Post by jeremyat on Mar 7, 2012 12:49:19 GMT -5
NOTE: This deck requires A LOT of rares.
As a veteran of MTG, SWCCG, and Middle Earth, I've always been a sucker for alternative winning conditions (I've still got my copy of the One Ring from Middle Earth--probably my all-time favorite winning condition). After getting a couple copies of Novella Catacombs (and seeing someone post about it a while back), I decided to make a deck designed to destroy the opponent's deck. At first I thought it would just be a fun diversion, but I've managed to beat a number of the top 50 with it (former matchup name--sarahsmoms; new matchup name--JATATT) and I've only lost a handful of times with it. I think it's pretty solid.
Agents:
The Spaniard x 5
Sites:
Novella Catacombs x 3
Roma, Vaticano District x 4
Buried Cathedral x 5
Actions:
Political Patronage x 4
Answered Prayers x 5
Sudden Exhaustion x 5
Ritual Sacrifice x 4
Ancestral Discovery x 2
Easy Come, Easy Go x 4
Memory Glitch x 3
Wanted Posters x 4
Wrath of the Righteous x 2
Total memories: 50
The focus of this deck is pretty straightforward: last long enough until mid-game when you can control the board and elminate your opponent's deck. This deck requires A LOT of patience.
In the early game, you want to use your Answered Prayers to eliminate the biggest threat in your opponent's hand. This may be one of several cards, and need not be an ally. For example, I almost always knock out a court order if I can. The last thing you need is a memory glitch or a wrath of the righteous to get countered. If you get lucky enough to draw a political patronage and a ruins, play that first (over Roma if you drew both) because you want your opponent's deck in the archive ASAP.
Once the game shifts to mid-game (I'd say everyone having eight to ten income), you want to save your discard cards until the day shift. Play them RIGHT as the day starts over and you will automatically force them to discard their card or take it into your hand. Keep in mind that you DO NOT care about winning this game in the traditional sense. If it happens to work out that way, great, but don't be afraid to play an easy come, easy go if it means you're going to lose influence on a site or two. Similarly, don't hesitate to drop a wrath of the righteous if it's going to take out a Spaniard.
By late game, you should hopefully have either two Romas or two Cathedrals out. If you've got two cathedrals out, the game's pretty much over because eight cards into the archive every day will eliminate all but the largest of decks in a few turns. You do not have to play the catacombs until the very end of the game to win it. In fact, it is my recommendation to hold it until you can play it to win unless you absolulely need it for the added income or to drop a site's influence by one because of the danger it will get destroyed by the opponent.
While this deck can work as a control deck, don't be afraid to use your Spaniards. He can act as a buffer against the opponent's agents and helps you draw the cards you need to keep the game under control. Usually by the time you can play him, the opponent is out of cards in his hand and the cards that you will be drawing will be far more helpful than the cards he will draw. Also, with a ruins out, it means that your opponent is going through six cards a turn instead of five, and that extra card or two can make a big difference in the end.
A couple of specific strategies to keep in mind. If playing against an order deck, make sure to hold on to your romas so that you can drop them on the same site where your opponent has played a borgia tower (or they've played enough cards for you to be certain they're not going to play a borgia tower before you can knock out their allies). Save your surprise attacks for specific allies if you're afraid you might see them: silvio barbagio (because you can't remove him otherwise), carlo grimaldi (because he gets more powerful as he scores), and lanz (because you don't want all of the opponent's allies to get stronger).
As I said, playing this deck requires patience and requires you to think beyond playing as many agents or sites as you can to win. You have a huge advantage, however, because most decks are built that way and you can neutralize virtually everything the opposing deck does. I play Moonstalker in Shadow Era for the same reason--you can use his ability to render a number of opponents helpless to your strategy. This deck can also make a match take a good bit longer than normal, so I tend to not break it out unless I know I'm playing someone good. Now that I'm in the 300s, hopefully I'll get more of y'all on a consistent basis (and not the 150-card decks...it makes my head hurt just thinking about some of those matchups). Let me know what you think!
