Blackwing Decks have been a popular choice for Duelists ever since we first saw Crow’s signature cards in Crimson Crisis and Raging Battle. The Deck is still very popular right now, and if you’re planning on attending the 75th SHONEN JUMP Championship in Edison, New Jersey, you’re bound to face off against a Blackwing Deck or 2 over the course of the weekend. Today we’re going to take a look at what Duelists are doing with their Blackwing Decks right now, and some of the new cards that are influencing Blackwing Duelists.

           The big combos in Blackwing Decks haven’t changed since they’re still very powerful today.

A lot has changed since we last looked at how Blackwing Decks work a few months ago. The biggest change is that we use a new Forbidden & Limited Cards List now. While certain Decks like Lightsworn and Zombies saw many of their best cards get Limited, the only major changes to Blackwing Decks are that you’re limited to 2 copies of Black Whirlwind and 1 Allure of Darkness now. That means that Blackwings are still as strong as they were previously, and there is now some space in the Deck to try out new cards and strategies

Most Blackwing Duelists are using their Decks the same way they did before, since the strategies used before are still strong right now. The aim of the Deck hasn’t changed. Duelists can still get and Special Summon monsters for free with the effects of Black Whirlwind, Blackwing – Bora the Spear and Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind. They can get even more free monsters with the effects of Blackwing - Shura the Blue Flame, Blackwing – Blizzard the Far North and Blackwing – Vayu the Emblem of Honor. These free monsters are then used to Summon Blackwing Armor Master, Blackwing Armed Wing and Blackwing – Silverwind the Ascendant, 3 of the strongest monsters in a Blackwing Duelist’s Extra Deck, along with Synchro monsters that every Duelist uses, such as Stardust Dragon, Goyo Guardian and Ally of Justice Catastor.

On top of all the Special Summoning that Blackwing Duelists do, the Deck can take charge of the Duel in many different ways. Royal Oppression is still a very popular card in Blackwing Decks since it’s a good card to use against almost every kind of Deck out there, and your opponent can’t stop you from Special Summoning monsters with the effects of your Shuras and Vayus. Royal Oppression is also the number one answer to Starlight Road, a card that many Duelists like to use against Blackwings. Starlight Road can stop you from activating the effects of Heavy Storm, Black Rose Dragon, Icarus Attack, Mirror Force and Torrential Tribute, but it can be negated by Royal Oppression, which lets you safely destroy your opponent’s cards.

                    Blackwing Decks don’t work as well if they can’t Summon lots of monsters.

Many Duelists know how powerful Blackwing Decks can be, and they often use several cards in their Side Deck to take care of them. One of those is Consecrated Light, a monster fromAbsolute Powerforce that can shut Blackwing decks down by stopping them from Summoning and attacking. To make things even more difficult for the Blackwing Duelist, Consecrated Lightcan’t be destroyed in battle when it’s attacked by a DARK monster, which prevents Blackwing Duelists from getting around its effect with Book of Moon.

Another popular card used against Blackwings is Trap Hole. Bottomless Trap Hole is something you see almost every Duelist use, but even with 2 copies in the Main Deck, it’s not enough to stop Blackwing decks from Summoning strong monsters every turn. Trap Hole can destroy any monster that is Normal or Flip Summoned with 1000 or more ATK, whileBottomless Trap Hole can take care of any monster with over 1500 ATK that is Summoned. If either of these are used, the Blackwing Duelist can’t activate the effect of Black Whirlwind to get a free monster from their Deck.

Finally, lots of Duelists are using Dust Tornado in their Side Decks again. Dust Tornado is a Trap Card that can destroy one of your opponent’s Spell or Trap Cards, and it’s often used against Continuous Spell and Trap Cards like Black Whirlwind and Royal Oppression to stop their effects from activating.

Just like Flamvell Cat Decks, Blackwings are very popular because they can Special Summon many powerful Synchro Monsters over the course of the Duel, and make the most of a wide variety of Spell and Trap Cards to stop opponents from making a comeback. You can expect to see many Flamvell vs Blackwing matchups on the top tables at the 75th SHONEN JUMP Championship, Regional Qualifiers, and even at your local store.