Machine Cult Preview Week – Patrol Mech & Battle Mech

Hey, we’re shipping Star Realms today! Check out the details, then come back here for more of “Machine Cult Preview Week,” which continues today with a look at two mid-cost options from this mechanized universe. First up, Patrol Mech:

Patrol Mech is a favorite card of mine, and one of those early buys which often sets me down the path to a Machine Cult build. Looking at other 4-Cost ships in the game we see that the Mech’s abilities are slightly under-powered compared to other offerings: the Trade Federation’s Freighter offering 4 Trade, the Blob’s Blob Destroyer offering 6 Combat. However its the versatility of Patrol Mech which is what makes it a standout, able to fuel either huge trade row purchases, or massive combat turns.

As discussed, most decks want trade early in the game and combat later in the game, and Patrol Mech seemlessly makes the transition from money-lender to cutthroat assassin without skipping a beat. Its also the only Machine Cult card with the scrapping option as an ally ability, so look to pair it with the other red robots and continue to thin your deck. Patrol Mech is definitely one of those cards worth getting into your deck before the first shuffling, so if you’ve got a 4 Scout hand, snap it up!

Going one Trade point higher and we see the combat workhorse that is Battle Mech, a card with art cool enough that we had to put it on the game’s deckbox:

Please forgive Rob’s awful cellphone photo

Though it doesn’t have as much raw power as Patrol Mech, its the combination of strength and an additional scrap which make Battle Mech so reliable, blasting away the opponent’s defenses while continuing to thin the deck. However, what’s really enticing about the card is its ally ability, giving a free card draw. We’ve discussed previously how powerful cantrips can be in Star Realms, and they’re made especially more powerful once the Vipers and Scouts have been removed from your fleet, ensuring that you draw into more gas to fuel your destruction. An obvious pick for the red player, this Mech will often play a starring role in Machine Cult victories. If you know you can trigger that ally ability, don’t let this guy sneak by!

– Vito Gesualdi, Community Manager
@vitogesualdi