• by Nafiz Erman, LordErman

  SHADES OF GREY

  Hello dear readers, after a three weeks break, I'm back with another installment of the Unofficial Card of the Week articles. This week, we will dive into the dark depths of the world of the rogue NID. And here is our tour guide:

  
  
  

  I like the NID faction. I liked them while watching the show too. I liked them because they weren't pure good or pure evil. While the honorable white knights of Earth (SGC) were fighting bravely against the evil black demons of the galaxy (Goa'uld), these guys belonged to neither of those two groups. They weren't something as simple as white or black in the first place.

  To me, they were the embodiment of balance in the show (at least during the early seasons). They were looking at things from a different angle. As I said, they weren't white or black but these guys, the rogue NID, were grey. And that was the reason I liked them a lot while watching the show. Pure good or pure black is too sharp for me (and I don't like being sharp). And just look at Shawn Grieves' picture on the card again. Half of his face is dark and half is clear. One simple picture actually explains everything about the rogue NID and their members.

  The NID faction in Stargate TCG is no different from what we have seen in the show. Characters like Mark Devlin or Brian Vogler work for both sides. Or cards like Shawn Grieves or Goa'uld Experiments do something good... only if you do something bad first (destroying an innocent(!) support character).

  Anyway... I built my NID deck some time ago and I even wrote an article about it and the Unofficial Card of the Week was Goa'uld Experiments back then. Since then, I have played with that deck from time to time only in casual games and only for fun. The deck has evolved much since then and I want to share its final version with you.

  But let me say this much first: No matter how I change the deck, there is no way that it can work well against the current meta contenders with the current cards. Therefore I will also talk about some cards this deck needs. If they exist in the Rise of the Ori set, then there is a big chance that this deck might become something very dangerous. Let me talk about the general idea behind this deck.

  It is a speed deck, meaning a glyph-win deck. It uses a lot of great gears and some support characters with mainly <when you play> gametexts. By the way the team is this:

  
  
  

  Shawn Grieves readies NID characters. This is very important as my aim is to complete multiple missions per turn. He also helps me destroy those <when you play> support characters like Olaf or Gairwyn so I can play them again.

  Jennings is useful for two things; he helps me getting rid of nasty adversaries as well as destroying those <when you play> support characters. By the way the current <when you play> support characters I use in the deck are Gairwyn, Olaf, Raully, Luthor and Cross.

  Makepeace is my hero in this deck. Especially during late game, there is no way I can complete my missions without his help; even though those missions are low difficulty missions. And finally Aldwin is there mainly because of his high point value. Also his gametext comes in handy from time to time.

  Okay now what does this team need? How can Rise of the Ori improve this team? Actually I'm hoping for an NID team character with a point value of six. His/her stats can be the same as Aldwin's or Makepeace's. Give him/her also a somewhat useful gametext and that character then will replace... who? Now that's a good question.

  If I replace Aldwin with that (possible) new character, then the deck will become an all NID deck which will generate more synergy between cards. However, if I replace Jennings, then the total point value of this team will rise from 17 to 19. And that is also very important. I don't want to lose to a Villain Win deck by allowing my opponent to score just three Ori adversaries and one Kendrick.

  Now let's move on to the gears. Of course the most important gear in the deck is this:

  
  
  

  This gear is actually the backbone of this deck and there is no doubt that I will continue to play with three copies of it even after the new set. One other very important gear for the deck is Atoniek Armband. The boost it gives is very important considering I'm aiming to complete multiple missions per turn.

  The deck also contains Symbiote Poison, Smoke Grenades, Sodan Cloaking Device and Ma'chello's Notes and all of them are very useful.

  For the future there is actually one thing this deck really needs in terms of gears. An NID gear, that allows us moving glyphs between characters. Currently the only playable way to fight glpyh removal is to pack Tight-knit Team. Malek is nice too but is very expensive. If we get an anti-glyph removal tool in the form of a gear with the NID trait, this deck will just love it!

  As for the events, currently I'm playing with Learning From the Enemy, Special Training, Top Minds and Annihilation. You couldn't even imagine how devastating Annihilation is until you use it; or someone uses it against you.

  And finally there are a few things I must say about the support characters. I already mentioned the <when you play> ones. This deck just loves them and needs more. At least two more.

  Normally this deck wants to play only with <when you play> support characters due to its "dark" nature. However there are some which don't have that gametext but work quite well in the deck; such as Sanderson. Look at him:

  
  
  

  He gets Combat +1 when you play an NID card and Ingenuity +1 if you play a gear. Now this is another reason why this deck loves Goa'uld Experiements so much! It is a gear and an NID card. Excellent combination. Play as many cheap NID gears as possible and Sanderson will turn into a giant! Sadly, Goa'uld Experiments is the one and only NID gear we have at the moment.

  Finally I also use Keffler, Bauer and Brian Vogler in the deck. I don't think I will replace Bauer with anything but Keffler and Brian Vogler can be replaced or simply be removed, if we get better cards with the new set.

  Okay dear readers, another article is drawing to an end. I'm sure that the new set will introduce its own decks and own strategies to the meta (spaceships for example). However I also have high hopes for some of the older strategies as well.

  I mentioned in one of my older articles that Marshall Sumner is one of my favorites in that category. Well, this deck is another one. And let's not forget that the new set is all about the last two seasons of SG-1 and we have seen more than a few NID characters during that time (Vala's abduction for example). This fact alone makes me believe that we will get more goodies for the NID faction in the Rise of the Ori set!

  Thanks for reading.

  See you online
  Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  Discuss this article in the forums.

• This Friday, May 2nd SOE Phone Support will be closed for a few hours from 10am - 12:30pm Pacific Time. Phone Support will resume operation from 12:30pm - 7pm Pacific Time. We apologize for the inconvenience.

