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Deck Profile: Ramon Mera’s Spirit Wings

April 9th, 2011

Three weeks ago at YCS Charlotte, we saw Ramon Mera make it to the Top 32 with his Blackwing Deck. Most Blackwing Duelists at that tournament used Decks that were familiar. A few others tried to make waves with Blackwing – Vayu the Emblem of Honor for a fast win combo with cards like Dark Grepher. Neither strategy made it past the Swiss rounds, but Ramon Mera blazed a path straight to the playoffs with a new Blackwing variant he calls “Spirit Wings.” Now he’s back in action here at YCS Anaheim, armed with an improved build of the Deck that took him to the Top 32 in Charlotte.

The lynchpin of Mera’s strategy is a pair of Spirit Reapers. This is also what makes his Deck so different from other Blackwing Decks. These Reapers add defense and discard power to the Deck. Blackwings usually don’t have a lot of either one. They also combo really well with the classic Blackwing cards. Here’s what Mera’s Deck looks like this weekend:

Monsters: 19

2 Blackwing – Sirocco the Dawn

3 Blackwing – Bora the Spear

3 Blackwing – Blizzard the far North

2 Blackwing – Shura the Blue Flame

2 Spirit Reaper

1 Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind

1 D.D. Warrior Lady

1 Dark Armed Dragon

1 Breaker the Magical Warrior

1 Gorz the Emissary of Darkness

1 Blackwing – Kalut the Moonshadow

1 Blackwing – Vayu the Emblem of Honor

.

Spells: 12

2 Pot of Duality

2 Mystical Space Typhoon

2 Smashing Ground

1 Dark Hole

1 Forbidden Lance

1 Allure of Darkness

1 Black Whirlwind

1 Book of Moon

1 Monster Reborn

.

Traps: 9

2 Solemn Warning

2 Dimensional Prison

2 Icarus Attack

1 Magic Drain

1 Torrential Tribute

1 Royal Oppression

.

Extra Deck: 15

1 Ally of Justice Catastor

1 Magical Android

2 Blackwing Armed Wing

1 Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier

1 Gaia Knight, the Force of Earth

1 Arcanite Magician

1 Black Rose Dragon

1 Blackwing Armor Master

1 Stardust Dragon

1 Dark End Dragon

1 Thought Ruler Archfiend

1 Colossal Fighter

1 Mist Wurm

1 Chimeratech Fortress Dragon

.

“Here’s the funny thing,” laughed Mera. “Charlotte was the first time I ever ran Blackwings in any tournament bigger than a local.” With a fresh perspective on the strategy, he was able to see room for improvement. “The Reapers help me a lot against Decks that swarm.” Samurai Duelists will need Hand of the Six Samurai or Legendary Six Samurai – Mizuho to get through a Defense Position Reaper, since it can’t be destroyed by battle. A Dragunity Duelist’s Stardust Dragon or Thought Ruler Archfiend won’t be able to power through either, forcing the Dragunity player to try and use Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier or Scrap Dragon.

In an environment where two of the top decks make fast, early attacks that can dominate a Duel, Mera benefits from a big (and unexpected). When a Blackwing Duelist Sets a monster, most opponents assume that they’ve Set a Blackwing and backed it up with Icarus Attack. The normal reaction is to attack that Set monster before doing anything else, to minimize the potential impact of Icarus. If that type of attack is made against this Deck, and all that happens is that Spirit Reaper gets flipped face up, and Mera’s opponent has basically wasted their turn.

But Spirit Reaper’s ability to block attacks is just the beginning. “It’s nice opening with Reaper and a Smashing Ground or Dimensional Prison,” commented Mera. “If they attack it, it flips, so I don’t have to worry about Solemn Warning. Next turn I can have an opportunity to make a direct attack to make my opponent discard a card, or force them to waste Mirror Force. Discarding a card to Reaper is a big deal nowadays.” Since Mera can destroy any 2 of his opponent’s cards with a well-timed Icarus Attack, it lets him clear the way for a direct attack with Reaper. By eliminating 2 of his opponent’s most important cards, and then making them discard another with Reaper’s effect, he can really leave his opponent in a bad spot.

Mera’s toughest matchup in Charlotte was against Gravekeepers, which proved to be the second most-played Deck in the tournament (just a few steps behind Samurai). “I drew a lot of cards I couldn’t use because of Necrovalley,” explained Mera. That’s led him to adapt his strategy a bit: “For example, I took out a Sirocco and a Shura, and Forbidden Lance, for Breaker the Magical Warrior and D.D. Warrior Lady.” Breaker seems like an especially good choice given Mera’s observations three weeks ago. “I saw that a lot of Decks are Trap heavy these days, and Breaker is a good card to bait out Solemn Warning and Bottomless Trap Hole.” It’ll also let him destroy problematic Field Spells in the Gravekeeper and Dragunity matchups. He can even destroy his own Royal Oppression if he ever needs to, giving his strategy a little more flexibility and control. Paired with Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind, Breaker lets Mera Synchro Summon Arcanite Magician. With Breaker to harass his opponent’s Spells and Traps, plus Warrior Lady to help him play around Gravekeeper’s Recruiter, he should have an easier time facing Gravekeeper Decks this weekend.

Ramon Mera was the single most successful Blackwing Duelist at YCS Charlotte, vaulting the performances of other Blackwing Duelists by leaps and bounds! The trends he set in that tournament could guide the development of the Blackwing Deck here today, and with Mera himself leading the charge, we could see some impressive showings from Blackwings this weekend.

High-Flyin Ramon Mera

Here’s what our expert(s) had to say:

Erik Mishtar (Modern day pharaoh)

Spirit Reaper and similar cards that can’t be destroyed by battle are extremely valuable to have when you go up against Decks like Six Samurai that can Summon a lot of monsters in a single turn. If you don’t like Spirit Reaper, similar cards you could consider for your Deck are X-Saber Pashuul and Marshmallon. Just watch out for monsters like Blackwing Armed Wing that can pierce through your indestructible wall!

Click for more post-event analysis!


Ramon Mera’s Spirit Wings – 40 Cards

Monsters: 19

2 Blackwing – Sirocco the Dawn

3 Blackwing – Bora the Spear

3 Blackwing – Blizzard the far North

2 Blackwing – Shura the Blue Flame

2 Spirit Reaper

1 Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind

1 D.D. Warrior Lady

1 Dark Armed Dragon

1 Breaker the Magical Warrior

1 Gorz the Emissary of Darkness

1 Blackwing – Kalut the Moonshadow

1 Blackwing – Vayu the Emblem of Honor

Spells: 12

2 Pot of Duality

2 Mystical Space Typhoon

2 Smashing Ground

1 Dark Hole

1 Forbidden Lance

1 Allure of Darkness

1 Black Whirlwind

1 Book of Moon

1 Monster Reborn

Traps: 9

2 Solemn Warning

2 Dimensional Prison

2 Icarus Attack

1 Magic Drain

1 Torrential Tribute

1 Royal Oppression

Extra Deck: 15

1 Ally of Justice Catastor

1 Magical Android

2 Blackwing Armed Wing

1 Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier

1 Gaia Knight, the Force of Earth

1 Arcanite Magician

1 Black Rose Dragon

1 Blackwing Armor Master

1 Stardust Dragon

1 Dark End Dragon

1 Thought Ruler Archfiend

1 Colossal Fighter

1 Mist Wurm

1 Chimeratech Fortress Dragon