So after buying two core boxes (isn't everyone?), I decided that I probably shouldn't gleen decks from other players.

I've really only played games with other newbs so it's not like I know what's down for competitive play. However, I am a competitive CCG player, so I figure I would give it a try:

First off Light Side

On the LS, I wanted to make a deck that took advantage of the stupid broken cards that weren't Princess Leia. Yes, I understand there's a lot of stupid good stuff to do with her, but I wanted to see if I could focus on the not so stupid. So I basically focused on the main Jedi, Luke, Obi-Wan and Yoda. All 3 come in different objective sets so I'd have to include at least one of each. It just so happens that Obi-Wan's set (Forgotten Heroes) also happens to draw you an extra card when you throw one of those force users into play. Unfortunately, Luke and Obi-Wan both cost 4 or more, which means you won't get much card draw on a turn. So perhaps to maximize, I wanted to stick in other Force Users. The only one I could really find in the collation of Jedi was the Jedi in Hiding. Only costs 2, and that's 2 for 2 Unit Strikes. Very nice. Plus it's possible that I could put into play 2 at a time, that's 2 cards I could draw out of it. And those trixy edge battles need cards. To collaborate all this together, I wanted to maximize the output on card draw AND synergy (again, staying away from Leia and her silly Rebel Alliance). Throw in some Yodas, and some high force count Objectives, and more Jedi in Hiding (off of Jedi Training) and viola, I haz decklist.

So here it is:

Jedi Faction
2x Jedi Training
2x Forgotten Heroes (Obi-Wan, hiForce)
2x Last Minute Rescue (jedi recursion, extremehiForce)
2x A Hero's Journey (Luke)
2x In You Must Go (Yoda, hiForce)

That said, I am looking to revamp this to somehow include a Corporate Exploitation (swarm is good since unopposed gives you a free objective dmg) and somehow also fit in Reconnaisance Mission (meta cards and +1 refresh).

On the Dark Side I already had a plan: I wanted to make a trooper deck. And since the DS already has a nice selection of Storm Troopers, I can throw in the Trooper buff card, some Espa Troopers and call it a day.

So here's the DS Trooper deck:

Imperial Navy Faction
2x The Ultimate Power (wait.. a card that blows up Objectives! Elite Stormtroopers? Grand Moff Tarkin?? WEEEEEEEE)
2x Take Them Prisoner (I need the trooper buff, Trooper Assault, in this deck, and it comes with Death Star Troopers… WIN!)
2x Imperial Command (Duty Officer is awesome, as is Admiral Motti, and Heavy Stormtrooper Squads.. SQUEEEE)
2x Death and Despayre (this was mostly filler, but added Devastator, more money, added life for objective, and had a cool name)
1x Corporate Exploitation (DUH!)
1x Reconnaisance Mission (I wanted meta cards)

That said, I could replace Death and Despayre with some of the Neutral stuff, like Ewoks or the Droid one.. I just want to try it out like this first. (and the Devastator is one bad MUTHA).

Comments, alterations, and posting your own decklists ARE WELCOME!

Winner said:

I built the same deck last night but instead of Death and Despayre I used Defense Protocol, cheaper units and two copies of Twist of Fate. Devastator is just too expensive for this deck I think.

Also Ewoks are LS only, not DS.

You can't use Reconnaissance Mission and/or Corporate Exploitation in a Light Side Deck - they're Dark Side neutrals.

Similarly, you can't use Tribal Support in Dark Side Deck - it's a Light Side set.

I would add Secret of Yavin 4 - Protect Character skill will help your big guys.

What are you talking about with LS and DS neutrals…they have no affiliation and are not subject to any compliance with LS or DS decks. There is no such thing as LS or DS neutrality. They only came packaged with LS/DS side cards as a matter of theme, but they are not restricted in any way to exclusively align with either side…Ewoks can most certainly use their powers to help the DS deck unrestricted…I'd call them traitors to the Alliance, but nothing says they can't be used to further the Imperial machine…

Sorry, I retract my statement above…I failed to remember to look at the backs of my cards…blast those limited edition Star Wars card sleeves covering up the alignments of my cards!!!

