Weekly Deckbuilding Discussion: Week 5 Nowi

[Genojack]

In the spirit of spurring discussion about deckbuilding, it seems like a good idea to start up your standard weekly discussion. The idea behind this thread is to put the spotlight on a unit, and discuss it from several angles, such as recommended companion units, full decklists, improvements for previously posted decklists, etc. My hope is that this thread might help in discovering and spreading good deckbuilding practices, and spark some creative discussion involving the game.

Posting Recommendations:

1. Consider stating the intent of the deck within the post, such as if the deck is of a budget, competitive or thematic nature.

2. The weekly unit does not have to be the Main Character (though highly encouraged). If it is not the Main Character, please mention the reasoning behind it's inclusion in the posted deck.

3. Consider mentioning what your experience with the posted deck, companion unit, or piece of advice (tested, solitaire, theory, etc)

4. As a footnote to the post, feel free to add your pick for a future unit spotlight, or what kind of unit you want to see in the future (popular, underused, gimmicky, etc.)

Further recommendations and guidelines will be added or removed at the behest of the community.

This week's unit: Nowi

Week 4 (24/7/2015) Linde

Week 3 (17/7/2015) Lissa

Week 2 (10/7/2015) Ogma

Week 1 (3/7/2015) Robin F

Edited July 31, 2015 by Genojack

[Genojack]

Week 1: Robin F

As both a beloved protagonist and set of easily available cards, Robin F seems like a good card to test out this thread. Sporting a cost 1 and 4 card, the skills of both Robin F cards revolve around moving the opponent's units and gaining advantage from being at a lower orb count than your opponent. She has the standard 1-2 range for mages, allowing for leeway when it comes to shuffling you and your opponent's position.

Cards That Work Well With Robin F;

Morgan M Getting the obvious out of the way, this card specifically requires Robin F in order to function at full capacity. Offers a cheaper version of her cost 4 version's healing ability, possibly allowing for an extra activation over the course of the game.

Tharja A logical consequence of losing more orbs than your opponent is likely having a larger hand. Tharja's various forms allow her to take advantage of that lead for power, or extend the advantage.

Noire Only applicable if Tharja has been included for all the reasons stated above. Additionally, the above cards all use a large amount of bonds, making Noire one of the more useful archers available.

Crom Both a solid Main Character given his support, and a good way to add focus to the enemy position manipulation theme.

Cordelia/Sumia Good supports, for both power and moving your 2 range characters to preferred positions.

Not Recommended;

Shadow Dragon Cards: Focusing on the Class Change ability seems like a better choice for Robin F.

Bond Flipping: Focusing on the Bond costs of the above units may be a better choice for Robin F.

The above was all based on theory, criticism is appreciated!

[viewtifulkye]

When I first saw Robin (F), I have to say that I completely underestimated her. Heck, I even wrote off the Move mechanic as a useful mechanic when I first read it. However, after being able to play a few games using just the starter decks (since me and my friend were just learning how to play the game, so instead of overcomplicating things, we just took the two different starters and pit them up against each other) I can defintely say that the Move mechanic is a very interesting tool that can be utilised to be very effective.

[spoiler=Lengthy Explanation of My Thoughts on the Move Mechanic:]The Move mechanic can be used to move an Ally unit to the Rear Guard to prevent them from taking a potential attack from anything but Range 2 users. This can be useful for whether you need your opponent to stop attacking your Main Character for a turn or two, as well as moving a unit to safety if you can't promote them that turn and have no plans to attack with them. Rescue is the skill that most resembles this method of utilising the Move mechanic, which is most commonly found on Pegasus Knights.

However, Robin F (and a handful of other cards) can use the Move Mechanic in a very different way, using the Move mechanic both offensively and defensively on your opponent's cards. Offensively, you can move an annoying Archer or Tome user to the Vanguard in order to be able to wipe them out without having to commit your own Tome or Archer unit to the Vanguard and risk them being wiped out as well. Defensively, you can take an opponent's unit that may be too strong for your units to handle this turn and Move them to the Rear Guard in order to "stun" them for a turn (the reason for this "stun" is that in order to Move a unit to or from the Vanguard, you must tap that unit, preventing them from performing any other actions during that turn!).

I've put my thoughts and experiences with the Move mechanic in the Spoiler box above; it partially has something to do with the Card of the Week which is why I put it in a Spoiler Box in case someone didn't want to read it and just wants to read up about Robin (F).