  SOE Customer Support Team

• INTERGALACTIC STOCK MARKET
  Ten villain cards you should get before RotO comes out
  Part II: Villain Cards

  Hello dear readers, I'm back with the second part of the Intergalactic Stock Market series. In this second part, I will talk about ten villain cards you should get before the new set comes out.

  In case you missed the first part, here's a quick reminder. I will only talk about Rare, Ultra Rare and Starter cards in this article. And I will only be talking about cards which you most probably are not using at the moment. You should already have the obvious ones such as Osiris, Naquadria Hallucinations or Hathor; those cards are always needed.

  Okay ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seatbelts as we are about to enter the treacherous world of the villains!

  NUMBER 10
  PLEA FOR HELP

  
  
  

  The current problem with this card is that it is bugged. So it simply doesn't work. However, we know that the current bugs will be fixed with the release of the Rise of the Ori. After that happens, this card may become one of our best options to have access to the hero player's mission pile.

  This card cannot cost lower than it costs now (for it isn't working now), so getting a playset of it now wouldn't be a bad decision at all.

  NUMBER 9
  UNDER SUSPICION

  
  
  

  This card might become a chase-rare because of several reasons. The first one is its skills. If after the new set, a skip-ingenuity and a skip-science deck (a M'zel centric Jaffa deck most probably) become tier 1, then we all should be playing with cards that can harm our opponent at his skip missions. Therefore any obstacle with a good failure text that covers those two skills might come in handy.

  Secondly, if somehow a "choke" strategy becomes playable, Under Suspicion would be the backbone of such a strategy. Choke by the way means making your opponent lose power (via Frank Simmons or Cave-In) or forcing him to pay power to assign characters; with cards such as this one or Forced Labor Camp.

  And finally this card can also be used in a "place this obstacle on a character" themed villain strategy. Such a strategy would be fun to play if Rise of the Ori gives us more such obstacles.

  In any case, Under Suspicion has huge potential and I strongly suggest you get your playset of it.

  NUMBER 8
  PAYOFF

  
  
  

  The same reasons that brought Under Suspicion to this list apply for this card as well. If a choke strategy is playable after the new set, then this obstacle will be another important card for it. This card can also be played in a "place this obstacle on a character" villain side. And any Political-heavy villain side might want to use this one.

  And finally, regardless of what I said above, if this card gets a twin with the new set, meaning an obstacle with the same gametext that provides two science and two combat difficulty, Payoff would then also become very useful, heavily played and thus... expensive!

  NUMBER 7
  GOA'ULD BOMB

  
  
  

  Currently this card is only played in Osiris based Villain Win decks. However this card, as its name also says, is really a bomb and I believe that after the new set this card will be used not only in some specific VW decks but in almost all the decks.

  You can punish any Pacifist (skip-combat) deck with this one. You can punish any skip-culture deck with this one. Not only Jack but who knows, perhaps in the future a Makepiece - Shawn Grieves centric NID deck as well! And add a skip-science Jaffa deck to the list and this card will automatically become one of our best friends!

  NUMBER 6
  TIME DILATION

  
  
  

  Can there be a villain card with a more devastating failure text than this one? I guess not. But it doesn't make any sense to use this one in the current environment. However, that is the current environment! We have no idea what it will turn into after the new set.

  Imagine that due to some brand new mission manipulation villain cards that came with the new set, those Tabloid Research-based two-skills decks we play now are dead. And that the meta is either Sumner or skip-science Jaffa or skip-ingenuity. Wouldn't you then be using this one?

  Yes. Of course you would.

  NUMBER 5
  DIMENSIONAL SHIFT

  
  
  

  The main reason this card isn't played is that there aren't any two-glyph decks in the current meta. Most of the decks nowadays don't even care about which glyph goes to which character. So right now no one wants to pay three power to block a single character before he is even assigned.

  But I foresee that the meta after the Rise of the Ori will be crawling with two- (or maybe even three-) glyph decks. I foresee that the next generation decks will care about glyphs as they never did before. I foresee that we will face cards like Sumner, Martouf or even Rak'nor in almost all our games.

  Just like Plea For Help, there is no way you could get this one lower than you could get now. Currently Dimensional Shift may not be very useful but of course there is no guarantee that it will stay that way. I say there is no harm in being prepared in case this one's price doubles... or even triples!

  NUMBER 4
  ARDENT PRIOR

  
  
  

  Ardent Prior is our first adversary card in the list as well as the only Ori card that just couldn't make it to the top 3. As the new set is all about the Ori faction, one doesn't have to be a genius to say that the price of this one will automatically get doubled in the very near future. Of course the new set will have its own Ori goodies such as Doci or Orici but considering Ardent Prior's devastating gametext, I strongly believe that he will find himself a place in many decks.

  As I said, investing in an Ori card just when a new set called Rise of the Ori is about to arrive, is never a bad idea.

  NUMBER 3
  NERUS

  
  
  

  While preparing this list, Nerus was the only card that caused me a lot of thinking. Even though not heavily played right now, Nerus is still the best mission manipulation card the villain player has and therefore it was obvious that he was going to be in the list. And he has both the Goa'uld and the Ori traits. But I wasn't sure about his place in this list. And after a lot of thinking, I decided to take a risk and placed him as high as Number 3.

  If we get better and cheaper (in terms of power not $$$) mission manipulation cards with the Rise of the Ori set, then I will be horribly wrong about this card. But if not, then prepare to face him in almost all your games.

  And finally I will repeat what I said for Ardent Prior. Getting an Ori card now for a relatively cheaper price is not a bad idea considering the new set will be Ori-centric.

  NUMBER 2
  MIND INVASION

  
  
  

  Devastating gametext, horrible stats. We need at least one other Culture obstacle for Replicator faction to make this one work. Right now, Mind Invasion plus Fifth aren't just enough. If we get such a card in the Rise of the Ori set, it would be great. But even if we don't, Mind Invasion will explode eventually with the Atlantis set as it will contain all those Replicators from the Pegasus galaxy.

