Game: Spycraft CCG

Thread: Re: Spycraft Expansions

Zukar — 2008-08-11T20:48:30+00:00

Think maybee I give the game a try...
But where can I get the cardlist for the last Exp. Murder Lottery? Jirel´s site don´t list them....
And where are the multiplayer-rules?

Thread: Re: Usefull to open more than one similar starter?

GaryP — 2008-07-31T02:40:36+00:00

There is, as I recall, one booster's worth of random cards (11 cards for Operation: Nightfall) and the rest are fixed. Giving the extra starters to friends is the best bet, since it will increase the chances of them wanting to play. =)

Thread: Re: Usefull to open more than one similar starter?

dosto — 2008-07-30T15:25:55+00:00

ah thx then it doesnt make sense to open more than one. got starter boxes of base set and 2 expansions. might sell the other starters or give em some friends

Thread: Re: Usefull to open more than one similar starter?

FlyingArrow — 2008-07-30T14:52:41+00:00

Everything I have I got second-hand (already open), but most of the starters are fixed, with only a few random cards.

Thread: Re: Usefull to open more than one similar starter?

bluef0x — 2008-07-30T14:45:37+00:00

I agree, it wouldn't be worth it to open more starters. There are few places around that have boosters for sale, those would be better choices.

Thread: Re: Usefull to open more than one similar starter?

Fong242 — 2008-07-30T12:37:35+00:00

IIRC, each starter contains 2 rares, one of which is a foil (in operation nightfall at least, the others I don't remember...).

Have fun,
Fong

Thread: Usefull to open more than one similar starter?

dosto — 2008-07-30T12:07:04+00:00

i bought a starter display and em wondering, whether it is usefull to open more than one of the same starterpack? is it all fixxed? or only a small amount of fixxed cards.

thx in advance

Thread: Re: Spycraft Expansions

FlyingArrow — 2008-05-21T06:03:28+00:00

I found the card lists at Jirel's Spycraft site. Lots of broken links to the defunct AEG site where the lists were available, but his was the only one I found that had copies of the files.

Thread: Re: Spycraft Expansions

Fong242 — 2008-05-19T23:57:10+00:00

I played quite a lot of it and I think it is a great game!

Yes there is a lot of think to remember and the game suffered from weird wording but the face-down mechanics for inactive agents and gears is really great. You have to make decisions without knowing exactly what the other player has. I remember quite masterful bluffs

Concerning multi-player mode, it's not so great since when you run missions, it's mainly one-on-one, some cards were introduced in the later sets to increase the interaction between multiple players but fundamentally it's not really multi-player friendly IMHO.

Fong

Thread: Re: Spycraft Expansions

FlyingArrow — 2008-05-19T22:00:40+00:00

FlyingArrow wrote:
I don't know if it will be around forever, but apparently there is a Spycraft website out there:

http://spycraft.cardsnotwords.com/

Also, there is a Spycraft thread in the 'gone but not forgotten' forum at alderac.com.

Ok, well it looks like that site didn't last long.

Thread: Re: Spycraft CCG Question

bluef0x — 2008-05-15T14:28:51+00:00

Which ones? Don't you have the walk through in the booklet? That gives the needed order.

Thread: Re: Spycraft Expansions

GaryP — 2008-01-25T22:23:42+00:00

Good (if disappointing) to know. The amount of special effects was a bit of a concern for me, but I figured it wouldn't be bad in practice. But if two CCG players thought so... ah well. I still want to try it, but I'll be sure to try 2P first with someone who likes CCGs. Thanks.

Thread: Re: Spycraft Expansions

Dave — 2008-01-25T21:51:25+00:00

GaryP wrote:
Based on the rules and flipping through the cards, it looks like a really great multiplayer CCG.

Hmm... I thought it looked like a great 2-player game looking through the cards. My CCG partner and I made it through a few matches, but found that information overload (too many agents with too many factors and abilities in play) made it overly taxing, and we've benched it. I'm not sure how Spycraft works multiplayer, but it seems like you would either end up with mega-overload, or mega-downtime.

