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Summoner wars notes

This is a hand management game. You get a random draw of cards. In Summoner Wars, you end up with a near infinite number of decisions to make regarding your hand. What to play? In what order? What to keep for a future turn? What to build as magic? What is the likelihood I'll get another one of these? To what benefit is it to play this card now vs. waiting until I get the perfect card to combo with it?

General practices

  • Understanding how to get the most out of your hand--and to ensure that your next hand will be as good as possible--is a key cog in Summoner Wars strategy.
  • Memorize unit abilities: faction abilities are what separates your army from your opponent
  • Summon unit for attack same turn or to move it into position to attack next turn.
  • Don't summon new units when you've already got enough units on the board to reach your move and attack limits
  • Plan the whole turn before you summon anything
  • Move to a strategy based on Events: Event cards are the lifeblood of your deck, swinging the game in your favor as much as a solid unit, usually without costing you any magic.
  • Use common as magic, unless there is a good reason to summon them. Know the number of card per common. Build magic.
  • Keep track of magic piles and champions occurence and appearance on next turn. In the same way, be aware of how much magic your opponent has, and think through which champions they could be preparing to summon.
  • Keep track of opponent's powerful events
  • Learn the power of phase-wraping events and abilities: Ex: Burn and Greater Burn add wounds before the movement phase. Summoning during event phase is great too (Summoning Surge, Forced Summon, Mirage, Channeled Summon and Reinforcements): place a forward wall, then play the event, then summon a unit from a place (probably near the enemy summoner).
  • Understand the unique card economy: every unit's true cost is its summoning cost + 1 (the cost of not using it as magic). Every unit you summon and every event you play is one less magic you could've used for something else. A no draw is truly terrible because even the worst-timed hand is worth 5 built magic.
  • Do not complain about dice rolls, learn to fix potential flaws.
  • Summoner can do a lot of attack in battlefield. Always have an escape route. Most opponents will spend their resources inefficiently in order to try to wound your summoner at all costs. If you have an effective escape plan, your summoner will get away with 3 or so life left, and you will have a much taller magic pile and draw pile than your opponent for the rest of the game.

Phoenix Elves - Prince Eilien

Burn and Great burn events make differences. Archers have to be kept far, and can hit at 4 spaces.