  I do believe that this one will be the most expensive villain card of all times. Sooner or later, that will happen. If not now with the Rise of the Ori set, then it will eventually happen after the Atlantis set. Get your playset now while you can or it may really be too late.

  NUMBER 1
  REBUFFED

  
  
  

  Naquadria Hallucinations meets Unlikely Friends and the result is a flying Cameron Mitchell! Very nice. Very nice indeed.

  The current problem is simply the price of this card (power-wise). If we pay four power, then we expect a better result than simply blocking a character. Stonewalled, if not paired with a Political adversary, costs four power too but it stops a character.

  The power cost of the Ori cards is actually a big problem. Five power for adversaries and four power for obstacles is not something an average deck can afford. Therefore I think that the new set should do something about this or all those brand new Ori cards will only be played in some specific Villain Win decks.

  Having said all these things, I strongly feel that Rebuffed will replace Naquadria Hallucinations and Unlikely Friends in the post RotO meta and instead of adding those two cards to our decks, we will simply play with 3x Rebuffed.

  On /ptrade this card currently costs around three to four EPS which is already high. My guess is that its price will be something around seven or eight EPS after the new set (due to high demand and low supply). Considering the fact that you will most probably need a playset of it (meaning three copies), it won't be a bad idea to start collecting it now.

  Okay dear readers, and that was my "ten villain cards you should get now while you can or you may deeply regret it" list. What do you think of it? Did I miss something?

  And by the way, after the release of the Rise of the Ori, I will prepare another two Intergalactic Stock Market articles and I will talk about the new cards (hero cards one week and villain cards the next week). And then after some time, I may also write another Intergalactic Stock Market article and talk about the old cards again and see what happened to them.

  Thanks for reading.

  See you online
  Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  Discuss this article in the forums.

• This week we feature a player from Stargate Online TCG.

  Real Life First Name:
  Andrew

  Forum Handle:
  andrewheintz

  Game Handle:
  andrewheintz

  Where do you live?
  New Orleans, LA

  How long have you played Stargate?
  Since March of the Beta (so very close to the beginning). I signed up for the beta merely to get to see the cards, but upon reading the rules I was like "Wow, this is pretty good".

  Do you play Legends of Norrath, Star Chamber or Pirates CSG?
  I have tried both LoN and Star Chamber, but they both don't do it for me like Stargate. I haven't tried Pirates.

  Do you play any physical TCGs?
  I don't play any current physical CCGs, save my limited pool of physical Stargate cards.

  What got you into gaming and what sort of games do you like the most?
  In middle school I 'owned' a few Magic cards, and played Doomtrooper with my friends, but really didn't have any idea what I was doing. It wasn't until I played Babylon 5 and 7th Sea in high school that I was introduced to 'competitive gaming'.

  What type of work do you do?
  I am close to finishing my PhD in Chemical Engineering. I expect to defend in June, and am currently in the process of applying for 'real' jobs.

  What other hobbies or activities do you take part in, other than Stargate?
  I spend my time away from work/Stargate working out and training for endurance races. I have competed in several triathlons over the last couple years, and completed my first Marathon in February.

  What is your favorite deck type?
  From a competitive standpoint, I still like Jack decks the best; but I think I have the most fun playing and playing against off the wall, creative/thoughtful decks (even if they turn out to be utter failures). For a completely casual game, I'll usually play my all-Jaffa deck.

  What is your favorite card (playability-wise)?
  I like Charles Kawalsky, Good Soldier, and many of my decks use him. He's basically a mini-Jack stat wise, but his high XP makes him very versatile and useful when playing around with other team configurations. I am lucky enough to have a foil version of him as well, which is one of my prized Stargate possessions.

  What is your favorite card (art-wise)?
  Bra'tac. He was so awesome in the series, and one of the best characters in the show. His ability is well flavored, and very indicative of the type of character he is- teaching others how to be better. It's a shame that his ability is so hard to activate in the current environment and thus sees so little play, because Bra'tac rocks.

  What type of TCG player are you? For example, are you an Art Lover, a Competitor, an Innovator?
  I would have to say that I am first and foremost a collector. I enjoy developing and playing 'theme' decks (like all-Jaffa, all-Tok'ra, etc) the most. I'm here first and foremost because of my interest in Stargate; it's just a huge bonus that this game is very, very good.

  What do you like best about Stargate?
  Stargate has several advantages over other ccgs *cough* Magic *cough*.

  First, the 'resource system' is somewhat non-traditional, in that you don't rely upon drawing (or rather, getting deprived of) lands/resources in the form of cards. This puts a good twist on the traditional 'power curve'.

  Second, there is no react system that allows for 'going backwards in time'- in STCG, if I destroy your support character, you can't use him to do something first before he dies. I like that, because it makes sense.

  Third, and I feel most important, is that as of yet STCG has very few 'negative playing experience' style decks (think discard, control, etc). It's a straightforward game to play, which gives the advantage to the skilled players/deckbuilders versus those darn rules lawyers.

  Could you describe, in brief, a memorable game you had, or opponent you faced, and why it stands out in your mind?
  In the third round of the September WCQ, I played Huaojozu. I was of course on-guard since Huao is an amazing player, but it was the deck he was running that caught me by surprise. He was running what had to be one of the very first versions of what was to become the CSi deck, and this was the first time I had seen this deck. Although I was somehow able to squeak by him for the victory with a few lucky Naquadria Hallucinations and Stonewalled, I knew that he was on to something. Obviously he was, as his CSi deck is now a well-established dominant deck.

  Do you run or work for an OSG or TCG Fan Site?
  Jeremy Commandeur has been generous enough to grace me with the title of 'Senior Staff Writer' for his stargatetcg.org site; which really means that I write semi-regularly. JC does a great job of keeping the site up to date, and keeping the community interested and involved. I urge everyone to check out the site and compete in his weekly contests.

  What is one thing no one would ever suspect about you?
  I took first in my age group at the 2006 Louisiana Triathlon State Championships.

