Tag: puppetmaster

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Hidden Trials – By Lightning

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23-077H – Azul

The Tsivets are coming strong, and Azul is about to kick some butts.

Azul has Counter, he will Counter any damage dealt to him to one of your opponent’s Forwards.

For the cost of 1 Crystal, Azul can also cast Berserk on a Forward. And, when he does, Azul gains +2000 power.

I’d say that’s a Crystal well spent.

 

23-078C – Alisae

Alisae is like a bloodhound. She’ll help you find the card you need, but only if you can show her what you’re looking for. And, the only way to do that is to already have a card with the same name in your Break Zone.

The only thing Alisae can’t search for will be Standard Units and Summons, everything else is fair game.

I’m sure she has some use, but there are plenty of other cards that’ll search better then she does.

 

23-079R – Estinien

I mean he’s no Opus VI Estinien, or Dawn of Heroes either, but Estinien is still a decent card to play.

Coming in with Haste, Estinien has the ability to attack from the get go, but you already knew that. So, why would we mention that?

It’s simple. Every time Estinien attacks, you get to grab a Scion Forward from your Break Zone. Making Estinien a great play, right away.

And, that’s not all!

At 3 points of Damage Estinien gains +1000 power. Add in Opus I Lulu and Hidden Trials Krile, and you’ll have a Forward that attacks for 11,000.

And this is just a Rare card.

23-080R – Odin EX

If this comes off of an EX Burst it’s great.

If it doesn’t it’s too expensive, and the Opus I Odin, along with the Opus I reprint from Opus VIII. is a couple of CP less.

Why would you play this one? Because you can cast it for 3CP if you remove 6 Lightning cards from your Break Zone. If you have no way of getting them back, then go right ahead.

Breaking a Forward still is a broken Forward your opponent can’t use.

23-081C – Puppetmaster

2 Cost Elemental Lightning Backup.

Puppetmaster is ready for action with his Puppet right behind him ready for orders.

Puppetmaster comes in and dulls a Forward. As with some of the other Backups of this set, he has greater power when you have a full line of Backups on the field. And, when that happens, Puppetmaster dulls all of your opponent’s Forwards.

I’m noticing a lot of great plays being brought in towards the mid-end game.

 

 

23-082H – King

Is this a new thing, where we remove cards to reduce the cost of casting a card?

Because King turns into a 1 cost Hero, if you remove 4 cards from your Break Zone.

And, whenever King attacks, you can discard 2 cards and Break a Forward of your choosing.

King’s cost evens out as the 4CP you save from removing the 4 Characters from your Break Zone.

There’s plenty of ways to get rid of cards, Lightning might become even more fast paced.

23-083H – Queen

Your Savior, Your Queen.

This is a great card. Cadets will be one the rise solely based off of this card.

At the small cost of removing 3 cards from your Break Zone. Queen will give a Class Zero Cadet a 2000 power buff, plus damage dealt to that Forward by your opponent’s abilities will become 0.

This card kinda makes me want to remake that Cadets deck I had made back during Opus XIII.

23-084C – G’raha Tia

At 5CP and 9000 power, G’raha Tia is just a regular Common card.

When he enters the field, and you have another G’raha Tia in the Break Zone, you can remove it from the game and deal 4000 damage to 2 of your opponent’s Forwards. You will also dull them as well.

If this card cost a little bit less, I would say that it’s better.

 

 

23-085R – Krile (XIV)

Look at the new card you’ll be putting in your Scions deck.

Nothing beats a 1K buff across your board. Especially when it comes to the Scions and they already work well together.

And if you still need a little bit of extra power, Krile can give a Scion another 1000 power when it deals damage to a Forward.

Can’t go wrong with that.

 

 

23-086H – Thancred

Thancred, reporting for duty!

Thancred is ready to go from the get go. (If you already have some Scions on the field.) He’ll break one of your opponent’s Forwards as he enters, and he’ll bring back a Forward from the dead as he enters the Break Zone.

Almost like a Viking, but different.

Scions being Scions.

 

 

23-087C – Jack

Yeah, you’re not going to play this card.

Unless there is another card that stated “this and this” if there are so many cards in your Break Zone.

I’m also pretty sure that the other Jacks are much better, I can say that without even looking for them.

