Block Golem: Supreme King of Legoland

When I first saw this card, I only saw a nice design and moved along. Then again, I was just coming back into the game, so I didn't know what to look for. But then I gave it a second look. And that's when I realized how awesome this card is. Well, awesome if you plan on playing Rock Stun.

This little card alone can bring back any pair of the key monsters (Rock, Guardian, or Sandman) to your field just for tributing itself. Not bad, if I do say so myself. Just imagine, going from 1 lone monster to suddenly having 2 that can control any mix of spells, traps or effects. And not just that, it's also a good Xyz machine if you plan on using a different version of rocks.

Rocks now can pull off some Xyz shenanigans from what I've seen, so it's not a bad thought to give it a try either. Too bad there isn't a rock Tuner to go around, otherwise this would also be a good Synchro machine. But mostly, it's a great card for anybody planning on using Rock Stun or just an solid Rock deck. Good way to bounce back for when your field is a bit empty.

Lightrays

In my attempt to catch up to what's been going on in YGO, I have stumbled upon the Lightrays. Now, these have quickly caught my attention, especially now that Lightsworns are once again strong (two Luminas and Gardnas) and Hieroglyphs are taking the OCG by storm. So it got me thinking, could we see some Lightray usage in this deck? It might be more viable in Twilight decks, but can still be used in LS or Glyphs as well.

So the first two Lightrays that came to mind are Sorcerer and Diabolos.

Cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. Must be Special Summoned (from your hand) when you have 3 or more banished LIGHT monsters, and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. Once per turn: You can shuffle 1 of your banished LIGHT monsters into your Deck to target 1 face-up monster on the field; banish that target. This card cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.

Now, 3 or more banished LIGHT monsters might seem a bit too much for a standard LS deck, but if you use Envoy and Chaos Sorcerers, your chances might increase to use it. Not really a bad choice, since it helps recover some LIGHT monsters back into the deck and remove a monster. And if you're not running Twilight, then it can still be a fun card to try as long as you combine it with the following Lightray:

Cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. Must first be Special Summoned (from your hand) by having 5 or more LIGHT monsters with different names in your Graveyard. Once per turn: You can banish 1 LIGHT monster from your Graveyard to target 1 Set card your opponent controls; reveal that target, and return it to either the top or bottom of the Deck.

Lightray Diabolos fits in quite well in Lightsworn mostly because it's a huge beater you can summon easily, especially since you can meet the requirements with little to no difficulty. And even if you don't get to use it's effect, it's still a good card to have. Now, by being able to banish monsters you can both manipulate your graveyard for Lightray Sorcerer and then recycle them back to the deck.

And as for Hieroglyphs, it's a Dragon type that can summon itself quite easily as well. So it seems like a great fit in either of these two.

You can either use one or both, but I think these two have what it takes to run along with Lightsworns/Glyphs and only improve their arsenal. Who knows? Perhaps these cards end up improving the deck or adding new twists to it. Only time will tell.

Neko Mane King...Wind-Up Weapon?

During your opponent's turn, when this card is sent to the Graveyard by the effect of your opponent's Spell, Trap or Monster Card, your opponent's turn ends.

Right away, my first thought upon discovering this card amongst my pile of extra stuff was that this could be really fun to use against Wind-Ups. I mean, it stops their loop dead in it's tracks even worse than Effect Veiler or Fiendish Chain can. However, there is the element of risk since it has to be discarded. But if you are successful with this card, just imagine how open your opponent might have left himself. Gives you pretty much an additional turn to do your things before the dreaded loop is attempted yet again.

While I doubt many will use this due to it's high risk scenario, it's certainly a fun card to use against Wind-Ups. So who knows?

Xyz Reborn

Target 1 Xyz Monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon it and attach this card to it as an Xyz Material.

I was talking about this card with a friend today and figured it would be a worthy topic for today's post. Let's see...a themed trap card that revives Xyz monsters and turns into an Xyz Material in the process? Not bad at all.

