Genre: Strategy, Turn-based strategy (TBS), Indie, Card & Board Game
Kards: The WWII Card Game
Get yourself ready for the 2021 World Championship!
Hello everyone!
As the qualifiers for the 2021 KARDS World Championships draw near it is the perfect time to start thinking about what decks and strategies you want to bring to the table to maximize your chances of winning.
The first set of qualifiers will take place every weekend from the 4th of September until the 10th of October offering two chances to qualify for the next stage of the World Championship. Qualification will happen through the game client and is open to everyone (further details about the qualifiers will follow in a separate blog). Anyone that completes a valid qualification will receive the limited edition KARDS 2021 World Championship cardback.
With all that in mind, what’s the best place to start and how should you prepare?
Set your sights on a strategy
Different players have different strengths and playstyles. If you are a very aggressive player by nature try looking for aggressive decks you can make work with your collection. On the other hand, if you are a slow and meticulous player, look for control decks that allow you to slowly march the game to victory.
In general it’s always good to look for strategies that compliment your playstyle, especially when going into a tournament where making misplays with an unfamiliar deck or strategies can be a costly mistake.
Join the KARDS discord to find other players that can help you in identifying and planning out strategies: https://discord.gg/kards
Identify the key cards you are missing or would like to add and plan on how you will get them
When you have identified your main strategy and playstyle you can browse around www.kards.com/decks for inspiration on how to best build or tweak your decks. In some cases you might not have all the cards needed, but spend some time both testing what cards you can use instead, that you already own, but also thinking about how you can get the cards that you are missing.
For this, look at your wildcards and national progression tracks as they frequently drop wildcards of all rarities that might get you what you need to round out your deck. In general, playing the nation you need cards in will help you work towards that goal.
Practice your decks
Jumping into a tournament with a new deck you have never played before is a great recipe for a bad time. Most likely you will be facing opponents with well prepared and practiced decks and who aren’t making a lot of mistakes. So to maximize your chances of victory you want to bring a deck you feel comfortable playing and you feel can help you play your way out of tough spots in the tournament.
If possible, find a practice partner. Someone who will allow you to test your deck against a wide variety of different strategies and give you feedback on the tough spots you put him in during the game. It can be invaluable to add your opponent's perspective into your preparation!
Be mentally and physically prepared for game day!
This really should go without saying, but this is something that can often be neglected by participants. Exercising, eating well, and being well rested before a tournament will help anyone perform better and further than that, will raise the overall enjoyment of participating in the tournament by helping the player keep calm under pressure, focus up and make fewer mistakes and to better handle any upsets or mentally tough situations that can crop up during the tournament.
In addition to the above, being well hydrated is a major factor in keeping the brain firing on all cylinders throughout the tournament session so make sure to have a glass or bottle of water nearby for the duration of the tournament.
And that’s it!
If you have done everything mentioned above you should be rolling into battle mentally and physically primed with a clear plan for what strategy you are going to bring into battle and the cards you need to take those decks to the next level. You should be well practiced with your decks and ready to take on any challenger!
The first qualification period for the 2021 KARDS World Championship will start on the 4th of September through the in game client. Mark the date and start getting ready today!
The KARDS Champion Cardback
Hello KARDS Community!
This is your reminder to sign up to the second Swiss Qualifiers for the next KARDS Open right here:
Signups are free and open to everyone interested in participating, so sign up now and grab a good weekend of competitive KARDS under your belt!
The KARDS Champion Cardback
Now as an added bonus for this KARDS Open and any future official KARDS Tournaments, we have an exclusive champion cardback! So without further ado, I introduce you to the KARDS Champion Cardback!
The KARDS Champion Cardback will be an additional reward given to the winner of any official KARDS Tournament including KARDS Open VIII and the upcoming Officer Club Championship this month.
Showcase your skill with the ultimate symbol of achievement, the KARDS Champion Cardback!
This weekend: Battle of Britain event
Welcome to the Battle of Britain event!
