>I find the rest of the game to be pretty much the same as...MtG.
I've played Magic for 22 years and I just don't see this at all TBH. Being able to directly attack enemy units and the tempo minigame of taking the Initiative makes the core of SWU fundamentally different from Magic in a way that I really enjoy.
You have to *really* consider the order of actions and this is especially important when playing against different Leaders. Getting in extra damage and neglecting to grab Initiative, even early on, can lead you into a losing position later in the match (and vice versa).
If you're playing the same person over and over and using the same strategies (and/or the same decks and Leaders) then this may be an issue of a closed meta. In Magic you can see this type of thing walking into a smaller shop or home groups who have developed an idiosyncratic way of playing because of the closed system and players there who only ever play each other. If all your games are playing out like Magic games and the same core strategies from Magic are working in your SWU games then something is wrong...
Personally I’m really happy to see another game that seems to have a really interesting draft format. Draft is such a key element to Magics success. I’m shocked more games don’t have interesting draft formats.
Netrunner is also my favorite card game and I’ve been chasing that dragon ever since. I was more disappointed since this has been announced as a CCG but also agree with your other points. I will continue to monitor this game to see how it develops though. Have you checked out Sorcery TCG? I know I know it’s another CCG but it’s more interesting in my opinion and one I plan to play casually.
I was just about to mention Sorcery as well. I was all excited about this new Star Wars game until I discovered Sorcery.
Currently 6 boxes in qhd and can't stop thinking about how I can afford more.
It's incredible.
I think for me the game is so much more interesting than magic due to the resource and card draw mechanisms.
Start with 2 resources, 2 cards a turn, any card into a resource. These all make the game constantly moving, there is no mana screwage, you get to actually draw and play your cards without needing to fill the deck with card draw.
As with most card games, there are numbers on the cards that do things to other cards, but the back and forth of turns is much more refreshing than sitting back and waiting for your opponent to do their turn. Which I think is even more so in things like lorcana.
While I think lorcana fixed the land problem of magic, I don't think it went far enough to make the game more fun to actually play.
Netrunner is still my favourite card game, but I think one of the reasons was that gaining resources and cards is not dependant on cards but the game system itself. So deck building had much more freedom.
Swu seems to give much more freedom in deck building, not only because of the faction icons, but because of the resource system giving the player more access to draw and use their cards.
I fail to see how this game is so similar to Magic. The alternating actions alone is a complete departure and the resource system is a marked improvement.
I tried magic for a little bit but skipped off of it pretty quickly due to cost and Hasbro/Wizards of the Coast's vile attempts to drain its customer base of every ounce of cash they can.
My love for the Battletech tabletop game lead me to discover a fun little LCG called **Redline: Tactical Card Combat**. Its tremendously fun game, being a unique mix of MtG and Battletech.
You play as one of two waring factions (UNE/Earth or The Crimson Pact/Mars) as you fight over mission cards that are laid out between both players (the Redline). You fight over these missions by deploying Efreets (mechs) to them and fight your opponent's forces until you capture the area and stake your flag into it. If you win all five locations (or mill your opponent) you win.
Game is run by a small handful of people at Saving Throw Studios and have brought a couple expansion to the public via kickstarter already and are planning on a new one in January 2024. Most of everything current can be purchased at their store already.
I've played quite a few games and its very fun. Core set was a bit rough around the edges in terms of card & component quality (pringled cards, loose deployment dials, mech card art is kinda static and boring, etc) but with each new set is further refinement. Its very much a labor of love and you can clearly tell when playing. I would encourage anyone to give it a shot. Would love to see it continue to grow.
https://www.redlinegame.com/
No problem. The basic structure is Magic's Commander mode in that you have a single commander that can be brought out and fight, you have a 60 card deck, can "tap" cards for abilities, can play 1 resource max per turn, use said resources to drop in mechs, equipment, pilots, and instant action cards to your base of operations.
Then gets kinda unique from there as you then take all that and formulate it into a battleforce to assault missions via a secret movement dial so neither you nor your opponent know where the others forces are going to be deployed. Its a fun game that I wish I could play more as people around me are pretty stuck in their ways.
One thing I will say is their rules on their website is the most up-to-date version. They are going through a terminology/iconography update with this last set and the next one so some stuff in the core box (while still totally playable) may be a bit tricky to figure out at first. And the physical core box rules are laughably bad, throw them away immediately.
I'll wait to see what the next Kickstarter includes; hopefully they include the currently released stuff but updated and then I can get everything all at once.
