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(07/25 Update) OP07 Black Lucci - A (VERY) Unique Perspective to Deckbuilding
🕑 Added 2024-07-23 14:00:17 +0000 UTCIntro
Hey guys, how yall doing, today we are looking at my take on Lucci deckbuilding.
I know I have publicly, primarily been coping with Rebecca, but I’ve done a lot of research into other decks, including Lucci.
I have seen 50 different people say 50 different things about Lucci, and it’s been hard to get any real direction on this deck.
Even Noel, who reminded me that IceAge is a card to consider in Lucci: https://x.com/dobogeee/status/1806697195598667908?s=46 , also has a lot of takes that I think either need explanation(so most people can understand why it’s run), or they’re cards that I think are basically OBJECTIVELY wrong to one, but technically not(because they’re not bad cards, I just think there’s objectively(almost objectively$ better alternatives)
What I’m trying to say is that no one can seem to agree on anything in Lucci. Even when everyone finally thought stage was correct, Noel comes out with a list that can very clearly run clean without stage.
And this is bad. I know people commonly like to say “it’s just preference,” but no it’s not just preference. There’s generally specific reasons why you choose to run either X or Y. Sure the decision to run X or Y may come down to preference, based on opinions, but literally 90% picking their “preference” don’t understand why they should pick one over the other. They just go off gut feeling, off of what most other people run, or off of pure feeling. And this includes TOP players (just because you are good at playing, don’t guarantee you good at deck building type shit).
And a lot of these opinions are people thinking that “because I play X card, I literally can’t play Y card.” And this is something I subconsciously thought regarding ice age & stage, until I really sat down for an objective look at it.
So today I want to talk about all the deck building choices & some sample decklists in order to further the research on Lucci deckbuilding, and give y’all all the takes, instead of fragmented takes that may confuse you.
Let’s get into it.
Most Lucci Card Choices
1-Cost Range
Spandam
This is the most common search for Black Lucci & this is because the current CP engine flows very well with how Black Lucci plays. For one, you’re able to search for Black Lucci, which traditionally was an issue with Blue-Black Sakazuki right. There was no way to search for Lucci, so Sakazuki adopted cards like Brannew in order to drop it into the trash.
But Spandem can just straight up add Lucci to our hand.
Not only this, we also have Kalifa (a card that can draw 2 & discard 2 to get us closer to Sabos), Tempest Kick (the new great eruption), Kaku (generally hits the same thresholds as Hina), Spandine (the card that lets us play Lucci & other CPs off of 4-Cost Rebecca blocker.
I think Spandem is generally the best searcher based on the current lists. But if someone made a Navy list with some insane ratios, Brannew could take over.
Mansherry
Someone actually just recently topped with Mansherry: https://x.com/Progress_2126/status/1815326990968275102 . And it’s funny to see this, because this is a card I also wanted to test in Lucci (y’all may have seen me even trying Mansherry in Sakazuki again, a little before it’s ban).
I ultimately decided against it, but I think Mansherry can be strong for getting access to more RebeccaWpandine + Lucci/Kaku combos (when you have run out of big guys), or for looping Sabos once we have run out of removal.
Joseph
This is a very spicy card that I think could be worth considering in Lucci. The idea behind this card is that we can combine it with Enies Lobby and other cards to double-pop 6-Cost Green Hawkins or 7-Cost Enel. But establishing 3-Cost Brook a turn before either of these cards come out already seems like a consistent enough-out to these threats, so I likely won’t include it.
2-Cost Range
Brannew
This is the other possible searcher in Lucci (I think I’d never play both, but fuck it, never say never). And I think it’s main advantages are that it can search for good early-game units in the form of Kuzan & Borsalino, and it can also search for IceAge.
It also opens up Sakazuki as an option to run as a 6-don turn play, which is quite strong against RP Law (but Lucci is already favored?).
