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Gunslinger in the Sky (Wind)

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26-041 – Ashe

Ashe looks like she just came out of Revenant Wings. And, on closer inspection, it says Revenant Wings right on the bottom.

First look shows us that if you have 3 Final Fantasy XII Characters on the field, Ashe’s cost will become 2CP. And, with that 2CP you get a 9K body. Who would have thought that the Queen would be a Meat Shield?

And, that is not the reason that you will play this Legend. All of your Forwards, except for Ashe will gain +2000 power. Pair that with Maria (1-083H) and all of your other Forwards will have +3000 power.

And if you need to reduce the damage dealt to one of your Forwards, all you need to do is dull one of your Final Fantasy XII Characters, and that damage will be reduced by 2000. This along with Ashe and Maria, gives your Forwards a 5K buffer zone. I’ll take it. Might even decide on some Sky Pirates one day.

26-042R – Alexander

That’s it? 3CP to break a High Cost Character?

And, if you don’t have the CP you can just dull 2 Wind Forwards?

This is great!

I’ll take 3 of these, even if I don’t have a Wind deck at the moment.

This card will see plenty of use.

 

26-043R – Vaan EX

Did we already say that Sky Pirates are making a comeback?

They might be, and Vaan is here to help with that.

We won’t even talk about his enter the field ability, where you can add a Sky Pirate to your hand from the top 3 cards of your deck. Or the fact that, this ability comes off of an EX Burst as well.

Nope, we’re going to talk about his second ability, which states that every time a Sky Pirate enters your field, you will activate 2 of your Backups. Vaan pays for himself right away. 2CP from the Sky Pirate you grab when he enters the field, and 2CP every time a Sky Pirate enters your field.

Vaan will give you positive CP, which is always good for Wind.

After that Vaan is just a Meat Shield.

26-044C – Sky Samurai

“Samurai of the Skyyyy,
Attack and Activate Myyy,
Backups, we can do it thriiiice”

I’ll leave that to the professionals.

Imagine having a Forward that can activate a couple of Backups every time they attack. Now think if you can have 3 of those Forwards on the field at the same time.

And, that Forward gains +2000 power when they attack!

I think we have something here. All decks playing Wind should have 3 of these.

It’s called Free CP. It’s even better if those Backups have abilities that you can use again.

And again.

And, again.

26-045C – Aerith

What can we say about this card? All you need is right there. On the card.

Aerith will activate all of your Final Fantasy VII Characters other than herself.

All you need to know is that Aerith should be usually played during your Main Phase 2. That way you can go all out and Attack with all of your Forwards. Play Aerith and have all of your Forwards ready to block.

And, that is that.

 

26-046C – Echo EX

Wol needs your help.

First off he needs help finding himself. Luckily Echo is here to help with that. Echo will search for Wol when she enters the field. This ability also comes off from an EX Burst.

Wol also needs some protection, and Echo can also help with that. If Wol is ever targeted by Summons or abilities, Echo will grant him protection in the form that Wol cannot be chosen by your opponent’s Summons or abilites.

Opus V Wol, I’m looking at you! You’re going to make a comeback!

26-047H – Oschon

I lost count of which of “The Twelve” I’ve seen. I’m thinking by the time I’ve seen Oschon it’s probably close to the end.

Oschon gains 1000 power for every other member of “The Twelve” That you have on the field. Giving Oschon a max of 16,000 from “The Other Eleven” And, there still are more ways to increase Oschon’s power. You might be able to get him into the 20s.

And once, Oschon has more than 10,000 power, Oschon will not be able to be chosen by your opponent’s abilities, and if he is dealt damage by any ability, that damage becomes 0.

Oschon might just be the main attacker of “The Twelve”

26-048C – Cloud

A Wind Cloud? Haven’t seen one of these yet.

5CP, or you can Warp Cloud for 2CP. Do you want to wait a turn? Or did you want Cloud in right this instance. Either way, if you can keep Cloud alive through out the match, Cloud will most likely be giving you a card every turn. Especially if you’re playing a Mono-Wind deck. Which is now possible with all the Final Fantasy VII Wind cards we have now.

You don’t even need to play Cloud in a FFVII deck, he’ll fit right in any Mono-Wind deck.
Focused Thrust? Yes, a special ability that will allow you to break a high cost Forward. 5CP or more.

26-049R – Cactuar Conductor

A 2 cost Backup, that can save your World of Final Fantasy Characters.

Let’s say Reynn, or Lann is about to be broken by one of your opponent’s abilities, Cactuar Conductor will come in and save the day. He’ll remove the Forward from the game and bring them back to the field at the end of the turn.

Or, does that World of Final Fantasy Forward have a great enter the field ability that you want to use once again, Cactuar Conductor is here to help with that as well.

Extra bonus points for Tonberry being featured on the card.

26-050R – Cissnei

I thought I already wrote this one.

Cissnei enters the field and you have 2 options. Either send a Monster to the Break Zone, or you can activate 3 Backups.

If you choose to activate the Backups, Cissnei becomes a free play. And, we here at Kardboard Korner like free.

