Patch Notes v0.18.2

Patch 0.18.2 focuses on balance changes, gameplay and bug fixes, and continual iteration on the Alpha Tournament system. It also marks the fourth, and hopefully last, Beta Ranked Ladder season.
[h3]Features & Bug Fixes[/h3]

• Beta Ranked Ladder Season IV
  
• Overhaul of how privacy works. If you have the “profile privacy” set:
  
  • Only people you’re following can see your match history, play time, coin cap, collection completion, etc. Known Issue: this requires that you’ve logged in at least once while the server is up, otherwise, they will see your profile as private.
    
  • Only people you’re following can spectate or watch games in which you’re a player with some exceptions:
    
    • If you started the game without profile privacy, the game is treated as public even if you later set yourself to private
      
    • Tourney games are always viewable
      
    • Ranked games are always replayable
      
• Turn timer is now visible while spectating
  
• Turn timer now turns green after hitting ‘end turn’ (helpful for 2v2)
  
• Skip going back to the main menu when requeuing from the combat scene
  
• Tournament rounds (swiss) now calculated as next integer log 2
  
• Players will now be dropped (no refund) from a tournament if they have two consecutive no shows
  
• Players will now get refunded their entry fee if dropped from a 2v2 tournament for not getting partnered
  
• In-game clock now shows remaining round time for tourney games
  
• Added export button to tournament deck viewer
  
• Finished tournaments now display the players list sorted by tiebreakers when players have the same match score. Note that in elimination tournaments, tiebreakers are not used to distinguish final rank
  
• Add two new deck styles for tournaments (constructed only)
  
  • Conquest
    
    • Each player must submit three decks built with the same card/path/power restrictions as if it were a single deck (ie. you may only have a total of 4 Freki Scouts among the 3 decks, split any way you choose)
      
    • At the beginning of each game, players select the deck they want to use for that game
      
    • The winner’s deck is disabled for the duration of the match
      
    • If all of a player’s decks become disabled and a match is still ongoing (in a best of seven series), all of their decks are re-enabled.
      
  • Last Standing
    
    • Same deck building rules as Conquest
      
    • At the beginning of the first game in the match, players select the deck they want to use for that game
      
    • The loser’s deck is disabled for the duration of the match
      
    • In the event of a tie, both players’ decks are disabled
      
    • Winners start the next game using the same deck as they used in the previous game
      
    • Losers (and players that tied) select another deck from their eligible choices
      
    • If all of a player’s decks become disabled and a match is ongoing, all of their decks are re-enabled
      
• Social panel should properly tell you if a friend is in a tournament game
  
• Auto prestige update for decks no longer changes the deck’s last modified time
  
• Fixed a bug where just changing a deck’s name/card back/board/art may not save the deck with those changes
  
• Fixed a bug where actions after death blow were being disallowed
  
• Fixed a bug where exiting out of watching a game would show an “invalid state” dialog
  
• Fixed a bug where damage clamp doesn’t apply properly to minions with damage immunity to type (ex. Scion of Pride on Waystone Garden)
  
• Fixed damage calculation error for Extract Life that has been affected by casting cost modifiers
  
  • Note: because casting cost cannot be reduced below zero, Extract Life under the effect of a casting cost reducing effect such as War Fan does no extra damage. However an Extract Life affected by Mind Freak will do 3 less damage than normal
    
• Fixed a bug where Defy Death would end your turn in 2v2.
  
• Fixed a bug where Defy Death wouldn’t save you from certain chained effects.
  
• Fixed a visual bug where stacks from Whitemoon Arena could display on separate lines
  
• Fixed stats of Tong Foot Soldiers and Lavish Proxy in puzzles
  
• Fixed a visual bug where some ability icons would continue to appear on a minion after being suppressed
  
• Fixed a visual bug where a card’s playable highlight might not be updated properly after canceling a play action
  
• Fixed a bug where a pod’s draft progress would hang if another pod finished before it
  
• Fixed a bug where path / power selection for a tournament deck would allow selection of banned cards
  
• Fixed a bug with the tournament deck viewer on mobile
  
• Fixed a bug where sign in warnings would occur long before sign in
  
• Fixed a bug where tournament prize tables was not allocating prizes for ties correctly
  
• Fixed a bug in tiebreaker tooltip values
  
• Fixed bug preventing modification of tournament announcement after start
  
• Fixed bug preventing edits to draft decks after start
  
• Fixed various places with string errors
  
• Improved tournament messaging with regards withdrawals, forfeits, etc
  
• Disabled non-functional context menus to spectate/replay puzzles
  

[h3]Known Issues[/h3]

• Guilds are NYI
  

[h3]Cards/Tuning[/h3]
With Norden dominating a lot of constructed and draft play, one of our primary objectives is getting it under control, ideally without swinging SO hard that Blue suddenly becomes weak; it HAS been nice to see other playstyles in Blue and Purple giving the aggression of Red and Orange or the control of Yellow and Green a hard time for once. This suite of changes is intentionally smaller and more surgical when compared to some past balance patches, but we still tried to find room for a few outliers and problem cards...

Alkonost

• 6[G]GG → 6[G]G
  
• (2) → ▽: Give another minion Sacrifice at the end of its turn unless it attacked or was just created
  

This has always been the Harpy that struggles to be relevant, (it’s hard being the eldest in a family with at least two overpowered genius siblings) and with these changes that’s still not likely to end, but hopefully she’ll at least see some action in the Arena.

Barbed Bolts

• 2[R]R → 2[R]
  

Quite weak, (and this won’t change that) but needs to be less constrained for any hope of combining with other colors.

