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Beginners Guide to Destiny Part III: Battlegrounds

Battlegrounds are quite possibly one of the most ignored part of deck construction. However, it can be one of the most important decisions as the battleground can both help you and hurt you at the same time.  And not just by dealing damage.  You need to give careful consideration to not only what battleground you take, or even if you want (or need) to take your battlefield if you win the initial dice roll.

Your first task when choosing a battlefield to fit into your deck is to ask yourself “How often do I want or need to claim this battlefield?” Or, to put it another way, how often do I need to be able to deny my opponent the chance to claim the battlefield?  If you are running a four Character build, for example, you have many activations and actions each turn, and against decks with fewer Characters and actions, you will probably not be able to claim the battlefield many times.  On the other hand, a two Character build can expect reasonably expect to claim the battlefield several times in the course of a game.

There are three different types of battlefields in the game. The first one is the helpful battlefield.  This type of battlefield grants you, the claiming player, a boon.  This boon may or may not have an impact on your opponent, but its primary claim effect has a positive effect on you.  The best example of this is Emperor’s Throne Room (AW167) “Claim – Turn on of your dice to a side showing a special ability. Then you may resolve that die.”  Special abilities can help you out without hurting your opponent like the Sith Holocron (AW16), or hurt them like Rey’s Staff (AW44).

The second type of battlefield is designed to hurt or hamper your opponent when you claim it. Separatist Base (AW173) “Claim – Each opponent chooses and deals 1 unblockable damage to one of their characters.” is a great example of this.  The damage taken from the battlefield go through shields, which makes it super deadly.  It forces your opponent to deal the damage to their own Character.  This ability can be used to great effect in the mid to late game when Characters are starting to run low on health.

The final battlefield is the neutral battlefield. While this battlefield provides a boon to the player that claims it, it does not hurt the player that doesn’t claim it.  Imperial Armory (AW169) “Claim – Play an upgrade from your hand, decreasing its cost by 1.” is a great example of this.  If you build your deck around this battlefield you are more able to take advantage of its claim than your opponent.  If, on the other hand, your opponent claims the battlefield, they may (or may not) be able to take advantage of its claim ability.

You need to always remember that no matter what battlefield you choose, if you do not win the dice roll to be able to choose the battlefield, be prepared to not have your battlefield chosen. Your battlefield needs to be a component to your overall strategy, but not the lynchpin that keeps your strategy together.  Also, even in the best cases, be prepared to have your opponent claim the battlefield in the course of the game, if only to deny you the claim ability that the battlefield provides.


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