Hasbro Deck Ideas and Signature Cards

by Darth Trumpetus

 

“Deck Ideas” in Hasbro Deck Construction

 

Every Hasbro deck has a central “deck idea.” These ideas give each character a main “path to victory.” In addition, most decks have a “signature card” that helps illustrate the deck idea, and of which there are usually 2-4 copies of the card in the deck. The Signature card is a powerful (though not necessarily the *most* powerful), reliable and unique card. Every card in the Hasbro decks is either directly related to the deck idea, supports the deck idea, and/or helps define the character in some specific way. All of the cards in the Hasbro decks have a purpose for being there with only a few rare exceptions. Also listed before the summaries are "killer combos." These combos are the most deadly combination of cards in the deck and further illustrate the main "path to victory."

 

This article will dissect each deck’s “idea” in order to help illuminate how each card falls into one of the three categories mentioned above. This is not a discussion of strategy, although the summaries and discussion of each deck’s main path to victory could just as easily be one. Many of the decks have alternate, less obvious paths to victory that can be found utilizing various strategy. Instead, this article is a dissection of each deck with relation to this perceived “deck idea.” Ideally this will help with custom deck design in that it will provide a standard by which to compare other decks, and will hopefully lead to newer and more interesting constructions.

 

 

Anakin Skywalker and Padme

Deck Idea: High Powered Offense

-Anger (x2): Attack 8

-Wrath (x3): 7 damage minor

-Precise Shot: Attack 9

-Shot on the Run: Attack 6

-Red Deck: Attack 5 (x4)

 

Support:

-Calm (x2): can be used directly in combo with Anger.

-Counterattack (x2): supports lack of defense in the red deck and has 1 damage (more offense).

-Protection: supports Padme’s character by increasing her staying power, because as a minor character with major offense cards, she becomes a frequent target of attacks and needs additional staying power.

 

Character Defining:

-Anger

-Calm

-Counterattack

 

Signature Card:

-Wrath

 

Killer Combo:

-Anger, then Calm.

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Anakin’s path to victory is in his powerful offense. He has a very strong minor with two powerful attacks. As Anakin has a red deck, the powerful minor serves as a distraction away from him and his lack of defense. His Wraths are powerful cards that will take down minor characters fast, which ideally gives him the upper hand in positioning. After Padme has dealt her damage, Anakin can get in there and finish off the opponents with the Anger/Calm combo, or vice versa.

 

Boba Fett and Greedo

Deck Idea: High Powered Offense

-Kyber Dart: Attack 9

-Deadly Aim: Attack 7

-Thermal Detonator (x2): 4 damage multi-target

-Wrist Cable (x2): 2 damage

-Desperate Shot: Attack 7

 

Support:

-Rocket Retreat (x3): with a yellow deck and low HP, this gives Boba added staying power through movement (as well as more offense cards).

-Sudden Arrival (x2): gives Greedo extra movement cards and is meant to combo with Desperate Shot. Sudden Arrival is more directly related to Greedo’s character than the deck theme (aka, movie recreation moment), but it can serve to block enemies to counter Boba’s low HP and lack of defense as well.

 

Character Defining:

-Thermal Detonator

-Rocket Retreat

-Wrist Cable

-Desperate Shot

-Sudden Arrival

 

Signature Card:

-Rocket Retreat

 

Killer Combo:

-Thermal Detonator, then Kyber Dart

-Deadly Aim, then Kyber Dart

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Boba’s path to victory is in his powerful offense. He has three powerful attacks and 4 direct damage cards. As he is low on defense and hit points, the added movement in Rocket Retreat will help him put space between him and his opponents, thus buying him time to draw his offense.

 

Count Dooku and Super Battle Droids

Deck Idea: Power and Control

-Tauntings (x4): Attack 7 (power)

-Gain Power (x2): Draw 3 (power)

-Force Drain: Discard 2 random (control)

-Give Orders (x3): Multi-move 4 (control)

-Force Push (x2): Move opponent, 1 damage (control)

 

Support:

-Minor characters: some of the most powerful minors in the game in terms of basic cards.

 

Character Defining:

-Taunting

-Force Push

-Give Orders

 

Signature Card:

-Taunting

 

Killer Combo:

-Taunting, then Taunting

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Dooku’s path to victory is in his Tauntings. Gain Power lets him get through his deck faster so the Tauntings appear more frequently, while Give Orders and Force Push give him control over the board. Controlling the board lets him buy time to get to his Tauntings faster as well. Force Drain can help control your opponent’s hand while you’re drawing to get Taunting.

 

Darth Maul and Battle Droids

Deck Idea: Flurry of Offense

-Sith Speed (x3) Attack 3 non-action

-Super Sith Speed (x3) Attack 4 non-action

-Athletic Surge (x3) Attack 8

-Red Deck: Attack 5 (x4)

 

Support:

-Blinding Surge (x2): Maul takes a hit, but dishes out 3 DD (offense) during the opponent’s turn. If you combo that between two turns of massive attacks from Maul, then the game is his.

