The Wulven Apprentice

With four candidates now gone, our remaining five started work on their sixth task: a card creation contest in tandem with the community!



Task 6 Details

Task: Select THREE cards from the recent Community Card Contest and add TWO of your own to them, to end up with five cards that you believe will collectively be a great addition to the game.

Purpose: This task is meant to represent one of the hardest parts of being on the Design Team, where you are faced with a MOUNTAIN of ideas and need to select and refine the ones you want to use in your next set!

Guidance: Please use the judging criteria from Task 2 to help you. In other words, don't stray too far from Shadow Era as we know it. We would love to have the option to add your cards to a set in the near future, and that can't happen if it requires the game to change too much.

Tweaking: You can tweak the contest entries that you will use but you can't do a full redesign. So balancing them or changing name and artwork is OK, but completely replacing the ability is not.

Twerking: Optional.

External help: No external help is allowed, although you do not need to do your own artwork. You can select any existing unlicensed work to use on your cards, providing you give credit to the artist and the artist has not explicitly stated you are not allowed to use their work.

Winning Team: A public poll will decide 80% of the outcome, Wulven judges will decide 20%.


The Submissions

Both teams submitted their card designs in text form, with links to artwork to be used. Wulven then produced the card images for them, based on what had been submitted verbatim (i.e. it's all been done as specified, with no wordings altered or anything else.)

Please check them out via the links below:


Nocturnal Advantage
Caleb and Sean (Joint Project Managers)
View Their Cards Here


Random Heroes
(a.k.a. Team GMT+)
Shawn (Project Manager),
Steven, Tomm
View Their Cards Here


The Results

The public poll put Random Heroes ahead by only 1 vote, but the Wulven judges agreed, sending both remaining Nocturnal Advantage candidates into the Wulven Lair.





Caleb

Hello again - First, I just want to say that whatever happens in the Lair this time, this contest has been enjoyable for me even in the hard times, and I feel like I've gained a lot from participating in it. I would be grateful and pleased to be selected to stay, but if this is the end of my ride I still will not come away from it empty-handed, because I've learned a great deal about my own capabilities and about the careful collaborative effort that goes into producing such a cohesive and engaging product. I think that even if I do not land my dream job from this contest, I will be able to apply the skills I have developed in many areas in the future.


1. How do you think your team did on the task?
I think this time around, our team came at the task with big ideas and a lot of heart, but we failed to do as careful a revision of our material as we should have. I think our biggest mistake, hands down, was Green Knight. The short version of it is that we simply should have chosen another card for this slot. The more in-depth explanation to our rather huge error here is that we mismanaged our time somewhat with the deadline approaching, devoting too much thought and effort to finalizing our art choices, coming to agreements on our flavor text, and writing our justifications for the card designs. We should have spent more time by far in doing things like revising the text on our cards, checking the power level on them, and reevaluating whether or not we had chosen the most interesting and rewarding cards for our three selections for the contest. (I think Sean and I both agree retrospectively that we had used Swamp Turtle for this slot instead, but we felt at the time that it didn't fit our theme well enough.) Green Knight's design, as submitted to the card creation contest we evaluated was already a touch on the powerful side, but relatively balanced. It was originally a 1/5 for 6cc, unique human ally, with the -2 damage from all sources ability, and an activated ability where he could kill target opposing ally for 3SE. We thought the idea had potential, and I was particularly excited because I thought the concept could help slower human strategies which relied less on playing allies in the early phases of the game. I have always noticed that many of the human side's more expensive allies are better with additional allies on their side, whereas expensive shadow allies are more capable of holding their own solo-- compare Aeon and Karlstrad to Ogloth and Kairos for example. The conceptual problem we had with Green Knight was that we found the design too similar to both Armored Sandworm and Ogloth the Glutton. Ironically, our revisions failed to make anything about the card more balanced or unique, but instead we ended up carelessly slapping too many good abilities (many of which lacked uniqueness) onto an ally with good stats. It really should have been an easy error to catch but neither of us did, which makes me feel terrible. Understandably negative reactions to this mistake completely dominated the response to our submission this week, and I think that, along with aspects of poor presentation like forgetting to include rarities and having rules text which still needed revision, really detracted from having people be able to notice the good things about our submission.
Sean and I put a lot of thoughtful consideration into this task as far as which heroes we believed deserve to be strengthened in today's metagame, choosing this as our theme, and I am proud of the concepts behind our work. I think that with just a little more time management and tlc, we could have really had a knockout submission, but sadly we didn't come together as a duo in enough of an organized fashion to catch all of our glitches, and I think it really weakened our standing in this task.


