Spark of Hope is out and Gen Con is just around the corner! The meta is brand new, making preparation difficult – much to test, there is! With that in mind, I’ve put together a list of 10 questions I’m asking myself as I prepare for Gen Con:
- Do I know what I’m doing against the droid menace?
- There are a lot of lines of play with R2 and C3PO. They can ramp, action cheat, disrupt your resources, discard your hand – basically anything. You’ll want a lot of reps with and against these two (and probably against a couple different versions), so that you’re ready for the various lines of play your opponent could take.
- How does desperate measures affect my deck?
- This card is even better than I thought it would be, and the real kicker is that some of the best Villain support decks include Jabba or Aphra, both of which can really dig deep for this card. Figure out what happens to your deck if your stuff gets blown up, and how you might play/build differently to combat these decks.
- Does Separatist Embargo kill my deck?
- If your deck is too linear it may be easily countered by Embargo. You need to know how your deck will function if your best card gets Embargoed.
- Can my deck handle Aphra and Ewoks?
- Both of these decks can push out a ton of indirect damage very quickly, and especially if you’re playing a two wide deck you need to know if you’ll be able to handle it. Aphra will definitely be there at Gen Con, and while I’m not 100% sold on the Ewoks, they seem to be exceeding expectations so far.
- Can I beat hero mill?
- Hero mill, both two wide and three wide, is still very good. While I don’t think these decks will be super popular at Gen Con, you need to be prepared to face them. If you can’t beat mill your deck probably isn’t a great choice.
- Do I know how to play against Vader and Palp?
- Big/little decks just play different than anything else, and both of these characters are still top tier. You’ll want at least some experience playing against them.
- What combo decks are out there and how do I beat them?
- The current popular combo deck is Jango/Daka, but it’s possible others could appear as well. These types of decks tend to be pretty linear, but quite powerful when they can pull off their game plan. You need to at least know what these decks are doing, so that you aren’t caught with your pants down.
- How does AOE damage affect my deck?
- Is one Fear and Dead Men a death sentence to my deck? Do I just get hammered by Leia Boushh? These decks aren’t crazy popular right now, but they are relevant enough that you should consider testing against them if you’re playing a wide deck.
- What new power cards could I run into?
- Desperate Measures and Separatist Embargo were already mentioned, but there are other new cards that can have a huge effect on the game. Cards like Admiral, Jump to Lightspeed, Possessed, Jedi Mind Trick, etc. You need to be aware of what decks might be playing these cards and how they’ll effect the game, so that you’re not caught off guard by power moves you weren’t expecting.
- Am I spending too much time exploring new decks?
- This one hurts to say, because I love exploring new stuff. But with so little time to prepare, you have to buckle down on probably 2-3 decks that you want to consider for Gen Con – otherwise you just won’t get enough reps.
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