System Failure is a great card if no one expects it. If you always assume your opponent has it, it becomes a dead card.

edit - well, almost. I forgot you could always flying kick + system failure

I shall endeavor to find that article and link it. (is this allowed?) It says so much more than I can put down from memory. It's most probably on the Wizards site or the MtG half of SCG.

I'm pretty sure you can post the address without the [url] around it and it is okay. It would be interesting, since that cliche is becoming bible in the world of Trading Card Games. Thanks.

Do you think this game is more forgiving when it comes to bad cards?

It's on MTG.com, either in one of Flores' articles or one of BDMs.

One of Flores's favorite phrases is "mana and bombs."

Only playing ridiculous, game balance destroying cards and ways to get them out faster.

The thing is, VS hasn't allowed itself to get any where near as broken as Magic:

The extended scene is broken beyond repair.

In standard right now, games are determined by who finds Jitte SECOND.

Ichorid has utterly destroyed any sembalence of control or combo within the game.


The closest we come in Vs to "mana and bombs" is New School. Tutor for what you need and use it to screw over your opponent. But even that hasn't gotten completely out of hand.

Comparisins to Magic in terms of deckbuilding are just a bad Idea most of the time.

The two games are completely different.

/rant off ;)

Rant on, as much as possible. That was cool. (check PM)

"At the end of the day", it's all a matter of opinion. I think that a good deck has versatility, and the cards don't all have to be good or synergetic, they just need to serve a purpose. Though generally, I believe simplicity and consistency are the keys.

Decks like AGL and Squadron have simple goals, hit hard and win fast. They accomplish this goal with huge characters and strong attack pumps. These decks aren't necessarily good, they're just straight foward. In a field of curve decks they thrive. Once again, this doesn't make them good, they are basically the best option.

In the upcoming Marvel & Silver Ages, I believe the strongest choice is Avengers. Just a simple deck, with huge characters, strong offense, and exceptional defense. This is a well rounded deck.

The day that VS turns into "Mana and Bombs" is the day I add another rubbermaid full of useless cardboard to the "I might pick it back up one day" spot in my closet.

Skill and Consistancy are great.
Losing to someone elses well built deck and taking a beating is fine.
Losing to someone with a one shot Johnny lucking into his combo... Fine.

The day that the game is, who finds the first I win card and who can search it best for EVERY match up... Im done.

Im with Stu on this one, the fact that the "Longshot Decks" (Talking about in the chance of winning not actually a deck that contains the cheracter Longshot... Ironiclly they can be the same) are exactly what keeps the flavor of the week deck in shape.

In short.... You cant tech against random.

No matter how much home work you do, there is always a chance you lose to some guy that played "the guy that looked cool" with "the plot twist with the guy making the eeerg face"

As soon as vs loses that flavor... the game is over.

I agree 100%.

After all, The Guy Who Looks Cool + The Plot Twist With The Guy Making The Eeerg Face is easily the greatest combo in history. ;)

Definately, but only on inish. Off inish I generally look to play "Dude flexing his mad pythons" and "The Plot Twist with the guy doing the ninja pose."

Dear RJCarrot,

This message is to inform you that Team Ninja has obtained legal counsel, and are prepared to take legal action against one RJCarrot for the use of said copywritten "Ninja Pose".

Sincerely


Paul A. Baker of

Traywick, Baker & Happy Meal Law Firm.

Beg to differ, but I think Curve Sentinels around this time last year fits "mana and bombs" better. That the cards all had good synergy with each other was just gravy. Nimrod, Bastion, Magneto, Hounds and a way to tutor for them that likely lets them hit too, Overload stupidity, Genosha...

New School is like Survival imo. A strange mix of Slivers and Survival.

Yes and no. Yes, since in direct comparison to Magic, the worst a bad card can be in VS is a land. It's sort of like mulliganing half a card; it'll never be a total waste. The corollary to this is that before VS I'd never seen a game in which it was possible to lose with so many cards in hand that did absolutely nothing. This is especially true in Sealed Pack. Due to the play system and its requirement of escalating costs almost every deck has a large number of cards which can only be played in a tiny, specific window during the game. Certain things offset this, like the power-up mechanic and discarding for searches, but a lot of the time it's not enough. If in Magic there is an inherent advantage to playing a mono-color deck, this is why in VS there is an inherent advantage in playing an off-curve deck. This is also why I keep trying to make Sealed Pack decks with 14-16 characters tops. It's not that the game is more forgiving to bad cards, rather it's even harsh on the good ones. So, if sometimes even the good cards can't be played at a certain point in the game, Lord have mercy on the bad ones.

Also, found it.

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=mtgcom/daily/mf80

After rereading this I think there's a bunch of stuff that doesn't apply to VS, but it's still somewhat worth reading.

Well, at least we haven't seen any true Jitte analogs yet. :)

I would have to say that by and large I agree with everything you posted.

It should be said, on the other hand, that while VS may punish you for drawing a hand full of characters it doesn't reward you for drawing a hand full of Plot Twists. A good draw requires a balance between the two.

That same idea, the balance between what you need to play and what you need to be able to play it, has been around since Garfield first spitballed the idea of Magic the Gathering. He had lands, we have Plot Twists. We may not NEED them to play the characters, but it is almost impossible to keep the characters around without them.

Vs has managed to take the sting out of mana hosing and uped consistancy rates by allowing us to draw 2 cards a turn. The number of true tutors in the VS system is already on par with that of Magic, and this game has only been around a couple years.

On a game-wide level, Vs rewards plans and play skill. It rewards forethought and practice. To the same extent, Magic rewards raw card power and top-decking.

Say what you want, but pulling a Wrath of God off the top of your deck at just the right time has nothing to do with skill.

It's not that I don't like Magic. Up until about a month ago, I played Magic at least 6 hours a week. It's a good game. Sometimes it just seems like it's one step above Yu-Gi-Oh.

Vs is less swingy, more tactical, with a higher emphasis on blow by blow decision making.

If you want the board to change drastically between breaths, play Magic. If you want to try and topdeck your way out of a jam, play Magic. If you want to beat your opponent on turn 1 with some degenerate combo, play Magic.

If you want a solid, engaging, cathartic mental workout, play VS.

it's as simple as this:

Synergy>good cards

Synergy+good cards=:devious:

Synergy-good cards=playable, but awkward

Good cards cannot win a game alone, it relies how cards work with one another. that's why the X-men have pretty much sucked (FLAME ME!) until now. they have totaly awesome cards, but they can't synergize. If you want an even shorter answer, read the card team tactics.