Tournament Report: Rinhime Top 8 JP NA WGP 25/26

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Rinhime played some Magic back in the mid 90’s (yay Ice Age), but stopped after a couple years. Rinhime got into Weiss cause he recognized it from Megami Magazine when Sword Art Online Set 1 came out in English and he’s been playing ever since. Rinhime’s first Japanese set was the 1st Love Live! set cause he didn't think they would ever bring it over (clearly wrong). Other Tournament Top Results include: Bushiroad Springfest 2017 3rd Place in White Plains, NY; another Top 8 Trios in between; and Bushiroad Springfest 2022 2nd in White Plains, NY.

Now onto the interview!

Melanie Lynette (ML): How did the event go for you? Was there anything specific that you'd like to share from the start?

Rinhime (RH): This event was the first time I had ever made a top cut in a singles event after many X-2s. Overall, I have not felt like I've been playing that well in the last few years so I am very happy I was able to get this far.

Winning Decklist:

BushiNavi Code: 1J5K3

https://decklog-en.bushiroad.com/ja/view/1J5K3

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 1 go for you?

RH: I won against Uma Musume: Pretty Derby: 4 Stock Soul / 4 Comeback (Door). Both of our decks worked well and it was a pretty normal game. I was able to get a pair of turns of Level 1 Saki combo and I had some cancel advantage early on. I was able to sculpt well at all game parts, so I pushed myself to Level 3 and finished the opponent from high Level 2.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 2 go for you?

RH: I won against Tokyo Revengers: Stock Soul / Gate (Pants). This game was dominated by the fact my opponent's game plan entirely didn't work out. On my opponent's second turn, they only attacked with 2 attackers and left my Kotone Riki alone. I thought they were trying to deny me some memory, but it turned out they just didn't have the cards they wanted. They never got the pair of dual laners out, didn't ever go above 6 stock, nor did they get any Pachins. They just ate damage and the game was never really in doubt, as I won from low Level 2.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 3 go for you?

RH: I lost against Gakuen Idolm@ster: 4 Comeback (Door) / 4 Gate (Pants).  Round 3 was a mirror against Gakum@s. In general, they just sort of had a better game. They were very aggressive using the Kotone Ramiris to get things into memory and to deny me some reverses, but it ended up I wouldn't have been able to take advantage of those slots. I got 1 turn of Level 1 combo and was just playing from behind basically the whole game. I tried to possibly lock them at Level 2, but I was so behind on resources I gambled to get another stock and it let them easily go to Level 3 and finish me off. 

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 4 go for you?

RH: I won against Chainsaw Man: 8 Choice. I didn't have a lot of experience against this deck, so I tried to play a bit conservatively throwing the Rikis into memory instead of leaving them to be reversed. The Power Level 1 sits at 6.5k so he was able to deny some of my reverses on my 1st Level 1 turn. From there on I made sure I got the backrow Level 1 Saki to get to 9k. My opponent ended up just eating big chunks of damage in the second deck and I was able to take advantage of that. He wasn't ready when he was pushed to Level 3. I took the win.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 5 go for you?

RH: I won against Yuru Camp: 4 Gold Bar / 4 Gate (Pants). This was another deck that I had very little experience with, maybe only playing it once or twice many months ago. I remembered hearing it was a deck that had stock swap or shuffle, but wasn't sure which card so I kept it in mind. The memory and Level 1 engine worked well. There were a lot of cancels on both sides so I made sure I didn't go too deep in stock. It turned out afterwards that the elbow drop/climax salvager is the go to choice from the banlist and the one he picked, so I didn't need to worry about it. He was pushed to Level 3 first and had a scary finisher turn, but I leveled and was able to barely clinch the win.

ML: And after deck checks, top cut! How did Top 16 go?

RH: I won against Oshi no Ko: 4 Comeback (Door) / 4 Gate (Pants). This was a rough game where I had a ton of Level 2s and 3s in my opening hand and struggled to get anything going. Possibly the only thing that saved me was my opponent just could not get a climax into his hand the entire game basically. Instead, he did hit 4 on a brainstorm, but he wasn't able to push damage or easily control his deck like he wanted to. I also forgot about the card that goes to stock on climax play so on the 1 turn I had a Level 1 Saki I messed up and couldn't plus from that. I was able to get 6 into memory, but I didn't think I had much of a chance on my finisher turn with just 1 Temari. He awkwardly ate a swing of 4 in a compressed deck and I was barely able to eek out a victory.

