CREATIVE OFFAL

A few weeks ago, I perused a Twitter list I created; a list that includes people I always consider following but simply don’t for one reason or another. There, in somewhat passive-aggressive text was a tweet that probably wasn’t aimed at me but very well could have been, knowing my online disdain for… well, A LOT.

  Cynicism, it claimed, is a boring a lazy practice. I should, as it suggested, “Love Something.” I paused, a little miffed at yet another post telling everyone to take the stance that “everything is awesome!” Then, I stopped to think about all the things--gaming and otherwise--that I do love. And the overwhelming conclusion is that there are quite a few things that fall into this category:

  I love when the most popular decks in a game are control/combo rather than aggro. I loved the old M:tG days of Donate+Illusions of Grandeur or Prosperbloom. I love running Armorsmith Warrior while playing Heartstone, and I love hopping into a SolForge queue with Kitfinity, drawing my entire deck and going off for the win with mere seconds left on the clock.

I love the game group I have that meets (almost) monthly at Panera to play a vast spectrum of genres and titles: from Ghost Blitz and Animal Upon Animal to Caverna and Keyflower. I love that I have a completely different game group comprised of my wife’s college friends, who have now become my friends. Though they aren’t the typical definition of “gamer,” their willingness to try anything is a trait I can only hope more people at my FLGS adopt.

I love telling my favorite ‘gamer moment’ stories: yarns that include playing a 2 hour game of Ascension with Paul Bender at GenCon 2011; a game that lead a then aspiring designer by the name of Christopher Badell to come over to our booth and trade me a debuting game by the name of “Sentinels of the Multiverse” for a copy of “Return of the Fallen.” Or the time that I ripped a giant hole in my pants at GenCon2013 right before I was supposed to join a playtest of Take the Bait. Thinking up a quick excuse, I muttered that the oven at work had gone haywire and I needed to go check it out! (That should buy me enough time to run out and get a new pair of pants, I thought). Several hours later, I returned, having driven all over Columbus after midnight only to find a K-mart in the ghetto with jeans my size that were surprisingly not Fubu or JNCO. The game was fantastic, and the experience solidified itself in my memory because I was able to squeak a victory out over TC Petty III by trading a bikini and then going Otis Redding and “Sitting by the Dock of the Bay” to block other players during the final round.

To a snarkier degree, I “love” when people think Twitter is the equivalent of a blog and post the rules to their untested game in a blast of 45 successive posts. I “love” when people forget that there’s this thing called a cell phone or DM and @ reply back and forth with their significant other for an hour about inside jokes 99% of their mutual followers don’t understand. In the same vein, I “love” when people feel the need to include their significant others in all their tweets, as if it’s more important to tell followers that you’re in love than it is to spend time or directly say something to the person with whom you’re “in love.” We all get it, you’re in a relationship and you like each other. Simma’ down ‘nah!

I love the support that my wife has given me in the past 2 weeks after I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. I will miss Soda, Craft Beers, Milkshakes, Pretzels, and eating @StarEater’s cookies at Origins and GenCon. I will love the feeling of not being lethargic and tired all the time more.

Finally, I earnestly love friends on social media who aren’t afraid to say when something sucks or when a campaign or publisher seems to be full of s__t (e.g. Anthony from CBJ or Nick Ferris). I love people like Rhiannon Ochs who bluntly tell you that your petulant little brats need to lose at games because it builds character. Likewise, I have immense respect for reviewers who take a middle ground approach; reviewers for whom “everything is not awesome,” and to whom a designer’s name or award nomination isn’t cause for salivation. I read and watch people like Joel Eddy and Chris Norwood for this very reason, and harp on other sites to take this approach. I do this not, as others assume, to be an asshole; rather, I do it because I agree with Eric Zimmerman when he opines:

Tomorrow is the monthly PaneraCon! To explain further, PaneraCon is a tongue-in-cheek gathering of 3 of my gamer friends and me in Ontario, OH. Typically, we claim a large table and game from 10am to 8pm with small breaks for food in between.  On average, we get about 6-10 games to the table (depending on weight). This time, the following games are scheduled to be played: 

Robinson Crusoe

Caverna

Steam Park

Quantum

Star Realms

King of Tokyo (with all expansions)

Splendor and many more. 

