I am a professional poker player.  If you know anything about this profession, then you know there is a term called "tilt".  This forum puts me on massive tilt.
 
I own Descent 1e and all of its expansions and Descent 2e and all of its expansions.  We play the game frequently.  I am generally the Overlord, but have played heroes as well.  In my group, whether we win or we lose, we can all have fun and enjoy the game.
 
If the threads in this forum are any indication, we are very, very much in the minority.
 
/BEGIN RANT - BEGIN TILT - BEGIN TL;DR
 
This forum, and many of its posts, never cease to amaze me.  If the heroes or the Overlord come up with some interesting strategy, some mechanic fully legal within the rules, etc. to overcome a desperate situation, and allow them to march towards victory, the other side instantly claims something is broken or unbalanced.
 
It could be the rules, a monster's abilities, a hero's skills, etc.  I am willing to bet that somewhere around 50% of all threads within this forum have this exact discussion on-going.
 
Today, I read a new thread about a particularly skilled OL named Kunzite who found a way to use an OL deck and available monster open groups to take advantage of the skills, weapons, and abilities of the heroes she was competing against by making solid use of Infector. Everything within the rules ... just good gaming.  As a result, some of the posters instantly point to something being "broken".  I mean, after all, their Treasure Hunter had allowed them to get 10-12 of the best weapons/armor/others available, and they still lost.
 
Of course there was no mention of the fact that Treasure Hunter was broken, by allowing them to get all of these goodies.  Oh no, it was that **** Infector class ... how, after all, could we have lost?  Note that Kunzite didn't complain when the heroes got all of these goodies ... she simply adjusted her style and strategies to take advantage of how her heroes were playing.  In other words, just good gaming.  And this is just one small example of what happens within this forum every **** day.
 
Why is it that when one side or the other is losing or loses (either by a small or large margin), that side typically claims that something is "wrong" with the game or that there is a balance issue, or that something is broken?
 
If you don't like what is happening, adjust your strategies, choose different heroes and/or classes, or different OL decks - i.e. change things up.  Perhaps in future quests/encounters of the same campaign you willing give up in encounter 1 to simply get more gold, or you forgo the gold and go for the win (for a relic or more gold or more XP or ?).  Perhaps in the next campaign, you choose a different mix heroes or skills or ?
 
It just seems to me that most of the posters within this forum can't have fun gaming unless they win, or unless they are all on the same side (such as a co-operative effort).
 
Grow up.  If you don't like what's happening, learn new strategies, play better, etc.  Much like in poker, talk with people who seem to have more success, learn from them, and apply what you learn.  It is possible to learn and have fun, even when you are losing.
 
It actually is funny how two forums within the same site can be so different.  I also play and participate in the Star Wars X-Wing forum.  In that forum, people share strategies and tips as to how to perform better in the game.  If they do mention things they think are wrong or unbalanced with the game, it is usually in the context of how to counter act them, and not as a complaint for losing.  Wish this forum was more like that.
 
/END RANT - END TILT - END TL;DR

I am a professional poker player.  If you know anything about this profession, then you know there is a term called "tilt".  This forum puts me on massive tilt.
 
I own Descent 1e and all of its expansions and Descent 2e and all of its expansions.  We play the game frequently.  I am generally the Overlord, but have played heroes as well.  In my group, whether we win or we lose, we can all have fun and enjoy the game.
 
If the threads in this forum are any indication, we are very, very much in the minority.
 
/BEGIN RANT - BEGIN TILT - BEGIN TL;DR
 
This forum, and many of its posts, never cease to amaze me.  If the heroes or the Overlord come up with some interesting strategy, some mechanic fully legal within the rules, etc. to overcome a desperate situation, and allow them to march towards victory, the other side instantly claims something is broken or unbalanced.
 
It could be the rules, a monster's abilities, a hero's skills, etc.  I am willing to bet that somewhere around 50% of all threads within this forum have this exact discussion on-going.
 
Today, I read a new thread about a particularly skilled OL named Kunzite who found a way to use an OL deck and available monster open groups to take advantage of the skills, weapons, and abilities of the heroes she was competing against by making solid use of Infector. Everything within the rules ... just good gaming.  As a result, some of the posters instantly point to something being "broken".  I mean, after all, their Treasure Hunter had allowed them to get 10-12 of the best weapons/armor/others available, and they still lost.
 
