Fire is the aggressor's element in Culdcept Begins. It trades the fat HP pools of a defensive colour for raw attack and the priceless Attacks First keyword, letting a fragile body kill an invader before taking a scratch. It also holds a natural edge over Water, with several creatures built to punch straight through it.

That aggression works whether Fire is your primary colour or a splash for extra bite, though the split changes which cards you run. This guide breaks down how Fire decks win, then sorts the standout cards by whether they suit a committed Fire build or a lighter splash.

How Fire Decks Work

Culdcept Begins Press Image 1

Fire wins through aggression. Its creatures hit hard and often carry Attacks First, which lets a low-HP attacker destroy its target before the return blow lands. Stack that with Fire's natural advantage over Water, where cards like Fire Beak crit and penetrate straight through, and you have a colour built to clear the board and take territory by force.

The dividing line between a primary Fire deck and a Fire splash is the Fire Land Required tag. The heaviest hitters, Dragon and Salamander among them, only deploy once you hold enough Fire land to pay for them, which suits a committed build that develops its own colour. A secondary Fire package can't rely on that, so it leans on the aggressors that fire off wherever they land. Read the cost line before you commit a card to a splash!

Best Fire Cards

Receiving a Lap Bonus surrounded by fire and spider monsters in Culdcept Begins.

The table below splits along that primary-or-splash line. Costs marked with Fire land want a committed build behind them, while the rest slot into any deck running Fire as a secondary colour. Every pick trades toughness for pressure, so play them forward.

Card

Cost

Role

Description

Dragonfly

G20

Early Aggro

Attacks First on a G20 body, ideal for snatching territory and trading up in the opening turns.

Executor

G40 + Discard

Glass Cannon

A brutal 70 attack for the cost, happy to delete almost anything before dying to the counterswing.

Phoenix

G40

Defensive

Returns to your hand when destroyed in battle, giving a Fire splash a threat that refuses to stay dead.

Flame Acolyte

G60

Scroll Chip

Its Forbidden Art deals 30 unarmed damage, reaching defensive creatures that shrug off normal attacks.

Manticore

G80

Scaling Aggro

Attack and HP climb with your hand size, rewarding a full book with a genuine heavyweight.

King Varan

G90

Closer

A 60/50 body with no land requirement, the splash deck's answer to enemy anchors.

Flame Goetia

G50 + Fire Land

Value Engine

A Forbidden Art threat that grows when you hold more cards than your opponent, punishing their spent hand.

Mattocktail

G70 + Fire Land

Land Development

Attacks First, and each victory raises the battle land a level, building your tolls as it clears the board.

Salamander

G70 + Fire Land

Anchor

Negates Fire attacks and heals from them, the closest a Fire deck gets to a proper defensive wall.

Fire Beak

G80 + Fire Land

Anti-Water

Attacks First with crit and penetration against Water and Air, built to punish those match-ups.

Dragon

G90 + Fire Land

Anchor

The signature Fire heavyweight, striking first with 40/60 stats that a committed build can deploy with ease.

As a primary colour, Fire leans into its land-gated bombs and its own development. Mattocktail turns won battles into higher tolls, and Nezha claws back attack power whenever you fall behind on territory. Old Willow adds a toll trap, stopping passing Cepters cold on your Fire land. Build enough Fire land to fuel the heavies, and the deck snowballs from every fight it wins.

As a secondary colour, the job is narrower. Fire supplies the aggression and combat removal that a defensive primary lacks, so favour the unrestricted attackers and the Forbidden Art creatures that need no land to function. A committed Water or Earth book gains a serious second gear from three or four Fire threats without ever developing a single Fire square.