[spoiler='Cost 1 Robin (F)]Amnesia-stricken Tactician, Robin (Female)/Cost 1/ATK 30/SUPP 20/Range 1-2/Unpromoted

Insignias and Traits: Awakening (Blue), Female, Tome

Skill 1: "Tactical Talents” / ∞ / If you have less bonds than your opponent, this unit’s attack is increased by 10.

Skill 2: “Strategist’s Emblem” / Attack SUPP / When your attacking unit has the Awakening Insignia, then you may choose one enemy unit that is not the defending unit and move it.

Let's start by talking about the Cost 1 Robin (F). Having an ATK stat of 30 is decent, considering that she is a Range 1-2 unit. However, it is subpar when considering Robin (F) as a Main Character as most Cost 1 units that would be considered for a Main Character role will normally have at least 40 ATK, putting her behind just a bit when you consider brute force. However, her Skill 1 helps to... *ahem* "tip the scales" in any battle that involves you having less Bonds then your opponent, which will usually be during their turn if they went 1st. Alternatively, you can just play a Cost 1 unit and then move Robin (F) to the Rear Guard if you happen to go 1st.

Her SUPP stat is pretty good as well, being a decent 20. While it is not quite as good as the Pegasus and Wyvern Knights that sport that lovely 30 SUPP stat, Robin (F) has the benefit of utility by being a Range 1-2 unit that doesn't require any skills. She also has the Move mechanic on her Skill 2 that can be used in similar methods as described in the above Spoiler Box.

Overall, a very good Tome user that offers similar benefits as other Tome users with a unique skill in Skill 2 that can lead to some tricky and very rewarding plays.

[spoiler='Cost 4 Robin (F)]Exalted Strategist, Robin (Female)/Cost 4(3)/ATK 60/SUPP 20/Range 1-2/Promoted

Insignias and Traits: Awakening (Blue), Female, Tome

Skill 1:“Grandmaster Plan” / & / Each time an ally class changes, you may choose one enemy unit and move it.

Skill 2: CCS “All According to Plan” / α / [Flip 3 Bonds] If you have less orbs than your opponent, add the top card of your deck to your Orb Area. (CCS: If this unit was placed without the promotion unit cost, this skill is inactive)

Cost 4 Robin sports a good 60 ATK that allows her to put the pain on her opponents from both near and far. However, while 60 ATK is not particularly that strong for a Cost 4 unit, it is her Range that makes up for the difference of 10 ATK power. Her skills also help add to her utility and make the 10 ATK difference seem very miniscule. Her Skill 1 is similar to her Cost 1's Skill 2, but not having to be activated from when she is used as a SUPP unit adds much consistency and frequency to being able to use (and abuse) the Move mechanic to your advantage. Skill 2, while similar to Morgan (M)'s skill, is more consistent to use over Morgan (M) (especially since Morgan (M) requires you to have Robin (F) in play in order to use the skill in the 1st place). Being one of the only two units in the game currently that can heal Orbs is defintely something you should consider if your deck prefers a strong late game, as well as just being useful in general.

Her SUPP stat stays similar to her Cost 1 iteration, being a solid 20. Not much else to say about her SUPP other than what's already been said.

In short, Cost 4 Robin (F) is a very fantastic unit, with unique abilities just like her Cost 1 card that, while tricky, can be life saving and bide you just enough time to make a comeback.

[spoiler=Comparisions with Other Similar Units]Tentative, coming soon. Or whenever I find the time to update this. :P

[spoiler=Sample Decklist]Tentative, coming soon. Or whenever I find the time to update this. :P

Will be updating this whenever I have more time to think about Robin (F). Hopefully, this was an entertaining and educational read for you guys and I would like to ask for some constructive criticism on how I could improve my "review" of Robin (F) and of potential future Cards of the Week. I look forward to the replies, to this thread and game's growth, and most importantly, for everyone to enjoy this card game based on such a fantastic video game series.

