Caught in the Web
As you await the previews coming this week for The Hunted, one of the heroes, surely, has already caught your eye.
A hero might draw your attention because of how glorious it will look as a marvel. Perhaps it’s the flavor of the ability as the hero’s story unfolds. Maybe, tournament viability is what makes a hero enticing. Or, it’s because Legend Story Studios has forced so many Araknis upon us that we can’t look away.
The brood has awoken and the sheer amount of striking art, powerful abilities, and flavor wins is overwhelming. Much like a PSA from the outback, we’re going to rank the Araknis on a scale of S/A/B.
Arakni, Marionette
No longer the Huntsman, Arakni joins the set as Web of Deceit in draft and Blitz or Marionette in Classic Constructed.
Art
I want to start by differentiating the Shadow talent from Chaos. While the art style may seem like similar grotesquery at first, remember that Shadow references the otherworldly powers of iArathael and the corruption of Rathe exemplified in cards like Tear Through the Portal. Chaos, however, has this multilocular vibe that I think is more of a reference to a demonic spider like Arakni’s namesake.
That said, in Arakni, Marionette’s art, we get to see those eyes on full display along their entire cape. The bloody membranes in the background elicit the feeling of a web as Arakni looks down upon their prey. But who will they lower upon? And which mask will they wear?
Strength
The base hero ability is tied to a mechanic we can’t yet fully explore, but from what we do know about marked, you can at least apply it with Mark of the Huntsman. Having start in play ways to threaten marked is a lot of pressure in combination with this ability. Pushing a weapon swing through now equates to extra damage and go again with the threat of a sprinkle of chaos. The one issue with the ability is how often the go again will really matter as it’s only on hit, so I could see the arsenal being pretty easily read as chain enders like Codex of Frailty or Leave no Witnesses.
If the mark lasts until end of turn, you’ll become an Agent of Chaos. We’ll explore those in full next, but as a mechanic, it’s incredibly potent. You give up the ability to go wide, but you gain the ability to access power without needing a mark. With stealth cards like Infect and Assassin cards like Inertia Trap in your deck, you can make any demi-hero work. To completely lean into this, however, is to deckbuild with fewer generics and Chaos cards.
I’m hoping we see a consistent pattern of flipping between base hero and the brood turn by turn, but it’s too dependent on the marked card pool to know for certain. There will be a tension within the deck to fit marks, stealth, Assassin, generics, and Chaos in proper ratios, and while the payoff looks fun and flavorful, it is ultimately random.
Flavor
The name, the art, and entire mechanic of the brood is fitting as it is chaotic. The visual of a brood of assassins high above, lowering themselves like a spider on a web is just fantastic. The competitive viability may be up in the air, but the deck is far from vanilla Flesh and Blood, so I’m keen to give it an A+
I. Arakni, Black Widow
Art
The first of the demi-heroes of the brood, Arakni, Black Widow looks as familiar as she does deadly. With a striking similarity to the iconic Leave No Witnesses, Black Widow has a sense of regality with how clean cut her armor is. With gold bands and a red cape, there isn’t much of a call to chaos. If anything, that leans into her namesake of the black widow spider: a pristine exterior with pure venom inside.
Strength
This is undoubtedly the highest impact Agent of Chaos. The ability to turn any clunky Assassin card into an on-rate attack reaction is already great for action point economy. The additional hit effect is just icing on the cake. While the opponent will get to choose which card to banish, it is an effect that’s always relevant, and in looking for raw power, you want abilities that have the most use cases.
Flavor
There’s just so much to love about this card. The Arakni, Marionette player will be itching to swap into her as much as the opponent will dread facing her. She is the queen of the brood, and well deserving of an S+
II. Arakni, Funnel Web
Art
Now begins the trend of truly leaning into spider-esque art. Arakni, Funnel Web might as well just be a spider, or at least possessed by some chaotic spider entity. We get a glimpse of actual webs spun atop of prey as the blades from both weapon and fang poise to sink in. It’s wildly chaotic and a true “wtf” moment for anyone on their journey of understanding the Chaos aesthetic. In relation to the funnel web spider, however, I don’t see the obvious reference.
Strength
This is easily the second most powerful Agent of Chaos. The main difference in comparison to Arakni, Black Widow comes in two parts. For one, the opponent won’t always have an arsenal. However, when they do, it’s almost certainly a card they want to protect, like Bloodrush Bellow. Since you can’t control who you’re flipping to, Funnel Web might line up poorly or it might be oppressive.
Flavor
For an Arakni that has “Web” in its name, we do get a sense of the entrapment of its prey on the art and with its arsenal ability. Well done, S
III. Arakni, Orb-Weaver
Art
The first thing to draw the eye is the wide samurai hat, jingasa, and the stunning costume on display. The colors match the real life orb-weaver spider quite well with a mix of black and gold, and the length of her fingers do a great job of mirroring the spindly legs of the spider as well. I don’t find it otherwise too relatable to Chaos, but it is definitely representing the source material well.
