Well, the Merc is getting bored with the usual "articles" (yes, I
am being sarcastic with the word) that bash archetypes, are for archetypes, are
against Prop 15/T2, against banning, have the exact same top 10, etc. How
about you guys?
First, I am gonna talk about "Archetypes." In Magic, there are
many, and there is variety and fun. In Pokemon, there are few, which means
mirror matches and the same moves over and over and over again, so the game is
growing weak. I knew people who quit Pokemon for Magic because Magic
offers more variety and skill competition and the most important thing,
thought-out stragety. Pokemon does neither. Instead, everyone plays
Scyther. Everyone plays Hitmonchan. Promo Mewtwo. Electabuzz.
Wigglytuff. And so on. I know they are good, but when cards become
overused and/or too powerful, Wizards bans or restricts certain cards; in Magic
at least. And does everyone get upset when a card gets banned or
restricted? Of course not (Note: Only one card in the history of
Magic was not meant for banning, and we have to say "Why, Wizards?
WHY!!!???" And that card is Dark Ritual. A common card. A
good card. Banned only in the Extended 1.X tournaments.). Now, I
don't hate arche!
type decks. But I do hate them w
So you want something to be done about the current archetypes? But you
don't want banning? Sorry, but banning and restricting cards are what make
the game more interesting. So what if you don't have access to the most
powerful Pokemon or Trainer. In Magic, no one complained when Black Lotus
was restricted for being too powerful. They just sold the other three and
that was that (Note: That was exagerative. Everyone should know that
Black Lotus is an out-of-print, roughly $500 card that is too good for it's
cost.). Also in Magic, we have the system of "errata."
That is when we change the text of a card officially so that the card is less
broken. Example:
In Magic, the "free creatures" blue got were broken. They said
"When (card name) comes into play, untap up to (number equal to the
creature's casting cost) lands." That means you tap to pay for the
creature's cost. When it enters play, you untap that many lands.
Before, this was broken, mainly because of Palinchron (seven mana, untap seven
lands, you can pay four mana to return it to your hand). What happened was
people would "fish it" out of the graveyard (discard pile) with less
than seven mana resurrection spells (mainly, Recurring Nightmare, three mana).
The result? Put one Pal in the graveyard, tap seven lands for seven mana,
use three to play Recurring Nightmare, return the Nightmare to sacrifice the Pal
in play to return the Pal in the graveyard, untap the lands you tapped, tap for
seven again, play Nightmare, return to hand and sac Pal to return other Pal,
untap seven lands, and so on. This generates an infinite mana loop.
We generate about 100 or so mana, and!
play a Stroke of Genius (three m
So how do you decide what gets banned and what gets restricted? I have a
simple solution. Announcing the cards that should be restricted or banned
list:
1. Double Colorless Energy: Face it. Two colorless energy with
no draw back is broken. Scyther showed us that. But because it is
only colorless energy, this should be: RESTRICTED. This weakens Scyther
and Wigglytuff by forcing them to play their attacks turn three. Sure,
there can be one DCE floating in the deck, but the chances of getting it will be
slim, and only works on one.
2. Computer Search: I get to drop two other cards and get an Oak.
Or whatever. I like this card, but this also has almost no drawback.
But because I have to have two other cards in hand, this should be:
RESTRICTED. This keeps looking for winning cards at a minimum.
3. Professor Oak: What were they thinking? We learned this
lesson from Wheel of Forture in Magic. But this is Pokemon, and only you
get affected. I like this card, but for obvious reasons, this card should
be: BANNED. It's just too powerful of a card drawing engine.
Play Bill. It is less broken.
4. Energy Removal: In Magic, lands are like energy, and we have
Stone Rain as Energy Removal. But Stone Rain can't make it until turn
three (two at most). And only Red gets it. We also have Rain of
Tears; we can Dark Rit for it and that says turn one; but even then, you have to
have Dark Rit in hand and you have to be playing black. Then we have Strip
Mine; that is like playing a land to remove a land; this was banned in Extended
once for being like Energy Removal. But in Pokemon, we have Energy
Removal. Your opponent plays an Energy for the turn. You remove it.