Of course there was no mention of the fact that Treasure Hunter was broken, by allowing them to get all of these goodies.  Oh no, it was that **** Infector class ... how, after all, could we have lost?  Note that Kunzite didn't complain when the heroes got all of these goodies ... she simply adjusted her style and strategies to take advantage of how her heroes were playing.  In other words, just good gaming.  And this is just one small example of what happens within this forum every **** day.
 
Why is it that when one side or the other is losing or loses (either by a small or large margin), that side typically claims that something is "wrong" with the game or that there is a balance issue, or that something is broken?
 
If you don't like what is happening, adjust your strategies, choose different heroes and/or classes, or different OL decks - i.e. change things up.  Perhaps in future quests/encounters of the same campaign you willing give up in encounter 1 to simply get more gold, or you forgo the gold and go for the win (for a relic or more gold or more XP or ?).  Perhaps in the next campaign, you choose a different mix heroes or skills or ?
 
It just seems to me that most of the posters within this forum can't have fun gaming unless they win, or unless they are all on the same side (such as a co-operative effort).
 
Grow up.  If you don't like what's happening, learn new strategies, play better, etc.  Much like in poker, talk with people who seem to have more success, learn from them, and apply what you learn.  It is possible to learn and have fun, even when you are losing.
 
It actually is funny how two forums within the same site can be so different.  I also play and participate in the Star Wars X-Wing forum.  In that forum, people share strategies and tips as to how to perform better in the game.  If they do mention things they think are wrong or unbalanced with the game, it is usually in the context of how to counter act them, and not as a complaint for losing.  Wish this forum was more like that.
 
/END RANT - END TILT - END TL;DR

"Fortune favors the prepared mind" - Louis Pasteur 

This ^^
 
As I mentioned above, I am a professional poker player, and have been one for a very long time.  So, as you can imagine, I am very competitive at everything I do/play.
 
When I first started out, I had to learn to take the emotion out of the game, and deal with the brutally bad beats that could and did occur.  I simply had to learn to make the best decisions each time (usually the most positive EV play), and that over time, always making the correct/best decisions would lead to making money, and thus "winning".
 
These days, the only time I get upset is if I make poor decisions; that is all on me.  All other things, including dice rolls, etc. are beyond my control - as long as I make the best decisions possible, and play to the best of my abilities, I can get my ass kicked and still have fun.

Unfortunately, I think a lot of this comes down to personalities - some people care a lot more about winning than others, and that will color any game experience. Games for me are a social thing. I have a regular group of six people that I game with every week. We all know what we are doing, so I'd better be willing to have fun while only winning one game out of six, or it would be a miserable time. Of course it's fun to win, but the only thing that bothers me about not winning is if I feel I personally didn't play well, and then I'm just upset with myself (I can get a little frustrated if I feel I played well but lost due to luck, but some reflection usually shows that I didn't play as well as I thought, or that I had put myself in a position where bad luck could hurt me).

I am the OL in our Descent group. We're playing the Labyrinth of Ruin campaign (with an Act I and an Act II Trollfens rumor quest thrown into the mix) . I won the first three Act I quests, the party won the next three (including the interlude). I have won the first two Act II quests. In each case I had fun playing - in several of them I could look back at mistakes I made and give myself a little mental kick over them.

I have to say, if I played in a group where the people regularly were upset about losing or whining about unbalanced this or that, I'd probably stop playing. I don't need that in my life.

I am a professional poker player.  If you know anything about this profession, then you know there is a term called "tilt".  This forum puts me on massive tilt.
 
I own Descent 1e and all of its expansions and Descent 2e and all of its expansions.  We play the game frequently.  I am generally the Overlord, but have played heroes as well.  In my group, whether we win or we lose, we can all have fun and enjoy the game.
 
If the threads in this forum are any indication, we are very, very much in the minority.
 
/BEGIN RANT - BEGIN TILT - BEGIN TL;DR
 
This forum, and many of its posts, never cease to amaze me.  If the heroes or the Overlord come up with some interesting strategy, some mechanic fully legal within the rules, etc. to overcome a desperate situation, and allow them to march towards victory, the other side instantly claims something is broken or unbalanced.
 
