Hey guys, TLG's wusubi here. I got to play my fair share of the new expansion and I have to admit that I'm slowly but surely getting addicted. With so many interesting cards added to the game, I figured I might as well share
my brief evaluation of the most powerful and popular cards in the current meta. Let's start off with the neutrals.
Regis: Bloodlust is included in the vast majority of meta decks. He's strictly better than the rest of the removal options at 9 provisions, such as Enraged Ifrit and Cyprian Wiley. His ability to Banish the card he kills can be quite strong. This can be used to counter Deathwish units like Dettlaff: Higher Vampire. I wouldn't be surprised if this card ends up getting nerfed by 1 point or 1 provision. Regis is definitely worth the 800 scraps, as he's one of the strongest neutrals in the entire game.
Gregoire de Gorgon may seem as a tricky card to get value with at the first glance, but coupled with Leaders that have Damage abilities, he plays for 11 points consistently. At 9 provisions, he's absolutely disgusting and I expect to eventually see him nerfed. His Shield protects him from damage, but he still gets countered by tall removal such as Geralt of Rivia. This makes Gregoire much better in decks that already go tall, especially Dettlaff, because his Leader ability can reliably give Gregoire a target to kill. He also sees a lot of play in Eithné, Crach or Brouver. Stop hesitating and craft this big boy.
Han Gaidth Sword is yet another decent 9 provision card. Similarly to Gregoire, it might be difficult to get value with, which is why it sees play in Leaders with Damage abilities. Sword is used to kill a valuable Gold card, which you then spawn yourself, effectively adding 2 extra points to cards like Regis: Bloodlust. It allows you to use your opponents Deploy abilities against them and get insane value, so it's no surprise that Sword sees play in decks such as Eithné.
Portal thins your Bronzes. With the graveyard nerf to Witchers, decks often lack the consistency. You should keep in mind that Summon doesn't count as played, so Deploy abilities don't work with Portal. This limits the pool of 4 provision cards that can be played in a Portal deck, which isn't actually a bad thing though. Ardal Portal decks include Nauzicaa Sergeants and Infiltrators as their only 4 provision cards. Meve plays Tridam Infantry and Lyrian Cavalry. Some decks can benefit from the extra thinning.
Lady of the Lake sees a good amount of play in NR decks. You can use her to protect a crucial engine. On top of that, she has decent synergy with some of the new cards which rely on Shields, such as Windhalm of Attre or King Roegner.
Fisher King is pretty much the Neutral version of Albrich.
If you're looking to increase the consistency of your deck
at the cost of some tempo, he can significantly improve
the quality of your hand for later. Synergy with Calanthe.
Northern Wind is one of the 4 new bombs. It's like Regis without the body. 4 damage is neat, especially when you Banish something. It's played in Eithné or in Crach decks,
as you can discard it with Coral. Moon Dust is also a bomb worth noting, because it can counter Shielded units easily.
Cutthroat and Scholar are 5 points for 4 provisions, which is absolutely fine. They're a nice addition to the set, as they offer Human, Bleeding and Boost synergies. Cutthroat has been played in Vampire Dettlaff. Oxenfurt Scholar provides plenty of synergies with Northern Realms. Solid filler cards.
Thank you for reading and I hope this review helps you with keg choices and crafting. If you have any questions, feel free to join us on our Discord server: https://discord.gg/uSUSJZr
Images were taken from https://gwent.seven7y.com/?lang=en
Leave a Reply