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Shonen TCG · General
Portgas D. Ace returned as an OP-16 leader, and EN players are treating him seriously. This OP-16 Ace deck tech covers the Whitebeard Pirates Rush shell that went 7-1 at Peoria and logged 16 wins across the first EN tracked window.
TL;DR: OP-16 Ace (OP16-001) is a Red Rush leader built around granting surprise attacks to Whitebeard Pirates bodies with 8000+ power or to Monkey D. Luffy. The core engine is Moby Dick for draw/search, Thatch for cheap tempo, and Little Oars Jr. as the preferred Rush target. Player Long placed 3rd at Peoria Treasure Cup (June 20, 2026, 7-1 record). Ace posted 16 EN tournament wins in the first tracked window. This is not a tier-topper, but it punishes passive play reliably.
OP16-001OP16-001 Ace is a 5000-power, 5-life Red leader who grants Rush to a qualifying Whitebeard Pirates character or Luffy once per turn during your Main phase. The deck wins by building a Whitebeard board around Moby Dick's draw engine, playing Thatch at a cost discount, and closing with Rush attacks from Little Oars Jr. or Luffy that the opponent did not see coming.
GODEEPER: Want the full card-by-card breakdown of what makes the Red Ace shell tick since launch? OP-16 Ace Deck Guide: Whitebeard Pirates Burn Build →
The leader ability reads: [Activate: Main] [Once Per Turn]. Give Rush this turn to 1 Monkey D. Luffy character you control OR 1 Whitebeard Pirates character you control with 8000 or more power.
A few things to understand about this effect:
It triggers on demand. You choose when to use it during your Main phase, which means you can develop your board first and then grant Rush to the character that benefits most from the attack right now. This is different from characters that have Rush printed on the card, which the opponent can see and play around on the previous turn.
The 8000 threshold gates the ability. Not every Whitebeard Pirates body qualifies. Thatch at his base stats does not reach 8000, so he is not a Rush target. Edward Newgate and Little Oars Jr. do clear the threshold. This creates a natural tension: you want bodies on board early to enable Thatch's cost reduction, but you specifically want high-power bodies to be Rush targets later.
Luffy bypasses the power threshold. 
OP16-015OP16-015 Monkey D. Luffy (the OP-16 version) qualifies regardless of power because the ability names him directly. His cost also drops by 2 when you have 6 or more DON!! on field, making him efficient to deploy in the mid-game turns where you want to grant Rush.
Ace (OP16-001) grants Rush to Whitebeard Pirates, turning fresh plays into immediate attacks for the deck's fast clock.
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Former card game tournament organiser turned analyst. Covers One Piece TCG meta, deck efficiency, and card valuation. Builds spreadsheets for decks most people just play.
Disclaimer
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The core cards in the EN week 1 builds draw from the Feature Deck #102 list and the Peoria TC result.
OP16-003OP16-003 Edward Newgate (Whitebeard), 4 copies. The anchor of the board. He clears the 8000 threshold and becomes the primary Rush target when Luffy is not available or when you need a single massive attack to break through a defensive setup. Four copies because the deck cannot afford to miss him in the mid-game.
OP16-005OP16-005 Thatch, 4 copies. Thatch's cost drops by 3 when you control an 8000+ Whitebeard Pirates character. That condition is almost always met in the mid-game because Newgate or Little Oars Jr. will already be on the field. At his discounted cost, Thatch provides power-efficient tempo that fills out the board and stacks bodies without stretching your DON!! too thin.
OP16-011OP16-011 Vista, 4 copies. Vista provides a reliable stat line that fits between the low-cost openers and the heavy hitters. He does not need a condition to come into play effectively and handles the DON!! curve on turns where you are not yet ready to deploy Newgate.
OP16-014OP16-014 Marco, 4 copies. Marco is the defensive resilience piece. His ability keeps him on the field when he would otherwise be removed, which matters against removal-heavy matchups like Blackbeard. He also hits above his DON!! cost in terms of power contribution.
Monkey D. Luffy (OP16-015): situational core. The direct Rush target named by Ace's leader ability. His cost reduction at 6+ DON!! makes him a natural turn-6 play, and granting Rush to him on that same turn creates a high-damage attack that most boards cannot absorb cleanly.
