BEFORE READING: For the newest version of the Card Tier List, CLICK HERE!
by Scott Heise aka HomerJr and Rick DeMille aka Darklighter
[Updated 12/3/2019]
With the release of Stellar Allies to the digital app on Dec. 4, 2019; we have updated the card tier list to include the cards from Stellar Allies.
The quick access card tier “app” as also been updated. That “app” can be accessed here.
This update includes one set:
- Stellar Allies (“L”)
Previous Updates:
- Original Tier List for V & 1 – Posted by HomerJr August 31, 2015
- Update adding B, H, F – Posted by HomerJr January 21, 2017
- Update adding Frontiers (R) – Posted by Darklighter August 26, 2019
- Update adding K & A – Posted by Darklighter September 20, ,2019
- Update adding 2 & U – Posted by Darklighter October 30, 2019
- Update adding W – Posted by HomerJr November 6, 2019
Before we get to the updated card tier lists, let’s talk quickly about the cards introduced with the Stellar Allies expansion.
(If you want to skip to the update Tier Lists, they’re in the chart below)
Stellar Allies (“L”) Ships and Bases:
- Alignment Bot [L] ($1) – Machine Cult & Star Empire
- Description
- Main Ability – 2 Trade
- Scrap Ability – Scrap a card from your discard pile or Gain 2 combat and target opponent discards a card
- Cheap cards that give trade and that can self-scrap are generally a nice early purchase. Much better than the cards that give trade that you’re then stuck with for the rest of the game, like Trade Pod or Federation Shuttle. Alignment Bot has a nice, versatile scrap ability as well.
- Tier List Ranking
- Opening buys – Tier 1
- Mid Game – Tier 3
- Late Game – Tier 4
- Description
- Pact Pod [L] ($2) – Trade Federation & Blob
- Description
- Main Ability – 2 Trade
- Blob Ally Ability – 5 Combat
- Trade Federation Ally Ability – 1 Trade
- A nice nice early game purchase, though in the mid to late game if you aren’t triggering the green ally ability this card can become a liability.
- Tier List Ranking
- Opening buys – Tier 2
- Mid Game – Tier 3
- Late Game – Tier 3
- Description
- Needle Lancer [L] ($3) – Machine Cult & Star Empire
- Description:
- Main Ability – 5 Combat
- Ally Ability (Machine Cult or Star Empire) – Copy an ally ability that you’ve already used this turn.
- It’s listed as a good buy in the early game because of it’s potential to affect the game later on. In the mid to late game this is one of those cards you don’t want to leave in the trade row. Needle Lancer has a big upside, but even if you’re “only” copying an ally ability that gives 2 combat, for example, that’s 7 combat from this cost $3 card. The interesting question will be Stealth Needle vs Needle Lancer. We think the answer is still Stealth Needle, particlarly the later in the game you get, because Stealth Needle copies the primary abilities too, but an advantage of Needle Lancer is that its “whiffs” are much less painful since it still gives 5 combat.
- Tier List Ranking
- Opening buys – Tier 2
- Mid Game – Tier 1
- Late Game – Tier 1
- Description:
- Pact Warship [L] ($4) – Trade Federation & Blob
- Description:
- Main Ability – 5 Combat
- Blob Ally Ability – Destroy target base
- Trade Federation Ability – Gain 5 Authority
- Similar to Blob Destroyer (same cost, blob ally ability to destroy target base) except that it gives 1 less combat and loses the extra ally ability of destroying a card in the trade row, and gains dual faction with blue and the blue ally ability. So Pact Warship is a slight upgrade over Blob Destroyer if you’ve got blue in your deck (mostly because it will trigger blue ally abilities of other cards, not because of the 5 authority gain), and a downgrade from Blob Destroyer if you have have little or no blue since you’re losing the 1 combat and more importantly the trade row control. On the whole, we’ve put Pact Warship in the same tiers as Blob Destroyer, but keep in mind the differences when deciding between the two.
