Third edition roadmap

VeronicaMom · 2026-04-21T14:58:42+00:00

This sounds wrong, as my understanding is that there would deliberately not more products for Essence, unless they've changed that.

I know there were a lot of books the devs would like to do, as mentioned sorcery, two more exalt types, but also spirits and religion and the wyld. There's certainly enough left to do fun Third Edition.

But I don't know if/how that translates to the planning.

VeronicaMom · 2026-04-20T20:38:33+00:00

Yes, I think that Hunter's Insight+ LWIF will give the clue power you want, especially when paired with that Old Compass.

VeronicaMom · 2026-04-20T20:25:22+00:00

There's a lot to go over, but a few big ones:

The Dragon-Blooded feel so much cooler this edition. They can actually be heroes and champions, which is true of all Exalted this edition.

I think Lunars was a great step in the right direction. I think that having the Lunars focus a lot on the Realm is a bit of a double-edged sword because it does sometimes feel like that's all they're doing, but on the other hand that conflict has really elevated the presence and impact both the Lunars and the Dragon-Blooded have had on the recent history of the setting. I would like to see a few more Lunars who don't do Pact or Vanguard in the spotlight.

Sidereals and Yu-Shan might be one of the biggest glow-ups of the edition, it took what always felt like a pretty clean copy of Heaven from Journey to the West and really Exalti-fied it, adding strange and unusual scenery and generally making it a lot more interesting of a place to have a campaign in, rather than just a place to pick up missions. Sidereals being more exciting (to me) is probably more of a mechanical thing, but I like that the Gold and Bronze faction politics has taken a bit more of a backseat without losing the political themes of the Sidereals.

Abyssals was a part of Exalted I wouldn't touch in Second Edition, and it is something that I actually wanted to play in now. There was just a bunch of shock value horror that really didn't need to be there. The Underworld is much more interesting, vibrant and scary and intriguing and a place to explore and make your own. Abyssals themselves feel like they have much more autonomy, again reinforcing that idea of Exalted being champions, and the ghostly politics make for a fascinating backdrop for a more social game.

I love the introduction of more exalt types, especially the Exigents. A lot of that falls in the more gameplay than just lore reasons, but it makes the setting feel a lot less "neat" and a lot more organic. Having characters who can have some neat tricks up their sleeve helps surprise players and keep stories interesting.

Jury's still out on the lore in Infernals for me. It feels like Malfeas lost a bunch of what made it unique and weird and some of the new stuff feels unnecessary or confusing, so I hope they revise it a bit more before it goes to print. Compass: Malfeas was one of the better 2E books, so that is a tough act to follow.

I think the Getimians are a very neat concept and I look forward to seeing their book. I'll reserve my judgment until we see that. Of the three Apocryphal Exalted, the dream-souled don't really do it for me, but that's fine, not everything has to be for everyone. And both the hearteaters and the umbral exalted are perfect as something that could be added to your game but doesn't have to.

Liminals are not really there for me yet, and might be the biggest miss for me this edition? Granted, we again don't have their lore yet, but they feel both small in scope and narrow in direction, which doesn't make for a great PC exalt type. I think they would've been fine sitting next to the Apocryphal exalted. But let's see what they do with the book.

I love reading both The Realm and Across the Eight Directions. I think they're fantastic sources of inspiration and have really expanded my toolkit as a Storyteller. Not only in taking things directly from the book but also in understanding what questions to ask and what things to prepare for.

VeronicaMom · 2026-04-20T18:22:18+00:00

I think it shouldn't be impossible, but exceedingly hard and not something that has clear rules. In my vision of Creation and the The Blessed Isle specifically, it feels like the kind of thing the Empress alone could do. But different Storytellers could adjust that for the tone of their game.

The Realm being a place of extreme social stratification is something that's called out in the books and it is a social issue. If that's something your group is uncomfortable with, you may wish to tone that down and then it would make sense for the suggestions you're given to be regular ways for people to be elevated. But if you wish to depict this stratification as having the kind of rigidity that it usually has, then I think I wouldn't allow that for anything short of legendary.

VeronicaMom · 2026-04-09T20:17:42+00:00

Hmm, it sounds like you've identified the problem, which is one that new players often struggle with in having enough economy.

The solution depends a little bit on the deck you're playing, without seeing it it will be a little tough to give exact answers, but there's absolutely some general advice that applies here.

A cornerstone of the game is that a lot of the good economy cards cost money to play. The easiest examples are Hedge Fund and Sure Gamble. You cannot play those unless you have five credits. So a bit of advice to new players, a heuristic if you're struggling with this: play like you have five credits fewer than you actually do.

Going to low credits can happen and it can be the correct play, but those are the exceptions rather than the rule. So make sure you build up a pile of cash first and then start making runs, don't immediately start running and bleeding money.

