Grade 0: 18
2 david (FVG)
4 Kafir
8 crit
4 heals
Grade 1: 16
4 Brenwen
4 Karma Collector
1 Swordbreaker
3 Night Sky Eagle
4 Dark Quartz
Grade 2: 9
3 Serva
3 Grosne
3 Dark Pride
Grade 3: 7
4 Claret Sword
2 Manisa
1 Mordred
Grade 4: 8
4 Aurageyser Dragon
1 Aurageyser Doomed
1 Efnysion
2 Diablo
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How to play this deck:
Always Mulligan for Claret and a Grade 2. Having 16 grade 1 means you are likely to see one, so if the first 2 are not in opening hand, feel free to mulligan grade 1 away for additional chance. If both are present, then feel free to keep at least a grade 1 and another grade 3/Brenwen. Triggers should not be kept in hand unless you know opponent is rushing and need shields asap.
You swing every turn with 21k columns and a big VG column. Eagle and Dark pride makes it really easy to form a 21k RG column when combined with Claret's skill. In turns you can't stride (or choose not to) you can just retire existing units (preferbly used quartz, eagle and swordbreaker) for claret's GB2, which usually force at least 2-3 cards off opponent depending on how many dark quartz called and likely force out a PG. It is quite easy to overwhelm opponent if you can keep up the 21k columns across multiple turns.
This deck can guard really well due to how it converts called units (usually a plus from calling from deck) into cards in hand. Aurageyser, doomed and swordbreaker add cards to hand while fueling card effects. You will likely go through most of your deck by 3rd stride, and likely deck out close to 4th-5th stride. At that point just ride Manisa and legion back the triggers for final push.
If choosing who to call as booster, always favor eagle over dark quartz unless VG needs the boost or you are calling quartz to boost VG by 15k. You will need quartz in the deck to trigger dark pride's effect, so try to keep at least 1-2 in deck unless its final push.
You have to get creative with your column sometimes. There are times its the right thing to call a dark pride at the back row just to retire it for aurageyser or diablo, which allows you to call a dark pride and form a new column. Its also entirely acceptable to call 2 quartz/eagle to form a 21k column, as making opponent guard that column and later retiring them for effects pays well over their worth.
Grosne needs 2 grade 1 or below called to hit 22k with a 7k booster. He can hit 31k with 3 grade 1 called and a eagle called by claret to boost it, while able to hit 16k with just kafir (if really need the soul). He dies a lot because he's our best column maker that needs to be on the field at start of the turn (you can consider putting it in back row the turn before you ride claret and stride so he gets benefit off the 1st claret skill.
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Breakdown:
Grade 0: 2 David, 4 Kafir, 8-12 crits, 0-4 heals
I originally ran 3 david when using 2 Doomed, but after reducing down to 1, 2 david is fine. David gives you a +1 off Aurageyser and reduce the cost of Doomed and Diablo, and is an extra potential card to check off either Aurageyser.
Kafir is manditory here. Fuels the soul if needed for two aurageyser + swordbreaker, and against early rush, he can boost Serva to 14k (10k guard against 9k) and then proceed to buff Claret to 21k with david boosting. In a pinch he can make 16k column with Grosne.
Alternative: Some people will like to play howl owls or Dark eye raven instead of all in crits. I am not in favor of howl owl as you will deck out much faster and rather have the crit pressure. Raven is bonus utility that can be combo with either claret or sharp fang witch to generate retire fodder and recycle the stand. In another different type of build i can see this going far with Grosne and Convalle, just not this build.
Grade 1: 4 Brenwen, 4 Karma collector, 1 Swordbreaker, 3 Night Sky eagle, 4 Dark Quartz
I play only 1 Swordbreaker as its not manditory to fetch all the time. She does help with bad hand, but you will be feeding the soul to Aurageyser, and only have Kafir to replenish it. You can fetch her when david is not available as fodder to reduce the minus. If you happen to have her in opening hand even after mulligan, you can just ride her and save your other grade 1 for bigger plays later in the game.
