The Daily Deal

The problem with this item, is with just one Daylight, you can't really build a deck around it. And Daylight in itself isn't that great of a card either. It's a big cleansing effect with a bit of a heal. Which decks would want that? Volcano? That's not really a viable strategy nowadays in multiplayer. And even if it were, I wouldn't want this item, with just one Daylight and one Cleansing Presence. And the last effect of the card is pretty useless too. It does 0 damage to Spirits, 2 damage to Werewolves, and 4 damage to Vampires. The damage should really be Penetrating or something, it's not like 4 damage will break the game. If I really wanted Daylight, I would use Radiant Goblet, and maybe Lance Of Overflowing Light.

 

Haethel's Resolve
This item opens up a new warrior archetype: the control warrior. It also improves upon previous such weapons. The previous best double major token control options were Reap The Whirlwind, with only 3 controlling cards, and Pressing Problems, with all 6 cards being controlling cards, but only 2 where you could control exactly where the enemy goes. Haethel’s Resolve has 4 controlling cards which allow you to control exactly where to push the enemy to, as well as 2 Penetrating Lunges that can help you get into an optimal Violent Spinning position. So what does the control warrior do? Take the victory squares, and hold position. How effective is it? Not very effective. While Violent Spins are very powerful and allow you to push an enemy off a Victory Square and occupy it immediately, they are the only marquee control cards on the item. The main problem with Barge is that you will still run into lots of popular melee-only blocks with it, like Parry and Subtle Parry, whereas control wizards don't need to worry about magic-only blocks since pretty much nobody runs those. The only popular universal block right now is Defender's Block. Another thing is wizards can pack themselves chock-full of control cards, whereas warriors will still be left with some plain old attacks that don't help with control. Hence, I would just leave the controlling to the wizards. Still, if you have a hankering for control warriors, this is a pretty good item for it but be prepared to shell out some moolah for some expensive items, like this, Reap the Whirlwind, Bruising Dervish, Pergop's Slippers, maybe even Enormous Tree Branch, and still not get great results. One last note, this item can be useful in leagues where Victory Squares are highly important, like Chess Madness or Triple Duel.

Epics:
Croker's Lucky Laser Shield
Laser Block is overcosted and Lifesaving Block will be a dead card for most of the match.

Starsaint's Manipulator
Too unfocused.

Tempered Flamestaff
When it comes to fire wizards, there's only 2 things I want on staves: Instant Burn and Ember Burst. This only has 1 Instant Burn.

Notable Rares:
Ascendant Dervish
Good for some leagues where you need flying effects, like Wicked Waterways.

 

Today's Daily has Focused Corrosion, not Corruption. Probably not worth taking at all, and definitely can't be put on the same character as Monsterbane Axe.

 

The Today's Daily Deal thread has it listed as Focused Corruption can someone confirm this? Can't access the game until later.

 

Settemio is right:

 

I think Blinding Blade does have some value as a way of adding Vengeance to Vampire Priests. Daylight and Cleansing Presence aren't great but they do at least trigger Talented Healer and randomly hose terrain, while bypassing armor and gaining movement are very nice on a vamp. Under peon's rating system, I'd say it's something like P or V with an N - there are better vamp weapons, but if you haven't got them, this is not a bad option and has some unique advantages.

I've also found a small amount of synergy with Blinding Blade and Draining Console. It's hard to get value out of Healing Beacon but it's not uncommon to put it down for priority with Talented Healer, then erase it while gaining 10-13 hp. That's more mitigating the chaff on items with otherwise very desirable cards than it is a good combo, but having usable chaff is worth something.

 

That's interesting, I didn't consider it as a vampire weapon, but having 2 mostly dead cards is just too much imo. I would rather have Lifesuck Spear with the same Impaling Stab and Enervating Touches. You don't get the Vengeance but you get 2 Lunging Strikes for mobility. And most importantly, no dead cards. I just don't think 1 Vengeance is worth the Daylight and Cleansing Presence. Maybe in a more wizard heavy metagame, it would an interesting consideration.

