Digimon TCG: Deck Tech - How to Play Glowing Dawn (BT25)

The animated show Digimon Beatbreak has been airing for a while, and now we can finally play a deck centered around it without getting spoiled. The final forms that show up in the anime are now a part of the TCG.

In today's article, we'll use cards from BT25 and ST23 to build a deck centered around Glowing Dawn, the main Digimon team in the show. We'll see how these cards work in the current format, including the new DUAL Digimon, a new mechanic.

The list we'll explore today showed up in the hands of a player called Travis Sawyer at a TAK Games Regional event that welcomed 80 players in Oceania. It got all the way to top 8, which is pretty good. It proves this archetype is a solid option for competitive players but isn't too oppressive.

The core is yellow and green and centers around Glowing Dawn and BEATBREAK cards. The idea is to be consistent in the first few turns, then put Tamers in play and use face-down cards as fuel to grow. To win, you'll use effects like Alliance, Piercing, and Security Attack +1. All of that while you control the board by tapping the opponent's cards, nerfing their DP, De-Digivolving their cards, and even putting their Digimon at the bottom of their deck.

Digi-Eggs

This list plays Kekkomon ST23-01, a great example of what this deck wants to do. Its Inherited effect lets you, once per turn when you attack, trash a face-down card from beneath one of your Tamers to Digivolve this Digimon into a Glowing Dawn Digimon from your hand for 2 less resources.

Like so, attacking is a way to improve your board. Instead of just attacking, you'll use the battle phase to progress your curve and keep going. Because this list plays Tamers quite easily, this effect is often available and makes your turns more efficient.

Rookies

The level 3 base will mostly get pieces for you and feed your Tamers. Gekkomon ST23-06 reveals the top 3 cards in your deck, lets you get a Glowing Dawn among them, and puts it in your hand. Afterward, you may put another Glowing Dawn card underneath one of your Tamers, face-down. It's exactly the type of opener this deck wants because it improves your hand and sets up your future turns.

Gekkomon BT25-046 is similar. It lets you get a Glowing Dawn card and a green BEATBREAK card from your top cards. Its Inherited effect, which gives you Piercing, also matters a lot because this deck has many ways to suspend enemy Digimon and use battles to progress the main game plan. As for Liollmon BT25-032, it is part of the yellow side of this strategy. It lets you get Glowing Dawn and yellow BEATBREAK cards, and its Inherited effect gives you Barrier.

This list only plays one copy of Chiropmon ST23-12, but that's because it's a bit more situational. It lets you get a Glowing Dawn card from your trash when you use a card from below your Tamers. It's not the main effect in this strategy, but it is perfect to recycle a Digimon and get back into the game.

Level 4 Digimon

This is when you will pick up the pace considerably. Cougarmon ST23-03 lets you get the top card in your Security and put it in your hand. Then, it activates Recovery +1 and heals you. In practice, you'll end up with the same number of cards in your Security, but you'll have more cards in hand. Because it's yellow, you can also set up a few tricks with it, manipulating your life pile. Its Inherited effect also lets you Digivolve your next Glowing Dawn Digimon for less resources if you trash a card from below one of your Tamers.

Cougarmon BT25-035 is one of the cards that most speeds up this game plan. When it enters or Digivolves, it nerfs an enemy Digimon by giving it -3000 DP. Then, if you trash two face-down cards from below your Tamers, you may Digivolve a Glowing Dawn Digimon from your hand for free. It removes small bodies, helps you remove bigger bodies, and controls the board really well. It will turn everything you do into a very cohesive game plan.

Armalizamon BT25-049, Geckomon's Champion form, represents the green side of this strategy perfectly. It taps an enemy Digimon when it enters play or Digivolves, and discounts the cost of a Glowing Dawn Option by 3 if you trash a card from below your Tamers. Because many Options in this deck can become Digimons through Arts Digivolve, this effect will be great, particularly when you need to Digivolve something for far less Memory.

Level 5 Digimon

The level 5 Digimon in this deck let you progress your game plan considerably, particularly if you need to be aggressive, and also make your board quite solid. Monarchlizamon ST23-08 has Alliance and gains +3000 DP when it enters or Digivolves. Afterward, you may trash a card from below a Tamer to play or use a Glowing Dawn card from your hand for 3 less resources. Its Inherited effect also lets you untap a Glowing Dawn Digimon after the attack, which goes really well with the other cards we'll see next.