Originally I ran 4 eagles, but due to Dark Pride i ended up with 4 Quartz. Quartz is about as good as eagles for making columns, as called by claret will grant it 12k power, enough to boost 9k to 21k. They can also form 21k column with eagles, and then retired later. Eagles are still here because they are good for making columns, and if you can call at least 2 grade 1 that turn, eagle can push Grosne to 26k (9+3+3+11), which is difficult to get with anything else.
Alternative: If you do not want to run Quartz, you can instead max eagle to 4. Last 3 slots can be allocated to Swordbreaker, Gargubau, 8k Vanilla (10k if called by claret, early defensive ride and can be used with 9k to 15k guard a 7k, or 15k a 9k with a grade 3) or another david.
Grade 2: 3 Serva, 3 Grosne, 3 Dark Pride
For most G-era decks, unless they have really strong grade 2 lineup, I strongly advise at least 2 10k to smooth out the early game. They prevent people from rushing your face to hell (think tidal assault and swordmy calling shirley or Magatsu) and safely delay riding if you need to Brenwen to fetch Claret. They also are easy to push 21k with either eagle or quartz using Claret, and can still form 16k column with swordbreaker. Serva is also the mate for Manisa, which I will touch on later.
Grosne replaced Barbelith in this deck as he has a higher potential ceiling. He can hit 26k with eagle, something Barbelith previously couldn't. He makes 21k column with nearly any grade one, and 16k with Kafir. He'll die a lot cause many opponents hate him.
Dark pride is a new option available to the deck that furthers the deck's playstyle; thinning, getting positive or break even off the retire effects, and most importantly, countercharge and generating columns. He is also an attack magnet that many people will want dead, so he tends to save you guard just by being there. I ran only 3 because you will almost never get to call more than 2 quartz through its effect, so any more only improves the odds of seeing it but does nothing in the long run.
Alternative: you can run a 4th Grosne, Fiercebau, Shadow Lancer, or Macha and swap the numbers around, but I advise keeping at least 2 10k as they make quite a difference. Just be light on RG CB cost as most of it will be dumped into your stride of VG skill. Also if you choose to run Cormac over Manisa, you will have to run at least 2 Mackart.
Grade 3: 4 Claret, 2 Manisa, 1 Shadow Blaze
claret is the heart (pun intended) of the deck, so no excuse running less than 4 of him. He generates pluses for you, thins your deck, and can even help you push for damage once GB2 (which is always active after striding Aurageyser first). thanks to quartz, you can easily swing for 36k 2 crit by calling 2 quartz and still have a 21k RG column.
The remaining grade 3 are there to support claret. Manisa is my legion option because she has lower opportunity cost compared to Cormac. Cormac's mate Mackart is relatively weak due to spending many turns striding and have almost no revengers to call except revenger triggers. While to crit is valuable, the both do the same thing late game; shuffle back triggers to prevent deckout and swing with 21k+ legion, which by then Manisa's 10k base matters little cause you will be decking out or running low on hand to guard. Serva also fits like a glove in this deck due to its GB1 nature and cost little to have inside.
The last tech I ran is shadow blaze dragon for the times you get rushed. He's still a better option than Gilvers as he can help cripple your opponent's field to oblivion. In this slot you could also consider Mordred, but i rather have a LB unit that can directly impact the field.
Alternative: You can run Cormac instead of Manisa, though I dislike his mate a lot as he does not justify the deck space. If you do so make sure to run at least 2 Mackart. You can also opt to either Badhaah Caar as a useful grade 3 to call as RG. Desperate dragon is also a decent option if you change most of your triggers to revengers and include some LB enabler. You can also opt to cut a Brenwen to run a 8th Grade 3 of choice.