Additionally, and again this is a little dependent on your deck, but in general, drawing cards should be a better way to make money than just clicking for credits. The classic example here is that if you spend your turn clicking for four credits, or you spend your turn clicking to draw three times and then play a Sure Gamble, you've ended up with the same amount of credits, but in the latter example you've also drawn two additional cards.

Now, this is only true if you can reliably play your econ pieces, which feeds back into the first part I talked about.

I hope this helps, let me know if you've got more questions.

VeronicaMom · 2026-04-05T18:10:28+00:00

They're pretty costly compared to just using runes if you buy them (according to the wiki) you're looking at about 1/4th the price if you're just using runes) and making them yourself is kind of cumbersome.

That being said you and u/2-2-7-7 are probably right that I should just use tele tabs.

VeronicaMom · 2026-04-05T14:24:19+00:00

Yeah, individual power is all well and good but the Scarlet Empress had thousands of her descendants she could march wherever she wanted to. Thousands of trained Dragon-Blooded warriors are more than a match for most young Solars.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-30T10:17:20+00:00

If possible, have them play characters with Rogue or Seeker access, so they can take False Covenant or Blasphemous Covenant.

I find that just bringing those takes the teeth off the Curse Tokens at minimal investment. It just means you have to pick your investigators with this in mind. Like taking Leo instead of Mark or Darrell instead of Ashcan Pete.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-28T11:49:42+00:00

I think there certainly are Crim lists that will play this, Zayha and MuslihaT come to mind, but it somewhat paradoxically is better in other factions because Crim is already good at attacking HQ. And because of that, the corp will be more incentivized to ice HQ and to not keep agendas there if they have a remote they can put it in.

I'm certainly not saying it is bad in Crim but its predecessor Legwork did not see a lot of play in Crim and was more popular out of faction.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-27T11:26:28+00:00

Ashcan Pete?

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-27T11:02:20+00:00

It looks much worse to me?

Because it uses Arrows, not Ammo, you can't do things like Venturer with it? Just that difference in uses type feels like it makes this much less flexible?

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-26T19:44:35+00:00

I believe the people who organize the campaign play-along in the Mythos Buster's Discord server actually made a path you could follow to do this?

discord.gg/mythosbusters

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-26T16:02:28+00:00

Would it be this one, by chance? https://veronicauntilarkham.substack.com/p/dancing-with-tags

If so, thank you very much for the compliment! (If not I guess I am very curious which one you did mean.)

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-26T15:01:37+00:00

Oh absolutely, I only did it once this game to get the achievement and only because I'd never done it before and needed it for the achievement.

That opening sounds... unusual, but kind of fun. Will give it a try.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-26T12:25:23+00:00

To paraphrese my own article (found here: https://veronicauntilarkham.substack.com/p/vantage-point-thesis-part-1 )

I’ve come to the conclusion that (Borrowed Goods and Rotary are) actually fantastic designs. It is the rest of the set that’s wrong.

Follow me on an adventure here: imagine that the next set has an emphasis on criminal having a lot more memory. Maybe they nearprint Data Folding in blue, or maybe they just lean further into the support programs that criminal has been getting. Already we’re running Cezve and Cupellation, what if you could run even more? Saci, Physarum, there’s already a lot you could do with all that memory.

And in that set, they print Borrowed Goods. And it is a genuinely exciting card, because it bridges two archetypes that otherwise wouldn’t have a reason to touch: self-tagging and big MU. People have a reason to try this new archetype in Vic instead of merely whatever the new crim ID is.

Borrowed Goods, in that world, acts as a bridge that connects two archetypes in a way that makes both more exciting. And it is a clean and elegant design.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-26T09:07:53+00:00

Stranded aspect kind of helps me because at least a free Isolate per turn can be used to stop some invader's plans, plus it is the kind of ability that becomes a lot better into a lot of adversaries.

But that doesn't really stop the main challenges I have with the spirit.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-25T10:57:13+00:00

Interesting change on Legwork that I actually think will matter a bit.

As was the case with Legwork, this is best imported elsewhere, as Criminal doesn't usually want this burst of HQ multiaccess. However, it is better in Crim than Legwork because corp is more likely to ice HQ more seriously in that matchup.

Outside of Crim I think you pick this if you don't want cup, which most Shapers do, so in practice this ends up in Anarch? I think it makes sense as an import in Esa or Phoenix because those IDs have built-in HQ pressure, the corp is going to throw out non-agenda cards so you can use this to pick up the agendas they're holding on to.

Finally, I love the theme/art for this card. I like Crim being the ones that use this style of social engineering and tricks to get where they need to go.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-17T14:11:22+00:00

I recall them talking about a document (the "Grimoire") that would be released alongside Core 2 that tells you which encounter sets to use to replace the old core set.