 

Glasod's Dark Eye
Soothing Darkness is a bad card. When characters need healing, they need healing immediately, not spread out over 3 turns while encumbering them, limiting their escape capabilities. If you put it on a character preemptively, they'll just get ignored, especially with the encumber preventing them from chasing people down. The only characters that aren't affected by encumber much are elf wizards, but elf wizards also have the lowest health pools so you'll rarely need the full healing off the Soothing Darkness. The only interesting reason to use Soothing Darkness is to put on a Jump Back stabber or step-attacker; that way, they'll jump back 1 step instead of 2, keeping them in range to stab back and such. Still, even if you wanted to try that out, there's a little something called Lattimore's Relic, which replaces the mostly useless Savage Curse with a very useful Purge. And it's an Epic. Would not purchase.

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

Ulalia's Boots
Excellent pair of boots for a wizard, and possibly even for a mischievous Radiation Bombing priest.

Yaro's Scepter
One of the better Epic replacements for the tokenless double Firestorm legendaries. I wouldn't pay money for it though.

Notable Rares:
Staff Of Winter
Very good cold staff for a major minor token. Pairs well with Instant Snowman.

Vampire's Blade
Good tokenless vampire weapon, though vamps don't usually have problems budgeting tokens.

 

Actually the damage is listed as "unpreventable," which means it cannot be reduced or prevented by anything (including nimbus). So it should be 4 damage to all forms.

 

My bad. Saw the underlined Unblockable and didn't read carefully. Actually, why is Unblockable underlined but unpreventable isn't?

 

One's a keyword (gives more info if you hover over it), the other is not. I guess the belief is"unpreventable" is self explanatory, meaning the same in the game as it does in normal English.

 

Bynzer's Black Spear

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed

Vampires have very few good options in the divine weapon slot in terms of draining attacks, so often they have to include weapons without draining attacks that shore up their other problems, mainly Sundering Strikes for armor. Bynzer's is one of the few good weapons with draining attacks. 4 Spears of Darkness brings consistency and the range of 2 is relevant for vamps that need all the reach they can get with their limited movement. Touch of Death can be a surprise finisher that gets past the popular Parry as it's a Magic Attack. The only thing I dislike about this item is Mass Frenzy, as you'll typically be bringing along a support priest who can do all the buffing anyway, and drawing a Mass Frenzy on your vamp instead of an attack isn't ideal, but I suppose Mass Frenzy is never bad so I can't complain too much. Still, this is clearly a powerful item, and if you ever plan on playing vamps, it makes for a solid purchase.

Epics:
St. Oliander's Tome
Consecrate Ground is the bad version of Bless. Team Heal is average and Mind Worm is terrible.

Ulalia's Boots
Excellent pair of boots for a wizard, and possibly even for a mischievous Radiation Bombing priest.

Ztoli Branch
Compare this to Dangerous Club and Maquah Of Ancient Blood, both of which only cost a single minor token.

Notable Rares:
Ancient Linestaff
Pretty strong cards all round for a major minor staff, and a decent addition to an acod mage.

Diamond Moccasins
Great minor token boots for a melee character. You don't see Quick Run often and it may take people by surprise.

Shielding Token
Best way to get Impenetrable Nimbus. A must for 1 hp quests.

 

Glasod's Dark Skull
Glasod again? Well this is going to be a short one. Spear of Darkness is the best range 2 vampire attack, but is one more damage over Hand Of Melvelous worth the minor token? Nope. Is Spear of Darkness better than Swarm Of Bats from Relic Of The First Vampire, which also costs a minor token? Nope. Is Glasod's Dark Skull worth purchasing? Nope.

Epics:
The Twins
Only item with Jim's Magic Missile, essentially Sorcerous Blast that's worse against armor. Both the Magic Missile and Glob of Flame have good synergy with Curse Of Fragility and Unholy Curse.

Torching Staff
Not a bad tokenless staff, but it doesn't have the premium staff-exclusive cards that fire wizards want, Instant Burn and Ember Burst.

