This article originally appeared in Pyramid #23
INWO Green Deck Strategy
by Aaron Curtis
With the release of Assassins, Green decks became not only possible, but powerful. Know their strengths and weaknesses, because even if you aren't playing a Green deck, there's a good chance one of your opponents is.
The single most powerful new Green group, and the most important to a Green deck, is Lama Ramadingdong. Not only does he get +1 power for each Green group in play (not just controlled by you), but he can use this to defend any Green group, for free! As a Personality with three alignments, it's easy to use a power booster to get his power to 10 or more, which makes your Green groups extremely difficult to take. Often, a contest between two Green decks will be decided by who can take, and keep, Lama Ramadingdong.
The other two key cards for a Green deck are Al Gore and Canada, which get a +8 and +10, respectively, for direct control of Green groups. Combine these with the strong ties between Green and Liberal groups (of the 15 Green groups, 7 are Liberal), and either of them can control Green groups out of your hand on a 10 or less.
A Green group with unexpected strength is Recycling Centers, with the extremely useful ability to take any discarded Group or Gadget Resource into your hand. They can be used actively, snatching up cards after you have destroyed them or forced your opponents to discard them, or they can be used passively, taking a used agent card (whether the attack succeeds or not) or a Gadget which was destroyed by a rival. Finally, they can be used defensively, to retrieve a group you failed to control from your hand, or a Gadget of yours which was destroyed. Recycling Centers are versatile and powerful, and with no alignments, difficult to defend . . . except with Lama Ramadingdong.
Of the non-NWO plots, only two are really important to a Green deck. Save the Whales is a standard +10 card for Greens. Oil Spill, an Assassins Rare, is a disaster with the bonus that if it succeeds, all or most Green groups in play get an action token! Use it to hurt your opponents and reload your groups for free at the same time.
Unfortunately, there is one NWO that will always be an Achilles' heel to Green decks: World Hunger. Not only does it remove all action tokens from Green groups as long as it is in play, but it prevents them from using their special abilities! Suddenly, Lama Ramadingdong becomes a Personality with Power and Resistance of 1, and all of your Green groups become very, very vulnerable. It is for this reason that a pure Green deck is not a good idea; it's much better to diversify, even a little. Fortunately, there is an antidote to World Hunger; Global Warming is also a Blue NWO, and increases the power of all Green groups by 2. But, be careful about playing any Blue NWO, as World Hunger could be right around the corner, and needs to be dealt with quickly. If you have Nevermore!, there is no better card to use it on than World Hunger, and you'll never have to worry again.
One advantage of the Green attribute when deck building is versatility. A deck of Liberal, Government and Green groups can amass power quickly with Political Correctness, Clipper Chip and Global Warming to win with Power for its Own Sake or Bavaria's Special Goal. Any of Lama Ramadingdong's alignments (Corporate, Peaceful and Weird) can be used as the start of a strong deck combining Green and the chosen alignment. Also, for Cthulhu's pleasure, it should be noted that several Green groups help destroy, especially Corporate and Science groups: Anti-Nuclear Activists, Eco-Guerillas and Rifkinites. Combine these groups with the Earth First! goal, and anybody can be a warrior for Mother Earth. Try playing with the UFOs and any three of the above Goals, and nobody will be able to learn your plans until it's too late!
Green decks are a case study in extremes. A well-built one can Lama Lama Lama its way to victory several ways, while a well-timed World Hunger can destroy an empire just when victory is within reach. Be aware of both possibilities, no matter which side of the Green fence you're on.
Article publication date: February 1, 1997
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