Please note, Sakazuki, Great Eruption, and Reject will be banned starting from June 21, 2024 with the release of OP-07 - 500 Years in the Future.

Tier Explanation

To create this Meta Tier list, I used data from tournaments, online ranked play, and my expertise and opinions of respected players. This tier list will hold meta-staple decks that you'll likely encounter in tournament play and will be updated as the meta changes up.

The decklists shared here have found success in tournament events but can be tweaked depending on meta shifts or players' own preferences.

Tier 1

Blue Black Sakazuki

Sakazuki remains a dominant force in the OP06 Meta, excelling at maintaining control over the board. Its cost-reduction ability pairs well with cards like Rob Lucci, Hound Blaze, Ama no Murakumo, and Borsalino, allowing you to deal with opponents' Characters.

The inclusion of 8 Gecko Moria has significantly bolstered the archetype's late-game potential, enabling impactful plays, particularly with Rob Lucci, and setting up a wide board of attackers for the upcoming turn. The list has access to value cards like Brannew, Sabo, Rebecca, and Gecko Moria, ensuring you don't run out of value throughout the game.

Sakazuki has emerged as a popular choice in both tournaments and ranked sim, solidifying its position as one of the premier decks in the current meta.

Guide:

Black Gecko Moria

In the OP06 meta, Black Gecko Moria has been achieving notable success by effectively balancing board development and control strategies. It utilizes cost-reduction cards to enable powerful plays with Rob Lucci and Absalom.

This is a difficult deck to pilot as it relies on cards from your trash, getting them back on the board or in your hand through Gecko Moria's leader effect, Doctor Hogback, and 8 Gecko Moria. Capitalizing on Gecko Moria's board development effect, you're able to establish a formidable board presence, launching a barrage of attacks that force opponents to expend their resources.

Black Gecko Moria has a great matchup table against most of the popular meta decks you'll go up against.

• Guide

Tier 2

Charlotte Katakuri

Renowned for its trigger effects, Yellow Katakuri stands out as one of the top contenders in the meta. The leader's ability provides invaluable card knowledge and the flexibility to manipulate the top card in your Life Area, creating pressure through trigger board development.

Mid-game pressure is pivotal for Katakuri, leveraging the +1000 ability to inflict damage to opposing Leaders while transitioning into late-game plays centered around Big Mom. The inclusion of 10 Charlotte Linlin not only grants an additional life card but also threatens opponents' Life cards, placing them at risk of losing to your attacks.

The late-game strength of 7 and 10 Charlotte Linlin is crucial, enabling you to outvalue opponents and eventually go through their blockers for that last one-hit wincon.

• Guide

Green Yellow Yamato

Yamato can be quite bothersome with the Double Attack ability, forcing Counter resources out of the opponent. Onami's Banish synergizes with Yamato's Double Attack, threatening to Trash two Life cards if the opponent doesn't commit Counter cards.

Hody Jones comes in handy to rest the opponent's blockers, creating opportunities to target their Leader and potentially clinch the game. Offering a straightforward yet potent gameplay experience, this deck overwhelms other decks with threatful attacks.

There are currently two competitive lists for Yamato, the Sky Wano Hybrid and Fortress lists, both performing well and have different playstyles.

Sky Wano Hybrid:

This version takes advantage of Sky Island and Land of the Wano characters as part of its game plan. It can be quite aggressive on the board with a couple of Trigger cards to enable you to develop Characters like Satori, Charlotte Cracker, and Kikunojo without using any Don!!!.

• Guide

Fortress:

The Fortress version plays around Eustass"Captain"Kid setup. You want to have him on the board, along with a couple of blockers to set up your Fortress, making it difficult for the opponent to reach your Leader. Donquixote Doflamingo joins the battle in the late game, offering a reliable defensive ability and shutting down the opponent's aggression on the upcoming turn.

