SWLCG Edge of Darkness Review: Scum and Villainy

THE RATING SYSTEM:
We'll only be rating the pods as a whole in these series. No in-depth analysis on the individual cards, as everyone already has an established opinion on them and it would take more time than what we can afford. Sorry to disappoint.
While the following isn't particularly precise, the different scores could be seen as:
1 - Poor - Probably a combination of subpar cards, low edge and lack of synergy. Should prove to be a weak addition to a deck even when building around it.
2 - Bad - Overall a weaker pod that can have its moment when properly supported, but usually stays within the realm of "just fun".
3 - Average - A fair choice that is simply outclassed by other options in most cases. May prove to be the superior pick in very particular decks.
4 - Good - All-around solid and can most likely pull its weight by itself.
5 - Great - Cohesive set with with several strong elements which can fit in a plethora of decks. Or it may be somewhat niche but incredibly strong in certain archertypes.


THE REVIEWS:

Hive of Scum and Villainy: 7 out of 15 possible points.


CobraBubbles (2/5) – This pod has come back into favour lately, and I don’t really get why. Just because Captured got re-released in a good pod doesn’t mean you should play this questionable-at-best pod to maximise the number of Captureds you can play. I guess you also get Bounty, which is one of the more interesting and interactive capture cards in the game, although it could do with more edge icons given its disruptability.
Apparently the designers thought that 2 force icons, 3 health and 3 white non-tactics icons was too good for 2 cost back in the day. Looking at units like Galactic Scum and Energy Spider make that laughable these days. Being entirely edge-enabled is a big enough downside for Greedo, and having the additional damage clause makes him upsettingly underwhelming. Love the art though, especially the Dejarik pieces that are still active on the upturned table.
And if you thought Greedo was bad, his Informant colleagues are incredibly disappointing. The flavour text, and the whole trope of the snitch who sells their soul to the highest bidder, is super Scummy, and it’s a shame to see so little done with it here. Along with Greedo and the hilariously narrow objective ability, they root the set firmly in tedium.

BakaMatt (2.5/5) – I used to shoehor this objective into my scum builds just to run Captured. While Captured is a fine unconditional removal, it alone doesn't justify running the rest of the package. This especially holds true now that Captured has seen reprint in the very good Heartless Tactics objective set. Greedo is decent for his cost, but he hoists one too many drawbacks - to be more playable, they should have given him a single pity black icon or two. Or they could have dropped the Forced Reaction. While it's a fine nod to the "Han shot first" meme, it goes a bit too far to punish a card that's already horrible in a lost edge battle. Bounty follows the same "do well in the edge battle" procedure, which feels very out of place in a faction that struggles to bring strong icons to the fore. It's best comboed with Edge Jabba's ability to put it into play without the drawback, otherwise it isn't too hard for the opponent to shake off. The objective isn't a bad defensive one - it could be better at protecting itself, but dropping unit damage from each attacker can be a huge boon to a wall of defense. The two "chud" units aren't great though, sporting an uninteresting spread of icons and no ability to make up for it.

Majestaat (2.5/5) – Giving it a little extra because no other set has so many cards Opps Jabba can discount. On its own... really subpar. Captured is pretty strong, but we got that in Opps Dengar now, plus Scum has enough spare removal in other pods. No need to go out of your way for this. The three units here are nothing special. Even if my total unit count was low, I'd still pass on this.
While cool, the objective is mostly superfluous. If you're getting all the tools to make it seem good, you'd probably won without it anyway.
Finally, Bounty. More often than not it will be a way to force your opponent to discard more than he wanted. That's be really great if you could punish a weakened LS hand afterwards. But that'll only make the bad units worse marginally better.
All things considered, it's a bunch of subpar cards + the amazing Captured.


Jabba's Reach: 9.5 out of 15 possible points.


CobraBubbles (3/5) – More than enough has been said about this sadly overcosted version of Jabba, and I’m not going to add to that - let’s talk about how awesome Reversal of Fate is instead. It’s both very strong and hilarious fun. I’m not sure why, but being on the receiving end of it is always enjoyable, and you can’t say the same of Twist or Prince’s Scheme. Thematically, it riffs on one of the great appeals of games like this one that are set in a familiar world. As players we are reliving, rejigging and recreating the events of the Star Wars universe, and this card kind of breaks the fourth wall of that process, directly portraying an alternative sequence of events. And it does it with one of the most derided scenes in the series to boot. A genius piece of work which shows how deep and literary game design can be.
As for the set as a whole, I think it actually deserves more play than it gets. I’ve had some success with a torturous fortress deck that plays 2 of this, 2 Heartless Tactics and some Tatooine Crashes and Slave Trades, with the aim of using all that easy capture tech to boost your reserve to absurd levels, and essentially lock the light side out of winning any edge battles in the late game. It’s horrific fun. But yes, you always edge Jabba.

