Editing Curser

A '''curser''' is any card which has the potential to distribute {{Card|Curse}} cards to other players. Cursers are generally considered among the strongest cards at their price points, since the effect of putting Curses into an opponent's deck is very powerful: it simultaneously reduces their score, puts useless cards in their future hands, and usually slows down their future deck cycling. The presence of one or more cursers in a kingdom therefore has a major influence on gameplay; most winning strategies will involve either gaining cursers or finding a way to defend against them. This early-game strength is offset somewhat by late-game weakness: since there are a finite number of Curses in the supply, cursers often lose most or all of their value after all the Curses have been distributed. Most cursers are [[Action]]–[[Attack]] cards.

These are [[Kingdom card|Kingdom cards]] that specifically cause other players to acquire Curses in ways that they do not always have the option to avoid:

* [[Seaside]]: {{Card|Sea Hag}}

* [[Prosperity]]: {{Card|Mountebank}}

* [[Cornucopia]]: {{Card|Young Witch}}

* [[Hinterlands]]: {{Card|Ill-Gotten Gains}}

* [[Intrigue]]: {{Card|Swindler}}—whether it can distribute a Curse depends on the top card of the opponent's deck; may give a Curse only when they reveal a card costing {{cost|0}}, often a Copper.

* [[Intrigue]]: {{card|Replace}}—it only distributes Curses if the player playing Replace gains a [[Victory]] card

* [[Intrigue]]: {{Card|Torturer}}—the opponent is always free to not take the Curse and discard instead; in games without [[villages]] it's relatively likely that few Curses will be distributed by Torturer

* [[Seaside]]: {{Card|Ambassador}}—it can only distribute a Curse if the player playing Ambassador has a Curse in hand

* [[Cornucopia]]: {{Card|Followers}}—as this is a [[Prize]], it is difficult to gain, especially early in the game when cursing is most valuable

* [[Cornucopia]]: {{Card|Jester}}—whether it distributes a Curse depends on the top card of the opponent's deck

* [[Adventures]]: {{Card|Giant}}—whether it distributes a Curse depends on the top card of the opponent's deck

* [[Adventures]]: {{Card|Swamp Hag}} — the opponent may forgo gaining a Curse if they choose to buy no cards on their turn

* [[Empires]]: {{Card|Catapult}} — distributes a Curse if the player is willing to trash a card costing {{cost|3}} or more

* [[Nocturne]]: {{Card|Idol}} — distributes a Curse only if the current player has an even number of Idols in play

Unlike the primary and secondary cursers which always affect other players, the cards in this category may affect the current player.

* [[Intrigue]]: {{Card|Masquerade}}—cannot cause Curses to be gained, but can pass a Curse from one player's custody to another's

* [[Seaside]]: {{Card|Embargo}}—causes anyone who buys a certain card in the supply to gain a Curse; this affects the player who plays Embargo as well as all opponents

* [[Adventures]]: {{Card|Messenger}}—causes all players to gain a card costing up to {{Cost|4}}, which can be a Curse

* [[Empires]]: {{Event|Ritual}}—gives the buyer a Curse when bought, as a penalty

[[Doom]] cards are cursers when they reveal {{Hex|Plague}}, and sometimes when they reveal {{Hex|Locusts}}.  The current player can receive a [[Hex]] if given by {{Card|Leprechaun}} or {{Card|Cursed Village}}.

[[Dark Ages]] is the only expansion that does not contain a curser; however, it does contain two cards ({{Card|Marauder}} and {{Card|Cultist}}) that cause opponents to gain [[Ruins]], serving a similar function.

It can be argued that the main curser from each early expansion closely represents the expansion's theme:

* [[Seaside]]: Sea Hag puts a curse ''on top of the opponent's deck''; Seaside's theme is cards that affect the next turn.

* [[Alchemy]]: Familiar is ''[[non-terminal]]'' and has ''{{p}}'' in its cost; Alchemy's theme is {{Card|Potion|Potions}} and action chains.

* [[Prosperity]]: Mountebank distributes ''{{Card|Copper}}'' in addition to Curses; one of Prosperity's themes is [[Treasure]]s.

* [[Cornucopia]]: Young Witch increases the number of ''differently-named cards'' in the Kingdom; Cornucopia's theme is variety.

* [[Hinterlands]]: Ill-Gotten Gains distributes Curses ''when it is gained'', not when it is played; Hinterlands's theme is cards with on-gain effects.

* [[Empires]]: Though Catapult on-play ability doesn't fit with Empires theme, it is part of a split pile; split piles are one of the themes in Empires.

* [[Nocturne]]: Idol, when it doesn't give out Curses, gives out Boons, and Plague is from the Hexes pile; one of Nocturne's themes are Boons and Hexes.

* [[Renaissance]]: Old Witch allows the attacked players to trash a Curse from their hand; One of Renaissance's themes is trashing.

* [[Menagerie]]: Coven and black cat match two of Menagerie's themes: exiling and reactions, respectively.