Zygote The arrival of starter decks was significant for Skyweaver. Now, new players can play constructed with competitive decks that can perform well in lower ranks and even not bad at higher ranks.
Creating a powerful deck to reach higher ranks might not be easy for a new player. You unlock new cards while you progress in the game and your collection is still limited. You may choose to buy some cards but, buying a whole deck can be expensive for some players.
One of the best ways to create competitive decks is by building upon the existing starter decks, and the starter decks were created for this purpose. Their structure allows you to build upon them. Sometimes by replacing weak cards with their stronger versions, and sometimes by selecting good pieces that can fit into them.
Today, instead of giving you the decks directly, I will provide examples of cards that you may include in the Ada starter deck. Will talk about why they can be a good fit, and you can choose the ones that you want to add to your decks. This will also allow you to utilize the cards that you already unlocked or can give you an idea of which ones to buy.
Here is the deck code of the Strength Starter if you deleted it before:
SWxSTR0224gSjisS9WiYTUwzdwyc7xYgw9eR2us1aSrgBNHNAnSpFH8P7Sb4RdUXCD8c7FjHgbLwCJXttb1C7upZe7
Pieces of the puzzle
The strength starter deck is built around Ada’s hero ability. The first unit that you summon each turn gains +1 power. There are several cards in the game that can take advantage of this ability and it is crucial to take advantage of some of them
1-Cost
Cards To Remove
Treefolk Sapling: Sapling doesn’t have a bad stat line for a 1-cost card. When played in Ada, it can be a 3-3, yet it doesn’t bring any extra benefits.
Options To Add
Flashbang: A card that shines in early-game. If it is played as the first unit, Flasbang becomes 2-3, with a shield. On top of that it has guard. It can both block and deal damage without quickly dying. Also on death, it attaches blind to an enemy unit. For a 1-cost unit, Flahbang comes with lots of benefits.
Unikron: Why should we use a unit that benefits from banner decks in this starter build? Because its ability synergizes well with the deck. First of all, assuming that you have no banner cards in this deck and you summon it as the first unit, Unikron becomes a 2-4, which is not bad for a 1-cost unit.
If you play Unikron while you have Treefolk Sage in the game, it summons as 1-5, and if you play it as the first unit it becomes a 2-6 which is a very impressive statline for a 1-cost unit. With the same logic, if you play Unikron while you have Bioluminary in the game as the first unit, it becomes a 1-cost 4-4. If you have both Treefolk Sage and Bioluminary in the game, you can watch your opponent concede.
Amalgam: The strength starter deck is not very strong when it comes to card draw and Amalgam can provide an early game option to increase your hand size and have more options to play.
2-Cost
Cards To Remove
Armis Support: Armis support doesn’t provide any benefit as a body and it is highly likely to get removed from the game if you don’t use its spell on the turn you play it.
Armis Tactician: For Tactician to become beneficial you have to play so many units that gain power while it is in play and that is a very unlikely situation.
Scaredy Sentinel: It is simply weak when compared to the Stalwart Sentinel and is better to replace.
Options To Add
Bioluminary: For 2-cost, there are many options that you may choose. Bioluminary provides +1 power to a unit when that unit gains power. Its ability makes it a very good addition to the starter deck since many of its cards are focused on gaining power and Ada’s hero ability gives the first summoned unit +1 power.
Buster, Squire: Buster is a risky card to play which can be very rewarding. If you play the buster first and aim to build around it next turns, Buster might get removed by your opponent. But, if you play it while there are units that can benefit from its effect Buster can be a beneficial card. In addition to that its spell can provide extra value. For example, it can combine well with Treefolk Sage, or Treefolk Leader and boost your powerful units.
Psyche: Psyche already has a very strong body for a 2-cost unit which can even become stronger in Ada decks. When combined with some early-game units such as Sage or Bioluminary, Psyche can become an extremely threatening early-game threat. Its drawback is certainly not nice, but at late game, it can turn into an advantage allowing you to draw a good amount of cards thanks to its spell Memesis “ Dust your hand. Draw a card for each card in the enemy hand ”
Redwood: The strength starter deck has 19 earth cards, and Redwood is an early-game unit that can benefit well from them. Since its ability and spell allow it to gain power, it can combine well with the Sage and Bioluminary. Its spell can also help to boost other units.
Stalwart Sentinel: Stalwart Sentinel is a replacement option for Scaredy Sentinel. It has +1 power and guard. When played as a first unit, it provides a strong body that can push some damage and also defend.