Within the next few days, Solforge (one of my favorite DCGs) will be getting a patch update, bringing with it 20 new cards and a handful of nerfs/buffs to existing cards.  Here are my thoughts on the new cards and decisions made about existing entities.  2.1 Spoiled Cards:

Scatterspore Eidolon Probably the best creature that has been spoiled so far. Though it ranks up pretty poorly (8/8 at all levels), it is important in that it trades early with the Ebonskull Knights that have started to run rampant in N/T builds, fits into the Big Dumb Animals deck, and gives the Nuada deck--something a lot of people have been trying to make viable--a good Plan B route by combo'ing with Tarsus.

Spiritbloom Dryad Decent Body (in all manners of the phrase). It will be interesting to see how players deal with the dual lifegain. The obvious inclusion is in the Arboris Aggro decks, but I think that's a bad place for this card (as Arboris Aggro wants to win quickly, rather than drag the game out.) This card seems to merit inclusion in A/U stall decks that look to control, level up, and then hit hard with a L3+ bomb like Chrogias or something of that nature. 

Chiselhearth Archer A fun card whose mechanics I was hoping to see. On the defensive, this thing trades with lots of pro-Mobility creatures {e.g. Everflame Phoenixes, Emberwind, Storm Bringer, etc). Will also be interesting to see if people can combine this with Shallow Grave for trigger shenanigans. 

Vyric Ebonskull As a few other players have mentioned, REALLY hoping this creature means Vampire Tribal will become a thing in Set 3. This is a cute card, with a Death Current on a stick feel at Level2. Its level 3 would go well in a Pet Cemetary deck, but feels too cutesy and like a "win more" effect to really be valid as a build around card. 

Oreian Fieldmarshall Global Buffs are always nice; and, though this isn't a great card on its own, the synergy it brings to the ubiquitous A/U Growwide decks (see S1AL's deck for example) cannot be overlooked. It will be passed over for things like WWP in Constructed, but is a very solid pick in draft. 

Cypien Battlesuit, Tarsian Pact, Savage Oath, & Tremorcharge The Cycle of Faction-gated Pump Spells brings varied levels of power to the table(t). Cypien Battlesuit seems primed to be included in an Aegis Knight deck to pump things like Vault Blockade, Oreian Battledroid, etc. Savage Oath--probably the best of the bunch, will also be included as a one-of finisher in Uterran Beats/Stompy decks. Tremorcharge has very narrow application, but could possible be used to keep things like Zyx alive for one more hit. 

Aetherforge Oracle Another card to help stall/leveling decks. As mentione by TinyGrimes on The Forge, this will be great for upgrading things like Energy Surge from your hand. I don't think these types of decks will hold up in the current meta, but the control/combo player in me would be happy to be proven wrong. 

Borean Mystic On the plus side, this guy's ability isn't level-gated. On the downside, he essentially takes up 3 lanes in a mobility deck that wants to keep things relatively open. Could be fun to see him in a FlipTheTable style manipulation deck with Seismic Adepts, Doomwings, etc. 

Everflame Mystic Mixes well with Korok. Lots of people are saying this is good with BinBen, which isn't really true as the free spells the Mystic gives you have to be used Post-Combat.

Aegis Knight The Armor version of Uranti Warlord. REally hoping someone can make an armor deck work, though I think the prevalence of Nekrium Removal in the meta right now makes that really difficult (meaning, you need to have really good board position or use Aegis Knight as the end of a 2 card combo to get true value from it)

Nerfs/Buffs/Misc.