Thread: Re: Spycraft Expansions

GaryP — 2008-01-25T21:14:37+00:00

Thanks for compiling this. I knew most of it already, but it's nice to have in one place. I have the original starters, but still haven't played it. It's a shame because, based on the rules and flipping through the cards, it looks like a really great multiplayer CCG. Someday...

Thread: Re: Spycraft Expansions

FlyingArrow — 2008-01-25T20:51:44+00:00

I don't know if it will be around forever, but apparently there is a Spycraft website out there:

http://spycraft.cardsnotwords.com/

Also, there is a Spycraft thread in the 'gone but not forgotten' forum at alderac.com.

Thread: Spycraft Expansions

FlyingArrow — 2008-01-25T20:51:03+00:00

It seems this game really died. There is no mention of it anymore on the publishers' site and I couldn't find any fan sites either. It didn't even warrant a Wikipedia entry, so in the future BGG might be the best source of information for this game.

Looking at ebay and reading through things, this is what I have gleaned about the game's releases:

Operation Nightfall (2004) was the base set of 344 (but actually 349) cards. It included 60-card starter decks for 5 factions (Krypt, Nine Tiger, Banshee Net, Shadow Patriots, Bloodvine). Each starter also came iwth 24 mission cards. Booster packs contained 15 cards.

Extinction Agenda (2004) was the first expansion of 160 (actually 162) cards. It included starters for 3 factions (The Franchise, Bloodvine, Shadow Patriots) and booster packs with 11 cards.

Day of the Bullet (2005) was expansion #2 of 160 (actually 161) cards. It included starters for 4 factions (The Franchise, Shadow Patriots, Krypt, Banshee Net). Booster packs were 11 cards.

Murder Lottery (2005) was expansion #3. It was supposed to be 160 cards but was apparently just 141 cards, released in booster packs of 11 cards. Scheduled starter decks were scrapped, so no starters in this release.

Three additional scheduled releases did not see the light of day: Seven Sins to Doomsday, Wildnerness of Mirrors, No One Owns the Future.

Shadow Academy (2004) was a self-contained introductory game with two 60-card preconstructed decks (Krypt and Nine Tiger Dynasty factions) and 24 mission cards.

Thread: Spycraft CCG Question

cornflake — 2008-01-06T21:54:50+00:00

Sorry, couldn't find a section for specific game queries. If this should be somewhere else, can a mod move it?

I got Shadow Academy ages ago, and tried playing it with my wife but she didn't get on with it so it went into the cupboard. I'd like to try playing it again with someone else who I play Magic TG with, but the cards are now out of their original order so I can't follow the introduction game. i could probably work it out by following the booklet, but I was wondering if there was a list anywhere with the original order of the decks. I've tried Googling without much success.

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Legomancer — 2008-01-06T15:57:02+00:00

Card Back

Thread: Re: Spycraft Review

Boppl — 2007-09-24T13:40:44+00:00

I have some questions about useing your charisma,combat and transport skills during a mission. do you need to use an action card

The charisma/combat/transport actions are "standard actions" which any agent is allowed to perform ONCE during the appropriate mission type. (ie use Charisma action during an Intrigue mission to "Baffle" an opposing agent, Combat action to "shoot" during Fight missions and the transport action to "evade" during chase missions)

These actions are not printed on your agents, but they are still automatically allowed to use them.
(They are however printed on the "reference card" which come in the starter decks, in case you forget what they are.)

do you just do a straigt across attack on the person and whichever is higher wins?

For any action, you are always comparing skills, and usually you want it to be higher than the enemies skill (their skill is usually called the Target Number or TN).
If your skill is greater than or equal to the TN, then your action succeeds. When you say whichever is higher wins, i assume you mean your action succeeds? (To actually "win" the mission, if you are the attacker, your team of agents needs to reach an objective number in a particular skill which is greater than that of the defender)

Also, even though initially you may have the 'higher' skill, your opponent has a chance to "react" (eg they could increase the TN, redirect the action, or even cancel the action with their agents skills or cards from their hand etc.)

Other skills (eg those printed on agents cards, or those printed on gear) can also only be used once per mission.

I hope my answers make sense and help!

