Card Trader Illuminerdy

We discuss the rumors that there has or will be an entire month spent on re-shoots for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. Michael got bored enough to download Bunt and Huddle (not Kick, of course), and gets his first taste of cross-trading. Ok, maybe it's not bored as much as deflated from still being unable to obtain the 1-count Mustafar Poggle. Rhett talks up the orange and insert load-up from the Power Box. And somehow, somehow, we still have more to say about manatees.

We have a pairing suggesting for today's episode, enjoy it with a 2010 Riesling. Michael and Rhett start off discussing some of their cosplay exploits, to varying degrees of success and notoriety. We talk about ways to get trades going: being proactive vs. advertising and letting them come in. Via Bunt, we also discuss rewards for completing sets, or the lack thereof. Michael discusses his woes in trying to obtain the 1-count Poggle base variant. Rhett critiques a symphony concert featuring a program of sci-fi film music. Also, selections by Mike and the Mechanics.

By the time we released last week's episode, Michael's observation that Rey fervor seemed to be dying down was already hilariously proven wrong even by our standards of mis-calls, and the 3-day celebration was just ramping up. We'd also talked about how red and blue base didn't seem to have quite the same demand with prospecting...oops. What will we have gotten wrong this week? Tune in and find out! As a special warning, in the post-show we manage to get derailed talking about breakfast cereal; you may find yourself wanting a bowl by the time all is said and done.

Happy Cinco De Mayo! We wanted to wait for a more Star Wars-specific date to drop this episode, but there didn't seem to be one, at least near the beginning of May, so we'll use this episode to celebrate something at least. Michael has said that these notes should not limit the episode in getting out in a timely fashion. So rather than withhold this one any further by typing about what you'll hear, we'll get it into your ears. At some point the 8-bit set is definitely discussed. As well as manatees. And let me just say, the opinions of the edible nature of aquatic mammals expressed by individual hosts does not necessarily represent that of the podcast itself. Enjoy!

Tune in to find out: which of our hosts was next to sustain a head injury by walking into a stationary structure? Which was better: Air Wolf or Blue Thunder? Also, some SWCT...we discuss the market for the single-digit count base variants, and especially the one count. We also talk a little The Walking Dead Card Trader, and an old Commodore 64/Apple II/DOS game that brings back memories for Rhett: Below the Root. Rhett, you can play online here, but it probably won't have the colors you remember. I'm guessing it looked more like this:

What would you buy for a dollar? Rhett discusses how he'll buy anything for a dollar, a pricing weak point of his that can and has been exploited in various situations. Dollar stores are obviously his financial kryptonite, and he at least knows to avoid them. We also discuss what if anything could be done with the Smugglers Den mechanic to improve the ability to do things like meld multiple cards at once, to make things easier in the situation of having hundreds of cards to meld, like the hyperspace variants.

Michael is under the weather this week, but joins us anyway, and hangs in there like the professional he is. He may even remember some of the discussion! We keep circling back to weather the 80 card Jedi Legacy set is the largest set ever in the app (spoiler alert: No). Hope y'all have had a good week, and happy trading! Here's the airline brochure referenced in the episode:I feel like we got gypped by ending up on the 777 pic.twitter.com/jJD6th1pjD— Tom McGrath (@TCMcG) April 18, 2016 And, of course, BabyMetal:

Plenty of cards to talk about this week as we've had a number of sets drop. We round them up, from TFA: Portraits, Geo-Linear, to the ones that have kept the good ol' tradable mechanic, like TFA: Classic Art. We also discuss the rumored "gold rush" potentially happening Sunday, so if you're a prospector, make sure you get those counts up to 100. Have a great week, and thanks as always for listening!

This week we spend a surprising amount of time actually talking about SWCT...the main topic: the influx of new cards that are dropping as Untradable. Why? We can't get our heads around it completely. We discuss it in relation to the "1 pull per account" mechanic as well, and are of different opinions over how they affect things.Other discussion highlights: "Selling out a base card"; good-bye Rancor. And Rhett starts chasing green-gradients...less than 24 hours before a bundle goes on sale with all of them and they sell out for good.

Every once in a while, something so noteworthy happens in the app that we just can't get our heads around it. The mini base cards certainly put us there. We headed straight to the Illuminerdy studios and hashed it out in an appropriately shorter-than-usual mini-episode. Michael doesn't pull punches, taking a strong stand against this set. "For the sake of the many, don't buy mini", even overturning his long-standing assertion that whatever variant Topps will release with Poggle on it, he will buy, insisting that no one at all should buy these cards to send a message that this is the line. And we explore many/mini possible directions this trend could go, from mini-Widevision (Vision?) to Mini-Relics (paint chips?) to mini-sigs (Initials?) to other sizes, pico to nano. #ForTheManyNoMini

Happy Birthday SWCT! This week we talk about:Vote in Star Wars Podcast Awards if you haven't! We're in New Show, Trade Fed is in Collecting. Polls open through 3/24Michael's ease in resolving a multi-hundred blind trade bug (thanks Rhett and #WalkForTheFix!)Revisited funSneaking variants in base trades: Futility of flipping over cards in the trade offerPi day in SWCT vs. other Topps Digital appsPrimesDejarik - we like this setMeditation Chamber card count updateDjas Puhr found! Apparently we weren't in-depth-enough fans to recognize this characterPost-show:Ancient Aztec sports90's baseballThe Waffle Sandwich at Waffle HouseSped-up cooking videos

This episode includes talk including, but certainly not limited to:- Rhett's technical problems...deleted the app and redownloaded, then locked out for 24 hours. He used to care a little that this was a problem, now he really does. #WalkForTheFix- Vote for us and others, best new Star Wars Podcast of 2015- Poggle hoarding with JB1127- Discussing Virgin Galactic promotion- New sets: Grafitti Splatter & its mechanic, Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Galactic Ships, Star Wars Card Trader: The Phantom Menace!- Preppers

Yes, we're back. Back again. I can't think of any bigger election news this week than the Fan's Choice voice. Star Wars Podcast Award-nominee Michael Nipp gives us a behind the scenes look at the ups and downs in an exciting election day.We also touch on the 7-day Prospecting chase, discuss new sets and the ever-expanding rainbow of variants. Enjoy!