Edited July 4, 2015 by viewtifulkye

[Genojack]

Week 2: Ogma

Next up, let's take a look at the original Mercenary rep, Ogma. Sporting a four cards at four different costs, Ogma remains a versatile tool in most player's toolboxes, only aided by the fact he is easily available with any Sword of Light starter deck. His cost 1 unit remains effective late into the game by sporting 60 attack with two or more 2≥ cost units on your turn. His cost 2 unit gains considerable bulk as a 70 attack unit at the cost of only certain select units being able to support him. Ogma's cost 3 card is when things get interesting. Gaining the standard Sword of Light effect on a 2≥ cost deployment, Ogma begins buffing himself and the deployed units. This added on to the ability to become a tome user temporarily for a bond flip and small attack deduction, the OG Hero cements itself as a great splashable unit. Finally comes the War-God, who can tap allied units to gain power and take out 2 orbs with one attack if said attack's power threshold is reached.

Cards That Work Well With Ogma;

Palla, Est and Catria: OK, a lot to work with here. Apart from being great support units in general, the pegasus sister's cost 1 ability works well for getting units out fast. Playing a sister with 2 unflipped bonds guarantees cost 1 Ogma's 60 attack for that turn. Additionally, said sister's skill triggers cost 3 Ogma's +10 power ability. Cost 3 Ogma's range can be used to cover pesky archers and wind mages bothering your flying units, keeping the trio safe. If your opponent breaks the triangle formation, and you cannot restore it that turn, the leftover units make great fodder for cost 4 Ogma's tapping ability. Finally, Ogma's various forms are light on bond flipping, allowing you to dedicate your resources to calling the other sisters.

Linde/Card Draw: Ogma likes to have a lot of allies, and as such likes having a large hand. Linde specifically has a low bond flipping cost, and is generally more aggressive than other card advantage units.

Olivia: More value for your berserk turn with the War-God, Levin Sword turn, or when you drop your hand on the field with cost 3 Ogma.

Really, Most Anything: A bit of a cop-out, but it's hard not to overstate Ogma's utility. As stated, with various forms filling different needs, low bond usage, overall high attack and few hindering traits, this week's unit is likely to find it's way into many decks. One possible problem with the card is it's lack of focus and direct synergy, leaving it left out if a more sinergetic card can be found.

Not Recommended;

Navarre: Despite being tied together with their cost 2 unit's effects, the two swordsmen's abilities clash in focus, one benefiting from solitude while the other wants allies. They can work in the same deck, but the focus will likely be skewed (unless you're building around Lon'qu, then power to you!)

[Tuvillo]

I used Ogma as my MC when I mixed my two Starter Decks, playing pretty much every mage in the two decks with the Fighters and Cavaliers, to reasonable results.

For me, the only reason to play Ogma at all is that his level 1 is really good as an MC, creating heavy pressure on the enemy early.

[viewtifulkye]

Ogma. This guy. This mercenary. THIS MERC.

[spoiler=Cost 1 Ogma]Talysian Mercenary, Ogma/Cost 1/Mercenary/ATK 40/SUPP 10/Range 1/Unpromoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Male, Sword

Skill 1: "Mercenary Commander” / ∞ / During your turn, when there are 2 or more allies with placement cost 2 or less, this unit’s ATK is increased by 20.

Skill 2: “Fighter’s Emblem” / Attack SUPP / Until the end of the attack phase, your attacking unit’s ATK is increased by 20.

Geez, this guy is ridiculous. Ogma sports a standard 40 ATK, however, his Skill allows him to be a Cost 1 ATK 60 unit once the conditions are met. Which is crazy. The strongest Cost 1 right now has a printed ATK of 50 (which is Lon'qu, and he has the disadvantage of only being able to have successful supports with Male units) and Ogma has essentially ATK 60 with no downside other than commiting lower Cost units to the battlefield. Which isn't a downside in most scenarios outside of late game. This makes him a worthy candidate for being a Main Character, as he doesn't require you opening with a higher Cost Ogma to keep your opponent from constantly bombarding your Main Character with attacks, while still allowing him to keep the pain coming. This can also be easily achieved by your second turn as well, making him a powerful play, whether you have him as a Main Character or as a deployable unit.

He has a measly SUPP stat of 10, but he does have his Skill 2 to boost his SUPP to 30. However, it is worth noting that Ogma will only be able to use is SUPP Skill when your unit is the one declaring the attack. This is important as it does not give him the wonderful SUPP 30 that the flying units give when you are on the defense. Inconsistent as it may be, he can still give that SUPP 30, which is still a strong SUPP nonetheless.

Overall, a very strong Swordsman to have at your disposal. Whether you open with him as your Main Character or late in the game, you can expect Ogma to be able to swing his mercencary sword through your enemies!

