New Spoiler Card Review:

Witch Queen of Transfiguration, Sinclair

Omigod omigod it's real it's real omigod omigod

Somewhere, Stil Vampir is sobbing gently in the fetal position.

A recent reveal in the Fighters Collection Winter 2015 set has in fact unveiled a Shadow Paladin Witch Stride, something I've been wanting for a WHILE, and boy, is she worth it. Firstly, we'll dissect the effect, then I'll add my opinion on how this will change the deck.

[Stride]-Stride Step-[Choose one or more cards with the sum of their grades being 3 or greater from your hand, and discard them] Stride this card on your (VC) from face down.

[ACT](VC)1/Turn:[Counter Blast (1)] If you have a heart card with "Witch" in its card name, and the number of your opponent's grade 0 rear-guards is two or more, your opponent reveals ten cards from the top of his or her deck, chooses a grade 0 card from among them, rides it, shuffles his or her deck, until end of turn, that unit gets "[AUTO](VC):[Counter Blast (1)] At the beginning of the guard step of the battle that this unit was attacked, you may pay the cost. If you do, choose any number of cards from your hand, call them (GC) as [Rest]." and "[AUTO](VC):At the end of your opponent's turn, choose up to one card from your soul, and ride it.".

Now, if we dissect this in pieces, beginning with the basics- Witch heart is required, which works fine for us, and the opponent will need to control 2 or more Grade 0 units. Without Fianna on the VG circle for a turn, this is tougher, but not impossible- and it adds to the opponent's list of worries. 

Now, they know this card exists, and they know Diablo exists, and they know that you have access to both. The threat of Diablo will make them call units, so they can still guard, which gives you rearguards to Hex with Fianna, Adora, Dana and Deirdre, while the threat of Sinclair will make them replace those Grade 0's as soon as humanly possible, minusing themselves and making Diablo hurt more. As you can tell, it's a big wheel of variables and worry and YOU'RE the one spinning it.

So, if they're silly enough to leave 1 or 2 Grade 0 rearguards, with a Dana or Deirdre in hand, Striding Sinclair becomes quite the option. For a counterblast, you'll make them ride a G0 from the top 10 cards of their deck- but it's okay, they aren't getting completely pseudo-Gloried. They can still guard the vanguard any way they want to...by paying a counterblast for the privilege.

In a game where in most decks, counterblasts equal direct advantage, pushing your opponent to use them to do something as essential as guarding is like disruption on steroids for SP Witches. And that's just wonderful, really. A cherry on top is that your opponent's Vanguard will be on 5k at most, which, if you're hitting or 16k+ columns (which you SHOULD) all rearguard attacks will require 15k shield at least- and if they want to use any grade other than Zero...that'll be a Counterblast, please.

At the end of the turn, they can re-ride a Vanguard from their soul- in some strange and situational scenarios, they can work this to their advantage- but in any properly planned Sinclair turn, this shouldn't matter too much, as they should be considerably softened up, or even out of the game entirely. In the rare scenario where re-riding their vanguard would plus hugely for them, simply use your common sense and judgement, and either go through with it if you think it will spell the end, or just don't stride Sinclair. She doesn't mind, she'll help you mess people up another time.

Changes to the Deck

Now, this is all my own theorycrafting here, but I've been playing Witches a while- so I feel like I may have some valid points. All things discussed here will need proper testing before we know for certain if they're right.

We're now more counterblast-heavy than we've ever been.

Fianna, Diablo, Sinclair and later on, Adora all  need counterblasts to get their effects off. This applies most to Fianna- the double Hex is quite effective, and done on a regular, staggered on a once per turn basis, will really set up for Sinclair, as most opponents will find it hard to keep replacing the Rearguards they've lost, and the loss of triggers from their deck, 2 at a time, is quietly devastating.

In a match against a Granblue player not so long ago, with his milling, and my Fianna effects, I managed to make him lose all of his trigger units from his main deck. It can happen, and while it's not something you should aim for by any means, it's still worth your time to grind those triggers out. Just think, the less Grade 0's they draw/check, the more Counterblast they will need to pay with Sinclair to guard, and the more disruption you'll have spread.

