That the Rare/Ultra Rare spirits not be available to purchase in packs. It goes back to the part where I would not like seeing it turn into he would has the most money has all the best spirits. Common and Uncommon spirits are what build a beck. And more often than not they are what win it.
@Neo Pain, I think we're on the same page still if I understand your concerns. I don't want to see people running around with overpowered decks that they purchased. I think it would be silly if people had decks with Council of Generals x3, Drylands Palace x5, Pyramid x5, Fixed Catapult, Lilith, Ballista, Catapult, Arabian Knights x5, Sicilian Knights x5, etc. Heck, I don't want to see anyone ever with those kinds of decks whether they purchased it or earned it via free-to-play, unless it's some kind of special event/tournament or an optional game type.
One way that some games avoid this (over-powered dungeons full of uber-cards) is by limiting the number of rare/legendary cards allowed per deck, or a rating system (star ratings on cards). The only constraint SpiritWars had was that some cards that were allowed only 1 copy per dungeon, but nothing more was needed due to negative and loss migrations. Some system might be needed however if we move away from migrations, which I think will be necessary if SpiritWars goes with a free-to-play ("freemium") business model.
I liked the Trade version, but I think the final Member's Non-Trading version was better because dungeons were a lot less over-powered. I used to love getting a repop, especially the global repops. In trade, I remember people having multiple dieties, 10 archers in every deck, War Chant x5, etc. While it was fun sometimes, you always saw the same dungeons and spirits. I think the games were a lot more strategic (and therefore more fun) in the non-trading version where the dungeons weren't on steriods.
I realize that not everyone might know or remember what spirits were labeled "rare" and "ultra rare". I built a large spreadsheet a long time ago for SpiritWars with every spirits information. After the game went offline, I was considering trying to rebuild it when it was offline for some time and accessed the spirit database. The only information in there that I don't think was posted online anywhere was the rarity and distribution frequency of each spirit.
Out of the 506 spirits in the game, 73 (14%) were "common", 177 (35%) were "uncommon", 170 (34%) were "rare" and 86 (17%) were "ultra rare". Some of the "rares" and "ultra rares" in SpiritWars weren't over-powered or even very desirable cards by any means, for example - Armasi Henchman, Nubian Slaves, Vestal Priestess, Alesian Lookout, Restoration, Treacherous Virgin, etc.
In addition to rarity, each card had a distribution frequency associated with it, so even some of the common cards weren't really common. Here's a few of the "common" cards with low distribution frequencies - Bog Monster, Bison, Arctic Bear, Apostasy, Dragonbane.
The only reason I'm mentioning this is to make sure we're using the same nomenclature. A lot of the "rare" and "ultra rare" spirits aren't very over-powered and some of them are very weak.
Anyways, I think you need to allow people to get "rare" and "ultra rare" cards from buying packs. I believe the chance of collecting one of the really powerful cards is the main reason that people will want to spend money ($$) on the game. I think these packs should also be available to free-to-play players, but it should cost in-game currency (gold) that takes a while to earn.The only cards I was suggesting that weren't available to free-to-play players would be all the cards from the newest expansion set(s). Each new expansion set should include the same distribution of common/uncommon/rare/ultra rares, so when a paying player buys a new pack, they're only getting 1 rare per pack (with a very small chance of it being extra rare). Or maybe even have only 5 cards in a pack with no guarantee of one of them being a rare, for example - 3 common, 1 uncommon, 1 uncommon(75%)/rare(17%)/ultra rare(8%).
By the way, here's a list of the spirits that are categorized as "rare" and "ultra rare"...