[spoiler=Cost 2 Ogma]Well-Armed Gladiator, Ogma/Cost 2/Mercenary/ATK 70/SUPP 10/Range 1/Unpromoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Male, Sword

Skill 1: “Predestined Paths” / CONT / Unless the support unit is “Caeda” or “Navarre”, this unit’s support will fail.

Moving on, Cost 2 Ogma has a superb ATK 70, comparable only to Athena who also sports ATK 70 with different downsides. While there are no requirements for deploying Cost 2 Ogma on the battlefield, he does have a downside when it comes to battling. This can be supplemented by playing more Caeda and Navarre cards, however, none of the current Caeda or Navarre support Ogma very well, let alone this card to warrant making a deck around those 3 units. Outside of that though, Cost 2 Ogma is great during the early game for posing a big threat to the field without potentially losing any ATK as his Cost 1 might have. However, I would not say that Cost 2 Ogma has much uses on the field outside of the early game. He is possibly useful for promotion purposes, but none of the current Ogma cards require being promoted for you to use their Skills, as well as Cost 1 Ogma is generally the cheaper and faster alternative.

Not much to say about his SUPP, being a measly 10 only helps to increase the desire to not play this card and to just skip straight to Cost 3.

I wouldn't suggest playing more than 1-2, unless we get more Ogma-support oriented cards from Caeda and/or Navarre. and even then, I probably still wouldn't play Cost 2 Ogma, as his Cost 3 and 4 are substantially more powerful and verstatile.

[spoiler=Cost 3 Ogma]Steel Swordsman, Ogma/Cost 3(2)/Hero/ATK 60/SUPP 10/Range 1/Promoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Male, Sword

Skill 1: “Talysian Guard Captain” / & / Each time you deploy a unit of Cost 2 or less, until the end of the turn this unit and that ally’s ATK are increased by 10.

Skill 2: “Levin Sword” / ACT / [Flip 1 Bond] Until the end of this turn this unit’s ATK is decreased by 10, but is now treated as a Tome with a range of 1-2.

Cost 3 Ogma makes a good trade by throwing away some ATK from his Cost 2 for a lot of verstalitily, worhty of him being called a Promoted Unit. Having a solidly standard ATK 60, Cost 3 Ogma shines with his Skills. His Skill 1 gives more power to lower Cost units that you deploy as well as himself, by buffing both units by 10 ATK. This also isn't a once per turn thing either, as this Skill activates EVERYTIME you deploy a Cost 2 or lower unit while also stacking so you can get a pretty big turn whenever Cost 3 Ogma is on your side. Insane. Now, his Skill 2 isn't as powerful in the ATK point of view, but it more than makes up for it with verstatility. By flipping 1 Bond and a measly decrease of 10 ATK for the turn, you can turn Cost 3 Ogma into a Tome user with 1-2 Range. This is a very strong Skill as being able to hit your opponent's Rear Guard and not having to fear using a frail unit for the purpose adds to Cost 3 Ogma's flexibility and splashability in any deck, even if he is the only RED character that you decide to use!

Overall, Cost 3 Ogma is a fantastic unit and combined with his Cost 1, makes for a very splashable and powerful card to have in any deck.

[spoiler=Cost 4 Ogma]War-God of Talys, Ogma/Cost 4(3)/Hero/ATK 70/SUPP 10/ Range 1/Promoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Male, Sword

Skill 1: “Battlefield-Born” / ACT / [Tap one ally unit] Until the end of the turn, this unit’s ATK is increased by 10.

Skill 2: “Sanctified Strike” / SELF / If this unit’s ATK is 100 or greater after initiating an attack, then until the end of the turn the orbs this unit destroys as a result of battle is now 2.

