The Daily Deal

Korenchkin's? Insta-purchase. Not because I need it, or I have a deck in mind, but who knows when it will next pop up?

There is only one way to get Adaptable for each class, so . . .

 

Korenchkin's Tactical Tunic
Peon's Prescription for Prodigious Multiplayers
Is Adaptable worth a major token? For a warrior or priest probably not. But for a wizard, there is no other armor that comes close to preventing the amount of damage that Adaptable will. Sparkling Cloth Armor sort of competes but only against melee. Resistant Hide also has massive damage prevention potential but there are a lot less burning and spark wizards than burst wizards running around. Not to mention the addition of Laser attacks introduced another way to get around it. Being immune to Sundering Strike is another huge advantage in Adaptable's favor. Korenchkin's Tactical Tunic has a hefty major token cost and doesn't work well if your wizard relies on attachments. For those reasons, it isn't necessarily worth accommodating but it certainly is worth playing when you can afford to. Would purchase.

Peon's Perspective for Penny-Pinching Singleplayer
I don't know about anyone else buy I tend to jam a ton of Impenetrable Nimbuses and Savage Curses in my farming parties, neither of which work well with Adaptable. Not being able to dual wield Mordecai's Staff Of Magma is more than my poor heart can take. These are fairly minor gripes but I still don't think Korenchkin's Tactical Tunic is worth shelling out for when Impenetrable Nimbus is so much cheaper and reliable. Would not purchase.

Substitutes
None

Did Peon Buy It?
Heck yes. Did I mention I that I'm a sucker for unique and powerful items?

Epics
Advanced Footwork- Fine if you want an extra copy of Violent Spin on your elf but it's not that exciting and a bit of a waste of the racial skill slot.
Badjeera's Black Relic- Wuuna's Vampiric Shroud/Flax's Thirsty Vial is better.
Xipe's Maquah- Solid attacks but most support priests would rather focus of spells.

Notable Rares
Cleansing Incense- Cheap source of Cleansing effects. Still too rich for your blood? Try Amber Charm.
Staff Of Winter- One of the best cold staves.

 

The Tunic allows your wizard to safely move close to an enemy horde and launch his Firestorms, which is dangerous with Nimbuses, if you don't have another Nimbus for the next turn. That requires a LOT of Nimbuses though, while I prefer to have a lot of Savage Curses, healing and drawing.
I don't agree that Adaptable is bad with Savage Curse. You just have to choose whether to play the Curse on the char with Adaptable or not. If you're close to finish off the enemies, play the Curse. If the enemies are close to finish your wizard, don't play it
Overall, the Adaptable makes wonders in SP. It may be enough to defeat the damned Storges, for instance. That's why my SP rating for the Tunic is even higher than MP rating.

 

Adaptable is indeed much better in singleplayer. The enemies have much more focused attack types and they don't stop attacking you when you have the corresponding attachment. However, you must have Adaptable in hand in order to take advantage of it. I would much rather have a good chance of having immunity on any given turn with an Impenetrable Nimbus priest than a low chance of immunity for consecutive turns relying solely on the single copy of Adaptable. If you want to buy Korenchkin's Tactical Tunic to supplement a Nimbus strategy knock yourself out but it does not replace it.

Just because you can play around something doesn't stop it from sucking. You cannot fling Savage Curse around willy nilly if you want the damage prevention. If Adaptable prevents you from casting Savage Curse that's defeating the purpose of the card. In any case, I tried to downplay the interaction as a minor annoyance. The real issue is that the single copy of Adaptable isn't reliable enough. Powerful but not worth purchasing when you have the better alternative in Impenetrable Nimbus spamming.

 

I couldn't afford this last night, but luckily I was checking the forums right before reset and this thread reminded me that I hadn't bought it yet. Ack! But I logged on in time and so I now have a tunic and a whole 46 coins in the bank.

 

Peon's 300th Review Spectacular

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed Items: A-K

Absolem's Leather Shoes
Advanced Crushing
Amulet of Blades
Aork's Vial of Memories
Apprentice Stoutness
Aranak's Chain Web
Avakiria's Cup
Axander's Robes
Axe of the Titans
Azan's Icy Bulwark
Azgul's Orb
Barnum's Burning Bauble
Barnum's Staff
Beater
Bendolth's Pauldrons
Berian's Locket
Bewlin's Baffling Bauble
Bleneth's Frenzy Charm
Bleneth's Frenzy Medallion
Bleneth's Skull
Bloodchopper
Bloody Stoutness
Blue Destruction
Bohemian Ear Spoon
Bolg's Club of Evasion
Boxton's Red Pendant
Brightblood Glaive
Brin's Spiked Rod
Brin's Storm Locket
Brutal Agility
Bynser's Weighted Club
Captain Cedric's Helm
Chalchu's Hammer
Chartwell's Amulet
Chartwell's Ring
Clovidian's Mail
Clowen's Boots
Crazy Sal's Halberd
Cudgel of Wrath
Czint's Buckler
Darune's Dagger
Demigod's Hammer
Dianon's Staff
Eeygonnic's Shield
Ekkerg's Amulet
Elemer's Diadem
Elemer's Pine Staff
Evasion
Eye of Wicna
Fabrian's Shield
Ferocity
Forval's Chain
Garalem's Boots
Gauixl's Sacred Maul
General Gideon's Helm
Glasod's Dark Eye
Glasod's Dark Thighbone
Gloomthirst
God's Rage
Golden Wings
Gzellin's Boots
Hand-Held Ram
Hand of Melvelous
Hand of Wicna
Hawkwind's Moccasins
Hawlic's Glowing Shirt
Hawlic's Handy Axe
Hawlic's Surging Shield
Highbolt Jerkin
Holy Hellyn's Breastplate
Huetotl's Firebrand
Igneous Scorchstaff
Illusion
Inara's Boots
Jaguar Spirit Staff
Jannivol's Shield
Jornin's Figurine
Juniper's Boots
Juniper's Jumper
Kazmir's Staff
Kelharin's Clogs
Kelvim's Buckler
Kelvin's Chunk of Ice
Kristoph's Skull
Knife of St. Blenko
Korenchkin's Tactical Tunic

