Updated for Vendetta

Darius

Hand of Noxus

Fury

OrderBeginner

Darius rewards a well-ordered turn with cheaper units and a ready 7-Might attack from Trifarian. The challenge is keeping enough cards to follow that pressure without giving away the battlefield you just took.

Key Cards

Hand of Noxus adds one Energy after you have played a card that turn. Noxus Hopeful then costs two Energy instead of four, while Vanguard Captain brings two Recruits with its Legion play. Trifarian gives you a different reward: your second card that resolves gives him two Might for the turn and readies him. He can be that second card himself, which lets him attack on the turn you play him.

Darius, Trifarian
Chosen Champion · Fury

Vanguard Captain
Key interaction · Order

Darius’ Field Guide

Darius wants you to plan the next play before paying for the first. A cheap unit can turn on Legion, let the Legend add an Energy, and make a larger follow-up affordable. That does not mean you should play any cheap card you happen to draw. Keep a unit that can contest a battlefield, a follow-up worth unlocking, and enough resources to use both. The Legend helps after the first payment; it cannot provide the Energy needed to make that first card legal. If a hand only works when every card comes in the right order, send some of those expensive payoffs back.

How Darius wins

Use the Legion turn to put more useful units on the board than the opponent can comfortably fight. Vanguard Captain lets you spread out, Noxus Hopeful provides a larger body for less Energy, and Trifarian can arrive ready to attack as your second resolved card. You still have to keep those points. Put enough strength into the first conquest to win it without leaving the other battlefield free. Draw effects and units that leave something when they die help you keep playing after the first push. Spend them to replace a losing trade or find the next attack, rather than sacrificing the board simply because your hand is small.

Key interactions

Know which kind of second card you need

Hand of Noxus · Noxus Hopeful · Darius, Trifarian

Legion and Trifarian do not count the same thing. Legion is active once another card has been paid for and put on the chain, even if that card is later countered. Trifarian needs your second card to actually resolve. If your first spell is countered, the next card gets Legion but is only your first resolved card for him. The Legend's resource ability is a Reaction, so it can help pay for another legal response after that first card. Exhausting the Legend, attaching Equipment, and making Recruit tokens do not count as playing another card. Hopeful's discount stays useful on later cards too; Trifarian's ready does not happen again on your third and fourth plays.

Make Trifarian the ready attacker

Darius, Trifarian · Vanguard Captain · Cleave

If Trifarian is the second card you resolve, he enters, sees that play, then gains two Might and readies through his trigger. Without other modifiers, he is a 7-Might ready unit for the rest of the turn, for his normal five Energy and one Fury Power. Do not spend two other cards first and expect the same entrance. Once he is already on the board, keep the second play for the fight where the extra Might matters. Cleave as that second card gives an attacking Trifarian three Might from Assault and two from his trigger, making him 10 Might for that combat before other modifiers. Cleave needs an open Showdown; it cannot answer a spell already on the chain. Readying him is not permission to move during the Showdown, either. He has no Ganking, so after combat a standard move from a battlefield goes back to base, not straight into the other battlefield.

Make the small unit worth a card trade

Unsung Hero · Cleave · Dragon Form · Sacrifice

Unsung Hero only draws from its Deathknell if it has at least five Might when it dies. Cleave gets the 2-Might Hero there while it is attacking; Dragon Form makes its base Might five for the whole turn. Once Hero is Mighty, Sacrifice can kill it for its additional cost. Hero draws two cards, and Sacrifice draws another two while channeling one exhausted rune. You have traded the unit for four cards and another rune if both effects resolve. The kill is paid up front, so the opponent cannot remove Hero in response to avoid that cost, but they can still counter Sacrifice. Do not wait until combat is over if Cleave is what makes Hero Mighty: Assault stops contributing when it is no longer an attacker.

Strengths

Legion makes a cheap opening card lead into a much larger board. Hopeful and Captain give you different ways to use that advantage instead of asking Trifarian to win alone.
Trifarian can enter ready as your second resolved card, so the opponent has to account for a 7-Might attack even when he began the turn in the Champion Zone.
Deathknell units and draw spells can make a trade that loses a unit leave you with cards or another body for the next turn.

Weaknesses

The first card still has to be paid for without the Legend's Energy. A hand full of follow-ups can lose time before Legion ever matters.
Trifarian's ready needs a second resolved card and a place worth moving to. Removal, a counter, or poor play order can leave the turn much smaller than expected.
Drawing by sacrificing units or giving them Temporary spends board presence. If those units were your only defenders, the next Hold can disappear with them.

