The Dark Side Is Strong In Me
By Shaun Valjan

"The Dark Side is strong in me, for I am Sith!" - Asajj Ventress

When I first saw the cards of the latest IDC TCG set I was blown away into a galaxy far, far away. The Clone Wars: Republic At War set is without a doubt the most powerful set ever produced but both WOTC and the IDC. Like the Jedi warriors on Hypori, I was unprepared by the sheer cunning and power of this set.

Now I will get to "experience the full power of the dark side" when I pit my CW:RAW-only Dark side deck against Trent "IVIaceWindu" McCrow's Light side deck. Now we will see just how fast "the Clone War spreads" across the galaxy.

As there are so many powerful possibilities, combos, themes and strategies in this 'seismic tank' of-a set, it is difficult to pick one out. Therefore this deck will focus on the main themes CW:RAW offers; a Dark Jedi/Gladiator and Separatist droid deck. And so I give you my Dark Side CW:RAW card-only deck:

 
 
The Dark Side Is Strong In Me
 
     
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1x Asajj's Lightsabers (A)
1x Enhanced Programming
1x Stolen Lightsaber
      Totals:
19 Character
18 Ground
18 Space
2 Battle
2 Mission
3 Location
3 Equipment
66 Total Cards
 
     
 

Download these decks and other deck articles for LackeyCCG here.

Now for a look at the inner workings of the Sith's plans for this deck.

   
   
   
   

Character: (19)
1x Asajj Ventress (A)
2x Asajj Ventress (B)
1x Asajj Ventress (C)
1x Darth Sidious (J)
1x Darth Tyranus (J)
2x Darth Tyranus (K)
1x Droideka JA-11-08
1x Durge (B)
1x Flalios (A)
1x General Grievous (E)
2x General Grievous (F)
1x Jasper McKnives (A)
3x San Hill (B)
1x Swyy'm-Ee (A)

"She will be more than a match for young Skywalker." - Darth Tyranus

The Character arena will be my strongest arena, focusing on Dark Jedi/Gladiator support units. I intend for Darth Tyranus (K) and San Hill (B) to help draw and build my many units, with General Grievous (F) and Asajj Ventress (B) to counter the powerful Jedi leaders of the Grand Army of the Republic. With the Gladiators fighting in the Character arena and Darth Sidious (J) n the shadows, my deck shall receive many useful bonuses.

 

   
   
   
   

Ground: (12)
1x Artillery Cannon
3x Chameleon Droid Unit
1x Commerce Guild Droid Line
2x Durge's Swoop Bike (A)
3x IG Lancer Droid Swoop
1x Quarren Crab Cannon
1x Quarren Isolationist League (A)
3x Separatist Hailfire Droid
2x Separatist Attack Squad
1x Super Battle Droid Battalion

"Never have we been outmaneuvered by droids" - Shaak Ti

The Ground arena will be my backbone arena, featuring the Separatist droid hardware of the IG Banking Clan and heavy artillery. I have focused on IG Banking Clan units to give San Hill (B) something to play with. The high proportion of Ion Cannon units makes the ground arena the most versatile arena in this deck. I intend to take advantage of the sets only Hidden Cost unit, Chameleon Droid Unit to help ambush the clone army.

   
   
   
   

Space: (18)
2x Asajj's Starfighter (A)
2x Asajj's Starfighter (B)
3x Geonosian Assault Starfighter
3x Geonosian Starfighter Swarm
2x Muunilinst Gun Platform
1x Separatist Starfighter Squadron
2x Tyranus's Solar Sailer (C)
3x Upgraded Geonosian Fighter

"This is no droid pilot! And the Force is with him." - Anakin Skywalker

The Space arena shall serve as my backup arena, focusing very heavily on starfighters. The main focus of the space arena is Tyranus's Solar Sailer (C) as it provides all my numerous Dark Jedi units very beneficial bonuses to speed and damage prevention. Next is Asajj's Starfighter with a choice of either Double Strike or Accuracy 2 and also capable of gaining bonuses from my Gladiators. Then there are multiple copies of the fast Geonosian Assault Fighter and the stable Upgraded Geonosian Fighter. Bringing up the rear is the bombarding Muunilinst Gun Platform to counterbalance any visiting Republic Assault Fleets.

   
   
   
   

Battle: (2)
1x Retrieve the Cloak
1x Tyranus's Fury

"It would not be so easy to defeat a Sith." - Darth Tyranus

Battle cards are not really featured in this deck apart from two. Tyranus's Fury is there to deal with any troublesome characters like Padme Amidala (I). As an alternative to intercept in the Ground arena, Retrieve the Cloak will allow me to preserve some of my cannons or Durge's Swoop Bike (A) and even IG Banking Clan units to gain build from San Hill (B).

Equipment: (3)
1x Asajj's Lightsabers (A)
1x Enhanced Programming
1x Stolen Lightsaber

"Consider this a gift." - Darth Tyranus

Some lightsabers and a droid program shall be all the Equipment I need for this deck. Asajj's Lightsabers (A) will be with main Equipment I will use - not surprising with its cheap deflect. Enhanced Programming will be used to upgrade the droid armies into a more accurate fighting force. As this deck is prepared to fight against Jedi it is logical to use their own weapons against them, especially if 'stolen' by General Grievous (E).

Location: (3)
1x Derelict Battlegrounds
1x Intergalactic Banking Clan Headquarters
1x Muunilinst System

"You are surrounded. Your army is decimated." - General Grievous

The Locations of this deck all revolve around one thing - power, power and more power. InterGalactic Banking Clan Headquarters will be my main location as it grants all my Separatists a nice +2 power. Derelict Battleground will give my ground Separatist droid with the sheer power to decimate the Army of the Republic. Muunilinst System will be more of a gamble as it increases the offensive power of my many starfighters, but it shall also aid the republic's starfighters. If played properly Muunilinst System will be the determining factor for the Space arena - for either side.

Mission: (2)
1x Dun Möch
1x Outmaneuvered

"Jedi. Their order is a fading light in the dark. Corrupt and arrogant, they must be punished!" - Asajj Ventress

This deck features on two missions, Dun Möch and Outmaneuvered. Both these missions are designed to counter Jedi units and units with inbuilt damage prevention. Dun Möch is the more formidable, but limited mission by penalizing characters for missing their target.

   
   
   
   

Conclusion:

All in all, this deck forms a versatile Dark Jedi/Separatist deck that can make the Jedi doubt the force and become vulnerable. It is supported with a great build gain engine and features nice deck searching options.
Anyhow have fun with the infinite opportunities CW:RAW will present the future of the SW:TCG.

"And remember, the Force will be with you. Always." - Obi-Wan Kenobi

Thoughts or comments? Visit the message board thread for this article here.
   
   
About the Author
Shaun has been playing SWTCG with Trent ‘IVIaceWindu’ McCrow since the AOTC days. He has a strong interest in SWTCG, especially in dream card creations. Shaun occasionally visits Rebelbasers, especially the Dream Card Separatist thread posting under the name Grand Admiral Shaun.
   
     
         
 
 
 


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