Flesh and Blood TCG - A Disconnection

There’s a disconnect at the moment, a feeling of separation that I’m not comfortable with or wanting to feel. A level of acceptance is probably needed on my part, but that feeling of missing out (FOMO) is a huge risk factor for me and has been for a long time. 

Flesh and Blood TCG (FAB) has been a significant part of my life now for a couple of years. Most of my social and not so social gaming is playing FAB. From attending the Card Tavern once a month Armory events, playing online via Talishar, playing in the Flesh and Common Blood league to the odd Pro Quest event in person.

OUTSIDERS is quickly arriving at the point of publishing this article and it’s got all the hype that a FAB set seems to draw. But not for me, in fact this is the first set since Monarch came out, which was the first set I got to see previews for, where I don’t feel a level of excitement or anticipation. I’ll explain, so I don’t play Assassin, Ninja or Ranger classes, which are the three classes being showcased in this set. Also, I haven’t found myself interested in any of the generic cards spoiled as part of the spoiler season.

Is this Legend Story Studios fault? Of course not, this was just their next release, its nothing to do with them that it isn’t in my interest. There are plenty of folks out there who are foaming at the mouth for this set. I’m proud to be a part of the Go Again Gaming (GAG) discord community and its all the talk in there let me tell ya.

I’m not even sure why I’m so numb to this new set. Maybe it is the hero classes, maybe it’s that I know pretty much every card in the set after spoiler season and maybe its that I’m just not seeing anything that’s exciting me. I mentioned it in the GAG discord server that I get spoilers, but believe we need to keep some secrets going into the set. There should be some excitement when you open them packs and find some wonderful new cards, not just skipping to the R+ section of the pack to see what rarer and foil cards you got.

I am planning to get to a pre-release event, for the simple reason that I’ve been playing tabletop games since 2003 and I’ve never attended one. So, the idea of just being able to get to one this time around is quite appealing, a sealed event where I don’t have to worry about bringing anything other than a deck box and some sleeves. But even that is looking like it may not be happening now too, the trials of being a parent to a three-year-old. So even that slither of hype or excitement towards this set is diminishing as quickly as I’m writing this piece.

My last post was about protecting your mental health when playing this game and this post now feels like actually, I’m now suffering from a downturn regarding my own mental wellbeing.

Maybe there is an element here of FOMO and maybe there is an element of frustration to this, I’ve a second child on the way, due to be born at the end of May 2023. This will no doubt pull me out of the game at least in the interim anyway. So, the one chance I’m going to have for the foreseeable future to be a part of a ground level introduction to a set, is now fizzling and lord knows when I will be able to get another one. Also, when the next set comes out, I’ll be a brand-new dad and there won’t be the time or money to be on the ground level entry I’ve had on every set since Monarch.

I know this whole thing sounds a bit like sour grapes and I apologise for that. I hope everyone who attends these events gets some great pulls and enjoys their experience. I do believe you should focus on enjoying the journey and experience these types of events provide. Flesh and Blood TCG is a great game, and I can only see it getting bigger over the next few years to maybe plant itself into the BIG THREE of games, or expand that term to BIG FOUR. 

But for OUTSIDERS, I’m just going to say this, I could’ve done with it being swapped with the next set.

@bigboss010 on Twitter, @bigbossbookclub on Instagram and Hive Social.

Thank you for reading,

I’m Big Boss…. I’m out….. Peace!

 

 

A New Year In Flesh And Blood TCG - Preparing For Pro-Quest

 “Our mission is to bring people together in the flesh and blood through the common language of playing great games” is the keynote statement from Legend Story Studios “about us” page.

This statement is something to really keep in mind as we start the new year and we approach the start of the next competitive season for the Flesh and Blood TCG.  This of course kicks off with the Pro Quest season, which begins on 14 January 2023. We also see events like Battle Hardened taking place in cities such as Leeds in the UK.

As this season rapidly approaches, we will all be thinking hard about which decks we are going to play and how best to tackle the season. Whether that’s trying to drive Briar, Warden of Thorns, towards the Living Legend status hanging over her currently, or if its how to bring newcomer Arakni, Huntsman to the forefront of the competitive scene. 

