Editing Dark Ages

{{Infobox Set
|name = Dark Ages
|type = Large Expansion

|cards = 500
|kingdomcards = 362
|kingdomsets = 35
|randomizers = 35
|othercards=
* 50 [[Ruins]]
* 18 [[Shelters]]
* 15 {{Card|Spoils|Spoils}}
* 10 {{Card|Madman|Madman}}
* 10 {{Card|Mercenary}} 

|theme =
* [[Trash]]
* Upgrading
|release = August 2012
|coverartist = [[Raven Mimura]]
|rulebook = https://www.riograndegames.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Dominion-Rules-DarkAges.pdf
}}

'''Dark Ages''' is the seventh [[Dominion]] [[expansions | expansion]]. It was released in August, 2012. It is a large expansion. The box contains 35 sets of Kingdom Cards, with 500 cards, as well as other new types of cards such as [[Shelters]], [[Ruins]], and {{Card|Spoils}}. Many cards in Dark Ages have a theme related to trashing and upgrading.

== Contents ==
=== Kingdom cards ===
There are 20 copies of {{Card|Rats}}. The 10 cards in the {{Card|Knights}} pile are unique.
* {{Cost|1}}: {{Card|Poor House}}
* {{Cost|2}}: {{Card|Beggar}}, {{Card|Squire}}, {{Card|Vagrant}}
* {{Cost|3}}: {{Card|Forager}}, {{Card|Hermit}}, {{Card|Market Square}}, {{Card|Sage}}, {{Card|Storeroom}}, {{Card|Urchin}}
* {{Cost|4}}: {{Card|Armory}}, {{Card|Death Cart}}, {{Card|Feodum}}, {{Card|Fortress}}, {{Card|Ironmonger}}, {{Card|Marauder}}, {{Card|Procession}}, {{Card|Rats}}, {{Card|Scavenger}}, {{Card|Wandering Minstrel}}
* {{Cost|5}}: {{Card|Band of Misfits}}, {{Card|Bandit Camp}}, {{Card|Catacombs}}, {{Card|Count}}, {{Card|Counterfeit}}, {{Card|Cultist}}, {{Card|Graverobber}}, {{Card|Junk Dealer}}, {{Card|Knights}}, {{Card|Mystic}}, {{Card|Pillage}}, {{Card|Rebuild}}, {{Card|Rogue}}
* {{Cost|6}}: {{Card|Altar}}, {{Card|Hunting Grounds}}

=== Additional materials ===
==== Ruins ====
* {{Cost|0}}: {{Card|Abandoned Mine}}, {{Card|Ruined Library}}, {{Card|Ruined Market}}, {{Card|Ruined Village}}, {{Card|Survivors}}
==== Shelters ====
* {{Cost|1}}: {{Card|Hovel}}, {{Card|Necropolis}}, {{Card|Overgrown Estate}}
==== Non-Supply cards ====
* {{Cost|0*}}: {{Card|Madman}}, {{Card|Mercenary}}, {{Card|Spoils}}

== Additional rules ==
* Dark Ages has two piles of cards that have a variety of cards in them: the [[Ruins]] pile has a mix of five different Ruins, and the {{Card|Knights}} pile has ten different Knights. These piles should be shuffled before each game, as explained under [[Ruins#Preparation|Prepa]][[Knight#Preparation|ration]]. The only card that may be bought or gained or chosen from one of these piles is the card on top. Players cannot look through the piles, only at the top card; turn the top card over any time it is face down. If a card is returned to one of these piles with {{Card|Ambassador}} (from {{Set|Seaside}}), the returned card goes on top. Ruins cards with different names, and Knights with different names, count as differently named cards for cards that care about this. For example, if {{Card|Menagerie}} (from {{Set|Cornucopia}}) reveals a hand of {{Card|Copper}}, {{Card|Ruined Market}} and {{Card|Ruined Library}}, then it will give +3&nbsp;Cards. When {{Card|Contraband}} (from {{Set|Prosperity}}) is played, a player can name a Ruins or Knight, but that only stops that specific Ruins or Knight from being bought. However an {{Card|Embargo}} token (from {{Set|Seaside}}) placed on the Ruins or Knight pile will affect any cards bought from it.
* Players can buy Ruins even though they normally will not wish to. Ruins cards are [[Action]]s; they may be played in the Action phase, and count as Actions for things that refer to Action cards, such as {{Card|Procession}}. The Ruins pile, when used, is in the [[Supply]], and if it is empty that counts towards the normal [[Gameplay#Ending_conditions|end condition]]. Cards that try to get specific cards from the Supply fail to get a Ruins or Knight if the correct one is not the top one. For example, if you buy a {{Card|Ruined Market}} with {{Card|Talisman}} (from {{Set|Prosperity}}), you only gain another Ruined Market if that is the top Ruins under the one you bought; if you use {{Card|Ambassador}} (from {{Set|Seaside}}) to return {{Card|Sir Martin}} to the Supply, the next player will gain that Sir Martin, but the player after that will not gain a card, as the next Knight will not be Sir Martin.
* Many cards in Dark Ages do something "when you trash" that card. These abilities function no matter whose turn the card is trashed on. The player that a "when you trash this" ability functions for is the player told to trash the card, regardless of whose card trashed the card. These abilities happen directly after the card is put into the trash, and can function in the middle of resolving effects for an Action card; for example, if a player plays {{Card|Graverobber}} and uses it to trash a {{Card|Cultist}}, they first draw three cards for trashing Cultist, then continue with resolving Graverobber and gain a card costing up to {{Cost|8}}. Cards can sometimes leave a player's deck without being trashed, such as by being returned to the Supply with {{Card|Ambassador}} (from {{Set|Seaside}}) or passed to another player with {{Card|Masquerade}} (from {{Set|Intrigue}}). When two or more cards are trashed at the same time, such as due to {{Card|Count}}, first trash them all, then pick an order to resolve things that happen due to trashing them. A "when you trash" ability is not itself a way to trash a card; some other card will be needed to actually trash the card and make the ability happen.
* Six cards in Dark Ages are never part of the Supply: {{Card|Spoils}}, {{Card|Madman}}, {{Card|Mercenary}}, and the three Shelters: {{Card|Hovel}}, {{Card|Necropolis}}, and {{Card|Overgrown Estate}}. Keep these cards handy for when they are needed. These cards cannot be bought, and cannot be gained by cards that gain cards from the Supply, such as {{Card|Armory}}. They cannot be returned to the Supply with {{Card|Ambassador}} (from {{Set|Seaside}}). They can end up in the trash if something trashes them. These piles being empty does not count towards the [[Gameplay#Ending_conditions|end condition]] for the game, or towards the count of empty piles for cards like {{Card|Poacher}}.

