Friends, readers, and fellow Illumineers, we’re facing down a threat that’s about to hit every corner of Disney Lorcana. Yes, I’m talking about “The Vine,” the star of the thirteenth set Attack of the Vine! However, this sentiment also applies to the upcoming second set rotation for Ravensburger’s ever growing trading card game.
With less than a month until the pre-release date for the next chapter in Lorcana’s sprawling story, that doesn’t leave much time to prepare for this huge shift. Thankfully, the folks behind the game are now revealing information about the future that should comfort Illumineers far and wide. And it all starts with the “100% organic panic” coming in Attack of the Vine!
The Vine Is About To Become A Very Big Problem
Ever since “Hen Wen’s Visions” in Whispers in the Wells, the threat of The Vine has been creeping into Disney Lorcana’s latest story arc. Without it, WinterSpell wouldn’t have been as frosty, and Wilds Unknown couldn’t nearly be as…well, wild. And now the antagonist (not villain) of this most recent run, is about to take center stage; courtesy of its own deadly card.
During last week’s Attack of the Vine! press conference, Team Ravensburger put that notion on the table, debuting the card “The Vine – Towering Stalk” before the public Lorecast. A Steel big body that’s basically a substitute for Reign of Jafar’s “Mickey Mouse – Giant Mouse,” it’s a 10 Ink cost with 10 Strength / 10 Willpower. So anyone else out there running a Ruby/Steel Aggro deck should make this a centerpiece worth questing for.
Of course, The Vine has three advantages that the giant mouse lacks. First off, it turns allows all other Floodborn Glimmers to act as Bodyguards – preventing any challenge to The Vine while they’re still standing. Second, while The Vine is a high ink cost card, it’s a 7 ink Shift on any Floodborn. Third, and most importantly, this Attack of the Vine! antagonist is Inkable; so it can act as either fuel for the fire or a nuclear option.
Dual-Ink Returns, In Beautiful Cine-Mayhem!
It has been a while since Disney Lorcana has dabbled in Dual-Ink Glimmers. More specifically, the last time we saw this mechanic utilized was in Set 7 Archazia’s Island. So seeing as that set is going to be rotated out, now’s as good at ime as any to see Dual-Inks returning to the decks of all Illumineers.
While some of these cards have seen some unplanned debuts online, the most prominent iterations to debut online are the Ruby/Sapphire “Belle & Beast – Certain as the Sun,” and the Amber/Steel “Lilo & Stitch – “Fun Loving Friends.” These Attack of the Vine! Iconics are brought to you in beautiful “Cine-Mayhem,” which takes inspiration from the movie posters of Disney classics that make up the Lorcana firmament.
Recent activity in the Lorcana market is seeing prices rising, due to an increased presence of resellers/investors. So if you really want these Iconics, you may want to keep that in mind when forming your purchase plan.
The Hunny Classification Is About To Break Some Mechanics
Hundred Acre Wood fans, your day has arrived. The Attack of the Vine! Lorecast has officially named the Winnie the Pooh gang as the protagonists of this botanical battle; and with some interesting new mechanics as a result. The first difference is that all of the characters in this party now have an official classification of “Hunny;” which was last seen with the Fabled reprint of “Winnie The Pooh – Hunny Wizard.”
What’s more, the return of dual ink mechanics has given those who want to add a little bounce to their deck. That’s thanks to “Christopher Robin – Hunny Mage” having not only an Amethyst/Sapphire split, but also the ability to let Illumineers play any Hunny character in their deck, regardless of ink color. You read that right seasoned Illumineers, and to explain why this new twist is debuting, allow Ravensburger Lead Game Designer Lukas Litzinger to explain:
This is the first time we’re breaking the deck requirements through a card design. … This just kind of also tells a similar story in parallel to the Floodborn of The Vine. The Floodborn are being drawn together to protect The Vine; and so in the same way we needed our heroes to band together [and] overcome their differences, in order to defeat this threat.
Apparently Ravensburger will be teasing even more about the Hunny gang, as well as their Illumineer’s Quest adventure The Great Hunny Rescue, at this year’s GenCon.
Lorcana’s Shift Mechanic Is About To Get Wild
I’m still sad that Wilds Unknown’s cards involving the Brave universe didn’t even try to use Shift. Seriously, the whole movie involves Merida’s mother and brothers turning into bears, and needing to become human again. It’s a missed opportunity, if you ask me; but that’s ok.
