Disney Lorcana · Set 1 Starter Deck
The First Chapter Amber & Amethyst: Upgrade Guide
The original Moana and Mickey deck: Amber characters that quest for a lot of lore, Amethyst card draw, and cheap songs to tie it together.
At a glance
Amber & Amethyst · Songs and card draw
How it plays out of the box
This deck teaches the basics: put characters out, quest with the ones that make the most lore, and sing a song when a character has nothing better to do. Moana is the lore engine, a 1/6 that quests for 3, and the Amethyst half keeps your hand full so you rarely run out of things to play.
What it lacks is a way to deal with an opponent's best character. There is very little removal, so a deck that challenges well will pick off your questers one at a time. Against another starter deck it holds up; against anything built with intent it falls behind by the middle of the game.
The cards on the box
Moana - Of Motunui
The First Chapter #14
Quests for 3 lore and readies your other Princess characters when she does.
Mickey Mouse - Wayward Sorcerer
The First Chapter #51
Makes Broom characters cheaper and returns them to your hand when they fall in a challenge.
Other cards to know
Friends on the Other Side
The First Chapter #64
A song any character with cost 3 or more can sing for free: draw 2 cards.
Hades - Lord of the Underworld
The First Chapter #6
Returns a character card from your discard to your hand when he enters.
Maleficent - Sorceress
The First Chapter #49
A 3-cost character that may draw a card when played.
The rating: power 2, difficulty 2
Easy to learn and easy to play, but too little removal to keep pace once an opponent starts challenging.
Both numbers are TurnZero HQ's own editorial read, not an official Ravensburger rating. Power compares the deck out of the box against the other starter decks, not against a tuned tournament list. Difficulty is how much the deck asks of the person playing it.
What to cut first
Start with the low-impact characters that only have a body and no ability, then any card you found yourself never wanting to ink or play. The Broom package is fun but thin; cut it entirely if you go one of the directions below rather than leaving half of it in.
A Lorcana deck needs at least 60 cards, no more than 4 copies of a card with the same full name, and at most two inks, so every card you add means one you take out. The deck building rules →
Upgrade direction 1: Song engine
Lean into the songs. Amber and Amethyst share the best cheap songs in the game, and characters that count as more expensive when they sing let you cast them for free. The deck stays a questing deck, but every exerted singer turns into a card or a cheaper play.
The tradeoff is that singers are exerted for the turn, so they can't quest. Run enough characters that you never have to choose between the song and the lore you need.
Ariel - Singing Mermaid
Fabled #15
A 4-cost singer that counts as cost 7, so she sings the big songs for free.
Akood et Emuti
Winterspell #29
A free song for a cost-3 character: your next character costs 2 less, and you draw a card.
Colors of the Wind
Winterspell #64
Draws a card for each different ink revealed off the top of every player's deck.
Ursula - Voice Stealer
Fabled #44
Exerts an opposing character, then plays a song from your hand for free.
Upgrade direction 2: Cheaper characters, faster lore
Push the plan the deck already has: more characters, sooner, and more lore from each one. Cost reducers let you put two characters out in a turn where you would have played one, which matters most in the turns before your opponent's removal arrives.
This version is weak to a board wipe, so keep a couple of card-draw songs in to refill after one.
Grandmother Willow - Ancient Advisor
Winterspell #13
Once a turn, your next character costs 1 less.
Aurora - Holding Court
Fabled #6
A 1-cost Princess that makes your next Princess or Queen cheaper whenever she quests, which also feeds Moana.
Pocahontas - Following the Wind
Winterspell #42
Quests for the lore of another of your exerted characters, so she doubles a big quester.
Pocahontas & Meeko - Adventurous Friends
Attack of the Vine! #27
An Evasive dual-ink Amber and Amethyst character that replays your 1-cost characters for free.
Upgrade direction 3: Add the answers it's missing
If the deck keeps losing to one big character, the fix is removal. Amethyst can move damage and exert threats, and Amber has a full board wipe for the game that has gotten away from you.
Raging Storm banishes your characters too, so play it when you are behind on board, not when you are ahead.
Cheshire Cat - Inexplicable
Whispers in the Well #60
Each time you Boost him, move up to 2 damage from a character to an opposing one.
Raging Storm
Winterspell #28
Banish all characters. An 8-cost reset for the game you're losing on board.
Can't Hold It Back Anymore
Whispers in the Well #62
Exerts an opposing character and moves damage onto it.
Core or Infinity
As of October 2026, this deck is not legal in Core Constructed as sold, because Core uses sets 9 (Fabled) onward. A card counts as Core-legal when any printing with its full name is, so the cards from this box that were reprinted in Fabled or later can still be played there. The whole deck is legal in Infinity Constructed, which allows every set, and at any kitchen table.
Every upgrade pick on this page is from set 9 or later, so all of them are Core-legal. Core Constructed vs. Infinity →
Buying the sealed deck? Search TCGplayer for the Amber & Amethyst deck → The link goes through our TCGplayer affiliate link; see our affiliate disclosure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the First Chapter Amber and Amethyst deck good for beginners?
Yes. It wins by questing, which is the simplest plan in Lorcana, and it rarely asks you to time anything. It's weak against decks that challenge often, which is the first lesson most players learn with it.
What's the first upgrade for this deck?
Ariel - Singing Mermaid and a few free card-draw songs. They make the deck you already have run better without changing how it plays.
Build the upgraded deck in TurnZero HQ.
Add the deck to the Deck Lab, make your swaps, and it checks the list against Core Constructed or Infinity as you go. Publish it to share the link. Free to start.
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