=== [[Shelters]] ===
* Dark Ages includes three Shelters - {{Card|Hovel}}, {{Card|Necropolis}}, and {{Card|Overgrown Estate}}. These cards replace starting {{Card|Estate|Estates}} in some games, as described under [[Shelters#Preparation|Preparation]]. Shelters have no corresponding Supply pile; they can never be bought, and {{Card|Ambassador}} (from {{Set|Seaside}}) cannot return one anywhere.

=== [[Lose Track rule]] ===
* In rare circumstances an effect may try to move a card that is not where that effect expects the card to be. In those cases the card does not move - the effect has "lost track" of the card. 
* Losing track of a card prevents it from being moved, but does not stop anything else from happening. 
** For example, if you {{Card|Procession}} a {{Card|Madman}}, Procession first puts Madman in play; then you resolve Madman, getting +2 Actions and drawing cards and returning Madman to the Madman pile; then Procession fails to put Madman into play again, because Procession expects to find Madman in play, but it is not there, it's in the Madman pile; then you resolve Madman again, only getting +2 Actions this time, since it says "if you do" before the card-drawing, and you did not actually return it to the Madman pile this time; then Procession fails to trash Madman since Procession again expects to find Madman in play and it is not there; and then you gain an Action costing {{Cost|1}} if you can. 
* Cards do not lose track of cards that they move, only cards that other cards move. 
** For example when Procession puts Madman into play, that does not cause Procession to lose track of Madman; it is Madman moving itself that causes Procession to lose track of it. 
* Things lose track of a card if something moves it, if it is the top card of a deck and gets covered up, or if it is the top card of a discard pile and gets covered up.

=== [[No Visiting rule|"No visiting" rule]] ===
* When a card is gained to a location other than a discard pile, it does not "visit" the discard pile - it goes directly to where it was gained. For example {{Card|Armory}} gains cards directly to the top of a deck.
In conjunction with the Lose Track rule above, this means that when a card is gained somewhere other than the discard pile, a card that looks for a gained card will not lose track of it.

== Flavor text == 
{{Quote|
 |Text=Times have been hard. To save on money, you've moved out of your old castle, and into a luxurious ravine. You didn't like that castle anyway; it was always getting looted, and never at a reasonable hour. And if it wasn't barbarians it was the plague, or sometimes both would come at once, and there wouldn't be enough chairs. The ravine is great; you get lots of sun, and you can just drop garbage wherever you want. In your free time you've taken up begging. Begging is brilliant conceptually, but tricky in practice, since no-one has any money. You beg twigs from the villagers, and they beg them back, but no-one really seems to come out ahead. That's just how life is sometimes. You're quietly conquering people, minding your own business, when suddenly there's a plague, or barbarians, or everyone's illiterate, and it's all you can do to cling to some wreckage as the storm passes through. Still, you are sure that, as always, you will triumph over this adversity, or at least do slightly better than everyone else.

 |Name=[[Donald X. Vaccarino]]
 |Source=[https://www.riograndegames.com/games/dominion-dark-ages/ Rio Grande Games]
}}
== Cards gallery ==
=== Kingdom cards ===
{{CardImage|Poor House}}{{CardImage|Beggar}}{{CardImage|Squire}}{{CardImage|Vagrant}}{{CardImage|Forager}}{{CardImage|Hermit}}{{CardImage|Market Square}}{{CardImage|Sage}}{{CardImage|Storeroom}}{{CardImage|Urchin}}{{CardImage|Armory}}{{CardImage|Death Cart}}{{CardImage|Feodum}}{{CardImage|Fortress}}{{CardImage|Ironmonger}}{{CardImage|Marauder}}{{CardImage|Procession}}{{CardImage|Rats}}{{CardImage|Scavenger}}{{CardImage|Wandering Minstrel}}{{CardImage|Band of Misfits}}{{CardImage|Bandit Camp}}{{CardImage|Catacombs}}{{CardImage|Count}}{{CardImage|Counterfeit}}{{CardImage|Cultist}}{{CardImage|Graverobber}}{{CardImage|Junk Dealer}}{{CardImage|Knights}}{{CardImage|Mystic}}{{CardImage|Pillage}}{{CardImage|Rebuild}}{{CardImage|Rogue}}{{CardImage|Altar}}{{CardImage|Hunting Grounds}}
=== Knights ===
{{CardImage|Dame Anna}}{{CardImage|Dame Josephine}}{{CardImage|Dame Molly}}{{CardImage|Dame Natalie}}{{CardImage|Dame Sylvia}}{{CardImage|Sir Bailey}}{{CardImage|Sir Destry}}{{CardImage|Sir Martin}}{{CardImage|Sir Michael}}{{CardImage|Sir Vander}}

=== Ruins ===
{{CardImage|Abandoned Mine}}{{CardImage|Ruined Library}}{{CardImage|Ruined Market}}{{CardImage|Ruined Village}}{{CardImage|Survivors}}

=== Shelters ===
{{CardImage|Hovel}}{{CardImage|Necropolis}}{{CardImage|Overgrown Estate}}

=== Non-Supply cards ===
{{CardImage|Madman}}{{CardImage|Mercenary}}{{CardImage|Spoils}}

== Impact ==
Dark Ages introduced several new cards to Dominion that broke previous unwritten (or even written) rules of card structure and gameplay, substantially broadening the scope of the kinds of things possible in Dominion. Dark Ages contains the only cards that cost {{Cost|1}} ({{Card|Poor House}} and [[Shelter|Shelters]]), the only supply piles that consist of multiple shuffled differently-named cards ([[Knight|Knights]] and [[Ruins]]), the only kingdom card of which there are more than twelve copies ({{Card|Rats}}), and more paradigm-breaking effects. 

