So with Opus VI officially launched today, I decided to do a quick article on what the top cards are in each element. This is a combination of my personal opinion and what cards I am noticing are getting at on of traffic over at my store’s shop. So let’s get going!

Fire – Vermilion Bird l’Cie Caetuna 6-010H

If you play fire (especially Mono Fire), you are including this in your deck. Definitely. For 6cp, you are getting a backup that enhances what fire does best, nuking your opponents forwards with your summons. Brynhildr is now extremely deadly. 2cp Ifrit can knock out a lot of the popular 3cp forwards such as Locke or Genesis. On top of that, it let’s you search out a card for free and instantly cast it. Use this with 4cp Bahamut to annihilate and remove an annoying forward. Cannot recommend this card enough.

Ice – Rinoa 6-041L

I did a full article on this card recently, but to just to reiterate, this card is insanity. While it’s weak on it’s own, or rather with an empty board, the amount of combos and game changing plays this card can make is incredible. Grab these cards now while you can, because they will be disappearing from shops, especially when you consider how strong Ice has been for the past 6 months.

Wind – Zidane – 6-044L

Zidane returns in Opus VI, and he is a nasty bugger. He has his typical high evasion, this time being able to dodge abilities that target him, but that’s just the icing on the cake. Any time Zidane attacks, you purge a forward from your opponent’s hand, slowing down their board state and robbing them of Crystal Points. He also has insane combos with discard effects, since after you force them to discard a card, you get to activate a Wind character for free. On top of that, you gain information on what your opponent is currently holding in their hands. Stellar!

Earth – Ajido-Marujido 6-064H

Sorry, not a legend! Although it has every right to be one. This mage has ridiculous value, and can do very well in any type of deck that supports summons. You can play it with Lightning and cast Raiden for free, you can cast Opus 1 Bahamut for free, and then still have a backup to generate resources. On top of that, you can search for 2 summons from the breakzone, rendering this card a 1cp backup. Grab those Cockatrices to further stall your opponent! More Hecatoncheirs or Opus 3 Shiva’s to punch through the opponents front lines! An incredibly solid card. (FYI, this character is a Male, everyone seems to assume otherwise)

Lightning – Estinien 6-088L

Lordy. Not only an incredibly powerful forward/Dragoon, this is probably THE chase card of Opus VI, and one of the most gorgeous cards in the entire game, with or without being foiled. An absolute bulldozer, this card can have haste with 5 backups just to get started. Can activate at will (although only once!) to surprise attacks or get a double attack in during your attack phase. If blocked, he simply impales a forward and tosses it into the gutter. This forward demands an immediate answer, or he will rip through you and get tons of damage in. Save those 4cp Bahamuts for him!

Water – Aymeric 6-106H

I feel like most people would expect Minwu L to be here from the new set, but for a consistently solid performance, I felt Aymeric would make this list. This forward has it all. Utility, high power, a built in Opus 1 Minwu support, and a giant great sword. When he attacks, all other Forwards gain 2000 power until the end of turn. This, combined with the Wakka backup, means he must be dealt with immediately. And seeing as how he doesn’t receive damage that is less then his power, you are going to have to call in the big guns. Your best bet is using cards that break him when he is dull (since he will be swinging most turns with his +2k ability, or using an instant removal such as Chaos, Walker of the Wheel or the Opus V Mateus. As per usual with water, do not let this card gain momentum on the board.

Light / Dark – Hraesvelger 6-127L / Nidhogg 6-130L

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Light and Dark were combined, due to them in my opinion being the only viable Dark/Light cards of this set. Nidhogg can be extremely dangerous with his ETF effects. While 9cp is costly, he can also be used in conjunction with The Opus VI Rinoa to rain terror down on your opponent.

Hraesvelger seems like a wonderful answer to monster decks. Monster decks rely a lot on bringing back cards from the breakzone, which Hraesvelger can purge upon entry. His other effects can be quite potent as well, such as stalling a game or letting you recoup resources for an extra turn to help you catch up. Both of these forwards are quite good.

And that wraps it up! Looking forward to seeing how the meta forms and gets adapted to in this set. Opus VI is a very nice set, in both value and with the art! See you next time!

(Did you know? Final Fantasy X is the last Final Fantasy game that allows you to name the main character. This option is usually introduced after some brief dialogue and action into the game, or could be manipulated using a character such as Namingway in Final Fantasy IV)