Buggy's curve is built around EB05-021 Alvida. Your goal is to spend the first turns searching for your pieces, then play several big Characters with your Leader effect before finishing your setup with OP09-051 Buggy.
Buggy OP09 for the EB05 format.
Your Mulligan should be built around one absolute priority: finding EB05-021 Alvida. She is the central piece of the decklist and lets you quickly play several big Characters while preparing your board for OP09-051 Buggy.
Games where you find Alvida early are much easier to develop. If she is not directly in your opening hand, you therefore want enough Searchers to find her quickly.
EB05-021 Alvida is your best card to keep.
With your Leader effect, you can play her for only 5 DON!! + one discarded card. Her On Play then lets you draw 2 cards and play a Cross Guild Character with a Cost of 8 or less from your hand.
Your most general line is:
Alvida → Dracule Mihawk OP09-048
This gives you two Characters with 7000 Power, a Blocker, and a refreshed hand thanks to the draw effects.
Mr.3 (Galdino) OP09-056 and Cross Guild OP09-057 are also excellent cards to keep.
Their main role early in the game is to find Alvida. Since both only look at the top 4 cards of your deck, you may need to search multiple times to find your key piece.
You can therefore keep multiple Searchers if you do not yet have Alvida in hand.
If you already have EB05-021 Alvida, Dracule Mihawk OP09-048 becomes an excellent card to keep with her.
Mihawk immediately gives you a 7000-Power Blocker while letting you draw 2, then discard 1. He protects your Leader, improves your hand, and is a Character with a high enough Cost to help set up your future OP09-051 Buggy.
Alvida + Mihawk is therefore your most versatile opening combination.
Crocodile & Mihawk ST25-003 is especially worth keeping with Alvida when you know your opponent has Removal.
Its protection lets you discard a card instead when one of your Cross Guild Characters would be removed from the board by an opponent's effect.
In matchups where keeping your board is essential, Alvida → Crocodile & Mihawk may therefore be preferable to Alvida → Mihawk.
Even though OP09-051 Buggy is your main late-game threat, it is not your Mulligan priority.
Before you can really use him, you need to build a board with enough Characters that have a Cost of 5 or more. It is therefore better to look first for Alvida, your Searchers, and your first development targets.
You will then have several turns and draw effects to find Buggy when your board is ready for him.
Buggy's curve is built primarily around EB05-021 Alvida. Your goal is to spend the first turns searching for your pieces, then start playing several big Characters with your Leader effect before finishing your setup with OP09-051 Buggy. The curve varies slightly depending on whether you go first or second.
Your best opening is OP09-056 Mr.3 (Galdino) or OP09-057 Cross Guild.
Your priority is to find EB05-021 Alvida. If you already have her, look for the cards that will complete your next development, especially a good target to play with her.
You do not yet have access to your real development turn. Use this turn to play another Mr.3 (Galdino) or Cross Guild to complete your hand.
The goal is still to prepare your next turn with Alvida + a target to play from your hand.
Starting at 5 DON!!, your Leader begins to accelerate your development in earnest.
You mainly have three options:
EB05-021 Alvida → OP09-048 Dracule Mihawk. This is your most versatile line. You get two Characters with 7000 Power, Mihawk gives you a Blocker, and you continue to refresh your hand.
EB05-021 Alvida → ST25-003 Crocodile & Mihawk. Choose this line when your opponent has Removal and may target your board on their next turn. Crocodile & Mihawk gives you protection to keep the Characters you just developed.
EB05-021 Alvida → P-084 Buggy. This line is more situational. Mainly use it against decks that rely heavily on attacks from Characters with a Cost of 3 or 4, since P-084 Buggy prevents those Characters from attacking.
Important: after using EB05-021 Alvida's On Play effect, you cannot play any more Characters that turn. If you want to use your Leader to play another Character before her, Alvida must be the last Character you play.
If your opponent does not present an urgent threat, you can keep developing your board with another sequence around Alvida to prepare OP09-051 Buggy.
You want to gradually reach four Characters with a Cost of 5 or more on your board so you can play your 10-Cost Buggy without him returning himself to the bottom of the deck.
However, you do not have to develop every turn. If your opponent has particularly problematic Characters, Gravity Blade Raging Tiger OP06-058 may be better. Your development on the previous turn often gives you enough of a board lead to spend this turn on Removal.
At 9 DON!!, you can start using your late-game plan.