In memory of the Battle of Britain, we have a special event for you in KARDS from August 12th to 16th.
The Battle of Britain was a major campaign during WW2 between the German Luftwaffe and the British Royal Air Force for air supremacy over England. The campaign lasted from July 10th to October 31st, 1940, with the main battle phase between August 13th and September 6th. The result was a disaster for Nazi Germany as they suffered significant losses, were unable to force Britain into an armistice, and, in fact, united the people in the United Kingdom against their enemies.
Unlike our previous historical events and providing something new, the Battle of Britain event focuses on 8 Special Operations. Complete the “Battle of Britain”-Special Operations and earn the associated rewards by playing Battle or Draft matches. The rewards include in-game gold, draft tickets, and a unique Battle of Britain emote.
Additionally, we have limited offers ready for you with great discounts on some of the most popular KARDS bundles. Check them out!
Join the Battle of Britain, enjoy the thrill of the hunt, and let us know what you think of this event in the comments below or on KARDS Discord.
We have a special celebration event ready for you this weekend.
Get double the experience points on your national progression between July 30 and August 1. Double the experience = double the rewards!
All experience points you earn between the start of July 30 (UTC) and the end of August 1 will be doubled! This allows you to collect rewards from the national progression system twice as fast and collect valuable rewards.
The national progression rewards span 250 levels and include gold, wildcards, random cards of any rarity, card packs, and more!
Use this chance to buff your account with lots of free rewards.
Additionally, we have great discounts on all five national equipment bundles to get even more out of this event and to take advantage of. Have a look at the KARDS in-game shop!
KARDS Tournament update - New Open format, OCC’s and the World Championship
Hello KARDS community!
As we near the end of summer it’s time to gear up for more KARDS tournament action throughout 2021, culminating in the epic showdown between the top four players in KARDS in Iceland for the World Championship in December!
But if you think you have to wait all the way until December for some high stakes KARDS action, we have some fantastic news to share!
Announcing a different KARDS Open!
We are making some changes to the KARDS Open moving forward to help the tournament better serve its purpose as a tournament where any player in KARDS can start earning some tournament experience and have fun while doing it.
First off we are slowing down the frequency of the KARDS Opens, hosting them every other month instead of each month. Alongside this we are increasing the prize pool for each KARDS Open from $1000 to $1500 so the overall KARDS Open Prize pool stays the same for the entire year.
Each of the tournaments will feature two separate swiss qualification weekends, giving players multiple chances to qualify for the latter part of the tournament and make their run for the prizes at the top, while providing players looking to sharpen their skills with ample opportunities to test their skills in the swiss rounds and start working their way up in the tournament scene.
The first tournament with the new format will be KARDS Open VIII which will start in August.
Signups for the two Swiss Qualifier weekends are open here: https://smash.gg/tournament/kards-open-viii/details
More details on the upcoming KARDS Open VIII can be found here.
How to register for an event on Smash and obtain your event pass: https://help.smash.gg/en/articles/2472270-registering-for-an-event
Help for how to use Smash during a tournament: https://help.smash.gg/en/articles/1465698-how-to-play-online-tournaments-on-smash-gg
The OCC Continues!
The Officer Club Championship will continue through the rest of the year, with the top 38 players on the ladder each month having a chance to compete for their share of the 1000$ cash prize and the glory of becoming the Officer Club Champion.
The World Championship journey begins!
As was mentioned in our announcement of the 2021 KARDS World Championship, the first qualifiers will start in September and will be open to all KARDS players interested in competing. The World championship will continue to run until the finals in early December.
Announcing the KARDS World Championship 2021
Hello Kards community! It is with great excitement that 1939 Games announces the KARDS World Championship 2021 and invites everyone to join!
The KARDS World Championship 2021 is an open event for all KARDS players starting with open qualifiers in September and October and culminating in a grand finale in Iceland in December where we will crown the KARDS World Champion 2021.
