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[Archetype]

I didn't see a thread about this card, so I thought I'd start one.

What does everyone think about it? After playing 2 games with it, I have to say, it is my favorite DA card, and probably my favorite overall Dominion. I have a couple things to say about it:

1. The combo with Rats is even crazier than you think. You have a deck chock full of Rats, Fortresses, and Death Carts, and you can trash everything with Rats, and use the Fortress for immunity as well as allowing additional Actions to play 2 Death Carts a turn to pick up Provinces.

2. This card, like Rats, is one that you can't go crazy with. You have to find that happy medium of trashing Actions, and knowing when it is okay to get rid of your Death Cart.

3. 5$ is A LOT of money. It's ridiculous how much money it is.

4. The Ruins that you get with it may seem like a drawback, but in reality, it's a bonus. It allows you keep your Death Cart in your deck while you use Workshop/Hermit/Armory to get some cheap actions you can trash (I chose Vagrant).

5. This card is a Powerhouse in Ruins games, trashing your Ruins for +5$. And sucks hard in Cursing games, when your deck is too bloated to match up your Death Cart with your gained Ruins.

Overall really cool and unique card, but can only work in certain set up. Once you can though, It becomes a Monster, cleaning up your Engine while fueling it with money.

What are your thoughts?

[jsh357]

Bring out your dead!

I also love this card, not much else to add to your post though.  Even if just using it as a one-shot, $5 is nothing to sneeze at, and in the right environment (lots of villages, trashing, whatever) the Ruins don't hurt you enough to be a big drawback.

[engineer]

I haven't played with it at all.  My concern is, is it dominant?  If death cart and rats are on the board, would this combo beat any other strategy?

[Archetype]

It's pretty narrow. Not as narrow as Counting House though.

If there is heavy Ruin giving, then this card is great in counter acting them.

With just Rats and Death Cart, it's not super powerful. You need something else to help it flow faster like Fortress or Procession.

[sherwinpr]

I played a three player game, where the key cards were Rats, Death Cart, and Cultist.  I opened Cultist/Estate (trashing Hovel), and proceeded to buy a few more early Cultists and an early Sage (at this point, it was guaranteed to dig up Cultists, but I bought a Gold fairly early on too).  I think I had something like 6 Cultists, and I gave out all the Ruins, buying a Death Cart myself after the ruins were out (but I drew it without Sage/Cultists, so it trashed itself, still netted me a Province that turn). 

The other players were basically ruined too fast.  They didn't buy enough Death Carts early on (they both Opened Death Cart/something, and I think the something was Hermit or Silver), having 1-2 Death Carts each and a few Rats by the time the curses ran out.  Essentially, the were so ruined, they weren't hitting $4 too often in the early game. 

So my huge lead let me win, and their Rats/Death Cart engine never took off.  May have been due to poor play on their part, or maybe due to my lucking into a triple Cultist chain early on (but Sage is a great enabler, as it's essentially an extra Cultist in the early game, as long as you draw into it in your initial hand, rather than via Cultists, but even the latter case is okay if you have a Necropolis in your opening hand).  Anyone have any insights?

[ednever]

I think death cart is too slow in multiplayer ruins games. The two ruins you pick up on the buy really get you behind. You pick up ruins much faster than you can destroy them. $5 is nice , but it only trashes 1 ruins.

When we played remake was also on the board and was a much better open than death cart.

May be different in 2p.

Ed

[Archetype]

2 player isnt too bad with the gained ruins, but I'm assuming you're right about multiplayer. Ive only played DA 2 Player

[Scissors61]

Remember, if there were no Looter attacks, than you would still have to get some +cards to ensure collision. Maybe Hunting Grounds would supply you and be trashable late game to pick up some VP.

[RD]

Is it stating the obvious too much to ask about obvious combos like Ironworks/Develop/other cards that can supply plenty of Actions? Should you even bother to Ironworks Ironworks or go straight into Ironworking Death Carts?

What else is decent for providing Death Cart food (including more Death Carts)? Maybe even Talisman? This is probably silly to focus on but I'd consider playing it with Contraband. The extra buy means no shortage of little cantrips or more Death Carts or whatever. And come Province time, the fact that it's a dead card probably won't bother you that much, because come on $5.

Or is this even really an issue, given you can always trash Death Cart to itself later in the game? I guess you don't really need THAT many $5+whatever turns to end the game.