2. How do you think you personally did on the task?
I think that besides having perhaps the greater share of responsibility in our problems with Green Knight, since I was the one who initially pegged him as a strong pick for one of our selections, I did well on this task. I did a large share of the work on this task, which included selecting Quelling Force and Green Knight (*sigh*), and co-selecting Wildfire Trap (submitted as 'Land Mine,') which was on both of our top pick lists. I also designed Conviction of Faith (a concept I am very proud of, although I realize it needs a rewording badly), and I found the artwork that we agreed to use for all of our cards except for Value of the Ill-Gotten. I also wrote our mission statement and the justifications for our card selections and designs, with Sean's input and feedback. This task did coincidentally happen during a rough time for me, because I tripped and fell on some stairs the night of the 6th and hit my head, so my doctor advised me to take prescription painkillers to manage my discomfort. I do not mention this by way of providing an excuse, because I feel like I was able to still do a lot of work on this task and I am happy with how most of it went, I just think that our work needed more polish and revision, and I think if I had not been required to be on medication that I would have been able to focus more effectively.
However we both could have done more to coordinate with one another and try to keep our efforts smoothly running on deadline, and I really think that our lack of careful revision is what cost us the most this time. I am equally to blame for the coordination and scheduling problems we had, and I realize it reflects poorly that our submission lacked the degree of polish it needed.


3. Why do you think your team lost?
I think our team lost, first and foremost because of a lack of revision. We had some problematic oversights, such as forgetting to include rarities for our cards, not working well with the stipulation that at least one of our original designs should work with one of our selections, and the general rewrite needed on Conviction of Faith. However, this lack of revision is most evident in how we failed to achieve a balanced and dynamic design on Green Knight. We had concerns that the design was too similar to already existing cards, and as we tried to find a separate niche for it to occupy, we began to develop concerns that we were making it too overpowered, but it seemed that the more we tried to make him unique, the more derivative and overpowered our design became. As I have mentioned, there were other card designs submitted which we felt strongly compelled towards, and I think we would have been better off using one of these, because Green Knight is a concept which I believe is potentially interesting, but it is problematic to revise in such a way that the card is well-balanced and also individually unique (since its initial suggested design shares similarities with Sandworm and Ogloth, and was already powerful enough to warrant examination.) As I've mentioned, I think the personal difficulties I had that week contributed to our poor showing. I know I still put in a lot of hard work on the project, but if I hadn't needed prescription strength painkillers that week, I know my work would have been more focused, and I'm sure we would have caught more of our mistakes. Sean was also very busy that week with his grad school, so I think those circumstantial difficulties on both our ends led to us getting a bit lost in some of the details without keeping sight of the larger picture. I do remember expressing concern over many of the things which ended up costing us points: that I was worried Green Knight was inappropriately powerful, that Conviction of Faith should be phrased more cleanly, and even midway through the task that our two cards we created didn't have enough synergy with the three we had selected. I think that my experience as project manager on task two should have served me better as far as providing oversight for our submissions, since my careful attention to balance and detail paid off so well that week. But since Sean and I preferred to work as a partnership on this assignment rather than assigning one of us as project manager over the other one, I think I paid less attention than I could have to overseeing the quality of our product for each step it took down the line. We both got absorbed in the details, but moved along without enough double-checking of what we had just done, and this is how the glitches slipped through. If I had been more on point that week and Sean had been less pressed for time and attention with his class work, I think we would have taken much more serious note of these concerns, and the conversation today regarding the outcome of this task could well have been a very different one.


