Djinn
Let’s face it, Basic Set Alteil is all about the level 3 cards. Those are the cards that really make the difference in the long run, they’re the ones that win your games. But you know, there are level 6 cards in the Basic Set, and they’re just lots of fun. They have big numbers and big attacks and there’s something irresistible about that.
This week we’ll be looking at Djinn, a Falkow level six and a very happy guy. Look at that smile. And look at those pants! I’m not sure, but it kinda looks like one pant leg is blue and the other has red stripes. It would not be a total lie to say he’s wearing American flag MC Hammer pants, and that earns him a place in my Card File all by itself.
First let’s talk about when you actually get to bring out a level 6 card. Generally, this happens during a late game SP bloom. Chances are, sometime late game you’re going to lose a big chunk of your field. You’re finally going to run out of copies of your level threes, and you’re going to be left with not a lot of cards, but level 4 in your chosen Sphere and at least 8 SP. Say, from two level threes hitting the graveyard plus your normal 2 SP allotment. That’s when you can bring out a late game level 6 to have some fun. If you’re enemy has already gone through this and has a Phoenix or something out there, Djinn isn’t going to live up to his potential. However, if your enemy still has lots of cards on the field, Djinn could win you the game.
Here’s an important thing to remember about late game heavy-hitters. They probably won’t be getting a lot of support from your other units, because chances are you’re running low on other units. Therefore, even though the high level cards tend to have big HP, like Djinn’s 80, they will actually be HP starved. Why? Because they’re probably going to be outnumbered, so the enemy will have plenty of chances to take that HP down.
Therefore, the number one thing you want your level sixer to do is go first, before the enemy can nickel and dime him to death. That’s the number two reason Djinn is my card of the week (number one is the pants). Djinn has an AGI of 4, which makes him the fastest late game card in the Basic Set. This speed will go a long way in making your enemy’s army, and I mean his whole army, wish they’ve never been born.
Now once Djinn’s going first, he hits for a decent 40 damage at RNG 3. That’s good, because in the late game you just need to send as many units to the cemetery as possible, so your enemy loses LP. Doing solid damage to those errant Will o’ the Wisps or Sylphs hanging out in your enemy’s back row will make that happen. But we’re not here for that, we’re here for the big one, an Action Skill called Berserk Wind. Berserk Wind is not cheap, at 3 SP it makes Djinn basically useless as a mid game card even if you could get him out by some miracle. However, this card is for a late game SP bloom, and at that point you won’t have anything else to spend your SP on, anyway. Berserk Wind subtracts 20, bypassing all armor, directly from the HP of all enemy units. Low HP Lawtia archers? Cemetery. Wounded but still armored Refess soldiers? Cemetery. Support characters? Cemetery. Will o’ the Wisp and any other Great Spirit? Cemetery. Like I said, a great way to win the endgame is to put units in the cemetery as fast as possible. Any units. It doesn’t matter if you only kill of his support guys and his archers, because his front line won’t be much use when his out of LP.
One other great thing about level sixers like Djinn is they can be highly effective with just one copy in your File. Think of it as the backup, since an SP bloom is usually caused by you taking a beating. One copy of Djinn can make a big difference, it can turn the game around. Also, I’ve found that if the enemy actually has enough power to take him down, then they probably also have the power to take him down two or three times. However, if you find yourself doing the late game SP bloom all the time, you might want to go with two or even three Djinns. And for those of you who don’t plan on letting yourself get hit hard enough to cause a late game SP bloom, think of this: there is nothing more frustrating then having one happen and having nothing to spend all that SP on!
Okay, that’s all till next week. Again, I’m not sure how consistent this section will be until the game’s official launch.
Note: This is Logress post from the Alteil.com website. The original post can be found here.