DRK3's Thread (Farewell)

[DRK3]

Hey guys, wanted to share a more detailed post (now that im back on my trusty desktop and not on mobile ) about the 'Heritage' card drop + reworks - the last new cards Gwent will ever see - coming tomorrow.

This is based on the patch notes that came out a few hours ago, you can find them here:
I did NOT see the dev commentary video regarding these reworks, this is my opinion without external influences.

Patch Notes 11.9

Update 11.9 is coming tomorrow, and with it, the last card drop for GWENT. We truly hope you enjoy these 12 cards and are excited to see, what you create with them. We are also making changes to existing cards to support the new card drop, as found below. For a rundown of the most important...

forums.cdprojektred.com

ONE-BY-ONE CARD REWORK ANALYSIS

-Ale of the Ancestors - this is a nice buff, but the card remains a low tempo play and you need to build part of the deck around it to maximize it, maybe it could be fun in a mushy truffle + dwimveandras spam deck.

-Tainted Ale - quite unusual rework, maybe it will be useful to counter certain meta decks that rely on boosty engines, but with only 3 charges it seems to still be overpriced, i dont think it will see much use outside of uninteractive decks.

-Cyprian WIley - this is a massive buff, being able to target 4pt units allows you to target most of the bronze engines in the game, he was always similar to toad prince, and being able to banish is much better than if he was just 'do 4 damage' as it bypasses armor and shields. I do expect to see him a lot more often now.

-Eskel Pathfinder - he is going to be really strong, but only in certain decks. The most popular primary category in the game is 'Human', by far, as almost all factions consist mostly of humans except MO and ST. So if you have a deck without humans, this can be a tool to kill defenders, tall punishment, dangerous engines, everything, unless you have the bad fortune of facing a similar deck to yours.

-Geralt Aard - for the first time EVER, a Geralt card goes below 10 prov, and can be used in GN decks... Still sucks and probably wont be used, maybe in ST movement decks only.

-Ivo and Gregoire - boring and probably not enough to make them see play.

-Marlene - really odd rework, now there is no way to give veil to your units on the turn they're played, and you get a card similar to that resilience bronze wagon that nobody plays anyway.

-Nivellen - got really expensive, but the buff is significant, probably worth to include it in ST movement decks.

-Regis Bloodlust - this is the reworked card that will get most attention. "OOOHH, 20 POINTS!!!"
At first it seems incredibly risky to even include it in deck, a card that cant ever reach R3, but players are already figuring out ways to dodge its negative effects, such as transforming it or locking it.

-Armored workshop - nice buff but probably not enough to include in most decks apart from dwarves perhaps.

-Inspirational ballad - really weird design, i get that its a nod to Geralt's Hansa in the books (dandelion, zoltan, regis, geralt), but its weird to include those 4 tags in a deck. Its slow and awkward, but 24 possible points for a 4prov card seems crazy.

-Oxenfurt scholar - seems super solid now for highly polarized decks. Getting an instant 9/10pt cards for 4p is really strong, especially when the condition is only in the deckbuilder.

-CONSTRUCTS - these 4 forgotten neutral golds got awesome reworks similar to what dragons got a few months ago, but they are cheaper and seem to be way more reliable, mostly consisting of deploy abilities.
BTW, there are 6 constructs in the game, the 5th is living armor, the 6th is NG's exclusive imperial golem.
The ideal order to play these 4 reworked bad boys is: Primordial Dao, Frenzied Dao, Colossal Ifrit, Enraged Ifrit.

-MONSTERS - Alpha werewolf seems really strong now, with Morvudd's old ability on ranged and big carryover value in the melee.
Mourntart also got a massive buff, yes it lost 3 provisions but its worth it to have her ability on deploy rather than order, so you no longer need to rely on petri's philter, expect massive 40+pt Mourntarts.

Im not sure i like the rework on Plague Maiden and cockatrice for poisons, even though lore-wise it makes sense. I mean i admit its interesting, i just dont like seeing one of my most beloved archetypes fused with one of my most hated mechanics.

