The Daily Deal

Discussion in 'Card Hunter General Chat' started by Fry_The_Guy, Aug 21, 2014.

  1. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Klonox's Warper
    The only reason to want this item is if you really need Illusory Barrier with Accelerate Time, since this is the only item with both. So to me, this fits in a Accelerate Time+Volcano deck. Against wizards, you put down Illusory Barrier near them, forcing them to come closer, which just happens to be in range of Accelerate Time. And Firestorm, incidentally. Against non-wizards, you can simply save the Illusory Barriers to remove Lava terrain from under your feet. Other than that, I'm not sure what else it would be useful for that other Warpers don't do better.

    Epics:
    Advanced Footwork
    While Violent Spin and Escaping Run are both fine cards, they don't outweigh the glorified Walk in Smashing Spin.

    Banik's Bubbling Bauble
    There are more focused items for both control and Firestorm.

    Roaring Staff
    Fine item but doesn't have the premium burning spells only found on staves, Instant Burn and Ember Burst.

    Notable Rares:
    Cleansing Shroud
    Great armor, great heal. Cleansing Ray at the very least triggers Altruism and can randomly come in handy sometimes.

    Gauntlets Of The Giant
    Fine Frenzy Aura item, if you are wary of the Ill-fitting Armor on Cuirass Of Froth.

    Kolt 45
    I keep stating Ember Burst is staff-exclusive but that's not exactly true, as this item proves.
     
    Last edited: Aug 5, 2018
  2. Sir Veza

    Sir Veza Farming Deity

    >> Warning - Largely off-topic <<
    @Gingrich Yurr , thanks for putting yourself out there with your daily analysis of DD items. Some may disagree with your findings, but this is often a matter of play-style, which can vary greatly between individuals. I believe it's good to comment and throw it open to discussion.
    I'm old and slow (and drank so many gifted shots of tequila at my gig tonight I had to bum a ride home, so I probably shouldn't be posting now), but I've learned a lot from reading the item evaluations over the years. My sincere thanks to you, Peonprop, and many others for expanding my view of the possibilities.
    What actually triggered this post, was a statement by @Jade303 regarding Gauntlets Of The Giant back in 2014. I don't know why I remembered it, but I found it amusing (and entirely justified at the time), as I still do today. Quirkiness is its own reward,
    I miss Jade and Jarmo (who owned a fully functional bastard sword), and so many others who made this place interesting. Flax, Kalin, and others are still around from those days, and so many more are filling in as part of the community that it still feels like home. Being odd is not necessary, but it probably helps to fit in and get yourself noticed.
    It's part of the reason I crawled into the house instead of sleeping in the driveway. I wanted to see what my community was saying.
    The actual order of precedence was somewhat more in the order of: (1) Get in out of the rain, (2) Find a dry cigarette and a means to light it, (3) Ascertain an ample supply of the hair of the dog that bit me [more than 2 quarts verified on hand, which should be ample, considering it was a small dog], and (4) test said remedy for quality and efficacy.
    Testing proved the remedy to be both warm and fuzzy in effect, and inspired me to get something to eat and check in on my treasured community, primarily to see when the next league starts, and where the Loot Fairy was staying the night.
    Then, of course, to read every new post on the forum, which brought me here.
    ... And made me think about an evaluator brave enough to put forth his ideas without apology
    ... And made me think about others brave enough to bring up ideas counter to those of an obviously (check the ratings) great player
    ... And made me think of Jade303's dozens of copies of Gauntlets Of The Giant
    ... And made me realize that however drunk I am, I'm home.
    And inside is definitely better than outside, especially if it's raining.
    And, most of all, I feel thankful for being included in this community.
    Good Hunting, One and All!

    p.s. Kolt 45 [Rare] can also be a lot of fun in the right circumstances, but you can probably snag one, two, or six during the months when the Citadel Leagues are in play.
     
    Last edited: Aug 5, 2018
  3. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Impeccability
    This is the only item with two Ready to Strikes so it pretty much singlehandedly opens up the possibility of building around Ready to Strike. With just one copy from the other helmets, it is too unreliable to truly build around, but it is much more reliable when you have two copies. Ready to Strike can be insanely powerful when you build around it, and it synergises with many cards, including Force Cone, Muscle Through, Pushback Parry, Bashes of all kinds, and the list goes on. Basically anything that moves your opponent. Ready to Strike is also an excellent counter against Vengeance as people holding it have to choose whether to try their luck and keep landing next to you and potentially keep taking damage or to just give up and move away. Ready to Strike has some downsides. Firstly, it's effectiveness is reduced by quite a lot by armor. Next, it is pretty bad against wizards since wizards likely won't be walking anywhere near your warrior anytime soon. Lastly, it takes up hand space so you may have to throw high quality attacks, armor or blocks to keep Ready to Strike in your hand, which in turn makes you more predictable and vulnerable, particularly if you keep two copies in hand. Regardless of these drawbacks, it can be a very fun strategy to execute and can be effective as well particularly in warrior metas.

