Labels: previews, Set 25, squee

Hey guys! Tsu here with another preview from Naruto CCG's Series 25 "Kage Summit"! We here at "The Perfect Curve" typically rotate who gets to write about which previews each set, to give each person a chance to write about a super rare because honestly, those are the most fun cards to write about and talk about. As the corner stones of the set and the "value" you'll be getting out of your boxes, the "Super Rare" card is obviously going to be widely talked about. Sadly the card I'm going to show you is NOT a Super Rare.

"Then why tell us about Super Rares at all Tsu?"

Glad you asked, Jimmy! You see normally I get dumped into one of two camps: Super Rare ... or unplayable card. I'm very pleased to announce though that our 2nd preview is actually a very good and very playable rare... so without further explanation, here is Lightning Style: Emotion Wave!






What Can I Do For You?
So at first glance, we can see that this is a late game Jutsu, primarily used by Darui in the anime and manga series. A turn 5 Jutsu with a symbol requirement isn't so bad but whenever we talk about Turn 5+ Jutsu the card has to hold some weight because it's going to be instantly compared to cards like Hydro Pump, Snake Sword, and of course Almighty Push!

So the question is, does Emotion Wave hold up? Well considering that most of the above removal cost at least 3 or more chakra to remove 2 to 3 Ninjas, we'll have to just see if it is a good value in comparison. But before that, we have to actually look at how the card works.

When we play Emotion Wave, we obviously have to pay the cost of X chakra...X can be as little or as much as we want. Note that paying 0 chakra for Emotion Wave does absolutely nothing. For each card you pay with the Lightning Symbol, you'll get a simple damage spell along the lines of an old school Fireball Jutsu. For each Water symbol you pay, you'll net an additional target on the card. So what does this all mean? Here's a quick table for you:

1 Lightning Chakra + 0 Water Chakra = 1 Damage to 1 Opposing Ninja
2 Lightning Chakra + 0 Water Chakra = 2 Damage to 1 Opposing Ninja
1 Lightning Chakra + 1 Water Chakra = 1 Damage to 2 Opposing Ninja
2 Lightning Chakra + 1 Water Chakra = 2 Damage to 2 Opposing Ninja
1 Lightning Chakra + 2 Water Chakra = 1 Damage to 3 Opposing Ninja
2 Lightning Chakra + 2 Water Chakra = 2 Damage to 3 Opposing Ninja
... And so on and so forth.

So 4 Chakra nets you a team wipe, which is actually less valuable than Snake Sword in this case which isn't really good value.

"But Tsu! I thought you said this was a good card!"

Well it is! The secret lies in a theme that's being pushed in Series 25 "Kage Summit" and that's multi-colored decks. By paying the cost of Emotion Wave with a single card like ...oh I dunno...the most played card in the format Monster Research, the Jutsu becomes way more efficient. If you were to pay the cost of emotion wave with only cards with the Water & Lightning Symbol together, the numbers for the card start to look more like this:

1 Water/Lightning Chakra = 1 Damage to 2 Opposing Ninjas
2 Water/Lightning Chakra = 2 Damage to 3 Opposing Ninjas

So for the low cost of that Monster Research in your chakra area, this card can cause some serious damage!




Double Trouble!
Here is a list of every Lightning/Water dual element card in Block format for your reference. This should give you an idea of just how many cards in the format are playable and can easily provide the double cost requirement for Lightning Style: Emotion Wave! Please keep in mind, this list does not include any cards from "Series 25" but you should note that many powerful cards such as Raikage, Darui and even Emotion Wave itself are capable of efficiently activating Emotion Wave.

Ninja
Anko Mitarashi - An already highly played card.
Anko Mitarashi - This 2 drop Common has no real use when you consider the 3 drop counterpart. Even though it can make every card in your chakra area able to be more efficient with Emotion Wave, I still don't see it making a huge splash.
Five Tails  - 7 Combat 4 drop is pretty good. Especially since he gets a draw for every victory he wins.
Gamaken - Thomas Veazie popularized this as a sideboard option against Ink Ninjas in Lightning & Water decks.

Mission
Great Naruto Bridge - Already sees play in 9 Phantom Dragons decks, which are already primarily Water/Lightning to begin with.
Anko's Memories - Restricted to 1 but still played in pretty much every Lightning or Water deck
Monster Research - The BIG ONE! 3 of in almost every single SJC Winning deck, a single Monster Research in your chakra area makes Emotion Wave something to fear.

 Jutsu
Chidori Lance - Decent Jutsu
Blade of the Thunder God - Not too great

So considering that only 2 of the cards on our list are actually unplayable (T2 Anko & Blade of the Thunder God), it's safe to say that this card will have a lot of synergy with a lot of very playable and powerful cards.

The Thunder God Tech
So I feel that this is something that needs to be pointed out and it's probably one of the main reasons I feel that Emotion Wave will make a big "splash" (get it?) in Lightning Decks this season... all thanks to this guy:





On turn 2 you can play Monster Research and board press with your field. If your opponent blocks you can play The 4th Hokage and have him use Emotion Wave for the cost of the 1 Monster Research in your chakra. This + the 4th's Effect all but guarantees you discard any opposing team as early as turn 2. Using the 4th Hokage's Mastery effect, you can keep not only the 4th Hokage but Emotion Wave to set this play up again later in the game. You killed 3 Ninjas for 2 cards in hand and 1 chakra. Talk about value!!!

I hope you enjoyed our second preview for Series 25 "Kage Summit"! Please check back next week for our 3rd preview!

-Tsu

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, previews, Set 25, tsu

"Temari, your curves are so perfect."

