adsarf · 440
Deck concept
Green Shadowcat decks are not really very novel. The interaction between her phased mass form and Unflappable is obvious to everyone. I thought this version was worth publishing because I use no defense events (other than Quick Shift).
The idea is really driven by the power of Shadowcat's hero cards. I want as lean a deck as possible to maximise the number of times I can play Quick Shift and Shadowcat Surprise in particular. That means thinning the deck as much as possible, and therefore avoiding the defense events. To do that, though, I need to be able to ready after exhausting to defend, so that I can get back in to phased form for the start of the villain phase. There are a few ways to do that in this deck but the key one is Utopia.
Card choices
The key theme of the deck is to minimise the events and maximise the supports and upgrades, so that with a thin deck I can get the most out of those key hero cards. I also need ways to ready after exhausting to defend.
Utopia is my main way to ready Shadowcat. Once it is down all 8 of my allies will do that. They also provide thwarting and damage options which I can use when Shadowcat's own choices are limited by the need to end the phase in the right mass form. I also have Ready to Rumble and Indomitable. I prefer to have one of each of these cards so that both of them can be in play at once - they are last resorts to use only if there are no other options to ready in my hand. Ready to Rumble otherwise dominates Indomitable completely for Shadowcat, so I can understand why you might prefer just to have two of those.
Finally there is Shadowcat Surprise, which is just a fantastic card. Because the response on Solid isn't forced, Shadowcat Surprise lets you either attack or thwart as required and still end the turn in phased mass form. This is kind of the build-around card in this deck.
As this is intended as a solo deck, card draw is critical. Unflappable is obviously very reliable, but only draws one card. Assess the Situation helps a lot, but Quick Shift is the star, and again a thin deck gets it into our hand more often, so it is really important to get those upgrades down.
Playing the deck
The focus with this deck is to play down as many upgrades and supports as possible. Have I mentioned that? Once Utopia is in play and the deck is thinned you can pretty much guarantee an ally in hand each turn, which means at least one ready effect, which means each villain attack hurts him more than it hurts you. Professor X gives you access to alter ego. You may take damage from the occasional villain attack in the early game before you have thinned the deck enough to guarantee a flip back to phased form every hero turn. You may also pick up some damage from minions or boost cards, so he is a valuable safety net. The rest is all pretty obvious stuff.
How to lose with this deck
If you want to lose with this deck then the best thing is to do it quickly, before the deck is thinned. That's when Shadowcat gets the least benefit from exhausting to defend, and has the highest likelihood of being stuck with no way to ready or attack in her own turn. That can obviously make it hard to deal with multiple minions or side schemes. Shadowcat is so powerful, though, that I think it is genuinely hard to lose with her whatever deck you choose.
Conclusion
This is a slight variation on a well-worn theme, but then it's a well-worn theme for a reason.