EB-06 Link Joker





Written and edited by:

Thien Nguyen, Arcadia, Chad Leiske and China Ross





Link Joker received its first wave of support in the BT-04 set, Vilest Deletor. This original support focused entirely on the Deletor archetype. In EB-06, the support that Link Joker is receiving is for another specific archetype rather than continued support for Deletors. This means that while the support may have a few good cards, the deck is being pulled in two directions.





In this set, Link Joker gained access to two boss monster level cards in: Starhulk Ruler, Brandt and Wandering Starhulk Deity, Brandt Ringer . These cards provide a super unique mechanic, the ability to reverse the effects of your opponent's triggers! This effect is strong, and can be very frustrating for your opponent. The Grade 3 variant of Brandt only changes criticals and heals, while the Grade 4 Brandt hits everything.





The Grade 3 Brandt can be used as a method to stall out the game, because you know that the most damage you'll take on a Vanguard attack is one! This is useful in reaching your second Grade 3, or Grade 4 ride.









One of the best cards introduced in EB-06 is Whiteouter, Vect . While the support may pull the clan in two directions, this card is good for any archetype of Link Joker. Targeted binding in a meta where the most dominant decks have key Grade 2+ units such as Dragonic Neoflame , and the entirety of the Bermuda Triangle deck is incredibly strong, plus you get to draw a card! This is a repeatable effect also, unlike a lot of your other units that sacrifice themselves in the process.





This unit will see play in any variant of Link Joker moving forward, it provides targeted removal and hand advantage all while psuedo-guard restricting your opponent!









The last, non-Starhulk focused card in the set is Fatal Shockwave, Jetshaft . For the cost of soulblast 1, he can force your opponent to intercept as much as possible. This is a fantastic card against a Bermuda Triangle player who mistakenly called a Fina against you.





Removing two units for soulblast 1 is a fantastic value, and it's a repeatable effect. This effect is even valuable against Kagero, in that you can forcibly remove Neoflame and make your opponent have to re-ride every time to get them back.





We predict that Jetshaft will find a home in both current archetypes of Link Joker in some way, but may get replaced post EB-07.









Conclusions and the Future





BT-04, and EB-06 both contained two separate archetypes of Link Joker support. As one of the last clans introduced in Standard, Link Joker received two near back to back sets of support that so far have had lukewarm results. In July, Link Joker receives its third and final set of support in the form of EB-07 and Harmonics Messiah (another archetype). The deck has been making waves in Japan, putting up fairly decent results against both Kagero and the current reigning champ Bermuda Triangle.





While EB-06 introduces a valuable Grade 2, the VR Brandt suffers from the same issues Link Joker has had previously, a lack of card advantage. In the current meta, it may be bettet to pilot an updated Deletors list, as it has a OK match up against Bermudas than to experiment with Brandt.





Hungry for more Link Joker content? Our clan primer updated for EB-07 drops in early July. One of our content creators happens in live in Asia and has been playing the EB-07 meta now for a while, hear his takes and what he thinks is the optimal build in that primer!





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