Need for Speed

Speed is deadly. If you don't believe me, there are a number of bugs on my windshield that will confirm my findings. Battle Spirits is a very fast game, and you need to be prepared for a quick start by your opponent.

Many of you have probably played Magic in the past. In Magic, you cannot attack with creatures the turn that you play them. There are a few creatures that break this rule but for the most part your opponents attacks are telegraphed in advance, much like a fighter swiveling his hips early before he punches. In Battle Spirits spirits can attack the same turn that they come into play, with the exception of the first players turn. This creates an unknown element when you are evaluating what your opponent can do to you next turn, and you need to consider all the possibilities. If you have 2 blockers out and 2 life left, you need to leave enough resources to defend not just the stuff on the table, but the spirits your opponent might play.

There are some fairly fast spirits in the base set, and it is not uncommon for "weenie" decks to be able to get a good opening draw and power over an opponent in three or four turns. You need to consider this when you are building your deck and when you are playing. If you are going second, you need to be able to play a couple of creatures out on the table the first turn, or you need a strategy that will quickly stop an aggressive attacking opponent. If your opponent starts out very fast and gets in a couple of early hits, you should make very sure you stabilize before you start trying to bite into your opponent’s life total. Attacking before you stabilize will only give your opponent extra resources to try to finish you off.

The one mistake that often occurs is waiting too long to block. If you take one or two hits early, you often will be better off losing an early spirit, hopefully getting a trade if you can, to stop early hits. Otherwise, you might be too far down to effectively power back and if you stay too close to the brink of defeat too long, you might fall off the edge.

You are not going to play every game the same way. It is especially true that you are not going to play as aggressively if you are going second as if you are going first. Even if you define your deck as an attack deck, think defense if you are going second against another deck that might be a fast attack deck as well. Changing your play style based on what you see and what you don't see but can picture coming soon, will increase your victory percentage.

Until next time.

-Michael Elliott