One of the main parts of this game is the banlist. Once a card has been released there is no way of "unreleasing it". Because of this, Konami has to create a banlist, one that makes cards unusable in standard play.
This banlist has a few inherent flaws. First, it is made for the OCG. There have been very few banlists in which a TCG Exclusive was hit and often they don't hit the top TCG Decks because they aren't that good in the OCG.
Each format, there are people who are annoyed by the banlist for different reasons.
* Some people only like a few Decks and just want to see those Decks
* Some people don't like certain Decks and don't want to see them on the banlist
* Others like/don't like certain cards
* Other people don't care about the banlist and just play to win
This format is different in that it's practically same as the final portion of last format in all respects other than that we have no Plants. Of course, Lightsworn were giving a boost, Dustshoot is gone (thankfully), and we have a second Torrential Tribute, but Wind-Ups, Rabbits, and Inzektors were not hurt. This is not what I and many other people wanted.
Keep in mind that this will be a banlist post: it will be long. I'll list what I feel should be the banlist needed to make this game a fun, two player game and why I think each card should be where it is.
This Banlist is based around the Dueling Network system: TCG rules with most cards available to you.
I would like to establish something: Yugioh is a two player game. With that said, I would like to take a look at Final Countdown, Exodia, Empty Jar, and Burn. Final Countdown and Exodia are decks that focus on achieving a certain win condition, similar to Last Turn Decks. These Decks aren't that good but at the same time they aren't bad. Every once in a while Burn or Empty Jar tops a YCS and in some formats Exodia and Burn became Tier 1 duel to some support. Back to the point. Neither of these Decks involves the other player. Final Countdown uses enough stall cards to make it extremely difficult to make your attacks go through while Exodia focuses on drawing the 5 pieces. A slow build stalls while a fast build OTKs you. Neither of these things are fun to duel against and are the Yugioh equivalent of masturbating. These Decks may not have been an issue but now, with One Day of Peace, Card-Car D, and Shard of Greed, these Decks are easily strong enough to win against even the Tier 1 Decks.
Burn and Empty Jar are a little more skill reliant (like Slow Exodia) but they too take the other player out of the equations. Most Decks have very few outs to these Decks - more so for Burn than Empty Jar but with one Solemn Judgment there just aren't enough ways to stop these Decks. Sure, you can side Deck Royal Decree but it's not a foolproof strategy - it's common not to draw a card even if you have three copies of it.
So all of these Decks will be killed with this list. In addition to that, I'll provide an alternative for those who do not care about the Decks unless they're Tier 1 which will allow them to exist.
Banned:
Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning (From Limited): An insanely powerful monster that at one was worth teching LIGHT and DARK monsters just to use it.
Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End: Staying Banned. Enough said.
Cyber Jar: So overpowered it's not even funny. Far too abusable.
Dark Strike Fighter: While it may seem mediocre at first glance it is far from just a beatstick. It can do more than 4000 damage in one turn - use in a Deck that makes two Synchro Monsters (or DSF and something else big) in a turn and it's an OTK.
Destiny HERO - Disk Commander: One of the single best monsters on the banlist. Way too abusable to bring back.
Exodia the Forbidden One (From Limited): All that needs to be Banned is one piece of Exodia. This is the only one that isn't Left/Right.
Fiber Jar: This card is rather unfair in that it resets the game. It's not necessarily abusable but can be included in any Deck to turn a losing situation into a whole new game.
Fishborg Blaster: Abusable to the max with T.G. Hyper Librarian. There are way too many broken combos to let this thing run around.
Goyo Guardian: I'm rather ambivalent about this card. While I really like it and want to use it, it's also incredibly good. Not only does it has 2800 ATK, more than a Normal Level 6 Synchro Monster, it is also steals your opponent's monster. In addition to that we still have Brionac so I feel as if this card is better off
staying Banned.
Inzektor Hornet (From Unlimited): Inzektors can function without it but it's just too overpowered at the moment.
Magical Scientist: It may seem terrible but when combined with Catapult Turtle it lets you pull of OTKs rather easily.
Makyura the Destructor: Easily the most powerful card in the whole game. It lets you play Traps from your hand and win on the first turn almost every game. If it ever comes off the Banlist we will all be playing it.
Mind Master: While not inherently broken it has many combos and being an infinite loop card it's best left on the Banlist.
Morphing Jar (From Limited): As unfortunate as it is, Morphing Jar allows Empty Jar to exist.
Rescue Cat: It would be really nice to have back but at the same time we would have to hit so many cards that it's just not worth it. It's definitely a problem card, especially with Xyz Monsters.
Sinister Serpent: While it's probably too slow right now but there's potential for infinite loops with cards that discard at any time.
Spore: Spore was Banned to kill Plants and sell Xyz Decks. It wasn't necessary but Plants were too good - it's fair for one of the key components to be Banned.
Thousand-Eyes Restrict: As a staunch supporter of Plant Synchro, I want to see a format with Thousand-Eyes at one and Instant Fusion teched in Plants. But alas, that would be too much. It stays Banned.
Tribe-Infecting Virus: Too powerful. I've seen people say that it's bad but it is in fact quite good - you can side Deck it against Decks such as X-Sabers which use mostly one Attribute.
Witch of the Black Forest: Searches for too much.
Brain Control: Mind Control is too much right now. There's no way this even more powerful card can be off the banlist.
Butterfly Dagger - Elma: It isn't inherently broken but it combos with other cards to create infinite loops.
Card Destruction (From Limited): Does too much for Dark Worlds.
Card of Safe Return: Extremely abusable. Some Decks can use this to draw five or more cards in one turn.
Chain Strike (From Semi-Limited): Chain Burn has been Neutered.
Change of Heart: Even more powerful than Brain Control.
Cold Wave: Too strong while X-Sabers are still viable.
Confiscation: Targeted hand destruction is rather nasty.
Delinquent Duo: Confiscation on steroids. Game-winning except against Dark World.
Dimension Fusion: Too many broken combos with this card. As cool as it is, it can't come back.
Final Countdown (From Unlimited): Pretty much useless at one but there's no point having it around. It's a stupid Instant-Win card.
Future Fusion (From Limited): Quite powerful. With Escuridao lets you use Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite to use it a second time and with cards like Brionac lets you make huge loops that win you the game.
Gateway of the Six (From Limited): Too one-sided. Allows Six Samurai to get out the most insane fields.
Giant Trunade: Better than Heavy Storm due to not being vulnerable to Starlight Road.
Graceful Charity: The discarding is a not a cost (see Dark Worlds). Also supports Fabled and is too fast for almost any metagame.
Harpie's Feather Duster: Heavy Storm and Trunade are strong enough.
Last Will: Once a rather bad card but now quite good.
Mass Driver: Inconsistent at one but still a Burn card that lets you FTK.
Mind Control (From Limited): This card was intended as a weaker substitute for Brain Control. It has proven to be almost as good (and even better in some situations).
Mirage of Nightmare: It does insane amounts of work for Dark Worlds.
Painful Choice: This is a format where a thin Deck and a thick Graveyard is big. It's also insane Lightsworn support.
Pot of Greed: Yes, it makes everything faster but already fast Decks such as Six Samurai become even Faster.
Premature Burial: Can't exist in a format with Dewloren and there are other broken combos as well.
Raigeki: Dark Hole is strong enough.
Royal Tribute (From Semi-Limited): So one-sided. It generates a lot of plusses. A LOT of plusses.
Snatch Steal: This card is a permanent Change of Heart. Sure, your opponent gains Life Points each turn. Even so, it's still too powerful. The ability to permanently steal a monster is quite broken.
Temple of the Kings: Essentially Makyura the Destructor. Sure, you have to draw it but it's still overpowered.
The Forceful Sentry: Surprisingly enough this card is better than Confiscate. It thickens your opponent's Deck.
Crush Card Virus: Has the potential to win games on activation.
Exchange of the Spirit: Would make self-mill a viable Instant Win strategy.
Imperial Order: Spells become useless. That means no Mystical Space Typhoon or similar cards (meaning that this card requires use of a so-so card such as Dust Tornado to destroy it. In addition to that, the cost means that you can just get rid of it whenever you have Spell Cards you want to activate. One of the strongest cards on the banlist.
Last Turn: Use with Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo to win. Far too good.
Magical Explosion (From Limited): The Deck is better than Exodia and is really one-sided.
Ring of Destruction: Targeted destruction that burns your opponent. Need I say more?
Royal Decree (From Unlimited): Another Continuous Royal Card. Makes games one-sided and cripples entire Decks. It also allows you to make big plays without being countered.
Royal Oppression: Not only does it slow down the game significantly, it also allows a player to get out some great monsters then sit there with a multi-Warning that costs less to play. Makes games one-sided.
Sixth Sense: Always say five or six - if you are right, you get a +4/+5 and if you are wrong you send 1-4 cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard. It's practically a win-win scenario.
Time Seal: Not as broken as many of these cards but helps lockdowns significantly.
Trap Dustshoot: Gets rid of a monster in your opponent's hand and allows a good player to control the game based on knowledge of their opponent's hand. Too one-sided.
Limited:
Blackwing - Gale the Whirlwind: Remains a powerhouse and two is too much, especially with new Blackwing monsters coming out.
Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier: A great card that is fine at one.
Cyber Stein (From Banned): The ability to bring out a massive monster used to be huge but it's not as good here - there are way too many counters for this - a Solemn Warning, Fiendish Chain, or Effect Veiler will leave the user with 5000 less Life Points and a very weak monster. It's also not that consistent at one.
