Welcome back, Ashes players! 

Today we introduce the Phoenixborn from the Grave King expansion deck: James Endersight! James is a ruthless Phoenixborn that uses divine and ceremonial magic to ruthlessly sacrifice and resurrect armies with which to overwhelm his enemies.

James Endersight

James is the first Phoenixborn to have a starting Battlefield of 7, and as you’ll soon see, he will need all the space he can get. James trades some Spellboard flexibility to achieve this, but when you have access to some of the best allies in the game, you don’t need many ready spells anyways! James’ life value begins at 19, but this is going to be chipped away at by James’ Convene with Souls ability. This ability gives James the option to search for whatever ally he needs, at no dice cost! James pays for this ability in blood, taking wounds equal to the selected ally’s life value. This differs from the ceremonial dice power in that every ally has at least one life, so there’s no avoiding this cost. With enough cheap, low life allies in the game, like Fire Archer and Shepherd of Lost Souls, James can get an aggressive start to the battle by starting with an extra ally in hand at no additional dice cost!

Vengeance 

There is no life that James isn’t willing to sacrifice to meet his goals, and his unique Reaction Spell, Vengeance, is proof of that. When declaring an Attack a Phoenixborn action, you can cast Vengeance for any number of dice and destroy that many friendly units. If you are able to meet this condition, you will be rewarded with two massive offensive boosts of Overkill and Spite to the same number of surviving units! This card is essential to convert a swarm of zombies and allies into a game-ending attack! Opponents will have to be prepared with defensive options like Particle Shield to help stave off some serious damage threats from Overkill, and will need as many high-health blockers as they can get to prevent Spite damage. When Vengeance comes down, it can often be too late, and the best option is to keep James’ horde as small as possible for as long as you can! 

Thanks for reading today’s preview! Stay tuned for more previews next week when we return to Fiona’s deck to see some of the creatures of Birdsnest. 

Until next time,