There and Back Again: A Monster’s Train

So the entire ‘mission’ of this blog from the get go was to play on $30 a month. I found that with 4-5 months, as long as you stay committed to a single monster or faction, it was fairly easy to construct an army that I thought was competitive. I’m sure with another $20-$30 in singles from Monsterpocalypse Now + some trading on the community site I will be able to spice up my Sky Sentinel army with all of the new units and buildings. At that point I really wouldn’t have to spend any money except for tournaments, which just adds to my tradable list to get even more of what I want.

The Question

It’s obvious that I’ll be able to compete on less than $30 at this point. That being said, where does this blog go from here?

Well… I must admit I wasn’t really all that excited about Monsterpocalypse Now! for a while. Even after seeing monsters at GenCon I still was just so so about the set. But then I just couldn’t get that train wielding ape out of my head. Terrence spoiled his stats on our site and I was in love.

I keep thinking about that ape with the train… Gakura they call him. I’ve seen his stats and I logically keep thinking how simply decent he’ll be unless he gets some amazing units OR his brawl units happen to be decently fast. Hopefully he gets one or the other. He has access to the Terrasaurs (which I think have been vastly under-rated until this point), so maybe he has a shot.

Does he have what it takes to be top tier? This question led me to thinking whether it is even worth running a monster from the new set, other than simply because they just look so fun. Terrence had written a series about old monsters new tricks. So I wanted to write about new monsters, new tricks.

So what’s the upside to running a new monster?

Advantages

They are new. Nothing quite beats the experience of ripping open plastic (notice I say nothing about those darn, hand cutting, cardboard boxes?) and fielding brand new monsters and units that you’ve never even seen played before. Like I’ve mentioned, the idea of sending my train wielding ape across the map to wreck your monster is just too tempting. But let’s talk strategy, not pure gamer ecstasy, for at least a moment.

The primary strategic advantage is also because the units and monster are new. Players haven’t played against the new monsters or units repeatedly and so they are bound to make mistakes. On a tactical level there are plenty of small things they are likely to do without knowing the ensuing pain that is sure to follow.

Any other advantages? Well I can’t really say right now. They will have access to old units, so there isn’t a huge disadvantage. There are certain abilities, etc. that aren’t cross factional, but overall they at least have access to equal amounts of minions.

Without the information on all the figures from the new set, there really isn’t much else we can figure out as far as strategy is concerned. Maybe their stats will be unique in a way that they are good against the current standard units and monsters in Monsterpocalypse. Maybe not.

Nonetheless, I will be doing some theory-crafting later – on with my hopeful new monster and old units / buildings.

Disadvantages

They are new. Ha. While yes there is some strategical and tactical advantages to fielding new monsters and units, the old monsters and factions have 3 full sets of faction-filled units backing them up. They also have installations.

Even further, they can splash agenda units from Monsterpocalypse Now! and get some of the same ‘newness’ benefits. On top of this, old armies and monsters can also add in the new buildings, potentially giving them enough ‘new’ to put them over the top in the early weeks after release.

Going with an older monster also gives you the experience curve. Example. Let’s say I am rocking out to Gakura next month and I’m playing Jonathan and his uncontrollable Martians. While it is true I might have some advantages because he doesn’t really know how the apes work quite yet, he has an advantage in that he has spent countless hours more with his martians than I have with my apes.

Now, 6-8 weeks after the release things are going to start calming down. Players are going to start figuring out what really works and you won’t be able squeak by wins with sub-par monsters (cou*planet eaters*gh). So if you are in to that winning thing, you’ll have to use those 6-8 weeks to find the good stuff.

Monsterpocalypse Now!

This is where things get really interesting. I’m hoping that Privateer is as awesome, or more so, than I think they are. If they are really good, then they made the new factions in Monsterpocalypse Now! capable of competing with the old stuff. It is possible that by using a new monster, the faction units available in one set, either splashing off faction or same agenda units, and using old and new buildings that the new factions can compete.

Right now it’s all theorycraft, so hopefully I’ll revisit this topic 6-8 weeks after release. Until then, I’m going to do some theory crafting about Gakura… oh Gakura.

The Answer

So where is this blog going now? Before, I had a monthly budget. I still want to write content to help those of us who don’t want to spend a ton of money on a gaming habit, but I’m going to shake things up.

I’m going to be trying to build a competitive army using a monster from Monsterpocalypse Now!. But wait, that’s not all. Instead of having a monthly budget, I’m simply going to try and play on as little money as possible. Any bets on how much money I’ll have to spend to get a competitive Gakura army?

Catch my next blog as I examine Sky Sentinel versus Gakura and see how things are going to shake out. I might even make a pre-order.