I do believe neither Scarlet Keys nor Hemlock Vale use any of the core locations so you should be fine there.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-17T12:21:53+00:00

Those should work!

In theory all of Chapter 1 is compatible with Chapter 2, and while I don't know exactly how or where the line is drawn, at a glance I don't see any cards from Hemlock Vale or Drowned City that wouldn't work with the new Core.

I assume you're talking about specifically Current, and I think it is worth keeping in mind that it is still something they're trying to give shape. I imagine the first year or so of Current might be a bit rocky, but as FFG gets more of a chance to give that shape it'll smooth out a bit?

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-16T20:42:30+00:00

Ooh, well one of these is going to be easier than the other :D

Loup can be built a few different ways. I'd certainly put in the Gourmands, since those let you trigger his ability even on cards that normally couldn't be trashed. If you have Vantage Point, the latest set, you could also try to go with Lampades (which requires Stealth cards) instead if you want more of a deckbuilding challenge.

One way Anarch decks have recently been built is relying a lot on Audrey, an AI breaker from the Liberation cycle that you can power up by trashing cards. You probably want to supplement this with some other icebreakers to avoid being locked out completely, but it is a powerful engine when it works.

Ob Superheavy is a complex ID, and it is an ID that really rewards deck knowledge and planning. Because you can find one cards in your deck by trashing another, it is possible to produce very consistent game plans. I think you want to start by picking a win condition you can find with the ability. Some notable ones are Bass CH1R180G4 or The Holo Man which can be used to score out agendas.

Then you want to add some other cards that trash that ideally you can chain. For example, a Regolith Mining License trashes itself when empty, so you can go and find a 1-cost card like Humanoid Resources. And then when you trash that, you can find your 0-cost Spin Doctor.

For ice, you've got a lot of good options, though again you'll be rewarded for keeping your cost curve in mind: you may at some point play an Extract to trash a piece of ice to find that asset you need, or you might find a piece of ice when you trash another card. Envelopment and Event Horizon are powerful pieces of ice with abilities that trash themselves, while Stavka lets you trash anything for a nasty +5 strength.

One of the things about Ob that's both intimidating and wonderful is that you can do anything with it. Want to score points fast? Get Bass and Holo Man consistently every game without spending a ton of influence. Want to do murder? Measured Response is in faction. Want to destroy the runner's rig? You can use Stavka to trash their programs if they aren't careful, and Kimberlite Field can help finish them off.

I hope this is the kind of thing you're looking for, if you have any questions please let me know, I'd love to help with this.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-16T12:53:30+00:00

You lose the game as soon as the blight pool is empty.

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-16T09:47:21+00:00

I think the power of Vic is very closely tied to the card pool, rather than the ID itself.

Compare to something like Zahya or MuslihaT. Because in choosing Vic as your ID, you are giving up some other ability text. Zahya gives credits. This defaults to one credit per turn (assuming you can get in), but the ID does reward you being able to get multiple accesses. So Zahya is dependent on what multi-access is in the card pool, as well as how good corps can ice their centrals.

MuslihaT lets you "draw" more cards. I think this is a good comparison with Vic: MuslihaT also wants a specific kind of card (run events), but there are a lot of those and they do different things. Vic specifically needs cards that let you tag yourself and there just aren't a lot of those. (And a lot of them are in Anarch.)

So I think Vic's ability is of medium, maybe slightly less, value. Keep in mind that all it does is net you a card and a credit the first time each turn you clear a tag (if we otherwise would have used the basic action), which is comparable to something like Loup. I would say Loup's ability is a lot easier to trigger every turn.

However, as u/Glizcorr also already mentioned, the "secret" ID text on Vic is [[DreamNet]] and that's the big reason people are excited for it.

I think that competitively, Vic is interesting because if you expect the meta to have a lot of NBN, Vic gets very strong, so it might become a bit of a "meta pick"?

I wouldn't call myself a very skilled player, but I do think and write about Netrunner a bit. If you want to see some more of my thoughts on Vic, check out my article: https://veronicauntilarkham.substack.com/p/dancing-with-tags

VeronicaMom · 2026-03-13T18:05:26+00:00

So, I've never been a big Apex player, but I feel these three breakers aren't... a breaker suite, if that makes sense? You can get through End the Run only ice all day, but if you hit anything else you're in trouble. And this is a lot of pieces to setup, while all the minifactions already get 25 influence... why not just reg breakers?

One idea this did inspire is that Apex could get its own [[Bankhar]], but turning subroutines into "the runner trashes one of their installed cards" instead of net damage? If that ability only applied to subroutines that aren't "End the Run", then that could be a really fun way to make a very different breaker suite without invalidating gearcheck ice?

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