Having Pro Circuit Amsterdam as the sole template upon which to model itself, I expected the local metagame to take after the Top 8 from PC Amsterdam. I was pleasantly surprised to find I was wrong.

 

Here's the breakdown.

 

Asmodeus Lock              x 03

Crime Lords                   x 03

Crime Lords Underworld   x 17

Concealed                    x 07

Honor Among Thieves     x 23

Mattie Franklin              x 02

The Army Deck             x 01

MK Sinister Syndicate    x 04

MK Friends                   x 06

MK Underworld             x 16

MK Beats / Hounds        x 05

MK CL                         x 06

MK Splash                    x 07

New Blood                    x 01

Underworld                   x 04

Sinister Syndicate          x 03

Spider-Friends               x 11

Wild Pack                     x 09

X-Statix                       x 21

Unclassified                   x 04

 

Granted, Honor Among Thieves has garnered a large following here. While many of those players who chose not to play Honor Among Thieves went with a rush version of Marvel Knights, the sheer diversity of the metagame was still overwhelming.

 

What I truly did not expect is the popularity of X-Statix. Given the hype over the deck in the period leading up to PC Amsterdam and its subsequent disappointing showing, I expected its popularity to be on the wane. However, it showed up in force today, having the largest number of converts after Honor Among Thieves. Indeed, many of the players I spoke with believe X-Statix to be one of the strongest decks in the format, even those who aren't playing the deck today.

 

It's interesting to note the Marvel Knights decks that splash multiple affiliations in order to incorporate the powerhouse cards from other team affiliations that have weaker support cards. One of the favorite affiliations for these players is X-Men, as it adds Bamf! and Heroic Sacrifice. Players are also naming Brotherhood with Midnight Sons for Insignificant Threat, and Underworld to access Blade, The Daywalker.

 

Among the more rogue decks, there's an interesting New Blood build that shows some potential. Apparently it tries to abuse the interactions between Blade, The Daywalker, Deacon Frost and numerous copies of New Blood.

 

With the boundless creativity and innovative spirit of these players, one wonders if they might uncover a breakthrough today that would forever change the game as we know it.