Editing Wild Hunt

{{Infobox Card
 |name = Wild Hunt
 |cost = 5
 |set = Empires
 |type1 = Action
 |type2 = Gathering
 |illustrator = Harald Lieske
 |text = Choose one: '''+3 Cards''' and add '''1'''{{VP}} to the Wild Hunt Supply pile; or gain an Estate, and if you do, take the {{VP}} from the pile.
}}

'''Wild Hunt''' is an [[Action]]-[[Gathering]] card from [[Empires]]. It is a [[terminal draw]] card that Gathers {{VP}} [[Victory token|tokens]] when played; the player can choose to forgo the draw to instead [[gainer|gain]] an {{Card|Estate}} and take the Gathered {{VP}}.
== FAQ ==
=== Official FAQ ===
* If the Estate pile is empty, you can choose that option but will not get the tokens. 
* Wild Hunt still functions normally if the Wild Hunt pile is empty.
== Strategy ==
Wild Hunt is expensive when viewed purely as a [[terminal draw]] card. However, its overall value is greatly augmented by its [[Gathering]] mechanic, which provides a good supplementary source of [[alt-VP]], especially if you can gain an advantage in [[deck control]] over your opponents. If only one player had completely unfettered access to the Wild Hunt pile, each play of this card except the very last of the game (to take all the accumulated {{VP}} from the pile) would score {{VP|1}} as well as drawing three cards, a very powerful effect; therefore, when playing many Wild Hunts is both possible and desirable, it can be a pile that is particularly important to contest.

Early in the game, Wild Hunt’s function in most cases is simply to draw cards, and in this respect it should be used like any other {{Card|Smithy}} variant: it’s best when you can fairly reliably [[collision|collide]] it with a [[Village (card category)|village]], and is a useful [[engine]] component that you’re likely to keep adding to your deck as your need for [[draw]] increases. Because Wild Hunt is expensive and its additional function (unlike the bonus [[sifter|sifting]] provided by {{Card|Journeyman}}, for example) is useless until you’re ready to start taking {{VP}} from the pile, it may be outcompeted early on by better or cheaper options for draw. However, it’s worth bearing in mind that drawing with Wild Hunt rather than an alternative [[terminal]] may become more valuable later, as each play racks up the number of {{VP}} available.

The transition to sometimes playing a Wild Hunt for {{VP}} rather than draw tends to occur when the number of tokens accumulated on the pile is high enough that it’s worth the cost of adding a [[junk]] card to your deck in the form of an {{Card|Estate}}, and you suspect that an opponent may take the points on their next turn if you don’t do it now. Various factors can influence your judgment, including the availability and strength of other ways to score, which may affect the value of the available {{VP}}: for example, Wild Hunt points may be especially important in an otherwise single-gain [[Kingdom]]. Another relevant consideration is the strength of your (and your opponents’) deck control and ability to handle the extra {{Card|Estate}}. Ultimately, an ideal scenario for the engine in the mid-game and later is to consistently draw your deck on each turn (including multiple Wild Hunt plays to draw cards), use your last Wild Hunt to gain an {{Card|Estate}} and take all the {{VP}} tokens from the pile, and perhaps then draw the {{Card|Estate}} as well and [[trasher|trash]] it (better still if you can get some [[trash-for-benefit|benefit]] from doing this, e.g. by using {{Card|Salvager}}). If your opponents are unable to execute this manoeuvre equally consistently, you may be able to poach {{VP}} that they’ve left on the pile as a result of needing to play all their Wild Hunts for draw or generating so few points during their own turn that they weren’t worth the cost of gaining a junk card. Similarly, if you have or can play more copies of Wild Hunt, in the long term you’ll score more even if everyone is drawing their deck consistently.

When you can’t draw your deck and play all your Wild Hunts (e.g. because you’ve adopted a [[money strategies|money strategy]] or the endgame has become a [[slog]]), more ongoing judgment is required as to when to draw on with Wild Hunt and when to take the {{VP}}. Additional relevant factors in this case might include [[reshuffle|shuffle]] considerations and the remaining contents of your deck (because this may be important in deciding whether or not it would be better to draw three more cards), the likelihood that an opponent will be able to take the {{VP}} before you get another opportunity, and your alternative options for scoring.