Dandylion: It can stay at one. At any more it's a lot more abusable.
Dark Armed Dragon: At two it's too consistently useful.
Dark Magician of Chaos (From Banned): It's not very fast.
Debris Dragon: It could go to two but it's probably best to leave it at one.
Elemental HERO Stratos: It remains a very powerful card.
Formula Synchron: A great card that gives draw power to Synchro Decks. It could go to two but it's safer to leave it at one.
Glow-Up Bulb (From Banned): Konami Banned it unfairly. Plants were too powerful but there are still other good Decks.
Gorz the Emissary of Darkness: It's very powerful and could merit a Ban.
Grapha, Dragon Lord of the Dark World (From Unlimited): It's a recurring boss monster that also has great effects.
Hieroglyph Dragon King - Atumus (From Unlimited): With only one the OTK is no longer possible.
Honest: Lightsworns just got a second Lumina. They don't need more support.
Mezuki: Quite powerful but Zombies aren't doing that well.
Necroface: Can't go to two because of the Necromill OTK.
Neo-Spacian Grand Mole: It's a very dangerous card at one and at two is even harder to get rid of.
Night Assailant: It can target itself with its own effect so we can't have more than one.
Plaguespreader Zombie: Quite good for Lightsworn.
Rescue Rabbit (From Unlimited): With Rabbit Decks dominating this card should definitely be hit.
Sangan: Not too overpowered but should definitely stay at Limited.
Substitoad (From Banned): Without three Mass Drivers and One for Ones this isn't nearly as broken. It also makes Frogs a lot better.
T.G. Hyper Librarian: Needs to stay at one to prevent unfair combos and loops.
Wind-Up Carrier Zenmaity (From Unlimited): It searches for any Wind-Up in your Deck and is part of a broken loop. With it at one the otherwise lackluster Wind-Up Hunter is no longer that good.
Allure of Darkness: Makes DARK Decks too fast at two.
Black Whirlwind: Insanely good search power for Blackwings.
Charge of the Light Brigade: Very good search power for Lightsworn.
Dark Hole: Worth keeping Limited as it's a solution to huge monsters.
Foolish Burial: A good card but a -1 in itself.
Heavy Storm: Surprisingly, this is better than Trunade because of its vulnerability to Starlight Road.
Infernity Launcher: Very powerful but Infernities still aren't consistent enough for this to be worth Banning.
Limiter Removal: Creates OTKs.
Monster Gate: A good card and abusable in multiples but a bit too luck based to be worth Banning.
Monster Reborn: A great card that can turn the game around. It's pretty good and may be Banworthy.
One for One: A great card that lets you search for Level 1 monsters. It's a -1 and is more of a combo card so it isn't worth Banning.
Pot of Avarice: It lets you draw two cards. It requires some setup and can't be used by every Deck so it isn't worth Banning but is too good at two or three.
Reasoning: More luck based than Monster Gate but still a good card.
Reinforcement of the Army: It's already made Six Samurai and HERO a lot better and Semi-Limiting it would make them Tier 1.
Scapegoat: With Plant Synchro gone it's not nearly as abusable.
Ceasefire: A burn card with a potent effect.
Magic Cylinder (From Semi-Limited): Limiting it hurts slow Burn.
Mirror Force: This card is fine at one.
Return from the Different Dimension: A great card but at one is inconsistent.
Solemn Judgment: Can stop almost anything. At more than one it's a bit too powerful but if Banned we lost a lot of useful negation.
Semi-Limited:
Archlord Kristya: Kristya is an extremely good card but it's actually a lot harder to get out than consistently than it would seem and is often dead in hand.
Blackwing - Kalut the Moon Shadow (From Limited): Even with Xyz Monsters Blackwings still aren't consistent enough. This should help them out a little.
Card Trooper: This card is too much at three (because of Machine Duplication) but shouldn't be Limited.
Destiny HERO - Malicious: It's too abusable at three and somewhat usable at two.
Dewloren, Tiger King of the Ice Barrier: Semi-Limited because of Symbol of Heritage.
Gladiator Beast Bestiari (From Limited): Gladiator Beast aren't dominating anymore. This would give them a better chance in the metagame.
Legendary Six Samurai - Shi En (From Limited): An overpowered card. Having it be Limited doesn't actually do that much.
Lonefire Blossom (From Limited): With Spore Banned this card is half as good as it was. Debris is still at one and it makes Gigaplant Decks more viable.
Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner: It's fine at two but can't be Unlimited as it would make Lightsworn a lot more consistent.
Magician of Faith (From Banned): I highly doubt that this card is fast enough to survive in the new meta. It could probably be Unlimited.
Marshmallon: A key component of slow burn but not that big of a deal.
Master Hyperion (From Unlimited): Incredibly powerful boss monster for Agents.
Necro Gardna: It gives Lightsworn Decks the ability to negate attacks for free but is also cloggy and dead in hand.
Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon (From Unlimited): Disaster Dragon is a bit too powerful with Lightpulsar Dragon creating and unfair loop with REDMD. The Deck has far too many easy boss monsters. It essentially limits the chances of pulling out a first turn REDMD + Lightpulsar as REDMD is still quite searchable through
slower methods.
Snoww, Unlight of Dark World (From Unlimited): Makes Dark Worlds more consistent.
The Agent of Mystery - Earth (From Limited): Was Limited because it was a Tuner in T.G. Agents. Should be Semi-Limited along with Master Hyperion.
Tragoedia: At three you would have a very good chance of drawing it and then it would be broken, at two it's more fair.
Wind-Up Rat (From Unlimited): Wind-Ups are still powerful with one Zenmaity and this should bring them down a notch.
Advanced Ritual Art (From Limited): Not too big of a deal without Dark Strike Fighter.
Book of Moon (From Limited): Without Empty Jar it isn't that big of a deal. It's also a good way to counter fast Decks.
Burial From the Different Dimension (From Limited): It's a -1 on its own. It was hit because of Zombies (Mezuki in particular) but with both Mezuki and Plaguespreader at one it's not worth using.
Emergency Teleport: Three is definitely too much but two makes Psychics a lot more consistent.
Level Limit - Area B: Isn't that abusable although it does help X-Sabers.
Shien's Smoke Signal: With Gateway Banned this isn't a huge problem at two.
Bottomless Trap Hole: A good card. Not sure if it should be at three but two is fine.
Mind Crush: Most abusable by Dark Worlds but without Trap Dustshoot it isn't nearly as good.
Ojama Trio: Needs to stay at two to hurt Chain Burn and All-Out Attacks OTK.
Torrential Tribute: Putting it at two was a really odd move but it's working out pretty well right now.
Solemn Warning: We need the ability to negate summons.
Ultimate Offering: Gadgets needed a small hit.
Newly Unlimited:
Left Arm of the Forbidden One (From Limited): Exodia is Banned so these are useless.
Left Leg of the Forbidden One (From Limited): See above.
Reborn Tengu (From Semi-Limited): Tengu isn't that overpowered without long Synchro Summon loops. It also makes a lot of Decks more consistent and only really breaks Plants (which is solved by Banning Spore).
Right Arm of the Forbidden One (From Limited): See above.
Right Leg of the Forbidden One (From Limited): See above.
T.G. Striker (From Limited): Unfairly Limited.
Tsukoyomi (From Banned): Slow.
Yata-Garasu (From Banned): It requires a way to attack directly. It only does 200 damage per turn - you're likely to run out of cards before you win. It will not win games unless drawn late game off something like Sky Scourge Norleras. Chaos-Emperor Dragon is gone and there is little chance of it being that useful. It wastes your Normal Summon so you would need Double Summon to effectively use it in a deck like X-Sabers.
Summon Monk (From Semi-Limited): Few Decks use Summoner Monk and none are very competitive. It's a good card.
Destiny Draw (From Semi-Limited): With Malicious at two three Destiny Draw isn't that big of a deal.
Magical Stone Excavation (From Semi-Limited): The only Deck that uses this is Empty Jar and this banlist kills it.
Metamorphosis (From Banned): Really doesn't do that much. Sure, it makes big monsters but it isn't really abusable - there are way better combos.
Primal Seed (From Banned): Black Luster Soldier is Banned, making this useless.
Swords of Revealing Light (From Semi-Limited): Very few people use this card and it isn't that good.
The Transmigration Prophecy (From Limited): This isn't the OCG. It shouldn't be Limited.
Cards that are staying Unlimited:
Wall of Revealing Light (From Limited): Was Limited because of the Magical Explosion FTK. Banning Magical Explosion makes this card rather bad.
If you are one of those people who do not mind Burn/Final Countdown/Exodia/Empty Jar, then:
Morphing Jar back to Limited
Final Countdown to Semi-Limited
All Exodia Pieces to Limited
Chain Strike to Semi-Limited
Magical Explosion to Limited and Wall of Revealing Light to Limited
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Gladiator Beasts
Obviously this is not the era during which Gladiator Beasts reigned king over all. This is a format in which Rabbits are the Top Deck with Wind-Ups and Inzektors coming just short of first place.
Gladiators topped once last format and then weren't seen again. Why? The Deck wasn't that good. Yes, with HERO support it can be quite good but using Test Tiger just isn't worth it. It's inconsistent. It requires you to control another Gladiator Beast and this isn't always going to be usable.
However, after an analysis of the metagame and extensive Testing, I have found that Gladiator Beasts have the ability to become Tier 2 again, potentially Tier 1 if enough good players use good builds.
