The final MP from Awakening is here – see Mercenary Tao below!

This season’s final Regional takes place tomorrow in Lenexa, KS (pre-register here). Participants must be fully familiar with both the CRD and Tournament Guide – available here. You can also save time by filling out a Deck Registration Form in advance.

• 11/5 – Dragon Prix: New Orleans (save $5 on entry by pre-registering here!)
• 11/11-11/13 – 2016 DBZ TCG World Championship (group rate booking available until October 27th, see here for more info)

Dragon Ball Z: Awakening releases next week, and our final Awakening preview showcases Mercenary Tao!

Mercenary Tao – Old Foe begins the game by probing your opponent for weaknesses. Each defended attack generates Rejuvenation for Tao, allowing him to recur key attacks for later use. His activated Power expands his flexibility by shuffling the Life Deck, while also smoothing out draws and filtering for a new card. Allies make up a significant portion of the metagame, and Tao’s anger raising ability can allow you to rocket off Level 1 in certain match-ups.

On Level 2, Mercenary Tao is ready to begin assassinating. Whether or not they are stopped, simply performing an attack causes your opponent to destroy the top card of his or her Life Deck. The pestering attack offers the same filtering utility from Level 1, but also packs a devastating HIT effect. Mercenary Tao’s ability to fluster the opponent’s block patterns can lead to extremely advantageous positions – either through high damage unstoppable attacks, or sneaking through disruptive HIT effects.

Mercenary Tao – Armed has one of the most unique abilities in the game, and being able to play Dragon Balls from your opponent’s Life Deck can put the kibosh on several prominent strategies. Beyond snatching DBs, Tao Level 3 is relentless – banishing the top card of your opponent’s Life Deck whenever his attacks are stopped and unconditionally activating his Power to make a non-Styled attack unstoppable.

Mercenary Tao Level 4 has no time for gimmicks. Performing attacks leads to your opponent’s Life Deck quickly becoming banished, while his activated Power banishes combo pieces from your opponent’s hand outright.

Mercenary Tao’s Super Dodon Wave is a 0 cost energy attack that attaches to your opponent’s MP, and has the potential to banish the top card of your opponent’s Life Deck each turn. Even when its detach clause is met, your opponent is not out of the woods – as it places itself on top of your Life Deck for another use!

Mercenary Tao’s Puzzles is one of the most powerful Named cards ever printed, and it offers two modes of use. When played as a block, Tao is able to followup with a potshot – and then end combat (or continue an attack string) afterwards. As an action, it simply provides a safe path out of combat (while also dodging effects like Paragus and Blue Battle Drill).

Dragon Ball Z: Awakening releases on October 28th – stay tuned for a full checklist (including Starter Deck contents) on the blog!