We are 3 weeks into the second KMC Season for Kaijudo. There are a handful of decks that are on top and I would like to discuss them. In every card game the Meta seems to create its own Tier system. That being Tier 1 being the top decks that win majority of the time, Tier 2, decks that win sometimes but still struggle going up against Tier 1 decks, and Tier 3 decks are just viewed as rouge decks that can win once in a blue moon but are usually just fun to play. By looking at the decks from the first 5 KMC’s you can clearly see this breakdown with the top decks being some form of Dragons, Haven Ramp, and rush. Dragons won 2, Haven Ramp won 2, and a rush deck won the other. Let’s go through and talk about each deck and why they are reigning supreme right now.

Dragons

According to all the top 8 deck lists from the KMC’s this deck is by far the most popular one that is being used. Mainly because it is Aggro enough to deal with Haven, and uses cards like Herald of Infernus and Bottle of Wishes to counteract rush decks. When it comes to deck building you have to make it aggressive enough to beat late game decks and defense enough to deal with early game decks, which Dragons do wonderfully. Here is Phillip R’s deck that he used to win the Evansville, IL KMC.

[ccDeck="Main Deck"]3 Andromeda of the Citadel:2 Keeper of Laws:3 Lux:3 Lyra, the Blazing Sun:3 Stormspark Blast:3 Bottle of Wishes:3 General Finbarr:3 Logos Scan:3 Nix:2 Comet Missile:2 General Skycrusher:3 Herald of Infernus:1 Infernus the Awakened:2 Jump Jets:3 Aqua Strider:3 Heretic Prince Var-rakka:3 Piercing Judgment[/ccDeck]

This Dragon deck is a lot different than most Dragon decks you see, which is a good thing. Utilizing cards Comet Missile and 3 Var-rakka shows that he can be pretty aggressive with this deck. Two cards that stood out to me when looking at the deck were Jump Jets and Aqua Strider. These are perfect answers to the rush/tempo match-up. He is able to have some sort of defense with the blockers and if he gets to 6 mana and he can use Jump Jets on his Herald of Infernus and completely take control of the game. The deck list looks very smooth and is probably very smooth to play.

Haven Ramp

            Haven Ramp decks have sort of taken the spot in the meta where control used to be. No one is really using control anymore, mainly because of this card. In your typical WDL control deck there are very few or easy outs to Eternal Haven. That being said most people, including myself, decided to just build decks that gets this guy out as fast as you can and just overwhelm your opponent where they can’t do anything to stop you. Here is ARG’s very own CVH’s Haven Ramp deck that he used to win the ARG Ohio KMC:

[ccDeck="Main Deck"]3 Andromeda of the Citadel:3 Eternal Haven:3 Keeper of Laws:3 Lyra, the Blazing Sun:2 Stormspark Blast:3 Bottle of Wishes:2 Crystal Memory:3 Bone Blades:2 Screeching Scaradorable:3 Terror Pit:3 Reap and Sow:3 Sprout:2 Tendril Grasp:2 Wildstrider Ramnoth:3 Aqua Strider:3 Fullmetal Lemon:1 Kivu, Ingenious Shaman:2 Piercing Judgment:2 Squillace Scourge[/ccDeck]

I played against CVH in the top 8 and lost to him. We were both running a Haven Ramp deck, with me using 53 cards using 3 copies of almost every card in my deck, along with [ccProd]King Tritonus[/ccProd], outside that our decks were almost exactly the same. We got to game 3 and he got out 2 Haven’s before I could get mine out and despite me having 9 shields and having Stormspark Blast go off two separate times as a shield blast, I still lost. I did get him down to 4 cards left in his deck though. The whole Eternal Haven concept comes down to having Haven out with a Double Breaker, and a Keeper of Laws. Then you attack with the double breaker and proceed to win because other than Stormspark, there is no out in the game to fight against it, some people can say Devouring Smog but I have never had a time where I did not have some random Blocker on my field while going for game I could just sacrifice. There are outs to Haven, but they are not easy and most of them require a two card or three card combo in order to work. The real only downside to using a Haven deck is the mirror match, there is almost no skill involved, it is just whoever gets more Havens out first.

Rush

            I did not specify what type of rush deck because they are all pretty equal with each other, if they go off and your opponent does not have the shield blasts, you win. This is the only deck you really do not have to focus on late game at all, you just have to accept the fact that if you make it to late game, the odds of you winning become very slim. I believe the best Rush deck is Mono Light only because it is fast enough to deal with most decks and it simplely dominates all other rush decks. Let’s take a look at Ken T’s WFL rush deck he used to win the Alpharetta, GA KMC:

[ccDeck="Main Deck"]2 Blinder Beetle Prime:3 Keeper of Laws:3 Magris the Magnetizer:1 Stormspark Blast:3 Aqua Seneschal:3 Cyber Scamp:2 General Finbarr:3 Rusalka, Aqua Chaser:3 Comet Missile:2 Gilaflame the Assaulter:3 Aqua Strider:3 Blitzer-Mech Falkora:3 Metal Max:3 Piercing Judgment:3 Scalding Surge[/ccDeck]

Being able to use all three of these civilizations in a rush deck is like the best of both worlds, or three worlds really. You are able to utilize bounce with water, tap down with light, and fast attacking with fire. It is a great concept but sometimes can be a bit cloggy. The best card from the water section in the deck is Cyber Scamp, without him there would not be much of a reason to really use water, he is definitely one of the best rush cards in the game right now. Another thing I really love about this deck is that it uses 3 [ccProd]Aqua Strider[/ccProd], something you never really see in rush decks. It is great for mirror rush match ups and is also great bait for Blinder Beetle Prime.

I believe these three decks show the essence of what it takes to win in Kaijudo. They are all aggressive enough to deal with late game and defensive enough, for the most part, to deal with the early game. If you can fit that formula into whatever deck you build then it can be competitive. Just because I think these decks are good examples of what it takes to win in Kaijudo, it does not mean if you copy them card for card you will win. Decks are built to every persons play style and without your own unique deck, it will always be a challenge for you to win. So I hope these decks give you an idea of what to except at KMC’s and ARG Circuit Series in the future! Unfortunately, I will be unable to attend the Kaijudo ARGCS in Columbus this upcoming weekend October 13. =( But best of luck to all of you in attendance!

See you on the other side of the veil!

 

 

Bobby Brake

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