To mitigate this, Shadow Paladin has some counterchargers we can use. In English, I'm currently running 3 Adra, whom functions as an impressive pressure unit- opponents generally know WHAT that countercharge and soulcharge will be doing, so they will guard her. Witch of Goats, Medb, is also an option, but calling a G0 Stand Trigger for a countercharge and soulcharge is getting more difficult these days- not only is a Stand Trigger difficult to run (Stands only being really worth it on Rias or Sinclair turns) but giving up a 10k shield for a 4k Rearguard that then stays on the field is NOT worth it.

And then, I personally will be defecting to Karma Collector. While Nemain has the name (which only really matters for Adora especial counterblasts and dumping for Kuroma/Rias/Securna, but it's not as if you'd drop a PG for those), Karma gives us the countercharge we need. Nemain's draw and drop is cute, and sometimes hits gold, but in dire straits, it's usually a one card mill, and set up for the Legion turn is no longer really a valid reason, when you can easily stride before Legion (usually Dark Knight, Grim Recruiter, or Aurageyser if you're nasty).

With Adra and Karma, you should be set for some nice countercharging- 2 gets you a Fianna go, 1 gets you to have fun with either Diablo or Sinclair.

Dana and Deirdre are staple at 4 now more than ever.

Speaks for itself really, Sinclair turns can come about now and then if your opponent can't/won't rid themselves of the units Fianna gave them, but savvy players will know to get rid of as many as possible- if they leave one, or none, however, Sinclair is still possible thanks to Dana and Deirdre. Call them as a column and you've got a Sinclair turn.

Although, careful not to hold too tightly onto them in your hand- sometimes, to keep up the tempo, you'll need to call Deirdre or even Dana just to remain offensive enough so that Sinclair/Diablo will be offensive pushes and not just damage turns- it's okay if sometimes you can't make Deirdre or Dana activate their effects. Plan ahead as best you can.

= = = 

To summarize, waking up this morning and seeing this card announced honestly made my day. It's diabolically cruel, and fits Witches like a glove. I'm happy.

mawile  x

A Deck List:"Poof, and the Rearguard is Gone!"

Shadow Paladin Witches, Build 1.04

Outlaws, enemies of the state of the United Sanctuary, come together, to practice and experiment with powers other Magi fear to even speak about. It's time to join the Coven.

Hi there! Now, I'll preface this by saying that the build is still highly experimental, so far I've had good results with it, but it still needs a little time to cook. Either way, I'm get straight into the build, and pick out certain cards for extra detail/anecdotes.

Grade 0: 18

Promising Knight, David x2

Witch of Black Cats, Milcra [HEAL] x4

Lizard Witch, Eine [DRAW] x3

Howl Owl [DRAW, Go to Soul, +3k] x2

Witch of Black Doves, Goewin [CRIT] x4

Black Crow Witch, Eine [CRIT] x3

4 Heal / 5 Draw / 7 Crit

Grade 1: 13

Little Skull Witch, Nemain [PG] x4

Witch of Precious Stones, Dana x4

Witch of Nostrum, Arianrhod x2

Cherishing Knight, Branwen x2

Witch's Familiar, Kuroma x1

Grade 2: 10

Witch of Secret Books, Adra x2

Inspection Witch, Deirdre x4

Witch of Reality, Femme x4

Grade 3: 9

Mesmerizing Witch, Fianna x4

Cultus Witch, Rias x3

Sharp Fang Witch, Fodla x2

Grade 4: 8

Dark Knight, Grim Recruiter x2

Dark Dragon, Phantom Blaster "Diablo" x4

Supremacy Black Dragon, Aurageyser Dragon x2

"Hey guys! So, how can I help? Why- Why're you all looking at me like that-ARGH"

Grade Zeros - Summary

David is your main fodder for Diablo/Aurageyser. He makes it so that we can abuse the stride effects too, and so that we can plus/make back our deposit when we have to retire. I run two as Sharp Fang Witch, Fodla, makes him searchable, and because this way I have the option to REALLY cut loose on the strides- gives an alternative if the Hexing Game isn't working out. 