Thread: Re: Spycraft Review

KaneBlaireau — 2007-09-07T16:03:03+00:00

Just noticed this over at CCG Armory (http://www.ccgarmory.com/spycraftccg.html) for half retail. Tempted to pick it up, but I already play so very many CCGs...

Thread: Re: Spycraft Review

gooch62 — 2007-08-31T07:46:24+00:00

I have some questions about useing your charisma,combat and transport skills during a mission. do you need to use an action card or do you just do a straigt across attack on the person and whichever is higher wins? and when they say you can only use mission actions once per mission does that include the useing your skills? if you are alowed to do so that is.

Thread: Re: Good Game...But How Spry is It?

nickjost — 2006-12-30T19:17:06+00:00

After having bought into it last summer I'll answer my own question, the game died. Too bad really it was a lot of fun.

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Lothartvni — 2006-09-12T22:13:26+00:00

A stack of sealed Operation Nightfall booster boxes.

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saejinn — 2006-07-20T14:51:50+00:00

Extinction Agenda Expansion Set

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saejinn — 2006-07-20T14:36:31+00:00

Featured Decks for the Extinction Agenda Expansion Set

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saejinn — 2006-07-20T14:30:36+00:00

Three Preconstructed decks for Shadow Patriots, Bloodvine & The Franchise

Thread: Re: Wait, what?

GaryP — 2006-07-19T14:55:31+00:00

vladdswrath wrote:
To look at it from a different perspective, assume you were a dedicated player, and purchased large quantities of boosters on a regular basis. Leaders are always in play from the start of the game, (you don't have to draw into them)so you only need 1 copy of them. Pulling piles of them out of boosters would be maddening to a dedicated player.

So, in the end I suppose it's a glass half full / half empty argument

The glass is mostly full, really, for exactly the reasons you state. (Although, there is no spoon.) They are called starter decks for a reason. As someone who is also just now getting into the game, it is a bit of a pain to have to buy twice as many starters as I need (in a box of 10). However, as Jeff said, you need ONE copy of each leader and mission card. It would indeed infuriate me to find them in boosters. And given the going rate for a pack of starters, I think it's a reasonable way to begin.

Thread: Re: Wait, what?

Dave — 2006-07-16T20:52:21+00:00

AEG always made the missions available online. You can view and download the missions from the following link:

http://www.spycraftccg.com/ccg/missions/

Thread: Re: Wait, what?

vladdswrath — 2006-07-16T19:08:30+00:00

Spycraft is a very faction oriented game. Playing a mixed faction deck is next to impossible (except for the Franchise, hence my "they're broke" comment). I think the reason the leaders are hard to acquire is that AEG assumed everyone would purchase the starter of their chosen faction.

To look at it from a different perspective, assume you were a dedicated player, and purchased large quantities of boosters on a regular basis. Leaders are always in play from the start of the game, (you don't have to draw into them)so you only need 1 copy of them. Pulling piles of them out of boosters would be maddening to a dedicated player.

So, in the end I suppose it's a glass half full / half empty argument

Thread: Re: Wait, what?

saejinn — 2006-07-16T07:17:38+00:00

Hey thanks for the heads up. I wish AEG would have explained all of this a bit more clearly, but either way thanks.

Originally when buying the game I opted NOT to buy the starters because I figured the cards would be very basic and specifically designed for beginners (kind of like Magic, and the Portal series). But now I see I DO need at least one deck afterall.

Getting the mission cards doesn't sound hard, but I don't think I have enough leaders for each faction (I recounted and found 3 for The Krypt, 2 for Shadow Patriots, 4 for Nine Tiger, 3 for Banshee Net, 4 for Bloodvine and 1 for The Franchise). I find this odd, seeing as how mission critical leaders are, you'd think the manufacturer would have bundled more in.

As for the rules, I downloaded them from BGG here.

Thread: Re: Wait, what?

vladdswrath — 2006-07-16T06:12:08+00:00

Spycraft was a GREAT game that never really got a chance to take off. I am sure when you get the hang of the game (there are a lot of non-card based rules to remember), I think you will enjoy it. From your post, it seems you got a very good selection of cards from all the expansions, so you should have plenty of options to build decks. You don't have to buy an entire box of starters, the "mission cards" you need to play the game are the same in every Starter and only one deck of them is needed for both players to play the game. Besides, one would assume you would like to have a rulebook, which of course comes in the starter.

