Alien Battles will be releasing this week and the majority of OP (Organized Play) Kit tournaments have already been run, but before the second wave of OP Kits arrives at our local game store, I'd like to give you my review on the first OP Kit.

In my total experience playing in VS 2PCG competitive level play, it has only been with two OP Kit tournaments. Both were held at different Cool Stuff Games locations in Orlando, Florida. Our local community for the game is small, so we had 5 participants at the first tournament and 4 in the second. I luckily managed to earn all of the contents from the kit.

My initial impression on the OP Kit was a mixed bag. The playmat looked good, foil versions of two supporting characters was nice, and the extended art acetate Star Lord MC was a cool idea, but my only concern was the product's quality. The promotional picture on ICv2 really showed how nice Star Lord looked, but sometimes advertisements can be misleading. So my hopes weren't up.

When the store manager handed out the prizes, the Star Lord exceeded my expectations. The edges on the plastic material were cut very smoothly and the weight isn't heavy. I especially like the artwork being inside the plastic rather than outside. This will ensure no wear and tear other than scratches on the plastic. It's also really cool the artwork is in multiple layers giving it a 3D look. I can't think of anything that would make this better. All in all, I am excited to see the next extended art acetate promo card even if it is Winter Soldier.

Grade: A+

At first, the Dr. Strange playmat looked okay but after seeing PauperTim using it, my opinions have changed. I don't think Ultra Pro produced this as I don't see their logo, however, the thickness and quality is practically identical to most of their playmat. It is unfortunate the KO Pile is above the Deck Pile as the standard tends to be the other way around. Using the same art as the Dr. Strange MC card was a good choice. The only gripe I have is Dr. Strange is aligned more towards the right leaving some negative space on the left. Fortunately, Upper Deck has "Dr. Strange" written down at a 90 degree angle filling the void. Even with some minor flaws the playmat is still quite attractive and should get the attention of any Marvel fan.

Grade: B+

The extended art foil Thanos SC and Loki SC both have the same foiling. I believe this is the first fully coated foiling we've seen on VS 2PCG cards. Like standard foiling for Magic: The Gathering cards, these foils have an overcoat that adds a uniqueness to each card. Thanos has some areas in its art that shines more and the same with Loki. The foiling is unfortunately a little dark, but it isn't as bad as the foils in the original VS System TCG. You can still see the art even when sleeved. I hope they continue this foiling process.

Grade: B

Overall, the OP Kit was a success. All of my critiques are very minor. My goal with this review is for you to know more of what to expect when receiving your OP Kit prizes. If you disagree with my assessment, please leave a comment as I want to know your opinion. Of course, I can't end this article without giving you my deck list from both tournaments!

OP Kit Tournament at Cool Stuff Games (Maitland) in Maitland, FL

Thanos

Deck Archetype: Standard Thanos
Deck Author: Richard Castle

Main Characters

• Thanos (MC Level 1) [BANNED]
• Thanos (MC Level 2) [BANNED]

Supporting Characters (29)

• 4 Cosmo [BANNED]
• 3 Yondu
• 4 Mantis
• 4 Green Goblin
• 4 Goblin Queen
• 4 Satana
• 3 Iron Man
• 3 Adam Warlock

Plot Twists (4)

• 4 Femme Fatality

Locations (27)

• 4 Academy
• 4 Fortress
• 3 Knowhere
• 4 Laboratory
• 4 Madripoor
• 4 The Vault
• 4 Training Ground

OP Kit Tournament at Cool Stuff Games (Waterford Lakes) in Orlando, FL

Cosmo Cage

Deck Archetype: Luke Cage - A-Force
Deck Author: Richard Castle

Main Characters

• Luke Cage (MC Level 1)
• Luke Cage (MC Level 2)

Supporting Characters (32)

• 4 Cosmo [BANNED]
• 4 Wasp
• 1 Iron Fist
• 4 Singularity
• 4 She-Hulk
• 4 Miss America
• 2 Punisher
• 2 Iron Man
• 3 Loki
• 4 Ghost Rider

Plot Twists (10)

• 2 Hidden Weapons
• 4 Super Senses
• 4 You Won't Like Her When She's Angry

Locations (18)

• 4 Academy
• 2 Arcadia
• 4 Fortress
• 4 Sanctum Sanctorum
• 4 Training Ground

The Thanos build was based off a list shared by David Leader on Facebook in the VS 2PCG Collective group.

Nothing special about the Thanos build, but Luke Cage is quite different. Because PauperTim liked playing Supporting Characters with Appear Triggers, it inspired me to test them in Luke Cage. I was impressed by Wasp, Iron Man, and Ghost Rider the most. So I put 10 of them to go with my 4 copies of Singularity. Another character that works incredibly well with Singularity is Cosmo. Since Singularity says "you may choose any number of face up characters on your side to leave play," Cosmo can either stay and keep his target locked, or go and switch to a new target. The 4 plot twists of You Won't Like Her When She Is Angry is pretty obvious when you are playing a total of 19 A-Force characters. Super Senses is great to keep your supporting characters alive, or Luke if he doesn't have a resource to activate his Impervious Skin ability. And the 2 Hidden Weapons are great for both offense and defense. The 18 Locations seems to be the right amount as my deck isn't heavily dependant on using them to win the game.

Thanks for reading my review and checking out the decks I played. If you are interested in the Luke Cage build, let us know by leaving a comment and we might write an article about it soon!