Trog Melter
If you think sacrificing damage from the staff slot for armor removal is worth it, this is the best option. Or you could just use armor removal in the arcane item slots, to get the far superior Boiling Armor.

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

Werewolf Hide
For those who need more movement and don't mind having less armor in their heavy armor slot (aka dwarves)

 

Sanger's Space Cap
Advanced Battlefield Training can create some cool combos but the reason it's rarely seen is because you need a lot of card draw to pull off any combos and if you don't have any specific combos in mind, then it's card disadvantage. Mimetic Crown is more of a deterrent than anything, the retaliation damage is respectable but still not great and opponents will often still just hit you regardless because it only triggers on a 3+. The only reason I can think of to want both of these cards on the same item, is to pass the attack cards you generated from Mimetic Crown to an ally, or maybe just pass the Mimetic Crown to someone else. Neither option appeals much to me. If it does appeal to you, consider Terminator Mask with Advanced Battlefield Training and Mimetic Crown too. The difference? It's an epic, so you save 2000 gold. Would not purchase the cap unless you can think of something to do with it and think Dodge is a significant upgrade over Lifesaving Block.

Epics:
Battered Holy Mail
If you want armor, Cintxotl Mail is generally better. If you want Surestrike Blessing, well, it's very easy to get.

Necalli Charm
Healing Pulse is terrible.

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 like the current one. Whatever it is, this is a powerhouse item not to be missed. Highly recommend purchasing.

Notable Rares:
None, go read the extra long Venerable Positioning review.

 

Bruising Dervish
This is the only way to get 2 Violent Spins on an item without spending major tokens. This is big because that means you aren't shoehorned into a pacifist control warrior build. With the double major token Violent Spin weapons, you simply give up too much damage which pretty much forces you into playing control. With Bruising Dervish you can still equip 2 double major token weapons with big damage to make up for the dervish's lack thereof. That's cool and all but who wants Bruising Dervish? What I can say is, it's a very specific tech choice for some map rotations. Positioning yourself is key, and positioning your opponent is even better. The Unblockable part of it is kind of a big deal too. You give up damage for far better control than opposing warriors. You also give up consistency in draws which is potentially a bigger problem, so I would recommend a priest to help draw more cards to get to the good cards more consistently. Overall, this item is incredibly niche, but can be powerful in the right hands and build. If you even have the slightest hesitation towards buying this item, then it's not for you.

Epics:
Colossal Hammer
All you want are the Pulverizing Bludgeons, so you might as well play Infused Greatclub and save on the token.

Staff Of Glowing Coals
It has Simple Bash, Burning Fingers and Fire Spray. Need I say more?

The Soulstone
One of the better minor token double Flash Flood items.

Notable Rares:
Bronzebottom Cuirass
Two powerful buffing cards on one armor. For those that want offense at the expense of defense.

Crusty Helm
One of the best tokenless helmets, with a great armor and a decent armor. Obvious Maneuver isn't that bad since the opponent can't see the card you draw off it and if you have other traits in hand you can further reduce the number of cards your opponent sees.

 

Andrei's Chiropteran Bundle

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed

There is nothing wrong with this bundle. Vampire's Kiss fits a vampire and it can help with removing armor. Cause Fumble is a fine block. However, the main reason you would want this item is Swarm of Bats, which is like a beefed up Surging Shield Block, and it helps with vamps' mobility issues. However, there is one huge reason you should not buy this bundle: Relic Of The First Vampire. For just a minor token you get a Swarm of Bats too which is the whole reason you want the bundle anyway, as well as two good vamp attacks. If Relic of the First Vampire didn't exist, this bundle may be a good purchase, but currently it's just outclassed.

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.

Spiked Platemail
Horned Plates is the bad version of Frenzy Aura. Gauntlets Of The Giant is pretty much an upgrade over this item.

Yolop's Talisman
Nearly always worse than Fingerbone Of St. Ob.

Notable Rares:
Manifold Healer
For vampires without a major token to spare.

