Legends of Runeterra’s newest region, Bilgewater, has set sail and landed on the shores of the client.
With this new set of cards, the shape of the Expedition mode has changed to include the newest region. Here are the entirely new buckets you’ll need to learn about in LoR’s Expedition mode.
Fishbones
- Regions: Bilgewater + Piltover & Zaun
- Description: Who needs reasons? Rile up a scrappy crew and buff ‘em up to go plunderin’.
Fishbones is a bucket that focuses on aggression through spellcasting. As the bucket name suggests, it features Jinx. As with most Bilgewater buckets on this list, they’ll primarily lean toward aggressive strategies.
First to Draw
- Regions: Pure Bilgewater
- Description: Up the ante with constant draws ‘til you’re the one left holding all the cards.
First to Draw features Twisted Fate. This bucket subverts going for tempo and looks to gather card advantage through massive card draw effects. Once you level up Twisted Fate, the potency you’ll have over your opponent is massive in a limited format like Expedition. If you think your deck runs out of gas too quickly, look toward this bucket to refuel your hand.
Smash and Grab
- Regions: Bilgewater + Piltover & Zaun
- Description: These cards won’t stick around forever, so get ‘em into the fray while you can.
Smash and Grab uses the new fleeting draw mechanic found in both Bilgewater and Piltover & Zaun. You want to try and make your curve as small as possible to allow your draws to not go to waste. Vi and Twisted Fate are two champions featured in this bucket. They both use the mechanic fairly well since they want to draw as fast as possible and play as many cards as possible.
Scout it Out
- Region: Bilge + Demacia
- Description: Assemble an unlikely crew of pirates and rangers who’ll happily chew through your problems.
This is one of the strongest new buckets to be introduced. Scout it Out features Quinn and Miss Fortune to show off the new keyword, Scout. With Miss Fortune’s raw power on her own, and the Scout mechanic to constantly reset your attacks, you must be aggressive to end games quickly.
Mega Keg
- Region: Bilgewater + Noxus
- Description: Build up a bounty of barrels, then blow your enemies up.
As the regions in this bucket imply, you’ll find aggressive cards to run over your opponent. This bucket primarily features Swain and Gangplank, who deal immense damage through effects. Prioritize effect damage with powder kegs, which can quickly stack when you’re given the chance.
Terrors from the Deep
- Region: Bilge + Shadow Isle
- Description: Toss your cards overboard to summon forth monsters from the darkest depths.
As the description suggests, this archetype shows off the new Toss and Deep mechanics. Maokai and Nautilus are the featured champion cards that both use this bucket. Nautilus’ power level goes up in this format since decks are inherently smaller when compared to the constructed format. Conversely, Maokai’s level up effect shouldn’t be prioritized since your deck is smaller and you’d find yourself milling your own deck faster than your opponent’s deck.
Raiding Party
- Region: Bilgewater + Freljord
- Description: Deploy strong units that only get stronger when you damage the enemy’s Nexus first.
Raiding Party’s main feature is the newest Plunder mechanic found in both Bilgewater and Freljord. The champions that are showcased are Gangplank and Sejuani, who both have level-up requirements that force you to go on the aggressive. This bucket is one of the stronger ones to grab, especially if your deck aims to end games quickly.
Spell Slingers
- Region: Bilgewater + Ionia
- Description: Cast multiple spells per round to keep your enemy guessing.
This final bucket focuses on the newest Ionia mechanic of casting two spells in one turn to obtain a bonus. Combined with Bilgewater’s cheap spells and fleeting draw, you must keep an eye out for any potential combos to succeed with this bucket. Lee Sin is a champion you can find in this bucket.
All of these new buckets are in LoR: Rising Tides for you to master now on PC and mobile.