I believe Josh used this quote once to describe a preview of Temari of ours. While I wouldn't say our final preview has "perfect" curves (I'm one who doesn't always subscribe to the philosophy of "bigger is better"), she definitely has more bounce in her step than most, if not all the females, in the Naruto universe.

It should be obvious by all the bad jokes by now that I'm talking about Tsunade.

Yes, for one reason or another, I seem to have happened into another version of the Fifth Hokage. In Set 19 we had Leaf's Elite, which was pretty amazing with the stat buffs and a pretty decent effect although not strong enough for a 6 drop. Later in Set 22, I showed you Tsunade (Kimono) and promised you that she would see tons of play as a Wind version of Jiraiya...not to mention the already stellar version of The 5th Hokage in the same set.

I like Tsunade. I really do. She's one of my favorite characters to play in the Clash of Ninja games due to her slow but powerful (both in terms of physical power and mixups) fighting style. As a character I like her violent temper yet caring nature for that of her comrades. All around, she's definitely one of the more interesting females in the show for sure. But the problem lies in the fact that there's simply no good Tsunade... as awesome as Kimono was there wasn't any real jutsu threats to recursively play besides those that are banned or limited. And the "Infinite" heal effects don't really do anything unless tricked into play early ... drawing cards? Well Wind already does a ton of that so this isn't going to be anything new that breaks the mold.

Every other Hokage gets strong, unique effects that are game ending. Tsunade keeps getting the same rehash set in and set out and it's really disappointing.

Question: How do we make Tsunade good?
Shortest possible answer and Bandai's most convincing argument yet that Tsunade's strength is unrivaled

MAKE HER "OVERFLOWING"

Simply put: Make her unaffected by your opponent's cards.

This Tsunade, for lack of a better phrase, is a "Master Baiter" (or if you prefer a kiddy friendlier name: A "Lightning Rod"). She forces the chain by saying "Not only am I huge but if you don't play first Jutsu, I will rain down an ungodly (efffing) firestorm upon you! You're gonna have to call the United Nations and get a (what a beaver builds) binding resolution to keep me from (what mommy and daddy do) destroying you. I am talking scorched-earth, (motherlover)! I will massacre you! I will (expletive deleted) you up!"

*ahem*

So you may be saying "Well that's all well and good Tsu, but Wind still sucks. I can't rain down the fancy pants Jutsu in that deck!"

Did you notice she has the Lightning Symbol?
Surprisingly enough, this Tsunade is more effective in a Lightning deck than in a Wind deck. Not only do they have the Jutsu to back it up, but they also have the large team powers and aggression for this to be a perfect fit.

My only real gripe with the card?
Protection from Missions but only EOJ timing? What gives Tylar!?

Oh and one more thing cause I know you'll all ask this. I talked to Tylar about this card. "Cannot be the target" means if she's already targeted and then her combat becomes 10 or higher, she no longer becomes a legal target, thus causes her to be unaffected by all of those jutsu.

We hope you enjoyed our Set 24 previews! Please stay tuned for Set 25 previews when they come out. Oh, and for our 2 year anniversary this month, I think I might smell a contest... we'll see.

Catch ya later Bandai!

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, Oppai Are OP, previews, Set 24, tsu

As of late, Missions cards have started to fall into a very specific category that determines if they see the light of day or not. Usually, a mission has to do one of the following two things in order to be considered for a slot in any deck,

Labels: previews, Set 24, Shino'sDad

Boa vinda a today' inspeção prévia de s de seu verdadeiramente na curva perfeita!

Agora com todo o hooting e hollering sobre o Topside, eu figurei I' d adapta e faz today' a inspeção prévia de s realiza duas coisas:

1. Topside can' cópia de t meu ahueaehuaeuhuuaha da revisão

2. It' s gosta de um enigma! Que sorte dos ajustes este cartão.

Porque este cartão, como esta inspeção prévia, confiará no oponente (leitor). Conseqüentemente, eu escondi inteligente 43 indícios durante todo este artigo para lig ao localizador de recurso uniforme para a imagem para este cartão. Aprovação, lá aren' t realmente 43 indícios, mas lá é bastante que o mais inteligente de você deve poder o figurar para fora… apenas como este card' efeito de s. Eu significo, eventualmente eu pude começ furado e apenas dar-lhe mais sugestões … mas… deve ser fácil bastante. It' s não como o vencedor está indo começ Canon Powershot g9 ou qualquer coisa.

Agora, Shikamaru [flexibilidade] era sempre um daqueles cartões que fizeram seu oponente ir " " do dammit do awwwwwww (castores); quando o viram. Se você didn' t tem a resposta, seu oponente apenas sentado lá com um ninja gigantesco do PM para começ BRs livre e para murá-lo o dia inteiro. Mas agora a resposta está em suas mãos… literalmente!

O Shikamaru fixo (etiquetado inteligente " Adaptability") é uma volta mais grande mas força agora seu oponente em fazer um Shikamaru' difícil; decisão de s. Se querem manter sua mão para fazer sob medida acima, a adaptação pune-os jogando o papel do cabo flexível. Se começam duramente carregar ou não usar recursos eficientemente, a terra tem todas as ferramentas para forçar descartes e whatnot para punir aquele.

Quando I' m não sure quanto jogo este cartão verá, it' s sempre uma opção a manter-se na mente quando you' re procurando um cartão que possa indiretamente beneficiar sua plataforma de várias maneiras.

-Josh

Tsu Edit: Always Kill, Never Die huehuehuehue

Labels: josh, previews, Set 24, viva brasil

Preface: I don't like to be that guy who calls people out, especially not publicly but I feel it needs to be said cause it's irked me and a lot of other people recently. The Hidan thread was the last straw.