This is my current build. It's a work in progress but so far I have received excellent results. Going first is the best way to win and having ample backrow will allow you to win with ease. However, the main problem is consistency. This is largely because of DN - I continually get 4 Monster hands or no monsters for many turns. However, other than that, the Deck runs quite smoothly. I'm considering re-introducing Pot of Dualities or even Upstart Goblins in order to maximize my chances of getting War Chariot but currently space is an issue.
The first oddity is Tour Guide From the Underworld. Up until now this amazing card has seen use in almost every Deck. However, as of now, this card is useful in Gladiator Beasts all because of a monster known as M-X-Saber Invoker.
You may ask yourself: "why is this such a big deal?" The answer is field presence. Normally, after using A Hero Lives and making a Gladiator Beast Gyzarus, you are extremely vulnerable to Solemn Warning or Solemn Judgment: you have just payed half of your Life Points and if you lose Gyzarus you're also down a card. That's where Tour Guide comes in: instead of bringing out a Gladiator and losing it, you make Invoker, Special Summon Gladiator Beast Darius from your Deck and tag Elemental HERO Prisma with Darius to make Gyzarus - not only do you have a 1600 attacker but you also have protection if they negate the summon of Gyzarus.
Next is the ability to make Leviair the Sea Dragon.
Leviair is one of the most amazing monsters in this metagame. Unlike in previous eras, the Banished monsters rarely have to stay there: Trance Archfiend returns Banished monsters to its owner's hand (in Dark World) and Leviair can get back most Banished Monsters (except for Xyz and high Level monsters). So what does this monster do for this Deck? Well, along with all the cards that Banish monsters, there is one in particular that is just fantastic for this Deck: Gladiator Beast Retiari. Retiari lets you Banish monsters in your opponent's Graveyard. Later on you can get them back with a Leviair, allowing you to take monsters such as Thunder King Rai-Oh or Jurrac Guaiba.
Next is Wind-Up Zenmaines. It's amazing. Enough said.
So Tour Guide gives them an advantage - an already good Deck gets a huge boost from Tour Guide. But what else is so key to making them meta?
Gladiator Beast War Chariot, a card that is (or was) feared as the number on form of effect negation - it's a +0 that can be returned to your hand by Gladiator Beast Equeste over and over, allowing you to create soft locks quite easily. A first turn War Chariot backed by a Laquari and Starlight Road (plus one or two other cards) can be almost impossible to get over without a really good hand.
But that's not all. On the subject of Starlight Road, Gladiator Beasts now have even more protection. Last format I advocated using two Starlight Road. Most Decks either used one or none. However, as the T.G. Deck that topped YCS Atlanta proved, having two Starlight Roads makes your backrow many times safer. The card was already quite useful but now with the addition of a second Torrential Tribute and the fact that Mirror Force has made a comeback means that we have far great use of this amazing card. It's also great in the Gladiator Beast mirror match and against Lightsworn (think Judgment Dragon and Celestia, Lightsworn Angel).
But that's not all. Gladiator Beasts have one more superweapon: Gladiator Beast Heraklinos. This amazing monster is nothing to laugh at. Not only does it have 3000 ATK, a score which no commonly used monster can match (over than a Leviathan Dragon with both Xyz Materials detached or a Grapha) but it also can negate any number of Spells and Traps per turn by discarding a card. This means that having a Heraklinos + any other Gladiator + War Chariot and one or two cards in hand is almost always a game-winning position to be in.
If Heraklinos seems hard to make, then you should check out the strategy of this Deck: use A Hero Lives to Special Summon Prisma, use Prisma to copy Bestiari (or Laquari if you have Bestiari in hand), sending that monster from your Deck to your Graveyard. Set your Bestiari or Laquari, flip them face-up to reveal them as Gladiator Beasts, tag for Gyzarus, blow up two cards, attack, tag out, get Darius and Laquari (or something else if you have Laquari in Graveyard) and tag for Heraklinos. Sure, you pay half your life points but this combo is easy to pull off and has devastating results.
So let's get back to the metagame, a world dominated by Rabbits, Wind-Ups, and Inzektors.
First is the Rabbit matchup. Going second against Rabbits hurts but you have multiple outs to their plays in the form of extensive backrow and War Chariot - they're likely to negate your Normal Summon just to avoid dealing with a War Chariot, allowing you to use a Mirror Force or Dimensional Prison next turn. If you start, a War Chariot, Gladiator Beast, and Starlight Road is often enough to seal the game in your favor. In addition to that, the fact that you use Forbidden Lance means that you can surprise your opponent by using Lance to get over their big monsters in the same way they would use their own - suddenly their Lances are being countered by your own, allowing you to tag out and gain more advantage. Game 2 you can always side in King Tiger Wanghu and more backrow, protecting you and preventing your opponent from using Rescue Rabbit and Tour Guide
Against Wind-Ups getting your hand hit by the loop can be pretty devastating but the game is still recoverable - if you can push through their backrow and get a few hits with your Gladiator Beasts you can start your Deck's engine "running" and get in a position where you're in control. In addition to that, Tour Guide offers easy ways to get out of bad situations by pulling out a Wind-Up Zenmaines or another Rank 3 Xyz Monster. Like with Rabbits, if you start with a War Chariot you can stop their first play and control the game from there on. In game 2 you can side in your Maxx "C" and the amazing King Tiger Wanghu. A first turn Wanghu leaves your opponent with very few options - it's won me many games simply by being on the field.
Inzektors are both the most and least problematic. If you have any outs whatsoever you can easily win but if you lack them then you are in a terrible position - every turn they will gain a lot of advantage in a way that prevents you from starting. Game 2 is quite easy - all you need is Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror and you're golden. A Wanghu will help secure your victory but isn't strictly necessary.
Other matchups for the Deck include Lightsworn and HERO. HERO is the toughest matchup due to the abundance of beatsticks and the (almost) unstoppable Super Polymerization. The best thing to do in the HERO matchup is just to play around everything they have and prevent any summons so as to get around Super Poly. As for Lightsworn, you have an extremely good matchup as they're typically activating one or two effects per turn - you can just negate them with War Chariot. In addition to that, they run an abundance of low ATK monsters so a King Tiger Wanghu will kill them.
Currently, my build is not good enough to be Tier 1. Luckily there are many more options to explore:
* Horn of the Phantom Beast would allow me to make my Gladiator Beasts even stronger and use Wanghu to its fullest, even main Decking it.
* Thunder King Rai-Oh: if I could find room I would be main Decking this amazing monster. It will take a lot of experimentation but it may be possible to fit Rai-Oh in the Deck.
Gladiator Beasts aren't perfect but then again no Decks are. However, unlike many Decks, this Deck has huge potential for growth and could become Tier 1 at any time - a build totally different from my own could prove to be one of the best Decks of the format.
Gladiators topped once last format and then weren't seen again. Why? The Deck wasn't that good. Yes, with HERO support it can be quite good but using Test Tiger just isn't worth it. It's inconsistent. It requires you to control another Gladiator Beast and this isn't always going to be usable.
However, after an analysis of the metagame and extensive Testing, I have found that Gladiator Beasts have the ability to become Tier 2 again, potentially Tier 1 if enough good players use good builds.
The first oddity is Tour Guide From the Underworld. Up until now this amazing card has seen use in almost every Deck. However, as of now, this card is useful in Gladiator Beasts all because of a monster known as M-X-Saber Invoker.
Next is the ability to make Leviair the Sea Dragon.
Next is Wind-Up Zenmaines. It's amazing. Enough said.
So Tour Guide gives them an advantage - an already good Deck gets a huge boost from Tour Guide. But what else is so key to making them meta?
Gladiator Beast War Chariot, a card that is (or was) feared as the number on form of effect negation - it's a +0 that can be returned to your hand by Gladiator Beast Equeste over and over, allowing you to create soft locks quite easily. A first turn War Chariot backed by a Laquari and Starlight Road (plus one or two other cards) can be almost impossible to get over without a really good hand.
But that's not all. On the subject of Starlight Road, Gladiator Beasts now have even more protection. Last format I advocated using two Starlight Road. Most Decks either used one or none. However, as the T.G. Deck that topped YCS Atlanta proved, having two Starlight Roads makes your backrow many times safer. The card was already quite useful but now with the addition of a second Torrential Tribute and the fact that Mirror Force has made a comeback means that we have far great use of this amazing card. It's also great in the Gladiator Beast mirror match and against Lightsworn (think Judgment Dragon and Celestia, Lightsworn Angel).
But that's not all. Gladiator Beasts have one more superweapon: Gladiator Beast Heraklinos. This amazing monster is nothing to laugh at. Not only does it have 3000 ATK, a score which no commonly used monster can match (over than a Leviathan Dragon with both Xyz Materials detached or a Grapha) but it also can negate any number of Spells and Traps per turn by discarding a card. This means that having a Heraklinos + any other Gladiator + War Chariot and one or two cards in hand is almost always a game-winning position to be in.
So let's get back to the metagame, a world dominated by Rabbits, Wind-Ups, and Inzektors.
