When we revealed Warhammer Underworlds: Harrowdeep at Gen Con, we touched upon the new Rivals format that the new season introduces. We’re now at liberty to go into more detail on Rivals, which has been designed as the best way to get started with Warhammer Underworlds. Here’s what you need to know.
In Warhammer Underworlds, both players must cleverly and carefully use decks of cards to boost their warband and to win the game. You have 12 objective cards to achieve and 20 power cards – ploys, magic spells, and upgrades – that help you accomplish those goals.
You’ve been able – nay encouraged – to build the ultimate deck from an ever-growing pool of cards. While this is great fun and all part of the experience, with years of cards now available, it can be tricky to know where to start for new players who don’t have access to the full card library. Rivals has been designed to be super simple for anyone and everyone to get into.
It works like this: each player gets a pre-built deck, either by selecting the warband-specific cards for a particular warband or by picking one of the pre-built decks such as Silent Menace, which you can even combine with older warbands from the first few seasons of Warhammer Underworlds.* You won’t have to build a deck – and because both sides now have a deck of equal power, the game will be decided by skill rather than the size of your card collection.
All you need to do now is choose your favourite warband and you’re ready to go. That’s no easy decision, but don’t worry, because we’ve got a guide to finding the warband that’s best for you coming up later this week.
Fans of deck-building shouldn’t worry – the Championship format is still very much at the forefront of Harrowdeep, and the new Grand Alliance-specific card sets will bring even greater flexibility to your games and tournaments.
The Rivals format means there’s never been a better time to get into Warhammer Underworlds. If you’ve been thinking about dipping your toe in the water, now is the time to take the plunge.** Sign up for our newsletter to keep abreast of the latest announcements on this fantastic new season of Warhammer Underworlds.
* As the Harrowdeep season progresses, we will see more of these pre-built decks released.
** Did we mention that Harrowdeep is set in an underwater labyrinth?