Margrave (Hinterlands)

Here's a comprehensive strategy guide for Margrave:

Margrave Strategy Guide

Introduction Margrave is a powerful $5 action-attack card from Hinterlands that combines strong personal benefits with a meaningful attack effect. Its unique combination of drawing power and hand-size reduction attack makes it a versatile card that can fit into many strategies while disrupting opponents' plans.

Core Benefits

1. Draw Power (+3 Cards)
2. Margrave's primary benefit is significant card draw
3. Helps cycle through your deck quickly
4. Can help find key cards and combinations

5. Particularly valuable early in the game when deck size is small

6. Extra Buy (+1 Buy)

7. Provides flexibility in purchasing
8. Enables double-buy turns
9. Valuable for strategies that want to gain multiple cards per turn

10. Can help grab key cards before opponents

11. Attack Element

12. Forces opponents to draw one card then discard down to 3
13. Unique timing compared to other discard attacks
14. Can disrupt opponents' carefully planned hands
15. May force difficult decisions about which cards to keep

Key Strengths

1. Self-Sufficient
2. Doesn't require other cards to be effective
3. Provides immediate value even if you can't play other actions

4. Works well as a singleton or in multiples

5. Deck Control

6. Helps you see more of your deck each turn
7. Can thin out weak cards through discarding when attacked

8. Enables more consistent access to key cards

9. Tempo Advantage

10. Provides both economic boost (through card draw) and disruption
11. Can create significant gaps in deck quality between players
12. Strong in both early and late game

Using Margrave Effectively

1. Early Game
2. Consider as an early $5 buy
3. Helps find early Gold/key cards
4. Can disrupt opponents' early deck building

5. May force premature greening from opponents

6. Mid Game

7. Excellent for finding key combo pieces
8. Helps maintain pressure on opponents
9. Can enable powerful multi-buy turns

10. Strong support for engine building

11. Late Game

12. Helps find Victory cards
13. Can disrupt opponents' final scoring plans
14. Still provides value through card draw
15. May force premature game end decisions

Key Synergies

1. Additional Actions
2. Village variants
3. King's Court/Throne Room
4. Native Village

5. Works well in action-heavy decks

6. Deck Manipulation

7. Scheme
8. Treasury
9. Haven

10. Helps ensure key cards aren't discarded

11. Draw Cards

12. Laboratory
13. Smithy
14. Council Room

15. Can create powerful drawing chains

16. Duration Cards

17. Wharf
18. Caravan
19. Fishing Village

20. Can help ensure duration effects aren't discarded

21. Action-Attack Synergies

22. Militia
23. Ghost Ship
24. Bureaucrat
25. Can create devastating attack combinations

Counter Strategies

1. Defending Against Margrave
2. Moat/Lighthouse for immunity
3. Horse Traders for draw/discard control
4. Watchtower to protect gained cards

5. Market Square to benefit from discards

6. Alternative Approaches

7. Rush strategies to end game before Margrave impact
8. Big Money variants that function with smaller hands
9. Focus on non-hand-dependent cards

10. Build resistance through deck thickness

11. Competing with Margrave

12. Consider getting your own Margrave
13. Focus on cards that work well with 3-card hands
14. Build engines that can recover quickly
15. Maintain flexibility in strategy

Timing Considerations

1. When to Buy
2. Early if no stronger engine pieces available
3. When opponent is vulnerable to disruption
4. When extra buys become valuable

5. If deck needs drawing power

6. When to Play

7. Early in turn to maximize options
8. Before other draw cards if combining
9. When opponents have full hands

10. To enable multi-buy turns

11. When to Skip

12. If stronger $5 options exist
13. When opponent has strong defenses
14. If deck already has sufficient draw
15. When rush strategy is preferred

