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Vase

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Posts posted by Vase

  2. Posted

    Hi folks, I've been wanting to grow my collection for a while now. I began collecting the game when it was brand new, stuck with it through the Mirkwood and Dwarrowdelf cycles, and had the Kazad-Dum expansion as well.

    I got bored and traded away my collection.

    Several years later I tried the Hobbit Saga expansion, the first couple missions. Wow, that was such a great gaming experience! To me the game at that point felt like what I had always wished it would be, both in terms of mechanics, interesting game play, and of course the story narrative.

    So about a year ago I picked up the core set and a deluxe expansion. I was hoping to get a Saga expansion but no local stores had one. I picked up Voice of Isengard...and wow, I never even played all the missions. I felt like it was as bad as OHUH was good. Who seriously enjoys a mission that involves saving Grima? :) 

    Getting to the point: I've been wanting to get Black Riders and start collecting the saga expansions that follow the narrative of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I've been watching eBay for months hoping someone will put up a collection that isn't out of my price range. Within the last couple weeks, Black Riders expansions seems to be disappearing. Right now there is only one copy available with a Buy It Now price of $157.50. On boardgamegeek marketplace there is only one English copy for sale, and that user will only ship to Europe (I'm in the US). There's nothing on Amazon. Nothing on B&N. I've checked local gaming groups on Facebook, etc. and there's just nothing.

    Did FFG recently announce that this would never be reprinted or something? Why is this so scarce? 

    Thanks!

  4. Posted

    Hello, I'm wondering what the general feeling is so far from people who did not play the old L5R. I'm curious because I'm not a veteran of the game, and the gameplay previews we've seen so far don't seem like anything special to me. It seems like longtime L5R fans are pretty enthusiastic though, and I wonder how much of that is because of familiarity with theme and the original game.

    I'm interested in jumping in to L5R and investing into the LCG longterm, but I guess I'm hesitant because of what happened with the Star Wars LCG. People who are fans of Star Wars were very enthusiastic about the game for obvious reasons. I know I was. But the actual gameplay was really not very good. Sure, some people really love that game, and that's great. But there's no question that it underachieved. I guess my point is: if the theme of that game was unpopular and obscure, instead of Star Wars, it would likely have been a total flop. The theme is the only thing saving it, in my opinion. Is there a similar situation happening for L5R?

    Ide Yoshiya reacted to this

  5. Posted · Edited by Vase

    Thanks for the blog post and the discussion. I came across this thread while looking for some healthy objective discussion about the similarities and differences between the two games. I recently  decided to buy into one of these two games and wasn't sure which one was for me. Ultimately I decided to get back into X-Wing (I traded away all my stuff two years ago).

    I decided that I prefer the quicker more reactive style of X-Wing, as well as the X-wing models. The Epic/Cinematic play is also something that I just can't say no to. Ultimately, I think the thing that helped me make up my mind was this question posed by Lyraeus on a different thread:

    "The overriding question is 'Do I want to be a pilot or a commander of a vessel?'"

    Thinking about it that way, there is no doubt I was craving starfighters and dog fights. That's what really ignites the boyish excitement in me....the same way it's been since first seeing Star Wars :)

  8. Posted

    Also unclear if mantis will be around or not. And how much FFG chooses to follow the Onyx storyline. I'd wait for a while. I sure once game is actually done and on the way they will do Clan specific preview articles.

     

    To be honest, I'm not planning on purchasing/playing the L5R product FFG is creating. I think I'd rather play a "dead" CCG, with variable boosters and old school collectible Common/Uncommon/Rare cards, then play any of the current LCGs. For me, there's just something missing from these new LCG games. Even though the games themselves are good (for the most part), I was missing out on the entire aspect of collecting cards, which for me was always half the fun.

     

    And even if I do decide to play the new LCG, I want to have understood and played the old game somewhat so that I can better appreciate the game and story arc overall.

  10. Posted · Edited by Vase

    What I look for in a clan....

     

    Well first, I think I would like a clan that matches my style of game play: I don't do good with drama, tricks, or complex sophisticated plans that take a long time to pull off (I like tricks and complex plans, I just suck at making them work) :)  With any game I play, I tend to favor brute strength and power over evasiveness and slipperiness. I often bide my time without being overly aggressive, then strike when I see a weakness in my opponent's game. Rather than making plays that create uncertainty and complexity in the game, I often play to simplify a game. I guess you could say I like to take away my opponent's options and force him/her to play the game my way.

