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** '''[[WeHaveReserves Shadow]] [[ZergRush Isles]]''' is probably the most complicated faction in the game, having numerous avenues of play. However, their core concept is the same regardless of how you build your deck- crush the enemy with your ever-growing horde of TheUndead. One can run an Elise deck to overwhelm their enemy with spiders or a Hecarim deck to attack with powerful but fleeting Ephemeral units that die when their turn is over. This faction is also home to the Fearsome mechanic, where units of less than 3 power can't block Fearsome units. Some of their units even lack the ability to block, emphasizing an AttackAttackAttack approach to solving problems. Because so many of their units are fleeting, they also have no problem sacrificing their own units to achieve even greater ends, and many of their units outright ''reward'' being killed. They also have the most drain mechanics amongst any of the factions, making them much tankier than they might seem. Their relentless focus on attacking makes them the absolute weakest defensive faction, however- only one of their Champions, Thresh, has anything remotely resembling a defensive kit, and a deck from Demacia, Piltover and Zaun or the Freljord will find themselves carving through the Shadow Isle ranks with little resistance, able to withstand the endless horde of monstrosities that pour forth with ease.

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** '''[[WeHaveReserves Shadow]] [[ZergRush Isles]]''' is probably the most complicated faction in the game, having numerous avenues of play. However, their core concept is the same regardless of how you build your deck- crush the enemy with your ever-growing horde of TheUndead. One can run an Elise deck to overwhelm their enemy with spiders or a Hecarim deck to attack with powerful but fleeting Ephemeral units that die when their turn is over. This faction is also home to the Fearsome mechanic, where units of less than 3 power can't block Fearsome units. Some of their units even lack the ability to block, emphasizing an AttackAttackAttack approach to solving problems. Because so many of their units are fleeting, they also have no problem sacrificing their own units to achieve even greater ends, and many of their units outright ''reward'' being killed. They also have the most drain mechanics amongst any of the factions, making them much tankier than they might seem. Their relentless focus on attacking makes them the absolute weakest defensive faction, however- only one of their Champions, Thresh, has anything remotely resembling a defensive kit, kit. As such, Shadow Isles decks are either extremely aggressive with cheap, frail units and a deck thus vulnerable to mass removal from Demacia, the likes of Piltover and Zaun Zaun, Bilgewater, or the Freljord will find themselves carving through the Freljord, or control decks heavy on kill spells that fold against things like Ionia's defensive tricks and counterspells and Targon's Spellshielded endgame threats that stop Shadow Isle ranks with little resistance, able to withstand the endless horde of monstrosities that pour forth with ease. Isles' spells from killing their units.



** [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Minimorph_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Minimorph]], on the other hand, is both permanent and works on champions. (It's more expensive, though.)

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** [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Minimorph_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Minimorph]], on the other hand, is both permanent and works on champions. (It's more expensive, though.though, and transforms the target into a 3/3.)
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** [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Yasuo/LOR Yasuo]] turned out to have an unforseen but crippling WeaksauceWeakness in his level 2 form which his level 1 form doesn't share- Frostbite. Level 1 Yasuo does 2 damage to any stunned or recalled enemy, while level 2 has him strike them instead (doing 5 damage by default). While this is normally a straight upgrade, if Yasuo is affected by Frostbite, his power is reduced to 0 for a turn, completely negating his level 2 effect. And since 2 of the most popular Frostbite cards that can affect Yasuo ([[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Flash_Freeze_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Flash Freeze]] and [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Harsh_Winds_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Harsh Winds]]) are Burst speed spells, Yasuo players can find themselves in a position where they play what should be a board-clearing [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Intimidating_Roar_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Intimidating Roar]], only to find it doing no damage and their Yasuo still on 0 power, unable to capitalise (although the Frostbite in turn can be negated with a timely [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Elixir_of_Wrath_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Elixir of Wrath]] or other Burst-speed buff spell).

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** [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Yasuo/LOR Yasuo]] turned out to have an unforseen but crippling WeaksauceWeakness in his level 2 form which his level 1 form doesn't share- Frostbite. Level 1 Yasuo does 2 damage to any stunned or recalled enemy, while level 2 has him strike them instead (doing 5 damage by default). While this is normally a straight upgrade, if Yasuo is affected by Frostbite, his power is reduced to 0 for a turn, completely negating his level 2 effect. And since 2 of the most popular Frostbite cards that can affect Yasuo ([[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Flash_Freeze_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Flash Freeze]] and [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Harsh_Winds_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Harsh Winds]]) are Burst speed spells, Yasuo players can find themselves in a position where they play what should be a board-clearing [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Intimidating_Roar_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Intimidating Roar]], only to find it doing no damage and their Yasuo still on 0 power, unable to capitalise (although the Frostbite in turn can be negated with a timely [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Elixir_of_Wrath_(Legends_of_Runeterra) Elixir of Wrath]] or other Burst-speed buff spell). [[https://leagueoflegends.fandom.com/wiki/Gwen/LoR Gwen]], whose Level 2 drains health from the enemy Nexus based on her power, had the same problem until her ability was changed to drain a minimum of two times (which is the same health drain as her Level 1).
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Trope was cut/disambiguated due to cleanup


