http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/list/8.page JForum - http://www.jforum.net Week 2 thread: http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/list/2695.page
Week 3 thread (now unlocked): http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/list/2720.page

[u]Round 4: The Quiz[/u]
This week's puzzles will stretch your creative thinking while in-game. Each of the three puzzles will give you a situation and ask you come up with the best solution.

Don't forget about the bonus credits for guessing my answer to puzzle 3 from last week. See the week 3 thread for details.

For these puzzles all of the entries will be ranked. The top player will get 10 points, second place will get 9, and so on down to the tenth player getting 1 point. Ties will all be given the maximum points for that level with subsequent scores skipping the intervening point levels. A sample point award is shown here (assuming a higher answer was better):

Player A: answer=12 - [b]10 points[/b]
Player B: answer=11 - [b]9 points[/b] (tie)
Player C: answer=11 - [b]9 points[/b] (tie)
Player D: answer=10 - [b]7 points[/b] (skip 8 due to the tie)
Player E: answer= 8 - [b]6 points[/b]
Player F: answer= 4 - [b]5 points[/b] (tie)
Player G: answer= 4 - [b]5 points[/b] (tie)
Player H: answer= 4 - [b]5 points[/b] (tie)
Player I: answer= 3 - [b]2 points[/b] (skip 4 & 3 due to the tie)
Player J: answer= 2 - [b]1 point[/b]

On to the puzzles!

[quote=Week 4 -- Puzzle 1]
[b]You must choose the five EOJ cards that can deal the most damage during a single attack/activation/casting.[/b] For each card, give the theoretical damage and, if necessary, describe the board setup and/or play sequence that enables the maximum damage. Your score will be the sum of all five damages.

Two additional rules. First, to keep things simpler [c]96[/c] may not be used. Second, do not choose [c]124[/c] or [c]156[/c] as their ability to add your mana to their attack makes their theoretical maximum damage extremely difficult to calculate.

[b]I would urge you to test out your answers in-game using player-vs-player mode.[/b]

There is no penalty if your submitted damage is actually lower than the creature's maximum - you just won't get the benefit of the higher number. On the other hand, if the damage you submit cannot be verified then it will not count and will be excluded from your total.

A sample answer might be as follows:
[i]1. [c]118[/c] can do 12 damage. This assumes that the card morphed and that it attacks three enemies in their blind spots. Four points of damage to each of three creatures for a total of twelve.
2. [c]86[/c] can do 9 damage. Assuming he is attacking a biolith creature and there are seven other non-biolith creatures on the board (4 yours and 3 your enemy's).
3. [c]6[/c] can do 6 damage. This assume he strikes two enemies in their blind spots for three damage each.
4. [c]56[/c] can do 3 damage. This assumes he transformed and attacked an enemy blind spot.
5. [c]2[/c] can do 2 damage. Normal attack striking an enemy blind spot.
[b]Total damage: 32[/b][/i]
[/quote]

[quote=Week 4 -- Puzzle 2]Say you just started a new duel. Construct a game sequence that abides by the following rules:
1. Standard board layout.
2. You go first.
3. You may use any valid deck.
4. You may assume any arbitrary card order in your library.
5. Your opponent passes every turn.
6. Sometime during the match you must play a [c]20[/c].
7. On your eighth turn (game turn 15) you place your fifth creature and win.

The puzzle: [b]Construct a turn sequence whereby your [c]20[/c] has the highest possible HP at the time that you win the duel.[/b]

For your answer I need the following:
1. Your contents of your initial five card hand.
2. A list of every action taken on every turn. This includes: the card you drew at the start of the turn, what cards were played, and what effects those cards had.
3. The final HP of the Ice Guard at the time you win.

