Ahoy, readers! I’m back for another Monsterpocalypse Monday Insider. In this article, I am going to build on my first two Insiders. To begin, my first Insider was a quick rundown of some Protector and Destroyer force lists you could pick up as a bundle to start playing. In my second Insider, “From the Silver Screen to the Table Top”, I shared my excitement about some of the big kaiju cinematic releases coming this year. In both Insiders, I note how much I enjoy playing Terra Kahn. So, this time, I am proud to debut my first Monsterpocalypse “Theme Deck” Insider.
In each “Theme Deck” Insider, I’ll propose a force or two based on an internal synergy or concept. Each deck will give players a starting point to purchase, grow, and develop as they play more games with it. I will suggest two different forces, one for each Agenda. That way, you and a friend can each pick up a theme deck and play. First up: what I call the “Apex Predators” deck centered around Terrasaurs. Apex Predators allows the player to be aggressive and take the fight to the enemy. Next, I’ll go over the theme deck I call “Galaxy Mind,” which gives players lots of options for deep and complex play.
Terra Khan might be my favorite monster, but he can’t do it alone. His best friend is none other than our favorite sky-faring Terrasaur, Pteradax. The Apex Predators Theme Deck centers around the dynamic combos that Terra Kahn and Pteradax bring to the table.
Apex Predators Theme Deck
Monsters
- Terra Khan
- Pteradax
Units
- Spikodon/Carnidon Blister
- Pteradactix/ Bellower Blister
- Triton Psi-Eel/ Steel Shell Crab Blister
- Draken Berserker/ Courser Blister
Buildings
- Mount Terra
- Industrial Complex
- Bastion Lander
- G.U.A.R.D. Defense Base
- Imperial State Building
- Tokyo Triumph
- Apartment Building x 2
- Downtown Highrise x 2
- Shadow Sun Industries x 2
With this theme deck, the first thing we need to take a look at Terra Khan’s Feeding Frenzy ability.
Feeding Frenzy – When this monster attacks a monster that is adjacent to any Faction unit, this attack does Super Damage.
Being able to engineer attacks that deal Super Damage while in alpha can lead to explosive damage turns. Feeding Frenzy does not specify the type of attack, meaning you can trigger Super Damage on a power attack. The prerequisite to this ability is that it requires the target enemy monster to be adjacent to a Faction unit. There are two hurdles to cross here. First, there are very few ways to position a friendly unit during your Monster Activation. The second hurdle is counterplay. Your opponent gets to take a turn after your unit turn, allowing them to move their monster away from your adjacent unit or return your unit to your reserves before Terra Khan gets to activate. Enter Pteradax. While in alpha, it has an ability called Tow.
Action: Tow – During your Monster Activation, this model can spend one Action Die to perform a Tow action. Choose one allied unit within five spaces of this model and place it adjacent to this model. The placed model cannot advance this turn.
Pteradax is the peanut butter to Terra Khan’s jelly. Tow allows it to pick up a unit during your monster activation and place it adjacent to Pteradax.
In the example above, Pteradax tows a Bellower from a far-off location on the other side of the building, moving the Bellower into position adjacent to Tharsis-5 and achieving the prerequisite of Feeding Frenzy on Terra Khan. Placing the Bellower behind Pteradax makes aligning with it in the squares outlined in red more difficult on the following turn. The Bellower’s position also provides some safety to the two Terrasaurs with its Disruption ability. Disruption helps play a part in Pteradax’s defensive kit. With a high DEF stat of 9 and the ability Side Step on both sides of its card, Pterdax can be a tough monster to pin down. Disruption makes that already high DEF of 9 a little better. If you happen to miss an attack on Pteradax, it can step away with Side Step.
Units play a key role in this theme deck. Terra Khan is the thematic unit general as king of the monsters. In alpha, Terra Khan helps the otherwise slower Terrasaur units get into position faster with the Stampede ability. In hyper, its ability Blood Rage gives an extra Boost Die on Faction units’ Brawl attacks. Terra Khan needs the units as much as they need him. Without them, he can’t trigger Feeding Frenzy.
Pteradax is a great counterbalance to Terra Khan offering little to the units. Instead, the units offer Pteradax various tactical options. Towing in an Elite Cranidon can bring the ability Flank to the fight, which drops an enemy’s DEF by 1 against brawl attacks. As stated above, Pteradax loves to Tow around Bellowers to cover it in their protective Disruption aura. The great thing about Pteradax’s Tow is that it’s not specific to Faction units. Placing Triton Psi-Eel can sneak in a Hazardous unit for extra damage on a power attack. Towing in a Draken Courser next to a blast target can be a great way to make use of Pointer, for instance. These are just a few examples of how this deck can synergize with the suggested units. As you would with any good theme deck, I added in a few units from different Factions to encourage you to branch out. I want to leave you plenty of room for your own unit creativity.
