Battlegrounds duos strategies

[RinseWizard-1705]

Looking for some insights into how other people think about Duos. Specifically:

A) What level of cooperation do you expect with your partner?
1). In depth collaboration, multiple pings per turn if minions are being passed. Passing minions at least every few turns (as warranted, obviously), and align minion types to maximize compatibility between boards?

2. passing obviously helpful minions (e.g. no brainier triples) and pinging for questionable ones.

3. Only passing when explicitly requested.

4. completely parallel play.

B) second question is more general. Currently, with buddies in the game, how do you think about the value of winning early? I will often skip the turn four upgrade if I can have a stronger chance of winning the next 2-3 matches because that gets me a buddy a turn or two earlier. But other people still seem to be trying to tier up as quickly as possible
I’ve seen this generally lead to complete blowouts very early that you can’t recover from, but I’m curious what other people’s takes are.

C) Related to b. it seems obvious to me that one player should stake out a strong early board and one should focus on a longer term strategy that can bridge the team until the early board player can assemble a late build. Is this a good general strategy, or should both players just focus on the long game?

[Clientofwar-11629]

@RinseWizard-1705

align minion types to maximize compatibility between boards?

I personally think this is a bad idea. It means that you both are competing to get the same minion type and there will be less of it. It would be similar to playing solo and having other players choose your minion type and sometimes you can’t find any of the type you want.

Maybe if you has a friend as your teammate this strategy could work out. But with a completely random person it would probably be a disaster. You also might get some toxic teammates who would just rage quit if they see you’re taking all the good minions instead of passing.

[RinseWizard-1705]

@Clientofwar-11629

It means that you both are competing to get the same minion type and there will be less of it

Ah I should have written that better. I meant choosing different, but compatible tribes/strategies. For instance, if I go demons, I will buff up minions in the tavern I can pass to my teammate. That strategy works best with something like mechs, since he can just magnetize the buffs onto his existing board. It works less well with something like undead.

[Diablotine-2816]

Personally, I don’t play enb duo if my partner isn’t there.
We speak to each other by voice, it’s more practical than emotes.

With strangers, I often found myself alone from the first round.

As a duo, I never take the same type of servants as my partner, ever.

For the rest, there is no specific strategy, everything depends on the taverns and the rest, but it is very rare (even exceptional) that we are only strong on a single board (favoring a board to the detriment of 'another) and it’s most often not done on purpose.

[Moondance-11467]

Just make the best play you can given both your boards and heroes. Don’t waste gold buying and passing meh minions. If you discover a meh minion for you but a really good one for your partner, pass that thing! Don’t only focus on feeding your partner (waste of gold, having no board yourself is bad). Basically, try to make the best move you can and balance your boards.

The value of winning early has skyrocketed. You may as, “meh, my buddy isn’t worth not upgrading the tavern for” but you could also be helping your enemy by losing to them. I don’t think enough people consider that.

I’ve lost so many games due to my partner picking the same minion type as me when my Hero and/or buddy works so well with it. Like, just pass me the cards and do something else… For some reason, this seems to be happening even more with Buddies. Perhaps it is because I’m not going to pivot when I KNOW my win con is that tribe.

What I truly hate is when my ally docks us 3 HP for a coin. It’s a ridiculous exchange without consulting your ally, and it has cost me plenty of games. That one coin, unless it is to get something right then, usually amounts to nothing but a refresh. And what’s crazy is when they do it when we have 3 or less armor, putting us to 30 hp, thus meaning we can die by two unlucky rounds.

[Bling-1807]

I play 90% with randoms in duos, because my gaming friends wont touch hearthstone stuff with a ten foot pole, despite the fact that BGs are nothing like HS. T_T
I usually use the first 3-4 turns to test the water and see if my teammate is actually there and not AFK, will actually play like they have a teammate, and don’t pick the same build as me.
In those turns, just pick whatever gets you the best stats. If that means you get a good first minion and can still tie when you go up to T2, Great! If not, pick a second minion on turn 2, and use the extra gold to buy a tavern spell or, if applicable, trade that minion for your teammates board. No matter whos board that minion is on, it still does its job of helping you win instead of tie, so the gold is generally not wasted. Same applies to turn 4. If you have a board that lets you win or tie, go up to T3 and use the extra gold on a tavern spell or to search for a nice T3 minion. If not, go for two minions.

You can win with a highroll with any tribe, but until they get nerfed, nothing beats Quill-bullies and Tavern-buff demons for pure consistency. Mainly because you don’t have to go past T4 to get a game winning board… so cheese.

[BlueWizard-11772]

New to battlegrounds, playing duos now.

My strategy is to buy one minion, if I like it.
Otherwise, I buy spells to buff the minions next turn.
Everyone goes to Tier 2 on 2, which is a mistake, imo.

Yes, you’re worried about getting left behind, but you’re also missing out on important choices available, potential tripples.

So, my strat is to go for the tripple, just after tier 2, or even 3. It’s possible to get a Tier 4 from a tripple in 4 turns.

Problem is, I need my partner to ‘hold the fort down!’ That usually doesn’t go well, and allot of times, he will pass me the last card that I needed before I’m ready. If he’s playing a different tribe?

I get a fantastic Tier 3 minion that only my partner can use!

