It's time to D-D-D-D-DDDDUEL

[Fallen Icarus]

xfd I still got out Whirlwind most of the games (3 of them, I think?), which is why the 3 matters. Opening hand too! Pre-banlist, getting whirlwind was a somewhat rare occasion, and if it was MST'ed, then too bad for you. That one time I had Whirlwind out, I think I got out, what, 4 decent synchros with most of their effects intact? Again, not likely pre-banlist. ofc, this is rendered obselete by Mirror Force, but w/e

[Emi]

Originally Posted by Fallen Icarus

Yeah, I want heavy storm back but for different reasons then Dopple >_>;

Played Talon today. Saw that Blackwings was tremendously boosted by the 3x whirlwind. Now we can make power plays that would not have been possible without it.

Heavy Storm is really nice. Though why can't we have Trunade? *shot*

Blackwings have nothing but up now. Having more than one Whirlwind on the field is usually GG for the other guy. It basically allows you to keep as many Kaluts as you need in hand. Plus any other cards for field advantage(Gale, Bora, Zephryos etc.)

[Talon87]

Originally Posted by Fallen Icarus

xfd I still got out Whirlwind most of the games (3 of them, I think?), which is why the 3 matters. Opening hand too! Pre-banlist, getting whirlwind was a somewhat rare occasion, and if it was MST'ed, then too bad for you. That one time I had Whirlwind out, I think I got out, what, 4 decent synchros with most of their effects intact? Again, not likely pre-banlist. ofc, this is rendered obselete by Mirror Force, but w/e

I don't know what your "xfd"ing at. I'm the one who should be laughing at you. In just about every Blackwings game I play on DN, the other guy usually manages to either:

1. drop two on the first turn, or else
2. drop two or three over the course of one game

You only ever got one (and sometimes zero) out each game. If anything, that's what is so lol-worthy. ^^;

[Emi]

How to defeat Infernity:

Part 1: Summon Gungnir
Part 2: Use Gungnir's eff to discard two Marksmen
Part 3: Destroy four cards
Part 4: ???
Part 5: PROFIT!

Spoiler: show

This took three turns, and I beat him. Not too shabby for one of my first duels with Merlantean Barriers. God that sounds so bad.

[Talon87]

Infernity's proven pretty tough for me to beat in these upper (mid) levels of play. The people who run Infernity that I encounter now are competent players using well-oiled netdecks that allow them to take between fifteen and twenty-five actions in a single turn, each turn, and usually thus enabling them to win by the conclusion of their third turn's Battle Phase. If I get my "god hand" against Infernity, then I'm okay, but that rarely happens. What really proves problematic for my deck with the Infernity decks is that they're very good at getting out suicidal field cleansers (like Black Rose Dragon) and then shrugging off the sacrifices as though they were nothing, returning to the field right as rain some two or three plays later. But I guess what I hate most about them is that their chains are so infernally long! >_< If it were a seven-step combo, fine, but it's like some bullshit twenty-five step combo we both have to sit through just to get out two Synchros and an XYZ in the end! Ugh! Why couldn't the archetype just fucking cut to the chase and accomplish what it accomplishes but in three turns instead of twenty-three? Ridiculous.

That stated, bit by bit I'm rising in the ranks. I've got 30 wins over losses now in Singles, and while I haven't risked a Match game over the past few days, it's still sitting nicely at 28 and 0. Apparently I've played enough Singles games at this point that my calculated ranking puts me in the 1600s. I don't expect that will last long -- the last time I reported being in the 1600s I fell to the 1900s the very next day without playing a single game in between -- but it is kinda neat to see how close I can get to Doppel. (He's at 1488 right now; I'm at 1623. Close!)

[Doppleganger]

Infernity is a deck that, like Dark World, is incredibly powerful in the Singles, but are easily debilitated by sides. And unlike Dark Worlds of old, Infernity still falls to its great deck killers. It's ironic how different the two decks are given these shared weaknesses because Infernity is famous for being inconsistent, while Dark Worlds super consistent.

[Emi]

Dark World is so much easier to play than Infernity. Infernity is crippled by the fact that you MUST have an empty hand in order for it to reach full power. And if you don't? You're running a severely sub par deck. Dark World can run so many more different cards and different strategies. Well, except offensive ones, but that's not the point.

[Kindrindra]

>Infernity

Have you guys seen the Phantom Hand card? From what I understand it's not really run that much in Infernity. Which is... Odd.

