The Daily Deal

The Pulper

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed

Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
Barge is the card Bash wishes it could be. The difference between Push and Slide Back is massive. With Bash, a wall behind your target will allow them to stand their ground while Barge lets you move targets from anywhere to 2 squares anywhere they could naturally move. This includes forcing them to stay in place in case you just want to continue beating them up. So why are Barge warriors nearly non-existent? Bruiser skills are cheaper to equip than Crusher skills, there are a lot more Bash focused weapons, and most importantly you can fit more Bash cards into a deck than Barges. I still think Barge in enough better that I'd be more willing to run a warrior with 9-10 Barges than a full on Bash warrior. That said, The Pulper is probably not the item you want.Enormous Tree Branch gives you the same amount of Barges plus a Blind Rage to cycle in exchange for damage. If you're playing Barges in the first place damage output is likely a secondary concern. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
Barge is neat but it is far better to do a high damage attack and take your punches than continually push mobs away for 5 damage a pop turn after turn. A lot of modules don't even have victory squares so Barge loses half of it's functionality. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Enormous Tree Branch (E)
The Daily Deal

Did Peon Buy It?
Nope. I don't always run a Barge warrior but when I do, I prefer Enormous Tree Branch.

Epics
Heavy Mace- Decent damage with passable spells but there are much better tokenless legendary options. You could also go the cheapo route with Malign Mace.
Rapier Of Misfortune- Someone will have Bad Luck whenever Rapier of Misfortune is used in a match. Hint, it's the person with 3 useless cards on their divine weapon.
Turnbull's Energy Vest- Of all the Force Field robes I like this one the least. Overheated Force Suit has a much bigger upside and Explorer's Force Suit is pretty much ideal for a control or burst wizard, which Squeamish doesn't really effect.

Notable Rares
Focused Teleportation (N)- Not many wizards rely on spells that aren't buffable by wizard traits and wizards already have the tokenless Electroporter Novice for trait cycling so you need a very good reason to spend a token on the full set of Dimensional Traveler. Volcano is that reason. With the trait on, you are free to expend your movement cards to disguise the presence any Volcanoes in your hand or to pray that the AI uses up its movement cards in singleplayer. A savvy multiplayer opponent will realize that only Volcano wizards choose to use Focused Teleportation. Other options include going tokenless for Forceful Teleportation, though that also telegraphs impending Volcanos, or the ever popular Electroporter Novice, which disguises your strategy but only has one copy of Dimensional Traveler.

Spoiler: Rare Rating Code

(B)est of the Best
Who need legendaries and epics when you have rares like these? This item is not only powerful but also fits in well established multiplayer or farming archetypes.

(N)iche
This is a great item but fits in a very specific build. You should only consider purchasing if you have that particular strategy in your sights.

(P)layable
Not the best. Not the worst. This item is simply solid all around and I believe could see play. If that isn't enough of a ringing endorsement then I don't know what is. Oh, and you can go ahead and assume that any item that falls into other categories is playable as well. I will not list things that I would not be willing to play myself.

(U)nique
There is nothing quite like this item. Its cards or combination of cards are not found on other items of the same slot or not on other items period. If this item catches your fancy you should take a second look because you won't find anything similar elsewhere.

(V)alue
There may be better options but this item won't bust your piggy bank.

 

Thanks for doing this awesome series, peonprop. Even on days like today when I know there's nothing I want in the DD, I always check this thread anyway because I might learn something.

 

The energy vest was an insta-buy for me as it was the last EttSC epic I needed. Will probably just sit there unused though!

 

Anyone else read this in the voice of "the most interesting man in the world", from the Dosequis commercials?..