  Feel free to leave andrewheintz a friendly note in the Stargate Online TCG forums!

• 

  If you've never been to an SOE Fan Faire before, you've been missing out! Fan Faire is a great place for SOE gamers to mix and mingle with each other and meet some of the faces behind their favorite SOE games. Here's just a taste of some of the great stuff we're planning:

  • In-game tournaments
  • Live, game-themed tournaments and quests
  • A costume contest
  • Lots of social activities, including a Kickoff Reception, a Grand Banquet and a VIP Party with live entertainment
  • Sneak peeks at SOE titles currently in development
  • The 2nd Annual Community Address from SOE President John Smedley
  • Developer forums and roundtables

  And that's just the beginning! No matter which SOE game you like to play, Fan Faire will be a blast! Even if you're not an SOE gamer, we encourage you to join us and bring your friends!

  Passes will go on sale later this Spring, but you can book your hotel stay now! The Las Vegas Hilton is currently accepting reservations at the discounted Fan Faire rate of just $139 per night. Just call (800) 635-7711 and tell them you're with Sony Online Entertainment, booking code SSOE8 or click here to make online reservations. Space is limited – so get your room soon, in case they sell out!

  Hope to see you in Las Vegas!

  Watch for passes to go on sale and other Fan Faire announcements on the Fan Faire site.

• Ten cards you should get before RotO comes out
  Part I: Hero Cards

  Hello dear readers. This week I don't have an Unofficial Card of the Week article. This week and also next week, I will talk about a special topic which I'll cover in two parts. The first part is, as the title of the article says, ten hero cards you should get before Rise of the Ori comes out. Next week I will talk about ten villain cards to get of course.

  Before I start, I must say that this article will cover only Rare, Ultra Rare and Starter cards. Common cards are very easy to get and with little effort you can get three copies of each Common card. Also as far as I know, some players (OrionPax, Querio) are giving away free Common cards to newcomers and/or to those who are in need. So the next time you see them online, simply be nice and ask them for the Common cards you are looking for.

  Uncommons are also not hard to get except for a few like Information Leak or Memory Stamp. But without spending a fortune, you can get them all in no time.

  Finally, I will only talk about ten cards you most probably don't use at the moment. You may have traded them away for EPS or better cards. So you will not see Walter Harriman or Martin Lloyd in the list; nor will you see Osiris next week. To be competitive, you should own these cards already.

  Okay ladies and gentlemen, now that we all know what we will talk about this week, let us start immediately.

  NUMBER 10
  RESCUE TEAM

  
  
  

  What? Yes I know, it is a mission card. But in case you didn't know; missions ARE hero cards, thank you very much.

  So what's so special about this one you might think. Well, for some time I have been toying with a Tabloid Research centered Culture-Combat deck. I'm not finished with it yet. But once I am finished, I'll write an Unofficial Card of the Week article and share the deck with you here.

  Anyway, if you want to build a Culture-Combat deck, then Teal'c is of course "da man". And then comes his buddy Rak'nor. Mala also fits well into this strategy. Not as good as Rak'nor or Teal'c but she gets the job done. However the current list ends there.

  I hope that Rise of the Ori will give us a Culture=3 and Combat=2 team character with a point value >=4. If it does, then this mission, Rescue Team, will be an auto-include in each Culture-Combat deck. Get it now while you can!

  NUMBER 9
  SELF SACRIFICE

  
  
  

  This is a great card but only in its own deck. You really don't want to destroy your own Oma Desala or Walter Harriman with this card for a simple +1 bonus. However there are some specific support character cards, which you really would want to destroy after you play them and get their benefit; in order to play them again.

  Do the names Olaf, Gairwyn, Cross, Burke, Kendra, Malek, Raully, Rodney McKay, Luthor ring a bell?

  NUMBER 8
  JACOB CARTER

  
  
  

  This is a fantastic card. Most of the time he is 3/2/2/3 and can even get to 4/3/3/4 with little effort. However he wants only Tok'ra and SGC characters around him and no one else. And unfortunately that is something we cannot provide with the current card pool (at least not competitively).

  I really do hope that Rise of the Ori will have the cards to make this one and his deck a tier 1 deck. This is already an expensive card. I strongly suggest you get your three copies of it before its price doubles.

  NUMBER 7
  ALPHA SITE FACILITY

  
  
  

  What did I tell you at Number 9 which was the event card Self Sacrifice? I told you that playing with <when you play> support characters might become tier 1 after Rise of the Ori.

  Well, Self Sacrifice answers the "how to destroy?" question. Alpha Site Facility answers the same question too but also gives you another reason to destroy them. Add the team version of George Hammond to the mix and you're good to go.

  Get this one before it's too late.

  NUMBER 6
  JARROD KANE

  
  
  

  Many, including me, think that skip-ingenuity strategy will be the next big thing. And if that happens, if a skip-ingenuity deck becomes tier 1 after Rise of the Ori, then this version of Jarrod Kane will be an auto-include to each such deck. Don't miss this one or you'll regret it.

  NUMBER 5
  LUCY! I'M HOME!

  
  
  

  Another great card. The SGC faction will only get better with the Rise of the Ori set and this one I believe will be heavily played. It currently costs three to four EPS on /ptrade. I don't think getting it now for that price would be a bad investment.

  NUMBER 4
  TOK'RA OPERATIVE NETWORK

  
  
  

  This card simply screams out saying, "Abuse me!". Turn one nasty obstacle into a complication, then ready this gear and do it again, then ready it again and use it again... Sounds nice, doesn't it? However the drawback is huge. I really wouldn't want to allow my opponent to play a Harsh Conditions when he has no power left.

  Gairwyn would be a solution. Wormhole X-Treme! -like missions would be a solution. Or perhaps there will be some other cards in the Rise of the Ori set that will turn this gear into a bomb. In any case, I say watch out for this one.

