Dominion > Dominion Articles

Three-sentence overview of each card in Hinterlands

(1/5) > >>

theory:
Border Village
$6 Action
+1 Card +2 Actions
When you gain this, gain a card costing less than this.

Its extreme cost is like a reminder of how you need a plan to win late if you're building such an engine.  You need either a repeated strong attack (e.g., Rabble pin), some other source of VPs, or some way to get a mega-turn.  In such decks, however, probably the best Village since Fishing Village.

Cache
$5 Treasure
$3
When you gain this, gain two Coppers.

The new Contraband.  Is good with ways to get rid of the Coppers, naturally, but by that time you'll rarely draw $5 instead of $6.  If you want this, you should actually have a plan for the Coppers, or have absolutely no other $5 worth buying.

Cartographer
$5 Action
+1 Card +1 Action
Look at the top 4 cards of your deck. Discard any number of them. Put the rest back on top in any order.

The card that Navigator and Scout wishes they were.  Like Warehouse, a great sifter in the late game after you've gone green; like Warehouse, needs a certain amount of junk in your deck to be worth buying.  Can be devastating if you get Possessed.

Crossroads
$2 Action
Reveal your hand. +1 Card per Victory card revealed. If this is the first time you played a Crossroads this turn, +3 Actions.

A variant on Cellar, with potential to draw stupid amounts of cards, but there's nothing more depressing than a hand with 1 Copper and 4 Crossroads.  Fits great in a +Actions/+Cards engine.  Covered nicely in an article by rinkworks.

Develop
$3 Action
Trash a card from your hand. Gain a card costing exactly $1 more than it and a card costing exactly $1 less than it, in either order, putting them on top of your deck.

Basically the worst early-game trasher if you're looking to thin your deck.  Helpful to set up certain combos, but a very niche card.  One of the weaker $3's in Dominion.

Duchess
$2 Action
+$2
Each player (including you) looks at the top card of his deck, and discards it or puts it back.
In games using this, when you gain a Duchy, you may gain a Duchess.

+$2 for $2 is great and matched only by Embargo, which is a one-time use.  You don't want terminal Silvers in general, though, no matter how cheap, so this will mostly be gained either as a free gift with Duchy or as part of a 5/2 opening.  The Spy effect is not very important.

Embassy
$5 Action
+5 Cards
Discard 3 cards.
When you gain this, each other player gains a Silver.

The granddaddy (thus far) of the Big Money + One Drawing Card engines.  Embassy/Big Money beats Envoy/Big Money hands down, and greatly accelerates the game.  Quite similar to Vault, especially since the benefit to your opponents is not always a benefit.

Farmland
$6 Victory
2 VP
When you buy this, trash a card from your hand. Gain a card costing exactly $2 more than the trashed card.

An on-buy Remodel that can often net you a free 2VP in the late game.  You'd probably rather some other trash-for-benefit card, like Salvager, but Farmland can Farmland other Farmlands into Provinces.  Interestingly, it synergizes well with its competition, since Farmlands are such great Salvager/Bishop/Apprentice/etc. fodder.

Fool's Gold
$2 Treasure - Reaction
If this is the first time you played a Fool's Gold this turn, this is worth $1. Otherwise it's worth $4.
When another player gains a Province, you may trash this from your hand. If you do, gain a Gold, putting it on your deck.
Quite fun, but you definitely need more than 2 FG's to make it worthwhile.  Obviously works great with trashing and sifting, and big draw like Tactician.  Needs some +Buy, otherwise it’s too slow to buy them all and not enough benefit when you play them.

Haggler
$5 Action
+$2
While this is in play, when you buy a card, gain a card costing less than it that is not a Victory card.

A nice fake +Buy on boards without it and leads to interesting interactions (including unexpected 3-pile endings) with Border Village.  Similar to Hoard, in that it can help you go green much earlier because you can do things like Province/Gold.  Otherwise, depends on good $4's and $2's.

Highway
$5 Action
+1 Card +1 Action
While this is in play, cards cost $1 less, but not less than $0.

Basically a Market; needs +Buy to be any better.  Harder to do megaturns like with Bridge (because it can't get Throned or Kinged), but easier to play multiples of.  Lets you do all those tricks (e.g., with Remodel/Swindler/etc.) that you wanted to do with Bridge but couldn't actually pull off.

Ill-Gotten Gains
$5 Treasure
$1
When you play this, you may gain a Copper, putting it into your hand.
When you gain this, each other player gains a Curse.

Brutal curser.  Great with trash-for-benefit cards, obviously, considering its expense.  Conducive to a Duchy / alternative VP rush.

Inn
$5 Action
+2 Cards +2 Actions
Discard 2 cards.
When you gain this, look through your discard pile (including this), reveal any number of Action cards from it, and shuffle them into your deck.

You need a good combo in your discard ready to go in order to play this.  Works well with Chancellor, so you don't have to worry about buying it at the end of your draw pile.  Otherwise unremarkable.

Jack Of All Trades
$4 Action
Gain a Silver. Look at the top card of your deck; discard it or put it back. Draw until you have 5 cards in hand. You may trash a card from your hand that is not a Treasure.

