Noah: Veil of Shadows

Ashes: Noah Week at PlaidHatGames.com continues! Each week, all week long, we’ll take a look at a different Phoenixborn and their suggested deck build. The goal of these articles is to introduce you to the cards found in the base game, and to give you a basic understanding of the strategy of each of the pre-built decks.

Ashes is available for pre-order at the PlaidHatGames.com store. Pre-order today from our site and get $15 off the retail price! Order from PlaidHatGames.com and get a free Dimona Odinstar promo Phoenixborn, along with her exclusive Rayward Knight ally!

What you don’t know can hurt you, and Noah is the master of the unknown. The Shadows of Viros focuses on surprising your opponents, keeping them on their heels. Today we’ll take a look at the spells and allies Noah utilizes to maintain superior options and to sneak in damage when the opportunity arises. Yesterday’s article covered Noah and his unique card. Check it out if you like surprises! And now we peer into The Shadows of Viros!

This guy embodies the sneaky damage moniker. Ambush 2 will allow you to deal 2 damage to a unit or Phoenixborn just for playing it! Then it can attack for 2 damage later in the round. And don’t forget that the  symbol can bring allies back to your hand from your discard pile, so you can cycle these guys’ surprise damage over and over. Very handy when your opponent has massed his or her troops and you’re having trouble getting damage through!

There are many reasons you would want to include this card in your deck, even though it has an effect similar to the effect you gain from the symbol. Here’s a few of them:

First, this card takes a main action and the ceremonial die only uses a side action. By using a main action it ensures you can play the ally on your next turn. If you pass your main action and use a side action to get an ally from the discard pile, then your opponent could pass to end the round.

Second, it only costs a  symbol, which you are 3 times more likely to roll than the  symbol.

Third, this card does not deal damage to you equal to the returned unit's attack value, whereas the  dice power does. This is handy when you need to bring an ally back from your discard pile, but your life total is low. When both you and your opponent are down to 2 life remaining, and you have a Stormwind Sniper in your discard pile, this card looks pretty awesome, trust me!

Wow! 6 damage for 2 magic! Your Phoenixborn must take damage first to use this spell, but… 6 damage! There are very few units in Ashes, even ones that have been improved by alteration spells, that can survive 6 damage. And it’s a reaction spell to boot.

There are so many ways you can use this surprise damage after your Phoenixborn receives attack damage. You could stop the next unit from doing damage to your Phoenixborn when your opponent attacks, or use it to clear the way for your other units to attack the opposing Phoenixborn on your next turn by destroying an unexhausted unit not even involved in the attack! You can use it to keep one of your own units alive and, well… I guess I’ll save some of the mystery for you to figure out!

When you read Summon Sleeping Widows, I bet you thought this was a ready spell didn’t you? Noah’s surprises just keep coming! Why use a ready spell to summon conjurations when you can just spring them on your opponents when they least expect them? Just when your opponent thought they were gaining the upper hand on the battlefield, you drop Summon Sleeping Widows as a reaction, and suddenly you have even more units than you did before your opponent killed the unit that allowed you to play this spell.

I also want to point out that 2 units with 2 attack value for 2 is very, very, cheap. Especially since you don’t need to use up your precious actions to cast this spell.

“Draw 3 cards.” More cards means more options. Getting 40% more cards than your opponent to choose from in a round is a huge boost! This card allows you to have the reaction spells you need in your hand when you could play them, and allows you to get your ready spells focused earlier than your opponent. Long story short, this card just gives you more options and in Ashes, more options means more power!

With all these surprises revealed, what could we possibly have to show you tomorrow? Well, we’re going to delve into Noah’s darker side. Yep, he gets darker! We’ll see the denizens forged from dark pacts, how he brings them forth, and how Noah forces the opposition to cease to have ever existed!

Thanks for reading!

Bob

Game Overview Previews: Phases of Play, Attacking/Defending, Placement, Card Types, Dice Powers, Multiplayer and Drafting
Maeoni Previews: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Coal Previews: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Saria Previews: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Noah Previews: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Jessa Previews: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4
Aradel Previews: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

Click here to pre-order Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn and get a $15 pre-order discount as well as the Dimona Odinstar Promo Pack.

Written by Bob Klotz.
Bob Klotz is the lead playtester for Ashes