One thing to note is there are variant leaders and other fixed cards in the different starters decks but you don't have to aquire them to enjoy the game. Starters from the later expansions, Day of the Bullet I believe, had six new missions to put into the mission deck, but again
they were the same across all the starters so you only need to get one.

Have fun...and don't let anyone play The Franchise...They're broke!

Thread: Wait, what?

saejinn — 2006-07-16T05:41:04+00:00

I saw this game and thought it looked awesome, so I bought "Operation Nightfall", the booster box (it says 'Base Set' on the box), "Day of the Bullet" booster box, and "Extinction Agenda" booster box.

Having opened all the cards (numbering in the hundreds) I was highly disappointed to discover THERE ARE NO MISSION CARDS. And I've only seen two LEADER cards, so far.

What kind of game lets you buy hundreds of cards and still not be playable?

Now I have to buy the other "Operation Nightfall" (you know, the one with the ten preconstructed decks), as well as the Shadow Academy, just to be able to play the game with a decent amount of mission cards.

This game looks awesome with great art and very rich in theme, but I'm disappointed in the lack of mission and leader cards.

I guess I thought it was more like "Magic: The Gathering" where you can buy any cards, slap a deck together and battle it out. I didn't know it needed special cards to "glue" the game together.

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Kyralia — 2006-02-09T22:01:24+00:00

Extinction Agenda Expansion Pack

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Nekura — 2005-09-29T12:21:04+00:00

Booster pack

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Nekura — 2005-09-29T12:21:04+00:00

Learn To Play kit contents

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Nekura — 2005-09-29T12:21:04+00:00

Learn To Play kit

Thread: Spycraft Review

nickjost — 2005-07-29T20:17:17+00:00

I now have several games under my belt and felt that it was time to give a review.

Summary of Play
Cards are divided into four types:
* Agents/Leaders: These have skills and are the conduits through which all actions are played.
* Gear: Played on Agent/Leaders. Usually give skill bonus and/or a permanent action.
* Actions: One time effects on the game played through agents.
* Missions: Agents go on missions to get points. Twenty points wins.

Players alternate playing actions either printed on agents or through gear and action card effects. Eventually one side will attempt to "run a mission" by assigning agents. They become the attacker. Other players are then permitted to assign as "defenders". A majority of the action takes place during missions.

The Pros
When I picked this up I got two starter decks and two boosters. We started play with just the starter decks. I was amazed at how well the game played out of the box. For those of you not familiar with CCG's most do not play well out of the box. Spycraft is a noble exception. The rules are constructed in such a way that every card is always valuable. This allows a much cheaper entry point than many other CCG's.

This goes hand in hand with Spycrafts other primary advantage. Since every card is valuable many can be played in a single turn. Card flow is therefore brisk and interesting. Effects are always happening and the battlefield is appropriately shifting.

While some bag on the art, Spycraft should be praised for staying consistant. Some games, especially in AEG's lineup, have art that goes all over the place in both style and quality. Spycraft has a very predictable style (it appears to have only a few artists involved and this makes the cards look like they go together. No, there are no sweeping and inspirational vistas like a certain game from WotC, but they don't have that budget and I don't think that style was ever the goal. Its supposed to look like a commic book.

The game is also remarkably cheap right now. It looks like the first few printings overestimated demand. Therefore, those sets are going for really good prices. The game isn't dead, but there is a glut of cards. Take advantage of that glut to get going.

The multi-player mechanic is also noteworthy. It allows multiple players to defend rather than attack. This discourages a bash on the weekguy mentality and encourages defend against the leader. Its a great mechanic.

The Cons
Every card is playable. You draw a lot of cards. The game has a tendancy to play slow. I noticed that most of our games clocked in at a little over an hour. We're new players and haven't worked out the kinks, but that did seem on the slow side for a CCG.

The default actions alloted during some missions are also a little difficult. Its easy to lose track of which agent did what since there is no "tapping" style mechanic. The rule book suggests markers of some sort. I strongly agree.