To guarantee a fun event for all participants, the World Championship has three stages so everyone can dip their toes into the competitive pool for a taste of the action
In-Client Open Qualifiers
Knockout Stage
Finals stage (in Iceland)
While playing in the World Championship is already a great adventure on its own, the way to the final is sprinkled with additional rewards ranging from cosmetics to the unique KARDS 2021 World Championship Cardback.
How do you become the KARDS World Champion?
The World Championship 2021 has three stages, you need to be successful at each to become the World Champion.
Previous season winners, KARDS Open winners and OCC winners as well as the top 4 players from last year's KARDS World Championship are all guaranteed a spot in the top 128 that compete in the knockout stage.
Stage 1: Open Qualifiers in September/October
Join one or both of the two open qualifiers available through the KARDS Client during weekends between September 4th and October 9th to earn your 2021 KARDS World Championship Cardback and compete to qualify for stage 2 of the tournament. The top 50 players from each qualifier will advance.
Stage 2: Top 128 player knockout stage
The 100 players from the open qualifiers and the 28 pre-qualified players are randomly drawn into 16 groups of 8 players and will play a round robin group stage during the weekend of the 23rd and 24th of October. The two players with the best score in each group will progress into a 32 person double elimination bracket played during the weekend of 30th-31st of October to qualify the four players that will make it to Iceland for the final stage of the tournament.
Stage 3: The grand finale of the World Championship!
All finalists will be invited to Iceland by 1939 Games for a thrilling adventure and to battle for the title of KARDS World Champion 2021 in an offline setting! A very limited number of seats will be available for those interested in attending the finals in Iceland, more information on that later.
Start preparing for battle!
With the first set of qualifiers starting at the beginning of September, now is your chance to start preparing your forces for battle to challenge for the title of KARDS World Champion and your share of the $10.000 Prize pool.
Start thinking about what types of decks you want to bring, what cards you need to get to be in fighting shape come September to take on the world's best players!
Rewards: Prizes all along the way to the top
Even though participating in the KARDS World Championship is already a great adventure in itself, we have sprinkled your journey through the various stages with additional rewards and prizes!
Let’s go over the rewards one by one.
Every player that completes three qualifying sessions in the Open qualifier for the World Championship will receive the KARDS World Championship 2021 cardback and a random golden special card.
Every player that qualifies for the top 128 - the knockout stage will receive two cosmetic in game-items as well as a pack of 10 draft tickets
The four finalists will get an all expenses paid trip to Iceland to play the finals in the bunker and will compete for their share of the $10.000 prize pool.
We will publish more details on all things KWC2021 in the coming weeks and months, so make sure to regularly check in for updates!
Operation Husky: The invasion of Sicily
Welcome to Operation Husky in KARDS!
On July 10, 1943, the Allies launched Operation Husky, a massive amphibious assault on the southern shores of Sicily to open the door to mainland Europe from the Mediterranean. For the next three days, more than 3,000 ships landed over 150,000 ground troops. More than 4,000 aircraft covered the landings and provided vital air support.
In memory of Operation Husky, we have a special event for you in KARDS from 16th to 19th of July.
Following our previous historical events, we now have for you new mini-tournaments and special operations. This time, participation in the tournament is entirely free. These tournaments are for new players and veterans alike as only cards of standard and limited cards are allowed.
Additionally, we introduce the US Field Flask as a new board decoration and also offer you good savings on some of the most popular KARDS bundles.
Historical background (in a nutshell)
Operation Husky, the invasion of Sicily, was a major step towards the invasion of mainland Europe as it secured the shipping lanes in the Mediterranean and provided a secure base for further operations.
The planning of Operation Husky is worth its own article, especially considering the amount of deception involved to mislead the Axis (most famously Operation Mincemeat [Wikipedia article][book excerpt]) and to conceal the actual invasion.
Husky was a joint operation between the USA, Great Britain, including the Commonwealth, and Free France against the axis powers of Italy and Germany.
