The Fate of the Republic
A First Look at the Clone Wars Edition of Star Wars™: The Deckbuilding Game
War! The discovery of the droid factories on Geonosis and the sudden deployment of the Clone Army has set off the Clone Wars. The countless droid legions deployed by the Separatist Alliance have proven to be a fair fight for the Jedi, the guardians of the Galactic Republic. With the fate of the Republic at stake, the galaxy anxiously awaits the outcome…
Fantasy Flight Games is proud to announce the Clone Wars Edition of Star Wars™: The Deckbuilding Game!
This edition pits the Galactic Republic against the Separatist Confederacy and functions as a standalone product that can also be combined with the original. Command iconic characters from the Clone Wars era such as battle droids, clone troopers, General Grievous, and Obi-Wan Kenobi as you fight to determine the fate of the Republic!
A New Edition
First off, let’s answer the question on everyone’s minds: do you need the original edition of Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game to play the Clone Wars Edition? The answer to that is: nope! As we mentioned above, the Clone Wars Edition is a standalone product, which means it could be the only product in the Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game line that you pick up and you’ll still have everything you need to play the game.
In this edition, the conflict is between the Galactic Republic and the Separatist Confederacy. Just like in the original edition, each player begins the game with a starter deck of 10 cards. In the Republic’s case, they begin with two Clone Troopers , seven Republic Shuttles , and a single Jedi Knight . On the Separatist side, you’ll find two B1 Battle Droids , seven Separatist Shuttles , and a Dark Side Agent . These starter decks have the same distribution of effects and abilities as the starter decks of the original edition, but that’s where the one-to-one similarities end.
The galaxy deck in the Clone Wars Edition has 90 brand-new cards, split into a mixture of 30 Republic, 30 Separatist, and 30 neutral. The Republic cards focus on synergies between Jedi and Trooper units. For example, units like AT-RT and Barc Trooper gain additional effects while you have another Trooper in play, while the Delta-7B allows you to reveal the top card of your deck and draw it if it’s a Jedi. With the Delta-7B, you could reveal and draw a unit like Aayla Secura , who then grants all your Trooper units a boost to their attack power, or, if you’re lucky, you could reveal Obi-Wan Kenobi and get to reveal another card after him!
On the Separatist side, we see a greater emphasis on the “exile” mechanic, particularly exiling your own cards in exchange for beneficial effects. For example, the B2 Battle Droid allows you to exile a Separatist card from the galaxy row in order to draw a card. Similarly, the Vulture Droid adds itself directly into your hand after you purchase it, at the cost of exiling it after you use it. After exiling a card, you can play a Droideka for some boosted attack power or use the ability on Nute Gunray to bring one of your exiled cards back into the game. Nute Gunray’s ability combos especially well with General Grievous , who lets you claim a reward twice when he defeats a target in the galaxy row. Use Grievous to clear a card from the galaxy row, exile a Droid card from your hand to claim the reward a second time, then use Nute Gunray’s ability to put that exiled Droid card into the galaxy row so you can buy it back!
While we’re on the topic of exiling, this expansion does slightly change how the exile mechanic works compared to the game’s original edition. Now, instead of returning exiled cards to the box, they instead go into a player-specific “exile pile.” This functions about the same as removing it from the game, but now—as demonstrated with the Nute Gunray card we showcased above—certain effects can bring those cards back into play. Knowing how to utilize your exile pile effectively is a key factor in Separatist strategy!
As for the neutral cards, you’ll find a grand mixture of scoundrels, bounty hunters, assassins, and outcasts. Use an Underworld Contact to get yourself a discount on the next neutral card you purchase, and if that card costs 4 or more, then Hondo Ohnaka can hook you up with some card draw on the side. The famed bounty hunter Jango Fett can also net you an extra card when he defeats a target in the galaxy row, and he can always call upon his signature Firespray if he needs a little extra attack power to do it. Stumbling through it all is Jar Jar Binks , who can earn you a bit of Force while also gumming up your opponent’s deck in his own unique way.
Mixing and Matching
We mentioned earlier how this was a standalone edition for Star Wars: The Deckbuilding game. However, if you happen to own the original edition of the game, you can combine the elements from that game with this one to make your own unique experience.
To set up a game in which you mix and match products, first you must separate each edition’s galaxy deck by faction. This means you’ll have an Empire deck, a Rebel deck, a Republic deck, and a Separatist deck, as well as one deck for each edition’s neutral cards. Each of these decks should have 30 cards in it.
Next, you and your opponent each choose a different faction, taking that faction’s respective starting deck and bases. Choose one of the two neutral decks (randomly if you can’t decide), then mix it with the galaxy cards of your chosen factions, and boom: there’s your galaxy deck! All you have to do at that point is randomly choose who will be the first player, and then the other player starts with the Force all the way to their side of the Balance of the Force Tracker.
A Brand-New Battle
Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game was a smash hit when it released last year, and now it’s back with a brand-new look and theme. Whether you picked up the original edition or are just now getting into the game, be sure to give the Clone Wars Edition of Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game a try when it releases this August!
You can pre-order your own copy of the Clone Wars Edition of Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game (SWG02) at your local retailer or online through our webstore today!
