E · Optimization & Practice · §19
Match Checklist Ten groups of questions, from role assignment through to the sideboard sanity check.
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Reset for next action cycle Role
Am I the aggressor, the reactive tempo deck, or the stabilizer this game? Who benefits from another full turn cycle? Do I need to win this fight, or only prevent the point? Scoring
What is the next available Conquer or Hold? Which battlefield is the opponent actually protecting? Do I threaten the second battlefield at all? Which of my units are still ready after this action? Hand
How many future unit plays are left in there? Am I spending a unit on an exchange that is already won? Is this card worth more as a future Legend trigger? Can Kinkou replace itself if I play it now? Power
Do I need double Body for Punch First? Do I need Fury for an Accelerate cost? Can I still afford Trophy Hunter? Can I pay Deflect costs if they have it? What post-board disruption has to stay available? Legend triggers
Where does this +1 actually change something? Can it push my other units to five for Kinkou? Can it move a unit out of damage range? Am I putting excess Might on one target? Can this one unit play affect two battlefields? Ready effects
What is First Mate readying, and is it exhausted yet? What is Twilight Reveler readying? Should the target act before the ready effect happens? Is the refreshed unit in the right place to matter? Thrill of the Hunt
Which play ability am I reusing? Which battlefield am I abandoning during resolution? Is the unit becoming a usefully new object, or just moving? Do I need to pay Accelerate, and can I? Would simply playing another unit be better? Interaction
Is Punch First necessary, or would a body do it? Are Falling Star’s two damage instructions assigned correctly? Am I paying Deflect for each separate selection? Can I strip the answer before committing to the battlefield? Battlefields
Is one of my units defending alone at Forbidding Waste? What am I returning with the Dais, and will the token hold? Who benefits more from Star Spring this turn? Can Trophy Hunter enter the lane that looks empty? Sideboarding
What exact engine am I answering? What is my shuffled unit count now? Have I cut too many early bodies? Is Brittle Steel actually live against this list? Does Unyielding stop what they actually do? From the guide . §19 Match Checklist
Ten groups, in the order they come up. The role questions belong before the first play. The Legend-trigger group belongs before every allocation, not once per game. The sideboard group belongs after you have built the post-board deck and before you shuffle it.
Pilot note If only one group survives time pressure, make it the hand group. Decorative deployment is what loses this deck games it had already won.