DotW Runner-Up: A Chaotic Ad Campaign

Glen Barnett

Theme: Madison Avenue slurps Media groups while New York or the Clone Arrangers grab Violent or Criminal groups. Power changing cards and a few other tricks bring you toward both the Gnomes's Special Goal and Hail Eris.

Building the Deck:

When starting out, I suggest three basic stages to deck-building. Even when you have all the cards and know what they do, this isn't a bad way to work.

Goals, or How am I going to win?:

• Wall St counts for Gnomes Special Goal and for Corporate Masters.
• Privatization will make a high power group count as well.
• Cable TV will count if you have a Personality (Hillary Clinton).
• Gnomes' goal is a good choice - it's easier to use a goal on an Illuminati.
• WITCH counts for Hail Eris.
• The Weird Turn Pro will make a low power Weird group count.
• There are several Power to 6 cards that will make groups count for Hail Eris or the Corporate goals.

Getting there, or What takes what:

• Madison Avenue will take Cable TV and Junk Mail at better than a 10, and will take TV Preachers with a little help.
• A Privatized New York will take ICS and Junk Mail at 10 or better, and also has a 9 to take Hawaii and will take the SCLA with a little help.

Shticks, or What does what:

• Mob Influence is for Junk Mail or the SCLA
• Weird Turn Pro is for SCLA or Science Fiction Fans
• Privatization is for New York or Clone Arrangers
• Hawaii should probably hang off your most powerful Corporate group.
• Midas Mill is for New York. If you don't get New York, ditch or trade the Midas Mill.
• Upheaval is only to be used if you manage to race ahead in groups, and could be followed up with a Solidarity. Take care using both.
• Chicken In Every Pot should be held back for when you need it; you may be able to use it in the endgame to advantage.
• Read My Lips and Talisman of Ahrimanes are to protect your personality.

So here's the deck -

Illuminati

• Gnomes of Zurich

Group Cards

• Cable TV
• Clone Arrangers
• Hawaii
• Hillary Clinton
• Int'l Cocaine Smugglers
• Junk Mail
• Madison Avenue
• New York
• Rosicrucians
• Science Fiction Fans
• Semiconscious Lib.
• T.V. Preachers
• W.I.T.C.H.
• Wall Street
• Midas Mill

Plot Cards

• Agent in Place
• Albino Alligators
• Are We Having Fun Yet?
• Atomic Monster
• The Auditor From Hell
• Crop Circles
• Currency Speculation
• Grassroots Support
• Harmonica Virgins
• Just Say No
• Miracle Diet Plan
• Mob Influence
• Poison
• Privatization
• Pulitzer Prize
• Read My Lips
• Secrets Man Was Not...
• Self-Esteem
• Stealing the Plans
• Terrorist Nuke
• Talisman of Ahrimanes
• Upheaval!
• Voodoo Economics
• The Weird Turn Pro
• Goal: Hail Eris
• NWO: Chicken in Every Pot
• NWO: Don't Forget to Smash the State
• NWO: Solidarity
• NWO: World Hunger

Beginning

Madison Avenue. If it bounces, take the Rosicrucians instead - you can use them to draw a Crop Circles, which you can then use next turn to make sure you get Madison Avenue - you need to get it before your rival does.

Early Game

You mainly want to concentrate on getting down a few Media groups. If you get lucky and get a little way ahead, consider going looking for Upheaval. Solidarity can be a funny follow-up. A lot of your plots are powered by Media groups, so having a few down will help. If you can, get Clone Arrangers down.

Midgame

You should look to have New York or Clone Arrangers down by now. If both come out in rivals structures, you should try to make a deal with the owner of one to take the other in return for immunity from your agent, plus some other consideration (you have some nice plots, for example, and lots of groups with global power). Start taking groups with them also. Get Secrets into your hand if it isn't already. Note that at various stages, some of your NWOs can hurt you - don't play them unless they hurt your rivals even more. Keep Hillary back - at least until you have some protection.

Endgame

By now you should have Privatized New York (or the Clone Arrangers) and could have the Midas Mill attached. Hawaii should be their puppet. You should start looking for any remaining power changers you can use, and your goal if you don't have it yet. Make groups count double, and declare victory. The token removing ability of Miracle Diet Plan could be handy here - and if you have the Clone Arrangers, you can get a very powerful action as well.

Substitute cards

You may want to ignore Upheaval and take another disaster (Hurricane, for example). You could play this deck as a UFO's deck by adding in the Corporate Masters - but then you'll need to choose which goal to win with. You could also go with the Adepts, add in the Templars and the Hammer of Thor, and work toward one or the other of the goal cards.

First posted: November 17, 1997

Last modified: November 17, 1997