 

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed Items: L-Z

Larkin's Orb
Lenora's Prayer Beads
Lewin's Boots
Lt. Buckwell's Boots
Luke's Iron Hand
Mandaeus's Aegis
Massive Harm
Mathilda's Locket
Mazzaram's Mighty Mattock
Meztis Wyrmhide Robes
Miligar's Dragon Tongue
Mindshrinker
Mokad's Reeking Skull
Mokad's Unholy Tome
Mordecai's Staff of Magma
Mullik's Blisterstaff
Nuncible's Boots
Og's Boots of Peril
Oquith's Choking Incense
Oquith's Foul Incense
Oskar's Pine Shield
Overheated Staff
Ozerian's Boots
Ozone Plates
Perfect Footwork
Perfect Stoutness
Perrio's Kinetic Robes
Phantom Pain
Porior's Nimble Mace
Prillith's Robes of Pain
Pwindle's Boots
Quellic's Boots
Quick Jon's Axe
Quornic's Battleaxe
Raging Battler
Red Flame
Relic of St. Darqar
Ring of Bifurcated Healing
Ring of Majestic Healing
Robes of Avak Seth
Robes of Foz
Robes of White Wylla
Rolf's Reliable Platemail
Sander's Force Mirror
Saramin's Shield
Shield of Ultimate Dodging
Shieldripper
Skull of Savage Iljin
Smoag's Bucket of Pitch
Snitrick's Shield
Spear of the Cozqui
Spear of St. Qaith
St. Alipp's Hammer
St. Gwendolyn's Armor
St. Hongjin's Soulstone
St. Malaj's Cuirass
St. Nyssa's Hammer
St. Pascal's Torch
St. Portia's Mail
St. Portia's Maul
St. Qaith's Armor
St. Sebanna's Armor
St. Tesrim's Corona
St. Xarol's Mace
St. Zaadia's Spacesuit
Staff of a Million Embers
Staff of Embers
Staff of the Misanthrope
Sundersong
Superb Flexibility
Superb Toughness
Suvv's Boots of Escape
Swiz's Circlet of Elements
Taltec's Staff
The Hackmaster
The Irradiator
The Lunginator
Trained Tactics
Troll's Ire
Ulrin's Scuttling Socks
Unholy Nimbus
Vibrant Pain
Vinorkin's Cuirass
Vira's Shimmering Robes
Wenham's Leather Cap
White Flame
Wild Trickery
Wym's Fiery Bangle
Xemu's Crown
Xemu's Staff
Yount's Chain
Yvette's Buckler

178/305 Legendary items reviewed

 

The Peonys

Best New Addition to the Game: SP Edition

Spoiler

Co-Op
Yes, we just had a new expansion but co-op breathes new life into quite frankly, a singleplayer experience that gets stale fast. Can you drag that newbie across the finish line in one piece? Will the pair of fresh eyes teach the grizzled veteran some new tricks? Is there something shiny in that extra large Loot Fairy chest? The only way to find out is to take that co-op plunge.

Best New Addition to the Game: MP Edition

Spoiler

Steam
Imagine my surprise when I tried to log in one day only to find out there were approximately one bajillion people ahead of me in a queue. Steam probably brought the greatest influx of new players to Card Hunter since the game's inception. More players should bring more variety to the metagame. Sure, there will be players looking only to copy the top builds but there will also be a much larger casual player base that is bound to mix things up. I can only hope that one day I too can fail so spectacularly from being too successful.

The Bell Tolls for "The"

Spoiler

The Hackmaster
The Hackmaster offers nothing but damage but it isn't even spread out well like Bejeweled Shortsword. Not being able to one shot elf wizards anymore was the straw that broke the camel's back. Don't be tempted by the only amethyst quality card available to players. Even emerald card tend to push the balance of items out of whack. Stick with good ole gold cards and you're pretty much golden.

Staff Recomendation

Spoiler

Mullik's Blisterstaff
To be fair, there weren't really any power staves in the last 100 reviews but Mullik's Blisterstaff is no pushover. It is a solid tokenless control staff that doubles as a great low level Firestorm staff. And if anyone's wondering, yes, I did buy Mullik's Blisterstaff. In fact, I'm pretty sure I've bought 2.