First is the Rabbit matchup. Going second against Rabbits hurts but you have multiple outs to their plays in the form of extensive backrow and War Chariot - they're likely to negate your Normal Summon just to avoid dealing with a War Chariot, allowing you to use a Mirror Force or Dimensional Prison next turn. If you start, a War Chariot, Gladiator Beast, and Starlight Road is often enough to seal the game in your favor. In addition to that, the fact that you use Forbidden Lance means that you can surprise your opponent by using Lance to get over their big monsters in the same way they would use their own - suddenly their Lances are being countered by your own, allowing you to tag out and gain more advantage. Game 2 you can always side in King Tiger Wanghu and more backrow, protecting you and preventing your opponent from using Rescue Rabbit and Tour Guide
Against Wind-Ups getting your hand hit by the loop can be pretty devastating but the game is still recoverable - if you can push through their backrow and get a few hits with your Gladiator Beasts you can start your Deck's engine "running" and get in a position where you're in control. In addition to that, Tour Guide offers easy ways to get out of bad situations by pulling out a Wind-Up Zenmaines or another Rank 3 Xyz Monster. Like with Rabbits, if you start with a War Chariot you can stop their first play and control the game from there on. In game 2 you can side in your Maxx "C" and the amazing King Tiger Wanghu. A first turn Wanghu leaves your opponent with very few options - it's won me many games simply by being on the field.
Inzektors are both the most and least problematic. If you have any outs whatsoever you can easily win but if you lack them then you are in a terrible position - every turn they will gain a lot of advantage in a way that prevents you from starting. Game 2 is quite easy - all you need is Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror and you're golden. A Wanghu will help secure your victory but isn't strictly necessary.
Other matchups for the Deck include Lightsworn and HERO. HERO is the toughest matchup due to the abundance of beatsticks and the (almost) unstoppable Super Polymerization. The best thing to do in the HERO matchup is just to play around everything they have and prevent any summons so as to get around Super Poly. As for Lightsworn, you have an extremely good matchup as they're typically activating one or two effects per turn - you can just negate them with War Chariot. In addition to that, they run an abundance of low ATK monsters so a King Tiger Wanghu will kill them.
Currently, my build is not good enough to be Tier 1. Luckily there are many more options to explore:
* Horn of the Phantom Beast would allow me to make my Gladiator Beasts even stronger and use Wanghu to its fullest, even main Decking it.
* Thunder King Rai-Oh: if I could find room I would be main Decking this amazing monster. It will take a lot of experimentation but it may be possible to fit Rai-Oh in the Deck.
Gladiator Beasts aren't perfect but then again no Decks are. However, unlike many Decks, this Deck has huge potential for growth and could become Tier 1 at any time - a build totally different from my own could prove to be one of the best Decks of the format.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Why Agents are Still Good and will be even Better
Agents were first released in Ancient Sanctuary - they were almost entirely useless, with Venus bringing out nearly-pointless monsters, Saturn dealing a lot of life point damage but only if you were winning, Mars being big but only if Sanctuary was out, and Mercury letting you draw a card if you had no cards in hand. All in all, a flop.
Konami rectified this with a Structure Deck that brought not two, but three major cards:
Master Hyperion
The Agent of Mystery - Earth
The Agent of Miracles - Jupiter
The first two were great for obvious reasons - Hyperion is a massive monster with awesome destructive abilities and gave you a way to win games. Even better, it has no summoning conditions, so you can still Tribute Summon it or use Monster Reborn. Earth would let you search for other Agents (namely Venus) and was a Tuner. One other development made Agents good - Xyz Monsters. With Venus, you could now get a Gachi Gachi Gantetsu for nothing more than 1000 Life Points - putting Agents on the competitive map.
In addition to that, Honest and Archlord Kristya. Honest is good for obvious reasons, as is Archlord Kristya - Honest lets any of your LIGHT monsters get over anything, no matter how big, eliminating the biggest threats and protecting you for the turn if it's your opponent's Battle Phase. Kristya, on the other hand, once summoned, lets you recover a Fairy as well as stop Special Summons and just keeps coming back. Also, like Hyperion, it has no summoning conditions, so you can use Monster Reborn or Tribute Summon it.
Lastly is Jupiter. This card is normally underrated - and for seemingly good reason: it's little more than a beatstick. However, it does a few things which will be even more important when Lightray Sorcerer is released. First, it gives you some Graveyard control, giving you more opportunities to summon Archlord Kristya. Second, it gives any Agent an 800 ATK point boost - this can let your weaker Agents handle Level 3-5 monsters or allow Jupiter to get over anything with up to 2600 ATK, be is Stardust Dragon or Evolzar Laggia. In addition, once Lightray Sorcerer is released, it will be essential for creating the proper summoning conditions.
Onto the builds:
There are many different Agent Decks. Some work, others don't. Some worked last format, but do not work any longer.
First are Sanctuary builds. These use Sanctuary in the Sky in order to give Hyperion, Jupiter, and Earth their secondary effects, all of which are quite powerful - Earth is able to search for Master Hyperion, Jupiter lets you get back Banished Agents, and Hyperion can use its effect not once, but twice in a turn. In addition to that, it gives you access to the powerful Divine Punishment, allowing you to run four Solemn Judgments, three of which have no cost (and instead of negating Summons, they negate Effects, which is often even more important).
This seems like an amazing strategy, but there must be some catch, otherwise people would be using it. This is the catch: inconsistency. Last format, these Agent builds underperformed due to their inherent inconsistencies. This format, they are useless against the meta decks because of these inconsistencies.
Next is Herald Agents. These use Herald of Perfection in conjunction with standard Agents.
Herald of Perfection is a great card, but the Deck still lacks consistency. Which means that Herald Agents are out.
There's also Dimensional builds that use Miraculous Descent but these are easier to stop, although quite powerful when the strategy gets rolling.
So, why can Agents work in the metagame?
There's a few reasons, among them:
Rabbits and Wind-Ups are Tier 1, along with Inzektors. Inzektors are just plain annoying but they're easy to side against. Moving on.
Rabbits have a few crucial, exploitable weaknesses. First is having high ATK. Jupiter will get over a Laggia as if it wasn't there, forcing them to waste backrow or Xyz Materials on it. A Hyperion or Kristya will do so as well, as will a Dark Mist. Most people thought that Gachi would be better, but Black Mist is superior in the Rabbit matchup. Not only is it able to kill three monsters, but it keeps half of their ATK, ending up with over 2500 ATK in many cases. If your opponent doesn't predict the Dark Mist, then they'll be forced to waste Xyz Materials on it, and if they do, they'll have to waste them on Venus - which leaves you open to Special Summon Hyperion.
As for Wind-Ups, Agents have amazing topdecking ability. Drawing a Venus gets them a Gachi Gachi or Dark Mist. Drawing a Hyperion gets them free advantage any day. Drawing a Kristya with 4 Fairies in their Graveyard is one of the best things that can happen. Drawing a Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning at any time can be game-winning. And drawing a Lightray Sorcerer will allow you to get over a lot of bad situations (as it can Banish Zenmaines). From experience, I have been able to win situations after having all monsters in my hand discarded (thank you overpowered Gravekeeper support).
All in all, the Deck is fantastic. It has few bad matchups right now and these weaknesses are easy to overcome with side decking.
Konami rectified this with a Structure Deck that brought not two, but three major cards:
Master Hyperion
The Agent of Mystery - Earth
The Agent of Miracles - Jupiter
The first two were great for obvious reasons - Hyperion is a massive monster with awesome destructive abilities and gave you a way to win games. Even better, it has no summoning conditions, so you can still Tribute Summon it or use Monster Reborn. Earth would let you search for other Agents (namely Venus) and was a Tuner. One other development made Agents good - Xyz Monsters. With Venus, you could now get a Gachi Gachi Gantetsu for nothing more than 1000 Life Points - putting Agents on the competitive map.
Lastly is Jupiter. This card is normally underrated - and for seemingly good reason: it's little more than a beatstick. However, it does a few things which will be even more important when Lightray Sorcerer is released. First, it gives you some Graveyard control, giving you more opportunities to summon Archlord Kristya. Second, it gives any Agent an 800 ATK point boost - this can let your weaker Agents handle Level 3-5 monsters or allow Jupiter to get over anything with up to 2600 ATK, be is Stardust Dragon or Evolzar Laggia. In addition, once Lightray Sorcerer is released, it will be essential for creating the proper summoning conditions.
Onto the builds:
There are many different Agent Decks. Some work, others don't. Some worked last format, but do not work any longer.
First are Sanctuary builds. These use Sanctuary in the Sky in order to give Hyperion, Jupiter, and Earth their secondary effects, all of which are quite powerful - Earth is able to search for Master Hyperion, Jupiter lets you get back Banished Agents, and Hyperion can use its effect not once, but twice in a turn. In addition to that, it gives you access to the powerful Divine Punishment, allowing you to run four Solemn Judgments, three of which have no cost (and instead of negating Summons, they negate Effects, which is often even more important).
This seems like an amazing strategy, but there must be some catch, otherwise people would be using it. This is the catch: inconsistency. Last format, these Agent builds underperformed due to their inherent inconsistencies. This format, they are useless against the meta decks because of these inconsistencies.
Next is Herald Agents. These use Herald of Perfection in conjunction with standard Agents.
There's also Dimensional builds that use Miraculous Descent but these are easier to stop, although quite powerful when the strategy gets rolling.
So, why can Agents work in the metagame?
There's a few reasons, among them:
Rabbits and Wind-Ups are Tier 1, along with Inzektors. Inzektors are just plain annoying but they're easy to side against. Moving on.
