After Worlds, there were quite a bit of new decks that are Tier 1, or close to Tier 1. Also, after Worlds, we discovered that MKO is still the deck to beat, going 7-0 in Day 1. One of the new decks to come out in the new Modern Age is SHIELD Burn. It is one of the few true fast off-curve decks in the format. This version is close to Jacob Gilham�s 6-1 Day 1 deck, with some tweaks to make it not only faster, but more efficient. I believe this deck has the tools to be one of the best decks in the format. Tonight we have Erick playing MKO, the deck he has been advocating since Marvel Legends came out, and is about as tuned as can get at this point. What better player to play MKO than an expert. On the SHIELD side we have Michael Bean, probably the most versatile Vs player I know. This is a best-of-5 match to see if MKO can handle even the fastest of decks, and to see if SHIELD is the real deal.
Characters
Total: 29
Plot Twists
Total: 30 Locations Total: 1 60 cards |
Characters
Total: 39
Plot Twists
Total: 8
Locations
Total: 13 60 cards |
Game 1
Erick wins the roll and takes evens. He mulligans while Michael keeps.
Turn 1:
Michael starts off with [Squirrel Girl, Doreen Green], but she doesn�t come out with any support. Erick misses and Squirrel Girl swings for 1.
MKO (E): 49
SHIELD Burn (B): 50
Turn 2:
Erick hits [Black Cat, Thrillseeker], while Michael drops a [SHIELD Agent], burning for 2. Erick thinks for a second, then decides to pass. Michael just attacks with Squirrel Girl again.
MKO (E): 46
SHIELD Burn (B): 50
Turn 3:
Michael recruits an Agent, then flips the [SHIELD Helicarrier], returning this 3 characters to his hand. He then recruits Squirrel Girl, bringing out an Agent with her, and then recruits another Agent. He burns for a total of 6. Erick passes� not good. Michael team attacks directly for 7.
MKO (E):33
SHIELD Burn (B): 50
Turn 4:
Erick needs to make up some serious ground and starts with [Wolverine, Covert Predator] in the hidden area. Michael flips and uses [Evil Lair], then recruits his own [Wolverine, Agent of SHIELD/HYDRA], returning the exhausted Agent to his hand. He then uses his last resource point to recruit that very same Agent. He burns for a total of 5 in the build phase. Erick decides to pay 2 endurance with Wolverine so he can attack his younger brethren. Due to the Helicarrier, Michael is able to force the stunback. Erick then plays [Quick Kill] on Michael�s Wolverine, but Michael chains with a [Torture Chamber] activation, burning Erick for 2 more. Black Cat attacks into squirrel Girl with a [Crackshot], and both stun. Michael counter attacks with his two remaining Agents for 4. Erick loses Black Cat in recovery.
MKO (E):15
SHIELD Burn (B): 43
Turn 5:
Michael starts turn 5 with an Agent. He then flips and activates [Birthing Chamber] to draw a card. He then terraforms another [SHIELD Helicarrier] into his row. He uses Evil Lair to burn Erick for 3, then flips the aforementioned Helicarrier (KOs the previous one) and returns 3 Agents to his hand. He then re-recruits each Agent again, then passes. He burns Erick for a total of 11 in the build phase. Erick simply recruits [Vengeance]. During combat, Michael team attacks Vengeance with 2 Agents, and plays a [Blinding Rage] to force the stun. The Agent bounces back to Michael�s hand via Squirrel Girl. Squirrel Girl and the remaining Agent swing directly with the help of another [Blinding Rage] bringing Erick down to -10. Erick sees that he cannot push enough damage in the counter attack from Wolverine because he is too far behind and Michael has a ready Torture Chamber as well.
SHIELD Burn wins Game 1.
Game 2:
Erick opts to take evens again. Both players keep their opening hand.
Turn 1:
Michael starts the game with a [SHIELD Agent], burning for 2. Erick hits his 1-drop this game by playing one of the key characters in this match-up, [Black Widow, Femme Fatale]. Michael passes his attack and the Widow is able to attack the Agent.
MKO (E): 48
SHIELD Burn (B): 49
Turn 2:
Erick recruits [Black Panther, Silent Stalker], then uses Widow�s ability to shoot the Agent, and recruits another Black Widow. This is a much better start for Erick. Michael recruits [Maria Hill, Deputy Commander of SHIELD], activates her, and succeeds with the rally. He recruits the SHIELD Agent he rallied, burning for 2. In combat, Panther attacks the Agent, then Widow swings directly, then in recovery, she shoots Maria Hill.
