All factions
Cease and Desist
ASTROKNIGHTS
Low-Medium
Play with a cast of ten unique minions that focus on drawing and playing actions that directly increase minion power.
Description
Meet the Astroknights, a faction from the Cease and Desist expansion. This group excels at discovering and utilizing actions that amplify the strength of their diverse minions. With a fortunate draw, their power can be unstoppable.
The Astroknights have a complexity rating of Low-Medium, making them accessible to a wide range of players. They are joined in the Cease and Desist set by three other factions: the Changerbots, Ignobles, and Star Roamers.
Cards Overview
The Astroknights faction is comprised of 10 unique minions and 10 actions, offering a balanced mix of gameplay possibilities. Their minions boast a total base power of 27, averaging 2.7 power per minion. Notably, several cards within the faction have the ability to augment minion power beyond these initial values.
Their action cards include a range of effects, such as two play-on-minion actions, Laser Sword, which appears twice. There's also one play-on-base action, Hidden Base. The majority of their actions are standard, with seven in total, including four that influence one or more minions: Block the Probe, It’s a Trap!, Prepare for Battle, Recycle the Trash, Use the Fours, and Yield to Rage, with Block the Probe and others providing direct power boosts. Specifically, six actions are designed to increase a minion's power: two instances of Block the Probe, two of Laser Sword, Use the Fours, and Yield to Rage.
2x Block the Probe - Choose a minion. It gains +2 power until the end of the turn. Special: You may play this card before a base scores.
1x Hidden Base - Play on a base. Ongoing: At the start of your turn, if you have a minion here, draw a card.
1x It’s a Trap! - Special: Before a base scores, reveal cards from your deck until you reveal an action. You may draw it or play it immediately. Shuffle the unused cards into your deck.
2x Laser Sword - Play on a minion. Ongoing: This minion has +2 power and is not affected by other players’ minions.
1x Prepare for Battle - Reveal the top three cards of your deck. Draw two of them and return the other to the top or bottom of your deck.
1x Recycle the Trash - Shuffle up to two actions from your discard pile into your deck.
1x Use the Fours - One of your minions gains +4 power until the end of the turn.
1x Yield to Rage - One of your minions gains +2 power until the end of the turn. Play an extra action.
Actions
2x Block the Probe - Choose a minion. It gains +2 power until the end of the turn. Special: You may play this card before a base scores.
1x Hidden Base - Play on a base. Ongoing: At the start of your turn, if you have a minion here, draw a card.
1x It’s a Trap! - Special: Before a base scores, reveal cards from your deck until you reveal an action. You may draw it or play it immediately. Shuffle the unused cards into your deck.
2x Laser Sword - Play on a minion. Ongoing: This minion has +2 power and is not affected by other players’ minions.
1x Prepare for Battle - Reveal the top three cards of your deck. Draw two of them and return the other to the top or bottom of your deck.
1x Recycle the Trash - Shuffle up to two actions from your discard pile into your deck.
1x Use the Fours - One of your minions gains +4 power until the end of the turn.
1x Yield to Rage - One of your minions gains +2 power until the end of the turn. Play an extra action.
Characters
1x Space Knight - power 5 - Talent: Reveal the top three cards of your deck. You may draw one action from the revealed cards. Return the rest in any order.
1x Scoundrel - power 4 - Talent: Move this minion and another one of your minions here to another base.
1x Space Prince - power 4 - Talent: Play an extra action that directly increases the power of one of your minions.
1x Walking Carpet - power 4 - Special: Before this base scores, if you are not winning, you may play an action that directly increases the power of this minion.
1x Alien Guru - power 2 - Ongoing: Once per turn, after you play an action that directly increases a minion’s power, you may also place a +1 power counter on it.
1x Annoying Alien - power 2 - Talent: Name a minion. All minions here with that name get -2 power until the start of your next turn.
1x Astro Robot - power 2 - You may destroy an action played on this base or on a minion here.
1x Mannersbot - power 2 - Talent: Reveal the top card of your deck. If it is an action, draw it, otherwise return it.
1x Pupoks - power 2 - Talent: Lose 1 VP to reveal the top three cards of your deck and draw them. You may play one of them as an extra card.
1x Ghost Knight - power 0 - Ongoing: This minion cannot be destroyed. Your other minions here have +2 power.
Strategy
Pairing Astroknights with factions that boost minion power through actions can create a formidable team.
Synergies
When pairing with Astroknights, look for factions that pack a punch with actions that boost minion power. Some factions have only a handful of these powerful actions, while others are overflowing with them. Fortunately, this wiki provides a handy guide to identifying factions that possess these potent power-boosting abilities.
Tips
To maximize the Astroknights' potential, focus on timing your action plays strategically, as they typically boost minion power directly. Since many of these actions have a limited duration, often expiring at the end of the turn, it's crucial to reserve them for key moments. In less opportune turns, a more effective approach might be to simply play a minion or pass.
The Astroknights possess a significant capacity for card draw, but this advantage is contingent upon maintaining minions in play. If opponents dismantle your forces or you need to destroy a base, this draw potential may be temporarily inaccessible. Additionally, abilities like Pupoks' rely on having victory points to sacrifice, rendering them ineffective if you have no points to lose.
Mechanics
Play with a cast of ten unique minions that focus on drawing and playing actions that directly increase minion power.