Everflame Phoenix, scourge of X.4, has received a moderate nerf (and one I'm pretty happy with). The 10 to the face has been removed, and the ash-respawn now only happens if the explosion takes out the creature in the opposing lane. Removal of the penalty for killing the creature is fantastic and overdue (as I never thought there should have been a penalty for making a good play in hopes of NOT taking 22 damage.) The Ash clause seems to be nice as well, as it gives players a chance to chump/whittle the phoenix without losing a TON of board position.

Ironbeard now neuters creatures even when they respawn into the same lane on a full board. Seems to make the Forgeborn a little better, and aims to balance A/U growwide and Varna's Pact shenanigans.

Spitemage has retained its removal capability (which is probably the best in the game to be honest). It has, however, been nerfed on all levels to reduce the potential for the card to go "to the face," when removal options aren't available. I like the decision, as it means the card will just be a 1:1 trade more often than not, and leveling it won't gain you as much of an advantage (due to 2 fewer damage at L2 and 3 at Level3)

Binben is no longer susceptible to Xrath's Will at Level1. I think this is a negligible buff and that BinBen, while amazingly fun, is still a horrible Legendary. The ONLY foreseeable way, IMO, to make him viable in Constructed is to make his Elementals level with him.

Some background about my gaming situation: The little town in which I live (roughly 35 minutes NE of Columbus, OH) has two FLGSes within walking distance of each other. When framed in this manner, many people think I am living the dream, that the presence of multiple stores of this nature within close proximity means I have my choice between myriad Euros, DBGs, and Ameritrash (oh my!).

The truth, however, is far from this. Of the two stores, one skews heavily toward the comic book side of things and operates under the mindset that the only games worth stocking are CCG/TCGs or things promoted by Wil Wheaton. They do have a demo library of about ~50 games, but... 40 of those are games I've culled from my collection to make space in my closet; so there's that. Similarly, the other shop in the area is an awkward amalgam of VFW and Game Store, filled with veterans telling war stories to Reservists. This store, much like the first, only sells games if they have been promoted by Tabletop or vomited into existence by Games Workshop.   This is not to say that there aren't some really good stores around, as The Soldiery and Guardtower are excellent alternatives; I just don't have the option/spare gas/or free time to drive 45-60 minutes on a whim, just to sate some "cult of the new" cravings.

Luckily, my friends and fellow gamers are amicable people who love getting together to play games. Once per month, several friends and I get together for something we call "PaneraCon." When that's not going on, my wife and I get together with her college roommates for something I'll be calling "WadCon" (b/c it occurs in Wadsworth, OH). WadCon, typically, revolves around lighter fare than PaneraCon, but is equally enjoyable because playing games, any games, is 100% better than not playing games.

At this month's WadCon, 5+ games hit the table:

Ha Ha Moustache

Sushi Go

String Railways

Splendor

For Sale

Various Digital Games (Culdcept, Hearthstone, SolForge, Ascension)

Here are my impressions of those aforementioned titles:

Ha Ha Moustache (played once): I don't know that I'd call this one a game so much as a pleasant distraction, but it's a silly distraction at that, and certainly something to break out early in the evening to get people in a good mood. For those of you who haven't played, the premise of HHM goes something like this: 100+ cards are shuffled into a pile. 1 by 1, the dealer will hold a card up to his/her face. On one side of the card is a black and white facsimile of a famous person's moustache. On the other side are 5 clues that can be given out to aid players in guessing the person to whom the facial hair belonged. Cards can range from the Easy (Wario, Hitler, Hulk Hogan), to the disgustingly difficult (Frida Kahlo, Heinrich Himmler, etc.) Our group was abyssmal at this game. Nonetheless, lots of laughs were had before we moved onto "serious fare." While this game is enjoyable, bear in mind that it works best with a group of casual or party gamers. Also be mindful that the novelty factor is severely determined by how often you play, as once you memorize the ~100 characters and their cards, the "game" loses its appeal rather quickly. Until that point, though, it's definitely worth the 10$ or so dollars you will spend to acquire it.