Rabbits have a few crucial, exploitable weaknesses. First is having high ATK. Jupiter will get over a Laggia as if it wasn't there, forcing them to waste backrow or Xyz Materials on it. A Hyperion or Kristya will do so as well, as will a Dark Mist. Most people thought that Gachi would be better, but Black Mist is superior in the Rabbit matchup. Not only is it able to kill three monsters, but it keeps half of their ATK, ending up with over 2500 ATK in many cases. If your opponent doesn't predict the Dark Mist, then they'll be forced to waste Xyz Materials on it, and if they do, they'll have to waste them on Venus - which leaves you open to Special Summon Hyperion.
As for Wind-Ups, Agents have amazing topdecking ability. Drawing a Venus gets them a Gachi Gachi or Dark Mist. Drawing a Hyperion gets them free advantage any day. Drawing a Kristya with 4 Fairies in their Graveyard is one of the best things that can happen. Drawing a Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning at any time can be game-winning. And drawing a Lightray Sorcerer will allow you to get over a lot of bad situations (as it can Banish Zenmaines). From experience, I have been able to win situations after having all monsters in my hand discarded (thank you overpowered Gravekeeper support).
All in all, the Deck is fantastic. It has few bad matchups right now and these weaknesses are easy to overcome with side decking.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Side Decking and Main Decking for the Format
This format is bound to to be exactly the same as this last segment of the September 2011-12 format was, at least until Lavals hit the competitive board.
Three cards are appearing in almost every Deck - Fiendish Chain, Maxx "C", and Effect Veiler. The first one is the most easily countered - a few Mystical Space Typhoons and Heavy Storm are obvious answers. The other two, not so much. There are two cards that both serve as good techs against these cards - Dimensional Fissure and Debunk. Debunk is a short term solution but doesn't keep the hand traps in your opponent's hand - if they blow up Dimensional Fissure they'll still have the hand traps. On the other hand, Dimensional Fissure will allow you to control the game more effectively and has more uses, although some Decks can't support it effectively.
There are also two alternatives to Dimensional Fissure: Banisher of the Radiance and Macro Cosmos - both of these also Banish non-Monsters, so they will Banish Xyz Materials and Equipped Monsters, stopping Inzektors and Wind-Ups (but unfortunately not Rabbits). The main downsides of these are that Banisher of the Radiance is a monster that you have to protect and most decks are using Thunder King Rai-Oh and even Doomcaliber Knight and Macro Cosmos is a Trap Card, requiring it to be set first as well as making it vulnerable to Royal Decree.
Of these, I would use either Macro Cosmos or Banisher of the Radiance, depending on my Deck - you have to be able to thwart Inzektors and Wind-Ups, even at the cost of being more vulnerable to Rabbits.
Next comes specific Decks:
Currently, the playing field consists of three Tier 1 Decks: Wind-Ups, Rabbits, and Inzektors. Some Rogue Decks such as Evols and Empty Jar may also show up but they aren't likely to consistently top as they no longer have a surprise factor.
Inzektors are the easiest to side against - max out your Spell and Trap destruction (to stop Royal Decree, which is sided against this card) and side in three Shadow-Imprisoning Mirrors. In doing so, you will stop any of their effects as well as Tour Guide and Sangan's effects.
If you don't think that you will draw into your Shadow-Imprisoning Mirrors, you can also side in one or two Macro Cosmos. Side out your Maxx "C"s and possibly Effect Veilers.
Rabbits are also pretty easy to side against. Previously, the most popular card was Spirit Reaper. While this card is amazing, it has a huge weakness - Forbidden Lance and Mind Control will destroy it. As a result, it's often more worthwhile to run Arcana Force 0 - The Fool. You can also use Marshmallon but the downside is that Dolkka can negate its effect and destroy it, making it easier to get over than The Fool. In addition to that, Rabbit Decks have seen use of Doomcaliber Knight which negates Marshmallon and kills it. Another side is Lava Golem. This monster is insane - it can get over even Vennominaga as there is no way of preventing its summon. The downside is that you give your opponent a huge monster, but provided you side in the rest of these wall monsters, it should work fine - Rabbits don't run any cards that Tribute so they will probably die from Burn Damage. Royal Decree is another option and if you have space, you can side Decree, The Fool, and Lava Golem against Rabbits all at once. I would side up to two Lava Golems, two or three Decree, and at least two Fools. If Rabbit is your worst matchup, side three Fools and some Marshmallons. Side out your Effect Veilers, Maxx "C"s, and possibly your Fiendish Chains.
Lastly we have Wind-Ups. Wind-Ups are the most problematic due to the hand destruction loop. Maxx "C" and Effect Veiler are main decked to deal with this threat. After turn one, you have a chance to set some backrow - the following cards can be quite effective. First and foremost is Fiendish Chain for obvious reasons, but this is also a main decked card. Now for Side Decks: Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror is an unlikely contender but consider this: it makes Wind-Up Hunter's effect a -1 (if you chain to its activation) as well as wasting your opponent's Tour Guide or stopping Sangan from giving them a potentially game-winning search. In addition to that, you may want some backrow protection - Dark Bribe can fill this role. Normally I would advocate the use of Magic Drain but as we all know Wind-Ups main deck a full set of Mystical Space Typhoon, Heavy Storm, and Wind-Up Factory as well as Monster Reborn, Foolish Burial, Dark Hole, Pot of Avarice, and occasionally other cards. As a result, Magic Drain is rather lackluster against this specific deck. Next is Cyber Dragon. This amazing monster was even sided against Plant Synchro as an out to Rai-Oh. It remains an out to Rai-Oh but is also a way around Wind-Up Zenmaines by making Chimeratech Fortress Dragon. This alone makes it worth using as Zenmaines can be a seemingly insurmountable obstacle.
Outside of these three Decks, you can expect to see a smattering of Six Samurai and potentially Evols due to both Deck's recent YCS tops. T.G. Stun will also be a rather common Deck due to it having won YCS Atlanta and the fact that it costs little to make. To counter Six Samurai and Evols, just use the same strategies as against Rabbits, although you won't need to side Decree. Against T.G., make sure to have three Royal Decree sided as well as Dimensional Fissure or Macro Cosmos.
If you encounter Empty Jar, Macro Cosmos should serve you well. Fiendish Chain will also allow you to negate one use of Morphing Jar which is likely to be a game winning move.
In one of my next posts I will write about the merit of Agents following the Banlist (and explain just how good they will be) as well as discuss Hieroglyphs and what not to do (hint: don't use Level 6 and 7 Dragons. Big Eye doesn't justify using Level 7s and Level 6s just get you another Normal Dragon which you were better off using to make a Thunder-End or Ennead).
Three cards are appearing in almost every Deck - Fiendish Chain, Maxx "C", and Effect Veiler. The first one is the most easily countered - a few Mystical Space Typhoons and Heavy Storm are obvious answers. The other two, not so much. There are two cards that both serve as good techs against these cards - Dimensional Fissure and Debunk. Debunk is a short term solution but doesn't keep the hand traps in your opponent's hand - if they blow up Dimensional Fissure they'll still have the hand traps. On the other hand, Dimensional Fissure will allow you to control the game more effectively and has more uses, although some Decks can't support it effectively.
There are also two alternatives to Dimensional Fissure: Banisher of the Radiance and Macro Cosmos - both of these also Banish non-Monsters, so they will Banish Xyz Materials and Equipped Monsters, stopping Inzektors and Wind-Ups (but unfortunately not Rabbits). The main downsides of these are that Banisher of the Radiance is a monster that you have to protect and most decks are using Thunder King Rai-Oh and even Doomcaliber Knight and Macro Cosmos is a Trap Card, requiring it to be set first as well as making it vulnerable to Royal Decree.
Of these, I would use either Macro Cosmos or Banisher of the Radiance, depending on my Deck - you have to be able to thwart Inzektors and Wind-Ups, even at the cost of being more vulnerable to Rabbits.
Next comes specific Decks:
Currently, the playing field consists of three Tier 1 Decks: Wind-Ups, Rabbits, and Inzektors. Some Rogue Decks such as Evols and Empty Jar may also show up but they aren't likely to consistently top as they no longer have a surprise factor.
Inzektors are the easiest to side against - max out your Spell and Trap destruction (to stop Royal Decree, which is sided against this card) and side in three Shadow-Imprisoning Mirrors. In doing so, you will stop any of their effects as well as Tour Guide and Sangan's effects.
Rabbits are also pretty easy to side against. Previously, the most popular card was Spirit Reaper. While this card is amazing, it has a huge weakness - Forbidden Lance and Mind Control will destroy it. As a result, it's often more worthwhile to run Arcana Force 0 - The Fool. You can also use Marshmallon but the downside is that Dolkka can negate its effect and destroy it, making it easier to get over than The Fool. In addition to that, Rabbit Decks have seen use of Doomcaliber Knight which negates Marshmallon and kills it. Another side is Lava Golem. This monster is insane - it can get over even Vennominaga as there is no way of preventing its summon. The downside is that you give your opponent a huge monster, but provided you side in the rest of these wall monsters, it should work fine - Rabbits don't run any cards that Tribute so they will probably die from Burn Damage. Royal Decree is another option and if you have space, you can side Decree, The Fool, and Lava Golem against Rabbits all at once. I would side up to two Lava Golems, two or three Decree, and at least two Fools. If Rabbit is your worst matchup, side three Fools and some Marshmallons. Side out your Effect Veilers, Maxx "C"s, and possibly your Fiendish Chains.