    Epics:
    Perfect Flexibility
    Advanced Battlefield Training can create some weird combos and situations, and this is the only item with two of it.

    Stookster's Amulet
    Arcane Spray makes this bad.

    Venerable Positioning
    Delegate is a very powerful card, especially if you Delegate a warrior. The Run is particularly good for a warrior because it lets you get close to the enemy. So with the card, you give someone 3 cards with no downside. The downside is you can't target yourself but if you're the only person left chances are you aren't winning anyway. As for the rest of the cards on this item, you have Vanguard, which is a strong trait, as well as Wounded Block, which is a decent block. I would call this the best Delegate item because of the cycling trait which no other Delegate item has but the Retreat from Make Haste is so strong too in some map rotations. Whatever it is, this is a powerhouse item not to be missed. Highly recommend purchasing.

    Notable Rares:
    Incense Of Roiled Air
    Fine Mass Frenzy item.

    Ravager's Cudgel
    Several strong attacks, and some Howls which are always good. Not a bad major minor weapon choice, but could use with some mobility.

    St. Xarol's Axe
    Good minor token divine weapon for campaign. Chops are best in campaign, especially so when buffed by Blind Rage or Unholy Frenzy from this item.
     
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  4. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Chartwell's Ring
    Firestorm is not a viable strategy in multiplayer. Most of the time, you'll hit more of your characters than your opponents, and if your wizard can hit more enemies than friendly characters, then they are probably in a dangerous position. Even if you use armor to mitigate the damage, it's just not worth the trouble. If there is one place where Firestorm is king though, it's singleplayer. Firestorm items will speed up your farming like no other item. There are 3 Arcane Items with double Firestorm and Chartwell's Ring is one of the two better ones. The Short Perplexing Ray from Chartwell’s Ring can let you get into a better position for Firestorming, escape an enemy that's too close for comfort, or remove an annoying armor. If you play mainly singleplayer, want an easier time in singleplayer, or plan on doing some farming, I highly recommend purchasing this item. I myself have bought two in the past and I don't even play singleplayer that much.

    Epics:
    Emperor's Plate
    For a major token you have access to Bern's Untouchable Mail.

    Oakenheart Shield
    A downgrade from Steel-Rimmed Buckler.

    Vial Of Spite
    Viable Ancient Grudge item with two accompanying control cards.

    Notable Rares:
    Focused Dervish
    For step attack warriors. Synergises with Leadership.

    Focused Electromancy
    Good for all kinds of wizards, including Deadly, Deadly Staff wizards and control wizards.

    Incense Of Roiled Air
    Fine Mass Frenzy item.

    Fun fact: This is the first day where every item has been previously reviewed, so no need to read it of you've seen it all before.
     
  5. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Klonox's Warper
    The only reason to want this item is if you really need Illusory Barrier with Accelerate Time, since this is the only item with both. So to me, this fits in a Accelerate Time+Volcano deck. Against wizards, you put down Illusory Barrier near them, forcing them to come closer, which just happens to be in range of Accelerate Time. And Firestorm, incidentally. Against non-wizards, you can simply save the Illusory Barriers to remove Lava terrain from under your feet. Other than that, I'm not sure what else it would be useful for that other Warpers don't do better.

    Epics:
    Ambush Captain's Casque
    The Lunging Bash synergises with Ready to Strike as it triggers when you bash someone against a wall but for a major token you probably want Impeccability instead.

    Blessed Mail
    Tanky armor for priests but Minor Heal is just sad.

    Xochu's Icy Circlet
    One of the better double Cone of Cold items, with Force Cannon being particularly effective against an encumbered target.

    Notable Rares:
    Cape Of Dark Magic
    Only way to get Spell Skill which is a great draw card and the accompanying cards are good as well, Sparkling Cloth Armor to get away from warriors and a cycling trait.

    Copper Zapping Wand
    Good for melee mages.
     
