Cross-Cultural Collaboration

[Creator]

One of the reasons that Decipher screwed everything up by merging cultures together in the Shadows set is because they wanted to see players have a more diverse combination of cultures in their shadow sides, rather than the frequently homogenized one-culture shadows that exist. This was a rather stupid thing to do because it required the banning of old blocks and the reprinting of popular cards under the new cultures-- effectively breaking the game and forcing a lot of players to trash their shadow sides, in my opinion-- however I understand what they were trying to do.

One-culture shadows are really the only ones around because they're the only ones that work reliably. There are only a handful of cards that operate well with other shadow cultures. With that in mind, I think Decipher could have done a better job preserving the longevity of the game (and kept longtime players interested) by creating more collaborative cards instead of making whole new cultures.

So I decided to start making a list of cards that would allow players to begin constructing shadow sides with two or more cultures that would work well together, or one add-on culture that helps boost the main culture, much like the fellowship side. I only have a few right now but I'll add periodically. Let me know what you guys think of this idea.


Endless Horde of Uruk-hai
Event • Skirmish
Spot an Uruk-hai to make each minion strength +4 and lose all game text until the regroup phase. If any of your minions are roaming, the twilight cost of this event is + .
"All Isengard is emptied."

(Adjusted. Reduced initial twilight cost and strength boost is now +4 for every minion, which in my opinion can be pretty dangerous to a fellowship if you've got 3-4 decent minions in play as it greatly increases the chance of a companion being overwhelmed, especially with Nazgul minions. Wouldn't it be cool to see an Uruk-hai Nazgul beatdown?)


Forced Into Conflict
Event • Maneuver
Spot a orc (or 5 companions) to make the Free Peoples player play a companion from their discard pile. That companion comes into play exhausted. The Free Peoples player may exert another companion to return the exhausted companion to their hand.

(Adjusted. The idea behind it now is to make the Freeps player add twilight and a vulnerable companion during the maneuver phase. This could work with a threat deck, because if you have enough minions out it would basically force the Freeps player to exert a companion rather than risk their exhausted companion dying in a skirmish and having threats dumped on their fellowship. Doing this repeatedly would also clog their hand.)

Temptation
Event • Assignment
When you play this event, you may spot a or minion to add . Spot 3 burdens and a companion to make that companion unable to be assigned to a skirmish until the regroup phase. A wizard may exert to prevent this.
"You cannot offer me this ring!"

(Adjusted. Might be overpowered now.)

Answering the Call
Condition • Support Area
Each time you play a , , or minion, add a token here.
Shadow: Remove X tokens from here to play a minion at twilight cost -X (limit ). Discard this condition.

(Adjusted. No longer unique.)

Surprised From Behind
Event • Skirmish
Exert a minion to play a minion from hand. Its twilight cost is -3. If that minion is a , it is ambush .

(Adjusted. I still think this is a good card to discourage double-moving without being overpowering, since the new minion isn't automatically fierce and can't be assigned to skirmish unless it's already fierce. However, play this with a fierce minion like a or even and the freeps player suddenly has a new, potentially large, minion to deal with immediately and without warning. Even if it's not fierce, something like a large Uruk-hai or Dunland minion would make double-moving less appealing if they know they'll have to face it in the next skirmish phase plus whatever else survives the current skirmish phase PLUS whatever you play during your next Shadow. The ambush thing is really just to add twilight for your next Shadow phase in case they move again.)


•It Calls To Them
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, you may spot a minion to add .
Response: each time a burden is added, you may exert a minion to add . If you cannot spot a minion at the start of the regroup phase, discard this condition.
"Shire? Baggins? But that would lead them here!"

(Adjusted. This would work in a burdening deck, especially one that requires events since it adds twilight for those things and frees up other twilight for minions. The minion spotting requirement keeps the condition from hanging around too long.)

• Gollum, Eats Foul Things
Minion
Strength: 4
Vitality: 4
Site: 3
Gollum may not be assigned to a skirmish until the regroup phase.
Regroup: exert a minion to make the Free Peoples player assign Gollum to a skirmish. Once that skirmish is resolved, resume the current phase.
Skirmish: exert a minion to make Gollum strength +2.

(Adjusted. Could be really nasty if you have 2-3 minions with higher vitality, because you can force the Freeps player to battle Gollum repeatedly in Regroup, or exhaust all your minions and just pump him really hard for one skirmish.)
Thoughts?

[FM]

I like the idea, but I think the execution is lacking thus far.

Endless Horde of Uruk-hai
Event • Skirmish
Spot an Uruk-hai to make each minion strength +2 and lose all game text until the regroup phase. If any of your minions are roaming, the twilight cost of this event is + .
"All Isengard is emptied."

(This is a multi-purpose boost for a beatdown deck. It would function well with Uruk-hai and just about any high-strength minion culture like Dunland)

No, it would not. It'd make you waste twilight for a minor strength boost that may not even be necessary outside the skirmish you're playing it in the first place, not to mention cancelling other relevant abilities, like the precious damage +1 they wield. I'd rather play Lurtz's Battle Cry and make my minions weaker in order to nail a key companion in a skirmish.

Forced Into Conflict
Event • Maneuver
Spot a orc and 5 companions to make the Free Peoples player play a companion from their discard pile or hand. If that companion is a Hobbit, make one of your minions strength +2.

(This would work well with shotgun Enquea or just about any card that requires spotting 6 companions).

