Dominion: Cornucopia - Tips & Strategies

Pulling off a bigger draw with Menagerie may some too luck-based. However, a Hamlet is a great way to manage this luck – especially early in the game, when Coppers and Estates are plentiful.

Use the double discard feature of Hamlet to selectively discard duplicates in your hand, even if it means losing some Coin. The additional 2 cards drawn should offset anything you discard. In addition, it may increase the life of this hand, especially with the additional Action Hamlet also gives in this situation.

While determining which Prizes to gain is always situational, I find myself more often than not, going for the Prizes in this order:

1) Trusty Steed – Of course you need a loyal horse to get you around your Dominion. This versatile card gives you 2 of 4 options. I most often take advantage of the +2 Cards and +2 Actions. If my deck is slim on Action cards, I’ll grab the +2 Coin instead of Actions. Rarely do I take the Silvers unless I need an influx of coin or want to get my discard back into my deck.

2) Princess – After gaining a loyal friend, saving the Princess should be the next goal. Everyone likes a lovely lady and they will reduce the cost of everything just to enter into negotiations with her. Buying Provinces is the way to win, and buying them at 6-Coin is the way to win more quickly.

3) Bag of Gold – The first two are my standard choices. At this point, it becomes a bit more dependent on the game state and availability. Gaining a Gold is almost always a good choice and the extra Action this card generates means your hand keeps playing.

4) Diadem – This is always an expensive Silver but becomes valuable with Action generating decks. All of a sudden, Villages become lucrative as each leftover Action magically turns into a Coin. The big caution here is that it is a Treasure and Treasure-stealing cards can swipe it. So keep this in mind before crowning yourself.

5) Followers – This is my least favorite of the Prizes. As an attack card, it is unique among the Action Prizes. Your following must be comprised of Militia and Goons as they always force your opponents down to 3 cards. If they are still in Supply, they also give them a Curse. The problem with the card is it also gives you an Estate. So while it can be a wonderful attack card, it still clogs your deck at the same time. If you grab this, grab another card that can do something with Estates. I would rather have seen this distribute VP tokens.