Dark Ages has been described as a highly advanced set, hard to introduce to new players, not only because of its paradigm-breaking cards, but also because many cards in it require high skill to play optimally and may depend on tricky combos with other cards.

Just prior to the release of [[Adventures]], a [http://forum.dominionstrategy.com/index.php?topic=12661.0 poll on the forums] found Dark Ages to be the most popular set, narrowly beating [[Prosperity]].  Reasons for this included the size of the set (more cards means more things to like), but also the overall quality of the cards, and the interesting new strategies brought to the game with their inclusion. 

=== Shelters ===

Shelters games cause many Kingdom cards to work differently, and affects the opening two turns as well.
* Weakened cards:
** {{Card|Ambassador}}, since Shelters can't be returned to the supply, and {{Card|Jester}}, since Shelters can't be gained from the supply
** Cards that interact with Estates (or Victory cards in general), such as {{Card|Baron}}, {{Card|Silk Road}} and {{Event|Inheritance}} aren't able to interact with them from the start
** Cards whose value as [[opening|openers]] depends on the fact that Estates cost {{Cost|2}}, such as {{Card|Remake}} and {{Card|Salvager}}, get less benefit out of the {{Cost|1}} cost of Shelters
** Cards that dislike junk variety, like {{Card|Hunting Party}} and {{Card|Journeyman}}
** {{Card|Magpie}} is weakened slightly; if Hovel is revealed, it's only a cantrip
* Strengthened cards:
** Cards that like any variety, like {{Card|Harvest}} and {{Card|Fairgrounds}}
** Engines, in general, are strengthened due to the addition of a [[Villages|Village]] to your starting cards, and the fact that trashing your starting cards doesn't lose you {{VP|3}}
** [[Trasher|Trashers]] that don't care so much about the cost of the trashed card get a slight boost from Overgrown Estate's when-trash draw
Necropolis allows for more flexible openings, since there is a lower chance of two opening [[terminal|terminals]] [[collision|colliding]].  Hovel makes for strategic decisions when purchasing Victory cards, especially [[Alt VP]].

=== Ruins ===

The addition of [[Looter|Looters]] can lead to games where twice the normal amount of junk cards are being distributed, leading to longer games.  {{Card|Cultist}} can also distribute Ruins faster than any [[Curser]] due to its chaining.  With both a Looter and a Curser present in a kingdom, the game slows down considerably, but three-pile endings are much easier to achieve, since the Ruins count as a supply pile.

=== Trashing ===

Given that it is one of the themes of the set, Dark Ages contains some of the strongest [[trasher|trashers]] in the game.
* {{Card|Altar}} - expensive, but incredibly useful - turning bad cards into {{Cost|5}} Actions in the early game, and gaining Duchies in the late game
* {{Card|Count}} - although it comes with stipulations, it can still usually trash 2 or 3 cards per use, and transitions into something more useful later in the game
* {{Card|Counterfeit}} - one of the best Copper trashers, especially since it continues to be useful after your Coppers are all gone
* {{Card|Death Cart}} - it gives the highest non-variable +{{Coin}} in the game
* {{Card|Forager}} - it has to be built up to get the full benefit, but as a [[non-terminal]] trasher, it is typically a good opener
* {{Card|Graverobber}} - one of only two cards that can gain from the trash, and the more effective of the two - it can also turn {{Cost|5}} Actions (like itself) into Provinces
* {{Card|Hermit}} - the best {{Card|Curse}} defense behind only {{Card|Watchtower}}, since it can trash cards directly from your discard pile, making it as though the Curser hadn't even been played
* {{Card|Junk Dealer}} - the [[Peddler variant]] trasher
* {{Card|Knights}} - while swingy, they can be quite devestating in large numbers
* {{Card|Mercenary}} - trashes very quickly while still giving a benefit and harming your opponent
* {{Card|Procession}} - while chiefly best with other Dark Ages cards, it can be quite good in engines, especially on boards with Actions of every cost
* {{Card|Rats}} - useless on its own, it is a powerhouse when paired with trashers that care about cost (like {{Card|Bishop}}) or card type (like Death Cart)
* {{Card|Rebuild}} - perhaps the most powerful card in this set (or even all of Dominion), it forgoes both [[engine]] and [[big money]] to directly turn Estates and Duchies into Provinces
* {{Card|Rogue}} - a weak card, but one of the few capable of stealing non-Treasure cards from other players

There are also several cards that benefit when trashed by other cards, or simply when another card is trashed.
* {{Card|Catacombs}} - it gains a cheaper card when trashed, mirroring {{Card|Border Village}}
* {{Card|Cultist}} - draws 3 cards when trashed
* {{Card|Feodum}} - can be trashed as part of a big money strategy, or as a means to get more Silvers to increase your point total from your other Feoda
* {{Card|Fortress}} - the first card that can never be removed from your deck via trashing - as it can be infinitely trashed, it does great with cost-caring trashers
* {{Card|Hunting Grounds}} - gains a Duchy or three Estates when trashed
* {{Card|Market Square}} - the trashing analogue to {{Card|Tunnel}}, it is very effective at gaining Gold in heavy trashing games, and then putting that Gold to use with its +Buy
* {{Card|Rats}} - though it does trash, its main role is to be trashed, similarly to Fortress
* {{Card|Overgrown Estate}} - draws a single card when trashed
* {{Card|Sir Vander}} - gains a Gold when trashed
* {{Card|Squire}} - can gain any [[Attack]], no matter its cost, when trashed

