BattleCON G10 - KingdomAces (Lixis) vs. Zorblag (Seth)

[KingdomAces]

Okay, I've got my references ready to go, and made sure that Wyrding is marked down as +0 priority instead of +1.

Spoiler: Pregame

1: Force Dodge
2: Pruning Grasp
Finisher: Virulent Miasma

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 1

Rooted Burst

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 1 Mk. II

Venomous Lance

No ante.

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

Advance 1, now you get to move me twice.

[KingdomAces]

I figured you were going to Compelling, which is part of the reason why I used Rooted initially, but once you saw I put down Burst, I figured that there less chance of you expecting a offensive play. In this case, I think what options I have in future turns is way more important than what actually happens this turn, between those two actions.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 2

Rooted Grasp

I don't think I will.

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

This is what, in actual fighting games, they call "down backing." I'll take that chip damage, and make a move next turn. Maybe.

[KingdomAces]

No, 1. I've got Soak 2.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 3

Vine Shot
Yeah, obvious, but I don't think you have a perfect answer to this. Except maybe Fool's Drive while purposely missing Beyond Eyes, but this is the only way I can possibly deal damage, and I don't think the clash would actually end up being too harmful.

No Ante

[KingdomAces]

Oh no, you have the lead again. How will I ever come back from this?

(Yeah, that's why I called it chip damage.)

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

Dammit, forgot about Oman.

[KingdomAces]

So yeah, nothing happens again. Yay?

[KingdomAces]

Yeah, well Fool's was the obvious play from you. I didn't even consider something with 5 range actually hitting.

[KingdomAces]

Beat 3 End
oLooooC

Lixis: 19/5
Vine Shot
Rooted Grasp

Clive: 20/5
Fool's Omen
Vanishing Shot.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 4

Focus Special Dodge
Because until I move at least one space forward, I can't hit you at all.

No Ante

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

Ugh, I realized that would be a problem too late.

Retreat 1!

Seth is surprisingly good at keepaway for a pure melee attacker.

[KingdomAces]

At this rate, yes. It looks like if I need a finisher at all it will be from back here.

[KingdomAces]

Now I kind of want to take a lot of damage so I can poison Fool's Shot.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 5

Pruning Burst

[KingdomAces]

No ante.

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

Yeah.

[KingdomAces]

Wow, dodge severely buffs wyrding. But yeah, no melee for you. Or me either, but...
One of these days! *shakes fist*

[KingdomAces]

Though I guess it's also a nerf because you can't have a priority 9 burst anymore. I still think being able to move is the better option.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 6

Venomous Grasp
It's a throwaway move that actually has potential to make things better for me!

Thanks for telling me, though because you did there's an even greater chance of us staying at max range the entire game, since I now have even more reasons to use mostly random bases. Also, I was talking about Dodge being a nerf/buff specifically for Wyrding. I'm not going to even pretend I have the knowledge to make broad claims about Dodge itself.

Fun fact about Wyrding. Activating it powers up my Pruning without me even having to hit you, and could possibly even result in three bases in a single discard pile, or in an extreme case only leave you with two bases you can use. So you probably shouldn't ever activate it.

[KingdomAces]

Beat 4

Start of Beat Summary
o

L

oooo

S

Lixis:

19 life
Force Gauge: 5
Discard 1: Vine Shot
Discard 2: Rooted Grasp
Finisher: Virulent Miasma

Seth:

20 life
Force Gauge: 5
Discard 1: Fool's Omen
Discard 2: Vanishing Shot
Finisher: Reading Fate

---

Lixis:

Focus Special Dodge

Range: N/A
Power: N/A
Priority: 3
This attack does not hit opponents.

Reveal:

Gain 1 Force. You may switch your Finisher to the other side. Perform your Base with no Style this Beat. This card and your Base cycle as normal. Your Force must be less than your current life to use this.

Start of Beat:

Move 1, 2 or 3 spaces. If you moved past an opponent during this movement, that opponent cannot hit you during this beat.

Seth:

Compelling Burst

Range: 2~3
Power: 3
Priority: 1

Start of Beat:

Retreat 1 or 2 spaces.

