The Growth/Strength Combo is well known… Not sure what synergies Past will bring to the table here - most likely just Utility in the form of Stewardess and Origin Story. Nullcraft and Mox certainly sound annoying enough to hold the early game in order to bring Tech II online. I’m also a bit worried about the possibility of a Birds + Nullcraft opener, which can exploit my spec combination’s weak anti-air options early on. Still going to open with Grave instead of Orpal + Sickness to at least look a bit threatening.
Tech 2 card(s)
Get Paid + Scavenger - ($6)
Worker - ($5)
Helpful Turtle - ($3)
Tech I - ($1)
Grave attacks your base for 2 damage.
Float ($1)
Discard 3, reshuffle, draw 5
[B]Board Info:[/B]
[B]In Patrol:[/B]
[I]Squad Leader[/I]: Helpful Turtle (1/2+A)
[I]Elite[/I]:
[I]Scavenger[/I]:
[I]Technician[/I]:
[I]Lookout[/I]:
[B]In Play:[/B]
Grave Lvl.1 (2/3)
[B]Buildings:[/B]
Base HP: 20
Tech I HP: 5
[B]Economy Info:[/B]
[B]Cards:[/B]
Hand: 5
Deck: 4
Disc: 0
[B]Gold:[/B]
Gold: 1
Workers: 6
Thoughts
And there’s the Nullcraft. That’s exactly why I patrolled the Timely Messenger - 1 gold is worth much more to me than 1 damage on the base.
I’m teching Plague Spitters because they are good against air and Rook even though they are underwhelming Tech I units otherwise.
Well that surely is some board presence - but I’m confused, no Tech I? no Heroes’ Hall? Is this a Stampede Rush … with purple starter? Wat?
Anyhow, the two Plague Spitters were probably an overinvestment seeing that no birds are coming. I’m teching in a Versatile Style as it helps against both Mythmaking and MoLaC. I think I can afford to go down a card as he did so as well and I can avoid cycling my deck for one more turn. Dinosize is a serious problem when calculating what he can do next turn, but I don’t think he can do anything that is cost effective with it. On the flip side, there is nothing cost effective I can do to get rid of the Fading Argonaut.
Tentative plan for next turn: Tech II and either midbanding Grave + Wither on something, or another Plague Spitter. If Tenderfoot is killed, I can maybe put off building Tech II for another turn as it cycles my deck.
Let’s talk about spec choice for a bit. I still expect Strength Tech II from him, since Versatile Style messes with MoLaC, so something that trades well with doubling Barbarians would be appreciated. Gorgons come to mind, but the rest of Disease are not really up to the challenge of maintaining board control. Discipline’s Vigor Adept and Young Lightning Dragon seem quite capable of contesting Barbarians though. So I will most likely go for Tech II Discipline - the hero focus of that spec is not something I will pursue though, since Origin Story exists.
TECH
Young Lightning Dragon
Young Lightning Dragon
STARTING HAND
Timely Messenger
Wither
Plague Spitter
Spark
WORKERS
Older Brother
Fruit Ninja
Granfalloon Flagbearer
Timely Messenger
NextHand
Bloom
Young Lightning Dragon
Wither
Tech 2 card(s)
Get Paid + float - ($9)
Worker - ($8)
Grave casts Wither on Water Elemental. - ($6)
Plague Spitter kills Water Elemental taking 2 damage in return.
Grave kills Neo Plexus taking 2 damage. You get 1 gold.
Grave 1->3, heals. - ($4)
Plague Spitter - ($1)
Float ($1)
Discard 1, reshuffle, draw 3
Board Info: In Patrol:
Squad Leader: Plague Spitter B (3/3+A)
Elite:
Scavenger: Tenderfoot (1/2)
Technician: Helpful Turtle (1/2)
Lookout: In Play:
Grave Lvl.3 (3/4)
Plague Spitter A (3/1) xx Buildings:
Base HP: 19
Tech I HP: 5
Economy Info: Cards:
Hand: 3
Deck: 5
Disc: 0 Gold:
Gold: 1
Workers: 8
Thoughts
Ok… so he’s just sitting back and building up. I still suspect Stampede, so I should reduce the amount of units he has drastically this turn… which might be difficult.