Vinsmoke Reiju

The Reiju Germa 66 version has seen the most success in OP06 meta. This variant leverages Germa 66 cards such as Ichiji, Niji, Yonji, and Reiju to summon their higher-cost versions from either hand or Trash. This playstyle necessitates the return of Don!! cards to facilitate such plays, resulting in fewer Don!! cards compared to opponents.

However, Returning a Don!! card to the deck activates the leader's effect, providing additional card draw value. Keep in mind, the higher-cost versions of Germa 66 Characters have unique effects when the player has equal or less Don!! cards than their opponent.

Vinsmoke Reiju puts up a good fight against popular decks like Sakazuki, Katakuri, Enel, and Perona.

• Guide

Tier 3

Enel

Enel has been a solid deck in OP-06 meta that wants to prolong the game by putting more cards in their Life Area. The Leader's effect, Charlotte Katakuri, Charlotte Linlin, and Yamato provide that additional Life Card, making it a challenge for opponents to end the game.

This sets up Enel deck to slowly outvalue opponents, especially with Katakuri, Linlin, and Yamato going for big swings and shifting the board pressure in your favor.

Although Enel is not as popular as Yellow Katakuri, it still has a good representation in tournaments and has managed to win first place in some of them.

Guide:

Trafalgar Law

Red Purple Law is an aggressive deck that puts a lot of early to mid-game pressure on the opponent. The Leader can sacrifice Dons to place opponent's characters at the bottom of their deck, making it difficult for them to keep up with the board development.

This deck wants to close out games as fast as possible before it runs out of resources. Players have started including Vinsomoke Reiju since she synergizes with the Leader's ability and offers that important card draw.

Perona

Although not as prevalent as Gecko Moria and Sakazuki decks, Perona has found success in tournament settings. The archetype employs removal cards like X.Drake and Ryuma to assert control over the board.

With access to black, players are including Gecko Moria for that crucial value it provides, setting up a powerful board development while also threatening to K.O. a character with Ryuma.

• Guide

Green Uta

Uta focuses on flooding the board with multiple units utilizing the effect of cards like Brook and Monkey. D. Luffy. This shifts the momentum in your favor, paving the way for devastating attacks.

Eustass "Captain"Kid paired with Blockers can be a nightmare for many meta decks, making it extremely difficult for them to go through and strike Uta.

"I'm Invincible" enables the setup of multiple leader-driven attacks, utilizing Uta as a heavy hitter to secure victory.

Guide:

The post One Piece Card Game Meta Tier List (OP-06) appeared first on DotGG.

Explanation of Banned and Restricted cards from One Piece Card Game's official website: "When a card is a “Banned Card” it is not permitted at all in decks used, while a “Restricted Card” means only 1 of that card is permitted in the deck."

As for Errata cards: "Errata Cards are cards which have their text changed due to misprints, to clarify translation or wording, or to adjust game balance."

In this article, I'll delve into the cards that have defined the meta in the OP6 JP format, as well as those that have been frustrating for players to play against.

It's important to note that I'm not advocating for the banning or restricting of all these cards. Rather, I'm shedding light on what might be on Bandai's radar or what different parts of the community want to see addressed. Let's dive in!

8c Gecko Moria

Let's kick it off with 8c Gecko Moria, arguably the strongest card in the OP-06 release.

8c Gecko Moria is a powerful late-game play that allows players to bring Characters from the Trash onto the board. This ability has made Gecko Moria a staple card in decks like Sakazuki, Perona, Black Gecko Moria, and B/Y Luffy.

The board pressure coupled with the synergistic effect of two Characters from the Trash has solidified Gecko Moria as one of the strongest late-game plays, boosting various archetypes. This has led to a massive representation of both Sakazuki and Black Gecko Moria in the OP6 meta.

Consequently, there's widespread anticipation that Gecko Moria might face some form of restriction. A Ban or Restriction would tone down the late-game dominance of Black decks, leading to a significant shift in the meta and opening up opportunities for other archetypes to shine.

Although challenging to change text, limiting Moria to Thriller Bark Pirates Leaders could be another approach to keep it in check.