As a veteran of MTG, SWCCG, and Middle Earth, I've always been a sucker for alternative winning conditions (I've still got my copy of the One Ring from Middle Earth--probably my all-time favorite winning condition). After getting a couple copies of Novella Catacombs (and seeing someone post about it a while back), I decided to make a deck designed to destroy the opponent's deck. At first I thought it would just be a fun diversion, but I've managed to beat a number of the top 50 with it (former matchup name--sarahsmoms; new matchup name--JATATT) and I've only lost a handful of times with it. I think it's pretty solid.
Agents:
The Spaniard x 5
Sites:
Novella Catacombs x 3
Roma, Vaticano District x 4
Buried Cathedral x 5
Actions:
Political Patronage x 4
Answered Prayers x 5
Sudden Exhaustion x 5
Ritual Sacrifice x 4
Ancestral Discovery x 2
Easy Come, Easy Go x 4
Memory Glitch x 3
Wanted Posters x 4
Wrath of the Righteous x 2
Total memories: 50
The focus of this deck is pretty straightforward: last long enough until mid-game when you can control the board and elminate your opponent's deck. This deck requires A LOT of patience.
In the early game, you want to use your Answered Prayers to eliminate the biggest threat in your opponent's hand. This may be one of several cards, and need not be an ally. For example, I almost always knock out a court order if I can. The last thing you need is a memory glitch or a wrath of the righteous to get countered. If you get lucky enough to draw a political patronage and a ruins, play that first (over Roma if you drew both) because you want your opponent's deck in the archive ASAP.
Once the game shifts to mid-game (I'd say everyone having eight to ten income), you want to save your discard cards until the day shift. Play them RIGHT as the day starts over and you will automatically force them to discard their card or take it into your hand. Keep in mind that you DO NOT care about winning this game in the traditional sense. If it happens to work out that way, great, but don't be afraid to play an easy come, easy go if it means you're going to lose influence on a site or two. Similarly, don't hesitate to drop a wrath of the righteous if it's going to take out a Spaniard.
By late game, you should hopefully have either two Romas or two Cathedrals out. If you've got two cathedrals out, the game's pretty much over because eight cards into the archive every day will eliminate all but the largest of decks in a few turns. You do not have to play the catacombs until the very end of the game to win it. In fact, it is my recommendation to hold it until you can play it to win unless you absolulely need it for the added income or to drop a site's influence by one because of the danger it will get destroyed by the opponent.
While this deck can work as a control deck, don't be afraid to use your Spaniards. He can act as a buffer against the opponent's agents and helps you draw the cards you need to keep the game under control. Usually by the time you can play him, the opponent is out of cards in his hand and the cards that you will be drawing will be far more helpful than the cards he will draw. Also, with a ruins out, it means that your opponent is going through six cards a turn instead of five, and that extra card or two can make a big difference in the end.
A couple of specific strategies to keep in mind. If playing against an order deck, make sure to hold on to your romas so that you can drop them on the same site where your opponent has played a borgia tower (or they've played enough cards for you to be certain they're not going to play a borgia tower before you can knock out their allies). Save your surprise attacks for specific allies if you're afraid you might see them: silvio barbagio (because you can't remove him otherwise), carlo grimaldi (because he gets more powerful as he scores), and lanz (because you don't want all of the opponent's allies to get stronger).
As I said, playing this deck requires patience and requires you to think beyond playing as many agents or sites as you can to win. You have a huge advantage, however, because most decks are built that way and you can neutralize virtually everything the opposing deck does. I play Moonstalker in Shadow Era for the same reason--you can use his ability to render a number of opponents helpless to your strategy. This deck can also make a match take a good bit longer than normal, so I tend to not break it out unless I know I'm playing someone good. Now that I'm in the 300s, hopefully I'll get more of y'all on a consistent basis (and not the 150-card decks...it makes my head hurt just thinking about some of those matchups). Let me know what you think!
