Look, I recognize that I stand on the wrong side of history. My continued contention that the Classic Battles starter decks were expertly crafted for teaching new players is not a popular notion. At the time, the product was much maligned first and foremost for its price point, and then for its inclusion of an incomplete set of a unique and powerful card (here’s looking at you, Glistening Steelblade). However, the actual content of the decks in question were nearly perfect for teaching EVERY concept in the game of Flesh and Blood. I have continually died on the hill that those two decks are the best items that new players could use to learn the mechanics of FAB.
With the release of the 1st Strike decks, that is no longer the case.
Hot off the presses and directly from the shiny new Card Database on Flesh and Blood’s website, we now have a full look at the 1st Strike Blitz Decks. This new product line has been touted as the de facto way for new players to learn the ins and outs of the Flesh and Blood TCG, and after combing through both lists, I couldn’t have said it better myself.
When the 1st Strike product was first announced, I had assumed that they would act as a spiritual successor to the Ira Welcome Deck that so many of us learned the game with. For those who never experienced it, the Ira Welcome Deck was a 30 card intro deck made up of 10 unique cards at 3 copies each. The deck included 24 Attack Action cards, a singular (and patently terrible) weapon in Edge of Autumn, and no equipment to speak of. The remaining 6 cards included 3 Attack Reactions (Lunging Press) and 3 Defense Reactions (Springboard Somersault) which served to teach players how to pass priority.
This smaller, more simplified deck design cleanly introduces players to the back and forth cadence of attacking and blocking on the combat chain. The design was later improved upon by the Classic Battles Blitz Decks. These were 40 card Blitz format decks that introduced the non-attack action cards, resource cards, and instants to newbies as well as several of the more obscure concepts that frequently trip up new players (such as paying for defense reactions when they defend). And while I love both of these products from a perspective of teaching the game, neither holds a candle to these new 1st Strike decks.
In order to fully explain why I am so smitten by these new player focused decks, we need to look at one more closely.
Aurora:
Equipment:
Star Fall - Lightning Runeblade Weapon - Sword (2H)
Ironrot Helm
Blossom of Spring
Aether Crackers
Ironrot Legs
Spell Fray Tiara
Spell Fray Leggings
Let’s start with the equipment suite: We are given Blossom of Spring, the same chestpiece we received in Classic Battles (and an easy to understand resource generator), Ironrot equipment for both our head and legs (allowing us to learn how equipment blocking and Battleworn works), a simple (albeit low-powered) weapon that synergizes with the deck, and Aether Crackers, an arm piece that blocks for 0 and can be destroyed in the resolution of a successful attack. Each of these main equipment pieces teaches new players a different core concept of the game; blocking, resource creation, attacking, and triggers involved with hitting an opponent.
Aurora’s deck is tailor-made to activate her hero effect, which states:
Once per Turn Instant – Pay 2: Create an Embodiment of Lightning token. Activate this only if you’ve played a Lightning card this turn.
To access this effect, Legend Story Studios has added a staggering 24 Lightning cards to the list, many of which are brand new common and rare cards from the upcoming Rosetta set. Cards such as Fry and Sizzle aren’t eye-catching in their power, but they play their part perfectly in this starter deck product as tools to teach players how action cards work, how a combat chain is constructed, and how defense values and breakpoints can change a game of Flesh and Blood.
Fry, as a 0 block 3 attack card, highlights the benefit of cards with natural go again, and contrasts its ease of play with its failure to defend its owner. Sizzle teaches new players how and when to play their non-attack action cards, and what happens when you play a non-attack action card both before and after a combat chain link. These cards do the same things that the Dorinthea and Rhinar decks each did, but in one simple package.
The deck continues to expand new player knowledge by including attack and non-attack action cards that do NOT have Go Again. Heaven’s Claws and Crackling encourage the timely use of your hero power to gain Go Again and extend the turn, and Harness Lightning allows players to learn about the risks and rewards of evasive arcane damage attached to cards without Go Again (giving them critical experience that could lead them into the Wizard class present in Rosetta).
And just like Classic Battles, these 1st Strike decks introduce players to instants in the form of Lightning Press and Cloud Cover. It may appear as though the team at LSS failed to include ways for new players to learn how attack and defense reactions work. However, these instants function in lieu of attack and defense reactions to teach players the timings involved with attacking and defending. As I’ve taught the game of FAB over the years, I’ve found that attack and defense reaction timings have consistently been one of the more confusing hurdles for new players to overcome. This is such a simple and effective way to scaffold the knowledge of reactions and their timings, and it makes the concept of reaction windows far more uniform than the Ira deck did back in 2019. Rounding out the card types and concepts, the Terra 1st Strike deck even includes block cards with the incredible parenthetical text stating:
(Tip - Don’t put this in arsenal. You can’t defend with cards from arsenal.)
I could go on and on about how simply and yet effectively this product teaches players the fundamentals of the game (and I probably have in a video already), but suffice to say that THIS is the product that a brand new player should pick up and try out. It teaches you everything you need to know to understand how the game works in any format, it has a very low barrier of entry, and it’s incredibly flexible for new players because it can function as a standalone, single deck purchase. If you see Aurora on the shelf and fall in love with the hero design, you aren’t forced into also buying Terra, and vice versa. Oh, and I almost forgot: These decks included SIDEBOARD EQUIPMENT FOR ARCANE MATCHUPS. Yes, Spell Fray Tiara and Leggings come in both decks, giving them both the ability to make simple sideboard changes based on the hero that they're playing against. This is one of the major improvements I’d like to see made in the Armory decks going forward, particularly now that it is already present in the official starter product.
All in all, this product line appears to be a slam dunk for LSS. I plan to cover it heavily on my own personal channel with the hope that new players will feel empowered and encouraged to take up Aurora’s sword and Terra’s shield!
