Empire 3: China

China is the swarm empire of the five: gunpowder and numbers. Its Powder Soldiers explode on death, which inverts the usual math of trading units — killing a Chinese board costs the attacker something every single time. On top of that sits the Dragon Assault, a defining power that floods the board in a single turn and can flip a match from behind. China does not especially care that you kill its cards; it cares how much you pay to do it.

Chinese matches revolve around width. Where Byzantium builds one tall wall, China spreads many cheap bodies that all carry a fuse. The strategic question every opponent faces is whether to clear the board and eat the explosions or leave it and risk the Dragon Assault putting the game away. As the Chinese player your job is to make both answers wrong: rebuild faster than they clear, and threaten the flood before they stabilize.

The signature Chinese seal is the Jade Seal. An empire that wins on quantity rewards seals that generate or discount cards — anything that keeps bodies flowing turns death-explosions from a consolation into a win condition. Keep an eye on your Treasure economy: flooding the board and promoting key units both cost Treasures, and China is the empire most tempted to spend them all on width.

• The Jade Seal is the thematic pick; generation-style seals suit the swarm plan.
• Powder Soldiers trade badly for the opponent even when they die — force awkward clears.
• Hold the Dragon Assault for the turn it wins, not the turn it is merely good.