ML: And next, Top 8. What was your match up?

RH: I lost against Idolm@ster Shiny Colors: 8 Gold Bar. This ended up being one of the worst games I had ever had with the deck. Again, drawing lots of Level 2s and 3s at the beginning and, this time, climaxes. I couldn't get that many cards into memory since I couldn't hit brainstorms because there weren't climaxes in my deck. My opponent wasn't canceling that much, but I was behind like a level at least the entire game. I couldn't get anything to my advantage and ended up with like 14 clean in my deck at Level 3 on their finisher turn.

ML: Congratulations still on your Top 8 accomplishment! Are there any final reflections or shout outs you would like to share?

RH: It was very nice that we were able to do everything through Bushi Navi and I thought the event went very smoothly without any issues.

Thanks to Chris, Alex, Caleb, Tyler, and Cookie for coming up with us and making it a fun overall weekend and everyone else in the JP NoVA (Northern Virginia) Scene. Also thanks to Aaron and everyone in Ohio and adjacent lands for giving me some more opportunities to improve.

ML: And that concludes our interview with JP NA WGP 25/26 Top 8 Rinhime! A special thanks to Rinhime for sharing with us! Congratulations and good luck in your future Weiss Schwarz matches!

Interested in more Tournament Reports or you would like to submit your own Top 16 interview from the JP NA WGP 2025? Check out more reports or submit a form at https://level4weissschwarz.wixsite.com/lvl4ws/tournament-reports !

Tournament Report: 3rd Place JP NA WGP 25/26 lyanne!

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Lyanne! also has a break down of her 3rd Place deck here on YouTube! Be sure to check it out!

Lyanne! first started playing back in 2019, but that was just when she and a friend in high school study hall were putting trial decks against each other. Lyanne! also played at nearby anime conventions that hosted Weiss tournaments as well, but didn't get to start playing seriously until 2022 when she learned that an LGS hosted locals. Lyanne! has participated in all Rosemont regionals since BCS 2022 (she is from Madison, WI area so she’s close by), but hasn’t topped any of them yet. WGP 2025 was her first travel event, as well as her first top in a larger scale event.

Now onto the interview!

Melanie Lynette (ML): How did the event go for you? Was there anything specific that you'd like to share from the start?

lyanne! (L!): I had to make it through LCQ (Last Chance Qualifier), which I did so barely (16th in standings by end)!

ML: So a very long weekend of Weiss with doing LCQ first on Sunday! What were your matchups and results on Saturday?

L!: Here were my Saturday LCQ Matchups:

Round 1: I lost against Uma Musume: Pretty Derby: 4 Stock Soul / 4 Comeback (Door) (Rice).

Round 2: I won against NIKKE: Goddess of Victory: 4 Comeback (Door) / 4 Standby.

Round 3: I won against Gakuen Idolm@ster: Comeback (Door) / Gate (Pants).

Round 4: I lost against Fairy Tail: 8 Gold Bar.

Round 5: I won against Oshi no Ko: 4 Comeback (Door) / 4 Gate (Pants).

ML: And you played the same deck for LCQ and for the Main Nationals Event?

L!: Yes, I played the same deck both days.

Winning Decklist:

BushiNavi Code: 2115B

https://decklog-en.bushiroad.com/ja/view/2115B

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 1 go for you?

L!: I lost against Gakuen Idolm@ster: Comeback (Door)/ Choice / Comeback (Door).  My opponent was playing a unique build that was different from the standard Gakum@s build. It was Saki Level 1 door combo, but they were also playing the 2/1 Sena free-fresh with her Choice CXC (climax combo), and the Ume 3/2 Door CXC. They played the match up very well by side attacking my Ai Level 1 combos with their 2/1 to avoid my backups. I had to rely on my 1/0 Ai Assist to try and pump power on soul triggers to get over the 12k power line that Sena boasted. I ate a good chunk of damage that pushed me to Level 3, with my opponent around 2/3 or so. I didn't have the means to close out the game yet, so I went for another Level 1 combo turn to build resources and hope to live. Triple Ai Level 1 combo whiffed on all 3 checks, and I didn't manage to live the turn after.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 2 go for you?

L!: I won against Heaven Burns Red: 8 Wind. The game was a bit rough for my opponent. They were out 5 climaxes by Turn 1 or 2, and the Ai Level 1 combo does a great job of pushing early damage in the first deck. They tried to set up a board with their 2/1 bodyguard, but since it's only 10.5k on offense, I was able to backup on an Ai to get over that. After that, there was just too sizeable of an advantage for my opponent to really come back from.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 3 go for you?

