Kaio-Ken x 5

Posted on by markjkinney

ADAM BIXLER

I have been putting off writing about the deck I took to the Energon Invitation. The main reason being that I felt ashamed of my performance. And partly because I knew why. The deck I took was raw, and unrefined. It didn’t have the privileged or rigorous testing or the fine sharpening it needed for that level of an event. I also just didn’t have the time. It was an unfortunate and yet fortunate accident of a deck. One we thought was nothing special, but I decided to build it at the beginning of Siege II. Then I brought it out at a play-testing session before the invitational just to have some fun and blow off steam. And it was crushing everything. Even decks we felt it shouldn’t. It was undefeated by the end of that night and we had no clue why. So, I rushed those final couple days to make the deck a little better than the beta version it was still in. I sleeved it up even though I was unsure what would happen. Its raw power took me to the top 8 but I could feel how clunky the deck still was. And in the top 8 the deck ran into Bugs, where clunky gets punished. 4 or 5 I still Functions later (yes, he had one every game) and I’m out. Placing 6th overall but there was this pit in my stomach knowing I could have done better. Tailwind was strong, but the deck was lacking.

If you read my previous article, much like a Saiyan warrior, defeat only makes me stronger. Working with Mark we took the deck that wasn’t considered to be good enough and turned it into an aggressive beast. I was tasked with making a version where I wouldn’t suffer the same fate to Bugs yet preserve its Blue deck-killing nature.

Behold the 5-wide variant of Tailwind:

  • 3x Sturdy Javelin
  • 3x Erratic lightning
  • 3x Bashing shield
  • 3x Grenade Launcher
  • 3x Improvised Shield
  • 2x Enforcement Batons
  • 2x Backup Beam
  • 3x Peace Through Tyranny
  • 3x Reckless Charge
  • 3x Focus Fire
  • 3x Supercharge
  • 3x Wedge Formation
  • 2x Head-on Collision
  • 2x Incoming Transmission
  • 1x System Reboot
  • 1x Reprocess

Sideboard (Options)

  • 3x Hijack
  • 2x One Shall Stand, One Shall Fall
  • 1x Pocket Processor
  • 1x Cornered
  • 1x System Reboot
  • 1x Espionage
  • 1x Treasure Hunt

The deck is very similar to its 4-wide brother in arms except for a few cards. I will spare you the simple explanations on certain cards because Mark has already gone over the basics of why Tailwind is so aggressively efficient. Instead I will focus on what this deck does different from 4-wide.

One might ask, why this 5-wide over another 5-wide that maybe I spent so much time on and at the last moment before the biggest event said, NOPE, let’s throw all that work right out the window. The deck I’m referring to is Off-road Patrol. A similar highly aggressive patrol team. On the surface the 2 seem similar in damage output. Powertrain offers static bold plus you play Impactor for double leaders which opens up very effective Matrix of Leaderships. When you look, however, at the bots you start to see their flaws. Lower health and base attack on average. Bold 1 is not the same as a +2/+1 buff no matter how you slice it. Tote is basically useless without a 4 Wheel drive in hand. But let’s say in the end you can still push out similar damage. You have access to cards like Confidence which have proven powerful at digging for powerful actions. However, the biggest loss is the effectiveness of green pips in the deck. Reprocess in Tailwind is always +2 on attack. You can load up on more green pips with no real downside. This is why Tailwind is so far ahead of most other aggressive strategies. Being able to sculpt your hand in a certain situation gives you an edge in most games. Off-road unfortunately suffers the same treatment as the back-up Z fighters get to Goku and Vegeta. Poor Piccolo and Tien…good but just not “good enough.”

Tailwind allows for extremely diverse choices when building around him. In keeping with the DBZ theme, he is our Goku:

He plays well with everyone.

He gets stronger as the game goes on.

For some reason he is unreasonably strong.

Unlike big blue decks where its “X” big guy and helpers, Tailwind allows you to really branch off in many directions. The 2 main branches being 4-wide and 5-wide. In those two branches the choices for effective teammates beyond the patrol is what makes the decks so appealing. I felt in the 5-wide deck Barrage offered the greatest output of damage. Similar to how General Optimus is the big Beat stick in 4-wide, Barrage is mine. Like Vegeta, however, he requires a little more effort to be as strong as Tailwind. Utilizing him effectively is a little harder than letting an Optimus/Tailwind combo sit there and buff your guys.  Some would say why not Skrapnel? Well, he’s just bad in this deck. Plain and simple. There. I said it! You already are doing well against most orange decks so why would you want to have a “win more” character taking up 7 stars in your lineup?  He is utterly useless against big blue decks like galaxy prime. Sure, he can tap down Flamewar and friend, but now you must kill Galaxy down a character. He’s also incredibly weak to all the ranged packages running around.  Never trade a Vegeta for a Yamcha

Speaking of the best options for your team, I wanted to take a second to explain why no Impactor. I love this character. You can even ask Mark or anyone who knows me. I think he’s great. But… he’s also the Trunks of the character selection. Almost his Father but just not quite there yet. See Captain Impactor giving bold every other turn in Off-road is awesome paired with Powertrain. In this it’s kinda lackluster. I already have bold based actions and upgrades to find that first green pip so he becomes redundant and unnecessary. Then on the attack, his reach against blue decks just isn’t there. One less attack and bold causes him to fall just shy for the 7-drop spot. However, I will say he is technically better in orange heavy metas. Since massive hits are usually not necessary, Impactor shines as a way to facilitate that “just enough” damage without sacrificing a card from hand. So maybe one day his time will come, but for now daddy Vegeta, I mean Barrage takes the cake.