200,000,000 V Amaru

One of the strongest cards in Yellow that enables you to set up the finisher play. Yellow decks such as Katakuri and Enel often struggle against blockers, and Amaru is the perfect solution. The ability to rest one of those 4 cost blockers and pave the way for your Character to connect with the opponent's Leader can set up the winning play. Moreover, the +3000 Power provides an additional boost during your attack, offsetting the Power decrease resulting from spending 2 Don!!!

Amaru acts as a defensive option when its Trigger effect is activated, providing an extra Life Card for Yellow decks. This makes it exceptionally difficult for opponents to set up the finishing blow. Amaru's versatility allows it to be effectively utilized both offensively and defensively.

The community's stance on Amaru remains divided. While some advocate for its restriction, others argue that it serves as an indispensable component in Katakuri and Enel decks, essential for closing out games.

Rebecca

Rebecca stands out as a high-value card in the popular Sakazuki deck, offering the dual benefit of setting up a blocker and deploying a cost-reduction Character like Hina simultaneously. This synergistic play enhances the effectiveness of Sakazuki's removal tools while maintaining a defensive presence on the board.

However, banning or restricting 4c Rebecca means it'll be a huge blow for the Black/Blue Rebecca deck, which already struggles to compete with the dominant meta decks.

Unlikely, but an alternative solution is errata, limiting Rebecca to Dressrosa. This keeps 4c Rebecca relevant in decks like Black/Blue Rebecca.

10C Charlotte Linlin

I'm not keen on touching 10c Big Mom in any shape or form. However, there has been a notable uptick in complaints from part of the community regarding Yellow decks, particularly, Katakuri.

Charlotte Linlin is a high-cost Character that'll spend all your Don!!! to bring onto the field. While this investment may lead to a potentially weak defensive turn, the payoff of gaining a Life Card while your opponent trashes one constitutes a significant swing in value.

She plays a crucial role in keeping various Yellow decks relevant. If we see a card restriction, I prefer if Big Mom is restricted to 2 copies, keeping her as a viable late-game win condition. However, card restriction means 1 copy is only allowed unless that rule is changed.

Hound Blaze

Sakazuki deck has garnered hate due to its dominance across multiple metas, leaving players sick of going up against it. Hound Blaze is a great low-cost removal card to deal with an opponent's Character. The fact that Hound Blaze removes a Character from play and places it at the bottom of the opponent's deck instead of K.O. means it can deal with Characters like 4c Borsalino and 5c Black Sabo.

Hound Blaze is one of the top-performing cards in Sakazuki decks, playing a pivotal role in keeping the deck at the top of the meta. Losing access to that low-cost removal should impact the overall strength of the deck and tone down its board control capabilities.

Ana Murakumo will most likely be the replacement for Hound Blaze, but Sakazuki will lose that +3000 Power aggression that Hound Blaze provided.

Capone Bege

While I'm not the biggest fan of restricting Capone Bege, many players have voiced concerns that it should be limited. Personally, I don't think restricting Capone Bege to just one copy is necessary.

Typically, players don't drop Capone Bege on the board; instead, they primarily include it in Yellow decks for its +2000 Counter and Trigger effect.

When its Trigger effect kicks in, stopping a Character or Leader from attacking can completely change the game, giving you an extra turn to snatch victory. In the late game, both Enel and Katakuri heavily rely on Capone Bege to buy them more time.

Closing Words

Many players have raised concerns about other cards like Ice Age and Rob Lucci. Although they didn't make the list, they're still powerful cards that enable the Sakazuki deck.

There hasn't been any official announcement yet regarding the banned or restricted cards, we'll have to wait until the 3rd of March.

The post 6 One Piece Cards Candidates to Get Banned/Restricted (OP-06) appeared first on DotGG.

• ‘Staple’ – this is a well-known archetype with a significant play rate and win rate;
• ‘Dark Horse’ – it is an underplayed or emerging deck, with a power level high enough to be placed on the Tier List.
• The order of decks within Tiers doesn’t matter (i.e., decks that share ‘Tier 2 Staple’ ranking are not arranged by power level within that rank).