BakaMatt (3.5/5) – This version of Jabba isn't bad, he's a bit overcosted given his lack of Elite. Grand Admiral Thrawn sports a very similar load out and hasn't given the meta fits, so I don't think Jabba at four resource cost (or with Elite) would have been bad. I often want to use both his ability and tactics icons, but both require focusing out for, so I often only get one. Enter Jabba's Sail Barge, the poor man's Motti. It lacks Motti's resource generation, trading for more blast, but the reaction moves from refresh phase to conflict, allowing you to free up a unit you focused for resources (or Jabba after you decide you want to use him for an extra deploy prior to conflict). It doesn't have to be free of tokens itself, but it lacks a lot of Motti's flexibility as you're less likely to attack with it and more likely to make it a giant focus token magnet to free up better units. Reversal is almost as good as having a Twist of Fate - toss in a terrible hand and swap it for your opponent's edge. All things considered, I'd rather have the Twist in most circumstances, but while this has a lower floor, Reversal also has a higher ceiling for value. We also get a 1-for-1 resource, which is always nice, and then a weak unit that really doesn't need much mention at all.

Majestaat (3/5) – Although this Jabba isn't terrible, it's lacking for a 5-coster. But I think I whined about it enough in the Scrap Metal review, so I'll pass on that this time. The Pleasure Barge always proved too situational for me. Not great as an attacker or enabler, though it can be huge mid to lategame when the LS thought it was safe from that locked main.
The Gamorrean Guard is slightly efficient, but irrelevant at the end of the day. If they had some sort of protect ability, Scum would have been viable waaaaay before. As it is, this is the pod that should have had Bounty in that slot. Would make Jabba much better without having to spend so much deck space with different pods.
A 1-1 resource is nice with the couple expensive units here. Plus Jabba can get past the limited restriction.
The big shots here are Reversal of Fate and the objective, in my opinion. The former is downright devastating, and adds to the headache of facing Scum in edge battles. Unlike Twist or Prince's Scheme, it is very rarely played around (since nobody runs it), and it will be particularly powerful if it snatches a fate card or two. Once lost a Protection, Heat and Seeds at the same time. Conceded right there and then. Yeh, extreme case, but more because you simply don't see this card enough. Fate cards are in every deck.
The objective was borderline useless originally. Now it's rather easy to get benefits from it, even early on, and in this game just having one extra reserve is a HUGE advantage. More deploy options, more tricks, MOAR EDGE. You name it.


The Tatooine Crash: 12 out of 15 possible points.


CobraBubbles (4/5) – This was a Scum staple for a long time, and it’s still a very solid choice. Free tactics, point-and-click enhancement control, easy capture-fuel, a 6 health objective, and the much-sought-after Twist - what’s not to like?
Ok, most times I don’t like the Sandcrawler. But even that can occasionally allow for some hilariously janky, very Jawa plays. Even in these halcyon days of a million playable Scum sets, if you fancy a no-main set to round out your curve, you can’t go far wrong with this.

BakaMatt (4/5) – This is my favorite of the Edge scum sets because of how little fat there is to trim. Yes, there's the possibility of having your hand clogged with jawas, but they're free and they come with tactics. If the bounce frightens you, you may stick to only running one copy of the set, but I've rarely had problems tossing two in as you can drop them right back out during the next deploy, and unlike every other free unit currently on offer they sport an icon that is immensely useful. Enough about the jawas, what else is on offer? First we have a great unit in the Sandcrawler, sporting double black unit damage and shielding at an affordable cost. The Forced Reaction can also stall out the board when you're up against a character deck (it does the opposite against vehicles, which is a small strike against it). Utinni is unrestricted enhancement removal at action speed. Even if your opponent isn't leaning enhancement heavy, dropping their resource base, which is almost always enhancement based, can be huge for swinging the board state, especially if you can manage it earlier in the game. The objective's six health makes it great for capturing, and hey, it also has a reaction to capture random cards if you need the fuel for your Dengar or Zygerrian Slaver. We're not too far off from a "mill" style deck aimed at emptying your opponent's deck just by flopping two of these and going to town. Is there anything else that could make the whole package even better? There's also a Twist of Fate. Magnifique!

