1000 Blades Season 2: New power system, more fun NFT card game experience

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In early 2022 I interviewed Nate Lindley on his new NFT card game 1000 Blades. Nate has been working hard at iterating on the game for an even more fun experience with Season 2, to start early next year.

A How to Play video was published in late November:

https://realworldpodcasts.com/watch/jvO0MOYpDS4o5vEud5M12gMsJ1G3DMsJ1G3D

I caught up with Nate to learn the differences with Season 2 and what fans can expect.

How is Season 2 different from Season 1?

Nate Lindley: The biggest difference between Season 1 and 2 is the power system. In Season 1, there was only 1 number on each warrior card that represented a warrior’s power. In Season 2, however, each warrior has 4 numbers. These numbers include SHUA (health points) and three attack powers (spirit, strength, and stealth). In Season 2, warriors now engage in a more direct style of combat. Battle cards flip and trigger a warrior’s attack power, dealing damage to the other warriors.

Why use SHUA for HP?

Nate Lindley: Short answer… because SHUA is iconic!

Expanded answer… I think homage pieces and cameos are fun. I wanted to show respect to your (Joshua Henslee) work. You have played a big role in the BSV community and I appreciate what you do. I think it is good to support each other and draw attention to other artists. Your SHUA heart design seemed perfect for HP. I am very thankful that you let me utilize SHUA. Now, when showcasing the game and people ask me what SHUA is, I can easily talk about NFTs.

Why did you choose to release the Ninja and Monk factions on different blockchains (Ravencoin and Radiant) respectively?

Nate Lindley: I wanted 1000 Blades to create a common ground, where people in different communities could connect. Games offer a space where people can mingle. So much of the crypto/NFT world seems to be bound to specific platforms (walled gardens, so to speak). I decided to hop some walls and see who might want to hang out from those other spaces. BSV will always be my first crypto community, but I can’t help but think there are good people in all these communities. Hopefully 1000 Blades will be a place where these folks can come together to share work, interests, and discoveries.

Perhaps territories can be won during livestream events 🤔

Question is, what are the territories called? Who are the leaders of each faction? How to make this all work?🧠 ⛈ #1000blades #NFTs #BSV #RVN #SOL #NFTGame #drawing #art #fantasy #maps https://t.co/Lw8aRk1RRK

— 1000 Blades (1KB)🐉🄶🄰🄼🄴 (@1000Blades_tcg) October 21, 2022

Earlier in the Fall you teased territories and places—are those implemented in any way in Season 2?

Nate Lindley: Oooh. Good question. Right now, it does not. I think the map is going to play a role in Season 3, though. Most 1000 Blades fans hear me talk about a storyline or comic. I certainly plan on writing and drawing that material. Yama, Heishi, Keishu, and the story of an oni’s diabolical plan to collect the blades of fallen warriors is too rich to lay to rest. I want to keep expanding upon it! In a way, even though the Season 1 and 2 games have taken a ton of work to build, I still consider these games to be the early phases of what 1000 Blades will become.

What are the prizes for Season 2?

Nate Lindley: This time I need to stick with crypto prizes. Last season, I was able to airdrop NFT and FT prizes. RelayX allowed me to do that. This time, however, Take It NFT and HandCash don’t currently offer that feature. So, I will resort to crypto (BSV, RVN, and potentially RXD).

This time around, players will win Mon (Victory Points) during gameplay. Each battle, Mon will accumulate and the last warrior standing will scoop the Mon. This will then be tracked so that we can determine the Jackpot winner at the end of the season. There will, once again, be 12 games in the season (1 game each week, for 12 weeks). The players with the most Mon will win crypto. Right now, it is hard for me to say how much those crypto rewards will be, because the NFT auctions haven’t occurred yet. It will ultimately depend on how many folks decide to play the game.

Why did you choose Take It NFT as the NFT platform to release the Samurai NFTs?

Nate Lindley: Actually, both Team Samurai and Monks NFTs will be on Take It NFT. I added Monks because the RXD NFT marketplace isn’t quite ready—it is still in development. So, both Samurai and Monks will be available on TakeITNFT. If and when possible, I will give the option to swap a BSV Monk for an RXD version. But, until we can explore that option, Monks and Samurai will both be on BSV via TakeItNFT.

