One Piece TCG: Deck Guide - Blue and Purple Monkey D. Luffy (OP11)

Nowadays, only a few decks are as comfortable as Monkey.D.Luffy OP11-040 in the One Piece TCG competitive scene. This deck is consistent, defensive, has access to ramp and even ways to heal, all while still being aggressive. It also masterfully puts many huge characters in play one after the other and perfectly manipulates the next cards you'll draw.

In a short amount of time, this new Luffy became the most well-rounded and dominant leader in the current meta. In today's article, we'll explore how this deck can stabilize, speed up, and end matches almost completely one-sidedly.

Monkey.D.Luffy OP11-040 really reminds me of Monkey.D.Luffy ST10-002 in the sense that he also has 6000 power but only 3 life. Leaders like these are true fortresses: with the right cards, they play on the defense until they can start attacking the opponent's life pile mercilessly. Monkey.D.Luffy ST10-002 has always been a bit unstable in the meta, but the way its Blue and Purple cousin, Monkey.D.Luffy OP11-040, was built makes it much better prepared for competitive settings.

Monkey.D.Luffy OP11-040's effect activates at the beginning of the turn as long as you have 8 or more DON!! in play. It also activates before even you get DON!! from your special deck, so you should focus on getting that amount as early as possible. When you do, this effect will let you look at the top 5 cards in your deck and add one Straw Hat Crew card from there to your hand. Then, you may reorder the other cards at the top or the bottom of your deck however you like.

So, this leader adds two cards to your hand every turn and also lets you reorder the top of your deck. With it, you'll essentially be able to pick what you'll draw next or set up combos and effects that interact with the top cards in your deck.

The list we'll explore today was played by IR Kong, who won 9 matches in a row with it at a recent tournament and ended up winning it. This is it:

This version is quite classic. It focuses a lot on ramp so you can play the best threats in these two colors and is a "good-stuff" archetype, so it also plays the most consistent cards possible instead of leaning on a specific strategy or combo.

The basic game plan is accelerating mana to get 8 DON!! as fast as possible and activate Monkey.D.Luffy OP11-040. If you manage to do this, you'll be able to play the most expensive cards in this list, use events to remove enemy threats, and protect yourself. In the late game, thanks to all this ramp and how easily you'll be able to put characters in play, this strategy will basically become unbeatable against many decks in the format.

Ramp

Initially, my plan was to start by going over a very specific combo that makes this deck incredibly strong. However, it doesn't make sense if I don't mention our ramp cards first, as they get us more DON!! and, as such, let us set up impactful plays and activate our leader's ability as fast as possible.

The most classic purple ramp card (which also interacts with the Straw Hat kit) is Zoro-Juurou OP05-067. Its effect activates when you have 3 life or less, which is perfect for this leader. When Zoro-Juurou OP05-067 attacks, he gives you one DON!!, even if he can't deal damage. If you manage to untap him, you can get more DON!! again with him in that same turn.

Another very popular, albeit expensive, ramp card is Mr.2.Bon.Kurei(Bentham) EB01-061. It naturally ramps DON!! when it goes in play, unless your opponent counters it with something like Marshall.D.Teach OP09-081. Furthermore, it is a great attacker later on because it can copy the power of any other characters your opponent has.

Gear Two OP11-080 is useful in two ways: you can use it in the main phase to ramp 2 resources or as a counter to give your leader +3000 power during battle. God Thread OP10-079 is another way to ramp DON!! while you remove an enemy threat. Thunder Bagua OP01-119, on the other side, is a ramp card that works as a counter on your opponent's turn.

Ramping DON!! is an essential part of your strategy. Without it, you'll take twice as long to progress your game plan, and your leader won't be as useful in the early or mid game. However, once you get all 8 DON!!, everything will change.

Sanji

Sanji OP06-119 is possibly the most important card in this entire strategy. He reveals the top card in your deck when he enters play. If that card is a character that costs 9 or less (and if it isn't a "Sanji"), you'll put it directly in play. Otherwise, it goes to the bottom of your deck. This may seem a bit inconsistent at first because you'll have to rely on luck, but keep in mind you'll manipulate the top card in your deck constantly. So, you can basically make this effect as efficient as it can be.

Once Sanji enters play and his ability triggers, then we can look at the top card in our deck...

... And that's usually a Charlotte Linlin OP08-069. Her ability basically makes the game last a little bit longer because she adds cards to your life pile if you return 1 DON!! to your resource deck and discard a card. Furthermore, she lets you put an enemy character that costs up to 6 DON!! at the top or the bottom of your opponent's life pile, so she also disables a threat. In the following turns, Charlotte Linlin OP08-069 will become quite aggressive as well because she has 9000 power.

Charlotte Katakuri OP11-067 is another balanced alternative. He is a blocker that has a lot of power and untaps himself and another Big Mom Pirates character at the end of the turn, so he can protect your Charlotte Linlin OP08-069.

This list only plays one Dracule Mihawk OP01-070, but it is essential, particularly to remove problematic characters because it sends them to the bottom of the opponent's deck. Monkey.D.Luffy OP09-119 and Monkey.D.Luffy OP11-118 can attack straight away because of their Rush, so you can use them to set up surprise attacks and get ahead in different ways. For instance, with them, you can draw cards or even bounce enemy characters.

This strategy is simple: ramp as much as you can early on to get 8 DON!! as fast as possible, manipulate the top of your deck, draw exactly what you need, and put strong characters in play, possibly right after Sanji OP06-119.

Final Touches

As this leader doesn't have a lot of life, you'll have to block. Donquixote Doflamingo OP01-073, Sanji OP07-064, and Nami OP11-054 are other ways to protect yourself. With Charlotte Katakuri OP11-067, you'll be able to survive the game until you can start attacking.

The card that most stands out in this part is Gum-Gum Giant OP09-078, which gives your leader +4000 power and draws cards as well. You can use it to reshape your hand or fix it entirely. This event is one of the main reasons why this deck is so dominant.

Matchups

Extremely aggressive decks, like Roronoa Zoro OP01-001 and Belo Betty OP05-002, are a big challenge because they can destroy your leader's life points before you get 8 DON!!.

Marshall.D.Teach OP09-081, in turn, disables Sanji OP06-119 and other early ramp cards, like Mr.2.Bon.Kurei(Bentham) EB01-061.

Monkey.D.Luffy OP11-040 is currently defining the meta. He is an extremely strong choice, as he can play both on the offense and the defense, but is still quite competitive.

What do you think? Tell us your thoughts in our comment section below.

Thank you for reading, and see you next time!