Cissnei also has an ability that will deal 2000 damage to a Forward of your choosing.
That’s about it simple, effective and great art.

26-051C – White Mage

Are you looking for Break Zone removal?

White Mage is here for that. Why would a White Mage be removing cards from the Break Zone is not something I thought I would see. I would have given that to maybe a Time Mage, or a Necromancer.

Once you use White Mage’s ability, you will take 3 cards from your opponent’s Break Zone and remove them from the game. If one was a Water card, you’ll also draw a card. And then you will discard a card.

White Mage can be useful in a pinch.

26-052H – Sonon

Sonon is back, and I’ll say that this Sonon is the best Sonon so far, son(on).

You will play Sonon on the same turn that you play Yuffie, that way they both will have Haste, an they both will be able to form a party and attack.

And, once that happens, you will activate all of your Backups, and you will draw a card. Leaving you with plenty of options for your Main Phase 2.

Now the only question left is what Yuffie do we use? I’m sure there’s one in this set, although I haven’t seen it yet. (This was written a month before Gunslinger in the Abyss is released. No Yuffie yet.) I would say either Resurgence of Power Yuffie, where she activates all of your Forwards when she attacks, or Hidden Trials Yuffie, where you draw a card when she deal damage to your opponent. 2 Wind CP will make that Yuffie unblockable.

The Choice is yours, would you like to draw 1 cards, or would you like to activate all of your Forwards?

26-053L – Bartz

Warriors of Light get ready to use those Crystals!

Bartz is here, and ready to be put into any deck that has Crystal Generators. You don’t even need any Wind Elements in your deck, as long as you have Crystals ready to go. 3 to be exact. You can pay for Bartz with those 3 Crystals, and when he enters the field, you can look at the top 2 cards of your deck, and play a Character that costs 3CP or less straight to the field. The other card goes to your hand.

And if you don’t want to use Crystals, you can always just pay 8CP. Because at the end of the day, You will get at least half of the CP you used back.

After all is said and done, Bartz becomes a Meat Shield with 9000 power.

26-054C – Penelo

If you’re playing Sky Pirates, you might as well throw Penelo in, even if you’re playing with another Penelo.

Why?

Well, first off Penelo is a Free Play if you already have Vaan on the field.

Second, Penelo will show you the top card of your deck, and if it’s a Final Fantasy XII card you can add it to your hand. If it’s not you just put it back. This way, you’ll at least know what the next card is.

And lastly, Penelo will block an attack, just so you can use this card again.

It’s not the best Penelo, but what she does is great for a turn.

26-055H – Fina

Now this is interesting. Fina the Warp Mage!

Warping has now become that much easier. Warp any element that you’d like without worrying about what elements you have in your hand or on the board, because Fina will allow you to pay with any element that you have on hand.

And, when Fina enters the field she will search for a Character that can Warp. Allowing you to use her ability from the get go.

Fina also has another ability that will remove a Warp counter from one of your cards that are currently Warping.

This is a great card all around. 3 of these will always be good to have. Even if you don’t need them in your current deck, you might need them in a future deck.

26-056C – Gorger

It’s the Elemental Wind Monster in the Abyss.

Gorger becomes a Forward during your turn, and Gorger can not be blocked by a Forward that costs 3CP or more.

Pay attention.

When Gorger deals damage to your opponent, you will put Gorger into the Break Zone, Activate 3 Backups, and draw a card. After that you can play that card that you just drew, because you’ll have 3 extra CP that you didn’t have before.

Gorger would have been better if he wasn’t sent to the Break Zone, after it deals damage, but then Gorger would have been over powered.

26-057C – Millefeui

A one cost Backup that will allow you to draw 2 cards down the line.

Millefeui isn’t a bad card to have, as you’ll be getting 1CP per turn, and you pay a whopping 1CP to get Millefeui on the field.

Only drawback, which isn’t really a drawback, is that you need at least 15 Wind cards in your Break Zone.

Other than that it’s a decent card. I don’t see me using it though.

 

26-058H -Larsa

This card is hard to read. The way the Full Art blends with the words is just off putting.
Let’s see what Larsa does.

Larsa is made for a Final Fantasy XII deck, but that deck will not be Sky Pirates.

When Larsa comes in you will either grab Ashe, Basch or a Judge from your deck and add it to your hand. I’m guessing we’re going to see more Judges here, or a Final Fantasy XII Royal Family deck, where Rasler will finally have a deck to be in.

Larsa will also sacrifice himself when a Final Fantasy XII Forward is sent into the Break Zone. And you will then add that Forward back to your hand.

I’d just change the art, make it a bit more readable.

26-059R – Llymlaen

Here is the first card that you will want to play when playing “The Twelve”. Llymalaen will allow you to cast “The Twelve” with CP of any element. No need to worry about how you’re going to pay for each member, when Llymlaen is on the field.

And, Llymlaen’s cost of 2CP makes her even better.

Is that all?

Nope.

Llymlaen will also protect one member of The Twelve when they are chosen by your opponent’s Summons.

26-060C/15-058C – Dragoon

Here’s a reprint, of a reprint, of a reprint.