=== Engines ===
Because of its minor theme of card combinations, many Dark Ages cards are well suited for engines.
* {{Card|Bandit Camp}} - is a [[Villages|Village]], and {{Card|Spoils}} are practically [[virtual coin]], not clogging up an engine
* {{Card|Cultist}} - in high enough density, is almost a {{Card|Laboratory}}, and helps slow down your opponent, giving more time to build your engine
* {{Card|Hunting Grounds}} - gives the highest card draw in the game without drawback
* {{Card|Ironmonger}} - it's a [[sifter]], and can be a {{Card|Laboratory}}, {{Card|Peddler}} or {{Card|Village}}, depending on which card is revealed, all of which are useful to engines
* {{Card|Mystic}} - gives [[non-terminal]] [[virtual coin]], and in combination with [[deck inspector|deck inspectors]], is an activated {{Card|Conspirator}}
* {{Card|Necropolis}} - as stated above, the addition of a [[Villages|Village]] to your starting cards is a boon to engines
* {{Card|Poor House}} - engines usually don't have many Treasures, ensuring that Poor House is most effective - it serves as an excellent source of [[virtual coin]] in these instances
* {{Card|Scavenger}} - helps setup your next turn, similarly to {{Card|Scheme}}
* {{Card|Squire}} - it is [[virtual coin]], and can alternate between [[Villages|Village]] and [[+Buy]], the latter of which engines often lack
* {{Card|Wandering Minstrel}} - the perfect engine [[Villages|Village]], as it ensures you only ever draw Actions

=== Weird cards ===
Some of the cards introduced in Dark Ages were completely unlike anything seen before, and are still regarded as oddities.
* {{Card|Poor House}} - the only card to subtract {{Cost}}, and the only Kingdom card with a cost of {{Cost|1}}
* {{Card|Fortress}} - the only card that can never be removed from your deck through trashing
* {{Card|Rats}} - hard to see the point of at first, and the first Action card pile with more than 10 cards
* {{Card|Band of Misfits}} - the first card that could emulate other cards without playing a physical copy of them
* {{Card|Graverobber}}/{{Card|Rogue}} - the first cards that could gain from the trash

=== Fixes ===
Like Hinterlands before it, Dark Ages contains cards that address issues with previously published cards.
* {{Card|Saboteur}} - {{Card|Knights}} and {{Card|Rogue}} can remove good cards from other players decks, but do not require time-consuming digging, can't easily trash Provinces, and give a benefit to the player (Saboteur was removed from the revised edition of [[Intrigue]])
* {{Card|Wishing Well}} - {{Card|Mystic}} does not give +1 Card before guessing, which enables synergy with cards like {{Card|Pearl Diver}} which give knowledge of the top card of the deck, as well as other Mystics

== Theme ==
Game designer Donald X. offered some insight into some themes of the set [http://forum.dominionstrategy.com/index.php?topic=1818.msg100829#msg100829 here].

* 4 Ruins: Marauder, Cultist, Death Cart, Vagrant (Ruined Library, Ruined Market, Ruined Village, Abandoned Mine, Survivors)
* 3 Spoils: Marauder, Pillage, Bandit Camp (Spoils)
* 8 When-trash: Market Square, Fortress, Squire, Hunting Grounds, Feodum, Cultist, Catacombs, Rats (Overgrown Estate, Sir Vander)
* 7 Other upgrade: Hermit, Urchin, Rats, Altar, Graverobber, Procession, Rebuild
* 8 Other trashing: Junk Dealer, Counterfeit, Forager, Death Cart, Count, Knights, Rogue, Pillage (Mercenary, Hovel, Dame Anna)
* 3 Look at trash: Graverobber, Rogue, Forager
* 7 Live with junk: Poor House, Sage, Storeroom, Ironmonger, Scavenger, Wandering Minstrel, Catacombs (Survivors)

* 4 Off-theme: Beggar, Armory, Band of Misfits, Mystic (Madman, Necropolis)

== Trivia ==
Dark Ages is the only Dominion expansion that does not contain a [[curser]].  It is also the expansion which introduces the most new kingdom cards.
=== In other languages ===
* Czech: Temné časy
* Dutch: De Donkere Middeleeuwen
* Finnish: Katovuodet (lit. ''famine years'')
* French: L'âge des ténèbres
* German: Dark Ages
* Japanese: 暗黒時代 (pron. ''ankoku jidai'')
* Korean: 암흑의 시대 (pron. ''amheug-ui sidae'')
* Polish: Mroczne wieki (note: as referred to in Polish ''[[Empires]]'' rulebook)
* Russian: Тёмные Времена (pron. ''tyomnyye vryemyena'')
* Spanish: Edad Oscura

=== Development timetable ===
{{Quote|Text=I started working on "War" in February 2007. The last change to Dark Ages cards was January 2012. I was working on the rulebook in March / April 2012. "Work" in some form continues past that point, since there is proofreading whenever the files are ready, and complaining about art to the degree that I get to, and writing previews and a secret history.
|Name=[[Donald X. Vaccarino]]
|Source=[http://forum.dominionstrategy.com/index.php?topic=5799.msg454950#msg454950 Interview with Donald X.]
}}
=== Secret History ===
{{Quote|Text=When I showed Dominion off to RGG, I had five expansions. They were: [[Intrigue]]; [[Seaside]] and [[Hinterlands]] combined; [[Prosperity]]; "War;" and a large version of [[Alchemy]] with a touch of [[Cornucopia]].
 
War was interaction-themed. Different ways for players to interact. Its cards included versions of {{Card|Swindler}}, {{Card|Trade Route}}, {{Card|Tribute}}, {{Card|Council Room}}, and {{Card|Smugglers}}. {{Card|Council Room}} kept the same name when I moved it to the main set; now you know how it got that name.

War was my favorite expansion, but the problem was, every expansion needed interactive non-attack cards. Every expansion needed a certain percentage of interactive cards, and attacks slow the game down, whereas non-attack interactive cards may not, and may even speed it up. So I had to spread them around. I made War more attack-themed and gave each other set at least one non-attack interactive card. Man do I need an acronym for that? Maybe I am done saying it.

