Card Categories

While analyzing the board at the start of a game, you often analyze each card by each functionality. This functionalities doesn't necessarily depend on the Card type and can be grouped into several categories.

Curser

This is often the most important category you look for. Cursers are cards which has the potential to distribute Curse cards to other players. They belong to the strongest cards in the game. These are Witch, Torturer, Sea Hag, Familiar, Mountebank, Young Witch, Followers and Ill-Gotten Gains. The more broader term is Junker - a card which can distribute Curses but also other bad cards like Estates and Coppers. All Cursers and Swindler, Ambassador and Jester are Junkers. A card distributing only Ruins is also called Looter (like its corresponding card type). These are Cultist and Marauder.

Handsize Reducer

Attack Cards that reduce the handsize of your opponents decks are called Handsize Reducer or Discarder. Usually your opponent can choose the cards to discard and never has to discard down to less than 3 or 4 cards. Examples are Militia, Goons, Margrave, Followers, Urchin and Sir Michael. Ghost Ship is a little bit different as it doesn't let your opponent discard the cards, he has to put them on top of his deck and it therefore messes with the top of his deck too. Bureaucrat is similar although putting the Victory card on top of the deck hurts more than losing it out of the hand. Bureaucrat, Cutpurse and Torturer are also the only discarding attacks that could stack down to less than 3 cards in hand - depending respectively on the number of Victory cards in hand, Coppers in hand and the choice of your opponent. Minion doesn't let your opponent choose what to keep, similar to Pillage where you can choose the card to discard.

Top Deck Messer

This is an Attack Card that messes with the top of your opponents' draw pile. Spy, Oracle and Scrying Pool let you inspect 1-2 cards which you may discard, so that bad cards are likely to stay on top. Bureaucrat, Rabble and Fortune Teller put directly Victory or Curse cards on top of their decks. With Ghost Ship you let you opponent mess with their own draw pile when you let them put cards back on top.

Trasher (Attack)

These are Attack cards that trash the valuable cards from your opponents' deck. Some of these are limited to treasure cards, such as Thief, Noble Brigand and Pirate Ship. Others offer a replacement your opponent may choose (Saboteur) or you may choose (Swindler). Another subcategory trashes only in a price range between $3 and $6 like Knights and Rogue.

Trasher

This is another important category to look for. Any card with the ability to trash one or more cards from your own hand or deck is called Trasher. Trashing is a very strong move - often underestimated by beginners - because you remove low value cards from your deck so that you can see your good cards more often. They generate high density of quality. Because of the many cards that have this ability, they are often divided into subcategories.

Trash for no Benefit

The act of trashing doesn't give any benefit beside of removing the unwanted card from your deck. Chapel, Lookout, Steward, Masquerade and Count belong to that category. Ambassador fits here too, although it doesn't trash your cards, but removes them from your deck which has often the same effect. Island and Native Village aren't Trashers either, but are often called Pseudo Trasher because they can remove cards from your deck, but still count to your score. Loan, Junkdealer, Dame Anna and Jack of all Trades belong also to this category because all benefits they provide don't depend on the trashing. And Mint gets an Honorable Mention as it is no trasher, but has an trash for no benefit buy effect.

Trash for Benefit

Cards that can trash and give a benefit depending on the card trashed are called Trash for benefit cards. They depend often on the cost of the trashed card, but there are exceptions. The most common benefit you get is another card, so you're basically exchanging one card for another. Called after the most basic card, they are named Remodelers. These are Remodel, Mine, Upgrade, Expand, Remake, Governor, Graverobber, Procession and Rebuild. Forge is different - but still fits - as it trades in X cards for 1 card. Develop works the other way around - it trashes 1 card for 2 cards. Transmute also belongs here, but it doesn't look at the cost of the card, it only depends on the type. And Farmland gets an Honorable Mention as it is no trasher, but has a remodel on-buy effect. Then there are other Trash for Benefit cards that don't belong to the Remodel family. There is Salvager and Counterfeit trashing for Coins, Bishop trashing for  , Apprentice trashing for Card Draw and Trader trashing for a amount of Silver.

Trash for fixed Benefit

All other Trashers fit in this third subcategory. The benefit you get isn't dependant on the card trashed and therefore fixed. These are Moneylender, Spice Merchant, Trading Post, Hermit, Altar, Death Cart, Mercenary and Rats. Trade Route and Forager belong to this category too although the benefit is variable, but it doesn't depend on the card trashed.

Gainer

Cards that gain other cards without buying them are called Gainers. Cards that only can gain specific cards like Rats or Jack of all Trades are not considered Gainers. Cards that need trashing to gain a card aren't considered Gainers either as they don't increase the deck size. They often have restrictions in card type or price range. Workshop, Ironworks, Armory can gain cards costing up to $4, Hermit and Dame Natalie up to $3. Smugglers can even gain cards up to $6, but is restricted to cards that the previous player has gained on his last turn. Graverobber and Rogue are restricted to the price range between $3 and $6 and cards in the trash. Feast isn't considered a Gainer as it is a one-shot and is only a replacement for a card costing up to 5$, but it can still gain multiple cards when played with Throne Room, King's Court or Procession. University is restricted to cards costing up to $5 and Action cards. Talisman, Haggler and Horn of Plenty are all different as they trigger in the buy phase and aren't able to gain Victory cards - or in the case of Horn of Plenty you have to trash itself if you do. Jester isn't restricted to any price range, but cannot gain Victory cards either and it depends on the top card of your opponent(s). Develop is an exception to no-trashing rule as it can gain 2 cards by trashing only one and is often considered as Gainer. Border Village is an Honorable Mention as it is no Gainer, but gains cards on-buy.

Defense Cards

These are mainly Reaction cards, protecting you from attacks or mitigating them. Lighthouse is no Reaction card and protects you from Attack cards like Moat does. Jack of all Trades is like a delayed Moat as it may mitigate nearly all kinds of attacks on play. Cards that offer defense from Cursers are Watchtower and Trader. Cards that offer defense from Handsize Reducer are Draw up to X cards like Watchtower and Library and also Horse Traders and Menagerie. Cards that offer defense from Trashing attacks are Secret Chamber and Market Square.

Cards that bend the rules

Then there are cards that bend the rules of Dominion. They let you either take multiple turns, such as Outpost and Possession or you are allowed to play cards multiple times, such as Throne Room, King's Court, Procession and Counterfeit. Black Market lets you buy cards that are "out of the kingdom".