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[vsiewnar]

Apothecary in Adventures

Apothecary is a card that I have grown to like over many games of Dominion. The learning curve for this card was steep for me but I was always encouraged when I saw some of the extremely elegant uses for it. There are two very good articles on the forum about Apothecary and they outline different uses of the card. I wish to contribute somewhat to the knowledge that is currently available on Apothecary. This contribution seeks to speculate what cards and events from the latest expansion, Adventures, will interact well with Apothecary. These thoughts are only based on my experience of numerous games with Apothecary and some games with the new expansion.

Apothecary/Raze

Raze fits the role of removing the starting estates (or shelters) uniquely. Raze is non-terminal and, when trashing estates, there is some cycling. What sets Raze apart (from Lookout, say) is that it can remove itself from the deck by trashing itself once the starting estates (or shelters) have been removed. This is one less card to reduce Apothecary's drawing power. Also, Apothecary can help pair Raze with an estate (or shelter). Ratcatcher can also be used to trash estates to clear the path for the Apothecary. However, pairing Raze, in particular, with Potion in an opening can lead to rapid deck development.

Apothecary/Artificer

Artificer is the card from Adventures that intrigued me the most. With Apothecary, it is possible to have an enlarged handsize from all the drawn coppers. Artificer can then make use of this increased hand-size to gain and top-deck expensive cards easily (say, Grand Market). This becomes more potent if there are enough Apothecaries in one's deck to re-draw the discarded coppers and play the gained card immediately or if there are multiple Artificers to gain cards. Additionally, Artificer is a cantrip so it works well with Apothecary.

Apothecary/Distant Lands

Distant Lands is good for the Apothecary-intensive deck. It disappears from the deck allowing the Apothecary to draw through more of the deck after it has been set aside. I have played a game with Apothecary and Distant Lands on the board and my deck had more longevity than other kinds of decks because Distant Lands were set aside once played. This is reminiscent of the Apothecary/Native Village interaction.

Apothecary/Guide

Apothecary decks run into the problem of stalling hard because they eventually reveal a 'wall of green' thus seeding their next hand with numerous green cards (similar to Rabble's attack). Being able to overcome this problem is what can make an Apothecary deck viable for a game. Guide allows you to discard this 'wall of green' for one that has more options. Events that can circumvent this 'wall of green' in your next hand are Scouting Party and Mission.

These are my thoughts on Apothecary's interaction with Adventures cards/events and you are welcome to share yours and leave feedback.

[faust]

Some commentary from a guy who has never actually played Adventures.

Raze is non-terminal, lets you draw one card i.e. it does not reduce your handsize (unlike Lookout)

This is not true. Say your hand is Raze/Estate/XXX. Play Raze, trash Estate, draw card. Now I have four cards in my hand. If my hand is Lookout/XXXX, I play Lookout, trash a card, and also have 4 cards in my hand. Now no doubt Raze is a premier trasher for an Apothecary engine, but this is not what makes it better than Lookout; it's the self-trashing that makes it better.

Of the other interactions, Apothecary/Artificer is the only one I'd consider a real combo. It works similar to Apothecary/Plaza, but Artificer is stronger. What you say about Distant Lands and Guide however is true for any engine deck: Any engine likes green cards that don't choke it.

You highlight Guide because it's good when Apothecary reveals a lot of green. But I don't think Apothecary has a bigger problem than other engines there. There green would always have been there, the only difference in an Apothecary deck is that you know about it.

[-Stef-]

What you say about Distant Lands and Guide however is true for any engine deck: Any engine likes green cards that don't choke it.

Even though you have a point (Distant Land is good for all engines) I also do see a synergy between Apothecary and Distant Lands.
The key issue here is: Apothecary engines are far more troubled by green than any other engine.
Most alt-VP helps most engines, because then they get more time and don't have to worry about losing to a 3-5 or 2-6 province split.
But the "simple apothecary engine" is not like most engines at all. It's best served by a quick and clean race to Provinces, preferably just winning that split 5-3.
Even something as simple as Harem is a big pain in your simple-apothecary-engine vs BigMoney-something matchup.

Distant Lands are the exception because unlike all other alt-VP this one helps Apothecary a lot. (ok ok Island)

[werothegreat]

You highlight Guide because it's good when Apothecary reveals a lot of green. But I don't think Apothecary has a bigger problem than other engines there. There green would always have been there, the only difference in an Apothecary deck is that you know about it.

It's actually not the same.  A normal engine draws payload along with Victory cards.  Apothecaries suck up all the Coppers from your deck, leaving concentrated green behind, which a Village/Draw engine will not do.

[vsiewnar]

faust, you are absolutely right about the handsize reduction with Raze when trashing estates.  I will edit the original post accordingly. For some reason, I had not accounted for the estate being in hand. However, when trashing itself, there is no handsize reduction.

[DG]

Apothecary with storyteller should have most of the benefits of apothecary with stables (which is pretty good).