I was thinking, Duelyst has a lot of unique CCG mechanics including a board, minion-like generals, tile effects (shadow creep, mana tile), positioning effects (blast, backstab), and AI (battle pets, Zendo). However, Duelyst lacks some tried and true mechanics that are mainstays of games such as MTG and Hearthstone. Here are some of these mechanics that might be introduced to Duelyst.
Modal (Choose One) effects
These effects allow the player to choose between two of more options upon play. Examples include choose X in MTG (the cards lists many different effects and you can trigger X of them) and discover from Hearthstone (you are presented with 3 cards. You can choose 1 of them to add to your hand). These effects often sacrifice tempo for versitility, having the card cost more to trigger an ability but be relevant in more situations. The closest that Duelyst has gotten to this are Thumping wave and the +X/-X Lyonar spells, which, while relevant in multiple situations, always provide the same effect.
Personally, I would love to see this type of card in Duelyst since they add more decisions and options without resorting to too much RNG
Multifaction cards
These are cards that can only be played in two or more specific factions. Examples include Multicoloured cards in MTG and Triple Class cards in Hearthstone. In MTG’s case these cards are generally above curve due to a more specific mana requirement while in Hearthstone, they are around the power level or regular class cards, since mana is uniform in that game. These cards promote cross faction synergy, which can make the game deeper, but harder to balance.
I don’t see these cards being added to Duelyst in the near future since separate classes are already ingrained into the game. If they were to introduce them, it would probably feel like a card-specific feature, like in Hearthstone, instead of something game defining, like in MTG.
Activated Abilities
These are cards that have some ability that can be activated just be interacting with the card itself. These abilities might require paying mana or exhausting a minion to trigger. Think of this as Bloodborn spells for minions. Whenever a minion with an activated ability in on the board, you have access to their Bloodborn spell. Activated abilities have been a mainstay in MTG, usually in the form of “tap” abilities. Hearthstone does not have these abilities, however.
I think that these abilities are extremely likely to be in Duelyst. The next expansion has something to do with Bloodborn spells and the lore (keliano’s ciphertext) hints at a race of “partial bloodborns.” Maybe, activated abilities are the focus of the next set.
Playing on the Opponent’s Turn
These cards have effects that trigger on your opponent’s turn. MTG has a whole class of cards, instants, that can be played in the middle of your opponent’s turn and Hearthstone has Secrets which, while played on your own turn, may trigger on your opponent’s. These cards work by reacting to or anticipating your opponent’s actions.
I don’t think that Duelyst will introduce anything like MTG’s instants, since that would fundamentally alter the game. Things like Hearthstone’s secrets, however, could be a possibility. Furthermore, Duelyst can have even more ways to influence your opponent’s turn with tile traps or abilities that trigger when destroyed on your opponent’s turn.
Others that may require too many interface changes or fundamentally alter the game
- Hand disruption (I can see one or two spells with this, but not a recurring theme) (we have Sphynx)
- Deck searching (too much interface changes) (cards that fetch specific card types are close enough)
I was not sure about the English name.