Deck Help

New to the game and not sure where to start? Or just looking for some pointers to improve your game? You've come to the right place!

Deck Rules
1. Your deck must contain exactly 70 cards.
2. Your deck must contain at least one Basic Minion.
3. You must own all the cards used in your deck. (Otherwise it is a theoretical deck, and cannot be used in official games.)

Getting Cards
Cards cost money! Or, you might trade them for other cards. Wander around town and you're sure to find people willing to do business with you.
Can I buy Promo cards? Usually, no. Promos are only available through special offers. You may be able to find them in a store, if you're lucky. Or, you might be able to trade with another player.
Can I have more than one copy of the same card? Absolutely! If you want, you can make a deck of seventy Super Koopas.

Building a Deck
First, you'll want to decide on your strategy. Do you want to overrun the board in a few turns, defend a few key lands, or disable your opponent?
Now that you know your goal, spend some time in the card lists. Which Minions have attacks that will help your strategy? Choose a few evolution lines from one or two Energy types.
If you want to use your Minions' attacks, be sure to have plenty of Energy to power them. Sticking with one Energy type will insure that you always have the kind you need, while including two types lets you use more different Minions. Or, you could try having even more Energy types.
Most decks will benefit from a few well-chosen Spell cards. These do everything from letting you draw cards to preventing your opponent from playing Buildings. Surely one of them will help your strategy!
Speaking of Buildings, some players may wish to use some of those too. These cards have helpful effects, like Spells, but they stay on the board and can be used repeatedly. Of course, your opponent could destroy them at any time. If you intend to use Buildings, be sure to put lots of Foundation in your deck.
Now you have a list of cards you'd like to use. Go back and decide how many of each should be in your deck. Make sure your deck is within the rules, and critique it for weaknesses.
At this point, you'll need to get your hands on the cards. Once you have your cards together, go battle and see how your deck does!

Making Cards
Unfortunately, the KTCG cards don't actually exist yet. So you'll have to be creative. You could copy the card text onto index cards, or set up a table in your word processor, then print and cut the cards apart. Whatever method you use, be sure the cards are the same size and all look the same from the back.
When you request cards from me, all I can say is "Okay, they're yours". That means you own a virtual copy of the card. Making it useable is up to you.

Sample Deck

A lot of new players seem confused on how to make a deck, or ask for a pre-made one. Here's a sample that a beginner could buy.

Deck List
 
Card Name Number in Deck Reason for Inclusion
Spindrift 7 Hold lands early in game.
Money Bag 7 Stock up Energy for Crystal King.
Crystal Bit 15 Inflict heavy damage.
Crystal King 3 Withstand strong opponents.
War Buddies 4 Prevent loss of Energy.
Honorable Discharge 3 Remove Money Bag from play area.
Mushroom 10 Prevent opponent from conquering land.
Ice Energy 21 Power attacks.

Deck Strategy

The goal of this deck is to amass several Crystal Bits in one land, then use their Blizzard attack to destroy all challengers. Their other move, Friends, will help you raise their numbers.

Since Crystal Bit has very little HP, play Spindrift and Money Bag first. Spindrift's Lure forces your opponent to attack her, or give up that phase of their turn. The next round, you can heal with a Mushroom and either Lure again or Bump for reasonable damage.

When you have a free attack, use Money Bag's Bank Account ability to save up Energy on the side. Your opponent cannot touch this stack. Most decks require more than 21 Energy, but Money Bag's searching ability, combined with the fact that this deck is single-type, allows you to have less.

When you need to tap the Energy pile, or when Money Bag is almost Knocked Out, play Honorable Discharge to shuffle him back into your deck. If you can, use War Buddies first to avoid temporarily losing his Energy. (War Buddies remains in the land you play it in, so it can be used repeatedly - but be careful that your opponent doesn't gain access to it.)

War Buddies also allows you to shift Energy from a dying Crystal Bit to one without damage, allowing you to more easily continue the assault. Frequent searches for Crystal Bits and Ice Energy will thin your deck, ultimately helping you to more quickly reach other cards - and the remaining Crystal Bits and Energies. Try to avoid letting up your attack to use Friends. Once you have sufficient Crystal Bits to begin, let replacements come as they will.

Finally, the powerful card, the one all new players are interested in. In this deck, it's Crystal King. His Freeze Punch attack is actually less useful than a powered-up Blizzard, but he has more HP and can recover. Remember all that Energy you set aside? You'll need it now. A Recover combined with a Mushroom will usually be sufficient to restore Crystal King to full health. If the situation gets dangerous, you can always shuffle away his Energy and give him an Honorable Discharge.

This deck requires you to be careful on the defense, but if you can prepare a Blizzard within the first few turns, you'll be able to flatten most opponents. It includes no Rare cards, and would sell for about 65 coins. A good variation would be to substitute Bumpty Penguin and Huffin Puffin for Crystal Bit and Crystal King.

Deck Spoiler List

Name: Spindrift
HP: 60
Evolution Stage: Basic Minion
Minion Type: Ice
Attack 1: I Lure-If your opponent attacks next turn, he or she must choose Spindrift as the target.
Attack 2: II Bump-10.  If Spindrift was attacked on your opponent's last turn, this attack does 30 damage.
Card Number: 50/116
Rarity Symbol: Uncommon

Name: Money Bag
HP: 50
Evolution Stage: Basic Minion
Minion Type: Ice
Attack 1: I Bank Account-Search your deck for an Energy card.  Lay the card aside and shuffle your deck.  When Money Bag is removed from the play area by any means, add any Energy cards you have laid aside to your hand.
Attack 2: I Surprise-20.  Flip a coin.  If tails, this attack does nothing.
Card Number: 16/50
Rarity Symbol: Common

Name: Crystal Bit
HP: 30
Evolution Stage: Basic Minion
Minion Type: Ice
Attack 1: I Friends-Search your deck for a Crystal Bit and place it in this land.  Then shuffle your deck.
Attack 2: II Blizzard-This attack does 10 damage for every Crystal Bit in this land.
Card Number: 19/50
Rarity Symbol: Common

Name: Crystal King
HP: 60
Evolution Stage: Stage 1-Evolves from Crystal Bit
Minion Type: Ice
Attack 1: II Recover-Discard I from Crystal King to remove up to two damage counters from this card.
Attack 2: III Freeze Punch-40.
Card Number: 20/50
Rarity Symbol: Uncommon

Name: War Buddies
Location: Your lands
Function: You may move Energy cards in this land from one Minion to another as many times as you want.
Card Number: 85/116
Rarity Symbol: Common

Name: Honorable Discharge
Location: Discard pile
Function: Choose one of your Minions and shuffle them and any cards attached to them back into your deck.
Card Number: 87/116
Rarity Symbol: Common

Name: Mushroom
Location: Discard pile
Function: Remove up to two damage counters from one of your Minions.
Card Number: 88/116
Rarity Symbol: Common

 

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