-NILFGAARD - Finally Vilgefortz was changed! Traeharn is still an issue, but that bastard is not on every single NG deck, Vilgefortz is, or at least was until now... I really like this rework.

-SKELLIGE - Udalryk was a strong contender to 'weakest gold in the game', even most 4p bronzes outclass him, but now he pairs up perfectly with Hym, one of my favourite cards ever.

-SYNDICATE - Hvitr and Aelydia's rework seems awkward, i doubt this will make them see play.
-Wheel of Fortune got a massive buff, becoming more similar to the SY bear, where you need to wait until RNG is kind in a turn to use it, i like it.

Arena endrega, i love this rework, pairs up nicely with insanity units, can be a very effective way to get tons of coins.
Mutant killer also became amazing in a salamandra deck, i am using one right now and this bad boy could get 30+pts in ideal situations, i am already coming up with ways to get more of these guys...

PREDICTIONS + PLANNED 'DECKS OF THE DAY'

I think we'll see a lot of Regis Bloodlusts, so get that tall punishment prepared.
We'll also see a lot of NG new cards and NR cursed Adda. A bit less, some ST dwarves and SY passiflora. Also some MO vampires, as they have a very loyal fanbase.

Personally i can already promise some decks i will do and share:

-A construct deck. They seem really strong and i love cards that are linked to each other, i only wish there were more...

-A NR Adda deck, with Draug and revenants and all those units i love. Maybe even some sabrina's inferno to spice things up!

-An inspirational ballad deck. Yes, i am building a deck around a 4p card, i am a sucker for theme decks after all.

-An oxenfurt scholar deck. Lets see how much i can milk out of this card.

-A SK alchemy deck around Ottkel or whatever is his name.

-A SK Queensguard swarm deck around Heulyn or whatever is her name.

-A MO swarm deck with the new poisons, maybe also the reworked alpha werewolf and the new Wild Hunt DW unit.

-A SY Passiflora deck with an absolute absurd amount of [CENSORED].

-A NG Van Attre deck to abuse this new cards and prove they're OP and might need an hotfix.

-MAYBE a Mushy truffle + ale of ancestors deck. Perhaps Alzur Spellatael.

-These are not decks but i expect to use Cyprian Wiley and Eskel pathfinder on many of my new decks.

 

[StanislavOZZO]

On contracts:
I did all of these quests. It required a tailored deck and some patience. I even came to like some decks in the process
I hope you will pass the frustration on those quests and have fun

 

[LeticiOrel]

Recently i decided to check the contracts tab.
Apart from ranked (i believe their tab is called 'seasonal') and journey contracts, i have completed most of them.
...
Anyone else still paying attention to contracts?

Yes, from time to time I look on the contracts tab, choose one or two of them and try to complete it. It's a loooong way to go for me though (5000 GGs for example xD).
Recently I've managed to complete 1000 wins with ST - what a joy it has been. It is said to be the weakest faction, but I had a really great time playing dozens of suboptimal decks. Next is gonna be SK, about 800 wins left

Post automatically merged: Sep 13, 2023

-Nivellen - got really expensive, but the buff is significant, probably worth to include it in ST movement decks.

...

Personally i can already promise some decks i will do and share:

-A NR Adda deck, with Draug and revenants and all those units i love. Maybe even some sabrina's inferno to spice things up!

-A SK alchemy deck around Ottkel or whatever is his name.

-A SK Queensguard swarm deck around Heulyn or whatever is her name.

-A SY Passiflora deck with an absolute absurd amount of [CENSORED].

Nivellen says hello to the Reavers!

I can't wait for these four decks in particular. Aren't you gonna be trying some new dwarves, or do you think it's not worth the time? Personally I think that Mahakam pass fits more in symbiosis decks...

 

[DRK3]

I can't wait for these four decks in particular. Aren't you gonna be trying some new dwarves, or do you think it's not worth the time? Personally I think that Mahakam pass fits more in symbiosis decks...

Of the 4 decks you pointed, i already built 3 (and you already saw the Passiflora one, and beat it with your own dwarves deck).

