The goal of our design isn't to dictate what you do and how you do it, it's about letting creativity roam and change the meta week after week according to how people feel about their decks and play styles.
What I'm trying to do with this website has been a long time coming my friends. I forever strive to bring you closer to Lightmare, and bring Lightmare closer to this great community of gamers. This next effort with these blogs will allow me to gain invaluable feedback from you, while talking to you a bit more personally than forums or an e-mail.
I pondered for quite some time on the first topic that I could discuss with you, as it had to be something that you have been wanting to hear about for quite some time. Something that understanding our thought process behind and intentions with would relieve some of the stress that Beta Development can create hoping that the company is devoted to the health of the title.
Well, I'm fairly confident this topic covers that to a puffing T. Without further adieu, I introduce to you:
Tipping the Scales, a Blog on balancing Infinity Wars.
For the purpose of this Blog, I'll be listing some very specific concepts, as well as referencing Set Designer "Robbiesla".
Balance is a very touchy subject. Everyone has their own unique perception of what it means, how it's achieved, and what constitutes imbalance. Hopefully this article will address your concerns, and give you a personal look at where Lightmare's head is at. We still have plenty of work to do, we're a long way from home and we're on the right track. It's time to finish the job.
Let's get right to it. I know, I know, you're staring at the screen and probably Ctrl+F'd "Verore" already trying to skip to where it is. Well hopefully that search brought you right here, because I'll mention what's going on there so that you stop throwing things at your monitor.
Essentially what you're about to read is the method of how we tip the scales. If you're too quick to act or too heavy-handed, you simply tip the scales of power in another direction. So what's Balance all about?
Those dastardly matriarchal spell weaving cultists can be a real pain, can't they? Mass Deathing, Death Raying, and Worshipping their way to aggravating the opponent to concede and subsequently find something to hurl at their monitor.
Control can always be potent, however these are not the problems Verore faces. Remember at the beginning of the article how I said everyone has their own perception of Balance?
If you will allow me, let me expand your thinking just a little bit. Join me on a journey through the harsh dark magic infested lands of Reish.
I was once asked the question in global chat "What does a balanced game truly feel like in your opinion?" It really made me think about my personal stance on this, and how working with Lightmare has changed it. I was reminded of a quote I once heard which was not only accurate, but encompasses a wonderful design concept used all over the industry but is widely misunderstood. | |
Perfect Balance is a mirage. Most people view Balance as a subjective term to dictate the power curve of decks or strategies. True Balance is a Rock, Paper, Scissors game in which the "Best Deck" can be beaten by another deck, which can then be beaten by another deck, so on so forth.
We have a list of things that need to be worked on, some concepts that need to be set in stone, and puffies that need puffing before we launch. Let me assure you, we will be making some moves in the near future.
Now let's discuss what the problem with Verore actually is.
Most people might say "Mass Death" "Death Ray" "Veroria" are the "Problems" with Verore. The fact of the matter is much larger. When discussing Balance you can't just point out a single card and say "This is really strong! Nerf it!" in most cases that will tip the scales in another direction. (See what I did there? Tip the scales?)
You have to be gentle, you have to be light-handed, you have to be careful. Here's a quote from Set Designer Robbiesla:
Rash balance makes for rash gameplay. If we change cards and their apparent balance every 2 weeks, we create a meta forcibly. Ideally the players would do this for us. We can't create a meta ourselves, as no competitive player would ever be able to properly build a deck if we did. Can you imagine if pro mtg players spent months working out all the kinks in their mono-black devotion deck and tailoring it for the meta and then wizards just came in and said, you know what, Doomblade now only destroys white and green creatures. The goal is to always the have the meta determined by the people who play it, and we can't jump into balance decisions like this willy nilly. The toolkit of verore needs love and attention and I have no intention of nerfing them out of playability overnight. |
Nerfing Mass Death or nerfing Veroria doesn't change the concept of their Toolkit, the Toolkit itself needs to be looked at to reduce it's overall capabilities in such a wide variety of scenarios. That's a task, a very difficult task, and one that we are working towards to improve the health of Infinity Wars.
Now, let's move on to the next topic:
We have a new faction, The Overseers. They're very new to the game, and very new to the way people look at playing the game.
Generally, when something is new and not widely understood, it can very easily be perceived as too strong.
The concept I'm about to give you applies to the Overseers, as well as one more fabled interaction.
As I said above, when something is new and not widely understood, it can be perceived as OH GOD WHY WOULD LIGHTMARE DO THIS. WHY IN THE NAME OF PUFFY DOES THIS EVEN EXIST. Trust me, we're listening, but we also have to be extremely careful as I've explained earlier in this article. | A general rule of thumb when reacting to Balance concerns is that changing a card almost immediately after it's launch is inherently negative and will have major consequences. What once was Haxorz may well be (and statistically has been proven to be true) a strategy that's countered and otherwise buried in a few weeks time. |
In this case, most people look at Orion, Master Engineer in a rather unassuming fashion. He doesn't look like much, he seems meh, and most just walk on by or trade him off. Well, little did you know that there's a rather significant combination with him, and it starts at the deckbuilding level.
Combinations like this very usually happen when a new set releases, and they can be very difficult to go up against or even feel good about facing. That is, until people begin to understand it, recognize it, and defeat it. What Lightmare has to be very careful with is if or how we change either one of these cards.
In this specific case, the MU02/Orion combination has quite a bit of counterplay. Players will recognize it, counter it, and the deck will be phased out of the meta by the communities efforts. This is what Lightmare strives towards, a player controlled Meta. We will step in where necessary, but for the most part the players' will shape and break everything.
If it has staying power and is a consistent problem even after this phase of understanding, then we have to act after we've ensured it is a legitimate problem and not just a temporary shock interaction. You know, like looking at the price tag of something and being really shocked by it's price, only to realize that you have a bunch of money in your account and it really isn't that bad.
(That scenario doesn't ever apply to me. I order off the value menu at taco bell.)
If you have comments, questions, concerns, or would like to request a topic for one of my blogs (I'll try and do one once a week) just leave it in the comments section here.
See you on the battlefield!