Last Shelter: How to split heroes with the new hero interface

It's Hero Development day as of this writing. And I was about to split my green heroes to get through COZ when I realized, the splitting button is gone with the new updated hero interface.

Luckily, we just finished Doomsday Season 2 and my alliance was lucky enough to get season 2 heroes as rewards. So this splitting method should work if you have Orange heroes with a 4th skill that has not been leveled up yet. (4th Skill counting from the left, top row).

The 4th skill requires 10 purple hero medals and 5 blue hero medals to unlock. When you click on UNLOCK, you should see an option to CHOOSE hero medals that are already available or to do a Hero Split. If you have heroes available for splitting, then they should appear on the bottom half of the screen.

In the same way, Orange Heroes can also be split, but this time, by using 7th or 8th skills of an Orange Hero that have not been leveled up yet. (3rd or 4th skill counting from the left, bottom row).

Another drawback of the interface update is that you can no longer split Green Heroes as of this writing. There are rumors that the developers will remedy this in the future since a lot of gamers are unhappy with this update. But in the meantime, you can still upgrade your Blue Heroes' skills in the same manner, then split and repeat to get through your Gold Boxes in COZ. Hope this helps you out.

War Heroes on Android Review

Since my units on Clash Royale are mostly at level 11, and at this point, leveling up is a slow process, I tried looking for an alternative card battle game on Google Play. And that's when I chanced upon War Heroes - very similar to Clash Royale but the setting - instead of being in a medieval realm of knights, archers, and mages - is similar to what you might have in a World War II scenario - infantry soldiers, tanks, and snipers.

I haven't fully accessed all areas of the game, but from the game play I've experienced thus far, it's really Clash Royale with a army theme. You have cards which you level up with in-game money. You have crates which contains cards that you open within 3 or 8 hours or instantly using gems. If not for the alternate company name, I would have thought that Supercell was also behind this game. Maybe Supercell is still a parent company.

Perhaps the only novelty in this game is the idea of having Generals - cards that give a player some kind of field advantage over the other player (assuming the other player is using a different type of General). Some generals add an extra tower that needs to be destroyed. Others spawn troops when certain field conditions are met. Still, others add barbed wires on the field, impeding the progress of foot soldiers. Maybe the creative team behind Clash Royale will imitate this concept and integrate it into their game.

I'm not sure if War Heroes has a 2 vs 2 player mode. In terms of strategy - it seems as if Clash Royale is more mature in that there are different ways to win. In War Heroes, is seems like overwhelming the opponent with units is the only way to win. But again, I haven't reached the upper levels in the game yet, so that is what keeps it exciting and fresh for me. But I suspect that once you reach a very high level in the game, where progressing comes to a slow pace, it will also lose its appeal. Till then, I am waiting to get access to some choppers in the game. ;)

Clash Royale 2 vs 2

Clash Royale 2 vs 2 has been the most fun gaming experience I've had on my mobile phone to date. It reminds me of the time I've spent on Starcraft, or Generals, or DOTA - where you are about to pulverize your opponent's base as a group. And there's also the thrill of coming back from a game where you are about to lose your base, but a timely counter, a fireball, or rocket to a weak tower, gains you the win when time is down to 00:00. And what's great about it is it is happening on your mobile phone.

2 vs 2 requires team work and familiarity with what each kind of unit does, especially those you rarely use in your deck. It is easy to spot if there is synergy between two teammates or not. And once your opponent sees this, they can easily take advantage of the situation.

The only thing I hate about 2 vs 2 is when your teammate goes offline - perhaps because of a lag in his internet connection, and you are forced to handle two players on your own. But I guess it is part of the game, but I wish there was a way to level the playing field when this happens, maybe allow you to control your opponent's deck, too, just to prevent from being overwhelmed by two player's combined forces.

It would be amazing to see if this game can expand to 3 vs 3, 4 vs 4 or even 5 vs 5. You would probably need a bigger map. And I don't know if you would then be forced to focus on a single unit - then it would be too much like DOTA.

