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Mora is at the top of the list for worst ESO game experiences.

Personofsecrets
Personofsecrets
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Patron effect that makes the game wacky by causing game states that shouldn't happen at early stages of the game - Check
Patron effect that makes further abuse of the games reshuffle - Check
Power matters too much - Check
Because power matters, the necesity to employ strategies that give the opponent wacky bonuses - Check
Numerous contracts that don't cost enough causing blow-out turns out of nowhere - Check

[snip]
[edited for bashing]
Edited by ZOS_Kevin on November 7, 2024 10:35AM
Don't tank

"In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • IncultaWolf
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    I've gotten so many hate whispers using Mora recently. Some of these top 50 ranked players on PCNA are sending me these rude messages too, kinda amusing. At least the matches end pretty quickly with this deck. I've had 45 minute player matches with Rajhin.
  • Personofsecrets
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    Let's say that speeding up games, the designers stated objective, is a good cause. And I don't think that it is a good cause in the vast majority of games, but let's say that it is generally speaking because some games could be sped up to most peoples benefit.

    8ppviapte836.jpg

    I don't understand how Mora successfully meets that objective.

    A number of games, the patron's use isn't meaningfully impacting game time. My average ranked game time is 9:57 and my average casual game time is 9:21.

    There are some games where a couple of minutes shaved off. Not enough to make a big deal out of, but enough to see what happens when someone runs the Mora scums. Is a couple of minutes time saved really worth people's dignity? Is it worth creating a new form of bad game experience?

    Was it all really worth it when already existing game pieces could have been adjusted to fix the time issue?

    Some people legitimately don't like longer games and that's fine. But wacky hot air balloon ride style games where power matters was a bad "solution."

    Increasing animation speed is a great solution. Rejecting game pieces which encourage toxic repetitive gameplay patterns is a good solution. Increasing the number of options in the tavern is a possibly good solution.

    Hearthstone is a dirty word. Remember that. It is the jail that people go to when the don't have anything better to do. Do you give people something better to do when you emulate Hearthstone? No, you just become like Hearthstone and thus without quality that makes you special.
    Edited by Personofsecrets on December 1, 2023 5:49PM
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • Personofsecrets
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    I've gotten so many hate whispers using Mora recently. Some of these top 50 ranked players on PCNA are sending me these rude messages too, kinda amusing. At least the matches end pretty quickly with this deck. I've had 45 minute player matches with Rajhin.

    My experience is that the Patron's use doesn't generally save time. And the times that I've found it saving time, the games are often incredibly 1 sides or unfun due to blow out scenarios. For example I won a Mora game on my 4 turn or something because I scummed a Currency Exchange victory after putting it into my deck, on the suffle, with Mora.

    So I don't really see how the patron can be taken in good faith.

    That said, I certainly acknowledge that my general experience could be different enough from other players general experience. Despite that, I think it would have been more wise to strike at the root of game time issues such as animation speeds or toxic gameplay patterns caused by the Rajhiin button rather than make something new that generates an all new negative reaction from a different group of players.
    Edited by Personofsecrets on December 1, 2023 5:55PM
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • Necrotech_Master
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    i only played a few pvp tribute games with this deck to get the achievement for the card upgrade

    i dont really like the deck either because to me a lot of the cards negatives far outweigh the positives

    i understand the deck is supposed to be kiss-curse due to it representing a daedric entity as there is always a price to pay for the power, but many of the cards seem to be more curse than beneficial

    only a few that were mentioned have the potential to being good like the huge power gen from only giving the opponent 2 coins
    plays PC/NA
    handle @Necrotech_Master
    active player since april 2014

    i have my main house (grand topal hideaway) listed in the housing tours, it has multiple target dummies, scribing altar, and grandmaster stations (in progress being filled out), as well as almost every antiquity furnishing on display to preview them

    feel free to stop by and use the facilities
  • Personofsecrets
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    i only played a few pvp tribute games with this deck to get the achievement for the card upgrade

    i dont really like the deck either because to me a lot of the cards negatives far outweigh the positives

    i understand the deck is supposed to be kiss-curse due to it representing a daedric entity as there is always a price to pay for the power, but many of the cards seem to be more curse than beneficial

    only a few that were mentioned have the potential to being good like the huge power gen from only giving the opponent 2 coins

    Unfortunately, I think that the concept of Mora would have lent itself better to effects like Psijic Scrying or Almalexia card refreshing. I can understand the Barter in Blood concept being used for the Daedra, but this particular gameplay style would have been better represented by Sheo than a daedric prince chiefly concerned with omnipotence.