Let me spell out all the rules listed in the Core Set "Rules of Play".

Page 6:
COMPONENT OVERVIEW
The following is a visual guide to the components found in the Star Wars: The Card Game Core Set:

(preceded by picture of Blue card backs) Light side cards represent the various units, events, enhancements, and objectives that are used by the light side of the Force.

(followed by picture of Red card backs) Dark side cards represent the various units, events, enhancements, and objectives that are used by the dark side of the Force.

Page 7:
AFFILIATIONS
[..]
Each of these affiliations is identified in Star Wars: The Card Game by the following icons:
(icon) Rebel Alliance (LS)
(icon) Smugglers and Spies (LS)
(icon) Jedi (LS)
(icon) Imperial Navy (DS)
(icon) Scum and Villainy (DS)
(icon) Sith (DS)

Some cards have no affiliation and are considered NEUTRAL . <=================== !!!

Page 28:
DECK CUSTOMIZING RULES
When a player builds his own custom deck for Star Wars: The Card Game, he must first choose an affiliation card as the foundation for his deck. After doing so, he chooses at least 10 eligible objective sets to form his deck.

Note : The pre-assembled decks in the Core Set each include only eight objective sets. When building a deck for competitive play, it must contain at least 10 objective sets.

A deck must be built for either LS or DS play. A player cannot use an affiliation card, or include objective sets in his deck, belonging to an affiliation dedicated to the other side of the Force (see "Affiliations" on page 7).

______________________________________________

My point is, the overview is trying to help new players divide cards up, but the "Deck Customizing Rules" say to refer to "Affiliations" and NOT "Component Overview" for LS / DS distinctions. And as it says on Page 7, some cards have no affiliation and are considered Neutral. Neutral cards do not match LS or DS, so could be played on either side. Unless I missed some other document somewhere else, according to what the Rulebook says, Neutral is distinguished. If they wanted you to look at the back of the cards, they would've asked you to do so, but they didn't (and that's a much easier way of teaching new players how to differentiate). In light of this, I'd assume that tournament play would require opaque sleeves so you can't distinguish between the different cards in the Command deck.

Yes you are wrong. The cards must be either LS or DS, you cannot mix them in a deck. You quoted parts of page 28 but missed the relevant ones.

Page 28 says

Example: An LS deck may contain only objective sets
from the Jedi, Smugglers and Spies, and Rebel
Alliance affiliations, as well as light side neutral objective
sets (i.e. objective sets that belong to no affiliation but
feature the light side card back).

and

Note that objective sets must still belong t o the side of the
Force (LS or DS) that matches a player’s affiliation card.

The Jedi deck in the OP is identical to the one I run. It's pretty beast, especially if you get Yoda in play and drop a couple of enhancements on him.

I'm considering swapping out Jedi Training for The Secret of Yavin 4. 4x Guardian of the Peace, 2x Lightsaber Deflection, and 2x C-3PO is pretty insane for protecting characters, but it really hurts to lose It Binds All Things, Ancient Monument, and half my Jedi Mind Tricks.

Actually, I might drop 1x Jedi Training and 1x Last Minute Rescue for 2x TSoY4, so I can keep one ofs for both those sets and still get the Guardians and whatnot.

Toqtamish said:

I agree with the gist. Only blue-backed cards can go into a LS deck.

However, I still debate that the book has it poorly stated (and in this case only in the example on pg 28).

Yes, I'm saying that speaking legitimate rules by way of using examples is not the proper way to write rules.
And yet, the only clear presentation of such is on the page 28 example. Not on page 7 where the official AFFILIATIONS are posted.

And FYI, the Note does NOT clarify nor further your argument in any sense of the statement. The note specifically refers to affiliation, and affiliation is posted on Page 7. Remember this isn't telepathy the game, this is a rule book where things should be clearly defined. And your Affiliation of a Neutral card doesn't have an affiliation (again, refer to page 7).

