There have been some big changes to this month’s ban and restricted list, and we even got a new Proxia card! Most of it has been expected. It seems like they are trying to rebalance the format so that we don’t get the same three decks in the top spots, we’ll have to see if it works. If you’re playing in any official event, make sure you are up to date. Check out the official announcement. If you need to pick up any Grand Archive singles, get them over at TCG Player using my affiliate link.
Proxia Vault Update
Arisanna gets her first update this season with Polaris, Twinkling Cauldron. but will it be enough to break it into the competitive scene? With potentially decent board wipe and Cosmic Bolt generation, will it be enough to break Arisanna into the competitive scene? I sure hope so. As a reminder, printed proxia cards are legal in official events, so make sure you go to take advantage of the official PnP feature to get your copy of Polaris, Twinkling Cauldron.
Arisanna Bonus: You may activate this card from your material deck. If you do, Polaris enters the field rested.
Whenever you sacrifice an Herb, put an age counter on Polaris.
Class Bonus, Banish Polaris: Deal X damage to all allies. Then generate up to X Cosmic Bolt cards and shuffle them into your deck. X is the amount of age counters that were on Polaris.
Ruling Notes:
To generate means to add cards from outside of the game. Those cards must be legitimate Grand Archive TCG cards, and cannot be represented by anything else. A player will fail to generate if they cannot find the cards to add to the game in a reasonable amount of time.
Generated cards are removed from each game zone (including the main deck) after each game, before side-boarding.
Tip: Using an altered card can help you differentiate between generated copies and copies that are in your decklist! Generated card alterations must still follow our guidelines that apply to any other Grand Archive TCG card if they would be used in a competitive event.
Thoughts: The biggest problem with Arisanna is that getting to her win condition is too slow to be competitive. By the time you get cooking, it is often too late. Being able to cast Polaris outside of the materialize step is a nice boost, but can she generate herbs fast enough to make a dent? MRC has some cool new herb generation like Cultivate and Nurture Crops, so there might be a chance. We’re going to have to wait and see.
Ban List
Corhazi Outlook has been banned, which is a huge hit to Wind Assasin decks where she is essentially an auto-include. Hopefully, this ban means we see less Tristan in the meta. If you’re planning to play in an official event, make sure you don’t have any of the following cards in your deck:
Catagory 2 Watch List
These cards are on the cusp of being banded. You can still use them in your decks, but there are plans of taking them out of the format at some point.
Category 1 Watch List
These cards are safe to use, but Weebs of the Shore is keeping an eye on these for potential bans sometime down the line. It looks like the Silvie decks are on the block, but that doesn’t mean you can’t play Silivie.
UniVersus just announced its 2025 product roadmap, and there are a couple of IPs that stand out. I am excited for Ninja Turtles and Solo Leveling personally. The new Attack on Titan: Battle for Humanity just came out, and it’s a pretty cool-looking set if you’re a fan of the anime. You can pick up the product at your LGS or TCG player. Make sure you check out my review.
If you don’t like Attack on Titan, there is no shame in waiting for something you do like. UniVersus is a fun and unique TCG that deserves more attention. Attack on Titan is where I started because they sent me product. I like it so far, but I am sure it is fun at any set.
2025 Roadmap
Solo Leveling Challenger Series (January 10)
Critical Role: Heroes of Exandria (March 10)
Attack on Titan: Apocalypse (May 16)
Street Fighter 6 Challenger Series (July 2025)
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (August 2025)
Guilty Gear – Strive- (November 2025)
And a few secrets along the way
Season 3 Regional Promos Announced
The season 3 regionals promos have also been announced. The top 50% of any Universus regionals event will receive copies of cool and exclusive Godzilla cards. I am almost tempted to starting my grind, but I don’t have the time or money to do so. I’d at least try to go for that Godzilla mat. Good luck to everyone who is. Make sure you check the official page to find events near you.
I was sent a couple of starter decks and a booster box of UniVersus‘ new Attack on Titan: Battle for Humanity set to review for my blog. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I won’t let it sway my opinions. This will be my honest review.