Meta Overview

Patch 5.1 introduced a couple of nerfs to top-performing decks like Morgana Galio Elder Dragon and Morgana Mordekaiser, toning down their overall power and giving more room for other decks to shine.

Additionally, the patch included buffs to Kai'Sa, Nilah, Udyr, and Nami, offering them a light boost to perform in the upcoming meta. The adjustments to Master Yi and Samira emphasized their early-game strength, encouraging players to explore these champions across different playstyles.

Check the latest Patch notes here.

Tier 1 Staple

Gwen Zed

Deck Code: CECQCBACBYBACAQGBEBACBIVCYBAMAQDBECQMBIMCAKCMKICAEBQKBABAYCQ4AA

Gwen Zed has been crushing it after the nerfs to the top-performing decks. The Ephemeral deck was already a good contender in the previous meta, leveraging the Ephemeral aggression and keeping pressure on opponents, making it difficult for them to set up their game plan.

Its ability to beat decks like Pyke Rek'Sai, Morgana Galio Elder Dragon, and Caitlyn Teemo FR quickly made it the most-played deck with a 54.3% win rate. However, it struggles against aggressive decks like Annie Jhin.

Annie Jhin

Deck Code: CUEQCAIDFAAQEBR4AECASDIBAUAQMAIGAIBQCBQMAIAQOAYOAIBAGAYEAMDAGDAPFEBACAIEBUAQMAQPAA

Annie Jhin closely tails Gwen Zed in popularity and has even surpassed it on occasion. The fact that Annie Jhin can crush the Gwen Zed matchup makes it one of the best decks to take for a ladder climb, boasting an impressive win rate of 56.12%.

If you favor aggressive style decks, then Annie Jhin is just the right deck to play in the Standard meta. It's capable of going wide on the board and stunning opponent's units to set up stronger attacks. Annie Jhin also has an edge against popular matchups like Pyke Rek'Sai, Viego Morderkaiser Elder Dragon, and Ashe LeBlanc.

Annie Jhin faces problems against decks like Seraphine Sett, Karma Sett, Kennen Jinx, and Janna Nilah since they can match the early aggression and have the low-cost damage spells to shut down Annie Jhin's attacks.

Tier 1 Dark Horse

Ashe LeBlanc

Deck Code: CEBQEBADAQHQGAIDDIPSCBIBAECAWHRGFECACBADBAAQMAISAEEACEYCAEARMKQA

I didn't expect Ashe LeBlanc to hold one of the highest win rates on the ranked ladder with 56.03%. Although the deck struggles against both Gwen Zed and Annie Jhin, it seems to be putting up a good fight against the rest of the meta.

The Freeze archetype can be a hassle for decks like Pyke Rek'Sai, Master Yi Nami, and Caitlyn Teemo FR to deal with.

Kennen Jinx

Deck Code: CQCQCBAECAAQMCQ2AEDQIBIEAECAYKBNGQCAKCR2JZKJCAICAECQUWYBA4FASAQBA4CASAQBAQASM

Kennen Jinx is another aggressive deck with a high win rate of 60.3%. It falls under Tier 1 Dark Hose as it beats the top meta decks but still doesn't have the play rate to be considered a Staple in the meta.

Taking a look at Kennen Jinx's matchup table, the archetype is beating most of the meta decks, which qualifies it as a solid consideration to take for your ladder climb. Its bad matchups are Seraphine Sett and Norra Elder Dragon.

Tier 2 Staple

Morgana Galio Elder Dragon

Deck Code: CUDQCAIADUAQOAAQAEEASAYBBABQGAQGAAWDAAQIAAFBIAYFAAGBEFACAECQACIBBAEQKAYBAUAAUAIFAIKACCAMBY

Despite the nerfs to Morgana and Sai'nen Thousand-Tailed, Morgana Galio Elder Dragon continues to perform well on the ranked ladder. Players have cut out Mageseeker Inquisitor and Sai'nen Thousand-Tailed for Blocking Badgerbear and Ballen the Benevolent.