If Topside reviews this card or any subsequent cards on our blog in the discussion thread, I'm pulling the article, the preview, and with holding our Set 24 Super Rare preview.

Why? Because he pretty much always says the same thing that has already been said before. On top of that, it's essentially just like him summarizing our entries and just putting it in the same thread. Let people actually read our work and form an opinion for themselves. Please don't just repost what we already posted...it just detracts from our posts.

Yes, I'm being mean.

Yes, I'm serious about this.

End Preface

Okay there now that that is out of the way I can actually proceed on with the talking.

So what is today's preview about you ask?

Well it mostly has to do with this guy. Surely you remember this guy, right? Our Set 21 preview turned a lot of heads because of his powerful effect....but he had no real support.

And until this day we still have a variety of Ink creatures.

There's Ink Summon, Ink Lion, Ink Leech, and Ink Snake for those playing at home. Of course Set 24 yields another Ink Ninja, the Ink Fish which has a stellar "Draw 1" effect and good turn 1 stats...but that wasn't "officially" previewed yet (just spoilered thanks to a poster on the message boards, posting up the newest Meijin kit)

But what does the deck actually DO?

Supposedly you put in play a bunch of dorks (that's small stat ninjas for the uninformed) and then you drop Sai [Virtuoso] on turn 4 and draw a ton of cards and then...

And then...

Psst, Tylar... I just drew 12 cards off Sai...what the HELL am I supposed to do with all of these cards?

The Ink deck doesn't actually do anything. Yes it draws cards. Yes it has lots of cheap spammable 1/1s and 2/2s, and while that may help you get a lot of BRs early with your multiple teams, everyone knows spamming out small Ninja doesn't exactly win the game without something like Scouting Party or Naruto Vs. Sasuke.

So what are you implying Tsu? An NVS for Ink Ninjas!?

I wish Timmy! Wouldn't that be awesome? No instead I offer something that is rather interesting and unexpected win condition for the Ink Deck.

A Burn Ninja

Ink Eagle is interesting in that he has the highest stats out of all the Ink Ninjas thus far and isn't terribly difficult to come into play. On top of that, his multi use effect allows you to detonate your entire field for a slew of Battle Rewards all in one go.

Speaking of "Detonate", I think you can already guess that this guy has a lot of Synergy with other free Battle Reward Ninjas such as Hidan (Curse Mode) & Deidara [Fiery Wrath]. Consider Andrew's strategy from our previous preview that nets 7 Battle Rewards in 1 turn. Now imagine if you actually had the Ink Ninja rush early game...it's realistically possible to net 10 Battle Rewards in one turn with this setup.

Problem? It doesn't seem entirely practical.

When I first saw Ink Eagle a week ago, along with Hidan, I originally thought that there might be some synergy with them but the problem was would I be able to cheaply spam out the Ink Ninjas in the early game? I get the idea of the deck is now to use Sai to generate a ton of chakra and spam out more ninjas to burn with Eagle but the chakra cost makes it incredibly difficult.

The card that makes it all easier? Monkey King Enma

Well at least it was Monkey King Enma until I realized the errata. Argh... if he hadn't gotten changed I think there might actually have been something really strong on our hands here. You could theoretically have a whole deck where you could drop Enma on 3 and then Sai on 4, draw a ton of cards and possibly spam out not only 4 or 5 Ink Ninjas but say a Kiba to tutor an Akamaru to get a free Double Headed Wolf, Shima to get Fukasaku or vice versa. In essence, I guess Enma got changed not only because of some pre-existing infinites and combos but some other decks in the future like perhaps the Ink Deck. Am I saying it's strong? Who knows...it seems weak on the surface but I think Eagle gives it a little something else that might make it be "sleeper OP" down the road.

I'm really hoping someone breaks this card because I still can't make heads or tails of the deck. It just has all these random weapons that are supposedly part of a bigger picture...or at least that's why Tylar keeps hinting at ever since he first gave me Sai [Virtuoso] to preview back in Set 21.

Honestly, I feel like he might be trolling me by slipping me Eagle but... you never know. There might just be more here than meets the eye...

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, previews, Set 24, tsu

After not posting in forever I am here today to bring you what I believe to be the most awesome card in set 24. Now, I know this might seem to be a rather bold prediction, with Sage mode being shown but I honestly love this card, infact I would go as far as to say that from the art to the design this card is perfect. But what is this card you might be asking? Well I will tell you: Hidan (Curse mode). For those of you who just want to see the card, feel free to scroll down, because before I show the card I want to do a quick trip down memory lane.

Back in late march we revealed the first ever Hidan and Hidan (Cursed mode). I was involve with these cards because of how flavorful they were, but looking back these cards weren't very good. While Hidan (Curse Mode) had some cool combos, Hidan didn't actually do anything by himself. Not only did he need other cards to make him good, he needed cards that you normally wouldn't play, meaning he lacked synergy with previously existing competative cards in his colors. Couple all of that that with his tedious put in play requirements, and you just had a card that took too much effort to actually utilize reliably.

So, for those of you at home keeping track, the 3 main flaws with Hidan (Curse Mode) were:

1) Needed other cards to be good

2) Lacked synergy with previlent cards in his colors

3) Was difficult to actually play

So bandai needed to somehow overcome these 3 main factors in order to make the next Hidan (Curse Mode) playable...

Preview!

... And I think they did EXACTLY that.

Looking at the very first problem with the original, you can imediately tell that the problem has been solved with the newest iteration. Not only does Hidan have a built in win condition, he also has a second effect that helps him trigger his first effect. So, if for some reason you only had a Hidan in play, you would actually be capable of winning the game.

