Is LL inferior to CL?

Par berijeux dans Homepage le 16 Février 2019 à 03:19

The first impression a CL player might have after playing LL is – it’s slower and therefore less efficient. Let’s look into the strengths and weaknesses of both styles.

Note that not all these points have the same "weight".

	LL	CL
You can save unique cards safely	True, with either value or colour if context allows	True. Value is more appreciated.
You can save non-unique cards safely	True, with either value or colour if context allows	It depends. Therefore more sensitive to buried second copies.
Handles situations that the other style can’t handle	True	True
Play per clue efficiency (excluding finesses)	Less immediate plays. Since you can save more easily, and saves will become plays in the longer term, play per clue ratio is not as obvious.	More immediate plays. Play per clue ratio seems more obvious, more easily observable.
Safety	Safer playstyle. Allows many clues – on chop or off-chop – that would cause bombs in CL. This way you can save cards that are neither critical saves, nor immediately playable. More importantly, cluing a group of cards in reverse order is situationally allowed.	More aggressive playstyle. Since saving tolerance is lower than in LL, more clues would be interpreted as plays, regardless of context. Therefore higher risk of bombing with “original” save clues.
Pace	Lower % of clues that cause an immediate play. May cause pace issues.	Higher % of clues that cause an immediate play. Solves some pace issues.
Finesses	Used very situationally – when the clue otherwise makes no sense and/or when the next player really is going to play because they have no way of knowing they shouldn’t. Arguably better for safety and worse for pace.	Extensively used.
Difficulty	Situation and history are far more important. Requires deeper analysis. Therefore harder to master.	Much easier to teach to beginners. They can reach decent scores very quickly.
Overall	More freedom in clue-giving. More mid-term / long-term planning. "Good engine, great brakes."	More immediate speed. "Awesome engine, poor brakes."

Is LL inferior to CL?

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