Lastly we have Wind-Ups. Wind-Ups are the most problematic due to the hand destruction loop. Maxx "C" and Effect Veiler are main decked to deal with this threat. After turn one, you have a chance to set some backrow - the following cards can be quite effective. First and foremost is Fiendish Chain for obvious reasons, but this is also a main decked card. Now for Side Decks: Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror is an unlikely contender but consider this: it makes Wind-Up Hunter's effect a -1 (if you chain to its activation) as well as wasting your opponent's Tour Guide or stopping Sangan from giving them a potentially game-winning search. In addition to that, you may want some backrow protection - Dark Bribe can fill this role. Normally I would advocate the use of Magic Drain but as we all know Wind-Ups main deck a full set of Mystical Space Typhoon, Heavy Storm, and Wind-Up Factory as well as Monster Reborn, Foolish Burial, Dark Hole, Pot of Avarice, and occasionally other cards. As a result, Magic Drain is rather lackluster against this specific deck. Next is Cyber Dragon. This amazing monster was even sided against Plant Synchro as an out to Rai-Oh. It remains an out to Rai-Oh but is also a way around Wind-Up Zenmaines by making Chimeratech Fortress Dragon. This alone makes it worth using as Zenmaines can be a seemingly insurmountable obstacle.
Outside of these three Decks, you can expect to see a smattering of Six Samurai and potentially Evols due to both Deck's recent YCS tops. T.G. Stun will also be a rather common Deck due to it having won YCS Atlanta and the fact that it costs little to make. To counter Six Samurai and Evols, just use the same strategies as against Rabbits, although you won't need to side Decree. Against T.G., make sure to have three Royal Decree sided as well as Dimensional Fissure or Macro Cosmos.
If you encounter Empty Jar, Macro Cosmos should serve you well. Fiendish Chain will also allow you to negate one use of Morphing Jar which is likely to be a game winning move.
In one of my next posts I will write about the merit of Agents following the Banlist (and explain just how good they will be) as well as discuss Hieroglyphs and what not to do (hint: don't use Level 6 and 7 Dragons. Big Eye doesn't justify using Level 7s and Level 6s just get you another Normal Dragon which you were better off using to make a Thunder-End or Ennead).
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Psychic Plants - A Hidden Gem
In my previous post, I discussed the Banlist. In this one, I'll discuss my favorite Deck for the format (up until Wind-Up/Zektors/Rabbits came around): Psychic Plants.
I'm the inventor of the Deck - I made it for Decks for Free! on Yugioh Wikia for a poster who was looking for a competitive Psychic Deck. What I came up with was a Synchro heavy deck that used the Plant Engine (Glow-Up Bulb, Spore, Dandylion, and Lonefire Blossom) and Tengu along with RFP Psychics.
The original incarnation included Overdrive Teleporter.
As you can see, Overdrive Teleporter is a Level 6 monster. Normally, I wouldn't use a Tribute Monster but after seeing Caius in Plants, I realized that this Deck was even better for Tribute Summons - Both Silent Psychic Wizard and Serene Psychic Witch provide even more tribute fodder. In addition to that, I had Telekinetic Power Well and Emergency Teleport, both of which would give me even more opportunities to Tribute Summon this monster.
Now why would I use it?
It gave me ample opportunities to do a number of things - first, I could swarm. The monsters wouldn't die during the End Phase so I could leave out some Psychic Witches. Second, I could Xyz Summon - Leviair, Zenmaines, and Leviathan Dragon were all possible Xyz Monsters. Lastly, I could Synchro Summon - be it Orient Dragon, Brionac, Naturia Barkion, or Hyper Psychic Blaster. Of course, for 2000 Life Points, this was more risky against Decks carrying Maxx "C" or Effect Veiler but at the time it was worth the risk.
Other important cards include Psychic Jumper. This monster is insane - with an Emergency Teleport and either this or a Psychic in hand, or a Telekinetic Power Well, or a number of other combos, I can steal any of my opponent's monsters for only 1000 LP - better yet, I can give them a floater such as Serene Psychic Witch or a Special Summoned Esper Girl.
As a whole, the Deck works fantastically - it has a great Plant matchup as it can make large plays and summon big monsters easily as well as use Naturia Beast.
Against Gravekeeper's, a Deck which often hurt Synchro Decks, I could get out Naturia Beast and Barkion pretty easily on my first turn, allowing me to stop either Necrovalley or their massive array of backrow - or even both at the same time.
The Deck had issues with T.G. and other Stun Decks but a Naturia Barkion would often seal the game in my favor.
Then comes Rabbits, Inzektors, and Wind-Ups. The first issue is the fact that everyone is running Maxx "C", Effect Veiler, and Fiendish Chain. With these three cards out, Overdrive Teleporter is far too risky - I'm paying 2000 LP and then they either negate it or draw cards when I attempt to make a play. It went out.
I added in Rai-Oh, a fantastic card against everything but Inzektors.
Even so, it just isn't cut out for this final segment of the format (and definitely not next format).
And now for an analysis of the Deck and the Deck itself:
Strengths:
The most obvious one is its Synchro Summoning capability. I can Synchro Summon many times per turn - Konami may have called Plants "Synchrocentric" but the Deck was really a mash of good stuff - this is a Synchrocentric Deck.
Next is the ability to maintain advantage. All the Plants are good for maintaining and generating advantage, as is Tengu, while the Psychics give me more opportunities to generate advantage. When I Synchro Summon, it can be a +1 in terms of card advantage.
Speed - Many cards in this Deck allow me to pull off first and second turn combos which can pretty much guarantee my victory.
High ATK - Silent Psychic Wizard is an amazing monster - it has an ATK which allows it to match Rai-Oh in battle and even profit off the exchange - a move which is incredibly useful at any time in the game. The Deck also includes Rai-Oh and Psychic Commander, which can kill anything with 1900 or less ATK.
Weaknesses:
Maxx "C" will stop my plays and leave me with a lot of monsters lying around.
Dimensional Fissure is pretty painful - yes the Psychics focus on Banishing but they do so themselves - doing so with a Dimensional Fissure means that I can't get their effects.
Other Stun cards also severely reduce the Deck's strength.
Now onto the Deck:
For those who need a list:
Dandylion
Esper Girl x2
Glow-Up Bulb
Gorz the Emissary of Darkness
Lonefire Blossom
Psychic Commander x2
Psychic Jumper
Reborn Tengu x3
Serene Psychic Witch x3
Silent Psychic Wizard x3
Spore
Thunder King Rai-Oh x2
Dark Hole
Emergency Teleport
Enemy Controller
Foolish Burial
Heavy Storm
Mind Control
Monster Reborn
Mystical Space Typhoon x2
One for One
Pot of Avarice
Bottomless Trap Hole
Dimensional Prison
Mirror Force
Solemn Judgment
Solemn Warning x2
Torrential Tribute
Trap Dustshoot
Ally of Justice Catastor
Ancient Fairy Dragon
Black Rose Dragon
Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier
Formula Synchron
Naturia Barkion
Naturia Beast
Orient Dragon
Scrap Dragon
Stardust Dragon
T.G. Hyper Librarian
Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier
Leviair the Sea Dragon
Number 17: Leviathan Dragon
Wind-Up Zenmaines
I'm the inventor of the Deck - I made it for Decks for Free! on Yugioh Wikia for a poster who was looking for a competitive Psychic Deck. What I came up with was a Synchro heavy deck that used the Plant Engine (Glow-Up Bulb, Spore, Dandylion, and Lonefire Blossom) and Tengu along with RFP Psychics.
The original incarnation included Overdrive Teleporter.
Now why would I use it?
It gave me ample opportunities to do a number of things - first, I could swarm. The monsters wouldn't die during the End Phase so I could leave out some Psychic Witches. Second, I could Xyz Summon - Leviair, Zenmaines, and Leviathan Dragon were all possible Xyz Monsters. Lastly, I could Synchro Summon - be it Orient Dragon, Brionac, Naturia Barkion, or Hyper Psychic Blaster. Of course, for 2000 Life Points, this was more risky against Decks carrying Maxx "C" or Effect Veiler but at the time it was worth the risk.
Other important cards include Psychic Jumper. This monster is insane - with an Emergency Teleport and either this or a Psychic in hand, or a Telekinetic Power Well, or a number of other combos, I can steal any of my opponent's monsters for only 1000 LP - better yet, I can give them a floater such as Serene Psychic Witch or a Special Summoned Esper Girl.
As a whole, the Deck works fantastically - it has a great Plant matchup as it can make large plays and summon big monsters easily as well as use Naturia Beast.
Against Gravekeeper's, a Deck which often hurt Synchro Decks, I could get out Naturia Beast and Barkion pretty easily on my first turn, allowing me to stop either Necrovalley or their massive array of backrow - or even both at the same time.
The Deck had issues with T.G. and other Stun Decks but a Naturia Barkion would often seal the game in my favor.
Then comes Rabbits, Inzektors, and Wind-Ups. The first issue is the fact that everyone is running Maxx "C", Effect Veiler, and Fiendish Chain. With these three cards out, Overdrive Teleporter is far too risky - I'm paying 2000 LP and then they either negate it or draw cards when I attempt to make a play. It went out.
I added in Rai-Oh, a fantastic card against everything but Inzektors.
Even so, it just isn't cut out for this final segment of the format (and definitely not next format).
And now for an analysis of the Deck and the Deck itself:
Strengths:
The most obvious one is its Synchro Summoning capability. I can Synchro Summon many times per turn - Konami may have called Plants "Synchrocentric" but the Deck was really a mash of good stuff - this is a Synchrocentric Deck.
Next is the ability to maintain advantage. All the Plants are good for maintaining and generating advantage, as is Tengu, while the Psychics give me more opportunities to generate advantage. When I Synchro Summon, it can be a +1 in terms of card advantage.
