WIXOSS Grand Prix Houston 2025: Interview with the Top 8 Guzuko

On June 22nd, 2025, Dehtail achieved 5th place with War Division Guzuko, the only black LRIG with such a high placing. In a meta as diverse as Legendary Diva, Dehtail shared some of their thoughts regarding the event.

Hi, I’m Montel, and my tag is Dehtail.

With Wixoss, I started with watching the anime. I was always watching and becoming more and more interested. I had hoped to play one day, but I figured it was gonna be just a Japan-only card game (I didn’t even consider proxying or anything). When Diva format came out and I heard that it was coming to the US, I pretty much dropped just about everything and started looking to buy cards. I remember my first deck was Card Jockey. I didn’t understand the rules, and much less the cards, but as I attended a card shop and played more, I started to learn., I came to realize that I tend to like playing black centers because I love the minusing effects and milling (watching the opponent’s deck hit 0 is ALWAYS so fulfilling for me).

// Could you tell us a little about the deck? You were the only player who was able to pilot a black LRIG into top 8 – what makes Guzuko and War Division so powerful? //

Coming into the GP, I didn’t really think of what the “best deck” was going to be. I chose Guzuko after seeing the Divisions Diva set, and I just really like minusing effects. What made me stay with Guzuko was the use of coins along with the main gameplan. Most of the SIGNI within the deck give minus effects with coins, and I felt that it was valuable to have a resource the opponent couldn’t touch. In addition, the piece Power of Struggle was too good to pass up. Giving me 3 options, I always had options to use it offensively by milling or giving S Lancer, or defensively by retrieving cards from trash and giving 10k power to the board. That, paired with Exia, made it hard for opponents to do anything, which also saved me from using assists.

// Were there any other decks you considered for this event leading up to it? //

Guzuko was not my first choice, as I wanted to continue using the Dissona Tama. However, I felt that that deck wasn’t holding up as well as I’d like anymore, so I put Tama to the side to work on later. The other deck I considered was using Mugen Shoujo with Azaela center. It was definitely an annoying deck to face, and I figured it would’ve been the majority at the GP. What turned me away from it was that I didn’t feel like I was able to consistently defend when I needed to and it just felt kinda slowish to me. I ultimately chose Guzuko because she felt consistent with wins, was comfortable, and I enjoyed playing her.

// What did practice and preparation for this event look like? Did you expect to make it as far as you did? //

Being in top 5 was nowhere NEAR where I thought I’d place. I kinda came in with the thought of “if I win at least 3 matches, I’ll be happy.” And there were so many close matches too, I kinda found it funny. As far as preparations, I actually built a few different decks that I felt would show up, and tried shadow fighting against them to learn potential strengths and weakness of those decks, while also trying to understand where Guzuko kinda falls flat at. It also helped me learn patience with the assists in the deck, seeing as I have more defensive options from Exia and Power of Struggle.

// How was playing games in the streaming room – did you feel any extra stress or pressure from knowing you were under a more public eye during those games? //

Being on stream has always been a nerve-wracking thought for me. I never thought I’d be on stream, and much less, place high enough to make it there. Once I got in the room though, I kinda forgot that I was being watched, and it just felt more like it was me against my opponent. In a way, it almost felt like I was in the anime. I’m just glad no one could hear me because I did kinda scream at the last lifeburst.

Dehtail utilizes a double Exia field to slow Skewer’s assault

// What were your thoughts on the event format, and what are some memorable moments from it, within the games or otherwise? //

The event itself was pretty fun overall. I did start to worry a bit because I didn’t have any signal on my phone, and I couldn’t see what table I had to report to. But I eventually found out and was able to get to all of my matches on time. The location was pretty nice, a lot bigger than the Dallas GP for sure. So it didn’t feel cramped or anything. And the side event was a nice idea, though I only had time to play once. I think the most memorable thing for me was just being able to be there with my friends and checking in with each other after every match. Then they started rooting for me once I told them I was undefeated before round 6.

// What are your thoughts on the P16 metagame? Are you looking forward to ARTS format? //

With P16, I was deadset on Mugen Shoujo being the top pick, so I wanted to learn everything I needed to. I wasn’t too worried about any of the divisions decks, but I probably should’ve been. Liberators were aggressive, but I didn’t really ever struggle against them. I haven’t faced any other War Division players, so I was kinda winging it there. Defense always seemed tough, but the people I practiced with played with more resource denial, which I was more prepared for. Everything else, I just felt I had to play on autopilot. Coming to GP, I was surprised with how many different choices I saw, even a Mahomaho player! That threw me off for sure. But I was happy to see there was diversity. I do hope ARTS is even more fun to play. I do wanna use Akira (I will be saying Aki-Lucky when I play her), but I also want to revisit Jewels and hopefully find a way to bring back Dissona Tama.

// Do you have any immediate plans for play going forward, and anything else you’re looking forward to regarding the game and your relationship with it? //

Any immediate plans? I think for now, I’m probably going to relax a bit. If friends do gather at the card shop to play, I’ll definitely jump in. But I’m really just waiting for ARTS to come. I feel like that will be a VERY exciting time.

Thanks again to Dehtail for sharing their time with us – hopefully you’re able to recreate those anime-like feelings at the next event, as well!