 

Mokad's Unholy Tome
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
Mokad's Unholy Tome was one of the first items I ever reviewed but looking back I was overly harsh on Unholy Energy, mostly because I had never tried it at the time. Since then, Unholy Energy has become my go to card draw card. Yes, it takes a while to fully reap the benefits but you have plenty of time in the early game. In fact, you often don't even interact with the opponent until after the first few rounds. Plus, delaying the draw has its benefits. You don't have to worry about discarding to hand size and you don't need to give up priority as you would with Inspiration or Demonic Power. That said, Mokad's Unholy Tome itself isn't that much different from its lower rarity competitors. Mind Worm is more useful than the Bad Luck on Ebony Prayer Beads but not enough so that I'd shell out the extra gold. Incense Of The Caged Demon is pretty much just a better item with the filler card being a cycling trait. If you aren't running too many other self damaging cards, Incense of the Caged Demon becomes a no brainer. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
Unlike multiplayer, you are thrust into the middle of the action in most modules so you don't have the luxury of early non-interactive rounds. Also, games shouldn't take more than a couple rounds when you've got an efficient farming party going. There are grindy modules of course but Mokad's Unholy Tome is still not worth getting over the substitutes. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Ebony Prayer Beads (R) , Incense of the Caged Demon (E)

Did Peon Buy It?
Nope. I'm a big fan of Unholy Energy but I always get it from either Mokad's Reeking Skull or Gloomthirst.

Epics
Mail Of St. Aulx- Inspiring Armor looks underwhelming at first glance but if you take a closer look, you'll find that it's a 2 for 1 that prevents a couple points of damage. That said, both Cleansing Ray and Shimmering Aura are far too narrow to run in general making Mail of St. Aulx the least playable Inspiring Armor divine armor.
Rantic's Orb Of Inner Fire- Very good item for a burning wizard. You always want to have some armor removal, especially if you run into Resistant Hide. Your piggy bank will also thank you as every other good arcane item for burning wizards is legendary.
True Mail- It's usually correct to run tokenless heavy armors like Perilous Ringmail or Spiked Tlahuiztli but you may occasionally want the double Reliable Mails, either from this or Sturdy Armor.

Notable Rares
Emberfloat Mantle (V)- Very few robes have Sparkling Cloth Armor and even fewer have Firestorm. Emberfloat Mantle is the only one to have both. While that makes it the second best choice for both cards, it is still an incredible value item. Firehide Robes is the obvious choice for a Firestorm wizard though Sparkling Cloth Armor is significantly better against melee than Resistant Hide. Thin Sparkling Cloak has an extra copy of Sparkling Cloth Armor but its popularity took a nosedive after the Vulnerable nerf. For having good anti-melee capabilities and a cycling trait all while remaining tokenless, Emberfloat Mantle is a great all-around choice of robes.
Shielding Token (BN)- Shielding Token is not only one of the best sources of Impenetrable Nimbus but it is also the cheapest to equip tokenwise. An unanswered Impenetrable Nimbus is incredibly powerful and luckily for singleplayers, the vast majority of mobs don't have answers for it. The AI also does not play around Impenetrable Nimbus making Nimbus spamming one of the most effective strategies to employ in difficult modules. However, the same cannot be said for multiplayer. You can and will run into players who both run answers like Purge and have the experience to play around it, either by declining to engage you while Impenetrable Nimbus is active or going after your other characters. The only other good source of Impenetrable Nimbus on a divine item is Medallion Of St. Vigus which is only uncommon but requires a major token.

Spoiler: Rare Rating Code

(B)est of the Best
Who need legendaries and epics when you have rares like these? This item is not only powerful but also fits in well established multiplayer or farming archetypes.

(N)iche
This is a great item but fits in a very specific build. You should only consider purchasing if you have that particular strategy in your sights.

(P)layable
Not the best. Not the worst. This item is simply solid all around and I believe could see play. If that isn't enough of a ringing endorsement then I don't know what is. Oh, and you can go ahead and assume that any item that falls into other categories is playable as well. I will not list things that I would not be willing to play myself.

(U)nique
There is nothing quite like this item. Its cards or combination of cards are not found on other items of the same slot or not on other items period. If this item catches your fancy you should take a second look because you won't find anything similar elsewhere.