OP16-017OP16-017 Little Oars Jr., 4 copies. The preferred Rush target in most board states. His power clears the 8000 threshold comfortably, and using Ace's ability to give him Rush generates immediate pressure that forces the opponent to counter on a turn they expected to play development cards instead. Oars Jr. costs enough DON!! that the opponent will often not expect the Rush on the turn he drops.
OP16-021OP16-021 Moby Dick (Stage), 4 copies. The draw and search engine of the deck. Moby Dick is the best unrestricted search/draw available to this shell and enables consistent access to Newgate and Thatch in the mid-game. Without Moby Dick, the deck struggles to find its key pieces on curve. Four copies is non-negotiable.
OP16-118OP16-118 Portgas D. Ace (Character version), 4 copies. The character version of Ace runs alongside the leader. He provides an additional aggressive body and contributes to the Red power suite without competing with the board slots needed for the Whitebeard Pirates package.
This framework reflects the Peoria TC placing list (Player Long, 3rd, 7-1 record, June 20, 2026) and the Feature Deck #102 shell. Individual counts in the non-core slots vary by local meta preference.
Leader:
OP16-001OP16-001 Portgas D. Ace x1Characters:
OP16-003OP16-003 Edward Newgate x4OP16-005OP16-005 Thatch x4OP16-011OP16-011 Vista x4OP16-014OP16-014 Marco x4OP16-015OP16-015 Monkey D. Luffy x2-3OP16-017OP16-017 Little Oars Jr. x4OP16-118OP16-118 Portgas D. Ace (Character) x4Stages:
OP16-021OP16-021 Moby Dick x4The remaining slots are filled with low-cost Red counter cards and Events depending on local metagame. The Peoria list leaned toward defensive counter density to survive into the Rush turns.
Marco (OP16-014) is the shell's defensive backbone, buying the turns Ace needs to convert Rush attacks into lethal.
Turns 1-3 (early game): Priority is setting up Moby Dick as soon as possible. Use these turns to search for Newgate and identify your optimal mid-game attack line. Vista can come down as an early body to establish presence without committing too much DON!!.
Turns 4-5 (mid-game, critical window): Deploy Edward Newgate or Little Oars Jr. With an 8000+ body on the field, Thatch now costs significantly less. Play Thatch at the discounted cost to add another body without overspending. The board now has multiple targets and the opponent cannot single out a priority threat easily.
Turn 6+ (Rush window): At 6+ DON!!, Luffy's cost reduction kicks in. You can deploy Luffy and use Ace's leader ability on the same turn to grant Rush, creating a back-to-back attack that stacks with existing bodies. If Luffy is not in hand, use the leader ability on Little Oars Jr. or Newgate instead. The goal is to attack for damage that forces the opponent to exhaust their hand countering rather than building their own board.
Closing: The deck does not burn the opponent out. It closes by stacking Rush attacks over multiple turns until the opponent runs out of counter cards. The Moby Dick draw engine keeps your hand from emptying, which is the main difference between this shell and slower Whitebeard builds that stall out late.
These assessments come from community discussion following week 1 EN results. No fabricated win rate numbers are included.
vs Blackbeard (S-tier): unfavorable. Blackbeard's Trigger-based control answers Ace's bodies before the Rush window fully opens. The deck can generate enough early pressure to steal games but cannot sustain consistently against a Blackbeard pilot who knows the counter timing. See the OP-16 Blackbeard deck tech week 1 for how the opposing side approaches the matchup.
vs Yamato (S-tier): roughly even. Ace's Rush tempo competes with Yamato's recursion speed. Neither deck has a decisive structural advantage in the early weeks. Outcomes depend on draw quality and whether the Ace player lands Rush before Yamato completes a recursion cycle.
vs Luffy (S-tier): slightly favored. Ace's removal efficiency and Rush timing outpaces the Luffy Impel Down flood strategy. Luffy's mid-game commitment creates a window where Ace's Rush attacks land before the board stabilizes. Not a free win, but the natural clock advantages Ace.