  6. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Tasty, Tasty Staff
    At first glance, Tasty, Tasty Staff looks pretty weak. Tongue Lash is 5 damage at 5 range when you can get Sorcerous Blast or Silver Bolt for the same quality with 6 damage at 6 range. Tongue Storm, 4 damage Burst at range 5 when you can get Arcane Burst with range 6 at the same quality. What makes Tasty, Tasty Staff unique is its attacks, Tongue Grab and Tongue Lash, being melee. Hence, they get greater buffs from Frenzy effects, and you can put Blind Rage on dwarf wizards with this staff to buff their attacks. Also, if you have a warrior in your team as well, you can use the Tongue attacks to test for melee blocks like Parry before engaging with the warrior. Tasty, Tasty Staff wielders are at a disadvantage against most other wizards since most other wizards have range 6 attacks so they can attack you while you can't attack them other than with Tongue Burst but you will have a huge advantage in terms of coolness. Who can resist a Marroo licking them to death? I'll be picking up another copy of this staff today, but for those more limited in funds, this item is more for fun than power. If fun is what you're looking for though, this staff is second to none.

    Epics:
    Heavy Mace
    Dark Drewg's Mace puts this to shame.

    Long-handled Mace
    A plain beatstick which brings nothing new to the table, other than an Unreliable Block which I do not want on my table.

    Shimmering Hood
    Decent if you know you'll be facing wizards. Also consider Shimmering Helm.

    Notable Rares:
    Drow Rapidity
    Strong tokenless Fleet item.

    Frenzied Lycanthropy
    If you think being a werewolf isn't deadly enough, you can get a Frenzy Aura along with it.

    Twirling Dervish
    Decent way to add Violent Spin to your warrior.
     
  7. Sir Veza

    Sir Veza Farming Deity

    If you know you'll be facing Only Bones in a campaign adventure, the Heavy Mace has twice the usable attacks of Drewg's. I'd prefer a St. Portia's Maul, but it and Drewg's can sometimes be quite difficult to find. (And are five times as expensive to buy.)
    If you farm the campaign a lot, lack a good crushing weapon for your priest, and have some gold stockpiled, this might be a good purchase.
     
  8. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Old Snarly's Moccasins
    With a Brutal Charge and a Prowl, these boots definitely suit a melee character the most. Enchanted Harness is a little odd but it could come in useful if you are running an armor like Barbed Platemail or Mimetic Crown. The thing about Old Snarly's is that there's Angry Jack's Boots which is only an epic and just one card away. Is Brutal Charge so much better than Creature of the Night to warrant the hefty price tag? I'd even argue that it's worse.

    Epics:
    Booming Ring
    Path of Knives isn't too great nowadays with Martyr Blessings and Vengeance in the meta.

    Noral's Cleansing Relic
    One of many cleansing divine items. Would not randomly bring it into MP matches, since terrain isn't that common. Would only use if you're using a build that requires cleansing, like Volcano.

    Staff Of Soot
    When you're playing a Smoke Bomb wizard, you do not typically want targetted attacks to go along with it since your Smoke Bomb blocks your vision too.

    Notable Rares:
    Buckler Of Protection
    Fine minor token Defender's Block shield.
     
  9. Kalin

    Kalin Begat G'zok

    Was it ever great in PvP? :p It's actually a good counter to Vengeance in the first two maps of Spreading Blight.
     
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  10. Sir Veza

    Sir Veza Farming Deity

    Booming Ring still works quite well on Lord Stafford and his unarmored minions.
     
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  11. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Ferocity
    If you want more Violent Spins on your dwarf, this is the best way to get it. Blind Rage is more help than harm most of the time, and the Violent Spin can help to ensure that you can get close to enemies to unleash the harm. Violent Spin is very useful in a lot of situations, and to make the most out of the Frenzy from Blind Rage, this item can be great for pretty much any melee character, including warriors, vampires, or even tongue wizards? Sure hope you picked up that Tasty, Tasty Staff the other day. Overall, this is a nice item to have in your collection, but it's not a top priority if low on funds.

    Epics:
    Aloysi's Cloak
    You get to Fumble away your Mystical Wyrmhide, all for only one minor token!

    Barreling Club
    No movement for 2 major tokens. You move your opponent I guess, but then you'll have no use for the Powerful attacks. If you want Barging, stick to Barging and leave the big attacks at home.

    Berserker
    You'd have to be berserk to pay a major token for Raging Strike and Barge.

    Notable Rares:
    Night-Forged Plate
    Can't remember exactly but this is either the only or one of the only Divine Armors with a trait, and it is an acceptable handicap card. The item comes with good armor with Encumber that honestly isn't too harmful for support priests as well as a heal useful for block checking. Best part is, it's tokenless!
     
  12. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Hand Of Wicna
    Hand of Wicna does not stand out from all the other minor token double Flash Flood items, and most of those are epics. To pay extra over those epics I would want an exceptionally good accompanying card and Path of Knives is not it. Martyr Blessing is in full force basically every season and playing Path of Knives is nearly suicidal. I would look for any other double Flash Flood item if you need one.