He's definitely replaced poor Lir, who was good, but required too many variables and had the capacity to be dead space.

As for triggers, I'm still toying with the number of Draw, and which Draws to run- the Witch draw is retire fodder for units like Rias and Kuroma, while Howl Owl fuels the soul for desperate Deirdre/Dana plays.

Goewin at max, ALWAYS. There's no reason not to, in my opinion, she makes it easier to try the deck without Securna. She's also searchable by Sharp Fang Witch, Fodla, which can make a CB1 = -10k to the opponent's Vanguard, with no loss in trigger count.

I don't miss the stand. While the Stand WAS a nice card, stands were only really dangerous on the Rias turn, and this witch deck doesn't focus quite so much on that anymore. The countercharge is nice, but the card was a case of "once called, you've lost a 10k shield". The soulcharge can be achieved by Howl Owl/ Re-Legion / Adra.

Literally powered by the PUREST of evils.

Grade Ones - Summaroo

Little Nemain and Dana are fairly staple at 4 each, not much to say there. The Countercharging PGG may also be a nice idea, but you won't be short of things to do if you choose Nemain instead. Dana is Grade 1 spot removal that punishes your opponent for guarding with a G0. Always monitor the drop zone, though, as they get to choose. The mindgame is always strong, though, you'll notice they'll be paying a LOT of attention, since you threaten near constant soft retires.

The last 5 are tech choices- Arianrhod for early game card-cycling, Branwen for Stride-Fodder, and Kuroma for draw. As it stands, Arianrhod is on thin ice, as I barely use her effect, while Kuroma and Branwen offer a little more utility.

Also, consider the fact that our Dark Knight, Grim Recruiter stride can toolbox your G1's AND your G0's - draw with Kuroma, spot remove with Dana, call a David as fodder for later, or even a Goewin if you want to play some kind of crazy mindgame- watch how fast they rid themselves of the G0's you gave them then.

Bat-print Bloomers, Agent Provocateur, $49.99

Grade Two - Samurai

Not much to mention in this section, 12k Attacker Femme is staple at 3/4, and Grade 2 "Dana" clone Deirdre is staple at 4. Femme gets extra points for being sackable with Fianna to draw 2, but in most scenarios, unless you have no Branwens in hand/don't care to Stride next turn, Sacking Fianna is the better option, if only to have Femme's intercept. 12k is also supremely handy when attacking weakened vanguards, shockingly enough. Deirdre needs no explanation, she may not be vaguely searchable like Dana is, but she's no weaker. 8 on-call spot removers are still 8 on-call spot removers. Not to be sniffed at.

Now, Adra, we can pull up a few seats, pour some tea and really have a chat about. Yes, we need Adora, but she's not out in English, so let's just not talk about her. Adra, however, offers us something we desperately need- on hit countercharging. She works well with the synergy of the deck in several ways- first, she reaches 11k, so, along with Femme, becomes a strong rearguard that can handle being boosted by something far weaker, like Kuroma or Securna, and STILL hit the standard 16k, making those backrow cards with low power still viable.

Secondly, her effect means there's a window of time in which she's active, but it creates so many variables and sets off so many mindgames that I love her for it. Firstly, she's active when the opponent controls 2 or more G0, which essentially means you've either used Fianna or some combination of Dana/Deirdre, so that's PRECISELY the time when you're going to want to mitigate those resources, so you can do it allllll again. 

