A New Beginning
Where there was two now stands one. This new one is stronger and has a different outlook on what their purpose will be. That new creation is http://www.entouragegaming.com/ “Our ultimate goal is to be a spot for ANY Destiny player to come and find content they can enjoy.” Matt says of the new CC. They not only have big plans with their channel but also themselves. “Our core group all plan on going to World’s so there will be plenty of top tier content in preparation for that. Our Birmingham and Nashville local groups both have strong players so we can record games to show other local groups what decks players are building from around the Southeast. The upcoming “Kitchen Table” series will cater to the fun, casual Destiny player who just wants to watch two people playing the game we all love.”
In the Beginning
I actually started to talk to Sons of Mandalore before the big news of joining forces with The Outer Rim. When I asked them how it began and Jimmy said it all came from, “Sugi (from the Knights of Ren) had a program for a while where they would allow friends and other smaller podcasts to come on the show and ‘take over’ for an episode. Kroozin and I did that, enjoyed it, and decided to keep it going.”
“I’ve always enjoyed writing articles and creating content, so this seemed like a good thing to do for Destiny.” Kroozin stated, but then explained the catalyst. “Shortly after Adepticon (where we did fairly well) and the Alabama Regional (finishing in the top two), I asked Jimmy if he wanted to start a podcast with me.” The rest is history.
For Matt it had more to do with adding a little something different. “I decided to start creating content around February of this year because I wanted to bring more quality content to the Destiny community. There are many great ones out there already and just want to add some Southern flair to the scene.” The make up of this group is a bit Southern, Jimmy and Kroozin are both from Nashville and Matt is from Birmingham.
We Bring the Excitement
“Destiny CC’s can give casual players a way into the competitive scene while filling the entertainment role for others.” Matt also said “Some areas do not have a very active local scene so watching CC’s play the game can give them ideas for larger tournaments and events.”
Kroozin felt “…most games CCs play a big role in both bringing cool new ideas to a game, but also growing the game by the passion they show for it. Specifically in Destiny, CCs help fill the gaps with issues like unknown release dates and organized play lulls that would otherwise cause issues for Destiny.”
Jimmy felt like a CCs calling was “…to show to the public that there is a community at large that is as excited as they are about the game. CCs are also a great source for news, meta talk, rumors and humor.”
Help Me Get Started
Kroozin recently wrote an article where he explained ideas on how to get started as a Youngling to this game. https://www.coolstuffinc.com/a/brianhourigan-05312019-destiny-on-a-dime-competitive. He goes through the different ideas on how to buy and get that perfect start.
Matt feels like getting the newer player hooked on fun could be a viable option as well. “I would say find fun decks to play first and learn the mechanics. This game is insanely fun and letting yourself enjoy the basic mechanics while playing iconic figures will draw more people in than throwing together a Tier 1 deck like Snoke/Watto/FOST was. A new player who loves Star Wars playing the new Kylo/Ren or Phasma/FOST decks might enjoy the game more long term and possibly be interested in more competitive decks in the future.”
“I see you have constructed…”
When I asked them about building decks they had differing opinions. For Jimmy he felt “it is a relative thing. First you need to determine your the style of deck you’re going to run…then you need to consider win conditions and how you’re going to get there.”
Kroozin felt that “For a new player I like to focus on characters they find interesting or fun, although of course this varies on the player. If that means a sub-optimal deck, so be it, as the first goal is to show them how fun the game is and learn the basics so they can explore for themselves.”
Matt has some advice about damage. “Don’t worry about mixed damage sides or anything like that. I really like Blue sticks for a new player because you can build a deck with around 10 upgrades, 12 to 15 events, and a few supports to cover the basics of the game. Rey/Aayla comes to mind as it incorporates damage and a special die to show that mechanic without getting too complicated.”
With all of them, they want the new person to have an idea, a point. The deck will be fun to play, if the deck has a purpose and the player has a connection to what is being played.
Meta Thoughts
When asking the CCs what they don’t like to sit across from, I wanted to see if there was a theme. I have found none. Each CC has given great reasons on why a deck type is good or bad. But in that ever laborious search for patterns, I asked again.
“I would say mill. I don’t hate mill by any means but sitting across from it is always a challenge,” is how Matt felt, “You have to think of your deck as the health pool instead of your characters and change your strategy compared to aggro. It’s very beatable however if you slow down and think through each action and each card in your hand.”
Both Kroozin and Jimmy, however, felt that “non-interactive decks” were their choice. For Jimmy, he said “Stuff like Sabine Wren (EW40)/Ezra Bridger (EW38) weren’t fun to go against because it involved rolling out, fixing dice and resolving them before I can respond. That’s not fun.”
Kroozin said “The only time I’ve ever dreaded playing against a type of deck is Force Storm(CV14) pre-nerf. Anything that is completely uninteractive and virtually auto-wins just feels bad to play against.” He also felt, “that said, I’ve never had a problem with other archetypes be it mill, vehicles or anything else. Each archetype just means you need to adjust your strategy and that’s one thing I love about this game.”
I asked them what cards they felt were “overpowered” or could be nerfed. Jimmy said “Metas are constantly evolving. When one thing drops, another will rise to take its place. It’s hard to say the game is perfectly balanced… and we don’t want it to be. If I wanted to play a perfectly balanced game I’d play chess.”
Kroozin said that “I’ll probably reserve judgement on any needed needs until we see how things shake out. I think this most recent round was a very well executed balance.”
For Matt, “I actually think the Escape Craft is the one that needs the most change. My personal suggestion would be make the Power Action a choice to attach or detach the craft from the Falcon. That limits the amount of resources it alone can generate. Having said that I don’t think it’s anything game changing though. Just a small tweak I would make. If this is the main change I would make that means they got most of the errata right so I’m very happy about that.”
Who’s in your Top 5
I like to see what cards have piqued the interest of the CCs. With that being said, I enjoy the idea that most of the answers we have been given are what most of us believe as well.
For Matt it is short and sweet, “Vader’s Fist (AG13), Entourage (CV152), Megablaster Troopers (CV31), Forsaken (CV9), and Doctor Aphra (LG20).”
For Kroozin it is “Vader’s Fist, Entourage, Megablaster Troopers, Doctor Aphra, and Wat Tambor (CV22).”
Jimmy feels that this is a bit one-sided. “Vader’s Fist, Entourage, Forsaken (CV9), Darth Vader TTB (AG1) and Wat Tambor. Note… all of those are Villain except for Entourage, which is Neutral. Hero isn’t in a great spot right now… but hopefully it’ll be getting better soon.”
“Parting is such sweet sorrow”
Well Chance Cube Universe, I hope that you got as much out of this as I did. There is so much more that I was unable to add in, maybe the new Entourage Gaming will have a follow up article in the future. By the way, it was not lost on me that all three had Entourage in their Top 5. Talk about being on the same page.
I am very lucky to have the opportunity to talk to these CCs, but I want to tell you that they are easy to find. You can contact them through the site at the top of the article. You can also look them up on Facebook. They are a delight and I had a great time putting this together.
A special shout out for the person that put me in contact with the then Sons of Mandalore, Greg Kuehlewind – yes that is his last name, I didn’t drop the Scrabble board to come up with it. He is a member of my group at Card Table Republic in Michigan and said he has gotten a lot from this CC. So if there is a CC you’d like me to look into please let me know. Maybe they’ll be the next guest on The Content Creators Corner.
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