If you already have four other Characters that meet the condition, use 5 DON!! with your Leader to play OP09-051 Buggy and Bottom Deck any opposing Character.
If you only have three suitable Characters on your board, you can first Hard Cast a Character for 4 DON!! that can reach the required Cost of 5, then use your remaining 5 DON!! to play Buggy with your Leader.
Depending on your hand and board, you can use ST25-005 Mohji, ST25-002 Cabaji, or EB05-021 Alvida.
The logic is almost identical when you go second. The main difference is at 4 DON!!, when you have more flexibility before your first big turn.
Use Mr.3 (Galdino) and/or Cross Guild to find Alvida and prepare your hand.
Your goal is still to reach the next threshold with EB05-021 Alvida + a good target.
At 4 DON!!, you can keep Searching if your hand is not ready yet.
You can also play ST25-001 Alvida, Cabaji, or OP16-056 Mr.3 (Galdino), depending on what you need.
Alvida → Mihawk for the most versatile line.
Alvida → Crocodile & Mihawk if you need to protect your board from Removal.
Alvida → P-084 Buggy if attacks from Characters with a Cost of 3 or 4 are the main danger.
Keep building your board with Alvida and your other Characters if your opponent does not force you to react.
On the other hand, Gravity Blade Raging Tiger becomes an excellent use of your turn if you can Bottom Deck one or two important opposing Characters with a Cost of 6 or less.
You can accept slowing your own development for a turn if it removes the main opposing threats, since your board should already contain several big Characters thanks to your previous turn.
At 10 DON!!, you have more options for combining your cards before using the 5 DON!! required for your Leader effect.
If your board is ready, play OP09-051 Buggy to Bottom Deck the main opposing threat.
You can also use OP16-056 Mr.3 (Galdino) before Buggy: Mr.3 can stop an opposing attack for the next turn while letting you draw, then your remaining 5 DON!! lets you play Buggy with your Leader effect and Bottom Deck an opposing Character.
This sequence lets you handle two opposing attackers during the same turn.
Alvida is the central card in the decklist and the main reason Buggy can develop his board so quickly.
With your Leader effect, you can play her for only 5 DON!! + one discarded card. Her On Play lets you draw 2 cards, then play a Cross Guild Character with a Cost of 8 or less from your hand.
This lets you chain plays such as:
Alvida → Dracule Mihawk OP09-048
Alvida → Crocodile & Mihawk ST25-003
Alvida → P-084 Buggy
Pay attention to the order of your actions: after her effect, you cannot play any more Characters that turn. If you want to use your Leader effect twice at 10 DON!! or develop another Character before her, Alvida must be played last.
Her When Attacking effect is also extremely powerful: you can negate an opposing Character's effect for the turn. This lets you disable a Blocker, an On K.O. effect, or protection from Removal before using OP09-051 Buggy or Gravity Blade.
Crocodile & Mihawk is your main protection against decks that can remove your Characters.
Once per turn, when one of your Cross Guild Characters would be removed from the board by an opponent's effect, you can discard a card instead.
This protection is especially important because your late game with OP09-051 Buggy depends on keeping enough Characters on the board.
Crocodile & Mihawk can also play a Cross Guild Character with a Cost of 4 or less when you play it normally. However, if it is played with EB05-021 Alvida, you cannot use this second play because Alvida's effect prevents you from playing more Characters that turn.
Mihawk is the most versatile target to play with Alvida.
You get a 7000-Power Blocker that also lets you draw 2 cards, then discard 1.
He therefore helps you protect your Leader, refresh your hand, and build the board needed for OP09-051 Buggy at the same time.
Alvida → Mihawk is generally your simplest sequence when the matchup does not call for Crocodile & Mihawk's protection or P-084 Buggy's specific effect.
P-084 Buggy is very situational, but can almost completely stop some decks' offensive plans.
While he is in play, your opponent cannot attack with their Characters that have a Cost of 3 or 4.
He is especially useful against strategies that rely on several attackers in that Cost range.
He can also play a Cross Guild Character with a Cost of 6 or less from your hand, giving you another way to swarm, especially with Dracule Mihawk OP09-048.
Mr.3 gives you a particularly useful way to buy time when your board is already established.
You can discard him to draw 2 cards while preventing an opposing Character with a Cost of 9 or less from attacking during their next turn.