The second-largest amphibious assault, only surpassed by D-Day, Operation Husky involved at its peak almost 800.000 fighting troops, the majority allied forces. The initial assault, complicated by harsh weather conditions, landed over 150.000 troops and 600 tanks.
The German commander-in-chief Albert Kesselring soon realized that the Italian forces couldn't contribute enough to defend Sicily and consequently worked towards a German retreat which was very successfully conducted between August 11 - 17, 1943.
Even though the Allied successfully conquered Sicily, they couldn't prevent the successful retreat of Axis forces, including heavy equipment, and thus failed their second main objective with this invasion.
In the end, however, the successful completion of Operation Husky led to the collapse of the fascist Mussolini regime in Italy and the declaration of war between Italy and Germany.
Tournament details
The KARDS "Operation Husky" tournaments are 4-player single-elimination tournaments for new players and veterans alike: Allowed are only standard and limited cards, no specials or elite cards!
In contrast to previous mini-tournaments, the Operation Husky tournaments are completely free. No entry fee is required at all.
Even though the tournament is free, there are rewards to earn! Complete the special operations assigned to you during this tournament and reap the rewards.
Deck Construction Rules:
Only Standard or Limited cards
Special Operations win conditions (can be combined):
Win 5 tournament matches as Britain, Germany, or US
Win 5 tournament matches with Italy or France as allies
(Edit: To clarify, the above mentioned matches are single matches. You do not need to win 5 times the tournament itself, just 5 individual matches).
We hope you like this format and would love to hear your thoughts on this. As you can see from the previous mini-tournaments and the current iteration, your feedback matters and is much appreciated!
Please let us know and use the comments below or chat with us on KARDS Discord.
Have fun and enjoy. See you on the battlefields of KARDS!
Announcing the next weekday skirmish - Odds vs Evens!
Hello KARDS Community!
The Weekday Skirmish happens twice each month and is a one day Swiss format tournament. Each tournament will have a unique set of rules, challenging not only your play ability but deckbuilding as well!
We are extremely excited to announce the next weekday skirmish on July 14th! This time it’s Odds vs Evens!
Signups are live NOW: https://smash.gg/tournament/kards-weekday-skirmish-july/details
What does Odds vs Evens mean?
In this deck format, you will only be allowed to bring a deck that includes all even and a deck that includes all odd cost cards. This means in your deck, your cards' base play cost must all be an even number while your other deck must contain all base play odd cost cards.
Who will reign supreme as the ultimate limited format tactician? Start building your decks now as the action commences on July 14th!
Join the 983 Discord: https://discord.gg/dAbfkYF
FORMAT
Bring two decks from two different main nations
One deck can only contain all odd cost cards while your second deck can only contain all even cost cards.
Win with both of your decks to win the round. NO BANS.
Best of Three Conquest
Swiss Format
First round starts at 17:00 GMT
Top 8 get 100 Gold each
Sign up to play right now, right here: https://smash.gg/tournament/kards-weekday-skirmish-july/details
KARDS Update June - Patch notes
Following the fantastic release of the Legions summer expansion, we have another goodie for you now: Card balance updates, bug fixes, and the event Operation Barbarossa!
Now onto the details!
General Changes & Improvements
Operation Barbarossa, the latest event in KARDS, is active between 24th and 27th. Read more about it in the 📜 Barbarossa event blog!
A new pop-up window with explanations about the seasonal ladder has been added.
The seasonal ladder rewards have been improved.
Card Balance Changes
Read the dev blog Research & Destroy for details and background info on the following 15 card changes. Listed below are the changes on these 15 cards.
Bletchley Park Was: All enemy cards in hand and on the battlefield are put on top of enemy's deck. Now: All enemy cards with cost 5 or less in hand and on the battlefield are put on top of enemy's deck.
Manhattan Project Was: Deal 10 damage to all enemies. Cost 12 Kredits. Now: Deal 6 damage to all enemies. Cost 6 Kredits.
Uranprojekt Was: Pin all enemy units. Enemy cannot deploy units or give orders for 2 turns. Now: Destroy all enemy units.