** Terror of the Tides came in the same set, Maokai exclaims "Your ship has come in!" when you summon it, [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers but it is not actually a ship]]. It's a giant ''undead'' sea monster masquerading as a ship and spreading an aura of terror that makes your other seamonsters ''much'' harder to block.

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** Terror of the Tides came in the same set, Maokai exclaims "Your ship has come in!" when you summon it, [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers but it is not actually a ship]].ship. It's a giant ''undead'' sea monster masquerading as a ship and spreading an aura of terror that makes your other seamonsters ''much'' harder to block.



* TheTurretMaster: Like League of Legends, Heimerdinger's main effect is creating turret-based cards which depends on how much mana is spent on a spell card. These cards are fleeting (so they must be summon on the turn they are created or else they are lost) but has 0 mana cost. Statwise, they have only 1 Health (unless Heimerdinger is leveled up, in which, they get 2) and a number of Power depending on what card they are (the number on the Mk plus 1 if Heimerdinger is leveled up) with a keyword as a bonus. These cards include [=Mk0:=] Windup Shredder (which has Challenger), [=Mk1:=] Wrenchbot (which has no keyword), [=Mk2:=] Evolution Turret (which has Tough), [=Mk3:=] Apex Turret (which has Fearsome), [=Mk4:=] Stormlobber (which has Overwhelm), [=Mk5:=] Rocket Blaster (which has Quick Attack), [=Mk6:=] Floor-b-Gone (which has Elusive), [=Mk7:=] Armored Stomper (which has Barrier), and [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers T-Hex]] (which is a powerful follower with 8 to Health and Power but no keyword).

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* TheTurretMaster: Like League of Legends, Heimerdinger's main effect is creating turret-based cards which depends on how much mana is spent on a spell card. These cards are fleeting (so they must be summon on the turn they are created or else they are lost) but has 0 mana cost. Statwise, they have only 1 Health (unless Heimerdinger is leveled up, in which, they get 2) and a number of Power depending on what card they are (the number on the Mk plus 1 if Heimerdinger is leveled up) with a keyword as a bonus. These cards include [=Mk0:=] Windup Shredder (which has Challenger), [=Mk1:=] Wrenchbot (which has no keyword), [=Mk2:=] Evolution Turret (which has Tough), [=Mk3:=] Apex Turret (which has Fearsome), [=Mk4:=] Stormlobber (which has Overwhelm), [=Mk5:=] Rocket Blaster (which has Quick Attack), [=Mk6:=] Floor-b-Gone (which has Elusive), [=Mk7:=] Armored Stomper (which has Barrier), and [[TheLastOfTheseIsNotLikeTheOthers T-Hex]] T-Hex (which is a powerful follower with 8 to Health and Power but no keyword).
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** With Volibear's introduction, comes the introduction of the "Titanic" mechanic, which is a label for any Follower with 8 cost, power, or toughness. Volibear's deck in particular practically runs on this, with cards that help him lower the cost of the next Titanic follower you play. Yes, even Champions can become Titanic, and Volibear himself indeed counts. In any case, once you summon Volibear, he always has the effect wherein he'll hit 3 random targets, dealing 4 damage to Followers, and 2 to the opponent's Nexus. Once a total of 50 damage is done, whether to the opponent's Nexus or to their Followers, Volibear levels up: once that happens, not only will all Followers on your side of the field gain ''[[ArmorPiercingAttack Overwhelm]]'', but anytime Volibear attacks, he'll shock 3 random targets the same as if he were summoned.

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** With Volibear's introduction, comes the introduction of the "Titanic" mechanic, which is a label for any Follower with at least 8 cost, power, or toughness.health. Volibear's deck in particular practically runs on this, with cards that help him lower the cost of the next Titanic follower you play. Yes, even Champions can become or are Titanic, and Volibear himself indeed counts. In any case, once you summon Volibear, he always has the effect wherein he'll hit 3 random targets, dealing 4 damage to Followers, and 2 to the opponent's Nexus. Once a total of 50 damage is done, whether to the opponent's Nexus or to their Followers, Volibear levels up: once that happens, not only will all Followers on your side of the field gain ''[[ArmorPiercingAttack Overwhelm]]'', but anytime Volibear attacks, he'll shock 3 random targets the same as if he were summoned.
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Added entries for the Beyond as a starting point.