But the Clash universe has already made a big investment in getting their characters recognized, that might just be the next step when Clash Royale losses steam. Still, for now, 2 vs 2 is too fun to pass up. Wish the tournament for 2 vs 2 always has a free entry, that was, I don't have to waste gems on losses. It's already a tough environment, I've yet to get to 10 wins. But it's really lots of fun, and if I could forego the payment of gems, I'd be more willing to experiment with my deck combinations instead of sticking to tried and tested ones.

Thank you, Clash Royale development team for coming up with ways to make this game better. May the game play continue to improve.  

How To Beat Alteil Falkow Mission 5

Falkow's single player mission level 5 was really tough to beat. Props to the developers for putting up such a challenging mission. It took me several tries but I was finally able to find the right combination to beat Galdirea.

I start out with Carbuncle then Pucera. After that, make sure that the shield requirement of level 5 Refess will trigger. Then, plant Refugee Citizen to get rid of Galdirea's grims. Then, try to get Limier followed by Stronghold. Then use Turn to Dust and Chaos Absorption to try and thin out the opponent's deck. Simulacrum helps in trying to match the opponent's troops modified HP while getting rid of a card if the HP is less than or equal to zero. And if you still haven't zeroed out the cards in the deck, then speed it up with Magma Golem as another shield on the frontline.

For the SS lineup, Annette is really helpful in setting one unit of opponent's troops to max HP of zero. And you then add that HP to Pucera. The second one, you can add to Limier to prolong his presence on the field. The rest of the SS are worth 3 LP, hopefully enough to last Galdirea's assault on your LP. (Cause she gets to hit it for free every other turn or so).

Galdirea will also send one random grim from your deck out of the game. I tried using Mirelia to recover these but it just doesn't work. And the second SS of Galdirea prevents level 4 and above cards for a couple of turns so it's best to keep your units and cards at level three and below.

Hope this helps out other players who are struggling with that mission. Good luck!

The Current State of Alteil in 2016

Alteil until now remains for me as one of the best card battle games available online. They have made significant improvements since they transitioned from a Flash based game to Html 5. I have now been able to play and finish games against both AI and human players compared to matches I've tried about two years ago when the transition began. It has been a slow process, but given the limited resources of the team behind the game, it is actually amazing that the game has been kept alive after all these years, considering I was already playing this game since 2008.

While there are still some random bugs, overall, the game is now playable. You might have to wait a long time since the images for the cards are cached in your browser. If you have a single deck for your card collection, the wait time might not be that long, but if you've amassed cards from the 1st set up to set 13, then you can imagine how long it will take to store all the card images on your device. But after the first time you do this, successive logins should be quick to load.

There are many ways to acquire cards even in this new version of Alteil. There are single player quests that can award a new player 1-star to 3-star cards upon the completion of a quest. Card rarities range from 1-star to 5-stars (rarest). There are also EX-cards that can be considered like 5-stars and are available for purchase during certain events or occasions. There is also the Free Daily Lotto that awards a player a single random card if the player has participated in a match with an AI or human that has at least ten turns. Winning against human players will also sometimes give the player a card for a prize, as well as materials for card crafting. I haven't really tried crafting yet, because the results seem to be random. But there are a few players who are trying to build a database / guide of materials that will result in certain cards on a consistent basis. I hope they succeed. And finally, you still get a card for every 10 levels you achieve in your rank. But it no longer gives you four choices like the old Alteil used to. (I think new players will still appreciate being given a choice from four cards from each primary sphere since when you are starting out, you initially chose a deck built around a certain sphere.) Point cards are still available. These are special cards which you can exchange for a card of your choice depending on the card rarity minimum. 1-star cards are worth 10 point cards while a 5-star card is worth 50 point cards, if I remember correctly.

Mirage Master is gone. This memory game used to be the most viable way of earning gran, one of Alteil's currencies. Now, you earn FM or fight money for every match against a human opponent. I used to use FM for purchasing avatar related items. I think that FM can also be used to purchase cards, but I haven't really tried it yet. As a point of comparison, I think that you will have to amass a lot of FM compared to gran to buy the same card. Only Premium players can sell cards now. To be a premium player means paying for membership. In the past, you could actually sell a card in exchange for gran. That means that if you had a fourth copy of a certain card, which you no longer need, you could at least recycle this copy in exchange for gran. Now, you can still try to sell these cards, but you sell them to fellow players, no longer to a recycling machine. So, it is possible that the card is stuck in the store since no one wants to buy it, especially if it is a common card. I hope that they bring back recycling so that fourth copies of cards, or cards that I don't plan on using since they are not part of the sphere I'm concentrated on could be exchanged for useful gran.

