Digimon TCG: Deck Tech - How To Play Vortex-Palmon

In today's article, let's take a look at a list that, at first, seems to combine two game plans that don't work together. On one side, we have the Palmon kit, centered around an iconic Digimon from the very first animated show, and on the other we have the Vortex Warriors kit.

I'm a really big fan of unusual fusions that only show up every once in a while, so let's go through this list and these incredibly different green strategies.

The deck we'll see today got first place in a tournament in Thailand in the hands of a player called NaYhok. NaYhok has brought Vortex lists to events before without the Palmon kit and also performed really well.

What sets this list apart from the others is that it plays green effects that suspend enemy Digimon, leaving them vulnerable. It also plays effects that let you suspend your own Digimon to discount costs, put another card in play from your hand, or get more cards and Memory. This deck plays by its own rules - it's not just an alternative to conventional Vortex lists. It moves at its own pace.

The "plant" kit includes cards that come into play early, get pieces for you, and make other cards cheaper. The Vortex core, on the other side, includes bodies that remove enemy cards in attacks and have Piercing. These two kits actually interact really well with each other, feeding each other constantly.

Here's our list:

Digi-Egg

This list plays Kokomon EX4-002 as its Digi-Egg, which is perfect. Its Inherited effect draws a card when one of your Digimon is suspended through an effect, once per turn. Suspending Digimon with effects is one of the things this list does best, so you'll always draw cards with it.

You can tap your Digimon to Digivolve them for cheaper, get Tamers in play for cheaper, trigger an On Play effect an extra time, or attack with Vortex. Kokomon might not be as flashy as other Digi-Eggs in the game, but in this deck everything interacts really well with it. You'll always get something in return from it.

Rookies - Level 3 Digimon

This level-3 core is quite straightforward. As we mentioned, this deck stands out because it plays the Palmon kit. First, we have Palmon BT10-046, a searcher that gets Plant/Vegetation and Fairy cards for you.

Searchers have always been the best foundation for any deck, and even though this list doesn't play any Fairy Digimon, this card still plays a solid role early on. Palmon BT14-044 is a bit different. Its Inherited effect lets you Digivolve it for 1 less resource if you have a green Tamer in play and also forces the opponent to lose Memory when their Digimon suspend, which is quite strong.

Palmon (X Antibody) BT15-045 is a great call after you use this effect because it suspends an enemy Digimon when it enters play or Digivolves. So, you can use these two cards together to sabotage your opponent considerably. Its Inherited effect also gives you Memory when a green Tamer enters play and, in a way, makes them cheaper.

These two rookies are small floodgates, which are great in the current meta. Terriermon BT3-046 prevents the opponent from gaining Memory with anything besides Tamer effects. Pomumon BT9-047 prevents players from putting Digimon in play through effects, including you and the opponent. But don't be scared: you'll be able to play around this relatively easily.

Level 4 Digimon

The main level 4 Digimon in this list are Sunflowmon BT10-048 and Togemon BT14-046. When you Digivolve Sunflowmon, you may tap one of your green Digimon to play another Plant/Vegetation/Fairy Digimon with 3000 DP or less from your hand for free. This should only allow you to play your level 3 Digimon, as they naturally have less DP, but both Sunflowmon and Togemon meet these conditions as well.

As for Togemon BT14-046, it does something else that is also critical: it discounts the cost of a green Tamer in your hand by 3 if you tap one of your green Digimon. Its Inherited effect also lets you Digivolve it for 1 less resource if you have a green Tamer in play, so you'll keep saving your resources. So, this deck needs Shoto Kazama and one of the two Mimi Tachikawa in play as fast as possible. Togemon BT14-046 is indeed essential.

Kokatorimon BT24-047 is a pretty cool tech card in this list that supports the Vortex Warriors side. When Kokatorimon enters or Digivolves, you may tap any Digimon. If you tap one of your Digimon, you may untap one of your Avian/Bird/Vortex Warriors Digimon as well and attack with it right afterward. Its Inherited effect also gives you some Memory back when it deletes an enemy Digimon in battle. This is the first Digimon in this list that interacts with the "bird" side of this deck because of its Vortex ability.

Level 5 Digimon

The level 4 Digimon above are great ways to get more resources, and the level 5 Digimon we'll discuss now will use these resources to progress the game plan. You can use Ajatarmon BT10-053 in your main phase once per turn. It's essentially the same as Sunflowmon BT10-048: it lets you suspend a green Digimon to put a Plant/Vegetation/Fairy Digimon with 3000 DP or less in play from your hand for free. Its Inherited effect also gives you 1 Memory back when one of your Digimon is suspended by an effect - which, as we all know, this deck does very easily.

