Time for another immediate segue back into Preview Season. Today, the Infinite Rares. Let’s see if they fare better than the Destruction Rares ultimately did. Also the Starter/Expert Decks are here! Will we get another huge explosion onto the scene like Shenron or Broly? Let’s find out.

Assault of the Saiyans Infinite Rares

SS3 Nappa, Saiyan Might

The Beard is Here! Anyway, the Infinite Rares are all about…ironically enough, Mono-Color decks. Though Dual-Colored cards should still qualify under these restrictions but otherwise your deck has to be Mono-Colored entirely. Not even Over Realm is safe unless you wanna hold them forever. The trade-off should hopefully be very powerful cards that can really push the desire to be in one color and only one color.

SS3 Nappa may arguably already be the best of the bunch because he represents the one thing this game has really never had, beyond maybe Gohan Lead. Unconditional burn. You just play him, boom 1 Damage and it’s Crit Damage. Honestly that’s absolutely insane and he is absolutely worth going Mono-Colored over. And even beyond that he’s a Crit 20K Body on top. In very crude theory, Gohan Lead + 4 of this is 8 nearly uncontested damage (Cold Bloodlust still exists). There’s absolutely a deck out there that just minimizes interacting with the opponent as much as possible to win by burn and this will be a centerpiece. Very strong card.

SS3 Trunks, Saiyan Harmonizer

The Blue Infinite Rare Trunks decided to grow his hair out. He is very reminiscent of Trunks, the Constant Hope. The goal is to get a bunch of stuff to combo out of the Drop Area. Now the downside is, no Keywords which means no Super Combo shenanigans. But you do get Unyielding Spirit Trunks and a bunch of abilities that work on comboing, some introduced in this very set. He also gets to draw more cards and potentially use his attacking ability again. There are also decks that already want you to be on Mono-Blue so this can slot in. Don’t know if he’s meta but he’s solid.

SS3 Broly, Saiyan Berserker

On the next episode of “Bandai really tries to make Set 1 Broly work” we have a new SS3 Broly that basically seeks to do everything for the archetype. It grabs Broly’s Ring, uses the Broly’s Ring on the board, helps Self-Awaken and cheaply drops the big drops without having to wait and risk Evolving. To me this is the epitome of “If this doesn’t do it, NOTHING will”. Seriously, it does everything that damn deck wants other than not having an offensive Keyword of his own or providing extra card advantage. I don’t even know how much more I can say about the card, it does its duty in one specific deck and will probably do it well. If you’re still beating that Set 1 Broly drum, this is the card for you. If not I don’t think this will change anything.

SS2 Kefla, Saiyan Synthesis

So we get Kefla to have something that actually goes with the cards from the set…kinda. See, both U6 Leaders probably do want some Blue because the Kales are pretty good cards. This ironically enough does not allow you to play ANY Kale with her. Uh…oops? She’s independent sure, but let’s look at what she provides. Essentially a 2 Drop kill body, at the cost of one extra card. It’s fine and all but again, these cards really needed to incentivize you to go into one color. She does not. She’s not going to be the thing that lets you look at Over Realm cards or things in a second color and say “Nah, this is better”. She’s a fine card but unlike the other 3 she’s REALLY held back by this restriction.

Son Goku, Saiyan Transcendence

The last of the Infinite Rares. A rare Xeno-Evolve these days on top of having the restriction only being usable when you hit 4 Energy which is really to avoid just turboing this out on Turn 2 with the new Xeno Goku counter. The reward? More ways to keep Over Realm going. Now obviously this is only for Mono-Black decks and Demigra could have another piece. A ton of recycling for the deck though I wonder if it’s just boarded too late to really make the impact necessary. If nothing else I can see it tried out and teched.

Dash Pack

Energy Volley Gogeta

Onto the Dash Pack and let’s see how we can help other archetypes. Gogeta is obviously meant to go into…well, Gogeta. And well…okay, the good news. It gives the Veku plays a different edge than just durdling around. You can actually put a threatening body on board before Turn 4 and get rid of one of the opponent’s best cards while getting very good information. The main downside though is that it’s a beating on your hand size. Veku usually subverted it by getting the cards back from the Union:Fusion so you don’t lose much of anything, before Turn 4 put a drain on it. This is essentially a -2 to play. 2 Cards for the Union-Fusion and then Evolving over top the Veku to get rid of a card from the opponent’s hand. So idk how much it helps, but at the same time the deck had a bit of filler space so this can slot in quite well. It won’t reinvent the wheel or anything, but it’s a fine piece.

Trunks, Hope of the Saiyans

I swear Trunks throws the word “hope” around more than Star Wars: Rogue One did. Anyway, another one of this “Attack, Dig Top 3” sort of cards. He digs for Blue Saiyans which again, is a relatively wide net. I can see it getting play in a few lists.

