Nova Blitz FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions about Nova Blitz.
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General

What is Nova Blitz?

Nova Blitz is a real-time trading card game, currently in development by Dragon Foundry. Summon units, play powers, and duel in real time. Turns are simultaneous, with both players playing at once. And, in combat, hidden attack and block orders let you bluff and counter-bluff your opponent.

When does it come out?

Nova Blitz is currently on track to enter beta in June 2016.

How much does it cost?

Nova Blitz can be played for free! Through playing and winning matches you'll be able to earn credits to buy new packs of cards without spending any real money. Of course, you can spend money if you want to.

What platforms will it be on?

Nova Blitz will be available for PC, Max, Linux, Android, and IOS! Furthermore, gameplay is cross-platform. Your collection is tied to your account, so it will follow you from your phone to your computer. Matches against other players will draw from the entire community, no matter how they are playing the game.

Can I play it now?

Yes! Nova Blitz is currently in alpha, but anyone can download and play it right now. You can find the most recent build on the forums, at http://novablitz.com/community/index.php

How can I help the development of this game?

The development team values your feedback! Make a post on the forums with any feedback, suggestions, or bug reports. Have an idea for an awesome new card? Post it! It might get implemented into the game! Nova Blitz has already been successfully funded on Kickstarter, but it's not too late to support the game and get some of the Kickstarter rewards, by becoming a Blitz Backer. The game has also already been Greenlit on Steam!

Gameplay

What game modes are there?

Currently in the alpha there is a Constructed mode and a Draft mode. In the future there will be tournaments as well! In Constructed you can play against the AI, a random person via matchmaking, or you can directly challenge your friends. In Draft you play against other people via matchmaking. Be careful! Once you lose too many times in Draft you're out!

What are the deckbuilding requirements?

Constructed decks consist of 40 cards, from up to two of the five Aspects, with no more than 3 copies of any one card. Draft decks have the same rules, but are only 30 cards.

What are the card types?

There are two types of cards. Units and Powers. Units are your fighting forces, which you will attack and block with in combat. Powers have a one-time effect on the game, and can create, modify, or even kill Units, or have an effect on the players themselves.

What is Initiative?

Whenever you play a card, you give your opponent Initiative. In the combat phase, the play who has Initiative has their attacking Units resolve first. This leads to an important bit of decision making. When the turn starts do you play your cards as fast as possible, so that when your opponent plays their cards they'll be giving Initiative back to you? Or do you let your opponent play their cards first, allowing you to react to what they did, but giving them Initiative? When players' healths are low, Initiative could mean the difference between victory and defeat!

How does combat work?

In the combat phase of a turn, both players issue their combat orders to their Units without the opponent being able to see what those orders are until all orders have been made. There are three different things you can have a Unit do in combat: attempt to attack the opponent directly, block a specific Unit, or do nothing.
Note that I said attempt to attack the opponent directly. If you tell your Unit to attack and your opponent had chosen one of their Units to block it, then the two Units will fight instead. Of course, if your opponent chose to try to block a Unit of your that you didn't declare as an attacker, their blocker is useless! This leads to bluff based decision making in combat. For a great blog post about that from one of the developers, click here
Some Units have abilities that affect how combat resolves. For example, some Units have an "Attack" ability that triggers when their attack resolves. This ability could have an effect on other attackers or blockers that could completely remove them from combat!
Another important thing to keep in mind is that a player's attacking Units resolve in the order that they were declared as attackers. With "Attack" triggers and various other effects that Units can have, attack order can have a big effect on the overall result of combat.