A Guide to Character Builds

''Foreword: This guide is a culmination of approximately a year's worth of testing, playing and spectating multiple character builds in Card Hunter by Phaselock. The author has experienced and witnessed all possible builds prior to the first ever expansion release of Card Hunter. All in all, this guide holds the experience worth of two beta resets and game release, more than 1000 MP games played/spectated and more than 300 MP cards played and tested since Jan 2013. This guide is intended for beginners and veterans alike. It summarizes the types of character builds commonly found in Card Hunter and attempts to explain the various features supplemented with card examples. Enjoy!''

There are (as of writing and post card draw nerf) three major types of character builds in Card Hunter. They are


 * 1) Build to Kill
 * 2) Build to Disrupt
 * 3) Build to Control

Almost all MP cards and character builds fall into at least one of three categories above.

Build to Disrupt
One of the most annoying ways to win is by disrupting the opponent's strategy through consistent negation of opponent's advantage. In any game, outcomes are not just bounded to the state of the pieces on a board. Forced resignation and frustration plays are valid ways to winning. There is also the saying 'A quitter never wins, and a winner never quits'. Forcing your opponent to quit is a tried and tested method of the ages.

Build to Control
Control in Card Hunter requires an understanding of the game state, both of your opponent and yourself. As such, it is considered to be one of the hardest build and gameplay style to pull off. The definition of the term 'Control' is unlike that of 'Disrupt'. Where disrupt affects by chance, control affects by devaluing the opponent's game state.

Disruption or Control ?
The astute reader will by now realize that not all cards are built solely for damage or disruption or control only. Indeed, depending on the state of the game, the actual use of a card dictates its intended function. Some cards are deceptively hard to classify until the play is made. For instance, playing on a five card hand is disruptive, playing the same card on a two card hand is control. Playing at the start of a turn is disruptive, playing the same when the enemy has no cards in hand and sitting on VPs is control. Using to isolate VPs at the start is disruptive, using the same with 2 victory stars left to win is control. As such, the flexibility of or  or  is far higher than, say.

To conclude, whether a build is made to disrupt or made to control really depends on how the cards are used in active gameplay. If you constantly find yourself discarding high value cards, chances are your gameplay is being curtailed and controlled. If you find board advantage slipping away, its likely your opponent is playing to disrupt your tempo. The type of build to play is really a matter of personal preference and skill. Some will find disruption a great fun way to win and constantly build around this style. Others will only stick to damage. Then there will be the control freaks who stick by their way. Whichever the case, I hope this brief guide serves as an insight into the key types of character builds and their gameplay significance in Card Hunter. Enjoy the game and have fun!

Credits
Phaselock: Author of this guide.