    So the theme feels off to me.

    One thing that I can say is successful about the Mora patron is that it does make combo matters. I don't always like combos, but they are a core part of the game, so making combos matter makes sense. That said, the way that combos have been made to matter is in large part due to cheap and abusable contract cards that add too much of a luck factor to games. So combos were made to matter in an incredibly unfun way that rivals the abusable nature of even the Sorcer King contracts which are god awful.
    Edited by Personofsecrets on December 1, 2023 6:02PM
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • Personofsecrets
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    Another thing that I should touch on is how the power generating starter cards inhibit game progression. Again, another simple design change that could help prevent games from being jammed up and taking more time than necessary.
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • AnduinTryggva
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    Let's say that speeding up games, the designers stated objective, is a good cause. And I don't think that it is a good cause in the vast majority of games, but let's say that it is generally speaking because some games could be sped up to most peoples benefit.

    8ppviapte836.jpg

    I don't understand how Mora successfully meets that objective.

    A number of games, the patron's use isn't meaningfully impacting game time. My average ranked game time is 9:57 and my average casual game time is 9:21.

    There are some games where a couple of minutes shaved off. Not enough to make a big deal out of, but enough to see what happens when someone runs the Mora scums. Is a couple of minutes time saved really worth people's dignity? Is it worth creating a new form of bad game experience?

    Was it all really worth it when already existing game pieces could have been adjusted to fix the time issue?

    Some people legitimately don't like longer games and that's fine. But wacky hot air balloon ride style games where power matters was a bad "solution."

    Increasing animation speed is a great solution. Rejecting game pieces which encourage toxic repetitive gameplay patterns is a good solution. Increasing the number of options in the tavern is a possibly good solution.

    Hearthstone is a dirty word. Remember that. It is the jail that people go to when the don't have anything better to do. Do you give people something better to do when you emulate Hearthstone? No, you just become like Hearthstone and thus without quality that makes you special.

    I often play Mora when I want a quick match when I am there just hunting the daily reward. I hardly ever use the patron itself, just the cards. And this deck is probably as stupid a deck as crow, just spam it and hope that your opponent does not get the good cards him/herself. But then, it does absolutely speed up the match like none other.
    Edited by AnduinTryggva on December 2, 2023 10:30AM
  • Arnoldthehawk
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    Fast games are the fun games. You want slow games? Please don't queue for ToT games
  • Personofsecrets
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    Fast games are the fun games. You want slow games? Please don't queue for ToT games

    You didn't read my post whatsoever.
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • benzenexz
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    Unfortunately, I think that the concept of Mora would have lent itself better to effects like Psijic Scrying or Almalexia card refreshing. I can understand the Barter in Blood concept being used for the Daedra, but this particular gameplay style would have been better represented by Sheo than a daedric prince chiefly concerned with omnipotence.

    So the theme feels off to me.

    Speaking of the theme of the daedric prince, neither Hermaeus Mora nor Sheogorath fits in the activity of bargin for power. The former is the daedric prince of secrets and knowledges and the latter of madness. Calavicus Vile is the prince of bargin and deal, and the "negative" effect of the cards certainly makes the deal fair, in accordance with that the prince is neutral in human affairs.
    My experience is that the Patron's use doesn't generally save time. And the times that I've found it saving time, the games are often incredibly 1 sides or unfun due to blow out scenarios. For example I won a Mora game on my 4 turn or something because I scummed a Currency Exchange victory after putting it into my deck, on the suffle, with Mora.

