Universal Fighting System
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| Universal Fighting System | |
|---|---|
| Designer | Ryan Miller |
| Publisher | Fantasy Flight Games |
| Players | 2 |
| Age range | 10+ |
| Setup time | < 3 minutes |
| Playing time | ~ 25 minutes |
| Random chance | Some |
| Skills required | Card playing |
The Universal Fighting System is a collectible card game originally designed by Sabertooth Games. The themes of the cards are drawn from a multitude of licensed gaming universes, principally Fighting game licenses. While the official product launch was in April 2006, the first set released in February 2006 was a special "battle box" based on the Penny Arcade online comic. It was announced on February 22nd, 2008, that the publication rights of the Universal Fighting System had been transfered to Fantasy Flight Games. [1]
Contents |
[edit] Licenses
Two months after the release of the prototypical Penny Arcade Battle Box, the game officially launched with the simultaneous release of two separate sets of cards, one based on the Street Fighter series and the other based on Soulcalibur III. All primary game releases since then have followed a similar two-set structure. A license with SNK Playmore allowed for cards based on The King of Fighters 2006 and Samurai Shodown V gaming universes in December 2006, and a second Capcom license, Darkstalkers, was added in November of the following year. As-yet unreleased licenses include Sabertooth Games' own original property, ShadoWar, with several more to be announced.
[edit] Gameplay
A game in the Universal Fighting System represents a battle between two adversaries. Each player controls one of the two characters, with the objective being to defeat the opponent (typically through loss of vitality). The two characters need not be from the same universe; for example, Chun-Li from Street Fighter could battle Cassandra from Soulcalibur or Tycho from Penny Arcade.
Players take turns, with each turn consisting of multiple actions. With each additional action a player takes in a turn, the difficulty of successfully completing that action increases. Players can continue to take actions until they choose to stop or until they fail an attempt. The game structure typically involve players building up foundations over successive turns, which then allows a greater number of actions before failure. Management of these becomes crucial, as players must strike a balance between using their resources for offense and defense; going "all out" for a series of attacks can leave one vulnerable to retaliation during the opponent's turn. The system relies heavily on card combinations, where one card enhances the effect of another.
As with many of Sabertooth's games, the Universal Fighting System is an advanced or expert level product (owing in large part to the fact that every card has at least one special ability), primarily aimed at older or more experienced gamers.
[edit] Card types
The Universal Fighting System has five different types of cards:
- Characters - A card which represents the combatant whose role the player is currently assuming. Character cards contain information about the character's hand size, special abilities, symbols/alignment, and starting vitality.
- Attacks - Orange-bordered cards which represent attempts to directly inflict damage on an opponent. Successful attacks that deal damage are added to your momentum, which helps towards enhancing certain attacks and other cards.
- Actions - Blue-bordered cards played from the hand which allow the character to perform some non-attack action or maneuver.
- Foundations - Grey-bordered cards which signify intensive training and reserves of inner strength upon which a character can draw to power attacks or abilities.
- Assets - Green-bordered cards which represent places or objects which are in play.
[edit] Card symbols
Cards in the Universal Fighting System include small symbols or graphics representing attributes of the card. There are 13 symbols in total, consisting of 12 defined symbols and the wildcard "Infinity" symbol. Three symbols appear on most cards, although some have one, two or four. These are used as a game mechanic to determine which characters are able to use which moves or powers. In order to play a card, at least one of the symbols on the card being played has to match a symbol on all of the other cards previously played during the turn, as well as matching a symbol on the player's character card. Hence, this prevents characters from using abilities which are not a match for their character, and prevents mixing abilities (in a single turn) which do not fit together. The symbols and their meanings are defined as follows:
| Element (description) | Attributes |
|---|---|
| [AIR] (A white whirlwind) | Intelligence, Deliberateness |
| [ALL] (A red circle) | Existence, Fullness |
| [CHAOS] (Three arrows pointing out) | Disorder, Instinct |
| [DEATH] (A white skull) | Destruction, Finality |
| [EARTH] (A green mountain) | Stalwart, Strength |
| [EVIL] (A red pitchfork) | Ruthlessness, Villainy |
| [FIRE] (An orange flame) | Passion, Speed |
| [GOOD] (A yellow halo) | Compassion, Heroism |
| [INFINITY] (A Möbius strip) | Eternity, Timelessness |
| [LIFE] (A growing plant) | Beginning, Creation |
| [ORDER] (A golden justice scale) | Law, Structure |
| [VOID] (A dark-grey vortex) | Emptiness, Space |
| [WATER] (A blue wave) | Adaptation, Fluidity |
[edit] Card rarity and distribution
Each card has rarity information printed along the bottom to indicate how common it is. The rarity is denoted by the number of small dots appearing at the bottom of the card, according to the following legend:
| • | Common |
| •• | Uncommon |
| ••• (non-foil) | Starter deck exclusive |
| ••• (foil) | Rare |
| •••• | Ultra Rare or Promotional |
Starter decks are semi-random, with 29 fixed cards and 31 random cards. This includes some exclusive cards which are only available through that starter and not available in booster packs. In each 10-card booster pack, there are 6 commons and 3 uncommons. The remaining card will be a rare or super rare card. There are also very rare boosters made up entirely of rare and super rare cards, colloquially known as "god packs". Lastly, each box of starter decks or booster packs contains a single "box topper", which is a special promotional card and not part of the standard card set.