And Issho becomes searchable against BY Luffy
Currently the issue with brannew is that the CP engine making the mid-to-late game strong seems to outweigh the early-game that Brannew provides.
But if someone could balance rations to mans it to where you could play 4 Rebecca and 2-3 Spandine, whole still running a Navy package, I think the Navy package could have real legs.
Basically I don’t think the early-game from Brannew doesn’t outweigh Spandem searching for Lucci or the access to Spandine. But if we can make Spandine work in Lucci, then our Rebecca’s also become Lucci’s, and the deck could be slightly less consistent in exchange for a smoother ride from the start of the game.
Helmeppo
I’ve seen a lot of people want to play 0-1 on this card, but I don’t agree. If black mirrors were uncommon, then sure. But black is literally one of the most popular decks. And Helmeppo is basically the only way to clear an opposing black mirror's 8-drop & 4-drop WHILE still playing a Moria, prior to 10-don.
I believe people used to argue that (you don’t need to clear both the 8 & 4), and agree you don’t NEED to clear anything. It’s technically still possible to win regardless, but it’s an unnecessary setback.
I believe this is the same logic that led to people taking removal out of Moria in Japan’s OP06.
People are like “oh I can just outresource them by drawing more cards,” but I think the saved resources by actually clearing both units, outweighs trying to only clear Moria, while drawing 1 off Spandem(instead of playing Helmeppo).
If anyone can enlighten me more on why Helmeppo shouldn’t be used, please let me know.
I understand it competes for space in the deck, but there's literally nothing better in the mirror than IceAge (or Tempest + Stage) + Leader + HelmeppoLucci on 9-don in response to an opposing Moria.
In my head the only cards to potentially play over Helmeppo are:
More BY Luffy techs - 6Brook, Issho, Nightmare Luffy (worse out of the 3 imo)
And that’s about it.
3-Cost Range
Spandine
This is one of the craziest cards in the Lucci deck.Being able to play Lucci off of a Rebecca is seriously too strong. This is similar to how in Sakazuki, the MoriaRebeccaHinaHelmeppo, essentially earned us an extra card in mirror matches.
However, if you play Helmeppo you can consistently answer both of the opponent’s units, and this card feels like it’s icing on the cake in non-mirror matches.
Therefore I think it’s possible to play 0-1 copies of this card (which is contrary to my opinion of Helmeppo)
I believe most lists play 2, and 2 is a good number for constantly wanting it in black mirrors, but I wonder how many I will personally use. 1 is decent for sometimes getting an extra advantage in mirrors, and 0 is a matter of making space for other cards. But also it contributes to running at least 18 CP cards (which is the sweet point for top 3 searchers), so it will likely stay at 2 copies, unless I find space for another CP, and have 1 extra card slot leftover.
3-Cost Brook
This is a very strong card, and I think it mainly competes for space with Kaku. Due to this card mainly popping off in the early-game, I personally suggest 3-4 copies (this is a good amount to hard-draw it or play it off Rebecca early).
I understand Kaku can hit crazy thresholds with stage-up, and it doesn’t require another card to be played, but I think 3-cost Brooks' utility is too strong.
Especially if you play IceAge, if you establish a Brook prior to Bonney’s Hawkin then, or Enel’s 7Enel turn, it’s quite easy to double-pop those units.
And against everything but RP Law, you would typically play Sabo or Borsalino on curve anyway.
So Kaku mainly seems stronger against RP Law, but it’s in a weird spot where sending back 3 also significantly sets back when we can use tempest kick.
For this reason Brook may potentially be a better option, but you can run both (although if you also opt for 6-Brook, you might be playing too much early-game removal).
Kaku also has the additional benefit of being searchable by Spandem, but 3Brook can be played off of Rebecca as well, so it’s close.
I think whether to use Kaku will come down to the RP Law matchup, and if you believe that the bottom deck 3 isn’t a huge setback. Otherwise I think 3Brook is about better in every matchup and helps with clearing the annoying units (6Hawkins/7Enel).