  NUMBER 3
  DANIEL JACKSON, ASCENDED BEING

  
  
  

  Not many decks are using this Daniel Jackson simply because they need the team version of him. However there will be some decks in the future (hopefully) that will use this one heavily. The <when you play> support character based deck is one. Skip-ingenuity is another one. Culture/Combat could also be another one. Also Skip-science decks might use him. As you see, there are a lot of decks waiting to play this version of Daniel Jackson if only they will be worth playing in serious environments.

  This card has huge potential and I think that you should get it now (at least two copies) or you will have to pay double the price of what you may pay now.

  NUMBER 2
  MARTOUF

  
  
  

  Even now, when you simply can't play a skip-ingenuity deck competitively, this one costs around two to three EPS. I just cannot imagine what its price would be if such a deck becomes tier 1. You REALLY should get three copies of this one. Now!

  NUMBER 1
  MARSHALL SUMNER

  
  
  

  Yes yes yes, I know what I said. I said Rare, Ultra Rare or Starter. This one is neither of them. However it is also neither a Common nor an Uncommon. So I think it's okay to mention this one.

  I'll give you a secret. The day Rise of the Ori is online, I will look at all the cards closely and do so over and over again, as will you all. But the first thing(s) I will look for will be cards that can be played with Marshall Sumner. This card is simply huge! Even now it is tier 1,5 but after the Rise of the Ori, I strongly believe that it will not only become tier 1 but it will also dominate the tournament scene.

  Okay dear readers, that'll be all for this week. These are the cards that I believe will "explode" after the new set. Let's have your opinion as well. Which other cards do you think will get big? Which ones do you think I overrated?

  Next week I will talk about ten villain cards you might want to get before it's too late.

  Thanks for reading.

  See you online
  Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman
  He who has been betrayed by his own modem during a WCQ... yet again!

  Discuss this article in the forums.

• The Stargate™ Online Trading Card Game "Through the Gate" promotions for SG-1 and System Lords have now ended.

  Card redemption requests received on or prior to April 10, 2008 are in the process of being fulfilled. Requests for card redemption received after April 10, 2008 date will not be fulfilled.

  SOE and Comic Images would like to thank all of our players who participated in this unique promotion.

• Hello dear readers, I'm back with another Unofficial Player of the Week interview. After the first interview with Caveat, I received some very positive feedback and decided to continue with such interviews every now and then.

  The timing of the last interview with Caveat might make you think that I'll be interviewing only players who win that month's WCQ. However that is not true. I'll only be interviewing players who try to keep this game alive: only those who share and who are creative and supportive. I'll interview only those who choose not to follow but instead to be followed no matter what.

  I'll only be interviewing "good players". And this above is my definition of a "good player".

  This week, my guest is OrionPax. Is there anyone who doesn't know him already? He came out of nowhere just when the tournament scene was about to die, and thanks to him and his efforts, we all had the opportunity to... well... to PLAY!

  I don't know how many cards and/or EPS he has given away so far. I don't think he knows that either. However thanks to his efforts, many players who were perhaps scared to play along with the "big boys" joined the tournaments and now some of them are those "big boys" themselves! And most important of all, he asked nothing in return.

  Without further delay, here's what OrionPax has to say.

  LordErman: Okay, would you please introduce yourself? Where are you from, how old are you and what do you do for a living?
  OrionPax: My name is Trenton, I presently live in Sierra Vista, Arizona, U.S.A. I am 34 years old. I work for the Department of Defense as a contractor.

  LordErman: How long have you been playing trading card games and which games did you play before?
  OrionPax: I collected Yugi-oh and Pokemon cards for my son, and I liked Magic and Star Trek the Next Generation. I have collected every card in all those sets and I have them locked away in a very big safe.

  LordErman: How did you join Stargate Online TCG? How and when did you hear of it?
  OrionPax: I did a search last May 2007 for Stargate and this site popped up. I looked it over and then decided to play.

  LordErman: Are you a fan of the TV show by the way?
  OrionPax: YES! Stargate and Stargate Atlantis are probably my favorite television shows of all time. I love the religion meets history meets linguistics meets science meets science fiction meets the military aspect of the television show. (I love it probably due to getting my degrees in archaeology and Religious studies, and now I'm working on my post graduate work in classical history. Also being in the military, having a love for the scientific method and being married to a linguistic genius that speaks eight languages).

  LordErman: You are the "Santa Claus" of Stargate Online TCG so to speak. Let's talk a little bit about that. How did that happen? And why did you choose to be "Santa Claus" in the first place?
  OrionPax: I believe that my maker gave me a second chance almost five years ago, when I lay in a hospital bed at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, clinically dead for four minutes of a pulmonary embolism. I believe it is my duty to help others out in any way I can. I love this show for the above reasons and just want to help others as long as I still have breath.

  LordErman: Let's talk a little bit about the game. Other than everyone's favorite and well known "Bermuda Triangle" (Walter Harriman, Oma Desala, Martin Lloyd), which cards are your favorites (including villain cards if you wish)?
  OrionPax: Well Jack O'Neill can power up your team, Daniel Jackson when glyphed-up can get you any mission, Charles Kawalsky gets you that needed boost to complete a mission. And Osiris is a frustrating pain in the neck... but my favorite is support version of Thor. He can single handedly end a game by setting up the next mission and helping you complete the present mission or the mission he just set up! You got to love that when you are in the endgame.

  LordErman: Which one is your favorite deck and why it is your favorite deck?
  Orion Pax: Villain Win is my favorite deck, and I do not even play it! This deck is my favorite due to the symmetry that the cards must have with each other and with the player that is playing them. The VW deck is a symphony of frustration and destruction when played correctly. The first movement allows the hero player to get plenty of glyphs and a sense of hope that is really fool's gold. The second movement is when Osiris is played and the third movement is the total humiliation and destruction of the hero team characters and support, ending in the constant scoring of villains, leaving the HW player one glyph and one to four experience points short! It is an amazing sight to see, unless it is happening to you; then it is just plain wrong!