It could be the rules, a monster's abilities, a hero's skills, etc.  I am willing to bet that somewhere around 50% of all threads within this forum have this exact discussion on-going.
 
Today, I read a new thread about a particularly skilled OL named Kunzite who found a way to use an OL deck and available monster open groups to take advantage of the skills, weapons, and abilities of the heroes she was competing against by making solid use of Infector. Everything within the rules ... just good gaming.  As a result, some of the posters instantly point to something being "broken".  I mean, after all, their Treasure Hunter had allowed them to get 10-12 of the best weapons/armor/others available, and they still lost.
 
Of course there was no mention of the fact that Treasure Hunter was broken, by allowing them to get all of these goodies.  Oh no, it was that **** Infector class ... how, after all, could we have lost?  Note that Kunzite didn't complain when the heroes got all of these goodies ... she simply adjusted her style and strategies to take advantage of how her heroes were playing.  In other words, just good gaming.  And this is just one small example of what happens within this forum every **** day.
 
Why is it that when one side or the other is losing or loses (either by a small or large margin), that side typically claims that something is "wrong" with the game or that there is a balance issue, or that something is broken?
 
If you don't like what is happening, adjust your strategies, choose different heroes and/or classes, or different OL decks - i.e. change things up.  Perhaps in future quests/encounters of the same campaign you willing give up in encounter 1 to simply get more gold, or you forgo the gold and go for the win (for a relic or more gold or more XP or ?).  Perhaps in the next campaign, you choose a different mix heroes or skills or ?
 
It just seems to me that most of the posters within this forum can't have fun gaming unless they win, or unless they are all on the same side (such as a co-operative effort).
 
Grow up.  If you don't like what's happening, learn new strategies, play better, etc.  Much like in poker, talk with people who seem to have more success, learn from them, and apply what you learn.  It is possible to learn and have fun, even when you are losing.
 
It actually is funny how two forums within the same site can be so different.  I also play and participate in the Star Wars X-Wing forum.  In that forum, people share strategies and tips as to how to perform better in the game.  If they do mention things they think are wrong or unbalanced with the game, it is usually in the context of how to counter act them, and not as a complaint for losing.  Wish this forum was more like that.
 
/END RANT - END TILT - END TL;DR

First off, try this link.
http://community.fantasyflightgames.com/index.php?app=members&module=messaging
See if that doesn't get you to the page where you can enable it.
Otherwise you could try editing your profile. If you click on your name up top then go into Edit Profile then Notification Options there might be something in there.

I was fascinated while reading this thread ... I often wondered what the average demographics were for games such as this.  Apparently I helped to skew the average age range slightly up ... I will be 73 in July, and enjoy anything Star Wars (or sci-fi in general) related.
 
To be honest, I am not sure what I enjoy more ... playing the X-Wing game, or collecting all of the miniatures that make up the game.

I was fascinated while reading this thread ... I often wondered what the average demographics were for games such as this.  Apparently I helped to skew the average age range slightly up ... I will be 73 in July, and enjoy anything Star Wars (or sci-fi in general) related.
 
To be honest, I am not sure what I enjoy more ... playing the X-Wing game, or collecting all of the miniatures that make up the game.

I was fascinated while reading this thread ... I often wondered what the average demographics were for games such as this.  Apparently I helped to skew the average age range slightly up ... I will be 73 in July, and enjoy anything Star Wars (or sci-fi in general) related.
 
To be honest, I am not sure what I enjoy more ... playing the X-Wing game, or collecting all of the miniatures that make up the game.

There are plenty of situations in life where you can identify something as "stupid", and be absolutely correct, without having all of the information.  Having said that, I do agree with you that more often than not, there are more constructive ways to provide feedback that can demonstrate your point effectively, without alienating your target audience.
 
For the record, I am unlike much of the target audience of this site, as I am 52 years old (far older, I suspect, than most participants).  Also, I began a company from scratch, grew it to 34,000 employees privately, and took it public, before selling my share of it a number of years ago.  I think I have "been there, done that", and certainly do understand the impact poor decisions can make on your organization, its success, and ultimately the product and service you provide your customers.
 