MKO (E): 46
SHIELD Burn (B): 46
Turn 3:
Michael recruits [Nick Fury, Director of SHIELD], then activates him, bringing out 2 more Agents (burning for 4), then flips and activates a [Birthing Chamber] to draw a card. Erick has [Blade, Independent Contractor]. Michael swings directly with the Agents, the flips a [SHIELD Helicarrier], returning Nick Fury to his hand, and hits directly for 6. Erick decides to counter attack with Blade into an Agent, then Panther into another Agent. In recovery, Michael loses an Agent, while Erick has kept both of his characters.
MKO (E): 35
SHIELD Burn (B): 41
Turn 4:
[Wolverine, Covert Predator] comes out for Erick. Michael has another Maria Hill and [Speedball ◊ Penance, Painmonger], who he places in front of an Agent. Erick pays 2 endurance for Wolverine�s ability, and then attacks poor Maria Hill. Panther then attacks Speedball, and before they both go down, Michael uses Speedball�s ability to burn Erick for 3. The last attack for Erick has Blade attack into an Agent. Michael reinforces with an adjacent Agent. During recovery, Erick plays [Quick Kill] on Maria Hill. Michael loses an additional Agent at the end of the turn, while Erick keeps his board again.
MKO (E): 29
SHIELD Burn (B): 30
Turn 5:
Michael has yet another Maria Hill, and she misses yet again on the rally. He then recruits Nick Fury, and activates him, bringing down 2 more Agents. He then activates the Chamber, drawing 2 cards and discarding 1. He then uses his last point on another Agent. He has burned for 6 this turn, while having 7 characters on the board. Erick plays [Mobilize] searching for [Punisher, Captain America] and recruits him. Michael sends an Agent into Punisher and plays a [Savage Beatdown] and [Blinding Rage]. Erick uses Punisher�s ability on Blade, and then goes down. Michael then sends his remaining characters directly for another 8, dropping Erick to 8 endurance. Erick goes into the tank� and comes out with Wolverine attacking an Agent. Michael flips another [SHIELD Helicarrier], returning the 3 remaining non-stunned SHIELD Agents to his hand. Erick then swings directly with Blade and Panther with the help of [Trouble With Dinosaurs] and [Devastating Blow].
MKO (E): 8
SHIELD Burn (B): 9
Turn 6
Erick has a full board of 4 characters, but can only muster a [Daredevil, Fearless Survivor] to bring his total to 5. Michael�s recruit step is a little more complicated than that. He starts off with a Nick Fury activation, bringing down 2 more Agents. He then recruits another Agent, and activates Birthing Chamber, drawing 2 more cards. He then recruits another Agent, then recruits [Wolverine, Agent of SHIELD/HYDRA], bouncing Nick Fury to his hand. He burns Erick for a total of 8 and now has 7 characters again and has rebuilt his board nicely. Erick starts combat off with Panther into a front row Agent, and both stun. Daredevil attacks the middle support row Agent to break formation, both also stun. Blade attacks into the hidden Wolverine with a [Trouble With Dinosaurs], chaining a [Quick Kill] on his own Panther to get an extra +1 ATK, and both stun. Wolverine attacks a front row Agent, and Michael is forced to reinforce. Punisher then attacks into an Agent, bringing Michael down to -8 to his -6. Michael has a lone Maria Hill ready and sends her into Punisher with a [Blinding Rage] and [Savage Beatdown], bringing Erick to -14, and barely pulling out the game.
MKO (E): -14
SHIELD Burn (B): -9
SHIELD Burn wins Game 2.
Game 3:
After 2 losses taking the preferred initiative, Erick decides to take odds. He keeps his hand while Michael mulligans.
Turn 1:
Erick has [Black Widow, Femme Fatale] while Erick has [Speedball ◊ Penance, Painmonger]. Widow attacks and Speedball burns both players.
MKO (E): 46
SHIELD Burn (B): 45
Turn 2:
Michael burns with Speedball, then flips and activates a [Torture Chamber], and recruits another Speedball. Erick has [Punisher, Suicide Run]. Speedball swings direct. Erick counters with Widow into Speedball, then Punisher direct.
