Balance is the top priority for designing Dreadgate, alongside fun. This not only includes gameplay mechanics and power (both cards and decks), but lore. The main thing about the crafts was that they would each have their own play style and tactics, since it’s predominantly a tactical game. There are naturally going to be some play styles that work well together, but in order for the game to remain true to its own lore, the craft styles also had to line up with the story. Originally there were only going to be 5 crafts, but a sixth was added (Hinter), for further balance and also to tie right in with the Dreadgate logo that was already in place.
With that all said, it was helpful to visualize the relationships between the crafts by using a color wheel.
This is basically a chart that explains the relationships between the crafts.
Allies
The color that is directly across from each icon is the most compatible. They complement each other. We call these allies. For example, blue and orange go together.
Secondary Allies
The two colors next to each craft’s ally are the secondary allies. These also complement the base color. So for example, blue works well also with black and green.
Enemies
Each color has two crafts that it does not get along with, and those are the colors directly beside it. So blue does not get on with red or purple. Green does not like purple or orange. And so on.
Remember the Lore
This is predominantly for lore purposes, but also for gameplay. But lore first. This is because the premise of the game — a massive military campaign to kill all spellcasters — was led by Genther Stormloft and Jarl Ultar, both Champion heroes. Their sole mission is to eradicate magic and those who use it, so it only made sense to make Champion dislike Sorcery, and vice-versa. If you would like to know more about why the crafts align or not with one another, see the Story page, which explains the basic lore behind the game. And also, remember that this color wheel comes in handy for deck construction, but ultimately you can combine any of the colors you like to suit your preferences! Go wild!