UniVersus is a unique trading card game that has been around since 2006. The game uses art from a collection of different intellectual properties. Whether it is the My Hero Academia sets or something from Godzilla, there is bound to be something for every type of player. Grab your favorite champion and face off against your friends in what promises to be an epic battle of skill, strategy, and just a little bit of luck. Do you have what it takes to come out on top?
What Makes UniVersus Unique?
I am going to simplify things a bit because there are videos below that will show you the following in better detail.
UniVersus is like a fighting game. Players take turns setting up their combos to attack and defend, and turns in between to power them up. Attacks and defense cards have a direction (top, middle, low) for added complexity. A successful defense that matches the attack negates it, while an adjacent direction only halves it doesn’t.
UniVersus also eliminates the hand size issue because you are always drawing cards in this game. At the start of your turn, you can throw away up to two cards you don’t need and always draw up to your starting hand size. This varies based on the champion you choose. This means you never start your turns with only one card and zero options after an explosive turn, and you never have dead cards clogging up your hand. You still can run out of resources after an explosive turn, so make sure you use your cards wisely.
I particularly love the mana system. Each card in a player’s deck can be exchanged for a random amount of mana (3-5). This amount is printed on the bottom right. To cast an ability, players flip the top card of their deck. If the number on the card matches or beats the cost of the card, the player gets to cast their ability. If the number doesn’t match or beat, the ability fails and the player’s turn ends. Each additional action costs one more to cast than the action before. This means the more you do in a round, the more expensive actions get.
My favorite mechanic is the mana system. Each card in a player’s deck can be exchanged for a random amount of mana (3-5). This amount is printed on the bottom right of a card. To cast an ability, players flip the top card of their deck. If the number on the card matches or beats the cost of the card, the player gets to cast their ability. If the number doesn’t match or beat, the ability fails and the player’s turn ends. Each additional action costs one more to cast than the action before. This means the more you do in a round, the more expensive things get.
You can also use your mana to put foundations into your reserve. You can use foundations in your reserve to help pay for your actions or buff them. Finding the perfect balance between acting, defending, and building your
How to Play
There are several how to play videos you should watch before you start playing, but here are the two that were helpful when I started learning.
Quality
The card quality is fine. The cuts are clean, the colors are vibrant, and the layout is easy to understand. The cards do feel a bit on the lighter and thinner side, but this isn’t a deal breaker. The foiling is subtle, but it does make the cards pop. I did notice a track line on my full art, but it was the only one in the batch so I don’t think it is a huge concern.
My only real issue with the cards is the text legibility. I can read most of the text boxes, but I have trouble with some of the wordier attack cards. The combination of that gradient orange and font makes things hard to read. It isn’t illegible, but it is an issue. This might be more on my dyslexia than an actual design issue though. Everything else is clean and clear.
I can see people having issues with the game’s art. Attack on Titan: Battle for Humanity uses colorized stills from the manga. Fans of the manga and anime will appreciate seeing important or iconic moments depicted in their card game, others will want original art. I was a bit disappointed when I opened my first pack, but that disappointment quickly faded as I started to fill the binder. The design works, the images are thematic, and they look cool on the table, but there are other existing IPs if Attack on Titan isn’t your thing.
Review
I enjoyed UniVersus, but it is not going to be for everyone. The biggest issue this game has is its complexity. The new player experience is a bit overwhelming. I had to watch a few tutorials a couple of times before I started to understand what to do. Luckily, there is an active Discord you should join if you have any questions or want a place to hang out and play the game.
Once I started playing and going through the phases, the game wasn’t so bad. Mastering the strategies to become a great UniVersus will take some time, but knowing enough to have fun with the game doesn’t. You just have to get through that initial hurdle.
