The Hanzo Ninja Clan School Of Anything Goes Martial Arts Lesson 8: Float Like A Butterfly. Sting Like A Bee.

Player ID 13807

Now, it's easy to get caught in certain traps, like the one displayed in the previous 2 lesson chapters. In that one, we discovered that, counter intuitively, and opposite of what most people advise, it is often better to tier ones smaller cards rather than their stronger ones. Another trap one might face is deciding which cards to tier based on card type.

What I mean is that a player may want to focus primarily on increasing their Move stat, for example. Naturally, they might think that it is best for them to tier all their Move cards 1st, before moving on to Attack and Defense cards. While this is generally true, the farther up the ladder you go, tiering stronger and stronger cards for a higher and higher Morphon cost per stat point, you'll find that you can get more Move from cheaper cards within your Attack and Defense decks. Let's take a look, shall we? We'll use the Move Card Falcon Swoop. It isn't the very best Move card, but it is very near the top.

Falcon Swoop Upgrade 1 (35 MP)
LEVEL 1
Att 75
Def 75
Move 161

LEVEL 5
Att 150
Def 150
Move 322

Now, 1st, let's calculate the overall value of the card using my Skill Point bonus as stated in the last couple lesson chapters. Att 50%, Def 50%, Move 150.25%

Att 75 + 0.5 (75) = 112.5
Def 75 + 0.5 (75) = 112.5
Move 161 + 1.5025 (161) = 402.9
For a total sum of 627.9

Now we divide that by the 140 Morphons it cost to tier this card to 5.
627.9 / 140 = 4.485
This card has an overall value of 4.49 to me.
But if I want to focus only on the Move stat, we get
402.9 / 140 = 2.88

This means nearly 2/3rds the value in this card for me is in Move. So let's put our values down again.
Overall Value: 4.485
Move Value: 2.88

Now, even though we're trying to focus on and increase our Move stat, the best place to do this isn't necessarily by using Move cards. In the current example, we've moved our way up to the Move card Falcon Swoop, which is one of the stronger Move cards. But what happens if, instead of tiering Falcon Swoop, we look at our other decks? Just because our other decks are filled with Attack and Defense cards doesn't mean we shouldn't look there for maximum Morphon efficiency in growing our Move stat. Those cards have Move too. And if we look at the previous two lesson chapters, we can see that a low end card can net us more stat points than a high end one per Morphon spent. This holds true across stat type aisles as well. Let's look at the recent MLK Holiday Defense card that recently came out called 

Peaceful Perseverance.

Upgrade 1 (10 MP)
LEVEL 1
Att 22
Def 103
Move 61
LEVEL 5
Att 44
Def 206
Move 122
Now, let's do the math and find our overall score 1st.
Att 22 + 0.5 (22) = 33
Def 103 + 0.5 (103) = 154.5
Move 61 + 1.5025 (61) = 152.65
With a sum of 340.15
Divided by the 40 Morphons we spent to tier it to level 5, we get an overall value of 340.15 / 40 = 8.5 The overall value of tiering this card is already nearly double that of tiering Falcon Swoop. But what about in regards to the Move stat? Let's look.
152.65 / 40 = 3.8
So this card has a Move value of 3.8 per Morphon, and an overall value 8.5 per Morphon.

Falcon Swoop
Overall Value: 4.485
Move Value: 2.88

Peaceful Perseverance
Overall Value: 8.5
Move Value: 3.8

So, by holding off finishing tiering your Move cards, and instead moving on to your Defense and Attack cards, you can see how, despite it seeming counter intuitive, you can potentially increase your stats both overall and individually, by taking a closer look at your other decks. Remember, ALL cards provide ALL three stat types.

Now, take a moment or several to look at your own Skill Point Bonuses and calculate what your formula for determining card value will be for you. Then, go ahead and start going through your cards and appoint values to them. This will give you an idea which cards you want to develop 1st. Remember, every edge matters and for free and budget players, you need to make the most of every Morphon and Crystal you get your hands on. So use these guidelines to help determine how best to do that for you.