Budget Remix Series Philosophy

Why budget decks? Some things to think about: 

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• You have new players in your play group. You just gave them a bunch of bulk from “X” series and they’re excited. This gives them a chance to play something with those cards immediately, even if the RRs or meta relevant Rs have to be ordered.

• Lower the playing level for an event or weekly locals to encourage growth or reset everyone’s mindset.

  • Budget decks lower the playing level and can help new players feel like they have a chance to learn and be successful in the game. Doing this when your play group has new players interested and trying out the game because they were drawn in due to an anime or game style can allow them a chance to grow until they pick or buy a more competitive set. Not every single card game player will enter the hobby and be able to access a top tier deck. This is one of many ways to grow locals. This can also flow into having free decks from your bulk to give out to new players at your own local brewed recruitment events.

  • No new players? Honestly, sometimes even us experienced players need a break from “X” set(s). One of the most fun locals we had in the spring of May 2025 occurred when some of our players returned from Worlds and were jamming a few Rose decks they picked up on launch. It was nice for that one event to reset the game back a few years to a more leisurely pace. You can even burn out experienced players by jamming the same deck too much, and even over do it for yourself. Playing with the same set, but changing up even a few cards or combos can keep you familiar with key set aspects while resetting your brain before returning to your main competitive focus.

• Playtest the “WHOLE” set and take no one’s word for anything. You will often notice that in the decklists of the best repeat champions will vary by 1 to 3 cards. This is often because they’ve considered (or even tested!) cards in the set and weighed that against the meta they will encounter at the event. They know which tech cards could modify the deck to weather meta or a banlist.