Ascension game for iOS

Hey RyanMM just a heads up that I kinda quit Ascension months ago in frustration over getting my ass handed to me repeatedly by these nice folks that are happily friending you as we speak :)

But I'm glad to be friends anyway :D

I've only played the game 4 times (2 with humans IRL, 2 with the app) so if you need a punching bag, let me know. lol

Japrufrock on that gamethingie.

Since Spoofy wuzzed out I have been the punching bag for Tyjenks and Sinnick, so feel free to offer me respite (or kick me while I'm down).

Hanzii - Great game!

RyanMM - accept my challenge! Begin your ascent into Ascension!

Big baby.

I'm sending you a challenge too RyanMM.

Cool, I think I'm finally ready to break free of the confines of the offline mode. I'll see if I can stealborrow my wife's phone tonite.

I played a million AI games before I felt even a little comfort in playing real people although I started playing some human opponents relatively early on. Too many games against the AI can cause you to develop bad habits that will work against it,, but not so well against real people. Plus it is great to beat up on people you know and when you make a play you can feel their fury on the other end of the interwebs bleeding through to your end. Unless it drives them from the game as happened to Mr SpoofyChop. :)

I actually refuse to speak to Tyjenks any more. We have to communicate through intermediaries. If you see that jerk tell him he deserves hemorrhoids and hairy ears.

;)

Tell SpoofyChop, "You are" for me.

If I didn't have such good luck playing the game, I think I would quit too. As you said when you quit, the frustration from the times luck does play a large factor is infuriating. I still think about taking a break as it has kinda become my sole competitive outlet and I am pretty competitive. Not good for the psyche getting pissed in the middle of a workday at a stupid card game when you have a shitload of work to do. I liken it to the pain losing in poker on the river when you have played perfectly and then some bastard gets that 1 card left in the deck he needs. I can't really point to what I do or do not do that makes me win more than I lose. It has led Mr. Dave Perkins and I to wonder whether some folks build a better feel or intuition for what plays you need to make at different times. I really don't know. I know I am about 300 games over .500, so something is different from when I was playing and breaking even.

RyanMM, a bunch of strategy hints this early won't help that much, but as mentioned over and over, knowing what to do in the beginning, middle and end portion of the game is one of the more important things. Your play should change as the game goes on and if you are trying to stick with a certain strategy and you see it not working out, you should change. Not sure how much you have played, so that even might not make much sense, but just give it some thought as you play more games and Good Luck. Ascension is a terrific game that still gets me excited to play and makes me want to throw my phone against the wall when I lose.

You know who else is good? cnahr Stupid 1-point loss.

[throws phone against the wall]

I really prefer to play games with dumb people and then beat them. I used to love playing with my daughters when they were younger but now they're like 9 and 10 and they kick my ass half the time.

What's a dad to do?

Tyjenks, my biggest problem in any game (Dominion for example) is that I have a lot of trouble taking into account my opponent's strategies when doing my strategy. I'd like to think I do a pretty good job of choosing highly optimal moves in any given turn.

You kind of get a feel for what your opponent is doing and then it becomes a game of denial. Either getting the cards you know they want, which may or may not really help your deck, or banishing them. Ascension is really a balancing act since you have to take into account what is in your deck and how to help it, deny your opponent and then forecast what you are going to do to manage the cards in the middle. To tell you the truth, I rarely use the card log and don't actively keep track of what my opponent is doing a lot of the time, which is bad. A lot of this is because I have 5-10 games going at all times for the most part and am too lazy to spend the time doing extra analysis. If it is at all possible, I think this game has given me ADD in playing it and in that I check my phone incessantly. :)

Yeah, the card log seems like a chore to use and is really hard to parse on the iPhone. I could see it being more useful on a tablet.

Tyjenks nixon66 how I do I start a game with you guys?

We should have challenged you and those games should be found in after you select Play Online under the "Game List" option.

Did you already challenge me?

Yessiree. My game list has a challenge awaiting "RyanMeray".

Yay! As soon as my wife is done using her damn phone to TALK TO PEOPLE (OMG WTF?) I'll be all like "CHALLENGE ACCEPTED MOTHERFUCKER."

WAITING! WAITING! sinnick Tyjenks I shiver with anticipation!

Hanzii I had to decline your invite because I don't have the expansion packs. I have issued a new one though.

1 POINT MOTHERFUCKER

Ryan, which decks do you own? I know you have the base so that's what I used when I sent my invite, but have you bought RotF and/or SoS as well?

Base set only.

Okay cool.

Ahhh, your pain is delicious. :) Great game. This next one is a bumpy one, too. I rarely play just the base game any more. This is fun!!

Ouch. That was less fun. I hate the Avatar. Not that it made much difference in a 30 point massacre. Gotta go to bed. Can continue tomorrow night!

Holy shit sinnick you are chaining cards together like a motherfucker. That's ridiculous.

GG Tyjenks. I got really lucky in my run with some of those cards. Couldn't have asked for a better outcome.

Jesus sinnick was that a perfect Mechana game or what?

Good game Ryan! I had to start jumping for it when you grabbed that early lead.

I didn't realize I had an early lead! I have a really bad time actually judging how I'm doing in a game. Another one of those weaknesses of mine.

I'm happy to say I am 2/4 tonite between sinnick and Tyjenks and now I've gotta peace out. Thanks for the games guys!

I broke my rule about giving advice in that I generally just don't give much. It never fails that I end up doing so, immediately get slaughtered by the advicee and look like a blowhard. :)

If it's any consolation, you weren't telling me something I didn't already know. ;)

RyanMM is kicking my asssssss!!!!

My gamecenter handle is rh4096 (damn it's hard to find one that's not already in use, those bastards). I got the game today since it's on sale. When I started it I had no idea what it is or what I'm doing. Then I went through the tutorial and one offline game and now I have no idea what it is or what I'm doing.

Guys, halp! I keep winning against the AI by just dragging around cards that are highlighted for me without any sense or porpoise. What's the skill required to play this game?

That sounds a lot like solving puzzles in an adventure game by just clicking on everything until something happens. Which is sort of the way I play. And why I also haven't started Ascension yet (which has sat on my phone and now my iPad for some time).

Play against humans! :) sending an invite.

Okay I've been playing with sinnick a bit - how come he wins even when I have more stars? I guess I just don't get what this game is about. And why would I want to get rid of cards I have (sometimes that is an option)?

I think you have a really good grasp on the game for someone who just started!

So something to be aware of is the honour value of cards. In particular note that Mechana have an honour value that's 1:1 with their purchase cost. These cards can be good to buy late in the game if you want to snap up points.

As for banishing, it's one of the most important things you can do early on, because if you get rid of weak cards, subsequent hands will be much more powerful. And all the cards in your starting deck are worth no honour, so can be banished without losing anything.