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Puzzle Garden #6

Any Way You Can
Difficulty: Medium

Consider the following situation- a Morse Code Poet- normally only three fighting, but due to its controller having five Feng Shui sites in play, each a column to itself, is eight fighting. Even with the four damage on it, that's still four fighting- not too shabby.

This Morse Code Poet is attacking a slightly damaged Aztec Temple- it has exactly four body remaining, but there is a coin face up showing Heads. The attacker doesn't have any power left or any cards in his hand, but it looks like he won't need it.

It looks like this is going to be game over, but the defending player has two power left and exactly one card left in his hand.

Card Focus: Fox Pass

Fox Pass
Feng Shui Site
1 Power, 5 Body
Unique. Turn to change one attacker's target to any Character or front-row Site you control.

Fox Pass? Why Fox Pass? Why now?

Fox Pass is probably one of the most powerful, most versatile of the defensive Feng Shui sites, and veteran players are likely to know of several tricky methods to use it to good effect. New players however, frequently see Fox Pass, and only consider the most basic of its uses. Hopefully this article may be useful to less experienced players, and also point out some new combos to old hands alike.

* Xin Ji Yang unites her father, Xin Kai Sheng and the Centre of the Lotus, Gao Zhang in a plot to launch worldwide attacks in the ancient juncture. The key to her plan is an alliance by marriage to the Alabaster King, an underworld Demon King.

* The Lotus combines the Imperial Chinese army, an army of undead, sorcerers, and millions of demons into one unprecedented infernal army. Xin Ji Yang also solicits some aid from the Queen of the Darkness Pagoda in exchange for underworld-related favours.

* The King of the Thunder Pagoda finds out and sends forces to fight his sister... on principle.

Shadowfist player, Simon Strange, shares with you his card-by-card commentary on the Empire of Evil booster set. Have fun reading and share your thoughts at Shadowfist_forum@yahoogroups.com.

My rating system explained:

1.0 - Totally lame card which I expect will never see play.
2.0 - A reasonable card in some cases, but in general there are better options.
3.0 - A solid card with a good variety of applications.
4.0 - Over the curve. Expect to see these cards early and often.
5.0 - Use it now before it gets nerfed.

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Architect:
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Abomination Serum

This card has great art, and fits the Shadowfist universe really well, but unfortunately it comes to as us as more of a novelty than a workhorse-type card. On its own it's a high-resourced 3 for +3 fighting state. If you have a scientist in play it sort of acts like a Unique Shadowy Mentor - but it's fragile because it requires that the scientist be maintained. For the same power investment I could probably just play CHAR, and in most cases I probably would.

(Solutions)
In all cases, you need to turn the Iron Palace to give your attacker Toughness one on the first attack, so the Deathtrap doesn't kill your character. However, you need to wait until you seize the Eagle Mountain to play your Sinister Priest, because Tim can intercept and kill the character. The only exception is the Evil Princess because you need the extra damage. In most (but not all) cases you can substitute playing a Sinister Priest for playing Lateral Reincarnation to bring a Friends of the Dragon into play instead.

The Tortured Memories and Alabaster Palace are Red Herrings- you don't have enough power to make use of them.

Open Season II
Difficulty: Hard

PG#5_Open Season
Once again, characters are hidden away, waiting to be found.
This time, it's 50 foundation characters, (each six letters or longer in length) from all of Shadowfist's sets, including Empire of Evil.
Find them all, and the remaining letters will spell out a question.
Answer that question, and you have the solution to this puzzle.

"The Monster Mash"
By Matthew D. Woolley

The Monster Mash is a dueling deck that combines jank, resilience and lightning counter attacks in one unpredictably successful package.

The Monster Mash (50 cards)

4 Cave Networks
4 Proving Grounds
Whirlpool of Blood
Fox Pass
Kinoshita House
2 Bandit Hideouts

5 Ogres
4 Little Grasshoppers
4 Rebel Consumers

3 Abysmal Deceivers
3 Redeemed Pirates
3 The Iron Monkey
3 Lui Yu Min

4 Shaolin Hoedowns
2 Mysterious Return
2 Tortured Memories
2 Secrets of Shaolin
2 Violet Meditation

At its core is the combination of Shaolin Hoedown and the Abysmal Deceiver. When played effectively, this combination allows you to attack with a Character and then sacrifice it for more than double its power value.

The Guiding Hand Commons of Empire of Evil
By Josh Jurgensen

Greetings all!
Welcome to the first of a series of introductions to the cards of Empire of Evil. I'll start at what I feel is the most fitting part - Hand Commons. Why are Guiding Hand Commons most fitting, you ask ?

Keep reading and find out why.

I am certain that I am not alone when I feel that the Guiding Hand are one of the few "flagship" Shadowfist factions. Guiding Hand, The Dragons & Eaters of the Lotus are frequently the first three factions that many of our new players see in our games. They are the most evocative and encapsulatory factions of the Shadowfist universe. And don't think I don't know what you're thinking : "encapsulatory isn't a word, you mook". Well, sheddap and strap in while I open up a can of science on you!

Title: 36-Legged Horror!
Subtitle: Spirit of Persistence
Cost: Pur Mag 3
Provides: Pur
Fighting: 4
Text: Mobility. +2 damage to Characters. Cannot be prevented from
intercepting. (This overrides 'cannot intercept' and 'ceases
intercepting' effects.) Not affected by other Character's Stealth
or Superleap.
Tag:
Artist: Angga Satriohadi
Faction: Purists
Set: Empire of Evil
Rarity: U

Title: Abomination Serum
Subtitle: State
Cost: Arch Arch Mag Tech 3
Text: Unique. Subject Character gains +3 Fighting and the designator
*Abomination*. Turn and maintain a *Scientist* Character you

The 6th annual Smackdown in Jacktown is on Saturday, November 7th, 2009.

We'll be forming up registration at 11 a.m. to throw it down at high noon. Meet us at da Vinci primary school at 559 Murphy Dr. in Jackson, Michigan (49202 for the mapquesters).

Bring $5, your meanest Battlematic, most devastating technique, and most powerful fu to face off against the reigning world champion, John Merrill, and the reigning World Dueling Champion, James Deto. There will be a Final Brawl tourney and a Who's the Big Man, Now? tourney.

Do you got what it takes to walk away a champion?