I greatly appreciate the number of ways you can win in this game. There are many different types of decks you can build. There are many different strategies for winning. That is why there are still players who have stayed loyal to this game all throughout the years. A player could be using a discarder (a strategy that diminishes the amount of cards that a player can draw from his card pile) on his first match, and an energy-drain deck on another (a strategy that prevents a user from putting cards into play since each card requires a certain amount of energy). Another player could use a deck that uses small fast units while another could rely on a single unit that wipes out most units on the field. Alteil is filled with variety, and even now, I'm surprised to see new strategies after playing this game for such a long time. (Yes, I'm talking about you Kraken users) Other card battle games, say like Clash Royale are pretty much one dimensional. And the player who can send out units the fastest will more likely win. But Alteil is like a chess match. You have to think about your moves from the first turn up to the last. Otherwise, you will lose to a well prepared player who built a deck out of common cards even though your deck is stuffed with rare cards. Card synergy, timing, and creativity are necessary for playing a masterful match.

There are currently about 5 to 15 players who are active daily. I wish more players played this game. A growing user base is necessary for a game to succeed. There are plans to roll out the game in Steam and also as a mobile app and I hope that it happens soon and it succeeds.

There are still a lot of things I could discuss about this game, but it is best for a person to try it out himself/herself. Perhaps then, you too will discover this gem of a game called Alteil. 

Lionheart Tactics

If you enjoy games like Final Fantasy Tactics or Front Mission, then you will probably like Lionheart Tactics by Emerald City Games and Kongregate. You can download this game for free at the Google Play Store.

It is a lot similar to Final Fantasy Tactics. You form a party of fighters (from my experience, a maxium of 6 as of this writing), and battle through various points on the world map. Some of the points can even be re-visited. And you acquire allies along the way.

So far, I have been able to acquire an archer, a thief, a wizard, a priest, along with the hero and his trusty aide - a soldier in full metal armor. I really enjoy Captain Redd since he serves as the Tank of the team, and his skill allows you to redirect all damage received by another member to himself. The Hero, on the other hand, is really good at dishing out damage to his enemies, especially if the enemies are directly to his North, East, South, and West. He can perform his Whirlwind skill that hits all enemies in these locations.

I'm probably at a low level as of this point, since the ranged units are not as powerful. I probably like the priest character next because he keeps healing my units and keeps the team alive. Then the thief, cause it allows me to accumulate money necessary for spending on skill upgrades, armor, equipment, and stones necessary for promotions.

The wizard is useful if enemies are in a column formation, since his fireball can hit two enemies in a single shot. The archer is useful for long range hits, preventing the enemy from countering (unless the enemy is also an archer or has long range).

I like the game. The only problem is that at this point, I can only play the game once a day (unless I'm willing to pay for items that will allow me to heal my party). So after a match, I usually just upgrade my unit's skills - some may take a few minutes, others, a few hours, giving them time to heal.

But other than that, I would still recommend the game to other players.

Clash of Clans: Hearbroken or a Proposal?

The image above, to me, seemed so funny, I just had to write about it. Three theories come to mind.

First, the player who made this is madly in love. He (or she) is so in love that he has ceased to be rational and has forgotten about the basic principle of protecting one's resources in Clash of Clans using the walls. Instead, he has used the walls to declare his undying love for the other person. He is probably in love with a fellow Clash of Clans player, a clan mate perhaps. Maybe they met through Clash of Clans and this is the most memorable way for him to tell the other person about his love. Maybe it is a marriage proposal, or maybe a be my partner proposal.

The second theory is that the two players are already in love. But they are in rough patch. And this is one of the player's way of saying sorry. He's probably a Clash of Clan addict and gives the game more time and attention rather than his partner. So, in order to say "Sorry" and to make amends, he sacrifices his well built town, allowing any other player, even novices of the game, to completely obliterate it because of poorly constructed defenses.

