Join Luke Marshall for a perspective on Nationals 2023 from one of the top players in the game including his deck list which placed 4th in Type 1-2P.
Introduction:
First off, I am so excited that I got to go and participate in Nationals for the second year in a row. I was not sure I would be able to go again but after reaching out to both my brothers and finding out that they were also down to attend I knew we had to make it happen while the tournament was being hosted in a good location for all of us.
Coming into the final month before Nationals this year was so different than last year because the previous year I was able to play in a lot more tournament settings and really wrestle with the card choices for my Widow Matthew deck last year. Last year I came in knowing what I was going to play and I just need to predict the meta correctly and try to get an edge. This year felt completely different. I felt that there were many viable decks to choose from this year and in a 1 TCE meta anything could take down Nats. I spent the whole year (mainly the Lackey Grand-Prix’s) playing different strategies every time to get a good feel for everything. The only person that knew what I thought was the best strategy was my brother Mack. We had built a deck in our heads coming back from Nats the previous year based on playing The Resurrection turn one every game. This would allow a consistent set up every game and if you have enough draw 2 characters in your deck to band in it provides a great back up plan in case someone keeps you off the early Matthew play.
We tested this deck throughout the year and some of its starts were absolutely busted with how fast it decked out and did the same thing in most of its games. It felt very powerful.
The Dilemma:
So then what was the problem coming into Nats? If I felt like I had found an extremely powerful deck that was doing something in the meta better then everything else (constancy and draw power) shouldn’t that be an easy choice? Normally the answer is yes but the other piece of relevant information is that the decks win rate to this point was not good. I was only winning about half of my games with it (especially when I went second). I knew that some things needed to change in the deck while keeping the same overall strategy. Thankfully this was about the time that my brother Nic decided he would come back into the game and attend Nats. I welcomed him back to the game with a ridiculous turn 1 that ended with only about 12 cards left in my deck (in the 1 TCE Meta). We did not even bother to finish that game as Nic decided he would start changing my strategy to fit his play style. He began refining that deck and cutting useless ‘fun’ cards (that I like) for actual good cards. After some more testing with my bros Nic and I agreed that Herod’s were by far the best defense. Mack agreed but thought demons were close to as good and he had the cards to play that one already. I thought maybe this was the key to improving my win rate because the defense had seemed to be the weak link all along.
As I continued to play against Nic and Mac I made a few key changes. The Herod defense was put in the deck which Nic had refined. I also started testing more cards to turn Star of Bethlehem into an actual battle winner rather then just a draw engine. I don’t remember when I stumbled upon playing the card “Redemption” but it was totally the right call. I added that and suddenly my mid to late game attack of Star of Bethlehem paired with the star ability on Redemption to CBN protect Lazarus was winning battles. Not to mention the games where you naturally draw Redemption seemed almost as game breaking as a turn 1 stricken …almost! With all of this in mind I still had one main thing on my mind: playing all good Dominants left no room for Christian Martyr or Falling Away and I believed the winning deck would have at least one if not both of those cards in it.
Fast forward to night before Nats, Joshua Potratz AKA KevintheDude let me know that we need to keep our newly started tradition (from last year) of laying out the decks we are playing and truly analyzing every card in each deck and debating the viability of each card as it pertains to the meta we would expect. This sent me into another crisis right before the big day as I was thinking back on the year and remembering my underwhelming win rate. I thought I had a unique strategy but I was doubtful it could hold up. So I switched my deck the night before to a pure Disciples build cutting Star of Bethlehem and something else for Christian Martyr and Falling Away. We played a test game and I got absolutely obliterated as my first turn Matthew got shut down in a major way. The only good thing about that game is that it showed me Falling Away over Angel of the Lord would be a good call for this year. We finished out the game and then I felt even worse then before.
The Decision/The Result:
I woke up the next morning and decided if I was going to lose then I would do it with the deck I had been playing all year: GoC good stuff trying to play Resurrection turn one, Star of Bethlehem turn 2, and Ride on Victoriously/Awesome Things for the win on turn 3 (with Impartial Judgement combo or Eternal Inheritance). If you want to know more about the defense go check out Nic’s write up about his deck on the forums as he explains the defense well. I am so glad I switched back to the deck I had been running right before the tournament as I was extremely pleased with the deck performance over 8 rounds of play. I went 6-2 and the two games I lost had the worst opening hands I had seen this year in playing the deck. If fact in my game against Nic he pulled off Matthew against me on turn one and started laughing and apologizing because my hand was so bad. He said “If I could pick 8 cards for my opponent to start with … those would be the 8.”
