Welcome all to the last major week of Preview Season for a while. Today Bandai graced us with a gift (that they said was going to happen for a while) where we have both the Green Cards and all the SRs from the set which means after today testing can truly begin. Green has somewhat struggled in recent memory, despite gaining some solid generic support. Green has oft been defined by the two archetypes that have been good, the Veggie Package and the Cell Chain. Beyond that it’s truly failed to find a foothold beyond Set 1 outside of a couple of outliers in U/G Control and most recently, Zen-Oh Maidens which fell off a cliff when players realized the immense volatility of the strategy. Will we get more generic support to flesh out the color? Will we just see Android support to once again try to pump Cell Chain up? As for the SRs, they have a lot to live up to from recent sets. Can they manage? Let’s find out.

Green Cards

Pilaf/Tiny Warrior Son Goku

The wish that was the entire basis of the creation of GT really. “Let’s go back to the good ole days, adventuring…and turning Goku into a kid.” Man that…didn’t really pay off as ratings sagged early and they rushed back to the battles of the DBZ predecessor instead, finding a way through SSJ4 to age Goku back up.

Anyway, most of the effects on this card are exactly the same as its predecessors, makes sense as this is Pilaf’s second Leader (congrats Tien, Pilaf has two Leaders before you have one). Seriously, all of his effects are the same outside of the Ultimate, so let’s just get to that.

I’ll say that his ultimate is…very lacking. Killing a Battle Card and 1 Card in Hand along with a 15K Pump is fine, but nothing spectacular for that cost. So honestly, it likely won’t be used. Instead, and I didn’t get the chance to mention it on previous articles, the remedy for Shenron Leaders with lacking Ultimates…is simply to use Beyond Darkness Demigra since the Dragon Balls automatically get you to the Dark Over Realm cost you need. It’s hard to argue, Demigra is essentially better than a good majority of the Ultimates in this set though at the cost of being a 1-of you can’t search for.

That being said, if Demigra is going to be the choice for a lot of Shenron Leaders then they’ll need something else to set them apart. Pilaf/Goku’s success will hinge on the cards that only HE can use.

Super 17/Super 17, Evil Entwined

Ah Super 17, it’s nice to see you. We have ourselves another Android Leader, with all the fun that comes with it. However, what draws me to him immediately before effects is that he’s also a Machine Mutant Leader…or at least it would if not for the fact that Bandai future-proofed a great majority of the Machine Mutant support to only work with either Dr. Myuu or simply, Red Machine Mutant Leaders. The couple of cards of support that works with any Machine Mutant Leader doesn’t help him all that much without the rest. …Maybe Vengeful Onslaught will finally have its place though.

Anyway, front side we’ve seen plenty already. Awakened Side we have yet ANOTHER Critical attacker. For those keeping count this is the 3rd Awaken Crit Attacker in the set (poor Roshi…). Not a whole lot of design creativity in this set, I’ll say that much. Anyway, his other effect is a call back to the Green Design of limiting hand size. He makes sure the opponent does not stay above 9 Cards on your turn. This is…okay I guess? It’s somewhat timely considering the surge of both Announcer and Hercule but I imagine in most cases this effect will not be used.

Once again, not a particularly spectacular card. Most of his deck’s design space will again, come from cards he can specifically use. Generically, not the best Leader out there.

Super Saiyan Son Goku

Yeah, skip.

Spirited Search SS Trunks

This card is pretty solid for Wish Goku and honestly any Wish Leader assuming you’re heavily invested into Green. The only time he’s ever “bad” is when you’re pretty safe on life while flipped. In other words, when you’re likely well ahead. Otherwise he does what you need him to do early, which is hasten your flip. He does what you need late, which is to grab back Desire Cards to use (especially with the current revelation that you do end up discarding Desire cards after using them via Wish Leader effect). If your colors are right, this is a definite staple for said Wish deck.

Spirited Search Pan

Now again, if Vanilla Support takes off, Pan grabbing Goku will be pretty good. Until then, Pan’s use will be to grab Trunks. I don’t know if the deck necessarily would need 8 copies of Trunks, but extra copies should be pretty good. I expect this to see play in any deck that’d play that Trunks.