Finally, the last theory still revolves around lovers. But they have broken up, and it is a complete split up. The other person refuses to get back with the player who made the town set up. He is completely heart broken. In utter frustration, he allows other players to trample on his town in the same way that his partner trampled with his heart.

I rarely see poorly made defenses on Clash of Clan. I've seen people who use the walls artistically. I've even seen a bat symbol reminiscent of the logo used in the Christian Bale movies. But I haven't seen a player do what has been done in the image above. Out of the three theories, I probably like the one where the player quits Clash of Clans for good to devote more time and attention to his girlfriend or wife. So he leaves the game completely, and this town setup is his proof for his loved one that she is more important to him.

Clash of Clans

Clash of Clans in my opinion is the best game on Android to date! It reminds me a lot about Ikariam and perhaps, this is what Ikariam would have looked like if it were a 3D game. Similar elements are present. You have to collect resources. You get to build different types of structures with different functions. You get to amass armies to fight other players.

But Clash of Clans is way better when it comes to the fights. Unlike Ikariam where the battle is left to the player's imagination, in Clash of Clans, you see the units fighting in real time. It's always funny when a unit is flung off the screen with a springboard defense, and exhilarating when you see your offensive troops break through a wall.

The game is also better when it comes to leveling up each structure or unit. I really look forward to the little changes in detail of a building per level. Ikariam used to do this for its buildings every five levels. Clash does it even for its army units.

And just like any other strategy game, the toughest part is reaching the higher levels where the time you have to wait to accumulate resources take like forever. And if you don't want to wait, you can always pay. No wonder, one of the news articles I read about this game reports that it rakes in about 2 million dollars a day just for in-app purchases. The developer states that if you build a good product, people won't mind paying for it.

The game is so good and it has replaced my allotted gaming time for other leisurely activities. Check it out!!! And hopefully, I'll battle with your troops soon!

ProjectY RTS

If you are looking for a game like Dune 2, Starcraft 2, or Command & Conquer: Generals for your tablet, then you will probably enjoy ProjectY RTS 3D Public Beta. It is available for free on the Google Play and you can check it out here.

The game requires Android 2.3 or higher and about 29 MB of space.

Like many RTS games, the goal is to conquer all territories in the entire map. Since this is a relatively young game, there are only a few maps free. This, by the way, is how developers will probably make money, by selling new maps.

There can be up to 4 multiplayers, but I haven't had the chance to test it with friends yet. Still, the single player customized campaign was good. There's also a tutorial campaign.

The main difference with this games and other RTS is you no longer create structures and harvest resources. Instead, the main resource are the robot brains, or pilots. These either drive vehicles or occupy structures like turrets and factories.

So, with prebuilt structures existing all over the map, the player (or AI) who can manufacture units and quickly occupy other territories will gain the long-run advantage in the game.

I find that once you have 3 rocket tanks (long range units) and a pair of repair tanks, you're good to go. Just support these with scorpion tanks for protection. The rocket tanks are your main offense. I hope that as the game progresses, The game gets more complicated rock-paper-scissor scenarios like Starcraft (still my favorite RTS of all time). But I think the reason why Starcraft had such variety was because it had 3 races. Maybe ProjectY could introduce a second race, maybe organic aliens.

Units have various types of upgrades like armor, health, range, etc. But there is an upgrade called automate upgrades which is what I go for since it can be a pain micro-managing on a tab. Although there are groupings of units, upgrades will still be done individually unless you automate it.

There are also specialized structures like an Air Control Tower which you can use to bomb areas in the map. But unless there are special buttons that can be assigned to structures, like what can be done to unit groups, then managing this is also challenging. I'm just thankful the factories have a rally point feature.

Overall, I give this game 5 stars. It is one of the best games I've played on a tablet, and I think it has a lot of potential. Hopefully, developers can come up with a story mode campaign, and air units, and more free maps. If your an RTS fan, you should give this game a try.

Ikariam v 0.5.9: New Structure - The Black Market

Ikariam version 0.5.9 was rolled out today and the newest structure introduced is the Black Market.

To be able to construct this new building, you have to research it first under Economy. It will cost you 56,000 research points.

