The Daily Deal

I did get blessed radcannon today, so I skipped the DD, mostly since the thing hasn't stocked any items that are so good you have to buy them. Then again, I have a renown of -200 because I don't play against slow players or gimmick nimbus builds. I am not dropping my rating intentionally, but I have found that the newer players with less cohesive decks are MUCH more fun to play against and faster.

 

Nah, I think you find it more fun because they are much worse than you, just a thought.

 

Ofc I use them also, right. So I have 12.5 - 13.5 traits.

Never tried that one. If i want a tokenless cycling staff I use Staff Of The Inferno and Firehide Robes

 

This map was made for Charges. I ran a Dwarf Warrior through a month of winter maps with Boots Of Etzicatl AND Charging Boulder, adding up to a grand total of 4 Brutal Charges. Jumping from one victory square to smash the enemy and follow up with some bludgeons to finish the job, man...

It was great fun.

 

Imagine doing the same with Rocket Charge 15 dmg!

 

If anyone is wondering how to tell if a Brutal Charge is coming on that map, just ask yourself why that enemy warrior is going for a victory square instead of trying to beat your face in. If you are playing wizards, pack a few Stone Spikes or better yet some Flash Floods to gum up the lanes. Priests can now join in the fun too with difficult terrains like Laser Beacon. Or if you can't beat them join them. Get to the victory squares first with Brutal Charge in hand and you win Brutal Charge Mexican standoff.

 

Laser Beacon is NOT a Priest card.

 

Oops. Well scratch that. Using Healing Beacon as a speed bump does not seem like a winning strategy.

 

Zero G Combat Helm (N)
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
There is a suite of incredibly powerful cards on Zero G Combat Helm but the major token cost is too prohibitive. Sprint, Team! centered decks work best when you have a lot of redundancy. Give a team of human warriors 3 copies of Sprint, Team! a piece and the biggest dumbest weapons available and let the beatings commence. Traditionally, that means dual wielding Bejeweled Shortswords and your minor token weapon of choice. However, that is not an option when you are down a major token. You could theoretically just use the Zero G Combat Helm bearer into a Sprint, Team! dispenser but that is both less reliable than have 3 potential sprinters/sprintees and a complete waste of a support character slot. I would much rather jam one less copy of Sprint, Team! on a buff priest and be able to play a normal game should plan A not pan out. Leave the Sprint, Team! to Forrtescue and Wenham. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
There is no need for Sprint, Team! in singleplayer. There is no element of surprise in a first turn ambush and the big boss monsters that you'll want to gang up on are more than happy to come to you. If you're just looking to have a bit of fun playing around with Mimetic Crown, there are cheaper and better ways to go about it. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Mathiam's Helm (E) , Major's Helm (E) , Helm Of Alacrity (R) : Sprint, Team!
Spacediver's Face Screen (R) , Terminator Mask (E) : Mimetic Crown

Did Peon Buy It?
Nope. To be perfectly honest, I haven't really looked that hard for a better damage setup than double Bejeweled Shortsword plus Troll's Ire/The Strongarm. If someone has a better weapon setup that only requires 3 major tokens I'd love to have an excuse to buy Zero G Combat Helm.

Epics
Eych's Amulet (P)
Do you love being disappointed by failed Dodge rolls? Well now your wizard can join in on the fun with Reflexive Teleport. Though Eych's Amulet barely crosses the threshold of playablility, you'd save a lot more damage from packing good old fashioned control spells.

Ravenna's Incense
Sapping Spear is weak and Cleansing Presence is a dead card far too often. Hold out for Skull Of Savage Iljin for tokenless Inspiring Presence.

Superb Stoutness (V)
The poor man's Perfect Stoutness, though Superb Stoutness is so close, even slightly better in a lot of cases, that I'd gladly pick it if you want to play around with Duck.

Notable Rares
Focused Pyromancy (BN)
Fancy burning spells like Instant Burn might get all the attention but the real power behind the burning wizard throne is Firestarter. For long duration burning spells, Firestarter boosts damage more than any other trait, including those of other classes. Token considerations aside, Focused Pyromancy is a near auto include. You can opt for Novice Pyromancy to save the token or Focused Burning for the off chance of stacking burning traits but the consistency and power of Focused Pyromancy wins out more often than not.

Spoiler: Item Rating Code

(B)est of the Best
This item is the best of the best of the best. With honors. It 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.


You could probably engineer a situation where this item wouldn't suck but it's more trouble than it's worth.


This item makes me sad and will probably make you sad too if you buy it. There are no circumstances where I'd consider playing this item.

 

Well, they often aren't worse than I am, but I still find them more fun to play against. Seems like the daily deal has become the daily dissapointment. I hear about these awesome items and never see them. Oh well, back to grinding multiplayer until I get the good stuff.