If you’re looking for a place to start, the Clash decks are a nice product. The decks are a more streamlined version of the game without losing any of the spirit. At the moment, there are two clash decks for Attack on Titan: Battle for Humanity: Mikasa and Levi. It doesn’t matter which you choose. Both felt similar in power level and played the same, it just depends on which champion you like more. Keep in mind that this is a beginner product. You won’t be able to take this to locals and do well, but you will at least learn the fundamentals if enjoy the game.
As far as sets go, I don’t have a reference. As a new player, the set felt fine. I am a huge fan of the blitz mechanic and I like the art. Fans of the anime will enjoy the flavor, and there are some alt-art cards you’re definitely going to want to chase. As someone who never watched the anime or read the manga, I thought it was a valid starting point, but there are other IPs you can also buy into. I know people will have issues with the art choice, but they really do look cool in person.
As far as sets go, I don’t have a reference. As a new player, the set felt fine. I am a huge fan of the blitz mechanic and I like the art. Fans of the anime will enjoy the flavor, and there are some alt-art cards you’re definitely going to want to chase. As someone who never watched the anime or read the manga, I thought it was a valid starting point, but there are other IPs you can also buy into. I know people will have issues with the art choice, but they really do look cool in person. I enjoyed the cards enough to start watching the anime and enjoyed the game enough to look into a local scene.
If you’re looking for a new type of card game with fun and engaging mechanics and don’t mind playing with licensed IPs, UniVersus is a great place to start. The game is a little confusing at first, but it gets fun if you stick with it. There is an active Discord you should join if you have questions or need someone to play with.
Kryptik Studios LLC has announced the launch of its ambassador program to raise funds for its next set. For those out of the loop, there was a sudden announcement on the official Discord that the Kryptik TCG was moving to an LCG model. After a passionate outcry from its devoted community, a change of leadership, and a divorce from its old printer, the Kryptik TCG found its push. The TCG would continue, but not without challenges.
The poor quality of older sets has left many local game stores and players distrustful. The split from Speed Robo Games was a step in the right direction. Reviews for the final Speed Robo set are not good, and the samples I received look terrible. The foiling is ugly, the card stock is thin and cheap, and they came curled. We can only hope their new printer does better.
But the damage has been done. Many of the early adopting stores and players burned by early quality issues won’t return, and others will need a lot of convincing. It is going to be a difficult endeavor, especially since the TCG space is ruthlessly competitive, but there seems to be a supportive community working tirelessly with the devs to give the game the traction it deserves.
The ambassador program launched on August 22nd and has already raised $20,000, according to Kryptik Chris’ announcement on Discord.
The announcement reads:
@everyone After 36 hours, we have raised over $20,000! We are steadily climbing towards resurrection! There are still spots available at each tier, so no one has missed their shot yet! Let’s keep those numbers climbing and we’ll make it to top!
This is a very positive look for the game and it shows how devoted fans of the IP truly are. But what is in the program, and is it worth it?
The Ambassador Program
The ambassador program are direct to consumer products and services offered by Kryptik Studios in order to raise the money they need to bring their next set to Kickstarter. The tier break down is as follows:
The program is still live as of writing this. Make sure you head over to the official website if you plan on supporting.
Impressions
The ambassador program was revised after input from the Kryptik community. While it makes me happy that the game is listening to its players, it doesn’t feel worth it for someone trying to get into the game for the first time. It would be more cost-effective for new players to pick up older products from TCG Players. Unless you’re already a fan of the game and believe the game will succeed, none of the tiers seem worth it. Why would I spend money on promos that will be worthless if the game fails down the line? Like I’ve said before, the game is going to need to do more than launch these kinds of programs to build its player base. I’ll be rooting for them either way.
Weekly Tournaments
If you want to play Kryptik, there are official weekly tournaments running Sundays noon EST. You’ll need to own Tabletop Simulatorwith the official Kryptik TCG module and join the official Discord. The community is beginner friendly, so don’t worry if you don’t know how to play. These tournaments are a great way to enjoy the game with other fans and possibly earn some cool prizes. These events need more people, so make sure you join even if you’re just wanting to try out the game. Who knows? You might like it!
