It’s been a while since the kids and I took a trip to the Land of Ooo, and, if you can say the same, you’ve likely missed the recent Card Wars developments as well. Since its initial release back in 2014, Cryptozoic Entertainment has been slowly expanding the scope of its for-real Card Wars gaming products, adding characters like Lemongrab, BMO, LSP, and even the Ice King to the lineup.
Earlier this week, however, things got all gender-bendy as the Adventure Time Card Wars Collectors Pack: Fionna vs. Cake hit store shelves. If you love Adventure Time, odds are that you also adore Fionna and her best friend Cake the cat. And if you’ve enjoyed Card Wars–either in its electronic or tabletop iterations–in the past, you’ll definitely dig what this set has to offer.
The core gameplay remains unchanged from its earliest incarnation. Each player has a unique character card and four oversized Landscape cards. Cake plays using Cornfields, while Fionna prefers the Blue Plains–much like their male counterparts. These are placed opposite each other on the playing surface, and each player uses a five-card hand and two Actions per turn to Ready (deploy) Creatures, Buildings, or Spells and/or chooses whether or not to Floop (activate) cards already in play.
Each turn ends in combat, and every Ready Creature must participate. Creatures on opposite Landscapes attack at the same time, dealing damage equal to their ATK value. When the accrued damage exceeds a creature’s DEF value, it is discarded. Damage dealt to open, undefended Landscapes, however, exhausts the Hit Points of the player herself. Once a player’s 25 HP are depleted, she loses and becomes the Dweeb. As opposed to the winner–who’s the Cool Guy… er Cool Gal.
That said, don’t think that this set is just a more feminine carbon copy of the original Finn vs. Jake Card Wars Collectors Pack. Fionna mixes up her Blue Plains deck with lots of the more variable Rainbow cards–many of them sword-related. The same goes for Cake’s Cornfield, which is much more Building-heavy and boasts a lot of cool Building-related Floop effects. This helps make these decks stand out, and also opens up some interesting new play strategies.
So, whether you’re looking to expand your current Card Wars stable or are just looking to take your first tentative steps into the game, know that the Fionna vs. Cake Collectors Pack offers the perfect blend of strategy, swordplay, and sarcasm. Would you expect anything less from Adventure Time and Cryptozoic?
Review materials provided by: Cryptozoic Entertainment
