Gwent Guide to Understanding Keywords and Terminologies

A short compilation of all the keywords and terminologies used by cards in Gwent. Understand how the game works through this highlight.

The many cards of Gwent revolve around a number of mechanics and abilities. Unfortunately, the free-to-play card game does little in explaining most of these terminologies. The tutorial only brushes the surface and players have to understand most of the technical jargon through personal experience so we decided to prepare a Gwent Keywords and Terminologies guide.

Gwent Keywords Guide

The following compilation is for the current version of the game.

Card Abilities

Boon: Using this ability, Positive row effects can easily be removed and can be replaced by Boon and Hazards.

Bounty: A Status placed on a Unit which is marked with a parchment icon. Once a Unit having Bounty gets destroyed then the player who setup the status gains coins equal to the Base Power of the Unit.

Charm: This ability moves a unit or army to your side.

Conceal: Flip an already revealed card.

Create: Choose a random card from the given three faction or neutral and Spawn it.

Coins: Coins are the currency and the best pick for paying fees and Tributes in The Novigradian underworld. You can receive them through Profit and they’re also hoarded for special abilities. You can have nine coins in your bank at a time and as the rounds progress, the coin-count reduces to half.

Crime: This is a special class for special cards.

Doomed: The unit cannot be resurrected after being removed from the battlefield.

Damaged: A Unit that has been damaged has higher Base Power than its current Power.

Drain: Steal a units Power.

Duel: Units deal their Power’s damage to the point where they are destroyed.

Disloyal: When you play a Unit on your opponent’s side.

Fee: Once you’ve spent a certain number of coins, the abilities with the fee label will get triggered. But keep in mind that the Fee ability is triggered manually).

Hazard: Using this ability the Negative row effects can easily be removed and can be replaced by Boon and Hazards.

Hoard: If you carry a certain number of coins then the ability with the Hoard label will trigger.

Insanity: Once your coin-count is insufficient, then an Insanity Unit ignores armors or the ability to trigger just to damage itself with the fee amount.

Intimidate: A Unit increases by 1 or a certain amount of coins once you play a Crime Card.

Profit: When a Unit with the Profit ability is played, you gain a certain number of coins.

Resilience: The unit cannot be removed from the battlefield for the next round.

Regressing: Once the Unit is removed from the board, its Base Power returns to its collection value. Not disabled by Lock.

Revenge:  For Deathwishes that trigger during the opponents turn.

Regressing: When placed in the Graveyard, the power of the card returns to its original state.

Swap: Exchange a card the deck to the hand.

Turn Counter: The unit does something after the following amount of turns.

Truce: If neither player has passed

Tribute: On Deploy, the player may choose to spend the specified amount of Coins to trigger the card’s ability.

Other Classifications

Unit: A card that spawns a physical character on the battlefield.

Potion: A card that provides bonus strength or immunity to units on the battlefield.

Special: A card that conducts an ability or spell, and has no physical embodiment on the battlefield.

Saqib is a managing editor at segmentnext.com who has halted regime changes, curbed demonic invasions, and averted at least one cosmic omnicide from the confines of his gaming chair. When not whipping his writers into ...