Premium Budget Fight: Spike Brothers (Bad End)

Congrats Chiefs

So with the Superbowl being a recent event, I thought it'd be appropriate to talk about Spike Brothers. In both Standard and Premium Spikes are a pretty solid clan that sets up rear guards to threaten the opponent each turn. Recent sets have also given the deck the ability to complement their aggressive playstyle with draw power and nice tech options as well. V-EB09 has graced us with the return of Bad End Dragger, and with everything Spikes already have alongside with being pretty budget in general, we can revisit a popular premium variation that use him alongside his stride Good End Dragger for a strong aggro turn.

Gallows Ball is pretty hardcore

Before diving into the options I'll go over the combo and how it works in regards to rulings, just as a refresher. First, you'll either have Bad End already on your VC or you'll ride him before striding into Good End. Then, call units so that you have a full board. Swing with your rear guards and then swing with Good End, activating his skill at the end of his battle searching for a copy of Bad End and another Grade 3 of choice. Since you have no open RC, you perform the rest of the skill by riding both cards as rest, riding Bad End first before your other Grade 3. Both of your Bad End's skills will proc one after the other, calling both to the front row RC and potentially retiring up to four of your opponents rear guards in the process. Note that the benefit of riding over 2 Bad Ends now only works with V Era Bad End, as the original version's double breakride no longer works due to 10.6.2 in the Comprehensive Rules. Now let's take a look at some options that can help round out the deck.

Grade 0

For starting vanguards, an immediate go-to would be Mecha Trainer either in its new or old form for the draw and search options respectively. Mecha Analyzer is also great for setting up additional attacks when using Bad End's second skill, though due to it's vulnerability against some decks in the early game, I'd recommend running additional copies to have a better chance of pulling it off. In a similar regard, Mecha Instructor is a good option in the trigger lineup for as a target for Bad End's second skill, or just to extend attacks when you can buff it in it's charged state. Aside from that it's a mix-up of the usual triggers. 

Crits to apply more pressure with a shout out to Machinary Slotback for more draws (just make sure you don't intend to use this on your Good End Turn). Draws aren't as necessary but Marilyn frees up G1 space like the other draw PGs if you can get her at a decent price. Spikes can run more stands in their premium builds as well, so Devil Watch is another recommendation in addition to analyzer if you want to try it out since it gives you more counterblast to use for various costs. Having extra attacks in the early game is also nice for putting pressure on the opponent. V Tiara is good for the higher stats, but you could also try either Linus or Linsey to synergize with your G guards. 

Other units with the charge ability here and in the other grades have some use to make multi-attacking easier by sending themselves to the deck after they've attacked, but don't work as well with the bad end combo since it keeps your board from being full. You can consider them if you want to, but I find that most are a bit slow and weak compared to the cards that the V series has granted the clan.

Grade 1 

Ladies and Gentlemen, there's the Kickoff

For grade 1 options, Offensive Punter makes a great ride target due to having the old forerunner ability letting you get an 8k on the board for free, and as a rear guard it enables some card draw and a minor power boost which is good to dig for other pieces you may need. Gyro Slinger and Snapper Devil are also good as more aggressive ride targets, and both also scale well later into the game since their skills become more powerful over time. For rear-oriented cards, Wonder Boy is still a good addition to recycle a large portion of your deck, and there are ways to abuse recalling him in the battle phase to get the skill off multiple times. Garry Gannon can lets you dig further into your deck and apply pressure on the opponent. Acrobat Verdi can also be used as stride fodder if need be. While Death Flag Dragger is designed to enable Bad End, it's hard to use the skill in some cases and Good End isn't the only win condition for the deck, so it's not necessary for this build though you can try it out if you want to. You can also run your Grade 1 PG of choice if you are unable to use Marilyn.

Grade 2

In the Grade 2 lineup, we're still looking to use more cards that can fill the board or act as beaters to use early. Considering that, Powerback Renaldo is amazing for filling the field quickly and conveniently, and if you ride him over Offensive Punter you can end up getting a potential 3 cards on the board on your second turn. Spike Bouncer is also still good since it's on place from anywhere (while Renaldo is restricted from hand), and can refund it's soul cost with it's skill on Rear Guard in addition to giving you more draw power. There are plenty of beater options to pick from for early and mid game pressure, like Brakki providing a consistent 20k unit to swing with, Black Panther alternating between 15k and 25k,  Provoke Needle being a constant 20k if it sits on a force marker, or Thaddeus if you want some additional on hit power. To reiterate, there should be a focus on early and mid game pressure to make your Good End turn threatening, as an example I've personally settled with Brakki as my main beater since it's power is free and live early on in the game, while having Renaldo and Spike bouncer to fill out my board for pressure and setup as well. 

