Table of Contents
Heya everyone! The OP10 release for the West is fast approaching, and new leaders and cards are coming to the game! This also means that the Sealed Pre-release event is something to look forward to!
The Release Events will take place between March 14 - 20, 2025. The format is the organizer's choice. It can be the traditional constructed format, a sealed format. The latter is what matters to us for this article.
The Rules
- Players open a set number of booster packs from specified sets and build their decks using only the cards they open.
- Unlike the standard play, you can ignore the normal deck-building color restrictions based on your leader and can include cards of any color in your deck. There are additional special rules for deck building.
- 6 Packs is the suggested number of packs. Each participant should use the same number of packs.
- You may bring your leader (including those from previous sets) to use in the event.
- Bring 10x DON!! cards.
Deck Construction Rules
After opening 6 packs, players build a 40-card deck, and a 10 DON!! card deck. There are no banned or restricted cards, and players can include as many copies of cards with the same card number as they like. (There is no 4-card limit and 5 or more copies of a card with the same card number can be included in decks.) Any cards left over from deck construction are treated as sideboard cards.
Suggested Match Format
Use a Swiss draw format to match players with the closest win rates.
Sideboard
Cards not used in decks are treated as sideboard cards. In between games, players can exchange cards in their deck with cards in their sideboard. Players can exchange as many cards between deck and sideboard as they like, so long as they have a legal number of cards in their deck.
Special Game Rules
In sealed format games, players can ignore deck color requirements based on their leader. For example: If you are playing with the Red starter deck as your leader, you would be restricted to only having red cards in your deck. However, in sealed you can use cards of any color in your deck, even though your leader is only Red.
All other card restrictions still apply as normal, including effects listed on leaders that specify names or colors.
Example 1: With your leader as OP01-060-donquixote-doflamingo, you may search for [The Seven Warlords of the Sea] type of Character cards when triggering his ability.
Example 2: When using the ability of OP01-067-crocodile "Blue Event cards in your hand cost 1 less to play" would only apply to Blue Event cards - This would not apply to Event cards of other colors.
Prizes
Participation
P-084 Buggy
P-086 Trafalgar Law
OP-10 Pre-Release Pack
- 2 cards per pack
- 75 types in total
- *Release Gold Stamped cards are from ROYAL BLOOD [OP-10] Common and Uncommon cards.
Winner
P-084 Buggy (Silver Foil + Gold Stamp)
Players Application Period
February 28, 2025 onwards Apply here!
Leaders
When choosing a leader, we want to pick one that isn't restricted to specific deck building or types of cards. Our Leader has to have skills that we can find use of regardless of how our deck shapes up. Since players can bring their own Leader with them to the event, we're not tied to the randomness of the packs and OP10 Leaders.
PRB01-001-sanji's effect only works on 8-cost or less Characters with no On Play effect, allowing you to give them the Rush keyword on the turn they're played. This lets you find immediate value from your Characters, putting pressure on the opponents, and forcing them to use up Counter cards. Since Vanilla Characters are extremely good in the prerelease Event and we'll usually add as many as we can in the deck, PRB01-001-sanji's effect will find value with those cards, making sure your Vanilla Characters are a force to be reckoned with.
A defensive Leader to slow down opponent's aggression who found success in OP07's pre-release. OP07-019-jewelry-bonney is great for stalling out the game by resting one of the opponent's attackers. This does require you to bank 1 Don for the defensive turn, and unlike OP07, OP07-019-jewelry-bonney doesn't have the support cards she had, so she'll probably be worse.
OP06-022-yamato is one of the best choices for the Double Attack. You can set up aggressive attacks regardless of your deck, basically, your Leader will be solo carrying here. Blockers could hinder your game plan, shutting down those Double Attacks if you don't have a removal card. It can be tough beating 5 health Leaders though, as many players will be favoring those Leaders.
OP06-022-yamato also gives 2 Rested Don to one of your characters, maximizing the aggressiveness of the Leader.
On his own, OP07-001-monkeyddragon has a solid effect, letting you move attached Don to another Character, maximizing your aggression.
