Start where the plan is obvious
The biggest early mistake is chasing the clan with the highest ceiling. A hard clan punishes the errors you have not learned to avoid yet. A simple clan lets you learn the floor fight while you still win.
Pick a clan whose job you can state in one sentence. A clear clan might flood the board with small units, or buff one big attacker. If you cannot say the sentence, the clan is not your starter.
What a forgiving clan does
A good starter clan has units that can stand on the front floor and live. It has effects that work without a perfect hand. It rewards the obvious play: place a defender, play your attackers, spend your energy.
Clans that need exact positioning, exact card order, or exact relic synergy are poor first picks. They are fun later, once the basics are muscle memory. Early on, clarity wins more games than raw power.
The two starters
The game opens with two clans that suit new players. One leans on steady front-line units that hold floors. The other leans on spells and scaling that build over a battle. Both teach the loop without demanding perfect play.
The deeper breakdown of those two is on the starter clan guide page. Read it after this one if you want the specifics.
Let the secondary clan help
Your secondary clan is support, not a second plan. Early on, take relics and cards from it that patch a hole in your primary. Do not try to run two unrelated strategies at once. One coherent deck beats two half-decks.
If your primary is weak in the opening turns, the secondary can supply early defense. If your primary scales slowly, the secondary can add burst. Match the help to the gap.
One sentence to guide you
Before each draft, ask: does this card make my one plan stronger? If yes, take it. If it serves a different plan, skip it. Starting players win by staying coherent, not by collecting power.
Next: Floor positioning.