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McGarnacle

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Artificer
« on: December 12, 2016, 08:57:57 am »
+8

Man, I missed you guys. Glad to be back. I've decided to come back by contributing something meaningful to these forums, rather than a few pithy lines in General Discussion or some wild accusations in mafia. So I thought an article would be appropriate. This is my first strategy article, and what better way to start than with one of my favorite cards in the whole game, Artificer.

Okay, so Artificer. Artificer is neat; nice name, cool mechanics, and not really hated by anyone. But I’m not here to tell you why I like Artificer. I’m here to tell you why I think it is one of the best cards in Adventures. We will start by looking at this versatile card’s many uses, and then talk about when to get Artificer and what to get with it.

Artificer as a Gainer

Artificer’s main strength lies in its versatility. However, the most obvious use for this guy is as a gainer. The topdecking ability means you can just discard 5 Coppers instead of playing them and get to use that Mountebank (or just another Artificer) next turn (or even this turn, if you have more draw). Being able to quickly acquire engine components is vital early game, and often gives you a huge edge on those first few turns.

Artificer as a +Buy

Though Artificer is a gainer, it can also function as a source of +Buy. Say you have an Artificer in play and from 4 Coppers and a Silver. You can discard it all to topdeck a , spend it all on a , or split it by discarding some and saving some for your buy phase. Additionally, with enough draw it’s entirely feasible to discard 8 or 11 cards to land that Colony or Province. Once you start greening, you can discard dead cards to get more VP or keep you engine running by also gaining Action cards.

Artificer as a Sifter/Enabler

The third and perhaps most subtle use for Artificer is a sifter and enabler. Remember, you don’t need to gain anything for discarding. Enabling Tunnels, Menageries, or Coppers for Counting House is useful, not mention that since it says “gain a card costing per card discarded”, with cost reduction, you can gain stuff without discarding anything, or just gain Copper if you need them. Draw-to-X is also great, and you can even trigger it repeatedly in a turn with enough Artificers.

Case Study: Artificer/Menagerie

While none of Artificer’s abilities are groundbreaking by themselves, it is when they can be used together that Artificer becomes a power card. It’s synergy with Menagerie is a case in point: Discard duplicates to gain Menageries (or Artificers) while enabling you other Menageries to draw more. While any sifter can do this, Artificer has the added advantage of actually gaining the combo components while sifting. Once you draw lots of cards, you don’t need to worry about a lack of +Buy, because Artificer has that base covered, too.

When it’s hot

So when is Artificer good? Since it is so versatile, it’s almost always useful to some extent, but Kingdoms with no gainers or +Buys really let Artificer shine. The presence of cantrips or Peddler variants also boosts Artificer, as you can quickly acquire them and play them.

When it’s not

Regardless, there are circumstances when Artificer is not a good option. It is almost completely useless in Big Money (which is why this article has no section on it), and kingdoms with good trashing mean you have nothing to discard. Likewise, handsize reduction attacks like Goons or Militia really hurt, as it makes gaining those key s harder with fewer cards in hand.

Summing it up

In conclusion, Artificer is an often underrated but very strong card. It’s worth considering on most boards, and the key card more often that it would seem. It’s versatility ensures that it can perform well in a variety of roles, often combining with other cards to be a real power card.

Synergies

Scrying Pool
Counting House
Menagerie
Tunnel
Poor House
Alms
Inheritence
Cantrips and Peddler variants

Antisynergies

Big Money strategies
Strong Trashing
Opponent’s handsize reducers

« Last Edit: December 12, 2016, 10:39:49 am by McGarnacle »
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LaLight

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #1 on: December 12, 2016, 08:59:38 am »
+1

Hey!!! Glad to see you back!
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McGarnacle

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #2 on: December 12, 2016, 08:59:46 am »
+2

This is in General Discussion so it can potentially be discussed/revised before posting it to Articles.
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McGarnacle

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #3 on: December 12, 2016, 08:59:59 am »
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Hey!!! Glad to see you back!

Awww, thanks!
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ThetaSigma12

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #4 on: December 12, 2016, 09:21:11 am »
+2

Good artice! I never though as artificer as +Buy, but with copper it kinda is.

I think you should mention Draw-to-X for sure, and devote more to my favorite use, gaining Coppers for free.

