Gwent Leader Abilities -- An In-depth Look

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Force of Nature
Order: Spawn and play Woodland Spirit.

Provisions Offered: 15

Minimum Value: 9 points

Strengths: Woodland Spirit provides consistent value and gives good reach. Because it plays decently in most decks, it does not immediately telegraph the nature of the deck in which it is played.

Weaknesses: Woodland Spirit provides little other than points – it has no ability. The doomed status prevents it from being useful in the graveyard. It does, however, have a relict tag, which can be useful in some decks.

Typical Uses: Woodland Spirit is typically used to provide an additional relict, to be an almost guaranteed thrive trigger, to achieve quick dominance, or to accelerate meeting the sabbath condition. It can be useful for any deck that doesn’t benefit from other monster leaders, although Carapace is probably better for this purpose.

Play Strategy: Force of nature, because its value is inert, can be played at almost any time, a time typically dependent upon the reason it was included in the deck (early to achieve sabbath, late to trigger thrive, as needed for dominance or the relict tag). Because of its simplicity, it is a good leader to explore long term Gwent strategy (reach, tempo, commitment, etc.).
 
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Tactical Decision

Order: Spawn and play Morvran Voorhis.

Provisions Offered: 15

Minimum Value: 7 points

Strengths: Tactical Decision is a very flexible leader ability that enhances almost any deck. It has some very strong synergies that give it a high average value with an attainable (although not frequent) ceiling of 26 points. And it improves deck consistency both by giving additional chance to draw key cards and by providing opportunity to remove bricks from hand.

Weaknesses: To achieve maximal value, Tactical Decision requires the inclusion of Snowdrop, Mage Assassins, and Affan. But Affan and the Assassins also introduce some awkwardness. They cannot be available to both Blightmaker and Morvran and can be awkward to hold in hand through rounds when they are not needed. Finally, Tactical Decision is weak unless used round three because the [bad] cards you eliminate from hand go to the top of the deck to be drawn at the start of next round.

Typical Uses: The synergies of Morvran Voorhis with Snowdrop, Affan Hillergrand, and Mage Assassins are strong enough that these cards are essentially auto include with the Tactical Decision leader ability. Other than wanting these cards, Tactical Decision can be used with virtually any deck. I have seen it with mill, clog, soldiers, Ball, Kolgrim, and even assimilate. It is the leader ability of choice for hyperthin because it allows the crucial target for Xarthisius, Merigold, and Yennifer: Divination to be in hand and then returned to the deck before it is needed.

Play Strategy: Most leader abilities should be preserved for use in the decisive third round, but this is especially critical for Tactical Decision as earlier use will often result in poorer draws in the succeeding round. Normally you want to use it after other cards that draw cards or modify deck order, but early enough that you have choice in the card(s) returned to your deck. Especially when playing hyperthin, you don’t want to play it before Sunset Wanderer triggers because you may need to correct the card that Wanderer draws. When opposing Tactical Decision – especially hyperthin, you may want to exploit the ability’s awkwardness by pushing early rounds deeper than you might otherwise choose to do.
 
Tactical Decision

Order: Spawn and play Morvran Voorhis.

[...]
Weaknesses: [...] Finally, Tactical Decision is weak unless used round three because the [bad] cards you eliminate from hand go to the top of the deck to be drawn at the start of next round.
Snowdrop fixes this in a way if you sequence it right than it is
not a weakness but a liability, because of

To achieve maximal value, Tactical Decision requires the inclusion of Snowdrop, Mage Assassins, and Affan. But Affan and the Assassins also introduce some awkwardness. They cannot be available to both Blightmaker and Morvran and can be awkward to hold in hand through rounds when they are not needed.
This is a perfectly fine pointslam and more a deckfix/thinning than handfix if used in earlier rounds and often leads to card advantage or at least round control. Therefor TD is perfect if the main weakness of your deck is losing to bleeds or not beeing able to bleed. (blightmaker+ma follow by Snowdrop+TD are pretty nasty points in just two plays without commitment.

Imho TD is best played along SunsetW, Snowdrop, Affan, 2x MageA and ONE Blightmaker. This is a lot of Provision but also a lot of points and Handfix/deckfix(thinning) so you reduce the need of tutors and gain some provision "payback". DMT is the icing on the cake, eliminating the last "bad draws" for later.
Play Strategy: Most leader abilities should be preserved for use in the decisive third round, but this is especially critical for Tactical Decision as earlier use will often result in poorer draws in the succeeding round. Normally you want to use it after other cards that draw cards or modify deck order, but early enough that you have choice in the card(s) returned to your deck. Especially when playing hyperthin, you don’t want to play it before Sunset Wanderer triggers because you may need to correct the card that Wanderer draws. When opposing Tactical Decision – especially hyperthin, you may want to exploit the ability’s awkwardness by pushing early rounds deeper than you might otherwise choose to do.

tread carefully. All well thought but my experience is the opposite. If you face TD you may step in a trap if your opponent is just too happy about getting rid of the bricks(affan/ma) while countering your push with gaining CA or forcing you to overcomit. Since TD can support a variety of decks, you should try to find out about opponents strategy (hyperthin, mill, clog, soldiers or any other combo....) and act accordingly. As quintivarum already mentioned this leader doesn't telegraph the decks meta strategy as clearly as others do, so .... tread carefully.
 