If you were looking for a powerful boss unit, look no further! Cost 4 Ogma is incredibly powerful as both a Main Character as well as a deployable unit. Both his Skills aim to rain destruction on your opponent's Main Character! Skill 1 can be used multiple times in a turn to increase his ATK to 100 or greater. This combos well with his Skill 2, as whenever he has an ATK of 100 or higher after initiating an attack, any Orbs he destroys becomes 2. Now, I'm not too sure about the rulings for this, but to my understanding, this Skill will work if Cost 4 Ogma has less than 100 ATK before supporting and at least 100 ATK when SUPP stats are applied, or when you perform a Critical Attack with him. If this doesn't work like this, I will edit it as such. But until then, if you don't have enough units, you can hope to activate the Skill with some luck with SUPP. This Skill is easy to activate, as you only need 3 untapped units to bring Cost 4 Ogma up to ATK 100, which is not out of the realm for this card, as his Cost 1 and Cost 3 carnations both also support Swarming the battlefield, so you can expect enough targets to use this card to it's full advantage. However, do realize that Evasion is a thing. So don't put all your eggs in one basket, as tempting of a basket Cost 4 Ogma is.

This card is most obviously best for late game, as Skill 2 can help seal the victory faster than your opponent may realize. Though realistically, the deployment of this card may very well force the game into the late game whether your opponent is ready for that or not!

[spoiler=Comparisons with Similar Units]Savior of Archanea, Marth/Cost 5(4)/Lodestar/ATK 70/SUPP 20/Range 1/Promoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Male, Sword

Skill 1: "Victory Nears” / ACT / [Flip 3 Bonds, Discard 1 "Marth" card from your hand] Until the end of your opponent's next turn the ATK of all your ally units is increased by 30.

Skill 2: "Falchion" / CONT / When this unit attacks a unit with the Dragon Affinity, this unit's ATK is increased by 20.

The Great King himself will be the first to try to give Ogma a run for his money. Using Marth's Skill 1 by paying the cost of Flipping 3 Bonds and discarding a Marth card, you give ALL YOUR ALLIES an increase of 30 ATK until the end of YOUR OPPONENT'S TURN. Comparing this to the seemingly selfish War God Ogma, this defintely does seem like a substantial upgrade, however, there are a few things that may hold Marth back from being straight up superior to our War God. First off, this Skill has a hefty, hefty cost to it. Flipping 3 Bonds AND having to discard a Marth card means that in order to activate this Skill, you must have a Marth card in hand as well as 3 unflipped bonds (obviously) but the implications are far deeper than just that. As of right now, there is no way to directly unflip flipped Bonds (the only way to even interact with flipped Bonds currently is using Nowi's skill to return a Bond to your hand), so once you Flip thos 3 Bonds, you can basically say good bye to them for the rest of the game. Also, discarding a Marth card prevents you from potentially using Evasion to save Marth if for some reason, he would go down. This is especially important if you have Marth as your Main Character. Because of the difference in cost between both cards, they are ultimately used in different ways. Marth is generally used to try to end the game during that turn or the following turn, while Ogma can be used safely over the course of 1-3 turns to try to end the game.

Courageous Talys Mercenary, Barst/Cost 2/Fighter/ATK 40/ SUPP 10/ Range 1/ Unpromoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Male, Axe

Skill 1: FS “Bord, Cord, and Barst” / & / [Tap Bord and Cord] During this unit’s attack, if you pay the cost for all 3 units, then until the end of your attack phase this unit’s ATK increases by 50 and the orbs it destroys as a result of battle is now 2

Skill 2: “Fighter’s Instincts” / CONT / During your turn, this unit’s ATK is increased by 20.

Barst's Skill 1 is very similar to Cost 4 Ogma. Both require 3 untapped units, give both units an ATK 100, and destroys 2 Orbs. However, there are a few key differences that lets Ogma win over the 3 Fighter Combo. Firstly, Ogma does not require any specific units to use his Skill, while Barst require him, Bord, and Cord to be at his full potential. Secondly, Bord and Cord (and even Barst) are very weak units, having ATK 30 with a Skill that boost their ATK by 20 during your turn... which is useless when you are trying to use Barst to his full potential. They are essentially sitting ducks in your hand or on the field and are only truly useful when you have Barst. Thirdly, because the units you use with Ogma are not required to be specific, you can deploy them earlier than having to save the 3 Fighter Combo for a one turn play. They can also provide ulitily by being Range 2 units to deploy to the Rear Guard, meaning you can keep them there if they can't attack over any unit and then just use them for Cost 4 Ogma's Skill to further increase their usefulness.

Eldest Pegasus Sister, Palla/Cost 3(2)/Falcoknight/ATK 50/SUPP 30/Range 1/Promoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Female, Lance

Skill 1: FS / "Triangle Attack" / & / [Tap Est and Catria] During this unit's attack, if you pay the cost for all 3 units then until the end of your attack phase this unit's ATK increases by 50 and cannot be avoided.