[b]I urge you to verify your sequence in a real EOJ match in versus mode against an imaginary human opponent.[/b] This is what I will do to verify all entries and if your sequence does not work you will not get credit for it.[/quote]

[quote=Week 4 -- Puzzle 3]You are playing a duel. Construct a game sequence that abides by the following rules:
1. Your opponent starts with four creatures: [c]184[/c], [c]45[/c], [c]84[/c] (facing right), and [c]50[/c] (facing right).
2. The initial board layout is as follows. All creatures have full standard HP. Fields are standard official layout.
[code]
+-----+-----+-----+
|BioBS| | |
+-----+-----+-----+
|SeHol|OurDr> |
+-----+-----+-----+
|Arela> | |
+-----+-----+-----+
[/code]
3. You both begin with no mana.
4. You start with no cards in your hand.
5. Your opponent passes every turn.
6. You may assume any arbitrary card order in your library.
7. You may assume that any 50/50 chances come up in your favor.

The puzzle: [b]What is the [i]minimum[/i] number of turns that it would take you to destroy all four of your opponent's creatures?[/b]

This one will be difficult to test in a real game, especially if you use any 50/50 cards. Just do your best :)[/quote]

Good luck!
]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25464.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25464.page GMT Archbishop Jirva (156) has the same "add mana to attack" ability. Let's exclude him as well from question 1.]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25470.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25470.page GMT
Also, I should mention the standard rules apply. Each question may be submitted separately, but no changes once you have submitted.]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25472.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25472.page GMT
For question 1, damage to your own creatures does [i]not[/i] count.

For all questions only Set 1 and 2 cards may be used. We'll probably start hearing about Set 3 abilities pretty soon and they should [i]not[/i] factor in to this contest.

Edit: Changed my mind on the first question. Enemy damage only. ]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25485.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25485.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25486.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25486.page GMT
Both of these are for question 1.

If a creature is destroyed outright for some reason (Phaseus being pushed off a Biolith field, for example) it does not count as damage. Damage is purely the numerical damage that pops up when a creature/spell strikes a creature else.

Also, fieldquaking does not count as damage. The HP gain/loss is not technically damage.]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25509.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25509.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25510.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25510.page GMT
Again I urge everyone to verify their solution in a real match. In particular [b]please pay attention to the summoning lock[/b].

After this I will not be allowing any further changes. I will attempt to follow your steps exactly and if your solution does not work I will only count your score at the point where your solution failed.]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25736.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25736.page GMT
At this point no one has a valid solution and I will be very sad when it comes time to hand out scores for this puzzle

At least everyone is on the same footing so that the 2 HP penalty won't really affect anyone's standing

Please submit your final answers [b]and verify them first![/b]]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25796.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25796.page GMT
In the meantime, the final week's puzzle is posted:
http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/list/2784.page

I will say this, there will be bonus points available for anyone that is able to beat the best solutions for week 4. Keep that in mind that when discussing the solutions this week. I'll give full details when I post solutions tomorrow.]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25925.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25925.page GMT
I have also included links to videos demonstrating the top solutions for each puzzle.

[u][b]Puzzle 1[/b][/u]

[u]Card 1[/u]
Most people recognized that Vamas, Tomb Sentinel (157) was the big hitter. With three copies of all six undead in the graveyard his attack is boosted to 20. Striking four enemies in the blind spots results in a total of 84 damage. Yowza.

[u]Card 2[/u]
The next highest submitted response was Crucible King Dios IV (16) with 44 damage: striking four enemies for eleven damage each. The eleven damage is from seven fire fields and two adjacent Verzar Elephant Brigade (48)s fieldbonded to be on Earth fields.

[u]Card 3[/u]
Next on the list is Phaseus, Biolith God (89). Pretty straight forward. Your opponent has four creatures in play. You have three Verzar Elephant Brigade (48)s flanking the field where you summon Phaseus. His base attack is four. Add two for each elephant and his total attack is ten. Striking four enemies his total damage is 40.

[u]Cards 4 & 5[/u]
There are a number of cards capable of dealing nine points of damage to multiple targets: Set 1 dominions with all fields of the appropriate element, any non-biolith God with three adjacent Elephant Brigades, or Biolith Temple (185) with three Elephants. There are probably more. Nine damage hitting four targets totals 36.