4. Why do you think you shouldn't be fired?
I think I shouldn't be fired primarily because I ended up doing more of the work on this assignment, for better or worse. I think I put more time and effort than Sean was able to on nearly every aspect of the work that went into our submission on this task, and not because I was particularly stubborn, but because I simply did more of the work that needed to be done. The theme we ended up using- "underdog strategies," was my idea. I thought this would be a good theme because it would give us access to a wide array of possibilities in selecting our designs, and that it would allow us to suggest ways to strengthen areas of the metagame which could use the boost. Sean never suggested another theme that I recall, although I asked a few times if there was any concept he would rather structure our cards around. When I went through the submissions to the card contest, I made notes about my reaction to each of the many designs I selected as runners-up for the three slots we had available to fill. I tried to encourage debate between us as to the merits of our selections and provide reasoned analysis as to how the cards would affect Shadow Era's metagame, but our discussion of this could have been more in depth, and I felt like Sean's appraisal of cards was somewhat less thought out at first, and that I would sometimes have to draw him into conversation about the cards. I feel like I also spent a bit more time considering artwork for our cards than Sean did, looking back on our process. I did almost all of the tracking down which artworks were already used for licensed properties and thus unavailable for our selection, and I found four out of five pieces of artwork which we both agreed on for our cards. I also did the writing for our card justifications, with Sean providing input as to our reasoning. I also think that if you compare Conviction of Faith, the card I designed, to Sean's Value of the Ill-Gotten, although you will see that the phrasing on mine (which underwent both of our approval) still needs revision, I believe it is also worth considering that my card would go much farther in its intended purpose of helping Jericho than Sean's would in its intended purpose of helping Serena. Personally, I don't believe that this is because mine is undercosted or overpowered, or because Value of the Ill Gotten is overcosted or underpowered-- I was actually the one who suggested the cost of Sean's card be lowered from 4cc to 3cc. Even so, Value of the Ill Gotten is a pretty conditional card which only helps you significantly if you are already in a winning position in the game, whereas Conviction of Faith effectively only asks for you to have an ally in play, and for four resources it will make them a more significant threat. However, Conviction also gives Jericho in particular a versatile removal card which Zhanna can't use nearly as effectively, whereas Lance can use Value almost as well as Serena can. I believe that mine does what it sets out to do more effectively, and works better with the theme that we chose for our submission.
It is extremely discouraging for me to be back in the Lair once more, especially since Kyle said I was looking tasty last time, but I feel that I honestly found a way to spend more time and energy on this task than Sean did, and that more of the material that made it into our final submission was achieved by my efforts than his. I think that Sean is good at this type of work, but that he has to split his focus between a lot of things, and for the past two tasks that I have worked with him, some sort of scheduling conflicts were always an issue for him, whereas I found ways to make myself more available and spend more hours on the project.
Being on the losing side in this competition so many times has been an extremely stressful experience for me; but it has also made me ask myself each time: Do I myself still feel like I might be the best applicant for this position? I consider that question sincerely and each time after a while I think, "Yes, I just might be." While during several moments there have been lessons which I took away from the tasks as to how I might do them better, I have always felt that I can say with confidence that I am hungry for the challenge and that I enjoy every single part of the process tremendously. I have consistently shown myself to be a hard worker and an enthusiastic, constructive collaborator. Working to design a collectible card game has always been one of my dream jobs since I was twelve years old, but I never thought I would have the chance until I saw the announcement for this contest. If I am given another chance and selected to stay, I can promise that I will dedicate my effort towards achieving great things for Shadow Era. I haven't ever had a chance for a job which I wanted more than this one, and although we stumbled on this challenge and I assume my fair share of the responsibility for that without compunction, I still have great things in store if I get another chance. My enthusiasm for this competition has only ever increased, and if I make it to the next round I will give it my all.


5. Any other comments to Kyle?
I've already been exceedingly verbose, so I will simply say it's a pleasure. Thank you for having me in the competition.


Sean

1. How do you think your team did on the task?
I think that Caleb and I did a great job on this task. It was hard work given that there were only two of us and we both had other commitments to attend to, but we both persevered and pushed forward to bring out a strong submission. Our goal (and theme) was to strengthen lesser used Heroes and Strategies and (aside from one) our cards I truly believe would have accomplished our goal. We had some issues obviously, but overall I think we did an amazing job working together to finish the task at hand while working to achieve our goals.


2. How do you think you personally did on the task?
I think I worked very hard on this task and did a great job on it. At the beginning of the task, I went through every submission in the contest twice, and wrote down any ones I thought had potential for the game. This document ended up comprising of at least 200 cards, and it was a feat to get that down. In terms of picking our 3 chosen cards to submit, Caleb and I brought up many cards and pretty quickly agreed on using Quelling Force and Wildfire Trap (originally Land Mine, but we changed the name to fit better with the Shadow Era Lore) and began looking at how to tweak them if needed. To be honest I was not entirely comfortable with going with Green Knight, and kept suggesting alternative cards to use instead, me being worried that Green Knight would be OP and at the very least would be hard to justify as being a part of our theme since it didn’t help a specific hero, but rather a deck strategy. Additionally, I was the sole author of the Value of the Ill Gotten card, worked to tweak the card and took into account everything the card could affect before I suggested it to Caleb. We had a few debates on the final wording and effects of the card, and in the end I think the hard work paid off on that card. My final official responsibility was searching for artwork for the cards we had chosen, went through a lot of suggestions of my own and Caleb’s, and kept looking and debating until we had found the art work we thought was perfect for our 5 cards. After we submitted our cards and they were made public, I took up the unofficial task of trying to explain anything that wasn’t clear to the community and our reasons behind our choices.