So, we’re just going to, you guessed it, Copy/Paste from Opus XV Crystal Dominion.

“You’ll need Dragoon to keep Kain on your side.

Other than that he enters the field. Gives you a Crystal. And finally you put him in the Break Zone and he gives 1 Forward First Strike.”

And, there’s no Kain here, so that was useless.

Windy Singles? 

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Tears of the Limit Break

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25-106R – Machina LB

How much you like this card depends on when you can play it.

Machina is a 2 cost Forward, who’s power will range from 4K – 10K, as every point of damage that you have received gives Machina +1000 power.

This is not bad at all. The only problem I see is that you can’t play Machina if you already have a Forward on the field.

And, that might be the reason Machina is a Limit Break.

.
25-107H – Red XIII LB

This is what a Limit Break should be.

Red XIII comes in and he gives all of your Forwards +2000 power until the end of the turn. With all the Final Fantasy VII Characters in this set, I see Red XIII being a great Limit Break to play.

And, since we’re talking about Final Fantasy VII, if you have another 2 FFVII Characters on the field, Red XIII will also gain Haste, First Strike, and Brave.

This will be a great play after a couple of turns. You’ll have a Forward that will be tough to beat.

I do like this one.

25-108R – Kam’lanaut LB

I’m not sure if Kam’lanaut looks more like a Transformer or a Super Hero.

Either way Kam’lanaut will do the same thing once he enters the field. He will break a Forward.

Why am I so sure, that Kam’lanaut will break one of your opponent’s Forwards? Because you wouldn’t be playing it if you didn’t control a Dark Forward.

After that you’ll have a Meat Shield on the field.

Hey, that rhymes.

25-109H – Shuyin LB

Shuyin! What’cha doin?

Looking for Vegnagun, that’s what Shuying is doing!

Shuyin will come in and search for a Dark Forward. If you don’t want Vegnagun, you can always look for Emissaries of Light Chaos, and go that route.

And, hey if you get Vegnagun in your starting hand, you won’t need Shuyin, but it’s always good to have him.

Yeah, I can’t think of anything else.

25-110R – Aerith LB

Here’s a way to make sure you can start your FFVII deck off right.

If your hand isn’t good, and you need to just find Zack or Cloud, Aerith knows where to find them.

You can then play them on to the field, and go along with your plan.

Aerith can also cancel an auto-ability targeting a FFVII Character.

It’s almost as if she’s sacrificing herself to protect the rest.

I’d call Aerith the perfect Meat Shield, but that feels wrong.

25-111H – The Emperor LB

Do you want to draw more card?

The Emperor her will help you out with that.

Every time your opponent searches for a card, or brings a card back from the Break Zone, you get to draw a card. And, there’s no limit on how many cards you can grab.

Since we already know that every deck has a card that searches for cards, and most decks have a way of bringing cards back from the Break Zone, you will draw enough cards to make The Emperor a free play in the long run.

You also get a body on the field with 5000 power.

You’ll want to keep The Emperor on board for as long as you can.

25-112H – Sarah (MOBIUS) LB

We were just talking about MOBIUS, somewhere during this set, and it is getting some love here.

Sarah will come in and if you find a MOBIUS card in the top 4 cards of your deck, you can add it to your hand, if not then all the cards go to the Break Zone.

It can work in your favor, it can also work against you.

But, the real reason you’ll be playing Sarah, is her second ability, in which she reduces the cost of playing your MOBIUS Forwards by 2CP.

And, you get a body, but you’ll probably just be dulling Sarah to help pay for your Forwards.

125-113R – Yang LB

Bring on the Monks!

This is just a way to get an extra Monk on the field.

What am I saying? I gotta read a little better here.

This is a way to get a Forward on the field, any Forward, any Element, any Category, any Job.

As long as you have enough Monks on the field you can even play Mont Leonis (14-075H) and Chaos (16-129L)

Just find a way to break Yang, and play him again, and then play him once again. Since Yangs LB cost is only 1 point, you can play all 3 Yangs if you have them in your Limit Break deck.

25-114R Kain LB

Kain might cost 9CP, but you can bring that cost all the way down to 2CP.

How?

Its simple really.

If you have 3 Dragoons on the field, Kain’s cost comes down to 4CP. And, once Kain enters the field you’ll grab a Forward from your Break Zone. Bringing it down to 2CP, just like we mentioned.

You can grab the Forward you just used to pay for Kain’s cost, or you can grab another one.

Most likely, you’ll be grabbing another one. Probably that Dragoon that was just broken last turn.

Did we mention Kain has First Strike?

If you’re playing Dragoons, you should throw at least one in your Limit Break Deck.

25-115H – Sephiroth LB

This is a fun card to play. I managed to pull it on Prerelease along with a couple of FFVII Legends, but that’s a story for another day.

The high cost of Sephiroth is worth it.

Whenever Sephiroth attacks or when he enters the field, Sephiroth will dull all the Forwards except for himself.

And, at the end of your turn you will break a dull Forward. At the end of your opponent’s turn, you will break another dull Forward. And so on, and so forth.

