So you have taken the first step. Congratulations! You are on your way to being the most popular person in the universe. Everyone loves a mill player! They get invited to all the hip galactic parties, the fanciest restaurants, and they are all the talk at Yoda’s birthday get-togethers.
Not really.
To be a mill player you must know that your deck archetype is the least fun to play against, yet the most rewarding once victory has been achieved. It takes great skill to pilot a mill deck. So let’s take a ride and discuss the million dollar question: Why should I play mill?
Here is my Top 10 List on why YOU should play mill:
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Cost to play is low!
Mill decks are fairly inexpensive to build. Granted, if you play Yoda, he may be the most expensive card in your deck, especially if playing elite. Most mill decks rely on events to help pilot to victory and they are not that hard to get or expensive to buy. Overall, you can build a competitive mill deck for low costs.
- Less reliant on dice rolls!
How many games have you played with Aggro decks hoping to hit the melee or ranged side? How many cards have you pitched to get the desired results? This is not the case with mill decks. Yes, you do need certain die sides but mill decks are not reliant on them to win. Your deck is designed to use what you have and very rarely do you need to pitch cards for a die result.
- Upgrades are not essential for victory!
The beauty of mill is that to be effective you need very few upgrades to be successful. Your upgrades serve a purpose and aren’t hard to come by. Some decks run as little as 4-6 upgrades to victory and so can you! Upgrades typically used also are not expensive to acquire. I love the fact that this archetype does not expect the upgrades to win them the game. The characters used are the main focal point for milling.
- You enjoy control!
As a former Magic: The Gathering player, I loved playing control decks. Removal, board wipes, and mitigation were huge. In Star Wars: Destiny, Mill scratches that itch for me. I love being reactive of what my opponent does than worrying about what can happen to my dice. Perhaps it’s the same for you. You like that power. Who doesn’t enjoy seeing their opponent shift uneasily once you thwart their plans? Basically your opponent is begging you don’t have something to stop their dice rolls. A well-timed card can make them wish they didn’t play you.
- You like a challenge!
Regardless of what you may hear or what you’ve read, playing a mill deck is incredibly challenging. You have to plan ahead. You need to do math on how much is needed to defeat your characters. What cards could they have left in their deck? How many is left to mill? Numerous questions and situations happen that you need to contend with. If anyone ever tells you that playing a mill deck is easy, just be polite because they are delusional. There is an art and science to piloting a mill deck to victory. Trust me on this one.
- Love/Hate Relationship with Mill!
You won’t get much applause from your opponent if you sit across from them with a mill deck. People will tend to groan and be unsettled. Mill decks are loved by some and hated by others. Legacies has made Mill an archetype to be loathed but they must respect it now. Every playtest group needs a mill player or someone to play a Mill deck. Once you pilot Mill well in your area, expect people to seek you out to play their deck against or hope that they don’t face you in a tournament. It’s glorious to be a mill player.
- Tilt is best served with Mill!
A poker term that basically means that they will play off of emotion instead of their skills. Once you achieve this, it will be difficult for your opponent to focus. They will make mistakes. They will misplay. This happens all the time. Games are won and lost by the decisions made. You have the ability to ensure they are on edge for the rest of the game and the tournament by just playing this archetype.If you enjoy this in any way, mill is your deck of choice.
- Mill decks are viable!
Mill decks pre-Legacies were fun to play and slightly competitive. Now they have won a Regional and have had numerous Top 8’s. The era of Mill is upon us. Mill is no longer the doormat of the meta. It is the sleeper pick to win and is now one of the most feared decks in the meta. No one truly believed that Mill could play with the big kids. Now they wish to play against any other deck but mill. Welcome to a new world of viability.
- Meta is undefined!
Remember the days of Poe/Rey dominating the meta every tournament? Remember Poe/Maz? These decks owned the meta after awhile. Now there are so many different decks winning that it’s up for grabs. Mill is a force to be reckoned with. No longer will mill sit by and see others claim victory. This meta is so wide open that mill is considered a top tier deck. Some will still be reluctant to respect it until they lose against it consistently. Mill players welcome that challenge to make believers out of them.
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This is way too fun!!!
Are you kidding me? Seeing cards discarded from your opponent’s hand and their reaction when you take one of their good cards is so satisfying. My favorite is when you mill one of their cards and you hear them groan. Take a second to look at their faces. You will know how devastating it is based on their posture afterwards. Not everyone is good at hiding how bad you hurt their chances to win. It’s so much more exciting to win this way then just dealing damage. So many decks do that, mill is not like the others. Play mill for the fun of it! You may never play another archetype again.
I hope you have enjoyed my Top 10 List. Do you agree with my list? Anything else you’d like to add? Thank you so much for taking this journey with me.
Happy Milling!!!
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I enjoyed this article quite a bit, having dabbled in creating a mill deck. The positive, fun writing style encourages me to make my mill deck more effective.
I also like how you didn’t promote hero over villain, or vice versa, when taking the plunge into mill, leaving it up to the reader to decide what side they want.
I look forward to reading your future articles!
Thanks for the feedback! As this is the only archetype I plan to play with SWD, I felt it was important to say share my thoughts. I look forward to expanding more and discussing options for Mill as we enter a new set.