We finally have the full spoiler for Lorcana, The First Chapter! Just the other day, Ravensburger released the official Lorcana companion app, which includes a complete, searchable card database and deckbuilder. And now that we can see all of the cards side-by-side, it’s time to break them all down and see what makes them tick.
There are six ink colors in Lorcana: Amber, Amethyst, Emerald, Ruby, Sapphire and Steel. Think mana types in Magic: The Gathering or energy types in Pokémon. Like those other TCGs, the ink color of a card plays a big part in deckbuilding. At minimum, your deck has to contain sixty cards, and you can only have four copies of a given card. Unlike those games though, Lorcana deckbuilding rules strictly limit you to one or two colors. That means it’s more important than ever to understand what each color has to offer, so you can make sure your deck has everything it needs to get you to 20 lore before your opponent.
Amber Ink Identity
Officially, Amber is described as the ink for purposeful characters who support their cause as leaders, healers and bodyguards. Ariel, Stitch and Moana have cards in Amber, as do faithful sidekicks like Timon, Pumbaa, and Mr. Smee. Amber ink features in the Moana starter deck, paired up with Amethyst Mickey Mouse.
A lot of mechanics can be found in multiple ink colors. Amber isn’t the only place you’ll find the Bodyguard keyword. (Bodyguard says: This character may enter play exerted. An opposing character who challenges one of your characters must choose one with Bodyguard if able.) It also appears in Steel. You’ll also find Support (Whenever this character quests, you may add their power to another chosen character’s power this turn) in other colors. You even find cards that remove damage counters from your characters in other inks.
So what makes Amber unique?
SING FOR ME!
The one keyword that appears almost exclusively in Amber ink is Singer. Song is a subtype of action card in Lorcana which can be played either as a normal action or “sung” by a character. Singing is an alternate casting cost, which you pay by exerting a character with an ink cost greater than or equal to the song’s ink cost. Card with Singer can exert for more than their base ink cost. For instance, Ariel, Spectacular Singer has Singer 5, but her ink cost is 3. She counts as a 5 cost card when casting songs. Cinderella and Sebastian also carry the Singer keyword. This is handy, because Amber ink features powerful songs like Hakuna Matata, a four cost that removes 3 damage from each of your characters, and Part of Your World, a three cost that returns a character from your discard pile to your hand. Singer is a major point of interest when looking for inks that synergize well with Amber.
On top of Singer, Amber has Ursula’s Shell Necklace, a three drop item that lets you pay 1 ink to draw a card any time you play a song. Lorcana has no maximum hand size, so there’s no almost downside to extra card draw. (You lose if you run out of cards in your deck, like in other trading card games.)
Healing Glow
Several cards in Lorcana reference Rapunzel’s healing power, not all of them in Amber. What Amber does have is an impressive variety of options for healing. On top of Rapunzel, Gifted with Healing and Healing Glow, Amber has Dinglehopper – a one cost item that exerts to remove up to one damage from a target character. That’s on top of Hakuna Matata, which I mentioned earlier.
With healing in each major card type (song, action, character and item), it’s pretty obvious that removing damage is meant to be a cornerstone of Amber ink in Lorcana.
Amber is your go-to support ink
With its generous healing package, unique song support, and plethora of characters with Bodyguard, Amber is an obvious choice for the defensive end of a deck. Look to pair it with powerful songs like Be Prepared in Ruby or potent characters like Simba, Returned King in Steel. With strong items Lantern and Ursula’s Shell Necklace, Amber also brings strong support to Sapphire. And of course, don’t forget Moana’s ability to ready your princess characters. That alone makes Amber a good second ink to add to any princess-themed deck.
Got a decklist that runs Amber? Drop a comment below or tag me on Twitter and let me know. We just might make a video about it!
Lorcana officially releases to local game stores on August 18.
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