Seraph
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Contents
Overview
Seraph serves as a bridge between Fire's two heavier hitters, the Phoenix, and the Crimson Dragon. Seraph is more defensive than Phoenix, but less offensive than the dragon, letting it be a good balance between offense and defense.
General Use
Quick Facts:
- Protection wears off after 1 turn or more than 1 attack
- Cannot activate ability on the turn it is played
- Seraph is still affected by adverse shield effects
With stats that are hardly a laughing matter, Seraph's main claim to fame is having a defense that is even sturdier than a Phoenix's. While a Phoenix can regenerate indefinitely, Seraph can prevent all damage done to it in the first place by activating its ability (except for damage from poison, gravity pull, or hitting a fire shield). As Fire and Light already have a very tight synergy, players will find Seraph to be another bridge that links the two elements, and even a fire deck with a 
mark splash can find it enough to power these creatures.
The Seraph is for players who wish to have something more powerful than a Phoenix and more sturdy than a Crimson Dragon. Seraph fills the middle gap very nicely and it fits in well with Fire's theme of glass cannons. A first turn Seraph is almost always in danger however, since it cannot use its ability immediately, and that is perhaps their largest weakness. After a turn and sufficient quanta, an indestructible powerhouse is comparable to the rage of the heavens coming down upon the opponent.
Synergies
Immolation is a card very well known and feared for its sheer speed and ability to bring in powerful Fire creatures. While Seraph is just out of range for even the upgraded Cremation, a 
mark or fire pillars can cover that. Like Lava Golem, Seraph benefits from the additional quanta gained from Immolation, in this case, the gained can be used to fuel its ability. The choice of fodder for Immolation decks with Seraph naturally shifts to Ray of Light, a free fodder card that produces each turn. With a 1:1 ratio of Rays and Seraphs, the Seraphs are essentially untouchable.
The first turn that a Seraph is out is the most dangerous for it. Any single control card can pick off a newly summoned Seraph, so keeping it alive is a necessity. Unlike a Lava Golem that can grow more hp and has a very close tie to 
and utilize Plate Armor, a better choice for Seraph protection would be Silence. Not only does Silence shut the opponent's hand down completely for one turn, but it nearly guarantees the Seraph's survival for the vital first turn and allow it to protect itself in future turns. Silence is also great in the fact that it's not too expensive, so cards like Immolation or Nova will be able to facilitate getting it out to support Seraphs.
While Seraph can make itself immune to dangerous spells and targetting, Seraph still suffers from adverse shield effects. Shard of Wisdom is an other card that offers a solution to the shield problem in addition to bringing more offense. With the relatively cheap cost of 3 (2 if upgraded) 
, a Seraph that utilizes this is able to gain spell damage and 4 extra attack. Shard of Wisdom can only be cast on a Seraph that has activated its ability, but the benefits that it grants are immense. While spell damage only sticks for one turn, the 4 extra attack stays for the rest of the game. The loss of spell damage can be seen as either a good or bad thing. On the negative side, Seraph can only ignore pesky shields for one turn, but on the positive side, if the opponent suddenly brings out a reflective shield like Emerald Shield, the Seraph will no longer be a hazard for its owner.
Other Cards With Synergy
As mentioned above, Ray of Light can be used alongside Seraphs to provide the needed for its ability. While Plate armor isn't the best card to combine with Seraph, it can still be used in a pinch because of unused or the large boost in hp. Deflagration should be used in Seraph decks to destroy opponent shields, especially if the user has a Fire Shield, because a stolen Fire Shield would mean death to Seraphs unless there is a way to go around it. Finally, another way to bypass shields is Momentum. Momentum on an invincible Seraph makes a truly terrifying creature that has no way of being hurt by spells or shields.
Conclusion
While still not as popular as Phoenix or Crimson Dragon because of its relative new age, Seraph is a card that is quickly gaining fire. A good balance between offense and defense makes it an interesting choice, and the combination with Shard of Wisdom makes it able to rival Lava Golem rushes in terms of growth. Seraph's greatest weakness is the fact that it's not specialized, being less efficient than both Phoenix and the dragon, as well as its speed. Lava Goelm and Phoenix can both come out quickly with Cremation, but Seraph's high cost puts it out of that range. Regardless, Seraph is a very powerful card when used correctly, and this extra glass cannon in Fire's arsenal definitely opens up many possibilities.
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