One of the first games I ever learned to play was Chess. I was drawn to the complexity of the board, and reveled in the tactics in combinations. This is one of the reasons Mythgard has sucked me in. And like Chess, Mythgard can have hugely complex board states. There are far too many possibilities to enumerate them all, so like Chess, we have to break things down into smaller pieces. This is where tactics come into play. When you learn the tactics, and when to apply them, you simplify the game. This lets you focus your mental energy on the critical parts of the game, allowing you to find the correct line to victory.
The Lanes
I'm sure when most of us started we picked a lane at random, or started with 4, because playing the middle is best, right? Surprisingly, no. As a Chess player, where centre control is an important tenet of the game, this took me a while to accept. But as we'll see when we start exploring the different offensive and defensive tactics, the play normally starts elsewhere.
The Attacker 1-7-4 or 7-1-4
The attacking player is looking to spread out their units in order to evade the defenders. By placing units on 1-4-7 you force your opponent to have three minions to block all of your minions. Keep in mind that AoE effects happen left to right, which is important when using Journey of Souls, or playing cards like The Oak of Dodona.
Why not lane 4 first? This shortens the distance a minion has to move to block one of your other lanes. If you play a minion on lane 4 and lane 7, a minion on 5 or 6 only requires one move to switch which minion they block.
The Defender 2-6-4 or 6-2-4
The defending player is looking to block all lanes of attack. This is best done by first shrinking the board by playing a minion in lane 2 or 6.
A defensive minion played in lane 2 closes off the left of the board, limiting them to four lanes on the right. A second minion on 6 further shrinks the board, limiting them to only the centre lane, which, if necessary, can be defended by moving the minion from either lane 2 or 6. Why not lane 4 first? This allows the attacker to play on lanes 1 and 7, essentially leaving your minion in no man's land.
The Lurker 1-7
Lurkers are best played on the edge. This means only one minion, on lane 2 or 6, is required to prevent the lurker from being attacked. As lurkers tend to be defense oriented, this fits perfectly into the 2-6-4 strategy of the defending player.
The Breacher 1-7
Similar to lurkers, units with breach or best played on the edge, but for the opposite reason. A minion on lane 2 or 6 threatens both lanes that could block the breach unit. As breach abilities tend to be offensive, this fits well into the 1-7-4 plan of the attacker.
Not There!
When a minion with Lurker or Breach is played off the edge there is a lane that the supporting unit cannot threaten.
The Double Block
There are several reasons you may want to employ this tactic. By default it plays around Blast, but it also makes a host of other effects your opponent might have either awkward or less effective.
Temptation cannot make your minions attack each other. Magmataur cannot hit both minions without them sacrificing their attack. Pentacle of Flavors loses most of it's punch.
But you just said...
As they say, rules are made to be broken. The trick is knowing when to break them. Next up are a few keywords that might make you want to break the "rules".
Agile 2-3-4-5-6
The benefit of Agile minions is their ability to ignore attacking restrictions. To make the most of this effect you want to play your minion off the edge, allowing it to always threaten three lanes. This is somewhat at odds with the attackers desire to prioritize lanes 1 and 7. This often leads to Agile minions being played in lane 4.
Swift(Attacker) 3-5
What!? This requires a little bit of next level thinking. We know the defender wants to play on 2-6-4, so we make it awkward for them. If they play lane 2 or 4, we can move the opposite direction, avoiding the defender. If they play lane 3 we have at forced them out of position, and if desirable, we can still double move to evade them.
Swift(Defender) 3-5
Swift is an incredibly powerful ability to have as a defender as it allows one minions to threaten five lanes. Placing the minion on lane 3 or 5 gives this range of coverage while also allowing the minion to slide in to its preferred lane. I swift minion on lane 3 also pairs with a minion on lane 6 to threaten the entire board.
Mythgard, just paint by numbers?
Of course it isn't. And that is the beauty of the game. Both players are trying to execute their game plan while simultaneously trying to thwart their opponents. Mythgard is a difficult game, and understanding the how and why of the positioning is at its core.