-Martial Defense (x1), some token defense for a character with a red deck.

 

Character Defining:

-Athletic Surge

-Speeds

 

Signature Card:

-(Super) Sith Speeds

 

Killer Combo:

-Sith Speed x3, then Super Sith Speed x3, then Athletic Surge x2 (37 attack points in one turn)

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Maul’s path to victory is in his non-action attacks. Sit back and draw constantly until you’ve got a few non-action attacks. If you’ve got a pocket Blinding Surge in the mix, then it’s a piece of cake. Move in and give it all you’ve got, take a hit to dish out the DD and finish the guy off the next turn.

 

Darth Vader and Stormtroopers

Deck Idea: Direct Damage

-Throw Debris (x2): 4 damage

-Wrath (x3): 2 damage multi-target

-Choke (x3) 6 damage minor

 

Support:

-Dark Side Drain (x2): is great against minors, but oops…Choke and Wrath kill them off (which themselves don’t work well together either). The healing here is meant to support his lack of defense in a red deck, but this is a weak card for that, especially considering what direct damage cards he has.

 

Character Defining:

-All Too Easy: a neat idea, but rarely works in practice. It would be deadly support in a deck with lots of attacks, which this deck doesn’t have.

-Your Skills Are Not Complete: a weak card that doesn’t relate to anything in this deck outside of being character defining. It can almost be used in combo with ATE to see your opponent’s hand, but that’s about it.

 

Signature Card:

-Choke (or Wrath)

 

Killer Combo:

-Throw Debris, then Throw Debris

-YSANC, then ATE (maybe?)

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Vader’s deck is arguably one of the weakest decks and doesn’t work well…why? Because too many cards are either not related to the deck idea, or are poor support, and there is no real path to victory. Vader does well in team games when he can utilize his multiple Chokes, and against characters with low HP where he can rely on his DD alone to win, but otherwise this is a poor deck from a design perspective. The cards work against each other more often than not.

 

Emperor Palpatine and Royal Guard

Deck Idea: Direct Damage and Discarding

-Force Lighting (x4): 4 damage

-You Will Die: Discard entire hand

-Let Go of Your Hatred (x2): Discard 2 chosen

 

Support:

-Future Foreseen (x2): lets Palpatine dip into his draw pile to get at You Will Die faster

-Meditation (x2): combos with You Will Die perfectly to prevent opponent from having cards in their hand

 

Character Defining:

-Force Lightning

-You Will Die

-Let Go of Your Hatred

 

Signature Card:

-Force Lightning

 

Killer Combo:

-You Will Die, then Meditation; Attack 4 x2; Let Go then Attack 4; Force Lightning x2, etc.

 

Not Related:

-Royal Command: some token movement and arguably a “filler” card. His deck is strong enough with or without it.

 

Summary: Palpatine’s path to victory is in his ability to disarm his opponent through discarding. Combo-ing You Will Die with Meditation and then following up with Let Go and Force Lightnings will ensure your opponent never has a hand, and allows you to land any smaller attacks undefended. This is one of the most interesting deck ideas IMO, and one of the most solidly constructed Hasbro decks.

 

Han Solo and Chewbacca

Deck Idea: Reverse Power Structure (minor stronger than major) with One Massive Attack Recycle

-Bowcaster: Attack 11

-Never Tell Me the Odds (x2): 2 damage, reshuffle discard pile

-Wookiee Instincts: draw Bowcaster

 

Support:

-It’s Not Wise (x2): keeps the opponent away from Han and does some damage in the process

-Wookiee Healing: gives Chewie even more staying power. As he’s the meat of the deck, he needs all the help he can get.

-Heroic Retreat (x2), gives Han an escape option to keep him alive a bit longer

 

Character Defining:

-Gambler’s Luck (x3), doesn’t really fit the deck idea, but it sure fits Han’s character to a tee.

 

Signature Card:

-Gambler's Luck

 

Killer Combo:

-Bowcaster, then Never Tell Me The Odds

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Han’s path to victory is through Chewie’s Bowcaster card. Wookiee Instincts allows you get to it faster, and Never Tell Me the Odds lets you use it again and again (theoretically). All the support cards, save Gambler’s Luck, serve to add staying power to Han and Chewie, as the recycle theme takes a long time to execute. From a critical perspective, the support could arguably be a little better.

 

Jango Fett and Zam Wessell

Deck Idea: Teamwork Offense and Movement

-Missle Launch: Attack 7 (Jango)

-Assassination: Attack 7 and move anywhere (Zam)

-Rocket Retreat (x3): Attack 4 and move anywhere (Jango)

-Sniper Shot (x3): Attack 3/6 (Zam)

-Wrist Cable (x2): 2 damage

-Fire Up the Jetpack: move anywhere

-Flamethrower: 2 damage and move targets 3

 

Support:

-None

 

Character Defining:

-All of them

 

Signature Card:

-Rocket Retreat

 

Killer Combo:

-Assassination, then Missle Launch

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Jango’s path to victory is using his movement to keep his distance, and then working together with Zam to overwhelm the opponent with offense. Zam is nearly as powerful as Jango, and in order to get Zam’s Sniper Shots to connect, the two of them have to overwhelm the opponent with attacks. Between the two of them they have 8 power attacks (1 less than Maul!), and the deck has 5 move anywhere cards and one move opponent card. Jango is nimble and will be hard to catch, while at the same time will be attacking constantly to whittle away his opponent’s defense.