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* With the inclusion of the ''Beyond'' expansion set, we get even more.
** With Volibear's introduction, comes the introduction of the "Titanic" mechanic, which is a label for any Follower with 8 cost, power, or toughness. Volibear's deck in particular practically runs on this, with cards that help him lower the cost of the next Titanic follower you play. Yes, even Champions can become Titanic, and Volibear himself indeed counts. In any case, once you summon Volibear, he always has the effect wherein he'll hit 3 random targets, dealing 4 damage to Followers, and 2 to the opponent's Nexus. Once a total of 50 damage is done, whether to the opponent's Nexus or to their Followers, Volibear levels up: once that happens, not only will all Followers on your side of the field gain ''[[ArmorPiercingAttack Overwhelm]]'', but anytime Volibear attacks, he'll shock 3 random targets the same as if he were summoned.
** Mordekaiser's later entry revolves very heavily upon you being a BadBoss by the time you summon him, having your Followers die whether by your own hand or your opponent's, and recycling them through various means, which includes via the ''Deathless'' mechanic. Once he hits the field however, he adds to the death toll on your side, killing then reviving two Followers upon being summoned. As soon as 15 of your Followers die (any followers with 5+ power counts as 2), Mordekaiser levels up and gains thusly gains a new effect: on top of his ability to revive any Follower that has been slain by your hand, anytime Mordekaiser attacks, for the rest of the game, anytime a Follower is killed while you're attacking (whether by battle or by spells), he drains the enemy Nexus by 1 for every Follower killed. And it gets worse for the opponent: the Nexus drain stacks every time a Mordekaiser, which means if you let a leveled-up Mordekaiser stay on the field, and attack with abandon, he could potentially kill you in a single hit...which gets even worse if there is somehow more than one Mordekaiser on the field, and/or ''Realm of Death'' is played on him, which not only forces the target to attack the strongest opponent in a free attack, it kills everyone else on the field.
** The Elder Dragon has been released as a champion. Much of his deck rewards putting out creatures of at least 6-cost into play...with his Origin effect, anytime you play a card with a base cost of at least 6 (doesn't matter if the cost has been lowered, so long as its cost was originally 6), that card gets one of 5 Dragon Boons placed upon it (you get to choose one of two out of those five), which has the effect of lowering the Elder Dragon's considerable cost by 1 every time it is played. Elder Dragon himself, however, will put all five Dragon Boons upon himself upon being summoned. Once you've attacked with a total of 75 power throughout the game, Elder Dragon will level up...and when he does, he gets a fitting effect called "I CANNOT BE STOPPED!", which literally means that he cannot be frozen, stunned, bounced back to your hand, etc. And Elder Dragon himself is a big, beefy monster enough to fall under the Titanic label even before he levels up [[note]]before leveling up and before any means of lowering his price are applied, Elder Dragon is a 12-cost 10/10 champion; once he levels up, his stats jump to a whopping '''30/30''', the highest stats in the game[[/note]], which means he can very easily be put into a Volibear deck.
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** You can draw cards that were placed traps by you, so be careful about using nabs on them, or else you will draw that one card with 15 puffcaps and 6 flashbombs and lose.
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Crosswick.

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* DrawExtraCards: Several cards allow drawing additional cards:
** Glimpse Beyond: Draw two cards at a cost of sacrificing a friendly card, though since it belongs to the Shadow Isles region, there are a lot of expendable cards that can be used on.
** Twisted Fate's level up condition requires drawing nine cards when he is currently in the field. Fortunately, he has many ways to get those cards out of the hand, which includes his Blue Card skill which gives him an extra Spell Mana and card. His signature spell, Pick A Card, returns one card in the player's hand but will receive 2 more cards on the next round. However, those cards are fleeting so they must be used or else they will be removed from the hand.
** The Nab keyword draws cards from the opponent's deck like Black Market Merchant and Pilfered Goods. Many of the nab cards require the Plunder effect, which the player must deal damage to the opponent's Nexus to achieve the effect.
** Targon decks have exclusive set of cards called Celestial cards and cards with the Invoke effect will create one of three randomly generated Celestial cards into your hand.
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Crosswicking.

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* CardCycling: The Shadow Isles region provides enough friendly cards that the card "Glimpse Beyond", which allows the player to draw two cards at the cost of sacrificing a friendly card already on the field, is a net positive 1 cards in the hand, without being as great a loss as it might otherwise be.
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** In a way, it fits any Follower with the ''Formidable'' keyword, as they deal damage with their health instead of their power. This, of course, includes Galio.
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** It's entirely possible that the Darkin that taught Vladimir blood magic is Xolaani given that she's the only Darkin we know of that uses it on a regular basis.

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