As Flesh and Blood hurdles towards its 5 year anniversary this October, the number of heroes that have entered the pantheon of Living Legend status continues to rise. Ever since Starvo kicked open the gates in 2022, a myriad of powerful heroes have joined him in retirement, claiming their favorite poolside chair and kicking back for some much needed rest (except Oldhim, as he’s still deciding which blue to pitch into Crown of Seeds). But an hour is coming, and now is, when they will once again don their armor, dust off their weapons, and enter the fray as the Living Legend format could grace an LGS near you during the upcoming Skirmish Season 9. What is the Living Legend format and what should you expect to see when you sit down at your LGS to play it?
In short, the Living Legend format exists to allow every hero the chance to be played once again, regardless of how many Living Legend points that they have accrued throughout their lifespan. It is a format that allows established players to pick up their favorite hero from yesteryear while giving new players the opportunity to play heroes that may have moved on before their time. It is also arguably the most high-octane format in the game, often featuring some of the most broken and dominant cards the game has ever seen. Bryan Gottlieb put it best in the December Banned & Restricted Announcement last year when he said:
“People enjoy doing powerful things during their games of Flesh and Blood, and Living Legend is meant to be a format where those power fantasies can be showcased.”
With that being said, this is not a format that has been left to grow wild, devoid of cultivation and pruning. In that same December article, Legend Story Studio added a cornucopia of cards to the restricted list in an effort to kneecap the boogeyman of the format: Bravo, Star of the Show. If the Battle Hardened L.A. results are any indication, this move appears to have worked. The format seems to be in a healthy spot with these changes, and the global community will put it to the test at the end of August when Skirmish season 9 begins. Let’s take a look at a few heroes who you can expect to see crushing the top tables of your upcoming LL Skirmish.
Chane, Bound By Shadow
Leading the infernal armies of the Demonastery against the heroes of the Light, Chane returns from Living Legend status more dangerous than ever, thanks in part to the sheer power of several banned cards. Belittle, Minnowism, and Plunder Run were and are still banned in Classic Constructed due to their game-warping potential and synergy. In the Living Legend format, though, their chains have been unfettered, and Chane is more than happy to add them back into his arsenal.
Chane’s gameplan is predicated on massively wide turns. If done correctly, your combat chains can make even a ninja blush. Bounding Demigon, Ghostly Visit, and Unhallowed Rites often act as pesky breakpoint attacks that can effortlessly gain go again from Chane’s hero effect. Tack on a Belittle/Minnowism combo for the extra resources or the +3 power (depending on which Minnowism you grab from your deck), end your turn with a massive Rift Bind, and you’ll begin to see the might that Chane brings to the table. And while some might view the Shadow talent to be a gateway to many abilities some consider to be unnatural, Chane’s most powerful turns are oftentimes enabled by a singular generic card: Art of War. Hearing “+1 power across the board and banish draw 2” are sure to send opponents spiraling into the recesses of their mind, reliving the carnage of battles long past. Make no mistake: Chane is one of the premiere heroes in the Living Legend format and will be a true force at the top tables this August.
Lexi, Livewire
Not to be outdone, however, is a hero that made her exit from Classic Constructed a bit more recently: Lexi, Livewire. An elemental ranger with the power to wield both ice and lightning, Lexi actually surged in popularity after the release of Outsiders when she gained access to a slightly above-rate card in Codex of Frailty. Here in the Living Legend format she can once again equip the Bull’s Eye Bracers, allowing her to fire a bevvy of arrows with go again from Voltaire, Strike Twice and end with the crackling crescendo of Endless Arrow for 5 (on hit, keep an arsenal for next turn).
At the end of her time in the Classic Constructed format, she found most success on a generic, go wide gameplan with splashes of frostbite effects here and there. Though she may not gain as many “upgrades” as Chane did in the move to Living Legend format, her card pool is so aggressively potent that she doesn’t need the power boost. Do you have control of the tempo? Use Drill Shot, Infecting Shot, and Heat Seeker to keep your opponent on the backfoot and you with a 5+ card hand next turn. Are you falling behind? Use Channel Lake Frigid, Arctic Incarceration (as a Dromai player, that card deserves to burn), or the now restricted but still useful Hypothermia to pull yourself back into the fight. Did your opponent steal cards out of your hand? No problem, just play Three of a Kind. Now you have a hand again! There’s a reason that Lexi warped the meta to her will for 8 months straight, and she’s looking to stake her claim in the LL format just as she did in Classic Constructed.
Zen, Tamer of Purpose
Oh, you thought that the LL format was restricted to only heroes that reached Living Legend status? Think again. ALL heroes can be played in this format, and they all have access to the banned cards of metas past. This brings us to the hero that is currently ruling the roost of Classic Constructed: Zen, Tamer of Purpose. His dominance in the current Classic Constructed metagame cannot be argued, and while he is far more balanced and answerable than previous top heroes, his potential in the Living Legend format should not be overlooked. While his results in the format have yet to be proven, simply take a moment to reflect on what he has access to in a format where he can truly unleash his Qi:
If the sight of those four cards didn’t cause you to throw up in your mouth just a little bit, then you are probably a Zen gamer. As the Skirmish season approaches, we should all watch intently to see how Zen fares in a format that gives him access to these cards.
As the days become weeks and the summer draws to a close, the Living Legend format will once again take center stage and heroes from far and wide will collide in a supreme test of strength and skill. Who will you pick up? Will it be one of these three, or another? If you’d like further coverage of the Living Legend format, keep it locked here as I plan to bring you breakdowns of the format results as we enter the Skirmish season in August!
