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Stacking the Deck By Haven

The Shaman King TCG differs from other TCGs in that a player has no hand, but draws from the deck when defending in zones. In Shaman King, you are always top decking. Although players know what cards are in their deck, they have no idea what they are going to draw, which can create situations where you make a decision based on what you think you will draw.

For example, you are considering pitching Shared Purpose when confronting a 4 force in the yellow zone, in order to move your Jun, Big Sister into the yellow zone from the green zone. If you flipped a Point Blank in the red, you would have to pay 1/2/0 to send back a 4 force, which you could have done for much less. If you flipped a Dark Ascendance, you would probably dance a jig. Either way, your opponent gets a full replenishment. However, having Jun in the yellow might help establish an advantage over the opponent.

All though situations like this don't occur too often, the decision that the player makes has a significant impact on the game. I said earlier that Shaman King is a top deck war. This means that being able to know what cards you are going to flip beforehand is invaluable, and lets you plan out your moves ahead of time. I call this Stacking the Deck.

There are a few cards that let you stack the deck. The majority of them are mind advantages, but there are some strikes and teamworks that have other/no traits. I'm going to take a look at a few of them. I took all descriptions from Stachura's Deck Builder Spoiler.

Lililala, Keeper of Memories | 1/0/0 | (eliminate Lililala)-->Before flipping, draw three cards. Place two in your discard pile and one on top of your deck.

Silva, Impartial Judge | 0/1/0 | If you play a strike in silva's zone, eliminate Silva. Before flipping a card, draw two cards. Place one in your discard pile and the other on top of your deck.

Yohmei, Asakura Patriarch | 0/1/0 | You may not focus in Yohmei's zone.
Before flipping in this zone, look at the top two cards of your deck and put them back on top in any order.

So here are the teamworks. Lililala is a one-shot go, letting you see 3 cards for 1 green, and then eliminating her. Silva can be used more than once, but you can't strike in his zone, he costs a yellow, and he gets Lililala's effect with one less card. Yohmei won't let you focus in his zone, and you do not discard any of the cards you draw.

The best of these 3 should be a no brainer. Lililala does little to provide permanent advantage, but she is very cheap, and lets you choose the perfect strike to hit back with, along with getting rid of 2 cards you wouldn't need

for later. When you use a stacking effect that discards all other cards drawn, you are generally looking for a good strike rather than a way to setup your teamworks or advantages. Think of it this way; if used in the green zone, you would get to look at what you would have drawn for each zone, and choose the best option, while staying in the green. Silva and Yohmei's downfalls are that they are not as cheap, and that their disadvantages (can't play strikes / can't focus, Team Yoh) really hurt your options.

Now for strikes.

Point Blank | 1/2/0 | If you counterattack with point blank, look at the top card of your deck. You may put it in your discard pile | 7/4

Len Spectergram | Ultra Cavalry Charge | 0/0/4 | You may play or pitch Ultra Cavalry Charge only if you are Len. (Pitch)-->Look at the top three cards of your deck and place them back on top in any order | 4/10

Point Blank works pretty simply, I thought Andysislands did a great analysis

in his CotD. View it here
http://www.pojo.com/shamanking/cotd/2005/Feb/2-23.shtml.
Point Blank is a great card to have in any deck IMO, and should be maxed in decks that really need a 7 block. Ultra Cavalry Charge is a good finisher with an ok pitching ability. What really hurts is that you lose the zone when you pitch, so your opponent will replenish more. If you run this card in a Len Deck, you are going to be pitching it a lot. I really haven't play tested this card, so you decide if you want it or not.

Mind Advantages:

Ponder, Reflect, Consider | 2/0/0 | Immediate. Look at the top three cards of your deck and place them back on top in any order.

Focal Point | 0/1/0 | Immediate. Before flipping your next card, draw three cards. Place one on top of your deck and put the rest in your discard pile.

Decipher the Runes | 1/0/0 | Immediate. Before flipping your next card, draw two cards. Place one on top of your deck and the other in your discard pile.

All three of these are useful. Ponder, Reflect, Consider is more for setting

up your field than for getting the good strike and throwing out unneeded cards. You could use it like this: place the weakest card in front, then a teamwork or advantage, then a strike. You would focus the weak card, then play a teamwork/advantage in the next zone, then play the strike. Focal point is just like the advantage form of Lililala, except more expensive and

with a charge. Decipher the Runes is a very cheap way to charge zones and stack your deck. I believe Decipher the Runes to be a staple, as it is very cheap, stacks the deck, and charges the zone. Focal Point and P,R,C are both good, and I would use them both in a mind deck.

I believe that knowing what cards you will draw is a huge advantage to have over your opponent, and I would recommend that all decks run 4x Lililala and possibly 2-4x Point Blank, depending on whether you need the big block. If you are running mind, run 4x Decipher the Runes, and maybe 2-4x Focal Point and 2-4x P,R,C. Stacking the Deck is a powerful strategy which will help you search out the cards you need, and enable you to win many a duel.

haven, haven345@hotmail.com

Remember to keep sending UDE those e-mails! We will not let the TCG die!

Here's UDE's E-mail: Ude@upperdeck.com

Here's the thread:
http://www.pojo.biz/board/showthread.php?p=2437633#post2437633