MKO (E): 38
SHIELD Burn (B): 37
Turn 3:
Erick has [Blade, Independent Contractor]. Michael has [Squirrel Girl, Doreen Green], bringing out a [SHIELD Agent]. He then activates Speedball, then flips [SHIELD Helicarrier], bouncing all 3 characters to his hand. He then re-recruits Speedball and Squirrel Girl, bringing out another Agent. He has burned Erick for 7. Squirrel Girl is behind Agent, but Erick just shoots her with Black Widow, but not before Michael activates the Torture Chamber, burning Erick for 2 more. Blade attacks into the Agent for the 1-sided stun. Punisher attacks Speedball, and Michael activates him, and both stun. Michael loses the Agent
MKO (E): 24
SHIELD Burn (B): 27
Turn 4:
Michael continues his sub-par draw with another recruitment of Squirrel Girl and an Agent. Erick plays [Wild Ride] searching for Black Widow, and plays her, [Black Cat, Thrillseeker], and [Black Panther, Silent Stalker]. Erick almost has double the board size as Michael. During combat, Michael sends his 3 characters direct and passes (cautious of Black Widow). Erick thinks about it, and then decides to shoot Speedball with Black Widow. Michael chains with a [Torture Chamber] activation, then he chains with 2 [Savage Beatdown] on his remaining two attackers. What a clever play! He gets Erick down to 4 endurance. Erick sends Panther into Squirrel Girl, and both stun. The score is 3-26 in Michael�s favor and Erick thinks about it for a bit, and with Michael having no hand, knows that he cannot power-up an Agent, so he sends Blade into an Agent for the 1-sided stun. Black Cat swings directly, draw Erick a card, and then Erick adds a [Trouble With Dinosaurs]. Punisher also swings directly with a [Savage Beatdown]. Michael flips a second [Torture Chamber] and uses to burn Erick down to 1! Erick then plays [Death, The Second Force of the Universe] to KO Squirrel Girl. Michael now has no board and they go one more turn�
MKO (E): 1
SHIELD Burn (B): 10
Turn 5:
Erick plays [Wild Ride] for [Vengeance, Spirit of Vengeance]. Michael has [Maria Hill, Deputy Commander of SHIELD], is successful with her rally, and recruits the Agent his rallied. Vengeance attacks into an Agent. He then swings direct with the rest of his board, along with 2 power-ups for Blade. Michael uses 1 Torture Chamber, and flips a 3rd [Torture Chamber] to burn Erick for 2 more, pushing the game 1 more turn!
MKO (E): -10
SHIELD Burn (B): -10
Turn 6:
Michael, who has only 3 resources, recruits 2 Maria Hill, and both miss the rally. Michael concedes.
MKO takes Game 3.
Game 3:
Michael takes the odd initiative and both players keep their opening hands.
Turn 1:
Michael recruits a [SHIELD Agent], burning Erick for 2. Erick plays [Wild Ride] for [Black Widow]. She then attacks the Agent
MKO (E): 47
SHIELD Burn (B): 49
Turn 2:
Erick passes his recruit while Michael has another Agent and [Maria Hill, Deputy Commander of SHIELD]. Erick sends Widow into the Agent, Michael activates Maria Hill, but misses. Erick then plays [Quick Kill] on the Agent.
MKO (E): 45
SHIELD Burn (B): 48
Turn 3:
Michael starts with a Maria Hill activation, but she misses again. Nick Fury comes out, and brings 2 more Agents along with him, burning for 4. Erick has [Blade, Independent Contractor]. Michael passes his attack step. Erick sends the Widow into the Agent for the stun, and then sends Blade into Maria Hill for the stun. Widow shoots a non-stunned Agent during recovery, and Michael loses another Agent.
MKO (E): 41
SHIELD Burn (B): 42
Turn 4:
Erick has [Wolverine, Covert Predator], while Michael has his younger brother, [Wovlerine, Agent of SHIELD/HYDRA], returning an Agent to his hand. He then recruits [Squirrel Girl, Doreen Green] bringing down another Agent. Michael has a [Birthing Chamber] to draw a card. Mari Hill�s activation misses yet again, and Nick Fury activates to bring out 1 more Agent. Erick sends Blade into Wolverine with a [Trouble With Dinosaurs]. Michael exhausts Wolverine for [Evil Lair], burning for 3, and both stun. Erick uses Wolverine�s ability to attack into Maria Hill with a [Devastating Blow]. Michael loses Maria Hill.