After you have researched the building, you can now construct it on any vacant building slot. This might be problematic at this stage in Ikariam for any player since all building slots have been used by this point in time, especially by those gunning for a 12th town. It would have been nice if the Ikariam development team allowed for an extra building spot, in the same way they created one for the Pirate fortress.

If you do decide to tear down an existing structure and build the Black Market, then the following units should be available for sale, depending on the Black Market's level.

The Black Market is an alternative to simply dismissing units from an oversized army or navy in case you're burdened with their gold upkeep. Sometimes, players overproduce units in times of war, only to waste the material used in production once they dismiss their units.

If there is a demand for units in your area, then you could make a profit via this structure. But just like the trading post, player demand and activity will be important in the decision to add this building to your collection.

Other details of the version update can be found below. Enjoy!

0.5.9

01.10.2013

Feature - New building: Black Market The building has 25 levels and allows the sale of land and sea units for any resources. A requirement for the building is the new "Soldier Exchange" research and a building ground. The building levels unlock the unit types that can be sold, after one another. For every unit type there is a minimum and maximum price, to avoid overpricing or dumping prices. For every soldier exchange, one part of the sale price has to be deducted as tax. With increasing Black Market level, taxes are reduced. The offered troops can be viewed and accepted by other players in the new "Soldier Exchange" tab at their Trading Posts. You can also purchase troops that you haven`t researched yourself yet. No Black Market is required to buy troops. Soldier Exchange also does not need to have been researched for purchasing. Change - the effects of the Hades, Demeter, Athena, Ares and Colossus miracles have been strengthened. Change - the trading post view has been adjusted slightly. Bugfix - when entering a running battle, only the units in the battle overview that fought from entry are displayed. Bugfix - while the chat window was open, the breadcrumb bar could not be clicked on. Bugfix - military actions of an occupier do not prevent the deletion of an occupied town by the owner. Bugfix - allied stationed troops are not thrown out of the town anymore when the town owner comes to a garrison right agreement. Bugfix - in the battle reports, the maximum amount of walls was displayed instead of the actual amount. Bugfix - when purchasing goods at an own town, the loading time was incorrectly calculated. Bugfix - when accepting a trade offer, the loading time was not displayed. Bugfix - various display errors fixed.

Tiberium Alliances Simulation Screen Problem

If you are using the Tiberium Alliances Combat Simulator (TACS) on Firefox, you might experience a problem in the simulator screen. Sometimes, the screen would be "moved" left by about an inch, preventing you from witnessing the simulation for that "inch of a column". (See the image below)

I have tried updating Firefox, Greasemonkey, and even the TACS script from version 2.1 to 3.0 beta. But the issue has remained.

Through experimentation, I just tried minimizing the browser window using the 2-rectagles button at the top right corner of the browser, then maximizing again. (If you want to use a keyboard shortcut in Windows 7, use the Win key + down arrow to minimize, and Win key + up arrow to maximize). Finally, the simulation screen went back to normal. I hope this solution will be able to help you out in case you are experiencing the same problem.

Cargo Bridge Level 20 Solution

Here's my solution to level 20 of Cargo Bridge. Hope it helps!

Cargo Bridge

I tried out X Construction on a friend's Android-based phone and was hooked. So now, I tried looking for a browser based game where the goal was to construct a bridge that would allow people to walk across it safely. I then found Cargo Bridge. There are no hassles of installation since its a browser based game. Check the link out http://www.physicsgames.net/game/Cargo_Bridge.html

Below is a screenshot of what the game looks like.

You have two types of building material to work with, namely walks and connectors. And instead of limiting the number of pieces you can use for these materials, you are given a financial budget which you can maximize / minimize for the project.

The objective is for the workers to get to the boxes or other types of objects, and bring those objects back to their original starting point.

It's simplistic, but pretty fun. Try it out.

Alteil: Special EX Aisha

The new special EX cards have been released by Alteil today. The Gowen card, Rusted Colossus seems complicated, so I'll probably have to see that in play to get an idea of its usage. One thing I can say about that card though, its a better SS than Russel in that it gives LV+2 and DF+5 to a friendly unit. That's a welcome bonus against return files.

Anyway, HCS Aisha, being a Refess warrior, seems like she would fit really well in a Catira - Toromea file.