During work on the main set, I briefly tried rearranging everything into 16-card expansions, and at that time I had an expansion that was top-of-your-deck themed. This theme was no good; it's fine for making some cards that play well with each other, but since I do that kind of thing in every set, the theme is invisible. So I broke that one up, and War ended up taking a few of those cards, thinking maybe it would end up with a mild top-of-your-deck subtheme, which fit with some of the attacks. In the end it only kept {{Card|Armory}}. Those of you noting that Dark Ages is the 7th expansion, and that in the Secret History for Dominion I say that {{Card|Adventurer}} came from the 7th expansion: that 7th expansion was the top-of-deck one. Ditto for {{Card|Shanty Town}}.

Around the time I was working in earnest on Cornucopia, I realized I had to decide what to do about the sizes of the last two large sets. The main set and Intrigue were standalones, and so 500 cards; Seaside and Prosperity had playmats and metal tokens. Hinterlands and Dark Ages did not have such things. Could they just be cheaper or what? I did not know yet if that was okay. However, I could dodge the issue for one of the sets by making it a standalone, and it seemed good to do another standalone anyway. I picked Hinterlands for that and worked to keep that set from getting too complex. And then what could Dark Ages have? And of course I realized that it could just have more cards; it could be 500 cards rather than 300. This would let me do some stuff that might not seem worth the space otherwise, like having a new kind of penalty card or cards that turned into other cards. So I expanded the expansion.

The original interactive theme was gone, and the attack theme was not going to cut it. Joe Dominion just doesn't want a heavy attack environment, that's what I think. And anyone who does can rig it themselves by including more attacks on the table. I figured attacks could still be a minor sub-theme, but slowly the cards that worked with attacks left, until Squire is all that remains (yes plus Beggar but that doesn't count). And as I mentioned, the top-of-deck theme was never going to amount to much.

I filled the void with an upgrading theme and a trash theme. Lots of cards turn cards into other cards, or themselves into other cards, and then a bunch of cards care if they're trashed, and a few care about the trash other ways. And of course the stuff I did with the extra 200 cards amounted to various minor themes too.

War was an unacceptable theme for Hans im Gluck, and I knew this basically from the day they took on Dominion. So way back when I knew I would be retheming the set. Dark Ages, there's a theme. It could be the poor to Prosperity's rich. Then when Alchemy became a small set, it looked like this set, though originally 4th, would be the last Dominion set, and that seemed cool too, going out with the Dark Ages (then Guilds got bumped to after it due to the basic cards product, which is also why Hinterlands wasn't a standalone).

Two cards from the original 2007 version of the set remain basically intact - {{Card|Altar}} and {{Card|Band of Misfits}}. The {{Card|Knights}} were in the original set in a different form, and there was a "+1 card +1 action" trasher which can claim to be an ancestor of {{Card|Rats}} and {{Card|Junk Dealer}}. The other 16 cards went elsewhere or didn't survive, being replaced by 31 new cards, some themselves from other sets but many new to this one. And of course I added those other cards, the [[Ruins]] and [[Shelters]] and things. The original war flavor and interaction theme are gone, replaced by the Dark Ages, upgrading, and the trash. The original set was my favorite and it turns out the final set is still my favorite. I liked the original for the interaction between players, and I like the final version for the interactions between cards. It is the crazy combos set.

On to the endless outtakes.

- The reaction part of {{Card|Trader}} started here, first by itself, and then for a while as a treasure-reaction worth {{Cost|1}}. The top half of {{Card|Inn}} started here too, for {{Cost|4}} (it was fine, I just needed someplace to put the bottom half of {{Card|Inn}}). There was also a similar card here later, "+2 Cards +1 Action, discard a card," for {{Cost|4}}, which ended up being too good. {{Card|Spice Merchant}} without the {{Card|Woodcutter}} option was here, but didn't exactly lead to {{Card|Spice Merchant}}. {{Card|Fool's Gold}} was in here at one point, in addition to the bottom being tried on {{Card|Bandit Camp}}. {{Card|Cartographer}} started here; it was a simple card that seemed perfect for Hinterlands, at the time a standalone.

- {{Card|Swindler}}, {{Card|Trade Route}}, {{Card|Tribute}}, and {{Card|Council Room}} started here. {{Card|Council Room}} originally cost {{Cost|4}}; {{Card|Tribute}} didn't say "differently named" and revealed the top card of each adjacent player; {{Card|Swindler}} didn't give +{{Cost|2}} and instead gave them a card for {{Cost|2}} less than the trashed card; and {{Card|Trade Route}} was "+1 Card +1 Buy +{{Cost|1}}, if a {{Card|Province}} has been gained this game, +1 Card." {{Card|Smugglers}} had its roots in a card here that was "+{{Cost|2}}, cards gained on the previous turn cost {{Cost|1}} less this turn." I tried a victory card with the {{Card|Horse Traders}} reaction here. {{Card|Hunting Party}} and {{Card|Spy}} were briefly in this set before getting whisked away.

- {{Card|Vineyard}} was in the set for a while, sometimes with a reaction. {{Card|Masquerade}} visited. {{Card|Monument}} was here for a bit, after leaving Prosperity and before returning to it. The card that ended up being {{Card|Horn of Plenty}} was here for a while after leaving Intrigue. When it was here it was some version of, "+2 Actions +1 Buy, while this is in play, when you play an action +{{Cost|1}}."

- There was an attack that gave out Confusions and doubled as a {{Card|Moat}}. There was an attack that was +1 Card +1 Action, name a type, each other player reveals their top card and trashes it if it matches. I tried a weaker version that only hit {{Cost|3}}-{{Cost|6}}'s before killing it.

- For a long time there was an attack which in its best form was "+{{Cost|2}}, they trash the top card of their deck and gain a cheaper card that shares a type with it, or a Ruins if they can't." I liked it. Eventually I decided though that there was enough hatred of trashing attacks out there that I should just stick with the {{Card|Knights}} (plus {{Card|Rogue}}, but it's only a fractional attack).

