.webp)
Marcolian Beginners Guide
Armored Division HQ King Deck
Written By
freetipscout
October 23, 2024
So far in this guide we’ve introduced you to a Peasant deck with only Common and Uncommon cards, a Noble deck adding Rares into the mix and now it’s time to look at our Armored Division HQ King deck which goes even further by including Legendary cards into the build.
By constructing a deck that includes some of the highest rarity cards in the game we can bolster the appeal of playing Armored Division which isn’t one of the strongest Marco decks but can still be semi-competitive and fun to play in a build like this.
The overall strategy for this deck is similar to our Lemi one where the aim is to get lots of low cost units down nice and early to establish board presence and increase our chances of triggering Assault from units in play.
The difference here is that we need to find and play as many vehicles as possible in order to benefit from the passive buff that vehicles receive from Armored Division HQ.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the key cards within this deck so we can understand the overall play strategy and where our win conditions come from.
Early Game Cards
In a deck where we need to find as many vehicles as possible there is nobody better in the entire Marcolian order than the Crimson Fleet Machinist.
The vehicles of war are many but none make it onto the battlefield without the say-so of the Machinist whose ability to determine the right vehicles at the right times has proved invaluable to the Marcolian conquest.
An excellent option to play on the first or second turn especially if no vehicles are held in the opening hand and if the Machinist can survive long enough your vehicles will even arrive in stronger shape too!
Assault is the recurring theme in any Marco deck and once again it will prove pivotal to the success of this Armored Division strategy.
The earliest opportunity in this deck to gain an Assault benefit occurs on turn two where the Scimitar Scout Bike can trigger card draw into hand following a strike from the Heavy Weapons Team.
This is an effective combo resulting in a hit to the opponent’s health, control of two units on the board plus an additional card in your hand so make sure you consider this opportunity when it’s presented to you early on in a game.
At face value this King deck doesn’t appear to have many Effects so why is the Bannerman here?
Well the beauty about this build is that it uses a new type of card in Parallel called a Split that was introduced with the Planetfall expansion set and this card can either be played as a unit or as an effect depending on the player’s choice.
This means the Bannerman is still a valuable 1 cost unit to play early in this deck so his stats can be increased when standard effects are played or if the effect side of the Split card is played instead.
The Mercenary Gunslinger makes a return in this deck for exactly the same reasons we included him in the Lemi and Cathy builds from before.
The importance of triggering Assault and controlling the board in the early game are the foundations to playing Marco decks successfully and the Gunslinger’s flexibility to help with both make him a mercenary to keep around.
Keep in mind that the mercenary business comes with a short shelf life so once the Gunslinger completes the job you needed him to do his life is generally considered expendable.
At a cost of 2 energy to play, the Scimitar Scout Bike is one of the cheapest vehicles in Parallel.
Staying true to its scouting nature, this Evasive bike looks ahead at your next four cards in the deck and brings a vehicle to the top of your deck so you can draw it next.
And if that wasn’t already good enough, when Assault is triggered on the same turn that the Scout Bike is played, then that vehicle from the deck gets put in your hand instead!
Official records remain unclear regarding the number of inmates who have survived the ordeals on the Alvaro Prison Ship, but those that have cannot bring themselves to speak about it.
The Interrogators never stop, they never tire and they are never short of the tools they need to get the answers they seek.
Survive the process and you will not be the same afterwards as the Interrogator extracts a heavy toll and only a few are willing to pay the price.
Mid Game Cards
Earlier in this section we talked about a new card type in Parallel called a Split which gives players the option of playing either a unit or an Effect and while there are two Split cards within this deck, the main one is the Scimitar Captain // Guerrilla Warfare.
The Scimitar Captain is a card that works really well in Armored Division because it is a vehicle unit that is not only Evasive but also provides an opportunity to discard a random card from the opponent’s hand if Assault has been triggered that turn.
Guerrilla Warfare on the other hand means you are playing an effect instead of getting another unit down on the board but you get the chance to look at the enemy’s hand to see exactly what cards they hold and then choose which one you’d like to discard.
There are no right or wrong choices when playing Split cards but instead it’s simply a case of weighing up the situation in a game and then deciding which option you believe will benefit your overall strategy and chances to win so choose wisely!
Noura, Hand of Unity is a legendary Universal card which means you can only have one copy of her in a deck so she’ll be a little difficult to find, but when you do have her in hand and there’s an opportunity to play her in the mid-game you should take it.
That’s because Noura’s powerful ability allows you to transform ALL non-vehicle units in your hand, on the board and in your deck into vehicles.
As we are trying to find and play as many vehicles as possible to gain the passive buff from Armored Division HQ, this is a card that has the potential to swing the battle massively in your favour!
Legendary Cards
Mirielle, The Ghost of Mars is Lemi’s most trusted assassin, tasked with infiltrating enemy positions and eliminating targets deemed too dangerous even for the most elite Marcolian special forces.
Little is known about the Marcolian’s most coveted secret weapon, giving rise to a nickname that has served to fuel ‘ghost’ stories amongst the soldiers about Mirielle’s legendary exploits.
For Mirielle, the mission comes before anything else no matter the cost as the results always justify the methods, even if those methods cost Marcolian lives.
Since being introduced as a Battle Pass reward, the Astel’s Glaive has been a popular choice in many players decks and with superb stopping power, excellent abilities and a reasonable cost, the Glaive will continue to feature in decks for the long-run.
Astel’s Glaive fully lives up to its legendary status as a vehicle that is not only Shielded but can clear multiple units on the board in combat too!
This makes the Glaive a real problem to deal with and in an Armored Division deck which can also buff it further, your opponent’s will be in for a world of Glaive pain when you play it in a game.
HQ Cataphract Land Fortress is a behemoth in the Marcolian fleet and a card which is exclusive to the Armored Division.
At a cost of 7, the opportunities to see this unit in play will be limited especially against aggro decks.
But if you do get a chance to play it, this card can win you the game as it is not only Shielded but also prevents adjacent vehicles from being damaged or destroyed AND it deals combat damage it receives directly to the opponent. Well worth the wait!
