A complete walkthrough for building, editing, and publishing decks on MetaZooNews.com
Welcome, Casters!
The MetaZoo News Deck Builder is a powerful, fully interactive tool to help you build legal, competitive (or just creative) decks using all publicly released MetaZoo sets:
This guide will teach you every feature of the deck builder, explain official deckbuilding rules, and helps you publish and manage decks on your profile.
1. Core Deckbuilding Rules
Before you begin, here are the official rules enforced by the deckbuilder:
Deck Size
Copy Limits
Caster Card
Every deck must contain Exactly 1 Caster card.
Your Caster determines:
The deckbuilder automatically blocks cards from other aura types that are different from what is listed on your chosen caster.
2. Starter Terra Star System (Important)
Starter Terra selection is one of the most unique parts of MetaZoo deckbuilding, so our deckbuilder gives it its own special interface.
You must select exactly 2 Starter Terra using the ⭐ Star Button system:
This system prevents confusion between designated starter terra and starter terra that you have included in your main deck (you may include other starter terra than your designated two to add to your main deck).
If editing an older deck, you may need to re-star your Starter Terra
3. The Deckbuilder Interface
Card Grid
This is where you can browse and select cards from: Base Set, Torrential Tides, and Secret Shadows.
Features Include:
Deck Panel Sidebar
Shows the full contents of your deck in real time.
Sections:
Controls:
The panel also warns you when you:
4. Validate Button
Once you're ready, click "Validate Deck".
Validation checks the following:
If legal, you will see a message stating "Your deck is valid!", and you will be ready to publish (if logged in).
5. Deck Insights Panel
Every deck comes with automatic analytic breakdowns:
Cost & Influence Curves:
These features show your influence and card cost distribution. This can help plan lane control, mission scoring and tempo.
Aura & Traits Overview:
These features summarize Aura composition, keyword count (such as gigantic, soar, overwhelm, discover, destruction, duel). They are useful for high-level deck synergy between traits and buffs.
6. Publishing a Deck
When your deck validates (and you are logged in), you can publish it. Publishing your deck creates a public deck page that is opened in a new tab automatically. This page shows the following:
The only requirements for publishing your deck are that you must be logged in and meet all validation checks. Once published, the deck will show up on your user profile.
7. Editing an Existing Deck
You may edit any deck that you created. You will see "Edit Deck" buttons on the deck's public page, and the deck's entry on your profile page (if you are logged in).
Clicking "Edit Deck" does the following:
To Update your deck, ensure that it is valid and hit the Publish button.
Note: If the deck was made before the Starter Terra system, you may need to reassign your two Starter Terra. Hitting the "Save" Button only saves the current deck to your local browser.
8. Deleting an Existing Deck
You may delete decks from the Decks tab of your profile. Only Admins and Deck Authors may delete decks. To do this:
9. Public Deck Library
The Public Deck Library shows all published decks:
You can also search and utilize filters to narrow results for things like:
10. Exporting to & Using with Tabletop Simulator (TTS)
If you want to play your MetaZoo deck virtually, you can export it from the published deck view and import it into Tabletop Simulator.
How It Works
The deckbuilder supports an Export to TTS option. This generates a .json file (deck data) plus a .png image of the caster for your deck. For the best experience, download both files from the deck's public page.
Step-By-Step Instructions for Importing a Deck into TTS:
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1. Download the deck files
From your published deck’s page: grab the exported JSON and the caster PNG.
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2. Move Both Files Into TTS's "Saved Objects" Folder
On Windows: Put both files here - C:\Users\YOURNAME\Documents\My Games\Tabletop Simulator\Saves\Saved Objects
On Mac: The folder is hidden inside your Library: ~/Library/Tabletop Simulator/Saves/Saved Objects
To access it: - 1) Open Finder. 2) At the top, click Go. 3) Select "Go to Folder". 4) Paste this: ~/Library/Tabletop Simulator/Saves/Saved Objects 5) Press Enter
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3. Load Your Deck in TTS
Launch TTS, Start a new game, open the side menu: Objects --> Saved Objects, then look for your deck & click it to spawn the deck.
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4. Have fun!
11. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q: I Found a Bug! What Do I Do?
A: Reach us a few different ways! First, you can fill out our Contact Form right here on the website. Second, you can reach out on instagram @metazoo.news. Finally you can just send us an email at info@metazoonews.com. We highly prefer you reach out via Instagram or the Contact Form.
Q: Where Do I Select My Deck's Allied Aura Type?
A: On the Stats & Legality tab, after selecting your caster.
Q: Do I have to make an account to publish a deck?
A: Yes, but you DO NOT need an account to save a deck locally to your browser.
Q: There isn't a lot of space to see my deck in the Stats & Legality Tab. What should I do?
A: Swap to List View for the best experience if that is your goal!
Q: How can I make a new Deck?
A: Just hit the "New Deck" button and a blank slate will appear for you to craft a new deck! Alternatively, open the deckbuilder in a new tab and rename the current deck to something else. Hit "Save". You now have a new locally saved copy of a new deck. DO NOT do this while editing a deck. That will only edit the current deck that you have loaded.