It looks like the community is not going to get rid of the GEM deck that easily. The main reason GEM is still performing well is because it crushes decks like Ashe LeBlanc, Seraphine Sett, Caitlyn Teemo FR, and Master Yi Nami.

Pyke Rek'Sai

Deck Code: CMCACBQGFUAQMBYFAQCAMAIDAUHQMBAHCMLECRCKKAAQCBAHAEAQEBAHHNCQ

Pyke Rek'Sai players continue to keep the archetype part of any meta we're in. The Lurk archetype is keeping a respectable win rate of 52.67%.

Although Pyke Rek'Sa is losing to Gwen Zed and Annie Jhin, the Lurk players are managing to beat other matchups they go up against, contributing to the win rate staying above 50%.

Master Yi Nami

Deck Code: CICQCAQGBYAQGBQRAEDQEEICAUDAKCYEAYBAQDIOEICQCAQGDAAQEAQKAEBQEFABAYBCAAIIAYLQEAIBAIYQEAQCAUEA

With buffs to Master Yi and Nami in Patch 5.1, players have been experimenting with different archetypes, trying to find the best decks for those champions. If you're the type of player who enjoys buffed-up elusives, then this deck might be right up your alley.

However, Nami Master Yi is struggling to keep up with the meta decks, barely holding a 50% win rate.

Karma Sett IO Seraphine Sett IO

Deck Code: CQCQCAICFEAQCBBUAEBAEBIBBACASBAHAIFRCEYUA4AQGAQUAEBQICYBAUBAMAIFAQTACBQECIAQQCQGAEEAICACAEAQEMIBAYCC4

Deck Code: EQBQCBQECUAQOAQLAEEAICIFAEAQINABAIBAKAIDAIKACBQCEAAQOAQUBMAQCARRAEAQIIIBAMCAWAIEAQDQCBQCEQAQQCQGAIDQEEITAIDQICIWAIEAIAQIAQCQICQRDATAKBQEBEJCQKZO

Karma Sett and Seraphine Sett managed to dodge nerfs to their Sunken Temple, keeping their clutches onto the meta as potent control archetypes.

With the rise of decks like Gwen Zed, Annie Jhin, and Kennen Jinx, Karma Sett and Seraphine Sett should be able to prey on those decks with their low-cost spells, making sure they struggle to set up their early-game aggression.

Teemo Yuumi

Deck Code: EQDQCBQKDIAQMBAUAEEAUAQBBACAKAQBAQEDIAQHAQCQSBAFBICR3DIBU4AQCAIGBIUAEAIHBIEQCCAGDQ

The nerf to Yuumi was just a slap on the wrist for the elusive Teemo Yuumi deck. The archetype can still build a frightening elusive pressure, difficult for many decks to deal with. It remains a Tier 2 deck, with a 54.11% win rate.

Caitlyn Teemo FR

Deck Code: EECACAIBAQAQQAITAICQIBQOAQAQICAZGQ5AMAIBAQ2QCBABBIAQKBACAEEACGABBACBQAQBAEPCUAQBAEAQCAIEAQDQ

Caitlyn Teemo Frejlord is desperately trying to stay relevant in the meta, holding a 51% win rate. It has an awful matchup experience against the top performers like Annie Jhin and Gwen Zed.

Janna Nilah

Deck Code: EICACAIEGQAQEBQJAMEAMCAXDECQQBABAIEBEFACAEDQIBICBACAKEYEAECAICYBAYCBIAIHAQEQCCAGB4

Nilah received a tiny buff in Patch 5.1 and hey, we take those! Getting to level up Nilah on 15 card draws could change some scenarios from losing to winning games! Janna Nilah has a 53.19% win rate and beats popular decks like Annie Jhin, Gwen Zed, Pyke Rek'Sai, and Ashe LeBlanc. Some versions also include Sunkin Temple in the list.