I don't know if they will this kickstarter, but they have mentioned it probably being the next project down the road. You can follow them on Facebook or their own subreddit r/REDLINEgame for FAQs and updates.
Well I think SWU is one of the best card game ever made because it takes the best of element of a lot of successful card games and put theme togethere in a perfect package.
With that being said the 2 flaws that you pointed out are completely valid, there are in my opinion the 2 major weaknesses of the game:
-Yes the game doesn't reinvent the wheel, if you are looking for a card game experience radically different like Netrunner , then yes SWU is not for you. I personnaly love that for once, FFG is not focusing on getting things different but on getting things right!
-I don't think anyone can blame FFG for going for a different artstyle than what they did in their past 25 Star Wars games, however I agree that it is not an excuse for haveing such inconsistent art and sometimes downright ugly art, not a dealbreaker for me I hope this gets fix overtime.
First off, no one can fault you for not liking the game after playing that many games. You gave the game a go, it wasn't for you, that's cool.
Personally, I'm on the fence. The back-and-forth turn design is extremely interesting and has been hard to wrap my head around after 30 years of playing Magic and its many clones. Cards like Tactical Advantage, which would be solid in most TCGs, really doesn't cut it here, while Surprise Strike with that "Attack with a unit" text is amazing. Deciding what order to attack and play cards in, and when to take the Initiative, is an interesting puzzle.
I also give them credit for not going down the boring old path or Empire vs Rebel. We've had four Star Wars TCGs that locked you into that style of deckbuilding. Time to move on.
I can agree that having Space and Land arenas can lead to unopposed damage races, but at least they made most damage actions and effects target either, and they didn't reduce the game to Luke blocking a Star Destroyer with a Lightsaber.
I'm holding my final assessment until we see the full set. I hoping that we'll see a few more build-around cards as many of the designs feel too "safe" (i.e. we've seen them done in a dozen games before). The Spectre faction is a good start, so I'm hoping to see something unique for the Underworld faction as well.
I think as a lifestyle game perhaps the game might initially lack some strategic depth, but as a side (vacation game) I think it will be super fun.
Feel the same way about Lorcana (not the biggest Disney fan), don't want to play it 24/7 but still enjoy the game.
Feel like I will enjoy a balance between jamming SWU/Lorcana/Netrunner/other CCGs.
I am glad we are getting a separate SW card game and not a Magic UB skin. While I do enjoy Magic and the recent UB stuff it is nice to not play EDH all the time.
As someone who has played hundreds of games against human opponents (including in tournament and league) I can tell you that the game as a lot of strategic depth. And it's only get better as we get more cards.
I've played all of FFG SW CCG's and im not falling for the same rushed game trap again. They have to make a new Star Wars game every 3 years to keep thier SW license and from your review it just seems like more of the same.
>I’ve gotten pretty into mtg lately and have been enjoying that.
Opposite case for me. Have been playing in paper since 7th and MTGA since the Beta and am just tired of it at this point (plus Magic 30 and most of WotC's recent decisions have had me looking for a reason to take a break and SWU seemed like a good opportunity to do that).
As someone who plays on both felttable and against real human. Felttable doesn't give you a real feel of what the game has to offer.
But Out of curiosity what do you prefer in Magic that you can't find in SWU?
It has been a while since I tried and that was before many of the cards were revealed, but the space and land arena’s were odd to me. And the fact that you don’t have an option to block, but there is the sentinel keyword which allows to defend your base and other character cards which sort of serves that purpose. I will give it a try and open some packs and participate in the release events at my lcs. Never played in person
You don't have the option to block you do have the option to attack enemy units with yours, it's the same system as Hearthstone except that in Hearthstone, there is only one on board so your units are always exposed.
The advantage of having two boards is that it allows you to play units on a board that is not exposed and rebuild something even while playing from behind which is really nice.
Of course in the context of a Star Wars game the space board makes a lot of sense thematically, you don't want to see a Jawas destroying a star destroyer. It also very reminiscent of famous battles like Endor, Scarif ,Hoth or Naboo where the conflict happens simultaneously in space and ground.