So 84 + 44 + 40 + 36 + 36. All this together brings the top score to 240. Two players submitted this as their top score.

Google Video: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4639212559176900530&hl=en

Sorry about the bad audio quality in these videos. I guess I didn't have the volume turned up loud enough. I forgot to activate the animation for Vamas. And the animation for the Elven Deity obscures one creature so it look like it only hits three creatures instead of four.

[u]Rankings[/u]
240 damage - 10 points - drizzle
240 damage - 10 points - sjabth
232 damage - 8 points - greyscout
232 damage - 8 points - DeRodeRidder
228 damage - 6 points - Royalty
171 damage - 5 points - sonihal
160 damage - 4 points - Slarth
150 damage - 3 points - Nightflyer
110 damage - 2 points - giaphan1989

_________________________________________________________________

[u][b]Puzzle 2[/b][/u]

I did verify everyone's entries for this puzzle in a real match. If there were simple problems I allowed the submitter to fix them as long as they didn't change their answer drastically nor increase their final score. Large issues could be fixed, but were assessed a 2 HP penalty.

Google Video: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-737461086208711261&hl=en

[u]Rankings[/u]
22 HP - 10 points - drizzle (resubmitted & assessed -2 HP penalty, was 24 HP)
21 HP - 9 points - sjabth (resubmitted & assessed -2 HP penalty, was 23 HP)
21 HP - 9 points - DeRodeRidder
16 HP - 7 points - Nightflyer
10 HP - 6 points - Slarth (error at turn 11)
9 HP - 5 points - sonihal (error at turn 5, assessed -2 HP penalty, was 11 HP)
3 HP - 4 points - Royalty (error at turn 3)
0 HP - 3 points - greyscout (error at turn 2)

_________________________________________________________________

[u][b]Puzzle 3[/b][/u]

I was surprised by the responses for this question. I never expected there to be a 3-turn solution. I thought the combination of protection, magic protection, and field control would make it tougher than that. There were a couple different ways that players attacked this puzzle.

sjabth and drizzle reminded me that there is another way to attack a creature: moving it. Both of their solutions were very similar. sjabth's is described below:

Turn 1.
Draw card - Summoner Mesmer's Errand (100) (1c/0m)
Mana charge (1c/2m)
Cast Errand - Draw Goghlie Altar (92) and Elven Death Dancer (66) (2c/1m)
Cast Altar - (1c/5m)
Summon Death Dancer to field 8 attacking the Fortress. They change places and Fortress is destroyed. (0c/0m)

Turn 2.
Draw card - Summoner Mesmer's Errand (100) (1c/0m)
Mana charge (1c/2m)
Cast Errand - Draw Behemorph (118) and Absolver Sacrament (191) (2c/1m)
Cast Absolver on Death Dancer (1c/6m)
Summon Behemorph (118) to field 4. It transforms and attacks all three remaining opponent creatures. (0c/3m)

Turn 3.
Draw card - Clare Wil's Banner (96) (1c/3m)
Mana charge (1c/5m)
Cast Banner on Behemorph (118) (0c/4m)
Attack with Behemorph (118) to kill off all the remaining creatures (0c/1m)

Funny story. While creating the replay on this puzzle the Behemorph (118) had the good fortune of transforming the first time I did it. Unfortunately I forgot to save the replay. It took another [i]four tries[/i] before it transformed again. And let me tell you, getting the board set up for the puzzle takes quite a few turns. Ug.

Google Video: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-966423099200227431&hl=en

[u]Rankings[/u]
3 turns - 10 points - drizzle
3 turns - 10 points - sjabth
4 turns - 8 points - Royalty
5 turns - 7 points - KillerShark1978
6 turns - 6 points - greyscout
6 turns - 6 points - Nightflyer
7 turns - 4 points - DeRodeRidder
8 turns - 3 points - Slarth
n/a turns - 2 points - sonihal (error at turn 3)

_________________________________________________________________

[u][b]Point Standing[/b][/u]

The points awarded this round are as follows:
30 points - drizzle
29 points - sjabth
21 points - DeRodeRidder
18 points - Royalty
17 points - greyscout
16 points - Nightflyer
13 points - Slarth
12 points - sonihal
7 points - KillerShark1978
2 points - giaphan1989

Here is the updated overall tally. Lots of contention in the top 3 slots. Even Nightflyer and greyscout aren't out of the running, especially with the bonus points up for grabs.

