Developer Karol Ruszkiewicz reels in decklists that made a splash over the past weekend, and breaks down what makes them such a catch! Let’s dive in!
Calling: Hamburg and Calling: Kansas City gave us a tale of two cities on the backdrop of the release of Mastery Pack Warrior. Two wildly different metagames, lots of deckbuilding innovations, with a surprising amount of odd similarities woven between them – both won by Mechanologists, Dash and Teklovossen, both having a Ranger in the top ranks, and both seeing a hefty amount of Warriors represented. Massive shoutout to Thomas Preyer and Matt Muus for showing honing a hero can pay dividends, and proving that Bright Lights is the best set in the game. Marlynn in Top 8? Double Teklovossen making the cut? And plenty of newcomers who nearly made it over the line in both events. Here’s a peek at the winning Dash and Teklovossen decklists, and of course, the Top 8 Marlynn decklist. For today’s article, though, I want to dive deeper and explore the lists that were a win or two away from glory.
Brandon’s decklists feels like a spiritual homage to the redline Azalea lists of yesteryear – lots of pumps like Lace with Bloodrot, mixed with efficient arrows like Searing Shot and Drill Shot. What impressed me was Brandon’s ability to convert each hand offensively, while still packing that sweet suite of traps. The mix of pseudo-loading arrows with his hero ability, while leaving the bow open to cards like Swift Shot constantly pressure the opponent. Brandon showcased his Ranger prowess on stream, against none other than Brodie Spurlock, piloting his trusty Vynnset. If you haven’t watched the game, I highly recommend it.
There are some notable upgrades from the Rangers of the past. A big one is Return Fire. Brandon made sure to sequence each turn in a way to leave the arsenal open to fully benefit from the block and pump of Return Fire. Defending for 4 and sending your arrows for 7 or even 8 on the clapback? But those are Codex of Frailty numbers! Combining it with a Dry Powder Shot results in an eyewatering 2-card-12. These efficient attacks just kept coming, while a careful selection of the best traps is there to throw a spanner in the works for your opponent.
Katsu Sushiman · Aug 11 · 9 min read0 likes00 comments0
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But in my opinion, the best thing about playing Riptide are the Legendary traps. Buzzsaw Trap, Spike Pit Trap, and Collapsing Trap can single-handedly turn the tide of a game – no pun intended. Why Riptide? Between aggressive Oscilio, Arakni, and the rise in Warrior’s popularity, there’s a growing number of decks for Riptide to pressure with his traps. Bloodrot Trap, Frailty Trap, and Inertia Trap are all insane, as long as they trigger.
Starting in Hamburg we saw an almost dream run of Adam Urban, one of the loud voices of the Hussar Hala deck, who was a win or two shy from hitting the Top 8.
The best thing about that Hala build? A modal game plan that can adjust against any matchup. Need to slow the game down? Life gain and defense reactions stop the opponent’s pressure, while Edict of Steel and Valiant Dynamo keep ticking the value along. Need to close the game fast? Triple sharpen turns with Beckon Steel and Swordmaster’s Shine can end the game before a blink of an eye if disrespected. Understanding when to lean into each dimension of Hala is the key to unlocking her potential.
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Mastery Pack Warrior bolstered Hala’s toolkit even more to give her turns consistency and extra bite. In Adam’s list, this can mainly be seen in the resource base. And Again… is another Flurry-like effect. Lessons Learned makes for an incredible hedge if a game goes long, bringing powerhouses like Swordmaster’s Shine or Beckon Steel back into the fray. Honed for Honor serves a similar role, yet it’s even more tailored for Hala’s play patterns.
Meanwhile in Kansas City, Hala just missed out, placing 9th by Randy Davis. Interestingly, Randy decided to take out Zenith Blade and every single sharpen card, replacing them it with a plethora of Warrior defensive cards – starting with 8 copies of Shunt, as well as Blunten, Stand Tall, and Thwart – all the different ways the opponent’s offense can be mitigated. Randy will go down in the Flesh and Blood stream history to secure a 7-0 on Day 1 of a Calling after playing out not one, but two Rusted Relics.