Shadow's Pick

Darius tournament list by HQS.星辰旅路

75th place · S4 Fuzhou City Challenge, 2026-08-09

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Deck total $297.96

Legend (1)

1x$0.21 ea.

Runes (12)

6x$0.10 ea.
6x$0.10 ea.

Battlefields (3)

1x$0.17 ea.
1x$0.12 ea.
1x$0.26 ea.

Spells (13)

3x$0.38 ea.
Energy
2
2x$1.70 ea.
Energy
1
2x$0.15 ea.
Energy
1
2x$0.88 ea.
Power
1
Energy
2
1x$17.35 ea.
Power
2
Energy
2
1x$0.09 ea.
Energy
1
2x$0.12 ea.
Energy
3

Gear (3)

1x$0.28 ea.
Energy
4
2x$27.94 ea.
Power
1
Energy
0

Units (24)

1xChosen$1.72 ea.
Might
5
Power
1
Energy
5
3x$62.18 ea.
Might
4
Energy
4
2x$0.09 ea.
Might
1
Energy
2
3x$0.35 ea.
Might
4
Energy
4
2x$4.21 ea.
Might
5
Power
1
Energy
5
3x$0.15 ea.
Might
2
Energy
2
3x$0.12 ea.
Might
3
Power
1
Energy
3
2x$0.08 ea.
Might
1
Energy
2
2x$0.04 ea.
Might
2
Energy
2
2x$0.17 ea.
Might
3
Energy
3
1x$1.99 ea.
Might
6
Power
1
Energy
6

Sideboard (10)

3x$4.21 ea.
Power
1
Energy
2
1x$0.22 ea.
Power
2
Energy
4
2x$0.30 ea.
Power
1
Energy
2
2x$0.33 ea.
Might
3
Power
1
Energy
2
2x$0.08 ea.
Energy
2

Shadow's take

This is my Darius pick because it has a way to keep playing after the first big Legion turn. Hopeful and Vanguard Captain build the board, while Shadow's Call can turn one of Captain's Recruits into two fresh cards without giving the rest of the group Temporary. Grim Apothecary gives you a different option: return a Temporary non-token unit from a battlefield to hand before it dies, then pay to play it again. I also like that the small units can become real draw engines. Cleave makes an attacking Unsung Hero Mighty, and Dragon Form does the same without needing it to attack. Sacrifice can then turn Hero into four cards across the spell and its Deathknell, or turn Ferrous Forerunner into two cards, an exhausted rune and two Mechs at base. Those cards help you find another attacker or a useful second play for Trifarian, instead of spending your last spell just to trigger him. I would keep asking what the unit is worth on the board before cashing it in. A handful of cards will not save the point you gave away by sacrificing your only defender.

The Game Plan

Early gameLook for a two-Energy unit and a follow-up that makes the opening worthwhile. Unsung Hero or Carrion Dredger gives you a body to develop; with three Energy available, you can play either, exhaust the Legend for another Energy, then play a discounted Noxus Hopeful. The units enter exhausted, so plan their next move rather than expecting an immediate attack. Seal of Unity is another cheap Legion opener, but its zero-Energy cost still asks for Order Power. Keep it when the rest of the hand can use that investment. I would send back extra five- and six-Energy units, or a hand of Dragon Forms and Sacrifices without a unit that makes them useful. Hold Marai for a Hidden slot if you want its damage; playing it to base does not trigger the two-damage effect.
MidgameGet Trifarian onto the board as your second resolved card when the ready can start an attack. On later turns, save the second play for a fight where his extra two Might matters. Captain supplies bodies for both battlefields, and an accelerated Kai'Sa can arrive ready for five Energy and one Fury Power, then draw if she conquers. Inferna can Ambush into your attack for two Energy and contributes three Might there; on defense it is only one. Vi is the larger Ambush play and can stun an enemy when she joins your attack, but joining your defense does not trigger that stun. Both need a friendly unit already at the battlefield. Save Hidden Blade for a unit whose removal is worth giving the opponent two cards. A hidden Marai or Blade can be a later-turn Reaction; hiding it does not let you use it immediately. Against a pending spell, do not reach for Cleave or Blood Rush from hand. They are Actions for an open Showdown.
Late gameUse Shadow's Call on a unit you can afford to lose before your next scoring step. A spare Recruit is an easy choice; Forerunner or Dredger leaves a token behind when it eventually dies, but that token appears at base. If you want the original unit back, keep three Energy for Apothecary and get it to a battlefield before returning it to hand. Sacrifice is the faster way to spend a threatened Mighty unit, and the exhausted rune it channels helps future turns even though it cannot immediately exhaust for Energy. Dragon Form can make a small unit Mighty and can be replayed once from the trash for three Energy through Flow. It has no Action or Reaction, so set it up during your own open Main Phase. B.F. Sword can keep Hero Mighty across turns, but paying four Energy for the Sword and Order Power to attach it is a real investment. Near the last point, choose the line that leaves the right attacker or defender alive. You do not need another draw combo if the cards already in hand can win.

