First One Piece Event Prep

Jumping Into a New Card Game

Tomorrow I’m going to a One Piece tournament. I don’t really know how to play One Piece and I’ve never gone to an event, but I want to get into it. Tomorrow is the release event for a new set, and it’s sealed—you go, buy packs, and play with the cards you get.

Sealed events are the perfect opportunity to start a new card game, no matter what game you want to get into. That’s how I like to just jump in. I don’t like deck building, but I love playing.

My Background with Card Games

If you know the trinity on the spike, I used to play Magic professionally. I used to make more money playing Magic than I did at my day job, back when Magic was still good—before Hasbro destroyed it. Don’t want to get into that.

I love card games. It’s been a big void in my life. I always looked forward to teaching my kids how to play Magic, and now I won’t even bother. I’m hoping One Piece can fill that void for me.

My Goal

My goal tomorrow is to win a match. My real goal is to win the whole thing because that’s just how I am with card games, but I’m being realistic. If I get one win, I’ll be happy.

What I’m Bringing

I ordered this Learn Together deck set—these are the only One Piece cards I have. I pulled the leader cards out because apparently sometimes you can bring your own leader. I threw those in this 20-year-old binder. I sleeved up 10 Don cards (the resource cards) too.

I don’t even have any other sleeves. I’m going to have to buy another deck box because this one is literally about to fall apart—it’s over 20 years old.

Safety Tips for Card Events

Going to a new venue I’ve only been to a couple times. I’m only going to bring this binder and this deck box in a backpack, and I’m always going to keep that backpack on me.

I grew up in an area adjacent to a rough area. The comic shop I went to and lived at was in a rough area, so you get used to defending yourself and not getting got. Always keep a backpack. When I’m sitting at the table, I’ll put my foot through the strap so nobody’s taking anything from me.

Probably not that much of a problem these days or where I’m going, but it’s just a habit from being a kid. I don’t usually bring trade stuff, and if I do, it’s just that little binder. That’s my pro tip for not getting your stuff stolen.

My Strategy for Sealed

I’ve looked through the set and usually it doesn’t matter what game you’re playing—in limited formats, there’s usually very little removal. You just want to put threats on the board and flood it, forcing your opponent to figure out how to deal with them without a direct way to do so.

From what I’m looking at with One Piece, that’s going to be the same. My plan is to look for big beefy dudes that I can drop on the board and follow curve.

Understanding Curve

The whole thing about card games—no matter what game you’re playing—there’s a cost associated with a card to play it, and you get X amount of resources per turn. Usually on your first turn you have a small amount of resources, then every turn you get more.

You want to do what’s called curving out:

• Turn one: use all your resources
• Turn two: get more resources, use them all
• Same thing on turns three, four, and all the way up

You want to drop a threat or something your opponent has to deal with every turn. In One Piece, especially in limited, I think it’s very hard to play control. I didn’t see that many cards that just say “destroy this dude,” so you’re going to have to do it in combat—which means you need a ton of threats.

What I’m Looking For

The thing I like about One Piece the most is that it’s all about card advantage. You can discard cards from your hand to prevent taking damage to your life total. And when you do get hit and take damage, you get cards back—like Pokemon prize cards where as you’re losing you get card advantage.

So I’m looking for:

• Big beefy dudes
• Cards I can discard to increase my dude’s power
• Blockers and counters
• Cool abilities

You want a bunch of big boring dudes who don’t have any abilities but are very strong. Just keep dropping them every turn and that’s how you win. It’s not glamorous, but it was like that in Magic, like that in Lorcana, and I’m assuming it’ll be the same in One Piece.

Life Update

This was a pretty crazy couple of days, but we’re through it now. Just a false alarm on some stuff—my son is super sick but it’s not going to be anything major. Yesterday we didn’t know if that was going to be the case, but it is. We’re in a much better spot today.

Crucible Guard is getting painted. I’m keeping the hobby streak alive, keeping the video streak alive, just trying to get back into a normal headspace now.

The LEGO Bonus

I did finish the Going Merry LEGO set, and this was the most fun I’ve ever had doing LEGOs. I did a ton as a kid and do a ton with my kids now, but this was the most fun set I’ve put together. I was a little sad when I finished it. Definitely recommend.

Transcript

Okay, tomorrow I’m going to a One Piece tournament. Don’t really know how to play One Piece. Never gone to an event. Uh I want to get into One Piece. And tomorrow is the release event for a new set.

So it’s sealed, which means you go and you buy packs and you play with the cards you get in the packs. So those are the perfect opportunities to start a new card game, no matter what kind of game you want to get into. That’s how I like to just to jump in. Um don’t like I I don’t like deck building, you know. I love playing.

Uh, if you know that the trinity on the spike, I used to play Magic professionally. I used to make more money playing Magic than I did at my day job back when Magic was still good. Uh, before Hasbro destroyed it. Don’t want to get into that, but uh, I love card games. Uh, it’s been a big void in my life.

Always look forward to teaching my kids how to play Magic, and now I won’t even bother to do that. But I’m hoping I’m hoping One Piece can fill that void for me. So, I’m going to show you how I’m preparing for it. Uh, and then tomorrow after the event, hopefully I can I can go from being a zero, not knowing anything or not very knowing very little about it to hopefully my goal tomorrow is to win a match. Um, my real goal is to win the whole thing because that’s just how I am with card games, but I’m I’m going to be realistic.

If I just get a if I get one win, I’ll be so I talked about this before. I ordered this Learn Together deck set and these are the only one piece cards I have. Uh, I pulled I pulled the leader cards out of these decks because apparently sometimes you can bring your own leader and I I don’t know. I just want to be prepared. So, I threw those in this this 20-year-old binder.

