Ready To Role
We Talk Tabletop
Destiny: What Lightsaber Pull means for the future of the game
If Destiny is your first venture into TCGs/CCGs, you may not understand why the community is so up in arms about this card. You may have heard a lot of talk about the direction of the game now that we have a “tutor” card: Lightsaber Pull.
WHAT IS A “TUTOR”?
“Tutor” is a Magic: the Gathering slang term that is derived from one of the game’s earliest cards, Demonic Tutor, a two mana sorcery that allowed you to search your deck for any card and put it into your hand. As early as turn two, if you drew this card, you could get whatever card you wanted and be ready to play it as early as turn three. Since I last played M:tG, when Vintage was still called Type One, that card was “restricted” (one copy per deck in a 60 card deck). However, Wizards of the Coast kept printing different versions with various limitations: costing life to cast, more expensive, put on top of deck instead of into hand, can only search for certain card types, etc.
IS LIGHTSABER PULL ON THE RAZOR’S EDGE?
In a vacuum, I don’t think that a “tutor” card is a bad thing for this game. Its free cost is balanced by the fact that you still have to pay full price for the weapon. It has sufficient limitations. You need to spot a blue character and it can only search for a blue weapon. You have to reveal it so your opponent knows how many resources you need to play it. Thrawn. Your opponent can try to make you discard it. It’s also a dead card late game if you’ve already drawn all of your weapons. Additionally, in a thirty-card deck with two copies of each card, you will probably draw the cards you want within the first few turns after mulligans anyways. Sure, it may slightly restrict future design space (they’ll have to keep an eye on cheap blue weapons), but other than that I don’t think it is a problem on its own.
This is hero’s Sith Holocron. The Sith can use their nefarious device to contact each other to obtain powerful force ability if the heroes allow them to roll a special and fail to remove the die.
Now, heroes too can now summon the powerful weapon they need at just the right moment.
Obi Lightsaber Pulls to defeat Darth Maul
R2-D2 throws Luke Lightsaber Pulls to go apeshit on Jabba’s barge
Wait… Lightsaber Pull is neutral? Damnit.
Anyways, we’ve already lost the mostly “back-and-forth” Awakenings days to Maz and FN-2199. Maybe that type of experience was never what the designers intended. But consider this:
- Use your two resources to play Vibroknife on Rey. Because of Ambush and Rey’s ability, you now you have two actions.
- First action: Lightsaber Pull. Search deck. Get Shoto Lightsaber. Shuffle.
- Second action: Overwrite the Vibroknife to play Shoto Lightsaber for free, you STILL have an action.
- Roll out Rey.
Not only are we chaining actions together, but now your opponent has to sit there and watch you search and shuffle your deck before they even get to react. You just played three cards, searched your deck, shuffled your deck, they presumably cut your deck, and rolled out a character. All before your opponent even has an opportunity to interrupt the sequence. That is awfully close to M:tG.
Of course, this is a Magical-Christmasland-scenario in which you need to either go first or not get Disrupted, have an ambush weapon in hand, and Lightsaber Pull in your hand, but we’ve seen crazier stuff. I’m not especially concerned about it, though, because the ideal play is probably to roll out Rey with the Knife first to see if you hit damage before overwriting with the Shoto Lightsaber. The Shoto Lightsaber has worse sides than Vibroknife and doesn’t do much until you have a second weapon.
Rey was dominant during Awakenings. However, she has since lost some of her spark. Maz, FN-2199, and other household names do her job faster, cheaper, or better. Unfortunately, her design in the early stages of the game have forced the designers to keep a close watch on blue hero. Could this be the card that brings one of the main characters of The Last Jedi back into the limelight right before the movie debuts? We shall see.
WRAP UP
Make sure to follow us on all of the different social media platforms, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Twitch, the new Instagram and Patreon, and share this article with friends who you think might also enjoy the game.
We are partnered up with TopDeckTCG.com! TopDeckTCG is your home for Star Wars Destiny strategy, content and singles! TopDeckTCG brings you everything that is Star Wars Destiny from great priced singles and promo cards to build your deck, competitive match play videos, deck tutorials and articles. Click Here For Singles!
We have also partnered up with FlipSide Gaming! Enter the coupon code READYTOROLE at checkout for 10% off!
Ready To Role 