L!: I won against Azur Lane: 8 Standby. Another tough game for my opponent. A lot of their CXs (climaxes) got milled early, and Ai got in there once more. With a near 10 damage lead, I believe I was able to close it out at 2 with some standby triggers to get in extra attacks with Ayumu 3/2 climax combo.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 4 go for you?

L!: I won against Love Live! Hasunosora: 8 Standby. Not to sound like a broken record, but once again my opponent had a lot of CXs sitting on the top of their deck on their first turn. I believe they went first and played a Rurino Twin Driver/Bomb, clocked top, which was a Standby, triggered Standby on the attack, and then triggered another Standby. They got a decent board out at Level 2, but I landed a swing for 5 that put them at Level 3 before they had a chance to stabilize further with Megumi Standby heals.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 5 go for you?

L!: I won against Kaiju No. 8: 8 Comeback (Door). This game was very tough and close. On my first Level 1 turn, I had only 2 Ai Level 1 combos to play, so I had to play a standby from hand to get my 3rd Ai on board. That inherently isn't too bad, I believe it's generally worth it to lose an attack in order to get your full board built up. KJ8 8 door isn't exactly the greatest matchup to go for that, but my opponent hadn't done their Level 1 combo yet, so on their first turn of resolving that, they crashed their lanes in. With one of their Mina combos in backrow, I decided to utilize the Setsuna PR's level down to discard an extra standby CX in hand, and hopefully make them need to work a bit harder.

However, I made my one massive misplay over the whole event- forgetting to play my Door CX. I didn't even realize until after my first attack, which I chose to trigger a Door on after checking top 2 with the 1/1 Ai's assist, and intended to pay it out with twin drive. I was agonizing over the mistake, but of course, I had to live with myself and play it out to the best of my ability. My opponent proceeded to kill all 3 of my Ai combos with the 1/1 events they grabbed prior, so I was really in a tough spot. My out to the situation was to helmet for a level 1 combo, then pay 3 Encore the helmet to reuse and get a second combo back. I finished my board with a JC in the front, in hopes to keep my hand from getting too low. My opponent followed up with 2 of their 3/2 Mina change combo, and killed a front row Ai and a backrow Level 3 Ai I put out with a standby trigger, which I was fine with because it let me bounce back my other Level 1 combo off the JC.

I had to play another turn starting at 2/6, and without the resources to try and go for game, I played an Ai 3/2 EP healer to try and maximize my chance of living next turn. I got stock swapped for 7 with a fair-sized deck and a decent amount of my CXs in there, but it luckily missed most of them and I managed to live barely. I closed it out from there, and couldn't believe I managed to clutch up in such a crucial game with a disadvantage after my earlier major misplay.

ML: And after deck checks, top cut! How did Top 16 go?

L!: I won against Oshi no Ko: 4 Comeback (Door) / 4 Gate (Pants). Nothing super outstanding about this game, but my opponent did have a bit of a tough first deck. The Kana Level 1 door combo milled out quite a few CXs, and I was able to get a bit of a damage lead off that. Their Level 3 combo turn was a bit scary though, they resolved triple Akane and hit a lot of my CXs off the bottom in a small deck. I was lucky to refresh 8. I was worried I'd go back with one less if a burn 1 hit a CX if it were the last card in deck. The icy tail mills after my refresh didn't hit as many, and I was able to live and get the win on my Level 3 turn.

ML: And next, Top 8. What was your match up?

L!: I won against Gakuen Idolm@ster: 4 Comeback (Door)/ 4 Gate (Pants). This game gave me some of the greatest luck I think I've had, at least considering the matchup. I naturally drew into all 3 of my backups by the time my opponent went to resolve their first Saki combo turn, which was at their Level 2. They played double Saki and a Misuzu early play, which was at 13k offense. I used 3k backup on first Saki, canceled, then had 4 or 5 clean in deck, so I used the accelerate Setsuna backup and grabbed the 3k backup back to hand, and also denied the second reverse. Refresh put me at level 2, so I used an anti-change backup on the Misuzu and got to keep all 3 Ais. That set me up for success, and I took the win.

ML: On to Top 4 then! Super exciting! What was your match up?

