Celestial Battlefield Card #7: Trex the Savage

This is an awesome card! The card design was provided by Kristofer and his group of players from Sweden...he did all the hard work, I just did a little painting to give it that "Guardians" look. I'll be posting a few more of his designs soon. It's also the first of some Saurians that will be added to this set.

Celestial Battlefield Card #6: Yeti

I've had time to do a little painting. The wrist fatigues easily, but has healed well. I just need to continue physical therapy and build the strength back up. Mobility is excellent.

Mounting a Comeback

Ok, so maybe I was a wee bit optimistic in my last post. But the cast is off, I'm wearing a splint, and entering the physical therapy phase. I have a pretty good range of motion already, I can write and type a bit with the hand now. Painting is maybe a week away. I had some downtime to work on new ideas and so next week you should see something new...

A Little Good News

Finally something positive. After meeting with the surgeon this past Tuesday, it looks like I'm getting a plate installed on my wrist this coming Tuesday (the 31st). Within 3-4 days I should have full range of motion back in my wrist. That means a little over a week from now I may be able to type with both hands again, and possibly even paint. It also means I'll be on painkillers for a few days, so there won't be any new posts for a few days after the surgery.

Again, thank you for your support. You all have been great!

Celestial Battlefield Card #5: Sleep

A Little Setback

Well, 2012 has started out the way 2011 ended - crappy. I'm sitting here typing with one hand because I broke my wrist today. Tomorrow I have to schedule surgery. The bad thing is it's the hand I paint with in Photoshop, so I won't be able to work on cards. I did have 2 or 3 more done, so I'll post those. It would be a good time to type up some card analysis, but my typing is so slow with my left hand. I'm trying to keep my spirits up, but it's very depressing. The good news is that when I fell off the roof, I didn't damage my back, neck or head, so it could have been worse.

I'd like to once again thank my blog followers for their support. I'll be around in one form or another.

p.s. It took me 5 minutes to type this up. Not great, but not bad...

Celestial Battlefield Card #4: Lycanthropy

Celestial Battlefield Card #3: Duel

Some Notes Regarding Celestial Battlefield Expansion

As I noted in a previous post, I have changed the set symbol from a sunburst pattern to trident-like pattern. The main reason for this was that the sunburst pattern bears far too much resemblance to the ankh pattern found on Necropolis Park cards. The small font cuts off the bottom of the sunburst. The trident symbol was much more distinctive, and still looks cool, so I went with it instead.

Also, the first two cards released both reference "cursed" cards. Cursed cards have both positive and negative effects. For example, a cursed Command Card might reduce Vitality for each creature under it and slap them all with a Cursed label. Reducing Vitality is similar to the effects of cards with negative numbers like Rye Beaner. This means you can get more creatures under Shield but also means they will be weaker in combat. And some cards are specifically built take advantage of having a Cursed Command Card or when matching up against Cursed Creatures, like the first two cards of the set, Deathknight and Inquisitor.

Some cards from Champion's Odyssey are going to be re-released with Cursed effects or labeling, such as Mummy's Curse and Possessed!

Celestial Battlefield Card #2: Inquisitor

Celestial Battlefield Card #1: Deathknight

It's finally here! Deathknight is of course the first card of the new set. It introduces a feature I'll touch on later, "cursed" cards. Also, those with sharp eyes may notice the set symbol has changed from the "sun" symbol to a "trident". I'll discuss this in an upcoming post as well.

For now, celebrate the first new card in over 6 months and the first of 2012!

Looking Forward to a New Year

Well folks, the second half of 2011 really sucked for the blog due to nice weather, mold infestation in my house, my back injury, and the holidays. I lost a lot of momentum as the #1 place where people come to get brand new Guardians content.

My back is almost healed, and being nearly pain-free is invigorating. I'm dedicating 2012 to bringing more content to the blog, including more cards, tutorials, and variants as promised. I had proposed some radical ideas for my next expansion, including co-op play, but I'm backing off that for now...I think that's better suited for a variant. I'm just going to add a couple of small ideas instead and go from there. By the end of the week I'll have the first new card up.

If you didn't abandon the blog despite the lack of content, cheers to you and thanks for your support!

Update on New Cards

Sorry that I haven't followed through on new cards yet. I injured my back a over a week ago and I'm still healing. I haven't been mobile enough to use my computer much, I've mostly been laying around taking painkillers and visiting the chiropractor. I'm feeling as little better today, and hopefully I'll recover in the next week and get some things going.

Celestial Battlefield: More Details

Here's the promotional blurb for the new set, Celestial Battlefield:

"Long have the Mid Realms suffered the effects of the titanic struggle between Guardians, Vierkun, and their armies...they have become shattered lands, where armies find it difficult to face each other, leaving conflicts unresolved. The Vierkun found a way to shift battles to the Celestial Planes, but when both opposing Vierkun attempt to shift the battle, the destination becomes uncertain, and the conditions for battle become unknown. In addition, Vierkun must often work together to defeat Avatars, powerful denizens of the Planes. This is the new stage upon which the Vierkun and their armies find themselves, and the results are often unpredictible, ensuring that only the strongest tacticians will survive..."

Celestial Battlefield is a Guardians expansion of 100 cards, including 2 new card types, Planes and Avatars, and other cards that make use of these new card types. This new expansion is fully compatible with the Revised Guardians set and all other Guardians expansions.

Name of New Set: Celestial Battlefield

I agonized for hours over what the name of this set should be called. In the end, I'm pretty satisfied with the name. It reflects the direction of the new set, which will introduce some new mechanics, similar to the way C.J.'s Event cards were a new mechanic.

I'll have the first card up soon...