Dark Frontier: Twist

March 21, 2019

Getting it Twisted

Eternal’s newest set, Dark Frontier, releases in May, introducing over 200 cards and several new mechanics. We’ve already taken a look at the Onslaught mechanic that rewards cards once you or one of your units have attacked, but today we’re going to focus on units that can get the job done all by themselves.

Those that enter the Shadowlands don’t always come out the same. Beast and soldier alike are susceptible to the effects of the place, as it twists the very fabric of a being’s essence.

Twist is a new mechanic in Dark Frontier that can be found on all sorts of units. Like most unit abilities, you spend power to enable the Twist effect. Unlike most unit abilities, Twist can be used any number of times on your turn. The longer something is exposed to the Shadow, the more it changes, and each time a unit is Twisted, it gets +1/-1 in addition to whatever else the Twist did.

When Razorquill Twists, not only will the enemy player be taking a little damage while you heal, but Razorquill will also come out as a 3/3 instead of its starting point of 2/4. For each Twist thereafter, Razorquill will continue to gain strength and lose health.

Twisting Bulbous Humbug a single time will leave you with a 2/1 flier and a Sigil for your trouble, but you don’t have to stop there. Even at 1 health, you can choose to Twist a unit one last time. It will die as a result, but maybe another Sigil was all you really needed.

Headhunter comes down as early as turn one and can begin working on your opponent’s health total. Once a worthy enemy unit shows up, however, Headhunter can Twist and cash in for a Wanted Poster on that unit. Of course, if you wanted to get multiple Wanted Posters, you could give Headhunter some extra health and then Twist away!

Whether you’re using weapons or spells, extra health is a natural pairing with Twist units and sometimes may even be the secret to hunting the biggest treasure.