- There was an attack, gain an {{Card|Estate}}, they gain a {{Card|Curse}}, for {{Cost|3}}. It dominated games too much. I replaced it with {{Card|Marauder}}, and used the Estate/Curse thing on {{Card|Followers}}.

- There was a trashing attack that could only trash cards that didn't match cards in the trash.

- There was a {{Card|Spy}} variant for {{Cost|2}} that put bottom cards on top or didn't.

- There was a flipped version of {{Card|Margrave}} - +2 Cards, each other player discards down to 2, then draws a card. Oh man. So painful. A version that was around for a while cost {{Cost|4}} and gave you 2 {{Card|Silver}}s if it was trashed. Another version cost {{Cost|5}} but came with a {{Card|Spoils}}.

- After that attack died, I tried, they discard down to 3, you look through your discard pile and either get a card from it into your hand or draw 2 cards. It needed the +2 Cards option in case your discard pile was empty. Well I decided {{Card|Scavenger}} was okay, but you don't need to see too many of these getting back Platinums.

- Early on Intrigue had had a one-shot that played every attack in your deck (digging them out of it). It moved here and stopped being a one-shot, then gained the setup of "add an attack pile to the game." It was in the set for a while, producing gigantic piles of pain.

- There was a {{Card|Village}} that had you {{Card|Spy}} first whenever you played an attack. Play three of them and you'd be making three decisions per player per attack. I liked it for a while.

- There was a {{Card|Throne Room}} variant that gave +1 Card +1 Action, and had every opponent play the card you Throned on their next turn. It had built-in super-crazy just by playing it on itself.

- Another Throne was "Choose one: +1 Card +1 Action; or Throne." It cost {{Cost|4}} when {{Card|Throne Room}} itself cost {{Cost|3}}. When {{Card|Throne Room}} had to cost {{Cost|4}} there was no place for this card, which would be sad at {{Cost|5}}.

- Another Throne hung around, set aside, until you wanted to use it (it was {{Cost|5}} and also gave you +1 Action when played). This works differently from Throne in multiples; two of them would let you do an action three times total, since each one just did it an extra time. This card was cool and was in the set for a while, but setting it aside indefinitely was problematic - in the past we've included playmats for that, and I didn't want playmats here - and the card was strong. A few times Bill Barksdale built a deck with lots of these Thrones and an {{Card|Altar}}, which would take advantage of not actually having to trash a card to {{Card|Altar}} if there are none in your hand, and would suddenly buy a pile of {{Card|Duchy|Duchies}}. One of those games, Bill pared his deck down to just an {{Card|Altar}} and five copies of this Throne, drew the five Thrones and then watched a trashing attack trash his Altar. Good times.

- Another Throne had you draw 2 cards, play an action twice, then discard 3 cards. That may look straightforward, but it's all kinds of weird.

- I had discarding victory cards for +{{Cost|2}} each. It started out at {{Cost|4}}, went up to {{Cost|6}}, moved to [[Hinterlands]], then was dropped for not being interesting enough.

- There was a {{Card|Remodel}} that put the card into your hand. Originally it didn't give +1 Action; then it did and was crazy.

- There was a {{Card|Remodel}} for {{Cost|4}} that {{Card|Remodel}}'d one of the top 3 cards of your deck, putting the new card on top. I thought it was a keeper, but in one set of surveys it became clear that it was a dud for several playtesters.

- Another {{Card|Remodel}} turned one card into two different cards that each cost exactly {{Cost|2}} more. I did {{Card|Develop}} instead.

- There was a victory card for {{Cost|6}} that was worth 2 VP and you gained two copies of it. That runs out the pile twice as fast, so I changed it to 1 VP but it came with a {{Card|Duchy}}. That moved to Hinterlands, was there for a while, then left when I made {{Card|Border Village}} cost {{Cost|6}}.

- I tried a victory card that was worth 1 VP per 3 copies of whatever action you had the most copies of. I had a few different reactions on the bottom, including {{Card|Moat}} and giving you a new hand when attacked.

- I tried a version of Wall here, which had been a Hinterlands card that I did a better way as Island, then tried to do another version of for a while. The version here was an action-victory worth 2 VP with "look through your discard pile, shuffle all but 5 cards from it into your deck." The various Walls all were ways to shuffle your deck without so much garbage in it; I dropped it from Hinterlands in the end because I did Inn.

- There was an old old card, gain a {{Card|Silver}} to hand, each other player gains a {{Card|Copper}} to hand, for {{Cost|5}}. Way back when, we didn't know any better, and this card seemed okay. Then I tried a bunch of things to make this good enough, eventually drifting into "+1 Card +1 Action +{{Cost|1}}, each other player gains a {{Card|Copper}} in hand then discards down to 4." In the end nothing has survived. Giving other players {{Card|Copper}} is bad in general because the pile varies in size so much, depending on the number of players and whether or not you add together the main set and Intrigue. It's fine if the attack is limited as to how much {{Card|Copper}} it will really give out, like {{Card|Jester}} and {{Card|Noble Brigand}} and {{Card|Ambassador}}.

- There was a card from Seaside, "+{{Cost|2}}, when you discard this from play you may put this on your deck," for {{Cost|3}}. It seemed innocent for a long long time. Steve Wampler eventually demonstrated that it was not. {{Card|Scavenger}} provides a way to get that +{{Cost|2}} every turn, but you need two of them, and might draw them together.

- I tried a few ways to give you a combination of +'s that you picked. It sounded like something but was never interesting.

- There was "+1 buy +{{Cost|1}}, if you buy a 2nd card on a turn with this in play, trash this and gain 2 {{Card|Silver}}s." I tried a few different "turns into 2 {{Card|Silver}}s" cards over the years; this was its last stand.

- When it looked like {{Card|Band of Misfits}} wouldn't survive, I made a card that was just a big choose one with the kinds of things you'd like to see on the table with {{Card|Band of Misfits}}.