So of course, this card opens up some crazy shenanigans right off the bat, both offensively and defensively. On the defensive side, you can use it to block an attack with Utopia and save yourself. Bring back Wind-Up Zenmaines and not only keep a monster, but blow something up for a defensive and offensive play at once. Bring back Adreus or Tiras for a surprise offense. Perhaps you want to bring back Zenmaity to further the loop.

So which ever way you put it, Xyz Reborn can be a game changer. However, having a card limited only to Xyz monsters is a bit risky. Then again, if your deck is capable of bringing many of these guys out, one or two copies won't hurt.

Xyz Reborn, use it wisely. I may just change the tide.

Dark Ascension: The Zombie Invasion

With Dark Ascension to be released soon, and with more and more card released, I have noticed that one group of cards is gaining a ton of incredible support. And that group is none other than Zombies, lords of the undead. The zombies here are so good, even I'm considering building a deck around them.

But for now, I'm just gonna take a look at a few of the cards that are definitely going to be a must-have for any Zombie deck.

First off, we have Gravecrawler:

Simple, yet effective. Gravecrawler is ideal for any Zombie deck just on the basis of constant revival. Controlling one zombie isn't hard enough either, so this makes for a good card to keep returning. And even though it can't be a chump blocker, it's good at forcing your opponents to use theirs. Also good fodder for cards that need to sacrifice creatures. Overall excellent card.

What's next?

 Quite nice. Exile any zombies you might not need back to get a new zombie token and continue to buff your army. A good card to maintain field presence and make your zombies quite strong. Maybe not ideal for a pure zombie deck, but the attack boost for all of them is certainly something nice, so it's included in this list.

And then there's an amazing sorcery for them as well. Apocalypse brings them all out, which has got to be quite intimidating late game, especially after that army of the dead comes back for more. And to top it all off, it destroys all humans, but that varies on your opponent. However, the ability to revive a mass swarm of zombies for 6 mana seems pretty good to me.

And then we have the final card, Diregraf Captain.

Diregraf Captain 1UB

Creature – Zombie

Deathtouch

Other Zombie creatures you control get +1/+1.

Whenever another Zombie you control dies, target opponent loses 1 life.

2/2

Again, giving your zombies a boost is always a good thing. Having a nice 3 mana cost is also a plus, since it can come out pretty early. Not only that, but it inflicts damage after a zombie dies, so it makes good use of your chump blockers by finding more ways to deal damage.

So that's it for zombies at the moment, more to come soon.

Dark Ascension: New Mythics

With more and more cards being revealed for the new set, I stumbled upon a few of the mythics to be included in this set. Let's take a quick look at them:

First up, we have a new card for Spirit decks. Seems a bit expensive for a creature, but then again, you can't mess with flying, double strike, and lifelink all in the same time. Not just that, Reaver fuels a good draw engine whenever you gain life, whether it's by one of it's attacks or by any other card. So perhaps we can see a strategy that involves increasing life and card drawing in some way.

Just like every dragon card, it has a high cost and it flies. However, this one is quite interesting, since it can provide a nice buff for your creatures for that turn. And it can be done as many times as you can provide mana for, so it's quite good. However, don't see it in any Innistrad themed decks. Perhaps it's too early to tell.

A possible hybrid between human and vampire decks? Don't know, but it seems that this card will surely benefit from a deck of that kind. The sacrificing a creature in order to be indestructible is a very good effect, as you can sacrifice vampire tokens, for example. But perhaps with the new cards that produce human tokens, this card can become quite deadly indeed.

And last but not least, we got ourselves a Planeswalker!

Producing vampire tokens to protect itself, nice! Giving your creatures a nice attack boost, also nice! Select up to 3 creatures or planeswalkers, destroy them and then take control of them afterwards? Now, that's completely insane! No doubt, Sorin packs a punch in this one. Taking creatures is really good, but the ability to also take planeswalkers puts this into a whole new category. Surely, Sorin will be a valuable asset to any deck that can use him.