MKO (E): 29
SHIELD Burn (B): 23
Turn 5:
Michael recruits [Speedball ◊ Penance, Painmonger] and activates Birthing Chamber, drawing 2 cards. He then flips another Chamber, drawing 2 more cards. terraforms a [SHIELD Helicarrier] into his resource row. He then activates Speedball and uses Evil Lair (exhausting an Agent), flips the Helicarrier, bouncing 2 Agents and Speedball to his hand. He then recruits 3 more Agents and Speedball. He has burned Erick for 12 in the build phase. Erick has [Punisher, Captain America]. Michael just sends his Wolverine directly with 2 [Blinding Rage] for a total of 16 ATK. He finishes it off with a Speedball activation. Erick is now at -2, but he has a counter attack. Since Michael has not attacked with his visible characters, he has a very good formation, and Erick has no flight to break it. He sends Wolverine into Squirrel Girl, and Michael reinforces with an Agent. Blade attacks into an Agent, and Michael again reinforces. Punisher attacks into Speedball with 2 [Devastating Blow], but Michael has a [Torture Chamber], KO�ing Speedball to burn Erick for 2, and reset the attack. Punisher just hits a SHIELD Agent.
MKO (E): -4
SHIELD Burn (B): 6
SHIELD Burn takes Game 4 and wins the Superhero Showdown, 3-1. It is interesting to see how much burn the SHIELD deck can put out, even if they don�t have the characters for it. This is the one true off-curve deck in the format, in my opinion. MKO still has game against the SHIELD deck, but it is very tough, because of [Torture Chamber] and [SHIELD Helicarrier] being able to reset attacks. The KO effects don�t do as much in this match-up because most of the deck are 1-drops.
| Erick�s Take:
Game 1: Not knowing what exactly I was playing, I took the preferred init for MKO, evens. There are several reasons why: 1. If you have Cat and Widow... or Wild Ride... you can figure out what to play. 2. Before Blade, you wanted to attack on 4 and 6 to maximize Wolvie's hidden ability and GR-6's burn. 3. You can usually end the game on turn 5 off inish. Since I did know it was an Army deck, I mulliganed for a 1-drop even though I had 2 and 3 in my hand. Big mistake. I don't remember exactly but I missed tons of drops and so did Bean but without the early beats... sad times. Game 2: So I take evens again because I figure I shouldn't have as bad a draw. I think everything goes well this game but the burn is just too much. The KO burn location (Torture Chamber) is irritating because now I have to think about whether or not to use attack-length pumps since it's very hard to clear an army board. Game 3: I take odds this time since evens isn't working. Bean is such a mind master. He makes it seem like I have the game won but if I didn't power up on turn 5, I lose by 1 endurance because he blows his row with multiple Torture Chambers. Luckily he draws nothing on 6 and I finally get one. It's hollow though because most of the game he's only playing 3 characters. I had to Widow multiple times to keep his board low but that costs me attacks. Game 4: He takes odds which means I lose. And I do... even though at one point I actually led in endurance... that didn't last long as he burned me for infi before combat even started. Uber attack pumps to my face with Wolvie-3 is the kicker.
The burn is just too much. I always hate playing Mike because his demeanor
is so calm and I have no idea what he's thinking. Then he just burns for
1000 and goes outside for a smoke. I think SHIELD Army is a rather bad
matchup for MKO unless Mike was using "heart of the cards" powers... those
darn YGO players (heh).
|
Michael's Take: The SHIELD deck is fast. It won three of the four games played, the fourth being a near thing, with the potential for a turn four kill had Erick played less skillful and recruited the normal Wolverine on turn four instead of the one drop killing Black Widow. That said, I didn't care for the deck so much. Most of the damage comes from the burn the army one drops provide, in addition to the two burn locations. The finisher is the 3-drop Wolvie who can attack to the face with any attack pumps that have been collected along the way. The problem I see with the deck is the inability for the army drops to do much more than sit there in the absence of an attack pump or the Helicarrier. Though it may be play-style, the lack of search also really turns me off.
As with all army/burn decks hand size dwindles fast. Birthing Chamber and Squirrel Girl help to alleviate this problem but they must be drawn and Squirrel Girl can be played around. I found myself having to flip additional Helicarriers on multiple occasions in order to play characters that turn, not so bad, as they burn as coming into play, but not necessarily ideal. Despite my misgivings about the deck it does drain the opponent�s endurance at a rapid pace and a perfect draw may be unbeatable, though perfect draws seem few and far between. It did beat MKO, arguably the best deck in the format, rather handily, so I will let that speak for the decks power and potential in the format. |