Patch v1.1 — 11/8 Patch Notes (Post-Tournament)

PATCH V1.1

Patch Highlights

At a glance, here's what's changing.

1 Game Mechanics 2 Nerfs 2 Buffs 4 Adjustments

Opening Hand GAME MECHANICS New Opening Hand Mechanic. Dragon Lair BUFF Razed Retire added. Headquarters BUFF Owner can target. Archant NERF Per 6 cards, up to 3. Y'lldiane NERF No longer gains keyword abilities. Shrimp ADJUSTMENT Unlimited Tactic, penalty for the third activation. Harbinger ADJUSTMENT +1 Resistance. Trait reworded. Barren ADJUSTMENT +1 Resistance. Trait removed. Demon removed. The Sunken Chest ADJUSTMENT No longer has cards underneath it.

GAME MECHANICS

Opening Hand

Rules Update New Opening Hand Mechanic.

The player who opens the game on defense will now hold the option to either 1) scrap and draw four new cards after turn 2, or 2) keep their hand for another 4 turns (6 total turns).
This fixes strength decks not getting to attack with a hand while also fixing the double pass mechanic and not getting a tactical phase with a hand.
Please test and provide feedback on this mechanical update!

BUFF

Dragon Lair

Balance Changes Razed Retire added.

Facts: Dragon Lair appeared in none of the tournament's ten decks.
Pros: Dragon Lair is a powerful card with a fun and distinctive playstyle.
Cons: The card was previously increased from 3 Credits to 4 Credits because allowing two copies proved excessive. However, that adjustment came without sufficient compensation for the increased cost.
Other Thoughts: Structures remain vulnerable to Hales, Ter-Mights, and the game's other anti-Structure tools. Given those existing weaknesses, adding a little more firepower feels reasonable.
Result: Dragon Lair becomes the first Structure to feature a Retire ability.

BUFF

Headquarters

Balance Changes Owner can target.

Facts: Headquarters appeared in none of the tournament's ten decks.
Thoughts: We have unlocked a new skill in templating to dynamically shrink and grow the text of a card based on length. Our "instead" clause is no longer efficient enough, lol We also noticed an issue with the phrasing.
Result: You can now choose your own headquarters with effects such as Exodus.

NERF

Archant

Balance Changes Per 6 cards, up to 3.

Facts: Archant appeared in three of the tournament's ten decks, including all three of the top-performing decks.
Pros: Archant is a recently reworked card that successfully defines the Insect archetype. It rewards thoughtful deckbuilding and provides a reliable way to trigger a key Retire between the first and second hands.
Cons: Archant encourages some degenerate gameplay by allowing players to effectively assemble their ideal opening hand. Its consistency comes with too little drawback, especially in decks already running three copies of Mavorik, where Archant can be included at relatively little cost.
Other Thoughts: I love Archant's design space. Adjusting its stats wouldn't meaningfully address the problem. As a 5-credit ship, there are limited ways to reduce its consistency without undermining the role it was designed to fulfill.
Result: Archant now activates for every 6 cards instead of every 4, with a maximum of three cards. It also gains 1 Strength and resistance.

NERF

Y'lldiane

Balance Changes No longer gains keyword abilities.

Facts: Y'lldiane appeared in one of the tournament's ten decks, finishing Swiss play undefeated at 4-0. However, the card ultimately proved beatable.
Pros: Y'lldiane is a brand-new card that has already enabled several distinct archetypes, including Y'lldiane Submarines, Y'lldiane Strength, and Y'lldiane Defense. From a design perspective, that versatility makes Y'lldiane a success.
Cons: Y'lldiane currently offers too much consistency alongside Archant, with too few opportunities for meaningful counterplay. More importantly, it largely invalidates the incentive to build traditional Demon/Mimic decks. I want those strategies to remain viable without requiring Y'lldiane.
Other Thoughts: I love the card and want to continue refining it rather than dismantling what makes it interesting. Even after this adjustment, I believe Y'lldiane will remain extremely powerful.
Result: Y'lldiane no longer gains keyword abilities from the Demons it conquers. Y'lldiane is a Demon Conqueror, not the Demon King. Building a Mimic deck should involve more than simply getting Mimic beneath The Demon Dagger.

ADJUSTMENT

Shrimp

Balance Changes Unlimited Tactic, penalty for the third activation.

Facts: Shrimp appeared in two of the tournament's ten decks. Both advanced to the finals.
Pros: Shrimp is a recently reworked card that successfully established the intended Deep/Insect archetype. It's an interesting build-around 3-credit ship with a distinct identity.
Cons: While I believe Decimate and Deep are reasonably balanced overall (perhaps a little too powerful in Bo1), Shrimp provides too much decimating potential in a 3-credit engine, particularly alongside Archant.
Other Thoughts: I want to unlock Shrimp's potential in defensive opening hands by expanding when its Tactic can be used. The goal is to improve the consistency of the card's gameplay experience while placing a reasonable ceiling on its power.
Result: Its Tactic becomes Unlimited, but using it a third time in the same hand causes Shrimp to be sunk.

ADJUSTMENT

Harbinger

Balance Changes +1 Resistance. Trait reworded.

Facts: Harbinger appeared in two of the tournament's ten decks, finishing with a combined 0-6 record.
Pros: Harbinger is a well-established card that recently gained Aircraft as an additional class. Overall, I believe the card has settled into a healthy position.
Cons: When I previously reworked Twilight and Ventus, I included Harbinger in those adjustments without fully accounting for its interactions with Archant and Raze, both of which could trigger Harbinger's Retire.
Other Thoughts: I don't believe the tournament results accurately reflect Harbinger's overall power level. Still, as a 5-credit ship, I see little downside to granting it an additional Resistance. Ventus and Twilight will remain unchanged for now, but I'll continue monitoring both closely.
Result: Harbinger's Resistance increases from 1 to 2, and its Trait has been reworked.

ADJUSTMENT

Barren

Balance Changes +1 Resistance. Trait removed. Demon removed.

Facts: Barren appeared in two of the tournament's ten decks. Both advanced to the finals.
Pros: Barren is a recently reworked card that successfully delivers on its alternate-win-condition fantasy. Requiring 4 and 8 sunk cards appears to provide reasonable thresholds for its progression.
Cons: Copying abilities is an interesting mechanic, but it introduces unnecessary complexity and highly inconsistent outcomes. Moving cards between zones and placing them beneath The Sunken Chest also creates some mechanically awkward interactions.
Other Thoughts: Decimate performed well during the tournament. I believe this was largely due to two factors: the Best-of-One format and the relatively unrefined state of many decks. A well-constructed deck shouldn't completely fall apart because a single card gets decimated. If it does, that may indicate a weakness in the deck's construction rather than an inherent balance issue with Decimate. Losing Y'lldiane in a dedicated Y'lldiane deck is undeniably painful, but those decks still retain their underlying Strength strategy and can win through conventional combat. Secondary win conditions deserve further exploration. I'm open to being proven wrong, and I'm also interested in introducing additional cards that can recover ships from The Deep at a substantial cost.
Result: Barren gains 1 Resistance, loses its Demon faction, and no longer copies keyword abilities. The Sunken Chest also receives a corresponding rework, detailed below.

ADJUSTMENT

The Sunken Chest

Balance Changes No longer has cards underneath it.

Facts: The Sunken Chest appeared in two of the tournament's ten decks. Both advanced to the finals.
Result: The Sunken Chest no longer stores cards beneath it.

All Patch Notes →