Majestaat (4/5) – Not gonna lie. I still think the Jawas are really overpowered from a design perspective. They're free, have tactics and are really hard to deal with permanently. And if you're only running 1x Tat Crash, it's pretty rare to have them clog your hand, which is admittedly their main (and potentially very big) downside.
The Sandcrawler is quite a good defender, and if you build around it, you can have some control on when to trigger its forced reaction (ex: Deadly Sight, Force Lighting), stopping the LS on its tracks.
Uttini! is what balanced enhancement-hate looks like. While it can't target all enhancements in the game, the fact it can deal with most resources is pretty big.
Finally, Twist. Nothing to say here. Always good to have a couple of them in your deck.
Anyway, this is an all in all very cheap set with decent control tools and a resilient objective, easy to fit in virtually any deck. No wonder it saw such heavy play, and it's still a perfectly viable pod.


The Shadow of Nar Shaddaa: 5 out of 15 possible points.


CobraBubbles (1/5) – For the record, Nar Shadaaa is probably my favourite place name in the Star Wars galaxy. It’s just so fun to say! The ability on the objective is actually really strong control, highly flexible though fairly costed. It might have been better as ‘Focus 2 objectives’, so you’re still losing 2 resources but you get to use it every turn if you can afford that hit.
I’m a fan of the Assassin Droid, if you play him with all the cool Droid tech Scum got in cycles 3 and 4 to give him extra guns and suchlike. Thing is, Iggy B already comes with one of these dudes, so you won’t be reaching for this set for your Droid deck. As for the Thugs… ugh. You pay 1 more than Greedo’s chuds, to get the same body minus 1 health, with an absurdly marginal ability and no Mercenary trait. Spice Visions is delightfully Scummy in both mechanics and flavour, but Protection makes little sense in an otherwise aggressive set, and the Thugs really bring the whole pod down. There’s nothing here compelling enough to make it playable.

BakaMatt (3/5) – Like Greedo's set, this is one I tried to pop into decks to make use of the powerful event. Spice Visions can be used to strike twice in an engagement, protect against a unit of tactics or allow you to double down on focus abilities or resources. For free, anytime. Okay, it deals damage in exchange, but there are countless situations where an extra point of damage is a pittance to pay for what you can accomplish with an extra focus on the right unit. If you're still shy, you have a copy of Protection to add a shield to the mix. The Assassin Droid isn't bad, although unexciting for the cost, and a bit fragile. If you can afford him a bit of protect he can pay off, which is more than can be said for the pair of Aqualish Thugs. Edge or discard them at the earliest opportunity. Who costed these at three? They're too fragile and not impactful enough to waste the resources on. And frankly, they're the biggest drag when including this set, like so many of the unplayed ones.

Majestaat (1/5) – This might just be my most hated pod in the whole game. Not necessarily the absolute worst, but it has some serious design flaws that just make me bang my head against the wall.
What's worse, the objective is really interesting, so it's a shame seeing it lost here. Double focusing an objective is a hefty price, but it can lock any attacking unit, at action speed. That's incredible, especially if this flops, say, after your first objective got destroyed, since it'll be easier to have spare resources then.
The Assassin Droid can go ham once in a while, but more often than not it's a bad drop, and you don't have the support tools here to make it more consistent like in Droid's Revolution.
If you ever play 2v2, you may find the Thugs to be actually rather amazing. But let's be real. In 1v1, they're simply terrible. If you're gonna give me such terrible stats for that price, at least give me control over the reaction. Or heck, make them Bounty Hunters so someone would waste his time with them and new Jabba.
Spice Visions, which is a really amazing card, becomes absolute garbage here. IT HAS ZERO TARGETS. Doesn't work on Droids and the Thugs die if they try to use it. Well memed, FFG. Well memed.
Protection is nice. The shield makes the droid a real threat in an engagement, while the Thugs could burn the shield to use Spice Visions and deal a whopping one extra damage.
Please do me a favor and never play this set against me. I may concede just out of disgust.


Carbonite Transport: 8 out of 15 possible points.


CobraBubbles (2/5) – What is it with the 5 cost 3 icon 3 health mains lacking Elite in this box? I guess you don’t want to be sitting back on the force with Slave I, so it’s not as much of a big deal as with Jabba. The iconic ship is an aggro powerhouse on its own, although feels a tad overcosted given that it only really does one thing - it compares really badly to Vader or Chimaera, even the Outer Rim Space Pirates who have a bit of flexibility. The rest of the set backs Slave up nicely though, with plenty of ways to dish out damage, and the resource you need to afford the big ship. The high edge count is nice for Scum too.
The objective itself is neatly thematic and greases the wheels of whatever silly capture bullshit you wanna play. Dengar’s Security Operator does that better now though, and unfortunately that’s the story of this set. If you want to put pressure on your opponent’s objectives Scum have gotten some much more efficient ways to do so in more recent sets (BtS Boba, Headhunters, Energy Spiders…). This set doesn’t do anything unique enough to put it past that competition, unless you really want Tractor Beam to counter Fighters I guess?

