Virtual DC Contest #3 - The Return of the King (Starting the FINAL ROUND!)

[Sam, Great Elf Warrior]

Wow, I didn't expect such an argument!

The answer as far as I can see is as follows. The purpose of virtual cards is to "fill out" the game - to fill in gaps, promote different strategies, show different takes on old strategies, promote new deck ideas and so on and so forth. Therefore you need to cater for all formats if possible, so you should make some cards geared for Movie block, some for Expanded, some for Standard, and also tournament, casual, multiplayer etc. Just because you're recreating a card from RotK block doesn't mean you should be restricted to what was known in RotK block - you're creating these cards post Hunters block, so it's ridiculous for you to forget information about the game that was introduced since RotK. And if the card might not have relevance in Movie block, it will have relevance for other formats that people want to play. If you don't want to use this version of the card in your deck, you don't have to - you can go back to the original version. You can even use King's Blade original in conjunction with King's Blade (V) in the same deck, if you so chose.

So in the case of resistance, some people will want cards that deal with resistance for their Expanded decks, which is something card designers need to be aware of.

In the case of toil, why bother writing it all out when there is a simple and concise language the game gives you to do so?

Secondly, I imagine that each virtual set would be available in the Standard environment to help move the game along, as well as the  format where the original card is found. So it might be relevant to have a RotK virtual card care about resistance.

Hope that clears up my intentions. Obviously you can feel free to disagree with me, and when you enter you can also feel free to not use any concepts from post King block - that's completely up to you.

Just remember to keep those entries coming in!

Thranduil

Ah, I was with ket and thought these were what the cards originally should have been; therefore we weren't supposed to use any anachronistic keywords. No wonder the cards were so powerful - they were scaled to post-Hunters rather than Movie Block.

[Thranduil]

Interesting round this one, with some very interesting cards that make you think - very appropriate for a library!

Okay so as usual please vote for your favourite 3 in order and have your votes in by Sunday 31st.

Sam, Great Elf Warrior
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
Each time you play an event, stack it here.
Regroup: Exert Saruman or an Man and remove for each card stacked here to take a card stacked here into hand; you may not play any more regroup events this phase.
Shadow: Discard this artifact or three cards stacked here to add (limit ).
The libraries of Isengard were filled with many ancient texts.
9 V 39

TheJord
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
Saruman's twilight cost is -1.
Shadow: Exert Saruman twice to play a minion from your draw deck. Its twilight cost is -4. Place Library of Orthanc on top of your draw deck.
9 V 39

Beregond25
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
Each minion is strength + 1 for every 2 artifacts in your support area.
Skirmish: Remove to play an possession from your discard pile on your minion (limit once per phase).
Regroup: Exert 4 Isengard minions to make the move limit -1 for this turn.
9 V 39

Anvar
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
When you play this, stack the top 6 cards of your draw deck here.
Each time you play Saruman you may stack the top 2 cards of your draw deck here.
Each time you play an Uruk-hai or minion you may remove to take a card stacked here into your hand.
"A strong place and wonderful was Isengard, and long it had been beautiful. But Saruman had slowly shaped it to his shifting purposes, and made it better, as he thought..."
9 V 39

Legolas3333
•Library Of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
To play spot Saruman.
Each minion is strength +1 for each minion of the same culture stacked here.
Shadow cards stacked on this card may be played as if from hand.
Shadow: Exert a minion to stack a shadow condition, shadow possession or shadow event from hand here.
Regroup: Discard a card stacked here to stack a minion from play here.
9 V 39

Sharkey
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
To play, exert an minion.
Response: If the fellowship moves during the regroup phase, discard this artifact to look through any player's draw deck. You may play a minion from that draw deck. When the minion is discarded, it is returned to that player's draw deck.
9 V 39

c10ckw0rk
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Condition • Support Area
Saruman's twilight cost is -1 for each Free Peoples card stacked on a condition.
Maneuver: Exert Saruman to make your opponent discard the top card of his or her draw deck. If it is a tale or a spell, you may stack it here.
9 V 39

Author's Note: Remember Twisted Tales!

Thranduil
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
When you reconcile, you keep up to 2 additional cards in your hand (ie. you discard down to or draw up to 10).
Regroup: Spot an minion and remove to draw a card.
9 V 39

Sweet_Stuff
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
When you play this artifact, spot Saruman to draw a card.
Each time a minion is killed or discarded, you may stack it here.
Shadow: Discard X minions of different cultures from this card to play a minion at twilight cost -X. Discard this artifact.
"Once he was as great as his fame made him. His knowledge was deep, his thought was subtle, and his hands marvelously skilled…"
9 V 39

ket_the_jet
•Library of Orthanc (V)
Artifact • Support Area
When you play this artifact, you may spot Saruman to add .
Response: If an minion is about to take a wound, remove or discard this artifact to prevent that wound.
9 V 39

[sharkey]

2
3
9

I like the idea of 8, but it gets too complicated when it becomes your fellowship turn... it's inactive, but you still have 10 cards, but reconcile to 8 in your fellowship, so your shadow starts with 8 and your fellowship 10... not quite the way that should work.

[Cw0rk]

2-4-10

8 looks cool, but I think drawing an extra 2 cards with no cultural reinforcement is too powerful. One card would be ok.

People can't vote for their own creation, right?

[Thranduil]

People can't vote for their own creation, right?

Bingo.

Thranduil

[legolas3333]

6
9
4

6 with the assumption that he means shadow players deck

[Witchkingx5]

9
7 cus' I like the idea of using also another card
4 cus' I always imagined of Stacking cards in a library, didn't you too?

[chompers]

6
2
7

[MR. Lurtzy]

Do I have to vote for 3 cards? Or can I vote for less?

[Thranduil]

Do I have to vote for 3 cards? Or can I vote for less?

I'd much rather you voted for 3.

Thranduil

[Beregond25]

1
8
4

[Sam, Great Elf Warrior]

7
9
3

[ket_the_jet]

I hate to say it, but I was largely undazzled by this round. My own contribution was simply a card to throw into the pot, and I feel like some others are either too obscure or too poorly worded to make the cut. It also doesn't help that, despite never using it, I feel like Library of Orthanc is a very neat card that could be a centerpiece in a few decks.

That said:

7: Beautiful card and works with the Twisted Tales theme. Whomever this was, could you PM me so I don't have to wait until Saturday/Sunday to find out?

5 was awkwardly worded; however, it seemed to work the best as a library...I guess it is where the cool minions go after school?

1, for the sake of having only one other vote thusfar and me not being able to pick a third place.

Like Lurtzy suggested, I would have only voted for one card this round...but I understand the dangerous implications of not having three votes per participant, so whomever submitted 5 and 1, congratulations on being first and second loser, respectively.
-wtk

[TheJord]

5
4
7

[Anvar]

8
5
9