Xenu's Paradox said:

After playing some matches tonight, I disliked the efficiency of the Jedi deck. It was great fun getting out Yoda with several attachments, but he's a glass cannon, and he's only 1 unit. He can't defend or attack more than 1 objective at a time. This was an issue for me since I was playing against my own swarm Soldier Imperial Navy Deck. It was quite annoying. The only time that the Jedi deck won was when it got out several of the 1 cost Force Sensitive, and was able to unopposed do damage and lock down my key units.

If the deck had more money production built in (and somewhat cheaper units) it could definitely contend objectives better with a more efficient money chain. For that effort, I'm thinking of tossing maybe the more expensive command cards objective for perhaps one that provides cheaper more fluid money.

Don't get me wrong, it's fun to play, I'm just saying from the perspective of making something that can compete with the Imperial Navy.

I guess I might have to throw in Leia after all. This would cause me to change a good portion of the deck but it might help speed up the effectiveness.
It also seems to me that the cost between a 2 cost and 3 cost is staggering. 2 cost allows for possibly 2 units into play on one turn in a typical money layout (1 Affiliation + 3 Objective = 4 resources you could rely on). But instead if you have a 3 cost card, you can only put one into play unless you have 6 resources! That's a lot! Same goes for anything 4 or 5 or 6. The amount of resources and relying on you being able to pay for those cards is many times a gamble unless you really build around it. That said, Luke is an amazing buy for 4. But when looking at any other card, if it's not stellar I'm not sure I would consider it if it costs more than 2.

Does that sounds correct?

I cannot believe this is actually being debated.

All cards are either DS or LS as illustrated by the card backs. Of course you cannot mix them as otherwise it would be pretty obvious of what some of the cards are when shuffling your deck.

The note that says: light side neutral objective
sets (i.e. objective sets that belong to no affiliation but
feature the light side card back ) .

Makes it pretty clear that neutral cards have a side of the force still.

objective sets must still belong to the side of the
Force (LS or DS) that matches your affiliation card. It says SIDE OF THE FORCE, so again LS or DS depending on the affiliation card you are using. Your affiliation card also has the appropriate back for which side of the force it belongs to.

A deck must be built for either LS or DS play again from the rules on page 28.

Of course the rules for deck building are on page 28 as that is the section called Custom Decks not on page 7. Page 7 merely outlines the different affiliations.

Also, each objective set even the ones associated with an objective that has an affiliation contains neutral cards in those objective sets. But they are still LS or DS.

The rules are very clear on this and you are the only person I have seen/heard/read who thinks there is any kind of room for debate on this.

This thread seems to be titled quite appropriately.

While the neutral objectives have no real text stating a difference between LS and DS in a manner similar to Warhammer:Invasion, the different colored card backs should dissipate any confusion. I'll hazard a guess and say that even most players with color impaired vision should be able to detect a difference.

It's all right. We all make mistakes. Knowing is half the battle.

Winner said:

I haven't noticed much in the way of resource production issues. Certainly 2x A Hero's Journey and 2x In You Must Go provide 4 1-for-1 resource enhancements, plus the objectives themselves provide 2 resources (AHJ) and enhancement cost reduction (IYMG). 1- and 2-cost units are generally more efficient ways to spend your resources than 4- and especially 5-cost units, but between Believers, Jedi in Hiding, Loyalists, and the incredible Guardian of the Peace, you shouldn't be hurting for cheap characters.

Yoda is quite a glass cannon, which is why Guardians are so useful that I did, in fact, drop 1 copy of both Jedi Training and Last-Minute Rescue to run 4 of them. Remember, too, that you've got Counter-Stroke and C-3PO to protect him from events, and Lightsaber Deflection is useful against both direct damage and strikes. Finally, never underestimate the utility of Tactics icons, which Yoda, Obi-Wan, and Loyalists all provide. You can send in Obi-Wan and/or Loyalists, focus down his dangerous units, and then send Yoda in to attack a different objective after the threats have been neutralized. Winning Edge is something you should always, always, ALWAYS strive for, and it lets Yoda focus down any units that manage to get into an engagement with him. Finally, remember that Yoda's a finisher. Don't be afraid to throw away a copy to win Edge early in the game. You can always use Return of the Jedi or pull another copy of him later on, when you're ready to take down that last objective in one swift stroke.