ArcaneAzmadi
11-02-2014, 09:59 AM
Full review of every card in Sins of Betrayal.
Welcome to my 2nd full set review. Griffin Bane wasn't a bad set, but Sins of Betrayal one-ups it with more consistancy, more variety, and less crap. I know this review is TERRIBLY late (Sins came out weeks ago) but eh, whatever.
THE GOOD:
* For the most part, the stuff the factions get is a lot less single-minded and one-dimensional. In Griffin Bane, almost EVERY card for each faction was bent towards pushing a single theme to the exclusion of everything else- breeder stacks for Inferno, Skeleton stacks for Necropolis, Bloodthirst for Stronghold etc etc. This meant that unless you were building a new deck based around these cards, there wasn't much you could actually use in your existing decks. While Sins of Betrayal still has some strong themes (Spirits and elemental creatures) there are a lot more "general use" cards that don't require you to build an entirely new deck to use them.
* Some GREAT gap filling cards plugging huge holes in the game, most notably Magic Pact (FINALLY a cost-effective, relatively easy-to-play and above all NEUTRAL way of dealing with ongoing spells and fortunes!).
* While there are a lot of good weenies in the set, the devs have been making a serious effort to make some more viable high-cost creatures. Admittedly they're mostly based around "come into play" effects, but it's a start.
* Buildings continue to be more than just a footnote in the game's history with some interesting, strong and cheap ones being added. It may be necessary to make serious consideration for anti-building cards in your deck construction.
THE BAD:
* Unfortunately, while for the MOST part one-dimensional theming has slacked off, Stronghold received the short end of the stick; they haven't been given new cards as much as an entire new deck. EVERY card Stronghold received (except for their Hero Sandor and the lousy Pao Scout) is intended for specific use in a Harpy/Centaur deck and will see little use outside of it if this rather gimmicky deck archetype fails to take off. And I honestly doubt it will. There's a crippling lack of good general-use cards that can be dropped into existing Stronghold decks.
* As has become a depressing trend, Stacking has been dropped without a trace. The ONLY card that has anything to do with Stacking in the set is the traditional "Hero released one set out of sync with the cards they're meant to be used with"- in this case, Anton, the definitive hero for Haven stack decks. Yet another interesting mechanic given a few base cards then discarded without remorse before it could get really interesting, just like Ambush.
* 3 more of the bland, boring "3 spell schools and vanilla stats" heroes. With the balance changes to make Invokers more viable (changing them to an effective 1/2/0) starting with 3 schools and 1/1/1 is no longer ANY kind of advantage. While you can still look for interesting combos to pull off with the spell schools (Sandor is the first Stronghold hero to have Dark magic access, for example) I really have no hesitation in dismissing this "class" of hero as, on average, the weakest and most boring in the game.
* I really think they could do more than 2 new events per set, and these 2 aren't much more interesting than the last 2. They're exclusively meant for themed decks and useless to everyone else.
OK, now for the cards. As before, I'm reviewing them all in the exact order that they appear on MMDoc Tools so you can keep up as you read. Unlike last time, I've traded in the A+ to D- scale for a simpler 1 to 5 star rating of the kind used by Inquest magazine. As usual, keep in mind that I haven't had time to actually TEST most of these cards, these are just my initial impressions from looking at them and theorising.
DISCLAIMER: I know I'm going to get a lot of "OMG you think this card is good, you noob, this card sux!" answers. What can I say, I have a creative mind a generous spirit and a fondness for strategies OTHER than Rush.
SCALE:
***** A must-use or game-breaker
**** Very strong, likely to be a staple
*** Decent, may well find use in certain decks
** Underpowered, only of use in very specific or gimmicky decks
* Crap, a card you'll almost certainly never use
HEROES
Anastasya
Ouch. This girl HURTS. Her stats and spell schools aren't particularly special (although Dark+Primal is always a good combination) but her ability just gives her UNPARALLELED creature control. Being able to drop 2 crippling counters onto any creature at will is usually enough to negate most single creature threats and combined with all the crippling and low-power synergy cards Necropolis got in both this set and Griffin Bane she's going to have a lot of tricks at her disposal. Creature strategies could really spin their wheels in the face of her control. ****
Anton
The "Haven stacking guy". His spell schools are even less original than Anastasya's (the same as Cassandra) but if you're going to make a stack deck, you do it with Anton, simple as that. Haven stacking hasn't had nearly the success of Necropolis stacking since the release of Griffin Bane, but I've seen some decks have some success and Anton looks like he could turn it up. Of course, like Nahla from Griffin Bane and Masfar, Father of Titans from Heart of Nightmares (the "Beastman hero" released in the construct set and the "Construct hero" released in the beastman set) he should have been released last expansion (maybe Slava should have had his ability?) but better late than never. ***
Elisabeth
Blah. While she has the unique spell combination of Earth/Light/Dark, I just don't any point to playing this girl. Academy has had access to all of these schools on varying heroes before, so unless you have some REALLY good cross-school spell combination, I don't see any reason to waste your time. **
Irina
Even worse than Elisabeth. Noboru had Dark/Light, Mukao had Dark/Water and Ishuma had Light/Water. Any of them would be more fun to play than Irina. *
Kiril
NOW we're talking. With the deadly Dark/Fire combination of Kal'Azar, Kiril is set up well to start, but he really comes into his own when you build a themed dark/fire creature deck around him- like Crag Hack only without the requirement to only use lousy creatures. 2/1/0 starting stats make it easier to use this ability sooner to rush out a big fire beastie and start kicking heads in. I see the makings of a POWERFUL rush/swarm strategy here. ****
Sandor
Unlike Elisabeth and Irina, at least Sandor brings something new to Stronghold (Dark magic access). Whether you can make anything of that is up to you, but it's something. He's still boring, though. ***
EVENTS
Week of the Elementals
Elemental creatures have almost always sucked, usually because they're at least 1 or 2 resources more expensive than their stats and abilities justify. Enter Week of the Elementals. While it's still not enough to bring most of the lousy Lesser Elementals down into usable range (even with their reduced resource cost, they still have a higher than necessary might requirement), some of the Greater Elementals may start to find some traction, especially with the other elemental creature and Spirit-buffing cards in this set. While its randomness makes it unreliable even with 4 copies in your deck, there's also the possibility of flipping over a double for -2R costs. A "wait and see" card, but one that has potential. ***
Waning Moon
Ooh, someone on the art team was slacking off- that's a Sellspell Djinn, completely unmodified, superimposed on the moon. Another event for the Spirit decks, this one isn't restricted to Neutral Spirits, but is a bit limited in its use. There aren't that many Spirits with strong come into play effects (although the Dousing Kappa introduced in this set is decent) and while it might be useful just to recall a damaged Spirit to your hand to save it from dying, at 2R it's a bit expensive. Sanctuary decks based around bounce strategies (Shalan, Voice of the Lotus perhaps) might find a good use for it, but it's a very conditional card, really only meant for specific strategies. ***
CREATURES
Ancient Ghost
Another neat 1 drop for Necropolis decks in the wake of Venom Soldier. While it lacks any attack power by itself (and is also a melee, not a flier), it has higher HP than the Lingering Ghost for half the cost, which combined with its Incorporality makes it one of the toughest 1 drops in the game. While the changes to the first turn mean this isn't as good for Fleshbane as it might have been thanks to the 1 Ma requirement (he can only play it on the 1st turn if he's going second), if you drop more Ghosts around it it can potentially buff itself up to a respectable 3 power. That's seriously good value for resource. ***
Embers Elemental
Initially this creature looks incredible and my first impression on seeing it was amazement. Then I thought again, checked my facts, and realised that Academy have NO other Fire or Earth element creatures in their lineup at all- not even one! While it can actually do some pretty mean damage if you can get multiple copies out at once (since even if they don't buff themselves, they SHOULD buff each other) you have to be running Neutral creatures to really justify putting this in your 2 drop slot. It's really only useful in a dedicated Elementals deck, which is hard to run in Academy as anything other than a gimmick. **
Fountain Spirit