You will slowly break down your opponent’s front line, but be careful. Once your opponent loses all their Forwards, you’re going to start breaking your own Forwards.

But, then again, if your opponent doesn’t have any Forwards on the field, you’re probably winning the game.

25-116H – Graff LB

The Grand General. Graff looks like he could be a captain, and when I saw it the first thing I thought about is Vikings.

Why Vikings?

Well, when Graff enters the field, choose a Forward you control remove it from the game. If you remove a Viking, you will draw a card.

Which should be a good enough reason to play Graff in your Pirate deck.

And also, whenever Graff attacks, you’ll choose one of your opponent’s Forwards and they lose 4000 power until the end of the turn.

Let’s not forget about Graff’s 9000 power either.

25-117R – Leonora LB

One more card that can search for another card.

A Forward to be exact, A Final Fantasy IV Forward.

Which Forward? Well, that’s up to you.

Leonora can also help protect your Final Fantasy IV Forwards, with her second ability which turns the next damage dealt to them to 0.

Final Fantasy IV now has 2 cards that will search for a FFIV Forward.

We might be on to something here.

25-118H – Golbez LB

We’ve seen all the Archfiends, now let’s take a look at their leader, Golbez.

5CP plus 2LB to play a 9K Golbez.

So far this is meh. Just your regular High Powered Forward.

Now let’s take a look at the ability. Once per turn, you can search for an Archfiend and play it onto the field. Just like that.

Imagine, looking for Cagnazzo, right when you need to get rid of a Forward that you don’t want on the field. Or playing Scarmiglione when one of your Forwards gets attacked and needs to be saved.

And, that was just a couple of Archfiends from this set. Imagine what you can do if you go through all of the Archfiends.

That Golbez VS Cecil deck is looking pretty good right now.

d

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Kain Highwind

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The prideful Dragoon, unable to show his true feelings.

Commander of Baron’s Dragoons, he is Cecil’s childhood friend and occasional rival. Kain’s secret feelings for his childhood friend Rosa allow Golbez to seize control of his mind and force him to become Cecil’s enemy. Once released from the brainwashing, Kain feels remorse and seeks to atone for his actions by joining the fight against the true mastermind, Zemus.

-Taken from the Ultimania

Commander of the Dragoons, Kain is no stranger to mind tricks, especially when they work against him.

Let’s take a look at all of Kain’s cards.

1-127H – Kain EX

At 6CP, this card is expensive for today’s decks. There are plenty of cards that will do what Kain does, and they will do it better.

But, this is still Kain.

Kain comes in and you choose a Forward and they lose 5000 power. That can be enough to break most Forwards. Especially the low cost ones.

We also have Dragoon’s Pride, which looks more like a Reverse Jump.

Kain will break a Forward, but Kain will not activate during the next Active Phase. Meaning that Kain attacks and then he jumps out of harm’s way.

2-103H – Kain

How did I never really read this card?

This is actually pretty good.

Kain comes in with Haste. You can then use his ability and your opponent will not be able to choose him with their Summons and abilities.

After that, during your next turn, Kain’s power will double. Which turns Kain into a 10K body. 12K if you have Lulu on the field. I’m sure there are also plenty of other ways to increase Kain’s power as well.

2-104R – Kain

How is this Rare, better than the Hero card of the same set?

If Rosa is on the field Kain gains Haste, First Strike and +2000 power. But, that is not the reason you’ll be playing Kain.

As Commander of the Dragoons, all Dragoons gain +2000 power.

You probably don’t even need Rosa to play Kain.

This makes a huge difference in how I see Dragoons.

I might even build a Dragoon deck for myself now.

Just to try it out.

6-090H – Kain

Golbez? There’s no Dark Golbez.

No wait actually there is. But, I doubt your opponent will be playing it. They’ll more than likely be playing Chaos.

For 3CP, you get a 9K body, which is good if your opponent isn’t playing any Dark cards. Cause if they are as soon as that Dark Forward enters the field, Kain gets his brain washed and your opponent takes control of him.

The only way to get him back is to send your opponent’s Dark Forward to the Break Zone.

I like it that it plays into the story, but I’ll pass on this one.

9-084H – Kain

It was something about Kain and Ranperre.

Discard Ranperre before paying the cost to cast Kain to make him 3CP, and then Ranperre plays a Final Fantasy XI Forward from your hand onto the field. Which would turn the tides a bit in your favor.

Other than that, for 3CP you get an 8k body, and when Kain enters the field, one of your opponent’s Forward loses 8000 damage until the end of the turn.

We already know that you will not be paying 8CP to cast Kain. So, is there any other Lightning Backup to toss and get a better effect?

10-134S – Kain

Coming in with Haste, this Kain does not receive damage unless he blocks an attack, or his attack gets blocked.

That means that in order to keep Kain safe, he should not attack or block.

And, we know that’s not going to happen.

Gungnir? Yes, Kain gains +5K power and First Strike until the end of the turn. This gives you another way to keep Kain alive.
Here’s an idea. Fill you deck with 50 Kains. and just keep using Gungnir over and over again.

Hey, it might work.