Well, those are all the mythics we know of for the moment. More stuff to come as it unfolds.

Wind-Up Shark

When a “Wind-Up” monster is Normal or Special Summoned to your side of the field: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. Once per turn: You can activate 1 of these effects.
● Increase this card’s Level by 1, until the End Phase.  

● Reduce this card’s Level by 1, until the End Phase.

Just because I haven't found a place to play YGO yet, doesn't mean I'm not gonna keep up to date on what's going on. There's still Dueling Network for me. Anyways, let's take a look at this new exclusive from ORCS, shall we?

Shark is an awesome addition to any Wind-Up deck, especially since it allows for crazy Xyz shenanigans when you combine it with Wind-Up Soldier or Wind-Up Dog. And if you just feel like going into Rank 4, then go for it. This little thing can go into 3 different ranks all on it's own, which is pretty impressive.

But for one, I'm glad it's restricted to Wind-Ups. The synchro shenanigans this thing would also unleash are going to be insane. However, that hasn't stopped people from testing out new plays, right?

Wind-Up Shark is not only a crazy Xyz enabler, but a great way to set off Wind-Up Factory every turn. In short, this card is good, the art is great, and it's just overall full of awesome. I see this thing making an impact someday.

Tour Bus From The Underworld

First off, happy christmas to everyone out there. Now then, on to business. Tour Bus' effect has just been revealed, so here's a quick review...

When this card is sent to the Graveyard: Target 1 monster in either player’s Graveyard, except "Tour Bus From the Underworld"; shuffle that target into the Deck.

Right off the bat, it shows that it's meant to be used with Tour Guide. Not only that, but from what it's effect reads, it's assumed that one can get it's effect even when detached (similar to Dandylion needing to only reach the graveyard from anywhere). So since it's a searchable recycling tool, Tour Guide gets an even bigger buff. Not just because it can search for the Bus, but Bus then brings back any used card once it's sent to the graveyard.

Bring back to the deck any Dandylion, Tengu, perhaps a Gadget, or any useful monster you want back in the deck. Not only that, use that to bring back a used Tour Guide or Sangan for even more shenanigans.

But it also has it's offensive uses, which is what makes it really interesting. It returns a card in either player's grave, so you can take advantage of this to manipulate their graveyard to your advantage as well. Remove a Treeborn Frog, Necro Gardna, lower the Lightsworn count, perhaps remove that one key monster needed to summon BLS. Whatever you need gone, it solves quickly.

That's what makes this card so interesting, it's so versatile. You can either use it to reinforce your deck with a recycled monster, or turn the tables on your opponent by putting back in their deck a monster they need in the graveyard.

I fear what kind of mayhem this card will bring. Only time will tell...

Gokai Change! Mask HERO!

With some of the new promo cards announced over in Japan, it was curious to see some new HERO support, but even better seeing as how they were Masked HERO monsters. Now, I'm a very big fan of Masked HERO monsters, especially since they remind me a lot of the Super Sentai (great stuff).

But all Sentai stuff aside, these two new heroes pack quite a punch and will take the deck to an even bigger level.

First up, we have Masked HERO Acid:

Must be Special Summoned with "Mask Change", and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. When this card is Special Summoned: Destroy all Spell/Trap Cards your opponent controls, and all face-up monsters your opponent currently controls lose 300ATK.

Acid packs quite a punch! Combine this with Absolute Zero and you have a complete field clearing combo. Zero takes care of the monsters and then Mask Change into Acid and turn it into a Harpie's Feather Duster with legs! And if you don't do it with Zero, then there's still the ATK reducing effect that can come quite in handy. Back row clearing is definitely it's best attribute, as is it's Water attribute.

All in all, Acid is a great card to have in any HERO deck. And it also combines well with the next card...Masked Hero Daian.