As usual, we start with stats. AGI 3, HP 60 and RNG 2 would seem fine for a Level 4 card. Attack is dependent on positioning, but area 5 is usually free in a Toromea file. Placing her there would even allow her to survive Blackstorm. She would also benefit from buffs from Folrart Swordswoman, and of course, Toromea. That means, her attack would roughly be either 50 or 60, and AGI could be 5 or 6, depending on the setup.

Her action skill HCS seems like fun with Toromea around, giving you the SP needed to trigger it, and again, potentially hitting enemy units in area 1, 3, and 5 for 50 or 60 ATK. The 10 HP penalty to a friendly unit in area 3 seems a must though. I would probably position Catira in that slot.

Her other action skill, HT should be good against undeads, lycanthropes, or Dilate. As a bonus, she self-heals.

Finally, her SS is like a nerfed Sergis. Useful against undeads or EN files. But you'ld only use her as an SS if you didn't have Sergis.

But at 1000 Gran a piece, despite all the added extra level 4s and level 3s, I'm afraid I won't be able to get her. 1 card is even more expensive than 2 Set 11 EX packs. And with 200 more Gran, you could get a complete set of the coming EX 12 cards. (Dunno when these will be released, but that's what I'm trying to save for).

Still, those with money to burn should find no trouble completing an Aisha set. And I guess I'll just enjoy watching the action from the sidelines.

Alteil Set 12: War Heroes Crimson Hero / Dilate

Alteil Set 12 was released today. It is kind of early, considering that EX 11 was recently introduced, but I guess the developers are trying to cash in on the holiday shopping spree while people still have money.

In my opinion, some of the cards in this set have been overnerfed compared to the Japanese counterparts previewed in the Alteil forums. I guess, it is to be expected since Alteil Set 11 was a "strong" set which allowed even newcomers to the game to compete in Folrart Arena.

Perhaps it is still to early to predict whether or not Set 12 will result in new meta files. But one card I see becoming integrated with mid Gowen BKR Winston files is the new Crimson Hero /Dilate - an early to mid game version of Bringer. Let us analyze the card.

For a level 4 Gowen unit, his HP might be considered sub-par, but the AGI and the AT are okay. Being a level 4 unit is always great in avoiding Returns and the much abused Withdrawal Strategy cards these days.

The most useful skill in my opinion is his Open, Scream of Red Death which is as powerful as Bringer's and costs 1 SP less. But the 6LP or higher restriction  means you have to use Crimson Dilate early in the game. This card is good for killing that pesky Diondora, Eskatia, or Alliria.

Nightsinger's Blessing as a start skill is probably a bonus of sorts, unless you intentionally splash an Eskatia type card which changes the battle-time to night. The recent EX card, Violet General has proven that even a AGI-1 skill can be an advantage during certain matches, but this being a time dependent skill on Dilate makes me question how effective it will be. It will certainly help against Eternal Night files, allowing Dilate to attack before say Fenrir or even Eskatia. 

His trait allows him to gain attack x2 and "send to cemetery" immunity along with say, Bringer if Song for a Hero is played on Bringer.

Finally, the action skill Crimson Death seems better than the Dilate Set 10 skill since it has no "number of enemy vs friends" restriction or Falkow level penalty. I don't know though if Crimson Dilate will still be around by the late game when your LP is down to 4 or lower. I guess this could be a different way of playing Crimson Hero Dilate, instead of taking advantage of his Open skill, you take advantage of his "mass wiping skill" ala Samurai Girl.

The soul skill is "meh" compared to Thunderbolt or even Russell. There are times when you want SS pinpointing. Why not just design the skill so that you select the specific units you want to target instead of creating an instance where the skill might not hit any units at all. But I guess Crimson Hero wasn't intended to be a staple SS.

Even thought it's early, I will say that this card is one of the best Gowen card of Set 12. Even better than the 5-star Gowen card. I think developers are intentionally making 5-star cards suck since these are auto-rewards to high level players gaining a "tenth" level. So if you want players to spend, make it more difficult to get the better card. I'm probably over-thinking this conspiracy theory.

Still, check out Set 12 which is sure to add variety to the decks you currently see in Folrart.