Tier 2 Dark Horse

Darius Gnar

Deck Code: CQEQCAIBCYAQCAZIAEBACBQBAIBQKAIFBKQQCAIFAEDACBQDFEAQOAIQAEEACEYEAEAQCBIBAQAQUAIHAMHAGAIDBMGSMAIBAYARQ

Seems like the Overwhelm deck is packing some heavy hits in Patch 5.1. The Gnar Darius deck is rocking a 57.52% win rate on the ranked ladder.

The aggressiveness of Darius Gnar can "overwhelm" a lot of archetypes in the meta like Master Yi Nami, Pyke Rek'Sai, and Caitlyn Teemo FR. It has a nearly even matchup against Annie Jhin. Ashe LeBlanc's Freeze cards are the main weakness of this deck.

Ekko Jinx

Deck Code: CMCQCBQHAUAQOBAJAIAQIKBUAMCAIAIEA4CQIBYBDRGU6UYBAICAOO3NAA

Ekko Jinx is one of those decks that can do wonders if piloted efficiently. It's a difficult deck to master, but can be rewarding.

The change to the Predict mechanic was a power boost to the deck, allowing players to keep Predicted cards on the top of the deck even with a Time Trick play from Ekko.

Ekko Jinx has an overall 57% win rate on the ranked ladder. The fact that it beats the likes of Annie Jhin, Zed Gwen, and Pyke Rek'Sai makes it an amazing choice for a serious ladder climb.

Shyvana Morgana

Deck Code: EUDACAIADIAQKAAMAEDAAMABBABQGAQDAABAWAQIAAGRSBABA4AAKAQDAABQQAQIAAIRUAQIBEBR4AQBBAAAUAIIBQHA

Shyvana Morgana Elder Dragon is continuing a powerful performance despite the nerfs to the Dragon Boons. The deck has a high win rate of 56% on the ranked ladder.

Players are still experimenting with different lists, some are cutting out Mageseeker Inquisitor and Alatis the Gallant from the list for Windsinger and Boadir of Blackened Ice.

Norra Elder Dragon

Deck Code: EUEACAIEAYAQGBQRAECQEBYBAYBRQAIHBIEQCCAKCQBAMCQPCEBQKCRIGHDACAQBAIDBYAIFBLKQCAYBA4FA6AIIBIDACCAMBY

Norra Elder Dragon was hit with a rough nerf to both Dragon Boons and Sai'nen Thousand-Tailed, affecting its overall performance on the ranked ladder. Now it struggled to maintain a 50% win rate and will likely fall off Tier 2 Dark Horse if it doesn't adapt to the meta and nerfs.

Unpopular Choices

If none of these meta choices fit your playstyle, here are two decks with high win rates but aren't seeing too much play on the ranked ladder.

Miss Fortune Quinn

Deck Code: EIDQCAIADUAQEAAGAECQMAIBA4AAKAQFAAFAYAQGAAUS2AYCAYLCQPQDAEAQABQBAIAAUAIHAAHACAIBAAGQ

The Scouts deck is putting up a wonderful performance in Patch 5.1 meta. The archetype excels at dominating the board and putting a lot of early-game pressure. This comes in crucial against fast-paced decks like Gwen Zed, Annie Jhin, Pyke Rek'Sai, and Kennen Jinx.

Teemo Tristana Elder Dragon

Deck Code: CUCACAIEBAAQKAQHAEDQUCIGAUFGA2LQOSTQDNYBAMAQQAYDAICQVBABQUAQEBQJAQRQGAICAYIQCBIK2UAQCCAMBY

Teemo Tristana Elder Dragon maintains a high win rate even after getting hit with a nerf to Sai'nen Thousand-Tailed. The archetype can match the early aggression of Annie Jhin and Kennen Jinx, especially with Pie Toss in its arsenal.

Closing Words

The Standard meta has seen some changes with the nerfs to Mageseeker Inquisitor and Morgana, giving more room for different archetypes to shine. The meta is still developing as players try to figure out the top performers.

I relied on stats from LoR.gg, Ruenterra AR, and llor-stats to create this meta-tier list.

