3-3

I participated in a release day draft for Transformers: Rise of the Combiners event and this is what I built (but first, a link to the spoiler list, so you can see what I did):

1 copy:
Rapid Conversion
Escape Route
Mining Pick Armored Plating
Press the Advantage
Testify
Espionage
Evasive Maneuvers

2 copies:
Spare parts
Surprise Attack
Noble's Blaster
Enemy Combat Analysis
Primary Laser
Enforcement Batons
Bashing Shield
Pep Talk
Erratic Lightning

3 copies of Field Repair

4 copies of Cooling Vents

Characters
Air Raid
Silverbolt
Dead End
Megatron, Arrogant Ruler

Looking back, I see what I should've done though: my draft pool included two Bolt of Lightning, a Leap of Faith and a Universal Network Access, along with two Vandalize.  I I had cut Dead End and run five star cards, I think I would've had a better deck.

Similarly, if I'm cutting Dead End, then cut Megatron for the Grapple I was passed and fill in with the best star cards (UNA, Bolt, Leap) then again, possibly a stronger deck. Megatron was REALLY good though.

But as always, play skill matters. In my first game, I was still finding the rhythm of the TCG again. It had been months since I had played and I don't think I made the best choices due to some rust in the gears. Couple that with trying to use the new green battle icons properly and yeah, I made some mistakes. Heck, having to note the cards I'd flipped and decide which to pull, if any, was not a simple task.

Game two was an absolute nail biter but my opponent had wisely drafted a heavily defensive deck and I just couldn't quite get there fast enough.

My third and fourth games went better for me; I felt more focused and had a better sense of how my deck played out, so I was able to look at what my opponent was doing and focus on the weak points in his strategy.

The fifth game I managed to pull out but the sixth I lost on time and I lost that game because I didn't attack my opponent's weak point. He was running the new Skywarp and, despite him telling me his deck was "One seventh zero icons", instead of going for his support cards I kept trying to knock out Skywarp. If I'd focused instead on Ironhide and Sludge, I might've won out. I still might've won if time had not been an issue but that's life.

In addition, I missed some of my green icon and character attacking triggers. Some of that is about the new mechanic, some of that is about my own inexperience.

Final Thoughts
So far, I like where Rise of the Combiners is going; the new mechanics add depth in positive ways, expanding the strategic element without making things too complex. The foldable cards, so far, are strong enough to endure a bit of use which I also appreciate. They feel sturdy!

The rules clarifications section needs some work. The use of FAQ and Rules Roundup pages at Facebook is clunky. While those posts help promote the game, they aren't easy to search through and getting answers to questions like "can I interact with Characters in the K.O. area?" has been very difficult for me to find. We just need databases set up for things like this.

The use of the green icons do slow the game down a little. However, I believe that this is because it's a new mechanic we have to pay attention to, and less because it's a massive drag on the combat portion of the game. The games I played still went at a brisk pace and felt engaging. I look forward to playing more games!