Make the best strategy with 30 cards! 4 Factions, plenty of play styles. Aim for the top ranks with skill and speed.

Might & Magic Fates TCG is playable on Android, iOS, and through Steam.

To get a good idea of how the game works, M&M Fates wants to keep the intense competitiveness of MTG Arena or Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel while keeping it accessible to the widest range of players. A player can develop basic mastery of mechanics as early as playing a couple of dozen games.

There are three phases in this game, and players alternate with each other on who gets the initiative.

First is the Gold Generation phase. This is an interesting system where cards in hand generate the currency you’ll use to cast spells and deploy creatures with. This does not use the mana ramp per turn of Shadowverse/Hearthstone games or setting land cards like in MTG Arena. Cards that make a fatter casting budget can be a factor in deckbuilding, and this opens up new strategies rarely encountered in TCG apps.

Players next enter the Deployment Phase. Creatures and Buildings are laid down in the field. Since both card types take up the same space, a player is allowed up to 5 of either card type. Some Artifacts can be activated and equipped to the player’s Hero.

The game starts playing differently once the Attack Phase starts. You and your opponent take turns dealing damage to the opposing Hero and creatures either by creature attacks or by casting Spells. The turn ends when everything on the board has dealt damage. Unused Gold for spellcasting resets to zero once this phase is concluded.

You win when you drop the enemy Hero’s health to 0.

This is a Hero-centric card duel where your commanders gain XP with every use. Choose one of two abilities when your Hero levels up. Real-time tactics and quick thinking reward players who can maximize what to pick when pitted against certain decks.

There are 30 cards in a deck, and up to two copies of the same card. The 4 starting Factions have their unique themes. Haven specializes in defense and healing, while Necropolis appeals to undead players who like attrition battles. Inferno is all about aggression and burn damage, and lastly, Academy duels with spells and card synergy. There’s a starter deck for every Faction, giving you the chance to play enough games to figure out if you have a favorite deck or if you can comfortably pick a side when you feel like it.

Deckbuilding feels easy because of the small card pool. Go to the Collection menu to swipe cards in and out of the deck roster. The save deck button is worded as ‘Validate’, which can slightly confuse players who are used to the five-letter-word-default. You can also dissolve unneeded cards to have enough material for a new and necessary card that you can add to your deck.

Content-wise, the only available game mode is ranked random matches. For first-timers, it’s a ladder system based on how many matches you need to win to advance to the next tier. Other competitive modes are bound to come in future installments. Battles can also drag, especially when you’re against players who want to get the most out of their fighting line.

While it’s possible to have quick, casual battles in Might & Magic Heroes TCG, the game’s battle structure allows plenty of combinations that can be more than just a game of coffee break cards.