Speed - Many cards in this Deck allow me to pull off first and second turn combos which can pretty much guarantee my victory.
High ATK - Silent Psychic Wizard is an amazing monster - it has an ATK which allows it to match Rai-Oh in battle and even profit off the exchange - a move which is incredibly useful at any time in the game. The Deck also includes Rai-Oh and Psychic Commander, which can kill anything with 1900 or less ATK.
Weaknesses:
Maxx "C" will stop my plays and leave me with a lot of monsters lying around.
Dimensional Fissure is pretty painful - yes the Psychics focus on Banishing but they do so themselves - doing so with a Dimensional Fissure means that I can't get their effects.
Other Stun cards also severely reduce the Deck's strength.
Now onto the Deck:
Dandylion
Esper Girl x2
Glow-Up Bulb
Gorz the Emissary of Darkness
Lonefire Blossom
Psychic Commander x2
Psychic Jumper
Reborn Tengu x3
Serene Psychic Witch x3
Silent Psychic Wizard x3
Spore
Thunder King Rai-Oh x2
Dark Hole
Emergency Teleport
Enemy Controller
Foolish Burial
Heavy Storm
Mind Control
Monster Reborn
Mystical Space Typhoon x2
One for One
Pot of Avarice
Bottomless Trap Hole
Dimensional Prison
Mirror Force
Solemn Judgment
Solemn Warning x2
Torrential Tribute
Trap Dustshoot
Ally of Justice Catastor
Ancient Fairy Dragon
Black Rose Dragon
Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier
Formula Synchron
Naturia Barkion
Naturia Beast
Orient Dragon
Scrap Dragon
Stardust Dragon
T.G. Hyper Librarian
Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier
Leviair the Sea Dragon
Number 17: Leviathan Dragon
Wind-Up Zenmaines
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
The Banlist And What Should Have Happened
Obviously, the Banlist is a controversial topic. Many players don't care either way - they're just here to play. Others are extremely picky about the Banlist and have very polarized opinions about cards and strategies.
I'd say that I'm one of the opinionated people. When it comes to Banlists, I have a very clear idea in my head of what should happen. This usually does not happen.
Take, for example, the recent Banlist:
Due to the fact that the Banlist is based off the Japanese Metagame (OCG), we have to deal with crappy banlists all the time. Of course, to compensate, we get TCG Exclusives like Tour Guide and Tengu. And Tins. And stuff like the Legendary Collection. Anyhow, we have the banlist. The most noticeable thing is the fact that four Tuners were hit - The Agent of Mystery - Earth and T.G. Striker were Limited, while Glow-Up Bulb and Spore were Banned. The next noticeable thing is that Inzektors, Rabbits, and Wind-Ups aren't on the list at all. This is because both were from recent packs and Konami wants to make money. Also, by eliminating Plants from the metagame, they increased the amount of users using Xyz more than Synchro Monsters.
Plant Synchro deserved a banlist hit - the Deck remained Tier 1-2 for more than two years. Many people claimed that Dandylion was the reason for its success - I totally disagree. While Dandylion is an amazing card, it's a lot less useful outside of Quickdraw decks than Glow-Up Bulb. Glow-Up Bulb makes your Level 4 monsters such as Reborn Tengu into Level 5s at no cost to yourself. In addition to that, while Dandylion is amazing with One for One, it wouldn't be nearly so good without Glow-Up Bulb. I predicted the Banning of the Bulb, but Spore? Trishula? With Bulb Banned neither of those really needed a hit - Plant Synchro would be relegated to the realm of Nordics or worse, the decks floating around behind Tier 2.
Trap Dusthoot was also Banned and I can understand the rationale - a good player drawing this on their first turn hand has a really good shot at winning the duel.
As for T.G. Agents, they were obviously powerful, but not topping in the TCG. As of late we have seen little action from Agents in the Top 32 of YCS events. Instead, they are dominated by Wind-Ups, Inzektors, Rabbits, and to a lesser extent, Plants. Yes, Agents did deserve a hit, but not Earth - that does little compared to actually hitting the power cards - Venus and Hyperion. While you may argue that Earth is like Reinforcement of the Army, being a searcher, in many ways, it is not. You have to waste your Normal Summon to search - in a fast metagame, this can be lethal. If you were to hit Venus the Deck would rely on Earth searches instead of just summoning Venus. As for Hyperion, if you hit it, the Deck will lose a bit of its explosive power and "sackyness" (unfairness, ability to draw a card with nothing out and win).
Lumina was brought back to two - this was a good decision as Lightsworn still weren't topping without three Charge and Honest.
Marshmallon at two should be fine in a fast format, although in a slow format it promotes slow burn (which is not a fun deck to duel).
Torrential Tribute was put at two - this is an odd choice, as most costless mass-destruction cards are at one or zero. Nonetheless, in this format, more ways to stop Inzektors, Wind-Ups, and Rabbits isn't a bad thing.
Shien's Smoke Signal should not have gone to two. The deck topped a YCS even in this format without two. The trick is finding the right build.
Level Limit - Area B is fine at two, three would be better.
Ultimate Offering to two makes sense as Gadgets are broken with it.
Emergency Teleport at two is a nice gesture, although an odd one, as they just hit a bunch of Tuners. Maybe they think it's some consolation...
The most controversial decision was Reborn Tengu. It's a TCG Exclusive, and those are not normally hit, but it was. A fourth card from Plant Synchro hit. The deck is pretty much dead because of it. People argue that Tengu is broken. However, it really isn't - it's kind of like Duality that it helps a ton of Decks but not the best Decks (of course, in some circumstances, Tengu leads to broken plays but these are not just because of Reborn Tengu).
Call of the Haunted was put at three. It's not seeing use at two, so no reason not to do this.
That is what did happen - but what should have happened?
First, we should have seen Wind-Up Zenmaity go to one and Wind-Up Rat go to two. No Hunter, you cry in anguish - but what about our hands? With Rat at two and Zenmaity at one, the loop is all but dead. In addition to that, a large portion of the Decks' power is removed - they no longer can summon three Zenmaity and another monster, or two Zenmaity and a Xyz, they can't pull off as big comebacks when drawing a Rat. Of course, hitting Shark would have been just as effective, but since it's a TCG Exclusive we can say that it probably wouldn't have been hit had Konami been thinking properly.
Next, Inzektors. I want to see Hornet Banned. Some people favor hitting Dragonfly - this makes some sense, but the deck still does the same thing - drop an Inzektor, blow shit up. This is not only overpowered, but boring. A well-protected Inzektor player can gain massive amounts of advantage over a few turns. This is not right. Hornet at one seems like a good solution but then again - they still have Armageddon Knight and if all else fails Summoner Monk (to get Armageddon Knight) to send Hornet to their Graveyard. And remember - you only need one Hornet to win.
Rabbits also need to be hit. Stun is a rather boring Deck in my opinion. I'm sure there are many of you that disagree with me on this, but having to break through four Traps without a Heavy Storm is just not fun. All the player has to do is play a Laggia, set their hand, and win. Seriously. Some people have said to hit Laggia, others have said to hit Leviair, and some have even said to hit the Vanilla Dinosaurs. All of these people are wrong:
Leviair is a great card but even Limiting it will do little to hurt the Deck. You'd have to Ban it to make a difference and that's just not fair.
Same goes for Laggia.
The Vanilla Dinos actually makes some sense - Semi-Limiting them would drastically decrease the consistency of the Deck, but at the same time, it makes so little sense - they aren't the reason the Deck is broken - hit the enabler!
Rescue Rabbit is the enabler. It creates unfair situations. Yes, Laggia and Dolkka exist. But hitting them will hurt Evols a lot more than is worthwhile. Yes, Rabbit can boost Normal Decks. But most of them don't really need it, and Gem-Knights, the best ones around, can juts use Gemini stuff - it works a lot better than Normal Builds. Just challenge Lappyzard21 sometime and you'll see.
In addition to that, I would like to see Grapha Semi-Limited. I think the reasons are obvious. It's just a stupid card - especially for a boss monster. If it had 1700 ATK, it wouldn't be an issue. But with 2700, it is.
Tsukuyomi should come off the banlist - it's too slow for the current metagame.
Magician of Faith should too - it brings back Spells but it's also too slow. Maybe if Inzektors died it would be too powerful but while they exist Flip Effect monsters are rather...risky...
Dark Magician of Chaos could come back for this format, maybe not for another. It would be a nice way to help decks other than Wind-Ups, Inzektors, and Rabbits.
Blackwing - Kalut the Moon Shadow should go to two - Blackwings just can't top and they deserve some mercy, like Lightsworn. Whilrwind to two would be a problem as it would almost be like Semi-Limiting both Gale and Kalut and Semi-Limiting
Gale is just wrong.
Gladiator Beast Bestiari should go to two. It would give Gladiator Beasts some more power without breaking them.
The Transmigration Prophecy should have gone to two. Seriously. It's not good.
Archlord Kristya should have been Limited. It's an insanely good card that makes games entirely one-sided.
With two Malicious Destiny Draw is pretty safe to go back to three. With three, definitely not, but at two, yes.
Royal Tribute should have been Banned, or Limited at worst. It's insane - it's usually a +1 or +2 but can get rid of your opponent's entire hand. And people complain about Wind-Up Hunter...
That's all for now, comments are welcome!
