Category: Duels Ratings

Draft

Spreadsheet: Card Draw
Category: Tech [Gold-Punisher and combo] A-Tier
Internal Category Tier: –

Constructed

Tier 6

I want to like this card because this plus Little Devil is a two-card combo that threatens 14 damage, but I just don’t think it’s viable. (Secret Legion + Revolt is 21.) I brought it to the No Core Constructed Monthly to help support Demonic Rising as a combo kill against Kark, got crushed by a more controlling Evil token deck without it (no one brought Kark). Overall, I was never in a position where I could play it when my opponent’s gold was down and they had no blockers, which admittedly could have been due to me building the deck sub-optimally.

As an “Or Draw 2” it’s never bad in limited, and it can always just be a blitzing 7/7 on-turn gold-punisher. Even with just two zombies that can attack, it adds 13/13 in stats to the board for a single turn. One thing I realized at the end of that tournament and nearly forgot now is that it is actually decent off-turn no stop your opponent’s onslaught. Much worse than off-turn Justice Prevails, Battle Cry, or Demonic Rising if you have a board, but okay, and it comes with a 7/7 blocker.

Maybe you want this in a deck that’s running both Little Devil and Guilt Demon (and maybe future blitzing 0-cost Evil champions)? Overall though, it is difficult to fit 1-cost cards that primarily just buff your champions in play for attacks, and Demonic Rising will almost always be significantly better and Justice Prevails isn’t that far behind it…However, this in a Krieg deck seems like it could be terrifying. Krieg in play assuming its initial 2 zombies are gone, play Eager Necromancer into this for 3 6/6 blitzing zombies, a 3/3 blitzing zombie, a 7/7 blitzing demon and an 11/11 Krieg. This provides 19/19 worth of blitzing stats, still not great but maybe the rest of the Evil token/combo package rounds it out. (I’m really looking forward to Krieg.)

[Unfortunately this is the last rating I have written up for now. On the plus side, I am in the process of getting pre-approved for my home loan and will be interviewing real estate agents immediately afterwards, so progress on that front.]

Draft

Spreadsheet: Slow Champions
Category: Tech
Internal Category Tier: E to B Depending

Spreadsheet: Slow Champions
Category: Establishing (C-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: E-Tier

Constructed

Tier 7

Too many points of failure

While agonizing which tier to put this in between 5 and 7, ^that was the thought that decided it. I don’t think this is a terrible card. In fact, I think it is fairly powerful and it has worked well both for and against me; however, I think any decks that would want this card are doomed to fail because they are too susceptible to disruption.

Human tokens:
I do not like 1-cost static buffs in human tokens, not Standard Bearer, not Helena’s Chosen, and not this. 1-cost static buffs for damage are unreliable. To disrupt your offense, your opponent can remove either your 1-cost static buff or your tokens it’s buffing. While their deck/draw might not be well-equipped to handle a specific one of those, odds are it can probably handle the other. Therefore, in the aggro-combo version of human tokens (which I believe to be the best), you’re only inserting another point of failure into your combo. I’d much rather force my opponent to have exactly Wither/Flash Fire than Wither/Flash Fire/Disappearing Act/Vanishing (not to mention the popular 1-cost answers like Drain Essence/Erase).

I don’t believe control-combo human token decks are particularly viable right now because they take too long to get going, and they either lose before going off enough, or your opponent draws into their necessary answers in time. This also only buffs the offense of the human tokens leaving them vulnerable to the same mass removal. At least with Forest Dweller, the +3 defense is incredibly relevant.

0-Cost Good Flyers:
Another idea for Imperial Commander is to use it with 0-cost airborne champions namely: Rescue Griffin, White Dragon, Faithful Pegasus, Watchful Gargoyle, and/or Dragonling. All of those cards with +3 offense are quite frightening. This is pretty much the situation I have seen the Commander do the best, once in the no-burn showmatch v Tatian and once in a limited game. The main problems are the same things as in the Human tokens example, don’t get these cards together and/or feel bad when your opponent splits them up. Most of these zeros aren’t quite powerful enough by themselves (except Gargoyle), so even though +3 offense makes them terrifying, it isn’t reliable.

Mass Tribute/Loyalty -> Draw a card with Noble Unicorn:
I’ve tried it so many times. At the end of the day, it doesn’t do powerful enough things soon enough to matter against Wild. Also, the Good 0-cost cards aren’t able to mitigate the power differential between Wild’s 1-cost plays as opposed to Good’s. If Lash/Rage and Spore Beast didn’t exist to push damage, maybe? It’s okay vs control. This card doesn’t make that archetype viable. I’m not even going to try to build that deck after finishing this review either.