    Epics:
    Keen Baselard
    Just too low damage to be viable. The only good cards here are Sundering Strike and Dodge.

    Mageslayer Mail
    Does what it says on the tin, with all three cards being good against wizards to some degree.

    Pol's Prayer Beads
    Strategies involving terrain typically do not need Frenzy.

    Notable Rares:
    Blazing Buckler
    One of the better tokenless shields, simply because it has Parry and no weak cards.

    Lantern Helm
    Best minor token Sprint Team helm, courtesy of the cycling trait.
     
  13. ParodyKnaveBob

    ParodyKnaveBob Thaumaturge

    You forgot Flimsy Block. Such a good card.

    Wait, why are you laughing? I'm not.

    I've considered now and then posting my own shop reviews, heheheh... $F^ }
     
  14. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Painful Flashstaff
    A very high damage double minor staff. This is the only way to get Obliterating Spark with only minor tokens, and Punishing Bolts have the highest damage potential of any wizard attack, as well as countering builds that rely on drawing a lot of cards such as through Martyr Blessing. The problem is Flash of Agony constitutes half of the item. You'll likely be hitting more of your own characters than enemies, and the damage to self is particularly bad for a low health wizard, so most of the time it will sit in your hand and be nothing more than a dead card. If you can find a use for the Flash of Agonies though, or if you can cycle quickly through your deck with card draw or something like Leadership, it can be a fine item if you need a lot of damage while only spending minor tokens.

    Epics:
    Black Walnut Staff
    Passable Firestorm staff for campaign.

    Jackrabbit Shield
    Hit the Deck and Dodge is not a good combo.

    Long-handled Mace
    A plain beatstick which brings nothing new to the table, other than an Unreliable Block which I do not want on my table.

    Notable Rares:
    Superb Evasion
    If you want Elvish Scamper, this is the way to get it.
     
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  15. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Knife Of St. Blenko
    Only item in the game with 2 Inspiring Presence. Inspiring Presence is mainly good in teams where you can hang back, typically 2 wizard 1 priest. In particular, it is good in leagues where you and your opponent start far apart and it is not easy to reach each other, like Wicked Waterways, Golden Shrine, and Central Processing. However, what I dislike about this item is that the attacks contradict what you are trying to do which is stay away from enemies. The attacks are certainly decent but you likely won't be using them too much. Still, if you want maximum Inspiring Presences you pretty much need this item. Is it worth it? I would say no unless you have a very specific build that can take advantage of it, and you know you absolutely need a lot of Inspiring Presence. Builds involving Inspiring Presence are also usually heavy in legendaries so you can take that into account as well.

    Epics:
    Charging Boulder
    Would have been a interesting item with both defence and mobility but Shrug It Off. Maybe someone can make it work?

    Frozen Shield
    A major token for 3 average blocks isn't great.

    Ihibrin's Holy Droplets
    Soothing Darkness is terrible, Light Heal is also pretty pathetic for a major token.

    Notable Rares:
    Evil Hourglass
    Only item with Doom, which can give you an easier time against some big bad campaign bosses.

    Howling Guidance
    Jump Soldier is excellent but rather poorly itemised. This is one of the if not the best item with it.
     
  16. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Hand-held Ram
    Of the 3 double minor triple Barge weapons, this is the clear loser. The Pulper has a lot more damage and Enormous Tree Branch gives you cycling and potentially more damage as well. The only thing this has going for it is the Flimsy Block, if that counts. If you're expecting a lot of control wizards the Flimsy Block may come in useful but other than that it won't come into play often. If you want a Barge weapon, don't pick this one.

    Epics:
    Ethereal Crystal Gun
    One of many Accelerate Time items. Perplexing Ray isn't that good, the discard being random hurts it a lot. Firestorm isn't great either.

    Flicker's Earcuff
    If you really like Counterspell, hold out for Aork's Vial Of Memories because Acid Spray is truly terrible.

    Rod Of Palver Pree
    Substitute for Asmod's Telekinetic Chain. Although the chain is obviously far better for controlling, the rod is no pushover and the damage can be more useful.

    Notable Rares:
    Blackeye Hammer
    There are few good single minor token weapons, and this is one of them. The 3 strong attacks are kind of canceled out by the 2 terrible Bludgeons but luckily there's a Blind Rage to tip the scales in its favour. If you've got movement covered, this can help add some damage.

    Rageblood Dagger
    This has everything you want for 2 minor tokens, movement, decent damage, and Blind Rage. Even the Raging Strike isn't enough to drag it down. You still need to be aware of the Raging Strike in your deck though when building your character.

