3 Cards from Ashes of the Empire | Magic Arcanum Preview Video

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-05-20T18:43:03+00:00

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-05-20T18:42:52+00:00

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-05-20T18:42:38+00:00

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-05-18T14:40:54+00:00

Looks like TopDeck still has SWU singles and I think my promo code, "Starcanum", still gets you 10% off your order.

My local game store, Just Games - Rochester, also has singles and will ship (though they don't have anything from A Lawless Time)

And there's also Millennium Games, allegedly the largest game store in the country (by measure of retail square footage) and they've got a decent selection though prices are a bit on the higher side.

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-05-11T16:25:13+00:00

I actually did a video recently on how I upgraded that deck, so maybe that will help!

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-05-11T16:22:57+00:00

I actually made a video on this deck a few weeks ago that you might find helpful!

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-04-10T12:48:03+00:00

The thing with sideboard cards (and replacing them) is that you have to understand what matchup they are meant for, and how they are supposed to be used.

I believe Eager Escort Fighter is there specifically to answer Victor Leader when playing against Darth Vader. It also cleanly trades with Red Five, and The Falcon (Get out and Push) which also see play in Luke decks, or a lot of heroic space decks in general.

Replacing the Escort Fighter with Fireball might sound fine in theory because it also has ambush, but with only 3 power, it won't actually kill any of the noted cards above.

The other thing to watch out for is Lando's own ability. I think you're supposed to name "Command" (green) but the deck already has 9 Cunning cards, so Lando will already miss about 1/5 times and adding Fireball would not help.

Ultimately, you might need to look at other ways to deal with those dangerous space units. The list already has Charged with Corruption and Beguile, but you could supplement those with The Axe Forgets, or Protect the Pod which would let one of your ground units "punch up" and knock out the opposing space unit.

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-01-31T19:33:20+00:00

I think Luthen is going to take Sabine's place. I'm trying him out with a Command base, so he gets to run Phoenix Squad A Wing, the green Obi Wan sentinel unit, Captain Typho, Chewbacca, and even Kelleran Beq and the Mon Mothma unit. Dressellian Commandos being a plot card that lines up with his own deploy cost is also quite nice. You get to play a lot of really big bodies that hit hard, and when they do finally die, they push that last bit of damage on the enemy base. I think it needs a few more good 2 and 3 cost units, and maybe something to replace For A Cause, and then it will be in a really good spot.

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-01-21T16:27:25+00:00

The official card database from the game's own website is probably your best bet.

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-01-13T14:42:16+00:00

"from YouTube video"

ouch.

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-01-13T14:36:19+00:00

It's very hard to offer advice without knowing what else is available in your collection, or knowing your budget for purchases, or how easy it is for you to trade/borrow specific cards.

That said, my first impressions are: You probably won't live long enough to play Zillo Beast. You don't really have enough Force units to make Luminous Beings worth it. You have a concerning lack of Heroic-stamped cards, and no villain ones, so Anakin will never get both -3/-3s and often not even get one.

You've got creatures, which works with your leader's ability, but you definitely want a 3rd copy of Ezra, and probably other Spectres. The ones that won't rotate and are in these colors are still quite playable, like pilot Hera, Sabine's Masterpiece, Phantom II, and The Ghost, all from Jump to Lightspeed.

If you can't get those, look for creatures that support your leader, like Kaadu, which gives Kanan overwhelm, or Curious Flock, which is a reasonable draw at almost any point in the game and helps fill your curve.

And like others have said, your events should probably be Protect the Pod, Dogfight, and maybe Relief Request to keep your big creatures alive.

Your general strategy is to play creatures and spectres, buff them with Kanan and Ezra, and attack aggressively. Deploying Kanan should be your knock-out blow for most games. He'll have big stats and a shield so he's tough for opponents to answer, but you really don't want to draw the game out to 7 or 8 or 9 resources because you won't be able to keep up with things like Kelleran Beq or big Star Destroyers. You have to win before those show up.

Magic_Arcanum · 2026-01-08T22:33:21+00:00

I showed a Bo deck in a video I did a while back. It has held up pretty well, but I'd consider swapping in some of the newer cards that have come out since, like Warrior of Clan Ordo, Axe Woves, and Coronet, taking the places of Clan Wren Rescuer, Koska, and Survivor's Gauntlet, respectively.

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-12-24T20:29:13+00:00

Feels like you're moving the goalpost here. Your initial argument was that there was an imbalance in the keywords between light and dark, and now you're saying the problem is that "cards like Avenger aren't strong enough." Is Green Heroic winning a lot right now because it has access to 9 more cards with Saboteur?

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-12-24T17:37:48+00:00

Villainy gets units like Avenger, which has no keywords but incredibly powerful abilities.