Promotional character cards (either rare or super rare), foil variants of commons and uncommons, and specially-designed cards are also obtainable by participating in hobby league tournaments and/or special events.
The 120 cards provided in the "battle box" follow a fixed distribution, without any element of randomness. The rarity system is adapted differently in these; one dot for a card that the box has four copies of, two for a card of three copies and three for a card of two copies (the "rarest"). Any battle box card reprinted from a previous release will have a tilde symbol - ~ - in place of dots.
[edit] Card sets and products
| Name of set / game universe | Release date | Unique cards | Starter deck characters | Booster characters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Street Fighter | April 2006 | 143 | Chun Li, Dhalsim, Ken, Ryu | Chun Li, Dhalsim, Ken, Ryu, Sagat, Zangief |
| SF02: World Warriors | July 2006 | 126 | (none; boosters only) | Balrog, Blanka, E. Honda, Guile, M. Bison, Vega |
| SF03: The Next Level | December 2006 | 90 | (none; boosters only) | Akuma, Cammy, Dudley, Fei Long |
| SF04: The Dark Path | February 2007 | 144 | Chun-Li , Ryu, T. Hawk, Twelve | Adon, Charlie, Chun-Li , Rose, Ryu, Sakura, T. Hawk, Twelve |
| SF05: Extreme Rivals | May 2007 | 90 | (none; boosters only) | Cody, Dee Jay, Ibuki, Ken, R. Mika |
| SF06: Fight for the Future | November 2007 | 99 | (none; boosters only) | Alex, Cammy, Chun-Li, Dhalsim, Gen, Gill, Guile |
| SF07: Domination | February 2008 | 144 | Akuma, Ken, Sagat, Sakura | Blanka, Dan, Guy, Karin, M. Bison, Ryu, Sean, Yang, Yun, Zangief |
| SF08: Deadly Ground | June 2008 | 99 | (none; boosters only) | Adon, Cammy, Charlie, E. Honda, Fei Long, Ibuki, Juli, Juni, Makoto, Rose, Vega |
| Darkstalkers | November 2007 | 126 | (none; boosters only) | B.B. Hood, Bishamon, Demitri, Donovan, Felicia, J. Talbain, Lilith, Lord Raptor, Morrigan, Pyron, Q-Bee, Rikuo, Sasquatch, Victor |
| DS02: Realm of Midnight | June 2008 | 99 | (none; boosters only) | Anakaris, Bishamon, Demitri, Donovan, Felicia, Hsien-Ko, Huitzil, J. Talbain, Jedah, Morrigan, Victor |
| Soulcalibur III | April 2006 | 143 | Astaroth, Nightmare, Taki, Voldo | Astaroth, Cassandra, Mitsurugi, Nightmare, Taki, Voldo |
| SC02: A Tale of Swords & Souls | July 2006 | 126 | (none; boosters only) | Ivy, Kilik, Raphael, Setsuka, Tira, Zasalamel |
| SC03: Soul Arena | February 2007 | 144 | Abyss, Cervantes, Lizardman, Yoshimitsu | Abyss, Cervantes, Lizardman, Mitsurugi, Taki, Talim, Rock, Yoshimitsu |
| SC04: Blades of Fury | May 2007 | 90 | (none; boosters only) | Maxi, Nightmare, Tira, Xianghua, Yun-seong |
| SC05: Higher Calibur | August 2007 | 99 | (none; boosters only) | Astaroth, Cassandra, Cervantes, Ivy, Seong Mi-na, Voldo |
| SNK Playmore | December 2006 | 144 | Haohmaru, Mai, Terry, Ukyo | Alba, Athena, Charlotte, Galford, Gaira, Hanzo, Iori, Kyo, Lien, Nagase, Nakoruru, Yoshitora |
| SNK02: Fortune & Glory | August 2007 | 99 | (none; boosters only) | Billy, Genjuro, Jubei, K', Luise, Mai, Nightmare Geese, Sankuro, Seth, Tam Tam, Ukyo |
| SNK03: The Cutting Edge | February 2008 | 144 | Haohmaru, Mai, Rock Howard, Yoshitora | B. Jenet, Galford, Iori, Kula, Kyo, Kyoshiro, Nagase, Ninon, Rera, Yumeji, |
| ShadoWar | 2009 | ?? | (none; boosters only) | ?? |
