Hail, champions! We are now in our 2nd week of Cosmic Creation -- how have you been finding the new cards? Where there any that have surprised you? If so, you might not be alone -- here's a rundown of the 5 most underestimated cards of the expansion. To make this list, we're again looking at Impetuous Panda's pre-release prediction survey as well as our own community ratings and comparing it with what we're actually seeing at tournaments and on the ladder.
1. Zoe
Zoe is the winner of the "Most Underrated Cosmic Creation" card by a mile. Understandably, players originally drew mental comparisons to Teemo and Fizz, the other 1 mana 1 HP champions who have always struggled to consistently win. It also didn't help that Go Hard, an almost perfect answer to Zoe, has been so prevalent in the meta. As the post-experimentation dust is settling, though, it is ironically starting to look like Zoe might be the only new champion that is competitively viable with her original stats. The secret to her success turns out to be the Supercool Starchart generated from her Nexus Strike, which means that a single unblocked attack will generate card advantage. She's also surprisingly easy to level, and her powerful L2 passive ability remains in effect even if Zoe is killed off.
2. Targon's Peak
Cards that give your opponent benefits are often more trouble than they are worth -- just ask Millhouse Manastorm -- so we're guessing that's the reason for Targon's Peak lukewarm reception. In practice, however, we're seeing some very strong new decks built around this landmark. While there's always that potential for a disastrous backfire, stuffing your deck with game-winning threats like Aurelion Sol and Feel The Rush mean the odds will be in your favor more often than not.
3. Wiggly Burblefish
Despite its adorable face, Wiggly Burblefish can be a tough card to love. It's only a 3|1 elusive, so you'll want to lower its cost by at least 3 to justify playing it, and since the spell it generates is random, players need to adapt on the spot. While it's definitely a very niche card that will only work in certain decks, many players have been experimenting with this little guy and have found him surprisingly effective. In the right deck, it's not hard to get his cost down to 0 mana and the random spell -- while unpredictable -- often can be used for good disruption and/or tempo.
4. Hexcore Foundry
Hexcore Foundry is another landmark that gives a benefit to both players (re: our earlier discussion about Targon's Peak). While players were a little more generous towards Foundry than they were with Peak, we're also seeing Foundry finding more application in the meta. It's very easy to incorporate the extra card draw for yourself into an Ezreal / Go Hard deck or for your opponent into a Teemo / Puffcap deck; Alanzq even made a clever deck that combines both elements.
5. Pesky Specter
Like most cards on this list, it's hard to predict exactly what impact Pesky Specter's special ability will have on a given game. If he shuffles both copies at the top of your opponent's deck, those turns become "dead draws"; if they go to the bottom though, they have no effect. Many players got lost in this uncertainty around this ability and overlooked the possibly applications of a 0-cost 1|1 unit. We're starting to see some experimentation incorporating this card in aggressive decks like Aggro Endure and Ephemeral Plaza.
Honorable Mention: The Grand Plaza
Speaking of Plaza: while practically everyone thought The Grand Plaza would be good, but very few predicted exactly how meta-shapingly good it would be. Frankly: if you rated this card anything less than 5 out of 5, you were underestimating it. It has become "Auto-Include 3x" in practically every Demacia deck, becoming as ubiquitous as staples like Pale Cascade and Glimpse Beyond seemingly overnight. At its worse, it is a free +1|+1 buff on every summoned ally; at its best, the challenger ability will give you total domination over the board. Plaza even seems to be overtaking Go Hard in terms of playrate as well, so expect to see a lot of this landmark for the foreseeable future.
Where there any cards on our list which surprised you? Any cards which you thought were underestimated and should be included? Tell us below!
Comments
Hexcore Foundry is the coolest card in Runeterra right now.
Targon's peak feels ok to play against.
All the rest of the landmarks feel bad to play against. They should all be Symmetrical or have Limited Charges.
I haven't even tried Targon's Peak yet. Man, I need to get on that.
It's definitely throwing a huge amount of RNG into your game on both sides, but I do like that it feels so different from most of the other decks out there right now. I've been thinking about writing up a deck spotlight on it.
I'd love to read it!