Curating Culdcept Revolt’s most convenient cards

Culdcept Revolt is a strategic board game, but one where the thinking starts before you even enter a match. Fortunes rise and fall depending on your deck. Given the high number of cards in this installment, over 400, coming up with something that works for you is a daunting task. It’s one that will necessitate careful thought and plenty of exposure to as many cards as possible.

The important thing is not to panic. Culdcept Revolt does a good job of easing you into the game. There are also a number of cards that act as staples. By keeping a few conventional cards in your deck, you can have something stalwart to fall back on while brainstorming your deck.

Ogres are a wonderful place to start. These cards have been part of Culdcept for years, but Culdcept Revolt is the game that makes these brutes better. Each one’s strength has been boosted by 10 points. For 80G, it’s worth it to place a 50HP unit down to protect a place. Since there are elemental ogres, they fit well in most decks. Plus, you can always pull in a neutral Ogre Lord card. It’s cheaper than a regular Ogre, with a 70G cost, 40 strength, and 50 health, but has the bonus abilities that give you +20 health if you’ve placed Earth or Water Ogres and +20 strength when a Fire or Wind Ogre is around. They don’t have the benefit of special skills, but they’re solid early-game cards.

Walls work well in early Culdcept Revolt decks as well. They’re a good way to call dibs on a place on the map for a small fee, protecting it from other players. Wonder Wall, the neutral option, has 30 HP and only costs 10G. It can’t attack, but it neutralizes all elements, which is nice. The Wall of Ice is the water option, and gives you a 40 HP wall for 25G that also gets +20 bonus health in a battle. Wall of Stone, the earth elemental card, doesn’t get more health when a battle starts, but gives you 60HP right away for 25G. All three do a good job of stalling while you wait for something more appropriate to place.

You need solid attackers in Culdcept Revolt, and there are quite a few cards that come up after the first few boards to fill that need. The Knight should always have a place in an early deck. It’s a little expensive at 90G, but he’s worth it. He has 50 strength and 40 health, plus is guaranteed to deal critical hits on any opposing cards with maximum hit points over 50. Think of him as a means of challenging some early monsters. I like to use him to take over an inhabited plot.

The Kaiser Penguin is another advantageous ally. He’s a card that’s new to Culdcept Revolt. For 90G, you get a monster with 50 health and 30 strength. That might seem a bit expensive, for something with so little strength and an inability to use scrolls, but its skill makes it worthwhile. This monster can destroy an opponent’s scroll, support, or tool at the start of a battle. This makes it a rather stable defender, since he starts with decent health.

With the Wyvern, you can start thinking more about conquering territory and pulling together advanced plays. This is an air card that, when placed on an air territory, can move to another air land. It’s only restriction is that it can’t be on any earth territories. You can combine it with movement cards to set up potential plays and build up an air territory monopoly. It works rather well as an attacker too. It’s not terribly expensive, at 60G, and has 40 strength and 40 health. When it’s on an air land, it gets attack priority and can hit before any opponents. This is the card you start popping into your deck when you want to start challenging yourself and thinking more critically.

It’s important to keep equipment cards on hand in early Culdcept Revolt decks. All the monster cards in the world won’t help if you don’t have the weaponry and defenses needed to aid them in a pinch. Everyone knows how important it is to keep swords and armor on hand, but you can’t neglect some other items. The Sling is an affordable weapon that only gives you 10 extra strength and health, but also has the benefit of allowing people to attack first. Not too bad, consider it only costs 30G. The Buckler is another defensive card to slip into the deck. For 40G, you can neutralize the attacks of any monsters whose strength is under 30. It’s not as practical in the endgame, since cards are far stronger then, but it serves you well early on.

Don’t forget status-influencing cards. The two I recommend most are Mana and Relief. Mana is invaluable at any point in Culdcept Revolt. For free, you can get your lap number x50 worth of magic power. I recommend keeping it until you’ve completed at least two laps, but it’s the sort of card where you can play it at any time and benefit from it. Relief is a good card to have when you start focusing on your deck and deciding which elements work best for you. It lets you pay 30G to either swap two of your monsters on the map or send one of them back to your deck. It’s the best card to have when you begin building your empire, since it lets you adjust decisions you might have made your first pass or two around the board.

But again, all of these are only a handful of options that might end up working for you. The beauty of Culdcept Revolt is the effect your decisions can make in a match. Your deck can help guarantee your victory or cripple you before you even start a board. It’ll take time before you find the right combination, but maybe knowing the virtue of Ogres, Knights, Wyverns, and other cards will help you get started.