 

What if one would want that helmet for a legit set of cards along with Mimetic Crown? I'd say it's good, maybe not as cards-to-value good as Spacediver's Face Screen, but I'd say it's still very nice.

 

I was planning on listing substitutes for both cards but forgot about it.

 

Ichabod's Buckler (P)
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
Defender's Block is the best block in the game. Many builds can only spare a minor token for shields. Ichabod's Buckler is a minor token shield with Defender's Block. Seems like buying it is a slam dunk. That is until you compare it with the alternatives. For the same minor token, you have access to Buckler Of Protection and Parrying Buckler. Both shields draw you more cards and that's all that it takes to come out on top. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
Never buy legendary shields. Card draw is still important but you have perfect knowledge of what you'll be facing so you can just swap between cheap Catch Arrow and Parry shields. If for some reason you still want Defender's Block, get Buckler of Protection instead for the extra card. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Buckler Of Protection (R) , Cherry Shield (E) , Defensive Buckler (R) , Aegis Of The Defender (E)

Did Peon Buy It?
Yes, but not today. Have the full set already though if I could have a do over I'd get a refund. I originally had more to say but halfway through I realized I'd spent more time talking about Parry and Lifesaving Block than about the actual cards on Ichabod's Buckler itself. Well I've taken the liberty of condensing the wall of text down to 4 words. Just use Parrying Buckler.

Epics
Impervious Panoply (N)
The best minor token heavy armor for Arrogant Armor. Vinorkin's Cuirass gives you the same thing without the encumber but you get a low impact Leather Harness instead.

Salazar's Sandals (V)
Good filler Team Walk boots till you can get your hands on Captain Cedric's Boots.

Supercooled Laser (N)
The best Cooling Laser staff.

Notable Rares
Argy Bargy Brand Sneakers (U)
Ooze Shove is both a potential powerhouse and a liability as control cards go. Moving something 3 squares away is second only to Violent Spin, and that's if you choose to give up your starting position. That said, Slide Back cards are limited by any blocking terrain behind potential targets and Ooze Shove itself is a blockable melee card. Muscle Through fairs better in the Unblockable department but it too fairs poorly against Violent Spin. However, what you lose in quality you make up for it in quantity. Getting two control cards on minor token boots is incredibly rare. In fact, the only other options are also player created items. Muscle-Bound Boots gives you more consistency but in the form of underwhelming Muscle Throughs. The epic Fashionable Ball And Chain has a Lunging Bash that fairs better against blocking terrain and the almighty Violent Spin but at the high cost of randomly Halting.

Gauntlets Of The Giant (P)
When you're looking to add a little oomph to your attacks, Frenzy Aura is a good way to go. Cutting through armor like a knife through butter more than makes up for being able to be knocked off. By the time your opponent gets rid of it, you'll likely have gotten at least a couple buffed hits in. While Cuirass Of Froth is preferable if you're going all in on Frenzy Aura, Gauntlets of the Giant gives you respectable armor while ditching the self encumber.

Staff Of Winter (N)
There are staves with better cold spells, there are staves with bigger variety of cold spells, but no other cold staff has the same level of consistency and damage. While packing the odd cold spell isn't unheard of, cold wizards themselves aren't very popular. Other good options include Frosty Staff, which trades damage for encumbrance stacking potential against 4+ movement and Staff Of The Arctic, which trade even more damage for a better chance to hit the rest of your team multiple targets.

Spoiler: Item Rating Code

(B)est of the Best
This item is the best of the best of the best. With honors. It 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.


You could probably engineer a situation where this item wouldn't suck but it's more trouble than it's worth.


This item makes me sad and will probably make you sad too if you buy it. There are no circumstances where I'd consider playing this item.

 

There's a typo in the link. (drop the "s" from the end)

 

I know you dont like substitutes on the same rarity, but Yvette's Buckler is a substitute. Allthough that is an understatement. I would consider Yvette's Buckler as a clear better version of Ichabod's Buckler. You also get a Defender's Block, but Surging Shield Block is a great upgrade from Wounded Block. It is virtual card advantage and is great with Cautious Mobility. Whether Wounded Block or Subtle Parry is better, does not matter, since the difference is definitly not as big as between Surging Shield Block and Wounded Block.

 

Ober, You are one of my favorite people here, but why did you have to bring up wounded block? The second worst block ever? I don't even run underdogs shield because of that.

 

It's virtual card advantage mostly against wizards but in those situations Subtle Parry is actual card disadvantage. If you're using it defensively to get out of melee range, I'd rather have Buckler of Protection and the extra card. Maybe I have an unwarranted aversion to Subtle Parry but Yvette's Buckler rubs me the wrong way.

