All images courtesy of Ravensburger and Disney
Previews for the newest Disney Lorcana set, Archazia’s Island, don’t officially start until February 10th.
However, we’ve already seen a sneak preview of cards with the set’s marquee feature, dual ink cards.
This is the first time Disney Lorcana cards will feature multiple ink colors. However, we’re not sure how they work just yet. There have been conflicting opinions on this: will they only go into the ink combination on the card (Sven is only playable in Blurple, for example), or will it mean they can go into any deck that shares a color (Belle can go into Sapphire Steel, for example). We’ll find out next week.
It’s an exciting time to be a Lorcana fan, as this spoiler season promises new, exciting mechanics.
Dual Ink Cards Will Go Into Any Lorcana Deck Sharing Their Colors
Let’s start with the big one: my called shot is that the dual ink cards will slot into any ink combination that shares the card’s colors. This means you can put Jafar into Emerald Steel, Amethyst Amber, etc.
While the Disney Lorcana rules state that decks cannot have more than two ink colors, I firmly believe it’s in the game’s best interest to loosen deck building restrictions to encourage diversity.
Take our friend Beast here. If he’s only limited to appearing in a Ruby Sapphire deck, he has no shot, especially since the deck is already cutting items in favor of efficiency. I understand the argument of preventing a theoretical Ruby/Emerald dual ink card from being so powerful that it can slot right into Ruby/Amethyst and Ruby/Sapphire. Having said that, if the goal of the dual ink mechanic is to strengthen underperforming color pairs, you need to make sure those cards are powerful enough on their own to make playing something like Ruby/Steel worth it. Otherwise, one card alone isn’t going to get the job done.
Furthermore, if there are enough powerful Ruby/Steel dual ink cards to make the deck worth playing, all those decks will look similar. Opening up your options allows for far more creativity when designing decks. Beast, for example, could fit super well into a Sapphire/Steel item deck.
Lady Will Make Aggro Tier 1
Surely, this will be the time for aggro to shine, right?
While the best performing Amber/Emerald decks revolve around the Under the Sea combo, aggro versions have flirted with success. However, they haven’t been able to get across the finish line due to the lack of finishing power Amber/Amethyst gets from cards like Merlin – Goat. Lady can help change that, so I’m hoping the dual ink cards can slot into any deck featuring its colors.
If Lady – Miss Park Avenue is locked to strictly Amber/Emerald, you could build an aggro deck that tops out at Kuzco – Temperamental Emperor while recurring cards like Go Go Tomago – Darting Dynamo and Banzai – Gluttonous Predator to keep pressure on your opponent. Sadly, I’m not sure that’s good enough when you can just run these cards:
Now imagine a world where Lady slots into Amber/Amethyst aggro. You’re already recurring Lilo – Escape Artist on her own. Now, you can also keep bringing back its high-powered questers or even a Madam Mim – Snake to protect them from being challenged.
Certain Cards Will Be Power Crept Out of the Game
I want to note that this isn’t a bad thing. It’s the opposite, actually. As Disney Lorcana grows, once powerful cards will become outdated. We’ve already seen it with Sail the Azurite Sea and Tipo – Growing Son outclassing Fishbone Quill and One Jump Ahead.
If my prediction on aggro becoming Tier 1 is correct, we’ll need a way to deal with those decks, which means I’d love to see these cards, in particular, get upgrades:
With Brawl and Grab Your Sword, being able to deal with threats in a more efficient manner is huge. As great as these cards are, they don’t always get the job done when facing down against an avalanche of threats like Daisy Duck – Donald’s Date, and a new addition to Amethyst/Emerald decks, Prince Phillip – Royal Explorer.
Aggro and tempo decks are becoming more efficient, and the game needs to see better ways to deal with them to keep things in check.
As for Let It Go, I’ve been pounding the table for more ink colors to get their own version of Be Prepared. Yes, I know it’s never fun to play against a board wipe, but if more decks have access to the ability to reset the board, it can help other ink combinations compete. Take Sapphire/Steel, for example, which has been outclassed by Ruby/Sapphire this set. Giving Sapphire a board wipe that, say, puts all characters into their controller’s inkwell would be a welcome addition.
We’ll Get A Fully Functioning Combo Deck
Yes, technically, Jafar – Striking Illusionist is the basis of a somewhat successful combo deck in Disney Lorcana, but its fail rate is far too high for my tastes. The deck is a good option for Set Championship tournaments, but beyond that, you’re sadly pushing your luck.
I’m making this call for two reasons. First, Ravensburger‘s introduction of dual ink in Archazia’s Island shows that they’re looking to expand the power of cards. Second, you better believe I’ve tried to make something work with every new set release.
It feels like we’re so close, but there’s just not enough in the card pool to make it work. Ariel is a great option for a win condition, as is Tamatoa – So Shiny. However, we’re lacking when it comes to a draw engine. Maurice – World-Famous Inventor costs far too much, and Maurice’s Workshop is too taxing on our ink. We don’t necessarily need anything special here, just something that lets us draw cards when we play items, which is more than enough.
Ravensburger may be nervous about having a powerful effect on a card, but a new mechanic in Archazia’s Island might be what we need…
Illusions Will Allow For Powerful Cards To Exist With A Drawback
Let’s go back to one of the dual ink cards from earlier.
Jafar’s ability says that whenever one of our Illusion characters is banished on our opponent’s turn, we may return that card to our hand. There’s just one question: what is an Illusion?
That’s the thing: we don’t know, but it sounds like a new character type that may be easier to banish than other characters. Ideally, some of these Illusions can do powerful things when they enter play, helping to make Jafar’s ability that much better.
Consider this: an Illusion character is balanced by having powerful stats at a lower ink cost or strong abilities that make it worth playing, but the drawback is that they can be dealt with in an easier manner than other characters. It’s a risk/reward scenario: you play the Illusion, knowing your opponent can easily deal with it, but if it survives, it’s well worth it.
Cards like this can perfectly slot into combo decks: you know there’s a risk when setting the combo up, and the reward is well worth it.
Previews for Disney Lorcana‘s Arechazia’s Island set begin February 10th. We’ll be here covering new cards, theorycrafting, and building decks in time for the set’s release this March. And to keep an eye on cards as they’re revealed, make sure to bookmark our Arcazia’s Island card image gallery.
