[FaB] Fatigue Theory

Since I'll be talking a lot about the 'expressive value of vertical/horizontal' in Nagoya,
I want to verbalize it and discuss it.

I've intentionally stayed away from fatigue for a year, so I'm about to return to it.

What is fatigue?

In FaB, fatigue is a strategy of 'making the opponent use up all the cards (resources) in their deck to win (or force them into a checkmate state).'

In typical TCGs, this is similar to a special victory via 'decking out,' but in FaB, running out of cards in your deck does not result in an immediate loss. However, once you use up all the cards in your hand and pitch zone and have no 'means of attacking (damage sources)' left, you can no longer deal damage, eventually leading to a battle of attrition with weapons or a loss once your hand is empty.

Total deck value

The most important concept for understanding and explaining the fatigue strategy is 'Total Value' of the deck.

• Total value of the attacker: The sum of the 'total damage' that all cards in the deck can generate throughout the game.

• Total value of the defender (fatigue side): The sum of the 'total defense value' that all cards in the deck can mitigate throughout the game.

[Conditions for fatigue to occur]

Satisfying this inequality (or inducing play mistakes during the game to chip away at the opponent's total damage) is the basic policy for the fatigue side.

When 'Count Your Blessings' existed, the total HP could reach nearly 100, making it easy to achieve the above condition.
It will likely never return...

How to defend

Basically, you defend in a way that maximizes the 'expressive value' of your hand. Also, when paying for AB or pitching for 'Oasis Respite,' the ironclad rule is to pay in a way that leaves strong resources for the late game. Furthermore, if you pay costs with resources generated from 'Fyendal's Spring Tunic,' it transforms into an astonishing expressive value of '5 points from 1 card in hand.'

Fractional damage that cannot be fully defended and attacks from 'Harmonized Kodachi' are offset by 'Sigil of Solace.' This also serves the role of offsetting arcane damage that cannot be fully prevented by equipment-based AB (exceeding the mitigation limit).

Expressive Value of the Future

Fatigue is not just about perfectly defending against an opponent's attacks with a 4-card hand (pure fatigue). There is an approach called "aggressive fatigue"where you actively apply pressure to grind down the opponent's deck as a result.

The core of aggressive fatigue is "forcing defense" through attacks.The prime example of this is an "all-out attack on the first turn of the first player." The first turn of the first player starts with both players having 4 cards in hand, but normally, no card replenishment (draw) occurs until the second player's turn ends. If the first player uses all their cards to land a high-damage attack here, the second player is forced to choose between two options: "take significant life damage" or "sacrifice cards to defend and lose the resources (damage output) they could have used on their own first turn."

If you can force your opponent to sacrifice cards here, you can crush their powerful first turn (such as setup for an attack) before it happens, and as a result, indirectly chip away at the total damage their deck could have produced throughout the entire game.

Similarly, even in the mid-to-late game, by actively playing attack actions with powerful On-Hit effects like "Command and Conquer," the opponent is forced to use cards for defense to avoid the hit effect. As a result, you can indirectly chip away at the "total damage (resources) the opponent could have produced on their next turn."

The pinnacle of this "actively reducing total value" movement is the Assassin class's "Contract" mechanism. Attack actions with Contract directly banish the top of the opponent's deck upon hitting, so whether the opponent takes the damage or defends, you are guaranteed to directly reduce the total value (maximum number of cards) of their deck.

Furthermore, this concept of "expressive value of the future" can be applied not only to the offense and defense of each turn but also tolong-term game plans.

By intentionally sending powerful "red cards" to the pitch zone early in the game, you ensure a powerful deck (strong draws in the late game) where higher-value cards appear consecutively when the deck goes into its second cycle.By conserving your resources for the late game and raising the quality of your deck in this way, it becomes possible to create a situation where you ultimately surpass the opponent in the expressive value of your deck.

When putting this play (pitch control) into practice,you do not need to perfectly memorize the exact order of your deck.

By simply being roughly aware of the overall color balance, such as "I pitched 'Command and Conquer,' so I'll pitch a blue next" or "I'll try to keep the deck ratio around 3 reds to 1 blue,"it is an recommended technique that anyone can easily try because it is sufficiently effective.

Example

We talked about this for an hour at the Pro Tour venue.

Let's consider an interesting example to deeply understand fatigue theory and the total value of a deck. At one point, it was a hot topic in the community that "in an Oldhim mirror with Sledge, playing 'Boulder Drop' is synonymous with playing a blue 'Head Jab'."

At first glance, playing the card seems to have higher damage output, but from the perspective of fatigue theory, a completely different picture emerges.

• "Boulder Drop" (played from hand): Consumes1 card from hand for "7 damage"

• "Sledge of Anvilheim" (swinging the weapon): Consumesnothing from hand (deck) by pitching only, for "6 damage"

The difference between these two actions is only "1 damage." In other words, you are consuming one entire precious card from your deck (hand) to increase your damage output by just 1 point. This is essentially the same as (i.e., very inefficient) going out of your way to play a "blue 'Head Jab'" that only deals 1 damage while consuming a card from your hand.

The "correct play" that changes depending on the opponent

Of course, this logic is not the correct answer in every matchup.

• Against Aggro: If the opponent is playing an aggro deck trying to overwhelm you with kill speed, the top priority is to get the "maximum value for this turn" rather than preserving your deck. Therefore, it is correct to play a 7-damage "Boulder Drop" even if it means consuming cards.

• Against Oldhim Mirror (Control Matchup): In a mirror match where both sides have strong defensive capabilities, the game inevitably becomes a "grind (fatigue battle)" where you chip away at each other's deck value. Assuming both players' life totals are well-protected, there is no need to grind down your own deck (your lifespan) for just one point of damage. Therefore, swinging with "Sledge of Anvilheim" without consuming cards is the optimal solution.

In conclusion

Honestly, fatigue has a certain threshold-clearing ability, so you can get a decent win rate. However, skilled players have proper countermeasures (ways to beat it) prepared, so the win rate just doesn't stabilize. Plus, it uses the full 55 minutes, so your hand is completely exposed, and it's common for your break time between rounds to be wiped out. Aggro is the way to go.

I'll get scolded if my theory is wrong by Nagoya standards...
Becky will passionately explain the correct theory...