Overall I am very excited about my 4th place (tied with Jayden) finish. It was another good year and I hope I get the opportunity to compete again next year.
Things I would change in the deck would be to take out Impartial Judgement combo and add another block: Herod Antipas with making Contagious Fear regardless of protect. I would change the Orphans Lost Soul for Prosperity Lost Soul and incorporate if possible Wicked Lost Soul. I would cut Reprimand/Repercussion for Reassuring Angels. I would cut Zechariah for Matthias. I would cut Lost Coin Found for The Ascension.
All that to say here is my deck…
Deck (50 cards):
1 Lost Soul “Darkness” (Job 30:26) (Promo)
1 Lost Soul (Jeremiah 22:3) (Orphans)
1 Lost Soul “Harvest” (John 4:35) (GoC)
1 Lost Soul “Humble” [James 4:6 / Proverbs 3:34] (2022 – 3rd Place)
1 Lost Soul (Lawless) (Promo)
1 Lost Soul “Distressed” [Zephaniah 1:17 – Fundraiser]
1 Lost Soul “Hopper” [II Chronicles 28:13 – Fundraiser]
1 Lost Soul “Thorns” (II Samuel 23:6) (LoC)
1 The Resurrection [UR+] (GoC)
1 Son of God (1st Print – L)
1 Star of Bethlehem [Fundraiser]
1 The Second Coming (CoW AB)
1 Ride on Victoriously / Awesome Things (LoC)
1 Three Woes (RoJ AB)
1 Falling Away (Promo 2018)
1 Herod’s Temple [2022 – GoC P]
1 Bethlehem Stable (GoC)
1 Chamber of Angels (GoC)
1 Sheol
1 The Ends of the Earth (RoJ)
1 The New Covenant (I/J+)
1 Four-Drachma Coin (GoC)
1 Book of the Covenant (PoC)
1 Temple Veil (GoC)
1 Reprimand / Repercussion (GoC)
1 Judas Iscariot / Judas, the Betrayer (GoC)
1 Matthew the Publican / Matthew (Levi) (GoC)
1 Zechariah, the Silent (GoC)
1 The Angel of the Winds (CoW AB)
1 Resurrection Revealer (GoC)
1 Simon Peter / Peter, the Rock (GoC)
1 Joanna, the Generous / Joanna, Wife of Chuza (GoC)
1 Lazarus, the Called / Lazarus of Bethany (GoC)
1 The Woman with Child (RoJ AB)
1 Angel from the Sun (RoJ)
1 Authority of Christ (GoC UR+)
1 Virgin Birth
1 Lost Child Found (GoC)
1 Good Seed (GoC)
1 Redemption (GoC)
1 Spirit as a Dove (GoC)
1 Love One Another (GoC)
1 Herod Agrippa I (GoC)
1 Herod the Great (GoC)
1 Herod’s Guard (GoC)
1 Outsiders (Black/Gold) (RoJ AB)
1 The Deceiver (RoJ AB)
1 Herod Archelaus (GoC)
1 Abandonment (EC)
1 Futile Inquisition (GoC)
Reserve:
1 The Child is Born (GoC)
1 Eternal Inheritance (CoW AB)
1 Simon the Zealous / Saint Simon (GoC)
1 The Heavenly Host (GoC)
1 Impartial Judgment (LoC)
1 Jotham, the Mighty / Jotham, the Upright (LoC)
1 His Sacrifice (GoC UR+)
1 You Will Remain
1 Herod’s Executioner (GoC)
1 Foreign Horses (LoC)
Tokens:
10 Lost Soul Token (“Harvest”)
10 Heavenly Host Token
Conclusion:
A couple last minute thoughts about the match-ups and game play. The two Lost Souls brought in for the soul hide match-up were great and totally the right call. Against Thieves attacking with Lazarus under the protection of Redemption star ability was game breaking both times I played against Thieves. The Herod defense is amazing. Woman with Child was also an all-star going to snag The Resurrection in key moments. The deck performed great in the mirror against Nic since even with a bad draw I almost pulled out a win. The only deck I felt had a slight edge on me for the day was Jeremy’s Transfiguration deck. Even if I would have gotten a better opening hand I think his deck has some advantages over my build and it would have been a tough win to pull off.
