One Piece TCG Review: The OP06 Meta, Best Leaders and Strategies

The sixth One Piece TCG set will be released in the West on March 15th 2024, but, in the East, players have already been playing the seventh (7 ??? checar) set, which has already been released. The good thing about the West being a little behind is that we can look at the East to understand the meta a bit better, and see which decks will be dominant next season to build them or prepare to face them.

In this article, we'll also discuss leaders that won't be that popular next meta, but are fun and can even catch your opponents off guard!

Every One Piece set includes six new leaders, and, with them, support cards to structure their main strategies. However, old leaders also get a few new support cards, and this can extend a leader's stay in the meta, or even revive old leaders who were forgotten as time went on.

In the OP06 meta, the meta will focus on always having a full board, with several cards that can bring you double their value, like so building a board that dominates your opponent's. Therefore, strategies that prevent your opponent from filling their board and/or help you address them if they do will become popular and start bringing results.

Let's discuss them!

Sakazuki

Sakazuki OP05-041 has been the most popular competitive leader ever since he was released in OP05, and has brought a control, "card advantage" trait to the game with its first ability.

In the OP06 meta, he didn't get too many support cards, but his versatility will allow you to take advantage of several new cards, and make him even more threatening than he was.

Let's see one of the lists that use them:

As noted, the deck itself didn't change much, considering it was already incredibly powerful and played well in a meta in which a burst of creatures is the main strategy.

Sakazuki has always controlled the enemy board excellently, all while he kept a full hand to defend himself. Now, with the new Gecko Moria OP06-086, Sakazuki will also have a powerful interaction that will fill your board, and you'll still have resources to remove something from the enemy board.

Furthermore, Gecko Moria OP06-086 will bring this deck an outstanding versatility because it will enable several interactions, and take advantage of a trash pile that is always full thanks to Sakazuki's ability.

With so many tools, this Admiral will keep himself at the top of the meta in OP06, and, considering the news regarding more bans on the horizon, players speculate he and the cards that are included in his deck might be at risk as a result.

Enel

Carrying on with the OP05 leaders who have also kept themselves at the top, Enel still brings good results and has conquered several competitive events.

His ability is efficient in general, and allows us to build decks with a bit more freedom, considering it is so versatile. It also allows us to build a list with the best cards in yellow.

Let's see one of the lists with him:

O-Nami OP06-101 is one of the most powerful yellow cards ever released, and has become a staple in every yellow deck from OP06 onward. It will be incredibly challenging to find a replacement at her level.

Kikunojo OP06-104 has also become a card that, as O-Nami, will be in most yellow decks because its trigger is relatively easy to activate and her "On K.O" ability is impressive.

Every card in this list impacts the board significantly when they're played, and Enel works really well when you control your life pile, besides having tools to choose his triggers, which will make your opponent's decisions complex and difficult. Undoubtedly, it will remain at the top until the end of this set.

Katakuri

Still regarding yellow, let's discuss the leader who has been at the top ever since he was released. Katakuri has one of the most powerful abilities in the game, as he controls not only the top of your life pile, but also the opponent's. He's also incredibly efficient in matches against other yellow leaders because he prevents them from controlling their life pile and choosing their own triggers.

Ever since OP05, Katakuri has been in a list that focuses a bit less on "Big Mom Pirates", and is more versatile, with "Sky Island" cards.

Let's see one of the lists with him:

Charlotte Linlin OP03-114 is still one of the greatest threats in this deck, and will always be something your opponent will have to worry about, considering they'll have to elaborate their play lines around her. However, as your opponent is preparing themselves, the new tools will allow you to control the board well with cards like Gedatsu OP05-102, and also declare powerful attacks with O-Nami OP06-101's effect.

Yellow is still the strongest color, and Katakuri is still the strongest yellow leader as well.

Moria

Gecko Moria OP06-080 is the leader who most has interactions with the trash pile so far. The "Thriller Bark" card package is also incredibly powerful, as they're very difficult to remove because your opponent knows that, if they remove them, these cards will come back and activate their "On Play" effect another time.

However, Thriller Bark cards aren't the only cards we can use, considering Moria has a lot of synergy with most of the black cards that already see play!

Let's see one of the lists with him:

Rebecca OP05-091 is still in most decks with black. Its synergy with Gecko Moria OP06-086 fills the board with creatures in a single turn, and extracts as much value out of them as possible.

Perona OP06-093 is the heart of this deck, and your opponent won't try to remove her, considering she'll discard one of their cards most times she goes on the board.

Moria is an excellent deck for the OP06 meta because its lists mostly include cards released in this set, which makes it more accessible.

Yamato

Last, but not least, we have the most popular and feared leader in this set.

Yamato OP06-022 has an extremely dangerous ability, and his card options make him even more threatening. The combination of yellow and green allows Yamato to remove everything in front of him and attack with all he's got, using his second ability to enable his utility characters, and also make them viable attackers.

Yamato OP06-022 has an efficient ability in general, which allows us to build several different decks for this leader, but we listed one that won a big tournament and showcases his versatility well.

Let's see one of the lists with him:

Kikunojo OP06-104 and O-Nami OP06-101 are still in this deck, considering they are, as said previously, staple cards in any yellow deck. However, thanks to green, we can use Kouzuki Momonosuke OP01-041, which not only searches for her, but also searches for other "Wano" cards that heavily impact the board.

Kouzuki Hiyori OP06-106 can help him control the top of your life pile because it allows you to choose the best trigger for you at that time. We also see popular yellow cards in this deck, such as Charlotte Cracker OP03-108 and Charlotte Linlin ST07-010, which are also efficient in general.

