In this series Redemption national champion Zac Cornell provides a briefing on cards that are staples in the classic format of Redemption. The first article in this series is on staple Dominants.
Introduction:
These articles are meant for beginner players looking for a good place to start deck building or intermediate players looking to broaden their Redemption knowledge. Many of the cards in here will never see high-end play, and that’s on purpose. This article is a jumping off point to give less experienced players a manageable list of cards that can work in most any deck so they can have a place to start in their own research and experimentation.
There are tons of theme-specific cards not mentioned in this series. They weren’t forgotten, but are mentioned in their selected themes in the Brigade Basics articles that I wrote and are published here on Land of Redemption. Cards that have usefulness outside of their theme will be mentioned here however.
This series is based on the Classic format of Type 1 and Type 2. Once the new set Gospel of Christ is released this series will be edited to include Gospel of Christ cards and will be based on the new Rotation format.
If I missed something, please let me know in the comments below! This article will be updated with each new set, so your comments could very well make it into the next update.
Dominants:
We are going to go into a bit more depth with Dominants than we will with other card types, as you are very limited with the amount you can put in a deck and they are the most powerful cards in the game. We will be dividing them into tiers based on power level and how useful they typically are.
Tier 1–
These will probably be in every deck you build (unless you were John Early in 2015) and you can expect your opponent to have them as well.
Son of God (I/J version)- This one goes without saying. It is important to note that the I/J version is far superior to the older versions since it negates lost souls. This is very useful with annoying lost soul effects abounding.
The only reason you wouldn’t use it is if you are using…
Chariot of Fire (PoC)- This is only used in good OT human prophets decks. It’s maybe a little better than Son of God situationally since it does not depend on Lost Souls being in play to get rescues but can just rescue your good OT human prophets. Being able to extend the battle by adding Elisha is pretty sweet as well. That being said, one issue is it does not negate lost souls so in some settings with annoying lost souls running around that can be a detriment. However, the situational perks of this card can outweigh that making it a niche replacement for Son of God in some decks and just as strong overall in those deck builds.
The Second Coming- This one also goes without saying. This card is so good since it allows you to get a second use out of Son of God and can be played separately from Son of God to recur it. The other bonus of The Second Coming is it can be used to get any good dominant from deck or discard pile. Depending on the nature of the game you may need to use it for grabbing Son of God for its initial and in that case only rescue or to grab a different good Dominant.
However, if you can’t get your hands on one, there is no shame in using:
New Jerusalem (Copy Dom)- It’s 90% as good as The Second Coming and a lot easier to come by. The key thing to remember with the new version of New Jerusalem is you do not have to have your Son of God to use it to rescue an additional Lost Soul. You can copy your opponents Son of God when they play it! You can also copy their The Second Coming when they play it. This can be done of course with any good dominant they play and is powerful. I would actually use the NT version over The Second Coming if I was using a Revelation Angels deck using One of Seven. I may even use the non-copy dom OT version if I was using a deck with Stone Pillar at Bethel or David, Heart after God. That being said the new version of New Jerusalem is significantly better than the old version, and the old version is the only one that has an OT edition.
Angel of the Lord- Still will win you a rescue attempt most games, so still a staple. Keep in mind there is a NT and OT version with the same ability. If you are using Stone Pillar at Bethel or David, Heart after God you will want to use the OT one, and if you are using Spirit as a Dove, use the NT version.
Falling Away- You will usually be using the Women’s version, as it helps your Lost Soul differential. For a long while this has been one of the most powerful dominants in the game. The main time you would be using the Cloud of Witnesses version is if you are using a hero with a choose the blocker (CTB) ability, usually Asahel, Ehud, or Elijah as it creates a “cheese” rescue scenario for one of the strongest rescues in the game which is very difficult to block. It is so hard to block since you often can choose for the human hero you convert to be an evil brigade which the opponent will likely have no evil enhancements for. In this case often all you need to do to win the battle is win by the numbers. Against a lone hero Falling Away (CoW) can often be a block as well so it has utility beyond creating a rescue with a CTB hero.
Three Woes- One of my favorite cards of the game. Can be a negate during battle and a way to take care of a pesky card outside of battle for the rest of the game. Super versatile, so it is always useful.
Tier 2–
For the final 2 Dominant spots in your deck, you will probably fill 1 or 2 of the spots with one of these cards. Many of these have been considered Tier 1 at some point, but now are just below that level due to power creep, meta changes, and the sheer number of good Dominants that have been coming out in recent years.