I do not plan on making dwarves deck for two reasons:
1. these 2 new cards arent exciting, and there isnt much room for going outside the box
2. i already did a Dwarf Heist deck last month that played heavily into the dwarf armor cards that are now being more used by players, everyone is free to try that one and maybe tinker with it, replace to include some new cards.

 

[Gemueseknolle]

the constructs are not that easy, as you might expect. they take a lot of points and by that ruining almost all meaningful decks - but yeah, i found one that seems to work mostly (with exception against nilfguard poisioning)

 

[DRK3]

the constructs are not that easy, as you might expect. they take a lot of points and by that ruining almost all meaningful decks - but yeah, i found one that seems to work mostly (with exception against nilfguard poisioning)

The construct deck was the first i did and the first i shared on the 'Deck of the Day' thread, yesterday.
I just updated it with screenshots, feel free to go take a look.

Used that deck to go from Rank 3 to 1, was able to beat Enslave 6 and Flanking soldiers, and even though i lost twice to SK warriors, i believe it can beat them too if draws R1 are good and you (i) dont mess up.

 

[StanislavOZZO]

-CONSTRUCTS - these 4 forgotten neutral golds got awesome reworks similar to what dragons got a few months ago, but they are cheaper and seem to be way more reliable, mostly consisting of deploy abilities.
BTW, there are 6 constructs in the game, the 5th is living armor, the 6th is NG's exclusive imperial golem.
The ideal order to play these 4 reworked bad boys is: Primordial Dao, Frenzied Dao, Colossal Ifrit, Enraged Ifrit.

ideally, Living Armor first
Frenzied Dao - anything but the first and the last
Colossal Ifrit last. You suggested Enraged Ifrit, yet Colossal Ifrit has +3 multiplier rather than +1 that other constructs have

...and I hate NG so Imperial Golem is out of the picture for me

 

[Gemueseknolle]

fully agree with living armor first, and colossal ifrit as last.
i also put in some decoy to make them even stronger.

i also do not use NG, but work with dwarfs.

 

[DRK3]

@StanislavOZZO @Gemueseknolle
I dont think Living Armor is worth including, hence why i didnt mention it in the order.
And i fully agree with you both, Colossal Ifrit should be the last its the one with the biggest point potential, i probably confused the names.

I faced a NG with all 6 constructs on ranked, on 1st round it was a near perfect mirror match where we both played all ifrits and daos... except he didnt have much left, while my Lippy made sure i got back those constructs and even stronger and i demolished him.

You can use decoy, renew, other shenanigans to try and play more constructs but none will be as cheap and effective as Lippy.

---------------------

Also i want to welcome everyone to step in and tell me which decks you want to see next on 'Deck of the Day'.
I already have so many ready like Otkell, Passiflora swarm, Heulyn Renfri, super polarized oxenfurt scholars SY, etc...

And i am open to let any of you steer me in any direction, as long as it includes any of the new or reworked cards.

 

[Gemueseknolle]

Living Armor is only worth it, when you work with dwarfs of course, but then it can become quite powerful.

 

[LeticiOrel]

Of the 4 decks you pointed, i already built 3 (and you already saw the Passiflora one, and beat it with your own dwarves deck).

What a great match, I just got lucky with draws (I had the infused Zoltan in hand at the very beginning of r1). Did you share this Passiflora deck somewhere? I can't see it in your decks and would love to try it (my SY skills are still at the lowest level possible )

 

[DRK3]

What a great match, I just got lucky with draws (I had the infused Zoltan in hand at the very beginning of r1). Did you share this Passiflora deck somewhere? I can't see it in your decks and would love to try it (my SY skills are still at the lowest level possible )

Its coming today, in a few hours.

Tomorrow is the Otkell deck, with a super giant wall of text of details, of every version i tried and why i used or didnt use specific cards.

Also ive been having fun making entire decks around reworked bronzes.
I spent over half an hour yesterday doing the inspiring ballad deck (and its still terrible), then a SY oxenfurt scholar deck with 6 cards of 11+ provisions, a salamander deck with mutant killer where this 4p bronze can theoretically go up to 40pts!, and a temerian infantry abuse deck (wait until the majority of players find out how broken this card is now, it might become the next reaver scout...)

