Budget Deck: Dark Irregulars (Blade Wings)

Hey guys! Welcome to Summer Break!

Along with Summer(Hallelujah), Glorious Bravery of Radiant Sword is on the horizon. Some great clans got some sweet support(Some clans even got some new keywords!) and I've decided to cover them all!

First up? Dark Irregulars!

Dark Irregulars got the Darkness keyword this set. If a card enters your soul, with the exception of riding, all Darkness abilities will become active until end of turn. Darkness support, as of now, is pretty good and quite easy on the wallet. Perfect for a budget deck. But! I was never really a fan of Scharhot Vampir, which Darkness support was obviously catered to, nor interested in playing him. Conveniently, another archetype that got support in GBT-07 caught my eye.

Blade Wings have gotten just a little bit of love from Bushiroad this set. Just a little, but it's hella good. With Tibold and Sullivan, Blade Wings have one of the best, if not the best, grind games. It may seem like all Tibold and Sullivan can do is defense, but with the right rearguard setup Blade Wings can get really, really aggressive, even without Reijy.

Unfortunately Tibold is around $8-9, but as I said earlier Darkness support is very easy on the wallet. Now then, let's get this show on the road.

Grade 4

We're gonna want to use Tibold as much as possible, so top him out at 4.

For our offensive strides, try to get as many Gilles de Rais as you can comfortably get for offensive pressure. Fill the rest of the slots with Frederick, since he's the next best thing.

Kisskill Lira and Ericrius are the best first strides for Dark Irregulars. I like Ericrius better for the guaranteed soul charge, but I recommend you run both in case you can't trigger Darkness for some reason.

You can run Demagogue if you'd like. You're going to be soulcharging a lot.

You're playing a stall deck, so it's pretty easy to get 15 unflipped G-Units for Blizza. A vanguard swinging for 101,000 is absolutely disgusting.

You're running GB units, so put in Sebreeze if you can afford it.

For now, use Agrat bat Mahlat. She also refunds Sullivan's soulblast cost in case you go against multi-attack decks. If he's cheap enough, run Saint-Germain.

Grade 3

The ideal Grade 3 lineup for Blade Wings is 3-4 Sullivan, 2-3 Wings of Reincarnation, and 1-2 Reijy. Unfortunately Reijy is $25-30 and Wings of Reincarnation doesn't work nearly as well without him, so we're gonna have to stick with just Sullivan for now. Sullivan's the main ride target anyways, there shouldn't be any problem.

Grade 2

Sorry. You're now outclassed

Flying Librarian is the best generic Grade 2 soulcharger in Dark Irregulars. An obvious four-of.

For our other Grade 2's, let's first talk about Doppel Vampir. It's a Tom Clone for Darkness that hits for 21k with a 7k boost while at 15 or more soul for no cost. A better Tom Clone with no cost. Combining this with Doreen makes PG or die attacks without any effort. It's music to my ears.

Another new Grade 2 we get from GBT-07 is our Blade Wing support, Blade Wing Sycus. It's... so amazing. It's literally two of the best soulchargers in the game, Flirtatious Succubus and Dimension Creeper, all wrapped up into one package.

Other Grade 2's you can consider are: Blue Dust, Dark Soul Conductor, Free Traveler, Gwynn the Ripper, Knife Conductor, Squallmaker Vampir, Decadent Succubus, Three-in-the-Dark, and Tragic Claw.

Grade 1

Lovin' that new art

You're going to want to stride every single turn, so four stride fodders. We're also getting a Quintet Wall in GBT-07(finally) which, with Sullivan, makes 0-to-pass attacks almost 100% of the time so it's just a better Perfect Guard. If you still prefer PGGs go ahead. You can also get away with using 3 Sentinels to make room for other units, since Sullivan provides so much defensive power anyway.

Doreen's getting a reprint and gives amazing offensive power. It's just perfect for the mass soulcharging you're going to be doing with this deck. You can also run Lunatic Masquerade if you don't think Doreen is enough.

Dimension Creeper works hella well with Sullivan's second skill, as does Sycus, so it's an instant +6 to soul.

Killing Dollmaster, Yellow Bolt, and Combust Vampir for more Main Phase soulcharging, Visionary Gemini for more defense, and Serpent Charmer in case you run out or can't use Tibold.

Grade 0

Werbat Ordonnanz still the best starter in Generic DI. If you have ride issues go ahead and use Devil in Shadow.

Now for the triggers. Shirley and Monochrome are your trigger soulchargers and, hey, do so in the main phase. Main Phsae. Doreen gets power ups. Monochrome is also a wash and gives a countercharge as well, but is a Stand Trigger, so I suggest only using two or three.

The rest of the triggers? Four Heals, obviously, and the rest of the triggers go to either Draws or Crits. Yeah, you heard me right. 10 Draws. It sounds like way too much, but considering that Sullivan gives every single card in your hand +10,000 Shield and the fact that you're running only 4-6 Grade 3's, the Draws pull a lot of weight here. You're also running Tibold, so you're not worrying about decking out due to the Draws. Crits, on the other hand, can be stacked onto a Doreen-boosted Doppel Vampir. It's all up to you.

                                                                                                     
Decklist:
NOTE: This is only an example decklist and should only be used as a base. I recommended 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

2x Werbat Ordonnanz
16x Triggers of Choice

Grade 1
4x PG or QW of Choice
4x Succubus of Pure Love
4x Dimension Creeper
4x Doreen the Thruster

Grade 2

4x Blade Wing Sycus/Flirtatious Succubus
4x Doppel Vampir
4x Flying Librarian

Grade 3

4x Blade Wing Sullivan

Grade 4

4x Wings of Annihilation, Blade Wing Tibold
4x Rebellious Retainer of Fresh Blood, Frederick
1x Mask of Demonic Frenzy, Ericrius
1x Storm of Love, Kisskill Lira/Great Demon, Soulless Demagogue
1x Air Element, Sebreeze
1x Snow Element, Blizza
4x False Dark Wings, Agrat bat Mahlat
                                                                                                             

Effectiveness: 8/10

Price: $50-55

Competitive: Yes

Final Words: This deck is hilariously fun and ridiculous to play. While it does take some resource management to play well, Blade Wings are just amazing. They slow down rush, shut down power columns, and deal with Control quite well. I'm really liking this deck and hoping to build it myself. 

Anyhow, see you on the next one!

-Robot