[Doppleganger]

You generally don't want to banish potentially useful cards and keep them out of reach for several turns. I'd use it in my own deck...but it requires an Infernity monster. :/

[Kindrindra]

But it's not for several turns- You get the hand back on the standby phase of your next turn, so you can just play cards in your main phase, banish your hand, do your Infernity effects, and then repeat next turn.

[Emi]

Originally Posted by Kindrindra

But it's not for several turns- You get the hand back on the standby phase of your next turn, so you can just play cards in your main phase, banish your hand, do your Infernity effects, and then repeat next turn.

It's called MST.

[Doppleganger]

MST doesn't stop the cards from coming back when banished by Phantom Hand. There's a ruling connected to it.

Originally Posted by Kindrindra

But it's not for several turns- You get the hand back on the standby phase of your next turn, so you can just play cards in your main phase, banish your hand, do your Infernity effects, and then repeat next turn.

The only situation in which that would be desirable is if your hand is full of monsters. Considering Infernity mostly wants its monsters in the grave, that means you are deprived of combo pieces in the grave and deck. It also means that you don't have a field full of set cards, and one slot is dedicated to Phantom Hand instead of other spells/traps.

It's an interesting idea, but it's very impractical.

[KratosAurion]

So, as far as consistency goes, what's the highest on the scale? Dark World? Also, anyone up for a Duel?

[Fallen Icarus]

I would have to say that Machine Decks have the highest level of consistency. Easily.

[Doppleganger]

Most consistent now, or ever?

[Emi]

Originally Posted by Fallen Icarus

I would have to say that Machine Decks have the highest level of consistency. Easily.

I would agree, but there isn't much they can do with that consistency. It generally takes a lot of effort even to get a Rank 7 XYZ on the field. Fire Fist is just about the same, if not a little bit less, but it can do so much more without losing consistency. The same can't be said for machines.

[Talon87]

If Machines are as consistent as Fire Fist, then Machines aren't very consistent. I can pretty confidently say this as a Fire Fist user. ^^; Consistent is Doppel's Stardust Stun. My deck, on the other hand, has wildly different opening hands which lead to wildly different games. Sometimes I have nothing but creatures. Sometimes I have nothing but spells and traps. Sometimes I have a mix of spells, traps, and creatures but no way to shield myself. Other times I have ample ways to delay the enemy (e.g. two Mirror Forces, a Magic Cylinder, and two MSTs) but no way to launch an attack. Its semi-chaotic nature is both blessing and curse, but consistent it is decidedly not.

Unless we want to ask "Is it consistent at destroying UU decks?", in which case yes, yes it is. But against OU or Ubers decks, nyyyyyyyyyyo.

[Kindrindra]

Yeah, I have to agree with Talon. I think the consistency of a deck is greatly related to the deck's draw and search power, as that is probably the most obvious manifestation of the true measure of a deck's consistency- That is, how many possible ways there are to start it's major play.

[Emi]

So, some of the Legacy of the Valiant cards have been released, at what point I have no idea but I just saw it now. Apparently there is a "Shinra" archetype.

Which has to do with plants. *shot*

Anyways, here is the cards:

Shinra no Mibari Peas

Spoiler: show

When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can reveal the top card of your Deck. If the revealed card is a Plant-Type monster, send it to the Graveyard. Otherwise, place it on the bottom of your Deck. If this card is revealed in the Deck and sent to the Graveyard by a card effect: You can target 1 Level 4 or lower Plant-Type monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target. You can only use this effect of "Shinra no Mibari Peas" once per turn.

Shinra no Senju Regia

Spoiler: show

Once per turn: You can reveal the top card of your Deck, and if that card is a Plant-Type monster, send it to the Graveyard and draw 1 card, otherwise place it on the bottom of your Deck. If this card is revealed from the Deck and sent to the Graveyard: You can look at up to 3 cards from the top of your Deck, then return them to the top of the Deck in any order.

Ghostrick Mary

Spoiler: show

Cannot be Normal Summoned unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster (but can be Normal Set). Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When you take damage: You can discard this card; Special Summon 1 "Ghostrick" monster from your Deck in face-down Defense Position. You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Mary" once per turn.

Bujin Arasuda

Spoiler: show

If a "Bujin" monster you control or in your Graveyard is banished: You can Special Summon this card from your hand in face-up Defense Position. During the End Phase, if you added a "Bujin" monster from your Deck to your hand this turn, except by drawing, while this card was face-up: You can draw 1 card, then discard 1 card. You can only control 1 "Bujin Arasuda".