4-Cost Range
4-Cost Kalifa 2K
This is one of Lucci's strongest early-game cards. Lucci’s 4-don turn is quite lackluster, so being able to filter 2 cards on that turn is very nice, as it can help us with drawing into more 8-drops.
I think this is one of Lucci’s best early-game plays when going second, and therefore I’d generally play 4 copies.
I get that it’s “only good on one-turn,” but that one turn can make or break the game (imagine you lost and you were 2 cards away from seeing a Moria), so I will likely be using 4 copies.
4-Cost Kaku
This is basically the CP version of Hina. Prior to set 7 coming out, I often said “I don’t understand why Lucci decks don’t play Hina” And this was because I wanted to do RebeccaHinaLucci + Tempest(while stage is active) to clear a 8-drop and 4-drop. Turns out KakuLucci + Tempest does the exact same thing. And RebeccaSpandine can substitute either the Kaku or the Lucci.
So I think this card can be quite strong. But I don’t think 4 is necessary, since it’s a combo you expect to do way later in the game, after running out of big characters.
4-Cost Lucci
The strongest card. This card changed Black decks forever from OP05. It only pops a 2 & 1-Cost, but in conjunction with Blacks a billion reduction spells, you can basically destroy anything.
This card is generally at 4 copies, as games that involve no Lucci are extremely difficult, and even if you see Lucci in hand and not grave, you can always combine it with reduction to destroy anything.
I think it’s basically always 4 copies. But if you were down bad for space, I could maybe see 3.
4-Cost Borsalino
The king of black mirrors? Borsalino is a card that can’t be answered when it’s played in the early-game. Or it couldn’t anyways.
With the addition of 6-Cost Brook, I think the strength of 4Borsalino has dropped a little bjt. It may still be worth including, since MOST Lucci players probably don’t play 6-Brook, and we would still have to open 6-cost Brook.
But I believe drawing into more Morias & other removal via 5Sabo, Kalifa, etc. is overall more impactful than the additional body of Borsalino.
But the additional body of Borsalino does open up lines like IceAgeLucciSabo leaving us with at least 3 units in board at 10-don. And this isn’t even accounting for random units that may have stuck due to lack of double clears.
It’s a card I’m still trying to evaluate. I think it’s stronger than Kuzan (especially with IceAge, I don't think Kuzan is that necessary for Bonney or Enel), but it also doesn’t seem necessary or the most consistent edge in the mirror match in the first place (because you have to see it early-game or it’s dead. Going second is also already favored, and you can answer their bors on 6-don with 6Brook)
If I need to create space to have more utility or early-game mirror breakers like 6-Brook, this is likely one of the candidates to be reduced
Edit:
This is one of the few cards I’ve failed to view through the scope of the BY Luffy matchup. Upon re-evaluation establishing an early 6K blocker is probably one of the best things you can do early against BY Luffy. Going first you could always Sabo on curve. Bur going second, there’s a chance you have to answer a 5-Drop Luffy played on 6-don, and in this case, 4Borsakino in 4-don could be one of our best plays. But I get the impression that Rebecca may already be enough.
BY Luffy will be a major factor in whether I include this card. But it’s also worth nothing that 6Brook removing 8Moria, probably adds the most significant amount of longevity to our gameplan, so that may already be enough. (So the idea is that we would play Rebeccas in the early-game instead, and then use 6Brooks to clear Morias/5Luffys in the late-game).
4-Cost Kuzan
This was one of the strongest cards in Sakazuki. Even if they removed it, we got value from drawing a card, and we demanded them to have an answer.
It was also arguably way better than Borsalino in mirror matches, because Sakazuki could just bottom-deck Borsalino. So we may as well earn a card, if our unit will be removed anyways.
But similar to how I eventually took Kuzan out of Moria. I believe Lucci prefers to be more proactive, rather than playing the “do they have the answer to Kuzan?” game.