The second problem with the original was his lack of synergy with other cards, something this guy can't relate to. This guy is all about the synergy. Seriously, he actually plays perfectly into fire decks utilizing some of the cards from the new "Win Battle Rewards" theme. Also, his draw back of giving up battle rewards is easily rendered irrelivant by another heavily played Fire card.

The third and final problem was the difficulty to actually get him into play, but as you can see this guy can reinforce off of any Hidan, without the use of a ritual circle. The ability to use ANY hidan is very helpful, because while some of you are probably going to be playing this guy for his synergy, others will be running this guy because of his ability to shut down cards that would otherwise throw a wrench in your plans.

Last thing I would like to share is a bit of math with you guys:

Turn 6 Reinforce Hidan, activate effect- 1 BR

Use Hanzo- 2 BR

Sac Hanzo with Deidara- 4 BR

swing with a big team including Hidan, your opponent chumps, you Dragon flame- 5 BR

You are now unopposed during showdown- 7BR

Total- 7BR in a single turn with almost now effort, all before sage mode can even come into play. Seems pretty good to me.

-Andrew

Labels: Curse Mode, hidan, previews, Set 24, Zero

It's been a while right? :)

Sorry the site hasn't been updated but the last few months have been busy for all of us...and with a stale game state there hasn't been much to talk about.

That said, Invasion was a swimming success for Bandai in my opinion, and TP4 is just as awesome. I personally haven't been able to get any TP4 or Target Promos yet but oh well. I'm sure I'll get some shortly after I get paid.

That said, we've received FIVE brand new previews for the newest set, Sage's Legacy, including a Super Rare to make up for our lack of one in Set 23. We'll be trying to do something "old" with these previews by doing a more in-depth write up than usual if we can. There's some interesting things to talk about with a few of our previews and I'm really happy that they're not just "*insert trash card here that you can barely talk about*" like we (and many other sites) sometimes get. I think this is kind of a reflection on Bandai's card design as of late. Invasion had very few bad cards and TP4 as well. Normally I've been accustomed to Naruto sets being 50 to 80% unplayable cards. And while a lot of cards in those two newest sets may not see play, I don't necessarily feel a vast majority of them are useless as per usual.

As for SJC MA in March, I'll be traveling with GenCon Winner 2010 Squee up to the Motel Casa de Pena to have some fun and cover the event for you all. Tentatively, I'll for-go playing in the event to make sure we do this coverage and we do it right. The best coverage I've ever done has been on days where I haven't been playing, and ones where I have...well they've pretty much been a wash. Additionally, this time the live stream will be done with my desktop, which is a much stronger device than the typical laptop you see me stream on. (An i7 Quad Core is much more powerful then this wimpy dual core). I got the idea from a video game streamer who travels around the country to cover events. He uses a comparable desktop and has since forgone his laptop because it's simply better. Sure travel accommodations suck that way, but it will get the job done faster.

In fact, he uses the same software as me and even the same camera (for those complaining the camera I use sucks). Because of the stronger PC, we can get away with setting the camera to max 720p HD settings. Now all that's left it so to acquire the stand he told me to get for the camera (surprisingly only $10!) and for the venue to deliver with the Wi-Fi I asked and we'll be in business. Please don't let me down on the Wi-Fi part Saul! I can't take another event where I'll promise something and have to settle with my tethered cell phone. Ha ha.

But seriously this time we're going to do this shit.

And we're going to do it RIGHT dammit!

-Tsu

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, Livestream, Massachusetts, previews, Set 24, Shonen Jump Championship, tsu

Because Andrew can't remember to post cards on time despite constant reminders:



This is our final Set 23 preview. Hope you enjoyed our previews. Please let us know what you think in the comments below.

-Tsu

Labels: previews, Set 23, tsu

Lightning has always had it's time in the spotlight in nearly every recent format, as well as some older ones as well. Though the times of Sexy Gaara, Chain Lightning, and Toad Rush are in the past; Lightning has regained it's position as a Tier 1 to 1.5 deck. Recent Lightning cards such as Anko's Memory, Monster Research, Killer Bee, and The Fourth Hokage, supplemented by strong Jutsu like Lariat, Rasenshuriken, Infinite Embrace, and quick Chakra producers like Kushina Uzumaki and Tsuchigumo Style: Forbidden Jutsu Release - Big Bang made for a solid deck.

With the soon to be released Set 23: Invasion just around the corner, in combination with the newly updated Rogue List for Premiere Tournaments, many players have been looking forward to what new toys Lightning will be receiving to play with. With the restriction of both Kushina Uzumaki [Eternal Bond] as well as Tsuchigumo Style: Forbidden Jutsu Release - Big Bang being limited to 1 copy per deck, along with the outright ban of Anbu [Hidden Threat] and Anbu [Rising Threat], the early game has been slowed down quite considerably. Where a player could easily have as much as 10 chakra on Turn 1, without having to sacrifice nearly any of their hand or board presence, priming you for a rain of Infinite Embrace on your opponent's field and a very abrupt scoop from your opponent, that is no longer the case. What Lightning needs now is more aggressive early game tools in order to fill that void (not Void, mind you).

Cue the new Rasengan, which can be played by the usual any Jiraiya or Fourth Hokage, but has the added benefit of being able to be played by any Naruto Uzumaki + Clone Status or Konohamaru + Clone Status. A quick check of the card database reveals that save for Naruto Uzumaki (Taijutsu), all Naruto have Clone Status in format, from the smallest Turn 0, to the Turn 5 Tailed Beast Mode, and all Konohamaru have Clone Status as well, most importantly Konohamaru Ninja Squad, who is a near staple in many decks (all decks?).