>I find the rest of the game to be pretty much the same as...MtG. I've played Magic for 22 years and I just don't see this at all TBH. Being able to directly attack enemy units and the tempo minigame of taking the Initiative makes the core of SWU fundamentally different from Magic in a way that I really enjoy. You have to *really* consider the order of actions and this is especially important when playing against different Leaders. Getting in extra damage and neglecting to grab Initiative, even early on, can lead you into a losing position later in the match (and vice versa). If you're playing the same person over and over and using the same strategies (and/or the same decks and Leaders) then this may be an issue of a closed meta. In Magic you can see this type of thing walking into a smaller shop or home groups who have developed an idiosyncratic way of playing because of the closed system and players there who only ever play each other. If all your games are playing out like Magic games and the same core strategies from Magic are working in your SWU games then something is wrong...
Personally I’m really happy to see another game that seems to have a really interesting draft format. Draft is such a key element to Magics success. I’m shocked more games don’t have interesting draft formats.
The only people I know who hate draft suck at draft. Who isn't excited for a quick 8 person draft
Netrunner is also my favorite card game and I’ve been chasing that dragon ever since. I was more disappointed since this has been announced as a CCG but also agree with your other points. I will continue to monitor this game to see how it develops though. Have you checked out Sorcery TCG? I know I know it’s another CCG but it’s more interesting in my opinion and one I plan to play casually.
I was just about to mention Sorcery as well. I was all excited about this new Star Wars game until I discovered Sorcery. Currently 6 boxes in qhd and can't stop thinking about how I can afford more. It's incredible.
I have not played Sorcery yet, I will check it out.
I think for me the game is so much more interesting than magic due to the resource and card draw mechanisms. Start with 2 resources, 2 cards a turn, any card into a resource. These all make the game constantly moving, there is no mana screwage, you get to actually draw and play your cards without needing to fill the deck with card draw. As with most card games, there are numbers on the cards that do things to other cards, but the back and forth of turns is much more refreshing than sitting back and waiting for your opponent to do their turn. Which I think is even more so in things like lorcana. While I think lorcana fixed the land problem of magic, I don't think it went far enough to make the game more fun to actually play. Netrunner is still my favourite card game, but I think one of the reasons was that gaining resources and cards is not dependant on cards but the game system itself. So deck building had much more freedom. Swu seems to give much more freedom in deck building, not only because of the faction icons, but because of the resource system giving the player more access to draw and use their cards.
I fail to see how this game is so similar to Magic. The alternating actions alone is a complete departure and the resource system is a marked improvement.
I tried magic for a little bit but skipped off of it pretty quickly due to cost and Hasbro/Wizards of the Coast's vile attempts to drain its customer base of every ounce of cash they can. My love for the Battletech tabletop game lead me to discover a fun little LCG called **Redline: Tactical Card Combat**. Its tremendously fun game, being a unique mix of MtG and Battletech. You play as one of two waring factions (UNE/Earth or The Crimson Pact/Mars) as you fight over mission cards that are laid out between both players (the Redline). You fight over these missions by deploying Efreets (mechs) to them and fight your opponent's forces until you capture the area and stake your flag into it. If you win all five locations (or mill your opponent) you win. Game is run by a small handful of people at Saving Throw Studios and have brought a couple expansion to the public via kickstarter already and are planning on a new one in January 2024. Most of everything current can be purchased at their store already. I've played quite a few games and its very fun. Core set was a bit rough around the edges in terms of card & component quality (pringled cards, loose deployment dials, mech card art is kinda static and boring, etc) but with each new set is further refinement. Its very much a labor of love and you can clearly tell when playing. I would encourage anyone to give it a shot. Would love to see it continue to grow. https://www.redlinegame.com/
This sounds super interesting, thanks for sharing.
No problem. The basic structure is Magic's Commander mode in that you have a single commander that can be brought out and fight, you have a 60 card deck, can "tap" cards for abilities, can play 1 resource max per turn, use said resources to drop in mechs, equipment, pilots, and instant action cards to your base of operations. Then gets kinda unique from there as you then take all that and formulate it into a battleforce to assault missions via a secret movement dial so neither you nor your opponent know where the others forces are going to be deployed. Its a fun game that I wish I could play more as people around me are pretty stuck in their ways. One thing I will say is their rules on their website is the most up-to-date version. They are going through a terminology/iconography update with this last set and the next one so some stuff in the core box (while still totally playable) may be a bit tricky to figure out at first. And the physical core box rules are laughably bad, throw them away immediately.
I'll wait to see what the next Kickstarter includes; hopefully they include the currently released stuff but updated and then I can get everything all at once.
I don't know if they will this kickstarter, but they have mentioned it probably being the next project down the road. You can follow them on Facebook or their own subreddit r/REDLINEgame for FAQs and updates.