Overall, this seems like a win more card. It is only particularly strong when your ahead and your opponent has nothing.

Draft

Spreadsheet: Other
Category: Ambush Champions (B-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: B-Tier

Constructed

Tier 4

This is an incredibly effective distribution of stats both in limited and for constructed decks that can weaponize tokens (Revolt/Demonic Rising). 4 bodies for 1 gold, off-turn, is the sweet spot for viability. Three has never felt like enough, outside of Rift Summoner which threatens to produce more, all of which are out of range of 3 damage removal. Further, that 8/8 body is surprisingly resilient and threatening, especially against bounce decks. Not only are you threatening to go off with Insurgency + 0-cost buffs if your opponent spends their gold first on your turn, but your also threatening 11 damage if they don’t. On your opponent’s turn(s), those human tokens are excellent chump blockers that can shut out potential attacks for up to three turns. If you play this to an empty board when your opponent’s gold is down, it is really difficult for them to pry their way back in without a board clear.

In limited this is always a solid ambush champion, so you can pick it even if you aren’t going tokens generally or human tokens specifically, and I strongly recommend against actively going human tokens in limited. However, after picking this up, cards like Revolt become a lot more threatening than just a simple draw 2 when passed to you. In constructed, this is primarily a human tokens card, but it works perfectly reasonably in a pure token Demonic Rising/Justice Prevails shell as well (but that might not be quite viable yet).

Draft

Spreadsheet: 0-Cost Cards
Category: Small Removal (A-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: S-Tier

Spreadsheet: 0-Cost Cards
Category: Other (A-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: A-Tier

Constructed

Tier 2

This is another excellent card. It is a zero with arguably 3 distinct, highly specialized and powerful effects. Further, none of them are card draw and yet this card feels complete and is absolutely playable.

First off, starting from the bottom, “Banish target 0-champion,” excellent. It is particularly strong against Dark Knight (unbreakable), Bodyguard (Recall from discard pile), and Ankylosaurus (big butt). Also Warrior Golem to prevent the recycle and plenty of others, but rule of threes.

Secondly, jumping to the top, “Deal 4 damage to target attacking champion,” excellent. This answers all current “unblockable” champions (not for long though) as well as many other champions. Importantly though, unlike Spike Trap/Hands from Below this does target so it can’t hit untargetable champions (Crystal Golem), and it can’t hit all current attacking champions. Both of those situations have come up for me so those distinctions do matter.

Finally, “It gets -8 offense this turn,” which is attached to the deal 4 damage effect, which can be relevant together but frequently isn’t. (It does prevent the -8 from being used on a blocker though.) This is fair Fumble. 0-cost gain 8 health. The primary application for this, in my eyes, is to largely negate the damage from an on-turn gold-punisher played against you when your gold is down. It can also be used as a combat trick to help one of your other champions break an attacking champion and potentially survive.

Overall in limited this is an excellent card because you are almost guaranteed to have a situation where one of these three effects are great. In constructed, you will usually include this because you specifically want one of the three effects, and one of those is significantly more likely than the other two to be the reason. Which one do you think it is?

When I started this rating, I was struggling with whether this should be Tier 2 or Tier 3 for constructed. Then I remembered it answers Muse AND Thought Plucker.

Draft

Spreadsheet: Slow Champions
Category: Tech
Internal Category Tier: B to S Depending

Spreadsheet: Slow Champions
Category: On-Turn Gold-Punisher (C-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: E-Tier

Constructed

Tier 4

This card has a lot of solid potential for abuse. At minimum it is an on-turn board clear earning it a stable B-tier status minimum. In can also function as a hard-hitting non-evasive on-turn gold-punisher, great with Lash/Rage.

Where the card shines though is with cards like Final Task, Invoke Pact, Surprise Attacks, and yes, even potentially Resurrection. An off-turn full board clear that leaves nothing for your opponent is excellent. Mist Guide Herald can even dig you closer to it.

(As of now, there is no way to make this unbreakable before it breaks to its own Tribute effect. There would either need to be a static effect or an ally effect that grants unbreakable to make that a possibility. For example, Evil Ally-> Target champion gains unbreakable is in play. Play Endbringer Ritualist, choose to resolve Ally effect first targeting Endbringer, then resolve Endbringer’s break all effect.)