But, as for why I chose Take It NFT… It has a clean design and the most creative bidding (Take It) system I’ve ever seen. It’ll be interesting to see what the HasteArcade/TaekItNFT team builds! When you’ve worked on something tirelessly, it is difficult to trust it in someone else’s hands. So, I asked some friends about Take It NFT. Mageta had just launched Reapers and he really spoke highly of Take It NFT; Thoth spoke very highly of Float from Take It NFT; You (Joshua) helped me understand the NFTs protocol of Take It NFT. Once I got three thumbs up from people I admire, I decided it was the best option. And, since working with Take It NFT, I must say they’ve been very helpful and supportive. Like I said, I am excited to see what they build.

Will Season 2 have Event tickets as Season 1 did?

Nate Lindley: Unfortunately, no. That was a great way to interact with the community. However, with multiple crypto platforms involved and without the ability to airdrop NFTs or FTs, I don’t think I can offer event tickets this time. But, this time there are many more warriors available. And, the starting bid for the Season 2 warriors is much lower than Season 1. There are now 81 warrior NFTs available and the opening price will be .444 BSV on Take It NFT when they drop December 7, 2022. RVN Ninjas NFTs will start at about 1,000 RVN for direct purchase on AshcanComicsPub.com.

Good news:
8 of my students asked to play @1000blades_ACP 🐉 today. With 8 playing simultaneously, the game played smoothly; everyone said 👍 and that they’d play again!!! What an honor😀 #NFTGame #NFT #BSV #RVN #RXD

— 🄰🄲🄿_Nate – Making Games and Comics😀 (@AwesomeCombo) November 30, 2022

Your students seemed to enjoy the new iteration of the game—can you describe what they enjoyed about it?

Nate Lindley: Yeah, so, some of you know that I am an art teacher. Well, a couple of students asked me how 1000 Blades was going. When I told them it was ready, they followed up with, “Can we play?” When they showed up to play, the group had grown to 8 people! I’d never play tested the game with 8 people… I was a bit worried, but the game (1 game deck) worked perfectly! Within about 5 minutes, they knew how to play and were having fun watching the Battle Cards flip and trigger their warriors’ attack powers. When the game was done, they said 1000 Blades was GOATed (I was told that means Game Of All Time haha) and that they would like to play again.

It felt good seeing them playing and enjoying a game I made. I think they enjoyed the simplicity of the game and the comradery it presented them. I think the ninja, monks, samurai, and oni theme was also very appealing to them. The low-stress, player vs. player element that 1000 Blades 2 offers is really inviting to people as well.

Can NFT card holders influence the outcome of the game in any way besides holding the card?

Nate Lindley: Right now, 1000 Blades 2 will play out whether players (NFT holders) are present or not. And, on that note, prizes can be won even if a player can’t attend livestream events. NFT holders can’t currently alter the outcome of the game. But, with the map you mentioned earlier, I do intend to find ways to allow for player interactions in upcoming seasons.

How will you leverage new video platform Real World Podcasts this season?

Nate Lindley: I hope to see Real World Podcasts succeed. I will be posting replays of the livestream to their site HERE. I think they might be exploring the option of livestream. That’d be cool!  If that occurs, maybe I will livestream there too. Currently, however, 1000 Blades livestream events on Odysse.

How can people get involved with Season 2?

Nate Lindley: Grab an NFT on Take It NFT or Mellori.io; Grab a tangible game deck HERE. I love making stuff and even if you don’t want to grab a NFT or game deck, join my Discord channel or follow 1000 Blades on Twitter, Twetch, or Truth. I don’t think 1000 Blades will stop production anytime soon. So, jump in now, mingle with the community, and let me know what you like about 1000 Blades! Thank you for your time, Joshua. Appreciate the interview.

Thank you, Nate, for taking the time to answer my questions. I hope the readers learned more about Season 2 of 1000 Blades; I certainly am looking forward to getting involved again!

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