Unmatched
Bruce Lee
Overview
“Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.”
– Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee is perhaps the most influential martial artist of all time. He is credited for promoting Hong Kong action cinema to the West, which changed the way Asians were presented in American Films. Before his untimely death on July 20th, 1973 at the age of 32, he starred in five feature-length Hong Kong martial arts films and founded Jeet Kune Do; a hybrid martial arts philosophy that draws from multiple different combat disciplines. Jeet Kune Do is even credited for paving the way for modern MMA. In Unmatched, Bruce Lee uses his combat mastery and prowess to overwhelm his opponents with seemingly never-ending combos.
Bruce Lee is a single-hero expansion that can be used with any Unmatched box set. Click here to learn more.
Hero Stats
Health: 14 / Attack: Melee / Movement: 3
Special Ability
At the end of your turn, you may move Bruce Lee 1 space.
Strategies and Tips
“Forget about winning and losing; forget about pride and pain. Let your opponent graze your skin and you smash into his flesh; let him smash into your flesh and you fracture his bones; let him fracture your bones and you take his life! Do not be concerned with escaping safely – lay your life before him!!”
– Bruce Lee
As a single hero with no sidekicks, some opponents may not take Bruce Lee as a formidable threat. When fully prepared, he is capable of bursting down even the bulkiest heroes in a single turn. His special ability helps him create distance after each turn making him especially effective against melee heroes. Ranged heroes can be tricky for him to deal with, but his high base movement helps him close the distance, and his one-inch punch makes short work of those annoying 1 hp sidekicks. When your opponent strikes, strike back even harder.
Primary Strengths
Incredibly high damage output with low value attack cards
Special ability is great against melee fighters
Heroes with few defensive options
Primary Weaknesses
Low health value
No healing effects
Heroes with high maneuverability or after-combat movement effects
Tip #1: Be Like Water
Bruce Lee has no healing or sidekicks to take damage for him, so he has to adapt. One of his most famous philosophies is “be like water”. Do not be overly assertive but adjust to your opponent. Water can flow around any obstacle, or it can crash and destroy anything in its path. Bruce Lee may be an incredibly aggressive hero, but he does have some tools to help him adapt to disadvantageous situations.
Taste of Blood is a defense card with a value of 3 that, after combat, lets you draw 3 cards if Bruce Lee has 5 or less health. Obviously being left with 5 or less health is not ideal; however, this card is great for preparing you for one final offensive when you are running low on health. There is only one of these cards in your deck, so this is best used when you have no more than 5 health remaining.
Be Like Water is Bruce Lee’s only other defense card, and it allows you to return a Jeet Kune Do card to your hand from your discard pile after combat. I will discuss the Jeet Kune Do cards in a later tip. What is important to know is that this card has a value of 3 which gives it decent block potential, and there are 4 in your deck.Â
As Bruce Lee, you will likely find yourself struggling against ranged fighters the most.
Skirmish is a versatile card best used on defense, especially against ranged fighters. With a value of 4 it is the highest value defense option you have, and it allows you to choose one of the fighters in combat and move them up to 2 spaces after combat. Depending on the situation, you may want to move them closer to you, or move yourself closer to them. It is a great way to set up an attack on your next turn.
Since Bruce Lee is such an aggressive fighter, there will be instances where you end your turn with a low hand count. Little Dragon is a versatile card purposefully designed for this exact situation. This card has a value of 2, but during combat, if your hand is empty, the value of this card is a 6 instead. Then, draw 2 cards after combat. When you are preparing your long attack combos, keeping this card in hand can prevent you from being punished if your opponent survives.
Tip #2: Create Opportunities
Bruce Lee has a few schemes at his disposal to help him create opportunities for big plays.Â
Bring It On lets you choose an opposing fighter in Bruce Lee’s zone and place them in any space adjacent to Bruce Lee, then gain an action. This helps you approach the pesky ranged heroes like Medusa and Robin Hood. The downside is it activates your opponent’s Momentous Shift and not your own, but it will hardly make a difference. There is only one of this card in your deck.
Nunchaku boosts all of Bruce Lee’s attacks by +1 for that turn; then, you gain an action. This sets up your Jeet Kune Do cards to deal 4 damage each instead of 3, and the attack boost cannot be canceled by a Feint. There are two of these cards in your deck.
One-Inch Punch deals 2 damage to an adjacent fighter, and if this defeats the fighter you can return the card to your hand instead of discarding it. This is the sidekick killer. If you are facing opponents with multiple 1 hp sidekicks, you should only attack them with this card. There is only one of this card in your deck.
Hoo! Whaaaaaa! lets you choose a Jeet Kune Do card in your discard pile, add it to your hand, and gain an action. With only one of these in your deck, try to only use this card when you have prepared a massive attack combo to add even more damage to it.Â
These cards can be used together or independently of one another. Using Bring it On and following it up with NunChaku, Hoo! Whaaaaaa!, and then a flurry of Jeet Kune Do cards could be all it takes to defeat your opponent if they have a low hand count or nothing to defend with; however, if you build such a combo and your Jeet Kune Do cards are met with a Feint, then it was all for nothing. Build your combos wisely.
Tip #3: There Are No Limits
Bruce Lee is not limited by something as weak as only using 2 actions a turn. Each of his Jeet Kune Do cards have a value of 3 and allow him to gain an additional action after combat, making him capable of defeating any Unmatched hero in a single turn when properly prepared. Be patient, build your combo over the course of the game, and when your opponent has a low hand count, that is when you strike.
Corkscrew Finger Jab allows you to deal 1 damage to the opposing fighter after combat and gain 1 action.
Downward Side Kick Forces your opponent to discard 1 card after combat and you gain 1 action. This is great for further limiting their defensive options.
High Straight Lead becomes a value of 5 during combat if either fighter started the turn in a different space. This has excellent synergy with Bring It On.
Intercepting Fist immediately cancels all effects on your opponent’s card and lets you gain 1 action after combat. This cannot stop an enemy Feint since defense always activates first, but it can disrupt your opponent’s attempt to move away from you.
Short Lead Hook lets Bruce Lee swap spaces with the opposing fighter after combat and gain 1 action. This is great for setting up a Momentous Shift.Â
Wrist Lock lets you draw 1 card and gain 1 action after combat. This is a solid mid-combo card.Â
These six Jeet Kune Do cards are all decent on their own, but incredibly powerful when used together and with his schemes. While it is important to build a powerful combo that will take out your opponent, you should plan to use your Jeet Kune Do cards regularly during combat to do periodic damage and bait out their cancel cards and keep your opponent on the defensive.
Additionally, Be Like Water gives you 4 opportunities to return a Jeet Kune Do card to your hand from the discard pile, so you should never be afraid of wasting one early. Keep your aggression high and give your opponent as few opportunities to attack you as possible.
Final Thoughts
Bruce Lee is a high-risk, high-reward hero that is incredibly dynamic and a ton of fun to play. He breaks the conventional rules of the game by frequently gaining additional actions, but he does not feel overpowered since his Jeet Kun Do cards trade high attack value for high attack volume. His primary weakness is his low health value and lack of a sidekick; however, his card effects can make up for his weaknesses if played strategically. Bruce Lee is a great hero for players of all skill levels, but his true potential will only be seen in the hands of players familiar with each possible matchup.