    and actually what you have mentioned is exactly how this deck reduces the time. The most tedious combination of decks from my experience would be Rahjin+Psijic+Almalexia+Druid King, and if you try get full hand of almalexia and psijic order and keeps donating cards confine cards shuffle cards and replace cards, you won't even be able to finish your turn before the time runs out. That opening the card window and selecting things and pressing confirm button are all time wastes. So in comparison with that, Mora is much more time saving
  • Personofsecrets
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    benzenexz wrote: »

    Speaking of the theme of the daedric prince, neither Hermaeus Mora nor Sheogorath fits in the activity of bargin for power. The former is the daedric prince of secrets and knowledges and the latter of madness. Calavicus Vile is the prince of bargin and deal, and the "negative" effect of the cards certainly makes the deal fair, in accordance with that the prince is neutral in human affairs.

    and actually what you have mentioned is exactly how this deck reduces the time. The most tedious combination of decks from my experience would be Rahjin+Psijic+Almalexia+Druid King, and if you try get full hand of almalexia and psijic order and keeps donating cards confine cards shuffle cards and replace cards, you won't even be able to finish your turn before the time runs out. That opening the card window and selecting things and pressing confirm button are all time wastes. So in comparison with that, Mora is much more time saving

    Thank you for mentioning about Clavicus - I was thinking way too generally.

    Regarding how time is "saved" by blow out games - it seems silly to mention how time is saved just because someone won extremely early. That is because the amount of time that it takes to play a game is being used as a measure of "fun." I don't see how games that are decided quickly are fun whatsoever. It can be because Mora added a stupid card to someons deck, because someone got too much value from an uncontested Ansei Patron flip, or because Siege Weapon Volley smacked someone in the face over and over with the help of Psijic cards to reset the shuffle.

    The goal is satisfying games, right? Not just fast games because a game being fast, in and of itself, doesn't mean much.

    There are the decks that you mention and also Crow. Crow has alot of long combo chains and the draw effect can be tedious. And this point is where your comment sort of rolls into what I'm saying. Instead of making universal changes to the game that could speed up all decks, the designers just went for a bandaid fix which doesn't even necessarily speed up games that well because the underlying issues such as animations speeds remain in the game.

    What if someone wants faster games, but doesn't necessarily like the playstyle offered by Mora cards? I think it's fair to say that a number of people are in that boat.
    Edited by Personofsecrets on December 6, 2023 2:49AM
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • benzenexz
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    Thank you for mentioning about Clavicus - I was thinking way too generally.

    Regarding how time is "saved" by blow out games - it seems silly to mention how time is saved just because someone won extremely early. That is because the amount of time that it takes to play a game is being used as a measure of "fun." I don't see how games that are decided quickly are fun whatsoever. It can be because Mora added a stupid card to someons deck, because someone got too much value from an uncontested Ansei Patron flip, or because Siege Weapon Volley smacked someone in the face over and over with the help of Psijic cards to reset the shuffle.

    The goal is satisfying games, right? Not just fast games because a game being fast, in and of itself, doesn't mean much.

    There are the decks that you mention and also Crow. Crow has alot of long combo chains and the draw effect can be tedious. And this point is where your comment sort of rolls into what I'm saying. Instead of making universal changes to the game that could speed up all decks, the designers just went for a bandaid fix which doesn't even necessarily speed up games that well because the underlying issues such as animations speeds remain in the game.

    What if someone wants faster games, but doesn't necessarily like the playstyle offered by Mora cards? I think it's fair to say that a number of people are in that boat.

    I agree on the fact that the amount of time of one match is indeed being used as a measure of "fun", generally speaking. However let's not assume that quick match and direct power gain is THE ONLY cause of "fun" and that everyone have the same way of having fun in the gameplay.

    Despite of what developpers says about it being a bandaid for speed games, it itself indeed brings a new mechanism into the card game, the "counterbenefit" to your opponents and forcing acquiring cards by both sides. There's no problem with some people wanting fast games and regarding that as "fun", but I myself do enjoy a lot of new mechanism here. On top of that, it's not completely impossible to win a game, in which one of the patron is Mora, without relying chasing for Mora cards. And that how to do that is where I find my "fun" of the game, regardless of the time spent on it.

