You Make the Set 5

[Thomas David Baker]

We are doing this in our Multiverse app:

http://mv.bluebones.net/

(Old shared Google spreadsheet for this is here:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ag7TtjWsLhYkdHBBUHF4RG... )

Channel Fireball just did Top 8 Mechanics:

* Retrace

* Dredge

* Landfall (not for attacking like Steppe Lynx - Grazing Gladehart and Roil Elemental style)

* Scry

* Flashback

* Kicker

* Flying

* Cycling

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiNNg5aj-xo

I wonder if we could use that, or some of that, as the basis of You Make the Set 5.  I know that some of you were keen on Landfall.

Not sure when we would play it out but some time in late May probably?

[Paul Hodgson]

Good work mate, I seem to remember from one of the GDS articles a bit about one of the hardest parts of design is making boring cards. There's always this temptation to make everything do something cool, when actually you need to focus on the bigger picture and make sure that the whole set is cool.

Maybe we just need more 3/3 for 4's in there?

[Dan Barrett]

Also if all your cards are good, you end up having no difficult decisions in draft / all your picks are playables as you said you found above.

This is a problem I have been having with my cube (as well as multi-colour card advantage control being too good, and aggro not good enough)

[Kieran Symington]

So when will you be back to do some playtesting with us mere mortals? We may not be as famous as Channel Fireball, but we at least know that Red is the best colour in triple-Five Towers draft!

Thomas David Baker said:

Printed the set out here and ran a five man draft at Superstars (Channel Fireball) yesterday.

[Thomas David Baker]

My flight is Friday afternoon.

So I am theoretically around this weekend (arrive about 11am Saturday) but not sure how compos mentis I will be.

Maybe something on Sunday?

[Simon O'Keeffe]

That would work out nicely, as after a couple of filled weekends I'm actually free on Sunday too.

Kieran, see if you can drum up some interest at your NOB draft tonight :-)

[Peter Dun]

I am back in the uk on thursday.... would be interested in playing if you guys need an extra :)

[Thomas David Baker]

Woo woo!  Return of the Dun!

Penderel's Oak Holborn 12pm Sunday?

[Peter Dun]

works for me :)

[Thomas David Baker]

Done!  (No pun intended.)

[Peter Dun]

open ff auctions already too!

[Thomas David Baker]

Not long now ... !

[Thomas David Baker]

Played the set a couple more times.  Another 5 man and a 4 man draft (with 9 card boosters).

5 man archetypes:

* Mono G Portent/Foresight (4-0)

* Mono W Lifegain with double Gluttonous Lark (me, 2-1)

* RU Card Advantage (2-1?)

* RU Portent (1-2)

* Mono B self-mill (0-3 but some close games). 

We didn't finish the round robin apart from Cameron who beat everyone with Mono G.

4 man archetypes:

* Mono W

* Mono G splashing Protective Elder and a U card (not sure which one)

* UB self-mill

* Mono R

Snapshots:

Soulstair Guide was an absolutely critical out to a 14/14 created with Vituperation of Flesh.  The self-mill/Vituperation of Flesh deck is probably good enough although it's not so nuts as Mono R Mindstorm and similar.

Soulstoke Engine gives you a hell of a lot of options in the W deck.

Mass Conscription was considered a bomb in the Mono G deck.

Two of the players (not including me) were very willing volunteer from the previous draft we did.

Arena Champion can win the game on its own versus Mono W.  Especially if I forget what the card does and think it can always fight :S

Deepwater Teachings was first picked by a returning player.

Cyclopean Commander is pretty damn nuts.

Engorged Murlodont is a pretty awesome trump to the W deck.  In the G v W matchup both players gained fairly obscene amounts of life (Protective Elder out on the G side) and I saw a 50/50 Murlodont with Gibbet Confinement on it.

The milling uncommon literally wins the game on its own against Mono R and is basically unbeatable.

The graveyard-from-anywhere mechanic is probably a little broken even without the context of looters but it is really fun.