After a very successful Kickstarter campaign and a bit of community feedback, the people behind Paragon: Monsters & Mayhem have decided to relaunch a bigger and better campaign on October 1st. Mark your calendars. If you have backed the initial project, you should have gotten an email explaining the change. Original backers will also get 6 packs and a serialized Alt Art Flameskull card. If you’re looking for a new fantasy-themed TCG with creative gameplay, you’re going to want to check out Paragon: Monsters & Mayhem. Make sure you follow the Kickstarter to be notified when it goes live.
What is Paragon: Monsters & Mayhem
Paragon is a tactical TCG coming to Kickstarter on October first. Players face off against each other in a battle arena where they take control of a Paragon and their allies in an epic battle to the death. The game features creative movement, mana, and health mechanics making for interesting and creative interactions. if you want to play the game or help play test, make sure you join the official Discord server. It is pretty active and there are always people willing to play. Just make sure you have access to Tabletop Simulator and the official Paragon: Monsters & Mayhem module. Make sure you start with the Starter Deck Sample Modulefirst though to see where you stand.
There will be an official Paragon Monsters & Mayhem Draft on Staturday August 31st at 6PM PST. This is a great chance to get together with the community and try out the game. Prizes:
1st Place – 1 Golden Paragon Monsters & Mayhem Booster
2nd Place – 2 Paragon Monsters & Mayhem Boosters
3rd Place – 1 Paragon Monsters & Mayhem Booster
Gameplay
Rulebook
There isn’t an official rulebook yet, the game is still in production, but there is a quickstart guide available to get you started. The book is pinned on the official discord, but I’ll leave it below for your convenience.
The new kickstarter is launching with 251 unique cards and alt arts to pad it out to 560. There will also be box topers, case topers, and some extra goodies. I’ll leave the graphic below for the full details.
Conclusion
I am interested because the art looks cool. Check out the cards revealed so far! I love the deep fantasy vibes and the flavor of the cards. I need to see more, but I am impressed with the art I’ve seen so far. I am also impressed by the developers. They seem to be incredibly involved with the community, and obviously listening to their listening to suggestions. If you’re looking for a new fantasy TCG, you might be looking for Paragon: Monsters & Mayhem. There is always risk in backing a Kickstarter, so make sure you do your own due diligence.
The campaign launches on October 1st. Make sure you’re following the campaign to be alerted when it goes live. The game was already fully funded once, I have no doubt they can do it again.
Edge of Exile sent me a bunch of products to review for my blog. Edge of Exile is the new company behind the strategy TCG Genesis: Battle of Champions. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I won’t let it sway my opinions. This will be my honest review of the game and the product.
What is Genesis Battle of Champions?
In the simplest of terms, Genesis: Battle of Champions is a tabletop wargame trading card game. The game is played on a 5×6 map where players take control of a champion and use their influence to command an army of monsters and magic to defeat their opponent. The goal of the game is to be the last champion standing. What makes Genesis unique are its movement, combat, and resource system.
While movement in a TCG isn’t unique to Genesis, it does give the game its tactical feel. The movement mechanics are easy to learn, but moving tactically on a 30-square space while navigating the randomness of a TCG is where this game gets complicated.
The Genesis combat system is truly unique. Each character and ability has a range of where they can do damage. This information is clearly marked on each card. This means that position and orientation matter when trying to deal with damage. The rest will resolve like your typical TCG after the stack resolves.
Finally, is the game’s resource system. In Genesis, players get a pool of mana based on their chosen champion. Players use this resource to cast their cards. A player can also cast cards by paying life or milling cards from their hand or deck if the ability calls for it. Having a diverse pool of resources means players can’t get locked out of a game for drawing poorly. These resources are finite, so the goal is to be efficient. This is my favorite aspect of the game and I will die on that hill.
The game is a little more complicated than my simple explanation, so I’ll leave an official tutorial to get you started down the Genesis rabbit hole.
How to Play Genesis
Here’s a great tutorial by DMArmada to help get you started.