You also have the new Rock Lee [Honor Bound]. While he is a bit tech in his use, he sports both Growth and Surge, allowing him to become a 5 or 6 combat on his own, if needed, which ties in well to his effect. He cannot be Blocked by a Team of 2 or more Ninjas. Although, he cannot be added to a Team with other Ninjas either. So that means that if your opponent wishes to stop him, they will need to send a Ninja one on one against him, leaving their field spread out. I can see this as one of the reasons that Anbu were banned, as dropping a Lee with two Anbu is a very harsh beating.

Ink Leech is an attempt to give back that early chakra gain, but at the cost of lower stats, and the inability to Growth over for even more chakra without the cost of a deploy. Despite this, it seems to be a rather popular card and just might see use anyways. Without the possibility of your opponent gathering a Team Power of 5 or higher any longer, the Leech and come down on Turn 0 and block, retaining it's 1 combat and support even when injured. Though, this would only really be advantageous if you were going first, as dropping an Ink Leech on the Draw will leave you severely lacking in Team power come your opponent's Turn 1.

There are still plenty of other Lightning cards that have not yet been previewed yet though, so this list of useful Lightning tools may increase before the Set is released on November 18th.

So by this point, you might be wondering what the point of all this up to now has been. The answer is today's preview, which is a card I feel might see some play, if only because if offers Lightning an aggressive start to the game.

First, I will tell you all that it is a Mission Card. Second, it plays on Turn 1. Early missions are always nice, but only if they do something useful, right? Well what do we seem to all want out of missions lately? Draw and Tutoring, it seems is what we all look for when assembling our mission line up. If there is an added effect to it, then all the better, right? Well then this card fits that bill perfectly.

So right away, you will notice that this card is similar in practice to Pat's preview card, but with the advantage of you being able to pick your chosen combatant. with the added benefit of being able to draw 2 cards if things go your way, which it should or else you wouldn't be playing the mission in the first place, right?

This card is Amazing if you are going first, as you will, unless playing understatted Ninjas, have a higher Team Power than your opponent, who should have a maximum Team power of 4, while you could have as much as a 7. Injuring their first Combat Ninja can be a huge advantage that you will be able to seize, plus you get 2 new cards as well!

While preparing to write this article, I took the time to search out any cards that are still legal that would give us some solid interaction with this card. Obviously, cards that aid in attaining a Victory such as The Fourth Hokage [Supremacy] come to mind, but so do cards that get effects Because we scored a Victory of some kind. Of all current Block Format Ninjas, the following activate an effect when it's Team with any kind of Victory:

Kakashi Hatake & Yamato
Itachi Uchiha
Karin
Pain (Deva Path)
Zabuza Momochi
Zabuza Momochi (Younger Days)
Uhei (accent over the U)
Rock Lee & Might Guy
Kakuzu (Soul Form)
Shukaku

With a quick pruning of some cards that just don't work well with Lightning's theme or are extremely off element, we have a new list that looks like this:

Itachi Uchiha (Set 21)
Pain (Deva Path) (Set 19)
Zabuza Momochi (Set 22)
Rock Lee & Might Guy (Set 19)

Also of note, is a reprinted Orochimaru that activates on an Outstanding Victory:

Orochimaru (Set 19 Starter Deck)

What about Jutsu cards?

Lightning Blade Single Slash (TP 1&2)
Eight Inner Gates (Set 19)
Deformable Body (TP 3)
Partial Expansion Jutsu (Set 22)
Severe Leaf Hurricane (Set 22)

Again, some quick pruning leaves us with:

Deformable Body (TP 3)
Severe Leaf Hurricane (Set 22)

Obviously, the idea of tooling our deck exclusively around a single mission card is a bad idea. But if the deck itself works well and we do not force the deck into a singular path (We need to be able to win the game without the mission, if it never comes up, afterall), then there is no reason not to try and compliment it with a few cards.

Seeing as the best cards for these situations are Lightning and Water, that would be the best place for this mission, if possible.

Obviously, a very nice, albeit very late combo comes in the form of the Rock Lee & Might Guy platoon, whom, as the target of the Mission, will continue to have to be opposed every new Combat Phase that it spawns. Pair them up with someone like Orochimaru [Eager Desire], and not only will your opponent's field be nothing, but so will their Turn Marker.

Five Minute Deck List Featuring Preview Card, Go!

Betting on a Victory

Ninjas (30):
Turn 0
x3 Rock Lee [Vanilla]
x3 Jirobo (State 1)
x3 Hotaru Katsuragi
x2 Gaara (Childhood)
Turn 1
x2 Karin [Absorption]
x2 Kidomaru (State 1)
Turn 2
x2 Konohamaru Ninja Squad
x2 Iruka Umino [Strategic Placement]
Turn 3
x1 Anko Mitarashi [Test Proctor]
x2 Naruto Uzumaki [Emerging Beast]
Turn 4
x2 Killer Bee [Da Eighth]
Turn 5
x1 Zabuza Momochi [Demon of the Mist]
Turn 6
x2 The Fourth Hokage [Supremacy]
x1 Orochimaru [Eager Desire]
x2 Might Guy & Rock Lee

Missions (11):
x3 Wager
x3 Monster Research
x3 Anko's Memory
x2 Make-Out Tactics

Jutsu (9):
x3 Chidori (Set 19)
x2 Rasengan (Set 23)
x2 Deformable Body
x1 Tsuchigumo Style: Forbidden Jutsu Release - Big Bang
x1 Infinite Embrace

Reinforcement Deck:

x3 Rock Lee & Gaara
x2 Kidomaru (State 2)
x2 Naruto Uzumaki (Nine Tails Cloak)
x2 Naruto Uzumaki (Tailed Beast Mode)
x2 Naruto Uzumaki (Four Tails)
x2 Naruto Uzumaki & The Fourth Hokage
x2 Jirobo (State 2) (We can only assume he will be good?)

