Pawn
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* Italian: Pedina | * Italian: Pedina | ||
* Japanese: 手先 (pron. ''tesaki'') | * Japanese: 手先 (pron. ''tesaki'') | ||
+ | * Korean: 앞잡이 (pron. ''apjab-i'', lit. ''agent'') | ||
* Norwegian: Kongsmann (lit. ''king's man'') | * Norwegian: Kongsmann (lit. ''king's man'') | ||
* Polish: Giermek (lit. ''squire'') | * Polish: Giermek (lit. ''squire'') |
Revision as of 23:35, 16 May 2015
Pawn | |
---|---|
Info | |
Cost | |
Type(s) | Action |
Kingdom card? | Yes |
Set | Intrigue |
Illustrator(s) | Franz Vohwinkel |
Card text | |
Choose two: +1 Card; +1 Action; +1 Buy; +. (The choices must be different.) |
Pawn is an Action card from Intrigue. Depending on what choices you make, it can be either a cantrip, terminal card draw, or a source of +Buy. It's a very versatile card, with a total of 6 possible choices, which often causes "analysis paralysis" for new players.
Contents |
FAQ
Official FAQ
- First pick any 2 of the 4 options. You cannot pick the same option twice. After picking both, do both, in either order.
- You may not choose to draw a card, look at the card drawn, and then make your second choice.
Other Rules clarifications
If Pawn is Throne Roomed or King's Courted, the choices do not have to be the same for each play of Pawn.
Strategy Article
Original article by werothegreat
Pawn is definitely not a power . At first glance, Squire even seems to be intrinsically better. But Pawn has its place - when played right, it can be helpful, and even essential in certain Kingdoms.
What does Pawn do?
Like many cards in Intrigue, Pawn offers the player a choice between multiple options. Given the inexpensive nature of the card, the options are not really anything to write home about - +1 Card, +1 Action, +1 Buy, or + - you get two different options. This makes Pawn remarkably flexible - it can be a pure cantrip, or a gimped Herbalist, or any other combination you like. However, this flexibility can lead to analysis paralysis, particularly in new players, who often deliberate for several minutes before finally choosing +1 Card, +1 Action.
Well, then why do I want this?
Typically you want to construct your deck to avoid only hitting , but that can't always be helped. In those cases, it usually doesn't hurt to throw a Pawn into the mix. But Pawn shines when it is the only source of +Buy - in those cases, players may often overspend just to get their hands on a couple. If that Pawn gets you a turn where you can buy two Provinces (or even just two Duchies), then it did its job. Pawn can also help in deck control - even when just used as a cantrip, it does give some measure of control over when you shuffle.
Pawn is also useful, and sometimes integral, to strategies centered on Action-heavy decks. Due to their cost and ability to give +Buy, Pawns can be used to spark a Conspirator or Herald engine, and are immensely useful in acquiring Peddlers. Any engine that has cards that draw to a certain size, such as Library, also enjoy having Pawn along to play disappearing money.
Okay, I got a Pawn - how do I use it?
That depends on the context. If you always use it as +1 Action, +1 Card, you might as well have not bought it in the first place, because the card replacing it would have just been in your hand anyway. You should have at least some plan to use Pawn in a way that merited purchasing it. But once it's in your deck, you may have a hand where you'll want to play Pawn as a cantrip, and there may be some games where you'll mostly be playing it as a cantrip, but to play Pawn well, you have to realize that it can do a lot more than that.
The trick to using Pawn correctly is knowing what's coming next in your deck. So when you play with Pawn, you should keep track of what cards you're gaining and what cards you've already played this shuffle. So ask yourself - what am I most likely to draw next?
Non-Action: +1 Card, + - this will net you the most Coin. If your Coin fielded this turn already exceeds (or if you want to purchase multiple cards this turn), then of course +1 Card, +1 Buy will be more suitable.
Action, in engine: Same as above, since, although your next card is likely an Action, you'll most likely still have Actions left to play that next card with.
Cantrip, no Villages: +1 Action, +1 Buy or +1 Action, + is a solid play, turning Pawn into a gimped Minion of sorts.
No idea: Probably best to choose +1 Buy, + (unless you have more Actions in hand).