Hody Jones OP06-035 and Roronoa Zoro OP06-118 are the greatest threats in this deck; Hody can steal an unexpected victory for you by tapping two enemy blockers, and, with your leader's second ability, attack in big numbers, and Zoro is an uncontrollable threat who will the game on his own if he sticks to the board.

Yamato is, undoubtedly, one of the strongest decks in this set, but, as he uses many yellow cards, it might be a bit expensive.

Besides the decks that have conquered the most expressive results, we also have those decks that don't show up a lot, but also won several great events and are very satisfying for players who are more experienced! Let's see some of these "Tier 2" or "Tier A" decks that are quite popular!

Perona

Returning to Thriller Bark, Perona OP06-021 has also become a threat who can't be ignored. Its ability makes it almost impossible for us to use cards that cost 4 or less in the meta because Perona can remove them effortlessly.

It is, however, a bit punitive because any wrong decision, as small as it is, can be very costly in the next few turns. This deck brings a long-term strategy, and the player needs a lot of patience to pilot it.

Let's see one of the lists with him:

Unlike other black decks, Rebecca OP05-091 isn't in this list because there's no space for her. However, it has a Marine/Donquixote Family base. Gecko Moria OP06-086 has an essential role to extract as much value out of your blockers and characters like Ryuma OP06-036, which remove cards when they enter and leave the board.

When this deck has ten DON!!, it will lock the enemy board completely with Donquixote Doflamingo OP04-031, which will give you more time and space to play.

This deck's versatility isn't in its lists, but instead in the possible play lines you can do with it. Always keep in mind how many DON!! you have because each decision matters!

Reiju

Now, for fun, Vinsmoke Reiju OP06-042 is one of the most fun leaders in the current set and can still bring you good results!

With its "Germa 66" base, Reiju can play big characters for a much lower cost, and also draws cards in the process. It has a certain versatility as well, considering it deals with opponents while it sets up its strategy.

Let's see one of the lists with him:

Your goal is clear from the very start of the game: play this entire family on the board.

How you'll do this is what will be different each time because your opponent will definitely not just let you build a full board. As a result, we have cards like Charlotte Pudding OP06-047, which will frustrate your opponent's train of thought by entirely changing and limiting their hand, or also Gion OP06-044, to disrupt decks that are more responsive. This deck also has Queen ST04-005, which is one of the best cards in purple to this day, and an excellent Stage, Kingdom of GERMA OP06-079, which will help you fill the trash pile so that Vinsmoke Judge OP06-062 can extract as much value out of it as possible.

This deck isn't at the level of the ones listed above it, but it is definitely a notable deck and demands respect because, as Perona OP06-021, it also rewards players who are more experienced.

Uta

One of the most beloved characters has returned in a much more powerful version in the new precon deck (ST-11). This leader can be aggressive every turn while it refills your hand, which on its own is a very strong trait for aggro decks.

The FILM type already had a strong package of cards that saw play in other decks, but now, with a leader who has a lot of synergy with this strategy, these cards have returned at full force.

Let's see one of the lists with him:

This deck has several "On Play" cards that play other creatures for free, and, like so, rapidly fill the board and overwhelm your opponents.

Nami OP02-036 is still the most important card in this deck because, with Uta, you'll also have card advantage, which will be essential.

We also have the new Roronoa Zoro OP06-118, which we've already mentioned in this article, which makes this deck even more threatening.

Uta ST11-001 is still very new, and players are still exploring lists with him, but it will only become stronger as new sets are released!

Edward Newgate

Whitebeard Pirates remain at the top with their hybrid "Whitebeard Pirates"/"Straw Hat Crew" build, which focuses on using the best these two types can offer, from events to characters. This build is still the most aggressive one, considering it finishes games incredibly fast and doesn't allow your opponents any time to stabilize the game.

Let's see one of the lists with them:

Even though it was a bit overshadowed now that Uta has been released, this entry deck is still excellent because it allows us to replace more expensive cards for others that still work well with this deck's engine.

Roronoa Zoro OP01-025, or “Rush Zoro”, as he is called by the community, is still popular in most red lists, and is still a threat even without being on the board; Monkey.D.Luffy ST01-012, on the other hand, is still considered the best red card because it can finish games very suddenly.

This leader can still be consistent in future sets because, besides having 6000 power, it has various cards that help you be more aggressive and end the game incredibly quickly.

Bandai has already announced that, after the World Championship, which will happen on March 2nd and 3rd, they'll announce a new list of banned and restricted cards. So, the whole meta can change before this set is even released in the West!

It is important to remember that, on May 3rd 2024, Bandai will release a complementary set, "Eternal Bound", or EB01. Later on, in April (the day still hasn't been confirmed), the company will release a new Ultra Deck, "The Three Brothers" or "ST13".

These two will bring new cards that already see play in the East and will probably heavily impact the West, with strong leaders and support cards for already existing strategies, so the meta will very likely change after each of these products is released.

There are still other decks that are bringing unexpected results, such as Nami OP03-040 and Trafalgar Law ST10-001, which are still not as popular as other decks. However, many players believe these decks will be better after the new set reaches the West.

The meta certainly has its favorites, but keep in mind this game doesn't have only a few strong, great leaders. Testing out decks and new strategies and having fun with them will always be the best way to play and enjoy this game!

But what about you, what do you think the OP06 meta will be like? Which deck are you most anxious to play? Do you think any of the leaders above can be the best in the meta? Comment down below!

See you next time!