When taking strain in skirmish mode, which do you typically prefer: taking damage or discarding the top command card of your deck? What influences that decision for you?

I'm curious what those of you who play more skirmish have to say on the matter.

I've played 10'ish skirmishes but haven't perso been inflicted with Strain but after having played with a couple of trannies I've dished out quite a lot. And then my opponent have mostly discarded the top card to avoid damage and I think he was right in doing so

When taking strain in skirmish mode, which do you typically prefer: taking damage or discarding the top command card of your deck? What influences that decision for you?

I'm curious what those of you who play more skirmish have to say on the matter.

Like anything. it depends on the situation imo. If it is likely to save the unit, even for just one turn, it is typically worth losing the card. If it is irrelevant, either because of the health of the model or because I am going to remove all credible threats shortly thereafter, I'll take the damage. I am generalizing of course. I will say that more often than not, it is unlikely that any one command card will drastically change the outlook of the game if they players are both constantly considering them, so I do not value many of the cards very highly.

Notable exceptions are Son of Skywalker and Take the Initiative. Both of those can be painful to lose off the top, but not likely to cause the game to crumble on their own. In my Magic days, they used to say "any card that is still in your deck may as well be in your discard pile". I find that to be true in most cases, IA is no exception.

Essentially, the question is will preventing that damage help prevent me from losing control of the board? If so, lose the card. If not, take the damage.

I agree with Hida77. It is very situational for me (10+ games by now, likely more, I just don't count at this point). I typically take the damage in the early game if it is not crippling a figure and I haven't pulled the command cards I'm fishing for yet. If it cripples a figure (or outright destroys one), I will weigh the board state and what command cards I do have. I actually put a lot of weight in the command deck (maybe more than I should) but I've seen some cards can just completely flip a game. If I know the command deck I'm using is full of chaff though, I will be more inclined to lose a command card instead of taking the damage.

One other situation that I weigh is how often Strain is going to be present in the game. If I'm facing a bunch of Relentless figures with Vader, I may consign myself to just losing most of my command deck to make sure the damage doesn't get out of hand.

If I am playing rebels and have Rebel Command its late game I discard knowing kind of whats left. Odds are I would do that Turn 3 and 4 if I was able to get to a termial round 1 and 2 even if I wasnt playing rebels.

In short early game no but middle to late game yes if I am at 50 of my command deck.

You also have to factor in that we will got more game changing cards meaning all decks will have 4-5 min cards like son of skywalker, Cover fire etc meaning losing one of them isnt as game changing as it is now.

Also this game is kind of like poker in round 3-4 when it comes to reading your opp when he gets his hand since a lot of gamers dont have good poker faces and give away a lot when it comes to drawing cards in board games. This gives you more info when playing stain.

Also you have to play the odds just like drawing a card on the turn or river.

over time this is going to change because I think Command decks will just get stronger over time.

I burn the card everytime. The game ends so fast you will see less than half your deck anyways.

I burn the card everytime. The game ends so fast you will see less than half your deck anyways.

Yes but there are game changing cards and I really dont want to lose that lure of the darkside, Son of skywalker, Covering Fire, Etc early game. If I cant take the damage and might lose the mini because of it which will put me down in points than yeah. I think losing that card could just be as bad as losing that figure. Timing is the key.

But that's just a maybe? Who's to say you will draw that card before the game is over? When you are only seeing 40%ish of your deck I don't like my odds. I use my deck as a added bonus, but I don't rely on drawing any certain card.

Do we get to look at the cards after they are discarded? I can't find anything that mentions that. If I look and see that I discarded my good cards already, then I'd be more likely to burn them to save damage later. But if I know I still have "Son of Skywalker" in my last 3 cards, taking the damage might be a risk worth taking.

I found the answer on pg. 13 of the "Rules Reference Guide":

Other Cards: Players cannot look at the cards in any deck
except for the Reward deck. Discarded cards, active missions,
faceup cards on the table, and cards in players’ play areas are
open information and may be read by any player at any time.

Hope that helps someone.

But that's just a maybe? Who's to say you will draw that card before the game is over? When you are only seeing 40%ish of your deck I don't like my odds. I use my deck as a added bonus, but I don't rely on drawing any certain card.

Right now its just a maybe but over time it should easy be 1/3 cards is game changing. If you are playing Rebels with Rebel command and get to termials the number just goes up the cards you can see. What if you are playing Rebel Command and Balance.

I will still go by if I am up or down, if it will cost me the figure, if its in early or late game , etc.

The what if the card you are discarding is one you really want is countered by the what if the card I am discarding is preventing me from getting the the card I want.

I would much rather draw and see than guess but you do have a good point.

I usually discard the card to avoid the damage but I also have a really bad habit of discarding Son of Skywalker when it really would have come in handy. I've literally discarded that card more than any other.

I think as the expansions come pouring in the Command deck will be more customized and as such more valuable card by card.

I tend to discard the card when I have used or drawn cards like Son of Skywalker etc.

I love the Trandoshan's for exactly this reason and they're only going to get better the more influential the command cards become.

I played against a Vader's fist build with two lots of Trandoshan's, a Royal Guard Champ., an Elite e-Web and a Officer the other day. With the four Trandoshan's attacking most rounds I'd burnt through the opponents command deck in no time (helped by him camping a terminal for a few rounds). After that he had no choice but to take the damage.

I've not been on the receiving end of Relentless yet, but certainly as we see the command decks improve with new additions it's going to make for some really hard choices. Add in the Merciless card that we'll get from IG-88 and it's going to be a discard frenzy!

Yeah, those Trandoshans are beastly. Literally!

I like it when good play by me forces difficult decisions for my opponent; it shouldn't happen all the time, but there should certainly be points in the skirmish where I can force my opponent into a very difficult bind. I think that's one of the marks of solid game design.