Post by Tuism on Mar 19, 2012 4:23:01 GMT -5
Hi all!
In this little write up, I wanna talk about the numbers of deck construction.
First of all, let's assume we have a 50 card deck. The less cards in a deck, the more consistent it is because you're more likely to draw the core cards rather than what you don't need. More dilutes consistency. Only reason to do that is if deck destruction become a popular strategy, which it isn’t yet, thank goodness. (I’ve seen a couple successful decks but haven’t played against them enough to say it’s popular)
As you know, you can have up to 5 of any single card in your deck. So how many copies should you include of a card?
Include 5 of a card if:
1) you want to see it in your opening hand
2) to possibly get 2 in your opening hand
3) you will always be happy to draw it
4) you expect to use it more than once in a game
5) you have the income to support playing it and playing it often (or it is supporting an income)
Some cards are great, but have no need for 5 in a deck, for example 5 il carnifice is overkill in a exit stage right deck. 5 cesares or Lucretias doesn't make sense in a weenie rush that doesnt boost income a lot.
Having 5 of a card gives you 42% chance of seeing it in your opening hand, higher if you mulligan. (someone with more reliable maths skills please check my maths)
Include 4 of a kind if:
1) it's a key card in your strategy
2) but it would suck to draw more than 1 early game
3) it's too expensive a card to spam
4) it's doesn't support your main strategy but you need it to deal with what you expect to come up against (eg if you're seeing a lot of unblockable agents maybe you need some sudden exhaustion)
4 of a kind gives you 33% of drawing it in opening hand 1st time, more if mulliganed.
Include 3 of a kind if:
1) you want to play the card at least once in a game
2) you wanna see it in your opening hand but never again
3) in fact you only want to see it once in a game, not really ever more.
4) it's a card that you use only to deal with particular situations, e.g. You play agents but in case you get overwhelmed, you wanna play Wrath of The Righteous quickly. 3 copies is right for getting it without being stuck with multiples should it not be needed.
3 cards give you 25% to get it in opening hand, plus mulligan.
I believe most good decks should consist of 5s and 4s of its cards, as that means you've picked the best cards to push the strategy, and to get the best in consistency, you've included them in as high number as you need. 3s are situational, and 1s and 2s are special cases...
Include 2 of a card in your deck if:
1) you see it helping you in a long, drawn out game but isn't needed to win in your core strategy
2) it's typically too expensive to play normally but mid-late game you'd love to see it (like Target practice)
3) you can tutor for the card and it is highly likely to be countered
4) you don't wanna see it in your opening hand
2 cards give you 16.6% chance of seeing it in your opening hand.
Include 1 of a card in your deck if:
1) You have tutors to fetch it
2) It’s only useful in EXTREMELY drawn out matches to break a stalemate
3) You don’t have more
1 Card gives you 8% chance of seeing it in your opening hand. Usually it sucks when it happens cos you don’t want it in your opening hand.
Tutoring
If you have a tutor for a certain card, you increase the chance of getting it. So 5 quick studies increase the chances of all cards drawn by 5, while having 5 discreet callings + 5 Lanzs is like having 10 Lanzs in your deck, minus a bit of speed sacrifice. That means having 1 or 2 Cesares/Lucrecias in a low income weenie rush deck is perfectly fine for in case you have the income to play it and draw a King’s Order. But if you run an income heavy deck and WANT 10 Lucrecias, you can, with 5 King’s Orders + 5 Lucrecias.
Sharing
Sharing is what I call the concept of sharing functionality. Let’s say you want 10 first-turn income boosting cards in your deck. Doesn’t mean you need 5 x Dama Rasa and 5 x Plentiful Crops - you can play 2 Dama Rasa, 3 Rare Art merchant, 5 Teodore Viscardis. They’re all income boosters. So for example if you need 5 anti-agent cards and 5 agents, you can play 5 Sudden Exhaustion and 5 Duccio De Lucas, or you can play 5 Thespian Legionaires, freeing up 5 more cards for something else.
It’s all very dependant on your strategy so there’s no hard and fast rule about this, so work at it
Card drawing:
The above “chances” are increased if you have tutors and card drawing in your deck. Theoretically haveing 5 Knowledge is Power in a 50 card deck means you actually have a 45 card deck as far as consistency goes.
Note that it slows your deck down, as card draw only replaces your card when it takes effect (either as an action resolution or drawing effect of Master Engineer, Nicolaus Copericus, etc), but it gives your game sustainability, and a greater chance to draw your core cards.
I’ve often heard people say that because you play tutors and card drawing, you can dilute your deck by having less of the “core” cards or going over 50 cards without worry. But my theory is that one should not aim to go back to “normal” consistency but go for “super” consistency. If I could play with a 30 card deck (20 self-replacing cards) without sacrificing so much speed that I’d get killed consistently, I would. And if I could have 20 lanzs in my deck, I would too (That’s an over-simplified example but it demonstrates the principle)
Hope this gives you some ideas in deck construction!
