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[Nordicus]

I am still highly enjoying the game. Still not sure about drafts. Did another one and won three games but was it fun? I don't know. It feels like only luck decides the outcome. Some opponents have killer-decks where you ask yourself how they could draft those and others barely play anything at all and quit after 3 turns, lol.

Had some great matches with my Time-deck yesterday.

The thing is that either colour-fixing is not common enough or people don't value it enough in draft picks.

Even the most basic constructed deck plays minimum 8 colour fixing cards. You need like 4-5 to get to that level of consistency with draft decks, and I often have the most non-games because of colour screw rather than general mana screw or flood.

There is some luck involved in the packs that you get, but the thing is that even then it's up to you to see which colours are pickable, and that you can sometimes just dump your first 5 cards away and not fall in love with your rares/legendaries.

I don't like to invoke whataboutism, but most digital CCGs have Hearthstone's "pick 1-of-3 cards, play every pick in deck" draft mode. With some picks, a program can help you pick the better cards, but when all picks are crap, tough titties, you have to play it. With MtG style draft of Eternal, altho packs can determine the ceiling of your deck, you are still fully responsible for the floor.

 

[Nordicus]

Faction progress system is now in, and the rewards are retroactive. (It kinda amazes me how much extra data Eternal keeps track of)

Also got 9k gold and 6200 shiftstone.

Apparently I don't really like playing Justice decks.

 

[hollomat]

I got 5 packs of each type and a bunch of gold and shiftstone from the retroactive faction rewards. It's crazy how generous the game is with packs.

Makes sense they were tracking it all since they had to have been tracking all this for the achievements.

 

[Twinguistics]

I really want to like this game but when I lose it's usually such a blowout that I'm left feeling that the whole thing was pointless and no choices I made would have made any difference.

I'm either mana flooded or starved and can't do anything and just watch my opponent build a massive board. It's not that fun. It's the same when I win, it's a landslide and my opponent is flooded or starved.

There aren't many close tense matches and it's such a shame. Am I wrong? Am I missing something?

 

[Mr.Deadshot]

I really want to like this game but when I lose it's usually such a blowout that I'm left feeling that the whole thing was pointless and no choices I made would have made any difference.

I'm either mana flooded or starved and can't do anything and just watch my opponent build a massive board. It's not that fun. It's the same when I win, it's a landslide and my opponent is flooded or starved.

There aren't many close tense matches and it's such a shame. Am I wrong? Am I missing something?

It's still a card game with a lot of luck involved. Those situations will always be there. But I had some amazing games during the last weeks that were very very intense.

 

[Nordicus]

Scarlatch is starting the spoilers for the new adventure set, "The Tale of Horus Traver"

Funny enough, to me this seems like an explicit Mask of Torment card. It's probably the most consistent repeated lifegain unit in Xenan colours. Amethyst ring might be the most consistent repeated lifegain card, but it doesn't do anything to the board. For what Katra decks currently are, Theurge is probably too slow with the cost of the repeated effect.

 

[Nordicus]

Lots more spoilers! (They haven't revealed what Omen of Austerity is btw)

Holy shit argenport minotaurs are crazy pushed here.

 

[Fixed1979]

Servers down, it'll soon be go time.

Figured I'd try to slog through a couple HS quests while I wait and it's down too, feels bad.

So it really looks like Minotaur might turn into the first legit tribal deck?

I've been playing a bunch of Sir Rhino's BG deck recently. It's a bunch of fun.

3 Finest Hour (Set1 #130)
4 Permafrost (Set1 #193)
4 Protect (Set1 #132)
4 Seek Power (Set1 #408)
4 Eager Owlet (Set1 #144)
4 Kothon, the Far-Watcher (Set2 #218)
4 Vanquish (Set1 #143)
2 Whispering Wind (Set1 #202)
4 Aerialist Trainer (Set2 #219)
2 Copperhall Bailiff (Set1001 #5)
4 Valkyrie Enforcer (Set1 #151)
3 Hammer of Might (Set1 #170)
4 Shelterwing Rider (Set2 #223)
4 Pearlescent Drake (Set2 #127)
6 Justice Sigil (Set1 #126)
5 Primal Sigil (Set1 #187)
2 Cobalt Monument (Set1 #418)
4 Hooru Banner (Set2 #216)
4 Seat of Order (Set0 #51)
4 Diplomatic Seal (Set1 #425)

 

[Nordicus]

Got my first 7-0 draft, absolutely ridiculous Argenport aggro deck, didn't even lose to having to 3-for-1 myself against an Adaptive Predator that got Lifesteal.