This is a really bad situation for me to be in - because if I build Tech II and he has Stampede I instantly lose the game. If I don’t build Tech II he can do so and my early tech advantage is completely gone.
Tech 2 card(s)
Draw a card from Technician
Get Paid + float - ($9)
Worker - ($8)
Orpal - ($6)
Plague Spitter suicides into Argagarg, removing the armor and putting 2 -1/-1 on him, while taking 1 damage in return.
Tenderfoot attacks Argagarg for 1 damage.
Nimble Fencer - ($4)
Nimble Fencer kills Argagarg, Orpal 1->3
Tech II (Discipline) - ($0)
Float ($0)
Discard 2, draw 4
[B]Board Info:[/B]
[B]In Patrol:[/B]
[I]Squad Leader[/I]: Orpal Lvl.3 (1/3+A)
[I]Elite[/I]:
[I]Scavenger[/I]:
[I]Technician[/I]:
[I]Lookout[/I]:
[B]In Play:[/B]
Nimble Fencer (2/3)
Tenderfoot (1/2)
[B]Buildings:[/B]
Base HP: 17
Tech I HP: 5
Tech II HP: 5 (Discipline)
[B]Economy Info:[/B]
[B]Cards:[/B]
Hand: 4
Deck: 0
Disc: 7
[B]Gold:[/B]
Gold: 0
Workers: 9
Thoughts
Ok… this is bad but I think it is possible to recover. Nimble Fencer Technician Draw to the rescue! The more I play this spec combination the more I feel like a Nimble Fencer or two are pretty much essential to maintain any kind of board control.
Plan for next turn: YLD and hope that whatever Tech II unit he fields is not too horrible.
You’re right, I messed something up.
Sorry about that - I shouldn’t have rushed posting that turn at the last minute… I’ll correct the turn first thing tomorrow.
Tech 2 card(s)
Get Paid - ($9)
Orpal 3->6 - ($6)
Orpal sacrifices Tenderfoot to put a - rune on the Squad Leader Wisp, killing it. maxband puts a - rune on the Technician Wisp (killing it too) and Blooming Ancient. You draw a card.
Orpal attacks Blooming Ancient to put two more - runes on Blooming Ancient (Ancient—) taking 1 damage in return.
River - ($4)
Young Lightning Dragon - ($1)
Float ($1)
Discard 3, reshuffle, draw 5
[B]Board Info:[/B]
[B]In Patrol:[/B]
[I]Squad Leader[/I]: Young Lightning Dragon (3/3+A)
[I]Elite[/I]:
[I]Scavenger[/I]:
[I]Technician[/I]: River Lvl.1 (2/3)
[I]Lookout[/I]:
[B]In Play:[/B]
Orpal Lvl.6 (2/4) x
[B]Buildings:[/B]
Base HP: 17
Tech I HP: 5
Tech II HP: 5 (Discipline)
[B]Economy Info:[/B]
[B]Cards:[/B]
Hand: 5
Deck: 9
Disc: 0
[B]Gold:[/B]
Gold: 1
Workers: 9
Thoughts
Ok, I spent a long time thinking about this and I just see no way to kill the Blooming. That second Wisp that is still around for some reason is very very annoying. This means that this game is most likely just lost as his next turn will be a max arg for 3 + runes and he probably has a unit in his hand, which will kill my YLD and River, so the only way out that I see is hoping I draw Death and Decay (Increasing that chance is why I’m skipping the worker.). Orpal should be able to survive and if my math is correct, he shouldn’t be able to max Arg and Origin Story me in the same turn.
Update after drawing next hand: nope, doesn’t look good.
Gold +TCN (9)
Ancient B , Ancient A+ (5)
Panda , +Wisp, Ancients++ (2)
Arg , +Wisp, Ancients++ ()
Ancient A > River, Arg to L3
Move Ancient A runes to active Panda
Panda > Orpal, Arg maxbands, +elemental, Ancients +
Move Ancient A rune to Nullcraft
Nullcraft > YLD
I was wondering what you are planning to do with the purple starter - turns out Blooming Ancient and Nullcraft is a really good combination. Also great to see Giant Panda is seeing some play.