BakaMatt (3/5) – In some deck builds, the objective text can be handy to shift cards around to meet capture requirements, or it can work to evacuate key cards from a badly damaged objective, but it more than likely will not be a game clincher. Traitorous Wing Guard is actually not a terrible unit. The condition is easily achievable for most scum decks to give him stats about on par with what usually costs two resources. Slave I can be beastly as a late way to close out the game, but is glaringly missing the Elite keyword. It either needed that, or to drop about 1 in cost to be excellent, but it isn't the worst unit printed. Tractor Beam isn't a full consolation, but a great tool to offset Slave I's weakness, especially shining in matchups where you can use it to 2-for-1 an opposing vehicle, one place where the high cost of the unit pays off. Prized Possession and Target of Opportunity round out the list, both are good cards that don't really need introductions.

Majestaat (3/5) – The original Scum aggressive set. Sadly, Slave I is yet another overcosted main. Sure, it can insta-nuke objectives, but that requires a lot of setup. Compare it to Moldy Crow. Yeah, it's not fair how much better that one is. Heck, a Black Sun Headhunter will do more than Slave I over a couple turns while still being much cheaper.
Traitorous Wing Guard is okay. The blast is pretty easy to gain, so it's two black icons for one resource. Have seen far worse. However, considering we get Tractor Beam here, and everything seems to spin around Slave I, I'd have liked to have a cheap vehicle here instead to actually make the card playable. The three pips makes it so that I can forgive that, however.
A resource to play the expensive main and a Target for moar blast. I like that.
The objective required too many pieces at first to be effective. You basically needed Tat Crash for capture, an objective like Jabba's Reach that benefited from said capture, and then Carbonite Transport to get the cards there. Now we have the chud in Dengar's pod, so why would I even need this?


Trandoshan Terror: 10.5 out of 15 possible points.


CobraBubbles (3/5) – A solid little set, this one. As previously discussed in this series, any unit that is Stormtrooper-equivalent with additional upside is generally pretty good. Unfortunately, at the time of release the Wookie-sniping ability on these Hunters was just as likely to do harm as good, given the strong Wookies from this box that benefit from taking damage. Nowadays you’re more likely to see Wookies around that you actually want to attack, but this is still a super marginal ability.
As with the Nar Shaddaa objective, the double focus on Bossk seems a little heavy handed. Making him Elite could have created an interesting and more interactive balance, as he’d only be out for one turn by default, but light side would have the option of locking him out for another with a single tactics icon. No doubt the ability is powerful though. I’ve already discussed Bounty, and we all know Heat and 5-2s are good. All around it’s a nice package, if a bit below the curve by modern standards.

BakaMatt (3.5/5) – Bossk is a great unit. He comes down with immediate impact, and after a few turns he leaves behind a solid body with good icons. Even if there are no wookiees, or (gasp!) no opposing characters, he's going to land value. The two unnammed trandoshans with him can't say quite the same (although they are excellent against wookiees), but they are decent units to drop down to hold the defensive line. Bounty is as underwhelming without building to shore up its weakness, and Heat of Battle adds even more punch to a set brimming with unit damage. This isn't one of the most powerful sets today, but it's stable and straightforward.

Majestaat (4/5) – Tatooine Crash aside, this is the only EoD Scum pod which I think is legitimately good, even by today standards.
2-resources objective, 3 useful units and a Heat, which is particularly good with all the units here having 2 guns.
Honorable mention to Bossk for being the only "famous" Bounty Hunter in the game who didn't need a second+ version to be playable. His text is costly, as it often means you won't ever have him available again, but hey, then your opponent must keep investing tactics on him, which isn't terrible. Think of it as a more restricted capture that may or may not grant you a big body for future use.
If anything, what hurt him the most was May the Force Be With You, because it's harder to pick on a desired exhausted target.
The baby trandoshans are fine. Mostly blank, but I like me some 2 drops with 2 guns, especially with the Heat, as already said.
Bounty is the only real subpar card here, but as said in Hive, worst case scenario you force your opponent to burn a couple cards. Sadly, this is yet another set that doesn't really get to make use of that window of opportunity granted by Bounty.
With the chance to open with 5 resources and all these guns, it should come as no surprise Sith liked this set so much. Bossk or bust.