- Tier List Ranking
- Opening buys – Tier 2
- Mid Game – Tier 1
- Late Game – Tier 1
- Description:
- Trade Hive [L] ($5) – Trade Federation & Blob
- Description:
- Main Ability – 2 Trade
- Ally Ability (Blob or Trade Federation) – Draw a card
- Defense – 4 (non-outpost)
- Bases that give trade are generally nice early game purchases, and this one is no different. The ally ability also decreases the chances of this card slowing your deck down. In the late game this card should probably be avoided unless you have a lot of green/blue and are very confident that the ally draw ability will trigger each time you play it, or if it will be able to sit behind a base wall and trigger the draw multiple turns in a row. Otherwise, it’s not worth the risk of it slowing your deck down to purchase this in the late game.
- Tier List Ranking
- Opening buys – Tier 2
- Mid Game – Tier 3
- Late Game – Tier 3
- Description:
- Missile Silo [L] ($6) – Machine Cult & Star Empire
- Description:
- Main Ability – 3 Combat
- Star Empire Ally Ability – Target opponent discards a card
- Machine Cult Ally Ability – Destroy Target Base
- Defense – 5 (Outpost)
- Missile Silo is the only base in Star Realms (so far) that can destroy another base without having to be scrapped to do so (like Plasma Vent or Port of Call). 3 combat and a yellow ally ability to make your opponent discard a card makes this very similar to Royal Redoubt, but you giving up 1 defense in exchange for dual faction with red and the red ally ability to destroy a base, which is a big upgrade over Royal Redoubt.
- Tier List Ranking
- Opening buys – NA
- Mid Game – Tier 2
- Late Game – Tier 2
- Description:
- The Citadel [L] ($7) – Machine Cult & Star Empire
- Destription:
- Main Ability – Target opponent discards a card & You may scrap a card in your hand or discard pile
- No other abilities
- Defense: 7 Outpost
- This is an interesting one. The immediate comparison is Junkyard. The Citadel is obviously better, but by how much? The 7 defense outpost (the highest for an outpost so far in Star Realms) is significant, so this card will stay in play more often than Junkyard. Of course The Citadel also factions yellow and will make an opponent discard a card on top of what Junkyard does. So The Citadel isn’t going into Tier 4 like Junkyard. In the mid game this card is a “solid” Tier 3 card, but in the late game this card is creeping towards Tier 4, but does enough to stay out of Tier 4. As with all cards, this one does have its place. If you’re losing and trying to slow down an opponent’s combat, this may not be a bad card to add to your deck. Or if you have a lot of yellow and are making your opponent discard multiple cards a turn, this is a good card to throw in. But this card is a “Meh” purchase more often than not.
- Tier List Ranking
- Opening buys – NA
- Mid Game – Tier 3
- Late Game – Tier 3
- Destription:
- Summit Site [L] ($8) – Trade Federation & Blob
- Description:
- Main Ability – Draw two cards
- Blob or Trade Federation Ally Ability – Gain 5 Authority
- Defense – 6 (non-outpost)
- It’s not a base you build your deck around like Brain World or Factory World, but this is a good base. Unlike most bases this base doesn’t slow your deck down.
- Tier List Ranking
- Opening buys – NA
- Mid Game – Tier 2
- Late Game – Tier 2
- Description:
Updated Tier List
The intent of these Tier Lists is to provide a quick reference to help players, especially newer or less experienced players, when deciding which card(s) in the trade row they should buy (or whether to buy a card at all). Every card included in the V, 1, B, H, F, R, 2, K, U, A, W, L sets is contained within these lists and grouped into one of three tiers based on the overall value of the card relative to the cost of the card.
HomerJr originally wrote the Tier Lists for the V, 1, B, H, & F sets, and later added rankings for Colony Wars (“W”). I (Darklighter) have not changed any of HomerJr’s original rankings, and have just added rankings for Frontiers (“R”), Year 2 Promos (“2”) & United Command (“K”), Heroes (“U”), Assault (“A”), Stellar Allies (“L”) using HomerJr’s methodology (as best I could).
While every card in the game can be valuable and help you win, not every card will have equal value over the course of the game thus there are separate Tier Lists for different phases of the game (opening buys, mid game, late game). Furthermore, many cards are highly situational or valuable only in certain decks. Please note that this is all the personal opinion of the authors, so don’t take anything in here as law. 🙂 We are always open to feedback, criticism, and discussion.