It would not be Monsterpocalypse without buildings to obliterate. I suggest a decent spread of buildings to give the theme deck a good start at a competitive build with lots of room to grow still. Mount Terra gives the force a little extra mobility and makes those Terrasaur units cheaper. I put in an Industrial Complex to further add to the speed boost from Terra Khan’s Stampede ability, and it gives Terra Kahn and Petradax a little bump to their already high SPD. The Bastion Lander helps move units around; this can be another tool in your arsenal to help getting Feeding Frenzy on Terra Khan to work. I also added the G.U.A.R.D. Defense Base—it has an ability called Command & Control that allows you to reroll a missed attack. When the game is on the line and a game-defining attack fails, you’ll be glad to have it. Finally, the Imperial State Building should not be overlooked in this force. Having the ability to swap buildings around can give you access to the buildings you need when you need them. The top six buildings from the force are the ones I would recommend a new player start with; the other six help flesh out the force and give you some more diverse options to try out.
Remember, though, there are two sides to this titanic coin. Thus, this next theme deck is called Galaxy Mind, lovingly so dubbed due to the many intricate ways the force synergizes its contents. When it comes to Destroyers, there is one big brain monster that comes to mind: Mecha-Maxim. Every time I play him, I find new ways to use his abilities. He truly is deserving of the Mastermind ability on his card, and the very first ability on his card, Blitz, is also one of my favorites.
Like Tow on Petradax, Blitz is an enabler ability that allows you to move an allied unit. Moving units into key positions in order to maximize the hazardous ability can be a fun way to set up an opponent for some unexpected damage.
Speaking of unexpected damage, I paired Mecha-Maxim with Tharsis-5. Its ability to repair buildings allows the player control of the battle space in unexpected and creative ways.
Galaxy Mind Theme Deck
Monsters
- Mecha-Maxim
- Tharsis-5
Units
- Harvester/Reaper Blister
- Saucer/Power Pod/ Hunter Blister
- Toxxos/Absorbers Blister
- Carnitron/ Robo Brontox Blister
Buildings
- Statue of Liberty
- Industrial Complex
- Reclamation Facility
- UCI Industries
- G.U.A.R.D. Defense Base
- Imperial State Building
- Power Plant
- Rocket Gantry
- Apartment Building x 2
- Media Company x 2
The first thing we need to look at is Mecha-Maxim’s ability Blitz.
Action: Blitz – During your Unit Activation, this model can spend one Action Die to perform a Blitz action. Advance an allied unit adjacent to this model up to its SPD, even if it has already advanced this turn.
My favorite unit to blitz in are Toxxos. The ability Hazardous can be rather devastating when in the right position. The goal of the game is not to just do 1 damage at a time; it’s to do lots of damage all at once. And one of my favorite combos can be rather sneaky: by combining the Repair ability on Tharsis-5, you can engineer up to 4 damage with a body slam where the opponent thought they were safe.
Before we get into the combo move, let’s talk a little bit about Tharsis-5. It has the ability to return buildings to the table during your monster turn. This allows Tharsis-5 to summon up damage where it needs it to be. If that weren’t enough, Tharsis-5 also has an ability called Nano Construction, which allows its Reapers and Power Pods to repair buildings during your unit activations.
Action: Repair – During your Monster Activation, this model can spend one Action Die while adjacent to a debris tile to perform a Repair action. If the tile is a hazard, flip it to the rubble side. If the tile is rubble and is unoccupied, remove it and return a destroyed building to play on that foundation.
Nano Construction – While this model is in play, allied Faction units without flight gain
Action: Repair.
This might not seem like all that much, But it adds up to one noteworthy combo. First, make sure your units are set up in position a turn ahead. (This requires some forward planning, but the deck isn’t called “Galaxy Mind” for nothing.)
The best part of this play is the big reveal. The first step is to have Mecha-Maxim Blitz the Toxxo to the crash-landing zone outlined in green. Next, Tharsis-5 uses Repair to place a building—in this case a Martian Command Post, outlined in yellow, in place of where the rubble tile was.
The finishing move in this chain of events is a big Body Slam from Tharsis-5. Sneaking a Toxxo and Martin Command Post into the crash-landing zone turned this body slam from a 1-damage power attack into a 4-damage power attack!
The synergy between units and monsters can be the key to game-altering plays. As you can imagine, buildings play an important role in this theme deck as well. The Rocket Gantry can level unsecured buildings, allowing you to change the landscape of the battlefield. When the power of the Rocket Gantry is combined with Tharsis-5, no building is off limits to you.
I could go on forever about the deep synergies and cool tricks of these theme decks. But why spoil all of the fun? Take one of these decks for a spin and let me know what cool synergies you find! I built these two theme decks to be fun and interesting to play together, so once you sink your teeth into them, you’re only a few upgrades away from a great TTS league or Monsterpocalypse Tournament force. Enjoy!
