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Shonen TCG · General

Reviewing
One Piece Card Game
The Impel Down Luffy deck is the highest-ceiling tempo build in the OP-16 format. The leader restriction sounds punishing on paper, but once the engine runs, no other Green/Blue build generates this kind of mid-game momentum.
TL;DR: OP16-022 Luffy is an S-tier Green/Blue leader with a hard tribal restriction: all characters must carry the Impel Down trait or the DON!! refund does not trigger. The reward for respecting that restriction is 2 free DON!! every turn from roughly turn 3 onward. Deploy cheap Prisoners on turns 1 and 2, unlock the engine on turn 3, and snowball from there. The Bandai feature deck runs a tight 50-card list centered on efficient 2-4 cost Impel Down characters.
OP16-022Shop on TCGplayer Monkey.D.Luffy is Green/Blue with 5000 Power and 4 LifeThe Impel Down Luffy deck plays a tribe-locked tempo game. You spend turns 1 and 2 establishing an Impel Down board with efficient 2-cost characters, then trigger the leader effect from turn 3 onward to refund 2 DON!! per turn. Those extra resources either go into additional character plays or power attacks. The deck curves to 4-5 cost threats by mid-game while most opponents are still working their standard resource curve.
Most Green/Blue decks in the One Piece card game function as generic tempo builds: they take the best Green cards for board presence and the best Blue cards for disruption and mix them freely. OP16-022 Luffy breaks that pattern with a hard restriction. To activate the leader ability, every character you control must carry the Impel Down trait. A single non-Impel Down character on your board and the effect does not trigger that turn.
That restriction eliminates access to a wide pool of strong Green/Blue generalist cards. No Nami, no standard Law pieces, no cross-archetype staples unless they happen to carry the Impel Down trait. What you gain in exchange is a DON!! engine that compounds: 2 free DON!! per turn starting around turn 3 means you are effectively playing with 2 extra resources every main phase, which translates to an extra character play or a significantly stronger attack each turn.
Correction: an earlier version of this section described a viable "unrestricted" build that mixes in general Green/Blue cards for more early-game consistency. That framing doesn't match the real card text. The leader ability only fires when every Character on the field is {Impel Down} type, so a single off-trait card doesn't trade consistency for ceiling, it just turns the engine off. There is no competitive alternate build; the tribal restriction is mandatory for anyone playing this leader seriously.
The tribal restriction also means your opponent knows exactly what is in your deck once they identify your leader. They will play around your character pool. Part of piloting this archetype is understanding that your hand is readable, so sequencing and bluffing become more important than in an open-card-pool build.
This page covers Bandai's official pre-launch feature deck, a strong, fully Impel Down-pure list straight from the publisher. For the current tournament-refined 50-card list that EN players have converged on since launch (same mono-Impel Down core, different card mix as the meta settled), see the main Luffy guide.
GODEEPER: See the tournament-verified 50-card list that's replaced this feature deck as the competitive standard since EN launch. OP-16 Green Blue Luffy Deck Guide: Tier 1 Tournament List →
Luffy (OP16-022) refunds 2 DON!! per turn as long as every Character carries the Impel Down trait, the restriction that defines the build.
This is the official Bandai feature deck for OP16-022 Luffy, published at en.onepiece-cardgame.com ahead of EN launch. It's still a fully legal, Impel Down-pure list and a fine starting point, though tournament results since June 12 have refined the build, swapping in Crocodile and Miss Olive for Jinbe, Boa Hancock, and Inazuma (see the GODEEPER link above for the current competitive 50-card list):
Leader (1)
Characters (48)
Events (2)
Total: 50 cards
The list is tight on card diversity by design. Fourteen 2-cost character slots (Mr.1, Mr.2, and Jinbe at four copies each, Inazuma at two) ensure you almost always have an early drop to start the board. OP16-042 Prisoner of Impel Down plays a different role than its ten copies might suggest: its rules text allows any number of copies in a deck instead of the usual four-copy cap, and the feature list uses that to run ten as a 6-cost, 6000-power, +2000-counter body that tops the curve once the DON!! engine is generating extra resources. The event card (Let's Go!!) appears as a lean 2-of: it gives counter support and a situational board-refresh option for the turns before the engine takes over, rather than functioning as the deck's primary defensive tool.