What is so bad about Wounded Block? Because it doesn't trigger as often when you're above half health? Seems like a pretty good deal to me.

 

Forrtescue's Feathered Cap (N)

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed

Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
When you play with Sprint, Team! you are free to two thirds of your squad just about anywhere on the map, barring difficult terrain. Might I suggest that support priest that was hanging out in the back? Or introduce any old wizard to the glory of Powerful Hacks. Heck, even a warrior is chump meat when you're fighting dirty in a two on one. Sounds awesome, so what's the catch? You can only get 2 copies of Sprint, Team! per character and that's only if you use human warriors. Triple warriors isn't too big of a deal since you want all your potential sprinters to be able to pack a punch. However, you'll have to do it without the usual buff priest so you are limited to high damage, low utility weapons. Use wimpy Step attack like weapons like Vibrant Pain or Double-Edged Sword and your wounded prey will have time to call for backup. No, what you need is Bejeweled Shortsword and lots of it. Naturally, this makes you weak against control wizards but everything else is fair game. You are also powerless againstImpenetrable Nimbus and Force Field (unless you're packing Nova Axe which takes away a little too much from your offense to run). As for Forrtescue's Feathered Cap itself, it's the only minor token Sprint, Team! helmet without weak cards. The only other comparable item is Wenham's Leather Coif which gives you an extra attack but saddles you with the underwhelming Leather Harness. If you want to try out the triple Sprint, Team! human warriors archetype, Forrtescue's Feathered Cap (or Wehnham's Leather Coif) is a must. You can try substituting races and classes on your sprinters but you will lose out on consistency so I would not purchase otherwise.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
Singleplayer maps often start you closer to the mobs, there is no element of surprise against the AI, and you are the one that is more likely to get ganged up on. Sprint, Team! is simply unnecessary. Play tokenless helmets or if you've got the tokens, something that increases your damage output like Angry Jack's Helmet or Bellowing Helm. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Major's Helmet (E) , Mathiam's Helm (E) , Helm Of Alacrity (R)
The Daily Deal

Did Peon Buy It?
Yes, but not today. Though they're fairly interchangable, I prefer the extra attack on Wenham's Leather Coif to Dodge.

Epics
Pendant Of Artax
Mismatched cards even when you take away the awful Little Zap.

Staff Of The Fire God (NV)
This is both a budget Searing Pain and burning wizard staff. It obviously doesn't come close to the real deal but you get what you pay for.

Vinorkin's Boots (P)
Great boots for avoiding melee attacks. Jump Back is a liability when you're a melee character yourself so wizards and support characters get the most use out of them.

Notable Rares
Powermace (P)
Powermace has a little bit of everything that a support priest wants out of a divine weapon. Something to keep opposing characters off your back, some self heal to keep you alive, and don't forget that Genetic Engineering can double as a Purge. You even get buffs if you win the Boost lottery on Genetic Engineering. The only real issue is that Radioactive Spray which, while powerful, isn't something you can effectively use on any priest.

Spoiler: Item Rating Code

(B)est of the Best
This item is the best of the best of the best. With honors. It 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.


You could probably engineer a situation where this item wouldn't suck but it's more trouble than it's worth.


This item makes me sad and will probably make you sad too if you buy it. There are no circumstances where I'd consider playing this item.

 

Major's HelmET

 

Because it is important to evaluate cards of every quality. This way you can see for which cards to look for, to find powerhouses.

And I agree with peon, it is not that bad. Allthough peon forgets about the main disadvantage. You often have to discard it, if you draw it early in the game. Also Pushback Parry is paper quality and a lot stronger. So you can look for items with Pushback Parry, to find great items, like Hexagon Shield, which also happens to be at the border of the nontoken shields. Because of this it is a great item. But nevertheless Eeygonnic's Hield is a great shield, when you expecte some amount of mages.
The same is true for example with move cards. Move 4 and Paper quality? Dangerous Maneuver is defintly an undercosted card for paper quality and the items which also happens to be at the border of the nontoken boots (and have card draw) are great, like Goat Boots or Hawkwind's Moccasin's.

@peonprop I think you should give Subtle Parry a try. It really depends on the meta, ofc. I have not played much this season, but it seems like a season where melee shines. And there Subtle Parry is really great. The best thing about Subtle Parry is, that often enough the opponents try to fetch your blocks with a weak attack and you get to draw a card that way. And if they dont, you blocked a big attack. Also great.
I personally shy away from Lifesaving Block. I had to discard it so often. Because I drew it too early or because of an Unnerving Strike. For me it is a way too situationally card to be considered anyway near good. But that is just me disliking situationally cards. Guess everybody has his quirk.