Servers down, it'll soon be go time.

Figured I'd try to slog through a couple HS quests while I wait and it's down too, feels bad.

So it really looks like Minotaur might turn into the first legit tribal deck?

It would seem so, though some people are saying Tavrod might be decent even in just normal Armory.

I've been playing a bunch of Sir Rhino's BG deck recently. It's a bunch of fun.

Yeah, Pearlescent Hooru is a neat tempo deck, happy that Rhino managed to make a deck with one of his pet cards that everyone else thought was terrible.

 

[Shai-Tan]

Came back to the game yesterday. I'm trying to make a Hooru Mentor deck work, adding the 4/4 that has and gives double damage and Vision of Austerity. Vision of Austerity is required to beat Chalice and Obelisk but it's horribly dead most of the time if other archetypes like Armory aren't being played. Definitely more playable than it was before though (couldn't even get to Master easily with a deck full of Mentor legendaries)

I think they did a better job this time compared to Jekk with the card design. Even the more fun cards seem worth trying whereas only 3-4 were worth using in Jekk.

 

[Nordicus]

I think they did a better job this time compared to Jekk with the card design. Even the more fun cards seem worth trying whereas only 3-4 were worth using in Jekk.

Absolutely.

In Jekk adventure, there weren't 3-4 cards worth using, there were barely 3-4 cards worth trying. A regretfully big number of the cards felt like draft chaff.

In Horus Traver's adventure, you have like Dueling Pistols, Sadistic Valkyrie, Cruciation and Watchwing Conscript that don't really open up deckbuilding options or help bring redundancy to strategies that want it. The cards are mostly either powerful, or delightfully weird.

Currently I'm trying to make a Big Skycrag deck that ramps into Rimescale Draconus and Molot&Nakova early with either help of Kindle or Firemaw, or both.

 

[Nordicus]

Well, shit. Guess Direwolf Digital has started making cards at proper rate.

 

[Fixed1979]

They are really killing it. Game deserves way more attention than it gets.

 

[Kade]

They are really killing it. Game deserves way more attention than it gets.

Agreed. It's honestly the best digital CCG available, in my opinion

 

[fuzzyset]

Well, shit. Guess Direwolf Digital has started making cards at proper rate.

I would be excited for this if they dropped the Beta / EA tags. They really need to release the damn game. They are going to heavily limit their potential player base if a new player, when the game is actually released, has 3 sets and 2 adventures worth of cards to collect.

 

[Nordicus]

I would be excited for this if they dropped the Beta / EA tags. They really need to release the damn game. They are going to heavily limit their potential player base if a new player, when the game is actually released, has 3 sets and 2 adventures worth of cards to collect.

Absolutely.

There are not many features that they've talked about previously that are not implemented now, so I would hope that full release is soon, preferrably a decent amount of time before Set 3.

 

[Keasar]

Fuck Clockroaches.

5 different people doing the exact same bullshit with them.

Fuck them.

 

[Fixed1979]

Have they talked about cycling card sets at all? I don't remember seeing anything on it but I would expect it to happen eventually.

 

[Shai-Tan]

Fuck Clockroaches.

5 different people doing the exact same bullshit with them.

Fuck them.

lol, what are you playing? They're slow to set up

Have they talked about cycling card sets at all? I don't remember seeing anything on it but I would expect it to happen eventually.

I'm sure it will happen eventually. Maybe after the next set? There's also the question of what format draft will be in the next expansion.

 

[Nordicus]

Scarlatch said one of game features in-development, is the ability to see how your deck ended up shuffled in your last 5 matches

lol, what are you playing? They're slow to set up

Truth

 

[Keasar]

lol, what are you playing? They're slow to set up

Truth

Even slower decks apparently.

Been mostly now just experimenting putting together my own decks but they always seem to have the same flaws of either being too slow or too fast and I am left with an empty hand and nothing strong on the field.

