Drawing Starting Hands Question

[paganeagle2001]

Using the pre made character decks at the back of the rule book is no problem, but what about when you want to do your own deck?

From the rulebook:-

Draw Starting Hands. Each character card includes a hand size for that
character; draw that number of cards from your character deck. The character card also lists a favored card type. If you did not draw at least 1 card of that type, discard that hand and draw again, repeating as needed until your hand contains at least 1 card of the specified type. Shuffle any discarded cards back into the character deck.

So, do I have to do a random selection or can I just pick the ones I want?

Again, it's just a clarification question.

All the best.

Great Uncle LROG

[OberonViking]

You get to choose which cards you want from the box, so long as you have the required number of each type.
The starting decks help with Analysis Paralysis, but don't forget you can trade cards freely before the game begins.
On the other hand, we enjoyed creating new decks after a session when we didn't have enough time for another game.

[paganeagle2001]

Thanks, but then why would they have the line on "if you didn't draw at least 1 card of that type"?

If you can select cards then you are not going to not select a favoured card????

All the best.

Great Uncle LROG

[Mogloth]

If you choose to not use the premade decks at the back of the rule book, you can create one using the card type guidelines on the character card. When you draw the cards to form your hand at the start of a scenario that is always random. You cannot choose what you start with in your hand.

[paganeagle2001]

Just had a look at the rulebook and cannot see the bit where is says about random selection for the start of a scenario?

All the best.

Great Uncle LROG

[Fromper]

You don't randomly select the cards in your deck at the start of the scenario. You create a character deck first, using the rules from the "Build Your Character" paragraph on page 4 of the rules. Then you play that deck just as you would if you were using one of the suggested decks from page 21.

[paganeagle2001]

Thanks Fromper, that's what I thought.

But again it brings up the question of why you wouldn't select a favoured card.

Valerous's favoured card type is weapon. Now on his character card he can have 5 weapons, so obviously you are going to select 5 weapons and so have the favoured card.

Perhaps I'm overthinking or something!!! lol.

All the best.

Great Uncle LROG

[Eric W]

paganeagle2001 wrote:

Thanks Fromper, that's what I thought.

But again it brings up the question of why you wouldn't select a favoured card.

Valerous's favoured card type is weapon. Now on his character card he can have 5 weapons, so obviously you are going to select 5 weapons and so have the favoured card.

Perhaps I'm overthinking or something!!! lol.

All the best.

Great Uncle LROG

The 'favored card' refers to a card in the character's hand (the cards in play), not the character deck. In Valeros' case, Valeros has five weapons in his character deck, but when you deal them out for the first time, you might not get a weapon in those four cards. If you don't, discard those four cards and deal out the next four.

[HeWhoLaffs]

Ok, if you don't want to use the pre-made deck suggestions at the back of the rulebook, you can choose the cards (weapons, spells, etc.) that you want to use to add to your character deck, using the number limitations on the character card, such as playing Valeros you can choose the 5 weapons that you want to include in your starting character deck. Keep in mind that any cards you choose, must have the word Basic in the list of traits.

When you are done selecting all the cards you want to have in your character deck, shuffle the deck, draw your handsize, 4 for Valeros, and if none of those cards that you drew were weapons, then you can shuffle your hand back into your deck and re-draw 4 new cards over and over until you draw at least 1 weapon to start with. That's what it means by favored card type. So Ezren's favored card is spells, and if in my opening playing Ezren I didn't draw any spells among those 6 cards, then I could shuffle and re-draw.

[Scribbling Rambler]

Yeah, Eric has the right idea. (EDIT: as does Laffs)

paganeagle, I think you're mixing up the rules for building your deck with the rules for building your hand.
The favoured card rule has nothing to do with building your deck. It is referring to drawing your starting hand. If you don't get a favoured card in your hand, you redraw from your deck.

[paganeagle2001]

Thanks all for solving the problem, all is clear now.

Make up the deck, do a few shuffles, put out 4 cards for Valeros hand.

Get:-

Chain Mail, Night Watch, 2 BOG's

ARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!!! No weapon!!!! Reshuffle

Get:-

BOG, Wooden Shield, Longsword, Potion of Hiding.

Great, got a weapon, off I go adventuring!!!

All the best.

Great Uncle LROG

[TClifford]

Actually, you don't want to reshuffle between mulligans so you have a higher chance to get your favorite card. You only want to reshuffle if you can't draw enough to make a hand and you still haven't found your favorite. It really doesn't matter that much with Valeros because he has so many Weapons in his deck, but a strategy for Lem is to make Weapon his favorite and since he only has 1 in his deck, it can take a couple of tries to get his 1 weapon.

[paganeagle2001]

Thanks for the update.

So, I can just discard the cards to the bottom of the pack and select the next four etc. until I get a favoured card.

That's what I like about forums like this, you get quick responses to questions.

All the best.

Great Uncle LROG

[MikMik]

paganeagle2001 wrote:

So, I can just discard the cards to the bottom of the pack and select the next four etc. until I get a favoured card.

The rules (page 7) says: "Discard that hand and draw again", so I believe the cards goes to your discard pile. Then, when you have at least 1 card of the specified type, you shuffle the discards back into the character deck.

[paganeagle2001]

Thank you, I'll make sure I do that.

This is why I have been asking about a PDF of a solo gamne. This way, things like this can be added in to it and people then have an example of the play required.

All the best.

Great Uncle LROG