News: Kaden Kawakami's National Championship Decklist Leaked

Reigning national champion Kaden Kawakami's decklist has gotten out to the public before Bushiroad USA could publish it on the official portal, breaking the otherwise-tight media blackout that has dominated the Challenge Cup since its opening rounds. In a video interview Kawakami has lain out his entire deck card by card, putting to rest a number of rumors surrounding its makeup. Although some controversy has arisen over Kawakami having possibly emulated a build that he had seen in his local tournaments, the national champion later clarified through Facebook that he had co-developed it with a friend, a situation similar to Smith and Bastianelli's teamwork on the previous championship's Spectral Duke Dragon deck.

Grade 0
x1 Lizard Soldier, Conroe (FVG)
x4 Dragon Monk, Genjo HT
x4 Flame Seed Salamander ST
x2 Lizard Soldier, Gan-Lu ST
x4 Gatling Claw Dragon DT
x2 Dragon Dancer, Monica DT
Grade 1
x3 Wyvern Guard, Barri
x4 Embodiment of Armor, Bahr
x3 Dragon Monk, Gojo
x2 Demonic Dragon Mage, Kimanra
x1 Heatnail Salamander
x1 Flame of Hope, Aermo
Grade 2
x4 Burning Horn Dragon
x3 Cross Shot, Garp
x1 Dragon Knight, Nehalem
x2 Bellicosity Dragon
x2 Wyvern Strike, Tejas
Grade 3
x4 Dragonic Overlord The End
x3 Dragonic Overlord

Probably the most noted feature of the deck is its six stand triggers, previously rumored to be as high as seven or eight, and the absence of critical triggers. While one of Dragonic Overlord The End's strongest features is his ability to multiply the effects of a critical trigger by standing after checking one, Kawakami recognized The End's strategic value as a vanguard whose attack would never be allowed to hit, and instead reinforced his rearguard attacks with stand triggers, taking advantage of Burning Horn Dragon's power-gain skill in the process while also using Flame Seed Salamander's skill to reduce the total number of cards in play, recycling his stands for better rearguard offenses while making it increasingly more difficult for the opponent to defend against The End as the game went on.

News: Kaden Kawakami Crowned Next National Champion

Original photo taken by Brandon Smith, used with permission.

After three months of fierce competition, the Stand Up Challenge Cup has come to a close with the coronation of the second North American national champion, succeeding Brandon Smith's seven month reign. Crowned at Champion's Gate, Florida, Kawakami is taking home the crystal cup with a radical Dragonic Overlord The End build that has drawn attention for running no critical triggers, instead filling out the space with seven stands and five draw triggers. The End has defined much of English Cardfight's professional play since February, but what sealed the tournament for Kawakami was the enhanced rearguard pressure of his deck, extending outside of his strong center line.

The runner up for the national title is John Muir, who used a Gold Paladin deck combining Incandescent Lion Blond Ezel and Great Silver Wolf Garmore. Within the best 8 were five The End cardfighters, Muir's Gold Paladin build, one Majesty Lord Blaster cardfighter and one Great Daiyusha cardfighter. The End having a greater presence is surprising to some due to Majesty Lord's firm dominance over him in the Japanese scene, but the Blaster deck as a whole has been noted to have a much lower overall presence within the North American play. Its unpopularity is generally attributed to North American fighters preferring The End's card advantage compared to Lord Blaster's static critical, and also to general overexposure among American cardfighters to The End from studying top Japanese decks.

With the Challenge Cup having come to a close, the last tournament to be resolved before the next World Championships will be the Team League 2013. The North American branch of the League will be concluded on July 14th, aboard the RMS Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. The Asian League will finish on July 7th at the Suntec City Convention Center, Singapore, and the European League on July 27th at Thistle Barbican in London.