11-054R – Hooded Man EX

There’s a reason why you can’t play Hooded Man and Kain at the same time. I won’t tell you but, you probably already know.
When Hooded Man comes into play you can grab a Final Fantasy IV Forward from your Break Zone. Which by itself is a great reason to play Hooded Man. Let’s not forget that this comes off as an EX Burst as well.

And, that’s not all. Hooded Man has one more ability that will make him a mainstay in any Final Fantasy IV deck. At the end of every turn, yours and your opponent’s Hooded Man wil activate all of your Final Fantasy IV Forwards.

What’s not to like?

13-073H – Kain

Kain is a great card if you can play him straight from the Break Zone. Cause once he gets broken, he’ll be under your opponents control.

Thancred (12-124L) and Y’shtola (13-134S) can play him straight out of the Break Zone.

15-048L – Kain EX

Attack and choose. Draw a card or Activate all the Characters other than Kain?

All the Characters? Characters?

Every time Kain attacks you can Activate your whole board?

Screw the extra card. Get me some blockers, and Edge, Opus I Maria, and anyone else that can help protect Kain.

Oh. And, some characters that will give me Crystals. Don’t want to lose Kain at the end of my turn.

17-102L – Hooded Man

This time Hooded Man comes in with Haste, and when he enters the field you can remove either a Kain or a Hooded Man from your Break Zone, if you do so, you can activate all of your Backups, and you can draw a card as well. Bringing Hooded Man’s cost down to 2CP.

How is this a Legend?

What am I missing?

You’re just paying to activate your Backups and have a Meat shield on the field.

17-131S – Kain

Haste? Check

Way to reduce the CP cost? Check

Buffs self when attacking? Check

All in all Kain here is a decent card. You might end up only paying 1CP for Kain, and if you do he’s an attacking Forward with 9K power.

 

17-136S – Kain

Kain allows you to grab a FFIV Water Character from the Break Zone.Plenty of Characters that you can choose from.

Other than that he can come in with Haste depending on the field situation.

3CP, 7000 power.

How badly do you need that Water Character in your Break Zone?

 

 

19-073C – Kain

Have we had a Kain as a Backup before?

Either way, this one isn’t half bad. Actually pretty useful with Back Attack.

If you have a Forward that is blocking another Forward, and your opponent buffs it to match the your Forwards power, you can play Kain and give your Forward First Strike. That way your attack will go through first. Breaking your opponents Forward.

Other than that, there really isn’t much use for it.

22-041C – Kain

Haste, and First Strike for a Common?

Activate 2 Characters when Kain Attacks?

+1000 power at 3 points of Damage?

How is this a common?

Whatever Rarity Kain has, this card is great. Actually it’s GRRRRREAT!

And, don’t get me started on the artwork, because we’re not here to talk about the artwork.

Just throw Kain into any Wind deck and you’ll do fine.

23-003C – Kain

Haste, and First Strike?

Kain is ready to strike!

Remember when we were talking about an all Haste deck? Well, Kain here is the perfect fir for it. Cause, every time he attacks, all of the Forwards with Haste or First Strike gain +2000 power.

Your opponent won’t know what to block, when to block, who to block, where to block, and most importantly, how to block.

Double Jump, is just a regular Jump attack, if it was double, Kain would be dealing damage to 2 Forwards.

Looking for Kain?

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Hidden Trials – By Wind

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23-039R – Asura

1CP and a Full Art, cant go wrong with that.

When you cast Asura, you activate all of your Forwards. Plus all of your Forwards can’t be returned to your hand and their power can not be decreased until the end of the turn.

You can either play this at the end of your turn, after you attacked with all of your Forwards. This way if you go all out thinking that you’ll win the game, you can still cast Asura and you will be able to block during your next turn.

I’m sure there’s better ways to play Asura, but that’s how I would play it.

23-040L – Adelle

This is wonderful.

Mono-Wind + Adelle = Hard to beat!

With Adelle, you can go all out with all of your Forwards, and if your plan doesn’t work out, you can attack with Adelle and use her ability to Activate all of your Wind Characters.

That way you’ll have your front line ready to block when your opponent decides to attack.

But, maybe they won’t , once they see all of your Forwards activated.

Only drawback is that Adelle won’t activate during your next turn, but since you’re running Wind, I’m sure you’ll find a way to activate Adelle.

23-041C – Jornee

A 2 cost Backup that that shall buff a Forward, and give it some protection as well.

Sure, that Forward needs to cost 3CP or less. But, once per turn, Jornee will give that Forward +1000 power and all damage dealt to that Forward by your opponent’s abilities will become 0.

I mean 2CP, for some damage control is worth it if you ask me.

And, if you don’t, then try it for yourself.

 

23-042C – Vaan

Well, this looks like a decent Vaan.

Vaan comes in, gain a Crystal

Vaan attacks, gain a Crystal.

Life of Crime, double the damage dealt to a Forward by Vaan.

Use the two Crystals Vaan gained from earlier and deal 8000 damage to all of your opponent’s Forwards.

And, they say a Life of Crime doesn’t pay.

23-043R – Venat

A 2 cost Backup, that can search for herself and play herself straight to the field.