New Vs. Old Cards
If you’re coming back to the hobby, you’ll notice that Genesis cards will be different from what you remember. Edge of Exile has decided to change the design of the card to better represent what they want for the game, and I think it’s for the better.
The most noticeable change will be on the back of the cards. They’ve removed the logo of the old company (RIP Haunted Castle Gaming) and changed the black background to a prettier purple and green gradient. I prefer the colorful back and new logo.
The front of the card has some major formatting changes that make the card cleaner. Abilities are easier to read, costs and line of sight are easier to understand, and the art looks better. There was nothing wrong with the old design, I quite like the retro vibe, but the new design makes the cards look modern. I’ll leave examples of champion cards from the newest Invasion set and the older Genesis set. Invasion is the first set with the redesign, and fingers crossed we get the upcoming metamorphosis.
Gamilla from Invasion
Iblis from Genesis
Quality
The quality of the cards is fantastic out of the box. The cards are a good thickness with a solid weight to them. They feel great to shuffle and hold, but I would advise you to sleeve them first. The art is clean and vibrant, and the text is easy to read. I did find one holographic card with visible track lines. It is the only misprint I’ve found so far, so it isn’t a huge deal.
Review
I was sent a booster box of Invasion and Genesis, all the Invasion starter decks, and a playmat. After learning how to play, opening a few packs, and testing a couple of the decks, my honest opinion is that this game is a lot of fun. I am not good at it, but I enjoyed every minute I sucked at it.
Genesis has beautiful art. I prefer the new style, but there is nothing wrong with the retro vibe of older sets. My favorite card has to be Harlequin. I love the twisting trees that disappear into the fog behind her. I love the purple glow of the fire from her eyes and heart. It’s a cool-looking demon, and I had a lot of fun with her deck. The rest of the set has been a lot of fun to collect because of how good the art is, and how much flavor went into it.
More important than the art is the gameplay. Genesis is a lot of fun. The movement system is great, there are no mana issues, and combat doesn’t feel slow. I am not huge on strategy games like this, but Genesis was a blast. It is definitely something I am going to keep in my rotation, especially since I have other decks I need to try. If you enjoy TCGs and wargaming, you’re going to want to look into Genesis. If you have the friend group, I recommend you get a few starter decks and at least give the game a try. Once you get hooked, you can buy a few booster boxes and never look back. The only other way to buy Genesis is through your LGS if they carry it. If they don’t, they can contact Edge of Exile directly and I am sure they’ll get hooked up with samples.
I know there is going to be some resistance because of how the game ended the first time. There are fans of the game that will never come back and others that will be hard to convince. The biggest hurdle Edge of Exile faces is earning back the goodwill that was lost. The company is making impressive strides to revitalize the game. They have a good relationship with distributors, they are growing the community by the day, and they are working on a new expansion that looks amazing. There is an active YouTube channel you need to follow to stay up-to-date on all the news.
Will their efforts be enough to save the game? It is hard to say at this point. The new set needs to come out, there needs to be an easy way to buy products, and there needs to be an accessible community. They are currently working on fixing this issue, and I hope that they do because this game is fun.
If you haven’t backed Paragon: Monsters & Mayhemyet on Kickstarter, you still have time. It is a great way to help support an indie TCG in getting on its feet and earning some exclusive products. Be aware that there is always risk when backing a Kickstarter. I’ve done a more detailed post about the gameplay already, make sure you check that out first.
The creators have revealed a few of the cards for their inaugural set, and they look amazing. I am a huge fan of the dark and gritty fantasy feel. This is such a good looking game.
As a disclaimer, I am not affiliate with the Paragon: Monster & Mayhem. I wasn’t even asked to cover this game. I just thought the game looked cool and I thought I would share.
After a very successful Kickstarter campaign, Paragon: Monsters & Mayhemcelebrates with some new stretch goals and announces its first round of community days. With fifteen days left on the campaign, it is not too late to get in early on a game that promises to revolutionize the TCG space with its creative gameplay and fantastic flavor. I am a huge fan of the art, and there are a good amount of goodies available to make backing extremely tempting. Make sure you head on over to the Kickstarter and put in your pledge before the pledge ends on August 29 at 1PM PDT. Make sure you tune into the first community day on August 14 at 3PM over on the official Discord.
