General - WIP
Important Caveat
Ashes is a deeply strategic and dynamic game. As a result of Phoenixborn matchups, deck-building, and meta changes (from expansions or changes to chain rules) it is nigh possible to give any absolute advice that will apply in every situation. Therefore any strategy tips should be viewed as general guidelines that will lend themselves to improving your play over time. Assume any concrete statements are prefaced with "generally" or "usually".
Setting Yourself Up For Success
Play known good decks
Whether starting out as a new player, a fumbling amateur, or grizzled veteran, it's never too late to play known good decks. Good decks naturally bubble up over time, "qualifying" as good by repeated successful tournament performance. While they may not always be meta relevant, they will have strong and clear plans that are easy understand and straightforward to pilot. Playing good decks removes deck-building as a variable on your path to improving game-play; you can more easily assess mistakes in your in-game choices.
Use known decks as a base for deck-building
Deck-building from scratch can be very intimidating as a new player, especially as the card pool continues to grow and the meta shifts. Starting with a known good deck as a base for building will allow you to limit the number of choices you need to make while still allowing you to flex your own style and preference.
Play with a deck consistently
The deck building in Ashes is so open that it is incredibly fun to continuously brew new ideas and give them a try, and you should not be discouraged from doing so. However for the purposes of increasing your skill and success, playing with single deck consistently gives a lot of benefits:
- you will learn to identify the weaknesses of your deck, and thus be able to better strategize how to overcome them in specific matchups
- you will internalize certain sequencing that needs to be done to maximize your turns and avoid mistakes where you can't afford (either dice or main/side action) to do what you want or need in a round
- you'll remember the cards and better assess your options now and the probability of drawing them
- you'll understand the tempo of your deck and thus when is a good time to attack and defend, PB guard, and in general whether the current situation is helpful or hurtful to your win condition
Do the dice math