Blood & Iron: Card Balance Changes

Hello friends!

Blood & Iron is on the horizon and the Kards meta is about to be shaken. To make sure it will be stirred as well we are throwing a balance patch on top of the heap of new cards arriving, old cards rotating out and (sometimes) older cards returning to the battlefield for a bit of pin & glory.

To help you wake up to this mad season we are providing you with this handy guide (read: dev blog) to navigate through it all. In total we are touching 12 cards - 7 are getting a shot in the arm (buffed); 5 are just getting shot (nerfed). The purpose of these changes is to make sure that the new shiny stuff coming in Blood & Iron is well supported and not overshadowed by some old ghosts too restless to go away. Let’s take a look

Starting with the nerfs, the first scalpel in the hunt for better balance is the 738. Jäger Regiment. It is a strong contender in any sort of aggressive strategies and even shows up in slower decks as well, such is its power. Well, said power is now 2 instead of 3. By power we mean its defense. It now has a defense of 2. Moving on.

Some have pushed for this change ever since the card showed up last winter. With a full year to push players to the brink of madness it is finally getting close to outlasting its welcome. Pushing the cost to 4 may not seem like a huge nerf, but remember that its best buddy Great Patriotic War is leaving for greener pastures and a certain Dowding System is coming back. Trying to push your way to victory on the back of this card will certainly be more tricky in the near future.

This nerf may not come as a huge surprise to some of you, what with certain entertainment enforcers having spoiled the fun already. Yet this should not really surprise anyone, as these commanding commandos have been tearing it up the last few months, acting as excellent counters to aggressive and slower decks alike. Let’s see if the Devils will still be part of the meta post-Blood & Iron or if they will pull a great trick and convince everyone they never existed.

Bummer Mafia, I mean Bomber Mafia, continues their amazing run of topping the nerfing charts for yet another balance patch. This time the frontend is getting slightly more expensive. Note though that the trigger amount has been reduced accordingly, meaning 9 is still the magic number to get all the marbles. Still, a higher cost is a higher cost and again Dowding System is waiting in the wings, chomping at the bits. 

Finally, Sensei Shibata has finished his lesson for now and has agreed to punch with only one fist moving forward. We will see what kind of vermin this brings out of the woodwork. Perhaps the Sensei will be required for some more double-fisting duties in the future, but for now, let’s all behave. 

That was the last of the nerfs, on to the buffs. First up we have a nice bone to throw all the commando aficionados out there. The Commando Archetype has suffered in recent weeks and all but disappeared. Commando Raid now doubles the Raiders searching for that Lost Archetype, let’s hope they find it before the Nazis screw everything up. 

We at 1939 Games aim for as much historical accuracy as possible and we all know that dragons are known as fast flyers. Hence, it made no sense for Storm Dragon not to have Blitz. We feel so much better now that this important true fact has been set straight. Having said that, we do not anticipate that this buff will set the meta on fire, but at least this big elite bomber is now a better high end threat and gives you some control over triggering its powerful destruction ability. 

Su-76M is really eager to participate in the upcoming tank meta and has gone out of its way to spruce itself up in preparation. Every surface is now shiny enough to shave by and every nut has been nutted and every bolt bolted. Net result: +1 defense. Get, set, go! 

Speaking of +1 defenses, here is another unit receiving the same treatment. Ambush Guards can be a tough nut to crack, to say nothing of the dangerous SISSI units that accompany it, ready to take advantage of the SISSI support cards coming in Blood & Iron. 

Attack being the best defense is a well known oxymoron; 1939 Games being full of oxymorons - this is a marriage made in heaven. This versatile removal order now provides a stronger HQ defense boost, making it that much stronger in keeping aggressive decks in check until you can take over the battlefield. 

The final two cards are both for Polish cards. One of the themes found in Poland when it first appeared in Legions was the survive combat theme. Sadly, the theme lacked strength to really take off, relegating Poland to rely solely on their Legions and Exile themes. Combat survival is a theme we are returning to in Blood & Iron, such as with Britain, so this seemed like the perfect time to give this little-played theme some much needed love. For the 5th Legions Regiment, this means giving it Blitz, making it much stronger as an early play to clog up the battlefield. 

The second Polish buff is to the 7TP tank. It now triggers on any friendly unit surviving combat, not just itself. This allows you to get immediate value out of it if you can attack (and survive) with another unit the turn 7TP comes down. The draw is limited to once per turn though, but this can also trigger during the enemy turn. Let’s see if this refreshing new version of 7TP ups its popularity.

That is all, no more, these are all the changes you are getting this time around. The balance patch will go live alongside the new expansion Blood & Iron on November 28th. As always, we will monitor heavily how the meta develops post-expansion and if needed we are ready and willing to make balance adjustments if required. Until then, hold onto your berets and see you on the battlefield, commander!