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Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

Welcome to the second Mage Knight thread.



Intro Guide
Base Rules
Lost Legion Rules
Getting Vassal Working

Thread 1 - Base Game Competitive
Thread 2 - Voltare Tough/Fair

What?

Mage Knight is the finest stomp-the-countryside simulator you'll ever see. Bridging an adventure game with a cardbuilding game with a living card game, it's up to the players to land their infamously powerful Evil Generals on the edge of an Atlantean continent, armed only with a deck of 16 cards whose effects range from 'hit poo poo' to 'block poo poo' to 'move my poo poo' to 'buy poo poo'. From there they must build their power, add new cards to their deck and new units to their army, and learn how best to combine efficiency with efficacy in order to ultimately reach the major cities of the region and flatten them into dirt. Lost Legions is the expansion that never should have been an expansion to begin with, an answer to the game's premature release due to financial concerns. It is, in effect, the 'complete' version of the game, adding many more cards and units to the stacks the players already face. It also includes Voltare, a famous general aligned against them that the players may have to fend off, or else race against.

I've run two of these threads by now, but you really can't have enough in the way of Mage Knight, so here I am again. Maybe one day I'll get to play? Maybe? Anyone?

So what's the plan?
  • This will be a four player competitive game, using Standard Conquest rules and Lost Legion tiles, just to get back into the swing of things and enjoy some good old fashioned stomping. In this mode, the players are not harassed by Voltare - they simply have to get to and take down the cities ahead of the other players.
  • Despite that, direct PVP is off because it sucks. You can still take over opponent keeps, however.
  • Standard houserule applies: if your first hand of the Round has no Move cards prior to Tactics choice, you may mulligan it.
  • When deciding your actions, please do as many actions as possible at once in bold. Obviously stop if you need a tile revealed, or an enemy piece - otherwise, try to bundle as much into a single post as possible. I'm only going to be double-checking your moves, rather than providing blow-by-blow feedback.
  • Off-turn posting, COs and peanut posting are all allowed (and encouraged).
Recruiting
  • I'm looking for four players. People new to the game are welcome and I will try to aid in your understanding of the rules, but be aware that Gutter Owl may just suddenly swoop by and dunk your score like a nerdy Batman.
  • PMs are required. Sorry! I need to provide links to your hand and it will help immeasurably if you have a way to provide me with COs and if I have a way to poke you if you're slow.
  • When signing up, please list your two preferred characters in order.
  • Recruitment will be open for 24 hours, whereupon selection will be by random draw.
  • I would like players who can check in at least once per day. Please note that I am in a new timezone, on a new laptop, and am using a new resolution and new software to make my updates. All of this may mean I'm a little slow until I get the workflow down, but by and large it shouldn't be a problem.
The Mage Knights
  • Arythea - focuses on spells and red mana.
  • Goldyx - focuses on mana in general.
  • Norowas - focuses on troop use.
  • Torak - focuses on block and not using mana.
  • Wolfhawk - focuses on ranged and movement.
  • Krang - focuses on refreshable skills.

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Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

berenzen is Arythea.
CirclMastr is Goldyx.
Captain Bravo is Norowas.
Opopanax is Wolfhawk.

Your goal is to race across the countryside, building up your power and taking over as many sites as possible, while also making sure you use your cards in the best possible fashion. I am not going to tell you guys how to play your entire hand, but I (or anyone else watching and reading along) can provide help if you need it to understand what's going on. I do expect you guys to have read the rules or to have watched the tutorial videos, though!

Here are some references, and things that aren't listed in the guides:



Here is an example deck. Arythea's, to be precise, but all decks are fundamentally similar - 4 movement cards, a handful of combat cards ranging between attack and ranged attack, some influence cards, and a smattering of other effects. You'll find it much easier if you keep track of what cards you have or haven't used.

And here is a list of sites, and what they do. You will definitely need to read through these to understand the map.

I'll be setting up the other game first, so now is the time to ask if you have fundamental gameplay questions.

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

ROUND 1

The sun rises on the first day. Ahead of the Mage Knights lies the Atlantean Kingdom, its cities relatively undefended against their assault at level 4.

Please pick tactics in reverse order i.e. Opopanax, Captain Bravo, CirclMastr, berenzen. Additionally, please let me know if any of the images are too small or too big or too fuzzy - I am dealing with a new resolution of laptop and new programs so my guesses may be a little off. Hands will be PMmed in just a moment.

Remember, tactics will determine both an ability for you to use during the round and your actual turn order.