     

    Next, I think I would like a clan that fits my own personality a bit. I'm a pretty simple guy. I'm quiet and reserved, mostly because I'm prone to offend people when I talk because I'm always very blunt and I suck at saying things in a way that is tactful. I value loyalty and integrity. My personal life philosophy is much more on the side of "A good traveler has no fixed plan and is not intent on arriving" than "I am the master of my fate and the captain of my destiny" (the latter seeming quite Mantis-y if I'm not mistaken).

     

    And finally I'm interested in really liking the story arc behind the clan. I don't want a clan history full of pride and seeking contention. I don't like bad guys. I like good guys that keep the peace honorably and follow the credo "death before dishonor." I like characters who don't wear their hearts on the sleeves, but quietly go about their business doing what they know is right, even if they are woefully misunderstood and shunned.

     

    Cheers

     

    (it took me some time to write all this out and articulate it well....so yeah, I have to admit I'm a perfectionist, even if I'm not proud of it....is there a perfectionist clan?) :)

  11. Posted

    As a newcomer to the game, I'm looking for a clan to "join" that I can really learn about and love. I'm wondering about the story arc of the Mantis clan because it's a clan I want to like...but the story arc on l5r.com is a bit of a turn of for me. The story arc there makes Mantis sound like childish whiners. They feel disrespected, their champion is nicknamed "sour disposition" because people don't openly acknowledge his clan as the best, and he won't ever rest until all Rokugan acknowledge Mantis as equals, which to him means that Mantis "stands above" the rest. So is Mantis championed by a self-centered ego maniac? According to l5r.com, Mantis profess not to care what others think about them, but they are in fact deeply bothered by other clans possibly looking own on them. Sounds like vain childish behavior to me.

    I'm trying to put a cool spin on these story elements because I want to like Mantis, but I'm struggling a bit. How do you Mantis players interpret the story? Thanks. (and sorry if I've offended anyone's honor, I'm just simply trying to understand what I may be missing here)

    Kakita Shiro and MarthWMaster reacted to this

  13. Posted

    I'd just go to a store that still has L5R on the shelves, buy a few of the starter decks, and play around with those.

     

    Yeah ok, but I don't understand what is compatible against what. For example, can any two starter decks play against one another? Are the factions divided up into "good guys" and "bad guys" or something like that? Also, I see that there have been like 8 different editions of the game. What if the local shop has two faction decks I'm interested in but one is from Ivory edition and the other is from Emperor edition, would that be an okay thing to buy?

  14. Posted

    I've known about this game for years, but just decided today to look into collecting and learning it. What do I discover? It's in hiatus while FFG revamps it. Exciting news, but it means I'm not sure what to do for now. 

     

    I do want to get the LCG and collect it regularly once FFG has it ready. But in the meantime, I want to start appreciating the AEG version of the game. Obviously I'm not going to buy a huge collection at this point, but what would you L5R vets recommend as a small or reasonable purchase that will help me to learn a bit about the game and have something to enjoy for the next year or so?

  16. Posted

    Yeah, I've been so impressed by the elegance of the rules. The ability to have so much customization, asymmetrical play, the quick setup and playtime of a board game combined with the open style play of a miniatures war game, and the absolutely huge potential for players to customize the game to fit their own needs is truly impressive. 

     

    I'm determined to help wake up this community. I've put a post over on BGG about wanting to create some youtube content. Perhaps before FFG throws us a bone we need to do our part and help them out more. 

    janbjo reacted to this

  18. Posted · Edited by Vase

    Ok, let me see if I can explain. 1 caveat, I wasn't a prolific player. I never played in a tournament, and I don't pretend I was a great player or that I understood the more advanced strategies.

     

    Having said that, this is what X-Wing felt like to me: spend 10 mins maneuvering. Either I've outmaneuvered my opponent (yes!) or I've been outmaneuvered (no!). At which point a perfectly-lined-up perfectly-timed shot is taken....which probably does nothing. Or even if it does something, it might remove a shield point or a hull point, which is pretty much nothing.

     

    10 more mins of maneuver for the same result.

     

    Then 10 more mins of maneuver for the same result.

     

    Etc.

     

    OR

     

    Everyone flies into a big cluster in the middle, people crash/collide, fire is concentrated, etc. and tons of stuff dies. Now either one player has an overwhelming advantage so the game might as well be over, or both players have just a small force left so begin the 10-mins-of-maneuver-for-that-one-perfectly-timed-shot cycle and repeat for the next hour.