Fuels a great Big Money engine like Smithy/Envoy/Embassy, but unlike them, can actually beat attacks.  TwoJackBigMoney bots are dominant on many boards.  One of the strongest cards in the set.

Mandarin
$5 Action
+$3
Put a card from your hand on top of your deck.
When you gain this, put all Treasures you have in play on top of your deck in any order.

The +$3 at the cost of a card is decent, though the main interest is in its on-gain ability.  Can be useful to buy in the late game if you fall short of a Province and want to try again.  Also good with +Buy, to buy the Province and then get ready to buy another one. 

Margrave
$5 Action - Attack
+3 Cards +1 Buy
Each other player draws a card, then discards down to 3 cards in hand.

The opposite of Torturer: gets worse and worse as you play multiples.  The +Buy is what really sells it, though, making it one of the best +Cards for a +Actions/+Cards engine.  Is basically Council Room / Militia rolled into one card.

Noble Brigand
$4 Action - Attack
+$1
When you buy this or play it, each other player reveals the top 2 cards of his deck, trashes a revealed Silver or Gold you choose, and discards the rest. If he didn't reveal a Treasure, he gains a Copper. You gain the trashed cards.

A tacit admission that Thief should have been better, but this didn’t belong in the base set.  Still not that great, but can be a good desperation buy in the late game, hoping to snipe a crucial Gold.  Especially interesting in multiplayer games and when people open with it.

Nomad Camp
$4 Action
+1 Buy +$2
When you gain this, put it on top of your deck.

Like a mom trying to get you to eat spinach: Woodcutter and its +Buy is good for you, and here’s a nice little on-gain bonus to try to make you realize this!  Can lead to a $4/$5 opening.  Still nowhere as good a source of +Buy as a Market.

Oasis
$3 Action
+1 Card +1 Action +$1
Discard a card.

Good with decks that want discarding: Tunnel, Minion, Library, etc.  Also great with Peddler (assuming +Buy) and Conspirator.  Otherwise, a quasi-sifter, sort of like Warehouse, and somewhat dependent on bad cards in your deck.

Oracle
$3 Action - Attack
Each player (including you) reveals the top 2 cards of his deck, and you choose one: either he discards them, or he puts them back on top in any order he chooses.
+2 Cards

Pretty unimportant. +2 Cards never excites anyone, and neither does Spy.  Offers some limited combo potential (e.g., with Tunnel and opponent's Sea Hag/Rabble).

Scheme
$3 Action
+1 Card +1 Action
At the start of Clean-up this turn, you may choose an Action card you have in play. If you discard it from play this turn, put it on your deck.

Great with Conspirator engines.  Also helps set up megaturn engines, especially when using Throne Room or King’s Court, and especially nice if you have an engine you intend to play indefinitely without greening up (e.g., Goons or Possession).  The ultimate Bane card.

Silk Road
$4 Victory
Worth 1 VP for every 4 Victory cards in your deck (round down).

Great with Kingdom Victory cards.  Otherwise, usually a decent consolation prize, if you miss out on Duchies, and occasionally worth more than a Duchy.  Often needs some kind of sifter (Warehouse, Cartographer) or cards that do things with green cards (Vault, Crossroads) to be worthwhile.

Spice Merchant
$4 Action
You may trash a Treasure from your hand. If you do, choose one:
+2 Cards and +1 Action, or +$2 and +1 Buy

Moneylender is a solid opener, and this is like Moneylender, but slightly worse (though the +Buy can come in handy).  You aren't guaranteed enough money, and it’s easier to accidentally trash everything and play yourself into a corner.  Dies off eventually, and so benefits from trash-for-benefit cards.

Stables
$5 Action
You may discard a Treasure. If you do, +3 Cards and +1 Action.

Pretty awesome non-terminal drawer, probably equal to Hunting Party / Lab.  Less reliable, though, and does very poorly when your Coppers are trashed.  Does nicely with fuel from cards like Ill-Gotten Gains, Cache, and Trader.

Trader
$4 Action - Reaction
Trash a card from your hand. Gain a number of Silvers equal to its cost in coins.
When you would gain a card, you may reveal this from your hand. If you do, instead, gain a Silver.

A strong reaction, but you know, reactions are not so great in 2p ever.  A good addition to a Big Money/draw deck, which ordinarily suffers hard from cursing attacks.  Led to a huge rules discussion involving blue dogs.

Tunnel
$3 Victory - Reaction
2 VP
When you discard this other than during a Clean-up phase, you may reveal it. If you do, gain a Gold.

Combos with everything on this big list.  Especially nice with Venture, and as a response to handsize attacks.  In late game, worth it, usually, for the 2VP alone.

HiveMindEmulator:

--- Quote from: theory on November 08, 2011, 04:20:45 pm ---Oracle
$3 Action - Attack
Each player (including you) reveals the top 2 cards of his deck, and you choose one: either he discards them, or he puts them back on top in any order he chooses.
+2 Cards

Pretty unimportant. +2 Cards never excites anyone, and neither does Spy.  Offers some limited combo potential (e.g., with Tunnel and opponent's Sea Hag/Rabble).