In this exciting episode we discuss:The loss of a first attempt at the episode this week.How Lifetime Network's Christmas movie Comfort and Joy starring The Facts of Life's Nancy McKeon stacks up against It's a Wonderful Life.That the Meditation Chamber card seems to be part of the Pack Insert set...good luck to those completing it.A possible "Life and Times of Qui Gon Jinn" set as a series of scenes depicting events in his life set in idyllic 1950's Americana, painted in the style of Norman Rockwell Saturday Evening Post covers.The people shipping Yoda and Yaddle...or as they would refer to the couple, "Yodel".Topps survey about about potential digital and physical Star Wars integration.The need to distinguish among people acquiring quantities of white base cards for one or more characters:Hoarding - Passion and devotion to one character, amassing as many cards as possibleProspecting - Seeking to acquire enough white base to meld a gold should the opportunity arise, for (usually) many charactersGor

If you enjoy listening, and you're reading this on or before Feb. 16, consider nominating us at starwarspodcastawards.com: direct link to nomination form here!Big thanks to those who sent Jan Dodonna and info on why a card may not show up in your collection even if you trade for it. We also discuss the opposite problem, where a card does seem to be in the collection, but is not actually there, and has cost people awards cards. Frustrating to say the least...it's one thing to hem and haw about how a marathon for a few dollars devalues if not demoralizes the fun of chasing for an amount of credits that's much greater (and we spend plenty of time doing that in this episode), but it's a whole other level when you can't trust that the cards that appear to be in your collection may not be there! Also we discover the new-to-us phenomenon of people selling and buying white base, Rey in particular, for real actual money. Who knew?! Not us!

Another week in SWCT-land and we have a couple of new sets to talk about for the first time in a while. There's also a couple of new base variants, but only one costs money outright; the gold Qui Gon shows up for those who've gotten a decent start on hoarding. Also, we explore the "can't see them but they're there" phenomenon of cards you don't appear to have (in my case, a couple of series 1 white base cards), even when accepting trades for them and observing that the total collection card count appears as though you do in fact have them. We give a shout out to the rainbow-barfing cats, and in the post-roll dig into the minutiae of dying from a gut would vs. surviving being cut in half. Enjoy!

When the cat's away, the Ewok's will play. Or maybe the opposite. No new SWCT sets this week, but we do have a new kind of card, and they started with a fun one; no digital piece of cloth here, we get real, actual digital fur. I'd like to see Kitten Cards do that! No really, I think that would be great if there were digital kitten fur relics. And be reassured that the fur was obtained in ethically humane ways. Some one collecting little digital fur balls, no doubt. Otherwise, we have a new variant; the pink has lost some of its elite status this go around; you may have to hoard 70 oranges at some point, but you won't be trading for a pink...at least not this one. It's nice to have an award card, though, although it is a shame they are so expensive to pull compared to paying a dollar apiece. And a burning question that only I seemed to have...did Fan's Choice sell out within an hour of release to voters or what?And for those who missed the Perry Como sketch that Rhett mentioned last week, it's worth a watch. T

In this ground-breaking episode we touch on:Hypoallergenic kitten breeds (both Russian)More appreciation for the community #OneInThePackTurnYoBack effortsMonumentsSilver variantsParmThePom's essay on improving pay-to-play in the appWhat's notable about General MadineMarathons in the 5K packImportant public safety announcement: After two reports of near-accidents from listeners while driving (due to either laughter, sleep, or abhorrence; circumstances not clear), we must recommend not listening to our podcast while operating heavy machineryKitten CardsA Perry Como referenceAs always, @CT_Illuminerdy on Twitter, or find us in the app, to let us know what you think!

"The dumbest, most awful thing possible is the most likely scenario."- Topps RazorWell this is a packed episode. We cover, and not necessarily in this order:- Pulling a faction card vs. winning the lottery (as we recorded there was only one reported winner)- The brilliant community work in spreading the "1 in the pack? Turn yo' back!" message- How will Series 3/TFA Series 1 be rolled out?- Rhett coins "Topps Razor"- Teals: The "most limited variant of 2016"!- Pink chases, monument chases- The most special Q&A session of 2016! Michael gives an emotional recount of how he came to hoard Poggle- Posters: you can pull 'em (with credits even!), but you can't trade for 'em! ...at least at first...is this a harbinger of things to come?- New parallels: Green and orange instead of yellow and gold: for easier color recognition in trades? To make room for an even more-most-limited-499-count-gold-variant?As this is posting, a whole lot of monument cards are appearing under "Coming Soon" in the app. Here's hoping that

It's been a quiet week in Lake Wobegon...I mean, in SWCT...although even as I type this there are new things percolating. The bold made prediction in this episode for seeing some actual base series 3 already may be coming true. In the meantime, enjoy this episode where Michael opens up about the risks he took to complete his rainbow of Poggle the Lesser cards, and Tommy steps up on the soap box to decry marathons selling out shortly before the next one drops. Look, people, let's work together here. If you didn't pull it when it first dropped, let's all agree to wait until there's two in the pack to pull so we can all get more value for our credits. We're not animals.