So, got a tourney to go to in the next week or two? Wondering what you should play, or what others will be playing? Well, due to the release of two new sets, we can predict this to some extent. Ah, isn't "expansion metagaming" fun? :-)
Well, EFC released just a few days ago. Despite a lot of anger at the packaging method, people still seem to be buying it. A number of new players will be trying out the Borg, as will old players who gave up on them. A lot of players will be adding the new cards to their Borg decks and testing them out, especially with Cube decks. You'll probably see as many Borg decks now as you saw when FC first came out.
So, you don't want to play the Borg, but defend against them. An all-female deck might work. But then again, with the new counterparts, Assimilate Counterpart might not be used that much. However, you could always send over a female VIP onto their Cube using Open Diplomatic Relations. Gowron of Borg will let them attack, but only once. Dukat of Borg will let them use the Airlock. But other than that, the Cube might be sitting there for a while. This small investment can cripple a Cube deck if it isn't anticipated.
With the new Gowron of Borg card, you should obviously keep your distance from Cubes, especially if you have a fleet of small ships. Interceptors can land on planets to avoid being fired upon, but be careful when landing on missions worth 35 or more points. Cloaking does well too - it's unlikely that he'll be able to uncloak your whole fleet...
Stop First Contact might be seen more now that Population 9 Billion - All Borg is out. *GASP!* Could we actually see Montana Missile Complex being used for what it's supposed to? Anyway, Cochrane and Lily will ruin their two-objective hopes, as will any Vulcan and the Vulcan Lander. Cochrane (and the Phoenix) would probably be your best bet from the two ways to Stop First Contact, as his super-ENGINEER ability could come in handy, and you could always use him to play Visit Cochrane Memorial anywhere if he's not needed to pilot the Phoenix. Assimilate This! and Worf might be good to stock too.
What deck would be good? Probably a Federation Enterprise-E deck, but remember to make sure that it'll win against non-Borg decks. Perhaps a Fed battle deck, with the 3-way Treaty in your deck in case you're up against a non-Borg opponent? And a Crew Reassignment can be added in only a few days...
Start stocking anti-Borg dilemmas, like Alien Parasites and Armus - Sticky Situation. These dilemmas will give the Borg a hard time when they attempt to scout the mission. A few Q-icon cards, specifically from the Q-Continuum set, will also hurt a scouting drone.
For the next few weeks, I would advise against using a Headquarters or using your homeworld. A Borg player might stock all the counterparts in their Tent, and will get out the affiliation you're playing and try to take out your homeworld. If they do, then it would be good to play a Nor at a different location, because you can still report personnel there even if your homeworld has been assimilated.
Oh, and don't overdo it on Computer Crashes. The Borg just got the Complink Drone, so Computer Crashes won't work when he's in play. (Coincidently, it seems that the other affiliations will get this ability next week as well...) Now the Computer Crash metagaming will start. While we won't often see the new Dominion card quite as much in everyone's deck, the Complink will be seen in almost every Borg Cube deck, if only because he can seed to help out with staffing.
And then, next week, the Dominion will come out. As mentioned above, Computer Crash will become rather limited. Also, Seven of Nine will be out, and she'll really help staff a cube in no time at all. A Borg player can have all the personnel to staff a Cube by the end of the first turn (they'll have to download the ship on the second turn). Borg decks will become just that much more powerful.
So what will everyone be playing? Dominion, of course. They're probably more anticipated than the Borg, simply because they act like a "normal" affiliation. Most people will not play them right away, though. They'll play a few sample games outside of the tournament environment for the first few weeks to get a feel for them first. However, some eager Dominion players will pop up right away, but probably won't be too effective because they're not accustomed to the subtleties of the affiliation yet. But don't underestimate them, either - they may not be at peak efficiency, but they'll probably still be able to put a dent in your deck if you're not careful.
Not quite ready to switch over to the Dominion right away? That's OK, your old deck will do well for now. You'll probably want to stock some of the new dilemmas and so forth, if you have them, from The Dominion. Just add a few of the new cards to your existing deck, perhaps a new Headquarters or Empok Nor, and see how things work out.
Worried about Founder infiltration, but don't have The Dominion? In that case, play a Bajoran deck with many Kiras, plus Kevins to nullify Memory Wipe. Also, Interceptors with Rinnak Pire can beat Attack Ships one-on-one, plus they can land if need be.
The most popular kind of Dominion deck that people want to play right now is a Dominion attack deck. In fact, this deck design seems to be very popular. But remember about affiliation attack restrictions! Stock Lovok Founder and Defensive Measures to get around the restriction. But be careful yet again, because if his ship has a Founder on it, then your Jem'Hadar involved in the attack will all commit suicide. Make sure that you have a strong secondary resource if you play this kind of deck.
Remember, the addition of The Dominion will definitely change the DS9-only tournament scene. Before, a Cardassian Ore Processing deck was by far the most popular deck, with a few Bajoran Interceptor / DS9 decks here and there. The Dominion will give personnel to the two affiliations, plus it will introduce a completely new (and popular) one. DS9-only tournaments will be very different from the ones that you're currently familiar with...
So, the two new sets being introduced this month will definitely have an impact on the tournament scene, especially over the next few weeks. With a carefully planned strategy, the transition will be a very smooth one...
Jolan tru,
Alidar Jarok