SS Vegeta, No Holding Back

Another power creep of the typical 4 Drop Removal…though not actually a power creep for Green specifically. Why? Green already has Kami’s Power Piccolo. It’s extremely rare that Kami’s Power Piccolo won’t be live so this is just realistically a more restricted version of him. If you don’t have Piccolo, this is a fine substitute. But seriously, invest into Piccolo.

Defensive Stance SS Vegeta : Defensive Stance Piccolo

The Sabat Brothers are now the Green Super Combos of choice. Same things that went for the other Super Combos in this set, go for these ones.

Negotiator Krillin

I know people are clowning on this card for being a much more restricted Jaco…and it is for the most part but he does have at least one upside compared to Jaco. He sends a Combo Card to the Drop Area rather than just the hand, which would lead to much less awkward turns where you REALLY want to get rid of Super Combos or something like Supreme Kai…this does circumvent that. Is it enough to make Krillin see play? …probably not, but side board potential could exist.

Physical Mastery Uub

Everyone, I’d like to introduce you to Indomitable Link Gohan. Doesn’t need Mill, shoots more cards, only requires 1 Green instead of two…is Gohan. Unless you REALLY want Mill, or a card that can live through a 15K attack back crack…use Gohan please.

Endless Malice Android 17

Android 17 Leader looks up and praises that he has even more support (EDIT)…but ultimately falls short because he doesn’t lower Specified Cost. We have less conditional 15K Crit Targets for him.

However for other tempo Green Decks or any that may want to run Super 17 Package or even Cell Chain he still does a lot of good work.

Deadly Defender Android 18

The last in the Deadly Defender series and…again, 17 Leader sees her and praises Lord Zen-Oh above because…we finally have a good 18! As a 3 drop we’ve already talked about this effect being good. But as a 2 Drop in that deck? Whew…this will be tough to deal with. I’m just happy we have a good 18 finally.

Hell Fighter 17, Evil Revived

Now obviously the true worth of its card will become apparent when we see what he goes into but even without that he’s very efficiently designed. Most Union:Absorb effects usually require some resources from hand or board, and also usually only grab from the Deck which is annoying for a various amount of reasons. HF 17 avoids both by allowing a Union:Absorb from the Drop AND grabbing his target from the Drop as well. It means he’ll be live a great majority of the time with very little cost to you. He also has Barrier in case by some miracle he isn’t live, so you can at least play him preemptively. Good card…as long as his target is good.

Super 17, to Further Heights

The target…is fine. Not fantastic, at least on its own merits. Fine removal, and doesn’t compete as much with KP Piccolo because this can come from a 3 Drop, and has potential follow up through Union:Absorb. He also has Barrier, so getting that follow up is much more likely. Do note, and this is a bit random but should mention it, you can grab this and HF 17 from Dr. Myuu so that’s neat. We’ll get to the SR in the SR portion of the article.

General Rilldo

30K Vanilla, gee, I wonder what’s coming up…

Dr. Myuu, Evil Genius

In terms of the 30K Vanilla Tech we’ve seen in this set, this is pretty much the easiest to set off. Just play Myuu at his proper cost, and mission accomplished. However, the trade-off is the fact that you need that 4+ Energy to play this and get it off compared to the others that could do it for 3 Energy. To that effect, probably not worth it in the end. That cheaper/faster cost does make a big difference.

Android 20, Vile Creator

Okay, so essentially this is a more restricted Champa/Supreme Kai. Ultimately he does get to the 10K the other two do, just through a more convoluted method, so what’s his upside? He gives them the +5K Power and Double Strike for the turn. There aren’t a ton of Dual Attacking Android threats, but some do exist. Maybe this could see play, but only in those specific scenarios. Also, it is neat in that it still at least makes sure the card keeps 5K in case of a Jaco-like effect. The more you read it, the more little things you notice about the card that makes it a bit more playable than you thought before.

Infernal Fighter Nappa

What, no! Why would you make us pay the Energy Cost? We already have free blockers, being able to play them from mill wouldn’t be all that insane especially since he’s already locked behind Green Leaders. Being forced to pay his cost turns him from interesting tech choice to STAY FAR AWAY. Geez, you couldn’t at least give him 10K Power?

Infernal Emperor Frieza

…excuse me for a second.