Blossomon BT3-054, on the other side, comes with an older keyword, Download 3. It lets you Digivolve it for 3 less resources as long as you tap one of your Digimon. These two cards will both progress your game plan quite fast and allow you to get something back whenever you suspend your units. This goes really well with Kokomon EX4-002, Mimi Tachikawa BT14-085, and many other cards, as well as the entire deck: you'll get ahead bit by bit in many ways and eventually set up a turn your opponent won't be able to predict.

GrandGalemon EX7-034 has Vortex, which allows you to attack a Digimon at the end of the turn (including the turn you played it). When you Digivolve it, you can also suspend 1 Digimon. If you suspend one of your own Digimon, GrandGalemon will be protected against effects on enemy Digimon until the end of the opponent's turn. As for its Inherited effect, it lets you untap it when you attack an enemy Digimon. It is perfect to both hoard resources and be more aggressive.

Finally, this list plays a single and curious copy of Kimeramon BT8-084. This card is pretty isolated from the rest of the strategy, but you can DNA Digivolve it with two level 4 Digimon and nothing else and put into play a Digimon that's level 5 or less from your trash pile. It also nerfs enemy Digimon according to its colors - in this deck, that will be 2 times. This card is not essential in this list, but you can do some pretty fun things with it.

Level 6 and Level 7 Digimon

MedievalGallantmon EX8-074 is, to me, one of the cards that best explains why this list works. It comes in with Alliance and Vortex, and, when you Digivolve it, you may suspend a Digimon to delete an enemy Digimon with 8000 DP or less. For each Digimon you suspend this way, you may remove even bigger Digimon. Considering this deck swarms Digimon into play, somewhat, suspends its own board frequently, and also enjoys locking down opponents, this effect can get quite powerful quite easily. Better yet, once per turn, when another Digimon enters play, you may reuse it. So, effects like Sunflowmon BT10-048 and Ajatarmon BT10-053 are "two for one". You'll get a new body on the board and also remove something. This level 6 Digimon will start creating value quite fast and is a classic choice in green and red lists.

This list plays two ACE Digimon that delay the opponent considerably. Puppetmon ACE BT21-051 lets you De-Digivolve something by 2 and then send a suspended enemy Digimon to the bottom of their deck. It also has Blocker and Reboot, and you can put it into play by surprise with Blast Digivolve.

Zephagamon ACE BT20-101, in turn, has Piercing, Vortex, and Blocker. You can untap it whenever any Digimon is suspended, and, both when you play it and when you Digivolve it, you may suspend a Digimon to send an enemy suspended Digimon to the bottom of their deck for each two suspended Digimon in play. It also has Blast Digivolve, so you can be more reactive and catch your opponent off guard with many debuffs and removals. This is precisely what makes ACE Digimon so strong.

The most expensive card in this list is Vortrexdramon EX11-074, a very elegant option. It comes with an alternative Digivolution condition (a Shoto Kazama and a GrandGalemon need to be in play) as well as Piercing, Vortex, and Blocker. When it Digivolves and when it attacks, you may suspend a Digimon. If you suspend one of your Digimon, Vortrexdramon gets +6000 DP and is immune to effects on enemy Digimon until the end of the opponent's turn. Afterward, once per turn, whenever a Digimon is suspended, you can untap it and battle an enemy Digimon. Like so, if you have a well-built board, you can win reactively while you punish enemy Digimon.

Tamers

This Tamer base is quite helpful, so you need to put them in play as fast as possible. Shoto Kazama EX11-062 sets your Memory to 3 at the beginning of the turn, and you can tap it whenever another Digimon is suspended to draw cards. It also gives one of your Avian/Bird/Vortex Warriors +3000 DP. Furthermore, on your turn, if your opponent has no tapped Digimon, your Vortex Digimon can attack them. This card comes with a lot of text, it nearly doesn't fit the frame.

Mimi Tachikawa BT14-085 is a searcher and gives you Memory when a Digimon is suspended through an effect. As for Mimi Tachikawa BT1-089, it puts Digi-Eggs in play for your or moves a Digimon to the Battle Area. This effect is perfect in swarm decks or decks that trigger lots of effects at the same time. It's also a setter.

This list is quite expensive because it plays many Secret cards and other cards that are difficult to find, like Palmon BT14-044. Still, though it plays two incredibly different kits, it ended up very elegant, and shows what green lists can do in this game.

You might be able to test it out with other cards, like an Arbormon that evolves from a Tamer and other funny tech cards. You can use your creativity to make this list all your own, with your own touch.

What do you think? Tell us your thoughts in our comment section below.

Thank you for reading, and see you next time!