 

[DRK3]

The following decks probably wont get a 'deck of the day' post, unless requested.
They are the decks built around a single reworked bronze i talked about:

1. Inspirational Ballad

This deck took so much effort, i did schematics on which factions have the desired tags (humans, vamps, witchers, dwarves). Even after, it took me over 30min in the deckbuilder. The goal? To get max ballad value, TWICE.
With NR, human are easy, i got 4 witchers, for dwarves i got 2 IF troubadours, plus several bonded units to help swarm, and vampires is the hardest - Hubert Rejk, the single NR vampire, and the other, i pray for a vampire with Runemage MO runestone (hasnt worked yet )

2. Oxenfurt Scholars

Oxenfurt scholars are now payoff for highly polarized decks (in this one, it has 6x 11+ provision cards).
Such a deck will probably have a ton of consistency issues, so for this one, i use my classic Snowdrop + Trollporter combo to try to banish 5-7 4p weak cards.
But the best place for this is surely NG, with Calveit top players are already exploiting this, replacing 6p Nauzicaa sergeants with 4p Scholars for the same value.

3. Temerian Infantry

This one is so broken, its only a matter of time until its NR's meta. Works with any leader which has 3 charges, play Radovid to get to 5 charges, i also use decoy to get to 7 charges, 8 with Viraxas. The problem? You cant use those charges until the end of the match. Not that is a problem, with how much value these 5p bronzes are, with only 5 charges, they are 13pts if played melee for instant boost.

I did change this deck, reaver scouts were giving more value to NG opponents than for me (since i couldnt use leader charges to give them zeal), so now this deck SLAPS NG as they cant copy our strategy (unless they have Henrietta and get many Radovids, never happened).

That's right, im putting NR Knights pointslam to shame. Doesnt feel good when the tables turn now, does it?

4. Mutant Killer

I love this rework so much!
I dont like poison, but if i have to do it, it better be with the cutest salamander ever! For mutant killers to get value, salamander cant be the finisher, but thats OK when you can get up to 39pt for a 4p card, with little the opponent can do to stop it, unless he manages to avoid playing any units (or they have veil) and kills all our swarming.

5. Arena Endrega

Another incredible SY rework.
I made this deck yesterday, and i f***ing love it so much, even if its very disruptable.
Already loved SK healing, but SY healing is just as much fun!

I am using massive, cheap units that get super damaged if you dont do something - Ignatius Hale (kill bounties) or PoPenance (have firesworn tokens), except i want them to get damaged. Or one of the greatest memes, Greater Bros + Vlodimir.
I protect those highly damaged units behind defender, i use Arena endrega + jackpot leader for 20+ pts (instant coin refill + extra boost), then apothecary for an extra 10-20 pts, both 4p bronzes!

 

[DRK3]

I bring new memes! Not necessarily of bronze cards, not necessarily of my creation, but they deserve to be seen nonetheless.

For those that doubt Ivo can be a good card. I said so myself, that it would probably fit better in NG than in witcher decks and this opponent proved my point, my jaw dropped when i saw that Ivo value after a full R1.

(AI Match) Now that is some serious 4p value, puts big boi Soves and Erlands to shame!
Havent seen anyone use this reworked werewolf yet, so i gave it a go. Its a new way of tall punishment, were you double up on your opponents tall units, but you need werewolf to be at least 1pt bigger, and in real matches, you need last say or you're super vulnerable to tall punishment.

The advantage is it only costs 4p (although you definitely need the 8p alpha werewolf to boost him to 13, with a full hand, and i used Renfri + stratagems to boost it even further)

(AI Match) This is a variation of the Lara Dorren swarm deck i recently shared. More memey, higher point potential, but more disruptable and thus, less competitive.
Lara Dorren is designed to trigger her effect twice since the 2nd time she gets doomed, but all you need to circumvent that are some cheap purifies and you can play her indefinitely.

Of course you also need WH golds to make her come back, and ways to kill her since her ability to take damage from existing frost only takes effect the 1st time she's played.
In a 10-card round, this 'summon-purify-kill' Lara cycle is hard to do many times, in this match i was able to get 4 effects, for over 100pts!