In either scenario, Wild Hunt as a method of scoring doesn’t work indefinitely, as the {{Card|Estate|Estates}} will run out at some point. As the pile gets lower, it may be worth considering gaining extra {{Card|Estate|Estates}} in order to empty the pile and deprive your opponents of future Wild Hunt points; playing additional Wild Hunts for points may be a good way to do this, especially if you have [[overdraw]]. Relevant factors when considering this move include the reliability of your own and others’ decks and the {{VP}} standings—for example, you may need to leave open the possibility of scoring more Wild Hunt points yourself on subsequent turns. It also commonly forms part of a [[three-pile ending]] to close out the game.

== Alternate Versions ==
== Versions ==
===English versions===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
! Print !! Digital !! Text !! Release !! Date
|-
| {{CardLangVersionImage}} || {{CardLangVersionImage|d=1}} || Choose one: '''+3 Cards''' and add {{nowrap|'''1'''{{VP}}}} to the Wild Hunt Supply pile; or gain an Estate, and if you do, take the {{VP}} from the pile. || Empires || June 2016 
|}

===Other language versions===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
! Language !! Name !! Print !! Digital !! Text !! Notes
|-
!Dutch 
| Wilde jacht || || || || 
|-
!Finnish 
| Henkijahti (lit. ''spirit hunt'') || || || || 
|-
!French
| Chasse fantastique || || || || 
|-
!German 
| Wilde Jagd || {{CardPNGImage|WildHunt_German|German language Wild Hunt 2016 by ASS}} || || Wähle eins:<br>'''+3 Karten''' und lege {{nowrap|1 [[File:VPDE.png|15px]]-Marker}} auf den {{nowrap|Wilde-Jagd-Vorratsstapel}}<br>oder<br>nimm ein Anwesen.<br>Wenn du das tust: Nimm alle {{nowrap|[[File:VPDE.png|15px]]-Marker}} vom {{nowrap|Wilde-Jagd-Vorratsstapel.}} || (2016)
|-
!German 
| Wilde Jagd || {{CardVersionImage|Wild HuntGerman2021rulebook|German language Wild Hunt 2021 by ASS}} || {{CardVersionImage|Wild HuntGerman2021Digital|German language Wild Hunt 2021 from Shuffle iT}} || Wähle eins:<br>'''+3 Karten''' und lege {{nowrap|'''1'''{{VP}}}} auf den {{nowrap|Wilde Jagd-Vorratsstapel}}<br>oder<br>nimm ein Anwesen; wenn du das tust, nimm alle {{VP}} vom {{nowrap|Wilde Jagd-Vorratsstapel.}} || 2.&nbsp;Edition<br>(2021)
|-
!Japanese 
| ワイルドハント (pron. ''wairudohanto'') || || || style="padding:15px 0px;"| 次のうち1つを選ぶ:「'''+3 カードを引く'''、ワイルドハントの山の上に{{nowrap|'''1'''{{VP}}}}を追加する」:「屋敷を獲得する。獲得した場合、ワイルドハントの山の上の{{VP}}をすべて得る」。 || 
|-
!Polish 
| Dziki gon || {{CardLangVersionImage|Polish}} || || Wybierz jedno: '''+3&nbsp;karty''' i dołóż {{nowrap|'''1'''{{VP}}}} na stos Dzikiego gonu; albo dodaj Posiadłość i jeśli to zrobiłeś weź wszystkie {{VP}} ze stosu Dzikiego gonu. || (2017)
|-
!Russian 
| Дикая Охота (pron. ''dikaya okhota'') || || || || 
|}

== Trivia ==
[[Image:Wild_HuntArt.jpg|thumb|right|354px|Official card art.]]
=== Name and Art ===
{{Quote|Text=
Wild Hunt is a European folklore thing - not so Roman but in the set anyway. I didn't go into that in the artist notes though.


Wild Hunt: A group of ghostly hunters, on horses and with hounds, in the sky, chasing prey.
|Name=[[Donald X. Vaccarino]]
 |Source=[http://forum.dominionstrategy.com/index.php?topic=5799.msg664890#msg664890 Interview with Donald X.]
}}
=== Secret History ===
{{Quote|Text=This started out being trashed to get the {{VP}}. You don't want to trash your {{Card|Smithy}}. I changed it to gaining an Estate (trying to make sure you couldn't make {{VP}} forever this way) and it was much better.
|Name=[[Donald X. Vaccarino]]
 |Source=[http://forum.dominionstrategy.com/index.php?topic=15660.0 The Secret History of the Empires Cards]
}}
{{Navbox Empires}}
{{Navbox Cards}}