Strength
This hero opens up an entire mini archetype within Arakni, Marionette. You’re now incentivized to throw your daggers with cards like Flick Knives or from the ability of Mark of the Huntsman for more of a benefit than just damage. It’s never certain when or if you can even replace them due to the random swap mechanic, but at least the Graphene Chelicera puts in a lot of work. Assassin has historically had the problem of not wanting to pay two resources for one damage, but now there’s the outlet to spend even less on the same damage with conditional go again. Assuming decks pack a lot of ways to mark, this adds a lot of pressure to the whittling damage presented by Assassins. My main concern, however, is how the random timing of these game plan-centric mechanics will work out.
Flavor
Swirling around her are the quite literal chelicerae made of graphene, so for that, it earns a bump. It’s probably the most situational of the brood, though, so I’m hesitant to give more than a C
IV. Arakni, Redback
Art
While in real life black widow and redback spiders look alike, there’s no mistaking these two Agents of Chaos. With a hulking silhouette, Arakni, Redback leans once again into an arachnid-warped aesthetic. While it takes a second glance to notice, they’re carrying a giant red umbrella over a traditional weapon, but it’s still some sort of deadly, due to the hanging blades from its brim. Personally, I’m the most terrified of this one because I just have so many questions… Glowing orange body and walking on one hand and one leg?! It’s freaky, and I love it.
Strength
This is a very solid member of the brood. It’s not too flashy, but it will reward a deck that’s already full of stealth cards due to the other synergies to go a bit wider and taller.
Flavor
I think this one’s a people pleaser. It’s fun to look at, and not too oppressive. A
V. Arakni, Tarantula
Art
If you’ve ever seen a tarantula pouncing from its den, you should be scared of this card. The action in the art speaks for itself: this guy is coming for ya. I like the balance of a humanoid Assassin augmented with some spider-like movements and weapons with the eyes in the darkness giving that sense of chaos.
Strength
This is simply a value engine. You’re now able to turn an Assassin card into four damage pretty easily, but the question is how relevant is the dagger’s hit effect beyond the loss of one life. I don’t foresee Arakni, Marionette decks running weapons like Spider’s Bite or Nerve Scalpel, but forcing through a hit of Mark of the Huntsman, at least, can set up a mark for another brood mate next turn.
Flavor
The movement in this card art is so aggressive, but the ability is pretty fair. I think it’s pretty middle of the road as far as the Agents of Chaos go, C+
VI. Arakni, Trap-Door
Art
This art may be the missing link between Arakni, 5L!p3d 7hRu 7h3 cR4X and the rest of the brood. While the real life trap door spider has nothing to do with Into the Spiderverse, that’s totally how this card reads. Some form of chaos has been augmented by Metrix tech, and the result is this bad*ss art.
Strength
Traps have not been a staple in Assassin strategy, but have long existed in the sideboard in the form of Frailty Trap or Inertia Trap. It looks like that trend will continue, since you’ll need some amount of traps to guarantee the value from this ability. It’s very face up, but at minimum, it’s like gaining extra life and thinning your deck from defensive draws as you become the aggressor.
Flavor
The epithet matches the ability, but the art is more standalone. Perhaps Arakni understands that to counter machines such as Terminator Tank, it’s going to take more than just fancy blades. B
Arakni, 5L!p3d 7hRu 7h3 cR4X
We don’t know much about this hero. They exist as a promo attached to the release of The Hunted, but it’s unknown whether they’re found in the set. Still, the legality will coincide with the rest of the brood. Even more credence to “Oops, All Araknis.”
Art
There’s a simplicity to it at first. It looks like a possessed Arakni mask clawing forward, but the more you look at it, the more of a story there is. Behind the mask, there’s three more “ghosts” as Arakni advances forward. In the foreground, the floating teeth start to make sense as a new mask materializing. It’s ominous, it’s in motion, and it’s some part of a greater story.
Strength
This hero is relatively simple. It’s like Arakni, Solitary Confinement has come to Classic Constructed, but now with the Chaos talent and a symmetrical effect. Without knowing the entire Chaos card pool, the strength is hard to decipher, but the downsides are apparent. In any Assassin mirror, the symmetrical effect will give higher rate action economy than just the standard go again from daggers. The question just becomes if your deck is built to have a higher consistency of aggressive stealth cards and payoffs like Spike with Bloodrot.
Flavor
This hero definitely slipped through the cracks and made it into The Hunted in a way we’ve never seen before. I’m eager to hear the lore behind this one and see how Assassin players deckbuild with a symmetrical effect in the game. Tentative B+
That, my arachnid enthusiasts, concludes our journey through the winding web of Arakni. Let me know which hero you’re most excited for (or least excited to face)!
Looking to get into Flesh and Blood on a budget? Then check out our deck techs for Dorinthea Ironsong and Dash I/O. Or for some strategy, follow our guide for when to play or draw.