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Double Cross

Order: Create and play a card from your opponent’s hand.

Provisions Offered: 16

Minimum Value: n/a

Strengths: Double cross often plays for the value of your opponent’s best card – which can be significant. It also reveals your opponent’s card holdings in hand which allows you to optimize your play. It triggers assimilate and can often trigger other cards (like Nauzicaa Sergeant). It can potentially force opponents into suboptimal sequencing if they feel a need to play around the ability.

Weaknesses: The notion that you can “play your opponent’s cards better than he can” is rather suspect. It supposes that you, with a few cards, can develop better synergies for cards than your opponent who should have designed an entire deck around them. However, between Duchess’s Informant, Illusionist, and Experimental Remedy, you might be able to gain more copies of a synergistic card than your opponent is allowed – assuming you can anticipate the synergies to play for. Double Cross is also a leader ability that is relatively easy to play around – expect opponents to play good cards early in round 3 when possible. Finally, it is very matchup dependent – some archetypes will have literally nothing of much value to you (e.g. Salamander when most of the poison is on your cards, or Detlaff when you have no consume cards).

Typical Uses: Assimilate and other theft-based archetypes will typically use and most benefit from Double Cross. It is usually not a great leader unless you intend to play multiple cards of your opponent as it is rare to get good synergies with your native cards. I also use it in quest decks – decks designed to quickly play multiple copies of a specific type of card to meet quest conditions because double cross actually plays the card – it is not just spawn.

Play Strategy: Double Cross is one of the game’s most interactive leaders in that opponents can anticipate its use against them and take measures to minimize its value. These strategies include both removing cards that would greatly benefit you from their hand and playing supporting cards is a way that minimizes your access to them. Assuming the ability is held for the third round, timing its use can be tricky. You generally want at least one of the three cards you are shown to be valuable to you. If you wait too long, your opponent might have already played those cards. If you play it early, RNG could result in seeing only bad cards. It can also be delicate to decide when you need the leader to defend a bleed. Double Cross loses value whenever your opponent’s hand size is less than three, and it is useless if your opponent’s hand is empty.

Commentary: Double Cross is my favorite NG leader ability because it does allow a lot of strategic interplay. It is very unique to the Nilfgaard faction and, to me at least, nicely captures the Nilfgaard spirit. And while it almost demands a lot of “copycat” cards, it is far more flexible than Enslave or Imperial Formation which demand tactic or soldier cards, respectively. The “copycat” archetype admits significant variety.
 
Arachas Swarm

Order: Spawn a drone on an allied row. Charge 5
Ability
: Whenever you play an organic card, spawn drone on a random allied row.

Faction: Monster

Provisions Offered: 15

Minimum Value: 5

Strengths: Arachas Swarm provides a timely jump-start to a swarm deck – allowing rapid application of a payoff (mass boost) card. This can be very useful to play around enemy removal, or to exploit cards like Yennefer of Vengerberg whose value is decreased as your opponent plays more cards. With individual charges, it allows the immediate creation of a junk unit if that is needed. And its ability to generate extra value when organic cards are played is occasionally nice (as when dry-passing with a Predatory Dive).

Weaknesses: It is probably a bad idea to play Arachas Swarm with anything other than a swarm deck (although there might be some potential to disguise decks that are only partially swarm – especially if they use a lot of organic cards), thus Arachas Swarm usually immediately telegraphs key aspects of your deck to your opponent. Also, a 5-point minimal value is a bit on the low side and the non-order aspect of the card generally adds little more.

Typical Uses: Arachas Swarm is almost exclusively used with swarm decks, although the basis of the swarm can be varied. It can be used in meme decks revolving around Glustyworp or even organic cards, but not in ways that are highly effective at present.

Play Strategy: Arachas Swarm adds versatility to swarm decks. By allowing up to 5 immediate, additional units, swarm payoff can begin immediately – allowing swarm decks a very strong short round. If played with cautious mulligans to avoid over-swarming, it can also have very strong engine value for longer rounds. Moreover, swarm often runs counter to typical control-based metas because the control finds few good targets.