Before Activating:

Move the nearest opponent 1 space.

After Activating:

Move the nearest opponent 1 space.

Ante:

Seth Antes Beyond Eyes

Dash

Drive

Reveal:

Lixis Gains 1 Force.
Lixis Switches Finishers

Start of Beat:

Lixis retreats 1.

L

ooooo

S

Active Player (

Lixis

):

Lixis does not hit.

Reactive Player (

Seth

):

Seth Pulls Lixis 1 space.

o

L

oooo

S

Seth does not hit.
Seth Pushes Lixis 1 space.

L

ooooo

S

End of Beat:

None

Recycle:

Lixis gains 1 Force.
Seth gains 1 Force.
On to Beat 5.

---

Current State

L

ooooo

S

Lixis:

19 life
Force Gauge: 7
Discard 1: Force Special Dodge
Discard 2: Vine Shot
Finisher: Life Virus

Seth:

20 life
Force Gauge: 6
Discard 1: Compelling Burst
Discard 2: Fool's Omen
Finisher: Reading Fate

[KingdomAces]

Well, even if you were available, I'm cutting myself off. No need to rush or anything.

[KingdomAces]

Beat 5

Start of Beat Summary

L

ooooo

S

Lixis:

19 life
Force Gauge: 7
Discard 1: Force Special Dodge
Discard 2: Vine Shot
Finisher: Life Virus

Seth:

20 life
Force Gauge: 6
Discard 1: Compelling Burst
Discard 2: Fool's Omen
Finisher: Reading Fate

---

Lixis:

Pruning Burst

Range: 2 ~ 4
Power: -2 + 2
Priority: -1 + 2

Reveal:

This attack has +1 Power and +1 Priority for each base in the nearest opponent’s discard piles.

Start of Beat:

Retreat 1 or 2 spaces.

On Hit:

The opponent discards an extra base of their choice with this attack pair.

Seth:

Wyrding Dodge

Range: N/A
Power: N/A
Priority: 3
This attack does not hit opponents.

Start of Beat:

Move 1, 2 or 3 spaces. If you moved past an opponent during this movement, that opponent cannot hit you during this beat.

Start of Beat:

If you correctly guessed an opponent’s base this beat with Seth's Beyond Eyes ability, you may choose a new base from your hand and use it instead of the previous on in this attack pair. The Active Player does not change. Both the new and the original base go to your discard.

Ante:

Seth Antes Beyond Eyes Drive

Reveal:

Pruning gains +2 Power and +2 Priority

Start of Beat:

Seth advances 1.

L

oooo

S

o

Active Player (

Seth

):

Seth does not hit.

Reactive Player (

Lixis

):

Lixis does not hit.

End of Beat:

None

Recycle:

Lixis gains 1 Force.
Seth gains 1 Force.
On to Beat 6.

---

Current State

L

oooo

S

o

Lixis:

19 life
Force Gauge: 8
Discard 1: Pruning Burst
Discard 2: Force Special Dodge
Finisher: Life Virus

Seth:

20 life
Force Gauge: 7
Discard 1: Wyrding Dodge
Discard 2: Compelling Burst
Finisher: Reading Fate

[KingdomAces]

Like I said, I want to Life Virus you. I'll hold off for now, but keep it in mind.

Pass

[KingdomAces]

I knew that Vanishing Shot was range 5 at some point, but when I actually made the decision, I must have either forgotten about it, or missed the "up to" part even though I was planning on abusing my own if you did Shot this beat. Might as well step forward if I'm getting hit anyway.

oLoooSo

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 7

Rooted Dodge
I doubt you'll Beyond Eyes it, it beats Compelling and Fool's, and if you do either Burst or Drive (Mimic's Drive in particular I'm worried about) I'll soak 2 of the damage, if I even decide to move in range of either of them.

Spoiler: Ante

None

[KingdomAces]

I'd rather not.

[KingdomAces]

(And I don't think I'm up for this today.)

[KingdomAces]

That was actually a really good time to Pulse. I ditched Grasp solely because I thought I'd have it back by the time we actually ended up at close range.

