{"product_id":"ranger-pack-hero-realms-exp","title":"Hero Realms: Ranger Character Pack Expansion","description":"\u003cp\u003ePlay Hero Realms as a \u003cem\u003eCleric\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eFighter\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eRanger\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThief\u003c\/em\u003e, or \u003cem\u003eWizard\u003c\/em\u003e! Character Packs add a cool new dimension to player vs player games. Each match-up is a unique challenge which will require different strategies such as the Ranger Pack: Hero Realms Exp. When playing a cooperative campaign, your Character Pack represents the starting point for your character that you will customize over time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach 15-card \u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCharacter Pack\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e includes:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA custom ten-card starting deck featuring multiple unique character-specific cards\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA character card with your starting health\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA class-specific minor ability card\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eA class-specific major ability card\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTwo score cards\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRules\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCleric [Hero Card]\u003cbr\u003e\nResurrect (Ability)\u003cbr\u003e\nBless (Ability)\u003cbr\u003e\nPrayer Beads\u003cbr\u003e\nSpiked Mace\u003cbr\u003e\nFollower x 2\u003cbr\u003e\nGold x 6\u003cbr\u003e\n\"Ones Digit\" Score Card\u003cbr\u003e\n\"Tens Digit\" Score Card\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eBLOG\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn my \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/hero-realms-review\/\"\u003ereview of Hero Realms\u003c\/a\u003e I made no secret of the fact that the core game is very similar to \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/?post_type=product\u0026amp;wrls_search_in=title%2Csku\u0026amp;s=Star+Realms\"\u003eStar Realms\u003c\/a\u003e, another deck-building game from the same designers and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.whitewizardgames.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\u003eWhite Wizard Games\u003c\/a\u003e. It's when you add the character packs into the game that \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/product\/hero-realms-deckbuilding-game\/\"\u003eHero Realms\u003c\/a\u003e really starts to come into its own.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach of the five character packs are sold individually. It contains a unique starter deck of 10 cards, a double-sided character card and two ability cards. The character cards replace the need for the base game's starter decks, but you'll still need its market deck and Fire Gem cards. I bought all five character packs at the same time as the core game, and I never play it without them, even if I'm playing with first-timers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eHow do they Work?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach of the character packs represent one of five common fantasy archetypes: wizard, thief, ranger, cleric and fighter. Each character has their own unique identity, which comes out through the cards in their starter decks and their abilities.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe starter decks will be fairly familiar. They contain 10 cards, just like the standard Hero Realms starter decks, and a mixture of gold and combat. However, they are asymmetrical - while every character has a few gold in their deck, their other cards are unique to them and promote various different strategies. Unlike the core game, some of these starter decks also include Champions, though as you'd expect, they're much weaker than those you'll find in the market deck.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAlongside the starter deck, each character also comes with its own starting life total and two unique ability cards. One of these represents a powerful effect that you can only use once per game, while the other one is a recurring ability that you can use once per turn if you pay two gold to do so. These cards really give the characters their identity, and make you feel that the players are actually acting as them within the game.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eThe Five Characters\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach character has its own unique identity, with cards and abilities that steer you towards certain strategies. We'll take a quick look at each of them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/product\/fighter-pack-hero-realms-exp\/\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Fighter\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePerhaps the most straightforward of all the characters, the Fighter is all about damage. He has the highest starting life total (60) to protect him as he uses combat-centric cards and abilities to do as much damage as possible in a short space of time. The Fighter doesn't lead you towards elegant strategies - he's all about killing your opponents as efficiently as possible. For all that his strategy is pretty one-dimensional, he's surprisingly fun to play.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/product\/cleric-pack-hero-realms-exp\/\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Cleric\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Cleric is a balanced character, with ways of doing damage, gaining life and boosting trade in her starter deck. What she really likes, however, is Champions. She comes with two in her starter deck - more than any other character - and her abilities are designed to keep Champions on the field for as long as possible. There are a few different directions you can go strategically with her, but she's happiest when surrounded by a big army.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/product\/wizard-pack-hero-realms-exp\/\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wizard\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Wizard is really going to appeal to a lot of fans of strategic card games. He's probably the trickiest nut to crack, and his recurring ability requires you to pay life to draw a card. His starter deck rewards you for playing Action cards, and he's the character that starts with the most combo potential. Players are rewarded for good stewardship of health as a resource and the ability to craft synergistic decks.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Thief\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMaybe I'm just a bad person, but the Thief, with her disruptive discard and stealing abilities, is my favourite character. Her starter deck is fairly non-descriptive, but she has two of the most thematic abilities in the game and can really frustrate opponents. As much as I enjoy playing her, I do find that her abilities can be a bit dull for other players, so I tend to limit how often I play her in head to head games.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.board-game.co.uk\/product\/ranger-pack-hero-realms-exp\/\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Ranger\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMy second favourite character, and the one I play the most, is the Ranger. His deck leans towards Champions, though not quite as heavily as the Cleric, and his abilities promote deck-filtering and card draw more extensively than any character save the wizard. He's a fun, balanced character who can start you off on both big trade and aggressive strategies - I imagine he'll be a hit with many card game fans.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eIs it Worth Getting the Character Packs?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUnreservedly, yes. The Hero Realms character packs give the base game a unique fantasy identity, allow players to express themselves and massively improve replay-ability. Not many deck-building games - especially pure deck-builders - incorporate asymmetry in their starter decks, and the abilities do a good job of making the character's differences go deeper than theme alone. They promote genuinely different strategies and increase the number of meaningful decisions that players can make throughout the game.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnother thing I love about them is that each character card is double-sided, with a male character on one side and a female on the other. It's a small, simple touch that significantly ups their inclusivity and encourages players to identify even further with the characters they choose. Many other games could learn from this example.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNot only are the character packs great for the base game, but they've also given the Hero Realms series room for expansion beyond the basic head to head deck-building format. The co-operative, legacy game-esque Ruin of Thandar campaign game makes use of the character packs to give players a clear role within the story, and the fantasy class system that has been chosen for the characters makes the campaign feel more like a card-based RPG.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn short, the character packs turned Hero Realms into a distinctive, unique game with a world of future possibilities; without them it's simply a slightly more explosive re-theme of Star Realms. I would strongly recommend buying them if you already own the base game, and would also suggest buying them along with the base game from the start if you're looking at getting into Hero Realms. They don't significantly increase the complexity and they vastly improve the playing experience. Really, they're a no-brainer.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRead More \u0026gt;\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"White Wizard Games","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56050131009914,"sku":"ZCO-WWG503","price":5.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0916\/9970\/8282\/files\/Ranger-Pack-Hero-Realms-Exp.jpg?v=1760984953","url":"https:\/\/zatu.com\/en-au\/products\/ranger-pack-hero-realms-exp","provider":"Zatu Games","version":"1.0","type":"link"}