Of course, that ability means that you’ll be searching for Venat (23-115L) and you;ll get 2 Crystals for it.

For me, that is worthless as, I will probably never play the other Venat.

Or you can just keep Venat on the field, and use her first ability to cancel a Summon whenever needed.

Now that, I can use.

23-044R – Silver Dragon

I see a pattern here. Monsters that need a Monster to become a Forward.

Silver Dragon becomes a Forward with 9000 power. Which is pretty decent, considering you only paid 2CP for it, but Silver Monster also has the ability, to protect your Monsters from your opponent’s Summons and abilities.

Meaning that you should throw Silver Dragon into any deck running Monsters and Opus XI Relm, as she searches and plays Monsters on to the field, without having to worry about CP.

Yes, Add it to your Monster deck.

23-045C – Samovira

Another Monster.

Samovira is a Winged Demon, waiting on the sidelines until it’s time to unleash his fury on a Forward, or a Monster.

It’s not much to get him on the field, but you’ll have to send Samovira and one other Monster into the Break Zone. Which in return will allow you to Break on of your opponent’s Forwards 5CP and up, or a Monster.

It’s almost like an even trade.

23-046C – SOLDIER Candidate

Another SOLDIER in training.

Just like the other Candidates, this SOLDIER Candidate gains +3000 power if you have a couple of Standard Unit Forwards in your Break Zone.

Now the question I have, is do SOLDIER Candidate’s abilities apply only to each individual card, or do they all get the effects?

 

 

23-047H – Tyro

The Record Keeper returns, and this time he’s grabbing a card from the Break Zone. You’ll need 3 elements in your back line for this to work. If you do, (which you will, because you won’t be playing Tyro if you don’t) Tyro becomes a Free play.

Tyro will also protect one of your Forwards that is being targeted by a Summon, ability or an attack, by reducing the damage dealt to it, all the way down to 0.

I can see it being used, but I don’t see me using it.

 

23-048C – Dr. Mog

“Calling Dr. Howard, Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard, Dr. Mog!”

Search for a Moogle, does that mean Moogles are a thing now?

Are we going to get Killer Moogles from Outer Space?

So, many questions, we need more Moogles.

Dr. Mog also activates a Moogle with his ability.

Good King Moggle Mog might be making a comeback as well.

23-049C – Ninja

We’ve seen plenty of Ninjas already.

This one is a Backup that costs 2CP, and depending on when you play him, you can a decent card, or a really good card.
Ninja will make a Forward unblockable by a Forward that costs 3CP or more.

Ok, not bad.

But, if you have 5 Backups on the field, all of the Forwards that you control gain that ability.

Allowing you to have a semi-open path to your enemy.

23-050H – Noel

It’s not Warp, it’s Ludicrous Speed!

Noel might cost 5CP to play him, but he can come in easily with Warp. You might not even need to wait a whole turn. If you have 3 Final Fantasy XIII Characters on the field, as soon as you get into your Attack Phase, you will remove 1 Warp Counter for each XIII Character on the field.

You can end up playing Noel for 1CP.

After that Noel comes in with Haste and First Strike, and he’s ready to attack with 9000 power.

He’s gone plaid!

23-051L – Hope

Coming in at 3CP with 7000 power.

Hope is a great card, and you probably will never attack with Hope.

All Hope is going to do, is come in to play, pay (x), search for a Final Fantasy XIII Forward and play it onto the field. This is a great way to splash some more elements into that XIII deck that you know you will be building.

Once the new Forward comes in to play, all you’ll need to do is dull Hope, remove him from the game, and bring him back during your next Main Phase 1. You will then pay XCP once more and search for a XIII Forward and play it on to the field, and repeat.

Don’t forget to add Nora EX (1-079R) and Bartholomew (7-060R) to your deck.

23-052R – Maina EX

Finally, Ninjas have a way to search for Ninjas.

4CP to search, making Mainas cost 2CP.

And then Maina also brings protection, for one of your Ninjas, against your Opponent’s Summons and abilities. Simply by dulling 2 active Ninjas.

Let’s make a Ninja deck that will make Vanilla Ice proud.

“Go Ninja, Go Ninja, Go!”

23-053R – Meteion

A rare Backup, that will activate all of your Backups.

And give you a card as well.

Sure, you’ll have to put Meteion into the Break Zone, but she will have served her cause, and then you can play another Meteion, because this one is gone.

All this for 2CP, not bad at all.

 

23-054C – Yuffie

There are Ninjas everywhere, and Yuffie is ready to go.

2CP, 5K body, and the ability to draw a card every time a Ninja deals damage to your opponent.

Plus if you have a couple of Wind CP ready to go, you can just attack with Yuffie, and if anyone tries to block her, just use those 2 Crystal Points to make Yuffie unblockable.

Almost like Opus IV Locke but, instead of paying with a card of the same name, just use two generic Wind Crystal Points.
I can see this being used.

23-055C/15-058C – Dragoon

Reprint of a Reprint.

Dawn of Heroes, Crystal Dominion.

“Crystals and more Crystals.