Labels: bandai, previews, Set 23, Shino'sDad

Oh, hello there.

Baby, I think this could be the start of something lovely. And I don't just mean you.

These really are the types of cards I love building around the most - robust, open-ended, tantalizingly beautiful engines just waiting to have all their juicy depths explored and achingly abused and...

Er, sorry. Got carried away there for a moment.

But in all seriousness, this Temari is just begging for a deck to be built around her. Or begging for ahueuhuehuaeuthaeuheuhue...

*ahem*

ANYWAYS.

The first second third fourth fifth sixth thing that came to mind when I saw this card was the deliciously naughty ummm... non-optional effect. Yes, non-optional effect, that's the one.

You mean I can play a card that turns all my jutsus into draw cards?! I love cards! Especially ones that let me draw more and more lovely Temaris!

The kicker, of course, being that all my jutsus have to be negation or do something involving jutsus. This is also, of course, assuming that Bandai erratas all cards that say "Target: 1 jutsu being played" to "Target: 1 jutsu" or rules that only the words "1 jutsu" need to be in the target - otherwise this card is just a tease.

Going into the wayback machine, some of you might remember a Sannin-winning deck nicknamed "Greedy.dec." The point of that deck was to generate massive teams to force the opponent into first action, and massive card advantage to draw the relatively sparse protection present in the deck. But what if... all your protection birthed card advantage for you? Then it wouldn't even be necessary to play so many missions to lube the engine...

Being away from the game for so long has led me to not know what any of the cards in the current block format do, but I've got so many dirty ideas about what to do to with this Temari.

Perhaps a Neo-Greedy.dec using the new puppets, but with a lot more jutsus. Or perhaps...

Yo dawg, I heard you like drawing cards so I put card draw into your card draw so you can... I don't even know how this meme goes. Probably ends with a ferocious punch to the nuts though. (Ferocious Punch with a Temari trigger seems unreal good, in any case)

Or you could play that new X cost Void jutsu and Temari turns it into a Tobi.
Or you could just play this Temari as your 2 drop and then randomly gain value from it as you proceed with your normal plan.
So many different positions are possible... this card is practically squirting with potential.

Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a mess to go clean up.

-Josh

Labels: josh, previews

You know sometimes I empathize a lot with Naruto. Growing up I'm sure many of you had that moment in middle school or high school where there was that one girl you liked. And you'd kill for just a moment to be alone with them and talk to them. But they never notice you, mostly cause they're too busy paying attention to some jackass.

sigh

You're so sure though if you were just given the chance, you'd be able to impress her. Yeah.

For me, it was 7th grade Math class. I got partnered up with the girl in question.

How the story played out in my head:

"Oh you can't answer number 4? That's easy! You solve it like this! And this! Simple huh?"

"Wow you're so smart! Thanks a lot!"

"We should totally study together after school and hang out all the time!"

"But what about so & so?"

"You don't need him! I'm super awesome!"

*girl clings to my arm as I fist pump in the air*

How it actually went down

"Do you need help?"

"No I've got it."

*awkward silence*

*Try to start a conversation*

*Gets ignored*

This was a disaster.


Basically...that's the thought process going through my head when I saw our first preview card:



Naruto plays this card, randomly gets paired up against Sasuke, pwns his face. He fist pumps into the air as "Eye of the Tiger" starts playing, as Sakura comes rushing to him.

"Nayrootoe! You sure showed Saucekay! You're the best! Can I be your girlfriend?"

The village loves him.

He becomes Hokage.

The end.

.

.

.
Or he randomly runs into like a turn 5 Sasuke [Eyes of the Serpent], gets blown out, and loses the game. And he totally doesn't get the girl cause he's so uncool.

I just want someone to play this in top cut at an SJC/Kage/GenCon and win a game off of it.

Hope you guys have your d20s ready...randomization is gonna be hilarious in stand off games.

Labels: previews, Set 23, tsu

We'll have 4 brand new previews for you guys in the coming weeks leading up to the release of "Set 23: Invasion."

I'm really curious to see how you guys feel about them as I personally feel all of them are pretty good.

Our first preview will be up by the end of the week.

-Tsu

Labels: previews, Set 23, tsu

*ahem*

Sometimes you hand out staff writers previews. And sometimes those staff writers forget to preview them. So in those times, we just put up the last preview and let you admire it yourself. Our last preview isn't anywhere as mind blowing as the functional reprint of Giant Vortex Jutsu but it is still a really solid 2 drop that I expect many Earth decks to be using post rotation. The ability to protect a Ninja from Damage during either players Mission Phases or EOJ for 1 chakra is a pretty potent ability.

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, previews, Set 22, tsu

In case you missed it at the Morristown tournament last Saturday, here is our 3rd preview courtesy of its creator Eric M. a.k.a. Squee.

I won't say much about the card as you can all ask him about it. Needless to say...the card reads ridiculous and will probably make Fire a complete force post rotation.

NOTE: Card has been corrected. It is as printed.

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, previews, Set 22, tsu

Those of you who have ever talked with me online or at events have probably heard me talk about my favorite card once or twice. Even during the days when I ran the podcast for bandai I occasionally mentioned my love for Tunneling fang. Back in the days before rotation I would constantly try to build decks that used cards like Loosing control of Chakra and Release of Chakra to trying and mill twenty plus card in a single turn off of TFang. While Tunneling fang never made it into competative play, it still holds a place in my heart and nothing makes me more excited than to see bandai supporting animal based mill, because it gives me hope that maybe they will give TFang another shot. Anyway, here is todays preview:

Yeah, thats right, he mills cards like a fiend and prefers not to be called a cute little doggie.While some of you (The ones who for some unknown reason hate mill) will probably be unhappy with this card, I honestly couldn't be more happy with him. While Pakkun doesn't do anything by himself (except act as a two support one drop for fire, a color which rarely sees those) he does however make every card in a deck built around milling your opponent to death, better. Not fully convinced? Lets look at World of Fire, the current "Best" mill card. The card essentially reads "Mill 2 cards a turn" and based on an average deck of 30 ninjas and 20 non-ninja cards the odds of getting that extra card milled off of pakkun are pretty good.