Battlefields

Blind

Seat of Power

Seat fits a Captain board that can leave a unit at one battlefield while taking the other. In a normal one-on-one game, conquering Seat while you control the other battlefield draws one card. Take the other battlefield first when you can, then use a separate attacker to earn the card at Seat. A newly played Trifarian or accelerated Kai'Sa can provide that follow-up without moving your first defender away. Make sure the other battlefield is still yours when Seat's draw trigger resolves. The opponent gets the same opportunity, so keep both attacks in mind rather than defending Seat at any cost.

Going First

Grove of the God-Willow

Take Grove early when the opening lets you build a Hold worth defending. The extra card each time you hold helps you keep finding the cheap first play and the follow-up, and Captain can leave a Recruit behind while the larger units move elsewhere. Grove does not draw on conquest or help you win the first fight. Be especially careful with Shadow's Call here: a Temporary defender dies before your scoring step. If it is your only unit left, there is no Hold and no Grove draw. Keep a permanent defender or have a specific way to replace the doomed one before counting next turn's card.

Going Second

Sunken Temple

Temple lets a strong retake replace a card immediately instead of waiting for a Hold. Trifarian and Vi are already Mighty; Dragon Form can get a smaller unit to five Might before it conquers. Budget the optional one Energy to draw after the attack, without taking away the resources needed to win it. The check is on a unit's Might, not your side's combined total, so Captain and two Recruits do not qualify by themselves. A surviving attacker still counts its Assault bonus when the combat conquest happens, so Cleave can get a smaller unit to the threshold. Moving into an empty battlefield does not make that unit an attacker, however. Cleave alone will not qualify it there.

Sideboard

Remove the Gear, not its next bearer

Salvage

Bring Salvage when an Equipment or other Gear is the reason your trades keep getting worse. It costs two Energy and Order Power, can kill a Gear, and draws a card even if you choose not to kill one. That makes it a useful first card before a Legion follow-up. I would start by trimming Hidden Blade when killing the bearer only leaves the Equipment for the next unit. Keep Blade if you still need immediate unit removal. Salvage is an Action: use it during your open Main Phase or an open Showdown, not as a response to an ability already on the chain. Killing a Gear does not undo an ability it has already used.

Choose between a forced sacrifice and a chosen target

Cull the Weak · Vengeance

Cull is for boards where the opponent has one unit they cannot afford to lose and you have a Recruit or a useful Deathknell to give up. Each player chooses their own unit to kill, so it gets much worse when the opponent can feed it a token. Vengeance costs four Energy and two Order Power but lets you pick the unit yourself, including one at base. I would replace Falling Star when damage is no longer removing the important threats, then trim a combat trick if you need another answer. Neither spell has Action or Reaction. Clear the obstacle during your own open Main Phase before starting the attack; do not wait for a Showdown and discover that your removal cannot be played.

Name the spell you need to play around

Fallen Feline

Feline is useful when one repeatable spell is stopping the same plan every turn. Name that spell when its play trigger resolves, then get the Feline to a battlefield so the lock actually applies. It has neither Ambush nor Accelerate, so playing it to base does not immediately protect your attack. The opponent can respond before the naming trigger resolves, and a spell already on the chain is not countered by the lock. I would trim Inferna when a small attacking body is less useful than keeping that spell unavailable, or one Cleave when you need to preserve your unit count. Do not give Feline Temporary with Shadow's Call if you need the lock next turn.

Take away the next play from the trash

Forge of the Future

Forge is for an opponent whose trash keeps providing another spell or another unit. Playing it costs two Energy and leaves a Recruit at base. Later, killing the Gear recycles up to four cards from trashes, so check the actual targets before spending it. Its ability has no Action or Reaction: use it during your own open Main Phase, before the opponent gets to play those cards. It cannot pull a Flow spell back off the chain after they have already played it. I would trim an Inferna or a combat trick when the longer game matters more, while keeping enough units to hold the battlefields. Forge can recycle cards from your own trash too, but leave Dragon Form there when you are planning to pay its Flow cost.

Updated for Vendetta

Darius

Hand of Noxus

Fury

OrderBeginner

Key Cards