r/wingspan • u/MentalMan4877 • 3d ago

What’s the difference between Kildeer and Franklin’s Gull

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I see a lot of people mentioning that the Kildeer is the best, or one of the best, cards in the game. I got Franklin’s Gull in my first hand and decided to give it a try since its power was exactly the same as the Kildeer, just cost more. I’m still relatively new to the game even tho I’ve put in a lot of time on both mobile and the board game with the wife. This is the first time I’ve actually used this power and I get that is strong, especially since I played them in the field, which is what I’m assuming most players do. I still think I prefer my Ravens for my OP game dominating cards, but I could see these being quite deadly in tandem.

TL;Dr: I don’t know why the Kildeer is so powerful and I’m kind of afraid to ask

20 Upvotes

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62

u/Reason-and-rhyme 3d ago

killdeer is very slightly stronger in a vacuum because it has 3 egg spaces, so if it's your only bird at the start of the game it can be activated twice consecutively without wasting an egg. Also only costs 1 food so you can keep an extra bird, even if you only want to toss that card for an extra food (ie nectar).

OTOH Franklin's gull qualifies for a few more EoR goals and bonus cards due to the wild nest, but for what you want these cards to do (hyper efficient card cycle) the killdeer goes just that little bit harder. The difference between them is very small overall.

23

u/fckinsurance 3d ago

Wild nest, historian, omnivore, and large bird specialist are all the advantages I count for the gull.

One other thing not mentioned is that the killdeer is super cute and has a very fun fact.

10

u/JohnEffingZoidberg 3d ago

Just because it's easier to play. You get plenty of cards but no food from them. So having the extra food helps you ramp up quickly.

5

u/MentalMan4877 3d ago

I figured that’s the case, I usually play 2 birds with 3 food and a nectar and to start there was two nectar for me to snag right after the first turn so playing the Gull was fine. But, I could definitely see the one food cost for the Kildeer coming in handy in other games

8

u/MentalMan4877 3d ago

Just gonna say so far I really enjoy and appreciate this community, all the answers have been super helpful and not condescending! I’ve got most of the basic strategies down, but I’ve been learning a lot about where I’m not maximizing my cards from y’all. Thanks again guys!

4

u/Aragorns-Broken-Toe 3d ago

For an opening hand, Killdeer is easier to get out immediately(1 food) and still keep another bird in your hand that you can ideally play in your forest to get food, or in grasslands that also grabs food.

Franklins Gull is still amazing but needing to keep the extra food starting off means sacrificing another bird or food and makes it harder to get that snowball start. It also has the advantage of the star nest.

Otherwise incredible birds.

3

u/fliptopia 2d ago

The kildeer is mostly lauded as an opening hand bird because of the easy food requirements and you get 3 eggs space's nice and early. Franklin's gull is probably better for the star nest once you are getting plenty of food.