(V)alue
There may be better options but this item won't bust your piggy bank.

 

Is there a need for the fourth Vibrant Pain? And in randis is the fifth Searing Pain, which is also useless, right?

 

I am not going to buy even the 3rd Vibrant Pain is nice, but it isn't as overpowered as it was long before. One Vibrant warrior is enough for me. The second is going to use Lunginators

 

No. Dual wielding Vibrant Pains is hazardous to your health. Fifth Searing Pain is less sketchy but you'd most likely want a buff priest.

 

Vibrant Pain

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed

Multiplayer
While Vibrant Pain is no longer the pinnacle of warrior technology it is far from unplayable. You give up damage but in return you get an unparalleled amount of mobility from your weapons slot. The addition of fly to Nimble Strike allows you to hop over impassable terrains and whatever barriers wizards throw down. Fly also allows you to position yourself behind enemies and get an unblockable attack through (with the exception of Defender's Block and Cause Fumble). Be careful about attacking with step moves from the front as Pushback Parry is widely played.

Singleplayer
There are very few instances of impassable or difficult terrain so most of the utility of Vibrant Pain is gone. It can be used to fly to the final boss of Secret of the Elder Mind but that's about it. The extra mobility can also be useful for chasing down highly mobile ranged mobs such as Blinking Wisps or Marksmen. Requiring double major tokens limits it to high level modules so take that into consideration if you're thinking about purchasing.

Peon's prescription for prodigious players- Vibrant Pain is a powerful tool for getting close to ranged enemies but you need to buff the attack with things like Mass Frenzy in order to compete with other melee characters. This is great with dwarves who need extra movement while buffing the attacks with Blind Rage and elves usingElven Maneuvers to draw the Nimble Strikes. Would purchase if you're prepared to build around it or if you need fly for certain leagues. Otherwise, it just does too little damage, even if it gets you 6 cards closer to 14 attacks.

Substitues- Lochaber Axe (E) double minor token
The Daily Deal

Did Peon Buy It?
Yes, but not today. I have 3 and doubt I'll ever want more. If anyone is wondering, yes I bought the 3rd after the Nimble Strike nerf. Vibrant Pain is still irreplaceable when it comes to giving your warrior incidental mobility. One on one against a warrior packing double Bejeweled Shortsword? I'd put my money on the beefy one. But if you were to ask me which I'd rather have against a control wizard I'd pick the Vibrant Pain warrior hands down. There are many ways to increase your damage output (including pairing that Vibrant Pain with a Bejeweled Shortsword of your own), but relatively few good ways to increase mobility.

Epics
Bloody Battleaxe- An axe without any chops is already grounds for dismissal. One that does more damage to you than your foes is even worse.
Cohr's Black Scepter- Whirlwind is a little too unpredictable and Runestone is much better.
Ixtli Amulet- You'd obviously use the minor token Phantom Pain if you had both but Ixtli Amulet is the only other good source of Illusory Barrier on an arcane item.