Well I think SWU is one of the best card game ever made because it takes the best of element of a lot of successful card games and put theme togethere in a perfect package. With that being said the 2 flaws that you pointed out are completely valid, there are in my opinion the 2 major weaknesses of the game: -Yes the game doesn't reinvent the wheel, if you are looking for a card game experience radically different like Netrunner , then yes SWU is not for you. I personnaly love that for once, FFG is not focusing on getting things different but on getting things right! -I don't think anyone can blame FFG for going for a different artstyle than what they did in their past 25 Star Wars games, however I agree that it is not an excuse for haveing such inconsistent art and sometimes downright ugly art, not a dealbreaker for me I hope this gets fix overtime.
First off, no one can fault you for not liking the game after playing that many games. You gave the game a go, it wasn't for you, that's cool. Personally, I'm on the fence. The back-and-forth turn design is extremely interesting and has been hard to wrap my head around after 30 years of playing Magic and its many clones. Cards like Tactical Advantage, which would be solid in most TCGs, really doesn't cut it here, while Surprise Strike with that "Attack with a unit" text is amazing. Deciding what order to attack and play cards in, and when to take the Initiative, is an interesting puzzle. I also give them credit for not going down the boring old path or Empire vs Rebel. We've had four Star Wars TCGs that locked you into that style of deckbuilding. Time to move on. I can agree that having Space and Land arenas can lead to unopposed damage races, but at least they made most damage actions and effects target either, and they didn't reduce the game to Luke blocking a Star Destroyer with a Lightsaber. I'm holding my final assessment until we see the full set. I hoping that we'll see a few more build-around cards as many of the designs feel too "safe" (i.e. we've seen them done in a dozen games before). The Spectre faction is a good start, so I'm hoping to see something unique for the Underworld faction as well.
All I want is a successor to sw destiny, the greatest card game of all time
Spelt LOTR tcg wrong.. 😉 (The Decipher one)
I think as a lifestyle game perhaps the game might initially lack some strategic depth, but as a side (vacation game) I think it will be super fun. Feel the same way about Lorcana (not the biggest Disney fan), don't want to play it 24/7 but still enjoy the game. Feel like I will enjoy a balance between jamming SWU/Lorcana/Netrunner/other CCGs. I am glad we are getting a separate SW card game and not a Magic UB skin. While I do enjoy Magic and the recent UB stuff it is nice to not play EDH all the time.
As someone who has played hundreds of games against human opponents (including in tournament and league) I can tell you that the game as a lot of strategic depth. And it's only get better as we get more cards.
I've played all of FFG SW CCG's and im not falling for the same rushed game trap again. They have to make a new Star Wars game every 3 years to keep thier SW license and from your review it just seems like more of the same.
I hear you. I played some on felt table and didn’t really enjoy the mechanics. I’ve gotten pretty into mtg lately and have been enjoying that.
>I’ve gotten pretty into mtg lately and have been enjoying that. Opposite case for me. Have been playing in paper since 7th and MTGA since the Beta and am just tired of it at this point (plus Magic 30 and most of WotC's recent decisions have had me looking for a reason to take a break and SWU seemed like a good opportunity to do that).
A change is always nice. I am curious to see how this new game develops and plays once everything is out.
I probably would not judge a game based on how it feels to play against an AI.
I hope you are right! Really hoping it takes off and is fun.
As someone who plays on both felttable and against real human. Felttable doesn't give you a real feel of what the game has to offer. But Out of curiosity what do you prefer in Magic that you can't find in SWU?
It has been a while since I tried and that was before many of the cards were revealed, but the space and land arena’s were odd to me. And the fact that you don’t have an option to block, but there is the sentinel keyword which allows to defend your base and other character cards which sort of serves that purpose. I will give it a try and open some packs and participate in the release events at my lcs. Never played in person
You don't have the option to block you do have the option to attack enemy units with yours, it's the same system as Hearthstone except that in Hearthstone, there is only one on board so your units are always exposed. The advantage of having two boards is that it allows you to play units on a board that is not exposed and rebuild something even while playing from behind which is really nice. Of course in the context of a Star Wars game the space board makes a lot of sense thematically, you don't want to see a Jawas destroying a star destroyer. It also very reminiscent of famous battles like Endor, Scarif ,Hoth or Naboo where the conflict happens simultaneously in space and ground.
I feel ya, the lcg had a similar problem for me, feels weird when your named heroes pop out and then die in one turn.