Grade 4: 4 Aurageyser, 1 Doomed, 1 Efnysien, 2 Diablo
I ran 4 Aurageyser as a 1st stride and a situational stride. Sometimes you just don't want to stride aurageyser doomed, and really need to lower cost of Aurageyser to dig further into the deck. Just be cautious if you have used swordbreaker, as you will have 2 soul to work with outside of kafir. Note that with dark pride, you can potentially generate a 4th attack through combat retire.
The doomed is a role player rather than a finisher. It helps you clear away grade 1 who no longer have effect (very important in this deck) as they tend to clutter the back row, so rather than calling over them and minus, you can retire them to effects and draw more cards. He has the occasional upside of blowing up opponent's units. Being an act skill may sound painful to many who are used to combat retire (like RFD or RPBA) but in this kind of deck where you want to call units before attacking, this is actually acceptable.
There is also a staple pair of diablo for the times you want to wreck their face. Diablo punishes opponents for not calling 2 units out with his guard restrictions. You need not always use the guard restriction; monitor opponent's drive checks, and it he does not seem to have a PG ready, the 36k 2 crit is good enough for 1 CB. Against opponents with PG, he still demands 2 retire and a PG, which is a minimal of 4 cards.
Efnysien is another role player here. He can easily hit 36k unboosted with a retire and a dark quartz called. In fact one of my most common play is when opponent does not give me counterblast, I usually stride this and retire dark pride, which allows me to fetch dark quartz to make Efnysien 36, and using the unflip to have claret fetch an eagle to make a new 21k column. Its still a very demanding turn to guard (PG stride and 21+ rear column) for almost no cost. He is also ideal if you don't want to over commit in the all in and want to wither down opponent a bit more, and thus retiring a used booster for a new booster.
Alternatives: you can opt to run 3 aurageyser and 1 doomed if you for reasons don't want the 2nd aurageyser as an option. Running 4 diablo also gives you more offensive power that taxes your opponent, but I much rather have more than 4 strides and have access to a toolbox. Diablo also leaves you a little light on the defense department; you have to be the judge of that.
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Things to keep in mind:
Disclaimer*
The deck is straight-forward, but its by no means easy to play properly! It ain't great nature math inducing, but it takes some planning. Small mistakes tend to cost you in the long run, and card counting (how many triggers left, how many useful calls left in deck, what your opponent drive check) goes a long way to play this deck to its potential.
1)
You are on a fixed timer to kill your opponent. That is around 2-4 turns including first stride. Because of how aurageyser cycles through the deck, combined with claret and dark pride pulling units from deck, you are expected to deck out around your 5th stride. This also means your VG will
ALWAYS attack theirs because of chance to crit them. Hence sometimes you might wanna slow down the card drawing if you know game will drag long . This includes the but not exclusive to the following:
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Not calling swordbreaker unless you have to. Its always there if you need it, but its not there because you must grab it. She makes doomed turns less painful and helps you dig deeper for that PG you are lacking in important fights, and should strictly used as such.
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Spending a turn as GB2 claret to force guard out isn't terrible either as you can still make scary numbers with correct hand. Its also cost no CB to do, which happens sometimes when opponent does not want to give you any.
-unless your hand is terrible that 10k shield doesn't matter, or opponent grade lock, or you need 3 soul for double aurageyser + swordbreaker (against spike brother comes to mind),
try NOT to use kafir to cycle. He's flexible and gives us options, but only use it if needed. He's equally valuable as a 10k shield.
2)
Plan your turns! Decide starting from first stride the order of cards you will play out. Different situations call for different strides, and there is no fixed sequence on how you would go about it other than 90% of the time aurageyser goes first. This deck performs really well when you plan out your turns, pick proper units to call at good timings. Keep that last Manisa and use Brenwen instead to stride if you aren't sure opponent is 100% dead and you are gonna deck out in 2 turns!
3)
Opponents no hand > your opponent have a lot of damage, unless that crit kills them. Due to the nature of this deck, your late game VG will likely have an innate critical or high chance of drive checking them. As such, you always wanna pressure the crit on your 21+ RG column to pressure out all the guard. So aim to make plays with this goal in mind.
