combat rebalancing

My suggestion for SCE was not make them round enders - they will end combat all right just not instantly but after the resolution of the opponents strike.

Ankha wrote:
There are two schools of combat:
- either you go for the kill, trying to torporize / empty / burn the opposing minion in one combat. This means you must be able to handle any counters the opposing minion may present: S:CE of course, prevent, long range etc.
- or you grind the vampires, meaning you play a few cards until the opponent can't evade anymore.

This is golden.

After analizing the EC meta I've come to the conclusion that combat is quite fine, you just have to go with the second "school".

People, who try to make "dedicated combat decks" must be discouraged, like people who try to make "dedicated hunt decks" ("6 minions with blood dolls hunting for 2 each with sabbat tech is so cool") - combat is an activity which doesn't win the game so it have to compliment real strategy, not be the main focus.

elotar wrote: Combat is an activity which doesn't win the game so it have to compliment real strategy, not be the main focus.

Actually it can be the main focus. In most cases it just NEEDS some extra cards that would take care for ousting part: some bleed actions/ modifiers, permanent bleed bonuses, etc. It can even be the main and only focus of the deck in case of weenie combat, where number of minions take care of prey's pool quickly. Weenie DBR, potence weenie, weenie recruiting War Ghouls are probably best examples here (at least the ones I remember being very succesfull in tournaments).

I was merely pointing out the the 'counters' you present, are in their nature relatively corner-case and unlikely to be considered in the majority of situations as a counter for S:CE.

Ankha wrote:

Juggernaut1981 wrote: I was merely pointing out the the 'counters' you present, are in their nature relatively corner-case and unlikely to be considered in the majority of situations as a counter for S:CE.

I don't consider Death Seeker nor Hall of Mirrors being cornercase. I'd rather say that players have not yet seen their potential.

The potential for Hall of Mirrors combined with Illusions of the Kindred strikes me as probably the most interesting way forward. IotK has always been kinda interesting with things like IotK + Horrid Reality + Flamethrower (or whatever), but susceptible to S:CE and other defensive strategies. Toss in Hall of Mirrors and it seems more resilient. And you don't care so much about the blood cost because it's the Illusion paying that - though 2 for IotK that you can't Taste back is, of course, annoying in the first place. (And even more annoying when someone just plays S:CE against your Illusion.)