L!: I lost against Quintessential Quintuplets: 8 Gold Bar. This game was tough, as I struggled to get triple Ai on board. I had to settle for double combo a couple turns, so I wasn't able to hold board at all. On the turn I did finally get triple Ai, I believe I whiffed all 3 of her check-adds, but it may have been only 2. I was at 2/5, and my opponent was also close to 3 with a lot of resources, so I was worried I wouldn't get another turn if I tried to stall. I went for the game, but one of my Ai Level 3 combos whiffed her burn 3, and I couldn't close it out. I then proceeded to lose, there was too much damage output on the Yotsuba Level 3 combo for me to survive.

ML: Disappointing to be sure, but then still onto playing it out for 3rd and 4th place! What was your match up?

L!: I won against Idolm@ster Shiny Colors: 8 Gold Bar. The early game in this was a bit strange overall. I opened with Kasumi helmet, which didn't go to memory since it got sided. My opponent tri-laned, which let me clock to Level 1. This put my Ayumu 0/0 memory card in WR, so I had to helmet for that and use it. I got 2 Ais out from hand and then played standby to put the 3rd out. My board got shut down the turn after by two of the 1/0 Natsuha card that swings big and pumps power, plus a Level 1 Bar combo. I had no backups, but I at least had a JC I played the turn prior, which let me save the Ai facing the combo and denied the on reverse CXC. My next turn I only got to play double Ai combo, but I found my backups and denied the 2 Level 1 on reverse CXCs that my opponent put in front of my Ais. I found myself a level ahead, and my opponent couldn't recover resources as well as they would have liked to. It led me to my victory.

ML: Congratulations on your 3rd Place accomplishment! Are there any final reflections or shout outs you would like to share?

L!: I also lost my first round on Sunday (like Saturday), so off the rip I was already fighting for my life. And my 5th Round was against KJ8 8 Door which was a scary matchup.  I made my one big misplay over the entire event in that game that made it very close!

I had several games as well over the weekend where my opponent was at 3/4 - 3/6, and I would gamble a side attack with a final Level 3 Ai combo with the door in play, hoping to find a soul trigger since there are so many. I did get punished for it most of the time (lol), but I was still able to clutch out games by living the return turn. You would think I had learned my lesson, but I went for it again in my final game of the weekend, the 3rd place qualifier, which also had a passed-down worlds invite on the line. I did find the soul trigger there, but the burn 3 is what killed anyways. So moral of that story is don't gamble on side attacks unless you're insane like me! 

Shoutouts to my local store Misty Mountain Games for providing a space close by to regularly play this game I love, and our great and talented locals players who I am grateful to for valuable practice. Shoutout especially to our player Ender K for grinding many games with me over the [REDACTED] (program that may or may not simulate online games of a specific TCG). Shoutouts to Love Live! for existing and being the franchise that has impacted my life in so many positive ways.

Honestly, it still doesn't exactly feel real. I know I did have some pretty great luck on my side, but I'm also confident in my skill- luck can only take you so far, in my opinion. You still need to play well to capitalize on the swings of luck, just as you need to play well when luck isn't on your side.

The list I used was from a JP Player who's done a lot of work on Nijigasaki deckbuilding, @shin_yhn_ws on Twitter. I definitely owe it to them for such an efficient 50. I have more thoughts about the deck list and general gameplan, which I hope to touch on when I can record a reflection video for my own channel (found on the link above or here).

ML: And that concludes our interview with JP NA WGP 25/26 3rd Place Winner lyanne! ! A special thanks to lyanne! for sharing with us! Congratulations to all who topped and good luck at Worlds in 2026!

Interested in more Tournament Reports or you would like to submit your own Top 16 interview from the JP NA WGP 2025? Check out more reports or submit a form at https://level4weissschwarz.wixsite.com/lvl4ws/tournament-reports !

Tournament Report: Top 16 jdkoren JP NA WGP 25/26

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Melanie Lynette (ML): How did you get into TCGs and specifically Weiss Schwarz as a game?

jdkoren (JDK): I started playing TCGs in the late 90's. I briefly played Pokémon, then switched to Magic and have played on and off since (now I mostly collect it). As for Weiss, during Covid I started collecting Prisma Illya SPs without even knowing what game they were from. I had seen the cards in shops in Japan prior to that, but didn't buy any at the time. At some point I started wondering what this game was, how to play, and eventually bought a Prisma Illya deck. Now it's my main game.

ML:  Onto the WGP interview! How did the event go for you overall?

JDK: I went undefeated in Swiss, but unfortunately was knocked out in Top 16.

