Villany and Troublemakers
by 11DBHK

Troublemakers are a great way to take control of the game - standard Troublemakers let you slow an early opponent's game down, and Villains are a powerful way to turn the tide of the mid- to late- games in your favor.

A Troublemaker is worth it if it causes more damage than the bonus it eventually gives. If you play a 3-point Timberwolves that is immediately defeated, you've give your opponent a huge advantage. However, if you drop a pair of Yellow Parasprites on your very first turn, your opponent will be losing two random cards a turn as they desperately try to clean off their side of Problems - although they'll eventually get 2 points from them, you could get them to lose a half-dozen cards in that crucial early-game timeframe before they do.

Second, Villains are vastly underrated by many players. When Villains reveal, they Frighten all Friends at that Problem - too many players aren't threatened when you drop a face-down Troublemaker at their Problem. Use a Lady Justice to get players to move group around a Problem, and then flip them all with a Villain, and your opponent might lose the game right there. Paying 2 AT for every single Friend they have is a cost many players can't handle.

For advanced strategies, you can use Villains as one-shot cannons to wipe out Friends. Playing one face down then immediately revealing it with Lucky Streak or Rising Star is a way to immediately handle a swift fleet of Blue ponies that are running away with the game! Play like this will get your opponents to think about clearing out of any place you threaten with a Troublemaker, and that alone is worth the play.