Must be Special Summoned with "Mask Change", and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. When this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower "HERO" monster from yourDeck.

Daian is the recruiter of the deck. Imagine using this to search for Voltic, who in turn can search for any banished HERO for extra damage. Perhaps you want to bring Stratos for an even bigger plus. Bring another HERO from the deck and then use Mask Change on that one for yet another beater. This card opens so many plays that it's not even funny. Indeed yet another great addition to the Extra Deck for HERO decks.

So whether it's Acid or Daian, these new Masked HERO cards are definitely worth running. Time will only tell if we get Wind, Light and Dark attributes as well. But for now, these will do more than well. I can't wait to use these guys and test them out!

Slifer the Sky Dragon

At long last! My favorite amongst the God Cards has been announced for it's release! And it doesn't disappoint, because it's one heck of a card! I will be getting this one for sure, and playing it too!

You must Tribute 3 monsters to Normal Summon this card (you cannot Set this card). The Normal Summon of this card cannot be negated. When this card is Normal Summoned, cards and effects cannot be activated. If this card is Special Summoned: Send it to the Graveyard during the End Phase. This card gains 1000 ATK and DEF for each card in your hand. When your opponent Normal or Special Summons a monster(s) in face-up Attack Position: That monster loses 2000 ATK, and if its ATK becomes 0 by this card's effect, destroy that monster.

Yes! It kept the attack reducing effect and made it even more awesome! This card gets rid of so many things, it's not even funny. It's the ultimate boss for any deck that can summon it. And speaking of decks that can summon it, Gadgets are the most ideal.

Gadgets help Slifer keep it's attack at a decent amount, while also helping you keep hand advantage. So it's a win-win scenario. This is a must-get for sure. I can't wait to finally use it. I'm making a "Slifer's Gadgets" deck now. Time to make a build.

Tinplate Archduke

Earth/Machine/Xyz/Rank 4 

3 Level 4 monsters  

During either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; change the battle positions of all monsters your opponent controls. (Flip Effects are not activated at this time.)

An interesting card from the latest Duel Terminal series, Tinplate Archduke is a monster with plenty of shenanigans in it's arsenal. While 3 monsters seems a bit costly, it's effect makes up for the cost. Being able to switch your opponent's monsters into a different position is no laughing matter. And having flip effects not activate is pretty good too, so it can laugh at cards like Ryko, Morphing Jar, GK Spy, or Penguin Soldier to name a few.

It's effect seems mostly defensive, since changing positions can save you from an all out attack, but it can also be quite offensive. Just like Karakuri's own Burei, this can turn any opponent's defensive play and turn it into an offensive strike. I can see this card being a bit fun to play in Karakuri for that reason, since they already take advantage of the whole switch position deal.

Costly summon but fun effect, Tinplate Archduke is a fun card to keep an eye out on.

Kuribolt

During your Main Phase: You can target 1 Xyz Monster with Xyz Materials; detach 1 Xyz Material from it, and Special Summon 1 "Kuribolt" from your Deck. This card cannot be used as a Synchro Material Monster.

Order of Chaos brings us yet another interesting card, Kuribolt. Being able to detach an Xyz material can be quite effective, considering there are already a few monsters this card alone can weaken. Let's see:

Utopia blocks less attacks

Force Dolkka to waste a material on it, since it's going to be detached anyways

Turn Laggia into a vanilla, whether it's by Kuribolt or forced negation

Leviathan gets one less buff

Leviair gets one search less

Well, you get the drift. As Xyz monsters are slowly gaining more use, this little guy is going to be a good card to keep at bay. That way, you can disarm an Xyz monster and use their own materials against them.

Not just that, but also summoning another copy of itself as a result of the effect is pretty good. Effective for making Rank 1 monsters. Make their loss your gain, that's Kuribolt's way!

Delver of Secrets

Back again with another MTG post. Went to one of the card stores a few hours back, hoping to look for copies of Doomed Traveler, but instead found this interesting common just waiting to be used.

