Between all the well-articulated and carefully considered articles our writers craft, we're also playing decks we haven't figured out yet or simply enjoy without much reflection. This series simply shares what we've been shuffling up for our local events - and why these decks have endeared themselves to us.
This week's Heavy Hitters edition takes into consideration the early meta we're all experiencing - and either looks to harness this new talent or exploit the unrefined field.
Today's feature comes from Alex Truell.
My affinity for Azalea is well documented, but second to the raven-haired ranger is Dash. Tactically, the Mechanologist class doesn't hold a candle to the intricacies of Ranger; but from an aesthetic and narrative vantage, Dash appeals to me in a big way - specifically, a tinkering, curious, always-in-trouble Dash. Which is to say, not Boost Dash, and not Fatigue Dash. Really, not a Dash that existed in FAB for the first 3 years of the game.
Not satisfied with the I/O representation of Dash, I rekindled my dormant artistic talents to put 'my Dash' on the board.
Pistol building was... fine, but what I truly desired was something that built up to a truly insane finish. Something that LSS delivered in Dynasty.
From that time forward, I've been committed to sticking Dash in that towering Mechanoid suit. Even as Dash accelerated toward respectability in the larger meta. Even as Maxx proved a much more organic fit for the Nitro strategy. It must be Mechanoid, and it must be Dash.
Weapons
- Symbiosis Shot (1)
Equipment
- Achilles Accelerator (1)
- Cogwerx Base Legs (1)
- Galvanic Bender (1)
- Hyper-X3 (1)
- Teklo Foundry Heart (1)
- Viziertronic Model i (1)
Loadout
- Backup Protocol: BLU (Blue) (2)
- Backup Protocol: RED (Red) (2)
- Big Bertha (Red) (2)
- Big Bertha (Blue) (3)
- Bios Update (Red) (3)
- Construct Nitro Mechanoid (Yellow) (3)
- Crankshaft (Blue) (3)
- Data Link (Red) (3)
- Dive Through Data (Red) (3)
- Expedite (Red) (3)
- High Octane (Red) (3)
- Hyper Driver (Red) (3)
- Hyper Driver (Yellow) (3)
- Hyper Driver (Blue) (2)
- Hyper Scrapper (Blue) (2)
- MetEx (Red) (3)
- Payload (Red) (3)
- Penetration Script (Yellow) (3)
- Polarity Reversal Script (Red) (2)
- Pulsewave Harpoon (Red) (3)
- Spark of Genius (Yellow) (2)
- T-Bone (Red) (3)
- Teklo Core (Blue) (3)
- Throttle (Red) (3)
- Tome of Fyendal (Yellow) (2)
- Zero to Sixty (Red) (3)
- Zipper Hit (Red) (3)
The deck has a core of 46 cards, so we add in 14 every match (sometimes a few more). Obviously, this is most often the Nitro Mechanoid and its tools - but while I hate games where I can't assemble the mech suit, it needs to be conceded that there are a few matchups where you might not want to try.
Generally, my first 8 in are Construct Nitro Mechanoid x3, Hyper Driver Y x3, and Backup Protocol: RED x2. The remaining 6 slots are matchup dependent; Payload, T-Bone, and Pulsewave Harpoon are go-to attacks to round out the numbers, with a 6-heavy skew available for Illusionists, a blue-heavy package (plus Arcane Barrier 3) ready for Kano, and an item-skewed 6 available for fatigue games.
The goal, of course, is to find 3 Hyper Drivers as quickly as possible and play out a Nitro Mechanoid, followed by a High Octane with a fistful of cheap boost attacks. This is a literally insane finisher, rivaling the Mechropotent - and we get to run 3 copies of the transformation!
But Hyper Drivers are a delicate business: boost too often, and you'll burn them out. Because of this, we have to adjust our gameplay strategy to a slower, more intentional pace. We're happy to boost before our board state gets started, and even when we've got a few counters on a fresh red Driver. But while we're still finding parts, the default posture is to block and chip.
I was playing this deck before Bright Lights, and starting with a Hyper Driver in play was... fine, but it also meant we had to start the game in cautious mode and dig dig dig for our win condition! Boosting not only threatened to burn out our Hyper Drivers, it risked banishing them from the deck - or worse, our Mechanoids!
But with Dash i/o, we have perfect knowledge of our topdeck. Digging with boost is actually viable; and when we find a Hyper Driver on the top of the deck, we can play it out at instant speed.
Rules Tip: While it may feel like one, the Mechanoid is not actually a demi-hero, and exists alongside your standard hero when it comes into play. As such, you still have access to Dash's topdeck reconnaissance even after you pop off!
The rest of the deck is fairly self-explanatory, though I'll note a few things that may feel contradictory. For example, Hyper Scrapper wants us to banish Hyper Drivers from our discard. This card is ideal to include when you side out the Mechanoid, as it gives greater purpose and payoff to your Hyper Drivers (which take up too many deck slots to remove for a matchup). Similarly, Hyper-X3 is looking to catch Hyper Drivers as we boost them off the top of the deck - but since it's a Mech headpiece with 1 block Battleworn, we're still happy to have it as essentially blank.
I don't present this deck as perfectly refined - I'm really working without much in the way of contemporaries, because I don't think many players are eager to both play Dash and intentionally undermine their deck with an inefficient focus - but I've put enough time and effort into it to vouch for it as Armory ready. If you see areas it could be improved, I welcome the suggestions.