Another cool thing about pakkun is his wording. Since he's a triggered effect any effect that causes a Non-Ninja card to get milled over will cause him to trigger, even his own effect. So for example, lets say you deploy Pakkun and then remove a coin from your world card to force your opponent to mill two cards. Unfortunately for him, one of the two cards is a jutsu, causing pakkun to trigger. Pakkun forces your opponent to mill one card, which happens to be a mission. Pakkun triggers again, and this time it's another jutsu discarded from the top of your opponents deck. Looks like Pakkun triggers again and again until he mills a ninja... Put then you play your Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu... and you see where I'm going with this. Pakkun is an awesome card, and will hopefully have a positive impact on block as more mill based cards come out. I hope you enjoyed my favorite of our preview cards from "Weapons of War". Be sure to check back next week for another preview, and for those of you attending the 1K we are running this weekend in Morris town, NJ we will be having a special preview shown during the tournament! Until next time.

-Andrew

Labels: previews, Set 22, weapons of war, Zero

Yes. I said it. Females are competitive.

Tier 1? Nope, probably not.

Tier 2? For sure.

And by the end of this short article and the unveiling of our first preview, I intend to try to make you a believer.

For once, it seems like Females is ACTUALLY viable. The Kimono deck, after getting my preview Monday and slowly making adjustments to a proxy deck that I've been playing, has surprisingly come out... good. It can at least go toe to toe with a post-rotation Earth deck with all the trimmings, Deidara, C4, and C0 in tow. And it's all thanks to a couple of key cards that I think a lot of people are overlooking.

The Kimono Deck at a Glance

Pros:
-MASSIVE...team power
I'm not even kidding. It is very possible on turn 6 to swing out with 3 teams whose powers exceed 16+. And I'm not just saying this on a whim...it happens almost every other game.

-The ability to draw about half of your deck by turn 4~5

-Reasonably powerful Jutsu lineup

-Incredibly Strong Late Game (even more so than Earth)

Cons:
-Somewhat Luck based
This isn't as big a con as you might think. It's incredibly easy to get the results you want once you're setup. Things are only rocky turn 0 and turn 1 usually.

-Very susceptible vs. Hina
Most missions in the deck are Permanent. Hina hurts very badly. However, my build plays 12~14 missions so I hope they have a way to recycle it.

-Very susceptible vs. Mill/Deckout
Because of all the mandatory draw power in the deck, you should arrive at turn 5~6 with 15 or so cards left in the deck. If your opponent is playing mill, all it takes is once shot with something like Great Dragon Flame Jutsu (Give 1 Damage/Mill 5) in the early game and you'll need to wrap things up by turn 7 or you're screwed.

-No 2 drops
Hardly a draw back but there's no good post rotation female 2 drop besides KNS and you risk that dying to Shizune. It's at your discretion if you want to play it. Ino Yamanaka [Playful] is not an option as it kills your deck's draw engine.

-Poor Chakra Generation
We counter act that in a few ways (Bonds, Hard Charging) but chakra lock, like Mill, is a bad matchup.

The Cards

Ninja
Hotaru Katsuragi
Boobie Lady is the ideal 0 drop in the deck. Neither of her coin flip effects have a draw back and she's a very good stated Ninja. I play 3.

Temari
Broken. You should know why we're playing this. I play 2.

Hinata Hyuga (Kimono)
Her effect is barely a drawback. On turn 0, you're either going discard 1 of the cards in your opponent's hand or she's a 3/0. You're going to want to try to go for heads obviously as a few good flips and you pretty much lock up the game. I would play 3 in this deck. I'd shoot to drop her on turn 1 though.

Tenten (Kimono)
Neither of her draw backs are bad. She's a 3 combat turn 0. You should be playing 3 of these. Even if you hit tails early with this card, there are other card effects in the deck that benefit greatly from milling cards off the top of your deck.

Ino Yamanaka (Kimono)
Literally unplayable. The worst upside of any Kimono Card. The worst downside as well.
Do me a favor and stick to this broken Ino instead. Her stats will serve you far better than any coin flip effect can. Just so you know, I play 3 of that vanilla Ino.

Sakura Haruno (Kimono)
The second best Kimono Ninja. You should be playing 3 of these as this is what makes the deck run. Almost every card in the deck will generate you card draw off of Sakura. It's very easy to draw 4+ cards a turn with this card and Tenten. My record in I believe 10 in one turn. 3 of. No exceptions.

Rin
Was in some earlier builds of the deck. Decent female. Heals your Hinata. Can be abused with other cards in the deck. You might find it okay to run but I think it's subpar so I've cut it. When I did play it, it was at 1. Just thought it was worth mentioning. The deck has no 2 drops so if you want more 1 drops to fill the void, she's one of the best ones you're going to get.

Shizune (Kimono)
The third best Kimono. She has no real downside and her effect can be stacked multiple times. It's very easy to get +2/+2 every turn with her. Some turns you can go broken and get +5/+5 for every Ninja on your board. You should be playing 3 of this.

Chiyo
A necessary 3 drop. If you mill over Tsunade with Tenten, your late game is screwed. You need this Ninja to pick up Tsunade and for that it's a staple. I would probably play 2.

