Metagame: The Curve Dissected: DC Origins, Part 1

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Metagame: The Curve Dissected: DC Origins, Part 1

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07/21/2004, 16:14

fatalsync

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Metagame: The Curve Dissected: DC Origins, Part 1

Welcome, everyone, to the first DC Origins installment of The Curve Dissected. Last time, I took apart Marvel Origins brick by brick and character by character to help readers understand and take advantage of the character curve.

For new readers, or players who are new to the Vs. System, the term "curve" refers to the non-linear progression of characters' ATK and DEF values from cost level to cost level. In a TCG with a linear character stat progression, the stats of a character will be directly proportionate to the investment required to bring it into play. For creatures without special abilities, a character with 1 ATK and 1 DEF will cost you 1 resource point, a character with 2 ATK and 2 DEF will cost you 2 resource points, and so forth. However, in the Vs. System, the characters' ATK and DEF values are set on a curve. A character that costs 1 resource point to recruit might have 1 ATK/1 DEF, but a character that costs 2 resource points to recruit will likely be slightly larger than 2 ATK/2 DEF. As the characters’ recruit costs increase, they get bigger and bigger. It’s likely that a single 3-drop character together with a single 4-drop character won’t be enough to take down a 7-drop character.

The result is nothing short of comic-style mayhem, where Thing can burst through a wall and save Reed Richards and Sue Storm from certain Doom, or Professor X can suddenly stop a small horde of Brotherhood characters in its tracks. Gameplay never degenerates to the point of total randomness and unpredictability. It’s a fairly well-balanced system.

The challenge lies in making sense of this mathematically complicated system. A linear progression of character values is easy to crack. A non-linear curve is much more difficult. It requires lots of study, furious calculation, countless little charts, more caffeine than the human body can reasonably handle, and a general disregard for shaving for a couple of days. I won’t lie to you—it’s a fair amount of work. But, because I’m a sucker for punishment, I’ll rip apart DC Origins on behalf of those who’d rather fall down stairs than do math in their spare time. I’m not a big fan of numbers, but they’re a necessary evil if players want to get the most out of their decks. And frankly, none of my editors were willing to pay me to fall down stairs instead of doing actual work.

I asked. There weren’t any takers.

...

Read the rest at MetaGame.com

07/21/2004, 17:41

Jetsetneo

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I'm glad for this article, It'll help me along in the construction of my decks for sure ^_^

07/21/2004, 17:50

imported_Bizarro #98

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Poor 7 drops.

It's kind of unfair calculate the 7 drops at all, as three of them are powerless humans, and ergo have low stats.

07/21/2004, 18:44

Jetsetneo

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I'd have liked to see the DC and Marvel stats combined and compared, anyone have the link to the metagame article that examined Marvel?

....and why does Superboy have the lowest def in his RC rank?

If we're all in agreement that hes 'Super'-why is it so easy to give him a beating?

07/21/2004, 18:50

imported_thugit

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Well, Superboy isn't exactly a super-ninja....I imagine it represents his inexperience (comic book time) as a fighter.

07/21/2004, 20:18

imported_veggiehater

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Re: Poor 7 drops.

Quote

Originally posted by Bizarro #98
It's kind of unfair calculate the 7 drops at all, as three of them are powerless humans, and ergo have low stats.

For a bunch of "powerless" humans they sure have some cool in-game powers though! =)

07/21/2004, 20:18

imported_Bizarro #98

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Answers.

Here you go, Jetset.

As for Superboy, his version name says it all. Superboy's invulnerability is telekinetic in nature (he more or less creates an indestructible mental force field around himself and anything he touches), and as such, it's not "always on" like Superman's is. He has to be concentrating to use it to it's full effect. As Superboy tends to be somewhat irresponsible, it's usually pretty easy for a villain to sneak up on him and give him a whack before he can switch into full on super mode.

07/21/2004, 21:17

imported_Bizarro #98

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Poor, awesome 7 drops.

Quote

Originally posted by Veggiehater
For a bunch of "powerless" humans they sure have some cool in-game powers though! =)

Savor them, my friend, as we probably won't see any more 7 drops with effects as great as these ones until the S.H.I.E.L.D and Hydra set.

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