Even at 2CP, I wouldn’t play this card.

At least the art is nice.

23-088L – Serah

Mono-Lightning XIII deck Incoming.

Your opponent will be using all their resources to get rid of Serah here.

Once she comes in all of your opponents Forwards will lose 2000 power, and if you have at least another 2 FFXIII Forwards their power will go down by 5000. And, this does not end at the end of the turn. As of my understanding, they lose that power until Serah is removed from the field.

That means that most of your opponent’s Forwards will be unusable. Sure, there will be ways that your opponent can raise the power of their Forwards, but Serah also has Dispel. Dispel removes any power gains that your opponent has given their Forwards until the end of the turn.

I’ll take 3 with all the bells and whistles.

23-089C – SOLDIER Candidate

Now, this is a Candidate I have a use for.

2CP/5K body, with Haste.

If you remember, I have built an all Haste deck, and this one fits perfectly into it.

2CP is perfect for it because you’ll only need to discard 1 card, since I don’t play any Backups. 5000 power isn’t bad, because you’re hoping to win in 2 rounds. And, half the time your opponent will not have any Forwards on the field.

And, most of the low cost Haste cards are Standard Units, SOLDIER Candidate will gain +3000 power, giving her an 8K body, the perfect “Candidate” for a Meat Shield.

23-090C/15-095C – Ninja

You know the drill.

“You’d think they’d at least try and get the serial numbers to match.

Would’ve looked a lot better reading 20-099C/15-099C.

Not that big of a deal but, at least you gain a Crystal when Ninja comes in.

After that you can send Ninja to the Break Zone, and deal a Forward 1000 damage.

*yawn

Maybe if it wasn’t a reprint I’d be more excited.”

23-091C – Fencer (XIII)

There’s a lot of good Monsters in this set.

Fencer is ready to Break a Forward on command, as long as you have an extra Monster on the field, because that extra Monster will be part of the cost you pay for Fencer’s ability to go off.

It’s a cheap play, and as long as the Monster you send to the Break Zone has done it’s job, you’ll be good to go.

 

23-092R – Black Widow

This Monster is interesting.

You’ll need 2 or more Monsters for Black Widow to become a Forward. And when Black Widow does become a Forward, when it attacks, you may put another Monster into the Break Zone, and that will allow Black Widow to deal 9000 damage to a Forward of your choosing.

You can splash Black Widow into your Monster deck with Relm, and after that Black Widow will slowly get rid of your Monsters to play more Monsters.

 

 

23-093C – Mog (XIII-2)

This Moogle makes that XIII Mono-Lightning deck easier to make.

Always good to have a couple of searchers, and this one is better, because you can get rid of Mog once he finds what you’re looking for.

Mog comes in for 2CP, and just hangs out until it’s time for you to use his ability.

After that, you can play Mog once more, and he’ll do the same thing once more.

Yes, this card is needed.

23-094C – Y’shtola

How is this a Common?

If you’re playing a Scions deck, you will be dulling your opponent’s whole front line.

And, this only costs 3CP.

All I see is, you play Y’shtola, and block with her as soon as possible, in order to play her again.

Find a way to grab her from the Break Zone as well, and you’ll be golden. Just like the S(ci)un of the Seventh Dawn … Ok, maybe that wasn’t that great.

23-095R – Rosso

Rosso, the Crimson.

Vincent is in trouble here.

The Tsivets are coming for him and all of his allies, and Rosso is coming hard. For every time she attacks, she deals 4000 damage to one of your opponent’s Forwards.

And, if you have a stash of Crystals, you can use them to give one of your Tsivets Haste, allowing them to go from the get go.
Tsivets might finally have some decent cards to get a fun deck going.

Singles?

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Resurgence of Power : Quick as Lightning

18-069C – Red Mage

Discard Red Mae, draw a card. And, that’s about it.

Cheap Backup to play.

 

 

 

18-070C – Aphmau

This one looks interesting. The Puppetmaster is grabbing puppets left and right.

What do I mean?

At the end of the day, Aphmau should cost you 0CP. Simply because, if you grab the first card from the top of your deck, She’ll cost 1CP. After that at 3 points of Damage you can pay 1CP and grab a card from the Break Zone and play it straight to the field.