Arythea (berenzen) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Goldyx (CirclMastr) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Norowas (Captain Bravo) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Wolfhawk (Opopanax) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Unit Offer | Fame Tracker | City Status | Site Reference | Unit Reference

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

Other miscellaneous notes and generally forgotten things:

- Don't forget you can play cards sideways for 1 Move / 1 Attack / 1 Block / 1 Influence.
- Don't be afraid to take some wounds if you have some way to get them out of your hand quickly. Regeneration, healing from villages or monasteries, a quick rest, or sitting in a healing glade for a while.
- 6 Attack will generally get you through a monastery or dungeon, not counting Block.
- 6 Ranged Attack will generally get you through a monastery or dungeon too, but that's a bit harder.
- You can move through other players, just not sit on the same spot as them. You can use towers that other people took over, but not keeps - you will have to take them over yourself.
- Read the site summaries!!
- Mana tokens last only as long as your turn. Mana crystals last as long as you like but you can only have 3 max.
- You only get access to one mana die a turn, barring anything else.
- Move costs are in the bottom-left of the map.
- Revealing a tile next to the edge of the visible map takes 2 Move.

Opopanax
Aug 8, 2007

I HEX YE!!!


I'm going to go ahead and start things off with a stupid question; what do I do? I get that I'm picking tactics but the rules aren't super clear on what that means. Where am I picking from and what am I picking? :downs:

The Shame Boy
Jan 27, 2014

Dead weight, just like this post.



Opopanax posted:

I'm going to go ahead and start things off with a stupid question; what do I do? I get that I'm picking tactics but the rules aren't super clear on what that means. Where am I picking from and what am I picking? :downs:




Taking Stela's last map picture as reference



Those Yellow Cards at the bottom of the picture are what he's asking you to pick from. Each one does a different thing but also determines turn order.

So basically taking 1 (Early Bird) guarantees you will go first in this round but it also means you don't get any kind of special effect. Taking 6 means you will go last but you get the ability take 2 turns in a row.

Same thing applies to Night Time when you guys get there, although those cards will have different effects.


Don't know if Stelas was wanting to do these kinds of explanations himself but since he doesn't seem to be here at the moment i hope he doesn't mind if i do it this once :v:

berenzen
Jan 23, 2012

Looks like it'll be fun

berenzen fucked around with this message at 18:56 on May 15, 2015

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

HOOLY BOOLY posted:

Don't know if Stelas was wanting to do these kinds of explanations himself but since he doesn't seem to be here at the moment i hope he doesn't mind if i do it this once :v:

I am absolutely a-okay with other people helping out with directions. Hooly Booly's right - you're choosing your turn order by picking one of the golden cards at the bottom of the map.

I'm going to try to stay a bit hands-off on outright stating which tactics are the best ones and other value judgements like that, because I want the players to have the chance to figure that out for themselves and not simply follow whatever I recommend.

Opopanax
Aug 8, 2007

I HEX YE!!!


See, I told you it was a stupid question! Great Start sounds good to me

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

Captain Bravo is up to pick a tactic, with Great Start having been taken. (Don't worry about waiting for an update mid-tactics picks, easier if I wait til everyone's picked one.)

Captain Bravo
Feb 16, 2011

An Emergency Shitpost
has been deployed...

...but experts warn it is
just a drop in the ocean.
I'll take The Right Moment.

CirclMastr
Jul 4, 2010

I think I'll Mana Steal the blue die.

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

By CO, berenzen takes Planning. Opopanax has the first turn. Proper update to follow in a bit, but Opopanax can declare actions now as Wolfhawk's hand hasn't changed.

CirclMastr
Jul 4, 2010

Uh, so I don't have the first turn even though I picked the lowest number?

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

Er. Yes. Sorry, I briefly confused Great Start with Early Bird.

Opopanax
Aug 8, 2007

I HEX YE!!!


Good because I really want someone else to go first so I can get a feel for this.

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

ROUND 1

So once again real quick, remember you can only use one die per turn, barring effects that let you use more like Goldyx' Mana Steal tactics card he just took, and those let you power the bottom half of cards. If you have any questions on what different sites do or what you might be likely to face, check the links below the map. Sorry if they're fuzzy, they're not particularly optimized within the module itself.

Right now, moving to (or even dealing with!) locations you think would be beneficial is generally best, since other people won't be able to stay on the spaces you end your turn on. For new players it's often better to move to a space, refill your hand of cards, and actually face the place with a full hand.