  LordErman: In any trading card game, there are those players who are very creative and very good at deck building. Then there are those who are called "pilots". They don't think about deck building as much as the other type but they are very good at piloting a well known deck to success. And then there are those who can do both things. Considering these facts, which of these groups do you think you belong to?
  OrionPax: Pilot. I do tweak every deck I play, but I am a pilot.

  LordErman: A new set is around the corner. How do you think it will impact the current meta? Which type of decks will get stronger and which ones in your opinion will be weaker?
  OrionPax: When the new set arrives I believe that the meta will totally change and that the current decks being played (Hammond, CSi, Jack, Osiris VW) might become obsolete. It really depends on the role the new Ori cards will play along with the impact of ships on the game. And also the changes that might come to the cards we play now; remember Ishta and Frank Simmons.

  LordErman: Any advice to the new players?
  OrionPax: Help others whenever you can and try to learn from the elders of the game. Learn to build decks like them and learn from their mistakes. We are a community and we are the Stargate Online TCG family!

  LordErman: Anything else you want to add?
  OrionPax: Huaojozu is the greatest of all time! Also I owe LordErman, Thorval and Querio a lot; they are great competitors and my brothers in the game! One last thing: Watch out for Meeryn, Por-ky, Jedifan256 and Replicator. They are the future greatness of this game. Shout out to everyone else, peace!

  That's all from OrionPax.

  I have played many great games and had many nice playing groups. There were always one or two players who were helping the newcomers with their limited supplies. However nowhere have I encountered a player like OrionPax. His efforts alone kept this game alive for months. There are not enough words to describe the level of our gratitude.

  Thanks for reading.

  See you online

  Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  Discuss this article in the forums.

• by Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  FROM THE HANDBOOK OF A BUREAUCRAT
  Chapter 6 - Section 14.b
  How to write an Unofficial Card of the Week article in five easy steps

  Step 1: Salutation
  

  Each Unofficial Card of the Week article starts by greeting the readers. Something simple like "Hello dear readers and welcome to another installment of the Unofficial Card of the Week" is acceptable. Exaggerated salutations may result in a "soft punishment" for the writer which is a permanent banning from the Stargate Online TCG forums.

  Step 2: Introducing the Card

  After the brief and simple salutation, the writer is obligated to introduce the card he or she will talk about as shown in the below sample:

  Here's the card we will talk about this week:

  
  
  

  The article may not start before the card is shown. Such articles will be deleted without hesitation and the writer of them hunted down by special NID agents and experimented upon at Area 51!

  Step 3: Introduction

  The introduction must be related to the subject. The writer shouldn't write directly what he or she thinks about the card. Instead, he or she must give clues why the card is chosen for the Unofficial Card of the Week. See example below:

  Of all the villain factions, Political is my favorite. Why? Actually it's very simple; it has answers to every situation during a game. It removes glyphs, it stops characters, it kills support characters, it makes your opponent assign characters to the mission even though not necessary, it gains power, it makes your opponent lose power, it incapacitates characters, it makes your opponent shuffle his or her mission pile... I mean, what else do you need?

  The writer must end this part of the article in one paragraph. A second paragraph is not allowed. Such articles will not be accepted and their writers will be sent to the Pegasus galaxy to become Wraith fodder!

  Step 4: Developing the Article

  In this part, the writer must talk about the card he or she has chosen. This part has no paragraph limitations. The writer is encouraged to use pictures. Below is an example:

  Considering the current meta, the chances of encountering an all-skills deck is like one in a million. In other words, everybody skips a skill if not two. This fact may not mean much to an average player but it means everything to a skilled player.

  Look at these twins:

   

  Both are very useful cards but what makes them so good and so useful is not only their cost/effectiveness ratio but also their failure text. Stopping your opponent's most important and dangerous character is just priceless.

  And this is what Paperwork is all about. It simply stops everyone! Team or support doesn't matter. No R and R or Atoniek Armband or Repository of Knowledge tricks. Nothing is allowed. No one gets through.

  Of course, Political faction has some other nice cards with some nice failure texts such as these:

   

  Both Raphael and Information Leak and all the other Political cards with nice failure texts such as Full Investigation or Senate Expense Review can be very useful; especially at a skip mission. But none of them are as deadly as Paperwork.

  Once the main point of the article has been stated, no more repeating is allowed. The reader gets it! Articles with useless repeating and articles that say the same thing over and over again will not even be taken into consideration and the writers of such articles will be put into an implantation process that will result in glowing eyes, distorted voice and a strange feeling in the gut!

  Step 5: Conclusion

  This is the part where the writer wraps up the article. This part is limited to one paragraph only and no pictures are allowed. Below is an example:

  Okay dear readers, that'll be all for this week. I know that many players include cards in their decks to punish their opponent at skip missions. I've seen players play with Parasitic Insects, Deep Memory Scan, Brainwashed Teal'c or even Borren. I too played some of those cards myself and I'm still playing some of them. All of those cards are good and highly playable. However I'm not seeing as many players playing with Paperwork as I should be. I hope that after this article the card will get your attention.

  At the end of the article, the writer should thank the readers for taking their time and reading the article. Something simple like "Thanks for reading" is enough. And finally the writer should add his or her signature and end the article as shown in the below example:

  See you online

  Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  Writers who submit articles that do not meet these criteria will be sent to Erebus where they will be forced to work at a Jaffa Labor Camp as slaves for the remainder of their lives (which will be pretty short).

  This handbook is written by:
  ROBERT KINSEY
  VICE PRESIDENT

  Discuss this article in the forums.

• Beginning at 9:00 AM PDT on Wednesday, April 2, 2008 all SOE account and commerce flow, the Station Store, character transfer service, and the CSG Store will be unavailable for maintenance.

  We expect this maintenance to take approximately three and a half hours. During this maintenance period game servers will still be accessible. Please watch the forums for further updates regarding this maintenance. We apologize for this interruption and will resume the affected services as soon as the maintenance is completed.

