First the squirrel, now the mouse. One thing is clear: it’s not safe out here for side characters from niche Disney movies. This week,Ravensburger announced the first two cards going on the Disney Lorcana banlist- and if you’ve seen any recent tournament results, these shouldn’t come as a surprise. Sapphire card draw engine Hiram Flaversham, Toymaker and Steel one-cost item Fortisphere are no longer legal in the Core Constructed format, effective immediately.
These bans are in response to the growing dominance of Ruby/Sapphire and Sapphire/Steel decks in the current meta. Since the release of Achazia’s Island last month, Sapphire item decks have reached a level of power and popularity that lead game designer Steve Warner saysbecame a problem the team could not ignore.With Set Championships just three weeks away and the World Championship on the horizon, it was decided that now would be the best time to ban these cards to give the meta time to adjust.
Why Hiram Flaversham And Fortisphere?
It’s no secret that Hiram and Fortisphere are fantastic cards in Sapphire and Steel, but there are a lot of other great cards found in Sapphire decks, too. Why these two and not other staples, like Pawpsicle; Be Prepared; A Whole New World; Belle, Apprentice Inventor; or Scrooge McDuck, Resourceful Miser?
Ina letter to the community posted to the official Disney Lorcana Discord, Warner explains why these two cards were chosen to ban. According to him, the problem with Hiram Flaversham is “the inability for opposing players to interact with [him].” Hiram allows you to banish an item and draw two cards when he’s played and every time he quests, meaning the Sapphire player usually gets to draw at least four cards before their opponent can find an answer to him. Because this frequently results in a large card draw advantage that was practically unstoppable, Warner determined that Hiram “felt less enjoyable than we want in a game of Disney Lorcana.”
With Hiram out of the picture, low-cost items lose a lot of their utility, but Warner explains that Fortisphere was still selected for a ban because it “put too much emphasis on players using items in Steel, which is not aligned with the Ink’s core strength”. Warner later elaborated on the Fortisphere ban ina Discord Q&A, explaining that it, along with other draw-on-play Steel cards, created a “critical mass of cutting through deck cards.” With Fortisphere contributing to over-consistency in some Steel decks. With that, the item synergies, and pure card draw not aligning with Steel’s identity, it was decided that it needed to be banned.
What Happens To The Sapphire And Steel Now?
Losing Hiram as a powerful draw engine in Sapphire is going to make a big impact on the meta. Ruby/Sapphire control decks relied on having Hiram to maintain their hand while ramping, and without it, the Ruby/Sapphire strategy is going to have to change..
Dinh Khang Pham’s Ruby/Sapphire burn deckthat he won DLC Melbourne with doesn’t rely as heavily on Hiram as other Ruby/Sapphire decks, so some version of that list may still be viable.
Likewise, Sapphire/Steel became extremely powerful this set thanks to the introduction of Belle, Apprentice Inventor; and Scrooge McDuck, Resourceful Miser, who can both be played for free with the right amount of items in play. Fortisphere, along with Pawpsicle, made Belle a fairly consistent turn one play, while Scrooge and Tamatoa, Happy As A Clam gave those Fortispheres additional value and recyclability. Without Fortisphere, we may see Sapphire/Steel resort to a more tempo-based version like the one that was popular last season.
Resetting The Meta
In bringing down the power level of Sapphire and Steel decks, the goal is to facilitate a wider meta with more competitively viable decks - so what does that look like?
In a power vacuum like this, there’s always going to be a deck that rises to the top, and many expect Emerald Discard decks will be the new one to beat. Discard has been one of the most powerful archetypes over the last year, winning two North American DLCs back to back. Due to its noninteractive abilities that led to an unfun experience for players, Bucky, Squirrel Squeak Tutor was eventually nerfed - but Discard didn’t go away.
Both Amethyst/Emerald and Emerald/Steel have viable Discard decks that become even more potent with fewer Sapphire decks (with less draw power) standing in their way, so it’s reasonable to assume that Emerald Discard decks will reenter the meta in a big way.
More Discard decks in the meta will open the door for more anti-discard decks, like Amethyst/Steel “Re-Pete” or possibly even Amethyst/Emerald decks using Kronk, Laid Back.
Ruby/Sapphire Control also preyed on Amber/Steel “Steelsong” decks. Steelsong hasn’t been able to find much competitive success this season, but with Ruby/Sapphire on the back foot, there’s an opportunity for Steelsong to climb back to the top.
Perhaps the most surprising beneficiaries of these bans are the Sapphire decks that didn’t rely on Hiram in the first place. Sapphire still got a lot of great new cards this set, so expect to see a lot more people experimenting with Amethyst/Sapphire and Emerald/Sapphire now.
And watch out for that Amber/Emerald “Chernadog” list, which uses Chernabog with multiple Lady and Tramp cards. It hasn’t won any major events yet, but it’s scarier than it looks.
Ideally, these bans are going to blow the meta wide open, allowing a large variety of decks to be competitively viable. There are three weeks until set champs, meaning there’s plenty of time for players to sort through the rubble and figure out what’s next. Bans like this can certainly be disappointing for people who have heavily invested in meta decks, but this is a great opportunity to help shape a more diverse, and ultimately more fun Disney Lorcana.
