Daring Lime's: Labor of Love

Deck Overview: Environment: Current Playstyle: Build Player Count: 1-2 players Power: Omega Level Difficulty To Pilot: Medium

Hercules has just released, and so far he's one of my favorite heroes in the game! Unfortunately, I've heard from people in Discord that they've been struggling to have fun and get wins with Hercules. Hercules is very strong in multiplayer, where he can focus on his labors while his teammates buy time. In solo, that can be more difficult. This deck is built to fix that, and the best part is it doesn't even need many cards! It's a current environment list with only 4 products required: Core Box, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Wonder Man, and of course Hercules. I tested this list against Expert Magneto in solo and was able to finish all 3 labors and easily win despite getting a horrible string of encounter cards, so I'm confident it will work for you. If like me, you're a lover of wisdom, read on :)

What do I want out of this deck?

1. Allow Hercules to safely finish his labors without needing other players to deal with the board state

   • In solo play, this is mandatory, and in multiplayer, I'm sure your friends would appreciate a little help while you go on your side quests lol.

2. Have a simple game plan that is easy to execute and powerful.

   • I think it's easy to try to do too much with Hercules, especially in a legacy environment where there are so many cards to choose from. Instead of having a bunch of moving parts where you're trying to simultaneously build an engine, finish the labors, deal with the main scheme, survive, and attempt combos that may or may not line up, this deck has a simple plan that will reliably work while still being extremely powerful.

3. Current environment:

   • I've been having a lot of fun with the current environment. I've seen a lot of negativity around it, though. I'll make a video soon detailing my thoughts, but for now, I just want to share a deck list that's fun to play, doesn't need many packs, and can still easily (with good piloting) defeat the likes of Expert Magneto in solo.

How To Complete The Labors Without Losing

The labors are what make Hercules powerful, but they're also what makes things more difficult and complicated than most heroes. I'll provide some tips on defeating each labor, then explain how this deck synergizes with the labors.

• Defeat the Hydra

  • This labor tells you to find a non-Elite minion with 6 printed hit points. Some scenarios have one, but others don't. Since Find searches everywhere except face-down encounter cards, you can also grab Lernean Hydra from his nemesis set. So there will always be a valid target. Make sure to look at every possible choice of minion and choose the easiest one. This gets easier as you learn the villains. If you're unsure, the Lernean Hydra isn't an awful option.

• Embody Pathos

  • This functions similarly to Defeat the Hydra, except it's for side schemes. The same rules about Find apply, except this card specifies that it can't be a side scheme that's already in play (you technically can choose a minion that's already in play for Defeat the Hydra). Evaluate the side schemes as best you can and choose one. Don't forget that it gives the side scheme Assault! This allows you to use your basic ATK stat instead of your THW stat when thwarting the side scheme. It makes it much easier.

• Protect Humanity:

  • This card finds Amadeus Cho and puts him into play. This is the most finicky labor to complete because if the villain attacks twice with something like Assault, or there are minions out that also target Amadeus Cho, or gods forbid both and you get Gang-Up (this happened to me against Magneto; I still won, though), then it can be difficult. Note that the interrupt on Protect Humanity lets you choose an ally, so if Amadeus Cho is defeated, you can just play another ally and finish the labor later. Also, Herc's Helm allows you to technically defend without exhausting. If you have multiple allies and don't need all of them to survive, this can be extremely useful.

As promised, I'll now detail how this deck helps with the labors. The biggest difficulty with completing the labors in solo play is managing the threat on the main scheme. Since the labors encourage you (or, in some cases, require you) to exhaust to complete them, it can be easy for the main scheme to get out of control. Justice helps with that. You have access to Under Surveillance, which buys you time. For Justice! can help complete Embody Pathos as well as efficiently thwart the main scheme. Surveillance Team helps you deal with side schemes, keep the main scheme in check, and avoid wasting thwarting.

Since you're readying so much with Son of Zeus and Limitless Stamina, it's a good opportunity to use Heroic Conditioning and Heroic Intuition to pump up your THW stat. Having between 3-5 THW with the Justice upgrades and Lion of Olympus, plus 8 ways to ready (completing the labors, 3x Limitless Stamina, and 2x Son of Zeus), allows for some hefty threat removal from your basic activations. The extra allies add consistency to Protect Humanity and provide versatile output and blocking before Hercules' labors are completed. Once the labors are complete, Hercules can take on anything!

Tips For Hercules

Hercules is a bit difficult to pilot. Here are some tips to guide you through your gameplay:

• Don't overemphasize the labors. If you have to deal with a minion, side scheme, or the main scheme, don't feel bad about waiting an extra turn for the labors. You'll complete more labors if you don't lose!

• Most of your cards aren't sacred. It's okay to skip upgrades and supports on the first deck pass. Hercules draws a lot of cards and you'll see them again soon, but here are the ones I would try not to skip:

  • Olympus: It's 0 cost. It doesn't do anything until you've completed your first gift, but it's so valuable later on, and so cheap to play, that it's probably worth playing.
  • Herc's Helm: This is also 0 cost and one of your best cards. It helps you stay alive, keep teammates alive in multiplayer, and most importantly finish Protect Humanity easier.
  • Under Surveillance: This card is extremely powerful, and it helps with the next tip!

• Go to alter-ego! You have 6 hand size in alter-ego. That helps you finish the labors faster with the extra cards, and when you finish the labors you get a ready and 4 card draw! That means going to alter-ego is even more helpful than normal.

  • Keep the threat low with Surveillance Team and make use of Under Surveillance for extra protection on the main scheme. You can easily thwart the main scheme back to 0 with For Justice!, Wisdom of Athena, and your THW upgrades.

• Get full use of your allies. Hercules has incredibly high survivability innately. Sometimes getting 3 THW from Jessica Jones will be more valuable than a block. Consider using the final hit point of your allies for ATK and THW. It's situational, of course—just keep it in mind.

Have fun with Hercules! If you enjoy this current environment list, let me know. I personally have been playing mostly current lately, and I'm having a lot of fun. If people want to see more current environment lists, I'd be happy to share.