QUOTE (Hags888 @ November 13, 2007 10:28 pm)
1. Is the PtV well supported?
2. Do the cards work well together generally?
3. Does the deck have an acceptable win/loss record?
4. How is the deck playability (aka, are there situations where you always can or can't make the cards work?)
5. Does the deck match other Hasbro trends or break them too much (this one contains all those things like talent card distributions, basic decks, HP ranges, etc...and really only applies to custom decks)?
6. Is the deck fun (this one is entirely subjective, but still valid)?

1) Irrelevant if we're not assuming we're designing a strong deck.
2) Irrelevant if we're not assuming we're designing a strong deck.
3) In my opinion yes, but in yours, I think it's no. But this is the weak=poorly designed argument you are not making.
4) Complex, even frustrating at times. Not sure what this has to do with concluding a design is poor, so I'm guessing this must be where your argument is coming from?
5) not a custom, as noted
6) Disagree about the validity; obviously there will disagreement on this. I believe Fish has mentioned Vader is his favorite deck to play, yes?
QUOTE (Hags888 @ November 13, 2007 10:28 pm)
I still haven't seen an argument in support of his deck design (I *have* seen arguments to support his win/loss record in that his depiction on screen is weak...but that's about it).

Considering I've written one line about his depiction on-screen (and that mostly a throw-away -- "I don't see the armored Darth Vader do anything 'formidable'"), and everything else has been in support of his deck design, I have to question which forum you are reading. In any case, here are reposts as requested (commentary finishes the statement, "Vader's deck is well-designed because..."):
QUOTE (volleyballgy @ November 03, 2007 01:26 am)
What is Vader’s Path to Victory?
It varies depending on his opponent, which is what I consider a strength of his deck. Against a character without power D, it's the attacks of the red deck with the finishing power of TD. Against personality minor opponents, it's hide behind stormtroopers until Chokes eliminate the possibilities of the opponent. I guess overall I'd say Vader's PtV is annoyance -- do what your opponent doesn't want, whether it's slowly chipping away at health by DD or hampering their efforts by eliminating the asset of a personality minor.

"... it is versatile enough to change against different opponents."
QUOTE (volleyballgy @ November 04, 2007 10:49 pm)
I think the strong attacks of the red deck, along with the highest health in the game, support what I'll call the "death by attrition" PtV. And, really, ATE really does support that PtV as well in that it makes an opponent stay away from Vader unless he has enough defense to play one for every attack of Vader's, thus prolonging the Duel and giving Vader a chance to draw more DD. Then, by the time the opponent does close in, he's about half dead already from the DD and Vader's attacks don't need to cause as much damage.

"... his basic deck, health points, and ATE support his PtV."
QUOTE (volleyballgy @ November 09, 2007 02:06 am)
My argument is that ATE supports this path by making opponents think twice about getting near Vader -- they need to be able to defend any attack Vader throws at them, so it takes time to build a hand. While this is happening, Vader is whittling away at their HP with his DD -- the "gradual wearing down" -- so that when they finally do approach Vader, around half their health has already been taken away, while Vader is at full strength. Then Vader finishes off with his basic attacks supplemented by the DSD, for the most part absorbing the opponent's blows in order to hit back.

"... ATE, Throw Debris, Wrath, DSD, and his basic deck support his PtV."
QUOTE (volleyballgy @ November 09, 2007 05:47 pm)
The advantage of his DD is that he can use it from anywhere, which allows him to damage the opponent without taking damage himself.

"... his DD can be used without being adjacent to an opponent."
QUOTE (volleyballgy @ November 09, 2007 07:02 pm)
IMO, it's pretty clear that since YSANC doesn't discard any defense, it doesn't really have anything at all to do with ATE. In fact, it doesn't have anything to do with helping Vader deal damage at all. But it DOES function as a way to prolong the Duel, thus supporting the attrition PtV. Most movement cards are specials, and there are also a fair number of DD specials, both of which are eliminated by YSANC. So in this way it can both prevent the opponent from getting to Vader at will and reduce potential damage when he does.

"... YSANC supports his PtV."
QUOTE (volleyballgy @ November 10, 2007 01:50 pm)
My defense of Vader's deck is that although others see two divergent and incompatible PtV's, I see only one, with each talent card contributing to that single PtV.

"... it has a single path to victory supported by all of his talents."
QUOTE (volleyballgy @ November 13, 2007 01:56 am)
I disagree completely; I think all three of these support the attrition PtV.
1) 3x Choke might mean one ends up useless, but it also means he gets them more quickly, which is a must. Vader can't afford to be taking shots from the minor(s) before closing with the major.
2) Wrath is almost the very definition of an "attrition" card...
3) Though it would be much more effective as an A4, DSD still provides some extra attacking power with the added benefit of potential healing, perhaps the one or two HP he needs to survive to attack one last turn.

"... Choke, Wrath, and DSD support his PtV."
QUOTE (volleyballgy @ November 13, 2007 08:32 pm)
I think the design was excellent -- instead of having six really powerful cards (3x Wrath, 3x Choke), you end up with two to three really powerful cards, one to three useful cards, and zero to two ineffective cards. That's three different levels of usefulness in only two different types of cards! Even more incredible is that they function even better in 2v2 without overpowering him in 1v1.

"... using only two varieties of cards, three different card strengths are achieved, which vary Duel to Duel."
"... he is neither underpowered nor overpowered for play in both 1v1 and 2v2."

What part of that isn't "an argument in support of his deck design"? And these are only my posts... Fish has made some as well.

In Italy for thirty years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love, they had five hundred years of democracy and peace. And what did that produce? The cuckoo-clock.
- Orson Welles