At 9 or 10 DON!!, you can combine him with your Leader effect: play Mr.3 for 4 DON!!, stop an attacker and draw 2, then use your remaining 5 DON!! to play OP09-051 Buggy and Bottom Deck another threat.
This lets you handle two different attackers during the same turn while improving your hand.
Boa Hancock punishes decks that build up an extremely large hand.
If your opponent has 9 or more cards in hand, she can make them discard 4 cards.
However, she is not searchable in this decklist. With only one copy, you will naturally need to draw her to use her effect.
Gravity Blade is your main option for controlling multiple opposing Characters.
For 7 DON!!, you can Bottom Deck two opposing Characters with a Cost of 6 or less.
This card is especially valuable against boards built around multiple important threats in that Cost range. It is especially useful against Rocks and Red/Green Luffy, two matchups that can cause problems for Buggy.
Against Rocks, it can handle Characters such as Newgate and Linlin. Against Red/Green Luffy, it can remove multiple threats such as Bonney and Law.
You can also combine Gravity Blade with EB05-021 Alvida: attack with Alvida first to negate an effect protecting against Removal, then use Gravity Blade to Bottom Deck the now-vulnerable targets.
OP09-051 Buggy is the final reward for all your board development.
With your Leader effect, this 10-Cost / 12000-Power Character can be played for only 5 DON!! and lets you Bottom Deck any opposing Character, with no Cost restriction.
Bottom-Deck Removal also gets around On K.O. effects, making it an extremely effective answer to big late-game threats.
The tradeoff is essential: you need enough Characters with a Cost of 5 or more to keep Buggy on the board. Buggy counts himself, so you must have four other Characters that meet this condition when he enters play.
This is why your early and mid game focus so heavily on multiplying your Characters and increasing their Cost: all your development prepares for OP09-051 Buggy.
Buggy has a very good plan against Yellow Enel, especially because you can build a board that is difficult to handle while keeping enough resources to answer his big threats.
ST25-003 Crocodile & Mihawk is especially important for protecting your board from Removal effects. If you anticipate Removal such as Kingdom Come, prioritize Alvida → Crocodile & Mihawk rather than developing without protection.
Try to quickly play several Characters with 7000 Power. Enel may then have a very hard time handling your board while committing DON!! to his own game plan.
OP09-051 Buggy is excellent for removing his big threats. You can directly Bottom Deck an important Character without worrying about its Cost or a possible On K.O. effect.
Once Enel is at low Life, keep multiplying your big attacks. If he has to commit DON!! to recover Life, he has fewer resources to threaten your Characters.
Rocks has several tools that can disrupt your setup, but Buggy also has especially effective answers to his board.
Gravity Blade Raging Tiger is one of your best cards in this matchup. It can Bottom Deck threats such as Newgate and Linlin and let you handle several Characters at once.
Crocodile & Mihawk becomes very valuable when you anticipate Removal. Keeping your board is essential to playing OP09-051 Buggy in good conditions afterward.
Use EB05-021 Alvida to negate effects protecting against Removal before using Buggy or Gravity Blade. If multiple protections are active at the same time, however, your opponent can make this sequence much more difficult.
Be careful not to expose all your Characters unnecessarily. Rocks can create very dangerous turns with several big attacks, and keeping a Blocker Active can make the difference when your Counter is limited.
Red/Green Luffy is one of Buggy's most difficult matchups. P-084 Buggy significantly improves your ability to slow down his board, but does not automatically turn the matchup around.
Look for P-084 Buggy to prevent Characters with a Cost of 3 or 4 from attacking your Leader. Several important parts of the opposing board may then be unable to contribute to the pressure.
Also try to find Crocodile & Mihawk. Your P-084 Buggy is extremely important in this matchup, and you want to protect him if your opponent has a way to remove him with an effect.
Gravity Blade is another essential card. It can simultaneously remove several threats, including Characters such as Bonney or Law, and let you regain control of a board that has become too wide.
Your margins are tight. Avoid using your Blockers or Counter unnecessarily: if P-084 Buggy stays on the board, some opposing attackers may already be neutralized, and you can focus your defensive resources on the attacks that still get through.
Red Law is an unfavorable matchup, where your curve is especially important.
Going First is especially important: you want to start developing before Law can establish his pace.
Try to follow your Alvida curve so you can quickly put several big Characters on the board. You need this presence to keep Law from dictating the pace of the game entirely.
Your goal is still to reach OP09-051 Buggy with a sufficiently developed board to remove an important threat without losing your own Buggy.
