Duration draw
Duration draw is a collective term for abilities that increase the number of cards you have in hand at the start of your turn. Most of the effects that provide duration draw are Duration cards—hence the name—but there exist Events, a Boon, an Artifact, a Project, a Way, and an Ally with duration-draw effects as well, as well as Reaction cards that add themselves to your hand at the start of your turn.
Duration draw is valuable in engine decks because it increases the probability that you will be able to line up key engine components to start your turn; the effect is therefore similar to guaranteeing a non-terminal draw card in a normal-sized hand. The power of duration-draw cards is mitigated by the fact that as Duration cards, they remain in play for multiple turns, and can therefore be played less frequently than comparable non-Duration cards. Moreover, the benefit duration-draw cards provide is delayed; most of them provide little or no value on the turn you play them. One reason Wharf and Gear are considered very powerful cards is because they can provide both terminal draw when you play them and duration draw the next turn.
Most cheaper duration-draw cards, such as Haven, increase the size of your next hand by setting aside cards from your current hand to add to your hand later—thus increasing your handsize at the beginning of your next turn comes at the expense of being able to use those cards on the current turn. More expensive duration draw will typically just give you +Cards from your deck on your next turn, or occasionally cards set aside from somewhere other than your hand.
Duration-draw cards often provide defense against handsize attacks, since they can allow you to re-draw to a full-size hand after being hit by an Attack like Militia. However, this is not true of most of the landscapes with similar effects, because they increase your handsize before you're hit by the Attacks.
List of sources of duration draw
Cards
- Faithful Hound, Haven
- Cargo Ship, Church, Enchantress, Gear, Ghost Town
- Caravan, Conjurer, Flag Bearer (via Flag), Horse Traders, Research, Village Green
- Archive, Barge, Cobbler, Crypt, Den of Sin, Haunted Woods, Highwayman, Tactician, Warlord, Wharf
- Hireling
Prince, Ghost, Captain, Mastermind, and Contract can provide duration draw if they play an action that provides at least +1 Card. Dungeon and Guide don't increase your handsize above five at the start of your turn, but they do sift your hand.
Other
- Events: Save, Expedition
- Boon: The River's Gift
- Project: Sinister Plot
- Artifact: Flag
- Way: Way of the Squirrel
- Ally: Coastal Haven
Summon, like Prince, can provide duration draw if it sets aside a card that draws. Cards that gain Horses function similarly to duration draw, in that you typically don't get to use the Horses immediately, but you're setting up draw for later. Supplies is the most similar, as it puts a Horse onto your deck during your Buy phase, which will usually be played as one of your first Actions on your next turn.