*walks away, excessive swearing and things being thrown*

…okay I’m back. WHY THE HELL IS THIS FRIEZA GREEN?!?! This Frieza would solve about 100 FA problems at once, and you make him goddamn Green! …okay…I’m okay…deep breaths. Anyway…it’s a good card. It’s not as busted as Bardock because no Swap into Goten, but it’s still good. I don’t know if most Green Leaders will play it over Gohan however. FA decks, especially Golden Frieza, will likely bend over backwards now to fit some Green into the deck.

Infernal Villainy Cell

Oh hey, Unbreakable Goku but better. Well, better if you ever plan on playing him at least. If you’re just comboing just do it based on cool factor. But if based on color, you still never end up up playing Unbreakable on board however this Cell is pretty solid. 20K Crit that cantrips, not bad. Obviously great if you plan on playing Super 17 Package, but even out he has some game to him. If you played Unbreakable in Green this is a fantastic upgrade. Also finds work in that “Cell Toolbox” deck idea I floated. Great card for Green.

Shocking Death Ball

Hello upgraded Full Power Energy. Seriously, unless you’re playing a non-Green Leader this is a straight improvement on it and now Goten has even more to worry about on swings. This set might as well be called “Bandai hates Goten“. Obviously fantastic against Aggro decks, will see play as a free negate regardless.

Unthinkable Fate

…well again, if we start getting more broad Vanilla support we’ll be in business. Until then this is the most niche Desire Card, and the worst part is that you have to sac something to get the revival. Why would we use this again?

Hidden Feelings

The moment Krillin got himself a wife! Anyway, again another niche Desire Card, especially when you consider that there really isn’t a Wish deck looking to play all too many Androids. Outside of Wish Decks this isn’t really any better, not for 4 Energy. Maybe if a Wish Goku Android Beats deck gets there, this card should be a key component. Until then, not so sure.

Infernal Messenger

Okay we get it, Super 17 really loves the word “Infernal”. Anyway, remember the time when this sort of effect was much more restricted during Union Force? Yeah, me neither. This card is pretty damn good. In the right deck this is always a search 2 for relevant cards. We like plusses. We like cheap plusses. We like cheap plusses for meaningful cards. If you have enough targets in your deck this immediately goes in.

Final Thoughts on Green:

I don’t think there’s anything too immensely explosive or absurd but Green got some good stuff…though again, most of the spotlight goes to Android support. Maybe NOW Androids will break out of its bridesmaid tendencies. Still I enjoy most of the cards in this color…other than the blasphemy of Green Frieza…

Super Rares

Yamcha, at 100%

Well the comparison on hand is pretty obvious, Miraculous Comeback Ultimate Gohan. They both are 25K Attackers that deals 2 Damage when they kill someone. The differences are pretty big though. Gohan needs a low hand size to be a 2 Drop where he’s most effective, otherwise he’s a hefty 6, he’s a Natural Double Striker, and also has a Heavy Combo.

Yamcha on the other hand is always a 3 Drop. However he needs a Red Earthling Leader (you’re only ever playing him in his namesake’s deck anyway), needs to Mill 5 to get his effects and needs to do so even to hit the 25K stick. “Well that’s a lot of restrictions for a more consistent drop, why not just play Gohan?” Well first off, play both, very little reason not to. The other reason is this, Yamcha’s attack cannot be negated and that is HUGE. You can always negate Gohan’s attacks in a pinch which always beats trying to protect your weenies. You don’t have the luxury with Yamcha. In his deck he can attack anything he wants and you’ll have to combo out to deal with it. If you’re playing cantrips you can see how difficult that will be to manage.

This is most definitely the headliner for the Yamcha deck and may be exactly what pushes him to topping potential.

King Piccolo, Terror Unleashed

Well now we can finally discuss that Desire Card from way back. It’s easy to see why it and this SR are so closely intertwined. Let’s just condense this as much as possible. In essence, King Piccolo is a slightly reduced 3 Drop 20K Dual Attack Double Striker with a Sparking 10 Condition and a Heavy Combo. Also requires a Red Wish Leader (so Oolong). The main question I guess to ask is, is this card good enough to make Oolong see play? …maybe? This card is a little tricky to evaluate, which is why I did my best to condense it.