• Beginning at 4am PST/11am GMT on April 1, 2008 all game servers and community sites will be unavailable due to network maintenance. We expect this maintenance to take approximately 5 hours.

  We apologize for this interruption and will resume all game servers and community sites as soon as the maintenance is completed.

• Pirates CSG Online introduces its 7th expansion, Pirates of the Revolution! Marines, ships, and characters from American history come alive in this new set. John Paul Jones, his ship the Bonhomme Richard, and his deadly enemy the HMS Serapis face off amidst the ever-present dangers of Foul Winds and treacherously beautiful Mermaids. Protect your Forts with Marines, and fire your enemy's ships to the waterline with Firepot Specialists. With this many new cards, mayhem under the American flag has never been so much fun!

  "I have not yet begun to fight!"- John Paul Jones

  Click here for all the details!

• To provide our customers with more credit card security, Sony Online Entertainment has partnered with Visa and MasterCard. Verified by Visa and MasterCard SecureCode have now been added to our Station Store purchase flow.

  Q. How will this affect SOE customers?

  A. When adding new subscriptions, changing a subscription, or purchasing software from the Station Store, you will be prompted to join Verified by Visa or MasterCard SecureCode. An application will pop up and prompt you to join the security program. Please enter all requested information. This is a secure site and only Visa or MasterCard will have your information.

  After you have signed up for the security program, you will need to login again to verify that the card has been secured.

  Q. How much does it cost to join Verified by Visa or MasterCard SecureCode?

  A. It is completely free to join Visa and MasterCard's security programs for online purchases.

  Q. Why should I give Sony Online Entertainment my personal information?

  A. The information requested for these programs is not stored on any SOE servers. These programs are provided by Visa and MasterCard. Only Visa and MasterCard will retain the information you provide for your security.

  Q: What if my card issuer does not currently support Verified by Visa or MasterCard SecureCode?

  A: Sony Online Entertainment will still accept transactions from card issuers who do not use either program.

  Please visit the Verified by Visa and Master Card SecureCode sign up pages for more information about these programs and how to sign up.

• by Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  TIGER WOODS IS A JAFFA and Jack O'Neill is his mentor

  Hello dear readers, I'm back with another Unofficial Card of the Week article. I have to admit that last week's article was a huge disappointment for me. As I was writing this article, there were still no entries for the Build Around Mansfield contest. Oh well, at least the article was useful for one thing: I found out that our nice little community is as lazy as it is nice. So, no more contests anymore. I will continue with the usual format.

  Anyway, first of all let me introduce you the card I will talk about this week:

  
  
  

  The scene on Goofing Off is the funniest scene from what most people consider to be the best Stargate episode ever; Window of Opportunity. Even though that scene was so funny, the card itself on the other hand, is absolutely no joke.

  Goofing Off has an evil sister called Renewal. And we all already know how powerful that evil sister can be; especially when used with adversaries that have gametext such as Hathor, Amonet, Nirrti, Olokun etc... Goofing Off is not as powerful as its evil sister. But when used with the right cards, it can be very annoying for the opponent.

  You may wonder why it is not as powerful as Renewal, especially when both do the same thing. The answer is very simple actually: because currently there aren't that many team and/or support characters with gametext. The current list is limited to six cards and four of them, Khonsu, Marell, S Cameron Mitchell and Jennings, are really not very useful or playable on their own. However there are two others which are very useful and highly playable, and when used with Goofing Off, they get even better.

  I'm talking about these:

   

  None of us needs any introductions for Charles Kawalsky; we all used the card in our Jack decks for a long time after the errata in September 07. But I believe that UR Samantha Carter deserves a little bit more attention; especially these days when the tournament scene is crawling with Villain Win decks.

  What does a VW deck do? While Osiris is in play, that deck plays high cost obstacles with gametexts and then withdraws them. So how can we stall this strategy? We can use Top Minds. We will remove that high cost obstacle with Top Minds before it can be withdrawn and thus leave the villain player powerless. Of course that is a good idea and perhaps the best idea. However UR Samantha Carter is another very good card that can help us defeat the evil villains.

  Even though this version of Samantha Carter is very deadly against VW decks, this fact doesn't necessarily mean that it is only useful against one type of deck. No it is not. Especially when combined with Goofing Off, this Samantha Carter is a real game winner, no matter what type of villain side your opponent is playing.

  Having said all these things, I sincerely hope that the new set, Rise of the Ori, will give us more characters with gametext, so we will have more options and more reasons to use Goofing Off. We all know what such a card can do when it has many nice options available. We know it, because we know what Renewal can do.

  I conclude this article with this screenshot:

  
  
  

  This was the team I used in my deck I created for the Build Around Mansfield contest. With SGC Emblem, Lucy! I'm Home! and Teamwork, I had very nice and surprising results.

  Even though those cards I named worked very well, the nicest trick in deck was Goofing Off. I used Goofing Off with Samantha Carter and destroyed multiple obstacles, or I used it with Charles Kawalsky and drew tons of cards. And then during the next mission when those characters were stopped and my opponent was thinking that he had everything under control, I played a Lucy! I'm Home! , readied one of those characters and re-used him/her. Truly devastating.

  Okay dear readers, that'll be all for this week. No matter how bored I am with the current card pool, it is very surprising to find out that there are still some small things here and there left to discover. The joy I got when I was building the deck for the Build Around Mansfield contest was such a surprise for me. You would have been surprised yourself if you had entered the contest but nevermind.

  Thanks for reading.

  See you online
  Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  Discuss this article in the forums.

• Check out this great review of Stargate Online TCG in TCGPlayer.com!

• This week we feature a player from Stargate TCG Online.

  Real Life First Name:
  Radim

  Forum Handle:
  Huaojozu

  Game Handle:
  Huaojozu

  Where do you live?
  Czech Republic

  How long have you played Stargate Online?
  Since a week or so after Beta was released (around February 2007?)