Chronicles of the Kings- Very powerful, but hits you as well as your opponent, so it’s a double edged sword. One really important thing to remember with Chronicles of the Kings is it can be used for a fight by the numbers (FBTN) effect in battle since if it is played in battle it negates enhancements of the opposite alignment for the whole phase in which it is played as the negate is ongoing. This is the only Dominant that can create a fight by the numbers effect within battle. This is also useful to remember if it is played in your opponent’s prep or discard phase since enhancements of the opposite alignment will be negated for that whole phase stopping your opponent for the most part from benefiting from their territory class enhancements of the opposite alignment and if in preperation phase from specified artifacts that are negated since they will be negated for the whole phase too. Remember, though the discard on Chronicles of the Kings is not ongoing but only discards the applicable artifacts/enhancements that were played/active prior to it being played. Why is Chronicles of the Kings Tier 2 and not Tier 1? It is borderline and could arguably be in Tier 1 but in the Classic format of Type 1/Type 2 it is not Tier 1 since for some deck builds Three Woes is all that is needed for a negate effect and Destruction of Nehushtan (PoC) can also take care of artifacts effectively as well.
Destruction of Nehushtan (PoC)- This card is a lot like Chronicles of the Kings and that is the reason why it’s here in Tier 2. Artifacts are rampant in the meta and therefore having ways to deal with them is important. Three Woes fills a lot of the same role and it’s not as effective in battle as it is either. It is does not have the FBTN effect of Chronicles of the Kings and does not hit enhancements. It is still good though since it can negate and discard ANY artifact in the game. Chronicles of the Kings can only negate and discard the following types of artifacts: curses, idols, covenants, and temple artifacts. Regular artifacts that do not have one of those types such as Hezekiah’s Signet Ring, Hidden Treasures, Holy Grail, Burial Shroud, and Matthew’s Begats to name some notable ones cannot be negated or discarded by Chronicles of the Kings but can be dealt with by Destruction of Nehushtan (PoC).
Mayhem- If your deck can play cards down from hand and not get clogged up with too many non-territory class enhancements, you should be running this card, as it can turn itself into a draw 6. It can also be a Lost Soul generation card if you can deal with your opponent’s Storehouse. Another perk of this card is it can create an auto block paired with Foreign Wives.
Christian Martyr- Only recently has this dropped out of Tier 1 due to the rise of banding chain decks. Still really good, just not in possession of the stopping power it once held.
Guardian of Your Souls (RoJ)- If you can search for this or you are using Martyrs, you would probably be using it, since most every deck is using the Women’s Falling Away right now. Otherwise, it’s an arm’s race if you can get it out before your opponent gets out Falling Away, so it’s not Tier 1 for that reason.
Specialty Tier–
These are Dominants you will only use with a specific deck type. Power level on these usually falls between Tier 2 and 3, but can vary so that is why they are listed in between Tier 2 and 3.
Glory of the Lord (Promo)- Used if your deck centers around Solomon’s Temple or The Tabernacle but especially in decks that want to abuse Book of the Covenant activated on either one all but guaranteeing the protection of both with only a few ways to get rid of that protection (such as Rubble and Dust). Glory of the Lord is also a tutor for Solomon’s Temple or The Tabernacle so in a deck that heavily relies on one these it can have a place. Priests decks that run a decent number of Tabernacle priests pair very well with this Dominant due to Book of the Covenant being able to search out covenants directly from deck including the reusable band on New Covenant (Jeremiah) (PoC).
A New Beginning (FoM)- Used in Flood decks to great effect there. The strongest board reset in the game and perhaps the greatest asset flood decks have compared with other deck builds due to their ability to reset so quickly after this card is played. This card is pretty much a staple dominant in Flood decks.
Led Astray (LoC)- Used in Meek Lost Soul decks, like Brown kings or maybe even Daniel or Herod decks. Very strong block in these decks especially paired with Herod Agrippa II who turns its withdraw into a capture.
Ride on Victoriously/Awesome Things- Used in Meek decks, especially decks that use Music Leader. The Awesome Things side of this card can be very powerful as a way to play enhancements pre-block.
Vain Vision- Used in false prophet decks, or decks with enough false prophets to make it useful outside of just soul generation. This card gives false prophets deck an incredible speed/consistency boost. Prophets of Baal can duplicate the effect of this card for a second use.
Vain Philosophy- Used in false prophet decks, but is also useful on it’s own. Prophets of Baal can duplicate the effect of this card for a second use. It is very useful for dealing with annoying cards in an opponents hand and is a strong counter. Outside of a false prophet deck it would likely fall into Tier 3.
Strife- Used in decks with King Rehoboam for an auto block. Also Herod Agrippa II paired with this Dominant is nasty for the opponent capturing all their heroes in battle except one. It is also useful for stalling a turn against banding chain decks, but in a deck without King Rehoboam or Herod Agrippa II it falls to Tier 3.
Burial- In Type 2 this card still is quite strong due to the rule of your opponent selecting which lost soul they will attempt to rescue meaning this card can be a block. However, in Type 1 it would fall all the way to Tier 4 having very limited use at this juncture in the meta there. Therefore it definitely is a Type 2 specialty Dominant.
Tier 3–
These Dominants are still good, just really hard to find room for. You will probably only use these if your deck has synergy with them specifically or really needs one of them.
Valley of Dry Bones- This is a great card, and would probably be at least Tier 2 if there weren’t so many other good Dominants out there. Since it doesn’t directly win you a battle however, it lands here. It is particularly strong in decks that run cards like Captive Priest which can be released and added to battle with great effect by Valley of Dry Bones.