In general, once your engine is at a point where your next cards are most likely Actions, then the +1 Action non-draw plays become quite powerful, since you'll want to save your Actions for more powerful terminals. So when should one play Pawn as +1 Card, +1 Action? When you have limited Actions, and want to keep searching through your deck for a key card. In situations where you'd be using Pawn only for this, it's probably best to just ignore Pawn.
Remember that Pawn is almost never the centerpiece of a strategy; it is very much a support card. Sometimes you pick Pawns up with the intent of using them for +Buy later, or because you hit and there's nothing else at that cost that you really want. Just make sure to keep in mind Pawn's ability to adapt, and don't just keep choosing the same options because you don't know what to do with it. Make sure you're picking the right two bonuses for your current turn.
The cheap nature of Pawn also allows you to amass a lot of them. This can help with 3-piling, simply by buying out the Pawns, and can definitely turn an engine producing a lot of coin (such as with Poor House or Merchant Ship) into one that buys several Provinces per turn.
Particular interactions
Poor House likes Pawn, since it will take up space in your hand that could have been a Treasure, and the +1 Action, +1 Buy or +1 Action, + options allow you to still play your Poor House without risking potentially drawing a Treasure.
Any card that likes lots of potentially non-terminal Actions will do well with Pawn - Peddler, Scrying Pool, Vineyard, Conspirator, Death Cart, to name a few. Gardens does quite well with Pawn, it being a cheap source of +Buy.
Throne Room and etc! These cards expand the range of options Pawn has. With Throne Room, you can use Pawn as terminal draw for the first play, and still use it for +Action on the 2nd play if you draw an Action. Throne Room can even turn Pawn into a makeshift Village. But this tactic requires two cards to get the effect normally produced by one, so don't go out of your way to pursue this.
Cards that inspect the top of your deck or place a card there also do well with Pawn - simply make sure there's a Treasure or Victory card there so that you can play Pawn for terminal draw without fear.
One unique aspect about Pawn is that it can either decrease or maintain your handsize while still keeping you at the same number of Actions. Menagerie in hand? Let's disappear some of those Pawns. Looking for your Madman? Use Pawn as a cantrip. This works especially well with Library, since, once you've finished playing your Pawns in hand for +1 Action, +/+1 Buy, it can skip over dead Pawns that you draw.
When should I ignore Pawn?
Pawn, like Cellar, is less useful when discard Attacks are in the Kingdom - true, the Pawn can just be used for +1 Card, +1 Action, but more often than not you'll find yourself just discarding them, and if you had not bought them in the first place, you would have had a better hand to choose three cards from. In general, contexts where a potentially self-replacing card like Pawn does more harm than good, should result in Pawn avoidance - for example, in 3- or 4-player games where Attacks abound, and having a Moat in hand is critical - a Pawn would soak up a spot in your hand that could be better filled by the Moat.
Terminal draw, such as Smithy BM, conflicts with Pawn, since they are now competing for an Action. Generally playing the draw card will be stronger, but with too many Pawns, you'll be getting dead draws.
Pawn becomes less useful when better sources of +Buy are present, such as Market or Wharf. What Pawn has going for it in these instances is that it is cheap, so it's easier to procure, and easy to spam, but you'd rather have the better card in your deck. However, Pawn can still be piled out in these instances when necessary.
In summary:
Don't be afraid to use Pawn for terminal draw, either with + or +1 Buy. Either option is usually better than the cantrip option. Just realize that you have, well, options.
Goes well with:
- Minion
- Engines
- Throne Room, etc
- Deck inspection/Top decking
- Library, etc
Conflicts with:
- Against discard Attacks
- Terminal draw BM
- Better +Buy
Trivia
In other languages
- Chinese: 小兵 (pron. xiǎobīng, lit. small soldier)
- Czech: Pěšák
- Dutch: Pion
- Finnish: Apuri (lit. sidekick)
- French: Pion
- German: Handlanger
- Hungarian: Csatlós (lit. sidekick)
- Italian: Pedina
- Japanese: 手先 (pron. tesaki)
- Korean: 앞잡이 (pron. apjab-i, lit. agent)
- Norwegian: Kongsmann (lit. king's man)
- Polish: Giermek (lit. squire)
- Russian: Заложник (pron. zalozhnik, lit. hostage)
- Spanish: Peón
Secret History