vs Sengoku Purple Control (high-tier): favorable. Rush pressure lands before Sengoku ramps to a full Admiral board. Sengoku does not have efficient early answers to Whitebeard bodies. If Ace closes by turn 8-9, Sengoku cannot assemble the Admiral package in time. The OP-16 Sengoku deck guide outlines the ramp timeline Sengoku needs to survive this aggression.
vs Purple Enel (S-tier carryover): very unfavorable. This is the hardest matchup week 1. Enel's draw engine pulls ahead on resources before Ace's Rush pressure becomes decisive. Enel can absorb one or two Rush turns and still have enough hand to answer the board. Without a specific tech card for the Enel matchup, Ace players who face Enel often must accept the loss.
GODEEPER: The week 1 EN meta picture includes more than Ace. OP-16 Meta Tier List: Week 1 EN Results →
Yes, with realistic expectations. Ace is not the S-tier leader that Blackbeard is in OP-16, but the deck does something no other OP-16 leader does as cleanly: it combines a genuine draw/search engine (Moby Dick) with a surprise Rush granter that the opponent cannot read from card text alone.
The Peoria 3rd place finish from Player Long shows the deck can go 7-1 against a field that includes S-tier pilots. Ace outperformed JP week 1 projections in EN, likely because EN players are more familiar with Red Rush lines from prior sets.
Cost note: The Whitebeard Pirates shell draws heavily from OP-16 in-set cards. The main cost barrier is Edward Newgate at 4 copies, which carries set-launch pricing. Marco and Little Oars Jr. are more accessible. Compared to the OP-13 Ace shell, the OP-16 version is more affordable to build because most of the key cards are from a single new set rather than requiring cross-set staples. For a full card-value breakdown, the OP-16 best cards to pull guide covers current market prices on the high-value pieces.
The deck does not reinvent the Red Rush archetype. It is a valid parallel shell to OP-13 Ace, suited to players who want to run native OP-16 support and capitalize on the Moby Dick engine.
What color is the OP-16 Ace leader? Portgas D. Ace (OP16-001) is Red with 5000 power and 5 life. His leader type is Whitebeard Pirates and he operates entirely within the Red color identity, requiring no splash.
How does Ace's leader ability work in OP-16? Once per turn during your Main phase, you activate the ability to give Rush to one Monkey D. Luffy character you control OR one Whitebeard Pirates character you control with 8000 or more power. Rush lasts until end of turn. You choose the timing during your Main phase, so you develop your board first and then decide which body benefits from the surprise attack.
What is the best Rush target for OP-16 Ace? Little Oars Jr. (OP16-017) in most board states because of his high power and the surprise factor given his cost. Monkey D. Luffy (OP16-015) is the secondary target, especially effective at 6+ DON!! when his cost reduction makes him efficient to deploy and immediately Rush on the same turn.
Is OP-16 Ace better than OP-13 Ace? Both are competitive. OP-16 Ace has more native in-set support via the Whitebeard Pirates package and the Moby Dick engine. OP-13 Ace runs a different ability. For players starting fresh in OP-16 format, the OP-16 version is more self-contained and accessible to build because it does not require multiple cross-set staples.
How does Thatch work in the Ace deck? Thatch (OP16-005) gets a 3-cost reduction when you control a Whitebeard Pirates character with 8000 or more power. Edward Newgate and Little Oars Jr. both clear this threshold. Once either is on the board, Thatch drops to an efficient cost for his power level and can be played on the same turn without spending all your DON!!.
What are Ace's hardest matchups in OP-16? Purple Enel is the hardest matchup. His draw engine generates enough resources to absorb Ace's Rush pressure before the Whitebeard board becomes decisive. Blackbeard is the second hardest because Trigger-based control removes Ace's bodies before the Rush window opens cleanly.
Did OP-16 Ace place in any EN tournaments week 1? Yes. Player Long placed 3rd at the Peoria Treasure Cup on June 20, 2026 with a 7-1 record. Across the full May 25 to June 9 EN tracked window, Ace posted 16 tournament wins. This outperformed early JP week 1 results that categorized the deck as lower mid-tier.
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