I think that the Kuzan plan was only effective in Sakazuki, primarily because of the mirror match, and because Moria would often miss removal for it on their 5-don turn.
But in current black mirror mirror matches, Borsalino is effective (because it can’t be bottom-decked). And thanks to stage and/or IceAge, the Black Lucci deck can handle every unit without having to try to stick a Kuzan.
I think this card is still strong against non-black leaders, but we can already handle non-black leaders quite well.
If Enel or Bonney is too difficult for you, then I would consider adding Kuzan as a way to have another value-play on 8-don. (For example, the ideal play against a 7Enel or a Green 6-Cost Hawkins, if we don’t have Brook from the previous turn + IceAge in hand, might be Issho. But if you add Kuzan, we also open up MoriaKuzan as a line!) - The idea here is to produce powerful units that will get us value later, since we weren’t able to clear their unit on that turn.
Edit:
This is a card I wouldn’t mind exploring more on the going second curve. Atm, I think the best 4-don turn play against aggro decks (Moria, Doffy, RP Law, etc.) is typically going to be 3-Cost Brook. Especially if we play IceAge, 3Brook + IceAge + Lucci on 6-don, will let us take a 4-drop and up to a 6-drop.
Kuzan opens up a line, where we can clear two 5-drops with only a minus-2 reduction, and even greater thresholds, when using IceAge. This will be extremely effective against the same aggro decks I just mentioned.
Lucci is already favored into Doffy & RP Law, but Moria is allegedly a bad matchup. So Kuzan helping double clear 2 units could help with this problem. But this doesn't account for them playing Sabo on 5-Don, so it may be more consistent to clear one unit with 3-Cost Brook on 4, and then use 6Cost Brook on 6. Or run a card like soaps sheep instead of Kuzan.
Enies Lobby does help us meet the same thresholds in the first place, so maybe it’s preferable to just always play more Enies Lobby. Even the value Moria play can be replicated by doing MoriaBrookSpandem (Brook + Enies Lobby is minus 3, which is close enough to 4).
4-Cost Rebecca
This is easily one of the strongest cards in this deck. It becomes a removal character with 3-Cost Brook, or by playing Spandine we can convert it to a Lucci/Kaku/etc, while establishing a blocker.
I think this card is almost guaranteed to be included. Being a blocker that significantly extends what removal plays we can do is too strong. And playing RebeccaSpandine off Moria is a common way to earn free advantage in mirror matches (thanks to us getting a free block, while still performing removal).
I think the only way to use fewer copies of this card, is if we rate early 3-cost Brook lowly, and we want to place a greater emphasis on running more 4-cost Borsalino instead, for mirror matches & BY Luffy, Which honestly isn’t the craziest idea, but this would weaken our options against Bonney & Enel (early 3Brook is super good against both those decks, since it can be combo’d with IceAge to clear Hawkins or 7ENel), and would require us to play more 5Kaku for the early-game, so this probably wouldn’t be worth.
4-Cost Hogback
My inclusion of IceAge has made this card an extremely viable option now. This card is basically used to recur Moria, but no one uses it because it’s awkward to time.
But now it’s possible to do IceAge + Lucci(+ tempest as well, if mirror match) to clear any unit on the board. Then we can use the remaining 4-don in order to establish a Hogback that will retrieve our Moria!
I think this card may be very interesting to test out, now that there’s a time to actually play it.
5-Cost Range
5-cost Sabo
This is easily one of the strongest cards in the deck. Being able to establish a 6K blocker, WHILE being able to draw 2 is way too good.
Most people seem to opt to play more Borsalinos than Sabo, but I’m actually quite conflicted, because being able to add +2 to trash, while assisting Lucci’s “consistency problem,” is too good.
I believe that Sabo, allowing us to draw into more removal combos, is generally more impactful than Borsalino sticking in the mirror.