3. Why do you think your team lost?
I think there were 2 main reasons we lost this task. The first and most obvious is the choice of the Green Knight. As I have posted above, I was not as convinced we should use this card as Caleb was, and in the beginning of suggesting our 3 contest cards I kept suggesting multiple replacements for that card, such as Steel Lizard or Swamp Turtle. Admittedly I was drawn into the idea of using the Green Knight, and even though initially I fought to keep its attack low, 1 or 2 usually what I suggested, I eventually relented to allowing its attack to be what it ended up as. I was also very worried about his connection to Armored Sandworm, how similar they were, and for a while we leaned on making him more like Ogloth the Glutten, but we panicked on that too and in the end we chose to lean more on the AS side, and the results can be seen. The second major reason we lost was our submission formatting which in itself breaks down into 3 key aspects. One bit of this was clear, we forgot the rule that at least one of our cards had to work with one of the 3 we had chosen. While it had not been in the official task assignment, we were explicitly told by Gondorian of this requirement, and unfortunately both of us forgot to implement that rule in our submission. The second part of our submission formatting that we did not implement was rarity. In the second task, the one that Team Nocturnal Advantage won despite losing the popular vote, we witnessed just how important it is to include rarity on the cards, as labeling something as a rare or epic card allows for a stronger effect then if it was simply a common, for example. The fact that we forgot this simple thing is upsetting, and I am amazed we did not think of it. Lastly, the wording on some of our cards could have certainly been better. I think the biggest example of this was Caleb’s card Conviction of Faith. When he suggested this card, I liked the idea very much, and I was so enthralled with the idea, that I failed to notice two issues with the wording. The first was that Sacrifice is already a key term in Shadow Era, and thus could not be used in the sense that the card meant it to. The second was that, so far in Shadow Era, the game does not make a player actively do anything if it is not their turn. This card’s wording would have allowed for situations where a player may have been forced to act during their opponent’s turn, which could have drastic effects on the game. Conviction of Faith was certainly not the only card wrought with poor wording, and I think overall we should have been more careful in reading over and hammering out our card submissions before we allowed ourselves to send them in for final submission.


4. Why do you think you shouldn't be fired?
I know I have said this many times, but I know I can give a lot to Shadow Era and Wulven Game Studios. I have constantly and consistently put Wulven Apprentice as a top priority above any other job I have and on equal footing as any homework project or assignment I have at FIEA. A lot of my time went into this task, and I fervently defended and explained our submissions. I can admit to our mistakes and I am happy to say that I have learned from them, but I am still very proud of the work we did, stood my ground, and I want very much to continue to work with this game and competition. With each task I have learned very valuable skills and lessons that I can use to keep moving this game forward at an exponential rate, and I have been very grateful for the experience. It would kill me if I lost the opportunity to take what I have learned in both this competition and in my schooling and apply it all for the benefit of this game and its amazing community. My ultimate goal, as I have said before, is to be able to help bring this game up to staggering new heights in both the digital and even physical realm, because I know it has the ability to be #1 in both.


5. Any other comments to Kyle?
I still have plenty to offer this competition, game, and company. This is a dream opportunity for me, and want to do everything I can to win this job. My personal background in playing card games all of my life gives me ample ability to know what sets Shadow Era apart from the rest of its peers and to know what to do to keep that up. My educational background in game design and game programming gives me a good technical understanding of how this game operates both in front of and behind the scenes, and gives me a lot to offer the game. I am extremely proud of everything I have done with Wulven Apprentice, and I am equally grateful for all of the important lessons that I have learned. This experience has massively increased my love and enthusiasm for this game. All of my experience, education, knowledge, and passion are at your disposal Kyle, I hope you will be able to take full advantage of it and I hope that you will show mercy and allow me to continue to keep learning and giving to this game that I adore.


Kyle's Decision

The main reasons that the Design Team gave as to why Nocturnal Advantage lost points was that their wording was terrible in places, and it did not even seem like an effort was made to polish it. The Green Knight would be easily the most overpowered card in SE history, and the team didn't give the rarity for any of the cards they submitted. They also didn't follow the guidance about designing 2 cards to work with the 3 they picked.

These are all important lessons to be learned, particularly since this wasn't the first card creation challenge.

It's been quite a while since I had a bite to eat, giving our candidates a much needed break. And it remains a very difficult task to select who I should dine on next. Any of the remaining candidates would make a fine addition to our team. Now it's time to start looking at everyone's specific talents and strengths, and also how well they might do in a team environment. Although not easy, that's what today's decision was based on.

Caleb, now you're mine!





This week marks the end of the tasks portion of the competition. The remaining four candidates will be interviewed and everyone will enter the Wulven Lair for the final decision!