Plus she’ll produce CP while you wait to get to 3 points of damage.

Let’s see some decks that will make use of this card.

18-071R – August

A King that comes forth when his Knights fail.

August comes in for 0CP if 3 of your Forwards leave the field. Leaving could be Removed from the game, sent to the Break Zone, Broken, or returned to hand. Even if you lose 3 Forwards during your attack phase, you can play August during your Main Phase 2 for 0 cost.

That alone will give you a 10K body for your opponents turn. They will think twice before attacking when he is on the field.
After that when he attacks, August activates himself and August can attack once more, which after that attack he will activate once more.

It’s almost like August has Brave.

18-072C – Kam’lanaut

For a Common this is a pretty good card.

From Kam’lanaut’s 3 abilities, there is only one that would give you a reason to play him. When he attacks, you choose one of your opponents Forwards and you can Dull that Forward.

Now remember, this is just a Common.

The other 2 abilities are, that he cannot be chosen by a Multi-Element Forward’s abilities, and at 2 points of Damage he gains +1000 power.

18-073H – Garuda (III)

I’m caught in the middle with Garuda.

I can see both sides of the card, while it can be a good play if your opponent doesn’t see it coming 5 turns away. That also means your paying 10CP for this play. While it does give you a chance to clear the board if you need to, but there is a card that does this for cheaper. Shantotto, who just removes all the Forwards, for 7CP.

But, if you can get Garuda to come in off of a Warp, and actually work without your opponent preparing for it, well, you’re in luck.

18-074L -Gilgamesh

Coming in with Haste, Gilgamesh is ready to attack. And if he comes in after you have received 3 points of Damage, Gilgamesh also gains Brave, and can attack twice in a turn.

That alone would make me want to play Gilgamesh.

Gilgamesh also has an entry ability in which you remove a number of cards from different elements, allowing you to Break a Forward that has the same cost as the elements you choose.

18-075R – Seifer

How much does a card from the Break Zone, +2000 power and Haste cost? Is it worth a point of damage?

If it’s the beginning of the game, and you don’t have your back against the wall. It might be worth it.

If not, Seifer is just a 3 cost Forward with a 7K body.

And the card you can grab is a Category VIII Forward.

18-076C – Cid Kramer

VIII Themed Decks could become easier to play. Cid comes in and can produce CP of any element for FFVIII cards.

That means you can splash any element you’d like, without worrying about needing certain elements on the board or in your hand to play them.

 

 

18-077R – Cid Sophiar EX

Raise your hat to Cid Sophiar.

Cheap card to play and is technically 0CP as you’ll just grab a Character from the Break Zone.

Sure, you’ll need to be at 3 points of Damage to be able to grab that card, but you can also grab that card off of an EX Burst.
I’d keep 3 of Cid in a deck.

 

18-078R – Cindy

Let’s see. Cindy is moonlighting as a Dark Knight.

We’re starting to see more abilities that deal you a point of damage to use them.

Cindy allows you to dull an opponents Forward for the cost of one point of damage. But, that cost goes away when you have already received 4 points of damage. Simply put, if you’re about to lose a Forward or be dealt a point of damage, it doesn’t make much sense.

If you’re using that ability to dull a Forward using an ability that will wipe out your board or something to that effect, it would be very wise to do so. I’m just rambling here.

Cindy does come in with Haste, and that is always a plus.

18-079R – Fujin

The Disciplinary Committee is here, although they really don’t discipline anyone, they’re just Seifer’s lackeys. And that is perfectly fine. Unless you’re Squall and Co.

Fujin Comes in and gives Seifer and herself +2000 power. And at 3 points of damage she grants another +2000 power and protection from your opponents Summons.

Only drawback is that Seifer has to be on the field to get these effects.

 

18-080C – Hurkan

A bit expensive, but Hurkan can break a Forward when he enters the field.

It also has an ability with a high cost that allows you to break another Forward.

I probably won’t be using it.

 

 

18-081H – Melusine

For 2CP you get to use one of your opponents Forwards until the end of the turn. Cost 4 or less.
Think about it.

Melusine comes in. You gain control of one of your opponents Forwards. You attack. Worst case, you break one of their Forwards. You might even deal them a point of Damage.

