Peon's Not So Daily Deal

Discussion in 'Card Hunter General Chat' started by peonprop, Apr 3, 2016.

  1. peonprop

    peonprop Thaumaturge

    It's good only if you need the ranged attacks and even then you might just want Blazing Shortsword. Otherwise things like The Strongarm or Dangerous Club are better.
     
    Last edited: Jan 4, 2019
  2. peonprop

    peonprop Thaumaturge

    Relic Of The First Vampire (N)
    Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
    Vamps are essentially warriors so replacing attacks with defensive things is usually off the table. Swarm Of Bats is incredibly versatile but when you're going off with Talented Healer, the last thing you want to do is break up your chain of vamp attacks. That said, just as warriors come in different flavors, not all vamps need to be all out offense oriented. Stab vamps in particular, who already have a hard time killing things in one go due to their lower damage attacks, would welcome a block that also moves them into Stab range. Vamps also make decent tanks with their naturally high survivability and Swarm of Bats does a great job of furthering a damage prevention game plan. If you aren't trying to maximize damage output on your vamp, Relic of the First Vampire is definitely worth considering.

    Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
    If you're using a vamp, you want all the damage you can get. In situations where you do need a boost in defense, a one shot card like Swarm of Bats pales in comparison to Impenetrable Nimbus and Shielding Token still gives you an on theme Consuming Spear. Would not purchase.

    Substitutes
    Badjeera's Black Relic (E), Flax's Thirsty Vial (E), Wuuna's Vampiric Shroud (E): Spear Of Darkness
    St. Banesh's Prayer Box (E) (minortoken): Swarm Of Bats

    Comments from the Peanut Gallery
    @Scarponi
    But just like with warriors, a vamp w/o movement can be left with lots of attacks, and nothing to attack. Bats' most useful feature on a vamp is not defense, but offense, it can close the distance with wizards, it can clear over an opponent's defense positioning to finish off a low hp character who has retreated to the back lines, it can bait in a strong character to initiate a cantrip kill of a weak character up to 6 squares away (for a stab vamp) after causing the strong character to use up its movement and not be a threat for the rest of the round. Vamps must have a way to deal with mobility, and a cantrip mobility option that doesn't rely on another support character can be very useful.
     
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2019
  3. peonprop

    peonprop Thaumaturge

    Repulsor Raygun (P)
    Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
    An average of 6 damage to a single target is about where you want to be for wizard attacks so any additional targets Scatter Laser hits is just icing on the cake. Force Cone can be awkward to use in cramped spaces and alongside melee teammates but it is second only to Gusts Of War when it comes to moving multiple targets. Both spells are powerful and fairly hard to come by so getting the pair in one neat little package is fantastic. The only real downside to Repulsor Raygun is that you are basically forced to pair it with another major token staff if you want any hope of getting kills with your wizard but paying full price for staves is par for the course. Repulsor Raygun is a nice mix of damage and control spells that is worth considering for any control wizard.

    Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
    You generally don't want control spells unless you're up against bosses and you can get enough from arcane items. What you need from your staves is high damage spells to finish the boss off and a pair of Scatter Lasers just isn't going to cut it. It's much better to go with a purely offensive staff like Heartripper if you're going to invest in a non-Firestorm/Volcano legendary. Would not purchase.

    Substitutes
    None
     
  4. Scarponi

    Scarponi Moderator

    But just like with warriors, a vamp w/o movement can be left with lots of attacks, and nothing to attack. Bats' most useful feature on a vamp is not defense, but offense, it can close the distance with wizards, it can clear over an opponent's defense positioning to finish off a low hp character who has retreated to the back lines, it can bait in a strong character to initiate a cantrip kill of a weak character up to 6 squares away (for a stab vamp) after causing the strong character to use up its movement and not be a threat for the rest of the round. Vamps must have a way to deal with mobility, and a cantrip mobility option that doesn't rely on another support character can be very useful.
     
  5. peonprop

    peonprop Thaumaturge

    Reynoldo's Boots (P)
    Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
    Escaping Run is a good card that just isn't quite worth paying for. It's decent movement that you can cash in for another card fairly regularly but there are just better things to spend tokens on than slow card cycling. If you have nothing better to do with the token and just wand to churn through your deck faster, Ilinca's Moccasins are both lower rarity and more efficient with the mostly benign Creature Of The Night. That said, Reynoldo's Boots are some of the best boots for those specifically seeking out Lunging Bashes. Otherwise, would not purchase.

    Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
    There are definitely going to be times where you'll have the spare token for some card cycling boots but there are a bunch of cheaper options to choose from. Mobility often isn't as important so things like Sticky Slippers will do the trick just fine. Even if you don't want to take that big of a hit to movement, the aforementioned Ilinca's Moccasins are cheaper and better. Would not purchase.

    Substitutes
    Ilinca's Moccasins (E) (minortoken), Lum's Moccasins (E) (minortoken)
     
    Last edited: Jan 29, 2019
  6. peonprop

    peonprop Thaumaturge

    Richie's Frigid Laser :(
    Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
    Richie's Frigid Laser is a complete mess. The only synergy to be found is boosting the damage of Cone Of Cold with Cooling Laser but that is hardly worth it and powering up Cone of Cold can backfire if you're wizard is in your back ranks. Jumpspark is incredibly weak, Laser Spray has significant drawbacks, and everything worth running can be found on more focused items. There are certainly times when card quality trumps cohesiveness but Richie's Frigid Laser is chock full of situational cards rather than standalone powerhouses. Would not purchase.

    Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
    You can find most of the appealing cards on Dual Optimum D-45 but I wouldn't want to run one of those either. Neither are focused or powerful enough to consider. Would not purchase.

    Substitutes
    Dual Optimum D-45 (E) (majortoken)(majortoken)
     
  7. Alan43

    Alan43 Kobold

    Reynoldo's Boots gives two Escaping Run instead of Energizing Move.
     
    peonprop likes this.
  8. peonprop

    peonprop Thaumaturge

    That's what I get for doing things from memory. I knew it was something with E in it.
     
  9. peonprop

    peonprop Thaumaturge

    Ring Of Bifurcated Healing :(
    Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
    Big heals like Greater Heal are generally going to be better than smaller multi target or team heals because that's how most damage is dealt. Even when you do get full value out of a Twin Heals, you will probably still have a severely wounded character that your opponent has been focusing his or her attacks on. That is why I don't like small heals period. To make matters worse, Ring of Bifurcated Healing is clearly inferior to Yochxti's Sacred Bundle. Twin Heals has a slightly better range than Triple Heals but that is rarely going to come up. Would not purchase.

    Peon's Perspective for Penny Pinching Singleplayers
    You will prevent way more damage from a single Impenetrable Nimbus than you would heal from any spell. Team heals do fare much better when you're flinging Firestorms willy nilly but you'd be better off using something higher impact like Jygpin's Healing Ring. Would not purchase.

    Substitutes
    Ajan's Glowing Vial (E), Elphala's Healing Ring (E) (minortoken), Frennik's Soulstone (E) (minortoken)
     
  10. peonprop

    peonprop Thaumaturge

    Ring Of Majestic Healing (N)
    Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
    Big single target heals already have a hard time keeping up with incoming damage so relying on smaller Team Heals is almost futile. Where cards like Team Heal really shine is in mitigating a self damaging strategy. Using cards Flash Of Agony or Demonic Revenge gives you guaranteed value from team heals while dealing the damage in manageable doses. The problem with Ring of Majestic Healing is that Team Heal gets outclassed by other team heals. Inspiring Presence heals for more and occasional draws cards, Healing Beacon has far greater team heal potential, and Healing Rays will often do a better job of healing while being good in normal gameplay. While they're more conditional and you can't fit quite as many copies of them in a build as Team Heals, the higher impact of the stronger heals means that you won't have to. Would not purchase.

    Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
    When it comes to staying alive, heals pale in comparison to Impenetrable Nimbus. This is especially true once you reach higher level modules where you start to get access to major tokens. Team Heal can be useful when you're using a Firestorm based team but Hrillia's Healing Ring is a good enough substitute and Boosted Heal is occasionally better. You'd also be better served by using the more powerful yet cheaper Jygpin's Healing Ring. Would not purchase.

    Substitutes
    Hrillia's Healing Ring (E) (majortoken)
     
  11. ThriceElite

    ThriceElite Kobold

    Btw Telekinesis doesn't teleport anymore due to the nerf. It has Fly now.
     

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