Illusion barrier is probably overpowered at duration 3. And I'm probably not the first to notice this. It's especially dominant in certain maps, but it's somewhat balanced by being very expensive to buy. Are there any plans to nerf it? It (illusion/phantom pain) seems like a must-buy for wizards but I would hate to shell out all that gold right before a nerf.
Illusory Barrier came out in the AotA expansion (the one prior to Citadel), so it's been around for a while. I've seen a few remarks from players who think it's too powerful, but never read any serious discussion of nerfing it. There's always a possibility of a nerf, I suppose, but I doubt it will happen. I've bought both Illusion and Phantom Pain, and they are very useful, but I don't think they're OP compared to their cost.
With the exception of the league Death March, I wouldn't consider it dominant on any maps (helpful, yes; winning, no). If anything I think Wall Of Illusion should be boosted somehow to give some sort of incentive to play it, it's the same quality as Illusory Barrier (though probably at a - to a = or + silver). When you are using Illusion, or to a lesser extent, Phantom Pain, you're giving up damage for control. It can be really annoying for wizards to deal with, but warriors can generally maneuver around it. Wizards can bypass it easily enough with other terrain cards if they have them. Possibly it's a teensy bit strong, but there are other cards/items which are more of a problem in my view.
It's more dominant the more movement is restricted, since it stops both movement and LOS, with DM being the extreme. Cool, I'll buy it when I see it. I just hope there isn't a nimbarrier added to the game, nimbus with same cost but duration 3 haha
Illusory Barrier is very very good as a counterplay card. The problem with it, though, is that it's Silver+ and any itemization with which it is plentiful in, has a few offensive cards (Path Of Knives, Flash Of Agony, Acid Blast). That means you're spending in tokens big time for these barriers. If you want to draw barriers consistently then you're probably going to run an Illusion + 2x Illusory Barrier items, which means you're spending 4 tokens and 3 valuable slots for placing barriers. That wizard now will basically be weak in doing anything else. I do admit though, one item with it is seriously strong, in line with other strategies that are difficult to counter. Can you make a guess? Spoiler: Answer Phantom Pain. Kinda reminds you of Searing and Vibrant, eh?
Illusion Wall is a as good as the Barrier as it replaces the Barrier and gives you 1 turn advantage. All at a cost of a small blue token. Alternatively, Smoke Bomb also does a fine job by canceling the advantage and creating a mess of smoke all over the place.
I don't think it's OP but it has lead to one of the most frustrating matches I've ever played....see image below for IB hell! (Despite the formidable wall and the Hypnotic Beacons I did go on to win the game btw)
Honestly I think Smoke Bomb is more overpowered than illusionary barrier. Unlike barrier, smoke bomb's advantage cannot be taken away with all those 1 tile terrain cards, which wizards almost always carry.
Smoke bomb obstructs the caster's vision as well, and the casting side is certain to have at least 1 wizard while the opponent's side may be all warriors. The strength of illusory barrier is that it acts as a one-way mirror vs wizards, and it obstructs movement vs warriors. -- Smoke Bomb does neither of these things.
