[Update 20 Sep 2024] A new variant of this deck has begun to grow in prominence in the metagame; in recent tournaments, it was most notably used by Italian player Luigi Amato to finish 10th at the Liverpool Regionals. This new deck variant includes the Gecko Moria card from Wings of the Captain [OP-06] to set up various combos as well as activate the Leader effect of the deck’s titular card from the 3D2Y [ST-14] Starter Deck.

Another important card in the new variant is Brook from the Extra Booster Memorial Collection [EB-01] to destroy opposing Characters with a cost of 0 in the early game, allowing the player to get the jump on the opponent.

Outside a short window of metagame viability between September and November 2023, the Black Luffy deck hasn’t made much of an impression in ONE PIECE Card Game tournaments to date. This could begin to change soon, though—the recent banning of the Enies Lobby card from Pillars of Strength [OP-03] dealt a major blow to the Black Lucci deck, potentially opening the door for other black decks to take a step forward.

Strategy

The main idea behind this deck is increasing the cost of Characters up to 8, thereby activating the effects of certain cards which have cost-dependent effects. The key cards of this deck which increase Character costs are a trio of cards from the 3D2Y [ST-14] Starter Deck: the deck’s titular Monkey D. Luffy card which is its Leader card as well as the I Have My Crew!! and Thousand Sunny cards. As long as a Character on the field has had its cost jacked up to 8, the deck’s Leader card effectively has a Power of 6000, allowing heavier damage to be dealt while also making it easier to counter out of opposing attacks.

Certain Character cards which already have a cost of 8 and thus activate the deck’s cost-dependent effects right off the bat include Sabo from 500 Years in the Future [OP-07] and Issho from Pillars of Strength [OP-03]. Sabo tips the field balance in the player’s favor by KO’ing two opposing Characters. Issho, meanwhile, is primarily a disruptive card; it allows the player to trash two of the opponent’s cards in hand if the opponent is holding at least six cards. It also reduces all opposing Character costs by 3.

Three other cost reduction cards in this deck are from Paramount War [OP-02]: Tsuru, Kuzan, and Ice Age. These cards will usually be used to put opposing Characters within range of a KO. When played, Kuzan also enables the player to draw a card.

Price

The cumulative price of all the cards in the Black Luffy deck is at least 30,080 JPY (~US$207).

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