Hi all, just bought the 2 starters and a few boosters, i've taken my first step into a larger world.....
Id like to see peoples view on the actual Claiming the Battlefield mechanic, could the game be just as good without it or would it be stale if it wasn't in the game...does it add that necessary extra something to the game...be it stratergy/flavour...etc?
"Is going first important?"
I find that the battlefield adds 3 aspects to the game:
Yes and no. Some decks are almost always going to claim the battlefield, while some decks will almost never claim it. In those extremes, it falls a little flat.
In a similar way, some decks won't care that much about what the actual battlefield is, while some decks will really want to use theirs, but the randomness of the starting roll off sort of hurts that.
Ultimately though, yes it's an interesting mechanic that impacts how the game is played. And most of the weaknesses can be patched with future cards (they've even started somewhat with Hyperspace Jump letting you swap the battlefield).
The game is better with another turn ending option. The game would still be playable sans battlefields, but it would lose excitement and stratgey.
The claim ability on battlefields can put a premium on actions. Every action I take is an opportunity for my opponent to take advantage of the battlefield. This intensifies every action and creates a game of musical chairs.
Part of this is knowing when to pass and when to claim. This is a great element of strategy.
The battlefield can definitely have a drastic effect on the outcome of the game. Whether you're using it for it's ability, or so that you can play cards that require you to control it, or even just to go first each round, it is imperative to know when to claim. Some decks don't care about it. Some do. But even the ones that don't can get value out of them. I definitely think that the game would be far less interesting without it as a mechanic.
There's also the aspect of claiming the battlefield essentially ceding the rest of the turn to your opponent. It's a risk/reward game. Do it too soon, and your opponent gets a potentially devastating uninterrupted string of actions. Wait too long, and they might grab it before you do. Anything that offers interesting decisions like that is good for any game.
I have repeatedly killed opponents' characters by claiming Emperor's Throne Room when they thought they were ay-okay safe with the current board state, so yeah, I'd say battlefield mechanics are kinda big.
They battlefield mechanic is great and can add quite a bit of tension to the game. It's another decision point that adds a level of strategy to the game. It even adds some strategy before the game starts, which battlefield to choose and why? I really like it.
There was a game I played recently where if my opponent had claimed the battlefield he would have won, but he didn't see the line of play that I saw and instead did one last action and I claimed, going on to win the game with 1 health left on my last character.