Use this reprint Dragoon to generate one Crystal and then use his ability to get him off the field.

See, I actually wrote something this time.

No Copy/Paste.

Nope.

I might Copy/Paste this for the next one though.”

23-056C – Luso

Need a way to bring back a Character from the Break Zone?

Luso here might be able to help.

Luso comes in and let’s you grab a Character of 2CP or less from the Break Zone and play it straight to the field.

And Luso’s abilities don’t end there. You can turn Luso into a Monster Hunter, where he will Break a Monster, but Luso will also end up in the Break Zone.

It’s a decent card, has good abilities when Luso enters and exits the field.

Deserves a shot.

23-057H – General Leo

A General needs his army, and so does General Leo.

Only difference is that General Leo’s army is a lot smaller than your average army. General Leo can handle the battle with only 3 soldiers.

When General Leo’s army is on the battlefield, they will give the General +2000 power and protection from your opponent’s Summons.

Other than that, General Leo will also allow you to play a card of 2CP or less from your hand onto the field, when he enters the field.

A leader among low cost Characters!

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Hidden Trials – By Fire

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3-001C – Garland

What a way to start off the set.

A 2 cost Backup that when Garland enters the field, you gain control of one of your opponents Forwards.

Sure, you’ll only have control of that Forward until the end of the turn, but, it is a good way to spoil your opponent’s plans and attack with that Forward, where they’ll either block it and send it to the Break Zone, or you’ll break the blocking Forward, or you’ll deal them a point of Damage.

I’ll take 3 of these.

Now, where did I put that card that recycles Backups? I can’t even remember which one it was.

23-002L – Caius

Caius is making a comeback, and he’s forming a Tag Team with Bahamut. Any Bahamut will do, as Caius will enter the field, you’ll search for Bahamut, and cast Bahamut right away. Most Likely that Bahamut will be a Free Play. As all Bahamuts cost 5CP or less with the exception of the Opus I Bahamut which costs 9CP.

You can play that one for 2CP, if you have Fang on the field, 19-131S or 19-020R, as both of these reduce the cost to cast Bahamut by 2.

Other than that you can cast Raise on Caius as he enters the Break Zone, for the small price of discarding 3 cards from your hand, Caius can came back to the field.

Even Yeul couldn’t see that one coming.

23-003C – Kain

Haste, and First Strike?

Kain is ready to strike!

Remember when we were talking about an all Haste deck? Well, Kain here is the perfect fir for it. Cause, every time he attacks, all of the Forwards with Haste or First Strike gain +2000 power.

Your opponent won’t know what to block, when to block, who to block, where to block, and most importantly, how to block.

Double Jump, is just a regular Jump attack, if it was double, Kain would be dealing damage to 2 Forwards.

23-004R – Kefka

First off, this is a great looking card. Almost reminds you of some Amano art.

Second off, Kefka is here to wreak Havoc on your opponent. Every time he attacks, Kefka deals 4000 damage to one of your opponent’s Forwards.

But, you’ll want to wait until you have 5 points of damage to play Kefka. Cause when you do, Kefka comes in with Haste, +2000 power, and whenever Kefka deals damage to your opponent, or to a Forward they control, you will double the damage Kefka deals to them.

That means 2 cards in the Damage Zone. And, when he attacks, it’s 8000 damage to that Forward that you choose and at least 14,000 damage to the Forward that will block Kefka.

When your back is against the wall, Kefka will do what Kefka does best.

I’ll take 3 Full Arts, Por Favor.

23-005R – Golbez

I don’t know how Golbez is just a Rare.

Golbez has 3 abilities to choose from, each one is better than the other.

Deal 5000 damage to all of your opponent’s Forwards. Break a Forward. And, the one I like the most, Grab a Forward from your Break Zone.

You can start building decks with all different cards, EDH style, and if a Forward ends up in the Break Zone, just use Golbez to grab it back.

All you need to do is protect Golbez, and you’ll never miss a card. Unless it ends up in the Damage Zone, but we have a way to grab cards from there as well.

23-006R – Soulcage

For 2CP you get a Forward with 9000 power. Is there a sale on Soulcage, cause that is dirt cheap. You can’t even get a deal like that at the Goodwill anymore!

Yes, Soulcage is a Monster, and yes, you need another Monster on the field for Soulcage to become a Forward, but that’s not a hard thing to do. Especially with all of these Monster decks that are going around.

And, when you put Soulcage into the Break Zone, you can remove it from the game, and grab a Monster from your Break Zone and add that one to your hand. It’s a win-win.

 

23-007C/15-007C – Samurai

Just Copy/Paste from what we wrote for Dawn of Heroes.

“What? A reprint? I wasn’t expecting that. Let’s see what we wrote when Crystal Dominion came out.

“Exchanging 2CP for a Crystal.

Seems like an even trade. Now to find what we’re going to use these Crystals for?

Samurai has no abilities, that consume Crystals, but there are plenty other cards that do. Samurai’s job is to give you a Crystal and then hopefully you’ll find a way to Break Samurai so you can play your real Backups. ”

Huh? What was I even writing, I had to edit it to make sense. In my defense, we didn’t know what Crystals would be doing back then. … Half the time I still don’t know.