Ending Day 1 of Calling: Hamburg at 6-1, Sebastiaan Knetsch showcased a few of Dorinthea’s noteworthy quality of life upgrades. Raise Blades buffs Dawnblade while offering hand fixing utility, which is extremely useful in a hero that needs multiple pieces to align to start amassing +1 counters. Giving the sword go again is one of them, which is where Blade Dance tokens smooth out her turns. Cards like Take the Lead, Shimmer of the Blade and Run Through (blue) are all important consistency upgrades.
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Shove Off, Donkey, and the one-of Overwhelming Swing make for an expanded range your opponent will have to play around, which is especially true when Singing Steelblade can bring any of these to the combat chain in no time. Sebastiaan was so close to glory, but I won’t be surprised if we continue to see Dorinthea on the top tables.
A true Warrior legend himself, Joshua Lau made a deep run at Calling: Kansas City with a Dorinthea list that has it all – Decimator Great Axe, Jubeel, Spellbane, and the signature Dawnblade.
The list is perfected in a way to transition between the defensive axe plan or pivot into maximizing +1 counters on Dawnblade. It always keeps your opponent on their toes. A big part of Lau’s kit to tackle those long games is Lessons Learned – a way to bring back key attack reactions to set up a late game push.
Imagine getting a tonne of upgrades to your hero and saying “you know what? I’m good, I’m going to stick with my trusty Decimator Great Axe build.” This is exactly what Benjamin did, adding just a sprinkle of new cards that pushed the deck to a spot where Benjamin was satisfied bringing it to a Calling.
Golden Company is the standout card. If I told you there’s a defense reaction that costs nothing and defends for 6, would you drop everything and play Olympia? Because that’s what Benjamin did. And by unconditional, I meant a teeny tiny clause about losing a Gold. A Gold you probably have spare because you won a wager last turn, or because half of your equipment counts as a Gold and you can cash them in too.
The other inclusion that we might see in these fatigue leaning lists is Lessons Learned. This card is purely amazing for getting back three cards to stop fatigue, but more importantly, it can bring back important one-of cards and other threatening attack reactions. It could also be the reason we are seeing more one-of inclusions in these lists – bringing back the single Overpower (red) or Fatal Engagement can be scary, especially late game when those reactions can end the game.
Meanwhile in Kansas City, Ryan Rich truly embraced Olympia’s wager package, even including All In in his list, alongside the new wagers like Bluff Catcher and Belly Buster. I love how the deck keeps on putting the opponent in a bind, do they have a powerful attack reaction, like Up the Ante, Take the Upper Hand, or Into the Muck? Or is it just Sigil of Solace?
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The deck is filled with spicy technology that increases the range of what Ryan can pull off in reactions. Provoke, Donkey, and Drawing Dead can all punish bad defense, while the one-of Nourishing Emptiness is a great way to strip equipment or prepare a huge spike on the following turn if it connects.
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On the Horizon
Ryan’s signature chef hat on stream is a symbol of all the cooks in the community, who bless us with fresh ideas week after week. But what will the community brew once the world of Flesh and Blood is filled with Shadow? Stay tuned for the livestream of the Usurp the Shadow Throne World Premiere, as we get the full picture of what all three Shadow heroes have to offer, and how they will get our creative deckbuilding juices going for the season to come.
Our next big dive into Classic Constructed will be in October, with three Callings – Atlanta, Kyoto, and Mexico City, as well as the latter half of Pro Quest: London. There are a lot of heroes walking a fine line at the top of the leaderboard, and a whole new set about to drop, so we’re on the edge of a potential massive metagame overhaul. I’ll be keeping an eye out for the freshest decklists as they come!
counters. Giving the sword go again is one of them, which is where Blade Dance tokens smooth out her turns. Cards like Take the Lead, Shimmer of the Blade and Run Through (blue) are all important consistency upgrades.
, would you drop everything and play Olympia? Because that’s what Benjamin did. And by unconditional, I meant a teeny tiny clause about losing a Gold. A Gold you probably have spare because you won a wager last turn, or because half of your equipment counts as a Gold and you can cash them in too.