Cycling Guide

Cycling is a basic gameplay strategy to ensure your cards return in the round and turn you need them. This allows you to, for example, play a card in the round it gains league arena bonuses, or play round buffs at the beginning of the round while avoiding lock cards in your opponent's deck. Streamer Zackis has created a video about cycling.

## Draw order

A deck is made up of exactly 18 cards that start in random order. At the start of the game, you draw 5 cards from your deck. You can play up to 3 cards each turn (provided you have sufficient energy). At the end of the turn, you receive the same number of cards as you play, so you always have 5 cards to choose from. Conceptually, the cards that you play are returned to the bottom of the deck so cards you play together will be drawn together. Further, the card you play in the left hand box is returned first, then the one from the middle box, then the right hand box.

Assume you play 3 cards every turn. Since you start with 5 cards out of 18 and draw 3 each turn, you draw your 18th card at round 2, turn 3. The other two cards are the returned left and middle cards from round 1, turn 1. That is, the right hand card is returned two rounds after you play it and the left and middle are returned one turn earlier. This continues through the deck, so the cards you play are available again approximately two rounds later.

This is depicted in the visual guide.

A simple example assumes you hold the same two cards through all turns.

## When is cycling important?

### Use case: Combos

If you have a two card combo that must be played together then play them in the left and middle box so they come back in the same turn and can be played together immediately and neither needs to be held. Three card combos will always need two cards to be held across the turn (unless you are not playing 3 cards every turn) so are very awkward to play in a deck with any cards you want to hold all game - you end up with two cards from the combo and the hold card in your hand at the same time so either need to play the part combo or cycle the hold card or only play two cards.

### Use case: Draw effects

Consider Door to Hell, which has a big buff on draw but penalises the following turn. If you play it in the right box in round 3 turn 3 or left/middle in round 4 turn 1, then it will return for the final turn of the game. Charles Dickens only buffs if drawn in rounds 4 or 5. So the most efficient way to play it is in the right box in round 2 turn 1 or left/middle in round 2 turn 2. That means it will come back in round 4 turn 1 and you can play it immediately (in left or middle box) to return in the final turn, getting two buffs from it.

### Use case: Permanent buffs on play

If you want to play a card 3 times (typically because it confers permanent buffs), then you are best to play it as quickly as possible to maximise the number of turns those buffs apply. But you must have played it by round 2 turn 2 (in left or middle) to get 3 plays. The 18th card in the initial random order can at most be played twice because it is not available at round 2 turn 2.

### Use case: Round buffs

There are cards like Heimdall that you will always want to play in the first turn of the round. If you play such cards in the right hand box, they will be available exactly two rounds later, to play again in the first turn. There are two main benefits of this tactic. First, the card avoids any locks played by the opponent because you play it in the same turn you draw it. Second, the card is not clogging up your hand in the previous turn waiting to be used, so you have a greater choice available of cards to play.