    However, let me just come back to the duration of the game. To find out if it's faster with Mora, we can test out by doing comparison experiment, which could take such a long time that I cannot afford to spend. But a thought experiment would be less time consuming: Choose whatever combination of 4 patrons, excluding Mora, as the comparison. Then randomly change one of them into Mora. Since Mora is reletively direct power gain, this means quicker to gain prestige, generally speaking, and skipping all the animation of draw cards, shuffle, etc. Once you've played the card, there is less things that you can do compared with playing with other cards, cuz mora gains power and not many golds. The offset of Mora also makes your opponent quicker to gain access to more expensive cards, which again could take more rounds to become true if otherwise, and that could probably be equivalent to what you said about "early" stage of the game in terms of time, but actually "late" stage in terms of your card decks.

    Regarding the goal of a satisfying game, I think it's just an empty wish. Satisfactory is purely subjective and we all know that people always have more or less of greed (of more satisfactory once satisfied, in this case) inside. Therefore, the complete and absolute satisfactory is not likely.

    That being said, one is always free to do things in which he/she finds "fun", by himself/herself, and under the structure of a certain sets of rules(as in game) or realities(as in real life). But when it comes to interact with others, there can always be some non-alignments between the two or more entities on the matter of "fun". In the case of ToT, I'm pretty sure that even now Rahjin is still more hated than Mora for being disturbed by your opponent, because that gaining strong and multiple combos is simply THE typical thing that can bring a huge and instant sense of satisfactory. Imagine ruining that with a sudden bewilderment drawn by the crow, lol.

    And that card games becomes oneside-blowout, that's where it is fun for some people, for the same reason mentioned above, and normally would bring discourage to the other. But it mostly is equi-probabilistic, though there are some other factor that you can do to influence that.

    And let's not forget about that people tends to enjoy winning a gamble. And those people tend to call all the actions from the opponent that involves increasing the chance of wining as trickery or cheating or some other things that gives the sense of not recognizing these actions as valid.

    We probably have to ban "thinking" in games so that the fairness of gambling can be finally met. But in that case the game will become pure gamble which definitely does not interests me. I agree that ToT has always be some probabilistic factor within, and that Mora deck just make it more unstable. but that's exactly where the idea of counter-gambling takes effect isn't it?
  • Personofsecrets
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    Thank you for the thoughtful comment. I've quoted the parts that I'm responding to below and below that is my response.
    benzenexz wrote: »

    "However, let me just come back to the duration of the game. To find out if it's faster with Mora, we can test out by doing comparison experiment, which could take such a long time that I cannot afford to spend. But a thought experiment would be less time consuming: Choose whatever combination of 4 patrons, excluding Mora, as the comparison. Then randomly change one of them into Mora. Since Mora is reletively direct power gain, this means quicker to gain prestige, generally speaking, and skipping all the animation of draw cards, shuffle, etc. Once you've played the card, there is less things that you can do compared with playing with other cards, cuz mora gains power and not many golds. The offset of Mora also makes your opponent quicker to gain access to more expensive cards, which again could take more rounds to become true if otherwise, and that could probably be equivalent to what you said about "early" stage of the game in terms of time, but actually "late" stage in terms of your card decks."

    - - - - -

    "That being said, one is always free to do things in which he/she finds "fun", by himself/herself, and under the structure of a certain sets of rules(as in game) or realities(as in real life). But when it comes to interact with others, there can always be some non-alignments between the two or more entities on the matter of "fun". In the case of ToT, I'm pretty sure that even now Rahjin is still more hated than Mora for being disturbed by your opponent, because that gaining strong and multiple combos is simply THE typical thing that can bring a huge and instant sense of satisfactory. Imagine ruining that with a sudden bewilderment drawn by the crow, lol.
    And that card games becomes oneside-blowout, that's where it is fun for some people, for the same reason mentioned above, and normally would bring discourage to the other. But it mostly is equi-probabilistic, though there are some other factor that you can do to influence that.