Winning Decklist:

BushiNavi Code: 6FY6R

https://decklog-en.bushiroad.com/ja/view/6FY6R

ML: One of the things that stood out to me specifically about your Oshi no Ko list here is that you've opted not to run the 1/0 Aqua (see pictured below). Many decks will use this to recur the 0/0 Akane to skirt the stock issues the deck can have in playing out triple of the Level 3 Akane changer/finisher and help bring hand size down to 5 or less for her finisher to fire off. What led to that decision and how did it feel play wise for you?

JDK: Great question. I run the Level 0 Akane Riko instead, because the Kana brainstorm is the engine of the deck and I want to get that out as soon as possible. It also lets me recycle attackers if I'm stuck at Level 0, and sometimes it denies reverses. The slots that would be taken by 1/0 Aqua are extra Level 2s and 3s, increasing the likelihood that I hit the top-check of the brainstorm.

ML: I will also note that I like your additional tech of the yellow Level Kana double bounce on top of the 2/1 Akane to deal with anti-auto damage effects like you find in Fairy Tail and Gakuen Idolm@ster. Using the 0/0 Akane you can play her and get around the color requirement to deal with your opponent's board states in various situations. On to the main rounds! What was your match up and how did Round 1 go for you?

JDK: I won against Idolm@ster Shiny Colors: 8 Choice. I fell behind early and misplayed a few times. At 3-4, I went in with double Akane just to heal down, but ended up defeating my opponent from 2-3, which neither of us expected.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 2 go for you?

JDK: I won against Azur Lane: 4 Standby / 4 Choice. I don't recall much about this game other than my opponent had a good amount of disruption. He was able to deny my Ai Fuka and take out my brainstormer by swapping it to the front. Somehow I grinded out a win.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 3 go for you?

JDK: I won against Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko: 8 Standby. My opponent had all 4 of his 3/2 Haruhi on board at 2-4 and combo'd, which hit me to Level 3, and leaving up 3 stock. I had checked his waiting room before the last refresh and saw it was full of Level 0s, so I knew Akane would pop off. I double bounced his back row so that my Akanes would beat his front row, and my one Akane changing from waiting room allowed me play around his event rest counter.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 4 go for you?

JDK: I won against Uma Musume: Pretty Derby: 4 Stock Soul/ 4 Comeback (Door). I had a weird start and passed Turn 1 going first.  After clocking, my hand had only 1 Level 0 card. I thought if he clean cuts and I don't draw more playables, next turn will be even worse and the game will go downhill fast.  Then at Level 1 things got weird for him. My opponent ends up attacking only once in one turn, only twice the next turn, and ultimately he never really got to compress with stock and markers. He hits Level 3 first and makes a push, but I had stabilized and was too far out of range. The follow-up closes out the game for me.

ML: What was your match up and how did Round 5 go for you?

JDK: I won against Aogiri High School: 4 Choice / 4 Comeback (Door)/. My opponent had a bad game and lost while I was still Level 2. He told me afterward that he was climax flooded pretty much the whole time.

ML: So after deck checks, we're on to the Top 16 matchup. How did the game go from your perspective?

JDK: I lost against Gakuen Idolm@ster: 4 Comeback (Door)/ 4 Gate (Pants). My opponent only fielded 1 Saki combo this game (which I denied the reverse), and mainly used brainstorms and Ramiris to keep up. I didn't draw a climax for Level 1, but I hit 4 off a brainstorm, so held a 10 card hand over refresh. The rest of the game I pretty much had all the resources I could have asked for. When he hit Level 3, I was 2-4 with 2 clean in deck, full hand with all the pieces, and plenty of stock. He put down double Temari and swung for 2 in the 3rd lane. I refresh 8 CX and penalty a clean card, so I'm 3-0 with 8 CX in 20 cards, but the swing for 4 from the first Temari sticks. I lose from the ping 1s and another refresh point.

ML: Even though that was a tough way to go out, congratulations on your accomplishments, including making Top 16, as well as being undefeated in Swiss! Are there any final reflections or shout outs you would like to share?

JDK: Everybody was awesome, and it was super cool to put faces to names of people I have met and talked to online.

ML: And that concludes our interview with JP NA WGP 25/26 Top 16 Player jdkoren! A special thanks to jdkoren for sharing with us! Congratulations again on your achievements and good luck as you continue to compete moving forward in the game!

Interested in more Tournament Reports or you would like to submit your own Top 16 interview from the JP NA WGP 2025? Check out more reports or submit a form at https://level4weissschwarz.wixsite.com/lvl4ws/tournament-reports !