Now THIS is a sweet 2 drop! While it lacks Immune to Retaliation (ITR from here on out) like the Kabuki Sentry, the fact that it CANNOT BE TARGETED is extremely powerful. The 1D requirement is practically a triviality and in fact makes this creature a nice addition to Takana Osore or Kenage decks who might be annoyed by the magic requirement on most of their shooters. However, you need to keep in mind that, contrary to what you might expect (and, if I'm being competely honest, contrary to all common sense), this is NOT a Magic creature like pretty much every other Spirit in the game. Still a great option for the 2 drop slot. ****
Lesser Glory
Another Glory for Haven's collection and this one's as sexy as hell. Unfortunately she's not as useful. While a 6 HP flier for 2 is a formidable defence, only 1/1 combat stats limit what she can really accomplish. Haven don't have a great deal of Spirit synergy compared with some of the other factions, while they DO have a surfeit of tough, reliable early defenders. She makes a good addition to Week of Training weenie decks, though, where 1 power is much less of a drawback, even an advantage. In general, though, she's not so much bad as redundant. **
Pao Harpy
On her own, this isn't that great- the extra point of damage she can put down wherever you need it is useful, but not often decisive. However, when taken as part of the series of Harpy and Centaur cards they received in this set, she can prove devastating. Backed up by the likes of Centaur Chieftain, Mother Harpy or Beastman Warcry, she can really put out a lot of economical, safe damage. Without these cards though, which aren't cheap, she's a bit underpowered. A potential staple in the hypothetical Centaur/Harpy deck. **
Dousing Kappa
A neat little toy for Sanctuary. While it lacks the high retaliation of the basic Kappa and has a 2Ma requirement that makes it more difficult, the come into play effect is worth quite a bit, even when it's only 1 damage. Sanctuary suffer from a lack of direct damage dealing, while they excel at bouncing and replaying their own creatures. The extra point against Fire creatures makes it a bit more powerful against Inferno in particular. I can see this being a core creature for Shailan combined with Waning Moon, although it does face some competition in the 3 drop slot. ***
Eternal Disciple
Over the last few sets there has been a huge emphasis for Necropolis on crushing low or 0 power creatures. Eternal Disciple, as well as being a decent 2/1/6 magic melee for 3R, comes with a built in No Mercy For the Meek. While No Mercy isn't used (especially as Cheap Death is so much better), as a free bonus on a well-costed creature it's a great bargain. A decent stand-in for Plague Zombie or Lammasu, its value increases exponentially if you include a lot of Crippling or other power reduction in your deck. Tasty. ***
Eternal Mentor
Ariana and Anastasya are going to love this one. 2/2/5 magic shooter for 3R is a decent start to build on and his ability to get +1 power every time you kill a Crippled creature -not that difficult with all the tools Necropolis get to kill weenies- gives him powerful scaling damage potential. With this guy on the board, Crippled creatures become a lot less expendable for your opponent. Obviously he's not an auto-include in every Necro deck, but if you use enough Crippling then he's the ideal choice for the 3 drop slot, more or less completely obsoleting Skeleton Archer. ****
Juvenile Centaur
A 2/0/4 shooter for 3R isn't a good deal, not even for Stronghold (who never got a Succubus/Neophyte Lich equivalent creature). A 2/0/4 shooter with Attack Anywhere for 3 is much better, but is it enough? Attack Anywhere seems to be being pushed as one of Stronghold's trademark abilities in this set and there are a number of cards that synergise with this creature, but the dependancy on being able to keep another Centaur in play makes it difficult to fully utilise with its otherwise poor stats. Stronghold have quite a few good 3 drop creatures that this has to compete with so I doubt it will see any play outside of the Centaur/Harpy deck. It's alright in a pinch, but nothing to write home about. **
Magma Elemental
Neutral Fire Elementals have had a somewhat disreputable history- remember Burning Sand Elemental, one of the worst cards in Forgotten Wars? Finally they hit it out of the park with a creature that, while still typically understatted for cost, brings a nice unique ability to the table by rendering all your Fire creatures immune to your own Fire damage. While obviously this isn't as good as making them immune to ALL Fire damage, this has a number of tasty applications. In the right deck (typically Inferno) it combines magnificently with the likes of Immolation or Lava Stream as well as letting you Armageddon, The Forbidden Flame, or throw around careless Fireballs at will (sadly not Arkath's Wrath, the meta standard). Perhaps more potently, it's a lethal combo with Hikyu, Chosen of the Flames' passive ability or Ragefire, bypassing the normal drawback of Area Blast (friendly fire damage when attacking melee creatures) letting you abuse them freely. Of course, you shouldn't forget that while its ability has oodles of potential, it IS still an otherwise poor creature, being a 2/2/3 melee for 3R. While it's only really of use in a gimmick deck, it could potentially prove to be quite a deadly gimmick. ***
Pao Scout
It looks pretty good at first glance, until you realise how painfully inferior it is to Inferno's Juggernaut. A 3/1/4 for 3R which gets +1 damage when unblocked, it can do some pretty good damage, but is just too squishy. The Juggernaut's payoff for its low 4 HP is 4 power and 3 retaliation and the Pao Scout just looks weak by comparison. Even compared with other Stronghold creatures, you're better off just running Centaur Archer, which is a 3/2/4 ITR shooter for 3. It really needed 5 HP to be viable. Skip this. *
Surging Djinn
Academy's take on Stronghold's Ancestral Champion from Heart of Nightmares, the Djinn isn't as powerful but considerably tougher (3/2/7 flier compared to 4/2/5 melee). Considering the drawback of these creatures is what happens when they die, that's a good tradeoff. While the drawback IS fairly considerable, you can mitigate it by utilising it in a low-magic Academy deck or simply boosting your magic up higher than you need it to be with spare uses of your hero ability, as it's actually not a bad late-game creature. If you use it carelessly, though, it may be crippling to rush it out early and lose it to a Death Seal or Soulreaver, so exercise caution. ***
Ur-Jubaal's Minion
+1 retaliation on a Succubus isn't a good tradeoff for the +1R cost and +1Ma requirement, especially as this one DOESN'T have ITR. The backlash effect actually makes it a pretty effective blocker as it will win exchanges with other 2 power 4 HP creatures like Neophyte Lich, but it doesn't last long enough to pull this trick off more than once or twice at most and Inferno get better 3 drops. A decent blocker in a pinch, but ultimately a novelty and not a great one. **
Wolf Priest
Oh god this guy is EVIL! This is the new defining creature of the Charity retaliation deck, a miniature version of Wolf Justicar that is also a lethally effective blocker thanks to Preemptive Strike (surprisingly rare even on Haven creatures) and 3 retaliation. And for a mere 3R/2Mi/1Ma he's undercosted as all get out. EXTREMELY hard to deal with in the early game, his ability makes him a powerful late game tool when it comes time to drop Truce of Elrath too. ****
Agyn Mercenary
So apparently the devs are committed to trying to convince us to play with Mercenaries. This guy is just WEIRD. Clearly he's meant to be used with Spoils of War (the ongoing fortune released in Griffin Bane that gives you 2R every time a Mercenary deals combat damage- keeping in mind that Mercenaries have to pay 1R to attack) to build up a large amount of extra resource before using him as the hammer. And to be fair, if the game drags on late enough, this guy could be a holy terror, attacking for 7 or 8 damage per turn. The problem is that I just can't see a Mercenary deck working, no matter how many gimmicky cards they throw at it. Mercenaries are TERRIBLE creatures even before you factor in their attack cost drawback so I can't see any reason you'd want to try and play with this guy except maybe for the lulz. I'm going to be generous because I think it's an amusing idea, but I just don't see it working. **
Arcane Master Djinn
In just about any other CCG, this thing would be awesome. In DoC, it's merely "very good". If you're not attacking with this creature then it's just a wall and if you ARE attacking with it you're asking yourself why you're using a glorified Lesser Air Elemental. The 3Mi/1Ma/2D requirements are a little on the awkward side as well. But the ability to draw an extra card a turn for free is pretty tasty, plus you CAN still attack with it when you need the extra damage more than another draw. Plus, no matter what, it replaces itself in your hand on the turn you play it (since it obviously can't attack that turn) which means it's automatically good card economy. Worth using in any Academy deck that goes to 2D. ****
Blazing Succubus
Now this is a real substitute for the Lilim. Unlike the Embers Elemental, Inferno have quite a few Fire element creatures that can benefit from this hellish little beauty as well as a couple of useful Dark creatures (such as Lurker in the Dark). While she only buffs adjacent creatures (and is a shooter rather than a melee shooter, restricting her deployment) she's also just a good body to have, a 3/2/6 for 4R, not quite as powerful as Lilim but still good enough. They also buff each other when deployed in pairs. Could well be the new standard for Inferno 4 drop shooters, considering Lashing Lilim just isn't cutting it. ****
