User blog:Tecku/Tecku Talks: Official PvZH Strategy Decks

A little while ago, I had a discussion with some people on the forum about cards for the upcoming Triassic Triumph update (don't worry, there are no spoilers here). Italked about how some cards would be done to boost a certain hero's strategy deck. This led to some people commenting on how most official strategy decks aren't that good. That got me thinking, how good are the official decks?

Tecku Talks About: Official PvZH Strategy Decks ..Man, how did I not talk about this sooner? Well, better late than never. History of the Decks Let's start off with a brief history lesson. Back when PvZH launched, there were no official decks. Every deck would be one custom made by the player, with some possible assistance from the auto-complete function. If you wanted complete deck blueprints, you had to go online to a site like Reddit. Furthermore, the deck selection screen was so clunky that it reached a point where most people had one, maybe two decks per hero. Later, PopCap had some deck builder's lab videos, but they barely did anything with the series. They made like, three videos total, and spaced them two whole weeks apart. PopCap also had some listing on their site on eac hero and what their decks "should" be like, but those were mostly general ideas. Then, something amazing happened. PopCap released an update where each hero got three pre-built custom decks. This was really neat because now we had well-rounded decks that were easy to find, could be modified, and gave us ideas on what to look for next. Furthermore, by giving each hero three decks each, we got ways to play heroes that we may have never even thought of before! I didn't realize Brain Freeze had such good Imp synergy, I dedicated him to Pet decks. I never thought of coupling Potted Powerhouse with Anti-Hero cards, but PopCap did! These new options encouraged experimentation, and I really liked it. Then, something happed. Galactic Garden came out. In addition to each hero getting a new deck, all the other decks got updated with new cards. Now, this was probably good for the long term. Decks needed to be updated to remain relevant. However, many decks had more than half their cards change, so many decks that were completed went straight back to being locked. This was beyond aggravating. Not helping was the fact that many Set 1 cards suddenly got an increase in rarity, making it harder to complete our Set 1 collection. Over time, we unlocked the GG cards, and decks opened back up. However, something was... different. A lot of the decks got stuck at 35-38 out of 40, because we lacked that one type of Legendary card that they demanded 3-4 of in the updated decks. Take a look at "Gargs Unleashed" or "Water Works." Notice how high the entry cost is on what is supposed to be the Hero's most basic, cheapest deck? Odd, ain't it?Now, with Sets 3 and 4, something is up. The card decks barely got changed with Set 3, and they seem to be planning on updating them with Set 4 instead. The biggest change to existing decks Set 3 did by far was change Nightcap's "Enter-Taining Effects" deck into the "Faceblaster 9000" deck. This isn't that bad, but I would like to see some of the decks updated with event cards right away. As we wait for Set 4, I will say this. I am okay with them splitting the update. Having two sets of smaller cards will make it easier to get the cards we want. However, Set 3 feels very cobbled together, and the decks are the biggest proof of that. They're changing the deck descriptions before Set 4 is even out, mentioning cards that have yet to be realesed, showing poor planning for the Set 3 release.

Official Decks: The Good Let's talk about some good points of the decks. First, the decks provide basic "core strategy" lessons for new players. The decks instruct new players how to combine cards with a single goal. Freeze decks, Pet decks, and Mushroom decks will all these come naturally over time, but the pre-built decks and their descriptions help reinforce the idea of what to think of when building decks. Next, as I said before, the decks provide new perspectives on how heroes can be used. Do you want to use Solar Flare's More Spore for mushroom synergy, or as evolution fodder? Should Super Brainz move zombies into empty lanes with Carried Away, or use it to knock out plant fighters? These decks are good at providing new opportunities for players. Another bonus is showing the connections between cards. For example, they teach how to combine cards in different classes, which can be hard to do for new players. Notable examples of this include coupling Anti-Hero with Poison Powerhouse, Laser Base Alpha with Frenzy, or Teleport with Valkyrie. This also goes for showing connections between new and old cards, such as Barrel of Barrels and Sugary Treat going together with Fire Rooster. It's nice that you can buy cards outright with Gems. I only got Winter Melon by buying it through the deck. Lastly, these decks are good for when you're not taking the game too seriously, and just want to try out something new. Pick a deck, hop into a casual game or random battle, and go with the flow. No complicated need to rebuild every time you want a change, or need to pick up a ticket boost. Simple, straightforward fun.

Official Decks: The Bad Now, let's discuss the underbelly of the decks. Now, PopCap is never going to create the perfect pre-built deck, especially if they want to cater to both casual and competitive players. As the meta changes, so will the best cards for the best deck. For example, back before GG, some Chompzilla decks recommended using Water Balloons as a counter against Fishy Imp. Is that still recommended? Probably not, but it's hard to say for certain. The best decks will always be custom decks tailored to the ever-changing playerbase. With that being said, there are some details PopCap can improve on. First, they should make some decks built especially for new players. It is noteworthy that the main focus of each deck is both its gimmick and where you can get cards for them from. Gold decks are supposed to be easy to unlock with the most noteworthy cards in them being Rare Premium cards, whereas Rainbow decks are for Legendary Premium cards. Yes, "Easy Peasy" is probably better with 5 Legendaries and only 1 Fire Pea. But new players don't have Gatling Pea, they have Fire Pea. Next, they need to invent a better way to tranistion old decks as they are updated. Now, I'm glad that they're not flooding the deck selection screen with a Premium, Galactic, and Colossal version of each deck as new cards come out. But if I'm familar with the ins and outs of my deck, I should be eased into the change. Getting locked out of the decks we completed is frustrating. I'd much rather keep using my "Fast and Furious" deck, and replace the cards within with the new cards as I get them, rather than losing all access and being told to come back when I have the new ones.Lastly some decks are just bad. Why are they bad? Well, I think Shroomstagram user said it best:  "While strategy decks have interesting, even good ideas, the problem, which started showing up after the Galactic Gardens update, is the fact that they are unorganized, bloated, and generally have no idea how to execute their decent ideas, preferring to shove in a bunch of legendaries rather than create actual strategies." Yeah, pretty much this. Some decks really need to be re-worked or outright scrapped:

"Interplantetary Exploration" has way too many environments and tricks, and not nearly enough fighters. "Swarm and Transform" is one of the most unreliable decks I've ever seen. If they won't scrap it, they should change the core cards like Seedling and Petal-Morphisis.Stop putting four Interdimensional Zombies in every Science deck. We don't need them."A Feast for Beasts" really understimates how quickly opponent rush decks can work, and talks like Gargologists are super easy to protect. They sometimes can get good combos, but the consistency isn't great. And there are a lot more that could be better. Conclusion All in all, the game is a lot better off having pre-built decks. However, I do still see some room for improvement. I really hope PopCap can find to ways to entertain me with their decks. What do you guys think?