A brand new deckbuilding roguelike game just released (as of the time of writing this) called Wildfrost, and it's got a lot going for it. The game has an absolutely adorable art style, has unique mechanics that separate it from other deckbuilders and is actually pretty difficult.
In Wildfrost, players collect cards as they progress through the long (but not too long) map, and these cards take the form of Companions, Items, Shades, and Clunkers based on the 'tribe' they're playing as. So, let's go over just a few of the strongest cards discovered so far, covering a few from each category.
10 Companion: Tusk
First up for the Companions, which are not Companions in the typical gaming sense, but are rather just a category of cards is a young man named Tusk. Tusk is our personal favorite card overall (at least so far). Now, at first glance, Tusk might not look like that great of a companion. Only having 5 Health and a 2 Attack aren't stats that really 'inspire' confidence.
But, it's Tusks' ability that really shines through. While active on the field, Tusk gives 3 Teeth to all other allies, which are basically this game's version of a 'Thorns' buff. And, there aren't really many builds that Tusk won't improve just by being there.
9 Companion: Tinkerson Jr.
Last up for the Companions is Tinkerson Jr., a Gnome from the Clunkmasters Tribe. As part of this down-on-their-luck Tribe (told in the game's 'story' through journal entries), Tinkerson Jr's ability is geared towards a Clunkmaster run, as it is entirely based around the 'Junk' cards that most of this Tribe's Clunkers and Companions seem to create.
And, it's very easy for a player to go a bit too hard using cards with the 'Trash' keyword and suddenly finding themselves a deck full of literal Junk. But, with Tinkerson Jr. this is much less of a concern since he turns Junk into useful weapons.
8 Clunker: Bitebox
While on the topic of Clunkmasters, let's start talking about Clunkers. Clunkers aren't Items...exactly, rather, they're inventions. The vast majority of them must be 'Active' (AKA placed on the field), as one would do with a Companion or a Shade. The most common one players will encounter is Woodhead (as seen in the tutorial).
Well, the Bitebox is mostly the same, except for one key feature. Instead of just tanking the damage and being destroyed, the Bitebox immediately returns the same amount of damage done to it (per hit) before being destroyed. So, considering how hard some enemies hit in the later zones (such as Bigfoot), a well-placed Bitebox can absolutely make or break an encounter. Think of it like a deckbuilder version of a parry in any other roguelike game.
7 Clunker: Krono
One of the simplest and overall best tips for those just starting off in Wildfrost is to get as many Crowns as possible during a run. Each time the player visits a new Wooly Snail Shop, there should be a Crown for 80 Blings. And, players should buy these Crowns in just about every scenario. These Crowns basically let players add additional allies or cards in the 'setup' phase for combat where they would typically only be able to place their leader.
And, Krono is a Clunker that, while active, adds a stack of Frenzy to any Crown'd allies, essentially doubling their damage output or Status Application. From here it should be pretty obvious why exactly that's so powerful, though that's only if the player can make it far enough to actually get multiple Crown'd allies.
6 Shade: Beepop
The next category of cards in Wildfrost are the Shades, literal shadows that used to possess objects and terrorize people until the Shademancers figured out how to tame them using carved masks. Shades essentially function as temporary Companions in terms of mechanics and visually they're one of the best representations of the game's incredible art style. The player uses a mask to summon them, they can't be recalled, and every time they're triggered they lose one HP.
Beepop is one of the most basic Shades and this is also exactly why it's one of the best. It's meant to be used like Woodhead, summoned simply to take a hit. But, when Beepop dies it inflicts 4 Overburn on its attacker. 4 Overburn is a ton of stacks of this already overpowered Status Ailment, so being able to apply it so easily is very handy.
5 Shade: Tigris
Tigris is another Card based around the Teeth Keyword and actually works especially well in combination with another card on here, the Companion named Tusk. Basically, whenever an ally is hit (even if it's for 0 damage), Tigris will gain a stack of Teeth added on top of the two it has by default. But, unlike other Shades, Tigris doesn't have a 'Counter' and won't 'Trigger' after a certain amount of turns, so it'll only lose HP from being hit, not from self-damage.
Because of this, players can just summon Tigris, keep it out of harm's way for a couple of turns while letting other allies tank some hits, and then drag it to the front to let the boss smack Tigris and hurt themselves on its Teeth for maximum damage.
4 Shade: Sheepopper
There are a few Shades that are even more unique than the others in that they're actually summoned on the enemy's side when played. Now, on paper this sounds awful as there's no reason for players to summon more enemies that can hurt them, right?
Well, Sheepopper is absolutely worth it, as it has 0 Attack and no Counter, meaning it just sits there with 4 health. But, when killed, Sheepopper deals 8 damage to all of its allies in the same row. This, when used in combination with other Ailments such as Overburn, can literally allow players to pop the entire enemy field of enemies in a single turn.
3 Item: Azul Battle Axe
As stated multiple times above, the Overburn Status Ailment (which is very different from Status Ailments in other games) is absurdly good in Wildfrost. Being able to build up a 'counter' that immediately pops that enemy once their health matches it (as well as deal that counter number's amount of damage to the entire row) makes fights so much easier.
However as a result of this, there aren't a ton of Overburn cards in the game, but the Azul Battle Axe is one of the best. Being able to both deal respectable damage and apply a good amount of an Ailment is something few other cards have.
2 Item: B.I.N.K
Ink is another Keyword/Ailment that the game doesn't play around with all too much until players start unlocking a lot of extra cards through Challenges. Basically, Ink'ing something means Silencing it, and the text in the middle of the card no longer applies while the Ink is active. This means that enemies who gain Teeth upon being hit won't do so, Aimless enemies will hit the front ally instead, and a Barrage won't work.
Ink is a perfect Ailment to use to briefly nerf an enemy right before they attack or nullify a Bosses' mechanics while wearing them down, and B.I.N.K is the best card for applying it to everyone.
1 Item: Bom Barrel
And finally let's go over what is undoubtedly one of the best cards in Wildfrost, hands down. Almost every other Status Ailment in this game is applied and is either wiped after triggering or counts down each turn. For example, Poison deals damage but the counter goes down every turn.
But, the Bom status Ailment doesn't do that, that number stays there for the entirety of the battle. So, if a player puts a crown on the Bom Barrel card, they'll start every single combat with it and will deal 4 extra damage with every single hit to every enemy hit. Sure, the 'Trash' component of the card is something worth considering, but 4 Junk cards, even in a build not centered around Recycling, is a small price to pay. Granted, even with an item this powerful, players are still finding themselves at a loss when it comes to Wildfrost's difficulty.
Wildfrost is available now on both PC and Nintendo Switch