After weeks of waiting it’s finally here: the first Shonen Jump Championship of the new format!

Tactical Evolution is in, while Ring of Destruction, Snatch Steal, and more are out thanks to the new Advanced environment. If recent Regional results are any indicator, Apprentice Monarch will be the most popular deck here today, thanks to the return of Magician of Faith and the new Crystal Seer. But beneath the surface lie dozens of major archetypes waiting to make breakthrough appearances, or prove their viability in the face of naysayers.

While many believe Destiny Heroes to be dead, a select few duelists are here today to prove that they’re more alive than ever. Competitors like Jeff Jones and Jon Labounty have brought several dramatic innovations to the Perfect Circle strategy, and with several Yu-Gi-Oh! ETC teammates piloting the same deck it seems as if Destiny Heroes may be headed for Day 2 yet again.

Zombies made a big impression last week when Lazaro Bellido turned the tempting possibilities offered by Zombie Master and Il Blud into the reality of a Regional win in Toronto. The deck was quickly posted by the PTO staff for that event, and has been making waves in online communities in the days since. Now, multiple SJC Top 8 alumni are running variants on the Zombie Card of Safe Return strategy. Can Zombies live up to the hype and make it to the Top 16?!

Six Samurai is another deck that seems to be popular this morning and, like Perfect Circle, inventive duelists are applying their own unique style to previous builds in order to stay one step ahead of the opposition. Team Nexus’ Jason Zigander has a build that I’ll be keeping a close eye on all day, a design that breaks new ground for the proven Warrior strategy.

Head Judge John Williams is receiving a tumult of rulings questions about Crystal Beasts this morning, so we may see a strong representation from Jesse Anderson’s signature monsters. Dimensional Fissure seems like a good fit for the emerging metagame this morning, and duelists have certainly not ignored the burn success Kenny So found at SJC Indianapolis just last month. Plus, at least one competitor here today who made Day 2 with Diamond Dude Turbo last format is aiming to do it again. While Apprentice Monarch may be the deck to beat, there are a ton of factors lurking just out of the spotlight of this format, and today’s field is volatile and unpredictable.