    And let's not forget about that people tends to enjoy winning a gamble. And those people tend to call all the actions from the opponent that involves increasing the chance of wining as trickery or cheating or some other things that gives the sense of not recognizing these actions as valid."

    Regarding the timing of Mora, I think that the best experiment would be to find actual game times where Mora was a patron and compare them to games where Mora isn't a patron. Generally speaking, I think that your thought experiment is the correct thinking on average. That is to say that when looking at games where power generation is available to games where it isn't available, the games where it is available are quicker on average.

    And although I think that Mora does conform to that generalization, Mora has some dimensions to it which also may lead to the tendency for longer games. So here are some of the reasons as to why I think that Mora doesn't necessarily hit the mark.

    - The first thing is a quality that you mention. Mora can make games unusual. So we may find ourselves making more unnecessary calculations than usual to figure out the best way to proceed after something like Knight Commander or Ansei's Victory is added to both players decks in the early game. The games could end faster if players knew exactly how to handle the situations, but correct handling of them is type of novelty that takes up time.

    - The Patron can be used to slow down the game via options such as adding agents to both players deck that use up power to remove. Specifically, Tribunal Sentinel or Stubborn Shadow being added to players decks can inhibit gameplay because of their bulkiness and inherent lack of ability to add economy. And I have used Mora in that exact way.

    - The Patron costs 3 power which impacts the prestige winning condition.

    - The patron starter card is a power generating starter card which inhibits early purchases and encourages a more passive early game of making writs of coins.

    - The designers attribute some deepness to the gameplay of the patron to choosing to not play cards in order to not give opponents bonuses. So sometimes Mora does encourage more passive play.

    - Players can sometimes have bigger and more complicated turns after an opponent has given them a bunch of different resources via Mora cards. The use of more resources may take more time and especially in cases where someone is presented tavern cards that best lend themselves to defensive options. So it may not be exactly clear how to use those resources to begin with.

    So I think that these dimensions to Mora are worth considering when seeing how successful of a Patron that it is. Especially compared to other patrons with good power generating options which don't have as much of the above mentioned baggage.

    And to be very clear, again, I agree that Mora probably saves some time on average, but I don't really think that it is all it was designed to be nor a good "go to" for players who want a fast option. Also, to be clear on a different matter, I'm not personally bemoaning that Mora isn't fast enough. I don't like fast strategies. I critique it's design for introducing more power generation, but also critique the patron for being relatively wacky and chance based compared to other ones. That's because of the patron ability and also abundant combo providing contracts that are cheap.

    Regarding the types of fun that games should offer, I have some thoughts written down at the following post.

    https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/647758/some-game-design-observations-and-my-general-thoughts

    I don't see fun as the chief concern for a game. I use the language of fun sometimes because it is the perspective that designers and most other people come from. I think that strategy games should be trying to achieve something more than fun. With respect to my linked to post, I would find Mora to be a form of game play that is too "divergent" from TOT as a whole. And, of course, none of the above means that other game issues can't be changed. A number of other issues including game time could be improved by things like improved balance. Likewise, a number of changes that I suggest to the game could also make the game more fun in different ways generally speaking. I wouldn't personally be permissive of types of fun like increased coin flips and bullet style games where some players derive enjoyment from more canned quick style games like marvel snap. I don't think that my goals and the goals of the designers for TOT are mutually exclusive.
    Edited by Personofsecrets on December 7, 2023 5:06AM
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • Largomets
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    The issue is that this community has spoken, and they want luck to trump skill. They'd much rather a fast game that boils down to winning a coin toss than a longer game where skill and strategy come into play. As such, we're seeing no nerfs to druid, a re-buffing of organum, and this deck coming into existence where literally the first turn can make-or-break which player gets lucky and wins.

