Recently a lot of people have been asking me what rival to pick or some tips to get better. I'm not the best player of this game to be honest, but I thought it would be nice to create a topic to help newer players. Feel free to post yours belows, i'll edit that post to make them easier to find. * The full campaign gives you six rival cards and three epics, while you could have gotten 30 card packs for the price. So basically unless you want to pay for it (and it'd be better to pay for cards) or have completed your collection, don't consider it. Seriously. * Adapt. There is no strategy in this game, it focuses on decision-making. You may have guaranteed a card that will be of no use in some games. You may plan on defending and suddently get a really offensive combo that makes it worth to switch tactic. * There is no best rival. All of them are a viable choice. But for beginners, i would recommend Arsenia, allowing you to guarantee a Valkyrie and Kubra, which lets you pick an economic card and get it early, ensuring you monopolize that ressource, i'd suggest Iron, Wood, Craft or Horses. * Don't guarantee a card that requires other cards to be efficient. Alright you got that Temple of Wisdom, what if your opponent prevents you from getting other holy cards, kills yours or you don't draw any ? * Consider economy, golds and ressources are worth victory points. And not only in the end of the final round where two golds will grant you one VP, but also during the entire game. Seen that nice card named Great Counsil ? (http://prntscr.com/ds0xeb). It looks strong huh ? How are you going to afford it if you didn't buy any economic card ? It'll basically cost your entire income. You could try to get it through waste-generating, but i'll take up slots making it considerably less efficient. Moreover, having a lot of ressources will help you lower your cards prices and will grant you gold through taxes when your opponent plays some cards. Economic cards are important, and you shoud really get a stable economy. * About economy, you should also try to pick ressources that you'll need. Look at Valkyries for instance. It requires iron to be cheaper. Getting Iron will help you affording the card. Also, depending on the rival or the player you'll be facing, you might guess about the tactic they're going to play by looking at what economic cards they pick (depending if they are already stable and if they had a lot of choices earlier, if they picked the only one they had don't try to make anticipations). * Another quick tip that I don't see used often. Let's imagine you and your opponent both begin first round with two economic cards. Try to get a look at what ressources are linked to those cards. Affording a card that is required to lower the price of another ressource you plan to buy next or that your opponent will need to afford the ressource he's going to get when hands switch could get you a little bit of golds that are always worth taking. ( http://prntscr.com/ds123f ) * Going straight forward by buying as much offensive cards as you can is stupid. Your opponent will buy structures and tank them with ease and overcome the VP you'll get via conquest with those his cards will get him. Plus splitting damage correctly will commonly allow him to survive. If you plan on going aggro, get a way to prevent your opponent from protecting itself. Battering Ram for instance. * Mostly you want to have at least the same number of cards that can attack than your opponent to tie him during conquests and still deal some damage to his city, but if you plan to go full defense via Mural of Peace, Wall of Last Ressort and stuff like that you won't need that to be efficient. * Buy cards that are efficient through the game. Scout is a great early card as it blocks other cards on the later rounds and is cheap. Warrior Poets or Epic of Gil will get stronger and stronger after each round. Think about the late game, where you want to drop big buddies and big culture points generators. You don't want to have no synergy between your cards when the final rounds are coming. * Sometimes it is better to buy a card you don't need to prevent your opponent from getting it. * Try to look at the possible combos that would be made when you switch hands, you'll be surprised by the amount of possibilities you'll find that could get you ahead. * Don't buy too many economic cards or you'll redraw them for the other rounds. Sure they are useful, but if you buy four on the first round then half of the cards you'll get on the second one will be economic cards that provide no effects, no damage, no armor and that will make you sacrifice other cards during war to keep your economy stable. * Look at your opponent's side and try to anticipate what he'll want to buy or what he plans on doing. If he's overwhelming you with cheap offensive cards, get a structure. Prevent his combos from being efficient on you, prevent him from having the cards he'll need. Let's imagine he just bought the Assacani and you have an artistic card that he'll get when you'll switch hands, you should probably buy it even if you don't need it. * Calculate what a card will cost via ressources so you don't end up needing that one gold that could have won you the game. Also you can determine if your opponent will be able to afford that card he will need or not. Then, you'll see what he will need to do to be able to afford that one (he'll play a cheaper card or create a waste), and by predicting what he will play, you will be able to counter him. Also, if he isn't going to be able to afford that card that could counter you, then don't mind buying it to prevent him from having it and focus on your strategy. * Last but not least, buy valuable card. Okay, that Holy Knight won't combo with your board, but a 4/5 hits hard and is able to tank some damage. Sure, that Guild of Masons won't provide your board any combo if you don't get a structure, but 5 armor may help during war, and it gives culture that might be worth taking.

Nice advices there ! Agreed with the campaign. Danse Macabre is probably the only card I'd really like from it.

Great advice! Covered a lot of points too. I would also add that knowing when to play aggressively/passively is necessary. Playing aggressively without considering culture will later on cause you to lose the advantage of culture. Playing aggressively should be done so the enemy is at a pretty big disadvantage, if the enemy has a significant amount of defense or cards that can nullify most of your offense then playing passively should be the key idea. If the enemy is at a big advantage with culture combos along with a low amount of defense or if the enemy has a lot of vulnerable economic cards drawed within the 2nd and 3rd round, then playing aggressively would be the best strategy. Playing passively does not always mean allowing the enemy to consistently win conquest. (I hope that made sense)