That says it all. No cost. No drawback. Super Energy Removal
is less broken, so in my opinion, this card should be: BANNED.
5. Gust of Wind: Do I think this is that great? Not really.
Sure, Haymaker benefits, but let's do something to it. This card should
be: ERATTA'D. It should say at the end of the text, "You cannot
play this card if you have already played a Trainer card this turn. You
cannot play any more Trainer cards this turn." So basically it is
saying if you are gonna play this, it has to be the only Trainer played for the
turn.
6. Alakazam: Wow! Damage Swap is real good. Maybe too
good. This card should be: ERATTA'D. It should allow you to
exchange as many damage counters from one Pokemon onto another Pokemon and only
use the Pokemon Power once for the turn. That means you can't move damage
from all of your Pokemon onto Chansey. Only one Pokemon to another, and
only once for the turn.
That's it for the list.
Now, onto the last item, the Propositions. They hurt the game. 15
Trainers is pitiful, and playing only two a turn is just as awful.
Bannings and restrictions should be made, not these Props. See, in Magic,
we ban and restrict. In Magic, we don't allow people to play only one
spell a turn or two or tell everyone to play 20 lands, 20 creatures, and 20
spells. In Magic, we don't change the overall rules like that. We
change a few, but they don't hurt the gameplay. In Pokemon, however,
Wizards wants people to be able to play their broken cards, but they want them
to play less of them. I know that restricting the Moxes and the Lotus in
Type 1 tournaments was a good idea, but they are still broken nonetheless.
So how do you save Pokemon in a card game retrospect? Ban, restrict, and
errata. You Pokemon players don't like it, but we Magic players need it
regardless. Magic players like variety. When there is only one deck
dominating the field, people get bored. We then !
stop playing. Pokemon will end u
One last thing on the agenda. Sam Yurick stated that:
"So what if there are currently fewer than 15 viable pokemon? That isn't a
sign that everybody needs to make a beedrill and venomoth deck, it's a sign that
wizards needs to make less garbage. They have the audacity to charge
between $3.50 and $7.00 for a pack of eleven cards and still yet, 9 of those
cards will often never be used. Then when we do find something good in one
of their shoddy boosters, they want to rule it unplayable just so that their
greed-driven promotional machine can ramble on. It isn't our fault that
there are only 15 really playable pokemon, It's Wizards of the Coast's fault for
not making everything playable. Then, of the 20 really playable trainer
cards, all of which work best in multiples, they want to reduce us to 15 in a
deck! The bottom line is this: Wizards doesn't want to see the game played
fairly, if they wanted that then they'd make some better cards."
Well, this is like most of you "kids" (I know I am being rude now, but
this needs to be said) saying there are very few "playable" cards and
that Wizards keeps the people from playing them. Let me tell you all a
little something. 90% OF ALL CARDS MADE ARE PLAYABLE! You guys just
don't want to play anything new because Wizards hasn't banned the
"good" stuff yet. I mean, Fossil Psyduck is playable, but people
like Hitmonchan better because "EVERYONE ELSE DOES!" Fossil
Horsea is playable, but "IT HAS LOW HP AND A WEAK ATTACK!" In
Magic, we have what is called "trash rares," rares that are totally
unplayable. But most of the cards are playable, just not in every deck.
You people expect every Pokemon card printed to work for Haymaker or Wiggly.
That is not how CCGs work. Not every card goes into every deck. They
go into certain decks. Any card can be playable. You guys just need
to stop hammering Wizards for not printing in your opinion "worthless
cards." They make a !
card, then distribute them. The
That's it for the Merc. Hate me if you want, but Pokemon is as good as
dead if some changes aren't made. Besides, is
Electabuzz/Scyther/Hitmonchan really that good? There are at least a
hundred other Pokemon. Try them. Personally, I hope they ban DCE and
ER and Oak. That will weaken the archetypes a little. I don't hate
archetypes. I want more. And cutting the boring archetypes we
already have will make more playable decks.
Mercury Crusader (A.K.A.: The self proclaimed "Greatest Water Pokemon
Trainer" and Team Rocket supporter)
themerc@angelfire.com
"Styling and profiling only the way a Horseman could..."