Level II sponsor cards that are great early game?

[watershipdown]

What are the best sponsor cards that you will always keep/take and upgrade sponsor immediately so you can play them as early as possible?

[D20Headshot]

Well, I usually don't upgrade sponsor, unless I have a good opportunity to play either Science Lab or Explorer in early game... Or if suddenly I find myself drowning with lots of sponsor cards that can generate interesting combos with my current gameplay.

[Propaganda_Panda]

Talented Communicator is another card which makes a sponsor upgrade viable, I'd say. It also means that if you manage to support a conservation project early, you will not have to take a worker but can start with the 5 money income directly.

[KeithHendricks]

Science Lab and Waza Large animal, for sure.

Science Lab can easily be worth 4 or 5 card draws and 2 CP endgame. Sometimes I’ll play it from the card row just for the endgame points.

Explorer can be great too.

The best thing about upgrading sponsors though is not the level 2 sponsors but playing endgame points from the card row. Like when your map is already full and Engineer or Side Entrance come out. They’re just gravy at that point, and a great thing to do with your actions when no one has any money left but no one is willing to trigger break.

[D20Headshot]

Resurrecting this topic.
As I painfully try to climb up the ladder, I observe that when my opponent is left alone with a sponsor upgraded, it can be extremely devastating. Even more with stronger players, obviously.
Do we have stats on Victory ratio with or without sponsor upgraded?
Or for advanced players, I am really curious to know if you wait for the right cards to choose to upgrade sponsor or if you just make sure to combine it with high reputation / upgraded card actions and let it go?
Thx!

[selwyth]

Talented Communicator is the only card that would make me upgrade Sponsor first, and only if it's before the first two Breaks.

Otherwise, I upgrade Sponsor mostly if I need to 'play fast'* against opponents with higher income and/or more workers. Playing Sponsor cards with the Sponsor action is usually not worth it after the 2nd Break.

* Break often and before they can use all their workers

[KeithHendricks]

I’ve won quite a few games with a final sponsor action. Sometimes others aren’t expecting you to be able to get 8-10 points from a sponsor play when you only have 5 money and no association workers left. Upgraded sponsors gives you some nice opportunities like this. Something like a late game Expert on Asia when you have six Asia tags combined with a Sponsorship Vultures when you have 4 birds is an easy 11 points (6 Asia + pavilion + 4 birds) and if you have to spend some x tokens to play them together as well as a few bucks to play one off the card row that can be pretty sweet. Everyone else is often cycling Animals-Build-Association and not thinking creatively about the sponsors. It can be a great way to build appeal in early and midgame too when everyone else is focusing on squeezing points out of their money economy and trying to move the break token when they’re out of cash.

[D20Headshot]

Oh that is indeed something I never think of !