SHOP: Building this Impel Down Luffy build? Check current OP-16 singles prices on TCGPlayer. Shop TCGplayer →
Monkey.D.Luffy (Leader, OP16-022) is the engine of the entire deck. 5000 Power and 4 Life is an acceptable stat line for a Green/Blue leader. The effect is what you are playing for: once per turn during your main phase, if all your characters have the Impel Down trait, set up to 2 DON!! as active. 4 Life is on the lower end, which means aggressive decks can threaten you if the engine is not running. Prioritize board setup over life protection in the early turns.
OP16-034
OP16-034Shop on TCGplayer Monkey.D.Luffy (Character, 4x) is a 1-cost card, cheaper than its role in the deck might suggest: 0 base power that climbs by +1000 for every differently named character you control once a DON!! is attached, plus an On Play dig through the top 3 cards of your deck for an Impel Down piece. It is an early curve-filler and card-selection tool, not a late-game threat.
OP16-027
OP16-027Shop on TCGplayer Jinbe (Character, 4x) provides the defensive body your early Impel Down board needs. His role is holding the board long enough for the engine to generate meaningful advantage, and he carries the Impel Down trait so the restriction stays intact.
OP16-026
OP16-026Shop on TCGplayer Emporio.Ivankov (Character, 4x) is one of the deck's acceleration pieces. Ivankov's effect pairs with the DON!! refresh to create sequences where you deploy more characters per turn than your cost curve would suggest. He is a staple in Impel Down lists for that reason.
Mr.1 (Daz.Bonez) (OP16-054) and Mr.2.Bon.Kurei (Bentham) (OP16-055) are your turn-1 and turn-2 drops, both sitting at 2 cost. Getting either on the board on turn 1 establishes the Impel Down count so the leader effect can fire as soon as turn 3. Draw a hand without these two and your engine runs a full turn slower. Mulligan aggressively for at least one of them.
OP16-042
OP16-042Shop on TCGplayer Prisoner of Impel Down (Character, 10x) is a 6-cost, 6000-power body with a +2000 Counter, and its rules text permits unlimited copies in a deck instead of the standard four-of cap. That is why the feature list runs ten. It is not an early piece: it is the repeatable curve-topper that gives the deck an always-available Impel Down threat for turns 5 and beyond, once the DON!! engine has generated the resources to play it ahead of schedule.
OP16-032
OP16-032Shop on TCGplayer Boa Hancock (Character, 4x) is the deck's late-game finisher pressure. Once the DON!! engine is established, Hancock becomes a resource-efficient threat because you are playing her off partially refunded DON!!.
OP16-048
OP16-048Shop on TCGplayer Buggy (Character, 4x) and
OP16-024
OP16-024Shop on TCGplayer Inazuma (Character, 2x) round out the supporting Impel Down cast. Buggy provides swarm presence at mid-cost. Inazuma at 2 copies is a flex slot: he provides utility in specific board states but at lower consistency than the 4-of slots.
Let's Go!! To the Navy Headquarters!! (OP16-038, 2x) is a light counter piece: as a Counter it grants your Leader +3000 power during a battle, and as a Main-phase play it can rest 6 DON!! to set your Leader and all Characters active if you control 5 differently named Impel Down characters, a swingy late-game reset rather than a defensive staple. At only 2 copies it is a situational tool; the deck's actual survival plan leans on its character count and counter-stat pieces like Jinbe.
Slower Sengoku decks lean on Sakazuki (OP16-065) to reset the board, which is exactly why Impel Down Luffy wants to close before the Admirals come online.
vs. Sengoku Navy: This is one of the tougher matchups. Sengoku lists include
OP16-065
OP16-065Shop on TCGplayer Sakazuki (Akainu) as a removal piece, and consistent removal clears your Impel Down board, cutting off the leader effect. The key is deploying characters at a pace faster than removal can answer them. Keep Mr.1 and Mr.2 pressure constant in the early turns so they are spending resources on removal rather than setting up their own engine. Check the full OP-16 Blackbeard Deck Guide for context on how redirect-control matchups play differently from removal-based ones.
