Glory in Navori Reveals: Day 5 – Samira
Hey all it’s Trevor “Shugo” Yung here back for Day 5 of our Glory in Navori reveals!
Yesterday we were teased with the evolution of the Plunder archetype, leading us away from Freljord and into Noxus.
We saw some crazy new cards that are definitely going to define the archetype, and today takes it to a whole other level with Samira!
Stay tuned for more reveal articles! To build your own deck, head to our Deck Builder.
Samira / Flair
Right off the bat, level one face value, Samira is a 2/2 with quick attack for two. Good start. Next up, she has an effect that triggers upon summon AND strike. Looking closer, that effect generates a really useful and cheap utility spell. The only notable restriction is we can only create this spell if we don’t already have one in hand. But with it being only one mana to cast, this is barely an issue. Before we go further, let’s look at Flair.
Flair adds to the game another “Warning Shot” like effect, as in we’re able to deal damage to the enemy nexus at burst speed. Generally this will still be used to enable Plunder, but it is a card to keep an eye on, since there is combo potential with burst speed direct damage (ex. Mischievous Marai + Warning Shot).
In addition to having a reliable Plunder enabler, Flair can also be used to make a one turn challenger on demand. This has exceptional synergy with Samira thanks to her inherent quick attack. If all of this already sounds powerful, just wait, there’s more.
Samira has an interesting level-up condition which requires her to have seen 6+ cards played. While that may sound simple enough, this count resets on our attacking rounds, effectively giving us a two turn clock. Do note that gaining the attack token via other effects doesn’t cause this reset. It’s only when you start the round with the attack token.
Okay, all that blabber aside, six cards over two turns is ridiculously easy to pull off. Samira is going to flip super easily, especially with the free Flair in hand. And what reward do we get for reaching level two? Surely it can’t be anything crazy given how easy it’ll be..
Free Rally on demand. Oh joy. Yup, everyone’s favorite keyword is here and it happens every time you play six cards. Also if you read closely, we no longer have any restrictions on either of Samira’s abilities. The six card count no longer resets, and there’s no limit to the Flairs! Plus they now cost zero mana, because why not, right?
If you ask me, I think Samira will be even more powerful than Akshan, which is one of the most consistently powerful champions in Runeterra. Remember on-release Vayne and Seraphine? I think Samira’s right up there with them, and that’s a scary thought with a huge new patch around the corner!
All Out / Samira’s All Out
If you still have doubts that Noxus will be the premiere Plunder region, All Out should be a pretty clear indicator. It’s funny looking at this card and knowing that Sharpsight got nerfed ages ago, because All Out is messed up. Without Plunder, it’s still the offensive half of Twin Disciplines, but only one mana. And with Plunder, this is Sharpsight for again, only ONE MANA.
Plunder definitely is a real cost. It will be more difficult to enable this on the opponent’s turn, especially during open attacks. Warning Shot effects will be pretty relevant for enabling this, but if that’s the case, it definitely balances out the card more. Where this will really shine is on offensive turns. Ping their nexus, play and trigger some Plunder units, then send everything into combat while holding All Out in your back pocket. The cost efficiency is wild, and it’s going to make it really hard for the opponent to rely on spot removal to survive.
Noxus isn’t usually the region for protective spells, so All Out is definitely going to shake up our decision making. We can no longer Mystic Shot their 3/2 without worry, and that’s a big deal for LoR’s most aggressive region. Thankfully, All Out won’t likely be the staple that Sharpsight was for Demacia. Plunder should keep it in line with specific archetypes, boosting their power, rather than making Noxus itself extremely over-tuned.
PS: Samira is already bonkers enough. Of course they give her a busted champion spell.
Stylish Shot
I’m concerned about this one. While it’s not burst speed like Flair, we still can’t interact with focus speed damage. But what really makes this scary? This is a REPEATABLE Warning Shot!
You may think be thinking.. “Shugo, they could just block your units?” I wish it were that easy. Focus speed will allow for easy open attack setups that will be really hard to defend. Not only that, but have you seen some of these new Plunder units? We’ve got a 3-drop Brash unit that summons another Brash unit. On top of that, the next two Plunder units below have overwhelm and fearsome. How exactly are we supposed to block everything!?
This is repeatable damage that can be difficult to prevent, all while fixing every consistency issue Plunder has ever had. Of course, it’s also one mana.. And since you could technically cast it twice in one turn (albeit losing it), that’s 2/6 cards towards flipping Samira. I dunno what else to say, this new BilgeNox Plunder archetype looks broken.
Dashing Dandy
If I was to evaluate this card from the perspective of the OG Plunder, my impression would be vastly different (forget region differences). While the upside is an impressive 4/4 overwhelm for three, it would be rather difficult to consistently pull it off. Many lines involved banking a little bit of mana in order to ping the opponent each turn. Hence why Shellshocker was such a key piece. Dashing Dandy would probably fit awkwardly, and not contribute to the overall game plan of flip champions and win.
Fast forward to reality, this BilgeNox Plunder is looking to be extremely aggressive, and with all the new tools to enable Plunder, it actually looks realistic to play this on three. The once you get it down, it’ll make it even easier to Plunder on future turns thanks to its overwhelm. Plus, if it sticks around longer, Daring Demolisher can help buff it up even more. That’s a lot of damage.
Elegant Edge
We get another Jagged Butcher, except this one’s got an edge in offence in exchange for weaker defence. A one mana 3/2 with fearsome is very good, and adds yet another above rate early game card for this already-pushed archetype.
Adroit Artificer
Finally, the first card today that isn’t an immediate slam dunk. A 5/3 challenger for five is a pretty tall order, even though it has a cute summon ability. Most of these new Plunder effects we’ve seen are just attack buffs, so we can sort of imagine Adroit Artificer as a board buff effect. In scenarios where we have enough units on board and the opponent has few blockers, this could definitely push a lot of damage and close the game. That said, a lot of the time a few extra points in power won’t matter because the units will get blocked anyway.
We could see this as a one or two-of in order to push more damage via Brash, fearsome, and overwhelm. But seeing how aggressive the deck is looking to be, and how Samira rewards multiple cards being played, Adroit Artificer doesn’t quite fit the bill. And I’m okay with that!
Stay tuned for more reveal articles! To build your own deck, head to our Deck Builder.
