Table of Contents
Each week, I will share with you some strategic thoughts highlighted by the Disney Lorcana metagame, so that you can be prepared to dominate your competition!
The first Disney Lorcana Set Championship will be held in selected Organized Play locations from April 19th to 28th, giving players an opportunity to compete and win a promo Stitch - Rock Star card and playmat.
Playing in an established metagame
Almost 2 months after set 3 release, the meta has settled down. We know what are the best deck archetypes and how they line up with each other. But how can this established metagame help us to crush our locals? This article will give you some tips, in order to win the precious and desired Stitch - Rock Star!
What does an established metagame mean exactly? A new product release or a major update in the game shakes Lorcana and other TCGs up. It is then time for innovation and hype for new cards like it was for Jafar. Indeed, Jafar - Striking Illusionist was very popular the week of the set release thanks to his flashy combo with A Whole New World. But then players understood that the combo (as powerful as it is) was not enough to make a consistent deck. Indeed, Jafar’s deck needed to run too many “bad” cards to be consistent and considered as a tier 1 deck. That's why its popularity declined slowly to tier 3.
After a few weeks, Amber/Steel songs won big tournaments and Zan Syed shared some guides and videos to explain how the deck works and what the plans are against most popular ink pairs.
Then, since week 4, five decks have been competing for the title of the best set 3 deck. They've managed to keep higher than 5% representation each week according to our meta report !
Focus on the big bad Amethyst/Ruby
Since set 2, Amethyst/Ruby is the most popular deck around. It's a strong and well known deck. Moreover, you can find plenty of content dealing with it, such as this deck guide from Den.
Base statement
In Den’s guide, both of the two lists are running 4 Be Prepared. This card is very powerful and allows the player to reset the board. It's like having an emergency button if you are feeling too far behind on the board.
But Be Prepared is so impactful that it becomes meta defining and everyone is playing around it. Indeed, as soon as the control player hits 7 ink, aggro players boards’ will be swiped up. Aggro players need to adjust their game plan accordingly. It could be, by saving resources to rebuild a board as fast as possible or by sneaking a well timed The Bare Necessities or Ursula - Deceiver on turn 6.
Going further
In the latest tournaments, top players are running less than 4 copies of Be Prepared. Some are adding Scar - Vicious Cheater. But some others like Rafał Tarnowski or Raclem are just cutting one or two, assuming that, even if they don't always have it in hand, the card needs to be respected.
What if someone crazier pushes this concept and runs 0 Be Prepared in their Amethyst/Ruby deck !
That's what Theotime Buchot made at Aulnay with their own takes on Amethyst/Ruby. Going for a more tempo oriented version of the deck but not as all-in on the aggro plan like versions running Pinocchio - Star Attraction.
The advantage of running a deck like this is that until your opponent understands that you might be running no Be Prepared, they might play assuming you have it, making sub optimal plays like keeping resources for post board wipe or by casting their key The Bare Necessities or Ursula - Deceiver on turn 6 into a hand full of characters.
Other decks can run these tricks too!
Amethyst deck running no Merlin - Goat to finish the game. But the fear of the goat puts pressure on control players to stabilize the game at low lore count and then to remove any threat that can let you reach 16+ lore.
Emerald/Steel decks running both discard packages with Bucky - Squirrel Squeak Tutor or Sudden Chill alongside A Whole New World. This allowed them to break the top deck mode they set up in early game if they wanted to.
Ruby/Sapphire control decks not relying on Fishbone Quill for their ramp but using How Far I'll Go in order to blank Benja - Guardian of the Dragon Gem and other tech cards.
Conclusion
In the current established metagame, I suggest breaking the consensus made on well known lists by tweaking it to trick and fool your opponents. This might be the key to surprise and take advantage of your opponents in the local community and win your set championship ! Or at least be aware that some of the most bold players will try to trick you with this kind of mind game.
As always feel free to share any comment or feedback below or by twitter @BaoxsbPro