79 - drizzle
77 - sjabth
73 - DeRodeRidder
67 - Nightflyer
65 - greyscout
26 - sonihal
24 - Slarth
23 - Naone
20 - Apophis
18 - Royalty
15 - RRDPS3KING
9 - medleymr
9 - Vivax
9 - Draigon
7 - KillerShark1978
2 - giaphan1989

_________________________________________________________________

[u][b]Bonus points[/b][/u]
There are some opportunities for more bonus points this week. Hindsight is 20/20 right? Think you can do better now?

If you can come up with a solution for any of the three puzzles that produces a better score, submit it to me via PM. At the end of the contest I will award bonus points to whoever submitted the best solution. Three bonus points for each of the three puzzles - nine total. If more than one person submits a solution with the same score then the points will go to whoever submit it first. I will post the best scores as we go along.

Submit early, submit often. You are free to submit multiple times on the same puzzle if you find a better solution. And, yes, I know there is a better solution to at least one of the puzzles.

For the record, the best scores so far are:
Puzzle 1: 240 damage
Puzzle 2: 24 HP (drizzle's submission before the -2 HP penalty)
Puzzle 3: 3 turns

Also don't forget that the last week's puzzle is up (http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/list/2784.page). Good luck everyone!
]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25976.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25976.page GMT Fist of Juno (190)]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25997.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/25997.page GMT ]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26000.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26000.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26001.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26001.page GMT I see we came up with all the same crazy answers. I have resubmitted my answer for Puzzle #2. I found a way to squeeze in 2 more hp so I have brought my total up to 26 I'll wait and make sure skaht says it's legit before claming it as official though :p ]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26022.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26022.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26023.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26023.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26027.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26027.page GMT ]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26028.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26028.page GMT I'll give you a hint... I had to kill off my own creature to make it work lol. ]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26093.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26093.page GMT ]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26095.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26095.page GMT how highed you get?]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26097.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26097.page GMT
I still know of at least one puzzle that can be improved. Keep digging.]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26102.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26102.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26104.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26104.page GMT [/quote]
It can be improved I just submitted a 30hp method. Thanks for the motivation sbjath We'll wait and make sure skaht confirms it, but now I doubt it can be improved (Actually I think it can be improved, lol... there might be a way to squeeze 31-32 in there if I could just figure out a way to get more cards into my hand lol).

EDIT: Submitted a 31er... well see if Skaht confirms it

EDIT EDIT: Also, Skaht, were you giving out a credit to the player that scored the highest in this weeks round? The week one thread says you are giving a bonus credit to the highest scoring player of each week but did not see you mention that this week. Thanks

]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26195.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26195.page GMT
Thanks for the reminder about the weekly credit. You definitely deserved it this week!]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26196.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26196.page GMT Sleeptrap (58) and a Ghost Ship (133) .]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26198.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26198.page GMT
Thanks for the reminder about the weekly credit. You definitely deserved it this week![/quote]

Fine... submitted a 32hp method, lol. And thanks for credit

Sjabth, thanks for the extra cards. I only needed one more (and figured out how to draw more cards earlier in my method) I think 32 is my cap with the strategy I am using. I would need to go another route completely to improve from here. My method has been milked as much as it can now, I think. ]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26222.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26222.page GMT ). Good job, drizzle!]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26229.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26229.page GMT
and so many grats to you both, gentlemen!

Cheers]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26323.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26323.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26331.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26331.page GMT
In the meantime, keep looking.]]> http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26580.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26580.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26595.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26595.page GMT http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26712.page http://www.eojmanager.com/forum/posts/preList/2758/26712.page GMT