RARE SPIRITS (170)ENERGY (25)- Darkwizard's Crypt, Moonlit Tomb, Vampire's Castle
- Drylands Palace, Merchant Caravan, Pyramid, Tower of Babel
- Aqueduct, Coliseum, Gladiator Academy, Mt. Vesuvius
- Augean Stables, Greek Monastery, Minotaur's Cave, Mountain Stream, Mt. Etna
- Isle of the Dead, Mineral Springs, Tethys' Well, Trading Post, Waterfall
- Druid's Grove, Farmers Market, Hibernian Alehouse, Hibernian Shepherd
COMBAT (74)- Ancient WitchChild, Armasi Assassin, Armasi Henchman, Crimson Wizard, Dark Adept, Dark Enchantress, Dark Scholar, Dark Witches, Hydra, Lord of the Dead, Nemesis, Phantom Horde, Shadow Blades, Vlad the Impaler, Werewolf
- Charax Sorceress, Fixed Catapult, Lilith, Mounted Bowmen, Nile Crocodiles, Nubian Slaves, Parthian Archers, Parthian Warlord, Ramses, Sultan of Persia, Unseen Stalker, Weapons Master
- Apulian Archers, Apulian Priest, Bacchus, Ballista, Catapult, Centurion, Cleric of Apollo, Hannibal's Elephants, Pavian Alchemist, Pavian Merchant, Praetorian Guard, Priest of Mars, Roman Horse-Archers, Roman Shield Bearer, Spartacus, Venal Governor, Vestal Priestess
- Argonaut Archers, Beastmaster, Centaurs, Cyclops, Jason, Priest of Vulcan, Rock Troll, Spartan Archers, Spartan Engineers
- Alesian Lookout, Atlantis Shaman, Banshee, Berserker, Crossbowmen, Frost Giant, Savarian Wizard, Saxon Knights, Siren, Valkyries, Viking Pillagers
- Elf Ranger, Elven Blades, Elven Princess, Elven Sorceress, Giant Hedgehog, Hippolyta, Sylvan Druid, Unicorn, Verdant Thicket, Woodland Sylph
DEFENDER (17)- Necromancer's Tower, Ogre's Lair
- Flaming Wall, Sumerian Citadel
- Hangman's Gallows, Roman Fortress, Temple of Pluto
- Dragon's Cave, Highland Bandits, Highlands Fortress
- Sea Dragon's Lair
- Amazon Temple, Elven Outpost, Giant Spider Web, Hesperides Garden, Living Thorns, Tree Fort
SPELL (54)- Anthrax, Darkwizard's Spellbook, Gluttony, Graft & Corruption, Under the Red Sky, Vampire's Kiss, Warped Terrain
- Antediluvian Curse, Column of Fire, Council of Generals, Emancipation, Eye for an Eye, Fortify Defenders, Hero's Quest, Internal Power, Pacifism, Prisoner of War, Tomb of the Kings, Whispering Sphinx
- Age of Reason, Cupid's Arrow, Devout Prayers, Exorcism, Fall of the Mighty, Hasten Fighters, Hasten Romans, Holy Light, Master's Wisdom, Military Genius, Rage of Perseus, Sicilian Executioner, Spyglass
- Advanced Architecture, Aegean Sea Tempest, Conscription, Earthquake, Love Letter, Oath of Fealty, Recurved Bows, Stone Masons
- Alesian Frigate, Bolt of Lightning, Mermaid's Prize, Mjolnir, Rampaging Colossus, Treachery, War Chant
- Clinging Vines, Harvest Time, Kiss of Life, Natural State, Pandora's Box, Restoration, Treacherous Virgin
ULTRA RARE SPIRITS (86)ENERGY (22)- Armasi Ferrier, Decrepit Mill, Dragons Graveyard
- Desert Scavengers, Library of Alexandria, Nubian Refugees, Persian Waterwheel
- Apulian Smithy, Arundel Mill
- Diamond Mine, Mounted Hunter, Olympic Vineyards, Oracle, Vulcan's Forge
- Alesian Harbor, Itinerant Merchant, Nereid's Spring, Saxon Seer
- Forest Chapel, Mts. of the Moon, Sacred Oak, Sacred Woods
COMBAT (40)- Circe, Fallen Paladin, Grendel, Medusa, Unholy Priestess
- Bedouin Saboteur, Osirus, Priest of Karnak, Sphinx
- Apollo's Seamstress, Cupid, Diana, Venus
- Achilles, Ajax, Alexander the Great, Athena, Cronos, Dwarven Slaver, Dwarven Smith, Guldar, Hector, Hercules, Storm Mage, Vulcan
- Baldur the Good, Beowulf, Moat Monster, Orion, Saxon Bard, Sea Dragon, Thor, Viking Archer
- Ash Druid, Bird-Headed Monster, Forest Dragon, Hibernian Fletcher, Hibernian Hares, Lemming, Pan
DEFENDER (3)- Forest of the Impaled
- Dwarven Fortress
- Guardian Angel
SPELL (21)- Acid Rain, Ambush, Grim Reaper, Poisoned Chalice, Ragnarok, Suicide, Witchcraft
- Scorched Earth, Spoils of War, Tribute
- Aphrodite's Dream, Jubilee, Juno's Betrayal
- Funeral Procession, Stone Touch, Thunder of Zeus
- Lost at Sea, Meteor Shower, Sunken Warship
- Pagan Sacrifice, Purify Waters