Orcs (the green tokens) differ from everything else as they block passage and you have to fight them from adjacent, and in fact will forcibly end your turn if you move from one hex adjacent to them to another hex adjacent to them. Everything else, you have to move on to in order to fight.

It is Goldyx's Turn.


Goldyx (CirclMastr) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Arythea (berenzen) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Wolfhawk (Opopanax) - 7 hand, 9 deck.
Norowas (Captain Bravo) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Unit Offer | Fame Tracker | City Status | Site Reference | Unit Reference

Stelas fucked around with this message at 04:03 on May 16, 2015

CirclMastr
Jul 4, 2010

Okay, so I want to use March and Swiftness to get up to the dungeon north of the portal gate via the grasslands.

I won't actually enter it yet.

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

imgur is having a bit of a fit at the moment, so I will hold off on fully updating just yet. berenzen is free to call their turn for me to run in the meantime.

berenzen
Jan 23, 2012

This turn would be easier if those orcs
up there were worth 3 fame instead of 2

Play both Marches and Crystallize sideways. Move east twice.

berenzen fucked around with this message at 04:28 on May 16, 2015

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

Man, I just realized you guys have pretty awful mana.

It is Wolfhawk's Turn.


Goldyx (CirclMastr) - 5 hand, 9 deck.
Arythea (berenzen) - 6 hand, 7 deck.
Wolfhawk (Opopanax) - 7 hand, 9 deck.
Norowas (Captain Bravo) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Unit Offer | Fame Tracker | City Status | Site Reference | Unit Reference

Stelas fucked around with this message at 05:00 on May 16, 2015

berenzen
Jan 23, 2012

Ended with 2 cards in hand. Should be drawing up to 6 because of planning

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

Good point, thank you. Might be best to remind me of that when it happens, tactics are easy to lose track of. Hand should be updated now.

Opopanax
Aug 8, 2007

I HEX YE!!!


I also don't think I got my new cards when I took Great Start

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

I can definitely see them in your hand - try reloading the image link I PMmed you at the start of the game. You should have seven total.

Opopanax
Aug 8, 2007

I HEX YE!!!


Oh there we are. Ok I would like to use March and move 1 E 1 SE to that glowing purple thing

berenzen
Jan 23, 2012

Binged through the other two previous threads. Definitely helped my understanding of the rules.

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

So you'll want to bear in mind that hexes have movement costs - these are listed on the bottom-left of the map, on the rectangular plate with the different colour mana dice on it. Getting to the purple circle (the magical glade) will mean you have to go into a plain hex (E), and then into a forest hex (SE), for a total of 2 + 3 = 5 movement. Playing March on its own only gives you 2 - the top half of the card. If you can find a way to power it with mana it will give you 4 - the bottom half of the card - but none of the dice in the source are the right colour so you'd have to use a card in your hand that gives you mana tokens.

Alternatively you could play multiple move cards from your hand, or else some move cards and some cards sideways. Any card can be played sideways to give you 1 Move, 1 Influence, 1 Attack, or 1 Block, so you could play March and 3 sideways cards to get to 5. However, this might be a bit wasteful in terms of card efficiency and utility! Similarly, remember that your normal hand size is 5 - you draw up to this at the end of each turn, so there's not a lot of point in spending 2 cards or less right now, because you wouldn't get anything new in your hand.

If you're wondering where to head, villages and monasteries are good choices - these allow you to buy troops for your army, and have other benefits. A mage tower would let you get spells, but it's on desert, which has an enormous move cost to get to right now. For quick reference, here's what's on the board thus far:

Crystal Mine (Blue) | Dungeon (Goldyx has his rear end sat on it) | Mage Tower | Magical Glade | Marauding Orcs | Monastery | Village

Opopanax
Aug 8, 2007

I HEX YE!!!


Ok, I wondered about that but figured it was to move off. I'll just make that first movement, then

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

It is Norowas's Turn.


Goldyx (CirclMastr) - 5 hand, 9 deck.
Arythea (berenzen) - 6 hand, 7 deck.
Wolfhawk (Opopanax) - 6 hand, 9 deck.
Norowas (Captain Bravo) - 5 hand, 11 deck.
Unit Offer | Fame Tracker | City Status | Site Reference | Unit Reference

Captain Bravo
Feb 16, 2011

An Emergency Shitpost
has been deployed...

...but experts warn it is
just a drop in the ocean.
Ok, I'll play Concentration and pick a Blue mana token, then I'll play Stamina with the mana token for four move along with Determination and Threaten both played sideways to get me six move. I'll move East, Northeast, and then East to land on the village, end my turn, and use The Right Moment to get a second turn immediately. (I'll choose what to use on that turn once my hand refreshes.)