Blessing Inquisitor
Another elemental buffing creature, the Inquisitor is narrower than the Blazing Succubus but is still a good card. Tougher, with lower power and higher retaliation, a melee shooter without ITR, he can give several of your Glories and Angels a nice power surge while holding off most attackers. Not quite as good as the Succubus due to not filling a gap in the Haven lineup the same way she did for Inferno, but definitely worth looking at. ***
Bursting Fire Elemental
Ah, another crap Neutral Elemental. How nostalgic. Actually, this one isn't QUITE so bad- sure it's badly understatted for its cost (2/0/5 for 4R) and even less damaging than the classic Lesser Fire Elemental, but Area Blast is a fairly useful ability and the 5 toughness makes it a bit more reliable at least. It might have a good place in the hypothetical 'Week of the Elementals deck'. It's still a lousy creature on its own merits, though and you won't have any reason to use it normally. **
Captive Djinn
Now this is something Academy were crying out for- a reliable and efficient way of dealing with ongoing spells and fortunes even for heroes without Prime access. The Captive Djinn is a lousy creature for cost, but its come into play effect is outstanding- presumably that's the reason it has Anchored, to prevent you from simply bouncing and replaying it. The fact that it can't deal with unique spells or fortunes is a pretty big drawback, though, considering how powerful some of the epic fortunes from Griffin Bane were (Army of the Dead in particular). But it's a particularly good answer to those lamers in Open who still think sitting on their backsides playing stall card after stall card until they cheap you (or bore you) to death is a good idea- it can BANISH (meaning no recycling) both Altar of Shadows and Stone Shield and Anchored makes it immune to Throne of Renewal and Broken Bridge. Take that, cheeseballs! ****
Centaur Sharpshooter
The second of Stronghold's new surge of Centaur cards for their 'Centaur/Harpy alliance' deck, this girl is understatted but flexible. Her ability to ignore Frozen Touch, Raya, Sibilant Seductress, The Frozen Maze, Altar of Shadows and any other attack-inhibiting effect you may care to name, combined with her Attack Anywhere ability, means the opponent has to deal with her more decisively or pay the price. Again, though, her cost just makes her a bit of a liability outside of her intended deck. Great for laughing at stall decks that think Altar of Shadows will make them invincible, but I think those are on the way out anyway. ***
Cleansing Priestess
This girl's a beauty. Seriously, her art is just stunningly gorgeous. As a card? Not too bad I guess. Because her ability takes effect at end of turn, you can reposition her to make sure she heals the creatures that need it the most, unlike normal Heal creatures who automatically heal whatever they're standing next to at the start of each turn, regardless of what the opponent did on their turn. She can also heal creatures after they take retaliation damage or damage from your spells like Sunburst. But while her ability to remove counters is nice (and something Eleonore, the Voice of Harmony CAN'T do) that's one thing you'd definitely prefer to happen at the START of your turn; removing the Crippling counters AFTER you've lost your chance to attack for the turn isn't much help. Ultimately though, she doesn't really do enough that Haven can't do already- she's only a 2/2/6 melee shooter without ITR for 4R and you're encouraged not to attack with her either to use her ability. Plus she has the same drawback as all Heal creatures (other than Eleonore) in that she doesn't heal herself. Also, don't use her with Holy Light since she doesn't discriminate between negative and positive counters. Beautiful, but not all that useful, sadly. ***
Elder Centaur
ANOTHER 2/2/5 Centaur for 4R/4Mi, this one is pushing its luck a bit too far. It has the same ability as Pao Scout so it can do a bit more damage if unblocked, but even a 3/2/5 for 4 isn't all that special. Magic Resist is a handy bonus, but it's not enough to save this card. MIGHT see some use in the Centaur/Harpy deck I keep talking about, but even that is debatable. *
Eternal Apprentice
The Necropolis entry in the "do something at end of turn if it doesn't attack" series, this one HURTS. Its 2/1/5 stats are poor, but it actually comes with Crippling itself, so it can do more with its optional attack than JUST 2 damage. Plus, like all the creatures in this cycle, its effect triggers on the turn you play it, making it effectively a free mini-Moonsilk Strand (or a limited Moonsilk Fetters). That extra bonus is enough to make it playable, more than making up for the excessive cost. ***
Eternal Scholar
Odd creature. A 3/2/6 shooter with ITR, its stats are good enough to justify its use on its own (better than Archlich, albeit lacking the Life Drain). Its ability to Immobilise any creature with even a single Crippling counter on it, no matter where on the board it is (unlike Hypnotise creatures) can really inhibit your opponent's mobility, especially if you're playing Anastasya. However, it should really just be taken as a bonus feature since Necropolis don't have any particular synergies with Immobilise. Still a very solid creature, if Necropolis didn't have Archlich it would probably be an auto-include, but you might still want to run a copy or two just to mess with your opponent. ***
Shark Bodyguard
Another weird one. Why is a supposed "Bodyguard" damaging enemy creatures for moving rather than protecting your own creatures? Oh well, whatever. A trifle understatted (although the 7 HP is nice), this can really pile on the pain if you use enough Outmaneuver- never mind if you get more than 1 copy into play! Combined with Torii of the Eternal Empress (see below) you'll be able to put out direct damage of the kind Sanctuary players haven't had access to since Ishuma was nerfed. And in Open format, it combos with The Song of the Lost to boardwipe again, similar to Ice Splinters (if slower). Another card you need to build your deck around, he may prove a bit expensive, but will certainly be a lot of fun. ****
Skeleton Servant
This thing looks terrifying- a 5/5/7 for 4. Then you read its text and think "OK, so it just needs a few turns to shift its counters off it onto the enemy". Then you realise your opponent will simply not block it and soak up the 1 damage it can deal per turn while laughing and it doesn't seem so good. But it's not all bad, drop a shooter behind it and it gets a lot harder to ignore. More evilly, take advantage of another one of the otherwise less-useful cards in the set, Ritual of Weakness, to immediately shift all 4 counters onto an enemy creature and unleash the 5/5 fury. The potential is frightening, but it takes a bit more creativity than you might think to get the best out of it. ***
Arcane Eagle
The heart of the hypothetical Spirit deck, this thing simultaneously buffs all your other Spirits up and gets pumped up itself to potentially frightening levels. A bit expensive but that's not so much a problem since these decks (and they ARE the only kind of deck that would run it) utilise Week of the Elementals. What IS a problem is the 4Mi/4Ma requirements. You won't be rushing this out, it'll be more of a finisher. And it's pretty good at that; with as few as 3 other spirits on the board, even cheap ones like Silver Bowl Spirit, you're already looking at a 6/3/6 flier. This is one of the cards that really makes the Spirit deck look like it has the potential to work. ***
Bound Succubus
Another sexy demoness (this one isn't even wearing the traditional metal thong). Inferno's "don't attack for a bonus" creature has probably the most powerful effect, but is also the most expensive. Only 3/2/5 for 5 with difficult requirements, she's broadly outclassed by the Blazing Succubus and her ability seems contradictory- if she's unblocked you'd rather just attack and if there's a creature in front of her you'd normally prefer to try and kill it before it can kill you instead. But considered as a finisher, she's one of the nastiest in the game. The turn you play her gives you an immediate 2 damage to your opponent (which makes up for the 5R cost) and no matter what they throw in front of her, if they can't kill her before the end of your next turn there's another unblockable 2, often enough to help you end a close game. As a Dark creature, she also makes a prime candidate for the Heretic Library (see below), making a mockery of your opponent's defences. Pricey, but when you think about it, VERY nasty. Also... she's going commando! ****
Centaur Chieftain
This is the big guy who makes the Centaur/Harpy deck work (or not, depending on how it pans out). There are a lot of across-the-board buffs in this set and the Chieftain gives his to 5 creatures in this set alone (he automatically meets the Juvenile Centaur's requirement to have Attack Anywhere), with even more if you include ones from older sets. He goes a long way towards redeeming Pao Harpy, Juvenile Centaur and Centaur Sharpshooter's unimpressive stats; sit him on a War Banner and they start to get quite frightening. A 3/2/7 shooter with ITR, he's not a bad body himself either. 5R IS a fair bit to pay, but he may prove worth it, although you probably won't want to be dropping multiple copies of him into play since he chokes the shooter line (and doesn't have Attack Anywhere himself). Finally, although this is more trivia than anything really useful, he turns The Last Stand into a boardwide +1 damage buff for all your creatures. ***