Type XXI U-Boat Was: Destroy target unit with cost 8 or less. Enemy discards 3 cards. Now: Destroy target unit. Enemy discards 2 cards.
Night Witches Was: Add a POLIKARPOV PO-2 OR FROM THE PEOPLE to your hand. Shuffle NIGHT WITCHES into your deck. Cost 1 Kredit. Now: Add three POLIKARPOV PO-2-II to your hand. Cost 3 Kredits.
Seaborne Invasion Was: All enemy units in frontline retreat. Add two random 3 cost US infantry units there. Now: All enemy units in frontline retreat. Add two US infantry units there with total attack of 6.
Dowding System Was: Counter an enemy order with cost 3 or more. Cost 2 Kredits. Now: Counter an enemy order with cost 4 or more. Cost 3 Kredits.
34th Infantry Regiment Was: At the end of your turn, remove the top card of your deck from the game. Now: At the end of your turn, draw and discard the top card of your deck.
Phoney War Was: Both players draw until they have a full hand. Now: Both players draw until they have 8 cards in hand.
Western Allies Was: Draw a French unit from your deck for each non-French unit in your support line. Now: Add the top non-French unit from your deck to your support line.
➡️ Read the dev blog Research & Destroy for details and background info on the above 15 card changes.
Bug Fixes
Card copied from DOUBLE STRENGTH is no longer shown to enemy.
Yamagata wasn't getting its buff in some cases when spawning on the board with an empty hand. Fixed.
AI was playing 2 extra kredits when its DEATH FROM ABOVE hit a PB4Y-2 PRIVATEER. Fixed.
Research & Destroy
Hello friends!
The summer solstice is behind us, the year has started its inevitable slide towards winter and a new balance patch arrives to send a shiver down the collective spine of the Kards community. What a time to be alive!
We are making several important changes this month.
The Legions set brought many interesting new twists and takes and, on the whole, has had a positive impact on the game. But old foes like Soviet Arty and Research still hold a strong grasp on the meta, stifling innovation more than we’d like. Time to shake things up!
Let's start with changes to several of the research cards. Research was one of the main features of the Breakthrough set and has for the most part been a fun and interesting addition to the game. But they have not been without problems or controversy. Some of the research paths have turned out to be a bit underwhelming, while others are a tad on the stronger side.
The main issue has been the end paths for Britain and USA - Bletchley Park and Manhattan Project respectively. Both are really strong at closing out games, making it difficult for decks not aiming to win as fast as possible to compete without some active way of dealing with these cards, like a counter, discard or cost increase. We want to keep these cards strong, as it is not trivial to get to them, but give players other options to build against them than racing or negating them. Let’s take a look.
This change to Bletchley Park means that higher cost cards are retained, which makes Bletchley weaker against other high cost decks. This allows players to build and play more directly to counter the effectiveness of the card. Furthermore, it makes the option below Bletchley Park, Active Sonar, more strategically interesting, as against certain decks it can be more effective than going for Bletchley Park. On the whole, we feel this change will create a more interesting nuisance either when playing with or against British research.
The old Manhattan Project often led to immediate game over against many decks and was especially brutal in draft. The new version retains similar thematic touch (you still get two “bombs”), but the total cost is now 12 (same as for the other high end research paths in Germany and Britain). The important part of course is that dropping both the bombs does not automatically lead to game over against decks without means to to raise their HQ defense, and there is a chance that some board presence can be retained. On the other hand, having to only spend 6 kredits to drop one bomb also makes it easier to make other important plays alongside it. Taken together, the card is still a powerful tool, but requires greater skill to wield effectively.
Unlike its US and British counterparts, the end path for the German research has been a bit disappointing, both in terms of performance and fun factor. We are adjusting it to something that is simpler, more straightforward and packing a bigger punch, putting the pro in Uranprojekt.