Monsterbane Axe
If you want your priest to be like a warrior, this is the way to do it.

 

Korenchkin's Tactical Tunic
The reason you would want this item is for the Adaptable. But how useful is it really for wizards? Against warriors, you need to take one hit first for the Adaptation to trigger, and that's one chunk of your health gone. Warriors often have varying damage types too, so if you're relying on Adaptable against warriors you'll probably be dead. Adaptable is much more effective against wizards as wizards typically focus on one damage type. However, if you're simply relying on Adaptable to win the damage race against wizards you'll be pretty sorry every game that you don't draw the lone copy in your deck. That's why you want Illusory Barrier against wizards, for the consistency it provides. And when you have Illusory Barriers against wizards and control against warriors, you sure don't need any Adaptable for defence. I'll admit I bought it in the past, because there's only one Adaptable item for each class and I wanted the full set. But I've not been using it much, especially with the wealth of great major token robes. If you are one of those people who likes these cool items you may want it, otherwise I can't really recommend it.

Epics:
Manhunter
Could be a great tech weapon if not for the Startling Strikes. It would be far better if those were changed to Strong Hacks. As it is, it's still an acceptable weapon if you want more blocks on the cheap, but you don't usually want that.

Overheated Mesmerizer
Normally, this kind of item would be considered min-maxed, with 2 high quality cards and a handicap to squeak by at level 17 for a minor token. However, Brain Burn is quite debilitating for wizards and it has antisynergy with Volcano too, since you don't want your opponent to know you have it. However, it's great in campaign where you can cycle quickly to Volcanoes.

Shield Of The Tumbler
Very similar to Aegis Of The Defender with 2 great blocks and a bad attack. The difference is Disorienting Block is very inconsistent, in that the movement is sometimes game winning and sometimes completely irrelevant. Whereas Defender's Block always gets you a card no matter what.

Notable Rares:
Ancient Linestaff
Pretty strong cards all round for a major minor staff, and a decent addition to an acod mage.

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

Subtle Positioning
Hands down, the best tokenless human skill. Two powerful traits and a fine block. They say movement is king in Card Hunter and Vanguard goes a long way towards getting you into a good position. Highly recommend purchasing.

 

While not very good in PvP, this item SHINES in the campaign. The AI doesn't pay attention to what you show, Hypnotic Beacon will negate a lava square if you need to spend a move to deal with a random pass, and may even disrupt your opponent. Brain Burn can be painful, but that is why you bring a priest. (Or, if a third Wizard, one can be expendable.) Getting your Volcanoes early and often is its own reward.
Just another convenient method of burning the world, really. (Queue Nero with his mythical fiddle solo ... and ... fade to ashes.)

 

Hmm, I thought Magma Scepter would be preferred for a minor token. Didn't think of the part where Hypnotic Beacon could overwrite lava terrain. I've tried 4 times Overheated Mesmerizer on one wizard before in the campaign and I kept getting Brain Burns and Hypnotic Beacons with no sign of Volcano, which made me give up on it. Guess I'll try it again sometime. Will edit the review. And I admit I was quite hard on the item, I think one of it on a wizard in pvp, just possibly, may be fine.

 

As a quick example, here is the volcano wiz I run on maps 2 & 3 of

Spoiler: Passageways to Death

Pyro
Level 24 Dwarf Wizard

Mordecai's Staff Of Magma
Mordecai's Staff Of Magma
Overheated Mesmerizer
Overheated Mesmerizer
Overheated Mesmerizer
Overheated Mesmerizer
Robe Of Lightness
Sticky Slippers
Subterranean Ferocity
Focused Teleportation

4 x Brain Burn
1 x Wild Run
12 x Volcano
2 x Immovable
2 x Hover
1 x Creature Of The Night
4 x Flash Of Agony
1 x Unreliable Block
1 x Dwarven Battle Cry
3 x Dimensional Traveller
4 x Hypnotic Beacon
1 x Cloth Armor
​

He's pretty consistent, as one needs for a sole volcano wiz in a 1/1/1.