Alteil EX 11: Gregory

If you specialize in the Gowen sphere, you'll be glad to know that one of the strongest cards in the new EX 11 Set is Exiled Swordsman Gregory. Let's check out the cards skills and stats.

The Start skill, Void Slash, allows Gregory to wipe out a single enemy row every turn as long as his Attack power is zero. And this is a Start skill that essentially bypassed DEF and gets to trigger before anything else. Of course, the condition is that the unit has to be focused and has an AT value of zero. How does one get AT to zero? Grim cards like Brave Strike, might be an option, allowing you to hit possibly 2 units in the back rows and the entire front row gets wiped out when the Start skill takes effect. Angel's trumpet is another grim that could be of use in Refess Gowen hybrids. Hunter Rosa and EX Brahma's soul skill even combos nicely with Gregory. 

The Action skill, Reason to Fight has turned Gregory into an effective buffer. Of course, the ideal target would be a level 3 unit so Light Heierrat Fighter, Heierrat Broadsword Soldier, or Heierrat Field Commander are ideal candidates. Field commander helps generate the SP needed to trigger the skill too. But I've seen players buff Jack Winston, Heierrat Revolver, and even Bear Killing Axe-man for kicks.

In case you didn't have the SP to trigger Reason to Fight, you can still focus Gregory by standing by. So even if his Start skill doesn't wipe out the enemy row next turn, the HP of the enemy units is still reduced to 30 HP.

While Gregory is slow, his HP and DF can more than compensate for it. He fits nicely in a Mid Gowen build, where BKR and Winston used to be the mainstays. Gregory along with other Mercenary Nation / Warrior types can serve as a bonus for a late game New Hunter Alisa.

I want to see him work with a pure Mercenary Nation build, but I haven't seen an effective one yet.

So if you miss playing Gowen, and are tired of the current Refess Meta, Gregory might just be the card that might breath life into that sphere.

Alteil EX 11: Lost Guardians - Violet General

Alteil EX 11 Cards for the set dubbed as the Lost Guardians, were released today and this is great news for Alteil players who haven't had new cards in a long time. Let's take a look at the card, which in my opinion, has the best art for this release - Violet General / Amethyst Eater.

The already competitive Carbuncle deck gets an added boost with the entry of Violet General. Aside from worrying about Red General, an opponent now has to deal with another card with healing abilities and HP manipulating abilities.

Her Open Skill is allows a level 3 friendly unit to gain an additional 5 MAX HP. Since most of the carbuncle units are level 3, targeting one shouldn't be an issue. The additional SP gain is also a plus since Refess suffers from slow SP generation during the early part of a match.

Her Start Skill may give your deck a slight AGI advantage over similar speed decks. But her strength is in her Action Skill which allows you to heal a friendly unit and at the same time, damage an enemy unit. With her Defense of 5, you might even place her at the front row as a tank, to reach those second row enemy units with her 3 Range.

Her Soul Skill will be great for any deck that suffers from quick depletion and needs replacement. Afel and even Lelein decks would probably be ok with it as a second to the last SS.

A set of 3 would set you back 1200 gran (400 gran per pack). The set also comes with EX Brahma and Hanuman (which are great additions for Eternal Morning Decks) and the two-star hard-to-complete-sets of Opal Carbuncle and Jade Carbuncle.

Check out EX 11, the best addition since the Alteil re-launch with Apocoplay.

Postscript:

Purple Stone is practically useless if your units are fully healed. And having a base AT=10 is no help either. Perhaps the developers can rework this skill in the next errata.

Wormy Worm 1.3

Use the NUM pad keys (1-9) to control the WORM

Current Score: Highest Score:

Wormy Worm 1.3

Play Again!

jQuery Worm Game Proof of Concept

Use the NUM pad keys (1-9) to control the WORM

Current Score: Highest Score:

Wormy Worm 1.3

Play Again!

Posts I've Written on Ikariam

Below are some of the posts I've written on Ikariam:

• Ikariam version 0.5: Renaming a Town
• Ikariam Workshop Level For New Ships
• Ikariam: Can You Own 12 Towns?
• Ikariam v0.4.5 New Ships!!!