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Hello, me and my dad are getting into this game and are finding it quite fun. Unfortunately, neither of us are particularly tactical which isn’t so bad as we mostly just play each other and soon my bro is joining in. I have a few questions though:

1) Is there any balance issues between teams/ can you win with any team or are there bad match ups? It seemed a little like Steelheart’s bros have trouble, based on the games we’ve played so far (but that could undoubtedly be because we suck at the game).
2) Is taking more power cards a waste of an activation? It always feels like it.
3) Do you guys have any general tips or tricks on how to play?
4) I can’t pick between the new Tzeentch or Goblins or Skeletons or Steelheart’s bros!

Thanks

EDIT: One more question: When you roll a critical success, for either an attack or defence, does it succeed no matter how many dice the other person succeeded with, unless they too rolled a critical? For example, my opponent got 2 hammers, succeeding with their 2 hits, but I rolled a critical success on my defence dice. Does that cancel both of their successes or does it still just count as one success so one of their hammers still makes it throug and does the damage?

EDIT 2: Alright, seriously the last question: in the power step, do both players get to play power cards in each activation, or only the person who just had their activation?

I'm new to the game myself, and everything I'm about to write comes from reading various blogs and listening to podcasts, so grains of salt, but:

1. There are definitely tiers of power when it comes to the original 8 warbands. From what I can tell, it's seems to be something like:

Tier A: Farstriders, Champions, Swarm
Tier B: Reavers, Fiends
Tier C: Fireslayers
Tier D: Boyz, Guard

The "better" warbands have more options available to them when it comes to deckbuilding and playstyles, while the lower tiers are more restricted either because of their card choice or their stats. However, deck makeup counts for a lot in Underworlds, and a Guard player recently won a Australian tournamnet, albeit with a strategy that was basically "I'm going to play over on my side of the table, leave me alone."

2. Not entirely sure, but there are cards that allow for draw mechanics during the power step. It's better than nothing if you don't have any other actions to take.

3. Check the Underworlds subreddit, and podcasts like Take the City, and blogs like Katophrane Relic, Steel City Shadespire, and Can You Roll a Crit

4. Buy everything!

Add. Question: It succeeds no matter how many normal successes the other player rolls. So if you roll a single crit against their two normals successes, you win and the attack fails.

Add. Question 2: Both players play gambits and upgrades, but you start with the player who was activating that turn, then go back and forth until both players pass.

Thanks for all the awesome answers! I thought we’d been playing a few things wrong. We had been using cards in our own activations only and not replacing our hands at the end of each turn...