Skill 2: "Sisterly Ties" / CONT / If this unit has either Catria or Est as support, then increase this unit’s ATK by 10.

The (in)famous Pegasus Sisters provide largely the same arguments as Barst and his buddies. However, there are a few key difference between the two groups. Firstly, if Skill 1 is used, the attack cannot be avoided. This is important for insuring things go your way (outside of an unlucky SUPP). Secondly, all 3 Pegasus Sisters' Cost 1 carnations have a Skill that provide you with easy Swarming to the battlefield. Truthly though, the Pegasus Sisters actually work BETTER with Ogma rather than being compared with him.

Infamous Knight “Raging Bull”, Cain/Cost 3(2)/Paladin/ATK 60/SUPP 10/Range 1/Promoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Male, Lance

Skill 1: “Blessed Knight’s Protection” / CONT / Your opponent’s Rear Guard cannot attack this unit or allies of 2 or less placement cost.

Skill 2: “Dancing Lances of Red & Green” / SELF / [Tap an ally “Abel”] Once this unit has initiated an attack, if you paid the cost then this unit’s ATK is increased by 40.

Cain and Abel provide arguably the best argument against using the War God Ogma. Firstly, they require only 2 cards, which while specific, are both fairly cheap to put into play. Secondly, their Skill 2 provides protection from your opponent's Rear Guard for both them as well as any unit with a Cost 2 or lower. Locking out the Rear Guard is just as powerful as getting rid of them entirely, even if you are not permanently getting rid of them. However, as great as the Dancing Lances are, they do have one flaw. Only requiring 2 cards for their combo attack does reduce the rewards that you could get from another similar unit. In Ogma's case, you lose the option of destroying an additional orb, which could be just enough to give your opponent enough time to counterattack. This is a bit minor though, as the Dancing Lances is generally an early to mid game combo.

New Exalt, Chrom/Cost 5(4)/Great Lord/ ATK 70/SUPP 20/Range 1/Promoted

Insignias and Traits: Shadow Dragon (Red), Male, Lance

Skill 1: "Vested Authority" / ACT / [Flip 3 Bonds, discard one "Chrom" from your hand] Choose as many enemy units as you like and move them. Until the end of the turn, the ATK of all ally units is increased by 30.

Skill 2: Skill 2: CCS "Exalted Falchion" / CONT / When this unit attacks a Dragon Affinity unit, this unit’s ATK is increased by 40. (CCS: If this unit was placed without the promotion unit cost, this skill is inactive)

Chrom has largely the same benefits as Marth with a 2 key differences. Firstly, the ATK buff does not last until the end of your opponent's turn. This means that you may not have the security blanket that Marth provides during your opponent's turn. However, that may not matter as Chrom does something else in place of that. He allows you to move any number of enemy units to anywhere you want, which means you can technically avoid all damage (barring from your opponent's Main Character or any units they may deploy on their turn) by moving all Vanguard units to the Rear Guard and vice versa, while keeping the opponent's Main Character on the Vanguard. This way, you can eliminate pesky Range 2 units as well as get potential hits in on the opponent's Main Character while limiting your opponent's offense on their turn. Other than that though, same arguments apply from Marth vs Ogma to Chrom vs Ogma.

[spoiler=Sample Decklist]IMPORTANT! This deck has only been built using theory and lacks any sort of playtesting! Being just a sample decklist, this is just to give you a guideline for the deck and you can (and are recommended to) customize it to your liking. IMPORTANT OVER!

Ogma's Triangle Attack:

B01-018HN Talysian Mercenary, Ogma x3

S01-004ST Steel Swordsman, Ogma x3

B01-016SR War-God of Talys, Ogma x2

B01-006HN Princess of Talys, Caeda x3

S01-002ST Aerial Battle Princess, Caeda x2

B01-004SR Angelic Advocate of Affection, Caeda x3

B01-031N Princess of Macedon, Minerva x1

B01-030R Princess, Minerva x4

B01-039N Eldest Pegasus Rider, Palla x4

B01-038R Eldest Pegasus Sister, Palla x3

B01-041N Middle Pegasus Rider, Catria x4

B01-040R Middle Pegasus Sister, Catria x3

B01-043N Youngest Pegasus Rider, Est x4

B01-042R Youngest Pegasus Sister, Est x3

B01-047N Divine Dragon Princess, Tiki x4

B01-046SR Manakete Princess, Tiki x3

B01-048N Princess of Altea, Elice x2

Total Cards: 51

So this deck features Ogma and being able his Cost 1, 3, and 4 to high effectiveness. However, this deck is built to be able to utilise multiple different MCs depending on your opponent's deck. The MCs this deck can be played with are: Ogma, Caeda, Minerva, Tiki, and any of the Pegasus Sisters. Caeda can be used as an MC in order to search for specific cards to out some of your opponent's important key cards. Minerva can be used if your opponent has either a lot of Archer units or plays a similar Pegasus deck (as you putting Cost 4 Minerva into play is very key in establishing field control against Pegasus decks). Tiki and any of the Pegasus Sisters can be used against rushdown/Tiki decks, as you will need the speed of either MCs in order to keep up/outpace your opponent.

Since this is Ogma's Card of the Week review, let's talk about the deck as if you are using Ogma as the MC. Ogma's Cost 1 is very useful early on as he gets pretty powerful around Turn 2, when you have 2 other allies with Cost 2 or less. This can be helped even faster with the Pegasus Riders, as having even just one will give you a fast field presence as well as setting up for your Triangle Attacks as well as Cost 4 Ogma. Getting a Pegasus Rider in play is also very important, as keeping cards in your hand is really needed for follow-up plays with Cost 3 Ogma. This is why the main core of the deck is Ogma and the Pegasus Sisters.

As for the rest of the cards, Caeda is there to help you search the rest of your deck for whatever you need. Minerva helps protect your Pegasus Knights from Archers while also feeding power from them. Tiki is staple for any Red deck as well as providing speed with Bonding. And Elice rounds out the deck by being able to help you complete Triangle attacks or set-up a Promotion with relative ease.

(NOTE: If you plan to play the deck only as an Ogma deck, then cut 2 Cost 1 Ogmas and add in 1 Cost 5 Tiki/Cost 4 Minerva/Cost 4 Caeda)

Also, I didn't forget about updating Robin (F)'s Card of the Week. I've just been so busy and luckily, I've been able to secure a bit of time to be able to fully update both Ogma and Robin (F)'s Card of the Week over the course of the next few days.

EDIT 1: Made a theory Ogma deck so read up on that if you haven't yet!

Edited July 13, 2015 by viewtifulkye

[Genojack]

Week 3: Lissa

This week, let's take a look at the 'Little Miss from Ylisse, Lissa'. Sporting a cost 1 and 3 incarnation, Lissa's abilities add a fellow unit to the hand from the discard zone through either tapping and flipping 2, or taking down an opposing unit. A solid addition to various Awakening decks, and having some interesting interactions with various Shadow Dragon cards, Lissa makes a great exercise for experimental deck builds.

Cards That Work Well With Lissa;

Maribelle: Plop her in the back, +20 Attack on your turn, and the ability to pull emergency Lissas for extra protection. Pretty much mandatory if Lissa is your MC.

Olivia: For the cost of flipping 2 bonds, you can convert your pretty princess into a unit exterminating, friend reanimating, advantage generating monster.

Henry: Aww come on, a self sacrificing unit Lissa can bring back? Too obvious Genojack, surely you have something better?

Wrys: I swear this unit has more to it. Despite having careful wording to prevent Olivia shenanigans, Wrys only helps ensure your Lissa lands her blows, if only to bring Wrys back for another round. The aforementioned Maribelle lands a cost 3 Lissa at 100 Attack, nearly making a Godspeed Dodge the only safe option for units released so far. But wait, it gets better...

Lena: Leeching on to the Wrys-Lissa combo is Lena, who can help add a Lissa (or other situational unit) to your hand each turn when a cost 2 or lower unit is played, such as Wrys! Including Lena can lead to a weak early game, but also secure a mean defensive machine later on, while compensating for Lissa's 1 range attacks.

Archers: A large threat to Lissa's defensive power are the various unblockable units, the most popular of whom are the Pegasus Sisters. On top of that, flying units are all the rage right now, Archers are rarely a bad addition.

Not Recommended;

Pegasus Units: Most flyers are comparatively weak without other supporting units. Lissa decks usually don't have a lot of room for alternate combos, and weak 1 range units aren't the most helpful. Lissa, Maribelle, Wrys, and various other cards don't move around much, leaving the standard pegasus support skill pretty useless. Finally, Lissa has many ways to buff herself up, making the consistent +30 support feel like overcompensation.