However, your opponent will not want this, meaning they will pay the minimum 10k guard (if Adra is boosted) to block her, which is great, since that 10k could be a G0, and that's more toys for Dana and Deirdre to play with. On the next turn, they'll feel pressure to get rid of those Grade 0's you've given them- they already do, but knowing that those Grade 0's do the following things:

1. Make terrible columns

2. Run the risk of severe punishment from Goewin, Rias or Securna

3. Allow the Witch Player to draw extra cards to hand using Fianna and Kuroma

4. Keep Adra active as an 11k attacker with the on-hit effect of keeping Fianna, Aurageyser and Diablo live

Meaning they'll most likely target Adra (which is nice, keeps pressure off your vanguard for a while, you can use your judgement to decide whether or not it's worth losing Adra right now) and they may well call over their G0's, which is a great outcome, as it's a straight up minus and feeds Dana/Deirdre. Also makes subsequent Diablo turns super punishing.

So, yeah, Adra fits in. When Adora is released, we'll have fun working out ratios then, but for now, the deck is fine. Comet Witch, Serva also makes a nice Ride if your locals has a lot of rush decks.

Instant Dragon Food, just add a Counterblast

Grade Three: Summer-Eye

Fianna at 4 is crazy important- you ideally want to ride her first. Rias makes a nice backup finisher/softener for OTHER finishers, but CB2 to hex one unit is very expensive, only use it if you know it will spell "GG". Fodla is the unit that has a lot more utility- in my old build she would call the Stand Trigger, and then I'd unflip a total of 1 damage, soulcharge 2, and Diablo would eat them all. Cute, but not wonderful.

Now, though, with the new support, she can be CB1 = -10k to the vanguard. Or CB1 = -5k to the Vanguard, and call a David to retire for Aurageyser/Diablo. She really does feed those dragons quite handily, and she's also the Goewin whisperer. I like her at 2 but I'm beginning to wonder about trying her at 1, and making Adra a 3 copy situation. Testing will show me what works best, but for now, Fodla is handy. Just never ride her.

Grade Four: Some Mary

Fairly standard spread, Aurageyser for draw, and turning that starter David into 5 cards in hand, including drive check, which should definitely hit a few combo pieces. Diablo may work in a 2-of capacity, but in Witches he punishes the opponent for over exerting, and his very existence threatens any player who knows about Shadow Paladin to play at least 2 rearguards, which handily stamps on the mentality of "you can't hex me if I don't call Rearguards" which always ends so well, right?

Dark Knight, Grim Recruiter works as an on-hit tutoring stride, but generally he will be situational, if you don't have the field presence/cards in drop to Legion yet, but have a surplus of stride fodder.

So, that's my current Witch Build, and it's very fun to play, but far from complete. Hope this helped you with your own build in some way, or maybe I've convinced you to join us?

mawile   x

Hubble and Bubble, Toil and Trouble:

Shadow Paladin Witch Support,GB-04

We're almost relevant again!

Let's jump straight in with Kuroma first- now, 5k is admittedly not optimal, and it's a G1, and G1 space in Witches is mostly constrained by preference- do you want to cycle the deck with Arianrhod, ready for legion? Beatdown with Scathach? Hold onto Securna- well, she's easier to decide upon with the advent of Goewin, but still. There's options, and only Dana and PG get their 8 spots guaranteed.

So- is Kuroma good?

Short answer, after some light testing- yes. The 5k still makes 16+k columns with Femme and Adra, and the Draw is certainly handy. I currently run 1 as a one-off in my own deck, but with further testing, this number may well increase. Discarding a Witch Draw Trigger and Drawing 2 cards before sacking Kuroma to activate Rias feels so satisfying. Worth a try.

Also, if you run Dark Night Maiden, Macha, or more likely, if you stride Dark Knight, Grim Recruiter, you can search Kuroma straight from your deck, and serve yourself those delicious cards to hand. It's a cute little combo that's served me well during my Dark Knight stride turns.

Adra is an interesting lady, and not only because she's wayy too relaxed for your predetermined Rear Guard pose- you show everyone those bloomers if it works for you, girl.