 

[nickcv]

Ok I really suck at drafting.

The first few times I was mostly going for legendaries and rares and ended up with only 3 win tops.

The last time I've tried picking small costs cards trying to build an aggro deck and ended up only winning 2 mostly because I was either being mana starved (missing the color I needed) or mana flooded
Which is the best strategy?

Should I aim for 3 colors?

 

[Shai-Tan]

if you go 3 color you want a decent amount of fixing. If you want to get better I would recommend watching good people on Twitch like manundmouse and teriyakiboyz

most important to keep in mind is curving out with units. i'm not exactly pro at drafting but there is a pattern in most of my 7 wins e.g.

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd....714/D6BCE41D6F66A9D44B7060AB89B851ED7B1784C5/

7-0 step down from 1+2, 3, 4, 5 in mana curve, decent amount of removal/stuns and evasion (flying)

there's always exceptions though e.g.

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd....977/4345B2ABD86C3BF0E22E62BCB1ED548B3145F169/

7-2 demonstrates how good "bombs" like awakened student are even if i don't have much removal or good curve

there's also playing to a theme e.g.

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd....273/3B5E086A20B1AC2A87F52FC9333B0579F145A173/

7-1 lifeforce. but that can lead to a lot of bad drafts if you lean hard into it and dont get any key cards. i salvaged this one with a splash to fire and lucky 2x umbren thirster. notice I have the two seek power and the stranger to fix on the splash (rip 5 cost smuggler's stash)

 

[Nikodemos]

I must say, some of the card interactions in this game are MtG tier shenanigans. Which is good, since I love ridiculously convoluted plans that make your opponent go 'Huh'.

Also, I keep reading some of the card descriptions in MtG terms and I didn't notice that they're not comparable. For instance, I kept reading Double Damage as Double Strike, where in fact it's completely different, in that any of the creature's damage abilities (including Entomb) deal double damage.

Only thing I don't like it how (thus far) a lot of matches go into topdeck mode rather easily.

 

[Nordicus]

I must say, some of the card interactions in this game are MtG tier shenanigans. Which is good, since I love ridiculously convoluted plans that make your opponent go 'Huh'.

Yeah the game is especially great for brewing silly decks.

Also, I keep reading some of the card descriptions in MtG terms and I didn't notice that they're not comparable. For instance, I kept reading Double Damage as Double Strike, where in fact it's completely different, in that any of the creature's damage abilities (including Entomb) deal double damage.

Indeed, and the devs even made First Strike equivalent only apply on attacks, so Double Strike as it exist in MtG you'll probably never see in this game.

Only thing I don't like it how (thus far) a lot of matches go into topdeck mode rather easily.

Yeah, that's been a brought up a lot, card draw is kinda highly costed (in terms of both Power and deck's card quality) so when decks manage to build something that gets over that hump they get crazy good. Praxis midrange became a thing basically on the back of Shatterglass Mage and Heart of the Vault, and let's not even start talking about Tavrod.

 

[Nikodemos]

Also, I've noticed players complaining about mana issues, but I suspect it's because a good number of them think Eternal is like Hearthstone and/or leave Advanced Deckbuilding off and do not customise their Power base.

 

[Nordicus]

Also, I've noticed players complaining about mana issues, but I suspect it's because a good number of them think Eternal is like Hearthstone and/or leave Advanced Deckbuilding off and do not customise their Power base.

I doubt they leave Advanced Deckbuilding off, but yes, people do not take powerbase seriously and there are decks with greedy mana even in tournament Top 8s

Like, you just want to grab people and shake them, going "You're curving higher than Rakano Plate, you're not playing that with 25 power, 4 of them monuments, jesus christ! Don't come crying back when Feln Control out-tempos you!"

 

[Tye The Czar]

I dunno.
Mana screw is extremely common for a CCG so close to MtG.

 

[Nikodemos]

Spellweaver avoids this somewhat by allowing you to sacrifice one of the cards in your hand for a shrine. Also, when you play a shrine for mana you draw another card.

 

[Nikodemos]

Man, I keep forgetting that state-based changes remain on a card after it switches zones. Ex, if you give one of your cards Aegis, or Overwhelm, or Deadly, the text stays on it if it goes back into your hand or the void.