Take That, Smartypants!

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Lots of opportunities for big burst here! Double Urien with Double Laerie. Double Chelonia. Double Aembermancy is a little encumbered by no Growth Surge, although it does have Reap or Sow. The Shadows is just okay, though. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/d2f17feb-99de-49ab-a98c-5b1fa6f405d3

Nice to see Smiling Ruth back! That with the Borrow mean you can steal more than just aember. Chelonia and Gruen promise a possibility of some Untamed burst. And Saurian has some nice tools, but I'm still not sold on Diplo-Macy or Ankylo Formation. :P Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/f9d1832d-5b2b-4e10-ab9a-afc9b9fce684

In this episode we'll look at some of the first real Wombo-Combo setups to show up in KeyForge, how to pilot them, and how to stop them. Bobby, come back!

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This deck has some insane aember burst: 4 off the Chant, but also likely from the Aembermancy. Growth Surge and/or Reap or Sow can combo with the Sporegorger to wipe the board, potentially triggering Keyfrog. And two copies of Thin the Herd can mop up board problems. And that's just Untamed! The Logos and Star Alliance are pretty okay, too. Getting Moray locked behind a Light-enhanced Chapman can...

I'm always happy to see Sporegorger. Also, Washed Away is a really nice rare. The legacy here suffers a bit from the same problem as Urien: more armor would really help it, but there isn't any to be had. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/27c6259a-7020-4b2e-be00-f9d4ed3bfef8

Alright, let's talk about what is probably my favorite archetype in KeyForge: Control!

This one has a lot of board presence, and cool abilities if you can start using creatures. However, it's hard to pull off that kind of strategy - lots of board clear and stun/exhaust abilities can really punish. And the deck probably doesn't have enough raw play value to overcome situations that deny it the board. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/a3febd31-da3a-433f-a41d-1d7985df...

This one has some fun steal, and aember generation on the Shadows side in the form of two Easy Marks. The Logos seems okay, and the Saurian offers a bit of control. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/e2772c0d-7107-48b4-8efc-568ead690211

This deck has a lot of fancy upgrades, and a few creatures they'd look really good on. Solid burst in Untamed, too, and a Keyfrog to try and forge on your terms. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/1e8e9819-e4c9-4146-82e1-c928932165ab

In this episode, I talk about the steal, or steal/rush deck archetype.

This is an insane amount of control, but maybe a little too heavy on that, without enough threat of its own. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/9c87cff0-3e67-4ed5-adbe-f29662a14af4

This is a nice aember + board control setup in Sanctum and Fishies, with some archive and warding in Logos. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/c27b1db0-1b8a-484c-9a94-90361f22a204

Another double Trickle-Down is fine with me! And the Unfathomable seems pretty frustrating to sit across from, with Star Alliance adding a bit more soft control. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/b9890f4a-d9e7-4a66-ad64-7bc1fbf05388

In this introductory episode of "Better Know an Archetype", let's talk about the simplest of KeyForge deck archetypes: Rush! The goal here is to generate aember and forge those keys, and who cares what the opponent is doing?

This Shadows has 4 unconditional out-of-hand steals, along with the possibility for a bit more, and a Miasma. And boy, do I love King of the Crag - if only Brobnar were a bit stronger in general, to make King a more important counter! Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/66c354ce-2afc-4c90-b768-551c2f9a5c41

This deck has a lot of really cool pieces (like 3 Hard Simpson!) that I'm not totally sure fit together the way I'd like. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/4ed07f89-e969-4cfc-8882-10696c843eb8

Swallow Whole is a really exciting card. This Unfathomable exhaust setup is pretty cool, but the Maelstroms are a bit iffy when you have the full board of Sanctum built up. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/aca2c98c-ed8a-45a7-bc42-1dc1fb0a2487

This is classic Untamed rush from CotA, with nice support from Brobnar, and a very mediocre Mars setup. It seems pretty likely to be able to pull off a Key Charge, but lack of recursion tools means you just sort of have to play things in the order they arrive. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/3b86b8f6-3734-4109-888e-ce4ea8d036cd

Dark Discovery + Keyfrog means two key cheats, and doubles of Infighting and Witch of the Dawn mean that you could theoretically Keyfrog three times in the same turn. :P The question is, where will the aember come from? Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/6a396384-7b8f-46ef-8790-a3c799e09439

In this episode: some of my favorite Saurian rares, controversial Untamed ones, and why is Staunch Knight in the card pool with Sargassa? Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/7bbdbafb-4b76-4430-bbeb-6d0568b4daf1

This is a fun deck with aember and board control options in every house. Extra fun if you can get the Speed Sigil out early - assuming you can get more value out of it than your opponent. Decklist: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/ee9750f6-041e-409a-9380-89dbb2eecb11

This is a really interesting deck that I have used successfully in competitive TCO and local chainbound. It has some very nice board and deck control against the opponent in Unfathomed, fun board control and burst in Untamed, and then a nice steal setup in Shadows that revolves around pings on Hard Simpson and killing Brend. In the ideal case, you can get lots of free aember from Trickle-Down, kee...

There are some really cool reap combo chains that could trigger here, but they are all predicated on having things survive across turns, so I would expect this to struggle a little bit against decks with damage spray. Decklsit: https://www.keyforgegame.com/deck-details/3f4d22ac-9f42-4913-b3c4-edd34898ade3