Feeding the Pit: 7.5 out of 15 possible points.


CobraBubbles (2/5) – Pit + Sarlacc is a neat, high-skill combo, requiring you to accurately the judge the value of various different resources at different times of the game - damage, cards for you, cards for your opponent, actual resources. Shame it’s the only really compelling in-pod combo in the Scum side of this box…
At first I thought that Bib must have been the first 3-for-3 resource in the game, and FFG had understandably overestimated how good that would be. But he wasn’t - Death Squadron Command came first, and has a built-in refresh ability to boot! So his extra drawback is a mystery to me. The Krayt Dragon is cool enough, but if I’m going to pay 5 for a big, ****-off DRAGON, I’m gonna be kind of disappointed when it does nothing more than look intimidating and occasionally squashes someone. There’s some neat tech here, but the set doesn’t really doanything of note, and I can’t see anyone really playing it these days.

BakaMatt (3.5/5) – The objective kicks the set off to a great start offering a double resource with fantastic text. While capturing cards can be almost as great as outright discarding or destroying a card, it can sometimes backfire as the opponent can recover those captured cards through various methods. Feeding the Pit lets you dump those cards to discard, boosting capture to a full removal option instead of just temporary. For your trouble, you not only get to remove damage from the objective, but also draw a card. Wow. The downside is the card is Scum affiliation only and doesn't contain a single capture card on its own, meaning you either have to be okay with using a splash of capture for multiaffilitation or going fully mono-Scum, since it's a Scum mechanic. Krayt Dragon is a great big dumb beater, the Gamorrean Guard is a small dumb beater, nothing too special, but the former is at least an imposing threat on the board. I've spoken great things about Spice Visions earlier above, and they still ring true here. The Almighty Sarlacc is a somwhat decent alternative to including a resource, although it works best on Feeding the Pit for the obvious victory-related reasons of damaging your own objectives. That leaves Bib Fortuna, who is somewhat decent. He's a three cost with three resource generation, a tactic, and three capacity, although he has an odd rider of sacrificing him if he ever reaches four or more focus. Considering a non-Elite 3-for-3 resource isn't all that exciting to begin with, his low icon readout of a single white tactics, and low force icon count, I think it was a bit much to add the drawback. Much like Greedo, I think Bib could have been pushed further to make up for that fact - perhaps limiting his resource generation to two, but adding Elite would have made him an interesting risk/reward card, or another pip or two, or an icon changeup. He just feel sort of... plain and unexciting.

Majestaat (2/5) – Some people swear by this set, and I'm making an honest effort to rate this as objectively as possible, but I've never managed to make this work. It doesn't even turn out as an okay option for me. It's usually pretty disastrous. Sure, I've heard how good it can be from others, but I've never seen it myself to at least figure how it works. Sorry if my rating is way off.
That said, I can see the glimpses of its potential.
The objective is pretty insane. 2 resource plus great ability. Even if it takes captured cards, you're Scum, you should have a few ways to get them. Add in the Sarlacc and you can have some absurd turns. Thing with it is, it's not too hot if not enhancing Feeding the Pit.
Bib Fortuna I completely dislike. Weak icons for his cost, no keywords to actually enable him to ramp. In fact, he puts himself at the brink of destruction if you try to recover your investment. Another prime candidate for elite.
The Dragon is a big, mean ball of stats. It just kills people and blow up stuffs, but it does that well enough, and with a Spice Vision in the same set, it can be pretty scary against anything. Shouldn't have a single pip though. Such expensive cards can easily become dead weight, and as such, should never have less than two icons.
Already talked about the Guard previously. No need to repeat myself. Wish that was a capture card, since the whole point of this set seems to be the objective.



FINAL WORDS:
As you can see by now, the Scum EoD pods are just all over the place. In others affiliations, playing X pod makes Y better, while Scum NEEDS X set for Y to be able to do what it's supposed to do. Terrible design, and that's why it took oh so long for green to take off.
Fortunately, we now have more cohesive pods that can properly support some of the cards here without relying on perfect combos with a bazillion different cards.

We'll round EoD up with the Sith, Navy and DS Neutral pods. That shouldn't take too long.

And that's it this time. I extend my gratitude to the review team and the readers who motivated us to do this. I'm sure there's room for improvement. If you got any ideas, feel free to comment or PM me so we can make the next article even better.
I must say, however, that there's a limit to how many images can be uploaded. That's why I only selected a few images per pod.

If you're looking for more reviews, you can find them in our forum thread here.

May the Force be with you all!