The Daily Deal

This is the only arcane skill I don't have, but I'm gonna have to wait for it to drop. Hot Flames is kinda weak, and I don't need another item with Stone Spikes, especially if I'm spending a token.

 

Lewin's Boots
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
Remember how I said Violent Spin usage would go way up after the Team Run nerf? Well I'm sorry loyal reader but I was wrong. Huge shocker, I know, but there's a first for everything. I'm still a huge fan of Violent Spin and I believe it is currently the most powerful move card but there are a couple things going against Violent Spin boots. Violent Spin does not help melee characters all that much. At the end of the day, your primary goal is to run up and smack people. To that end, Violent Spin may as well be a Run. For buff priests and wizards, Violent Spin acts as an unblockable Telekinesis for adjacent characters but would the token you're spending be better used elsewhere? Judging from how often I don't see it being played or even how often I use it myself, the answer is no. Lewin's Boots aren't bad. The Dangerous Maneuvers are painful but they help melee attackers get close while giving support characters and wizards a long move to escape with. If you've got the token to spare Lewin's Boots are a great option but I also wouldn't go out of my way to free up a token for it either. Purchase if you've got spare gold but don't sweat it if you need to pass on it.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
Spending tokens on boots is a big no no. There are two exceptions to this rule. Token boots are acceptable if you want extra copies of Reliable Mail or you need a movement boost to chase down ranged mobs. Lewin's Boots sort of fits the second category but there are way cheaper options that do the job way better. I'm a huge fan of Turquoise Boots for those situations. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Foley's Footwear (E) , Infernal Boots (R) , Vinorkin's Boots (E) , Zachary's Boots (E)

Emperor's Plate
Oakenheart Shield
Waenog's White Chain

 

St. Portia's Mail
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
You need a very good reason to run Arrogant Armor and Mass Frenzy in the same deck. There aren't many enemy attachments running around these days. The most common ones are burning attachments but armor itself is already good against them. Most likely, you're going to want Arrogant Armor to shed bad traits you're running yourself to get a smaller effective deck size, such as Vulnerable from Sacrificial Axe. So what kind of priest can take advantage of this. Vamps really want Talented Healer so they're out. Inspiration priests similarly want Altruism. You could possibly want it for a Mass Frenzy spammer but you can usually cram enough onto a priest to keep a constant buff going and not being able to buff yourself is a big downside. An Impenetrable Nimbus priest loses out on Altruism and can't self buff to stay alive. What you are looking for are buffs that don't benefit from priest traits and you aren't meant for self buffing. Savage Curse and Unholy Wellspring you say? We have a winner. Small deck sizes in particular help find the hard to come by Unholy Wellspring. However, I wouldn't spend a major token just to get a Mass Frenzy on a wizard buffing priest when there are minor token options available, with Mail Of St. Oxivia being optimal. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
There are a ton more attachments to worry about in singleplayer. Having access to Arrogant Armor during Secret of the Elder Mind for instance makes a nightmarish module more palatable. However, the major token requirement limits the amount of use you can get out of St. Portia's Mail and a copy of Mass Frenzy does not make up for it. There are plenty of minor token Arrogant Armor divine armors to choose from and most of them are cheaper epics. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Axamander's Ringmail (E) , Old Saint's Armor (E) , Untouchable Plate (E)

Magnetic Shield
Riptide
Weighty Wand

 

Suvv's Boots Of Escape
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
Suvv's Boots of Escape are the only boots that can draw you 3 cards. Paring down your effective deck size is one of the most powerful things you can do. The less cards you have to draw the more often you're going to see your most powerful cards. However, unlike trait cards, Escaping Run requires you to give up initiative to reap the benefits. If you are using it to draw cards on a melee character you either have to move away and give your opponent the opportunity to retreat or stand your ground and let your opponent get an extra hit in. If you're playing a wizard, you need to maneuver close enough to let your opponent get next to you, which is not ideal. If you're using it on a support priest you need to again move close to the enemy or keep hanging on to Escaping Run turn after turn until you have the chance to use it. Requiring a major token is another big factor that you need to weigh in. Overall, I believe Suvv's Boots of Escape won't draw you the full 3 cards often enough to justify both the tempo loss and the token cost. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
If using minor token boots is a faux pas then using major token boots is a felony punishable by harsh ridicule from your peers. I'm talking mean stuff. Someone might even call you a ruffian. If you're using the token on boots just to conditionally cycle cards there are probably some other slots that could be upgraded for greater effect. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Lum's Moccasins (E) : Escaping Run
Ballet Shoes (C) , Sticky Slippers (R) : Deck size reduction

Demon's Golden Blade- Good damage and a powerful buff but too painful to use.
Staff Of The Fire God- Fireball alert.
Yaro's Scepter- Firestorm alert.

 

Also:
Xipil Ring - Volcano alert

 

Not seeing it on the wiki. Is it an item that changed names, or maybe you wanted Sticky Slippers?

