Min/Max Boards

That works.

A lot of the time playing with people who know what they're doing can be less fun because they move somewhat robotically, so having those other choices about how to build a deck just makes the game better imo. Otherwise you just watch everyone make the same decisions and the person to go last is just plain screwed.

I know what you mean. I'll be more likely to try stuff other than variations of Big Money if I'm playing against someone less experienced. The Apprentice/Alchemist/University combo I mentioned worked well against someone newer because he didn't get a fast Province engine going.

I haven't seen people gain huge advantages from Black Market because you only gain one copy of the card. Even in situations where you might bring that card out a lot, people tend to have gained a compensating edge from the same place you did. You also get plenty of draws from Black Market that don't impress at all.

Chapel could be a good one to have if you're the only one, but it might not be that strong since you wouldn't be buying it on your first turn. Other veto cards could be nasty, like Possession or Saboteur. But you don't have a lot of control over what you get, so it's not likely to be an overpowered card. It's just a really random card with that looming potential.

I liked K's Revised Necromancy Handbook as probably an overall favorite.

Beyond that, my interest tends to shift around depending on the class I'm currently looking at playing.

I think I might dislike every card with a potion in it's cost. could have spent that action winning...

I hate it just because of the opportunity cost you need to get that Potion in the first place. I really only like it if I can get the Alchemist, which is already a copy of one of my favorite core cards (Laboratory), and also makes that Potion in the deck useful. A favorite tactic of mine is to pick up several (up to five) Alchemists and several Apprentices (possibly sped up with University, if available) to try to narrow my deck down to the above-mentioned cards, two Golds, a Silver, and the Potion. With two or three Apprentices, you can always have $8 in your hand for quite a few turns (four or five, at least). You just can't take too long to set this up...

It's like they were designed for online play only, for which they often work fine, but stuff like Philosopher's Stone would be a nightmare if you were playing it tabletop. Counting your cards every time you play it? Who thinks of something so terrible and then prints it?could have spent that action winning...

Yeah, it really does slow the game down. I saw it and thought OMG Broken! It is pretty nice as time goes on, but it is a pain in the ass to use. Although, if you're playing with a friendly group who trusts each other, you can get away with only counting some times. For example, if you were at 20 the last time you used it and you know you haven't acquired five or more cards, then you know it's still worth the same amount.

Cards like Possession, which are obviously really horrible balance-wise, are yet another example of "looks good on paper, doesn't work in practice" because having someone take TWO turns to every one of yours is exactly the kind of nightmare that can really hurt a game. Why didn't someone realize how much fun it ISN'T to sit and just watch someone take their turn for multiple minutes of gameplay?could have spent that action winning...

Well, it's "balanced" in that everyone can use it, but it's annoying in that if only one guy is using it, then the other players either have to get on board, or hope that they can win fast enough to not be out-paced. It's kind of like Chapel in that regard. Although, this and Saboteur are two cards we almost never play with.

I think I like Seaside very much though. IRL I've only played with it online but I like the duration cards. I like setting upcoming turns up, and it covers against those inevitable bad draws a bit.could have spent that action winning...

I like Seaside a lot, too. It actually took me a while to warm up to it (I really liked Intrigue at that point). When I came back to it, I liked it a lot more. It took me a while to see the use in Haven, which can be a lot of fun to use.

Prosperity is a bit disappointing in places, bigger isn't always better, but it's not un-fun like a lot of Alchemy. It's just that a lot of the stuff didn't feel different enough. Otherwise they're nice cards that are nice to have.could have spent that action winning...

I really enjoyed Prosperity when it first came out, but I haven't played it in about a year, now. It's a real game changer in many ways, but so many of the cards are just +3 cost versions of core cards that the feel of the game isn't different. Before that, each edition had it's own feel, which was a lot of the fun, to me.

On a related note, there is a pretty cool five-card combo in Prosperity that lets you pick up +9VP a round while maintaining a five-card deck (so you have the same hand every time). Granted, if someone has attacks, this could mess it up real quick. But you need:

• Bishop
• 2 Monuments
• 2 King's Courts

Each turn, you get +9VP and +$15, but you don't spend the $15 until near the end because you want a constant five-card deck.

Black Market makes things interesting. Not sure what else to say about it. I like it, but its value isn't always obvious. It can be lots of fun to use, but then you realize you could have spent that action winning...

I haven't used it yet, but it does look like fun. My only complaint is that some cards really are better than others, and if you can get the only one copy of it in the game, it could seal the deal right then and there. Technically everyone has an equal opportunity before you start drawing into the black market deck, but afterwards, all bets are off.

leap

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So THATS why they had large families!

I feel like I'm getting ripped off on my tax breaks for my kids.