vs. Blackbeard (Black/Yellow): Blackbeard's attack redirection disrupts your combat math. You commit power to an attack and the redirect shifts the damage target. Play around this by spreading attacks across multiple characters rather than committing all your DON!! to a single large attacker. The engine advantage gives you the resources to spread pressure in a way that taxes the redirect mechanic.
vs. Buggy (Blue): A mirror-adjacent matchup: both decks share the Impel Down character pool. The difference is your DON!! engine gives you higher individual turn ceilings. Their advantage is a lower average cost curve and more characters on board earlier. Play to your engine, not to racing their character count early.
vs. Rush Aggro (Red Ace): Red Ace is the most dangerous matchup. Four Life is manageable until the burn effects start adding up. The Let's Go!! Event becomes critical here: hold counter coverage for the key attack windows. Do not overextend into board if it leaves you unable to defend life. See the OP-16 Ace Deck Guide for how the Whitebeard Pirates burn build applies this same aggro pressure from the other side of the table.
vs. Purple Enel (S-tier): Enel lists use board clears and draw engines that punish wide boards. The Impel Down build is vulnerable here because your tribal restriction means you cannot pivot easily. Focus on presenting individual high-power threats rather than spreading a wide board that is more exposed to AoE removal. The DON!! refund lets you redeploy after clears faster than most decks can.
GODEEPER: Trafalgar Law isn't a leader in OP-16 at all. See what his two real Character cards actually do and where Law shows up in the current meta. OP-16 Law Deck Guide →
One Piece TCG OP-16 Guide: Set Review & Leaders (2026): Full OP-16 set overview, all six leaders, and key mechanics.
OP-16 Buggy Deck Guide: Buggy runs many of the same Impel Down characters but at lower average cost with a different leader effect, making it the budget-friendly Impel Down option.
Purple Enel Deck Guide for One Piece TCG OP-16 2026: this deck's toughest S-tier matchup, with its own build and disruption-plan sequencing.
OP-16 Sengoku Deck Guide: Purple Marine Admirals Build: the Admiral removal package that punishes a slow Impel Down board, covered from the Sengoku side.
One Piece TCG OP-16 Meta Report July 2026: current EN win rates now that the format has settled past week 1, including this leader's S-tier standing.
OP-16 All 6 Leaders Explained: side-by-side comparison of all leaders including both Luffy variants and their differences.
OP-17 Spoilers Complete Tracker: Every confirmed OP-17 leader, card, and release detail as spoilers drop.
What color is the Impel Down Luffy leader in OP-16? OP16-022 Monkey.D.Luffy is Green/Blue. He requires all characters in play to have the Impel Down trait to activate his DON!! refresh effect, which makes him a tribal build rather than a generic Green/Blue tempo deck.
Can I mix in non-Impel Down Green/Blue characters? No. Adding a single character without the Impel Down trait shuts off your leader ability for that turn. The restriction is strict: ALL characters currently in play must carry the Impel Down trait or you cannot activate the effect.
How many DON!! does Luffy OP16-022 refund per turn? Up to 2 DON!! become active once per turn during your main phase, provided the Impel Down restriction is met. Over a 5-turn mid-game stretch, that is 10 extra DON!! worth of tempo advantage.
Is the Impel Down Luffy deck expensive to build? The official Bandai feature list uses mostly OP-16 cards that settled at low-to-mid prices post-launch. The leader isn't a SEC, keeping entry cost reasonable, though the deck's ten copies of OP16-042 push the total up some. Expect roughly $90-140 for the full 50-card build as of mid-2026.
How does this deck compare to the unrestricted Green/Blue Luffy build? The unrestricted build uses the same leader but ignores the tribal restriction, mixing in stronger general-use Green/Blue cards. It is more consistent in the early game. The Impel Down version wins harder on turns 4 and 5 when the DON!! engine is firing, but punishes you more for bad draws.
What is the best counter to Impel Down Luffy? Wide-board clear effects hurt this deck badly since it needs multiple characters in play to gain value. Decks with persistent removal or Rush attackers that threaten life before your engine comes online are the strongest counters.
Does Buggy work in both the Impel Down Luffy and Buggy decks? Yes. Several OP-16 Buggy and Impel Down characters overlap between the two archetypes. The difference is the leader: OP16-022 Luffy uses the DON!! refund for tempo, while the Buggy leader uses Impel Down characters for a swarm strategy at lower average card cost.
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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.
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