Grapes of Wrath- A vastly underrated card in my opinion. It can be offensive or defensive, can function a lot like Angel of the Lord, and can destroy a banding chain. It is really strong with cards that create a side battle such as The Lord Goes Before You giving it the ability to successfully rescue a soul by getting rid of an opponents blocking character(s) (up to 2) in the side battle while leaving the rescuing hero(es) in the main battle to rescue a soul. The only drawback is that you have to be losing or tied to bring out it’s full effectiveness in a non side-battle situation, so it’s a bit too situational to be Tier 2.
Shipwreck- If the meta changes to focus more around fortresses, this will be at least Tier 2, but as of now, unless you really need to hit Storehouse or The Throne of David, you won’t find a target that’s worthy of using a Dominant slot to take out. If more decks run Sheol, Coliseum, or The Gates of Hell this card could be considered Tier 2.
Doubt (LoC)- A really cool card, but another Dominant that doesn’t guarantee a block so it lands in Tier 3. It is more useful in Type 2 than in Type 1 for sure.
Rubble and Dust- This card is quite situational and does not fit particularly well in many deck builds due to this. It does have use though because it’s regardless of protection and can hit stuff in set-aside, making it able to hit cards like a Glory of the Lord protected Solomon’s Temple/The Tabernacle or Noah’s Ark with Pitch and Gopher Wood on it that very few other cards can. It is handy for getting rid of annoying characters that have a placed enhancement on them such as a character with Joy or Peace on them or a strong character with a weapon placed on them. Additionally it can be used with a card like Hiding Joseph’s Cup or Examining the Scriptures for some useful strategies to get rid of annoying characters. Paired with a card like Hiding Joseph’s Cup or Examining the Scriptures, Rubble and Dust can be very strong with choose the blocker (CTB) abilities creating a “cheese” rescue scenario similar to that of Falling Away (CoW) with CTB. Ehud (RoA) is particularly good paired with Hiding Joseph’s Cup+Rubble and Dust since that can be a great way (due to its regardless of protection) to get rid of strong evil characters like Red Dragon or King of Tyrus (PoC) since his CTB ability is applicable to all evil males not just humans. Not only does this get rid of one of these characters but it also is a very strong rescue! Examining the Scriptures can be used with Ehud+Rubble and Dust too but will only work with evil humans so it cannot be used in conjunction with Rubble and Dust to get rid of Red Dragon or King of Tyrus. Elijah (PoC) and Asahel are other great options to pair with this strategy with either Hiding Joseph’s Cup or Examining the Scriptures however their CTB ability is limited to evil humans (Asahel is limited to evil male humans in fact). It is important to note with Hiding Joseph’s Cup since it is dual-alignment, Rubble and Dust can be used for blocking utility with evil choose the attacker (CTA) abilities like Medium in Endor. This is handy for getting rid of a hero or two that is causing problems. So in decks where Rubble and Dust can be paired with a card like Hiding Joseph’s Cup and a CTB or CTA ability it could be worth a dominant slot.
Tier 4–
These Dominants are the least useful in the game. You will only see them if someone is trying to run a really old strategy or is just having fun.
Harvest Time- Used to be Tier 2, maybe even 1, but there is so much better Lost Soul generation these days that it’s not worth a Dominant slot.
Blinding Light- Somehow outdated even the year it came out. The strategy it helps is super hard to make work and not that good even if you get it going, a hard pass.
The Holy Spirit- Maybe you could make this work in some kind of Children of Light deck, but those went out of style after it got nerfed, so you won’t be seeing this card any time soon. It can be used in decks that rely heavily on Joy or Peace, but even here Hope tends to be the better option since it does not take up a Dominant slot. That being said there is one long forgotten strategy for The Holy Spirit that Gabe Isbell mentioned in an article back in 2016 that is worth mentioning:
“Maybe you’ve caught on to the power of The Throne of Grace by testing it out in one of your decks. Or maybe you’ve faced it an[d] been brutalized by its power. The key is to have a single brigade Enhancement you can discard each turn. Look no further than The Holy Spirit to get those “useless” Fruit of the Spirit cards from the limited set! In case you haven’t noticed, The Throne of Grace works very well in tandem with Coliseum. Many of the old Fruit of the Spirit Enhancements have 2/2 numbers for toss effects as well! I’m not recommending that you load your deck full of Limited Edition Fruit of the Spirit. But having one that you can get every turn can have a huge effect on the game!”
And that is a creative idea for the Classic format of Redemption that could cause The Holy Spirit to see some more play in niche decks!
Conclusion:
Hopefully this article has been helpful for you in thinking through staple Dominants for Redemption and for that matter how to use Dominants in ways you perhaps had not thought of using them before. Please stay tuned for the next installment of “Classic Staples”!
To buy singles, sealed product, and other gaming supplies mentioned, please visit Three Lions Gaming!
