Way of the Horse
| Way of the Horse | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Info | |
| Type | Way |
| Set |
Menagerie |
| Illustrator(s) | Jessi J |
| Way text | |
|
+2 Cards +1 Action Return this to its pile. | |
Way of the Horse is a Way from Menagerie. It lets any Action work like a Horse, giving +2 Cards and +1 Action then returning to its pile.
FAQ
Official FAQ
- The card returns to its pile, even if that is a non-Supply pile. A card with no pile, such as Necropolis (from Dark Ages), fails to return to its pile.
Other rules clarifications
- If you use a card like Necromancer to play another card without moving it into play, and use Way of the Horse, that card does not move to its pile.
- Cards bought from the Black Market deck are not considered to have a pile, and so, like Necropolis, you can use Way of the Horse on them and not return them anywhere.
- Failing to return a card to a pile does not stop you from getting +2 Cards and +1 Action.
Strategy
Way of the Horse allows you to play any Action card for non-terminal draw, which is a very powerful effect, at the cost of returning the card to the Supply (or a non-Supply pile). It is extremely useful with Action cards that you either don’t mind losing (e.g., Ruins which are cheap and junk otherwise) or cannot return to a pile. You can also tactically use this Way with an Action card you would normally prefer to keep, for example to rescue a turn that would otherwise be a dud or to cannibalize your deck and stretch its capabilities in the endgame.
Way of the Horse provides a very strong one-shot effect to get rid of Action cards you no longer want or need. This can be helpful with cards that were useful at the beginning of the game but have overstayed their welcome, such as a Chapel after you have trashed your starting junk. It can also be useful with cards that have an important on-gain effect but may be worth much less once they’re in your deck (e.g. Stonemason or surplus Lackeys). Way of the Horse has a very important interaction with Ruins, as it transforms them from mostly harmful junk into very useful, extremely cheap one-shot non-terminal draw cards. This makes Looting attacks very unattractive, as receiving Ruins is actively helpful to your opponents, and Death Cart a possible source of draw. More generally, the presence of Ruins (and, to a lesser extent, other cheap and usually weak Action cards, e.g. Beggar) strongly encourages adding plenty of +Buy such as Bridge, since cheap Horses are often a good deal and you’re likely to want to buy many of them. For the same reason, Workshop variants and other gainers such as Rats become more valuable with Way of the Horse, and may be especially crucial to replenish your supply of Action cards if you cannot draw your deck every turn without relying at least partially on Way of the Horse.
There are two situations in which a card cannot be returned to a pile. First, certain cards do not have a pile (such as Necropolis and cards from the Black Market) and can therefore always be played as Way of the Horse without losing them, essentially providing a cheap and flexible Laboratory effect whenever you need it. Second, a card can be prevented from moving (which usually means it was not in your deck in the first place), e.g. when played using Necromancer or a Command card such as Overlord. This is especially useful with Captain, since using Way of the Horse with a start-of-turn play not only provides strong draw but also creates extra terminal space.
In the endgame during your final shuffle, when you don’t mind losing some of your cards, it may be beneficial to play Action cards that you’d normally prefer to keep using Way of the Horse. This is most likely to be a relevant consideration when you otherwise can’t draw enough of your deck (perhaps because its functionality has deteriorated due to greening) and exchanging some payload for draw will enable you to end the game. A deck-cannibalizing strategy can also be relevant if you can favorably manipulate your score by returning cards on your last turn, e.g. because Wall or Wolf Den is present. Because you are returning cards to their piles, however, it is important to make sure that doing so does not work against a pileout you might be aiming for.
Way of the Horse has an important interaction with Possession: while cards trashed during a Possession turn are set aside and returned to the possessed player’s deck, the same is not true of cards returned to the Supply, so Way of the Horse potentially lets you completely disassemble a Possessed opponent’s deck.
Versions
English versions
| Digital | Text | Release | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
 |
+2 Cards +1 Action Return this to its pile. |
Menagerie | March 2020 |
Other language versions
| Language | Name | Digital | Text | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dutch | Spoor van het Paard | +2 Kaarten +1 Actie Leg deze kaart terug op diens stapel. |
(2020) | ||
| German | Weg des Pferdes |  |
 |
+2 Karten +1 Aktion Lege diese Karte auf ihren Stapel zurück. |
|
| Japanese | 馬の習性 (pron. uma no shūsei) |
Trivia
The name is a reference to Horse.
Preview
