The Noble Phantasm of legendary servant Archer, creating a reality marble which he can easily use to gain utmost advantage. There is one thing that is similar to the game of WS other then the actual Climax card, is the similarity with Assisting Blade’s (BACKUP) ability to change the pace of the game.

What better series to chant the incantation then Fate/stay night/Hollow Ataraxia/Zero itself? =D

I am the bone of my sword

(The Basics)

In a Power based game such as WS, it is relatively important to keep certain Character cards alive. Counter cards are the only cards in the game that allow a player to react to an opponent attack during his turn. It also provides mileage to cards, giving a higher return to the Cost investments given up when playing them. Thus, during deck construction, it is normally a standard process to put in Counter cards.

However, one must understand the purpose of Counter cards, and how to make the most out of them.

Steel is my body and fire is my blood

(Types of Counters)

There are two types of Counter cards: Character card Counters and Event card counters.

Character card counters are Counter cards with the Assisting Blade (助太刀) ability, or BACKUP in official terms. The ability is only playable from hand when your Character cards suffer from a Front attack and can usually only target 1 of your Character cards in battle. There are standard Counters levels and understanding them will allow you to abuse them.

As Character counters utilize their ability instead of the card itself, you do not need to fulfill colour requirements to use the effect of a Character counter card. Character Counter cards are also Character cards, thus making them retrievable with retrieval effects.

Normally, Event card counters hold more latent potential then Character card counters. They normally have restrictions on what cards they can boost, give Character cards abilities, or are able to perform interesting effects. Event counter cards give a more varied ability support.

They can also be activated in normal Main phases, and can target cards that are not in battle. This essentially means that you can stack a Counter card over another one, in two attack declarations.

 I have created over a thousand blades

(Knowledge of Counter Cards)

Experienced players would be familiar with the basic increment of Counter cards across the sets. Below are the basic Power up statistics of basic Counter cards and their deficit in Power on their own Power.

Knowing the base power limits of sets will allow you to determine how much power boost is needed to be “clear” of the opponent’s Counter card.

By over-powering the opponent’s Counter limit, one can take down the opponent card without worry of a failed attack.

By adding the Counter Increment to the opponent’s total attack, you can make sure an opponent Character card is taken down totally.

Unknown to Death, Nor known to Life

(Decisions regarding Counters)

Sometimes, the player has no choice but to Counter and defeat the opponent Character card because he will not be able to take it down during his turn.

But when exactly would a player want to use a Counter card? Some players simply want to Counter to kill off an opponent Character card. That is logical, but a player can actually go deeper into the timing of using Counter cards. Below are just some important reasons to use Counters.

• Kill off an opponent Character card which you cannot kill during your next turn.
• Burn out a Climax card before Refresh.
• Cleave open a path for smaller Character cards to fill your Stage.
• Activate secondary abilities or to Counter for other Character cards (Event Counters and certain Character Counters only)

Remember our good-ol’ meta deck AB? You always have the option not to Counter.

As a Counter card holder however, it is also not necessary to continuously use Counter cards. Sometimes when the opponent card can be taken down with other cards in your hand, or can be easily Encore-d or returned to play, it is rarely required to use a Counter card.

Also, knowing the power limits of the Counters does not necessarily mean you need to cross them. A good tactic to enforce when trying to overpower the opponent is to note the opponent’s deck first and check their Waiting Room. By noting the triggers of your opponent, you can also roughly gauge if you are required to go over the Counter limit of the character card.

A standard level 2 Counter card is rarely ran more then 3, while a lv1 counter, is rarely ran more then 2. Just keep in mind how many of them are gone and roughly make a guess if the opponent actually is holding on to any.

However, even without the actual card in hand, a player can still  intimidate the opponent by having a sizable hand. This is known as a “Counter threat” as it gives the opponent an impression of strength should the player exhibit tendencies to play out Counter cards.

Cautious players without cheap Encore options might choose to avoid attacking them as it would be difficult to recover from the loss of a failed attempt to take down the opponent card.

Have withstood pain to create many weapons

(Special Counters)

With more experience, players can also expect special Counter cards to the series. They are normally in the form of Event card Counters, but they do exist as Character card form. Some counter cards also contain secondary abilities.

Below is a short list of notable Counter cards:

Should you remember the special abilities and potential Counter limits of the opponent, you will be able to be better prepared for the opponent’s defense.

Yet, why are these secondary abilities important? Or Event Counter abilities for that matter?

An example, why would anyone want to mill their own deck with certain Counter cards? – Because his deck has ran out of Climax cards. Why would  a player want to mill the opponent’s deck? – Because he is going to Refresh soon and he wants his opponent to miss a Change timing. Or maybe the player wants to reform his deck because his Climaxes are prematurely triggered/cancelled out.

Some event cards also perform heals, so I’d reckon they’re pretty important.

First, le me Counters for Rider, making it 8500…  In this example, Misaka 1/0 is actually 7000 Power with Komoe sensei at the Back.

Using the first effect, le me passes on the additional 1000 to Sakura & Rider.

Further increasing Sakura & Rider by adding a full 2000 to it, making it 8000 Power.

 Yet, those hands will never hold anything

Indeed, when your hand is holding too many Counter cards, and yet you do not have any Character cards to attack with, the player will be in deep trouble. Thus the importance of deck balancing to have enough attackers.

By balancing the deck percentage of a Counter card, you may hold a good amount of Counter cards and yet still have enough Character cards to keep your Stage filled.

A good number of Counter cards can only be determined by the deck build. Should a deck heavily depend on a Counter card, you may choose to put more of it. If not, it would be good to insert a decent, maybe 3-5 Counter cards in a deck to form Counter threat.

For standard Counter card numbers, I’d recommend 1-3 lv1 Counter cards, and 2-3 lv2 Counter cards for most, if not all decks.

So as I pray, Unlimited Blade Works.

Rather then the Climax card, I hope this article has answered questions about the usability and strategies involved in playing Counter cards. This is but just the tip of the iceberg as there will definitely be more Counter cards to be released in future, and hopefully they can give more variety to the player in response to the opponent’s strategies.

The deck really runs the Climax card. I do not jest here.

Again, the disclaimer stuff:

The above article is of my own opinions of the game, of which theories and styles can be derived from. They might be repeated or reiterated by other writers, or vice versa. Any or all opinions about my articles are welcome, but please note that they are plainly based on theory and play-tested ideologies.

See you guys again next week!