After that, just turn Melusine into a Forward and keep attacking until she breaks. After that rinse and repeat.

I’ll take 3.

18-082C – Imitation Despot

If you’re playing Manikins you’re playing this card.

Imitation Despot allows you to grab another Manikin from the Break Zone. And depending how many Manikins are on the field Imitation Despot can cost you 2CP.

Add in an 8K body, and that’s hard to beat.

 

 

18-083R – Raijin

The other member of the Disciplinary Committee, same as Fujin, he gives Seifer and himself +2000 power.

And, at 3 points of Damage, he and Seifer also get another +2000 power and they both can’t be chosen by your opponent’s abilities.

At the end of the day, if Seifer, Fujin, and Raijin are all on the field and you have 3 points of Damage, Seifer will have 15,000 power.

If you ask me, I’d rather play Opus II Seifer (2-110R) instead. Add an Edea to the mix and he’ll be a Monster to deal with.

18-084C – Ramuh

Ramuh is a decent Summon to play, even if you don’t pay the extra cost. Dealing 7000 damage to a Forward will break most Forwards. If you need some extra Zap in your Judgement Bolt, I suggest you remove 10 Lightning cards from your Break Zone and turn that 7000 into 150000.

 

 

 

18-085C – Dragoon

Cheap Backup to play that comes with an extra cost, if you want to use it.

The extra cost is a total of 5CP in which 2 need to be Lightning CP. If you decide to pay it, you can Break a Forward. Any Forward.

Dragoon is like Hurkan, but better. In that Hurkan will only break a Forward up to 5CP, where Dragoon can break any Forward. Good to be played in a pinch, if you have the CP.

Other than that, at 3 points of damage, dragoon gains +3000 power and Haste.

Making him a 2CP/8K body.

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Emissaries of Light – Opinion on Lightning

16-085C – Assassin

2 cost Backup that serves as a backup plan and a Backup.

Deals Damage to a Forward that entered this turn.

8K should be enough to break most Forwards coming in.

 

 

16-086C – Ixion

This is a pretty decent Summon. 4CP to have a Forward lose 8000 Power. And, if you’re playing a tri-color deck, it’ll also cause all of your opponents Forwards to lose 2ooo power. Including the first Forward you chose, so that will make it 10K.

 

 

 

16-087C – Puppetmaster

Puppetmaster enters the field, you discard a card and grab a better one from the Break Zone.

I like this card, and it doesn’t cost much.

Grab that Forward from the Break Zone that just got broken, and use it again as your opponent just watches as he just used all of his resources to get rid of it.

Or, something like that.

16-088L – Black Waltz 3

Black Waltz is coming out in full force. (Yes, I know that everyone already knows that, but these are what I see when I first look at the card. I’ve been very behind this Opus,)

All the Black Waltzes are helping each other come back from the dead. And, this time there is no timers on them.

It would be interesting if there was. Roll of the dice or flip a coin, and they just Stop.

Time to head to Black Mage Village.

16-089H – Zack

Zack looks like he’s ready to save Cloud once again.

He’ll come in take care of all the enemies and when he is ready to be sent to the Break Zone, Cloud will come in and finish the job.

It would have been nice if it was that easy.

But, still a pretty decent card for a FFVII deck.

 

16-090R – Seymour

Summon heavy?

Seymour, (I always end up typing Seymore) is a card you’ll play later on in the game, as with depending on how many you have in your Break Zone, Seymour will Break a Forward when he enters, and after that, he simply deals your opponents a point of Damage for removing 6 Summons from the Break Zone.

Sounds good to me.

 

16-091C – Chadley

Now, this is a decent Backup.

Lightning is getting some cards that will help you retrieve cards from the Break Zone.

For 4CP, Chadley can grab you 2 Forwards from the Break Zone. And, you don’t need to use his ability right away.

You can use it as soon as a Forward you need is sent to the Break Zone.

16-092C – Noel EX

For an expensive Common, this is a decent card.

Noel comes in and Dulls 2 Forwards. This also works off of an EX Burst as well.

Other than that, you can dull and sacrifice Noel, and Dull all of your opponents Forwards.

What did they call him in Lightning Returns? The Shadow Hunter?