These decisions are of course impacted by the type of player that you are and there are different types of players in any game, from social casual players to hardcore competitive players.  

I consider myself somewhere in the middle, a casually competitive player, what this means essentially is that I’m only ever able to play on a casual level, so maybe once or twice a month in person, but when I play, I’m aiming for the win. Sadly, this has only ever landed me one top 8 at a Pro Quest and a few small turnout Armory events under my belt. I’m yet to reach the proverbial mountain top myself and I don’t delude myself thinking I ever will, considering the time I actually get to play.

There are of course those hardcore competitive players, those who go to as many Armory, Pro Quest and other events as possible each week. They are looking to get the XP, the prizes and of course, the money that comes from topping those big events. There is nothing wrong with being a competitive player, not really.  

But something I have noted on multiple occasions since being more active on Twitter (@bigboss010) is the aftermath of these large-scale competitive events. The solemn and sad posts, which seep out shortly after the conclusion of the event, that search for the answers to what went wrong.

My own experience has seen also me sitting on a long train ride home to Crewe, hell bent on quitting the game because I didn’t do as well as I believed I should’ve. Having to sit and really think about my view of what I want from this game as an individual. Then coming to terms with the fact that you just can’t win them all and with the amount I’m able to play, is probably unrealistic.

So something I’ve started to be very concerned about is the mental health of the player base. This sinking feeling which seems to come from the end of an unsuccessful attempt to climb to the mountain top seems more and more common these days. 

I spoke with my good friend Martyn on my podcast (Big Boss Book Club) about his experience playing Pokemon and Magic: The Gathering at a competitive level and it’s clear this isn’t just restricted to isolated cases in FAB. 

When James White and the Folks at Legend Story studios developed this game, the gaming system and brought it to the public, I can with great confidence say, they didn’t want people getting depressed after playing. I hope their goal was to have players sitting, fist bumping or shaking hands and discussing the game. Debating those critical moves and plays. 

So this brings me back to the opening of this article. The goal is to bring people together in person, to play great games. That’s the key, playing great games. We come together for our love of this game and although we can be serious about it, aiming to win the big one. We need to remember; we are together to play this game and we shouldn’t put so much emphasis on the big W over our own well-being and just having fun. 

The friends and experiences this game can offer are practically limitless and it’s on us the current player base to make these experiences positive, welcoming and more importantly, enduring. In my mind these are the only true ways of expanding the player base and continuing to grow this amazing game.

I myself am hoping to attend the Battle Hardened weekend in Leeds, UK. I am also bringing my previously mentioned friend, Martyn with me as he is eager to get involved in a major event. What decks will we be bringing, you maybe asking yourself. Well thanks for asking.

I’m going to be bringing Briar, Warden of Thorns, for a couple of reasons really, the biggest reason is that I’ve never played her at an event before and as this is her farewell tour, I figured this maybe the last chance I’ll have to pilot her at a CC event. The other reason is that I love the Runeblade class and if you’ve ever played against me when I’ve piloted Big Vis (Viserai, Rune Blood) you’ll know I just cant do it very well and my win / loss record is HORRIBLE. So Briar felt like a good option to stay on-brand and with a class I actually enjoy while hopefully not completely jobbing out (sorry for the wrestling reference).

My friend Martyn has expressed a big interest in Bravo, Showstopper. Essentially, Martyn is a big wrestling fan, like myself and Guardian has the Chokeslam card…… Enough said really.

So to conclude this piece, I want to thank you for taking a few minutes to read this and I hope you’ll consider checking out my social media pages and my podcast.

Please remember though that although the Pro Quest season is about getting those PTIs, its also about getting together in the flesh and blood to play great games. The fundamental point of games is to have fun. So please take care of yourself, your mental wellbeing and to quote the Gamble Aware UK TV advert, when the fun stops, stop.

Rule 1 of playing great games, is to have fun and enjoy the experience. Whether you are turning up to play with Fai, Briar, Bravo, Lexi or our supreme ruler Azalea. I wish everyone the best of luck in their endeavours this Pro Quest season and I hope you all have fun. 

I’m Big Boss, I’m out…. Peace.