disappointed with the championship

[Spirits]

Is anybody else disappointed with the championship and what shadow era has come to

I was very excited given the winners in the qualifications were constantly hitting the top ranks.. meaning that strategy and smart play really mattered.. the games then were amazing with ups and downs (though few surprise moves). one can say the best of the best have made it.

But then came the finals. I was waiting to see what those true well earned finalist had ground up for a deck. For example snare trap was a welcome change for banebow somewhat not so banal. and Ka leo's deck also was so diverse i couldnt keep up with what he has going most.
Until the big disappointment came in: Dimension Ripper. the card defines the work "LUCK"
Dev should name it "lets flip a coin" instead
I love this card when im looking for fun.. and also no one can say it is any less lethal in amber's hands. but to rely on it in a final.. there goes all the planning and grinding and thought work to trash..

the game becomes: let the man with the best luck win. and this is exactly what happened.. based on each's pick from the other's deck, each finalist either lost or won. minimal strategy, and the thinking process was as thorough as any quick game match up. I was bedazzled by both player's strategies in the qualifying, i was very excited to see them in the finals until BOOM.. matches were as good as a flip of a coin.

I am afraid that shadow era is slowly drifting away from strategy and going towards the luckiest player wins. I see it with those hords of Eladwen quick matches, and that into the forest strategy. All credit to the innovative creation of these strategies (long time ago), but in the hands of the masses, either u get lucky or you die no matter what is played. And i fear.. i mean FEAR that with more expansions, this "either you win or you lose no matter what is played" notion is going to expand.

Congrats to the winners, i dont think you are any less worthy, but that is just my opinion coming from a true disappointment - probably because of high expectations

[tman507]

You should've paid attention to last years WC, where Jacqui (at least I think it was Jacqui, someone can correct me if I'm wrong) lost to iClipse in the final four round I believe because he used Dimension Ripper and gave iClipse an Enrage which iClipse used to win. So it can go both ways. And believe me when using Dimension Ripper, you do have to plan your deck to make sure you're not likely to give your opponent anything of too great of value (which is why any Elemental player who uses Dimension won't ever include Soul Reaper in the same deck).

[Demnchi]

Luck is a part of the game with or without dimension ripper, and using DR does require some lucky pulls. However, keep in mind that it does draw you cards and the disruption it causes can be very beneficial in its own right. Not to mention there are ways of making this beneficial to you only (such as using it when your opponent has a full hand.) its not an all or nothing luck card and there are ways to take advantage of the chaos it creates in a skillful manner, especially based off what you pull as it changes your options. Using those options are still skillful choices in my own personal opinion. I'm sure more skilled players can give you more specifics as to why, but I will say that its another tool in the tool box and KA Leo used it very well, and GoLD played against it very well as well.

[Raphael Majere]

DR is still being used because of what it can do at its cost.

I don't like it's wildness but as with most players, we don't have much choice.

Zaladar at t5 going first, is able to activate it's ability for the first time. Combined with DR, zal can deal a very powerful 5 dmg or rather, a 3 dmg and a 2 dmg, helping to secure the board once and for all. FT on t5? Great going second, but why would I want to kill/hurt my own allies when I am going first?

At this time, there is no other weapon at t5 for zal.

Amber, naturally, wants her weapons to last as long as possible, ok, JD is automatic, but i would also want a weapon that can deal 4 dmg. sabre? Yeah ok, but at only 2 dura and virtually suboptimal vs heroes who don't use attachments. RLS has a similar problem: it makes sense to invest in a weapon that has more dura for amber.

DR comes in. Again, like zal, amber has no choice. RW? Yeah, but I need a JD or Tree to enter the graveyard first.

[Seraphihuang]

luck is the beauty part of the game.

[Spirits]

You should've paid attention to last years WC, where Jacqui (at least I think it was Jacqui, someone can correct me if I'm wrong) lost to iClipse in the final four round I believe because he used Dimension Ripper and gave iClipse an Enrage which iClipse used to win. So it can go both ways. And believe me when using Dimension Ripper, you do have to plan your deck to make sure you're not likely to give your opponent anything of too great of value (which is why any Elemental player who uses Dimension won't ever include Soul Reaper in the same deck).

exactly my point.. it can go both ways. which puts less emphasis on deck design. (not no emphasis.. we have seen the brilliant edgenel)

and @ tman507: it is a great card.. but to bring it to the finals, then you must have in the back of your mind that im going in kamikaze.. either win or lose.
I have to say it was a good idea betting the opponent brings good cards.. buts it is betting non the less

I just feel that someone playing a final should think im going in to win, not lets put more cover of night and hope he gets it

[Shadow Mann]

Yes...because you'll find KA Leo's deck loaded with "cover of night"...c'mon, seriously?

[Spirits]

Yes...because you'll find KA Leo's deck loaded with "cover of night"...c'mon, seriously?

of course not seriously.. it is a joke

[Warr Byrd]

Shadow Era is designed for all kinds of players, both those who are competitive and those playing for fun. I think Dimension Ripper was primarily intended for fun play and not meant to be seen in top level competitive play. From that point of view, the fact that it showed up in the World Championship Finals is a good thing, in that the players are finding good interactions and strategies that were not intended by the designers. If the strategy is particularly strong, the design team then has to go and try to find ways to create cards that counter that strategy, thereby helping the game to grow. Look at Millstalker. Totally unintended strategy, wasn't even found by a player until after the set was locked. Come Dark Prophecies, the Design Team made cards that were hard counters to the Millstalker strategy. Since those cards were somewhat unsuccessful (the number of Millstalkers has been reduced, but most players find the cards too specific for Millstalker to run them in their decks), Shattered Fates is going to introduce more cards that should help in countering Millstalker.

[Airact]

The ability to calculate odds and effective values of cards is what makes good players good. I see nothing wrong in Dimension Ripper being used.