UPDATE: I'll soon be switching time zones, meaning next weeks update will likely arrive at a significantly different time. Thanks to everyone helping out with the thread!

[Genojack]

Week 4: Linde

For our fourth entry, let's focus on Linde, one of the first cards that comes to mind when one mentions "card draw". Both iterations of Linde carry an ability to increase their own power at the cost of a flipped bond, while also boasting the ability to draw or cycle depending on the circumstances. Due to it's low power during the opponent's turn, Linde is unlikely to be your MC, though some gimmicks can be used to keep her safe as one. Thanks to her abilities, Linde remains rather independent, using very few interactions.

Cards That Work Well With Linde;

Marth: Nothing too clever here, cost 1 Marth's support ability can bring a final turn push utilizing Linde's +20 ability to an early close. Cost 4's movement options generally benefit mages, and no-one can argue with the power of cost 5 Marth's activated ability.

Elice: An efficient +2 for 2 bonds, never a bad addition for Sword of Light decks.

Draug: Your MC lacks attack? Draug's your man.

Abel/Cain: A Linde deck might be lacking a bit of power, Abel and Cain are the solutions.

Gregor: Ok, time for some gimmicks. This interaction is not limited to Linde, but for all mage MCs. Simply put, push all of your ranged units to the Rearguard, place a Gregor up front, force your opponent to kill him in order to initiate a forced march, netting you an extra bond.

Nowi: Useful for when you reach that bond saturation point, Nowi adds to your cycling while maintaining an extra available flippable bond for Linde to use each turn.

Olivia: Linde's +20 attack skill is potent, why not milk that ability for a game winning push.

Any deck needing some card draw: No explanation needed.

Not Recommended;

Heavy bond flipping units: Linde's power come's from her ability to gain gradual consistent advantage. Some of the above recommended units break this rule, which demands serious consideration.

[xNinjaOfChaosx]

So, I've been thinking up making a Manakete deck, and was hoping you could help me with some card recommendations since your other characters are well fleshed out. So far, the deck would be about bond ramping and then using the Bond Area as a toolbox, kinda like how the Lissa deck would use the Retreat Area as a toolbox. So far, I've figured it would have:

Tiki (MC) [1, 2 & 5] - Primary bond generation

Nowi [1 & 3] - Used to be able to grab cards from Bond Area once you've reached that ideal quantity

Gregor - Additional way to speed up bond generation

Now, the issue I'm seeing being centered around this is that your hand and bonds will burn up quickly when using Tiki 2, which will need to be used to reach Tiki 5 ASAP as well as hit that magic number for her 90 power. This will mean you won't be able to freely use bonds until much later, so high bond cost effects might not be wanted for the deck, but at the same time if you don't use Tiki 2, you'd have a bunch of bonds to be able to spend.
What else should you run to make the most out of the bond toolbox as well? Stuff that's useless early but will be situationally useful later could include maybe FS units, like Bord/Cord/Barst.

[Genojack]

Tomorrow will be the start of the next week, so we'll put Nowi or Tiki under the microscope then. Until then, take a look at Touya's Blog (The Lycian League) if you want a taste of what some of the Japanese players have been using. Specifically, check out the Card Land Kamata tournament winner's Manakete deck.

Additionally, there are some challenges to be met when building a Manakete deck. Some things to consider are; How do I deal with Falchion Units? If Tiki is my MC, can I wait potentially 4 turns at 30 power? Is it possible to create a large army for the maximum support->bond engine, or how much is too much? I'll post tomorrow with my thoughts on the matter :)

[Genojack]

Week 5: Nowi

As one of the two Bond manipulating manaketes, Nowi gains massive power based on the state of one's bond zone, while also utilizing the bond zone as a toolbox. Nowi herself is unlikely to see play as a MC given her fluctuating 20 attack and non-promotable cost 3 version, and will likely have to be played either just for it's cost 1 version or as a part of a Tiki deck.

Cards That Work Well With Nowi;

Gregor:

Tiki:

Draug:

Movement Options:

Not Recommended;

Pending

Super sorry, my schedule took a turn for the worst, look forward to an edit later today! May have to do a expanded recommendation for Tiki given how integral it is to Nowi.