- A few cards tried to provide other uses for the Ruins pile. One was "+1 Card +1 Action, play the top Ruins, put it on the bottom." It was cute but there's a tracking issue. I did {{Card|Ironmonger}} instead. Another card played the top four Ruins. It gave you +{{Cost|3}} instead if the Ruins ran out, because what fun is that.

- Here's a weird one. {{Card|Woodcutter}}, copies of cards in the trash cost {{Cost|1}} less this turn; setup: we each put a kingdom card into the trash. Let me tell you, some slow decisions there, and then you have to keep the trash all spread out. It was interesting though. Those of you complaining about the {{Card|Band of Misfits}} FAQ, this is how you could get {{Card|King's Court}} to cost less than {{Card|Band of Misfits}}.

- The original main set had "Trash a card from your hand, discard a card, draw 3 cards." I dropped it from the main set for being redundant; there were other trashers. I slotted it right into Intrigue and then bumped it from there too. I stuck it here and well. It was interesting in its day, but wasn't so interesting these days, being similar to various other cards.

- An old card drew you 2 extra cards in your next hand, and was a {{Card|Moat}}. The idea was to increase your chance of having reactions in hand for attacks.

- A few times over the years, I tried to make a card that cost the other players a victory card at the end of the game. It attacks your score. This version I'm looking at was an "Action - Endgame." I tried versions that made one card not score, or two. At two no-one scores. At one it just wasn't interesting enough. The rest of the card can't exactly compensate; the text doing this weird thing has to be worth it.

- I tried {{Cost|2}}, "+1 Card +1 Action, each player draws a card." It's pretty rude with {{Card|Militia}}s.

- I briefly had a card-drawer that gave you cards when it was trashed. I guess that still describes {{Card|Cultist}}.

- A somewhat late card read, "+1 Buy +{{Cost|2}}, while this is in play, when you gain a card, you may trash a card from your hand." It was fine, it was just lackluster. I see another {{Card|Woodcutter}} here I don't remember; {{Card|Woodcutter}}, a card costs $1 less this turn per copy you reveal from your hand.

- Another late card was a treasure-victory card, worth {{Cost|1}} plus {{Cost|1}} per nontreasure in your hand, and worth 1 {{VP}} per 10 cards in the trash. The {{VP}} part was crazy, and I replaced this with a treasure worth {{Cost|1}} per different card type in your hand. It was cute in all-Dark Ages games and not so great otherwise. It flirted with staying in the set, then I replaced it with {{Card|Rebuild}}.

- More late cards, briefly tested in case they somehow worked out, all costing {{Cost|5}}. A two-use {{Card|Gold}} (you trash it and gain a {{Card|Spoils}}). +3 Cards, we all set aside a card from our hand, then we all take one of those cards. +1 Card +1 Action, When you gain or trash this each other player gets a Ruins. +1 Card +1 Action +{{Cost|1}}, may discard x cards to gain a card costing $x. +4 Cards, +1 Action, discard 3 cards. And there was a hot potato card - you passed it left when you played it and got some benefit, and at end of game it was worth negative VP - that I tested but did not make a prototype card image for. The slot all these cards were tested for went to {{Card|Mystic}}.

- A few cards moved to Guilds, including one that then didn't survive there, but that story will have to wait.

True story!
|Name=[[Donald X. Vaccarino]]
 |Source=[http://forum.dominionstrategy.com/index.php?topic=4318.0 The Secret History of the Dark Ages cards]
}}
=== Retrospective ===
{{Quote|Text=Dark Ages is my favorite of the early sets but has a stand-out number of design mistakes - {{Card|Rebuild}}, {{Card|Cultist}}, {{Card|Procession}}, {{Card|Band of Misfits}}.
|Name=[[Donald X. Vaccarino]]
|Source=[https://discord.com/channels/212660788786102272/499250664690679808/630250506824187924 Dominion Discord, 2019]
}}
=== Second Edition ===
{{Quote|Text=It would be nice to replace {{Card|Band of Misfits}} and {{Card|Procession}}, ideally with fixed versions as if. I've wanted to kill {{Card|Rebuild}} for a while, and people would probably be happy to have a better-to-print {{Card|Cultist}} and {{Card|Urchin}} (which is two cards). That leaves just one card left to replace (to have the same size update pack). Nothing else has to go but something else could be improved on; I'm personally not much of a fan of {{Card|Storeroom}} or {{Card|Sage}}. {{Card|Scavenger}} would be safe though.
|Name=[[Donald X. Vaccarino]]
|Source=[https://discord.com/channels/212660788786102272/257241961482813440/631201668838719508 Dominion Discord, 2019]
}}