    It's a shame, but apparently some people find "I got the wrong cards and lost through no fault of my own" fun and "there's a level playing field and enough time that either player can use superior skill to overcome luck" as not fun, so now the devs are catering to the brain dead.
  • WitchyKiki
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    I kind of like it, it does speed up games and I like how it adds a new aspect to the game. Some cards Ive had to skip in order not to give my opponent an advantage. I also like that it does speed up games. Matches are done so quick, regardless if I lose or win I'm just happy to get another coffer so fast <3
    Context is for kings -Captain Gabriel Lorca
  • Largomets
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    WitchyKiki wrote: »
    I kind of like it, it does speed up games and I like how it adds a new aspect to the game. Some cards Ive had to skip in order not to give my opponent an advantage. I also like that it does speed up games. Matches are done so quick, regardless if I lose or win I'm just happy to get another coffer so fast <3

    The problem is, the people playing competitively on the LB don't want to throw away their score because of poorly balanced game design. They need ways for casuals to get coffers that don't boil the whole game down to luck in competitive. It's really frustrating being on a hot streak in competitive, playing good games against good players, and then running into a Mora spammer who boils the entire game down to RNG and removes almost all skill from the equation. No one good is picking Mora in competitive. The top players abandoned it quickly because it's too much risk. Card games always have an element of luck, but Druid and Mora are literally game-ruining RNG farms. Even crow, pelin, and organum (commonly cited as RNG decks) can be countered and combated by skilled players on the wrong end of luck. Druid and Mora it's just who gets lucky on hand 1 or 2 and then they have a MASSIVE edge over the player that did not get lucky.

    You should not be able to get 10+ power on turn 1 or 2 based solely on tavern luck. That's insanity.
  • El_Borracho
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    Mora is the single biggest mistake the devs made in ToT. It is absolutely brutal and is as close to purely RNG-reliant as it gets. It reminds me of the early days of ToT with the "Race to Rally" but far, far worse.

    Unfathomable Secrets is such an OP card, its unbelievable that it is in the game. 4 coins for 5 power, with the setback being one card to your opponent? LOL. If you can combine that with Unsettling Aura or Chromatic Reservoir, you are hammering out 10-11 power between 2 cards, and can go up to 16-17 power with a 4 card combo, just on those 2 cards, regardless of the 2 cards you are combining them with. With the setback being your opponent gets a second card. Whoo-hoo! Oh, thank you for destroying me in one turn, I'll put these 2 cards to good use.

    Either dial back the power (preferably) or make the setback actually mean something. I don't even think if you made these cards WAY more expensive (9-10 coin) it would have any effect on them. If you get the right Druid cards, you are already playing with 8-11 gold by your 4th turn
    Edited by El_Borracho on December 12, 2023 10:21PM
  • Personofsecrets
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    Yea, the contracts in Mora were thought out poorly.

    They just want players doing more things as a way to artificially reduce the time it takes to play a game.

    So draw an extra card here get an extra coin there. Do more things and therefore end game more fast.

    It's lowbrow to design in such a way, but especially lowbrow because they could just fix core game problems like the tavern not having enough buyable normal cards in it by increasing tavern size to 6 rather than 5 options. Or they could get rid of power generating starter cards to help prevent players from being screwed over on their turn one and two.

    I genuinely think that it could be that simple, but they chose poor bandaid fixes.
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • WitchyKiki
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    Largomets wrote: »
    WitchyKiki wrote: »
    I kind of like it, it does speed up games and I like how it adds a new aspect to the game. Some cards Ive had to skip in order not to give my opponent an advantage. I also like that it does speed up games. Matches are done so quick, regardless if I lose or win I'm just happy to get another coffer so fast <3

    The problem is, the people playing competitively on the LB don't want to throw away their score because of poorly balanced game design. They need ways for casuals to get coffers that don't boil the whole game down to luck in competitive. It's really frustrating being on a hot streak in competitive, playing good games against good players, and then running into a Mora spammer who boils the entire game down to RNG and removes almost all skill from the equation. No one good is picking Mora in competitive. The top players abandoned it quickly because it's too much risk. Card games always have an element of luck, but Druid and Mora are literally game-ruining RNG farms. Even crow, pelin, and organum (commonly cited as RNG decks) can be countered and combated by skilled players on the wrong end of luck. Druid and Mora it's just who gets lucky on hand 1 or 2 and then they have a MASSIVE edge over the player that did not get lucky.