Do not unnecessarily delay your development while looking for a perfect hand. In this matchup, losing tempo makes your transition to the late game much more difficult.
Going First also greatly improves your chances against Green/Blue Luffy.
Prioritize your curve and try to find EB05-021 Alvida quickly. You want to play your big Characters before your opponent can fully establish their own plan.
Develop your board with your OP09-051 Buggy condition in mind: you need enough Characters with a Cost of 5 or more to turn your board advantage into Removal.
Avoid giving up tempo unnecessarily. Your best way to stay in the game is to keep playing Characters that are difficult to handle while progressing toward Buggy.
This matchup depends heavily on your curve: a hand with Searchers → Alvida → good targets gives you a much better chance to keep pace.
Red/Purple Luffy is one of Buggy's most difficult matchups, and going first is not necessarily enough to solve the problem.
Your priority is still to execute your own curve rather than keep a hand that is too reactive.
Look for Alvida and quickly play several Characters to prepare OP09-051 Buggy.
You need to apply enough pressure with your 7000-Power attacks to make Luffy use his resources before he can fully take advantage of his late game.
Buggy has several tools that are especially effective against Green/Yellow Robin.
Gravity Blade Raging Tiger is extremely powerful here since the main opposing Characters remain in a Cost range it can handle.
Keep building your board with Alvida while controlling the Characters that are actually dangerous. You do not need to answer every small threat immediately.
Once your board condition is met, OP09-051 Buggy gives you another answer with no Cost restriction.
Chaining your Bottom Deck effects is especially useful because it lets you remove Characters without triggering the opposing Leader's effect.
Buggy also has good matchups against OP17 Purple Kaido, OP12 Rosinante, OP14 Boa Hancock, OP17 Shanks, and OP17 Black Luffy.
Your plan is mainly the same as your standard curve: find Alvida → play several big Characters → reach four Characters that meet the Cost condition → use OP09-051 Buggy to control the opponent's main threats.
Mulligan for EB05-021 Alvida. She is the most important piece of your curve. If you do not have her directly, keep your Searchers to increase your chances of finding her before your first big turn.
Always adapt the target you play with Alvida to the matchup. Dracule Mihawk OP09-048 is your general option with its Blocker and draw, Crocodile & Mihawk ST25-003 is preferable when you anticipate Removal, while P-084 Buggy can completely slow down decks that depend on attackers with a Cost of 3 or 4.
Pay attention to the order when you play EB05-021 Alvida. After her effect, you cannot play any more Characters that turn. If you plan to play another Character before her, especially with your first Leader use at 10 DON!!, do so before playing Alvida.
Use Alvida's When Attacking effect before your Removal. You can negate an opposing Character effect protecting the board, then use OP09-051 Buggy or Gravity Blade on the target you want to remove. You can also disable a Blocker or an On K.O. effect, depending on the situation.
Always prepare your condition before playing OP09-051 Buggy. Buggy counts himself, but you need four other Characters with a Cost of 5 or more to keep him on the board. Do not rush him if your board is not ready yet.
Take advantage of the Cost increases on your small Characters. ST25-001 Alvida, ST25-002 Cabaji, and ST25-005 Mohji can reach the required Cost to count as Characters with a Cost of 5 when your board is sufficiently developed, making it easier to prepare OP09-051 Buggy.
Do not automatically develop every turn. After playing two big Characters with Alvida, you can sometimes spend your next turn on Gravity Blade. You have already gained a board advantage, and removing two important threats may be more valuable than immediately adding more Characters.
Combine OP16-056 Mr.3 with Buggy when your board is already ready. You can play Mr.3 to stop an attacker and draw 2 cards, then use your remaining 5 DON!! to play OP09-051 Buggy and Bottom Deck a second threat.
Do not necessarily try to protect every attack with Mihawk. Your 7000-Power Blocker is an important part of your board and helps prepare Buggy. In some situations, taking an attack or using Counter is preferable to unnecessarily exposing Mihawk.
Keep your Characters Active when the matchup can strongly punish your Rested Characters. Your deck depends heavily on keeping its board. An extra attack is not always more important than preserving a Character needed for your next OP09-051 Buggy.
Go first when you have the choice. The 1 → 3 → 5 → 7 → 9 curve suits Buggy especially well. This priority is even more important in some unfavorable matchups such as Red Law or Green/Blue Luffy.