== Recommended sets of 10 ==
All sets include the Shelters.
=== Dark Ages only ===
{{Kingdom|Armory|Band of Misfits|Catacombs|Cultist|Forager|Fortress|Hunting Grounds|Knights|Market Square|Procession|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Grim Parade}}
{{Kingdom|Bandit Camp|Graverobber|Junk Dealer|Mystic|Pillage|Rats|Sage|Scavenger|Storeroom|Vagrant|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Chess With Death}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Dominion (base set)|Dominion]] ===
{{Kingdom|Cellar|Moneylender|Throne Room|Witch|Workshop|Hermit|Hunting Grounds|Mystic|Poor House|Wandering Minstrel|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = High and Low}}
{{Kingdom|Festival|Gardens|Laboratory|Library|Remodel|Altar|Knights|Rats|Scavenger|Squire|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Chivalry and Revelry}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Intrigue]] ===
{{Kingdom|Armory|Ironmonger|Mystic|Rebuild|Vagrant|Baron|Conspirator|Nobles|Secret Passage|Wishing Well|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Prophecy}}
{{Kingdom|Beggar|Marauder|Rogue|Squire|Urchin|Diplomat|Harem|Swindler|Torturer|Upgrade|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Invasion}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Seaside]] ===
{{Kingdom|Count|Graverobber|Hermit|Scavenger|Urchin|Native Village|Pirate Ship|Salvager|Treasure Map|Treasury|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Watery Graves}}
{{Kingdom|Death Cart|Feodum|Poor House|Urchin|Vagrant|Fishing Village|Haven|Island|Lookout|Warehouse|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Peasants}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Alchemy]] ===
{{Kingdom|Armory|Cultist|Feodum|Market Square|Rats|Wandering Minstrel|Apprentice|Scrying Pool|Transmute|Vineyard|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Infestations}}
{{Kingdom|Beggar|Catacombs|Counterfeit|Forager|Ironmonger|Pillage|Apothecary|Golem|Herbalist|University|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Lamentations}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Prosperity]] ===
{{Kingdom|Counterfeit|Forager|Graverobber|Market Square|Rogue|City|Grand Market|Monument|Talisman|Venture|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = One Man's Trash|id = onemanstrash}}
{{Kingdom|Bandit Camp|Procession|Rebuild|Rogue|Squire|Forge|Hoard|Peddler|Quarry|Watchtower|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Honor Among Thieves}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Cornucopia]] ===
{{Kingdom|Band of Misfits|Cultist|Fortress|Hermit|Junk Dealer|Knights|Fairgrounds|Hamlet|Horn of Plenty|Menagerie|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Dark Carnival}}
{{Kingdom|Bandit Camp|Counterfeit|Death Cart|Marauder|Pillage|Sage|Harvest|Hunting Party|Remake|Tournament|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = To the Victor}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Hinterlands]] ===
{{Kingdom|Beggar|Count|Feodum|Marauder|Wandering Minstrel|Cartographer|Develop|Embassy|Fool's Gold|Haggler|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Far From Home}}
{{Kingdom|Altar|Catacombs|Ironmonger|Poor House|Storeroom|Crossroads|Farmland|Highway|Spice Merchant|Tunnel|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Expeditions}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Guilds]] ===
{{Kingdom|Hunting Grounds|Ironmonger|Procession|Marauder|Rogue|Advisor|Baker|Candlestick Maker|Plaza|Stonemason|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Stoneground}}
{{Kingdom|Feodum|Fortress|Knights|Market Square|Poor House|Butcher|Doctor|Journeyman|Merchant Guild|Taxman|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Class Struggle}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Adventures]] ===
{{Kingdom|Amulet|Caravan Guard|Hireling|Peasant|Relic|Graverobber|Marauder|Procession|Rogue|Wandering Minstrel|event1 = Alms|shelters = 1|imgwidth = 150|title = Cemetery Polka}}
{{Kingdom|Dungeon|Haunted Woods|Ratcatcher|Raze|Transmogrify|Cultist|Death Cart|Fortress|Knights|Rats|event1 = Lost Arts|event2 = Pathfinding|shelters = 1|imgwidth = 150|title = Groovy Decay}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Empires]] ===
{{Kingdom|Castles|Chariot Race|City Quarter|Legionary|Sacrifice|Death Cart|Fortress|Pillage|Rats|Storeroom|event1 = Advance|landmark1 = Tomb|shelters = 1|imgwidth = 150|title = Tomb of the Rat King}}
{{Kingdom|Capital|Charm|Engineer|Groundskeeper|Legionary|Bandit Camp|Catacombs|Hunting Grounds|Market Square|Procession|event1 = Triumph|landmark1 = Defiled Shrine|shelters = 1|imgwidth = 150|title = Triumph of the Bandit King}}
{{Kingdom|Archive|Catapult|Crown|Patrician|Settlers|Feodum|Hermit|Ironmonger|Rogue|Squire|event1 = Ritual|landmark1 = Museum|shelters = 1|imgwidth = 150|title = The Squire's Ritual|id = squiresritual}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Nocturne]] ===
{{Kingdom|Cemetery|Cursed Village|Necromancer|Skulk|Tormentor|Armory|Forager|Graverobber|Market Square|Squire|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Grave Matters}}
{{Kingdom|Changeling|Devil's Workshop|Sacred Grove|Tracker|Vampire|Catacombs|Count|Fortress|Hermit|Rats|shelters=1|imgwidth = 150|title = Rats and Bats}}
=== Dark Ages & [[Renaissance]] ===
{{Kingdom|Border Guard|Patron|Seer|Silk Merchant|Swashbuckler|Hermit|Mystic|Procession|Sage|Wandering Minstrel|project1 = Star Chart|shelters=1|artifact2 = Horn|artifact4 = Lantern|artifact5 = Treasure Chest|imgwidth = 150|title = Stargazing}}
{{Kingdom|Flag Bearer|Improve|Lackeys|Mountain Village|Research|Count|Counterfeit|Cultist|Graverobber|Rats|project1 = Crop Rotation|project2 = Sewers|shelters=1|artifact1 = Flag|imgwidth = 150|title = Sewer Rats}}

=== Dark Ages & [[Menagerie (expansion)|Menagerie]] ===
{{Kingdom|Animal Fair|Cardinal|Falconer|Goatherd|Hunting Lodge|Altar|Beggar|Catacombs|Fortress|Market Square|shelters=1|way1=Way of the Camel|event1=Ride|shelters=1|imgwidth=150|title = Friendly Carnage}}
{{Kingdom|Camel Train|Destrier|Displace|Paddock|Scrap|Hunting Grounds|Pillage|Rats|Sage|Squire|shelters=1|way1=Way of the Butterfly|event1=Bargain|shelters=1|imgwidth=150|title = Gift Horses}}

=== Dark Ages & [[Allies]] ===
{{Kingdom|Barbarian|Broker|Contract|Highwayman|Wizards|Bandit Camp|Beggar|Forager|Graverobber|Poor House|ally=Cave Dwellers|shelters = 1|imgwidth = 150|title=Grave Business}}
{{Kingdom|Emissary|Importer|Skirmisher|Swap|Townsfolk|Count|Death Cart|Knights|Rats|Squire|ally=Desert Guides|shelters = 1|imgwidth = 150|title=Rat Traders}}

{{Navbox Dark Ages}}
{{Navbox expansions}}