I don’t know how to say it, but I’m gonna go out on a limb here:

If you’re not playing the same tribe as your teamate, don’t pass him a tripple! Unless, you’re intension is to undermine them, stealing thier big tripple?

Just don’t do it.

[REEEEEEEEEEE-1789]

If you can tell your teammate is bad, don’t trade with them.
If they actually make good choices, trade with them.
If they sell a card that is a win condition by itself and force some other dumpster build, just quit or mute their comms.

People may not like this, but holy christ above people are so much worse at duos than solos.

[Diablotine-2816]

@BlueWizard-11772

New to battlegrounds, playing duos now.

My strategy is to buy one minion, if I like it.
Otherwise, I buy spells to buff the minions next turn.
Everyone goes to Tier 2 on 2, which is a mistake, imo.

I’m sorry to tell you that everything in your message indicates that you don’t have the right strategy.

The first turn, even if you don’t like any servant, you MUST (except in the exceptional case where your hero skips your turn) buy 1, even if you don’t like any of them, you take the strongest (which you can sell later for 1 gold coin).

Turn 2, either you increase your tavern = it’s NOT an error OR, if you really like a servant, you buy it FOR YOU and if possible with a 1 point spell, otherwise you update.

Turn 3, if you don’t have your tavern up by turn 2, you do it.

It’s a beginner’s MISTAKE if you or your partner buy cards for each other on turns 1, 2 and 3, even if it’s to make a triple.

It is very rare to keep level 1 or 2 minions on your board : they are not important and what’s more your partner will lose 4 gold coins for “s-h-i-t” and fall behind on their board .

Being “very strong” at the start with your little golden minions = you will get run over in the last rounds and your experienced partner knows it…

@BlueWizard-11772

he will pass me the last card that I needed before I’m ready.

What do you need “to be ready” ?

@BlueWizard-11772

If he’s playing a different tribe?

And, what is the problem ?

@BlueWizard-11772

I get a fantastic Tier 3 minion that only my partner can use!

So give him (or sell it if bad = you have to ask him first if he wants it).
You have 3 choices, this is the game…
It is NOT his fault.

@BlueWizard-11772

If you’re not playing the same tribe as your teamate

In general, no one on a team plays the same minions, except in very exceptional cases depending on the heroes.

@BlueWizard-11772

don’t pass him a tripple! Unless, you’re intension is to undermine them, stealing thier big tripple?

Just don’t do it.

W-H-A-T ??!!!

You should play with a vocal friend who knows how to play to explain it to you…

@REEEEEEEEEEE-1789

holy christ

What ?

[RinseWizard-1705]

@Diablotine-2816

W-H-A-T ??!!!

My guess is they mean when you’re playing a tavern buffing strategy. I’ve had partners triple my elementals with unbuffed ones and it is a little annoying.

Also annoying when someone passes a triple right at the end of the turn, but I’m not sure that you can blame them because I don’t think the timing is synchronous between partners.

[Kamikaze-1242]

@RinseWizard-1705

What level of cooperation do you expect with your partner?

Not wasting his gold with useless minions or rejecting a really strong sinergy cards to buy nothing that helps.

[Diablotine-2816]

@RinseWizard-1705

triple my elementals with unbuffed ones and it is a little annoying.

Yes, that’s a good example.

This can also happen with Zilliax.
(I believe these are the only 2 exceptions.)

@RinseWizard-1705

I don’t think the timing is synchronous between partners.

Everyone’s time depends on their equipment.

For me there is sometimes a delay of a few seconds before my partner starts moving his cards.
I imagine the opposite happens sometimes.

@Kamikaze-1242

Not wasting his gold with useless minions or rejecting a really strong sinergy cards to buy nothing that helps.

True.

[BlueWizard-11772]

@Diablotine-2816

The first turn, even if you don’t like any servant, you MUST (except in the exceptional case where your hero skips your turn) buy 1, even if you don’t like any of them, you take the strongest (which you can sell later for 1 gold coin).

Yes, yes, yes… because otherwise, you’re gonna take a whole Three damage, if you lose the battle!

Look. It’s simple. The choices that you make early on are crucial to your win condition. If my win condition is to play deathrattle minions, and there aren’t any first turn, I’m not gonna set up the board with a stooge.

One thing that I have learned, since writing this post:

Some minions do not affect the outcomes of others. There are neutral minions that are not associated with any tribe. In my ‘humble opinion,’ I would purchase a Passenger, or the like, so as not to lock myself into a tribe I know I cannot win with.

[BlueWizard-11772]

@Diablotine-2816

Turn 3, if you don’t have your tavern up by turn 2, you do it.

Agreed, and to make up the loss, I go to Tier Four, as quickly as possible.

Sometimes, because I didn’t buy enough minions, Tier Four is just out of reach by turn Seven (in which case, I’m stuck at Tier Three, which is a bad thing)!

[BlueWizard-11772]

I guess, it all depends on if you’re winning.

If I’m ahead of the game, I can tier up without spending too much gold.

If I wait, until it’s at a reasonable cost, say… Six Gold (to go to Tier Four)!

I can buy more minions, fill out my board, and win some battles.

It also depends on what my partner is doing, and whether or not I have found any decent cards. Tripples are great, but if that leaves me with only Three minions on the board at Turn Six, that’s not gonna work.