Kingdom Considerations

1. Favorable Kingdoms
2. Action-heavy boards
3. Boards lacking other draw
4. Kingdoms with valuable $5-$6 cards

5. Boards with powerful combinations

6. Unfavorable Kingdoms

7. Boards with strong attacks
8. Kingdoms favoring rush strategies
9. Boards with superior $5 options

10. Kingdoms with strong defenses

11. Kingdom Speed

12. Better in medium-paced games
13. Can slow down fast kingdoms
14. Helps control game pace
15. Influences greening timing

Advanced Strategies

1. Engine Building
2. Use as engine accelerator
3. Combine with villages for action chains
4. Enable consistent combo execution

5. Maintain pressure on opponents

6. Deck Control

7. Manage deck composition
8. Control shuffle timing
9. Optimize discard decisions

10. Maintain key card access

11. Attack Timing

12. Coordinate with other attacks
13. Disrupt opponent's key turns
14. Force difficult discard decisions

15. Control game tempo

16. Multi-Margrave Strategies

17. Consider multiple copies
18. Enable consistent drawing
19. Maintain constant pressure
20. Create powerful turns

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Overvaluing
2. Don't buy too many copies
3. Consider opportunity cost
4. Balance with other needs

5. Watch kingdom context

6. Poor Timing

7. Playing too late in turn
8. Missing key attack opportunities
9. Poor coordination with other cards

10. Inefficient buy timing

11. Defensive Errors

12. Over-defending against attacks
13. Neglecting own strategy
14. Poor discard choices

15. Inflexible planning

16. Strategic Mistakes

17. Ignoring kingdom context
18. Poor combination choices
19. Inefficient deck building
20. Neglecting victory conditions

Sample Strategies

1. Basic Engine
2. 2-3 Margrave
3. 4-5 Villages
4. Additional draw/actions

5. Terminal payload

6. Attack Heavy

7. 1-2 Margrave
8. Other attacks
9. Action support

10. Victory cards

11. Big Money Variant

12. 1 Margrave
13. Treasure focus
14. Minimal actions

15. Efficient purchasing

16. Combo Deck

17. 2 Margrave
18. Key combo pieces
19. Action support
20. Engine components

Cost Analysis

1. $5 Slot Competition
2. Council Room
3. Laboratory
4. Market

5. Other kingdom-specific options

6. Opportunity Cost

7. Action usage
8. Deck space
9. Purchase timing

10. Strategic direction

11. Value Assessment

12. Draw power
13. Attack impact
14. Buy utility
15. Combination potential

Conclusion

Margrave is a versatile and powerful card that combines strong personal benefits with meaningful opponent disruption. Its success depends on: - Kingdom context - Strategic timing - Proper support - Effective combination

Key takeaways: 1. Strong early purchase 2. Valuable engine component 3. Effective disruption tool 4. Flexible strategic fit

When used properly, Margrave can: - Accelerate deck development - Disrupt opponent plans - Enable powerful turns - Control game pace

Understanding these aspects will help maximize Margrave's potential in your games.

Advanced Tips

1. Shuffle Timing
2. Track opponent's shuffles
3. Time attacks for maximum impact
4. Manage own deck cycling

5. Consider deck composition

6. Hand Management

7. Plan for opponent's draws
8. Optimize discard decisions
9. Maintain key cards

10. Enable future turns

11. Strategic Flexibility

12. Adapt to game state
13. Adjust to opponent responses
14. Maintain multiple paths

15. Consider alternate approaches

16. Game State Analysis

17. Monitor victory conditions
18. Track opponent strategy
19. Assess attack impact
20. Plan end game

Special Considerations

1. Multiplayer Games
2. Attack impact multiplied
3. Consider table position
4. Manage multiple threats

5. Balance attack focus

6. Tournament Play

7. Time management
8. Consistent execution
9. Defensive preparation

10. Strategic adaptation

11. Online Play

12. Quick decision making
13. Clear planning
14. Efficient execution
15. Time management

Final Thoughts

Margrave's strength lies in its versatility and ability to both improve your deck while disrupting opponents. Success requires: - Clear strategic vision - Effective timing - Proper support - Adaptable execution

Understanding these elements will help you maximize Margrave's potential in your games.