Discuss our Excelsior tournament format, storyline events, and anything else related to this experimental new tournament style
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By CaptMDKirk (Matt Kirk)
 - Delta Quadrant
 -  
Continuing Committee Member - Retired
Architect
#415986
So now that we've lived with the cardpool for awhile, what are some problem cards that folks have found while playing? Are there any cards you feel are missing from the cardpool? List them here with your reasons why! (Your rationale will weight your responses accordingly.) :cheersL:
Last edited by CaptMDKirk on Tue Apr 03, 2018 11:40 am, edited 1 time in total.
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By Naetor
 - Delta Quadrant
 -  
#416022
Despite the lower time limit, games do not seem to last much shorter. I feel players are able to attempt missions sooner and with less build-up, but the dilemmas are much stronger than the personnel available. I think players are rewarded for playing the clock instead of playing the game since there's a tendency for games to go to time. The game isn't broken otherwise, but some cards make for boring games.

In Development - A large proportion of personnel cost 2, making this pretty much a full stop against most decks every time. Slightly Overbooked (even when 6 cost) is almost always a full stop. It makes for uninteresting dilemma interplay. Now I just accept that 3 mission attempts will fail because of this.

Discommendation/Moral Choice/Weight of Command - They don't really create a "meta counter" like anticipated since people are just trying out decks. Rather every deck simply runs 1 or more of each and they are used pretty much as a full stop.

Unexpected Difficulties - Every deck in the format is better off running 3x these. Combined with the dilemmas mentioned, it's very easy to hold people off.

Surprise Amity - Kind of a surprise card on the list, but given that most personnel cost 2 and are continually stopped by In Devs, you basically amass a large crew of low cost personnel. This card is game winning.

Escape/ETU - I was debating on whether these were good or bad for the format. A lot of it has to do with In Dev stopping all your 2 cost personnel, then a card like Cornered or Ardent Predator finishes off your big guys -- which now makes future In Devs hit even more. These saves are always necessary.

Dyson Sphere - With no discard pile counters, this mission just becomes an easy 40-50 point mission. With time limit being an issue, you can use this to get ahead on points and win 80-70 (or something like that). It's a weird card for the format since most other missions have fair attributes:points ratios.

Lack of Command stars - Seems to be a problem for Feds, compounded by the sequence of In Dev > kill dilemma.

Personnel that don't do much - Most personnel feel like they do little outside provide stats. It makes the game feel like you are just throwing personnel at a brick wall for 50 minutes.
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First Edition Art Manager
By jjh (Johnny Holeva)
 - First Edition Art Manager
 -  
#416206
Problem Cards:
Too much Non-Aligned. Takes away from the affiliation-centric story premise.

I also do not believe the Core Android Build (Datas, Lore, Lal, Graves, Soong, and Soong Types) makes sense for this environment. Graves protection, Soong’s downloading, and Lal’s dial-a-skill combine to be overpowered.

Cards that over-clock personnel play: too many 1-costers, Common Ground

Cards I Miss:
Bridge Officers Test - Is the game better or worse with guaranteed all stops? I prefer the element of doubt BOT brings to dilemma play.

Grav-Plating Trap - I feel Events and Interrupts are too easy to play in the current environment

What if…
… the QTY limit of any card in Excelsior was two instead of three? I’d enjoy the greater diversity of Dilemma play and deck building (I don’t need to play/hit InDev x3 in each game). And draw decks couldn’t depend on a handful of Star Cards. Probably never happen (too drastic a change), but I’d enjoy the challenge for one of the Acts, if not the entire format.
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Second Edition Playtest Manager
By Faithful Reader (Ross Fertel)
 - Second Edition Playtest Manager
 -  
Continuing Committee Member - Retired
#416264
jjh wrote:Problem Cards:
Too much Non-Aligned. Takes away from the affiliation-centric story premise.
I shared this sentiment initially, but they are there to fill up skill holes. Plus, it gives players a 'fourth affiliation' to play, one that has a built in immunity to The Affiliation-Stoppers. At our event, each player had a different affiliation by cheer chance.

How much is 'enough' Non-Aligned?

Keep getting your comments in. Matt's already made some pretty big changes based entirely on feedback!
jjh wrote:What if…
… the QTY limit of any card in Excelsior was two instead of three? I’d enjoy the greater diversity of Dilemma play and deck building (I don’t need to play/hit InDev x3 in each game). And draw decks couldn’t depend on a handful of Star Cards. Probably never happen (too drastic a change), but I’d enjoy the challenge for one of the Acts, if not the entire format.
Probably too big of a change, for year one at least. I'm really liking the cardlist for this act. It gives you an idea of what the others will have when they come in.
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Chief Programmer
By eberlems
 - Chief Programmer
 -  
Explorer
2E European Continental Quarter-Finalist 2023
2E  National Second Runner-Up 2023
#416296
I just played one tournament but personnel die quite a lot and Shared Hallucination stops the attempt or discard the hand. This combined with limited time and limited retrieval opportunities makes it hard to rely on specific cards.
Dilemmas are much stronger with limited skill and attribute bonuses.

The Seen and the Unseen is the NA stopper and it even returns.
For Klingons I missed a disruptor and a reliable way to get battle points and win with 2 missions done.
And for Jean-Luc Picard, Galen any kind of artifact.
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