The point definitely seems to be play King’s Return in the early couple of turns to stock your hand full of it and Piccolo. Once you flip, you play them more to make sure your Drop is filled with all of them. Then you have at least 4 Dual Attack attempts (specifically Dual Attack, you can’t just Warp four and attack 5 times in one turn), and more if your opponent starts answering him. Also, if you don’t flip right away the King becomes a 25K Double Strike Dual Attacker. For 3 an absolutely fantastic rate. Then of course you have the ability to end the game by giving him that +15 instead for the 35K, though be forewarned to make sure you have 10 other cards in the Drop first that aren’t Dragon Balls or the Desire Cards otherwise you might accidentally lock yourself out of the restand (though thankfully it’s an Activate: Main ability to make sequencing far easier).

I’ll say this deck has potential legs behind it but it’ll require great testing.

Gogeta, Hero Revived

The Holy Fusion Knight is now even shinier. He comes with a lot of goodies. Triple Strike, Barrier, Deflect and even Union:Fusion which you WILL need for this card. 7 is a very big cost, especially these days. So this is one of the times I suggest aiming for Union:Fusion if you want to use this card. Yes it’s a minus…but as you’ll see the opponent will be facing a far bigger minus as he’s essentially Zen-Oh combined with Perfect Force Cell. Unless the opponent is insanely lucky (or you play this really poorly), if you play this Gogeta and resolve his skill, you should win the game. Now of course, as Zen-Oh should’ve been, he requires a great amount of commitment. You have to have the life to dump and most likely, the Goku and Vegeta to dump as well. Because at 7…you might as well just play Chain Attack Zen-Oh in U/R instead. However at 5 it’s definitely worth as you get to keep your board and your hand as well.

Now where does this see play? That’s tough because it’s not enough just to have the Goku and Vegeta but they also need to have the same power. The problem is that where Goku shines at least a little a 15K, Vegeta shines at 20K. Vegeta right now has truly come into his own at 20K (At All Costs, Deadly Defender) power. Goku on the other hand doesn’t have the best stuff at those levels. Probably his best is Comrades Combined at 15K, if only because it grabs Deadly Defender (and Sneak Attack to a lesser extent). Sneak Attack Goku could also maybe find some run. Before someone says, yes, Test of Strength Goku is a fantastic 15K…but chances are they’ll be used up with Uub instead. At 20K though, Goku got nothing. A festival of situational mess. Sadly we can’t use Unbreakable here, he’s a Goku: GT. So we really have to focus on the 15Ks since Vegeta at least has Sneak Attack Vegeta. So the deck that’s most likely to play him? Iron Vow Trunks, which already topped in a deck centered around him.

Past that though, I don’t think playing a 7 Drop in any capacity is wise right now. Still, if you’re able to play this Gogeta, you should be winning that turn.

Ghost Rampage SS Gotenks

Hey Gotenks got himself a SR, and a damn good one. A simple 4 Drop with relevant stats that says when you play him, Mill 5 and bounce up to…100 20K or less Battle Cards? …I’m gonna hope this is just a funny joke and not Bandai planning some insanity down the line. For now it’s a funny number to say bounce everything on the opponent’s board more or less. This is extremely nasty against the right deck. Now it does say choose, so Barrier avoids it but that’s fine considering how free the wipe is. Yes it only bounces but again, this wipe is absurdly easy. Just be wary of using this against a board that has Negate Battle Cards on it. Gotenks can backfire if used poorly. If used well though, this card can be an absolute backbreaker.

Infernal Chain Janemba

Please refer back to my Set 5 Blue Article for this Janemba.

Twin Onslaught SS4 Son Goku

SS4 Gokus for all colors! Two left. Remember that Gotenks above? Yeah, that had nothing close to this. Remember I said earlier that the viability of Pilaf/Goku would come down to the cards only they can use. Aka, this card right here. Is it enough? …Yeah, it’s more than enough. 5 Drop 25K Double Strike isn’t anything to write home about. But like Gotenks, he’s also a nuke for a Mill 5 but he’s a far more permanent nuke. He kills anything with no restriction. And if the opponent decided to duck it a little with some Barrier he’ll pay for it greatly as he’ll negate their effects and gain Dual Attack for his trouble. Which means at his WORST, he’s a 5 Drop 25K Double Strike that kills the entire board. At his best and the opponent got cute with a Barrier Card, he’s a 25K Double Strike Dual Attack. Paired with Wish Goku’s Ultimate you can also clear off a Barrier Battle Card if you don’t get the job done.