Because of this belief, I’m inclined to include more Sabo, but Borsalino is much more highroll, if we naturally draw everything.
It’s also worth nothing, that there’s fire plays at 10-don like IceAge + Lucci + Sabo.
Nightmare Luffy
I have mixed feelings about this card. It’s mainly for BY Luffy, but it’s hard to play on curve when going second (assuming the BY Luffy player played self-damage Luffy on 5-don), and it’s weaker than Sabo in black mirror matches. It’s actually decent against Bonney & Enel (for the same reason Brook is strong), but we already have Brook as an option.
I think 6-Brook generally outperforms this card, so I wouldn’t include it. But if you are really sweating the BLuffy matchup, then it may be worth running this on top of 6-Brook.
There’s probably more windows to play this card than I’m giving it credit for though (whenever they play a 5Sabo, or we’re blockering up, or we didn’t draw 8-Drop).
But even in consideration of these turns to play it, I still think 6Brook takes priority, but even a few copies of 5Luffy just to recur off of a Rebecca, or something like that, doesn’t sound too bad.
Edit 07/25/24
I still haven't tested this card, but I am becoming more and more interested in testing it. It still seems quite difficult to play on curve (depending on the opponent's plays), but you can basically always play it if they don't do back-to-back Luffy.
And I think permanently removing 5Luffy / 8Moria is more effective than trying to blocker-up for the whole game, so it's a card I also want to try.
I also want to stress that this does happen to be extremely good on currve against both Bonney & Enel, just another way to fry 7Enel & Hawkins.
5-Cost Kaku
This card was basically a necessity in the Black-Lucci deck, until 3-Cost Brook came around. We need early-game removal outside using one of our 4 Luccis, and we would rather not burn the Luccis anyway.
Kaku does have the downside of sending 3 CP backs in the early-game, which will make tempest be live later, but stage/Tsuru/iceAge can help ease that out.
I think whether we use this card mainly comes down to how many 3-cost brooks we want to use, and meeting the CP quota for consistent Spandem searchers (iirc the sweet number for Spandem is at least 18).
EDIT:
BOTTOM-DECKS TWO CARDS NOT THREE. Which is slightly better, but I pretty much hold the same stance. I think only way im fitting in Kaku is by doing something liek 3 Rebecca, 3 Brook, 1 Spandine. I do think my inclusion of IceAge, does make Kaku stronger than it was before, because turning off early-tempest matters less.
6-Cost Range
6Brook
I feel like this card is godly in mirror matches & against BY Luffy. For one, being able to answer a 4-Cost Borsalino or 5Sabo, while developing a 6-Cost that must be answered, is really, really strong. It’s also the strongest answer to random IceAgeLucci + Sabo turns.
Against BY Luffy being able to get rid of an unkillable Moria or 5-Cost Luffy will limit the opponent’s plays, while extending how long we can keep ourselves alive.
This is a card that I really want to play 2-3 of.
(P.S: You’ll also notice Nami often wins games on OUR turn, so 6Brook being able to send 3 cards to bottom can actually be huge against that matchup).
7-Cost Range
7Luffy
I don’t think this card is worth.
Due to us not swinging, our trash generally isn’t filled enough in the first place. 5Luffy being able to be played on earlier turns & being able to be played on the same turn we grab it back from Rebecca (on 9-don+), and 6Brook being flexible in general, both seem to outclass 7Luffy as a BY Luffy tech.
Big-Drop Range (8 + 9-Drops)
8Moria
The king. Perona is the only deck that I’ve ever considered using more Sabo than Moria in. MoriaLucciHelmeppo is too strong of a combo.
And this card can adapt to any situation depending on our trash.
8Sabo
Another very strong card. People are unsure if they should run this, whether 1 is enough, etc.
I think this card is pretty strong against RP Law & mirrors, having more double clears makes the ride smoother
It’s weaker than Stussy against Bonney/Enel, but does having access to double-pop, if necessary, outweigh the downside of having to discard?