Like other witch Rear Guards, Adra hopes your opponent controls at least 2 Grade 0 units- and lets be honest, that's not hard to do, with staple Deirdre, Dana, and Fianna, and with the new influx of Grade 0 starters sticking around even longer, either waiting to activate Generation Break, or units like Bar Maid Grace and Pencil Koala, who offer their effects indefinitely across the game. Although, in the case with those last two, only leave them in the field if you're about to plus hugely off of it. We have our own spot removal, and those starters are unsightly. Pop those zits when you get the chance.

Adra's power for seeing 2 Grade 0's is to hit 11k, and on hit to Vanguard, counter charge and soul charge one- i.e., set up all your costs. Running her can be hard as G2 space is tight- or rather, it will be when Adora is released- but she's worth a spot or two. Her on-hit is VERY welcome, our only other form of Counter Charging being the less synergistic Stand Trigger, or....healing? There's also the PGG option, if you'd want to go for that. I'm currently testing 2 in my build, but I could easily see her at 3. Once Adora sees the light of day, however, then the REAL testing will be begin.

To summarize, these "throwaway commons" for an obscure deck are anything but. They're kind support, and well worth the time of any SP Witch player. I guarantee it!

Now just give us a stride in FC Winter, Bushi. Go on, you know you wanna.

- mawile  x

Future Visions: Shadow Paladin Witches

"The Dark" Legend Deck: Ren Suzugamori 

and its effect on Shadow Paladin Witches

Now, in the English format,Shadow Witches are doing well, but they're obscure.  They aren't played as much anymore, with a small, cult (aha) following. The deck is still rather good, however, in spite of new disadvantages that plague the build.

I'll cover these disadvantages first, then we can discuss exactly which cards in the new deck advance the Witch agenda. Firstly, Witches need more support.We're due some support soon, and Adora, the Promo Witch, is due a release in English. This support is needed because there's very little variation in modern Witch builds- 4 Fianna, 4 Rias, etc, etc. A dedicated Stride would also be incredibly helpful. All the strides we have for Shadows- currently work, but feel a little clunky- with some exception, more on that later.

A mechanic which also plagues us is the advent of more and more useful triggers- depriving them of the checks, and pseudo-retiring units is still fun, and advantageous, but the amount of triggers that can then be used, make the calling mechanic advantageous for the opponent. We've always known that Witches can be a double-edged sword, but it's never been sharper, and it'll only get sharper and sharper.

So, let's see what the Legend Deck gives us to play with.

Firstly, we'll start with Young Skull Witch, Nemain.

[CONT]: Sentinel (You may only have up to four cards with "[CONT]: Sentinel" in a deck)[AUTO]:[Choose a card from your hand, and discard it] When this unit is placed on (GC) from hand, you may pay the cost. If you do, choose one of your vanguards that is being attacked, and that unit cannot be hit until end of that battle. Then, if you have a card named "Young Skull Witch, Nemain" in your drop zone, draw a card, choose a card from your hand, and discard it.

Firstly, Young Skull Witch, Nemain, gives us the Witch name. This is useful for one; continuing the theme, and allowing us to rid ourselves of the outdated quintet, and the off-theme Mac Lirs. It's also useful tech-wise for the purpose of Witch of Attraction, Adora, whom requires a "Witch" counter blast.

Effect wise, she's interesting- rather than the unflip of the most recent Perfect Guards, she'll give you a card, and then make you discard. This can make Legion even easier to achieve later in the game in Witches (around the stage where you need to be boosting with Arianrhod rather than tapping her to ditch cards) by adding three cards to drop zone and giving you a card. The effect also leads to interesting situations, possibly drawing you a new Perfect Guard when you need it most, or allowing you to dig even deeper into your deck for the cards you need, alongside drawing units such as Fianna.

In short, she's good, despite some controversial opinion. Worst case scenario, you just discard the card you draw, if it's not what you need, and in a Legion Deck that ISN'T Oracles/Genesis, the claims of decking out are unwarranted- you're doing it wrong if you deck out simply from adding this card.

[AUTO](RC) Generation Break 1 (This ability is active if you have one or more face up G units in total on your (VC) or G zone):[Counter Blast (1)] When this unit attacks a vanguard, if this unit is boosted, you may pay the cost. If you do, search your deck for up to one grade 1 card, call it to (RC), and shuffle your deck.