The game also uses a novel payment mechanic. I like it, but since it is different from the system used in MTG it may be difficult to grasp for new players who haven't read the rules. I noticed in the demo games we played that it took a while for the players to catch on to how agents and gear were activated.

The rules are still fairly new so there are some areas that need more detail. A technical rule book seems to fill in these missing areas and is available on the website.

Summary
This is a strong emerging game that needs more attention. Like Legend of the Burning Sands its getting dwarfed by AEG's more popular but less fluid Legend of the Five Rings. Try it out. Its cheaper and plays much better.

Update
Since posting this review the game has "died". That is, it isn't made anymore. This is not a reason not to play it. CCG's that die usually get traded at pathetic prices. Give it a go. You should have a lot of (cheap) fun in the process. If your interested in the setting try out the RPG which is now run by a third party. Good stuff.

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thoia — 2005-07-18T17:17:05+00:00

A readable scan of the back of the starter deck for the Bloodvine Syndicate

Thread: Re: User Review

nickjost — 2005-07-05T21:31:13+00:00

From my brief plays I think the multi-player component is probably AEG's best since it aviods the bash the leader problem (essentially everyone has an oppurtunity to defend instead of attack). A truely underrated game that gets hit for all the wrong reasons.

Thread: Good Game...But How Spry is It?

nickjost — 2005-07-05T21:23:49+00:00

Just got a couple of starters and boosters for this. Loved the game. The starters played well, which in the genre is a miracle. Added one booster each and we got in a good six hours of gaming off of this hidden gem.

My question though...how "alive" is the game. There are some rumors that it isn't doing so well. Smaller games have survived, so I'm hoping the same for Spycraft. Any information from game insiders?

Thread: User Review

Derek Mitchell — 2004-09-09T16:29:33+00:00

Have you ever dreamt of being an international spy? Or of having the latest in high tech equipment at your disposal? How about getting to travel to faraway and exotic countries? If so, then you are going to love AEG’s “Spycraft” CCG.

Newly released and based on the popular RPG of the same name, the CCG puts you in the thick of the game of espionage. It allows you to control a team of highly trained agents in an attempt to thwart the other teams of spies working to foil your efforts at completing missions.

Now, to be brutally honest, I’ve looked at the RPG books but never played. However, thanks in large part to the CCG, I’ll probably buy a few. Having read about the release of the game months ago, I was more than a little eager to get my hands on some cards. Luckily for me, AEG put demo decks on their website, so I got to play with those. Fortunately, I wasn’t disappointed.

Don’t stop here, I’m not finished. Keep reading!

Scoring will be done with 1-5 gadgets, with 5 being the best.

THE PREMISE: Just like it says above. Direct a team of highly trained agents and complete missions to earn Victory Points (VPs). Currently there are several factions, which are: The Shadow Patriots (remnants of British MI:6), the Krypt (Russian), Bloodvine Syndicate (Mafia dudes), Banshee Net (computer geeks gone berserk), and the Nine Tiger Dynasty (Chinese warlords). The factions seem balanced, with the Krypt possibly being slightly stronger.
SCORE: 4 gadgets for a way cool setting.

THE LOOK: Not bad. The artwork is, well… okay. Not anything to get really excited about, but decent enough. Very comic-bookish. Still, it conveys the theme well, and some talented people put some hard work into it, so I’m impressed.
SCORE: 4 gadgets

COMPONENTS: Starter sets come with 84 cards and a rulebook. 24 cards are Missions (one for each time zone), and are the same in every starter deck. The remaining 60 cards have a certain number of fixed cards, with a few random Rare thrown in. Having purchased all five decks, I found that each contained one foil Rare card. The starter box is double size, but just large enough to hold all the cards (in separate decks), and the rulebook. Additional cards may be purchased in booster packs. I feel another addiction coming on…

# PLAYERS: 2-5. I really enjoy multi-player games, even though they do extend the amount of time needed to complete the game. Spycraft is no exception.