Eternal Archon
FINALLY... a non-unique Vampire cheaper than Vampire Lord with more than 2 power (at least conditionally). Putting the finishing touches on a Sveltana deck, this guy makes the Putrid Dragon looks like the bad joke it is. OK, so he can't get NEARLY as big (since he only gets +1 for each Crippled creature rather than each counter like the Dragon does with Poison) but he's fairly well-priced at 2/3/8 for 5R, has Crippling himself and has no drawbacks (he wont, for example, Cripple himself when he attacks a melee creature). Dropping a Moonsilk Strand or Moonsilk Fetters can give him a sudden and unexpected burst of power and combined with Death Lord he can punch through a weakened defence to lay a serious beatdown on your opponent. You WILL want to combine him with other Vampires like Blood Ritualist or Vampire Connoisseur, though- while he has ITR like all Vampires, he's the only one (other than Vampire Assassin) to lack either Life Drain or an alternate way of healing himself. ***
Greater Kirin
Anyone remember Sacred Kirin? Yeah, now THAT'S a card that saw a lot of play... Greater Kirin is everything Sacred Kirin should have been- same power and retaliation, slightly lower but still impressive HP and a MUCH lower cost (5R/5Mi/1Ma compared to Sacred's ridiculous 8R/6Mi/1Ma). It also exchanges 1 point of Focused Blast for Hypnotise and an upgrade from melee to melee shooter. This is a genuinely powerful Sanctuary beef creature, capable of dishing out serious damage for an affordable price. Someone explain to me why the devs ever thought Sacred Kirin was a playable card again...? ****
Gust Harpy
Yet another understatted, overcosted creature which attempts to make up for it with an array of abilities. Stronghold haven't received a Quick Attack creature in a while and the Gust Harpy does something new- while it's not a shooter (obviously because all Harpies are, by definition, fliers) it comes with Attack Anywhere, letting it hit the back line out of nowhere while also remaining safe from counterattacks (if not actual retaliation). While it may be a lot easier to do this with Surprise Attack or even Fire Bolt, being a creature he still sticks around afterwards, which is more than you can say for a Fire Bolt, while he also benefits from things like Centaur Chieftain. Problem is that while the Centaur Chiftain can justify his high cost with his decent stat line, 2/2/5 is pushing it a bit too far for 5R. I'm willing to cut versatile creatures a fair bit of slack when it comes to cost, but this is too much. **
Mother Harpy
Hubba hubba! If the Centaur Chieftain is the king of the Centaur/Harpy deck, this is the sexy queen. 3/2/6 Attack Anywhere makes the 5R cost worth it and she has a surprisingly low 4 Mi requirement. More importantly, she drastically improves the flexibility of your Harpies, allowing you to let your Attack Anywhere ones dodge away from danger while still attacking and letting the basic Ranaar Harpy get to where it's needed. Also keep in mind that, unlike a lot of the other mass creature buffing creatures in this set, she DOES affect herself, making herself a 3/2/6 Attack Anywhere with Swift for 5R even if you don't have any other Harpies in play. I think this is the first time in a while that a non-Inferno card has taken the prize for "Sexiest Card Art in the Set" too... ***
Time-Bender Djinn
Another odd creature. A formidable 4/3/7 flier for 5, you actually aren't that likely to trigger its main ability very often- even though the Djinn counts as 1 Prime creature itself, you need to have 4 others in play at once and get them to live through the enemy's turn. The fact that the Djinn sacrifices itself to give you the Time Jump is also somewhat of a drawback, especially as it happens at the start of the first turn, meaning you don't have access to its power on EITHER of your two turns. However, what puts it well above Time Jump (aside from the lower cost and magic requirements) is the fact that not only do you not have to spend any resource on the turn it triggers (Time Jump's 6R cost has always been a major drawback) it doesn't prevent your resource from refreshing on the 2nd turn the same way Time Jump does either! The turn Time-Bender Djinn triggers (or the one you get after it) is quite likely to be the turn you win the game- especially as you already have at least 4 other creatures in play. Just watch out for inconvenient 'until your next turn' effects like Altar of Shadows or (god forbid) Prison- if the opponent drops one on their turn between you setting up the Djinn and it triggering, you may find yourself unable to fully capitalise on your bonus turns, with no way of preventing the Djinn from wasting itself. Still a potentially devastating card. *****
Warding Inquisitor
Simply awesome. A full turn of Enemy Spell Ward on all your creatures at once can be the difference between winning and losing in the magic-heavy meta and that's exactly what this guy gives you for a mere 5R. That'd be pretty good for a 1-shot fortune; getting it on a creature that you can even bounce back to your hand and play again is ABSURD. His body isn't anything special, a 2/2/7 ITR shooter, but his requirements (3Mi/2Ma) are surprisingly low, making him easy to include in most Haven decks. This could really turn the tide against spell-heavy decks. *****
Executioner Succubus
The worst case of butterface this side of Mileena, what this, uh, girl boils down to is a beefier but more restricted Inferno Banshee- same cost, same requirements, same Dark element, higher power, retaliation and HP, no Incorporeal but can only kill damaged creatures. That's actually a considerably worse drawback than it initially seems- if the opponent drops a big creature on the board, you want to be able to deal with it NOW. The Banshee can do that with no questions asked, the Succubus needs another card to set it up for her first. Since you're not buying her for her body (no innuendo intended, although she's not that bad looking below the neck) that drawback REALLY makes it hard to justify her 6R price point. **
Shogun
So what makes Shogun worth using where Executioner Succubus isn't, especially considering his arguably weaker CIP effect? Simple: faction synergy. Sanctuary are in a far better position to take advantage of bounce strategies with the Shogun, with the cards like Shailan, Voice of the Lotus, Sayama Warden and Truce just for starters. Also, while the pocket Magma Burst the Shogun brings isn't as deadly as the Succubus' instant kill ability, it's far less restricted. You'll need to keep in mind, though, that it's still magic water damage (since the Shogun is a magic creature) so Magic Resist creatures will still take half damage from it, although it does bypass Enemy Spell Ward. The lower Ma requirement relative to the Executioner Succubus is also nice. Not necessarily a staple creature, but very useful. ***
Spell Stealer Heretic
EDIT: Even after the (much needed) nerfs, she's still a heavyweight contender for the position of BEST CIP creature in the set (only challenged by the next entry). While her 3/1/6 magic melee for 6R stats aren't the greatest, her ability is just fantastic (and was even more so before the nerfs). While she's restricted to only replaying your Dark and Fire spells, she casts the spell for free (unlike Gazal, Herald of the Void) which makes her value range from "meh" (if you replay a Fire Bolt) to "UNBELIEVABLE" (of you replay an Arkath's Wrath). The most obvious candidates in Standard are Arkath's Wrath and Soulreaver, but when played in Open she's even more devastating, able to replay Shadow Image, Puppet Master, Fireball, Curse of the Netherworld, Mass Inner Fire and even Armageddon! Since the spell is free to play no matter how much it costs, her 6R price point becomes a bargain the likes of which few cards can match. *****
Ariana, Chosen of the Void
Well this was unexpected! The previous Chosen were all the unique faction creatures from Forgotten Wars, but this marks the first time a HERO has entered the battlefield as a creature. Ariana has unquestionably THE most powerful CIP effect of any creature in the entire game- it's Void Ripple, pure and simple, the most effective "single target kill" card ever released. You pay for it in two big ways though- firstly her extremely high 7R cost and secondly her AWFUL 2/1/7 stats. This makes Ariana different from most of the other CIP creatures in this set, who are mostly a body with a bonus spell tacked on- you are playing Ariana exclusively for her CIP effect. And while it IS a remarkable CIP effect, there's one thing you need to keep in mind- since Ariana is a Neutral Prime-aligned creature she's not actually giving you anything you didn't already have, since she can only be used by heroes who could already just use Void Ripple. That said, there are two big advantages to Ariana. Firstly, while her resource cost is even higher than Void Ripple, her requirements (3Mi, 4Ma) are MUCH lower, making her much easier to include in almost any Prime deck. Secondly, as a creature (specifically a PRIME creature), she can be easily bounced and played again (this is definitely the best thing to do with her, since as a body she's barely worth it). If you're playing in Open, you can even combine her with Rewind to keep playing her over and over until the enemy can finally kill her- not necessarily that easy with 7 HP. Expensive as hell, but if you can set it up it's practically an assured win. Not QUITE the game-shaker she could have been, but still a must-have for Prime magic players. *****
CONTINUED BELOW.