If you have questions, suggestions or comments, just drop it below!
In this little write up, I wanna talk about the numbers of deck construction.
First of all, let's assume we have a 50 card deck. The less cards in a deck, the more consistent it is because you're more likely to draw the core cards rather than what you don't need. More dilutes consistency. Only reason to do that is if deck destruction become a popular strategy, which it isn’t yet, thank goodness. (I’ve seen a couple successful decks but haven’t played against them enough to say it’s popular)
As you know, you can have up to 5 of any single card in your deck. So how many copies should you include of a card?
Include 5 of a card if:
1) you want to see it in your opening hand
2) to possibly get 2 in your opening hand
3) you will always be happy to draw it
4) you expect to use it more than once in a game
5) you have the income to support playing it and playing it often (or it is supporting an income)
Some cards are great, but have no need for 5 in a deck, for example 5 il carnifice is overkill in a exit stage right deck. 5 cesares or Lucretias doesn't make sense in a weenie rush that doesnt boost income a lot.
Having 5 of a card gives you 42% chance of seeing it in your opening hand, higher if you mulligan. (someone with more reliable maths skills please check my maths)
Include 4 of a kind if:
1) it's a key card in your strategy
2) but it would suck to draw more than 1 early game
3) it's too expensive a card to spam
4) it's doesn't support your main strategy but you need it to deal with what you expect to come up against (eg if you're seeing a lot of unblockable agents maybe you need some sudden exhaustion)
4 of a kind gives you 33% of drawing it in opening hand 1st time, more if mulliganed.
Include 3 of a kind if:
1) you want to play the card at least once in a game
2) you wanna see it in your opening hand but never again
3) in fact you only want to see it once in a game, not really ever more.
4) it's a card that you use only to deal with particular situations, e.g. You play agents but in case you get overwhelmed, you wanna play Wrath of The Righteous quickly. 3 copies is right for getting it without being stuck with multiples should it not be needed.
3 cards give you 25% to get it in opening hand, plus mulligan.
I believe most good decks should consist of 5s and 4s of its cards, as that means you've picked the best cards to push the strategy, and to get the best in consistency, you've included them in as high number as you need. 3s are situational, and 1s and 2s are special cases...
Include 2 of a card in your deck if:
1) you see it helping you in a long, drawn out game but isn't needed to win in your core strategy
2) it's typically too expensive to play normally but mid-late game you'd love to see it (like Target practice)
3) you can tutor for the card and it is highly likely to be countered
4) you don't wanna see it in your opening hand
2 cards give you 16.6% chance of seeing it in your opening hand.
Include 1 of a card in your deck if:
1) You have tutors to fetch it
2) It’s only useful in EXTREMELY drawn out matches to break a stalemate
3) You don’t have more
1 Card gives you 8% chance of seeing it in your opening hand. Usually it sucks when it happens cos you don’t want it in your opening hand.
Tutoring
If you have a tutor for a certain card, you increase the chance of getting it. So 5 quick studies increase the chances of all cards drawn by 5, while having 5 discreet callings + 5 Lanzs is like having 10 Lanzs in your deck, minus a bit of speed sacrifice. That means having 1 or 2 Cesares/Lucrecias in a low income weenie rush deck is perfectly fine for in case you have the income to play it and draw a King’s Order. But if you run an income heavy deck and WANT 10 Lucrecias, you can, with 5 King’s Orders + 5 Lucrecias.
Sharing
Sharing is what I call the concept of sharing functionality. Let’s say you want 10 first-turn income boosting cards in your deck. Doesn’t mean you need 5 x Dama Rasa and 5 x Plentiful Crops - you can play 2 Dama Rasa, 3 Rare Art merchant, 5 Teodore Viscardis. They’re all income boosters. So for example if you need 5 anti-agent cards and 5 agents, you can play 5 Sudden Exhaustion and 5 Duccio De Lucas, or you can play 5 Thespian Legionaires, freeing up 5 more cards for something else.
It’s all very dependant on your strategy so there’s no hard and fast rule about this, so work at it
Card drawing:
The above “chances” are increased if you have tutors and card drawing in your deck. Theoretically haveing 5 Knowledge is Power in a 50 card deck means you actually have a 45 card deck as far as consistency goes.
Note that it slows your deck down, as card draw only replaces your card when it takes effect (either as an action resolution or drawing effect of Master Engineer, Nicolaus Copericus, etc), but it gives your game sustainability, and a greater chance to draw your core cards.
I’ve often heard people say that because you play tutors and card drawing, you can dilute your deck by having less of the “core” cards or going over 50 cards without worry. But my theory is that one should not aim to go back to “normal” consistency but go for “super” consistency. If I could play with a 30 card deck (20 self-replacing cards) without sacrificing so much speed that I’d get killed consistently, I would. And if I could have 20 lanzs in my deck, I would too
(That’s an over-simplified example but it demonstrates the principle)Hope this gives you some ideas in deck construction!
If you have questions, suggestions or comments, just drop it below!