Because apparently, if you actually read the card Samurai can put itself in the Break Zone.”

23-008H – Zidane

Free Zidane!

You play Zidane, and once he enters the field you get to search for 2 FFIX Forwards and, add them to your hand. And, that’s great, you can get rid of him right after, because he only has 5000 power, but that’s still enough to block one of your opponents attacks.

If we get some decent FFIX cards, Zidane would be one of the first cards you would throw into a IX deck.

 

 

23-009H – Zorn & Thorn

Zorn & Thorn, we have a Tag Team right here, going for the World Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Belts.

And how are they going to do that?

It’s simple, they pick their own opponents. Zorn & Thorn attack and they get to pick the Forward that will block them. Over and over. All you need is to give them a buff, and they’ll be that much better.

And, if they are finally sent to the Break Zone, they turn into a Monster. Not a giant monster, just a Monster that costs 2CP or less.

I like it.

It’s kind of like Zorn & Thorn transform into Meltigemini.

Who would have thought?

23-010C – SOLDIER Candidate

First Strike.

I know I’ve seen a SOLDIER Candidates in another element, now I’m wondering if there is one in every element, and if they are all the same. Only one way to find out.

If you have a couple of Standard Unit Forwards in your Break Zone, SOLDIER Candidate gains +3000 power.

Now, the real question is, if it’s only for this SOLDIER Candidate, or all of the SOLDIER Candidates.

I wonder if they met Zack?

23-011L – Terra EX

One of my playmats has the same artwork. If you haven’t seen it, it is a beautiful sight. Terra riding the Magitek Armor ready to … well you should know. I won’t spoil it.

Terra comes in and you can grab a Summon from your Break Zone. then you can cast this Summon for 2CP less than what it costs to normally cast it. You also grab a Summon from your Break Zone when Terra is put into the Break Zone. Making Terra’s final cost a whopping 1CP.

Terra only has 5000 power, but the reason you’ll play her is solely for the reason that, when she is on the field, your opponent cannot remove the Summons in your Break Zone from the game.

And, that is it.

Protect the Summons! Protect the Espers!

23-012C – Tifa

What are those? Maracas?

3CP, 7Kpower and the ability to deal 2000 damage to a Forward every time Tifa attacks.

Let’s not forget about the Crystal you gain whenever Tifa damages a Forward that is sent to the Break Zone.

And, with that Crystal, Tifa gains +2000 power and Haste, giving her a total of 9000 power.

For 3CP, that’s not bad at all. Sure there are better Tifas, but this one also has it’s uses.

23-013C – Morrow

Morrow is a Backup now?

You won’t be playing Morrow, if you have received anything less than 5 points of Damage.

This is a card that you’ll most likely play alongside Kefka (23-004R) As they both shine once you have received 5 points of Damage.

Morrow comes in and deals a Forward 9000 damage.

He’s like a Mini-Summon. Plus, Morrow only costs 1CP.

If this would have been a Forward it would have been twice as better.

23-014H – Nelapa

What?

This is your Summon control.

Your opponent will think twice about casting a Summon, when Nelapa is on the field.

Cause if they do, Nelapa will deal 10,000 damage to a Forward of your choosing, and also deal your opponent 1 point of damage.

With that being said, I can see Nelapa thrown into any deck that deals with Fire. I mean why wouldn’t you. There should be a card that hardly sees any play in that deck anyway.

I’ll take 3 Foil copies.

23-015C – Notsugo

Is it Not-sugo or No-tsugo?

A 1 cost Monster that sacrifices itself and another Monster to deal 9000 damage to one of your opponents Forwards.

Simple and straight to the point.

It might be worth playing in certain situations.

 

23-016R – Bahamut

This is the Bahamut you’re supposed to play with Caius.

You can play this Bahamut, and many other Bahamuts free of charge if you grab him when Caius enters the field.
Removal at it’s finest.

Not just 1 but 2 Forwards are to be removed from the game.

The first one just needs to have 9000 power or less, and the second one should already be in your opponent’s Break Zone.

For a Free card this is great.

23-017C – Parai

Parai searches for a Final Fantasy Legends Character. And, he only costs 2CP.

But, there’s always a but, Parai will deal you one point of damage.

Is it worth it?

Depends on if you have Kefka and Morrow ready to go once you reach 5 points of Damage.

Maybe yes, Maybe no.

23-018R – Palom

Palom, one half of the twin mages.

Palom is a free play, if Porom is already on the field.

If not he’ll only cost 2CP. Palom comes in with 5000 power and allows you to place 2 EXP Counters on a Forward. That Forward will gain +2000 power.

And, if the twins work together, I think Porom will be something like this as well.

 

23-019C – Monk

A one hit wonder.

How big is that one hit?

Depends on how many Backups you control one Monk enters the field.

If you have 5 Backups, that hit will be a whopping 8000 damage dealt to one of your opponent’s Forwards.

If not then it’ll be a measly 4000.

That’s not that bad. There are plenty of Forwards that will go down with a 4K shot.

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