Welcome to my 2nd full set review. Griffin Bane wasn't a bad set, but Sins of Betrayal one-ups it with more consistancy, more variety, and less crap. I know this review is TERRIBLY late (Sins came out weeks ago) but eh, whatever.
THE GOOD:
* For the most part, the stuff the factions get is a lot less single-minded and one-dimensional. In Griffin Bane, almost EVERY card for each faction was bent towards pushing a single theme to the exclusion of everything else- breeder stacks for Inferno, Skeleton stacks for Necropolis, Bloodthirst for Stronghold etc etc. This meant that unless you were building a new deck based around these cards, there wasn't much you could actually use in your existing decks. While Sins of Betrayal still has some strong themes (Spirits and elemental creatures) there are a lot more "general use" cards that don't require you to build an entirely new deck to use them.
* Some GREAT gap filling cards plugging huge holes in the game, most notably Magic Pact (FINALLY a cost-effective, relatively easy-to-play and above all NEUTRAL way of dealing with ongoing spells and fortunes!).
* While there are a lot of good weenies in the set, the devs have been making a serious effort to make some more viable high-cost creatures. Admittedly they're mostly based around "come into play" effects, but it's a start.
* Buildings continue to be more than just a footnote in the game's history with some interesting, strong and cheap ones being added. It may be necessary to make serious consideration for anti-building cards in your deck construction.
THE BAD:
* Unfortunately, while for the MOST part one-dimensional theming has slacked off, Stronghold received the short end of the stick; they haven't been given new cards as much as an entire new deck. EVERY card Stronghold received (except for their Hero Sandor and the lousy Pao Scout) is intended for specific use in a Harpy/Centaur deck and will see little use outside of it if this rather gimmicky deck archetype fails to take off. And I honestly doubt it will. There's a crippling lack of good general-use cards that can be dropped into existing Stronghold decks.
* As has become a depressing trend, Stacking has been dropped without a trace. The ONLY card that has anything to do with Stacking in the set is the traditional "Hero released one set out of sync with the cards they're meant to be used with"- in this case, Anton, the definitive hero for Haven stack decks. Yet another interesting mechanic given a few base cards then discarded without remorse before it could get really interesting, just like Ambush.
* 3 more of the bland, boring "3 spell schools and vanilla stats" heroes. With the balance changes to make Invokers more viable (changing them to an effective 1/2/0) starting with 3 schools and 1/1/1 is no longer ANY kind of advantage. While you can still look for interesting combos to pull off with the spell schools (Sandor is the first Stronghold hero to have Dark magic access, for example) I really have no hesitation in dismissing this "class" of hero as, on average, the weakest and most boring in the game.
* I really think they could do more than 2 new events per set, and these 2 aren't much more interesting than the last 2. They're exclusively meant for themed decks and useless to everyone else.
OK, now for the cards. As before, I'm reviewing them all in the exact order that they appear on MMDoc Tools so you can keep up as you read. Unlike last time, I've traded in the A+ to D- scale for a simpler 1 to 5 star rating of the kind used by Inquest magazine. As usual, keep in mind that I haven't had time to actually TEST most of these cards, these are just my initial impressions from looking at them and theorising.
DISCLAIMER: I know I'm going to get a lot of "OMG you think this card is good, you noob, this card sux!" answers. What can I say, I have a creative mind a generous spirit and a fondness for strategies OTHER than Rush.
SCALE:
***** A must-use or game-breaker
**** Very strong, likely to be a staple
*** Decent, may well find use in certain decks
** Underpowered, only of use in very specific or gimmicky decks
* Crap, a card you'll almost certainly never use
HEROES
Anastasya
Ouch. This girl HURTS. Her stats and spell schools aren't particularly special (although Dark+Primal is always a good combination) but her ability just gives her UNPARALLELED creature control. Being able to drop 2 crippling counters onto any creature at will is usually enough to negate most single creature threats and combined with all the crippling and low-power synergy cards Necropolis got in both this set and Griffin Bane she's going to have a lot of tricks at her disposal. Creature strategies could really spin their wheels in the face of her control. ****
Anton
The "Haven stacking guy". His spell schools are even less original than Anastasya's (the same as Cassandra) but if you're going to make a stack deck, you do it with Anton, simple as that. Haven stacking hasn't had nearly the success of Necropolis stacking since the release of Griffin Bane, but I've seen some decks have some success and Anton looks like he could turn it up. Of course, like Nahla from Griffin Bane and Masfar, Father of Titans from Heart of Nightmares (the "Beastman hero" released in the construct set and the "Construct hero" released in the beastman set) he should have been released last expansion (maybe Slava should have had his ability?) but better late than never. ***
Elisabeth
Blah. While she has the unique spell combination of Earth/Light/Dark, I just don't any point to playing this girl. Academy has had access to all of these schools on varying heroes before, so unless you have some REALLY good cross-school spell combination, I don't see any reason to waste your time. **
Irina
Even worse than Elisabeth. Noboru had Dark/Light, Mukao had Dark/Water and Ishuma had Light/Water. Any of them would be more fun to play than Irina. *
Kiril
NOW we're talking. With the deadly Dark/Fire combination of Kal'Azar, Kiril is set up well to start, but he really comes into his own when you build a themed dark/fire creature deck around him- like Crag Hack only without the requirement to only use lousy creatures. 2/1/0 starting stats make it easier to use this ability sooner to rush out a big fire beastie and start kicking heads in. I see the makings of a POWERFUL rush/swarm strategy here. ****
Sandor
Unlike Elisabeth and Irina, at least Sandor brings something new to Stronghold (Dark magic access). Whether you can make anything of that is up to you, but it's something. He's still boring, though. ***
EVENTS
Week of the Elementals
Elemental creatures have almost always sucked, usually because they're at least 1 or 2 resources more expensive than their stats and abilities justify. Enter Week of the Elementals. While it's still not enough to bring most of the lousy Lesser Elementals down into usable range (even with their reduced resource cost, they still have a higher than necessary might requirement), some of the Greater Elementals may start to find some traction, especially with the other elemental creature and Spirit-buffing cards in this set. While its randomness makes it unreliable even with 4 copies in your deck, there's also the possibility of flipping over a double for -2R costs. A "wait and see" card, but one that has potential. ***
Waning Moon
Ooh, someone on the art team was slacking off- that's a Sellspell Djinn, completely unmodified, superimposed on the moon. Another event for the Spirit decks, this one isn't restricted to Neutral Spirits, but is a bit limited in its use. There aren't that many Spirits with strong come into play effects (although the Dousing Kappa introduced in this set is decent) and while it might be useful just to recall a damaged Spirit to your hand to save it from dying, at 2R it's a bit expensive. Sanctuary decks based around bounce strategies (Shalan, Voice of the Lotus perhaps) might find a good use for it, but it's a very conditional card, really only meant for specific strategies. ***
CREATURES
Ancient Ghost
Another neat 1 drop for Necropolis decks in the wake of Venom Soldier. While it lacks any attack power by itself (and is also a melee, not a flier), it has higher HP than the Lingering Ghost for half the cost, which combined with its Incorporality makes it one of the toughest 1 drops in the game. While the changes to the first turn mean this isn't as good for Fleshbane as it might have been thanks to the 1 Ma requirement (he can only play it on the 1st turn if he's going second), if you drop more Ghosts around it it can potentially buff itself up to a respectable 3 power. That's seriously good value for resource. ***
Embers Elemental
Initially this creature looks incredible and my first impression on seeing it was amazement. Then I thought again, checked my facts, and realised that Academy have NO other Fire or Earth element creatures in their lineup at all- not even one! While it can actually do some pretty mean damage if you can get multiple copies out at once (since even if they don't buff themselves, they SHOULD buff each other) you have to be running Neutral creatures to really justify putting this in your 2 drop slot. It's really only useful in a dedicated Elementals deck, which is hard to run in Academy as anything other than a gimmick. **
Fountain Spirit