-This makes those who no guard the vanguard only take 1 damage at best but still need to throw down cards that turn as it reduce the odds of damage check a trigger. If opponent does not guard the 2 crit, he took 3+ damage this turn anyway, instead of taking only roughly 2 damage because the RG column is easier to guard after damage check.
-As tempting as it is to outright put them to high damage by crit to VG, we aim to kill opponents in 3-4 strides, and you want them to drop everything by the time your VG start to have inherit crit. This only applies if opponent is at 3 or less damage and we are striding aurageyser or Efnysion. At 3 damage any other stride or claret's GB2 will outright kill them for us if we check a crit trigger and they aren't guarded.
-Against an weak hand, diablo and doomed will decimate them even at 3 damage, which is why we have Efnysien and aurageyser to "pave the way" for us, and use big RG columns to wither down opponent.
4)
Plan your columns properly. This deck makes easy 21k columns every turn, but it hurts you if you can't keep it that way every turn.
-Sometimes
you don't have to kill david on first stride (aka aurageyser) and thus save him for an easier doomed turn. Applies mostly for non-retire clans. Against retire clans expect your first david to die A LOT, so plan columns accordingly.
-Sometimes with heavy grade 1 hands you can have david to RG column and apply a little more early pressure, especially if you need brenwen to fetch a claret. Opponents usually don't bother with it and any attack diverted at it means opponent committing cards to field, which mean less cards to guard or exposing their grade 2 to further attacks.
Claret's stride skill is borderline crazy. In addition to fixing columns and toolboxing, the 2k power gained also allows columns previously difficult to get. David becomes 7k booster, swordbreaker becomes 8k, brenwen becomes 9k booster, quartz can pretty much boost anything to 21k as 12k.
-Dark pride allows for multiple attacks per turn if properly set up. Especially so on diablo turn where opponent will take an immediate -4 (2 RG and at least a PG) just for the stride alone, allowing you to get Dark pride value if the resulting quartz generates another good column.
-Sometimes you can call something with dark pride for first swing, and prepare something 11k+ to combo with the called dark pride once aurageyser retires dark pride + fodder.
5)
Try not to take more than 2 damage early if possible. This is more than enough resource to go about a aurageyser + claret combo and generate a 21k column. This is good practice in G-era decks because of how bad getting rushed is. It pretty much allows you to take risks you normally cannot take, taking an expected crit to save guard for future turns. It also allows you pace your damage as close to opponent as possible unless either side got trigger sacked. This allows you to have proper control over heal triggers (assuming you check them)
6)
Don't let it get to you when you lose!. Kanzaki can go shut it about winning is everything. This deck is very potent, and can give many decks a run for their money. But its not unbeatable by any stretch. Its just really consistent and there will be times where your deck just doesn't give you what you need when you need it. Opponents can still trigger sack you, you drive checks can run dry of triggers, everything important goes to damage zone, opponent 6-7th damage heal; stuff can happen. Winning is never final, losing is never fatal. That's what makes vanguard different from other games: there's a reasonable amount of thinking and skill, but luck is still equally important and keep things interesting.
-That said, when this deck sacks people, it sacks them
HARD. Your wins can look like complete blowouts at times, and it can be quite bad-ass to look at. And while its good to feel great about it, please be humble and remember that there will come a time you will be on that receiving end as well. No point being a prick about it; Humble in victory, graceful in defeat is how we leave good impression (even if people do moan a little when they see david)
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Keep calm while playing this deck. A calm, collective, and focused player playing this deck is a frightening opponent, and is a force to be reckoned (by vanguard standards). You take the tools you need, when you need it, hit like a truck, and tank through most crazy turns like its nothing. We have the tools, but we don't have to slap it in their faces.
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So that's my take on G-SP after gb04. Wad do you guys think? Do leave some comments!
