Syndicate - Thoughts Before Release

[DRK3]

So, ofc we cant talk yet with 100% certainty about the new faction before trying it, but since most cards have been released by now, we can start sharing our predictions and thoughts about it.

1st, i like that this new faction seems truly complex, compared to the existing ones, it might bring a layer of complexity that Gwent lost.

2nd, the coins mechanic - i noticed there are no cards to influence your opponent's purse, in case of a mirror match. This worries me a bit. For example, a player can start by using specials to get coins on the first few turns, reducing interactivity, a bit like no-units decks, which were dealt with so recently.

For example, a player can start with playing a few artefacts, denying possible damage from the opponent, but there's artefact removal as a counter. If a player is just getting coins with specials, there's nothing you can do about it.

3rd, this new faction divided into gangs, almost feels like 4/5 new mini-factions. I suppose each is an archetype:

The Fire guys with swarm strategy, similar to NG with Daerlan Soldiers/ Slave Infantry and Vreemde/Vrygheff.
The Intimidate dwarves are to Crimes like Ardal is to Tactics.
The 'Insanity' gang might a bit like Skellige self damage.
There is even a card that boosts with every special played during the match, like Scoiatel used to have (but this one is bronze, unlike the others that were 3x bronze)

It's good to have variety and being able to mix all these cards in a deck, but i fear the devs are looking at these archetypes individually, and when its released some crazy combo with cards of different gangs will be found and break the game, needing an urgent patch. Lets hope not, though.

What are your thoughts?

 

[4RM3D]

2nd, the coins mechanic - i noticed there are no cards to influence your opponent's purse, in case of a mirror match.

There was during PTR, but it was universally hated and very limited in scope (and really gimmicky). As such, the card has been changed.

3rd, this new faction divided into gangs, almost feels like 4/5 new mini-factions.

I would like to point out that every faction can play 3 multi-faction cards from the Syndicate. This division, as you have mentioned, would actually make sense, not only gameplay-wise, but also lore-wise.

 

[Raziel_888]

2nd, the coins mechanic - i noticed there are no cards to influence your opponent's purse, in case of a mirror match. This worries me a bit. For example, a player can start by using specials to get coins on the first few turns, reducing interactivity, a bit like no-units decks, which were dealt with so recently.

For example, a player can start with playing a few artefacts, denying possible damage from the opponent, but there's artefact removal as a counter. If a player is just getting coins with specials, there's nothing you can do about it.

I got the same worries, but I'm pretty sure it'll be countered quickly. Firstly, the coins being divided by 2 each round make it (looks like at least) not very useful to spend first round doing this... And the special cards giving crowns may lack tempo.

Overall I'm really eager to get into it and try new decks with all of this material.
I like the fact that this faction looks like it has an distinct identity compared to the existing ones.
And I really like the idea of double faction cards. I think it might make them really hard to balance, considering all the possible synergies with one or the other to adjust the provision cost but it sounds cool. And if it works out, I hope they will soon add dual faction cards between the others, rather than all of them being 1/2 syndicate.
It reminds me of the double color cards in magic. I allows for more diversity.

 

[KoncertMajstor]

1. I also like that they're bringing in more complexity. Having cards that go beyond "damage this, boost that" is always welcome -- I mean, at its core, that's what the game is, but I'm glad they're trying new ways to deliver that. I'd also like to add that this faction seems a bit more solitaire, and is less focused on instantly destroying your opponent. While I think removal is important, I feel like things die very quickly in their current state.
2. Like I said about the solitaire, I'm ok with this conceptually, as I like when gwent has both players building up giant boards and doing their thing, but we'll see when it comes out.
3. Would you say that the other factions also have this going on (such as dwarves, and elves archetypes in ST). Granted, this faction does feel a bit more "defined" but we'll see how well things mix when it comes out. Mixing bandits with zealots seems a bit off, but Gwent decks are rarely super thematic anyway.

 

[sfruzz]

The coins mechanic being restricted to a single faction can be a problem in future expansions. It's likely going to be quite a constrain. They need to add new cards with this coins mechanic at each and every expansion: 4 out of 5 SY archetypes heavily dependent on the coin mechanic.

The new faction is like the koalas. They eat only eucalyptus leaves.

 

[Sleeperko]

I just hope that they will completely rework arena. Or at least ban all coin generating/coin spending cards in this mode. It begins to look even more frustrating as it is now....

 

[rrc]

There will be a Hot Fix within a week to nerf a few Gold Cards (and I think even some bronze cards). This will happen 100% surely. There are already so many crazy combinations that seem possible which is ridiculously more powerful than existing cards/decks/archetypes.

My thought on this faction (from SK's PoV): "You bloody SY, you think you are now the most favorite of CDPR? You are like a newly wed spouse, getting all the love (hell lot of love) and attention. But remember, I am SK, the first love and first crush of CDPR. CDPR's love on you will slowly wear away, but I will always remain the most special and the most loved faction of CDPR. Enjoy your honeymoon period. Good Luck"

My thoughts as my own: This is a very very interesting faction which is really very complex, but, thanks to so many broken OP cards, even noobs like me can play it with a lot of success. I will definitely play this faction exclusively after it gets released for at least a week. The coin carryover will only make sense when you win R1 on in R2, you invest the crowns for carry over. In R1, if you want to carry over and invest your crowns heavily, it means that you are playing extremely low tempo cards (if cards are not using fee, they are not playing for their potential) and you may lose on even which will make your life hard. But of course, we can only know it for sure when we get our hands on it. But overall, I am excited about this faction and the coin mechanics.

 

[VONFIDDE]

At the current state of the game, i see no point in playing anything else but Syndicate. We need the challenge and we need factions with strong identity. Will they rework the old factions or? Not that impressed after NG-rework.

 

[BoYoDes]

My believe from what I've glanced so far is that this expansion will turn the struggling game on its head, right when it started to get A BIT balanced. Thus stuff that needed some tweaking will have to wait even more, cause all of the effort will be pointed toward the new faction.

I may be too negative and ultimately proven wrong, but I do not feel any positive vibes for this expansion, starting with its theme and going through the mechanics - maybe we'll have a glimp of what NR could be if not intentionally weakened like it is now.

 

[Luckless_Jack]

I share the same concerns as some of you above.

Will this Midsummer expansion be the Homecoming equivalent of the Beta Midwinter one? If so, this could be a much bigger mess. The Midwinter expansion released on top of a pretty solid existing foundation and still did a lot of damage. I am not sure the game's current foundation is strong enough to cope with another serious misstep.

So why are CDPR rushing this expansion out like they seem to be? Do they think that the game doesn't have the flaws that many of us think it does, and is ready to expand and flourish? Or do they think that if they take the time to stop and fix them that the game may lose what little momentum it currently has? Perhaps they just want to get as much released as they can before the launch on mobile?

Hopefully our concerns are unfounded and the new faction is a great success, both in itself, and for the game as a whole. The existing factions definitely need more work though, no matter how The Syndicate turns out.