The post Legends of Runeterra Standard Meta Tier List – Best Ladder Decks appeared first on DotGG.

Gameplan

Charlotte Katakuri, our Yellow leader, holds a special ability to peek at the top card of either player's Life Area. This allows you to strategically manipulate the cards, either keeping them on top or sending them to the bottom. Although activating this ability costs 1 Don!!, the +1000 boost on Katakuri sets up for stronger attacks.

The goal is to utilize this ability whenever possible, as the +1000 Power bonus applies pressure on your opponent and often forces them to expend counter resources.

When examining your Life Area, prioritize keeping cards with trigger effects on top to get value out of them. The stage of the game affects your decision on which cards you want on the top. For example, Charlotte Perospero and Satori are great early to mid-game triggers to have on top of your Life Area. Capone Bege and Sanji are better suited for the late game as they play a more defensive role.

When observing your opponent's Life Area, aim to discard any cards that could disrupt your strategy, sending them to the bottom of their Life Area.

The Trigger Value

This deck excels in creating a formidable board presence through trigger effects like those of Charlotte Perospero, Satori, Charlotte Cracker, and Sanji. While these summons don't require Don!!, they do consume cards from your hand.

With a power of 5000, these characters serve as excellent attackers, whether confronting the opponent's Leader directly or clearing their units. Your main goal is to develop a solid board presence and use your Characters to keep that board in check.

Charlotte Perospero is one of the best characters to have in the early game since, unlike Satori, it's 3 cost character with a draw effect. On the other hand, Satori isn't a character you want to spend 5 mana to play, instead, you'll rely more on its counter effect to keep other Characters alive or protect your Leader.

Charlotte Cracker becomes particularly potent when your Life count is lower than your opponent's. Giving one Don!! and pumping up its Power will set up the Double Attack and force opponents to commit their counter cards to protect their Life.

You're not upset to see Sanji on the top of your Life Area regardless of the stage of the game. Sanji can be a great board pressure in the mid-game and can also be used for defensive purposes to protect other characters or your Leader in the mid/late game.

Unlike Sanji, Charlotte Brûlée is mostly on the board for defensive purposes and can come in clutch if it's played from her trigger effect, providing additional protection to your Characters or Leader.

Shirahoshi and Capone Bege are more suited for the late game. So if you find them on the top of your deck you'll want to move them to the bottom and increase the odds of finding better-suited trigger cards for the mid-game.

Shirahoshi offers 3 card draw and you can trash 2 unneeded cards. 5 cost can be expensive to play, which is why you'd rather play her through her trigger effect.

As for Capone Bege, this card is a valuable +2000 counter; you don't want to play it on the board as it doesn't offer any threat when played. Activating its trigger effect in the late game can catch opponents off-guard, disrupting their attack phase by shutting down an attacker and potentially buying you an additional turn to win the game.

Mid-Game Removal

Gedatsu proves invaluable for dealing with units of 5 Power or less, potentially swinging the board in your favor. However, its effect depends on the opponent's Life.

This means if you have Gedatsu in your hand in the early stages of the game, you want to avoid dropping the opponent's Life below 4 or 5, depending on the matchup. This can set up a powerful Gedatsu turn to switch the board presence in your favor by KOing a unit on the spot.

In the later stages of the game, you'll likely not find value in Gedatsu's effect anymore and can either act as a Counter, a 6000 Power attacker, or even trash fodder.

Events

The list only runs two Events with their own unique trigger effects. Thunder Bolt has a great Trigger effect that allows you to K.O. one of your opponent's Characters with a cost of 5 or less. Activating the trigger doesn't only bypass the mana cost but also doesn't require you to trash a card from the top of your Life area. This can be a great game-swinger in the midstage. It can also shut down a potential attacker, weakening your opponent's aggression.

200,000,000 V Amaru is more of an aggressive Event that allows you to Rest a 4-cost unit and give +3000 Power to your Leader or a Character. This comes in handy if you're looking to attack the Leader directly, but the opponent has a blocker on the board with 4 cost or less like Rebecca or Borsalino.