I’ll bring this. And then the way One Piece works, these are kind of like your lands. Uh, if you’re familiar with Magic at all. So, I sleeved up 10 of those. I don’t even have any other sleeves.

Uh, I’m going to have to buy another deck box cuz this this one is like literally about to fall apart. It’s over 20 years old. Not not even going to bring these to the event. I’m just gonna I’m gonna close this back up. I’ll figure that I I love Zoro, so I’m probably gonna play Zoro.

Or actually, I think I’ll probably play Mihawk. But, uh, now on to actually preparing for it. Step up. One, uh, going to a new venue. I’ve only been there a couple times in the past.

Like, it’s it’s a little bit farther away for me than it’s comfortable, but it’s only a pre-release event I could actually attend this week. >> Um, I’m only going to bring this binder and this deck box, and I’m going to put it in a backpack, and I’m always going to keep that backpack on me. Right. I grew up uh in kind of a rough area. Uh or I I grew up in an area adjacent to a rough area.

The comic shop I went to and and like lived at was in a rough area is a more accurate way of describing that. So, you get really used to uh defending yourself and you get really used to not getting got. So, always keep a backpack. Um I don’t use any other anything that I like when I’m sitting at the table, I’ll put my foot through the strap of the backpack and that way like I’m good. Nobody’s taking from me.

Um, probably not that much of a problem these days or where I’m going, but it’s just a habit from from being a kid and like, you know, yeah, you just got to be smart. So, I’ll throw that in a backpack in a busted up old backpack. I won’t bring anything else. Um, and that’ll stay the same. Like, I don’t I don’t usually bring trade stuff and if I do, it’s just that little binder and I won’t bring like I don’t have any any hitters right now, but even when I get to that point, um, I don’t really do that.

Uh, that’s my that’s my pro tip to not not getting your stuff stolen. Um, I’ll I’ll bring some dice and like just some counters cuz again, I don’t really know what what I’m going to need in that regard. But I’ve looked through the set and usually it doesn’t matter what game you’re playing. When you’re playing in kind of a limited format like this, there’s usually very little removal. So, it’s like you just want to put threats on the board and flood the board with threats and and force your opponent to figure out how to deal with them when they don’t have a direct way of dealing with them.

And from what I’m looking at with One Piece, that’s going to be the same like the truth truth for this game, too. Uh, so my plan is to go in look for just big beefy dudes that I can drop on the board. Um, I want to follow Curve. So, Curve the whole the whole thing about card games, no m they all kind of work the same. No matter what game you’re playing, there’s a cost associated with a card to play it and you get X amount of resources per turn to play it.

And usually on your first turn, you have a small amount of resources and then every turn you get more. So you want to do what’s called curving out where on turn one you use all your resources on turn one. Then turn three you get more, you use all your resources on turn two. Same thing on turn three and all the way up. And you just want to curve out and hit drop a threat or something your opponent has to deal with every turn.

And and if you’re playing like a control or something, then obviously you don’t play anything. You’re sitting back with answers to the things your opponent’s doing. But um I think I think in One Piece, especially in limited, it’s very hard to play control and limited. >> And in this set specifically, I didn’t really see that many things that just thought I’d say like destroy this dude. So you’re going to have to do it in combat, which means you just need a ton of threats.

So I want a bunch of big beefy dudes. Uh the thing I like about One Piece the most is that it’s all about card advantage. I mean, every game is all about card advantage, but more so in One Piece where like you can you can discard cards from your hand to prevent taking damage to your life total essentially. And then when you do get hit and you take damage to your life total, you get to draw cards from your deck or not you don’t not from your deck, but you get to it’s like Pokemon prize cards kind of where you’re as you’re losing you’re going to get card advantage. Uh, so it’s very cool.

So I’m I’m looking for big beefy dudes. I’m looking for the the cards that I can discard from my hand to increase my my dude’s power so they don’t get either killed or I don’t lose life. And then uh other than that, I’m just looking for cool abilities. But those are those are the two main things in my head. If I get if I get some blockers, if I get some counters, and if I get some big beefy dudes that I can just drop on the board on curve, uh that’s usually the trick to winning in like sealed or limited events.

Um, you want a bunch of of big boring dudes who don’t have any abilities but who are very strong and just you just keep dropping them every turn and you you drop more and more every turn and that’s how you win. It’s not very glamorous. But, uh, it was like that in Magic. It was like that in Lorcana. Uh, I’m assuming it’s going to be like that in One Piece.

Um, there’s a ton of guides out there for One Piece specifically. I didn’t read any of those. I just was looking at the sets and like pretty much the same when it comes to combat. Um, so yeah, this is a short one because this was a pretty crazy couple of days. Um, but we’re good now.

Uh, we’re through it. You know, it’s uh it was just like a false alarm on some stuff. Uh, son is super sick. Luckily, it’s not anything it’s not going to be anything major. We didn’t yesterday.

We didn’t know if that was going to be the case, but it is. So, uh, it’s good. We’re in a much better spot today. But, Crucible guard is getting painted. I’m keeping the hobby streak alive.

keeping the video shoot alive. Uh just trying to get back into a normal headsp space now. So, thanks for being here. Uh I’ll see you tomorrow when we’ll definitely be back to normal and it’ll be like a real >> Oh, I did finish uh the Going Mary set and this was the most fun I’ve ever had doing Legos. And I mean, I did a ton of Legos as a kid.

I do a ton of Legos with my kids now. And this was the most fun set I’ve put together. Like, it was it was so fun to put together. I was a little bit sad when I finished it. So definitely do recommend.