Trust me, I have made plenty of mistakes myself - some of them truly atrocious. One of the reasons my company was as successful as it was, was in large part due to feedback that I received from inside and outside of the organization; often, that feedback tended to be brutally honest, holding no punches, and very difficult to hear.  Nevertheless, it is exactly what was called for, and the primary motivator in driving me to succeed, and providing a more refined product to my customers.
 
So, while there may be more effective ways to communicate, the feedback provided by Bladen above should stand without ridicule; it is, after all, I assume his true feelings/beliefs.
 
The sad part of all of this is the fact that I don't think FFG pays near enough attention (if any at all) to these forums; as a result, I think they miss out on a very important resource for connecting with their customers, and learning from mistakes.
 
Again ... just my two cents worth.

This statement made me laugh out loud, and I have had nothing to do with this thread up until now.  Having said that ...
 
So basically if I disagree with an approach that an organization is taking, I am not at liberty to provide feedback, comments, opinions, etc.?  Really?  Truly?  Where exactly are we living again?
 
I am sorry but just because a business has been around for 20 years DO NOT mean they understand their business, or the markets within which they operate.  I can name you plenty of examples of where this is the case, and for organizations that have been around far longer than FFG.  And quite frankly, while I enjoy FFG's games very much, and have made substantial investments in them for the length of their existence, they absolutely DO make some incredibly stupid decisions, despite their alledged expertise in their market place.
 
They have made bad strategic decisions, they have made bad design decisions, they constantly make poor on going decisions when it comes to their games and those games development, testing, etc.
 
So please, spare us the holier than thou attitude.  FFG has much room to improve.

Below, you will find a link to a cheat sheet to a spreadsheet that I created to assist in monster selection for open groups.  I found that having all of this information in one place made it much easier for the OL when determining what open groups to employ in given encounters.
 
It includes all of the monsters from D2e base game, the D1e conversion kit, Lair of the Wyrm, and Labyrinth of Ruin.  Since it took a bunch of time to create, I thought I would share it with all of you in case someone else would find it helpful.  Enjoy.
 
Here is the link: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1VdxSyVrikwRVZkSFprS25EaHM/edit?usp=sharing

There's a reason the only good lawyer is the one at the bottom of the ocean.  I refuse to play with "lawyers" who nit pick and analyze the English language (of what passes for it on FFG's cards).  Takes all the fun out of the game.

One other point that hasn't been mentioned.  A good OL will also consider the Heroes (and their skills) along with his specific encounter goals when deciding what monsters to bring into play.
 
Often, it is NOT wise to pick some of the larger based monsters.  For example, there are heroes with skills and/or Heroic Feats that are capable of defeating a single monster with a single hit no matter what damage they do.  So, if you pick Ettins or Shadow Dragons, you often only get 1 or 2 of them.  If a hero can eliminate one of them or all of them in a single blow (and often getting to go first this happens), then the OL has nothing left.
 
Instead, if the OL chooses a "lesser" monster group, often they get up to 4 monsters, which distributes them, and makes it far harder for a single or multiple heroes to eliminate all of them.

Below, you will find a link to a cheat sheet to a spreadsheet that I created to assist in monster selection for open groups.  I found that having all of this information in one place made it much easier for the OL when determining what open groups to employ in given encounters.
 
It includes all of the monsters from D2e base game, the D1e conversion kit, Lair of the Wyrm, and Labyrinth of Ruin.  Since it took a bunch of time to create, I thought I would share it with all of you in case someone else would find it helpful.  Enjoy.
 
Here is the link: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1VdxSyVrikwRVZkSFprS25EaHM/edit?usp=sharing

Okay, my first attempt to provide access to a document.  It should be a spreadsheet which includes the stats for all monsters from D2e the base game, the conversion kit, Lair of the Wyrm, and Labyrinth of Ruin.  I found that having all of this information in one place made it easy for the OL when determining what open groups to employ in given encounters.
 
Anyway, spent a bunch of time on it, and thought I would share.  If this works, and you can view/save it, it is best printed on legal paper.
 