A lot of people think 1-ofs suck in Lucci, but I think 1-of 8Sabo actually makes sense. When you consider it as a 5th Moria clear, playing 1-of Sabo actually isn’t that crazy. You’re just increasing the amount of removal 8-drops in your deck. Issho is the 8-drop I would never run at less
I don’t think Sabo is mandatory, at least if you are playing IceAge + Lucci, because you have more ways to double clear in the matchups you need to, But the idea of including one is pretty good, because having another big removal play can be really strong against mirror matches, RP Law, Enel, etc.
8Issho
This is a card that CAN be strong, but I don’t think would be optimal if BY Luffy wasn’t in the meta.
Against BY Luffy, being able to discard 2 seems to be one of our best on-curve plays. And aside from Moria, there just seems to be no other 8-drop that can build our board, or disrupt our opponent’s hand, when we are unable to respond to their board (because they played a Sabo on 5 or something like that).
Even against non-BY Luffy, being able to slam an Issho, when we failed to respond to a 7Enel or Green 6Hawkins, can also be really strong as well. Especially against Bonney, who doesn’t have a real answer to Issho.
And unlike 8Sabo, which I think can make sense as a 1-of (under the logic of it being a 5th Moria), I think 1-of Issho generally doesn’t make too much sense. There’s no other card like it, so I feel like I must play at least 2 copies of it. And if I only wanted to play 5 big guys, it wouldn’t be my big guy of choice in the first place, because I’d rather have a removal character, as that’s more consistent with what the deck wants to do.
But BY Luffy partially flaws this logic, because BY Luffy is the one matchup where a 1-of Issho makes sense, because Moria & Issho have similar value in that matchup, where we either set up a blocker or disrupt the opponent;’s hand, since we are unable to respond to their board.
As long as BY Luffy is in the meta, I believe I may want to include some amount of Issho, even if it’s only 1-copy. Unless I deem that BY Luffy is unwinnable, but this doesn’t seem to be true. Or if I decide that 6Brook is enough, which could also be true.
9Stussy
This is another decent 1-of in Lucci (just because it’s searchable by Spandem). I haven’t been the biggest fan of this card, as I have believed Moria, Sabo, and Lucci combos all can do the same thing.
But upon re-evaluation this card may have value for a combination of these reasons:
+1 to the CP count & also a searchable big-play
Best respond to 8Sabo / 8 Issho
I like that 8Sabo gives me another option to double-clear but between 8Moria & RebeccaSpandine + Kaku/Lucci combos, we arguably already have enough double clears
Very strong against Enel / Bonney (but not necessary ofc)
For these reasons I think a 1-of Stussy could be kinda gas, but I’mma probably determine it to be winmore & not include it.
Events
Tempest Kick
This card fills up the CP count, while also being the new Great Eruption. I think 4 copies should generally be included, but if we are playing IceAge, I can see about a copy or so, being taken out in favor of a card like finger pistol.
IceAge
One of my personal favorite cards in Lucci. Especially in mirror matches, having a consistent way to double pop an opposing 8-Drop + 4-Drop will be incredible in mirror matches, and it would actually change the timing of when Sabos can start getting spammed in the mirror.
I also think this helps alleviate the problem of when we mill all or most of our big guys. Still having ways to clear an opposing Moria combo when we only have Lucci is extremely effective. This is similar to my logic of still using IceAge in my stage Sakazuki deck, and that helped me win numerous mirrors last set.
This card is not necessary, but I’m very interested in playing about 2-4 copies.
Soap Sheep
This card is a way to consistently get rid of two 4-drops on curve, and it can actually pop a 8-Cost & 4-Cost when combined with Enies lobby.
Personally, I could only see myself using this if I opted out of Enies Lobby, or played very few copies. And that would be a build idea where I’m playing like 4 IceAge, and then I have Soap Sheeps to smooth out the early-game.