Gravekeeper's Saniwa

Spoiler: show

You can Tribute 3 monsters or 1 "Gravekeeper's" monster to Tribute Summon this card. When this card is Normal Summoned: You can apply a number of effects, up to the number of "Gravekeeper's" monsters that were Tributed for this card's Normal Summon.
● This card gains ATK equal to the combined Levels of the Tributed monster(s) x 100.
● Destroy all Set monsters your opponent controls.
● All face-up monsters your opponent currently controls lose 2000 ATK and DEF.

Number 39: Utopia Roots

Spoiler: show

2 Level 1 monsters
When any player's monster declares an attack: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; negate the attack, and if you do, if that monster is an Xyz Monster, this card gains ATK equal to the Rank of that monster x 500.

Rank-Down-Magic Numeron Fall

Spoiler: show

Target 1 "Utopia" monster you control; Special Summon from your Extra Deck, 1 "Utopia" monster whose Rank is lower than that monster you control, by using it as the Xyz Material. (This Special Summon is treated as an Xyz Summon. Xyz Materials attached to it also become Xyz Materials on the Summoned monster.) The Summoned monster gains this effect.
● If this card battles an opponent's monster, that monster's effects are negated during the Battle Phase only.

Xyz Shift

Spoiler: show

Tribute 1 Xyz Monster; Special Summon from your Extra Deck, 1 Xyz Monster with the same Type, Attribute, and Rank as the Tributed monster, but with a different name, (and if you do,?/then?) attach this card to it as an Xyz Material. Send the Special Summoned monster to the Graveyard during the End Phase. You can only activate 1 "Xyz Shift" per turn.

[Talon87]

None of those cards excite me. The only one I really have any feelings on right now is the Gravekeeper card, Gravekeeper's Saniwa, which seems to be offering Gravekeeper decks some much needed (in their opinion) / highly inappropriate and unbalanced (in every other deck's opinions) muscle in the mid-late to late game. It gives them the option to convert three of their weenies into one massive beatstick with 4000+ ATK AND/OR to shrink all of your guys' ATK and DEF by 2000. (Never mind the destroying set creatures, which is just an added bonus.) But yeah, not a single one of those cards excites me or makes me want to play more YGO.

[Emi]

I do have to say that the "Shinra" archetype at the moment looks bad, both in a gameplay(they seems like a slower more gimmicky version of Lightsworns) and in design. The new Ghosttrick does look really nice though, I'm sure swampy will like her. Why does Konami have such a hard-on for Bujins? If they keep adding in cards like this guy we might see "Exodia Bujins" coming soon cause god-damn if this archetype doesn't thin out the deck. XYZ shift looked cool and then I realized that its honestly pretty terrible. The only pairing I can think of at the moment that could use this is the Battlin' Boxer duo(not a good idea) and a switch between Hieratic Sun Dragon and Thunder End Dragon(which actually isn't bad at all. Constellars...can't really. But Evilswarms can to a point, which is interesting....Utopia Roots looks gimmicky but REALLY fun if you can use it right.

Gravekeeper's Saniwa is the most exciting card though for me. Gravekeeper's however don't tend to float that way though. They tend to use only 1 or 2 monsters and loop around Necorvalley, from what I've heard, and Saniwa doesn't have anything to do with Necrovalley, which is kind of sad. It will give a huge boost in power but I'm not sure whether its worth it or not. I may try the archetype out and see what happens though.

[Fallen Icarus]

...with the release of the new bujin, I don't think the other main bujin is necessary anymore. May still run him at 1. Will see.

Mary is a great card for Ghostricks. Will have to put her in when I eventually make the team.

[Kindrindra]

Yeah, Gravekeeper is one of the archetypes I've been studying for making a deck for a while, and so I saw Saniwa earlier, but... He doesn't really excite me. Gravekeepers isn't really a swarming deck, which would be the kind of deck Saniwa would be ideal for. It's much more about locking down graveyard-related strategies and finding ways to be immune to it's own trickery, instead.

Speaaaaking of graveyard-related strategies, XYZ Shift looks fun for them, since it's essentially a way to quickly and easily send two XYZ monsters to the graveyard.

[Emi]

Actually, Roots isn't bad in decks that use cards like Gravity Bind or Level Limit, or in decks that can easily summon large XYZs like Hieratics or Drulers.

Or MPBs.

[Muyotwo]

I misread it as "XYZ Shit". Which pretty much describes the metagame at present
[/ba-dum-tish]