Grade 3

You wouldn't like him when he's angry

Since we already have Bad End taking a spot here, we just need a second card that works with the deck, either as another beatstick in the event that our field is open on the Good End turn, as a card that can be used alongside the Good End combo, or as an alternate vanguard we can use to save on Bad Ends. There are actually options for all of these within the clan. The main one to be used is Bullspike since he directly synergizes with the combo. If you ride him last using Good End's skill, his first skill will greatly buff your Bad Ends with Force 1 markers and give you further advantage when the opponent's inevitable guard triggers his second skill. Spike Brothers usually have cheaper VRs as well so I'm happy to recommend him if you can get him while he's at a good price. If you can't there are still options that work for the deck. Juggernaut as a Grade 3 version of Brakki is another good beatstick to work with for the deck and also works as an early vanguard if you're unable to stride. Seifried is also fine early with the threat of an additional attack aside from the option of having stand triggers. Hive Maker is also a good target to call in the event your Good End Turn has an open board since you can still benefit from using his skill to increase the number of attacks you'll have (calling instructor with him is very strong as one example). Aside from that I'd suggest Unite Attacker and Gunwild Wolf less for their actual skills and more for them having Force markers to strengthen the board, although I won't say it's impossible to use their skills. Just unlikely.

Grade 4

      

While Good End is the main stride target for the combo, you only need one copy here since it takes a lot of resources that makes it hard to do multiple times. This free up the remaining space to have versatile alternative options that can win the game or give you advantage in one way or another. Agrias is still a great option for cheap multiattacking and draw that also enables some rear guards to set up additional and/or stronger attacks alongside him. Violence Ace can draw a ton in the right circumstances and is another multiattack enabler. Picaro, while a little expensive for it's skill gives you access to your deck to get what you need for the turn. Rising Supernova's cost is free in the event you're denied counterblast and also run charging units that you can make use of. Hellhard Eight can also be used as a finisher as it's skill is really good for closing off games if your other strides haven't done so already.

For G guards, most are pretty good for Spikes so it's up to you on what you want. Aery is a cheap 20k shield, Hecaton returns cards you may need later to your deck (getting Wonder Boy back to reuse later is very nice if the situation allows it), Maximum² can be used to protect a rear guard if the opponent doesn't have removal for it. Linus provides up to potentially 35k shield and accelerates your GB count for Violence Ace and Hellhard Eight. If you're interested in Cray Elemental options, Dizmel provides more rear guard protection, Agleam and Ractome let you dig for extra shield or another card as needed, and Colburn is another large shield depending on your opponent.

                                                                                                                       

Decklist:

NOTE: This is only an example decklist and should be used as a base. I recommend that you create your own decklist through your own testing. I found this decklist to fit me, but it is up to you to find a decklist that fits you. 

Grade 0:
1x Mecha Trainer (V)

2x Mecha Analyzer

4x Machinery Slotback

4x Mecha Instructor

4x Cheer Girl Marilyn (V)

4x Cheer Girl, Tiara (V)

Grade 1:

4x Offensive Punter

4x Gyro Slinger (V)
4x Wonder Boy (V) 

Grade 2:

3x Spike Bouncer (V)
4x Powerback Renaldo

4x Highspeed, Brakki (V)

Grade 3:

4x Bad End Dragger (V)

4x Deadheat Bullspike

Grade 4 (Strides):

1x Divine Hand, Good End Dragger

1x Great Villain, Dirty Picaro

1x Temerarious Cataclysmic Rogue, Hellhard Eight

2x Great Hero, Rising Supernova

2x Shootdown Sovereign, Violence Ace

4x Black Horn King, Bullpower Agrias

Grade 4 (G Guards):

1x Dark Element, Dizmel

2x Durable Barrier, Hecaton Gyace

2x King of Interference, Terrible Linus

                                                                                                                        

Price: $80-100

Effectiveness: 8.5/10. You can pull the combo off fairly consistently and end games with it. If you can't or don't the deck is still extremely flexible and powerful enough that your other options present a threat.

Competitiveness: 7.5/10. Spikes can perform fairly well against a good number of decks, but can be outed through counterblast denial or crippled by control options during the battle phase.

Final Words: The Good and Bad End combo is very rewarding and fun to pull off in matches, and this deck is a great way to get into premium spikes if you've been interested in it or have the pieces from your standard deck. I enjoy it a lot and I think it will get better with new cards in the future. Definitely give it a try if you like a more aggressive playstyle.
  

We never should have doubted him