Honestly it’s so relatively simple in what it does there’s not much to say. Come in, smash everything up. If I play Wish Goku, this is the reason why.

Super 17, Cell Absorbed

The rare “Special” Era, aka thanks Dragon Ball Heroes. This card is absolutely great. Even on 6, a hefty cost, this card is a nightmare to face. You’re losing 4 cards to this in almost every scenario and he won’t restock you thanks to Crit. And of course, thanks to the 4 Drop Super 17 he can come out as soon as Turn 4. Though you will need that 10 Cards in Drop which won’t be the easiest thing on that turn outside of Super 17 Leader. …thankfully that’s for the best, it should require a little bit of work to say “screw you to most of your hand”. At least he’s underpowered statwise at 20K, but otherwise this man is an absolute house. If he doesn’t end the game, he’ll make it hard for the opponent to fight back.

SSB Vegeta, Testing His Limits

Hey, where’s our 99K Combo Power we were promised with this art?! Curse you placeholder art… Anyway the value SR Vegeta train continues. Simply put, he’s either a 15K Double Strike Dual Attack, or a 15K Double Strike into a 20K Blocker Barrier. Sort of like Yellow’s version of Limitless Energy Android 17. A good tech choice for Yellow for the right decks.

Frieza, Back From Hell

…after a week of thinking…this card is still kind of a lot to take in. It’s a lot of conditions for burn. The opponent having 7 or more cards in Rest Mode is a LOT to ask for in a lot of situations. At the same time a free 1 Damage Burn on the opponent should require a lot of work in this game. His other effect is mostly just okay, he can lock down a card pretty much permanently, might be good enough to play in Golden Frieza just off that effect since it’s an okay attacker as well.

The burn effect just requires so much, and honestly will only go off against VERY specific decks…namely U/Y Swap. He could steal a win against them but to me that only makes it a very niche side deck option to troll. I don’t think the card is all that great otherwise, requires too much opponent input to use reliably. So as mentioned above, you’ll probably have to want to use it for the freeze effect.

Shenron, the Wishgranter

Remember the Starter Deck SR Shenron? This is literally that but bigger and badder. All of his effects, stats and costs are just bigger. 5 over 4. Heavy Combo to Light Combo. Sparking 7 rather than Sparking 5. Draw 2 rather than 1. Untap 4 Energy rather than 2. Revive a 3 or less rather than 2. Then lastly, +15K and Triple Strike rather than +5K and Critical. Is the one extra cost enough to allow the Starter Deck Shenron to keep his place? Well you COULD play both, but ultimately you want to be playing this whenever. EDIT: The main thing that divides the two (that I forgot to actually write) is that this only gets its effect when played on board, whereas the Starter Deck Super Rare gets it every turn. The choice therefore is more than likely format dependent. In a format full of removal this is where you want to be, but when its lacking the SD is far better.

Black Masked Saiyan, the Devastator

The last SR and the last to talk about and man is this card interesting. It also requires a fair bit. Gotta have a Black Leader, and you and your opponent have to have a combined 15+ Saiyan Cards in the Drop. But the reward you get is a Free Damage short of a Block (as the battle would be against the Blocker and not the Leader at that point). That is an effect worth fighting for. Now, you know how I feel about opponent input cards but in this case it’s a lot more manageable because you can provide the entire input if needed. Your deck will have to be absolutely loaded on Saiyans and also avoid Over Realm pretty much completely. There are quite a few quality Saiyans out there however.

Maybe a Black Veggies Package? Black Goku’s Lineage (no U/Y Swap because no access to Trunks or Flute). Something is out there where this card can be used effectively. I’ll believe in it.

Final Thoughts on SRs:

A lot of good stuff here, and a bit of niche stuff. Not the overwhelming force of last set but still quite a few things to play around with. We have a very interesting format ahead of us.

Next Time, I’ll get into the Top 5 for each rarity, and also my misses on World Tournament.