For the record I despise this card. I feel that Brainwash is an insult to the complexity of Vtes as an excellent game. If there is any one card that I felt shouldn't exist in Vtes it is definitely this card, I mean, in theory, if there are enough players playing enough Brainwash and do not have the luck to have anything less than a 5-cap Vampire in the opening crypt, and everyone is Brainwashed, the game will hang. ya, one in a million chance, but hey, no other cards even have the possibility of doing that. Also, I feel that this card makes the prey very frustrated, as it absolutely shut him down, unless he's also playing with small Vampires, and has some means of recovering from a weenie bleed.
This is in no way deviating from the mighty advantage that this card will bring to you, even if you're not playing a weenie deck, and even more so if you are.
First, Brainwash is not unique, which I think, it should be, as it will greatly reduce the possibility of shutting down games and ruining somebody else's day. Playing Brainwash with a weenie deck is a no brainer, and in my opinion, should be delegated to playing something not as sophisticated as Vtes. It requires very little skill, very little thinking most of the time, and add very little to the enjoyment of the game.
Of course, there are many different decks, and many different environment, and therefore many different ways of playing a Brainwash deck - so I'm sure there are many more ways that I may not have seen, and it is not fair to say that a Brainwash deck doesn't require skills. I've seen first hand good and bad play with Brainwash decks, but I've never seen a table enjoying a Vtes game when a Brainwash deck is in it.
So what makes Brainwash so deadly?
Again, I stress that it is not unique. So, assuming that no other player is helping the prey, and you slap Brainwash after Brainwash on his uncontrolled region - he's gone. He has no game. You win - that's about it. If somebody else burns the Brainwash for him, you will generally get to play one more on him anyway - generally slowing him down a lot and delegate him (usually) to a defensive position (if not wounded him mortally already)
Secondly, add in Pentex Subversion and you will shut down one (and very often the only one) minion that he brought out around your Brainwash. then slap more Brainwashes on him again. Imagine how frustrated he will be.
Then you bleed, usually with a large number of weenies. Very rarely will anybody else on the table being able to do anything much about it, and the prey will die. Most of the time the prey would have achieved absolutely nothing and probably didn't even get to play.
It is one thing being bled to death by stealth bleed, it is altogether another thing when you are not able to do anything throughout the 5 min of your game.
And is the Brainwash deck invincible?
Hardly. Very often most weenie Brainwash decks starts to suffer against their 2nd prey. The second prey will have at least 1, most often several minions ready to fight, and most of the Brainwashes in hand is now rubbish, since influence phase is not a major requirement by turn 6. Brainwash decks will still work of course, they have got 1 VP and 6 extra pool already afterall. Does it change the way a dedicated Brainwash deck works against prey number 2? Nope, not a thing - dedicated Brainwash decks rarely has plan B.
So you can see why I dislike this card so much - I feel that the current incarnation of Brainwash does more damage to the game than provide an interesting card to play with.
But I've also seen Brainwashes being used very creatively, not in straight-forward bleed decks, but were delegated to a more devious mode. I'm talking about the Reality-Trick of Danya decks. This is a CHI theme deck that relies on Reality to move Vampires into the uncontrolled region, lock it with Brainwash, and transfer those prey-invested transfer to your pool with Trick of Danya. It is not exactly the most effective and deadly method of ousting, but it is definitely cool - plus the role of Brainwash in this deck is merely as an accessory - not a necessity - very unlike the more malicious role it has in a weenie Brainwash deck.
I implore players not to play with this card. I hated it. Really. Someone must have Brainwashed me into this conclusion.
(o.o)Brainwashed
Sunday, December 20, 2009
At Your Disposal : Brainwash
For the record I despise this card. I feel that Brainwash is an insult to the complexity of Vtes as an excellent game. If there is any one card that I felt shouldn't exist in Vtes it is definitely this card, I mean, in theory, if there are enough players playing enough Brainwash and do not have the luck to have anything less than a 5-cap Vampire in the opening crypt, and everyone is Brainwashed, the game will hang. ya, one in a million chance, but hey, no other cards even have the possibility of doing that. Also, I feel that this card makes the prey very frustrated, as it absolutely shut him down, unless he's also playing with small Vampires, and has some means of recovering from a weenie bleed.
This is in no way deviating from the mighty advantage that this card will bring to you, even if you're not playing a weenie deck, and even more so if you are.
First, Brainwash is not unique, which I think, it should be, as it will greatly reduce the possibility of shutting down games and ruining somebody else's day. Playing Brainwash with a weenie deck is a no brainer, and in my opinion, should be delegated to playing something not as sophisticated as Vtes. It requires very little skill, very little thinking most of the time, and add very little to the enjoyment of the game.
Of course, there are many different decks, and many different environment, and therefore many different ways of playing a Brainwash deck - so I'm sure there are many more ways that I may not have seen, and it is not fair to say that a Brainwash deck doesn't require skills. I've seen first hand good and bad play with Brainwash decks, but I've never seen a table enjoying a Vtes game when a Brainwash deck is in it.
So what makes Brainwash so deadly?
Again, I stress that it is not unique. So, assuming that no other player is helping the prey, and you slap Brainwash after Brainwash on his uncontrolled region - he's gone. He has no game. You win - that's about it. If somebody else burns the Brainwash for him, you will generally get to play one more on him anyway - generally slowing him down a lot and delegate him (usually) to a defensive position (if not wounded him mortally already)
Secondly, add in Pentex Subversion and you will shut down one (and very often the only one) minion that he brought out around your Brainwash. then slap more Brainwashes on him again. Imagine how frustrated he will be.
Then you bleed, usually with a large number of weenies. Very rarely will anybody else on the table being able to do anything much about it, and the prey will die. Most of the time the prey would have achieved absolutely nothing and probably didn't even get to play.
It is one thing being bled to death by stealth bleed, it is altogether another thing when you are not able to do anything throughout the 5 min of your game.
And is the Brainwash deck invincible?
Hardly. Very often most weenie Brainwash decks starts to suffer against their 2nd prey. The second prey will have at least 1, most often several minions ready to fight, and most of the Brainwashes in hand is now rubbish, since influence phase is not a major requirement by turn 6. Brainwash decks will still work of course, they have got 1 VP and 6 extra pool already afterall. Does it change the way a dedicated Brainwash deck works against prey number 2? Nope, not a thing - dedicated Brainwash decks rarely has plan B.
So you can see why I dislike this card so much - I feel that the current incarnation of Brainwash does more damage to the game than provide an interesting card to play with.
But I've also seen Brainwashes being used very creatively, not in straight-forward bleed decks, but were delegated to a more devious mode. I'm talking about the Reality-Trick of Danya decks. This is a CHI theme deck that relies on Reality to move Vampires into the uncontrolled region, lock it with Brainwash, and transfer those prey-invested transfer to your pool with Trick of Danya. It is not exactly the most effective and deadly method of ousting, but it is definitely cool - plus the role of Brainwash in this deck is merely as an accessory - not a necessity - very unlike the more malicious role it has in a weenie Brainwash deck.
I implore players not to play with this card. I hated it. Really. Someone must have Brainwashed me into this conclusion.
(o.o)Brainwashed
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