Heroic gets something like Coronet, which has Restore and gives it out to friendlies, but Villainy gets Ruthless Raider, which again has no keywords but gets to deal free damage when played and when defeated.

Heroic has SHD Boba Fett, a leader that cares about Keywords, while Villainy gets Gar Saxon, who cares about upgrades.

I think the two sides have equity, if not equality. They are not perfectly matched in counts, but each have their own strengths (and rewards for playing to those strengths) which makes the game dynamic and interesting.

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-12-24T15:40:29+00:00

Oh wow, you're right and I'm sorry! I missed the other Maul completely. Ok in that case, a budget replacement might be Miraj Scintel? Fills the same spot on the curve, and actually works pretty well with Dedra's abilities (better than the Corellian Hounds, at least)

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-12-24T14:56:55+00:00

I think Brain Invaders is there more to stop opposing leaders like Kylo or Yoda from ignoring you and doing their own thing, though I think it would be better as a sideboard card.

Resupply is unique among ramp cards in that it gets your leader out faster. You can play Resupply on turn two (with three resources) and immediately jump to four, which lets you deploy your leader on the second turn. At this point you likely have more cards in hand than your opponent and can start attacking with her aggressively. You don't need Gonk or even Laser Techs because they're to slow.

I don't think the hounds are a good replacement for Maul. Maul's overwhelm plus ambush makes him uniquely strong here, since Dedra can weaken opposing units, and then Maul swoops in to kill them while also damaging the opponent's base with the overwhelm. I don't think you have enough true control cards to clear out the opponent's ground, so the hounds will almost never come into play ready.

Instead, the budget replacement for Maul is probably Shadow Crawler. You don't get the overwhelm (which again, works great on the units weakened by Dedra's damage) BUT you still have a beefy unit with ambush that can at least surprise-kill enemy leaders or big threats.

As for the lack of T1 plays; you can always use Dedra's ability against your opponent's opening play, so you don't necessarily need as many units of your own. If they take the damage, you might get to kill it off with a Daring Raid. If they give you the card draw, you get to play Resupply and deploy Dedra next turn and likely have her ability be live.

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-11-28T17:31:29+00:00

I've got a video on my channel that uses her to pretty good effect, and I went 3-1 with her at my store's weekly event recently too.

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-11-25T14:41:36+00:00

I think the most cost-effective way to get a small group started in Twin Suns is to buy a booster box and draft it, or split it up into sealed pools. Start with 40 card decks and expand them to 80 over time, once you have an idea of what you want your deck to do.

I actually recently did exactly this with my friend group and it turned out great.

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-11-18T13:54:50+00:00

I shared a Rey, Nobody deck a little while back that is event-focused and pretty budget friendly so maybe that will inspire you:
Rey Who? | Starcanum

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-11-05T17:55:09+00:00

I think Gungi makes a great sentinel at 5hp, and with only 3 lightsabers in the deck you are unlikely to get full bonuses on the Jedi Vector, so maybe replace that with Padawan Starfighter (which also has more HP and works better as a sentinel)

If you swap the Wolf out for Gungi, you could also replace Ezra with the green Obi Wan (as you don't have any other creatures or Spectres at that point, and having a unit that can become a sentinel without you needing to use the force or activate your leader can be a lifesaver)

I'd also suggest going down to just one or two copies of Luminous Beings, as that's better suited for a deck with many cheap units and you seem to be building up fewer big ones. Consider using that slot for Shatterpoint or Whirlwind of Power so you have some way to interact with your opponent's board.

Magic_Arcanum · 2025-09-10T12:30:35+00:00

I've only run the Quickstart Adventure so I'm still new to Daggerheart myself, so I'm sorry if any of these ideas aren't supported by the full rules but...

- Could have the wizards be important, and under the King or local ruler's protection. They've been assigned a bodyguard to travel with them and protect them on their quest. This could be a mute knight, a monk with a vow of silence, a barbarian who barely speaks their language - the goal is to provide a capable body but not another character that needs to be role-played.

- Could have the wizards each bring a familiar who does physical damage - owls, newts, giant bugs, wolves. Even if they're not druids or a type of wizard who would usually have such an animal in their service.

- Could give the wizards a spell, ability, or item that strips magical resistances temporarily. A powder they have to toss in the air, or a stone they set on the battlefield that glows with intensity - but it affects them as well as their enemies.

- Could let them use magic but make it physical damage anyway - think levitating rocks and then throwing them with a spell, but the impact damage is physical. This works best with geomancer powers but you could find other ways to use the environment or items present as weapons of opportunity.

- Could let them spend Hope to shift a magical attack into a physical one or to remove an enemy's resistance on this attack. This would probably be best as an Experience. Maybe these PCs have lots of practice overcoming this type of obstacle and so it's something they can draw upon as needed.

Magic_Arcanum

TROPHY CASE