You can't force them to play a companion from hand unless you reveal their hand, and then, it'd be ridiculously overpowered. Cards that spot 6 companions are there to punish greedy oponents and to level skill, as they have to think about them in-game, not to ruin the game by forcing them to overload on crappy companions so you can Enquea the troublesome ones. Every deck you pretty much be swarms with 4 of these, 4 Enquea and anything else that let's you recycle them. The only other choice would be with 3-4 Greed, 4 Enquea, Evil Afoot AND Runners and these. Congratulations, you just killed the game. I know it's awesome to play those effects, and Enquea'ing someone is very satisfying, but you can't make it a certainty, otherwise, these cards get too powerful. They have a harsh spotting requirement for a reason, you know?

Temptation
Event • Assignment
When you play this event, you may spot a minion to add . Spot 3 burdens and a wizard to make that wizard unable to be assigned to a skirmish until the regroup phase. That wizard may exert to prevent this.
"You cannot offer me this ring!"

(This would open up possibilities for a swarm and just about anything else.)

How exactly does this open the possibility os a swarm? minions cost a lot (at least most of the ones that'd allow you to add burdens anyway), then you have the need to add burdens and... what? Exert a wizard? This wouldn't do anything. Ever. Might as well make is cost 0 and spot a single burden, it'd still not see play anyway, removing Gandalf from the equation is not enough for a swarms. The only clever thing I can see is to combine it in a multicultural News of Mordor deck with a skirmishing Saruman in it so that you can prevent him from skirmishing (and if you made it cost and add , and playable in the Shadow phase, it could actually see some play as  Morgul Gates 5-8, though I still doubt it).

• Answering the Call
Condition • Support Area
Each time you play a , , or minion, add a token here.
Shadow: Remove X tokens from here to play a minion at twilight cost -X (limit ). Discard this condition.

This one I could see word. Weird, as you could stuff it in a non-[Sauron] deck at all and still make tokens, but other than that, I like this one. Sure, being unique makes it suck and the cap is too restrictive, but that's easily fixable. Still wouldn't encourage multicultural decks whatsoever, since it can work without other cards, unless you consider playing this card to be enough to constitute a multicultural shadow...

Surprised From Behind
Event • Skirmish
Play a minion from hand. If that minion is a , it is ambush + .

(A good card to discourage double-moving without being overpowering, since the new minion isn't fierce and can't be assigned to skirmish.)

A crappy card that clogs your hand, does nothing for multicultural decks whatsoever (same case with the card above) and that most of the time will have to be played to cycle out 3 cards from your hand, when you could simply not play it in your deck, play a minion with the extra twilight and cycle the other card anyway.

It Calls To Them
Condition • Support Area
Response: each time the ring-bearer puts on the One Ring, you may exert a minion to add . If you cannot spot any minions at the start of the regroup phase, discard this condition.
"Shire? Baggins? But that would lead them here!"

Not sure what it does for you. It gives twilight way too late to matter, and I don't see multicultural decks using this for nothing, as making the RB wear the ring is a pain in the #$&*@! in the first place, specially when he can see the card and can do the math to figure out if he's screwed, and how bad.

• Gollum, Eats Foul Things
Minion
Strength: 4
Vitality: 4
Site: 3
Gollum may not be assigned to a skirmish until the regroup phase.
Regroup: exert a minion to make the Free Peoples player assign Gollum to a skirmish. Once that skirmish is resolved, resume the current phase.

This Gollum looks like it'd die horribly anytime you tried to pull shenanigans with him, with no way to pump and all, but I could surely seeing it work, specially with Shelob. Oh, wai, same culture... never mind (just kidding, it'd still work with other beefy minions, just not worth it).

[Creator]

Thanks for the feedback, guys. These were just ideas and I'm new to making DC's, so I figured they might make more sense in my head than in reality. That's why I posted them. I still think cross-cultural collaborative cards still have merit to them, so I'll keep working on these (if nothing else because it's fun).

That said, I've made adjustments to all the cards based on the feedback. Here's another couple card ideas as well:

• Paralyzed By The Eye
Condition • Support Area
When you play this condition, add 2 tokens here (or 3 tokens if you can spot a minion).
Maneuver: remove a token from here to exert a companion. That companion may not exert again until the Regroup phase.
The Eye of Sauron struck terror and obedience into all whose gaze it fixed upon.


(This would wreak havoc with an exert-to-wound deck.)

Reckless Curiosity
Condition • Support Area
Response:If one of your conditions is discarded by the Free Peoples player, you may play a minion from your draw deck. The Free Peoples player may exert a companion to prevent this.
"Fool of a Took!"

(Condition protection in literally any deck.)

Grief
Condition • Support Area
If a companion is killed, transfer this condition to a companion. That companion is exhausted and cannot heal. When the Fellowship moves, discard this condition.

(Similar to Black Breath but can be used in any deck.)

Flanking Maunever
Event • Assignment
Exert a minion. That minion's skirmish may not begin until all other skirmishes are resolved.

(Essentially creates lurkers without having to have an annoying lurker mechanic.)

Love Of Destruction
Event • Response
If one of your minions wins a skirmish, make a man strength +3 and fierce.
Grima thrived on the thought of Saruman's schemes.

(Works in any deck with men in it, be it or ; I could also see very nasty possibilities if this were combined with Flanking Maneuver and Bill Ferny, Swarthy Sneering Fellow)

• Driven By The Ring
Condition • Support Area
Response: If Gollum loses a skirmish, make him strength +4 and fierce. Discard this condition.


Thoughts?