GAME PLAY: Not as complicated as you might think, considering what the game is about, but you will probably have to reference the rulebook the first few times you play.
All players share one Mission deck. This is placed in the center of the playing area and five cards are drawn from it and placed in a row to form the Mission Queue. The first two mission cards are dealt face up.
Your agency deck contains Agents, Gear and Action cards. You start the game with four Leader cards (levels 1-4), which are initially put into play face down, with the first one revealed once play begins. All Leaders must be from the same faction that you are playing.
Once all decks are ready and level 1 Leaders are revealed, players draw a starting hand of 7 cards. Players then determine starting player for the turn by adding up the Craft abilities of Agents in play (this includes Leaders, which are the only Agents you’ll have in play at game start).
Each turn has two phases, the Intel Phase and the Debrief Phase.
The Intel Phase: Like many of their other CCGs, Spycraft uses the ‘play until everyone passes’ type of turn. There are seven possible action to take during the Intel Phase.
1.Recruit an Agent. Place Agent card into play area. These are played face down until the cost of that Agent is paid.
2.Requisition Gear. Ditto, but are played under Agents, or as bluff.
3. Perform an Intel Action on a card in play. Use Agent, Leader, or Gear abilities. This also includes activating Agents and Gear, and your Leader must be able to pay the cost (located in upper right corner), or the card is retired.
4. Play an Intel Action from your hand. Action cards.
5. Brief a Leader. Use current Leader to pay part or all costs to activate next Leader. The former Leader becomes an Agent.
6. Discard a Mission. Either of the two face-up Missions in the queue. If a Mission is discarded, another is drawn to replace it in the queue
7. Run a Mission. Attempt one of the two face-up Missions.
The attacking player selects which of the two they want to run, then another player defends that Mission. If all players pass on defending, the person to the right of the attacker must defend it. In a two player game, no one can pass on defending. Each player selects Agents to run the Mission and use Gear and Action cards to help thwart the other. During the Mission, Agents can be “exposed” or even “retired.” Action cards and Gear abilities can increase or reduce the skill values of Agents. Once all Actions have been played, whoever has the higher point total in the required skill wins the Mission.
Missions vary in what type of skill is needed to complete them. Agent skills are Charisma, Combat, Transport and Craft. Each player may attempt one mission each turn. Whichever player wins the Mission earns the VP on the Mission. Earn 20 VPs and win the game. An alternate victory condition is to eliminate all other Leaders.
Debrief Phase: Once all players pass consecutively, then each player draws five cards. If any player has more than seven cards, they must discard down to the maximum hand of seven.

PLAYING TIME: Like many multi-players CCGs, it depends on the number of players. A game using all five factions can easily eat up an hour or more. You can count on the ‘more’ in most games. Since this is kind of the average in most games, I’ll score it that way.
SCORE: 3 gadgets

CARD LAYOUT: Very good. The cards are not cluttered and contain just the effect or information you need to use it. If there’s one thing I hate, it’s cards jammed full of so many symbols you’ll never remember them all. Kudos to AEG for well designed layouts.
SCORE: 4 gadgets

RULES CLARITY: Not bad, but could be better. I’ll never understand why manufacturers can’t get everything into one place. Fortunately, the game is not that complicated, and our group only came up with a few questions that we found answers for on the AEG website (www.alderac.com). The rulebook is large, and the type easy to read. We were able to grasp the mechanics after one read-through.
SCORE: 4 gadgets

THE STORY: A good storyline can be found on the website, and I’ve enjoyed it. The installments are short (2-3 pages), but read easily, and there’s some good character and plot development. I get the impression that the author is new to the storyline business, but he’s off to a pretty good start.
SCORE: 3 gadgets

PROS/CONS: The game has enough strategy to be exciting, and a decent storyline. Add to that pretty good artwork and easy play. As stated before, the factions seem balanced, and I’ve seen each one win a game. However, after a few plays it becomes a bit repetitive, which I’m hoping that additional cards from boosters and future expansions will cure.
SCORE: 3 gadgets

CONCLUSION: Having anticipated the game for some time, I was expecting to be blown away. It didn’t exactly leave me flat, but there’s an overall impression of something missing that I can’t put my finger on. Guess I’ll have to keep playing to determine what it is.
OVERALL SCORE: 3.6 gadgets. Slightly better than average, so I’ll recommend it to players getting into CCGs, and to seasoned collectors. It has the potential to improve, so here’s hoping AEG gives this game the support it deserves.