Here is the link: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1VdxSyVrikwRVZkSFprS25EaHM/edit?usp=sharing

The new monsters included with Labyrinth of Ruin are as follows:
 
Goblin Witcher   Attack Type: Range   Traits: Building, Cursed
     Act I:   Minion   Speed: 4   Hearts: 3   Defense: Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow
                              Surge: Curse   Surge: +1 Range
                Master   Speed: 4   Hearts: 5   Defense: Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow
                              Action: Bewitch   Surge: Curse   Surge: +2 Range
     Act II:  Minion   Speed: 4   Hearts: 6   Defense: Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow
                              Surge: Curse   Surge: +2 Range   Surge: +1 Heart
                Master   Speed: 4   Hearts: 8   Defense: Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow Green
                              Surge: Bewitch   Surge: Curse   Surge: +2 Range   Surge: +2 Hearts
 
Bewitch: Move each adjacent Cursed hero up to 2 spaces in any direction of your choice.
 
Curse: If this attack deals at least 1 Heart (after the defense roll), the target is Cursed.
 
 
Volucrix Reaver   Attack Type: Melee   Traits: Building, Mountain
     Act I:   Minion   Speed: 4   Hearts: 3   Defense: Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow 
                              Action: Skirmish   Surge: Pierce 2
                Master   Speed: 4   Hearts: 5   Defense: Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow
                              Surge: Ravage   Action: Skirmish   Surge: Pierce 2   Surge: +1 Heart
     Act II:  Minion   Speed: 4   Hearts: 4   Defense: Gray Brown   Attack: Blue Red
                              Action: Skirmish   Surge: Pierce 2
                Master   Speed: 4   Hearts: 6   Defense: Gray Brown   Attack: Blue Red
                              Ravage   Action: Skirmish   Surge: Pierce 3   Surge: +2 Hearts
 
Ravage: Both of this monster's actions on a turn may be attack actions.
 
Skirmish: This monster may move 3 spaces, then perform an attack.
 
 
Carrion Drake   Attack Type: Melee   Traits: Water, Dark
     Act I:   Minion   Speed: 5   Hearts: 6   Defense: Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow
                              Fly   Surge: Disease   Surge: +1 Heart
                Master   Speed: 5   Hearts: 8   Defense: Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow
                              Fly   Plagued   Surge: Disease   Surge: +2 Hearts
     Act II:  Minion   Speed: 5   Hearts: 7   Defense: Gray Brown   Attack: Blue Yellow Green
                              Fly   Surge: Disease   Surge: +1 Heart   Surge: +1 Heart
                 Master  Speed: 5   Hearts: 10   Defense: Gray Gray   Attack: Blue Yellow Green
                              Fly   Plagued   Surge: Disease   Surge: +2 Hearts
 
Fly: This monster may ignore enemy figures and the effects of terrain while moving.  It must end its movement
       in an empty space following normal movement rules.
 
Plagued: When a hero adjacent to this monster would discard a Poisoned or Diseased Condition card, he
                instead keeps the card.
 
Disease: If this attack deals at least 1 Heart (after the defense roll), the target is Diseased.
 
 
Arachyura   Attack Type: Melee   Traits: Wilderness, Curse
     Act I:   Minion   Speed: 3   Hearts: 5   Defense: Gray Brown   Attack: Blue Red Green
                              Action: Pincer Attack   Surge Surge: Pierce 1
                Master   Speed: 3   Hearts: 7   Defense: Gray Brown   Attack: Blue Red Green
                              Lingering Curse   Action: Pincer Attack   Surge Surge: Pierce 2
     Act II   Minion   Speed: 3   Hearts: 7   Defense: Black   Attack: Blue Red Green
                              Action: Pincer Attack   Surge Surge: Pierce 2
                Master   Speed: 3   Hearts: 9   Defense: Black   Attack: Blue Red Green
                              Lingering Curse   Action: Pincer Attack   Surge Surge: Pierce 3
 
Lingering Curse: When this monster is defeated, each adjacent hero must test Willpower.
                            Each Hero that fails is Cursed.
 
Pincer Attack: Perform an attack targeting up to 2 heroes adjacent to this monster.  1 attack roll
                       is made but each hero rolls defense dice separately.  Each target that suffers at
                       least 1 Heart from this attack (after the defense roll) is Immobilized.