adsarf · 428
Deck concept
My previous approach to playing Phoenix has been to stay restrained as long as possible, or even all game as in https://marvelcdb.com/decklist/view/39137/brains-over-brawn-1.0. This deck is all about unleashing Phoenix.
Now once Phoenix is unleashed, you want to end the game as soon as possible, which you can do pretty easily if you keep drawing Telekinetic Attack. With only two of those in the deck, though, how do you achieve that? The way I do it in this deck is by using Strength In Numbers to filter through the deck as quickly as possible.
So the approach is to set up as many allies as possible as quickly as possible in the four or so turns it takes Phoenix to use up all her power counters, and then blast the villain off the map with Phoenix's powerful unleashed events, her basic 3 ATK, and a little help from her friends.
Card choices
Utopia and The Triskelion are essential for Strength In Numbers, and Utopia is pretty powerful in any Phoenix build due to her high stats. Storm is fantastic with Phoenix because of Soul Sisters, and Beast is great with Band Together, but otherwise the exact mix of allies we wind up using isn't that important.
I avoided Cerebro and Danger Room because the aim of the game isn't to spend time in alter ego. Likewise The X-Jet because we aren't hanging around long enough to see value from a card like that. Of course an additional X-Men support would have helped Forge retain his value later in the game but his main role here is to get Utopia out quickly, and once he's done that then like all the rest of the allies he is mostly there for Strength In Numbers.
Psimitar can do a lot of damage even in a short game with so many Psionic cards in the deck, and Psychic Kicker is an obvious partner for Strength In Numbers so that needs no real explanation.
Cards you might cut are the second Band Together, which can be a pain if you find it in your initial hand; and Uncanny X-Men, which is fantastic if you find a way to play it early but often can't be afforded until it is too late to make much difference. That might make room for Combat Specialist to increase your ATK and get extra card draw, at the cost of a little more set-up being needed. I preferred not to go that route because you can play Uncanny in the late game pretty easily, even if it doesn't offer the best value; once Phoenix is unleashed then there's not much prospect of playing and clearing Specialized Training at all.
Playing the deck
The first turns of the game are about spending power counters to get as many allies out as possible. The earlier we get Utopia the better, so Forge is a high priority for the mulligan, but otherwise almost any ally will do.
Ideally, you don't want to recover or play Cyclops while still restrained because adding power counters to Phoenix Force slows down the switch to unleashed and therefore interferes with the strategy. Of course it is optional to place those counters, but not placing them is giving up resources so that feels bad too. If possible, the best solution is to wait until you are unleashed when you can place a couple of extra counters on Phoenix Force for extra resources without disrupting the deck strategy. That may mean using Telekinetic Shield or an ally to block. Resources are plentiful in this deck so it isn't at all unlikely that you will be able to play two allies in a single turn and still advance the game even if you let one of them chump block.
Once you run out of power counters then it is time to get blasting. If you have a Strength In Numbers in hand, you should be able to hit a basic ATK of 6 every turn with Utopia, get 2 damage out of Psimitar and maybe 4 or 5 more using Psychic Kicker on an ally plus 4 from Psychic Blast or 9 from Telekinetic Attack. That adds up pretty fast. On turns with no Strength In Numbers, 5 allies on the bench can do a fair bit themselves. This is the time when Uncanny X-Men really helps because the extra hit point each ally has can be useful at the end of the game. The game isn't really likely to last long enough that the status effects from an unleashed Telepathic Trickery will really matter.
By this stage even Dark Phoenix shouldn't be too much more than a speed bump...
How to lose with this deck
Standard III is worth avoiding with any Phoenix deck. You can cope with Dark Phoenix once set up and unleashed, but she can completely disrupt your strategy if you see her early, even if she doesn't just defeat you.
Overkill is always a problem, as Phoenix is squishy. Rise from the Ashes is expensive but it can be worthwhile if there's a risk of the villain unexpectedly gaining overkill.
Too many minions early on can also be an issue as Phoenix doesn't have a ton of HP herself, and you don't want to be chump blocking too much or you will run out of power counters before you have built up your full bench of allies. You may have to slow down a little and go to alter ego while still restrained. There's no way to confuse the villain while restrained here, so this is a risk, but Phoenix can clear a lot of threat and there are some powerful thwarting allies in the deck, so hopefully it will be a setback rather than a disaster if the villain schemes.
Conclusion
This isn't a true rush deck, but it is quick, powerful and pretty reliable. It's a pretty cool feeling to play Telekinetic Attack with Band Together and still have 8 cards in hand afterwards! Definitely worth a spin.