 

16-093R – Noctis

You are playing a FFXV deck for certain. Kingsglaive or Noctis and Friends, or a mix of both.

Noctis here will shine in either deck.

You’ll be dulling Forwards left and right, and with the new Noctis/Ardyn deck coming out later this year, I’m sure there will be plenty of use for this one.

Noctis can watch it all happen while he sips his coffee.

16-094C – Palmer

The way Palmer is sitting there, about to sip his tea, you know that he’s got something up his sleeve. You think you have him backed into the corner, but nope.

Palmer gives you a way to grab two cards when you run out of cards.

For 2CP, I think this is a good play. He’ll grant you a CP every turn until you decide to use his ability.

 

 

16-095R – Vivi EX

Are we getting the pieces to make a Black Mage deck possible?

Grab a Black Mage from the Break Zone, when Vivi enters the field.

And deal Damage to a Forward, which increases with each Black Mage that you have on the field.
Is this the first Lightning Vivi?

 

16-096R – Byakko

Another Shijin for Kirin.

We already know, Byakko comes in and you can search for a Shijin other than Byakko.

After that, every time Byakko attacks, you can choose 1 Forward and Dull it.

 

 

16-097H – Hyoh

You can play Hyoh for 1CP, but he’s not that great. Not yet.

Hyoh becomes more valuable, the more you put into him.

You’ll want to spend another 4CP on Hyoh to make him a devastating threat.

1CP to give Hyoh Haste and up his power to 7K. After that another 3CP to up his Power to 10k and when he deals damage to your opponent you will deal 2 points instead of 1.

Just watch out for a possible Double EX Burst that might come your way.

16-098H – Spectral Keeper

Spectral Keeper is a Keeper.
Yeah, that was lame.

But, this Monster is a Monster.
OK, I’ll stop there.

But, dulling a Forward at the beginning of each Attack Phase is more than enough to place him in your deck.

And, at 3 points of Damage, Spectral Keeper becomes a Forward and every time it attacks,you will dull a Forward as well.

16-099C – Merald

Soiree Members coming out in full force.

Let’s give this Common some great enhancements, depending on how many Soiree Members are being played.

2 for Haste.
4 to Break.

I’ll need to check out some of these Soiree decks.

16-100L – Y’shtola

Every time I see a new Y’shtola card, I think to myself, I should start playing FFXIV again.

Can Scions make it once again in the Meta? I don’t really follow it, but I haven’t really heard about Scions recently. First it was Marche/Ritz, then it was Samurais, Sky Pirates, Kingsglaive and and now Soiree and The Black Waltz.

But, I believe Y’shtola can give Scions a new Pulse.

 

16-101C – Yuke

Another backup Backup.

Keep Yuke on the field until you need to use him.

After that dull, return to hand, play and Break a Forward.

 

 

16-102R – Lann

For the cost of a Monster, Lann becomes a decent card.

If you decide to remove a Monster from the Break Zone after you play Lann, he’ll gain 2K power, and you’ll dull a Forward during each of your Attack Phases.

You can also use that same Monster to pay for the cost to play Lann, thus killing 2 birds with one stone.

 

16-103C – Larva

Like this Monster.

Larva has some use, but he’ll be perfect for Lann.

Or, just play Larva to Break a Forward, and then put him in the Break Zone to see what your next draw will be.

 

16-104R – Reeve

This Reeve is more like Reeve from the game. Think about it.

Reeve comes in and you play a Forward from the Break Zone onto the field. That Forward could very well be Cait Sith.
Reeve cannot activate during the Active Phase simply because he will be controlling Cait Sith, and will be too busy to be doing anything else.

Which makes me think if we’ll be getting a decent Cait Sith in the near future.

Resurgence of Power, I’m looking at you.

16-105R – Reynn

Just like Lann, Reynn has pretty much the same abilities as her brother.

Only difference is that she gives another Forward Haste.

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Opus XIV – Lightning Review

14-077C – Ovjang

Easy way to grab a Forward of cost 3 or less that was recently broken. Any Forward will do.

But, you’ll probably want to play Aphmau.

 

 

 

14-078H – Trap Door

Trap door, if you walk through it you’ll break a Forward.