Notable Rares
Automatic Shield (N)- You need to be in a module where the mobs use Burst, Cone, or Linear attacks (or whatever the attacks those annoying chess pieces have are) and you also need to be using a melee party. If those two things fit whatever you're doing say hello to your new best friend. Why not just spam Impenetrable Nimbus and be done with it you ask? Well, you don't need to remain glued to your priest and you're not always going to draw a Nimbus every turn. This is a very situational item but it is definitely one you should keep in mind as future modules come along.
Enormous Mattock (N)- With Enormous Mattock you need a way to deal with Large Weapon. Even if you think a map is wide open enough that you can just swing your oversized beat stick around willy nilly, guess again. You are going to find yourself next to blocking terrain more often than not. That means you're going to have to run stuff like Arrogant Armor or Genetic Engineering but if you do the payoffs are big beefy attacks with a side order of cycling traits.
Focused Bruising (N)- Bash warriors are wildly unpopular so their trait gets the most love in the form of a 2 point damage boost. If you do decide to run a Bash warrior, you've got the choice between Focused Bruising or the tokenless Novice Bruising. Keep in mind that Bash warrior play extremely differently from other warriors. Since you can't reliably keep your target in attack range, you are at the mercy of whatever your opponent chooses to do. This makes Bash warriors more suited for controlling victory squares than killing stuff. That is of course, unless you pair Bashes with range 2 attack. *cough* Zoltan's Laser Scourge *cough*
Powerpike (P)- Prior to Powerpike, the best Stab weapons had at most 3 premium stabs with Double-Edged Sword topping the list. Powerpike ups the count to around 3.5 with a solid Penetrating Stab. Add on a pair of double digit laser attacks and you've got a powerful weapon indeed.
St. Xarol's Axe (P)- When you are farming the lower level modules, 5 damage is the sweet spot as it puts you out of Weak Block range that those darn Kobolds seem to never run out of. Being able to hit two things at the same time is just icing on the cake. If there is a priest in your low level farming party, St. Xarol's Axe is an excellent choice.
Tempest Robes (N)- If there's one thing people tend to shy away from it's uncertainty. Whirlwinds are definitely random, it even says so in the card text. While I can't tell you where everything will land, I can tell you that it will be a pain in the butt for your opponent. Camping out on a victory square? Whirlwind. Finally got within striking distance of your wizard? Whirlwind. Got blocks waiting for a juicy target? I hope Whirlwind is good enough for you. Being able to inconvenience the entire opposing side is incredibly powerful. Tempest Robes gives you two more cracks at Whirlwinds and a Resistant Hide to boot. You also have the option of the legendary Uula's Whirling Robes for an Arcane Shell but at the cost of a Whirlwind Enemies which isn't worth it.

Spoiler: Rare Rating Code

(B)est of the Best
Who need legendaries and epics when you have rares like these? This item is not only powerful but also fits in well established multiplayer or farming archetypes.

(N)iche
This is a great item but fits in a very specific build. You should only consider purchasing if you have that particular strategy in your sights.

(P)layable
Not the best. Not the worst. This item is simply solid all around and I believe could see play. If that isn't enough of a ringing endorsement then I don't know what is. Oh, and you can go ahead and assume that any item that falls into other categories is playable as well. I will not list things that I would not be willing to play myself.

(U)nique
There is nothing quite like this item. Its cards or combination of cards are not found on other items of the same slot or not on other items period. If this item catches your fancy you should take a second look because you won't find anything similar elsewhere.

(V)alue
There may be better options but this item won't bust your piggy bank.

 

And the opportunity costs for the Searing Pain is not that big, since it does not prevent me from double dipping. So I think I will buy it. For firestorm three mages in the low levels have been profen faster than two and a buff priest. Maybe the same is true for the Searing Pains? Allthough I often enough want Nimbus on my priest on certain levels.

 

Bolg's Club Of Evasion

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed

Peon's Prescription for Post Patch Procrastinating Multiplayers
Dodge builds used to be able to accumulate two copies and annoy the heck out of melee attackers with a 75% success rate. With the updated Dodge, that rate goes down to 55.56%. Because of this, I think it's better to think of it now as a value card rather than a complete strategy. It's ok to replace blocks in the shield slot since they serve similar functions. However, now that you can't rely on it as much, the value of replacing attacks with Dodge goes way down. As much as it pains me to say it, and you know that I love me some 13 attack warriors, the kind of build Bolg's Club of Evasion was meant for isn't feasible anymore. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Postponing Purchasing Singleplayers
Warriors are either killing machines or damage sponges in the campaign. Those in the former don't want to skimp on attacks. Those in the latter would rather be Impenetrable Nimbused since it always works and isn't useless against ranged mobs. Heck, everyone wants to be Nimbused up. You get a Nimbus! And you get a Nimbus! Everybody gets a Nimbus! Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Bec De Corbin (E)
The Daily Deal

Did Peon Buy It?
Yes, but it was before the Dodge nerf. Having tried desperately and failed to make Dodge work since then I would probably skip it now. I don't regret the purchase though. Bolg and I had some crazy times while it lasted.