Overwhelming Energy Broly

A new Broly for the Movie Broly shenanigans. From the start though with that first Auto we learn very quickly this is NOT for Starter Deck Broly. At all. This just brings that effect to the other variants like Paragus and then allows you to pivot into Broly the Ravager or more likely Demonic Intimidation. Problem is getting this on board is a bit annoying unless you’re on the Tragic Awakening plan and then the question always is…why not just do the typical Broly Chain? I’m not sure honestly, but maybe there’s something here.

Vegeta, a Master’s Temperament

The last card from the Dash Pack and I like this one the best honestly. It’s a pretty easy condition to meet, Yellow Leader and a Cabba on board (much easier now that we got two pretty solid ones) to tap two of the opponent’s Energy which will go quite well with the Expert Deck that we’ll see in a little bit. Crippling the opponent’s Energy is very powerful, don’t overlook this card.

Saiyan Legacy

King Vegeta/King Vegeta, Leader of the Saiyans : King Vegeta’s Dynasty

Hey, we finally have a King Vegeta Leader! And boy is he neat. Good, not sure yet but neat, definitely. He restricts you to Saiyans which…really isn’t much a restriction in this day and age. You’ll lose out on a couple of cards but overall your deck will be fine. He damages himself to dig for…pretty much anything in the deck that isn’t a Counter Extra Card (if you even choose to play one…you probably will, but still). Then he has one of the most unique Awakening conditions, requiring you to have both King Vegeta’s Dynasty and 3+ Energy. This seems like a lot honestly, especially when you consider he damages himself for his ability on the front side. It’s the first time (I believe) that a Leader has a Self-Damage effect…only to have an Awakening Condition unrelated to his Life Total. It means you have to be much more careful with that ability since you don’t necessarily have the guarantee of the Awaken to save your bacon.

On his Awakened SIde you either get to sac off a Saiyan for your draw and then become a 20K DS beater, or you can just simply play a cheap Saiyan for free, albeit having its effects negated for the turn…and then still draw a card. Generally you want cards that either have an effect when killed, or at the very least have some type of effect that can be activated later on, like an Activate ability or a Continuous Effect. There aren’t a ton, but there’s enough to toy around with and I like how versatile he is. He’ll either help you get the board back, or use the board to push further. If you have neither…well, you’re screwed anyway.

Lastly we’ll talk about the Dynasty here. A very unique card, that essentially replaces itself and the card it plays immediately, becoming a quick +2 for 2 Energy. An actual +2 because it also maintains a Negate later on in the clutch that the opponent is forced to play around and it also doesn’t run on the “Counter” Keyword which could potentially allow it to subvert some cards that avoid Counter effects. It ties the deck together, it’s pretty strong, there’s certainly no shame in putting this on board to set up your Awaken.

Raditz, Earth Invader

Now onto the other SD exclusives we have a new Raditz. Again, another card intended to be “free” but in this case…it doesn’t really do anything after that. At most it’s something you can have on board easy to sac for King Vegeta’s Awakened effect but that’s about it. Nothing too special, don’t think it’s good enough.

Vegeta, Royal Prince

Hey, a 2 Drop 10K Vegeta, now Raditz, Saiyan in Arms has an actual effect. This card is alright. It’s probably not good in King Vegeta, just because while it’s a Saiyan with an Activate: Main effect…King Vegeta can’t really afford to lose any more life than he’s already giving up. But being a Raditz target is relevant, I expect to see it there especially if we get a better Nappa as well.

Fated Kaio-Ken Son Goku

The boss for at least the budget version of this deck. He ties together the whole self-inflicted damage with an actual payoff. Get him out for 2 Energy and then hopefully be a 20K Double Strike/Dual Attack bomb. For beginners this is a good card to learn the ropes. Not really great in constructed though, as we saw in the set R/G (Gruul Smash!) has better stuff for finishing the game.

Universe 6 Assailants

Cabba/Vegeta & Cabba, Master & Pupil

Another new character to the Leader pile, welcome to the club Cabba. His front side is a mixed bag. Being restricted to U6 Battle Cards is actually a BIG restriction and he essentially asks for only Blue/Yellow ones. Oh and Vegetas too, of course can’t let Master Vegeta out. So unfortunately his deck building will be a bit limited.

His front side effect proper is kind of like Pan. Play a card, get a pump and card advantage but Cabba gets it in the form of self-damage. In this case though it leads to a traditional Awakening Condition at 4 Life, Untap Awaken at that which is pretty good. Also unlike Pan he can trigger the “draw” off of any U6 Battle Card rather than needing to hit a power marker which helps greatly in the early game.

His Awakened Side is what really informs what Cabba wants to be doing. He is about tapping…Energy this time! Not just Battle Cards…thankfully as we’ve had quite enough of that for Yellow Leaders. He gets pumped on defense if the opponent taps out. That…is not all that great. Most people do not tap out on offense all that often but it IS nice when they’re forced to for whatever reason. If they do tap out it’s essentially free card advantage for you by needing less cards on defense. If nothing else it’ll force the opponent to hold back on offense if they may not want to. He even has another ability to essentially make it so the opponent will NEVER dare to go for a big tap out turn as it’ll leave them crippled on Energy for their next turn.