 

Rolf's Reliable Platemail
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
Obviously Reliable Mail is great but I want you to take a look at your warrior. Is he/she using a major token heavy armor? Chances are, if you aren't using Yolotli Armor you cannot equip Rolf's Reliable Platemail without major damage to another part of your build. Using a token on heavy armor is not very common. When it does happen you most likely have Enchanted Harness shenanigans going on or a Frenzy Aura armor to buff attacks. Neither strategy wants Reliable Mail instead. For those currently running double Reliable Mail armor the 3rd copy is not worth the major token. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
Reliable Mail is much better in singleplayer. You are generally going to be hit with a greater number of weaker attacks so the 2 hp per hit really adds up. The major token is what again holds Rolf's Reliable Platemail back. Giving up a minor token for a double Reliable Mail armor is understandable. On the other hand, the 3rd Reliable Mail does not come close to making up for the amount of damage you give up from losing a major token for weapons. Add the fact that you can only equip it in higher levels and Rolf's Reliable Platemail starts looking a lot less reliable. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Sturdy Armor (E) , Sturdy Mail (E) , True Mail (E)

Aataabulous's Boots
Japper's Energy Boots- Cheapest but worst double Energizing Move boots.
Staff Of Burning Ice

 

Shieldripper 5/5. Great weapon, especially with Crusher. Even without it, you have 48 damage total + great tech attached. It doesn't need any support, just equip and use. Buy it if you don't have one, and probably even if you have one I already have two, so I will skip it.

Cleansing Diamond
Manhunter
Shimmerwing Robe

 

Shieldripper
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
Unnerving Strike is decent but it isn't all that it's cracked up to be. The average melee character has 3 blocks and the average wizard has none. Most of the time Unnerving Strike winds up being a Strong Bludgeon. When you do catch someone with a block there's a good chance it's a high percentage block like Parry which will still trigger 50% of the time. Unnerving Strike is even worse currently due to widespread usage of Aegis Of The Defender. Not only is everyone down a block for you to remove but you also can no longer assume that the character your opponent leads out with has a block in hand. While fine on lower costed weapons where you really only want the 8 damage with occasional card advantage, spending two major tokens for copies of a relatively low damage card that doesn't live up to expectations is overkill. Would not purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayers
You can use Shieldripper in modules starting at level 14. There are a couple of mobs with annoying blocks including those damn dirty monkeys. The majority of them have block melees. What are you trying to tell us Peon? Is little Timmy stuck in the well?

Spoiler

USE YO WIZARDS

Would not purchase.

Substitutes
Maquah Of Ancient Blood (E) , Riptide (E)

Cleansing Diamond
Manhunter- Do not get suckered by the name. Men use Parry. You get one Unnerving Strike and 3 weak attacks that lose to Parry. If you are having trouble beating Parry I suggest you click the spoiler above.
Shimmerwing Robe

 

This is called a "metagaming". You aren't going to play versus "the average melee characters". A warrior can easily have +2 blocks from a weapon (Bolg's Big Iron Plate, for instance) and some extra blocks from the skills. Why not having extra Surging Shield Blocks that can be used for movement if needed?
Even if Parry and Aegis Of The Defender are popular now, that doesn't mean they're going to be popular forever, and on every map. It's just silly to skip the great weapon just because the current metagame doesn't favor it. Metagame shifts very often. Plus, if your target has the Aegis, you're still going to hit him and remove his Defender's Block.
Finally, if you use Shieldripper, you should try to backstab your enemies. Yes, it's difficult, but if you manage to backstab, you will not only avoid his blocks, but also discard his Parry even if he had it. If he discarded nothing, you know for good that he has no blocks. Thus, backstabbing with Shieldripper is much more beneficial than usual.

 

So buy a weapon because it might be good in a metagame that has never existed? Plus, I hear having less than 14 attacks is frowned upon.

The current metagame is just icing on the cake. The average metagame is already unfavorable for Unnerving Strike. You would need a metagame filled to the brim with lower percentage blocks for Shieldripper to be good. This again, has never and likely won't ever be the case. What kind of doofus would encourage people to use Wounded Blocks?

So buy an item because you can wreck someone in a highly unlikely situation? Wouldn't you want Shieldpopper to save on major tokens?

I have played with Shieldripper a lot. I spent a good month with it when I first found one and almost every game I was wishing it was a Bejeweled Shortsword. You do not need to listen to my advice. Heck, you might have a different experience than I did. But don't be surprised if you find yourself disappointed with your shiny new toy.

 

No, buy a weapon because it's good versus most good and playable blocks. And having two blocks on a weapon doesn't force you to have less than 14 attacks.

I don't know what's "an average metagame". Do you? Anyway, I will never believe that only Parry and Defender's Block are played nowadays.