--- End quote ---
Maybe uninspiring, but I'm not sure it's unimportant. The attack is better than spy (since the main goal of this type of attack is to cause key card to go unused for a shuffle), and the +2 Cards becomes better since it's after the spy.
A simple oracle simulation that opens oracle/silver and adds a second oracle is pretty competitive with smithy big money (loses 44-47), so it can't be *that* bad. It's just hard to appreciate an attack that is so random...


--- Quote ---Silk Road
$4 Victory
Worth 1 VP for every 4 Victory cards in your deck (round down).

Great with Kingdom Victory cards.  Otherwise, usually a decent consolation prize, if you miss out on Duchies, and occasionally worth more than a Duchy.  Often needs some kind of sifter (Warehouse, Cartographer) or cards that do things with green cards (Vault, Crossroads) to be worthwhile.

--- End quote ---
Also worth mentioning that silk road rushes work just like garden rushes.


--- Quote ---Spice Merchant
$4 Action
You may trash a Treasure from your hand. If you do, choose one:
+2 Cards and +1 Action, or +$2 and +1 Buy

Moneylender is a solid opener, and this is like Moneylender, but slightly worse (though the +Buy can come in handy).  You aren't guaranteed enough money, and it’s easier to accidentally trash everything and play yourself into a corner.  Dies off eventually, and so benefits from trash-for-benefit cards.

--- End quote ---
I think this compares more closely to lookout than to moneylender. Both are non-terminals that trash a single card, do a little cycling (2 cards off the draw pile), and become unusable late if you've trimmed most of your bad cards out. Spice merchant has the advantages of leaving you with 1 more card after use than lookout or potentially offering a +buy, but the disadvantage of being able to trash only copper and costing $4 instead of $3. I'd say it's probably generally a bit less useful than lookout.

LastFootnote:
I agree with most of your analyses, but I have issues with two cards. I have only played solitaire games with these cards thus far, so please feel free to let me know if I'm way off base.


--- Quote from: theory on November 08, 2011, 04:20:45 pm ---Spice Merchant
$4 Action
You may trash a Treasure from your hand. If you do, choose one:
+2 Cards and +1 Action, or +$2 and +1 Buy

Moneylender is a solid opener, and this is like Moneylender, but slightly worse (though the +Buy can come in handy).  You aren't guaranteed enough money, and it’s easier to accidentally trash everything and play yourself into a corner.  Dies off eventually, and so benefits from trash-for-benefit cards.

--- End quote ---

It seems as if you're completely ignoring Spice Merchant's (+2 Cards/+1 Action), which I believe is the option you'll want to use the majority of the time you play Spice Merchant.

Moneylender lets you trash Copper while providing enough coins to allow you buy more powerful cards for your deck. Spice Merchant lets you trash Copper while allowing you to draw and play more powerful cards that are already in your deck. So if there's a $3-cost card available that you want to play as often as possible (say Swindler or Ambassador), you might prefer to open with Spice Merchant rather than Moneylender.

That being said, I'm wondering if Spice Merchant isn't a better card to pick up soon after your first reshuffle, rather than on one of your first two turns. Unlike Moneylender, Spice Merchant does not jump-start your economy, so buying it immediately may slow you down. If you buy better coin-producing cards on the first two turns, then buy a Spice Merchant on turn 3 or 4, you'll most likely be shuffling it into your deck along with a powerful $5 or $6 cost card. Then you can play Spice Merchant to trash Copper while cycling to your good stuff.

As for the (+2 Coins/+1 Buy) option, I'd probably only opt for it in specific, less common situations. First: I really need the +Buy. Second: the +2 coins are guaranteed to get me to a price point I really need, whereas the two cards I draw are not. Third: there are fewer than 2 cards in my deck and the +2 coins are enough to buy a card that my deck needs before I reshuffle.


--- Quote ---Stables
$5 Action
You may discard a Treasure. If you do, +3 Cards and +1 Action.

Pretty awesome non-terminal drawer, probably equal to Hunting Party / Lab.  Less reliable, though, and does very poorly when your Coppers are trashed.  Does nicely with fuel from cards like Ill-Gotten Gains, Cache, and Trader.

--- End quote ---

Saying that it does nicely with fuel from those cards seems akin to buying more Copper to feed your Moneylender. Your deck starts with 7 Coppers. Stables are an alternative to aggressively trashing your Copper, much like Apothecary.

ehunt:
Quick note on oracle:

Oracle/Potion is a great opening in a familiar or alchemist game (assume there are no important terminals on the board).

timchen:
It always feels right to me to compare spice merchant with masquerade: both can draw two and trash one. Spice merchant is nonterminal, but can only trash copper. Early on the +1 action may not matter, and the requirement to trash a copper hurts the economy quite a bit. In addition it costs $4. This makes it not as strong. But still an okay card I would say.

I would also say that oracle seems to be an underated card. One key advantage it can have is the ability to draw the $5 cost card you purchased at turn 3 in the very next turn. Deck cycling in the early game is very big I would say. Nevertheless I also get tromped when I skipped my 2 coppers and stifled my own economy; without a proper calculation/simulation it's hard to say what is the best choice.

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page