Draft

Spreadsheet: 0-Cost Cards
Category: Other (A-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: B-Tier

Constructed

Tier 5

6/7 airborne stats are strong. Wins against Strafing Dragon and Angel of Light and blocks the common 6/8s without breaking (Ice Drake, Gold Dragon, etc.).

However, while getting that strong airborne body for 0 is powerful, having no immediate effect leaves it devastatingly susceptible to Raxxa’s Curse/Siren’s Song punishes. Its stats also won’t save it from Ensnaring Rune/War Machine. All of those are powerful and highly desirable cards in limited, so if your opponent has a chance to draft them, they probably will (unless they got even better choices). That being said, with an ever expanding card pool, your opponent might not get offered them, let alone draw them in game. Of those, Raxxa’s Curse sees a ton of constructed play, Ensnaring Rune sees some (me), and Siren’s Song/War Machine sees very minimal fringe play.

If your opponent doesn’t have an effective/efficient answer to this (and it does survive all 6 or less damage removal [Smash and Burn]), this is a serious threat. It can’t be effectively chump blocked, it kills in 5 attacks by itself, and it is challenging to remove in combat. I will generally pick cards with greater immediate effects and/or card draw over this, but if I’m ahead of the curve on card draw and have a few solid reestablishing cards, this is a high priority pick I’d be thrilled to get.

In constructed I am incredibly reluctant to bring 0-cost champions without blitz that have no immediate effect because of the popularity of both Raxxa’s Curse and control. Playing against control, especially Kark, a 6/7 airborne champion isn’t enough threat/damage on its own, and combining it with other champions makes you more susceptible to board clears. Slow champions without blitz, even 0-cost evasive ones, usually just don’t cut it.

Draft

Spreadsheet: 0-Cost Cards
Category: Other (A-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: S-Tier

Spreadsheet: 0-Cost Cards
Category: Other (A-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: S-Tier

Constructed

Tier 2

This is one of my favorite Epic cards. It’s powerful, it’s flexible, and it has an excellently devious smile I can relate to.

It is a 0-cost 1/1 body that your opponent is punished for bouncing because you can either targetedly banish 3 cards from your opponents discard pile, get a total of 9/9 in stats over 4 bodies, or a mix of both. My preferred use for it is in combination with Demonic Rising/The Risen/(eventually Krieg Ally ability) for a major blitzing assault. However, I love having the ability to choose to break up that combo to banish key discard threats, turn off an opponent’s recycling at critical junctures, and/or just establish threat for 0. All four of these are powerful effects, and it feels excellent being able to choose how best to utilize the card in each individual matchup/game.

(I really want to play this with Krieg now, I hadn’t actively considered this specific possibility before.)

[I had some time to write up a few more of these as well for the regular schedule.]

Draft

Spreadsheet: Slow Champions
Category: Establishing, Other (C-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: D-Tier

Constructed

Tier 8

A slow champion that puts a single token into play and has 9 or less health, why would I want this? I don’t.

That being said, 8/9 in the air is enormous stats when this sticks. It is hard to effectively block this and even harder to break it in combat, if it sticks. Drifting Terror and its token are also both Evil demons which opens up Raxxa’s Displeasure and Dark One’s Fury possibilities as well. Further, if you do use single target removal on the Terror (Drain Essence, etc.), the demon token is a considerable bonus left over too.

Overall, in Dark Draft, I don’t want to commit a precious slow champion slot for this because there are so many better/more impactful possibilities. If I’m late in the draft and low on slow champions or if I get passed four slow champions, there are still worse options than this. In constructed, same thing but even more so. It has been reasonable the few times my opponents have played it against me though.

Draft

Spreadsheet: Slow Champions
Category: Re-establishing Single-Target Big (S-Tier)
Internal Category Tier: A-Tier

Constructed

Tier 2

Big airborne reestablishing champion. 8 damage is enough to break a lot of important champions and most airborne champions.

8/8 is also excellent stats in the air, since it wins in combat against all of the 6/8s on down. Only outright loses to two playable airborne champions: Draka and Sky Serpent. At 8 health it survives Whirlwind which is potentially a big deal for airborne champion fights. Finally, the airborne 8 offense threatens to kill your opponent very quickly while dodging more chump blocking.

This card was incredibly powerful in the no-core monthly tournament. At some point, I might make the argument that Hunting Wyvern is on the same level or better than Kong/Sea Titan in draft, but today is not that day. There are potential constructed metas where I would definitely make that argument.