The One Ring to Fool Them All

Spoiler

Ring Of Bifurcated Healing
Not much to see here. Heals are weak and multi-target heals are the worst offenders. Twin Heals just happens to be near the bottom of that infamous list.

I've Got to Hand it to You

Spoiler

Luke's Iron Hand
While Luke's Iron Hand is pretty much the same as Ring Of Appropriation, Telekinesis is just so back breaking when it works. I would switch out all my Rings for Jedi hands in a heartbeat.

Biggest Gripe About the Forums

Spoiler

The %$*&@ing Word Limit
What is this, Twitter?

Peon's Desert Island Item 3

Spoiler

Korenchkin's Tactical Tunic
I look for two things when I buy items. Raw power and coolness factor. Korenchkin's Tactical Tunic just so happens to fit both. Adaptable can only be found on 3 items and there's no other card quite like it? Shut up and take my money. I'm not sure I'll buy the warrior and priest versions but there sure isn't anything comparable armorwise for wizards.

As always I'm open to any suggestions to make my reviews better. Even I didn't think I'd stick it out for this long but I'll promise to keep reviewing if you promise to keep on reading.

 

I just wanted to say that we don't need to promise you anything. You know we're reading!

I wanted to say "thank you" for helping all the new players that have problems deciding which item is good and which isn't. I probably saved thousands of gold just because I have this thread open by default. If you're willing to, please do keep making these!

 

Frankly I think this isn't just a mandatory daily read, it's one of the (if not the) best examples of player community interaction enhancing and enriching a game experience, ever. You rock, Peon, flat out. Thanks for that.

 

Agreed! Time to update my bookmarks once again. Looking forward to the next couple of hundred!

 

@peonprop Link to White Flame is broken.

 

Vinorkin's Cuirass

Spoiler: Previously Reviewed

Multiplayer
Arrogant Armor has two uses. The obvious main use is to counter enemy attachments. With frost wizards seeing so little play you really only need to worry about burning wizards. Arrogant Armor is good against burning attacks but Reliable Mail does a similar job since burns do a maximum of 3 damage. The other reason to play Arrogant Armor is take advantage of items with bad traits. Cards like Vulnerable and Large Weapon will fall right off and you get to have all the perks of a smaller deck. It is dangerous to rely on Arrogant Armor this way though. You can have at most 2-3 of them in your deck and if you don't draw a copy before seeing the bad traits you will be in a world of hurt. The biggest downside of Arrogant Armor is the inability to stick beneficial traits and buffs. If you do run Arrogant Armor, be sure your warrior can function without them.

Singleplayer
Arrogant Armor is a great tool for combating enemy attachments but you will have to settle for unbuffed base damage attacks. It is best used against encumber and halt effects where buffed attacks can't hit out of range mobs. However, if the attachments in question are damage based like Infected Bite it is often correct to race them with buffs like Mass Frenzy or Impenetrable Nimbus.

Peon's prescription for prodigious players- If you expect to regularly face encumber effects or want to build around items with bad traits, Arrogant Armor is exceptional. If your warrior needs buffs to operate on the other hand, try to find a more suitable solution. Would get Vinorkin's Cuirass only if you can't afford a major token and you want to avoid the encumber from Heavy Armor on Impervious Panoply.

Substitutes
Impervious Panoply (E) . Emperor's Plate (E)
Plates Of Ixicha (E) - Only has one copy of Arrogant Armor but Reliable Mail combats burning cards and Quickness Aura negates most encumber cards.
The Daily Deal

Did Peon Buy It?
Nope. I rarely use Arrogant Armor. When I do, I go for Bern's Untouchable Mail for the full set.

Epics
Ajan's Glowing Vial- Twin Heals is weak and Curse Of Fragility is basically a bad, short duration Frenzy buff in most builds.
Hylithia's Wand- I prefer Xochu's Icy Circlet for my Cone Of Cold needs. Force Cannoning away an encumbered target is just too satisfying.
Ixtli Amulet- Illusory Barrier is a great card and hard to come by. Though token intensive, Ixtli Amulet is the best cheap way to get it.

Notable Rares
St. Xarol's Axe- Great for low level mob clearing. Why priests get better low level weapons

 

Anyone like Azgul's Orb? I am seriously considering buying it. I feel like it is a great SP and low rank MP item.

 

you should definitely buy if you are trying to grind sp.

 

Thanks for the input. I mean, doesn't everyone have to grind SP? At some point, if you play frequently, you are going to grind?

 

Not everyone plays SP. But those of us who do, use as many Azgul's Orbs as we own.

 

I bought two! Now if I could just find a few sets of Firehide Robes...

 

Besides loot fairy runs, I play MP almost exclusively. MP rewards, especially for leagues, make SP rewards look sad in comparison.

 

Some people seem averse to re-running the campaign, in whole or in part. Personal preferance, I guess. I like grinding.
You can run levels 2-6 in about 30 minutes with a good build, and the gold haul is usually pretty nice. You can also focus on the level of items you're looking for, if you choose to do so.