As I am not nearly as creative as most of you, nor as clever, I have been scouring the internet in an effort to analyze the current Star Wars Destiny meta despite it only being a few months after release. With our tournament schedule for season 1 out, I thought I would share my findings as you all prepare your decks!
One of the easiest ways to improve your results in a card game like Star Wars Destiny is by studying competitive deck lists. While you don’t need to copy them, (creative decks can be just as competitive as cookie cutters), looking at tournament winning deck lists is one way to improve your play. The decks that win tournaments are usually put through rigorous play testing and have proven themselves in trial by fire. You only have 30 cards to work with out of a pool of soon to be hundreds, so optimizing which ones you draw is one of the quickest ways to improve your play before it even begins.
While the meta has not stabilized yet, I have attempted to compile for you some of the more successful decks I have seen. Keep in mind, most decks, even those following patterns like those below, will be differently suited to their players – including your own!
Note: an “e” before the character name means the elite version – taking two of their character dice.
eVeers/eJango
Battlefield
Frozen Wastes
Upgrade
x2 DH-17 Blaster Pistol
x2 F-11D Rifle
x2 Holdout Blaster
x1 Infantry Grenades
x2 IQA-11 Blaster Rifle
x2 Jetpack
x2 On the Hunt
Support
x2 Backup Muscle
Event
x1 Armed to the Teeth
x2 Dug in
x2 Electroshock
x2 He Doesn’t Like You
x2 Logistics
x2 Probe
x2 Tactical Mastery
x2 Unpredictable
This deck was created by Phaustus. There are many variations but I included his mostly due to his solid write up here: http://swdestinydb.com/decklist/view/5506/aggrojango-1.0
Variations: eGrievous/Jango
eHan/eRey
Battlefield
Starship Graveyard
Upgrades
2 x Holdout Blaster
2 x DL-44 Heavy Blaster Pistol
2 x Infiltrate
2 x Jetpack
2 x Cunning
1 x Jedi Robes
1 x Lightsaber
1 x Second Chance
Support
2 x Infamous
1 x Play the Odds
Event
1 x Negotiate
2 x Shoot First
2 x Unpredictable
1 x Hyperspace Jump
1 x Scramble
2 x Riposte
2 x Use the Force
2 x Deflect
1 x Mind Trick
This deck was created by Zach Bunn for which he provides an excellent write up here: https://teamcovenant.com/star-wars-destiny/han-rey-the-aggro-decklist
eJabba/Darth Vader
Battlefield
Imperial Armory
Event
2x Ace in the Hole
2x Electroshock
2x Enrage
2x Feel Your Anger
2x He Doesn’t Like You
2x Unpredictable
Upgrade
2x Crime Lord
2x Datapad
2x Force Choke
2x Force Throw
2x Hunker Down
2x Immobilize
2x Mind Probe
2x Sith Holocron
2x Thermal Detonator
This deck was created by Christopher Bates who took it to an undefeated victory in a 54 player tournament. You can hear him discuss it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b_7_PPNAWSk
Variations: eJabba/eCount Dooku
eLuke/Ackbar
Battlefield
Imperial Armory
Event
2x Defensive Stance
2x Deflect
2x Dug In
2x Field Medic
2x Leadership
1x Return of the Jedi
2x Riposte
2x Use the Force
2x Willpower
Support
2x It Binds All Things
Upgrade
2x Force Throw
2x Force Training
2x Lightsaber
2x Luke Skywalker’s Lightsaber
1x One with the Force
2x Rey’s Staff
This deck was created by a fellow called Nole, and looks pretty good. You can hear about it here: http://shoutengine.com/KnightsofRen/202-like-my-father-before-me-28146
ePadme/Rebel Trooper/Rebel Trooper
Upgrade
x2 Cunning
x2 Datapad
x1 Diplomatic Immunity
x1 Hunker Down
x2 Infiltrate
x2 Scout
x2 Second Chance
x2 Survival Gear
x2 Thermal Detonator
Support
x2 Play the Odds
Event
x2 Electroshock
x2 Field Medic
x2 Flank
x2 Logistics
x2 Negotiate
x2 Unpredictable
This deck was created by John Gobeil and you can read his write up on it here: http://swdestiny.com/face-2-face-games-toronto-box-tourney-report/
Variations: ePadme/eAckbar, ePadme/Rebel Trooper/Ackbar, Padme/Hired Gun/Rey (this version was supposedly played by Lukas Litzsinger, the lead designer of the game, so if anyone has that list I’d love to see it!)
eVader/Tusken Raider
Battlefield
Starship Graveyard
Event
2x Enrage
2x Force Strike
1x Isolation
2x No Mercy
2x The Power of the Force
2x Use the Force
Support
2x Backup Muscle
1x It Binds All Things
Upgrade
2x Force Choke
2x Force Throw
2x Force Training
2x Gaffi Stick
2x Kylo Ren’s Lightsaber
2x Lightsaber
2x Mind Probe
2x Sith Holocron
This deck seems to have many variations, but I chose this one because of the discussion on it you can listen to here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_q_JXlciTv8
There are lots of other decks out there that seem to be performing well! For example, eQui Gon/eRey seems to have potential. Bala Tik has made his way into a lot of decks, too. I hope the above decks give you something to consider, and help to give you a sense of optimization and efficient card interactions.
What kind of decks are you guys building?