Player reputation

build lots of experimental trick decks so nobody has any idea what to expect from you. most of them will be about impractical combos or filled with inefficient cards so they don't know how much of a threat you are.

then for the tournament you bring the one trick deck that worked and has since been polished into a perfect killing machine, taking everyone by surprise.

not that I'm saying I necessarily do this! nosiree, I'm just a bad player :3


also, don't let personal feelings get in the way of earning VPs.
(save the grudges for Battlestar Galactica; send that douche to the brig under the pretense of suspicious cylon activity!)

KevinM wrote:

Players should really play the game and not the player, most of the time. If you think VTES is poker, you're making the game A LOT harder on yourself than it needs to be.

I find that it can help to look at decks someone has played in the past to strategize against them. For instance, players that play a lot of fortitude are more susceptible to Theft of Vitae. This may be the exception that proves the rule, though.

Well in my playgroup, I was seen as my ally's best enemy.
I would play cards that would always imapct my ally more than my prey or predator.

The background on that topic is my game vision was/is different from theirs. Also, I started playing VtES for the 1st time in December '08. Information on playing the game was given to me haphazardly, same for deckbuilding...

Nevertheless, I tend to keep to the spirit of the game and try to keep my deals as much as possible. That is the way I try to be percieved as well.

Playing within the same group, especially if it is smallish, lends to an intimate knowledge of their play style and preferences. This can be both a boon and a bane. For instance, one player makes a remark each game that I will always have something up my sleeve to thwart the oust, being very hard to kill. This I find amusing because I certainly don't try to project that image, yet it he is perpetuating it, perhaps to my advantage. However, what that did do beneficially is cause me to look at the possibility I do take a defensive stance to often, or try and have a contingency plan for almost all things I think I might face in the coming turns. This navel gazing in turn led to the discovery that my belief 'you gotta be in it to win it', largely developed from a firm stance in the play to win arguments, has been colouring my play decisions and limiting the amount of tolerable risk versus potential VP's. I now consciously attempt to 'go for it' much more than before.

On the other hand, there is a certain player in my group I know that the best way to avoid the random bazooka is to not first draw his ire. This means don't be the first to block him, or bleed him, or indeed do anything can can be a perceived as a slight as his one method of defence is to threaten retaliation and not to be called a liar, he will like a dog with a bone go for that player whenever possible for the rest of the game. Also likes to play combat so cross table rushes are a distinct possibility. DO NOT be his first target and watch the table destabilise around you.

All well and good to have such intimate knowledge of your fellow locals but I do find it lends to weaker, sloppier play as you inevitably start to modify your decks, play style and mentality to best deal with those adversaries.

As for tournament play, I try very hard keep my trap shut and minimize extraneous talk. Firstly when speaking to others you have less concentration for the table, in my case especially for my grand predator and grand prey and secondly you risk annoying others with your banter in some unperceivable way.
That said, I am always looking for the opportunity to point something out that is beneficial to another player that also happens to help me at the same time.

In many cases peoples reputations are deserved and should be heeded, just don't pay them too much respect. I think that peoples personality's play a huge part in how they operate their decks. For those that can get a good read on them this can be an advantage.