We rank each card into one of three tiers as follows:
- Tier 1: Strong value and/or agnostic to situation; beneficial in almost any deck; you almost always want to have it in your deck if you can
- Tier 2: Solid value and/or somewhat situational; may rely on ally ability triggers to be effective; generally a good buy if no Tier 1 card available
- Tier 3: Weak value and/or highly situational; may need exactly the right game circumstances to be effective; best to avoid buying except in rare cases
- Tier 4: Poor value in nearly all situations; buying this card will probably worsen your deck; you’re probably making a mistake if you’re buying this card
Please note that our intent is not for cards in the same tier across cost brackets to be considered equivalent in value. In general, cards in the next higher cost bracket have a value one tier higher. For example, a Tier 2 card in the $3-5 cost bracket would have a value on par with a Tier 1 card in the $1-2 cost bracket. Also, cards are listed within a cell by faction and cost; the order of cards within a cell is not meant to imply anything about the value of the card relative to the others in the same tier and cost bracket.
($X) = Cost to buy card
no bracket = Original Core Set
[1] = Year 1 Promo/kickstarter card
[B] = Bases & Battleships expansion
[F] = Fleets & Fortresses expansion
[H] = Heroes expansion
[R] = Frontiers expansion
[K] = United Command expansion
[A] = United Assault expansion
[2] = Year 2 Promos
[U] = United Heroes
[W] – Colony Wars
[L] – Stellar Allies
NEW CARDS IN BOLD
Opening Buys (Deck 1)**
I prioritize strong trade and scrapping cards for my opening buys, as well as bases that provide good long-term value. Combat cards are generally only valuable at this stage for destroying opposing bases, or for all-out rush strategies when the trade row is combat-heavy.
**NOTE: The “Opening Buys” Tier List only ranks cards cost $1-5, which is the typical range of trade a player will have on their opening two turns. With the inclusion of Gambits and Events it may of course be possible, and advisable, to purchase cards that cost $6+ in Deck 1.
Updated 12/3/2019
$1-2 |
$3-5 |
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Tier 1 – Must Buy |
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Tier 2 – Good Buy |
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Tier 3 – Meh Buy |
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| Tier 4 – Don’t Buy |
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Mid Game (Deck 2-2.5)
I consider the mid game to be the period after the opening buys where there is still time for trade and scrapping to amortize, and both players have enough authority to survive through at least their opponent’s next shuffle and a full deck thereafter. During the mid game, I tend to value cards that help buy $6-8 cards (but also have late game value), strong bases, and cards that sow the seeds for big rallies in the late game (card draws, top-decking, etc). But be careful… often the mid game doesn’t last very long! If you’re not sure if you’re in the mid game or not, it’s usually best to play as if you’ve already progressed to the late game.
Updated 12/3/2019
$1-2 |
$3-5 |
$6-8 |
|
Tier 1 – Must Buy |
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Tier 2 – Good Buy |
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Tier 3 – Meh Buy |
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Tier 4 – Don’t Buy |
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Late Game (Decks 4+ or Authority < 30)
I consider the late game to be the point at which trade and scrapping no longer have enough time to provide value, and/or one or both players do not have enough authority to survive the next full play through of their opponent’s deck. During the late game, I tend to value cards that provide maximum combat in as few cards as possible and help fuel big rallies via card draws.
Updated 12/3/2019
$1-2 |
$3-5 |
$6-8 |
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Tier 1 – Must Buy |
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Tier 2 – Good Buy |
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Tier 3 – Meh Buy |
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Tier 4 – Don’t Buy |
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Megahaulin Blog for Star Realm Strategy 
Why is the “Repair bot” always ranked lower than the “Explorer”? It’s the same card with a little more capacity.
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That’s a fair question. I personally would put them in the same tier, but others believe buying a Repair Bot is worse because of the risk of flipping a card in the trade row that is favorable to your opponent. They would argue that because Explorer and Repair Bot are so close, they would rather buy an Explorer and not risk flipping a good card for their opponent in the trade row.
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