As always, there is always risk backing projects on Kickstarter. Spend your money responsibly.
What is Paragon: Monsters & Mayhem
Paragon Monsters & Mayhemis a two-player tactical trading card game. It features a grid system with interesting combat, movement, and mana mechanics. As a Paragon, you control the powers monsters, and mayhem as you face off against other equally worthy Paragons thirsting to be the best. Can you harness the powers of your deck to vanquish your foes, or will you be left holding your cardboard?
Gameplay
It’s better to see gameplay than to read about it. The developers of the game have a solid tutorial and some gameplay on their YouTube. Make sure you give them a follow to stay up to date on all the news. I’ll link the videos below for your convenience.
Impressions
The game looks fun. I need to do some testing, but I am interested. The art is great, the flavor is solid, and the gameplay looks interesting. There also seems to be a lot of passion behind the project, but I’ll need to see some product before I can make my judgement. I am excited to join the community night to learn more about the game, cards, and to get to know some of the people behind it. Make sure you tune in at 3PM tomorrow on the official Discord.
If you would like to try the game before you make your commitment, there is an official TTS module on steam with demo decks to get you started. I’m sure you can find people to play with on Discord if you ask nicely. If you’re ready to pull the trigger, you have 15 days as of writing this post to pledge over on the official Kickstarter. Might be your only chance to get some neat exclusive product.
As a reminder, I am not affiliated with the game, nor was I asked to cover this game. I thought it looked cool and thought I would share.
The new Grand Archive ban list has been posted, and it is not the huge meta shifting announcement it was made to seem. They got me. The biggest change this time around is the Stonecale Band nerf, and Corhazi outlook being moved categories. I’m okay with the changes, and the explanation makes sense to me. Make sure you check out the official ban announcement if you want to know more.
Stonescale Band Errata
Stonescale Band has new text and made slower. This was done in hopes to re-balance the, and hopefully refresh the Silvie deck list. I think most people are getting tired of seeing her in the format. The new text reads:
The next ally card you activate this turn can be activated as though it had fast activation.
Limiting the amount of allies it can summon one ally per activation and increasing the cost is sure the slow the deck down, but will it be enough to change the format? We will have to wait and see.
There are new new banned cards, but make sure you keep these out of your deck if you’re heading to an official event.
Watch List (Most Likely to be Banned)
Cohazi outlook has been moved to the watch list. While this list isn’t an outright ban, it is a card that is being considered for a future ban. You can still enjoy the playing your wind decks, just don’t be surprised when she gets added to the ban list.
Watch List (Safe to Use)
Creative Shock has been removed from the watch list, and is longer considered for a ban. Although cards on this list are never in any real danger, it is nice to see cards being removed. Stonescale Band is the only new addition to the list. It is still safe to use, but Weebs of the Shore are keeping an eye on how it performs in the meta moving forward. This is an understandable move, especially since the meta seems to be dominated by the same three decks at the moment.
Chicago Ascent just ended and unfortunately, there were no major updates to the format. The Re:collection decks showed up in full force with Tristan taking top spot. Hopefully today’s bans will create enough ripples in the format that we’ll get to see a different grouping at Ascent Singapore. The nerf to Stoneband Scale should help cull some of the Silvie decks. Either way, here are the top three performing decks in the meta right now. I’ll leave affiliate links to singles for those who need them. Check out the official event page for the full lists.
Material Deck 1 Spirit of Fire 1 Lorraine, Wandering Warrior 1 Tristan, Underhanded 1 Tariff Ring 1 Channeling Stone 1 Discordia, Harp of Malice 1 Flash Grenade 1 Grand Crusader’s Ring 1 Safeguard Amulet 1 Smoke Bombs 1 Sword of Seeking 1 Wind Resonance Bauble
