Mr. Marius Gaius.

By magicmint, in UFS Deck Building

Starting Character:

Marius Gaius*

Actions:

4 x Quick Strike
4 x Mist Stance

Assets:

4 x Path of the Master

Foundations:

3 x Looking for a Thrill
4 x Brooding
4 x The Strength Within
4 x Hope for One's People
4 x Defeated the Rifle
3 x Communing with the Ancients
4 x Trained Far and Wide
3 x The Forgotten Technique
4 x Battle Tested
3 x Nursing a Grudge
3 x The Ultimate Team

Attacks:

3 x Over the Shoulder
3 x Crushing Embrace of the Jotun
4 x Full Moon Disembowel
3 x Fire Brand
3 x Execution Technique First Rite

Total card count, not including starting character: 66

Marius is a sturdy character, with 28 vitality, and at a first glance his enhance may not seem up to par with say Mitsurugi's form and enhance or Astrid's enhance. Truthfuly, it isn't. Yet, I've found that it can still mean the difference in winning games, whether it be a much needed damage or speed boost. Where I think Marius shines is his ability to fetch actions from the discard pile, which synergizes extremely well with both a Full Moon and Fire Brand combo (hence why I put 'em in the deck!). Filling a card pool up with Mist Stance and Quick Strike, into a Full Moon can deffinatly wrack up both damage and speed, and better yet can be abused by both Marius' own enhance and with Path Of The Master. Where the deck falls short is its slow building. Yet, it can be possible with a favored foundation set-up and hand to kill as early as turn three.

When I was creating this deck and play testing earlier versions, I wanted to play Full Moon and Fire Brand consistently and without failing. Fire obviously was the best choice for asymbol to play, because it gives me both Nursing a Grudge and The Forgotten Technique, which works wonders when I need my Full Moon and Fire Brand. The added throws assist with the momentum to fuel The Forgotten Technique and bring actions back from the discard. And to play Full Moon and Fire Brand without wrecking my staging area, I included both Trained Far And Wide and Communing With The Ancients. Personaly, I believe these cards function better in this deck then For The Money could, because: A) For The Money can be cancelled by opponent, which I do not want to have happen; B) both have effects that I could use beyond trying to play Full Moon and Fire Brand (Communing With The Ancients with Path Of The Master is great when needing to block on my opponents turn, plus I get to draw a card). The Execution Technique expands my options as it can be used to combo into Fire Brand if I do not have Full Moon and it can reduce the difficulty of both Full Moon and Fire Brand. Also, I can use Execution Technique with Nursing a Grudge to bring back Full Moon and Fire Brand.

Another great card I found functioned extremely well in the deck was Path Of The Master. With the number of cards that have symbol specific abilities I could pump my attack and then draw a card. This is why Financial Troubles or Relentless do not have a place in the deck (I had them in previous versions). Path Of The Master enables better resource managment, because I can commit a singlefoundation to draw a card and pump an attack, instead of commit one foundation to draw, and then commit another to pump an attack. Then there is the fact that Path Of The Master has an excellent damage pump. With the idea that there will be one or more actions in the card pool and a Full Moon and Fire Brand combo, Path Of The Master can pump for some hideous damage. A single Mist Stance, Full Moon and Fire Brand in the card pool results in +6 damage from Path Of The Master alone. Fire Brand can be for 18 damage easy with its own enhances, Mist Stance and Path Of The Master.

The remainder of the foundations are simply for speed and damage pumps, as well to fuel drawing with Path Of The Master.

Thanks for reading ! :)

one thing you could consider is side boarding dark bite. replace crushing with it if you're against some momentum needing deck, it'd wreck their face. other then that, good write up