  Do you play Legends of Norrath, Star Chamber or Pirates CSG?
  Nope

  Do you play any physical TCGs?
  I am the 2005 and 2006 Pokémon TCG National Champion and I have attended the Pokémon TCG World Championship.
  I also keep up to date with Magic: The Gathering and Yu-gi-oh! TCG. I have tried Beyblade TCG out of boredom but its waaaay too simple a game.

  What got you into gaming and what sort of games do you like the most?
  My desire to learn English I suppose. Ever since I was like 5 years old, back when 486 was the high-end machine I wanted to know more about the language I could not understand. I can safely say that gaming made me what I am now. I prefer RPGs, mostly Final Fantasy style. Good platforms are also welcome although scarce as far as PC goes. Fortunately I've got PS2 with a PS3 hopefully coming soon where those games are abundant.

  What type of work do you do?
  Studying in High School. I'm starting college this September (project manager).

  What other hobbies or activities do you take part in, other than SGO?
  Hanging out with my friends mostly. I like to play squash, billiard, bowling and other such games. Basically, I just like playing games. Where there's a game, you'll find me there.

  What is your favorite deck type?
  CSi style decks, mostly because I basically created the archetype with Querio, whom I playtested it against. I like its speed and consistency. Lately though, I have been turning to Villain Win decks as they seem to have a much better average match-ups in today's metagame.

  What is your favorite card (playability-wise)?
  Osiris from SG1. There are just so many possibilities with this card. Any match with a Villain Win deck basically comes down to: 'I need to complete as many missions as I can before my opponent can get Osiris out, by which time I better have a way to get rid of her.'

  What is your favorite card (art-wise)?
  I haven't really thought about this. I guess Repeating Time. Every time I see it, it reminds me of everyone's favorite episode of SG1.

  What type of TCG player are you? For example, are you an Art Lover, a Competitor, an Innovator?
  A competitive innovator. I like to come up with new decks that people haven't thought of but I also want them to be good and win me tournaments.

  What do you like best about SGO?
  It's hard to explain, really. Quick-paced games, innovative game play, impersonating my favorite characters together make for a great experience.

  Could you describe, in brief, a memorable game you had, or opponent you faced, and why it stands out in your mind?
  That would have to be a game I had against tjej sometime during the holiday marathon (I think). He was running a version of CSi against my VW. The game came down to him being 23/24 exp with a LOT of science support characters and 2 science missions coming up that I needed to defend to win the game. I remember using Hathor over and over in combination with Renewal and Repeating Time to get all of his 9 or so assigned characters to contribute only around 4 total skill to the mission. After I used the same tactic for the second science mission I knew I would have enough time to score enough adversaries for the win. It was a great game for me, because I knew that any misplays on my part would cost me the game and I managed to pull through.

  Do you run or work for an OSG or TCG Fan Site?
  Nope. Way too much stuff on my hands to manage that, I'm afraid.

  What is one thing no one would ever suspect about you?
  Well, I have one dark secret, but you will have to forgive me if I don't tell you. On the other hand, since I deal with people mostly through emails, they often tell me that they expected someone totally different than an 18-year-old boy when they meet me in real life. Guess I'm just not the R'n'B type that you see on the TV as a prototype of a modern kid. I would take classical music over hip-hop any day.

• by Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  GIMME A GIANT WILL YA!

  Hello dear readers, I'm back with another installment of the weekly Unofficial Card of the Week articles. Every week I try to come up with a topic that is hopefully interesting for you to read. And almost every time, I try to include a decklist for your enjoyment. However this week, I will make an exception. This week, I don't have a deck. This week, I'll ask YOU to come up with a deck. So this week we will have a contest!

  Sound fun? Interested? Good. First, here's the card you will build your deck around:

  
  
  

  Okay, he or she who builds the most competitive deck around Mansfield wins. GO!

  Thanks for reading.

  See you online

  Nafiz Erman, aka LordErman

  ---

  Uhm... That was a little bit fast now, wasn't it? Okay let's rewind first and start all over again. Mansfield is actually a very interesting card and one of the most undervalued team characters in my opinion. Let's read his game text once again. It says something like this:

  "Hey you the player! Gimme Libra or Pisces glyph ASAP!!! And then find a way to make me ready over and over again. "Why" do you say? Why??!?! Oh my God! Because if you do, I'll turn into a giant after a few successful missions and most probably will win you the game in one single turn! Not even that newbie lieutenant called "Elliot the Idiot" can be beat me. I can be the fattest, I can be the meanest and I can be the biggest of them all! Understood?"

  Well, that's more or less what his game text says.

  Of course, as the writer of this article it won't be appropriate for me to enter this contest. However I can give you some small hints which may hopefully help you when building your deck. The first thing I notice when I read his game text is that Mansfield gets bigger and bigger after each successful mission. And to be able to complete that many missions in a single turn, I need to play low difficulty missions and which then means that I need to play a seven glyph speed deck.

  Okay that's a start. Is this all I can see by just looking at the card? Actually no. Those two glyphs on him also give me a clue about what kind of a team to play. The Libra and the Pisces glyphs can be found on science, combat and ingenuity missions. In other words, those two glyphs cannot be found on culture missions. I don't know about you but this fact automatically means a skip-culture team to me.

  Now... by just looking at the card itself, I figured out the type of team I'm going to play and the win condition of my deck.

  Now let's move on to the second most important question: What possible ways are there to ready Mansfield? There are a lot and I won't name them here one by one. However this one looks promising:

  
  
  

  Okay that's good. And is there a way to help him get even bigger than he can get alone? Well of course there is! How about this one:

  
  
  

  And my final hint... If I'm going for several missions per turn, then which specific support characters should I add to my deck? How about these:

   

  Okay, I think that I already told you more than enough. Of course, what I've told you so far aren't "rules". So you don't have to use SGC Emblem or Lucy! I'm Home! and you don't even have to skip culture at all. You may