Shadowverse is a digital collectible card game with tens of millions of downloads. It features eight unique classes, such as Runecraft or Shadowcraft, with their own specialized traits and exclusive cards. You can also utilize neutral cards in your decks, which are cards that any class can use. The developer, Cygames, releases a new expansion, a new pool of cards, every three months along with a mini-expansion, a smaller pool of cards for the current expansion, at the halfway point between expansions.
Shadowverse Rotation Tier List
It can be daunting to even know where to begin with the dozens of expansions that have been released. Luckily there’s rotation; a ranked mode where only the five most recent expansions are usable. While this gives you a better chance to focus on a good deck, there are still hundreds of cards split between several classes. This list will help you get an idea for the meta so you can find what works for you.
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S-Tier
These are the strongest decks currently. This isn’t to say they are unbeatable or without issue, just that they give you the greatest chance to win.
Mono Blood
A very strong and consistent deck that centers around Mono, Immortal Garnet. It can draw Mono and other machina cards thanks to Aiolin’s Remains while also doubling as a ramp-up to Mono. It also uses the Vengeance mechanic in combo with Urias, Final Vampire, and Doomlord of the Abyss to attack your opponent directly, clear the board, and keep yourself safe from damage for a turn.
A-Tier
These are strong decks that may take more work to bring their potential out and get consistent wins.
Evolve Sword
A midrange deck where you utilize evolving and rally. You can play a bit aggro, flood your board with followers, or ramp up to Erika and win on a one-turn kill (OTK). In many games, you’ll be doing a combination of two or even all three.
Ladica Forest
A strong combo deck centered around the card Ladica. You want to get as many low-cost cards into your hand as Ladica’s effects activate based on the number of cards you played that turn. The main reason this is in A is that it takes a lot of pre-planning and knowing exactly how to hit the number you need for Ladica.
Flame and Glass Shadow
This combo deck uses a bit of everything: evolving, shadows/necromancy, invocation, storm…you name it, it’s probably here. You’re trying to gain and use as many shadows as possible to invoke Suzy, Hexcaster to help lower Skeleton Raider’s cost but also to reanimate Flame and Glass with Cernunnos.
Earth Rite Rune
This deck is laying down runes to activate the abilities of followers and spells that burn runes to activate. It’s good but requires a bit of thinking for the best cards to play depending on the situation while also keeping track of how many runes you’re adding or using. You’re attacking face with cards like Earthen Fist and Acid Golem while keeping yourself safe with Juno, Atelier Alchemist.
B-Tier
These decks can win but require more skill (and maybe a bit of luck).
Handless Blood
A strong deck that you’re trying to empty your hand with and add more Paracelise, Demon of Greed’s into your deck to invoke. It uses low-cost cards to become handless as quickly as possible, many times by the end of turn three. This deck would easily be A tier if not for Birth of the Ravenous, a card that hard counters it by making it so both players draw a card at the end of their turn if they have less than 6 cards in hand. Hard to be handless with a card always in your hand.
Aggro Puppets
A fast deck that can also disrupt your opponent. With Inauspicious Puppeteer, even the beefiest follower could be reduced to a non-threat or outright destroyed. You’re fusing puppets with Orchis, the Limitless in order to have two evolved followers, one with storm, that your opponent has to deal with. Decks with a lot of heal may present problems.
Face Dragon
A deck built around trying to do as much damage to your opponent as quickly as possible. Using cards to increase your play orbs until you’re in overflow and then unleashing devastating combos such as Brutal Dragonnewt paired with Rowan, Dragon Lance . Many of the other decks can deal with the threats of this one so you need a really quick ramp up or a bit of an unlucky hand from the opponent.
Resonance Puppets
A less aggressive version of the puppet deck, it instead uses dot damage with Cassim, the Courageous while healing with Rosa, Unfettered Maiden. It’s a bit slower and needs stronger play than its counterpart.
Heal Haven
A deck for healing and working towards Bahamut. Bellerophon helps clear boards and hurt the opponent with its effect while you are constantly healing. Great against decks that attack face like Handless Blood or Face Dragon but is slower getting into Bahamut than most other decks that use him.
Control Forest
You’re evolving and you’re using play points. The evolving is to clear your opponents board or build your own while you try to get to 50 play points as soon as possible to activate Bahamut. With so many other combo decks, and a few aggro decks, this one gets pushed down further and further.
Bahamut Dragon
Instead of just ramping to big cost followers, you’re also ramping into Bahamut. It’s not as good as other combo decks, especially others that utilize Bahamut, and needs to use its cards that increase play point orbs to be effective. It’s a much more limited style than other combo and Bahamut decks.
C-Tier
Decks that aren’t consistent or don’t have a great win-con. It can require strong play and a fair bit of luck to get consistent wins.
Resonance Portal
A deck that is slower than Resonance Puppet and ramps to Bahamut instead of Orchis. The game plan is much the same with Resonance Puppet in terms of Cassim and Rosa but wants to utilize play points more with the addition of Norn, Arbiter of Worlds.
Ward Haven
A deck using wards with a splash of Bahamut. You’re trying to both protect your leader with wards while also letting them get destroyed to use Wilbert, Luminous Paladin as a win-con. You’re also evolving to flood the board for Holy Saber. A lot of decks can clear the board, attack your leader directly or put out followers that you have to worry about.
Burial Rite Shadow
A deck that removes Flame and Glass in favor of just being about Skeleton Raider. It plays largely the same as Flame and Glass but with more middling results.
Spellboost Rune
A staple of Runecraft, spell boost is about using spells to increase the count of spell boost cards in your hand as it allows for new/better effects or lowers the cost of the card. The deck doesn’t have a win-con that can compete with other decks as Kuon and Isabelle are countered by many other decks or kill too quickly to allow them to play.
D-Tier
You’ll find it hard to get consistent wins with these decks. It might come down to just luck on your part.
Commander/Fortress Sword
Commanders were pushed in the mini-expansion but haven’t seen much play due to it not beating out any archetype. It’s too slow to deal with aggro, but not fast enough to handle control decks. Fortress Guardian is a good win-con with potential, it’s just hard to ramp up to quickly.
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