Your opponent will think twice before breaking Trap Door.

 

 

 

14-079 – Aphmau

If you grabbed Aphmau from the Break Zone, you can play a card named Aphmau from your hand for 1 Lightning Crystal Point. Doesn’t have to be this one, but there aren’t any other cards named Aphmau.

 

 

 

14-080R – Exdeath

8CP is a bit high. But, you get to do 2 things at once. Break a Forward and grab a Forward from your Break Zone that is 4CP or less.

But, you’re probably going to be playing this card for the ability, Black Hole. For 1 Lightning CP and an Exdeath you can remove 1 Forward from the game.

 

 

14-081C – Puppetmaster

Hmm, this Puppetmaster needs his puppet to dull a Forward.

 

 

 

 

14-082C – Gnath

Don’t like the cards you just drew? Just play Gnath with those 2 cards and hopefully get something better. And if that doesn’t work, Dull and Break and hopefully you’ll get something better once again.

 

 

 

14-083C – Fachan

I’d call this a ticking time bomb. Every time it ticks it gets more power. But this time bomb, you can have it go off whenever you choose to.

 

 

 

 

14-084C – Schuzelt

For Mono-Lightning this card can be great. Deal a Forward 1000 Damage and then use Grim Reaper to Break it. You can use Grim Reaper more than once.

 

 

 

 

14-085C – Sylph (XIV)

A primal activates Sylph, and sylph can dull and reduce the Damage one of your Forwards takes by 2000.

I’m wondering, what a Primal deck would look like. Every time a Primal enters the field you can activate all of your Backups.

Hmm.. Let me look into it.

 

14-086R – Heidegger

Break a Forward when Heidegger enters the field, but you’ll need to discard 2 cards. 6CP, not bad for it. Cheaper then 8 that Exdeath had.

Next turn, you can pay 1 Lightning CP, and dull Heidegger and put him in the Break Zone to add 1 Forward to your hand. If you find one in the top 5 cards.

Even Heidegger is wondering if this is a good deal.

 

14-087L – Ravana, Savior of the Gnath

Ravana can attack 4 times???

Move over Gilgamesh, Ravana has taken your spot. It doesn’t really matter that Ravana can’t gain Brave when he activates every time a Character is put into the Break Zone. Yours or your opponents.

And the Damage that he is dealt is reduced by 5K.

Gilgamesh and Ravana. Ice/Lightning. The game can be over in 1 turn.

14-088C – Mneejing

This card was probably meant to help Aphmau, but it probably won’t be used for Aphmau.

You can choose any Forward 3CP and under to use it on.

 

 

 

14-089C – Ewen

For 1CP you can Break a damaged Forward.

Nuff said.

 

 

 

14-090R – Ramuh, Lord of Levin

Unless you’re playing Ramuh early on, he is coming in with Haste.

And, you’ll be breaking Forwards left and right. You can have Ramuh on the field and cast Raiden (Revenant Wings)
(10-100C), and Break all the active Forwards your opponent controls.

Remember you heard it here first.

 

14-091R – Ramuh

Same thing as above. If you already control Ramuh, Lord of Levin, you’ll be Breaking 2 Forwards each time you cast this card.

 

 

 

 

14-092C – Dragoon

Are you playing Dragoons? You might want to pass this card, unless you can find a way to play him for cheaper. But then you still have a body on the field.

 

 

 

 

14-093H – Luso EX

I can see some playing this card. For 2CP you get to search for a FFTA2 Character, and if that doesn’t work, at least you have a blocker. That will last through one round.

Engage on the other hand, is the same as his n entry ability, except for the fact that the FFTA2 Character is played straight to the field than to your hand.

 

 

14-094R – Ravus

Plenty of Captains to choose from but, one that stands out is Captain (12-094C). I can see some shenanigans that will come out of these 2 cards.

With that being said, 1CP for a 9K body, is what you would want to play every chance you get.

A Forward losing 5K when he enters either the field or the Break Zone isn’t bad either.

 

14-095H – Roche

Roche. The perfect play Turn 1.

If he is in your hand on your First turn, You will basically, just lay the card down and deal your opponent 1 point of Damage. If not, then there is nothing special about him. Except the first time you fight him in FFVII Remake.