As for its trigger effect, you'll get to trash two cards from your hand and add 1 card from the top of your deck to your Life area. Technically, you're burning one card since you'll later get to draw the card in your Life area. This can make it more difficult for the opponent to close out games. However, in a lot of cases, you'll opt to not activate the trigger effect if you don't feel you're under the threat of losing the game.

+2000 Counters

You don't really want to play these Characters on the board, as they offer more value when used as +2000 Counter plays to protect Characters or your Leader.

However, Streusen can come in handy when facing aggressive decks like Zoro that rely on 1-cost Characters. The ability to K.O. one of those units can slow down their aggression and buy you enough time to shift the game in your favor.

Late-Game Winners

You don't care much about dropping your opponent to 0 card Life by attacking with your units since the 7 and 10 Linlin will do the job for you. The 7 Big Mom forces your opponent to make a difficult choice of either trashing a card from their Life area or giving you an additional Life, hence more card value. There is no win-win scenario for them here unless their Life area has no cards.

As for 10 Big Mom, she does not give opponents the luxury of choosing their poison; both 7 Big Mom effects will take place. You'll gain an extra Life card while your opponent trashes a Life card, this is a massive value swing that also puts the opponent at the risk of losing the game to your attackers.

8 Charlotte Katakuri's play effect can be used either to put a Character back in the Life Area. Depending on the scenario of the game, you'll get to decide whether you'd rather get rid of an opponent's Character or place on of your Character in your Life Area.

Placing a Character in your Life Area grants you an additional Life, making it more of a challenge for the opponent to close out the game. Additionally, you can benefit from the trigger effect of the Character you play Katakuri's effect on.

Popular Matchups

Sakazuki

• You're up against a deck that wants to control the board with its removal cards.
• Sakazuki has 4 Life, which means it can be awkward to set up a Gedatsu play. If you have him in hand, you can opt to skip your first attack and try K.O. Robb Lucci or Kuzan. However, Borsalino can be problematic since Gadesto can't K.O. it. Instead, you might adopt a more aggressive play and start forcing counters out of them.
  If you do drop them down to 3 Life cards, Gadesto can still find use for K.Oing Hina.
• Taking Life cards with 10 Big Mom can put them at the risk of losing to big hitters. They'll rely on their blockers to shut down your attacks.
• With 200,000,000 V Amaru, you could rest a Rebecca or Borsalino, paving the way for you to connect with their Leader and close out the game.

Enel

• You want to adopt more aggressive gameplay in the early stages of the game and drop them down to 2 Life cards.
• From there, you'll focus more on building a board and keeping theirs in check. The goal is to make it awkward for them to set up a Yamato play and create an opportunity for one powerful hit to close out the game.
• Watch out for their Gadetsu play, it's fine to drop to 3 Life cards if it means you'll get to keep Cracker and Sanji safe from getting K.Oed.
• 10 Big Mom is a nightmare for them. Trashing one Life card will force them into a more defensive play, unable to defend their 7 Enel. 10 Big Mom is extremely difficult for them to K.O. and will be a heavy hitter.
• Important not to drop them 0 Life cards for the first time a turn if you're unable to follow it up with an attack. You want to avoid allowing Enel to activate their effect and gain value.

Purple Luffy

• You'll rely a lot on your trigger cards to build a board and keep up with Purple Luffy.
• Don't hold onto 7 or more cards in your hand. You want to avoid setting up their Trafalgar Law to trash two cards from your hand.
• You mustn't let them dominate the board's presence. Use Thunder Bolt to clear their blockers.
• Katakuri is nice in this matchup to put one of your Characters in your Life Area, giving you an additional protection layer to prolong the game.

Closing Words

Katakuri highly relies on the trigger effects to set up that powerful board presence and create threatening attacks. It has a good shot at beating popular meta decks which makes it a solid contender in tournaments. It's always useful to learn how the deck operates to pilot it correctly or at least know what you're up against.

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