Yo dawg, heard you like games... (The Nim Rod)

[Trebuchet MS]

[spoiler Lore]When this card is activated: Place 15 Nim Counters on this card. During each End Phase, the turn player must remove 1, 2, or 3 Nim Counters from this card. When the last Nim Counter is removed from this card: Halve the Life Points of the player who removed that last counter, also send this card to the Graveyard. If this card is destroyed by a card effect while it has 5 or fewer Nim Counters on it: The opponent of that card effect's controller draws 1 card.[/spoiler]

 

Essentially, a subgame of Nim in your card game. If you know the strategy, you have control of the outcome of the game. What awaits the person who's forced to remove the last counter? They lose half their Life Points. This also means there's no beneficial reason to cheat the game with Counter Cleaner.

 

Of course, if you're on the verge of losing the Nim subgame, you can simply take this card off the field via any means possible. As does the opponent. But if you do so, you're also giving the opponent a card. Which outcome would be better in your eyes?

[Excalibur the Divine]

Very interesting, but like you said if the turn player was about to lose they could just mst or dust tornado it
I think that you should consider making this a trap card for the element of surprise

[Trebuchet MS]

Very interesting, but like you said if the turn player was about to lose they could just mst or dust tornado it
I think that you should consider making this a trap card for the element of surprise

"Element of surprise"? There isn't much surprise involved in a card whose effect is time-delayed.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

I love it. The pun in the name is just beautiful. It brings a tear to my eye.....I hope you intended it or else I'm an idiot.

Anyway, honestly not sure what kinds of decks would use this well, but it looks so fun. I like the strategy element to it. It's a game within a game.

Now, it being able to be destroyed kinda makes me sad, because it makes it basically useless. Actually, yeah very much useless.

Maybe make it that instead of being destroyed you lose Nim Counters?

[Trebuchet MS]

I love it. The pun in the name is just beautiful. It brings a tear to my eye.....I hope you intended it or else I'm an idiot.

Anyway, honestly not sure what kinds of decks would use this well, but it looks so fun. I like the strategy element to it. It's a game within a game.

Now, it being able to be destroyed kinda makes me sad, because it makes it basically useless. Actually, yeah very much useless.

Maybe make it that instead of being destroyed you lose Nim Counters?

Yes, the name pun is very intended.

 

Normally, I'd give a Continuous Spell/Trap a form of protection to ensure the opponent doesn't yawn and destroy it, but because the card tempts the opponent with the possibility of reaping its effects (provided they know the strat) it gives them a reason not to destroy it. Unless they're about to lose its subgame, of course.

 

Maybe if I add another effect to compensate for the event that this card is destroyed when its subgame is on the verge of completion?

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Yes, the name pun is very intended.

 

Normally, I'd give a Continuous Spell/Trap a form of protection to ensure the opponent doesn't yawn and destroy it, but because the card tempts the opponent with the possibility of reaping its effects (provided they know the strat) it gives them a reason not to destroy it. Unless they're about to lose its subgame, of course.

 

Maybe if I add another effect to compensate for the event that this card is destroyed when its subgame is on the verge of completion?

Okay good...

 

And yeah, I see what you mean. But yes, there needs to be some compensation. Because both sides are bound to have some way of destroying it by that time, in the event that one of them is about to lose it.

 

This might be a bad thought, but here's another thought. Give it protection after it reaches a certain number of counters. That way you COULD destroy it, but only early, so you'd have to weigh the risks/rewards.

[Trebuchet MS]

Added an effect that lets the other player draw a card should it be destroyed when the Nim subgame is on the verge of completion.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Edit: Misread.

Okay yeah that should work out pretty well.

[Trebuchet MS]

You need to reword it I think. It says when it's destroyed while having "5 or fewer". If you want it to be when it's near completion then it would have to be "x or higher"

It comes into play with Counters, and players progress the subgame by removing Counters. The subgame completes when the last Counter is removed. Hence the subgame being near completion is when the number of Counters left are few.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

It comes into play with Counters, and players progress the subgame by removing Counters. The subgame completes when the last Counter is removed. Hence the subgame being near completion is when the number of Counters left are few.

Yeah I edited it right after, I misread and realized that after looking again. (And now my stupidity is quoted, woe is me.)
As it is, it should work. I'd have to do some math to figure out if 5 or less is the best number to have it at, but it seems good for now.

[newhat]

I mentioned in the thread of the written version

that math minigames are not workable on cards because they have a solution. 

 

You win if your moves leave 13, 9, 5 and 1.

You start by removing 2.

After your opponent moves, drop it to 9.

After your opponent moves, drop it to 5.

After your opponent moves, drop it to 1.

It took about 15 minutes with tokens to figure this out on my own. I am the best.

 

It's possible to make a minigame where the solution is too complicated to math out, but I don't know what.

[Darj]

Aside the fact that the minigame can be solved as newhat pointed out (I had no idea that was possible), I don't like how you can play it as a win condition: Build a deck full of stall cards, 3 copies of these and defeat the opponent by winning Nim rounds, essentially turning any duel into a Nim game; you can further support this kind of deck with burn cards. Of course, this would be almost as bad for the game as playing Solitaire Exodia, since the idea is to play Yugioh, not Nim or any other game.

 

The way I see it, you have 2 alternatives for disabling this card from winning games by itself, and thus fixing the above issue:

- Inflict non-lethal damage instead: Halve the LP, reduce the LP to X number, etc. (But still, you could finish the opponent with burn cards, so the following option would be the best in my opinion)

 

- Give it an effect that generates card advantage instead, like drawing, or adding from the grave (or even the deck if you want a broken but more rewarding effect) to the hand, X number of cards.

[Trebuchet MS]

Aside the fact that the minigame can be solved as newhat pointed out (I had no idea that was possible), I don't like how you can play it as a win condition: Build a deck full of stall cards, 3 copies of these and defeat the opponent by winning Nim rounds, essentially turning any duel into a Nim game; you can further support this kind of deck with burn cards. Of course, this would be almost as bad for the game as playing Solitaire Exodia, since the idea is to play Yugioh, not Nim or any other game.

 

The way I see it, you have 2 alternatives for disabling this card from winning games by itself, and thus fixing the above issue:

- Inflict non-lethal damage instead: Halve the LP, reduce the LP to X number, etc. (But still, you could finish the opponent with burn cards, so the following option would be the best in my opinion)

 

- Give it an effect that generates card advantage instead, like drawing, or adding from the grave (or even the deck if you want a broken but more rewarding effect) to the hand, X number of cards.

I'll change the burn effect to halving the losing player's Life Points to give the subgame diminishing returns as the Duel goes on.

[newhat]

I still don't respect this card. It's like a game of tic-tac-toe; if the person who activated it knows what to do, the outcome is always in their favor.