Right from the flavor text, you know our second preview for "Path of Pain" is something special.

"Now. . . Explode!"

"YES SIR!"

. . .

Pause.

In all seriousness, the change of having Taijutsu be a Combo deck starting with Set 19 has been a much welcomed change, and something I've been hoping for for a long time. When I first started to watch this series, I wasn't really a big fan of Rock Lee but after his selfless actions when fighting Dosu I sat and thought about it. "He really whooped on Sasuke so that alone gets him cool points. I might actually end up liking this guy after all!" Then after the Gaara fight, I was sold. I don't often show it much anymore, since he seems to be taking a back seat to my obsession with tsundere (See: Sakura), but Rock Lee really is my favorite character in Naruto. I feel he is one of the most likable characters and really carries my spirit and motto in life very well: You can overcome it with hard work. If you really try, you can do it.

And the character is actually flawed. He has weaknesses. He's not over powered like Sasuke. He's not just handed incredible powers like Naruto or Ichigo or any other main character in a Shonen series. He works for it...and it pays off (sometimes). So why isn't this reflected in the card game? You work hard to make a Rock Lee deck and it under performs. As Andrew said, chance removals and pumps don't work well AT ALL in a removal based format. Now that removal is gone and entire elements are being reevaluated, Lee finally has his chance to shine.

Yesterday, we showed you the first piece in the Rock Lee combo for Set 19, which is basically the beginning of the combo. Today, we'll be showing you the centerpiece of the combo. It doesn't tie everything together but you will soon realize just what it is the deck is supposed to be doing:



Yes, it's a Platoon. When Tylar first showed me the card, I protested saying it should have been a Squad because typically Platoons without Shikamaru or Temari just don't make the cut. Some of those fears, however, are quickly dispelled by a few of the cards highlights.

Card Overview
Pros
-9/3, 8/0 stats are absolutely bonkers. The card is HUGE.
-No Hand cost, something that has been needed for platoons to be competitive for a while
-Commonly played Ninja in Lightning
-Effect allows for near infinite Battle Phases if you are able to force blocks. The effect IS MANDITORY, so yes, it is indeed an infinite combo that auto-wins the game if your opponent must block the team every time and cannot remove it from play.
-Valid effect means injuring it does not stop the infinite lock
-Jonin Rank and a solid combat attribute in "Taijutsu"
-Not a squad meaning you don't need to cram both Ninja into the deck

Cons
-Not a squad meaning its probably more difficult to play and thus risks seeing no competitive play
-No mental power
-Takes up deck space
-Only 1 symbol
-Turn 6 Platoon makes it very difficult to play
-Competes with other Might Guys (Dynamic Entrance, Unstoppable Blue Beast) and the Rock Lee & Gaara Squad which are both incredibly powerful in the Taijutsu Deck already.

Will the card see play? I don't really know. But the effect looks EXTREMELY promising and if someone can find a way to break it, it could be the start of a very fun deck type, finally earning Rock Lee some much earned recognition.

Thanks again to Tylar for giving us such a fantastic preview for set 19. Check back early in the week for our "The Perfect Curve Contest" prizing structure as well as how to enter for your chance to win one of several prizes, as well as more previews from Set 19, "Path of Pain."

Labels: bandai, Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, Path of Pain, previews, tsu, Tylar