Epics
Basher's Delight- One of the best ways to get Bashes if you're looking for them.
Salazar's Sandals- My pick for best non-legendary Team Walk boots. If you've got some gold to burn, I'd be on the look out for Captain Cedric's Boots.
Torching Staff- Decent damage for a tokenless staff but Firestorm a la Staff Of The Inferno is superior for low level farming and burning wizards have Overheated Staff to turn to for token savings.

Notable Rares
None. Go read yesterday's that I just finished putting up. I put waaaay too much work into it for no one to read it.

 

I read every word! Great analyses and just a damn good read when I'm on the fly.

 

Tasty, Tasty Staff
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
First of all, props to @Inkfingers for the delicious addition to the game. With that out of the way let's get down to the nitty gritty. What does Tasty, Tasty Staff actually have to offer? Well, wizards now have access to long range melee attacks. On the one hand, you get an additional boost from Frenzy (Unholy Wellspring) and Melee Frenzy (Blind Rage) buffs. And on the other hand, you've just turned on every Parry that previously sat impotently in your opponent's hand. I could see going either way on those two points so I'm going to call it a wash. If you discount the melee attack types and just look at the overall package, you basically have a slightly upgraded Hydrogen Staff. There are better and more consistent staves for everything that Tasty, Tasty Staff can do. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
The best farming wizards excel at hitting multiple targets. Tongue Storm is a step in the right direction but again, there are much better staves for the job. I would even go so far as to say that Blue Destruction, essentially Tongue Storm x 6, is not good enough. You pretty much always want to be Firestorming, Flash Of Agonying, Volcanoing, and occasionally Fireballing. All other spells need not apply. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Hydrogen Staff (E)

Did Peon Buy It?
Yup. I am a sucker for cool items and Tasty, Tasty Staff is exceedingly cool. How often do you get to lick your opponents? I'm also looking forward to Raging Battler doing more than trait cycling on my wizards. I feel kind of bad the casual nature of the Aloyzo's Arsenal contests pretty much ensures that I'll never be able to fully endorse a winning item but I make a personal exception when it comes to purchasing fun items. If you also think a big part of games is about just having a good time then I'd recommend you do so too.

Epics
Ephriam's Crazy Boots- Diamond Moccasins are significantly better Quick Run boots, and cheaper to boot.
Lochaber Axe- Rageblood Dagger is generally going to be better if you're just looking for more step attacks but there is no better weapon for Nimble Strikes using only minor tokens.
Spacemartyr's Relic- Good Inspiring Presence divine items are few and far between though at a major token, Spacemartyr's Relic is the most difficult one to fit into builds.