Macha is an interesting choice. Without Adora, there's most likely some space in your deck taken up by Comet Witch, Serva. At 10k, she's a useful ride and a nice beater for when Rias is doing her thing, but with a little imagination, Macha can function like a tool box, getting you exactly what you need for each situation, and setting you up for the big boss.

As the call is guaranteed for only 1 counterblast (easily unflipped by one of the 4 Witch of Goats you should be running)- Macha will call a G1 to your field from the deck, and with the sometimes sparse fields Witches can suffer with, this is a big help.  And the Toolbox effect is also incredibly handy. Everything set up for a Dana play, but no Dana in hand? Use Macha. Ready for a beatdown, but the hand is all triggers and defence? Use Macha, calling Scatchach. Want to set up grave for Legion next turn? It's unlikely you'll need to, but you can use Macha, and call Arianrhod.

In short, she can fetch you whatever you need fetching. She will also most likely call attention to herself on the field, making your opponent target her, which is not so much a problem in Witches as the deck doesn't rely on her at all, simply using her effect to gain advantage. And if she lives, and you're conserving CB for the bosses- she makes excellent fodder for the next card we're going to use, or can be easily intercepted, to be replaced with a Femme or Deirdre the turn after.

 Stride (Released when both players' vanguards are grade 3 or greater!)-Stride Step-[Choose one or more cards with the sum of their grades being 3 or greater from your hand, and discard them] Stride this card on your (VC) from face down.[ACT](VC)[1/Turn]:[Counter Blast (1) & Choose a face down card named "Dark Dragon, Phantom Blaster "Diablo"" from your G zone, and turn it face up] If the number of face up cards in your G zone is two or more, until end of turn, this unit gets [Power]+10000/[Critical]+1 and "[AUTO](VC):[Choose three of your rear-guards, and retire them] When this unit attacks a vanguard, you may pay the cost. If you do, your opponent may choose two of his or her rear-guards, and retires them. If he or she does not retire two rear-guards, until end of that battle, your opponent cannot call cards from hand to (GC).".

Dark Dragon, Phantom Blaster Diablo is an incredibly powerful card. There are accusations flying that its unbalanced, too overpowered. I'm not going to get into that, but I am going to discuss a topic that I've not seen many discuss: how it can work for Witches.

Firstly, Witches find it harder to pay this cost than other Shadow Paladin builds, but they can manage. Lir, for one, eases this- either you pull her effect off, calling two Witch of Goats, getting the unflip, and then dumping those units for Diablo, or if Lir failed, send her. Macha eases the cost, even during the turn you stride Diablo, helping not to throw yourself off kilter. So, it's payable.

The effect will make the opponent retire at least 2 of their units, or make them suffer the onslaught. This works out as a win/win, even in witches. Diablo in Witches functions more as a problem solver as an out-and-out finisher, as for a finisher, look no further than Rias (potential for a pseudo +25k boost to each column for only 1 retire). The problems Diablo solves are thus- the opponent is savvy enough to know that leaving the Grade 0's is going to end badly for them, so they minus themselves more by calling more units over them, stopping your extra draw and finishing effects.

This is a dangerous move for them, but it does disadvantage us- no draws from Fianna, and no finisher with Rias. What do we do? Stride Diablo. The worst possible time for them to face Diablo is when they're low on resources. This is especially true of any Stride, but with Diablo, it can really harm them. If they want to guard, they're losing those shiny new calls to pay for the right to do so, and then when they guard, they're dealing with at least a 36K double crit unit with Triple Drive. Then they're losing cards from their small hand (Perfect Guards, mainly).

Or- if they decide to keep their rear guards (or if they don't have 2 rearguards) you're hitting them for at least 2 damage, straight up. Easy. In short, Diablo can disadvantage the opponent further, can strike for game, and can add more control to the Witch deck. Just play with the timing.