Spoiler: Beat 7, post Pulse

Rooted Strike

[KingdomAces]

Sorry, forgot. No.

[KingdomAces]

Sweet, so it'll miss no matter what I used!

Assuming you mean Dodge, pass again.

[KingdomAces]

Pass anyway.

[KingdomAces]

Called it.

[KingdomAces]

That sounds accurate.

Well, the only things that would outright beat that were Fool's, which would be stupid if I did literally anything else, and activated Omen, which is an all-in play when I have several decent options. The only thing you really lost was 2 damage.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 8

Burst Lance
Ha, let's see you get around this!
[/spoler]

[KingdomAces]

Yeah, and I'd also escape whatever you would try to do and make sure that you couldn't get to me.

Spoiler: Actual Beat 8

Vine Shot

I'd be interested in a best of three with these two, if you wouldn't rather try Seth against someone else.

[KingdomAces]

I somehow missed that you anted with your initial move. No thanks.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 9

Pruning Burst

[KingdomAces]

Probably a waste, but...

Stun Guard 2

[KingdomAces]

pass

[KingdomAces]

It didn't.

Retreat 1.

[KingdomAces]

And for the record, putting you in the corner was the main reason I used Vine Shot last beat, not the damage, so when you dodged in there on your own it was kind of amusing.

[KingdomAces]

SoLoooo

Seth 10/4
Fool's Oman, Burst, Shot
Wyrding Dodge

Lixis 13/10
Pruning Burst
Vine Shot

Maybe?

[KingdomAces]

I actually really want to think on this one. Just Compelling/Vanishing and Strike/Grasp have completely different counters depending on the combination, and I don't think any of them overlap across the board. Sorry, but I might not figure out what I want to do for quite a while.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 10

Venomous Grasp
I'm kind of hoping this clashes, but if it doesn't then I guess I still hit for 3 and make you discard a base.

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

Sure. I have plenty of time, but I am kind of worried that taking on too much will make me feel like stopping completely. If that happens, I'd rather make this set my priority, since it started first, and get to the other game when I feel ready for it.

That being said, I'm not saying that will happen, but it did at least once every Survivor I've played, so I don't want to disappoint you in the event that I end up being really slow about it. At the very least though, I'd want some time to prepare, so I could tomorrow at earliest.

Since everyone else is playing as a different character, I might as well as well.

Spoiler: Character "Choice"

You know what? I'm not got going to be deciding any time soon.
1-5: Lixis
6: Vaanah
7: Runika
8: Lymn
9: Tanis
Though I am keeping veto open in case I decide I want to in hindsight.

Original Roll String: 1d4+5

1 4-Sided Dice: (2)+5 = 7

Also, I'm still concerned that maybe we're supposed to be moving this to Frogstar, especially if we continue making new threads for every game, even in best of threes.

[KingdomAces]

Oops, I hit edit instead of quote.

oLSoooo

Seth 7/5
Vanishing Strike, Drive
Fool's Oman, Burst, Shot

Lixis 13/11
Venomous Grasp
Pruning Burst

Maybe?

[KingdomAces]

The alternate UA is on the Wiki, and yeah it seems like a straight upgrade from the normal ability. When I was first looking at the normal one, it seemed to me like that was completely unplayable, so she really needed it. And I thought I hit post on this before doing ^, but apparently not. Probably because I feel like I have something else to say, but I can't think of what.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 11

Rooted Dodge
I refuse to let you Dodge. I want to Strike, in case you Grasp, but I can't risk you calling it, getting out, and leaving me strikeless.

Spoiler: Opening Ante

None

[KingdomAces]

Wait, I apparently completely forgot why I wanted to clash in the first place. Editing one or both of the above this game related posts.

[KingdomAces]

My resources are saying that it's Soak 2 at Disparity 3, and Soak 3 at Disparity 5, so cumulative it would only be Soak 5.

