is definetlie not something we want...

THE V-CARDS SHOULD BRING MORE PEOPLE BACK THE GAME THAT GOT BORING! NOT DRIVE THE AWAY!!!
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Bandobras Took
Rules Wizard
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My Morannon deck went knocking an Sauron's door in a game vs. Jambo, and a few questions arose thereby.

1) In what order are the Nazugl permanent events faced? Who chooses?
2) Are they discarded after their attack?
3) If the attack is defeated, would you receive kill MPs from an enemy's Nazgul?

P.S. If Faramir hadn't been seized by terror, my Fellowships would have stayed in play and Boromir would have had to only roll a 7 to beat Sauron. :)
Jambo
Posts: 888
Joined: Fri May 19, 2006 3:01 pm

Yeah, cracking game! Morannon brings a new meaning to using the One Ring! Ben was oh so close too.

Just out of interest, he was up against a Nazgul hazard deck and got hit by all and sundry on his way to Barad-dur and only after Turned Hope to Despair made Faramir high-tail it taking with him the 3 Fellowships did Ren's corruption check JUST take hold of Boromir. :D
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Bandobras Took
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That's right, he was despairing, not terrified.

Probably from watching his older brother stomp on Nazgul after Nazgul untapped. :)
Jambo
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Frodo: for your information we discarded the Nazgul permanent events after they attacked and the resource player (i.e. Ben) chose what order they attacked in. I presume dead Nazgul from permanent-event status would've been counted as MPs if they were mine...? Although I suppose that doesn't really matter in the long term if Morannon is played - you either lose or win outright.
Frodo
Ex Council Member
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Location: NYC, NY

Morannon Questions:

1) In what order are the Nazugl permanent events faced? Who chooses?

Since they are triggered by passive conditions during the m/h phase, I think Annotation 26 applies (haz player chooses), but I might be incorrect; perhaps Ann 26 only applies to items triggered at the very "start" of the m/h phase, and thus the resource player can decide (since he decides at all other times). Perhaps Brian or Mark or a better Rules Judge can weigh in on this.

2) Are they discarded after their attack?

Since the card doesn't say they are, No.

3) If the attack is defeated, would you receive kill MPs from an enemy's Nazgul?

Yes, absolutely. As opposed to Underdeep autos where Nazgul events are used as attacks and the card says "IGNORE result of defeat".

Gamers: do we think the Nazgul attacks must be more interesting since an untapped One Ring-bearer can essentially face them all? Hmm, perhaps it's okay since if any are given more than one strike (fell beast from Nazgul Are Abroad (V)) that spices them up considerably.
Frodo
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Location: NYC, NY

Hello all, I am currently revising all the v-cards and am posting 3 different versions of Ent-draught for your consideration and input.

Ent-draughts (Version 1)
Playable at Wellinghall (even if Wellinghall is tapped; does not tap the site). Cancels any stage resources on bearer. A non-Wizard bearer has +1 mind, +1 prowess (maximum eight), and +1 direct influence. During your end-of-turn phase, you may tap this card to take Ent-Draughts from your play deck into hand. Cannot be stolen or transferred.

--In this version, the character would have to tap for and get the item at Wellinghall in order to receive its benefits; as opposed to running your Wizard there, getting the Draught, and carrying it back (frothing hot!) to Celeborn at Lorien.

Ent-draughts (Version 2)
Permanent-Event.
Playable on a non-Wizard character at Wellinghall. Cancels any stage resources on character. +1 mind, +1 prowess (maximum eight), +1 direct influence, and if he was wounded when this card was played, he is now healed. During your end-of-turn phase, you may tap this card to take Ent-Draughts from your play deck into hand.

--This slightly different version allows a wounded character to go to Wellinghall and get healed (once) by the drinking of the draught. It also makes the playing of the draught on a wounded character who is perfect for the Direct Influence bonus a bit easier, since those characters might not have had the stamina to avoid an Assassin on the way to Wellinghall (and thus could not tap for the draught). Thematically, the books gave me the impression that Merry and Pippin were “wounded”, as well as exhausted, and that Wellinghall gave them healing.

Ent-draughts (Version 3)
Playable at Wellinghall (even if Wellinghall is tapped; does not tap the site). Cancels any stage resources on bearer. May tap to give non-Wizard bearer permanently +1 mind, +1 prowess (maximum eight), +1 direct influence, and if he was wounded, he is now healed. This card never untaps and if tapped, it cannot be stolen or transferred. During your end-of-turn phase, you may take one Ent-Draughts from your play deck into hand.

--In this version, any character could play the card, then transfer it to another character at any site, who could then “drink” it somewhere other than Wellinghall.

I think my favorite is version 2, even though that means the card is no longer an item. It probably shouldn't be, anyway.

I believe these changes address the concerns Leon and Boder and others brought up. Thank you to everyone for your input, as always.

Frodo
[/b]
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Nerdmeetsyou
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I like version 2 also best.


But shouldn't the card be limited once for each character???
Frodo
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Right now, it's limited to three times per character, since you can only have 3-ent draughts (like leon's version). I don't see a need to limit it once. But to use it so many times a character would have to prolong his trip to Wellinghall.

Frodo
Ringbearer
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Version 2... the added bonus is kinda compensated with time loss and assassin dangers.
"I used to roll the dice, feel the fear in my enemies eyes."
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Leon
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Joined: Tue Mar 13, 2007 12:18 pm

If you add to version 2 that it is only playable during the site phase characters have to prolong their trip to receive more than one, right now you can just play 3 of them at once.
Frodo
Ex Council Member
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Oop! That was a nice catch, Leon.

My mistake, of course, was that when I turned it into a permanent event rather than an item, I forgot to specify when it could be played.

Joe
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Thorsten the Traveller
Ex Council Chairman
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Hmm, why shouldn't ent-draughts be an item? I'd say it's an item, that yields a permament effect if you use it, and you can only drink it once. Option 3 is perfect therefore, I'd choose this option, for versatility, even if you'd probably use it the same way as the other versions (since you want to gain the benefits and use them right away).
One addition though, I think the fetch ability should only apply when at Wellinghall, otherwise it doesn't make sense - even though you can't play it anywhere else, it can still be used to thin out the play-deck.

Another question, why increase DI and not body? I understand DI is more useful generally, but not more thematical. People gain DI because they grow taller or more entlike? That way the ents should have massive DI. Perhaps it would apply to hobbits, or only versus ents....I would prefer bonus on body, to max 10 or even no max., what the hell, let them grow tough like trees! Can be very useful in the right deck.
Stone-age did not end because man ran out of rocks.
Frodo
Ex Council Member
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Location: NYC, NY

There is a new update to the Virtual Card set available! ( Version 0.8 ) See the topic for the downloadable pdf.

I hope you all enjoy the (slightly) new texts!

Frodo
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