Another strong Leader in this format is ST02-001-eustasscaptainkid, capable of attacking more than once. We do have to use 3 Don to activate his effect, so it's more tailored for the late game, allowing us to pick off rested characters, force counter cards, or adopt an aggressive plan and attack opponent's Leader.
OP03-099-charlotte-katakuri's +1000 Power when you attach a Don on him is crazy good for powerful attacks that could force 2 Counter cards from opponent. Getting to look at the top Life Card gives you crucial information. Usually, we're more used to looking at our own Life Cards to find a Trigger card. However, we might not have access to many Trigger cards in this format, so we might opt to look at the opponent's Life Cards and put it at the bottom if it's of any use to them in their upcoming turn.
The wider the board, the more pressure OP01-001-roronoa-zoro imposes. 1 Don on OP01-001-roronoa-zoro will give all Characters +1,000 regardless of their color, threatening aggressive turns.
ST03-001-crocodile is a popular choice in this format since he's able to slow down opponent's pace by returning a 5-cost or less to their hand. To activate his effect, we'll have to -4 Don, so we have to be wary when to activate it. This also means we have to be on the lookout for any cards that benefit from having less Don than opponent.
OP09-001-shanks is great for the prerelease Event since his defensive effect isn't tied to specific cards. Once per turn, you can give one of the opponent's Characters -1,000 Power when they attack. This is basically a free +1,000 Counter every turn, helping you protect your Leader or rested Characters. Keeping a rested Character in play goes a long way in these events, so OP09-001-shanks's defensive effect is a consideration to bring.
Rainbow Luffy can be a powerful Leader in this format, especially with Characters like OP10-095-roronoa-zoro that can activate their effects even though they're tied to a specific Leader type. OP10-021-punk-hazard is a consideration to play with Rainbow Luffy for the extra Don you can attach to your Leader or Characters every turn.
OP10 Leaders
OP10 doesn't have new leaders worth playing for this event. We want a leader who can shine regardless of the cards in your deck, and unfortunately, the new leaders don't offer that.
OP10-001-smoker is probably your best pick out of the OP10 Leaders, giving you 2 extra Active Don if you have a 7,000 Power Character in play. Those 2 Dons will be useful for developing more on the field or going for more aggressive attacks.
OP10-099-eustasscaptainkid works with {Supernovas} type Characters, so picking him as your Leader will depend on the cards you pull. At the end of your turn, you can set up 1 {Supernovas} type Character as Active and give it blocker, especially good with cards like OP10-105-cavendish, OP10-119-trafalgar-law, and OP10-112-eustasscaptainkid to turn them into blockers and still use them offensively.
Vanillas
Vanilla cards are great for this format, they're not reliant on specific synergies and have high power for their cost, capable of presenting a threat. All of these cards are common, so you'll easily find a bunch of them to add to the list. When adding Vanillas, keep the deck curve in mind, we want to have something to play on Don 4+.
OP10-054-blue-gilly and OP10-073-buffalo are your low cost Vanilla Characters which create offensive pressure when played on turn 2. We have a bunch of 5-cost and 6-cost Characters to add to the list, so you're guaranteed a strong mid-game.
Remember that all of these Vanilla Characters have a +1,000 Power Counter so they won't end up dead cards in your hand.
Vanilla Stats
These are Characters with vanilla stats, but they lose the +1,000 Counter for their effects. Some of these effects will be completely useless, but you could still run them for the statline.
3-cost and 5-cost "Vanilla" cards are popular in this set, so you will prefer to go first in this format if you have many of them in the deck.
Blockers
Blockers are extremely good in this format for protecting your Leader or key rested Characters. Unlike the normal format, most decks won't have consistent methods to KO your blockers through effects, so they'll be forced to wait until you decide to sacrifice it. We have many low-cost blockers, which we can include to the list to chump block an attack and keep your key Characters safe.
OP10-011-tony-tonychopper is the best addition to your list, having +2,000 Counter and gains +2,000 Power during your opponent's turn, becoming a 6,000 Power blocker.