On the flip side, Type XXI U-Boat was almost always just straight up better than the next research up. So to create a smoother research path for Germany, we are also taking a little bit of a sting out of the submarine.
On the whole, while research cards are less effective at ending games outright, they still offer plenty of power and are worth using. Being less effective at ending games on their own is in our opinion a good thing that will lead to more healthy and skill-based gameplay between control decks.
Next up, we have a couple of cards that we are neither nerfing or buffing, but changing for a different reason.
Same as with the change to 1st Rifles recently, we are changing Night Witches to remove it from allowing for an infinite deck, i.e. never dying to fatigue damage. We still want to keep it as a strong card, and after having tried various things out decided on this one. You are getting a lot of bang for the buck here, but be mindful of your hand size when you play this, as adding three bombers to hand can put a severe restraint on it if you are not planning to play them out soon.
Seaborne Invasion has been a problem card for awhile because its effectiveness can swing so wildly every time a new 3 cost US infantry is created. So we decided to reduce the random factor a little bit so players have a better idea of what to expect, but we don’t want to remove the random factor completely, as it is an interesting spin for many players. This new version should on the whole be on a similar power level as before, the crazy good or crazy bad rolls have just been removed.
Next up, we have a few nerfs, because what would a balance patch be without some nerfs thrown in?
Dowding System is an integral part of the Kards ecosystem to keep order heavy decks in check. Still, its effectiveness can be a bit too stifling for many decks, so we are adjusting it a bit. It is still very effective, but keeping up 3 kredits versus 2 is a real downside. It now also misses out on countering many important 3 kredit orders like Convoy Hx 175, Amphibious Assault and the first level of the research cards, though that is not always a good thing if you are trying to bait it out.
Despite the changes to Supply Chain last time around, Soviet Arty is still the King of the Hill. To diversify the meta a bit better, we are making a couple of changes to it. The first of those is Patriotic Firestorm. For decks full of cheap artillery, a single Firestorm could lead to massive blowouts. While still strong at 2 kredits, it is now slightly trickier to light the fire.
The second change is to reduce the staying power of the 10th Engineers Battalion. It can still provide plenty of firepower on the fly, but is much more vulnerable. Making it 1/1 actually brings it in line with other similar booster units, like Sd KFz 222 and Type 93.
We are adjusting slightly the ability on the 34th Infantry Regiment. This actually does not weaken this particular unit at all, but it does break its synergy with the 35th Mountain Rifles. Getting 5/5 unit on turn one was a bit too much high-roll and something that created more frustration than fun. This changed version can actually open up different synergies with cards like Betty and Supply Chain, so it will be interesting to see what develops on that front.
The main reason for nerfing Phoney War is due to our ongoing effort to reduce draw denial effects in the game. While Phoney War does not explicitly deny a draw, it does lead to a missed draw, which creates frustration. It is still a powerful effect that continues to fulfil the same role in the decks it is used in, just slightly less efficiently.
And as usual, we are also giving a few little used cards a bit of a facelift.
Buffing artillery is always slightly risky, but it is unlikely this change will have a big impact on the constructed scene. This change is mostly thought with draft in mind, where Japan needs a bit of love.
US based control decks are an endangered species, they are more common as allies in control decks, otherwise going for ramp themselves. A buffed Torpedo Attack may not create a lot of waves, but at least it offers a much better removal option for wannabe US control decks.
Speaking of ramp, it seems the quartermaster has been dipping into his own stores and gotten fatter. For 4 kredits, a 2/3 body was a bit on the weak side, let’s see what a beefier backside does for its survival rate.
Last but not least we have Western Allies, a true bro-mance that never was. Let’s see if this altered version, aimed at all combo meisters out there, can rekindle this budding romance that was meant to be.
That’s it for now. We decided not to make any changes to cards from the new set (Legions), as none of them are causing any big alarms at the moment. A few of the new cards are being heavily monitored, so we will see what happens next time around.
The balance patch will go live on Thursday June 24th, stay tuned for further details in the patch notes. See you on the battlefield, commander!