    You should not be able to get 10+ power on turn 1 or 2 based solely on tavern luck. That's insanity.

    I do have to agree the most desperate players seem to pick Mora, and I have a lower opinion of the deck itself. I do agree with a lot of your points, but for me, the game goes by so quick that it just doesn't matter. I find Crow/Red eagle spam so much more upsetting.
    Context is for kings -Captain Gabriel Lorca
  • Personofsecrets
    Personofsecrets
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    Patron effect that makes the game wacky by causing game states that shouldn't happen at early stages of the game - Check
    Patron effect that makes further abuse of the games reshuffle - Check
    Power matters too much - Check
    Because power matters, the necesity to employ strategies that give the opponent wacky bonuses - Check
    Numerous contracts that don't cost enough causing blow-out turns out of nowhere - Check

    [snip]

    [snip]

    I quit the game because I realized that I left myself dead on board after not paying close enough attention. [snip]

    [edited for flaming & to remove quote]
    Edited by ZOS_Icy on December 31, 2023 5:59PM
    Don't tank

    "In future content we will probably adjust this model somewhat (The BOP model). It's definitely nice to be able to find a cool item that you don't need and trade it to someone who can't wait to get their hands on it." - Wrobel
  • Seraphayel
    Seraphayel
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    Personally I think Mora is a very interesting patron and certainly pushes a risk & reward playstyle. The thing is, you really need to play the game very aware and observe what’s going on, when your cards or the ones of the opponent are shuffled and so on.

    It‘s a bit like counting cards at a blackjack game. If there‘s a strong card in the tavern and your deck is about to get shuffled while opponent this has one or two rounds left of cards, the patron can be very strong.

    My only issue with it is the very harsh backlash from the cheap cards because it makes them hardly useful. Letting your opponents draw 2 cards is such an incredibly strong side effect that you want to barely ever get that card anyway. Gifting coins or might is less problematic in my opinion.

    Mora and Rhajin certainly make an interesting pair when you could force your enemy to draw bewilderment cards, but no game lasts long enough for this tactic to really play out imho.
    Edited by Seraphayel on February 22, 2024 2:50PM
    PS5
    EU
    Aldmeri Dominion
    - Khajiit Arcanist -
  • Northwold
    Northwold
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    I've gotten so many hate whispers using Mora recently. Some of these top 50 ranked players on PCNA are sending me these rude messages too, kinda amusing. At least the matches end pretty quickly with this deck. I've had 45 minute player matches with Rajhin.

    I've had 30 minute plus player matches with almost every deck because some players act like ToT is grand master level chess and the very opening move merits running down the timer to 1 second... I really, really wish we had the option to block people.

    That said, I still think giving each player the ability to veto one deck would improve the game enormously and add a bit of spice. If you hated Mora, you could veto it. (yes, this should not be possible against players who have only the four base decks)
    Edited by Northwold on February 23, 2024 2:15AM
  • El_Borracho
    El_Borracho
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    Northwold wrote: »
    I've gotten so many hate whispers using Mora recently. Some of these top 50 ranked players on PCNA are sending me these rude messages too, kinda amusing. At least the matches end pretty quickly with this deck. I've had 45 minute player matches with Rajhin.

    I've had 30 minute plus player matches with almost every deck because some players act like ToT is grand master level chess and the very opening move merits running down the timer to 1 second... I really, really wish we had the option to block people.

    That said, I still think giving each player the ability to veto one deck would improve the game enormously and add a bit of spice. If you hated Mora, you could veto it. (yes, this should not be possible against players who have only the four base decks)

    I could not agree with you more. A veto option would be outstanding.

    And, even after the constant complaints about the "grand masters" you speak of :D, the devs refuse to do anything about players who needlessly run the timer all the way down. Every. Single. Turn. Sorry, I will not accept any defense of this behavior. Even professional poker has instituted rules against this trollish tactic.
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