Commentary: To choose Arachas Swarm is usually an obvious decision. There are very few gray areas. Arachas Swarm is very much a leader ability tied to one archetype (swarm) and rises or falls with that archetype. (This I consider unfortunate design as it severely limits variety.) But occasionally a swarm deck can benefit more from other leaders (e.g., Carapace to protect key engines or Fruits of Ysgeth to generate thrive value). Be on the look-out for surprises.
 
Imposter (Nilfgaard)

Order: Lock an enemy unit, then spawn its base copy in the opposite row and boost it by the number of enemy units with a status in the locked unit’s row

Provisions Offered: 15

Minimum Value: not relevant (depends upon opponent’s cards)

Strengths: This leader ability works with virtually any deck; the biggest issue is whether another leader works better. As such, the leader does nothing to telegraph your hand.

Weaknesses: The leader ability is highly dependent upon gaining value from your opponent – something you have no control over. This feature also makes it very hard to predictably synergize with your own deck – the status boost to the summoned unit is not usually significant, summoning rather than playing does not trigger assimilate – and makes much value come from locking the opponent. Because the leader is best used on engines, it can often be played around if held until round three. Thus, the leader ability tends to consistently generate 8 to 12 points of value but has little potential to do better than that.

Typical Uses: I can’t say this leader has a typical use – it neither benefits nor penalizes any archetype. The boost from statuses gives slight benefit to decks that confer numerous statuses, but this is not a huge difference and can be slightly anti-synergistic with the lock. It is probably best with decks that have no obvious other leader choice. I can also be useful tech in metas where powerful engines are common.

Play Strategy: As with most leader abilities, you want to save the order, if possible, for the decisive round (usually the third). Otherwise, you generally play the leader opportunistically when the “best” likely target presents itself. This target could be a good engine (which you can also use) or a high base value unit (which gives you significant points). Engines you want to take as soon as possible; there is usually no rush to take high base power units, so you can wait in hopes of getting a better target.
 
Overwhelming Hunger (Monsters)

Order: Destroy an allied unit, then spawn an Ekimmara in its row and boost it by the destroyed unit’s power.
Charge: 2


Provisions Offered: 15

Minimum Value: 6 points

Strengths: Overwhelming hunger guarantees an ability to immediately trigger a deathwish ability for cases where a consume unit is unavailable, or when one does not want to risk a deathwish unit being locked (or banished or stolen) waiting for a consume type unit to destroy it. It can also function as a sort of purify against poison, or a productive way to place units in the graveyard for future use.

Weaknesses: Without deathwish units, overwhelming hunger has relatively limited value (it can deal with poison or put units into the graveyard, but these uses are usually of limited utility). It also creates significantly boosted units vulnerable to tall removal and/or reset. Finally, it is NOT consume and does not trigger consume powers.

Typical Uses: Although infamously linked to Viy decks, this leader ability is effective for any decks that utilize deathwish units (although other leaders – notably Carapace and Fruits of Ysgith – can also work well with some deathwish decks). I suppose Hunger could be used effectively with Witches Sabbath (e.g. as a stop-gap measure to place desired units in the graveyard if they are played the same round as Sabbath), but I have never seen it used as such. Otherwise, Carapace will almost always be a stronger choice.

Play Strategy: As with most leader abilities, players tend to preserve Overwhelming hunger charges for the decisive final round. When used with Detlaff: Higher Vampire, Overwhelming Hunger is often used twice on Detlaff in a single round for a large point swing. Because it comes with two charges, depending on the deck it is used with, it can conceivably be used at least once on a critical turn in an earlier round. Because Overwhelming Hunger charges creates units vulnerable to reset, it may be wise to preserve them for last say – but typically deathwish decks have sufficient boosted and tall units that reset and tall punish will find targets anyway.
 
Stockpile (Northern Realms)

Order: Spawn a volunteer on an allied row, then reduce the cooldown of Northern Realms units in that row by 1.

Provisions Offered: 15

Minimum Value: 6 points

Strengths: Thanks to the horrendous interface, this leader ability is excellent at tilting anyone foolish enough to play it. First, the targeting of a row rather than a unit takes some getting used to – especially when the row begins to fill with units. Second – and this is idiotic design – the ability remains active after being used. So when you “click” a unit you just recharged, it doesn’t fire the unit, it wastes a second leader charge. This is inconsistent with how other leader charges (e.g. off the books, reckless flurry, pincer maneuver) work. Finally, you are extremely likely to waste another charge trying to figure out how to disable the leader.

Weaknesses: I got too frustrated with this leader to find any.

Typical Uses: Reducing the Gwent player base with counter-intuitive, frustrating play.

Play Strategy: Rope your opponents while frantically struggling to turn off an ability you don’t want to use.
 
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