It’s an interesting idea, but I doubt it’s worth it. Considering Lucci is supposed to already be able to beat Blue Doffy & RP Law, and Moria can out this play by establishing Sabo on 5 anyways.
Finger Pistol
A card that’s been added to help handle Green Hawkins. I think this card being able to handle Green Hawkins is already perfect, but it actually also helps get tempest kick live faster, by giving a total of +3 to trash. I think it’s a card that’s worth considering, but if Bonney drops in popularity, I’d probably take it out.
Six King Pistol
Noel popularized this card after featuring it in his Lucci deck: https://x.com/Dobogeee/status/1806697195598667908 , but I personally think this card is bait. Lucci is a deck that can confidently control the board against every non-BY Luffy deck. Even against decks with unkillable units like Bonney & Enel, Lucci still has plans that can get rid of the units.
So I think it’s more reliable to adopt more copies of cards like “Six King Pistol” or “Finger Pistol” that can deal with these bad situations, than to try to run a Six King pistol for emergency defense.
Because if we properly keep up with their board, then we generally won’t be in lethal situations in the first place.
BUT, I do think it’s valid as a “9th” 2K counter, so that may be a fair reason to play it. But I imagine I’m playing another big guy or another Rebecca or something like that before including this.
Stages
Enies Lobby
This card is basically a permanent Kuzan, and no deck can destroy it, once it comes out.
When combined with Tempest Kick, Moria can answer 8-Drops & 4-Drops, or can single-pop pretty much any unit.
I think a build with IceAge makes this card technically unnecessary, but I think this card is too strong against RP Law & Moria to remove, and it makes our clears in mirror matches that much more consistent.
It is pretty weak against BY Luffy, but I will need to see BY Luffy rise in popularity before I remove this.
Now that we have gone over the majority of the notable card choices, let’s look at some lists.
Cross’ Decklists
Cross’ Personal Standard
I believe this will be my current standard for the Black-Lucci deck.
I think both 3Brook & Finger Pistol will typically be stronger on the curve than 5Kaku, thanks to them not delaying our tempest kick.
IceAge is very strong in mirror matches, or early double-pops with Lucci when Tempest isn’t live yet
1 Finger Pistol is fine for handling Hawkins or popping threats on curve when there is no Brook. We can handle the first Green Hawkins with IceAge + swing with Brook, but if another Hawkins comes down, then we can answer it with finger pistol
3 6Brook is a decent amount for seeing it on a curve in mirror matches. This is one of the best punishes to a 4-Cost Borsalino. If we open both Spandem and Rebecca, we actually can attempt to grab 6Brook from trash out of 4 cards on our 4-don turn, and when going first we can see it out of 6 cards. Make sure to not blindly do this though, as Kalifa may be a better play depending on if we’ve seen Moria. It’s also worth noting that I often like to play Sabo in-response to Sabo
IceAge is really strong for when we don’t see Enies lobby in mirror-matches, and helps with TempestKick not being alive in the early-game against aggro decks. And unlike drawing multiple Enies Lobby, there is no downside to drawing multiple IceAges. In fact it’s trigger can pop 3-costs, and multiple IceAges can let us play catch-up, if we missed a turn of clearing a big unit.
Sabo > Borsalino. As I suggested earlier, I prefer Sabo to Borsalino for consistency purposes. I understand that Borsalino is forever on the board, but I think drawing into more clears than our opponent matters more, and having a way to clear their Borsalino w/ 6Brook is also huge.
1 Issho - As I mentioned earlier, I think this is one of the worst big drops to have as a 1-of. But the BY Luffy matchup puts our deckbuilding in a unique spot, where Issho is the only other 8-drop that can replicate Moria’s value, since we are unable to respond to BY Luffy’s board. If BY Luffy didn’t exist, then I think this card would be guaranteed 0 copies. It just happens to be really good against BY Luffy, and good enough in Enel, Bonney, and mirror matches (on curve).