Reading the article in detail there's a lot of good points here I never thought about, like Artificer/Menagerie.
« Last Edit: December 12, 2016, 10:20:33 am by ThetaSigma12 »
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McGarnacle

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #5 on: December 12, 2016, 09:27:14 am »
+1

Good artice! I never though as artificer as +Buy, but with copper it kinda is.

I think you should mention Draw-to-X for sure, and devote more to my favorite use, gaining Coppers for free.

Thanks! Got it covered.
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aku_chi

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #6 on: December 12, 2016, 10:15:39 am »
+3

Artificer is a cool card that should have an article.  You should mention that, absent handsize attacks, Artificer can gain and topdeck another Artificer, which is occasionally useful.  Artificer + Alms (discard everything and still gain a $4 card) and Artificer + Inheritance (gaining inherited Estates is easy) are also strong synergies.
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allanfieldhouse

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #7 on: December 12, 2016, 10:35:35 am »
+1

I don't think Artificer qualifies as a "sifter". It's basically just a "discarder". That being said, all your points in that section still hold up.

One fun interaction is that if you have cost reduction x5 and 2 Artificers in hand, you can insta-pile the Artificers plus 2 more $5 cost cards.
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Re: Artificer
« Reply #8 on: December 12, 2016, 10:36:45 am »
+5

Artificer/Scrying Pool is an amazing combo that should be mentioned here as well. I've played it more than once, and it's like the cards were made for each other.

McGarnacle

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #9 on: December 12, 2016, 10:39:20 am »
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Wow. I had never thought of all these extra amazing combos. Learn something new every day.
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Chris is me

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #10 on: December 12, 2016, 11:28:54 am »
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While "everything comboes with Ferry", Ferry / Artificer probably merits special mention. A Ferry / Artificer opening nets you (basically) two Artificers a turn until they are gone - you topdeck one every turn and you buy one outright so you can really quickly drain the pile. After that, Ferry on anything else you want to gain makes it much easier to use Artificer to get those cards.

The Artificer / Scrying Pool combo merits special mention, probably its own article to be honest.

Artificer also really likes Pathfinding, Tactician, etc.
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gloures

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #11 on: December 12, 2016, 11:40:05 am »
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Artificer/Scrying Pool is an amazing combo that should be mentioned here as well. I've played it more than once, and it's like the cards were made for each other.


Had this come up twice in my league match yesterday, one of them with menagerie also. Long, loooooong turns.....
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Re: Artificer
« Reply #12 on: December 12, 2016, 11:59:44 am »
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Artificer with extra draw is very good, artificer with other discarders (inn, horse traders) is worse. Artificers can replicate themselves from a five card hand. With hirelings or pathfinding they can replicate bigger cards. It can be a big bonus to draw a gained card the same turn as playing the artificer, either to play the new card or clear out a vp card before next turn's hand.

Artificer with peasant is very strong.
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Re: Artificer
« Reply #13 on: December 12, 2016, 12:31:37 pm »
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Cost reduction really loves artificer especially if it is easy to have in play before playing artificer. So Bridge-troll and especially highway.
you can gain out the artifice pile if you get it dow to 0.
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vsiewnar

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #14 on: December 13, 2016, 11:13:14 am »
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I think Artificer/Tactician and Artificer/Apprentice are worth mentioning
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aku_chi

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #15 on: December 13, 2016, 11:19:48 am »
+2

What's special about Artificer + Apprentice?
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pacovf

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #16 on: December 13, 2016, 12:46:53 pm »
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Trash a Province with Apprentice
Gain a Province with Artificer
???
Profit
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Chris is me

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #17 on: December 13, 2016, 12:53:35 pm »
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Trash a Province with Apprentice
Gain a Province with Artificer
???
Profit

Lacking other card draw, it's a really cumbersome but viable way to drain a pile, requiring one Artificer, one Apprentice, and 1 of any other cantrip per card you want to remove from the pile. I don't think this synergy isso radical it requires its own part of the article to explain (vs Tactician or Scrying Poop)
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vsiewnar

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Re: Artificer
« Reply #18 on: December 13, 2016, 03:47:22 pm »
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Apprentice can get you a lot of draw and Artificer can take advantage of it. It's similar to trash for benefit cards. Convert Gold to Duchy, say. I've only used it once and that was to drain the Province pile. Every pair of Apprentice/Artificer is one Province gone (if the deck is of the right size)
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