Attack of the Vine! seems to have made up for that absence through two sweet words on one of Turning Red’s Meilin cards: “Temporary Shift!” It basically does what it says on the tin, where you can shift our pop-fixated Pixar protagonist into her larger red panda form – with a catch.
By the end of the turn you play “Meilin Lee – Popular Red Panda,” all damage falls away, and Mei becomes her human self. So if you’ve got enough power in your Inkwell, you can just keep bringing this 4 Strength/5 Willpower girl out to do some damage, returning to your hand once the job is done.
What’s more, other cards have some fun tweaks to the standard Shift experience. Another prime example is the Emerald/Sapphire Dual-Ink card “Mickey Mouse & Minnie Mouse – Adventuring Duo.” If you have both of those individual characters in play, it’ll cost you no ink to activate this 7 Ink “Dual Shift,” which quests for 5 Lore. I guess Shift truly happens when The Vine is afoot!
Attack Of The Vine Pre-release Box Promos
Much as we saw with Wilds Unknown, the new Disney Lorcana pre-release kits now contain a random promo card to add to your evolving collection. And as you can see, all colors of the deck are going to get a boost from what’s in store. In case you can’t read the beautiful cards above, here’s the list of the pre-release kit exclusives for Attack of the Vine!
- Pocahontas – “Guiding the Tribe” (Amber)
- Vixey – “Expert Fisher” (Amethyst)
- Buzz Lightyear – “Providing Cover” (Emerald)
- Boo – “Energetic Child” (Ruby)
- Merlin – “Envisioning the Future” (Sapphire)
- Maximus – “Relentless Stallion” (Steel)
You’ve got to love the reference in Merlin’s new Lorcana card; as it calls back to Shimmering Skies’ “Vision of the Future” Action card. Meanwhile, my Ruby/Steel tendencies are gravitating towards Maximus and Boo; especially when that adorable Monsters Inc. character can invoke quite a bit of removal without damage.
Of course, while we’re on the subject of promos, let’s take a look at the Weekly Play and Buy A Box offerings on deck. (The latter of which will really please fans of Winnie the Pooh.)
Attack Of The Vine’s Play Promo Cards Include A Long Absent Friend
If you buy a Booster Box of Attack of the Vine!, then you’ll be taking home a beautiful Ruby “Tigger – Hunny Barbarian” card. Which, if you remember good old Christopher Robin above, will make for a happy addition to any Hunny-based deck.
Don’t worry if those citizens of the Hundred Acre Wood aren’t at the top of your list; as this rundown of Weekly Play Promos offer quite a bit of variety:
- Morph – Little Imitator (Amethyst)
- Randall Boggs – Scary Smart (Sapphire)
- Melin Lee – Lead Vocalist (Amber)
- “If I Didn’t Have You” – Monster’s Inc Song (Amber)
MORPH IS BACK, BABY! As a fairly fresh Disney Lorcana Illumineer, I’ve heard tales of this Treasure Planet character being able to Shift any character in the past. That advantage has returned, albeit in a slightly different Amethyst card that retains the 2 Ink / 2 Strength / 1 Willpower stats of his Emerald Into the Inklands variant.
Before we move on, we have two final non-set champs promo cards from Attack of the Vine! Through the image below, here is next Seasonal Play promo, as well as a very villainous Magical Places entry:
While that Amethyst Maleficent card is going to be a Disney locations exclusive upon pre-release, I really wish it was special to the upcoming Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party events. People are still praising this year’s Festival of the Arts scavenger hunt at Epcot for introducing them to Disney Lorcana, and this sort of strategy offers a sound path towards player growth.
Attack Of The Vine Set Champs Card/Playmat
Last, but not least, the moment you’ve all been waiting for. If your Wilds Unknown set champs journey didn’t result in a playmat and/or some shiny new cards, the next round is coming! Though as you’re about to see, the Attack of the Vine! set champs will not have a matching card/playmat set.
As far as cards are concerned, the Emerald “Rapunzel – Escaping the Tower” will be the featured card for the next round of set-themed combat. And when looking into the champion’s playmat for Attack, set champions will find themselves taking home this:
This is not the end of the surprises that Attack of the Vine! is introducing to Disney Lorcana. At this very moment, new card reveals are taking place – in anticipation of its July 17th Pre-release event! Those of you who aren’t near a local game store, or have other commitments, will be able to snag some of this growing dread on July 24th – which is the set’s general release date. And as always, for more adventures in Illumineering, don’t forget to keep gathering knowledge and wisdom over at THS Table Top Gaming News!
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