18 CP Targets - 18 is one of the sweet points for searchers that check top 3, so having 18 targets is pretty nice. Someone else can do the math on what the best reasonable number for CP targets is, but from what I’m told, 18 is more than good enough.
THE Community Standard
This is roughly what I expect to be the standard list from the community based on what I’ve seen. There would probably be more tsuru’s by either fully taking the Brooks out, or reducing some combination of Brook, Tsuru, and Helmeppo.
This list isn’t bad, but I think the 1-of Stussy isn’t necessary. 1-of Sabo is pretty good, I think it’s up to what matchups you value more for the 1-of 8Sabo vs 1-of 8Issho, and I think this slot could even go to 2 copies.
Kaku is fine, but I think 3Brook does the job well enough, and helps solidify most matchups, and doesn’t mess up how fast we can use a tempest kick.
Cross’ Community Standard
This is the list I would probably recommend to most people in the community. It still includes the Borsalino that many are already comfortable with, but it still features some of my favorite techs “6Brook” & “IceAge.” IceAge in particular is still effective at 1 because it can be considered a 9th “Tempest + Stage” combo.
But considering how 4 Tempest, 4 Stage already works for most people, you could replace this in favor of more 8Sabo or a Finger Pistol.
I do also want to say it’s possible that I underestimate how effective 4Borsalino is on curve against both Moria & RP Law, and even though mirror is already favored, it can put us that much further ahead, so maybe using Borsalinos is the right answer. I’ll experiment more with the first list I posted to reach a conclusion.
07/25/2024: New Deckbuilding Idea
I think something like this will be my new shell when building Lucci. I still am a huge fan of 6Brook, but it’s not mandatory so it’s not included. I also think it’s possible to play 1 Spandine, or go down to 3 of the 3-Cost Brooks.
But basically 2 Spandam is a concept I hadn’t considered last night. And then I also saw Kai perform with a 2 Spandam list in Japan yesterday, so now I will likely be playing 2-3 Spandam, which opens up A LOT of space.
This could lead to running more big units, me finally playing other Borsalino, other techs, etc.
Tips on some Key Matchups
This was primarily meant to be a deck building guide, but considering I run some unique cards, I want to give some tips on some key matchups that some of these techs apply to.
BY Luffy
Against this matchup, DON’T attack the opponent until later in the game. Typically the only time we can swing in the early-game is if they misplay, and attack us with a Garp.
Don’t use 6Brook to answer 5-Cost Sabos on curve. Sabo generally doesn’t attack anyways, and if it does, it’s very easy to attack it with our board, so focus 6Brooks for when they do MoriaSabo combos, or a 5Luffy is being protected by Sabo. We can generally clear a Luffy on curve without 6Brook on curve as well, so just be conservative with our Brooks.
Issho does not have to be the 8-cost unit we see on curve, it’s mainly just important to see a 8-Cost unit that gives us VALUE in general. This Is why I’m not defaulting to playing 3-4 Issho, as Moria is normally strong enough on curve, thanks to being able to play Blocker + Spandem. I do think it could be worth considering a 2nd or 3rd Issho to give more consistency to this matchup, just depends on how much more popular BY Luffy becomes.
Bonney
This matchup is typically advantageous, we just remove cards as they come.
6Hawkins spam is the main way Bonney can win this matchup, but if we establish a 3-Cost Brook the turn prior to their Hawkins, then we can combine IceAge with the Brook on our board to clear Hawkins!
Enel
This matchup mainly comes down to whether 7Enel sticks or not, and even then it’s typically Lucci favored.
The main way to lose this matchup is for 7Enel to go unanswered on curve, so by establishing a 3-Cost Brook on curve, we can aim to double pop Enel with a Brook that’s on the board + Lucci from our hand!
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This is it for the article for now, hope it was helpful. I will catch you guys in the next one, peace!