| Name of product | Release date | Total cards | Unique cards | Characters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penny Arcade Battle Box | February 2006 | 120 | 45 | Gabe, Tycho |
| Soulcalibur III Battle Pack | November 2006 | 120 | 44 | Sophitia, Siegfried |
| Street Fighter Battle Pack | July 2007 | 120 | 36 | Akuma, Ryu |
Some characters have only appeared as promotional cards, available through various outlets. The following is a list of all of the promotional characters that have not appeared in any of the expansion or battle sets through to the release of the ninth pair of sets, SF: Deadly Ground and DS: Realm of Midnight.
| Name of game universe | Characters |
|---|---|
| Street Fighter | Elena, Geki, Hugo, Necro, Q, Rolento |
| Soulcalibur | Amy, Arthur, Chester, Demuth, Greed, Miser, Night Terror, Revenant, Strife |
| SNK Playmore | Basara, Duke, Kazuki, Leona, Lilly Kane, Mr. Karate, Sogetsu |
| ShadoWar | Lu Chen, Rashotep, Temujin, Yi Shan, Zhao Daiyu, Zi Mei |
| UFS | Nicholas the Saint, The Universal Fighter |
| Coolest Prize | Andrew Olexa, Jacky Tang, James Hata, Matt Kohls, Scott Mence, Wess "Flawless" Victory |
[edit] Set Rotation
As with most trading card games, an effort is made to keep the organized-play environment fresh and accessible to new players by periodically retiring older sets. However, unlike other games, the rotation policy in UFS does not follow the set-release structure, with some cards in any given set rotating before or after others. In general, the watermark within a card's text box (or below the vitality symbol on Character cards) dictates which "wave" a card belongs to, though older sets did not have this feature. A more detailed rotation structure can be found here.
[edit] The Coolest Prize in Gaming
A key draw to competitive UFS play is "The Coolest Prize in Gaming." Winners of specific Worlds Singles, Worlds Teams, Nationals Singles, and Nationals Teams events are allowed to design their own card, in conjunction with the publisher. The card's art features the winners themselves and they receive every copy printed.
| Winner | Year | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Matt Kohls | 2006 | World Champion |
| Andrew Olexa | 2007 | World Champion |
| Wess Victory | 2006 | U.S. National Champion |
| James Hata | 2007 | U.S. National Champion |
| Jacky Tang | 2007 | Canadian National Champion |
| Jonathan Herr | 2008 | Canadian National Champion |
| Scott Mence | 2007 | U.K. National Champion |
| John-James Watkins-Field | 2008 | U.K. National Champion, French National Champion, Swedish National Champion |
| Team Fruit F*cker John-James Watkins-Field, Daniel Eggle, Jason Handy | 2007 | U.K. Team Champions |
| Team Nice Head: Omar Chavez, Fred Ehrhart, James Hata | 2007 | World Team Champions |
| Team Venture: Nathan Eiskant, Brian Garber, Mack Rice | 2007 | U.S. National Team Champions |
[edit] External links
- Fantasy Flight Games' Universal Fighting System homepage
- Sabertooth Games' Universal Fighting System homepage
- UFS Cards: UFS articles, previews, and decks brought to you from the player community.
- Cardboard Dojo: A UFS E-Zine
- Team Canada Online: A UFS/CCG fan website
- CCGDb.com: A search engine for the UFS TCG, as well as several other TCG systems.
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/PDF/pr-2008-GamesWorkshop-Sabertooth.pdf Fantasy Flight Games press release