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

It is Norowas's Turn. Again.

Because you moved next to it, everyone gets to see what the defender of the mage tower is.

A quick note for all players, since the other game reminded me: the map can 'stretch out' to one more hex in either direction. That is, you could move east from the blue mine, or NW from the top-most orc, and still uncover a tile there. (Think of it as 'extending' the coastlines that the start tile has on it.) Unfortunately, the incorrect shading is just thanks to how Vassal captures images, it doesn't properly copy transparencies.


Goldyx (CirclMastr) - 5 hand, 9 deck.
Arythea (berenzen) - 6 hand, 7 deck.
Wolfhawk (Opopanax) - 6 hand, 9 deck.
Norowas (Captain Bravo) - 5 hand, 7 deck.
Unit Offer | Fame Tracker | City Status | Site Reference | Unit Reference

Captain Bravo
Feb 16, 2011

An Emergency Shitpost
has been deployed...

...but experts warn it is
just a drop in the ocean.
A 6/6 Poison Mage!? :eyepop:

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

The expansion sometimes does not gently caress around, yeah. It's probably one of the heftiest mage tower monsters there is.

Captain Bravo
Feb 16, 2011

An Emergency Shitpost
has been deployed...

...but experts warn it is
just a drop in the ocean.
Ok, to start with I'll draw a white mana die from the source, and use it to power Mana Draw, turning it into two white mana tokens. I'll use the first Mana Token with Crystallize to get a white mana crystal, and I'll use the second token with Noble Manners, along with Rejuvanate and Rage played sideways, to generate six influence, which I will then use to purchase a squad of Utem Crossbowmen from the village, generating an additional 1 Fame and 1 Reputation from Noble Manners.

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

Captain Bravo posted:

Ok, to start with I'll draw a white mana die from the source, and use it to power Mana Draw, turning it into two white mana tokens.

Mana Draw is a bit obnoxiously worded, so I'll just make it clear: when you play Mana Draw, you choose another die from the source to turn white. The original die you used will get rerolled after your turn, the one that you turn white to get the two mana tokens will stay that way. In effect, you can manipulate the dice in the source a little.

Captain Bravo
Feb 16, 2011

An Emergency Shitpost
has been deployed...

...but experts warn it is
just a drop in the ocean.
In that case, I'll be nice to everyone else, and turn the Black die in the source to white. :angel:

Stelas
Sep 6, 2010

Bah, Norowas players. Always too nice.

I'll start doing little notes along with each update, just for things to watch out for:
  • Even though there's a 6 poison attack guy on the mage tower, note that one of the Veteran players let it hit him for a total of 6 wounds, purely because it meant getting some of the desirable and available skills and spells quickly. Knowing when to take wounds is important - don't try to get through the game unscathed, and remember you have ways to heal in your deck and on the map (magical glades, villages, monasteries).
  • Units are very good for two main reasons: for one, they have abilities, and each unit can be used for their abilities once per night or day, or more times if you have a way to re-ready them. For two, they can take hits for you, though they are somewhat harder to heal back up than you are. It's always worth bringing some along, even as Wolfhawk.
  • Note that my advice about the village no longer holds true - there are no units left that can be bought in villages until the next round rolls around! Monasteries, Keeps and Mage Towers are your options now.
  • The round ends when a) someone has no cards left in their deck and b) that player chooses not to play any more cards on their turn and calls Round End and c) their next turn rolls around. As such, Norowas' two turns in a row using his entire hand mean that everyone else is going to be feeling a little rushed. Pressuring your opponents to have to hurry can be very useful, provided you can do something with your own cards first.

It is Goldyx's Turn.


Goldyx (CirclMastr) - 5 hand, 9 deck.
Arythea (berenzen) - 6 hand, 7 deck.
Wolfhawk (Opopanax) - 6 hand, 9 deck.
Norowas (Captain Bravo) - 7 hand, 0 deck.
Unit Offer | Fame Tracker | City Status | Site Reference | Unit Reference

Stelas fucked around with this message at 04:36 on May 18, 2015

CirclMastr
Jul 4, 2010

Dungeon time!

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Captain Bravo
Feb 16, 2011

An Emergency Shitpost
has been deployed...

...but experts warn it is
just a drop in the ocean.
While Goldyx raids the dungeon, I will Raid the Village

Stelas posted:

Bah, Norowas players. Always too nice.

:unsmigghh:

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