Highly unlikely you say? Do you remember AotA appearance when everybody played Twisted Shields? I'd say highly likely, since the game constantly changes. As for Shieldpopper, that wasn't a funny joke.

As I've said, I have two Shieldrippers. I don't have some key items to play both, but I'm pretty sure that Shieldripper + Crusher is much better than Bejeweled Shortsword. If something is going to disappoint me, that's a blocked Powerful Hack

 

But it isn't good against most good and playable blocks. Go through the list of commonly played blocks if you don't believe me.

A metagame comprised of average decks AKA 3 blocks on melee character, no blocks on wizards. You don't have to believe it but it doesn't make them less commonly played.

Twisting Shield has 2 copies of Pushback Parry, another block Unnerving Strike is bad against. Twisting Shield and Hexagon Shield are still played since they are the best lower rarity tokenless shields. Shieldpopper was not a joke. It was a hyperbole to make sure people saw how ridiculous your line of reasoning was.

As much as I enjoy our 3 page exchanges I'm afraid I'll need to leave it here. I need a good night's rest if I'm going to be running my attacks into all those blocks.

 

I do use Unnerving Strike in MP regularly and, while it isn't capable of shutting blocks down entirely, it still is the single best attack card vs. blocks. I don't use Shieldripper specifically, but that's just because it doesn't fit very well with my overall strategy. At the same time, I do find some value in meta-related considerations, especially in the context of an MP-review of a given item.

That being said, while I do appreciate both @peonprop's and @Ector's dedication and efforts, I also think you should refrain from engaging nitpicking showdowns as soon as the chance arises. While an exchange of opinions can be really helpful to the discussion at large, severe quote-storms very quickly get daunting, if entertaining (at times).

At the end of the day, this (and randi's) thread should really be about explaining why an item might be worth buying, rather than whether or not you should buy it at all costs. The vast majority of items do have both pros and cons, so different people will find different uses for different items, depending on their specific build, playstyle and whatnot. Because of that, the should-buy/should-not-buy part of your posts always ends up being the less valuable, at least to me.

Sometimes, you do make it sound like this is a curious kind of infomercial or something

Also: this.

 

It IS good against all blocks, even against 2+ blocks like Parry and Pushback Parry. If it doesn't remove the block with 100% chance that doesn't mean it's bad. 50% chance is much better than 16.67% chance with a regular attack. There is no need to wager a 3-page discussion: that's obvious to everyone, including you.

 

*folds*
*orders a second bottle of whiskey*

 

Heelloooooo...

I usually don't take part of this tread we all love : the daily deal ! Mostly because Peonprop reviews are pretty good. Thanks dude.

However ... today I saw something that made my cards shake in indignation.

Not the Shieldripper stuff. Having your warrior actually remove a card from opponents hand is awesome, but its not worth the two major tokens.

But guys ! Manhunter !

The damage is not great but you have interesting tech for a minor token and 2 sublte parry. This is a huge weapon for specialized builds. It may or may not be a good choice in competitive MP. But there are leagues, soloplay, fun parties...

I believe you should own one. Its only 500 gold. You will win some games with it.

 

Even if Shieldripper would be good against a few of the odd builds you might occasionally see, it doesn't warrant actually building with it. Anyone with experience building decks for games knows you don't include "silver bullets" in your main deck. Including narrow tech to defeat a fringe deck type just waters down your performance against the majority of the field, which means you lose a lot. Instead you build to defeat the decks that are popular at the moment, and Shieldripper sure doesn't do that. By how much does it defeat the raw damage of The Strongarm? Is the slim extra damage and the minor tech (out of favor in this metagame) worth 2 Major Tokens versus ZERO? No damn way. I definitely would play Bejeweled Shortsword over this, and there is an array of tech more suited to this metagame available for Major Tokens including Nimble Strike and other step attacks which most characters want a LOT more than Unnerving Strike. Would not purchase.

Shieldripper - IT'S A TRAP!

 

Good to see others weighing in with opinions!
Having an Unnerving Strike or two isn't a bad thing, but Shieldripper isn't worth two major tokens. I bought it because I didn't have one, but one is enough.

*sees bet*
*orders two bottles of tequila - wait, make that three, so I'll have one to share*

 

A "silver bullet" is a way to totally screw one kind of strategy, being absolutely worthless versus the other strategies. The very name reflects that silver bullets are good only aganst werewolves, not against humans. Shieldripper deals 48 damage, 60 with Crusher, so it will never be a "silver bullet".

Brilliant logic. Why don't you play three Strongarms then? I am going to play my Shieldrippers with Crushers, of course, which raise damage to 60. Considering the added tech, that's well worth two yellow tokens. And my Advanced/Focused Crushing will be well worth the token for a warrior with 16+ crushing attacks. You just refuse to see that.

What can I say here? You are deliberately denying yourself a very powerful option. I am pretty sure that we'll see the decks with lots of blocks one day, and you will regret about this.