     

    So that's the part that just isn't my cup of tea. I totally get that many people would love the constant maneuvering, and I'm happy they love the game. But I think maybe my background of chess and Warhammer Fantasy has me disliking that. In both of those games, maneuvering happens at the beginning. You arrive at a position that you have carefully planned and worked for, and then the crap hits the fan and you find out which players ideas were stronger and more well-thought-out. With X-Wing it feels like the planning and maneuvering is often pointless because outmaneuvering an opponent several times a game only to come up empty on the dice was pretty common. And I LOVE dice. I love randomness and chance in my games, just not the way it comes out in X-Wing. Also, how many times in the movies does a pilot outmaneuver another pilot, get behind him, get off that perfect shot, and then not destroy the enemy fighter? It seemed not only anti-climactic but anti-thematic as well. Still a beautiful game though, without a doubt.

     

    It seems like Armada wouldn't have this problem though. Even just on this thread several people have mentioned that Armada is slower and more contemplative.

     

    Oh and P.S., space dogfighting simulated in 2D bothered me as well. I don't think that will be much of an issue with Aramada though because it seems like the fighter squad rules are pretty elegant for allowing a feeling of 3D when it comes to how they interact with the big ships. And big ships don't need a ton of 3D because they aren't dog fighting, they are supporting and broadsiding, etc.

     

    I tried to spare you guys from this madness in my brain by being simple. But you asked to know more..... :)

    cjk1975 reacted to this

  19. Posted

    I play both, but I vaaaaaaaaastly prefer Armada.

     

     

    Care to elaborate? I'm curious what it is about Armada that causes you to prefer it.

     

    I dabbled in X-Wing, found it wasn't for me, and traded away all my stuff. When Armada was announced I found myself thinking "Ah crud, I wish I would have gotten THAT game instead." I'm on the fence right now about pulling the trigger on Armada with father's day coming up :)

    Stasy reacted to this

  20. Posted · Edited by Vase

    Hey everyone, I hope this is not inappropriate.  I bought into this game after trying it out and really really love it.  However, I just can't find a way to balance playing this game with my family responsibilities.  So I am selling off the stuff I got, most of which is still unopened and in the original packaging.  I've owned this stuff since November and sadly have not played a single game :(

     

    If interested, I posted the details in the fliptheforce forum here.

     

    I am a huge fan of FFG and am going to focus my small available gaming time and gaming budget to play LOTR solo instead.  If anyone is interested, I will consider trading for LOTR cards.

     

    Cheers.

  21. Posted

    Yeah, Vassal is something I have looked at.  But for some reason, a huge part of the game for me is the miniatures.  Playing the same rule set in a 2D video game format just doesn't do it for me.  I dunno why :)

     

    I have been doing exactly what you say Michael Hasselstein.  I jot down all logical moves for my "opponent" ships and then set my own dials.  Then as I go through the maneuvering I just randomize which predetermined "good" move the opponent ship will make.  It has definitely been fun, I'm just looking to refine what I'm doing and get a better experience if possible.

     

    Thanks for all the discussion so far!

  22. Posted

    Guys, thanks for the feedback so far. 

     

    @Chris Maes:  I have never tried swapping sides like that.  I agree, not perfect, but WAAAY better than the mindless AI systems floating around out there.  I will definitely be trying this out.

     

    @CatPeeler:  This is also a cool idea I hadn't yet considered.  I'll be trying this one out as well!

     

    Any feedback from anyone about the idea to play X-Wing long distance?

  23. Posted

    Hello all,

     

    I realize this thread is pretty old, but I'm trying to get a feel for what people are doing to play this game solo.  

     

    The game is so much more complex than it was in fall of 2012, especially with the addition of the TIE Phantom, so I don't know that the ideas presented in this thread are still valid.  One huge failing I see of randomness or very simple AI is that there are so many upgrades a ship can be equipped with, making it very difficult for them all to be taken advantage of well.

     

    I am personally still playing solo and am looking for a way to improve what I do.  Anyone else out there in the same boat as me?  Also, I'm trying to test out a way to play X Wing long distance, doing 2-3 turns a week using my blog, youtube, and skype...or something like that.  Anyone interested in testing out an idea like that?

     

    Cheers!  

    ~Vase

  24. Posted

    I read through most of the discussion here and a lot of good points have been made.  To be honest, I'm not really excited for these new ships.  I've never been a fan of Episodes 1-3, nor am I a fan of the Extended Universe.

    I do believe they will be fun in the game.  I think FFG has had some awesome ideas with this game, and I recognize that as one of the hottest games on the planet, they (as a business) need to capitalize on that.  It seems like most people are super stoked for Wave 4, so I'm happy that the community is so happy.

    I may buy them to get the upgrade cards for things like Ship Mods and Pilot Skills, but I don't plan on using these to game with anytime soon.

    Oxymandias reacted to this
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