OP10-055-marco's On KO effect is a must inclusion in the list, removing a 4-cost Character from your opponent's field without having to attack into it.
Control Characters
We don't have access to many Characters with an effect to control the field, so we're on the lookout for OP10-100-inazuma or OP10-046-kyros.
When attacking, OP10-100-inazuma can rest an opponent's Character with a cost equal or less to the total of your and your opponent's Life cards. We're resting an opponent's Active Character, which allows us to attack it, threatening to KO it. We're not guaranteed our attacks will KO it, but we can at least bleed our opponent from Counter resources if they try to protect it.
OP10-046-kyros has 9,000 Power, a huge plus for a 7-cost Character with a strong effect. When played, you can return a 5-cost Character to the opponent's hand, shifting the field presence in your favor.
Power Reducers
You're setting up for a strong future turn if you have OP10-016-monet in play early into the game. By resting her, you gain 2 Active Don and you give an opponent's Character -1,000 Power, making it vulnerable to your attackers and forcing more Counter resources from the opponent.
Card Value
Cards that give you a resource advantage over your opponent are always great for this format.
OP10-025-enel, OP10-072-donquixote-rosinante, and OP10-045-cavendish are adding more cards to your hand, helping you find the cards your need for the later turns or giving the Counter resources to defend against your opponent's upcoming turn. OP10-045-cavendish can reactivate his effect when he attacks, so if your opponent fails to remove him, you're getting a card draw another time, increasing the resource gap between you and your opponent.
OP10-109-basil-hawkins and OP10-118-monkeydluffy offer value but in a different way. Instead of adding cards to your hand, they're removing cards from the opponent's side, lowering their resources. On KO, OP10-109-basil-hawkins will trash 1 card from the opponent's Life area, that's one less attack you need to go through on their Leader and a Life card they won't be adding to their hand.
As for OP10-118-monkeydluffy, he's tough to remove through an effect, so your opponent will rely on attacks to KO him. When attacking, if your opponent has 5 cards or more in their hand, OP10-118-monkeydluffy will force them to trash one, cutting down on their hand resources.
Carry Characters
These Characters are extremely difficult to find, but if you're lucky enough to get them in your packs, then you want to add them to your deck!
OP10-030-smoker has the Banish keyword, which means we want to attack the opponent's Leader with him, forcing them to Counter the attack or have one of their Life cards trashed. Additionally, OP10-030-smoker gives you 1 Active Don each turn, that Don can be used to add more Power to your attacks and make it harder for the opponent to Counter it.
On Play, you can rest OP10-112-eustasscaptainkid to trash the opponent's top Life card, doing them on Life cards and making sure they don't add it to their hand. He also remains on the field as a 9,000 Power Character, so even when rested, your opponent will struggle to KO it through attacks.
If your opponent is at 2 Life cards or less, OP10-112-eustasscaptainkid lets you draw a card and trash a card from your hand, filtering your hand for better cards.
OP10-119-trafalgar-law is a situational card and you'll need to have a couple of {Supernovas} type Characters in your deck to make him useful. Through his effect, you can place 1 {Supernovas} type Character from your hand to your Life area, adding an extra defensive layer for your opponent to go through. OP10-119-trafalgar-law is also a 7-cost 9,000 Power Character, so you're developing a high Power attacker that can be difficult for the opponent to deal with.
+2,000 Counters
We want to run as many +2000 Counter as we can, ideally, 6 to 8 cards to protect Leader or key characters. It doesn't matter too much which cards we add since they're serving as Counters only.
However, certain +2000 Counters can find use outside of just counters.
We've talked about OP10-011-tony-tonychopper, a Character that can be played for the Blocker keyword and +2,000 Power he gains during defensive turns.
OP10-049-sabo can protect a Character from getting removed, but you will have to return OP10-049-sabo to your hand to keep a Character with 7-cost less from being removed, which isn't the worst since you can use him as a +2,000 Counter.
