Photo credit: Geokeeno on DeviantArt

 

There’s no MP in this game which I have more pure fun piloting than Frieza. With a few tweaks to his stack from set 1, Frieza could have easily been relevant in every set of Pan/FanZ.

Building a Frieza Deck

Right now, I believe Frieza is underplayed. He is certainly viable in Black, Blue, and Red. Frieza adds unique flavor to whatever Mastery you pair him with. If you’re very comfortable with Protective or Ruthless, than go with that Mastery first. If you’re interested in building a deck with the Galactic Conqueror himself, I’d pick one of those styles which you already mesh with the most, start with Frieza’s key cards (my opinion below) and have a great time repping the little guy.

Frieza deserves to be in this meta. When I took him to Kenosha, Wisconsin last year during OP2, I truly believed I was taking one of the best decks in the format. Granted, lots of people were completely sleeping on Mischievous Mastery, Combative Mill, and Supreme Kai at the time, but no one saw Frieza coming that day. I surprised my opponents, and while I didn’t go undefeated, I knew I would be able to go toe-to-toe with any deck in attendance.

Key Cards

No Frieza deck is complete without Frieza’s Supernova. While I did go 6-2 with Devious Frieza at a PanZ regional with only 1 nova in deck, that build was uniquely designed for that meta (and should have won the day). That triple threat deck abused pre-nerf Black Command and the passive anger gained from blocks on Levels 1 and 3 to counter the heavy attack Broly, 13, and Cooler builds that were prevalent at the time.

Try beginning your Frieza shells in any Style with the following cards:

3 Frieza’s Supernova

2 Frieza’s Arrogance

1 Overwhelming Power

1 King Cold (ally)

1 Ginyu–Aggressive (ally)

1 Chilled (ally)

1 Overpowering Attack

3 Stare Down

1 Time is a Warrior’s Tool

This just in–NOW WE HAVE A NEW CARD!

While Frieza is not the only beneficiary to this Set 12 card spoiled on this great podcast, he certainly benefits. Black and Red Frieza will certainly take more Endurance and another Named Card. Blue Frieza will also make use of it, particularly with top decking a card for Blue Resolute Mastery to draw. However, my first thought with this was with this little combo:

Frieza has so many Actions during combat. So much so, that a reasonable combat could end like this:

Opponent has 0-1 cards left, his Power has been used, and his board cards have been used. You top deck a Super Nova with Malicious Intent, it hits the discard pile. You draw the Nova with Mr. Announcer, sure, they draw, but with Ginyu ally in play, you can see if that’s a block or not. Throw your Nova and profit.

Frieza can definitely afford to throw 3 of these into his deck. If the card doesn’t provide value to your deck or in a certain match up, then pitch them to the Banished Zone with the Level 1 Power when you advance to your Golden Form.

A Current List

While have already seen that Aliens and Frieza will continue to get support. Here’s a Frieza deck you can use right now (it also includes the spoiled card Malicious Intent).

Black Mischievous Mastery

1 Frieza–Resident of HFIL

2 Frieza–Golden

3 Frieza–Galactic Conqueror

4 Frieza–Revived

Planning Step Cards (15)

3 Malicious Intent

2 Black Searching Technique

1 Villainous Visage

1 Afterimage Technique

1 Black Possessive Drill

1 Deflection Drill

1 Black Absorption Drill

1 Black Smoothness Drill

1 King Cold

1 Mr. Announcer

1 Chilled

1 Ginyu

Attacks (24)

3 Frieza’s Supernova

1 Overpowering Attack

3 Sinister Choke

2 Torturous Volley

2 Energized Strike

3 Black Trick Shot

2 Black Swirl

2 Black Defensive Burst

3 Black Judgement Rush (Named)

2 Black Back Strike

2 Black Capture

Blocks (12)

2 Frieza’s Arrogance

1 Time is a Warrior’s Tool

3 Black Swipe

3 Black Delay

3 On the Move!

Events (9)

2 Overwhelming Power

3 Stare Down

2 Villainous Energy Sphere

2 Black Scout Maneuver

 

Strategy

While I typically prefer the Dragon Ball version, I know many others do not. Here’s a camp 2 Black Frieza list that I believe to be pretty competitive at the moment. With plenty of ways to search the opponent’s Life Deck, Black Frieza can remove problem cards like Vegeta’s Final Flash, Vegeta’s Prideful Challenge, Namekian Right Throw, Time is a Warrior’s Tool, Orange Tank Barrage, Orange Destruction, On the Move!, all manner of energy blocks, Sinister Choke, Tug of War, Unleashed, and so much more. With hand knowledge from Ginyu and Stare Down, we can pinpoint specific combats to deal maximum damage. We should nearly always have stages for Supernova and the other energy attacks herein.

With a hybrid-beats package, we are sure to push damage through in any non-Time combat. I would love to have more anger hate in here, perhaps even ball 2 and Afterimage Technique. So if you use this list and find yourself lined up against an anger deck, use your searches to remove their key anger cards.

Early Game

Typically, you want to be the one to enter the first combat. This ensures that you can get to level 2 and get King Cold out before your opponent’s first action–Unleashed can hurt you early by dropping you to 1. The cards you will usually want to banish to advance are:

2 Frieza’s Arrogance

2 Black Back Strike

3 Black Judgement Rush (Although, you could opt for Overwhelming Powers here if you do not suspect Setups and Drills from your opponent)

From here, you want to establish your board state. Rejuvenate your Arrogances to get King Cold and Ginyu/Chilled (typically). Your opponent will have to be able to handle your high action economy in order to enter against you. Use your mastery wisely to break up their tempo and keep that game at your speed.

Mid-Game

It is highly possible that you are behind or even in the Life Deck race. Don’t worry, you may have plenty of cards on the board, Named Cards to Rejuvenate with Golden, or Named Cards in your discard pile ready to fuel the Nova. Keep track of your opponent’s blocks in their discard pile and banished zone. Strike hard when you can, sit back when you need to.

Late-Game

Monitor your opponent’s win conditions. You may need to use your crits strategically to control the Dragon Balls or keep MPPV off of the table. Are your novas in deck or do they need to be rejuvenated? You can use After Image, Energized Strikes, or rejuvenating Arrogance to keep your deck shuffled. Hand and deck knowledge will be in your favor. Land your Nova and win–not to mention unpreventable damage from Trick Shots and Sinister Chokes.

Farewell

Don’t write off our lord Frieza just yet, or do, and allow the dedicated Frieza loyalists to show you the power of an exploding star.

 

– Tommy