Notable Rares
Marmot Boots (V)- Warriors typically spend 6 tokens on weapons leaving a measly 2 to dole out over the other item slots. This makes good tokenless items all the more appealing. Marmot Boots give you long, mostly unconditional movement cards for no tokens. If you are able to splurge on a legendary, Hawkwind's Moccasins are easily the way to go.
Perfect Ferocity (NU)- There is one reason and one reason only to pick Frenzy Aura over double Blind Rage dwarf skills and it isn't the bad Rusty Armor impression. Adding Penetrating to melee attacks is crucial for vamp priests. They have lower damage attacks that get doubly screwed over by damage prevention since every point of damage dealt is a 2 point life swing. Having access to 2 Frenzy Auras is the biggest reason to go dwarf with your vamps so Perfect Ferocity is a must for short bloodsuckers.
Smoke Pin (N)- Smoke Bomb is the premier wizard hoser and Smoke Pin is the best item to get it with. While Smoke Bomb is situationally useful for clearing out terrain attachments and overlaying difficult terrain, you generally won't want it unless you are expecting to face an abundance of ranged attacks. It is also fairly difficult to get a good offense going with your wizard within the cover of Smoke Bomb, with cone spells and Firestorm being your best options, so you need to be fully committed to having a relatively impotent wizard before running Smoke Pin.
Vampire's Blade (B)- Vamps have a tendency to fall in and out of favor but there's no denying that they are strong. One of the biggest contributors to their continued success is how few tokens they generally need. Vampire's Blade not only fits the tokenless theme but is also one of the best vamp weapons period. You can't get more than 4 vamp attacks on a divine weapon and Vampire's Blade is the only one that fills out the rest of the item with cycling traits. Loner can be painful at times, especially in singleplayer where you're not only more likely to be outnumbered and surrounded but also might start within striking distance of the mobs. While there isn't another suitable tokenless vamp weapon, there are a couple legendary options with Bynzer's Black Spear topping the list. You could also opt for the uncommon Lifesuck Spear, though at only 2 vamp attacks I'd rather just dual wield Vampire's Blade and take my chances with Loner. The two cycling traits also make Vampire's Blade a good divine weapon for priests looking to draw specific cards, in which case Sacrificial Axe is also an option.

Spoiler: Rare Rating Code

(B)est of the Best
Who need legendaries and epics when you have rares like these? This item is not only powerful but also fits in well established multiplayer or farming archetypes.

(N)iche
This is a great item but fits in a very specific build. You should only consider purchasing if you have that particular strategy in your sights.

(P)layable
Not the best. Not the worst. This item is simply solid all around and I believe could see play. If that isn't enough of a ringing endorsement then I don't know what is. Oh, and you can go ahead and assume that any item that falls into other categories is playable as well. I will not list things that I would not be willing to play myself.

(U)nique
There is nothing quite like this item. Its cards or combination of cards are not found on other items of the same slot or not on other items period. If this item catches your fancy you should take a second look because you won't find anything similar elsewhere.

(V)alue
There may be better options but this item won't bust your piggy bank.

 

Tasty, Tasty Staff paired with a more conventional choice seems like it might be fun for head games just because it adds a different type of threat. Parry not necessarily being dead => complicates the decision as to which cards to retain at the end of a turn, for instance, and conceivably increases the number of situations in which the holder of purely anti-melee block like Parry now might spend a few cycles considering whether it's worth it to burn a movement card to face the 'right' direction if for some reason he was looking away.

Granted, it's still presumably going to be far more efficient to be flinging Fireball backed by Savage Curse...

 

Just nickpicking, but are the two really that comparable?
It feels like the other two cards fit two different builds.

 

Quick Run is traditionally a movement card for melee characters. What kind of builds did you have in mind?

 

I think it's fairly safe to say that you'd have to have a really bad hand to keep a Parry that only blocks 3 cards out of the opposing deck, with only the slide attack being a juicy target. If you're facing the wrong way against a wizard you either got flanked by a second wizard in which case wizards bearing melee attacks seems like the least of your worries, or there's a melee character in front of you in which case turning to face the wizard whilst leaving your back exposed to the melee character seems counterproductive.

 

Does anyone have a decent support build to buff a stabity stab vampire? I would think that unholy well is the best way to go, but it could easily be mass frenzy + frenzy aura I guess...

Also, Byzner's black spear is spelt wrong @peonprop.

 

I want to hear peoples opinions: Should I double dip DD today? - I am not sure if I want to risk not being able to double dip the searing pain tomorrow... uhh scratch that, I mean whatever is in shop!
And yes I still can double dip - and can still double dip the LF

 

Just something to note: While Tasty, Tasty Staff does trigger dead blocks, they're only dead blocks if you are running no melee. You can use your melee ranged attacks to draw out blocks without risking life and limb from a safe distance, then hop in with your warrior (/priest) and use your attacks safe in the knowledge that they can't block. I would actually count this as something in Tasty, Tasty Staff's favour (that is, triggering blocks). It's not good if you're running only range, obviously.