About five losses in, I finally beat Horde-Crone.
Before anything else, here’s the mechanic that makes her so punishing: when she Unleashes, she draws every Trog from the discard pile and puts them all into play. Let that pile grow and the spiral becomes unmanageable — each Unleash floods the board, which makes the next one worse.
I wasn’t losing because my damage was weak. I was losing because I hadn’t figured out what this fight actually requires.
What I Was Getting Wrong
My first instinct was to chase her HP. Build up spells, deal damage, race her down.
That doesn’t work. While I was burning resources chipping away at her HP, Trogs piled up, Unleash triggers compounded, and the board fell apart before I could respond.
The shift that changed everything: Trog management first. Nemesis HP second.
The Team Setup
Four mages: Kadir, Jian, Z’hana, and Nym.
The basic strategy had two pillars:
- Z’hana handles Gravehold HP recovery
- Kadir handles player HP recovery and charge management through his signature card and Vim Dynamo
Before landing on this lineup, I tried swapping Kadir out for Brama — she can also handle player HP recovery. But the team ended up with too little firepower to finish the fight. That’s what pushed me back to Kadir.
Z’hana
Open Breach IV on Turn 1. If Trogs appear, you can immediately cast into them. After that, target Diamond Cluster. Use Vim Dynamo for charge and HP recovery. If Feral Lightning is available, set it in a closed breach and cast it through Eternal Ember — no discarding required.
Nym
Rush V’riswood Amber first for fast aether ramp. Then move into high-cost spells.
Kadir and Jian
Both follow the same purchase path: V’riswood Amber first, then Chaos Arc and Feral Lightning. Pick up Bottled Vortex and Vim Dynamo along the way.
Supply
| Spells | Relics | Gems |
|---|---|---|
| Feral Lightning, Combustion, Chaos Arc, Disintegrating Scythe | Vim Dynamo, Bottled Vortex | V’riswood Amber, Diamond Cluster, Banishing Topaz |
Vim Dynamo gives 1 charge and restores 2 player HP, then is destroyed. It also has a “take damage, draw 2 cards” effect, but in 4-mage play that’s unlikely to come up.
Disintegrating Scythe was added specifically to boost firepower.
Purchase rule to cut decision paralysis: 5+ aether = buy a spell. Under 5 = buy a relic or gem. This removes the hesitation of choosing between Bottled Vortex, Spectral Echo, or V’riswood Amber when you’re sitting on 3 aether. Setting spells at 5+ cost also keeps overall firepower high.
I wanted to lean on Depths-only cards as much as possible, but the expansion cards alone lacked the damage output and speed this fight demands — especially in 4-mage play.
The Strategy That Actually Worked
Trog Priority
Since Z’hana handles Gravehold recovery, Gravehold attacks can be tolerated to a degree. What you can’t afford is player HP damage — so Trog management becomes the priority.
Kill order: Yud first → Zom second → Orp last
Use Spark for Trogs — but only when efficient:
- Spark set in Breach III or IV, or
- Two Sparks in Breaches I and II together (2 damage total)
A single Spark in Breach I? Redirect it at the nemesis or a non-Trog minion. Combustion is easier for clearing Trogs, but it’s clearly too weak to keep up with Horde-Crone’s demands.
Why Disintegrating Scythe Over Monstrous Inferno
Nym’s signature card combined with V’riswood Amber is the fastest way to generate 8 aether. Monstrous Inferno costs 8 aether for 7 damage — but it occupies two breach slots, which is a major bottleneck in a 4-mage game. Non-Nym mages would need Diamond Cluster or Banishing Topaz to afford it, and getting to an actual cast takes too long.
Disintegrating Scythe deals 8 damage for one breach slot (with 1 self-damage). It can also move the top card of any player’s discard pile — including your own — back on top. That makes it viable even for Z’hana when she hasn’t been able to pick up attack spells.
Damage Breakdown
- Kadir: Chaos Arc + Feral Lightning + Spark → up to 11 damage
- Nym: Disintegrating Scythe → 8 damage (1 self-damage)
- Jian: Uses the charge ability to double-cast Chaos Arc or Disintegrating Scythe. With two Sparks and Chaos Arc, that’s still 7 damage even when the full spell package isn’t ready.
A Note on Nym’s Charge Ability
Nym’s charge ability can trash nemesis cards — useful in a pinch. But after surviving with it, you still need to defeat the nemesis and all remaining minions. Horde-Crone Unleashes 3 times per turn, and two Trog types that Unleash twice each means up to 7 Trogs could hit the board in a single round. Only use Nym’s charge if you genuinely have the breathing room for it.
Prioritizing Power Card Handling
Even when card acquisition ran slightly behind, Jian and Z’hana prioritized handling power cards with aether over buying new cards. In the winning run, Jian only managed to pick up Chaos Arc as a spell — but paired with two Sparks, that was still 7 damage.
Once cards came together, Jian shifted focus to setting up the charge ability.
Finishing the nemesis before Tier 3 minions entered play was the real turning point. That was partly luck — but building toward that condition was the goal the whole time.
What Almost Ended the Run
There weren’t many outright mistakes.
After Nym picked up Disintegrating Scythe, she focused on strengthening Breach II to eventually set two spells simultaneously.
The dangerous moment: Bane Sire appeared early. Its PERSISTENT effect triggers an extra Unleash every nemesis main phase — Trogs multiplied faster than we could respond. Four Yuds hit in one turn, Z’hana dropped to 1 HP.
Kadir’s signature card combined with Vim Dynamo brought her back to 4. That recovery kept the run alive.
Three Things I’d Tell Myself Before Run One
- Trog management comes first — don’t chase her HP
- Yud > Zom > Orp, every single time
- Don’t waste Spark unless it’s in Breach III/IV or paired with another
This held up for two consecutive wins — though one was technically a practice run since we forgot to deploy Trogs at setup. Either way: Horde-Crone went from wall to winnable once the priorities were right.
Tested in 4-mage mode. Mileage may vary in solo or 2-mage, but the Trog priority logic holds regardless of party size.
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