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How is One Piece TCG like Magic: The Gathering?

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As a long-time Magic: The Gathering player, jumping into a new card game like One Piece TCG meant wrapping my head around a few concepts. Luckily, I went through this, so you don't have to. Here are the things you should know about One Piece TCG if you're coming from a Magic background.

It's A Little Like Commander

What stuck out to me about One Piece TCG when I first started was how close it was to Commander in some senses. Only colors contained on your leader can be included in your deck. Your leader is a bit like your commander since each deck has one, except that, unlike a commander, it's always on the field. It's also somewhat cheaper to build a budget One Piece TCG deck than to build a budget Commander deck.

No More Mana Flood Or Mana Screw

We all remember drawing land after land off the top when we needed action, or vice versa. One Piece solved this problem by giving you a dedicated land deck (called DON!!). Not only do you get two DON!! per turn, but you also don't have to worry about colors. No more worrying about the four-and-a-half rules of mana bases! All the cards in your deck will be one (or two) colors and will be determined before you start the game, which leads me to my next point.

The Numbers Are A Little Different

In Magic, creatures have power and toughness. One is offensive capability, and the other is defensive. In One Piece TCG, there's only one number, which is the card's power. When characters attack, their power is compared to the defending character's power. If there's a difference (or if they're equal) the attacker wins.

Donquixote Doflamingo (OP01-060) | Jasper Zowiesyah, Championship Finals Melbourne/1st

One Piece TCG

[Leader]

1 Donquixote Doflamingo (OP01-060)

[Character]

4 Perona (OP01-077)

4 Sengoku (OP07-046)

4 Buggy (ST17-003)

4 Marshall.D.Teach (ST17-005)

4 Edward Weevil (EB01-023)

4 Crocodile (OP07-040)

4 Jinbe (OP07-045)

4 Trafalgar Law (ST17-002)

4 Boa Hancock (ST17-004)

3 Dracule Mihawk (ST03-005)

3 Charlotte Pudding (OP06-047)

2 Gecko Moria (ST03-004)

3 Jozu (OP08-047)

[Event ]

1 Perfume Femur (OP07-057)

2 Gravity Blade Raging Tiger (OP06-058)

Interaction is Simplified

Have you ever been involved in a never-ending counter-war in Magic? This isn't a concern in One Piece TCG, since interaction only happens at specific times. Card timings are stated on the card, and most of them operate on the player's turn.

There are Only Five Card Types

Magic players are used to several card types, but One Piece TCG simplifies this immensely. Instants/sorceries are boiled down to Events. Instead of enchantments and artifacts, One Piece TCG has Stages. The equivalent of land is Don!! and creatures are called characters.

There's Only One Main Phase

Magic players are used to a pre-combat and post-combat main phase. One Piece TCG does away with this, giving players just a main phase. This might seem simplistic, but it streamlines things quite a lot. Instead of giving creatures/characters another combat phase, players can have as many "combat phases" as they want, provided they can untap/restand their characters. Card timing and phase management aren't nearly as complex as in Magic.

You Can Attack Creatures (Sometimes)

In Magic, you can't directly attack creatures, but in One Piece TCG, you can, sometimes. When a creature/character is rested/tapped, they can be attacked. Combat power rules apply normally and the higher power character wins. If the defending character loses, they are KOed.

Combat Itself is Much Simpler

Each character has a single combat (with a few exceptions). On combat, the attacking player declares what their character or leader is attacking. The defending player then gets to activate a blocker (but only on characters with the Blocker keyword).

After that, the defending player can discard any number of cards with "Counter" in their hand to attempt to raise the power of the defending character above the attacking character. If Blocker is activated, the defending character changes from the declared target to the Blocker.

There are no Life Totals

One of the strangest things for Magic players jumping into One Piece TCG is the concept of Life Totals. In Magic, life is determined by a number, while One Piece TCG uses cards from the deck to set up the life that a player has.

Each leader has a set amount of life, which defaults to five for mono-colored leaders and four for dual-color leaders. This number refers to the number of cards from the top of the player's deck they need to set aside in the Life pile.

When you take a hit, no matter how big the attacking character is, you take one life from the top of your life pile. If you have no life left and take a hit, you lose the game.

Constructed Formats are Best of One

Magic's Constructed formats always require a best-of-three win, but in One Piece TCG, you only need to win one match. Games are much faster as a result, and it's very likely to pull off a surprise win against your opponent.

There are Six Unique Colors

One Piece TCG adds a sixth color to the color pie in Purple, but even though the colors are similar to Magic, they're not as well-defined. Color identity isn't as rigidly enforced as with Magic, so there are some very interesting cross-color dynamics that can affect gameplay.

It's Ripe for Experimentation

Magic players have gotten used to having a meta solved in a matter of days when a new set is released. While One Piece TCG also has a meta, it's less rigidly defined. There are also not many people experimenting with new leaders and ideas, even though so many of them are available. If you're a brewer looking for a challenge, One Piece TCG might be exactly what you need to refresh your outlook on TCGs.

Should You Jump Into One Piece TCG?

If you enjoy experimentation or want something fresh to play around with, One Piece TCG is a great place to start. It's not as alien to Magic players as it might first seem, and the game's strategic depth is surprisingly complex. If you've been playing Magic for a while, like me, and want something fresh to discover that's just on the cusp of becoming popular, this might just be your new jam.

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