Hey, everyone! I've got sort of a weird question for you guys.

I love this game, and it's been a lot of fun so far, even if I haven't had enough time to play for the past few weeks. I want to become a good player, mostly casual, but I would also like to give a tourney a try if I ever get a chance.

The biggest hurdle I've come across, though, as a humanities person, is the apparent need to know a lot of math to do well at these games (I recently got Netrunner and am thoroughly intimidated by how everyone who plays it seems to swear by click to credit ratios, etc.). Math...isn't my thing. Even so, I'd like, as I said, to be a better player, so what would be the best way to kind of ease myself into some of these concepts? I'm actually a little excited since this would be something new for my brain to try to do, but I would appreciate some advice, if that is OK.

Thank you!

Is this a question for Star Wars or Netrunner?

apart basic algebra (5-3=2) I think you don't need crazy math skills.

what you need is pattern recognition, and this comes from playing lots of game.

you'll start to take blocks/attacks choices based on memory and patterns instead of doing it by making all the possible combinations.

my humble opinion.

Many people, in my personal experience, who play these sorts of games are math-inclined, myself included. But, there are those of us who also have a humanities bent, such as myself. If math isn't your thing, fear not. There are limits to every type of knowledge, and there is a degree of equifinality at play. Let me explain.

In AGoT, for example, you can find myriad articles talking about gold-curves, probabilities of drawing certain cards, etc. But, similar conclusions about what makes an effective deck can be attained via the rational-intuitive method; this is to say by simply playing. You do not need to have run scores of analyses to be a great player.

Yeah, Divinityof# is right... I always believe if you build a good deck, the math sort of takes care of itself.

I believe a good memory is what lets one win consistently in this game- the ability to know what pods have Twists, how many Twists an opponent has played (and has yet to play) and all of that kind of thing... Playing the game like your opponent has a Twist in their hand (seeing a theme here?)... Overall, the game doesn't have the steepest learning curve of the other games I have tried...

Just play what you like. As others have said, familiarity with the cards is the only math you need.

Thank you! Yeah, it kinda figures that, as an ABD in premodern literature, a card game would make me feel like a moron. XD

Really, though, I got kind of paranoid about this after reading Netrunner articles over on CGDB (I just got the Core Set and am interested in playing Anarch). I think some of them were written with the best of intentions, but the come across as very, very condescending towards those of us who are less math-oriented than others. This made me a little paranoid, and I was afraid that the same might be the case in Star Wars, too.

I mean, when it's all said and done, is there really anything wrong with wanting to be a Jedi or Jabba for a day, no matter what the competitive scene is doing?

In the meantime, waiting for Lure of the Dark Side at my LGS. Woo!

Almost every game is all about the numbers when you get down to it.

Almost every game is all about the numbers when you get down to it.

Everything is about the numbers, when you get down to it. Pythagoreans thought that one could unravel the mysteries of existence, if we just learn enough about numbers and mathematics; they viewed numbers as divine, whence my username. But, the question is whether you need to be a wizard in mathematics and/or statistics to be a great card player; the answer is "No."

Are great gymnasts masters of physics and geometry? No. They can be said to have a sort of kinesthetic intelligence, developed over time through trial and error. Card players can develop an effective intuitive sense of probabilities through exposure to the games that they play; one doesn't need to run probability simulations or crunch numbers - we have statistical models that we evaluate game states against that are simply collections of our past experiences. The more we play, the more accurate our intuitive models become. Card games have a part to their engine rooted in probability. Working with those probabilities can be done on paper or done intuitively over the course of playing the game. If you are wondering if your deck has too many high cost cards, you could 1) take the data about the cost of the cards and the turn structure of the game and the probabilities of drawing certain cards on certain turns, and come to some conclusions about what you will usually be able to play on which turns, or 2) you can eyeball the deck when it is laid out on your kitchen table, shuffle it up, play a couple games and realize that you are either drawing too many resources, or are often not able to pay for things, and make a quick tweak or two.

This is what I think of when I think of math in regards to the card games I play...

Know how to count to 5 and 12. Everything else is theory.

I believe that using different tokens can sometimes help with the quick adding, find what works for you. I see some people who like to use all 1s instead of 3s for damage. Some people use dice, but probably can't at a tournament.

Also, take your time looking the board over with each step. Keeping mind of the actual play stages and each step within helps break it down.

Such a great game!!

Know how to count to 5 and 12. Everything else is theory.

Actually, counting isn't math MacRauri.