Equipment Archetype Gets Sharper Detection
The Equipment archetype has always been one of the trickier ones to get right. It’s not just “cards that care about Equipment” because there are distinct strategies within it. Voltron builds stack buffs. Token-based approaches that want to copy Equipment. And throw decks that benefit from unattaching.
We’ve been refining how Icarian detects and scores these patterns, and the latest update fills some gaps that were hurting recommendation quality.
Filling Gaps in the Concept Graph
Icarian’s recommendation engine works by mapping cards to a graph of interconnected concepts: actions that produce resources, payoffs that consume them, and the synergy chains that connect them. The richer that graph, the better we understand how cards work together.
Equipment had some missing pieces. Cards with “throw” mechanics, i.e. ones that benefit from unattaching Equipment, weren’t being recognized properly. Neither were cards that copy or multiply Equipment. And some recursion patterns were slipping through.
We’ve added concepts for all of these. The system now understands that Sunforger tutoring a spell when it unattaches is a payoff worth weighting. That Bloodforged Battle-Axe copying itself feeds the same synergy chains as Equipment tutors. That Tiana bringing back destroyed Equipment is recursion, not just a tribal effect.
The end result of this is that cards that always belonged in Equipment decks now score like it. Captain America’s archetype match jumped from almost 50%. Arna Kennerüd doubled.
Restructured Top-Tier Commanders
The Final Fantasy crossover brought some genuine Equipment-matters commanders. Firion creates token copies of Equipment, Cloud cares about being equipped for double strike and tutoring. They’re now properly recognized alongside Syr Gwyn, Wyleth, and the other Equipment staples.
What This Means for You
More concepts means a richer understanding of how cards connect. When you’re building an Equipment deck, the system recognizes more of the strategies you might be pursuing and surfaces cards that support them.
Ready to build? Get started with Icarian and see the improved recommendations in action.