Riftbound Radiance: Top 10 Cards from the New Set

Radiance is upon us and ahead of EU Regionals in Stuttgart. Let's take a look at the top 10 most promising cards from the set and why they might be impactful!

#10 - Ki Burst

Ki Burst in the right shell, like Riven, can be a Stun effect for a single Energy, which is already very good on rate. If paired with cards that actively benefit from something being exhausted, like both Riven Champion units or another card down on this list, then you get even more mileage out of this innocuous card. It's also likely that in your Calm deck, you have your Heron on a battlefield anyways, patiently waiting to do something - likely ready to be exhausted to effects like Ki Burst.

#9 - Siren's Song

Siren's Song was hyped up to insane levels during the spoiler season. Even though the card indeed turned out to be pretty cheap Energy-wise, it does not seem to have the same hype as it did. The issue with it is that it's basically a movement counter to cards like Ride the Wind *or* a way to basically Charm out an attacker. This does nothing when you're on the offensive, with the exception of a case where the opposing unit moves out of combat so you pull it back in. If we add up all these cases, the number of moments when it could be useful starts to be substantial but still considerably less than we might have anticipated. That's why, instead of what may have been thought as #1 initially, this lands at #9 for now.

#8 - Bilgewater Tracker

Bilgewater Tracker is a three-drop that is super context- and metagame-dependent. There are a lot of juicy targets like Up From The Deep Tentacles or, cruelly on curve, killing Faefolk or Treasure Hunter when you go second. This card might experience ebb and flow depending on what is being played at a given moment, but it definitely will be a forever staple in red decks even if at least in the maybeboard waiting to jump into the action at opportune moments.

#7 - Hush

Hush is a tough nut to crack. In theory, if your deck contains Hush and Defy, you've got every spell covered. When we think of Hush-able spells, the list of meaningful effects is not short as it includes among many: Rebuke, Punch First, Time Warp, Singularity, Falling Star, Unchecked Power, The Harrowing, Switcheroo, Downwell. Any of them countered for a single Energy can be backbreaking. 

However, it's not all roses. Most of those have two power to begin with so us paying two power to play Hush makes it kind of a wash. Moreover, most of these are countered much more cleanly with Not So Fast, which is at the same time quite a bit wider in its application. Therefore, Hush's unique selling point is that it's somewhat of a Not So Fast, while also being able to counter Downwell, Harrowing, or Time Warp. This is far from bad and you will encounter effects like these. That's why I reckon this will end up as a 1-of in sideboards in most green decks, but won't fundamentally change a ton. Although this card existing and being in sideboards is definitely a huge demotivator in putting cards like Time Warp in your deck, especially with the prevalence of green decks in general.

#6 - Hunters' Circle

A battlefield sneaked into the list. Hunters' Circle has the potential to be properly backbreaking when you cheat out cards like Ferrous Forerunner or Astral Heron ahead of the curve. On the flip side, it's a double-edged sword, as the opponent might also be able to take advantage of the discount. 

This is a very powerful battlefield that might truly swing games.

#5 - An Offer You Can't Refuse

Will Kennen now be a purple-only deck? It just might, as Salvage is put back in the drawer and Offer takes its place, as the purple gear hate of choice. It costs two, has no power cost, and can be played Action speed. It's clean, efficient, and does exactly what it's supposed to do. I fully expect it to be one of the most popular sideboard cards in the game and it should remain so for the upcoming months. While not backbreaking or particularly exciting, the reliability of simple effects pays off.

#4 - Battle Preparations

In card games, you're taught from early on that one of the most powerful things you can do is cheat on mana. The strongest manifestation of that is cards that can be played literally for free, or essentially for free. Enter Battle Preparations. While you have to pay the upfront cost, you get it back immediately if Shown Off with a Gear. It will shine in decks that either are centred around Gears (Azir, Ornn), happen to have plenty (Lilia), or have just enough to justify it (Riven, Irelia, Akali).

The sneaky strength is that the opponent cannot properly predict what might happen. Normally, two mana up against a green deck is something from among one Discipline, one Longsword, or two En Gardes. Now, it can be any of the above preceded by a Preparations - this throws the math off completely. Moreover, you could play more than one in a single combat! Two Energy could represent Prep into Prep into Discipline! 

Free spells are busted and I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being much stronger than we currently think it is.

#3 - Trifarian Captain

The line of two drops that Bilgewater Tracker kills on curve is joined by our #3 here. This card is absolutely bonkers strong. A two-drop that replaces itself immediately is one thing. It also provides card selection for what you *might* need. Moreover, it's never a bad top deck in the late game, as you're getting the body and get to dig quite deep for whatever you might need.

Naturally, when we see a card, we try to break it. Hence, one of the main homes for the card is likely to be Kennen, because...you can cheat Nocturne into play with it. Yes, Nocturne is so back after it left for a month or so.

When we combine all of the above, we have an insanely strong uncommon on our hands.

#2 - Reckless Innovator

Innovator is another uncommon that is poised to make waves. It's a three-might unit for three - all good there. When it becomes exhausted, which could be from attacking or effects that exhaust, you get a Gold gear or can pay power to draw a card. It's like Treasure Hunter on steroids. In that vein, Innovator plus Ride the Wind is a crazy combination, especially in Riven where Innovator would enter Ready - in which case it'd get exhausted twice in the process. Early game, you might be opting for Gold, and in the mid to late game start cashing it in for cards. 

If that wasn't enough, it itself has accelerate, so you get the effect immediately.

Great roleplayer that will likely be a staple 3-of in Riven, and possibly in other ready/movement decks like Irelia.

#1 - Bedeviling Stranger

Not sure how predictable this was, but yes - the #1 spot goes to Bedeviling Stranger aka Rebuke two-drop. You can see the same motif among many cards here on the list in that a card is strong if it fits your normal curve (2 or 3 drop with decent stats), but has additional utility either in early game or later. Stranger can be hidden to be a conditional Rebuke of sorts, and while the condition is not trivial to meet, the sheer existence of this card will warp the way combat is played. Just think of this simple case.

An opponent can attack you with one, two, or three units. You have a hidden card, but it can be Tideturner to pull in a stronger unit, Switcheroo, or Stranger. How on earth is the opponent supposed to figure out how to attack? Each pattern is potentially countered and punished by a potential hidden - and it's not like you're dead if they do guess correctly.

Purple decks are going to be an absolute headache to play against (always have been) and we shall see how much of it will be actual guessing or being able to make educated decisions to pull through.

Conclusion

This set does not seem to have brought a revolution but rather evolution. We see a couple of better versions of old cards and a couple of new tricks available to some decks. It does seem that Riven has got most goodies and green-purple solidifies its position as the best colour combination. Excited to see what happens at Regionals and how the metagame develops!