Now THIS is a sweet 2 drop! While it lacks Immune to Retaliation (ITR from here on out) like the Kabuki Sentry, the fact that it CANNOT BE TARGETED is extremely powerful. The 1D requirement is practically a triviality and in fact makes this creature a nice addition to Takana Osore or Kenage decks who might be annoyed by the magic requirement on most of their shooters. However, you need to keep in mind that, contrary to what you might expect (and, if I'm being competely honest, contrary to all common sense), this is NOT a Magic creature like pretty much every other Spirit in the game. Still a great option for the 2 drop slot. ****
Lesser Glory
Another Glory for Haven's collection and this one's as sexy as hell. Unfortunately she's not as useful. While a 6 HP flier for 2 is a formidable defence, only 1/1 combat stats limit what she can really accomplish. Haven don't have a great deal of Spirit synergy compared with some of the other factions, while they DO have a surfeit of tough, reliable early defenders. She makes a good addition to Week of Training weenie decks, though, where 1 power is much less of a drawback, even an advantage. In general, though, she's not so much bad as redundant. **
Pao Harpy
On her own, this isn't that great- the extra point of damage she can put down wherever you need it is useful, but not often decisive. However, when taken as part of the series of Harpy and Centaur cards they received in this set, she can prove devastating. Backed up by the likes of Centaur Chieftain, Mother Harpy or Beastman Warcry, she can really put out a lot of economical, safe damage. Without these cards though, which aren't cheap, she's a bit underpowered. A potential staple in the hypothetical Centaur/Harpy deck. **
Dousing Kappa
A neat little toy for Sanctuary. While it lacks the high retaliation of the basic Kappa and has a 2Ma requirement that makes it more difficult, the come into play effect is worth quite a bit, even when it's only 1 damage. Sanctuary suffer from a lack of direct damage dealing, while they excel at bouncing and replaying their own creatures. The extra point against Fire creatures makes it a bit more powerful against Inferno in particular. I can see this being a core creature for Shailan combined with Waning Moon, although it does face some competition in the 3 drop slot. ***
Eternal Disciple
Over the last few sets there has been a huge emphasis for Necropolis on crushing low or 0 power creatures. Eternal Disciple, as well as being a decent 2/1/6 magic melee for 3R, comes with a built in No Mercy For the Meek. While No Mercy isn't used (especially as Cheap Death is so much better), as a free bonus on a well-costed creature it's a great bargain. A decent stand-in for Plague Zombie or Lammasu, its value increases exponentially if you include a lot of Crippling or other power reduction in your deck. Tasty. ***
Eternal Mentor
Ariana and Anastasya are going to love this one. 2/2/5 magic shooter for 3R is a decent start to build on and his ability to get +1 power every time you kill a Crippled creature -not that difficult with all the tools Necropolis get to kill weenies- gives him powerful scaling damage potential. With this guy on the board, Crippled creatures become a lot less expendable for your opponent. Obviously he's not an auto-include in every Necro deck, but if you use enough Crippling then he's the ideal choice for the 3 drop slot, more or less completely obsoleting Skeleton Archer. ****
Juvenile Centaur
A 2/0/4 shooter for 3R isn't a good deal, not even for Stronghold (who never got a Succubus/Neophyte Lich equivalent creature). A 2/0/4 shooter with Attack Anywhere for 3 is much better, but is it enough? Attack Anywhere seems to be being pushed as one of Stronghold's trademark abilities in this set and there are a number of cards that synergise with this creature, but the dependancy on being able to keep another Centaur in play makes it difficult to fully utilise with its otherwise poor stats. Stronghold have quite a few good 3 drop creatures that this has to compete with so I doubt it will see any play outside of the Centaur/Harpy deck. It's alright in a pinch, but nothing to write home about. **
Magma Elemental
Neutral Fire Elementals have had a somewhat disreputable history- remember Burning Sand Elemental, one of the worst cards in Forgotten Wars? Finally they hit it out of the park with a creature that, while still typically understatted for cost, brings a nice unique ability to the table by rendering all your Fire creatures immune to your own Fire damage. While obviously this isn't as good as making them immune to ALL Fire damage, this has a number of tasty applications. In the right deck (typically Inferno) it combines magnificently with the likes of Immolation or Lava Stream as well as letting you Armageddon, The Forbidden Flame, or throw around careless Fireballs at will (sadly not Arkath's Wrath, the meta standard). Perhaps more potently, it's a lethal combo with Hikyu, Chosen of the Flames' passive ability or Ragefire, bypassing the normal drawback of Area Blast (friendly fire damage when attacking melee creatures) letting you abuse them freely. Of course, you shouldn't forget that while its ability has oodles of potential, it IS still an otherwise poor creature, being a 2/2/3 melee for 3R. While it's only really of use in a gimmick deck, it could potentially prove to be quite a deadly gimmick. ***
Pao Scout
It looks pretty good at first glance, until you realise how painfully inferior it is to Inferno's Juggernaut. A 3/1/4 for 3R which gets +1 damage when unblocked, it can do some pretty good damage, but is just too squishy. The Juggernaut's payoff for its low 4 HP is 4 power and 3 retaliation and the Pao Scout just looks weak by comparison. Even compared with other Stronghold creatures, you're better off just running Centaur Archer, which is a 3/2/4 ITR shooter for 3. It really needed 5 HP to be viable. Skip this. *
Surging Djinn
Academy's take on Stronghold's Ancestral Champion from Heart of Nightmares, the Djinn isn't as powerful but considerably tougher (3/2/7 flier compared to 4/2/5 melee). Considering the drawback of these creatures is what happens when they die, that's a good tradeoff. While the drawback IS fairly considerable, you can mitigate it by utilising it in a low-magic Academy deck or simply boosting your magic up higher than you need it to be with spare uses of your hero ability, as it's actually not a bad late-game creature. If you use it carelessly, though, it may be crippling to rush it out early and lose it to a Death Seal or Soulreaver, so exercise caution. ***
Ur-Jubaal's Minion
+1 retaliation on a Succubus isn't a good tradeoff for the +1R cost and +1Ma requirement, especially as this one DOESN'T have ITR. The backlash effect actually makes it a pretty effective blocker as it will win exchanges with other 2 power 4 HP creatures like Neophyte Lich, but it doesn't last long enough to pull this trick off more than once or twice at most and Inferno get better 3 drops. A decent blocker in a pinch, but ultimately a novelty and not a great one. **
Wolf Priest
Oh god this guy is EVIL! This is the new defining creature of the Charity retaliation deck, a miniature version of Wolf Justicar that is also a lethally effective blocker thanks to Preemptive Strike (surprisingly rare even on Haven creatures) and 3 retaliation. And for a mere 3R/2Mi/1Ma he's undercosted as all get out. EXTREMELY hard to deal with in the early game, his ability makes him a powerful late game tool when it comes time to drop Truce of Elrath too. ****
Agyn Mercenary
So apparently the devs are committed to trying to convince us to play with Mercenaries. This guy is just WEIRD. Clearly he's meant to be used with Spoils of War (the ongoing fortune released in Griffin Bane that gives you 2R every time a Mercenary deals combat damage- keeping in mind that Mercenaries have to pay 1R to attack) to build up a large amount of extra resource before using him as the hammer. And to be fair, if the game drags on late enough, this guy could be a holy terror, attacking for 7 or 8 damage per turn. The problem is that I just can't see a Mercenary deck working, no matter how many gimmicky cards they throw at it. Mercenaries are TERRIBLE creatures even before you factor in their attack cost drawback so I can't see any reason you'd want to try and play with this guy except maybe for the lulz. I'm going to be generous because I think it's an amusing idea, but I just don't see it working. **
Arcane Master Djinn
In just about any other CCG, this thing would be awesome. In DoC, it's merely "very good". If you're not attacking with this creature then it's just a wall and if you ARE attacking with it you're asking yourself why you're using a glorified Lesser Air Elemental. The 3Mi/1Ma/2D requirements are a little on the awkward side as well. But the ability to draw an extra card a turn for free is pretty tasty, plus you CAN still attack with it when you need the extra damage more than another draw. Plus, no matter what, it replaces itself in your hand on the turn you play it (since it obviously can't attack that turn) which means it's automatically good card economy. Worth using in any Academy deck that goes to 2D. ****
Blazing Succubus
Now this is a real substitute for the Lilim. Unlike the Embers Elemental, Inferno have quite a few Fire element creatures that can benefit from this hellish little beauty as well as a couple of useful Dark creatures (such as Lurker in the Dark). While she only buffs adjacent creatures (and is a shooter rather than a melee shooter, restricting her deployment) she's also just a good body to have, a 3/2/6 for 4R, not quite as powerful as Lilim but still good enough. They also buff each other when deployed in pairs. Could well be the new standard for Inferno 4 drop shooters, considering Lashing Lilim just isn't cutting it. ****
Blessing Inquisitor
