We all saw the top decks duke it out at last weekend’s Disney Lorcana Challenge in Las Vegas and Birmingham, and every single usual suspect was represented. The ‘Big 3’, Ruby/Amethyst, Ruby/Sapphire, and Amber/Steel Song had great showings at both events, while the once-dominant Emerald/Steel Discard Control deck reemerged in Las Vegas with a vengeance after losing Bucky to a nerf last set.
But if you only look at the top-performing decks you won’t get the full story. Plenty of extremely talented players made it into the Top 64 with extremely powerful decks that could have carried them all the way if their matchups were different or draws were luckier. If you want to grow as a player you may’t just look at the decks that win, you have to study the entire field. Whether you’re preparing for DLC Seattle or the upcoming Set Championships, you might find something useful in these five under-the-radar decks from last weekend.
Morgan Shamblin’s Amethyst/Emerald Bounce/Song
Amethyst/Emerald was only a small fraction of the field at both DLC Las Vegas and Birmingham, but it overperformed greatly, especially in Birmingham where Jonathan ‘JohnnyR’ took second place with his fairly standard toolbox-style bounce deck. Here I want to highlight Morgan Shamblin, AKA ThatMoKid’s deck, which took them to eighth place at DLC Las Vegas.
It has Ursula Deceiver Of All and a nice package of low-cost songs that have wildly different uses. Ursula can sing Sudden Chill to rip two cards from the opponent or sing Friends On The Other Side to let you draw four, but it’s Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo that truly gives this deck its spice.
There is so much utility in the Ursula and Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo combo in this deck, depending on what you need in the moment. You could bounce Merlin, Rabbit twice to draw four cards, or bounce Lyle Tiberius Rourke, Cunning Mercenary twice and give two opposing characters reckless. You can double bounce a Merlin, Goat to instantly gain four lore, or double bounce a Kit Cloudkicker, Tough Guy and force your opponent to put two characters back in their hand. There’s so many more ways to make use of this combo, you’ll just have to try it out yourself.
At just $200, this is one of the more affordable decks in Lorcana. It’s not the easiest deck to pilot but all that bouncing is sure to make your opponent’s head spin. Check out the listhere.
Clara Cyr’s Amber/Emerald Aggro
I wrote about Cyr’s Amber/Emerald deck in my best decks from DLC Las Vegas list, but it’s worth mentioning again here because it’s a build you’ve probably never seen before. This all-character deck looks like a pure hyper aggro list, but it has a surprising amount of utility that allows it to interact with the opponent’s board in a way most aggro decks don’t.
A well-timed shift into The Queen, Commanding Presence can allow you to turn one of your 19 one-drops into a targeted missile, while Rapunzel, Gifted With Healing helps you keep the pressure on and bring a Daisy Duck, Donald’s Date back to full Willpower when your opponent foolishly leaves damage on them. If your board gets cleared, you’re almost always rewarded with a free Chernabog, Evildoer. This is a clever aggro list that doesn’t require you to turn everything sideways every single turn to win. If you’re looking for a more interactive way to play aggro, this is it.
Check out Cyr’s listhere.
TFM_Dan’s Amethyst/Steel Aggro
Not every great deck made the top cut. In fact, there wasn’t a single Amethyst/Steel deck in the entire Top 64 at DLC Vegas. Still, The Forbidden Mountain’s hyper aggro Amethyst/Steel list is one worth trying. It performed well in the Friday Competitive Constructed event and very nearly got TFM_Dan into the top cut.
Unlike some aggro decks, this one excels at keeping the pressure on with extra card draw. Between The Library, A Gift for Belle, Amethyst Chromicon, and Doc, Bold Knight, it’s unlikely you’ll run out of cards before quickly pushing to 20 lore. This is the only deck I’ve played that makes good use of The Boss Is On A Roll. It allows you to sequence your Docs to ensure you can keep drawing by bouncing him back to your hand and playing him again. It’s a fun deck that struggles against Amber/Steel Song, but we may not be seeing as much Steelsong after its somewhat lackluster performance last weekend.
Check out TFM’s deck guidehere.
Phillip Quiett’s Ruby Steel Location Aggro
Yet another aggro list, but one that’s unlike all the rest. Phillip Quiett, AKA PhiQ, devised a location-focused aggro deck that utilizes the RLS Legacy to protect weak questers and the Seven Dwarf’s Mine to help you control the board. Its most interesting invention is the combination of Flynn Rider, Frenemy and Gustav the Giant, Terror of the Kingdom. Gustav the Giant is a 6/6 that comes down exerted, but on turn three he’s guaranteed to have the highest strength on the board, which is all Flynn Rider needs to activate his lore-gaining ability.
This is a hand-dump aggro list that can build surprisingly difficult boards for the opponent to deal with once you’ve got a couple locations and a John Silver, Greedy Treasure Seeker in play. Once your hand is empty, Tiana, Celebrating Princess protects your characters from actions too. The most inventive list I’ve seen in a long time, and it finished 47th place at DLC Las Vegas.
Check out the listhere
Humble’s Sapphire Amethyst Blurple
Sure everyone knows Blurple. It’s Blurple! But Blurple barely showed up in the top cut, with only one making it into the Top 64 in Las Vegas. The version I’m highlighting here was played by Humble in a 318-player side event on Sunday and took 2nd place. Blurple may not be a top deck right now, but it’s clearly doing something right.
The only good answer to Blurple is a wide board since it doesn’t have a lot of removal options. But if this deck is able to ramp efficiently it’s actually really good at locking down the opponent’s board with Hades, Infernal Schemer and Elsa, Spirit of Winter. There are so many big threats in this deck that need to be stopped quickly or the game can get completely out of control.