OP10-114-xdrake can rest a 4-cost or less Character if you have equal or less Life cards than your opponent. You can shift your attacks to KO that Character, or rest a blocker so your attacks aren't interrupted.
Events
We don't have to include Events for our deck to perform well, but running two or three events could still come in handy.
Removal Events
Removal events help you maintain control of the field and lower opponent's aggression. This set has a lot of control events we can add to the list, helping us remove win conditions and making it harder for the opponent to win the field presence. However, of these events can KO a 5-cost or less Character, so if your opponent has a 6-cost or more in play, they won't be much of use.
OP10-019-divine-departure is a versatile event, it can be used to Counter an attack with the +3,000 Power boost or to KO a 5-cost or less Character. However, you have to return 5 Don to activate the KO effect, so it will slow you down on the upcoming turn.
OP10-079-god-thread can KO a 5-cost Character and ramp you for 1 Don, letting you play a higher cost Character on your upcoming turn.
OP10-098-liberation is a strong control event if you're behind on the field, allowing you to KO a 6-cost or less and a 4-cost or less Characters to slow your opponent down.
Counter Events
Counter events to give your Leader or a rested Character a Power boost to block an attack and keep them in play. Managing to win the field and have multiple attackers lined up to pressure the opponent is how we win these events, since opponents might not have a way to deal with your Characters outside of strictly attacking into them.
Other Considerations
Key Characters
OP10-005-sanji and OP10-038-roronoa-zoro are strong early attackers. OP10-005-sanji with his 6,000 Power during your turn can KO a rested Character, but will be tough to protect. However, when KO'd, card]OP10-005-sanji[/card] will draw a card.
The ability to gain rush on OP10-038-roronoa-zoro can be valuable depending on the state of the game, having an extra 5,000 Power attacker for 3 Don.
OP10-086-shiryu gains +2,000 Power once per turn, turning him into a 7,000 Power Character, an immediate inclusion to your list. We'll ignore the second part of his effect unless we're playing OP09-081-marshalldteach or Rainbow Luffy.
OP10-085-jesus-burgess is a Rush attacker, offering offensive pressure on the turn he's played. However, you'll have to attach a Don and have 8 or more cards in your trash to activate his Rush keyword. It will take a while to get 8 cards in your trash, so you'll likely only activate this effect in the late game.
Special Cards
These are all special cards from past sets that you could find in your packs. All of these characters are generally good, and you can add them to your list if you're lucky enough to pull one.
If you're playing Bonney and pull OP07-021-urouge-463, you're making life easier to activate your defensive effect and rest an opponent's Character. OP07-021-urouge-463 will also be useful with other Leaders, as he makes it easier for you to play a Counter event without slowing down your development.
You can rest ST15-002-edwardnewgate-672 to KO a 5,000 Power Character, a great effect on the turn he's played.
How to build the deck
We want to ensure we have a curve going for us. So after we've added our blockers, Vanillas, +2000 Counters, and late-game win conditions, we need to take a look at the deck and make sure we can develop on the board every turn after turn 1. We don't want to end up with a bunch of unplayable cards in hand and be forced into an awkward turn that puts us behind.
Depending on your deck, you'll decide whether you'd rather go first or second. For example, if we have a lot of Vanilla cards (especially 4-costs and 6-costs) then we want to go second to play them immediately. However, if we have many 5-cost Characters and 7-cost Vanilla cards, then going first would make more sense. For this set, we'll favor first, since most of the vanilla cards cost 5 and we have plenty of 3-cost Characters with 5,000 Power to add to the list.
Keep cards with no Counter to a minimum. If we run too many of them, we might end up struggling to Counter certain attacks and quickly drop low on Life cards.
Practice
You can use a pack-opening simulator here.
Closing Words
Pre-release sealed event is a fun way to play One Piece and the prizes usually have good value behind them! Make sure to learn the cards before going to the event, it'll help you build your deck and play optimally!
This is it from me, I wish the best for your event, good luck! If you want to keep up with my content, consider following me on Twitter or BlueSky.