Because I am lacking a General Optimus to help push extra damage, I have built in more access to damage buffs and weapons. This allows the deck to always have a pump of some kind ready. I’m leaning more on action-based pumps so as not be blown out by Security Checkpoint. 

Orange Matchups:

Being 5-wide allows you to gang up on orange decks more easily. Remember how I said bugs punished me? Well not a problem for this deck, nor should most aggressive strategies pose a problem. I have ascended beyond a Super Saiyan. The damage output is high and both Barrage and Tailwind are excellent at cleaning up shop. Even against 4-wide Tailwind decks, you should be able to outpace them. Since the sideboard is not transformative you gain the ability to tech your sideboard for a heavier orange meta. One Shall Stands are great at taking out targets you may have missed or setting up Barrage for the big hit. It also combos extremely well with Sturdy Javelin. Being able to pick off multiple targets or focus one down with direct damage makes this deck lethal against Skrapnel or safeguard style orange decks. To a lesser extent, it can invalidate Forcefields with more cards than just Bashing Shield.

Razorclaw was included as a possible sideboard if you felt blue wasn’t an issue in your meta. I highly doubt that will be the case, but Razorclaw provides a way to circumvent the roadblocks certain orange decks set up. Attacking an important target your opponent is attempting to hide will most likely cripple their game plan. I will say that this does feel like a win more type of sideboard slot. You are favored for the most part, but it might be the edge you need in an orange heavy meta.

Razorclaw cannot snipe down opposing Tailwinds unless he is in bot mode due to Stealth.

Blue matchups:

Right off the bat, I will admit this deck is slightly weaker to blue decks than its 4-wide counterpart. Given that caveat, transitioning to 4-wide is a viable strategy as well for this deck. I, however, wanted to explore this deck strictly as 5-wide so I could open the sideboard to multiple character options based on an expected meta.

In the sea of blue that normally surrounds the tournament field this deck seems like an odd one to even consider. But I also thought that when playing the 4-wide version and it beat the pants off many blue decks. Galaxy Prime even has a hard time keeping pace with the might of Tailwind. So, 5-wide shouldn’t be counted out just yet. Barrage still lays down a heavy beating when set up and the little 4- and 5-star characters sometimes each hit for 14 to 16 damage. This means that although you lose the constant bold buff Optimus provides, the deck can still power through the “big dumb guy” decks. The key to winning is being able to get solid hits in with Barrage and Tailwind on the turn you get multiple attacks. It can be hard since blue decks were provided multiple ways so disrupt your damage output.

The Sideboard character that I think is most beneficial is also the card I believe to be a trap: Arcee (much like Krillin). I don’t like her, but the fact that she is a threat for most big blue decks makes her a worthy option over Raider Visper. We have determined that if you are going to use her, there should be some sideboard slots that help maximize her effectiveness. Otherwise don’t play her. Her flip isn’t completely useless either. Negating a hovercraft or putting certain characters out of the range of a burn card makes it more difficult for these blue decks to kill outside of combat.

Pocket processor is also very handy against blue decks and the 5-wide version can utilize it more so than the 4-wide. You have more turns to hide the utility and it becomes extremely handy after a Security checkpoint. Unlike the 4-wide deck you need to keep pumping relevant cards into your hand even if they just get swapped for a bashing shield. Since blue decks allow you the time to set a non-damaging upgrade, you can take a turn off to ensure future damage. It’s like that series of episodes where the one villain character lets the hero charge up for 45 minutes and then wonders why he’s now cut in half and the now yellow haired protagonist is the victor. That is what pocket processor offers in your blue matchups. A steady but sure way to keep your hand as lethal as possible.

Combo:

Against combo decks like Springer OA or Daring Escape, the deck will play like its 4-wide counterpart. Hijacks are necessary to slow them down, and Espionage to take key cards. The difference here is your ability to swap in either turbo board or Razorclaw. Turbo Board is self-explanatory, but you lose Barrage. Razorclaw is a way to attack their Springer while he is untapped and possibly kill it. A tall order but not impossible. Basically, Razorclaw can guarantee 3 hits on their engine character. No, I don’t have a witty Reference for this one, umm something something surprise Kamehameha. There we go.

Overall this deck is still being tested and thrown around with different supporting characters. We argue all the time whether it’s worth exploring it further or just sticking with General Optimus. In all honesty, it’s a matter of what you want to increase your win rate against. This is great vs orange matchups and is very good against Galaxy Prime. But your blue decks like Shockwave and Jetfire become shakier. Side-boarding helps but is never a cure all. This was a reactionary deck to never lose against bugs or wide aggro again. So, some of this decision is more emotionally based. But I stand by this deck as a viable avenue for Tailwind decks to go with. It hits hard and still blows up some of the more popular meta decks.

Mentally I felt defeated and angry after the Energon Invitational. I was half tempted to just accept that I was never that good and it was just a fluke. But wallowing in self-loathing was not the answer.  Although I feel short at Energon, I believe we were able to take the deck to new heights. We took a rough, crude deck full of weaknesses and molded it into a lethal machine with multiple options towards victory. As Vegeta once said:

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