…It's What You Commandeer
Submitted by Telak on Mon, 01/07/2008 - 19:27
This Deck was build by openCards user Hoss-Drone and was published first on "The Continuing Committee (trekcc.org)" at Jan 3rd, 2008.
…It's What You Commandeer
Deck listing:
Missions:
Dual: 16
Event (11):
Interrupt (5):
Personnel (22):
Ship (6):
Hints & strategie notes for this Deck
Months ago, I visited decipher.com and came to discover that a collection of cards from What You Leave Behind had been posted. One of those cards immediately caught my eye. That card was Commandeer Prototyp.
My mind immediately began to race with a list of possibilities. I could download the Phoenix (Risen From the Ashes) directly to a mission and force my opponent to score ten more points to win. I could use the Baraka with the Romulans and put those extra points they generate to good use. I could download Quark's Treasure, Sabotaged Shuttle, played with Khan Noonien Singh, Bold Man to become its corresponding Commander, and potentially take that game-winning extra turn in the clutch! That’s straight cash, homey! However, the combination that really stuck in my mind was to use Commandeer Prototype to download the Alpha Quadrant’s most stolen ship, the U.S.S. Defiant, Commandeered Warship. Not only does its subtitle make it the perfect choice, but so does its game text.
In Second Edition, the front lines are the missions you attempt and the ground you take is often measured in the dilemmas put under those missions. The Defiant has been taking ground in glorious service of the Founders for years now. With Commandeer Prototype, the Romulans, Klingons, Ferengi and Cardassians can join in the fun!
Now that What You Leave Behind has been released, the first deck I’ve put together centers on this powerful new mission and that tough little ship. The strategy is simple. Complete Commandeer Prototyp, download the Defiant, start moving dilemmas to either Eliminate Sphere Network or Restore Errant Moon (depending on your skills in play), complete that mission, and finally move dilemmas to the mission you left for last. Of course, the Defiant is only any good to you if it’s actually in the deck to be downloaded. If you drew it into your hand before completing Commandeer Prototype, These Are The Voyages is the answer to put the Defiant at the bottom of the deck, gain card drawing advantage, and possibly even dig for a card you need, like an early-game ship.
I chose to go with the Klingon affiliation and utilize another card that specializes in Commandeering - Kruge, Instinctive Commander. Kruge has all the skills necessary to complete the lower Cunning requirement, he has a command star to meet the Defiant’s staffing requirements, and he has Astrometrics, an important skill for overcoming space dilemmas. He can also contribute his Astrometrics for completing Restore Errant Moon. He gets a plethora of help from seven other different sources of Astrometrics necessary to make sure you can come up with three when you need them. Engineer is the next most important skill in the deck as it is necessary to complete two of your missions and staff the Defiant. To give the deck speed and dilemma-busting power, three copies of The Promise and Energize, and two copies of Stricken Dumb are included. Strength is by far the Klingons' greatest attribute, and this deck takes advantage of that by using two copies of Warrior’s Birthright to avoid using those Cunning requirements, and U.S.S. Enterprise-J to give a boost to completing the two 40-point missions whether or not you have Warrior's Birthright at your disposal.
Rounding out the deck is a collection of personnel meant to give you help in various areas. Persis, Loyal Daughter and Khan Noonien Singh, Bold Man give you eight Cunning and Strength along with Engineer, the group of Past Klingons provides needed dilemma-busting skills (not to mention potential cost reductions for efficiency), Worf, The Strongest Heart gives you help getting personnel past random stops while providing a use for any duplicate events in hand, and several personnel with 2 Diplomacy will help get you past Gomtuu Shock Wave.
Finally, the unsung heroes of the deck are S'salk, Gorn Captain and William T. Riker, Exchange Officer. While they don’t have Astrometrics or Engineer, they do have Leadership and Officer for mission skills. However, where they really contribute is with their game text. Riker really doesn’t need an introduction as he’s been banking skills to overcome dilemmas and complete missions for years. S’salk, though, is a hoss. The Defiant will be putting two or more dilemmas under a mission before your personnel attempt it, so at the least he’ll be attributes seven across. Put four under and he’s nine across. This will go a long way in helping you overcome a popular dilemma like Chula: The Dice (or any other dilemma with an attribute requirement).
Speaking of dilemmas, now that the deck is together, let's discuss the dilemma pile. The Defiant is going to need time to help you get through your missions, so you’ll need a pile that’s going to effectively slow down and stop your opponent. What You Leave Behind has some efficient new dilemmas that will certainly help you. Moral Choice will either stop one person for cost two or it will stop three people if one is Federation. For cost four, Chula: The Chandra will either stop two or it will stop three or more. A lot of decks these days are packing high-cost personnel to use with These Are The Voyages or against The Dal'Rok. Select that person with The Chandra and you could potentially stop the entire mission team or at least stop enough to cause your opponent to fail the attempt. Old Differences offers another efficient means of slowing your opponent down. Two stops that will either cost three at a lower-point mission your opponent is most likely attempting with fewer people, or two stops for cost four at a higher-point mission that he or she will need more personnel to complete with. Now that you have your means to slow your opponent down, let's talk about ways of stopping him or her and buying more turns. Gomtuu Shockwave will work well with Moral Choice and chances are an opponent will lose a turn repairing the damage. Rogue Borg Ambush continues to provide either difficult attribute requirements or a difficult skill requirement. Where No One Has Gone Before will send your opponent to the far reaches of space and buy you two turns. Lastly, Outclassed will most likely "one drop stop" a fast-moving opponent trying to use a cheap, low-attribute ship.
Now you have a deck that will remind you that it’s not what you leave behind…it’s what you commandeer!