Sushi Go (played 2 times): Knowing that most members of the WadCon group prefer lighter games, we subsequently cracked open the non-Gamewright version of Sushi Go. While I have a bad habit of derisively calling Sushi Go, “baby’s first drafting game,” doing so undermines the fact that this game is somewhat of a perfect stepping stone from the ground level of drafting mechanisms into more complex iterations  (e.g. - 7 Wonders). From the utterly adorable art that catches the eye, to the very easy to grasp scoring system, it’s easy to understand why this title has become so popular. Though right on the border when it comes to what I consider “too light,” I certainly appreciate the role a game like this plays in getting friends to the table and then getting them to stay at the table to play other games.

String Railway (played once): One of the things other things we found out about the WadCon group (aside form the fact that they like to play games) was the fact that they like to play train games. Though not yet up to the task of something along the lines like 18XX, Ticket to Ride maps like Legendary Asia, Europe, and Africa went over well at our New Year’s party; so we were eager to try other games with the same theme. That said, one of the first names that comes to my mind trains are mentioned (other than Alan Moon) is Hisashi Hiyashi (designer of String Railways and the 2013 hit TRAINS!) Though I, personally, think Trains! is somewhat overrated, I was eager to play Hiyashi’s other offering after seeing it featured on SU&SD.    We read over the rules, set up the river and mountain and proceeded to play the game… and were left horribly underwhelmed. To me, String Railway isn’t so much the strategic game I was hoping it to be so much as it’s a faux-dexterity game that gets a bit too much credit for using unorthodox components. It also seemed to be overbalanced, with many of the cards giving 2 points (+/- 1) and no real incentive to connect to particular stations other than the fact that it gained you points or took points from your opponent in such a small/marginal manner that you didn’t really feel it was important to take certain options into consideration. I assume that I, and the members of my group, missed some nuanced strategy of this game, but I don’t think this one will be hitting the table again for quite a while (I may even donate it to our library, which is trying to cultivate a collection). I’m also starting to gain the opinion that Mr. Hiyashi is a relatively overrated designer when compared to some of his other Asian brethren like Seiji Kanai and Jun Sasaki.

For Sale (played 2 times): There are oodles and oodles of reviews and strategy articles about this Stephen Dorra, 2-phased auction game, so I won’t bore you by adding a long-winded discourse. I will simply leave it at this: If you haven’t played For Sale, you need to. And, after playing it, you don’t feel a need to purchase it… I’m not sure we can--or should be--friends any more. It’s streamlined, accessible, and deep; three qualities every great game should have.

Tom Vasel just posted nominees for Dice Tower's 2013 awards. Not that anyone cares, but here are the games I would choose from each category:

Reprint -- Downfall of Pompeii

Party Game -- Rampage

Artwork -- Dixit

Components -- Forbidden Desert (though, Euphoria not getting a nomination here is a bit surprising)

2P Game -- Targi (with The Duke a very close second)

Co-Op -- Freedom: Underground Railroad

Strategy -- Lewis & Clark (Caverna being a bit too heavy for my personal tastes)

Expansion -- Skullport (I think LoW base game is a bit bland and overrated, but SoS's corruption resource adds a phenomenal twist)

New Designer - Cedrick Chaboussit and Brian Mayer are neck and neck. Can't go wrong choosing either one.

Family - SteamPark (Rampage is also fun, but SteamPark feels more like a game than an activity)

Small Publisher - Heartland Hauling

Innovative - Nothing here really stood out to me to be honest

Theme -- Freedom: Underground Railroad

ICv2 - Nominees for 40th annual Origins Awards.

Life Hacks: A Netrunner Story

Probably one of the best gaming articles written (so far) this year. There is SO MUCH here that resonates with me, and will probably codify shortcomings and difficulties in becoming adults and striving to carve out identities for ourselves. I have groomed characters, finished sidequests, obsessively filled out skill trees. I am a completist. I put things in order. I increase statistics. I accrue a set of skills logically and then I use them to defeat circumstance, chaos. I hold a controller, because I need to be in control.