Another elemental buffing creature, the Inquisitor is narrower than the Blazing Succubus but is still a good card. Tougher, with lower power and higher retaliation, a melee shooter without ITR, he can give several of your Glories and Angels a nice power surge while holding off most attackers. Not quite as good as the Succubus due to not filling a gap in the Haven lineup the same way she did for Inferno, but definitely worth looking at. ***
Bursting Fire Elemental
Ah, another crap Neutral Elemental. How nostalgic. Actually, this one isn't QUITE so bad- sure it's badly understatted for its cost (2/0/5 for 4R) and even less damaging than the classic Lesser Fire Elemental, but Area Blast is a fairly useful ability and the 5 toughness makes it a bit more reliable at least. It might have a good place in the hypothetical 'Week of the Elementals deck'. It's still a lousy creature on its own merits, though and you won't have any reason to use it normally. **
Captive Djinn
Now this is something Academy were crying out for- a reliable and efficient way of dealing with ongoing spells and fortunes even for heroes without Prime access. The Captive Djinn is a lousy creature for cost, but its come into play effect is outstanding- presumably that's the reason it has Anchored, to prevent you from simply bouncing and replaying it. The fact that it can't deal with unique spells or fortunes is a pretty big drawback, though, considering how powerful some of the epic fortunes from Griffin Bane were (Army of the Dead in particular). But it's a particularly good answer to those lamers in Open who still think sitting on their backsides playing stall card after stall card until they cheap you (or bore you) to death is a good idea- it can BANISH (meaning no recycling) both Altar of Shadows and Stone Shield and Anchored makes it immune to Throne of Renewal and Broken Bridge. Take that, cheeseballs! ****
Centaur Sharpshooter
The second of Stronghold's new surge of Centaur cards for their 'Centaur/Harpy alliance' deck, this girl is understatted but flexible. Her ability to ignore Frozen Touch, Raya, Sibilant Seductress, The Frozen Maze, Altar of Shadows and any other attack-inhibiting effect you may care to name, combined with her Attack Anywhere ability, means the opponent has to deal with her more decisively or pay the price. Again, though, her cost just makes her a bit of a liability outside of her intended deck. Great for laughing at stall decks that think Altar of Shadows will make them invincible, but I think those are on the way out anyway. ***
Cleansing Priestess
This girl's a beauty. Seriously, her art is just stunningly gorgeous. As a card? Not too bad I guess. Because her ability takes effect at end of turn, you can reposition her to make sure she heals the creatures that need it the most, unlike normal Heal creatures who automatically heal whatever they're standing next to at the start of each turn, regardless of what the opponent did on their turn. She can also heal creatures after they take retaliation damage or damage from your spells like Sunburst. But while her ability to remove counters is nice (and something Eleonore, the Voice of Harmony CAN'T do) that's one thing you'd definitely prefer to happen at the START of your turn; removing the Crippling counters AFTER you've lost your chance to attack for the turn isn't much help. Ultimately though, she doesn't really do enough that Haven can't do already- she's only a 2/2/6 melee shooter without ITR for 4R and you're encouraged not to attack with her either to use her ability. Plus she has the same drawback as all Heal creatures (other than Eleonore) in that she doesn't heal herself. Also, don't use her with Holy Light since she doesn't discriminate between negative and positive counters. Beautiful, but not all that useful, sadly. ***
Elder Centaur
ANOTHER 2/2/5 Centaur for 4R/4Mi, this one is pushing its luck a bit too far. It has the same ability as Pao Scout so it can do a bit more damage if unblocked, but even a 3/2/5 for 4 isn't all that special. Magic Resist is a handy bonus, but it's not enough to save this card. MIGHT see some use in the Centaur/Harpy deck I keep talking about, but even that is debatable. *
Eternal Apprentice
The Necropolis entry in the "do something at end of turn if it doesn't attack" series, this one HURTS. Its 2/1/5 stats are poor, but it actually comes with Crippling itself, so it can do more with its optional attack than JUST 2 damage. Plus, like all the creatures in this cycle, its effect triggers on the turn you play it, making it effectively a free mini-Moonsilk Strand (or a limited Moonsilk Fetters). That extra bonus is enough to make it playable, more than making up for the excessive cost. ***
Eternal Scholar
Odd creature. A 3/2/6 shooter with ITR, its stats are good enough to justify its use on its own (better than Archlich, albeit lacking the Life Drain). Its ability to Immobilise any creature with even a single Crippling counter on it, no matter where on the board it is (unlike Hypnotise creatures) can really inhibit your opponent's mobility, especially if you're playing Anastasya. However, it should really just be taken as a bonus feature since Necropolis don't have any particular synergies with Immobilise. Still a very solid creature, if Necropolis didn't have Archlich it would probably be an auto-include, but you might still want to run a copy or two just to mess with your opponent. ***
Shark Bodyguard
Another weird one. Why is a supposed "Bodyguard" damaging enemy creatures for moving rather than protecting your own creatures? Oh well, whatever. A trifle understatted (although the 7 HP is nice), this can really pile on the pain if you use enough Outmaneuver- never mind if you get more than 1 copy into play! Combined with Torii of the Eternal Empress (see below) you'll be able to put out direct damage of the kind Sanctuary players haven't had access to since Ishuma was nerfed. And in Open format, it combos with The Song of the Lost to boardwipe again, similar to Ice Splinters (if slower). Another card you need to build your deck around, he may prove a bit expensive, but will certainly be a lot of fun. ****
Skeleton Servant
This thing looks terrifying- a 5/5/7 for 4. Then you read its text and think "OK, so it just needs a few turns to shift its counters off it onto the enemy". Then you realise your opponent will simply not block it and soak up the 1 damage it can deal per turn while laughing and it doesn't seem so good. But it's not all bad, drop a shooter behind it and it gets a lot harder to ignore. More evilly, take advantage of another one of the otherwise less-useful cards in the set, Ritual of Weakness, to immediately shift all 4 counters onto an enemy creature and unleash the 5/5 fury. The potential is frightening, but it takes a bit more creativity than you might think to get the best out of it. ***
Arcane Eagle
The heart of the hypothetical Spirit deck, this thing simultaneously buffs all your other Spirits up and gets pumped up itself to potentially frightening levels. A bit expensive but that's not so much a problem since these decks (and they ARE the only kind of deck that would run it) utilise Week of the Elementals. What IS a problem is the 4Mi/4Ma requirements. You won't be rushing this out, it'll be more of a finisher. And it's pretty good at that; with as few as 3 other spirits on the board, even cheap ones like Silver Bowl Spirit, you're already looking at a 6/3/6 flier. This is one of the cards that really makes the Spirit deck look like it has the potential to work. ***
Bound Succubus
Another sexy demoness (this one isn't even wearing the traditional metal thong). Inferno's "don't attack for a bonus" creature has probably the most powerful effect, but is also the most expensive. Only 3/2/5 for 5 with difficult requirements, she's broadly outclassed by the Blazing Succubus and her ability seems contradictory- if she's unblocked you'd rather just attack and if there's a creature in front of her you'd normally prefer to try and kill it before it can kill you instead. But considered as a finisher, she's one of the nastiest in the game. The turn you play her gives you an immediate 2 damage to your opponent (which makes up for the 5R cost) and no matter what they throw in front of her, if they can't kill her before the end of your next turn there's another unblockable 2, often enough to help you end a close game. As a Dark creature, she also makes a prime candidate for the Heretic Library (see below), making a mockery of your opponent's defences. Pricey, but when you think about it, VERY nasty. Also... she's going commando! ****
Centaur Chieftain
This is the big guy who makes the Centaur/Harpy deck work (or not, depending on how it pans out). There are a lot of across-the-board buffs in this set and the Chieftain gives his to 5 creatures in this set alone (he automatically meets the Juvenile Centaur's requirement to have Attack Anywhere), with even more if you include ones from older sets. He goes a long way towards redeeming Pao Harpy, Juvenile Centaur and Centaur Sharpshooter's unimpressive stats; sit him on a War Banner and they start to get quite frightening. A 3/2/7 shooter with ITR, he's not a bad body himself either. 5R IS a fair bit to pay, but he may prove worth it, although you probably won't want to be dropping multiple copies of him into play since he chokes the shooter line (and doesn't have Attack Anywhere himself). Finally, although this is more trivia than anything really useful, he turns The Last Stand into a boardwide +1 damage buff for all your creatures. ***
