The Crime Lords team works together like a crime family. They’re almost always reinforced, they know a thing or two about protection, and they defend themselves rather aggressively. There’s nothing complicated about that. But if you’re looking for a good brain exercise, try playing with their other specialty—switching defenders.

4 Roscoe Sweeny- 1

4 Cobra- 2

4 Kingpin, Wilson Fisk- 3

4 Mr. Hyde- 3

4 Bullseye, Deadly Marksman- 4

1 Saracen- 4

3 Mr. Fear- 5

2 The Russian- 5

3 Jaime Ortiz ◊ Damage- 6

2 Bullseye, Master of Murder- 7

1 Kingpin, The Kingpin of Crime- 7

4 Armed Escort

2 Boss of Bosses

2 Combat Reflexes

4 Face the Master

2 Fight to the Finish

4 Geraci Family Estate
4 Hand Dojo

2 The Family

4 Unstable Molecules

When switching defenders on your opponent, you’ve got to have some good options for where to send those incoming attacks. A good defense is a great place to start, so this deck is all about the defense.

Roscoe Sweeny is a good enough searcher for this deck. He’s not as versatile as other character search cards, but he works more than once. Sweeny likes to find Cobra, who in turn finds you Mr. Hyde. It’s just one big chain gang of Crime Lords, which makes sense, as I’m guessing these guys have spent some time on one (or will soon). Since Kingpin, Wilson Fisk is a good drop on turn 3 or 4, an early Sweeny is great, but Boss of Bosses will fill in if Sweeny fails to show up on time.

Cobra is a pretty weak 2-drop, but he becomes so much better on turn 3 when you recruit Mr. Hyde. The combo between these two is a good argument for the odd initiative. Putting Mr. Hyde behind Cobra means that Hyde won’t be attacking this turn unless you really want to use a Combat Reflexes. Hyde is a good 3-drop, but he could use an Unstable Molecules. If he gets one, you just might break your opponent’s initiative by putting him in front of Cobra. If you’ve got a Geraci Family Estate in your resource row, Kingpin, Wilson Fisk may be your better defensive turn 3 play. There are four Estates in the deck, so you never have to pay the discard to keep ’em around.

On turn 4, a boosted Kingpin can be good if you’re looking to beef up an Unstable Hyde (this makes thematic sense). If you’re on defense, Saracen is a good choice. Otherwise, it’s time to jump the curve and recruit Bullseye, Deadly Marksman. You’ll probably want to discard an extra Hand Dojo to keep him in play. The Dojo . . . might as well talk about it now. When your opponent makes an attack, wait for him or her to decide whether or not to pay the 3 endurance before switching defenders. If your opponent doesn’t pay the 3 endurance, chances are good that you’ll stun the attacker (you can make sure you do with a Face the Master). If your opponent does, switch it up and re-trigger the Dojo when a new character becomes a defender. It adds up.

On turn 5, recruiting Bullseye, Deadly Marksman and Roscoe is a fine play if you’re missing Jaime or don’t have a 7-drop waiting in the wings. Or, you can stay on curve with The Russian. The Russian makes for a great Armed Escort. Your opponent probably has a character that would rather not face him, but you can force the issue. However, if you’ve got an Unstable Bullseye, and it’s your opponent’s initiative, Mr. Fear is a good bet. Here’s where the Hand Dojo tax will really start to add up.

On turn 6, it’s all about Jaime Ortiz Damage. With his range and high DEF, your opponent either needs a 6-drop flyer, or needs to stay at home. Jaime’s a one-man redirection machine. Sure, you have to stun a defender, but you’re on defense and will be taking some licks, anyway. The trick is to make sure that the attacker takes just as many. You’ll want to save a Face the Master to keep Jamie up, as this is also a great turn to play Fight to the Finish, assuming The Russian didn’t already use them all. The plot twist combo works just fine if your opponent sends his or her 6-drop at Jaime for a mutual stun, rather than risk other trickery. The Family isn’t exactly tricky, but it sets the table so that all of your reinforcement bonuses can come and eat turkey.

On turn 7, Kingpin, The Kingpin of Crime is your drop if you have the initiative (just make sure you attack with him last), while Bullseye, Master of Murder is your choice if you don’t. The deck doesn’t feature any 8-drops, so you may end up playing the other one on the following turn. Bullseye has a big, well . . . bull’s-eye on him, because your opponent can’t afford to make other attacks before taking him out. Here’s where your ability to switch up the defenders will pay off, as long as you still have some plot twists left with which to stun your opponent’s attackers.

Questions or comments may be sent to mhyra@metagame.com.