 

[DRK3]

I am creating a compilation of all the thinning tools present in Gwent, will post it in several parts, in my Misc. Guides thread soon.

I checked online and didnt find anything like it, the closest was Lerio's guide to thinning on his website, but mine will be more of an informative list rather than a qualitative guide.

I think it can be very useful for players looking to increase consistency of their decks, without spending too many provisions.
And it will likely be my last major article i post for Gwent.

 

[quintivarium]

I am creating a compilation of all the thinning tools present in Gwent, will post it in several parts, in my Misc. Guides thread soon.

I checked online and didnt find anything like it, the closest was Lerio's guide to thinning on his website, but mine will be more of an informative list rather than a qualitative guide.

I think it can be very useful for players looking to increase consistency of their decks, without spending too many provisions.
And it will likely be my last major article i post for Gwent.

This will be a very useful guide. I always hate looking for thinning as it comes under so many different key words “summon, discard, play, draw”, etc. And then you still miss cards like Knickers that don’t use the key words.

But I am saddened that you see it as your last major article.

 

[DRK3]

The Thinning guide is complete, it can be found here:

Misc. Gwent Guides to... [THINNING]

[GUIDE TO TYPES OF PASSES] Heads-up: this small(er) guide is more directioned to be entertaining than actually instructive. It likely wont help you play Gwent better, but may help you understand some unusual situations. Passing in Gwent is very important. This guide won't cover the normal...

forums.cdprojektred.com

Last week, i crafted my very last Gwent card (it was Radovid: Judgment Premium, for those who might be curious. I know it should have been something special but i immediately crafted the new premiums i loved and left the most boring for last).

It dawned on me - the Gwent cardpool is finally complete (no more new cards or reworks), which is sad as there wont be anything new in the future, but on the bright side, for content creators and followers, it also means guides and videos are less likely to get outdated and obsolete.
Looking at my Misc guide threads, they took so much time to write and now easily over half of those guides are partially or totally obsolete and irrelevant, which is a bit disheartening.

So, now its the perfect time to create content that wont need to be updated.
\
/
On another - somewhat related - topic, i plan to keep sharing decks of the day until the 200th (less than 10 left now).
I previously attempted to stop that project (alongside Gwent) but eventually came back. However, i already shared here somewhere that i have OCD behaviours, which make me care too much about numbers and will not allow me to "break" the 200 mark (because i definitely dont want to have to go to 300!). If i find myself really desperate to share a deck, i will do so in another thread and "cheat the system"

Another endgoal is to finish all Ciri Journey contracts. I thought i had done them all but apparently CDPR added new ones and i didnt know, so now im trying to complete those, and since you only get 3 per week, its not something i can rush. Still need 3-4 more weeks of play...
Oh and still need to get that Meve cardback, which requires me to use, and WIN with NR...

 

[DRK3]

SEASONAL MODES

Unlike most Gwent players, i love seasonal modes - not all, but most.
I've always felt like it was a viable alternative to escape the nightmarish metas that grip standard modes (casual + ranked).
And was saddened by how ignored they were by pretty much all content creators and streamers.

Today, i bring a retrospective on my favourite seasonal modes that spiced up Gwent.

HISTORY LESSON

Originally, there were 12 seasonal modes, and each lasted roughly a month, equivalent to each ranked season. Those seasonal modes didnt even have proper names, they were called by the name of the season. Most of them are stll part of the seasonal cycle.

A few years, the monthly rotation changed into a weekly rotation. Which was a good change IMO, one month was too long and in simpler seasonal modes, you would get tired of them within a week, maybe less. Although i hated when one of my favourite seasonals started at the beginning of a new expansion, you wanted to try the new cards (and me, wanted to use them to release new decks in this forum as soon as possible), so the seasonal mode window was lost.

Then some time ago, seasonal modes were also cycled out and replaced by new ones, so it was not just the original 12, there's a lot more now although im not sure on the exact number of active ones.