3-Cost
Cards Can Be Replaced
Armis Cannon: Cards in 3 cost are not bad and they can stay in the deck. So, instead of directly removing them, I can recommend replacing them. Cannon can be replaced with Oni Smith. Even though Cannon provides fewer benefits, in terms of Tempo it can be superior to Smith due to its cost. It is up to you and your deck whether to replace it or not.
Armis Trooper: Trooper can be replaced with Steam Knight. A similar scenario applies to this replacement as well. In terms of tempo Trooper can be more beneficial and in terms of power Knight can be better.
If you choose to replace these cards, don’t forget to include some 3-cost units to your deck so as not to destroy your tempo.
Options To Add
Olifant: Olifant is a strong defensive unit thanks to its large health and shield. When played as the first unit in Ada decks, it can also turn into an aggressive option. With other cards in the deck, it can get even stronger. For example, you can apply the Stone Fist on Treefolk Crusher to Olifant or play it while you have a stat-boosting unit on board, such as Armis Flagbearer.
Tatt: Tatt provides a good value by protecting one of your units or even making them stronger if they have guard. It can also trigger some unit’s abilities if you already gave those units guard before such as; Treefolk Leader or Armis Dropship.
4-Cost
Cards To Remove or Replace
Treefolk Brawler: Brawler can be replaced with Treefolk Goliath which has a higher health and spell to trigger its ability. Even though both of these units have a nice ability, their costs are high and their abilities may not trigger if you can’t support them with enough units. So, they can be completely removed from the deck.
Cleave: Cleave can be replaced with Claw Swipe depending on your preference. Swipe deals the same damage with less cost but doesn’t provide a +1 boost which can trigger effects of many units in the starter deck. Which one to use depends on your deck and the decks that you are facing.
Options To Add
Oni Smith: Smith is a valuable unit that can both boost a unit or damage a unit. Its boost can help you trigger unit effects and make them stronger, and its damage can help you remove units.
Oreheart Brawler: Brawler comes with a strong body for its cost and it is protected by Lead. The Starter Deck is built around Earth and Metal cards, and those cards enjoy effects that give them power. Brawler allows them to come into play stronger and can trigger their effects. Brawler’s effect can combine very well with units, such as Treefolk Sage and Bioluminary, and can suddenly create very strong boards that can allow you to end the game very early.
Steam Knight: Steam Knight can work as a nice removal tool in Ada decks if it is played as the first unit. Depending on what other units are on the board, it can get much stronger and provide a good value.
5- Cost
Cards To Remove or Replace
Treefolk Bulwark: Bulwark’s effect may seem nice, but it is not always easy to trigger more than once to gain a good value out of it and the unit’s stats are low considering it doesn’t have any other keyword.
Vanquish: You don’t need to remove Vanquish but you may replace it with Mortal Blow which is 1 cost cheaper but doesn’t provide +1+1 benefits. Considering its +1+1 benefits, Vanquish can fit into the starter deck more. You can decide depending on your deck and the meta.
Options To Add
Band Together: A very useful spell to boost your units, trigger their effects create a sudden strong attack force. If it is used when Bioluminary is on board you can have a very strong board and even end the game easily.
Ground Pound: Since the starter deck includes several units with high health and units that can achieve high health, Ground Pound can be an effective removal tool.
Roothog: Roothog can be an alternative 5-cost unit that can slow down the opponent and later can get stronger with its Anima which can also combine well with some cards.
6-Cost
Cards To Remove
Overgrowth: Overgrowth usually only benefits when you are already leading the game, and it may cause your tempo to slow down. If you are losing the game and requiring solutions, Overgrowth doesn’t provide that and it is an expensive card to use.
Options To Add
Burninate: Burninate is a strong AoE removal spell that can help you clear threats. It is a useful mid to late-game option. Even though it can not clear large units by itself, your units can help to clear them before you play the Burninate.
The rest of the cards in the Starter deck can stay, they are useful options that can help you to win the game.
What else you may add?
El Monstruo: A powerful unit that comes with strong stats and a barrier to protect it. It doesn’t impact the game on the turn that you play it, but it can allow you to win the game next turn.
Titanic’s Command: It can make one of your units stronger, trigger their effects, and summon two more units which can provide you with a powerful board.
Tiamat: A strong finisher that can deal damage and dust units on play. It is very effective since its effect can trigger on the turn you play it and can keep pushing damage or protect your hero.
Titanic: A scary unit that can clear the board and if it survives it can also help you to end the game. Since it has shroud it is hard to remove it with spells.
I hope you enjoyed this guide. All of the recommendations in this guide are optional and you don’t have to implement all of them. Now you check the card that you already have and think about which ones to include, or you may think about which ones to buy.
If you like to read my take on Strength Starter cards, you may check this set review.
See you in the Sky!