Anko Mitarashi (Kimono)
Anko is the Kimono I'm most on the fence about. Growth coins are very good, especially since you can have turns where it's possible to put 3 or 4 growth coins down. The reason why I'm weary of playing her is because she can very well eat all your chakra...something the deck already lacks because almost every mission is permanent. Your chakra comes almost exclusively from hard charging and Bonds in this deck... I have recently changed her to this Anko because of how many Ninjas you can put in play with this deck. It's simply a safer option.

Kurenai Yuhi (Kimono)
Ya'll ain't ready for this card. Seriously it's too good. So that's why we're not going to play it and opt for Genjutsu Reversal instead. It protects you from Jutsu on both players turns and has solid stats, without having to worry about decking out or giving your opponent advantage.

Konan
Techy option for a 5 drop. I've been experimenting around with it. Good synergy with max hand size increase cards.

Mission
Dreams of the Past
In many ways, this is the only reason this deck is playable. Being able to get 3 chances to hit the Kimono effects per turn starting on turn 1 is a must. If you stack at least 2 of these, you'll be able to resolve every effect for the rest of the game unless your opponent Hinas you. The D1 on T1 isn't bad either, especially if you curved Tenten/Sakura.

Fond Memories
I've played without it most of the time but I realized that it's definitely a necessary card in the deck. It's not better than Dreams but it allows for you to destroy your opponent mid/late game if you have a way to trigger all your Ninja effects at least 3 times in a turn.

Bonds of Frienship
A necessity. The deck simply has crap chakra generation and this helps smooth it out. The growth coin can be helpful late game too.

Ino's Tears
It's been awful for me. Just don't play it. The deck draws enough cards as it is...this is completely unnecessary. If you're playing the correct number/quantity of cards, you should draw them every game with this deck's amazing draw engine.

Barrier Preperation
I shouldn't have to explain why we're using this one. Blink out an injured Kimono, put it back into play, trigger your whole board.

Daydreaming
Draw 2, Heal a Ninja, trigger all my ninja effects, and my max hand size is increased by 2? Derp good in this deck.

Jutsu
Hydro-pump
BROKEN. BROKEN. BROKEN.

Stunning Strike
Sucks. Don't play it. I'm serious. Only on here cause I know someone is going to see "Expert: Female" and try it. Just...no.

Reanimation Ninjutsu
Fair choice. I don't play it but it's there if you want to draw a card/heal a ninja and pick up a Jutsu from the discard pile. It's main use is to loop Hydro Pump.

Kick of Anger
Injure spell for the whole deck. Built in howl if you tie or better on the EC. A very solid choice overall for this deck post rotation, since Wind has few better options.

Ferocious Punch!
Negation of choice. I shouldn't have to tell you how good this card is in this deck.

Infinite Embrace
The best card in the whole deck. Remove a Ninja and trigger all your effects....which means the card essentially reads: Move the Target to it's opponent's chakra area. Then, you draw 2 cards and discard 1 card from your hand. Then your opponent discard's a card from their hand. Then all your Ninja's get +1/+1 and you get a growth coin on 1 of your ninjas. If you have a second Embrace (which is very likely given what Tsunade does) or draw into a second Embrace...yeah. Good times.

Okay so if you actually read all of that, you have my gratitude. I just wanted to show people that there are a decent number of tools and that you can actually build a viable deck out of this. I'm not saying this is the best way to build it...keep in mind I've only been proxying for a day or two now...but for a Day 1 deck that's still rough around the edges...it has promise.

Oh and here's this TSUNADE (KIMONO)

that I'm sure you've all been waiting to drool over.

What a finisher for the deck right? Every turn you can trigger all the abilities of your Ninjas for 1 chakra. In addition, you get to pick up a Jutsu in your discard pile. Even the Haters can't say a Wind version of Jiraiya [Instruction of the Hidden Technique] is bad. Even if the Female/Kimono deck fails, I expect Tsunade to see play regardless. I feel she's just that good ... any respectable Wind deck should be able to easily muster 3 female Ninjas considering every Ninja in those decks is usually a Puppet, Female, or both if you consider Sasori.

*ba dum tiss*

*crickets*

*ahem*

I hope you've enjoyed our first preview card for Set 22. Check back for our other previews soon!

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, Deck Building, previews, reviews, Set 22, tsu

We just got our Set 22 Previews fresh from Bandai. After our set 20 preview fiasco (that shot us in the foot pretty badly mind you), we received some really stellar stuff to make up for it this time around. Get ready for the best set of previews yet! If the rest of the card's in the set are on par with what we got, I can only assume we're in for one hell of a good time post GenCon.

See you Friday! And trust me, it will be a good one!

Preview Hint: new KIcks for Miss melONs? Oh my!

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, previews, Set 22, tsu

Just as a reminder, we will be helping host along with 2010 SJC Champion "Squee" a tournament in Morristown, New Jersey on Saturday July 23rd.

You can find all the details on the official post on the Bandai boards located

Here

PLEASE POST IN THE THREAD IF YOU ARE COMING! WE NEED A HEAD COUNT!

This tournament needs a minimum of 30 players so please let us know if you are coming so we know if we are making our quota. If this event is successful, you can expect to see one perhaps in the winter time.

As an incentive for people to show up, we will be showcasing an exclusive preview that you can only see by attending this event. Be one of the first to see a very powerful card from Set 22, 2 weeks before its release!

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, previews, tournament, tsu

At this point I'm sure some of you have seen the card on Troll and Toad but none the less here is our last preview:

Barrier Battle Arts

Hope you enjoyed these previews. Check back for Set 22 previews very soon!

Labels: Chief Tsuzumiya Haruhi, previews, Tournament Pack 3, tsu