PERSONAL RANKING (NO ORDER)

1. Battle Rush - i had to start with this one, obviously, its the one ive been most vocal about for years.
It has its fair share of issues: it doesnt really motivate creative deckbuilding specific for this mode, a lot of players just use the metadecks that dont take much time to play each turn. And its in this mode that is noticeable how shitty Gwent's UI and animations are, especially on mobile (for example a trap player can screw you because the spring animation takes so long it may not even give you time to do your plans).
However, i love it, i dont mind making a few mistakes here and there, to speed up the games and force everyone to play at a pace closer to my own, and do 3/4x times as many games in the same time as standard.

2. Patience is a Virtue - this is actually one of the newer seasonals, not part of the original rotation.
(Its the one where cards are transformed every turn, into others with +1 provision)
Its highly RNG-dependent, but there's still a degree of strategy and deckbuilding value, no two matches are the same, and being good adapting to each context and being familiar with all of the cardpool is highly rewarded.

3. Trial of the Grasses - a lot of players hate this one, considering it one of those where its "solved", there's one or two clearly best decks and no room for variation.
(its the one where all units get -2 +4, unless they're witchers, which just get the boost)
This is actually the mode in ALL OF GWENT where ive had the most success. Very close to 100% winrate. But what makes me proud of myself, is using a different faction and deck than the ones considered top (NR witchers and SK witchers).
NG is usually considered favoured in most seasonal modes, and in this one rarely anyone ever uses it, which is ironic since ive made several decks that are 100% unbeatable (assimilate strategy) against the popular decks. How can a deck be 100% foolproof? When even if you draw you're worst 16 cards, you can still beat any deck.
Note: sadly (for me, i know for most is not sad at all), this mode and the old dynamics died with the Yrden nerf, which was the central card of the mode, use or lose.

4. Switcheroo - (the one where after card hands switch after each player has a turn)
Super fun mode where having a terrible deck was actually a viable strategy. A mode where deckbuilding was more important than piloting the deck, and the best strategy was to create a deck where you could take advantage of your cards (synergy with leader or cards in deck) while your opponent couldnt (assuming it was not a mirror match).

5. Dual Casting - (the one where the 1st special is repeated each turn). The current seasonal mode, and motivator of this post.
I already said somewhere else i love how this seasonal mode is the one where i have most fun trying all 6 different factions, and with enough skill and deckbuilding, they're all viable.
Yes, i do admit SK Magic Compass, if properly played - or even not - is kinda overwhelming, and when i finally faced it, ruined my perfect streak. Still, that is really hard to pull off properly. Also, mill players love this mode - they can mill more effectively and almost all decks are thinning a lot anyway - which sucks, but they're still easily beaten.

Simple advice:
- try to go for 13 min units, 10-12 specials in the deck.
- include units that cheat the system and create specials.
- mulligan units, play as many specials from hand as possible.
- when using tutors like oneiro or royal decree, go fetch 2 important units (unless its R3 and you missed that really important special).
- forget the standard meta, a cheap bronze special can often be more valuable in this mode than a top gold unit in every metadeck.

Honorary mentions: other seasonals i like that didnt make the cut are 'Double Down', 'Bearly Balanced', 'Entrenched' or 'Our Battle will be Legendary'.

 

[DRK3]

Deck of the Day enters today officially on its last stretch.
This is the schedule i got planned and will try to stick to it:

Deck 197 - 17th October, today (the deck is out now!)
Deck 198 - 20th October
Deck 199 - 23th October [Gwent's final release - 5th Anniversary]
Deck 200 - 25th October [Gwent's Closed Beta start - 7th Anniversary]

I am still unsure what the last 3 decks will be (working on one right now), but i want at least one to be competitive, and all three to be spectacular.

 

[DRK3]

Running behind on my schedule, havent played much Gwent on this weekend, and before that, the 'Patience is a Virtue' seasonal, with its never-ending fun, distracted me from creating new, memorable (standard) decks.

Still plan to post the last 2 decks of the day next week, but instead of Monday + Wednesday, it will probably be more like Wednesday + Friday.

And one shall be Skellige - of course - which is a work in progress, but the other i still dont know at all, so if anyone's got a request or idea to throw at me, now its your last chance (i cant promise i'll do it if its too similar to meta or something ive already covered in the past, otherwise i will try to do it).