 

Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia

Deck Idea: “Anti-Offense” and Timed Attacks

-I Will Not Fight You (x3): everyone discards attack cards (anti-offense)

-Luke’s In Trouble (x2): healing Luke while he's not fighting (anti-offense)

-Latent Force Abilities (x2): Attack 7 (timing)

-Justice (x2): Attack 4/10 (timing)

 

Support:

-Children of the Force (x3): keeps Luke out of trouble and away from the action

 

Character Defining:

-I Will Not Fight You

 

Signature Card:

-I Will Not Fight You (or Children of The Force)

 

Killer Combo:

-Latent Force Abilities x2

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Luke’s path to victory is using I Will Not Fight You to force his opponent’s to ditch their offense. The only problem is that Luke ends up having to ditch his offense too (and with a red deck this is a poor design). Timing in this deck is everything. You’ve got to get your attacks off before your opponent, and then make them discard their stuff. You also have to time Justice properly. If you know your opponent isn’t going to kill Leia, don’t save Justice. It’s a frustrating deck that doesn’t work all that well, because it could use more cards directly related to his “anti-offense” idea, but when it does work, the frustration shifts to your opponent.

 

Mace Windu

Deck Idea: Stockpiling and Hit and Run

-Battlemind (x4): potential Attack/Defend 9

-Masterful Fighting (x2): Attack 5, draw card

-Wisdom (x4): Move 5, draw card

 

Support:

-Whirlwind (x2): gives Mace damage potential, as stockpiling means not attacking much, and not attacking much means opponent will have defense when you finally do.

 

Character Defining:

-Battlemind

-Wisdom

-Masterful Fighting

 

Signature Card:

-Battlemind

 

Killer Combo:

-Whirldwind Attack, then Widsom

-Battlemind Attack, then Battlemind Attack

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Mace’s path to victory is sitting back and drawing cards to build up a full hand in order to make full use of Battlemind. His hit and run cards allow him to get in some offense and escape to safety in order to continue stockpiling (all the while giving him a draw card to keep his hand size up). Mace’s cards on their own aren’t all that powerful, but they all work so well together that he is a formidable opponent.

 

Obi-Wan Kenobi

Deck Idea: Hit and Run, and Manipulation

-Jedi Attack (x3): Attack 6 move 6 (hit and run)

-Force Quickness (x2): move 8 (hit and run)

-Force Control (x2): Attack 7 move everyone 3 (both)

-Force Balance: everyone discards hand, draws 3 (manipulation)

-Jedi Mind Trick: draw card from discard pile (manipulation)

 

 

Support:

-Jedi Block (x3), when the opponent finally catches up after all that hitting and running, he’s ready to block it all.

 

Character Defining:

-Jedi Mind Trick

 

Signature Card:

-Jedi Attack

 

Killer Combo:

-Force Control, then Jedi Attack

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: Obi’s path to victory is all about attacking and running away while manipulating his opponent. Force Control can be used for escaping, or manipulating an escape, while Jedi Attack is the perfect escape card. Force Quickness works well for running either to or from an opponent. Force Balance can be timed perfectly to destroy your opponent's strategy, while Jedi Mind Trick helps minimize the loss from Force Balance. Obi-Wan's deck is regarded as one of the strongest of the Hasbro decks, largely because his hit and run idea is so well fleshed out, and he has no apparent weaknesses.

 

Yoda

Deck Idea: Defense and Manipulation

-Serenity (x2): Defend 15 (defense)

-Green Deck (defense)

-Force Rebound (x1): Defend All, opponent eats attack (both)

-Force Lift (x3): opponent can’t move, attack, or defend (manipulation)

-Force Push (x2): move opponent anywhere, 3 damage (manipulation)

-Insight (x2): Discard chosen (manipulation)

 

 

Support:

-Force Strike (x2): combos with Force Lifts

 

Character Defining:

-Force Rebound

-Force Lift

-Force Push

-Insight

 

Signature Card:

-Force Lift

 

Killer Combo:

-Force Lift, then Force Strike

 

Not Related:

-None

 

Summary: In Yoda’s path to victory, if you get too close to him, you’ll regret it as he will manipulate you to no end. He’ll lift you, he’ll push you, and he’ll pull your best cards. If that wasn’t bad enough, he’s got more defense than any other character in the game, including one that forces you to eat your own attack. From a critical perspective, this deck misses out on extra movement…but if it had movement cards, would you really want to play against it?