I'd say that I'm one of the opinionated people. When it comes to Banlists, I have a very clear idea in my head of what should happen. This usually does not happen.
Take, for example, the recent Banlist:
Due to the fact that the Banlist is based off the Japanese Metagame (OCG), we have to deal with crappy banlists all the time. Of course, to compensate, we get TCG Exclusives like Tour Guide and Tengu. And Tins. And stuff like the Legendary Collection. Anyhow, we have the banlist. The most noticeable thing is the fact that four Tuners were hit - The Agent of Mystery - Earth and T.G. Striker were Limited, while Glow-Up Bulb and Spore were Banned. The next noticeable thing is that Inzektors, Rabbits, and Wind-Ups aren't on the list at all. This is because both were from recent packs and Konami wants to make money. Also, by eliminating Plants from the metagame, they increased the amount of users using Xyz more than Synchro Monsters.
Plant Synchro deserved a banlist hit - the Deck remained Tier 1-2 for more than two years. Many people claimed that Dandylion was the reason for its success - I totally disagree. While Dandylion is an amazing card, it's a lot less useful outside of Quickdraw decks than Glow-Up Bulb. Glow-Up Bulb makes your Level 4 monsters such as Reborn Tengu into Level 5s at no cost to yourself. In addition to that, while Dandylion is amazing with One for One, it wouldn't be nearly so good without Glow-Up Bulb. I predicted the Banning of the Bulb, but Spore? Trishula? With Bulb Banned neither of those really needed a hit - Plant Synchro would be relegated to the realm of Nordics or worse, the decks floating around behind Tier 2.
Trap Dusthoot was also Banned and I can understand the rationale - a good player drawing this on their first turn hand has a really good shot at winning the duel.
As for T.G. Agents, they were obviously powerful, but not topping in the TCG. As of late we have seen little action from Agents in the Top 32 of YCS events. Instead, they are dominated by Wind-Ups, Inzektors, Rabbits, and to a lesser extent, Plants. Yes, Agents did deserve a hit, but not Earth - that does little compared to actually hitting the power cards - Venus and Hyperion. While you may argue that Earth is like Reinforcement of the Army, being a searcher, in many ways, it is not. You have to waste your Normal Summon to search - in a fast metagame, this can be lethal. If you were to hit Venus the Deck would rely on Earth searches instead of just summoning Venus. As for Hyperion, if you hit it, the Deck will lose a bit of its explosive power and "sackyness" (unfairness, ability to draw a card with nothing out and win).
Lumina was brought back to two - this was a good decision as Lightsworn still weren't topping without three Charge and Honest.
Marshmallon at two should be fine in a fast format, although in a slow format it promotes slow burn (which is not a fun deck to duel).
Torrential Tribute was put at two - this is an odd choice, as most costless mass-destruction cards are at one or zero. Nonetheless, in this format, more ways to stop Inzektors, Wind-Ups, and Rabbits isn't a bad thing.
Shien's Smoke Signal should not have gone to two. The deck topped a YCS even in this format without two. The trick is finding the right build.
Level Limit - Area B is fine at two, three would be better.
Ultimate Offering to two makes sense as Gadgets are broken with it.
Emergency Teleport at two is a nice gesture, although an odd one, as they just hit a bunch of Tuners. Maybe they think it's some consolation...
The most controversial decision was Reborn Tengu. It's a TCG Exclusive, and those are not normally hit, but it was. A fourth card from Plant Synchro hit. The deck is pretty much dead because of it. People argue that Tengu is broken. However, it really isn't - it's kind of like Duality that it helps a ton of Decks but not the best Decks (of course, in some circumstances, Tengu leads to broken plays but these are not just because of Reborn Tengu).
Call of the Haunted was put at three. It's not seeing use at two, so no reason not to do this.
That is what did happen - but what should have happened?
First, we should have seen Wind-Up Zenmaity go to one and Wind-Up Rat go to two. No Hunter, you cry in anguish - but what about our hands? With Rat at two and Zenmaity at one, the loop is all but dead. In addition to that, a large portion of the Decks' power is removed - they no longer can summon three Zenmaity and another monster, or two Zenmaity and a Xyz, they can't pull off as big comebacks when drawing a Rat. Of course, hitting Shark would have been just as effective, but since it's a TCG Exclusive we can say that it probably wouldn't have been hit had Konami been thinking properly.
Next, Inzektors. I want to see Hornet Banned. Some people favor hitting Dragonfly - this makes some sense, but the deck still does the same thing - drop an Inzektor, blow shit up. This is not only overpowered, but boring. A well-protected Inzektor player can gain massive amounts of advantage over a few turns. This is not right. Hornet at one seems like a good solution but then again - they still have Armageddon Knight and if all else fails Summoner Monk (to get Armageddon Knight) to send Hornet to their Graveyard. And remember - you only need one Hornet to win.
Rabbits also need to be hit. Stun is a rather boring Deck in my opinion. I'm sure there are many of you that disagree with me on this, but having to break through four Traps without a Heavy Storm is just not fun. All the player has to do is play a Laggia, set their hand, and win. Seriously. Some people have said to hit Laggia, others have said to hit Leviair, and some have even said to hit the Vanilla Dinosaurs. All of these people are wrong:
Leviair is a great card but even Limiting it will do little to hurt the Deck. You'd have to Ban it to make a difference and that's just not fair.
Same goes for Laggia.
The Vanilla Dinos actually makes some sense - Semi-Limiting them would drastically decrease the consistency of the Deck, but at the same time, it makes so little sense - they aren't the reason the Deck is broken - hit the enabler!
Rescue Rabbit is the enabler. It creates unfair situations. Yes, Laggia and Dolkka exist. But hitting them will hurt Evols a lot more than is worthwhile. Yes, Rabbit can boost Normal Decks. But most of them don't really need it, and Gem-Knights, the best ones around, can juts use Gemini stuff - it works a lot better than Normal Builds. Just challenge Lappyzard21 sometime and you'll see.
In addition to that, I would like to see Grapha Semi-Limited. I think the reasons are obvious. It's just a stupid card - especially for a boss monster. If it had 1700 ATK, it wouldn't be an issue. But with 2700, it is.
Tsukuyomi should come off the banlist - it's too slow for the current metagame.
Magician of Faith should too - it brings back Spells but it's also too slow. Maybe if Inzektors died it would be too powerful but while they exist Flip Effect monsters are rather...risky...
Dark Magician of Chaos could come back for this format, maybe not for another. It would be a nice way to help decks other than Wind-Ups, Inzektors, and Rabbits.
Blackwing - Kalut the Moon Shadow should go to two - Blackwings just can't top and they deserve some mercy, like Lightsworn. Whilrwind to two would be a problem as it would almost be like Semi-Limiting both Gale and Kalut and Semi-Limiting
Gale is just wrong.
Gladiator Beast Bestiari should go to two. It would give Gladiator Beasts some more power without breaking them.
The Transmigration Prophecy should have gone to two. Seriously. It's not good.
Archlord Kristya should have been Limited. It's an insanely good card that makes games entirely one-sided.
With two Malicious Destiny Draw is pretty safe to go back to three. With three, definitely not, but at two, yes.
Royal Tribute should have been Banned, or Limited at worst. It's insane - it's usually a +1 or +2 but can get rid of your opponent's entire hand. And people complain about Wind-Up Hunter...
That's all for now, comments are welcome!
The First Post
For those of you who know me no description is necessary.
For those of you who don't, I'm BobaFett2 (BF2) for short.
I'm the Head Administrator of Frost and Flame Academy as well as a contributor for Yugioh Wikia. I play on Dueling Network.
I post on Pojo in the Collectors Forums.
I'm a huge Yugioh fan. I've traded through the mail with a lot of people.
I enjoy skill Decks and do not enjoy Stun Decks. I'm a pretty good duelist. I play in real life with Gladiator Beasts among other Decks. I love Plant Synchro, especially Glow-Up Bulb. I invented the cheaper Psychic-Plant variant (which doesn't use Tour Guide and is more Synchro-Focused). I am not a budget player, but neither am I one who plays with full Tier 1 decks. I can afford them, but the cost is too high and I'd rather not spend tons of money on a card that will probably be hit.
I have some skill with graphic design. But not a lot. Same goes for programming.
And in the words of the immortal Monty Python's Flying Circus's John Cleese...
And now for something completely different
As for the blog itself...
I will be posting as regularly as I can about the game, be it the banlist, the meta, interesting decks, cards, or investing. That will be all for now.
For those of you who don't, I'm BobaFett2 (BF2) for short.
I'm the Head Administrator of Frost and Flame Academy as well as a contributor for Yugioh Wikia. I play on Dueling Network.
I post on Pojo in the Collectors Forums.
I'm a huge Yugioh fan. I've traded through the mail with a lot of people.
I enjoy skill Decks and do not enjoy Stun Decks. I'm a pretty good duelist. I play in real life with Gladiator Beasts among other Decks. I love Plant Synchro, especially Glow-Up Bulb. I invented the cheaper Psychic-Plant variant (which doesn't use Tour Guide and is more Synchro-Focused). I am not a budget player, but neither am I one who plays with full Tier 1 decks. I can afford them, but the cost is too high and I'd rather not spend tons of money on a card that will probably be hit.
I have some skill with graphic design. But not a lot. Same goes for programming.
And in the words of the immortal Monty Python's Flying Circus's John Cleese...
And now for something completely different
As for the blog itself...
I will be posting as regularly as I can about the game, be it the banlist, the meta, interesting decks, cards, or investing. That will be all for now.
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