Eternal Archon
FINALLY... a non-unique Vampire cheaper than Vampire Lord with more than 2 power (at least conditionally). Putting the finishing touches on a Sveltana deck, this guy makes the Putrid Dragon looks like the bad joke it is. OK, so he can't get NEARLY as big (since he only gets +1 for each Crippled creature rather than each counter like the Dragon does with Poison) but he's fairly well-priced at 2/3/8 for 5R, has Crippling himself and has no drawbacks (he wont, for example, Cripple himself when he attacks a melee creature). Dropping a Moonsilk Strand or Moonsilk Fetters can give him a sudden and unexpected burst of power and combined with Death Lord he can punch through a weakened defence to lay a serious beatdown on your opponent. You WILL want to combine him with other Vampires like Blood Ritualist or Vampire Connoisseur, though- while he has ITR like all Vampires, he's the only one (other than Vampire Assassin) to lack either Life Drain or an alternate way of healing himself. ***
Greater Kirin
Anyone remember Sacred Kirin? Yeah, now THAT'S a card that saw a lot of play... Greater Kirin is everything Sacred Kirin should have been- same power and retaliation, slightly lower but still impressive HP and a MUCH lower cost (5R/5Mi/1Ma compared to Sacred's ridiculous 8R/6Mi/1Ma). It also exchanges 1 point of Focused Blast for Hypnotise and an upgrade from melee to melee shooter. This is a genuinely powerful Sanctuary beef creature, capable of dishing out serious damage for an affordable price. Someone explain to me why the devs ever thought Sacred Kirin was a playable card again...? ****
Gust Harpy
Yet another understatted, overcosted creature which attempts to make up for it with an array of abilities. Stronghold haven't received a Quick Attack creature in a while and the Gust Harpy does something new- while it's not a shooter (obviously because all Harpies are, by definition, fliers) it comes with Attack Anywhere, letting it hit the back line out of nowhere while also remaining safe from counterattacks (if not actual retaliation). While it may be a lot easier to do this with Surprise Attack or even Fire Bolt, being a creature he still sticks around afterwards, which is more than you can say for a Fire Bolt, while he also benefits from things like Centaur Chieftain. Problem is that while the Centaur Chiftain can justify his high cost with his decent stat line, 2/2/5 is pushing it a bit too far for 5R. I'm willing to cut versatile creatures a fair bit of slack when it comes to cost, but this is too much. **
Mother Harpy
Hubba hubba! If the Centaur Chieftain is the king of the Centaur/Harpy deck, this is the sexy queen. 3/2/6 Attack Anywhere makes the 5R cost worth it and she has a surprisingly low 4 Mi requirement. More importantly, she drastically improves the flexibility of your Harpies, allowing you to let your Attack Anywhere ones dodge away from danger while still attacking and letting the basic Ranaar Harpy get to where it's needed. Also keep in mind that, unlike a lot of the other mass creature buffing creatures in this set, she DOES affect herself, making herself a 3/2/6 Attack Anywhere with Swift for 5R even if you don't have any other Harpies in play. I think this is the first time in a while that a non-Inferno card has taken the prize for "Sexiest Card Art in the Set" too... ***
Time-Bender Djinn
Another odd creature. A formidable 4/3/7 flier for 5, you actually aren't that likely to trigger its main ability very often- even though the Djinn counts as 1 Prime creature itself, you need to have 4 others in play at once and get them to live through the enemy's turn. The fact that the Djinn sacrifices itself to give you the Time Jump is also somewhat of a drawback, especially as it happens at the start of the first turn, meaning you don't have access to its power on EITHER of your two turns. However, what puts it well above Time Jump (aside from the lower cost and magic requirements) is the fact that not only do you not have to spend any resource on the turn it triggers (Time Jump's 6R cost has always been a major drawback) it doesn't prevent your resource from refreshing on the 2nd turn the same way Time Jump does either! The turn Time-Bender Djinn triggers (or the one you get after it) is quite likely to be the turn you win the game- especially as you already have at least 4 other creatures in play. Just watch out for inconvenient 'until your next turn' effects like Altar of Shadows or (god forbid) Prison- if the opponent drops one on their turn between you setting up the Djinn and it triggering, you may find yourself unable to fully capitalise on your bonus turns, with no way of preventing the Djinn from wasting itself. Still a potentially devastating card. *****
Warding Inquisitor
Simply awesome. A full turn of Enemy Spell Ward on all your creatures at once can be the difference between winning and losing in the magic-heavy meta and that's exactly what this guy gives you for a mere 5R. That'd be pretty good for a 1-shot fortune; getting it on a creature that you can even bounce back to your hand and play again is ABSURD. His body isn't anything special, a 2/2/7 ITR shooter, but his requirements (3Mi/2Ma) are surprisingly low, making him easy to include in most Haven decks. This could really turn the tide against spell-heavy decks. *****
Executioner Succubus
The worst case of butterface this side of Mileena, what this, uh, girl boils down to is a beefier but more restricted Inferno Banshee- same cost, same requirements, same Dark element, higher power, retaliation and HP, no Incorporeal but can only kill damaged creatures. That's actually a considerably worse drawback than it initially seems- if the opponent drops a big creature on the board, you want to be able to deal with it NOW. The Banshee can do that with no questions asked, the Succubus needs another card to set it up for her first. Since you're not buying her for her body (no innuendo intended, although she's not that bad looking below the neck) that drawback REALLY makes it hard to justify her 6R price point. **
Shogun
So what makes Shogun worth using where Executioner Succubus isn't, especially considering his arguably weaker CIP effect? Simple: faction synergy. Sanctuary are in a far better position to take advantage of bounce strategies with the Shogun, with the cards like Shailan, Voice of the Lotus, Sayama Warden and Truce just for starters. Also, while the pocket Magma Burst the Shogun brings isn't as deadly as the Succubus' instant kill ability, it's far less restricted. You'll need to keep in mind, though, that it's still magic water damage (since the Shogun is a magic creature) so Magic Resist creatures will still take half damage from it, although it does bypass Enemy Spell Ward. The lower Ma requirement relative to the Executioner Succubus is also nice. Not necessarily a staple creature, but very useful. ***
Spell Stealer Heretic
EDIT: Even after the (much needed) nerfs, she's still a heavyweight contender for the position of BEST CIP creature in the set (only challenged by the next entry). While her 3/1/6 magic melee for 6R stats aren't the greatest, her ability is just fantastic (and was even more so before the nerfs). While she's restricted to only replaying your Dark and Fire spells, she casts the spell for free (unlike Gazal, Herald of the Void) which makes her value range from "meh" (if you replay a Fire Bolt) to "UNBELIEVABLE" (of you replay an Arkath's Wrath). The most obvious candidates in Standard are Arkath's Wrath and Soulreaver, but when played in Open she's even more devastating, able to replay Shadow Image, Puppet Master, Fireball, Curse of the Netherworld, Mass Inner Fire and even Armageddon! Since the spell is free to play no matter how much it costs, her 6R price point becomes a bargain the likes of which few cards can match. *****
Ariana, Chosen of the Void
Well this was unexpected! The previous Chosen were all the unique faction creatures from Forgotten Wars, but this marks the first time a HERO has entered the battlefield as a creature. Ariana has unquestionably THE most powerful CIP effect of any creature in the entire game- it's Void Ripple, pure and simple, the most effective "single target kill" card ever released. You pay for it in two big ways though- firstly her extremely high 7R cost and secondly her AWFUL 2/1/7 stats. This makes Ariana different from most of the other CIP creatures in this set, who are mostly a body with a bonus spell tacked on- you are playing Ariana exclusively for her CIP effect. And while it IS a remarkable CIP effect, there's one thing you need to keep in mind- since Ariana is a Neutral Prime-aligned creature she's not actually giving you anything you didn't already have, since she can only be used by heroes who could already just use Void Ripple. That said, there are two big advantages to Ariana. Firstly, while her resource cost is even higher than Void Ripple, her requirements (3Mi, 4Ma) are MUCH lower, making her much easier to include in almost any Prime deck. Secondly, as a creature (specifically a PRIME creature), she can be easily bounced and played again (this is definitely the best thing to do with her, since as a body she's barely worth it). If you're playing in Open, you can even combine her with Rewind to keep playing her over and over until the enemy can finally kill her- not necessarily that easy with 7 HP. Expensive as hell, but if you can set it up it's practically an assured win. Not QUITE the game-shaker she could have been, but still a must-have for Prime magic players. *****
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