Murasamemon BT25-041 is similar, but it can trigger more times. When it Digivolves or attacks, it lets you play or use a Glowing Dawn card from your hand for 3 less resources if you get the top card in your Security and put it in your hand or if you trash a card from below a Tamer. Like so, you can keep playing even if you don't have any resources from below your Tamers ready or if you lost them.

Monarchlizamon BT25-057 is one of the most interesting cards in this list because it's a DUAL card, a new mechanic from the new Digimon set. You can play it as an Option or as a Digivolution, but you can never play it over a unit in play. As an Option, that is, as Final Judgment, it gives you Rush, Security Attack +1, and +5000 DP. It also lets you attack with a Digimon and can Digivolve over a Digimon after this effect resolves through Arts Digivolve. Like so, Monarchlizamon will remain in play. As a Digimon, it De-Digivolves a card by 1 if you use a card from below a Tamer and can force an enemy Digimon into battle when it Digivolves. This card is perfect for aggressive turns. It will remove pieces from the enemy board with two different effects.

Level 6 Digimon

The most expensive card in this list is Atratusmon ST23-09. It has Security Attack +1, Reboot, and Blocker. When it Digivolves and when it attacks, it is immune to effects on enemy Digimon until the end of their turn, then deletes their weakest Digimon (with the least amount of DP). Its Option side is Eclipse Impact. It suspends an enemy Digimon and puts their strongest tapped Digimon at the bottom of their deck (the Digimon with the most amount of DP).

Habakirimon BT25-043 is the main beater in this list. When it Digivolves or attacks, it activates Recovery +1, then lets you trash the top Security card of the player who has the most cards in their Security to untap. Furthermore, once per turn, when a Glowing Dawn Digimon would leave the battle area, you may trash the top card in your Security to prevent that. It is also a DUAL card, and its Option side is pretty interesting. It gives an enemy Digimon -8000 DP, and, if you trash the top of your Security pile, you can give all enemy Digimon -5000 DP.

Glowing Dawn

Tamers are critical in this list precisely because it centers around the Glowing Dawn team. Tomoro Tenma BT25-090 sets your Memory to 3, and, when any Digimon is suspended, it lets you put the top 2 cards in your deck below it, face down. We're not exaggering when we say it is this list's main engine.

Tomoro Tenma & Kyo Sawashiro ST23-13 and Reina Sakuya & Makoto Kuonji ST23-14 will put more cards beneath your Tamers and create Memory if the opponent has any Digimon in play. The first will give you +3000 DP when you trash cards from beneath your Tamer, while the second gives you Jamming. These two effects will improve your attacks considerably, particularly if you combine them with Alliance and Piercing.

Glowing Dawn P-236 is a Memory Boost. It makes this list more consistent because it reveals the top 3 cards in your deck, lets you get a Glowing Dawn card, and then stays in the battle area and gives you 2 Memory through its Delay effect. e-Pulse ST23-15 puts in play a BEATBREAKER card that costs 4 or less from your hand or trash pile, and afterward, you can put it below a Tamer to draw a card and gain Memory. These two Options will put resources in your hand and interact really well with the main game plan.

Ideally, you should open with a Tamer and use your Rookies to find the right pieces. This deck needs Glowing Dawn cards in your hand and face-down cards beneath your Tamers, so try to be consistent in the first few turns.

Afterward, the idea is to follow your curve but not spend too many resources. Kekkomon ST23-01, Cougarmon ST23-03, Cougarmon BT25-035, and your level 5 Digimon will turn attacks and Tamer effects into cheap Digivolutions. However, you must be careful to not spend all the cards beneath your Tamers too early because they're the fuel that makes this entire list work.

With this deck, you must assess whether you need to put pressure or control the board each turn. Try to use Piercing, which this deck can naturally give to your Digimon. Your other keywords, Alliance and Security Attack +1, will be enough to force the opponent to answer, and, when they can't, you'll only get further ahead.

I have thoroughly enjoyed Digimon Beatbreak, both because of the new ideas, characters, and Digimon it has introduced. Now that we have this Glowing Dawn archetype, I hope we can play a Tactics list soon, as this team is also a part of Digimon lore.

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

Thank you for reading, and see you next time!