In this thread I am looking to find/share really cheap decks (minimal investment beyond starter decks with flexibility to use whatever random cards one may have obtained from kegs). Such decks would be useful for beginners just ready to move beyond a starter deck, for more advanced beginners wanting to explore different factions, or for any player wanting to fulfill quests with something fun to play and not an auto-lose even in unranked play. I don’t expect these decks to be highly competitive — many might be 30 to 50 points below their provision limit.
I know we have intro decks available, but for some players/uses, the real money cost is prohibitive. As these decks appear to use 2 legendary and 6 epic cards beyond the starter deck (not to mention the rares and commons), they would cost more than 4000 scraps to build — not what I would call cheap.
So far, I have found two pretty good, really cheap decks. But despite nurturing a Nilfgaard starter deck to about rank 18 (and buying many NG kegs) before switching to Skellige, I still cannot field a reasonably playable NG deck and swap out “win matches playing NG” type quests whenever I get them. While I do have reasonable decks with SK and ST ( I’ve never tried SY because it’s not been required for quests), these are based on significant card acquisitions and are not what I count as cheap.
So let me share my Monster and Northern Realms deck ideas (really cheap decks will tend to use mostly whatever cards a player has available, so general ideas are better than specific card lists), and ask other players to enlarge my list with their decks — even if they use the same factions.
Monster: Use Arachas Swarm leader ability with any cards that spawn or create multiple creatures (remember your leader will spawn a drone whenever you use an organic special card). Follow the swarming with cards that boost all units, and finally use whatever you have that synergises with these cards to fill out the deck. Key to my version are two copies of bone talisman and two copies of Arachas nest. Other really useful cards include predatory dive, endrega warrior, night wraith, and Kikimore warrior, and even nekker, but you can use whatever you have. If you are lucky enough to own Triss: telekinesis (create extra bone talisman), Germaine Piquant (spawning) or Plague maiden (just be sure you can “eat” her), those are great additions, but not vital. Note: this deck is especially effective against NG as it contains absolutely nothing worth poisoning or stealing. However, if poison is nerfed (either directly or indirectly) as I expect in the next patch, this deck win rate will probably drop significantly.
Northern Realms: Use the uprising leader ability, two copies of Lydian Scytheman, and as many boost cards (or cards like Ronvid the Inccessent or Redanian Elite that boost themselves). Remember, formation also gives a unit boost. Cards that spawn other cards that can be later boosted are also helpful. Otherwise select cards that are either powerful or synergies with boosts. Playing two or three 10+ point Scytheman is hard for an opponent to match. Try to avoid putting all boosted units on one row to minimize vulnerability to row reset. Note: this deck is vulnerable to decks that do lots of nickel and dime damage. It also will not out perform certain aggressive engines, so some removal is useful.
I know we have intro decks available, but for some players/uses, the real money cost is prohibitive. As these decks appear to use 2 legendary and 6 epic cards beyond the starter deck (not to mention the rares and commons), they would cost more than 4000 scraps to build — not what I would call cheap.
So far, I have found two pretty good, really cheap decks. But despite nurturing a Nilfgaard starter deck to about rank 18 (and buying many NG kegs) before switching to Skellige, I still cannot field a reasonably playable NG deck and swap out “win matches playing NG” type quests whenever I get them. While I do have reasonable decks with SK and ST ( I’ve never tried SY because it’s not been required for quests), these are based on significant card acquisitions and are not what I count as cheap.
So let me share my Monster and Northern Realms deck ideas (really cheap decks will tend to use mostly whatever cards a player has available, so general ideas are better than specific card lists), and ask other players to enlarge my list with their decks — even if they use the same factions.
Monster: Use Arachas Swarm leader ability with any cards that spawn or create multiple creatures (remember your leader will spawn a drone whenever you use an organic special card). Follow the swarming with cards that boost all units, and finally use whatever you have that synergises with these cards to fill out the deck. Key to my version are two copies of bone talisman and two copies of Arachas nest. Other really useful cards include predatory dive, endrega warrior, night wraith, and Kikimore warrior, and even nekker, but you can use whatever you have. If you are lucky enough to own Triss: telekinesis (create extra bone talisman), Germaine Piquant (spawning) or Plague maiden (just be sure you can “eat” her), those are great additions, but not vital. Note: this deck is especially effective against NG as it contains absolutely nothing worth poisoning or stealing. However, if poison is nerfed (either directly or indirectly) as I expect in the next patch, this deck win rate will probably drop significantly.
Northern Realms: Use the uprising leader ability, two copies of Lydian Scytheman, and as many boost cards (or cards like Ronvid the Inccessent or Redanian Elite that boost themselves). Remember, formation also gives a unit boost. Cards that spawn other cards that can be later boosted are also helpful. Otherwise select cards that are either powerful or synergies with boosts. Playing two or three 10+ point Scytheman is hard for an opponent to match. Try to avoid putting all boosted units on one row to minimize vulnerability to row reset. Note: this deck is vulnerable to decks that do lots of nickel and dime damage. It also will not out perform certain aggressive engines, so some removal is useful.