    Sacrificial Axe
    Great cycling item for support priests, and comes with a couple of good attacks to get away from people.
     
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  17. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Advanced Ethereality
    Ethereal Form is terrible. I dare say Ethereal Form is worse than Zombie Form, because Zombie Form is still dangerous as they can bust out an Infected Bite or Brains! on you, while Spirit Form pretty much offers no threat at all. Doom is useless, Boo! is nearly impossible to fire off and can easily backfire with a simple Purge, Beam Of Hate is pitiful, and Ancient Grudge is pretty useless when you're in Ethereal Form since your deck shrinks. The only truly great cards are Acid Jetand Unholy Curse. This item throws on a Hex of Dissolution with Ethereal Forms which makes no sense at all. If you're playing an acid wizard you don't want Ethereal Forms, you want Acid Leaks instead. And if you're playing an Ethereal Form wizard, you don't want Hex of Dissolution, you want to change your wizard instead. Would not purchase.

    Epics:
    Banik's Bubbling Bauble
    There are more focused items for both control and Firestorm.

    Cohr's Black Scepter
    A mish-mash of random cards. Would rather have more focused items.

    Flying Carpet
    For a major token, there are much better movement cards you can get than Fly, and they don't come with a terrible Cloth Armor.

    Notable Rares:
    Ancient Heirloom Shield
    It's a niche shield, but sometimes you just want those Lucky Charms, for situations such as your character starting far away from the action, on a support character, or maybe even to Leadership.

    Warp Robes
    Excellent tokenless robes. Cycling trait that's useful for getting your wizard into position, an armor that removes enemy attachments most of the time, and great movement.
     
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  18. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Superb Flexibility
    The Zoltan's Helm of Human Skills. Everything I said in that review linked above applies here. Perfect Flexibility is the major token item that outclasses Superb Flexibility, like General Gideon's Helm for Zoltan. In addition, for the same minor token, Trained Flexibility is only one card away from Superb Flexibility and can potentially be better as well. It just isn't worth it. Would not purchase.

    Epics:
    Bahoxl's Maul
    Fine cleansing weapon.

    Howling Hood
    Best minor token helm with Enchanted Harness.

    Lochaber Axe
    Nimble Strikes are great but not really enough to have to deal with Weak Chop and Unreliable Block.

    Notable Rares:
    None
     
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  19. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    The Strongarm
    There are many juicy high token items for warriors in slots like Helmet, Heavy Armor and Shield. However, it is often difficult to allocate tokens to them as giving up tokens in the weapon slots typically means greatly reduced damaged output. Well not with this weapon. At tokenless it outdamages plenty of more token intensive weapons. This gives you a lot more freedom in how you spend your tokens. There are other great tokenless options as well like Blazing Shortsword but for straight up brute force, The Strongarm is the top choice. Highly recommend purchasing.

    Epics:
    Club Of Wrath
    Generally worse than its legendary counterpart, Cudgel Of Wrath, as well as Dark Drewg's Mace.

    Keen Baselard
    Just too low damage to be viable. The only good cards here are Sundering Strike and Dodge.

    Ogre Plate
    Shimmering Aura is terrible and Enchanted Mail is overcosted.

    Notable Rares:
    Ancient Heirloom Shield
    It's a niche shield, but sometimes you just want those Lucky Charms, for situations such as your character starting far away from the action, on a support character, or maybe even to Leadership.

    Rageblood Dagger
    This has everything you want for 2 minor tokens, movement, decent damage, and Blind Rage. Even the Raging Strike isn't enough to drag it down. You still need to be aware of the Raging Strike in your deck though when building your character.
     
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  20. Gingrich Yurr

    Gingrich Yurr Thaumaturge

    Lewin's Boots
    Violent Spin is a very strong and versatile card. This is one of a few minor token boots with Violent Spin, and looking at the rest it's one of the better ones. Eadrik's Boots is simply terrible and it would be folly to use Foley's Footwear. Lewin's is really only competing with Infernal Boots which are good if you can take the pain and Vinorkin's Boots with a nice Jump Back but a subpar Officer's Harness. I think the designers didn't pair up Violent Spin with too good cards on purpose because they realised its power. Lewin's are a fine but unremarkable option if you do want it.

    Epics:
    Corian's Boots
    Officer's Harness don't usually do much.

    Eixocl's Hammer
    Excellent weapon, giving nice control and mobility to a warrior. And of course, Blind Rage.

    Whiteglow Flail
    Nimble Strike and Barge are both great for getting away from enemies. Impenetrable Nimbus and Martyr Blessing are also strong support cards.

    Notable Rares:
    None
     

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