[KingdomAces]

And if anything I think the equalizing factor here is that the Disparity is never going to get too large with this matchup. Disparity 7 is the absolute biggest it can possibly get, most of the time it will probably be far smaller than that, so Lymn will never get any of her powerful effects. Maybe Chimeric's 4+, but I don't see anything needing more than that actually activating.

[KingdomAces]

Grasp doesn't allow me to not move you, and space 3 is the only place I can move you to. Am I missing something here?

[KingdomAces]

That's what I had initially, then edited it after I realized that was stupid. I think I thought I used a +0~1 range attack and pulled you, but then I changed it when I saw the mistake.

[KingdomAces]

That attack is assuming oLSoooo. If that's the case I'm fine with it.

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

Eh, should have just used Strike.

Advance 3 to ooooLSo, then I take 1 damage, going down to 12?

If we were in the position you thought we were in, I definitely would have used Lance. In this position though, you could just Dodge backwards.

[KingdomAces]

Yeah, no. I'll stay here, thanks.

I actually had Rooted Lance down as a move when I thought it was oSLoooo, so I'd think the same thing with that moved over a space. Probably.

[KingdomAces]

If you dodged, Rooted Lance would have missed, because there's nothing stopping you from retreating, which is exactly why I assumed you were going to. Lance only prevents you from entering a space adjacent to mine, not leaving it. Unless that's not what you meant by Lance was just going to hit you, in case I don't know what you're getting at.

Spoiler: Beat 12

Naturalizing Strike

You have first Ante. And spoilers, even if you didn't I would 100% pass, because there's no reason for me to ante before you give your Beyond Eyes.

[KingdomAces]

Well, in most cases I'd be completely fine with not getting to spend Force if it meant you not using your ability. I mostly just didn't think you'd ever want to do that though.

And I don't think Naturalizing would stop you from winning priority ties.

[KingdomAces]

I think I was planning on anteing something just to get some use out of this force. I forget what though.

Soak 1

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

And of course I didn't think to purposely clash with Dodge the time it would matter.

Well, you've got three beats to do a net of five damage. I will stall you out if I have to.

[KingdomAces]

Nah.

[KingdomAces]

oooSooL

Lixis 12/9
Naturalizing Strike
Rooted Dodge

Seth 7/7
Compelling Dodge
Mimic's Grasp

Possibly. Very little fact checking, but I still think it's right?

[KingdomAces]

Assuming the above

Spoiler: Beat 13

Vine Drive
I probably should think this over more, but if this works then it will work well.

Spoiler: Opening Ante

Pass

[KingdomAces]

Soak 1, why not.

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

Advance 2 pull 2.

oSoLooo

[KingdomAces]

Lixis 9/8
Naturalizing Strike
Vine Drive

Seth 4/7
Vanishing Drive, Burst
Compelling Shot

[KingdomAces]

Forgot about that temporarily. Edited.

[KingdomAces]

Spoiler: Beat 14

Pruning Burst

And because it might end up mattering, I believe that it's

Lixis: Life Virus
Seth: Reading Fate

[KingdomAces]

Pass

[KingdomAces]

No, probably not. Especially because I think you're dead.

I actually just wanted to escape so I could Life Virus, but I apparently didn't notice I had lethal.

[KingdomAces]

GG to you too. I'm just glad I actually won a game, and not because I misunderstood the mechanics my way to success. Even if it took you switching characters twice.

[KingdomAces]

They were such huge blowups that I highly doubt actually knowing what my abilities were would have helped much.

And in this case I think Lixis has a huge advantage over Seth, mostly because of Lance. I have ways to counter everything you do, but I think you're just not mobile enough to get past my increased range. I'm not saying it's unwinnable for Seth by any means, but it's at the very least 6-4, if not 7-3, in Lixis's favor.

This game in particular though... I think you only hit with Beyond Eyes once? I'll have to look back on that, but that really says a lot about Lixis's toolset that she can almost constantly have at least two different bases accomplish what she needs to do, and you just got unlucky with the 50/50's.

I'll be looking forward to the rematch as well.

[KingdomAces]

If you want to keep practicing Seth, I could switch instead. I don't think it's entirely fair that I get to keep playing with the same character while you're constantly switching and having to relearn things.