Over the course of last year, cards that were boosted above the top base level ruled the app. Although things have changed significantly in 2016, boost cards have returned as an integral part of being a top points player in the contests. Because value and trading can be so hard to navigate, I think its time to have a longer discussion on boosts and how they can be used in your daily interactions.

Boost Definitions

For reference, standard scoring is available in common white cards. This is 1x for all points, which can be referenced in the point scoring tip sheet located in the article feed (microphone icon on the far left).  Gold cards, which are the top scoring readily available cards in the game, score at 2x. Boosts go in excess of that 2x limitation.

There are three types of boosts.

Permanent Boosts – these are the cards that retain their boost level for the entire season, and are usually represented with the base card design in a different color. So far this year we have purple which score at 2.2x and neon green, which score at 2.4x. These are available at specific times in specific packs in the store.

Game Only Boosts – these are temporarily boosted cards, which are made available every Thursday, Sunday, and Monday. They only retain their boost for the week they are released, and reset to 1x after that. These are only available for a specific time in specific packs. The value is maximized before the game for trading purposes.

Insert Boosts – these are permanently boosted cards, but are part of sets released during the week, or given out as awards for completing sets. The highest permanent boosts available in the game are 2.5x, at the moment. These cards are usually reserved for sets that are highly limited and take a lot to complete.

Although not currently confirmed, higher boosts will likely be made available in packs in the near future. Thanksgiving and Black friday are a good target for the release of these cards, as this was something that took place last year.

Using Boosted Cards

The reason that boosted cards have so much value is because of the points they score in contests, in addition to the limited nature of their release. Even at 2.2x, which is only a boost of 20% of a common card above gold, they can score quite a few more points.

Example (25 yard receiving TD):

Gold 2x –

• 5 points reception
• 25 x 6 points per yard = 150 points
• 200 points per TD

Equals 355 points, multipled by 2 = 710 points.

If you multiple by 2.2, its 781. If you multiply by 2.5 its 888 points. Over the course of a whole game, each boost card played adds up to thousands of points above that of a gold. Playing multiple boost cards at once only compounds this. Many of the top point players in any given contests will have multiple boosts at their disposal. To be a point player that finishes in the money at this point in the season, you will need some but not many.  Eventually, that could change.

Boosted Card Values

Currently, the community values boosts as an extension of the gold cards. I have seen many people willing to trade multiple boosts for multiple golds, and I will advise this is a poor decision. Remember, Gold cards have UNLIMITED card counts for the entire year. There is a high propensity that they will become flooded, especially if Huddle decides to run special packs or promotions. Boosts will RARELY IF EVER be like this.

Boosts occupy two spaces in the game, first as a points tool, and second as a collection piece. Rare count boosts will be sought after by points players and team collectors alike, which means that they will always have more value than just their gold counterparts. If the boosted card is an insert itself, like the Todd Gurley future stars award card (boosted at 2.5x), it becomes one of the more sought after points cards in the game.

When looking at the game only boosts, these cards can be tricky. The better players can be traded for inserts or other nice cards during the time the game is still in play, but as soon as the game is in progress or complete, the value will plummet. Be aware that if you pull a game only boost and dont plan on using it, its in your best interest to trade it BEFORE the game starts to get the best trade value.

Position of the player on the boost card also makes a difference, but this is where you can make some nice trades and prey on people’s lack of understanding around the point systems. The community values QBs as the top position available. This is only the case if you are not going to make any changes to your lineup during the live games, or if you dont have enough cards of receivers to fill out the rest of the lineup.

Here is the secret: On just about every passing play, the player who receives the ball will score more points than the QB.

Example from before (25 yard passing touchdown):

WR (355 points)

• 5 points reception
• 25 x 6 points per yard = 150 points
• 200 points per TD

QB (233 points)

• 3 points attempt
• 5 points completion
• 25 x 3 points per yard = 75 points
• 150 points per TD

As you can see, the point differential is more than 100. Now, QBs complete more plays per game than a WR, which means the TOTAL points scored during the game will usually be higher. However, if you are switching players out on every play, the receiving player is always better.

Lets take it a step further:

WR (355 points)

• 1x: 355
• 1.2x: 426
• 1.5x: 532
• 1.7x: 604
• 2x: 710
• 2.2x: 781
• 2.4x: 852

QB (233 points)

• 1x: 233
• 1.2x: 280
• 1.5x: 350
• 1.7x: 396
• 2x: 466
• 2.2x: 513
• 2.4x: 559

As you can see, it is better to play the 1.5x red WR than a 2x QB. Pretty significant in the way the point system works. Additionally, its better to play a Gold WR than any boosted QB currently available.  When you consider how much people will give for a 2.4x boost of a good QB, to see that it isnt even worth what a gold WR will generate, kind of adds a bit of a sting to that trade. That doesnt mean I would go out and unload all my QBs, but I would definitely adjust the way I look for boosted cards.

Here are my positional rankings:

1. WR
2. RB
3. TE
4. QB
5. DEF

Here is where the community usually values positions:

1. QB
2. WR
3. RB
4. TE
5. DEF

Its worth discussing the fact that defensive players, especially linebackers can rack up a ton of points. However, the availability of in game coverage on the Red Zone channel during the 10 game slates on Sunday is unlikely. Its better to just play along with the offense and realize that defense will never get the love it probably deserves.

Maximizing Your Boosts

There is no more polarizing topic in Huddle right now than Boosted cards, which is only exacerbated every time more are released. Some people hate boosts, other people like me, love them. They make the game more interesting and add more strategy to the overall playing experience.

If you want to play along with the live games, Boosts should be your bread and butter. Take advantage of guaranteed boost per pack releases, and save your coins to really spend what you can when the good boosts hit the store. Focus in on where your lineup is weak and go nuts in the contests trying to win. Its a ton of fun and I cannot wait to see what is still to come.

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New User Tips is a running series on Digital Card Central – If there are any other questions you have about the nuance of the game, please do not hesitate to tweet me @SCUncensored or through a same card trade with a message in the game. 

If you have ideas for future New User Tips – please let me know!