I do like though that he gains extra card advantage for doing more tapping, that’s really solid and is an actual payoff. This Leader has a lot of potential, but help is needed. Let’s see if the rest of the deck gets there on top of the things in the set.

Vegeta, Saiyan of Universe 7

This card…is not the best start unfortunately. It’s a bounce 2, draw 2 hopefully but usually you’re bouncing things the opponent doesn’t mind bounced. Also it’s a 4 Drop Blue Vegeta…we have At All Costs Vegeta. Okay for beginners, not something to stay with.

Champa, Scheming God of Destruction

Now this is interesting. At its core, it’s another Champa that pumps something and gives 20K and Double Strike. But there’s obviously differences. For one you gotta pay 3 Energy which is a lot more and only works on U/Y U6 Battle Cards. However the upside to all of this, besides the fact that this can be used in Cabba and his predecessor can’t along with having a body on board, is that the target keeps the boosts until the end of turn. Quite handy for any Dual Attackers and the like. Interesting card, has potential as does anything that gives something Double Strike.

Sisterly Bonds Kale

Hmm…this doesn’t look familiar at all…

Yep, not familiar. Anyway this is just a much fairer version of the above card that wreaked so much havoc for a few months (and still pops up periodically to be a pain in the ass). Far more restricted targets and no stacking cost reduction BUT she does make it so you can put a Cabba or Caulifla in play and not just Caulifla. Obviously though a pretty solid card with enough targets in the deck. We like value, she gives value.

Hit, Ace of Universe 6

What we have here is yet another card made with the expectation of setting of the Combo Evolve plays. Without it, not very good but with it he helps take up the spot of Champa/Vados. If you feel that Champa/Vados needs some redundancy this helps, or if they’re out of your price range (I doubt it but you never know). Also can be another Hit Evolve target if you REALLY need it. But it’s just general redundancy and only okay redundancy.

Cabba, Saiyan of Universe 6

Again, we like value. This Cabba is a value machine. Grabbing 2 U6 cards from the deck is great. Yes you may have to discard one afterwards but that’s fine and even sets up Kale for later. On top of that he can keep something tapped down if Sedala is out. This card is solid in this deck, absolutely fantastic in Hit. Can’t go wrong, great card.

Caulifla, Troublemaker of Universe 6

A 2 Drop Caulifla is something Kefla badly needed. Is it good? Well another self-damaging card is a bit worrisome and it taps down an Energy. For Cabba he really needs that on the opponent’s turn, not his own. For Kefla it’s probably fine. For Hit, not necessary. Probably a decent tech choice to potentially steal a game but nothing more.

Vegeta & Cabba, Master-Pupil Bond

Okay so this card…eh… Keep in mind, Aegis is a very costly ability in many cases. Two cards out of your hand to try and keep defense. This card then asks you to discard yet ANOTHER card…just to play a 2 Drop U6 with no Keyword skills (aka no recycling Super Combos). To me that is a lot to ask for in that ability. I would say it’s mainly solid with the above Caulifla to not only trigger a draw on the opponent’s turn but potentially all of your abilities if the opponent only left one Energy up. But that feels niche and alone isn’t really enough to put this over the top.

Planet Sadala

The U6’s own Field card and it’s interesting. Pretty similar to Dynasty in that you play it to play something, but in this case you give up one drawn card in order to keep your ability. To me the ability being maintained is more important so that’s good.

Now unlike Dynasty it doesn’t have another freebie ability. Instead, if this gets sacked (for those who aren’t aware you can simply play another Field card of any sort and this card will hit the Drop, so another of this will suffice) you get to tap something down and search the top 5 for pretty much any card. Honestly going Sadala into a future Sadala seems solid. You get a Battle Card, you Draw a card, you tap an Energy and you get a search. To get this for essentially 2 Energy is a lot of value. Great card for pretty much every U6 Variant this set.

Frost’s Deadly Poison

The last card for today. This card is essentially a combination of Crusher Ball and Cold Bloodlust that also grants a card draw and possibly an Energy untap. This is a lot of stuff on an Extra Card and with the benefits of Aegis getting 3 Energy up may not be the hardest thing in the world especially with the opponent being perhaps hesitant to go all in on a big play against Cabba due to his effects going off if they tap out. At the same time 3 Energy, even if one will untap, is a lot to keep up at once and relying on Aegis may be too much. Again though it’s a lot of effects and I’m hard pressed to just write it off. I think it has potential and can just completely shut down a turn.

Final Thoughts:

A lot to cover recently but a lot of fun stuff to cover. Most of the Infinite Rares I enjoy, the Starter Decks probably could’ve been better but the Leaders are very unique which I love and will allow fun deck building challenges. There were definitely card to help out new archetypes as well. I think there’s value to be had here.