Quarry (Prosperity)

Here's a comprehensive strategy guide for Quarry:

Quarry Strategy Guide

Introduction Quarry is a unique treasure card from Prosperity that provides both economic value and a powerful cost-reduction effect for Action cards. While its base coin value of $1 might seem underwhelming for a $4 cost, the cost reduction ability makes it a powerful enabler for action-heavy strategies and engine builds.

Basic Characteristics - Provides $1 when played - Reduces the cost of all Action cards by $2 (to a minimum of $0) while in play - Costs $4 to purchase - Is a Treasure card, so it plays automatically in your treasure phase

Core Strategic Elements

1. Engine Support Quarry's primary strength lies in its ability to make Action cards more affordable, which is particularly valuable for:
2. Building engines more quickly
3. Making multiple purchases of expensive Actions in a single turn
4. Enabling mass-buying of cheap Actions for rush strategies

5. Supporting combo decks that need multiple copies of key Action cards

6. Timing Considerations Being a Treasure card means Quarry must be played before buying, which creates important timing dynamics:

7. You must commit to playing Quarry before knowing exactly what you'll be able to buy
8. Cannot save Quarry for later purchases in the same turn
9. Works well with cards that give +Buy since you can take advantage of multiple discounted purchases

Key Use Cases

1. Early Game ($4-5 Opening) Opening with Quarry can be strong when:
2. The kingdom features important $5-6 Action cards you want multiple copies of
3. You plan to build an Action-heavy engine

4. There are no competing powerful $4 cards that provide immediate economic boost

5. Mid-Game Transition Quarry becomes particularly valuable when:

6. Transitioning from money play to engine building
7. Looking to acquire multiple copies of key engine pieces

8. Setting up for a big turn where multiple Action purchases will be needed

9. Late Game In the late stages, Quarry can help:

10. Race to empty piles of cheap Actions for three-pile endings
11. Acquire multiple expensive Actions in a single turn for final scoring pushes
12. Enable massive draw and action chains for decisive turns

Synergies and Combinations

1. +Buy Effects Cards that grant additional buys work exceptionally well with Quarry:
2. Market
3. Grand Market
4. Worker's Village

5. Festival These allow you to capitalize on multiple discounted purchases in a single turn.

6. Treasure Gainers/Draw Cards that help you find and play Quarry consistently enhance its value:

7. Merchant Guild
8. Bank
9. Venture
10. Treasury

11. Trading Post

12. Action-Heavy Support Cards Cards that benefit from having many Actions in deck:

13. King's Court/Throne Room (cheaper to acquire multiple copies)
14. Villages (cheaper to stock up on)
15. Draw cards like Laboratory, Smithy

16. Library (cheaper Actions make it more likely to draw to capacity)

17. Cost-Sensitive Cards Cards where cost reduction is particularly impactful:

18. Grand Market (making it cost $4 instead of $6)
19. Forge (cheaper to acquire for trash-for-benefit strategies)
20. King's Court (reduced from $7 to $5)
21. Other expensive terminal Actions

Specific Kingdom Scenarios

1. Village/Smithy Engines Quarry excels in traditional engine builds by:
2. Making Villages cost $2 instead of $4
3. Reducing Smithy cost to $2
4. Enabling faster accumulation of engine pieces

5. Supporting multiple Action purchases per turn

6. Draw-to-X Strategies With cards like Library or Watchtower:

7. Cheaper Actions are more likely to be kept
8. Faster deck cycling

9. More efficient engine building

10. Rush Strategies When pursuing pile-emptying strategies:

11. Makes cheap Actions cost $0
12. Enables mass buying of certain piles
13. Supports three-pile ending attempts

Counter-Strategies and Weaknesses

1. Limited by Treasure Nature
2. Must be played before buying
3. Cannot be saved for later purchases

4. Vulnerable to attacks that hit Treasures

5. Opportunity Cost At $4, Quarry competes with:

6. Silver (immediate $2 production)
7. Key kingdom cards

8. Engine pieces Consider carefully whether the cost reduction will offset the lost economic power

9. Action-Light Kingdoms Quarry's value diminishes when:

10. Few worthwhile Action cards available
11. Money-focused strategies dominate

12. Victory card rushing is optimal

13. Attack Vulnerability Particularly susceptible to:

14. Militia/Discard attacks (being a Treasure)
15. Thieves and similar Treasure attacks
16. Noble Brigand

When to Buy Quarry

Strong Reasons to Buy: 1. Multiple expensive Actions ($5+) in kingdom 2. Planning action-heavy engine 3. Multiple +Buy sources available 4. Key engine pieces cost $4-6 5. Need cost reduction for specific combo

Reasons to Skip: 1. Money-focused kingdom 2. Better $4 alternatives present 3. Few valuable Action cards 4. Need immediate economic boost 5. Racing strategy where tempo is crucial

Quantity Considerations

How many Quarries to buy depends on:

1. Small Engine (1-2 Quarries)
2. Just need occasional cost reduction
3. Limited +Buy available

4. Mixed money/engine strategy

5. Medium Engine (2-3 Quarries)

6. Regular cost reduction needed
7. Some +Buy available

8. Focused on Action cards but not exclusively

9. Heavy Engine (3+ Quarries)

10. Consistent cost reduction crucial
11. Multiple +Buy effects
12. Almost exclusively Action-based strategy

Timing Your Quarry Purchases

Early Game (Turns 1-4): - Consider opening Quarry if key $5-6 Actions present - Balance against need for early economy - Plan engine structure

Mid Game (Turns 5-8): - Best time to add Quarries if engine developing well - Look for opportunities to make multiple discounted purchases - Consider payload needs

Late Game (Turns 9+): - Usually too late to start buying Quarries - Exception: specific combo setups - Focus on using existing Quarries effectively

Advanced Tips and Tricks

1. Warehouse Tracking Keep mental track of:
2. Remaining key Action cards
3. Potential for multiple buys

4. Coin availability for optimal Quarry use

5. Planning Multiple Buys When setting up big turns:

6. Calculate total coin needed
7. Account for all cost reductions

8. Consider order of purchases

9. Pile Control Use Quarry to:

10. Empty specific piles strategically
11. Block opponents from key cards
12. Set up three-pile endings

Sample Turn Examples

Basic Engine Turn: - Play Quarry ($1) - Play Silver ($2) - Buy two Villages at $2 each (normally $4 each) Total: $3 spent for $8 worth of cards

Advanced Engine Turn: - Play 2 Quarries ($2) - Play Gold ($3) - Buy King's Court ($5), Village ($2), Smithy ($2) Total: $9 spent for $15 worth of cards

Kingdom Recommendations

Strong Quarry Kingdoms Include: 1. Multiple expensive Actions ($5-7) 2. Multiple +Buy sources 3. Engine-building support cards 4. Cost-sensitive combos 5. Limited alternative $4 cards

Weak Quarry Kingdoms Have: 1. Few valuable Actions 2. Strong money strategy 3. Better $4 alternatives 4. Racing elements 5. Heavy attack presence

Conclusion

Quarry is a powerful but situational card that excels in: - Action-heavy engines - Cost reduction strategies - Multiple-buy turns - Specific combo setups

Success with Quarry requires: - Careful kingdom analysis - Strong timing decisions - Good treasure management - Clear strategic planning

While not always an auto-buy at $4, Quarry can enable powerful strategies and combinations when used appropriately. Understanding its strengths and limitations allows players to maximize its potential in the right circumstances while avoiding its pitfalls in less suitable situations.