Boneyard Abomination

• Has strength and health equal to the number of minions in all boneyards → double the number of minions in your boneyard
  

The fact that this change helps it not be so absolutely bonkers in 2v2 is actually just a side benefit. Even in standard modes, the ‘playing against’ pattern dissatisfaction seems to be less about its raw size and more about where that power is pulled from; it feels brutal to defend against when every negative trade will feed the beast. Ideally this shifts the Abomination to be better in comeback situations than winmore ones.

Bridgeway Troll

• Regen 1 → Removed
  

It would seem that one of the earliest and least relevant activated minion designs slowly got chain-buffed into seeing play! But with the secret being out that portal tech is actually good, he’s lightly contributing to the trend of Norden dominance, and we can’t lay the blame ENTIRELY on Ingrid. Trimming excess power from one of his more flavorful abilities before touching the core, though.

Dashing Ringmaster

• Other friendly minions that are created with 4 or less strength get Rush → with 4 or less strength have Rush
  

Those wordings seem very similar, so what this means in English instead of card-game-ese is that the conditions for getting Rush are now dynamic; if a minion’s strength changes after they hit the board to qualify or not, they’ll gain or lose Rush dynamically. This is happening because the way it worked before could be somewhat confusing, not to mention sneakily powerful in the cases where an advanced understanding of how abilities interact let you circumvent it.

Dire Benediction

• 3[O] → 2[O]O
  
• Cast on a minion to deal damage to its opposing player equal to its strength → with at least 1 strength to deal 4 damage to the player opposing it, then lock its strength to zero.
  

When these “two-faced” spells that are designed to work on both sides find their niche, they tend to trade interesting mechanics for one myopic function. Hopefully flattening the output will allow us to reclaim some of that flexible potential from the maw of giant minion burst killing.

Godsblud Transfusion

• Give a minion +3/+3 → +2/+2 and Regen 2
  

Many attempts to put a little oomph into this particular combination of “out-trade and heal up” have proven to be over a surprisingly narrow efficacy line, at least within this rarity and cost bracket. Necessarily returning to the smaller buff state, given this is one of the tools Norden is currently bludgeoning everyone with.

Gemhold Dwarf

• ▼ → ▽: Refresh your gems
  

Green is generally struggling a bit and not seeing enough play as a color, so there’s a handful of low impact buffs like these; Most of them less likely to shift a ton of power so much as utility and usability.

Harvester

• Demise: Add a 0/3 Maze of Iyatiku to your hand → Create a 0/3 Maze of Iyatiku here
  

Sowing the seeds of this draw as an existing corn card was a HYPER flavorful change, but the benefits have proven to be harder to reap than anticipated.

Herald of Conquest

• 7/6 → 7/7
  

Honed Edge

• Give a minion +2/+2 → +1/+2
  

Similar to Godsblud Transfusion, attempting to reduce power without completely reverting to weaker past positions.

House Elf

• 2/1 → 1/3
  

He’s been confused and agitated since being told to leave his home and beat up other minions, so we’re pushing this statline to better match the li’l guy’s fantasy and function with his rarity.

Ingrid Stormdottir

• 5(B)BB → 6(B)BB
  
• Awaken: Return all → up to three Valkyrie cards in your boneyard to your hand and make them Ephemeral
  

We definitely overreacted to the Valkyrie leader not initially showing up in many decks that should have enjoyed her, but there were probably other factors like Mythic obtainability to blame in addition to the high cost. While it would be a fascinating test of card strength perception to simply revert Ingrid, we’re going to try to find a middle way where she’s not quite as overpowered.

Isle of Buyan

• 3[G]G → 3[G]
  

A little splash-ability might help this show up alongside other colors that are equipped to appreciate it.

Loki’s Veil

• 3(B) → 2(B)
  

With other bread-and-butter tools in the faction coming down a bit, taking the opportunity to ease access to something strange and niche.

Mavka

• 2[G]G → 2[G]
  

A part of the modest Dreni relief efforts, albeit one that’s less likely to impact constructed than draft modes.

Nine-Tailed Vixen

• 4[P]P → 4[P]
  

Because many of the Spirits that she would have fun brokering are in other colors.

Ourania Muse

• 3[R] → 2[R]R
  

Simply too expensive, but adding a sort of ‘safety gem’ to make sure they don’t sneak up on us with reliability in other colors and archetypes.

Parsa Divinity Cannon

• 2/5 → 2/6
  

Serenity Seawitch

• GGG → GG: Give another minion -3/-0 → -2/-0 until your next turn
  

Bringing a bit of utility down below the kind of monocolor threshold that prevents it from feeling playable.

Terragon

• 5[P] → 5[P]P
  

Our favorite high-value turtle dragon might be a bit too easy to use, especially when drafted.

Vodnik Informant

• 1/3 → 2/2
  

With House Elf moving in on his territory, our fishy friend is forced to step up and compete with other one drops.

Wonder Drug

• Gain 4 life and draw a card → 5 life
  
• If you have 8 → 9 or less life, double this effect to 8 life and 2 cards → 10 life and draw a card
  

Trading an entire draw for 2 more life is indeed a nerf, but trying to anchor the threshold to the concept of “in single digits” in exchange since Yellow isn’t currently acting up as a ‘problem color’ (for once). Our efforts to keep game times reasonably low don’t always put individual cards in the crosshairs, but the Drug has become a very difficult to assail icon of the “just run your opponent out of gas” playbook that can really extend our average match length.