First thing that came to mind was to use it in my Blue Illusion deck. While this isn't an illusion, it's an excellent 1 mana drop that turns into a good flyer as early as turn 2. Now, that's not something to take lightly. Another good thing I realized is that it remains a human, even after transforming. So I can experiment with the Innistrad equipments for humans, especially since Lord of the Unreal is also a human.

Now, while Delver of Secrets may be tricky in it's transformation, there are ways to make it so that you know it will surely transform. For example, a card like Ponder will have you look at your deck and make sure there's either an instant or sorcery so it transforms. Another way of helping out is by making sure your creature count is a bit lower than other spells. But the best way is using cards like Ponder or other abilities like Scry, for example.

Perhaps there's a way to abuse this and Invisible Stalker for a very aggro Blue Human deck. That would be pretty fun, but for now I'm just going to use this with my illusions.

Doomed Traveler

It's Friday, so it means it's time for another MTG post! This week I'm going to discuss a common card from Innistrad that's been grabbing my attention. It's a card I seem to have overlooked at first, but then realized I had to get more. I'm talking about none other than Doomed Traveler.

Doomed Traveler is quite simple. For one white mana, it gives a 1/1 Human that produces a 1/1 white spirit with flying when it dies. This means, it gets the token if it chum blocks or even if it's sacrificed. This opens up a whole lot of plays.

First off, it allows for Human decks to use cards with Morbid, since it feeds the conditions quite well and replaces itself instantly. It also fuels Unruly Mob and Thraben Sentry if you use a deck with them. Best part of it is, that the spirit tokens covers one weakness this deck exhibits, which is the lack of creatures with flying or reach. Having a chum blocker that can fly is quite significant.

So if you have a Human deck out there, you might want to give this guy a try. It might be worth your while.

Royal Prison

While this card is face-up on the field, neither player can Special Summon monsters from the Graveyard.

Well, isn't this an interesting card? Seems Order of Chaos is going to bring us a watered-down version of Royal Oppression. However, it's not a card we can dismiss. There's potential here, even if it's just as a card you have on your side deck.

This card is great to side against decks like Dark World, especially since their special summoning comes from the graveyard. You can use this to bring down Frognarchs, Lightsworns (to a certain degree), X-Sabers, Karakuri, Blackwings, and other decks that use grave revival for big plays.

It's going to be a good surprise element to any grave reliant deck, so don't underestimate it when it comes out. Certainly it's a card that can turn the tide of the game if played right. Who knows, perhaps it can be good in the main deck. Only time will tell.

Let's hope this card doesn't increase in rarity once it comes out, because it's going to be one of those cards with enough force your opponent to play differently. Good card.

Wind-Up Rabbit

One of the newest exclusives in PHSW, Rabbit brings a big boost to Wind-Ups. While the main focus may be on the other rabbit, this one is still one to look out for. It's effect reads:

During either player’s turn: You can target 1 "Wind-Up" monster you control; banish it until your next Standby Phase. This effect can be used only once while this card is face-up on the field.

Upon initial observation, we see it's a quick effect. This becomes really good due to the fact that Rabbit can essentially rewind your monsters at any given time. This can be used both defensively as well as offensively.

You can save a Wind-Up you control from being destroyed from any source by just using Rabbit's effect. Likewise, you can wait until your opponent's end phase to activate it and bring back an essential Wind-Up in your turn for a big play.

Not just that, but 1400ATK saves it from Bottomless. That alone is pretty good. That, and the fact that it can save stronger Wind-Ups from the same card. It can also stand it's own ground, or even banish itself if needed and then bring it back and reuse it's effect on other targets.

No matter how you look at it, Rabbit is a real fun card that brings a surprise factor to any Wind-Up deck. Be sure to look out for it.

Gishki Beast

When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 4 or lower "Gishki" monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon it in face-up Defense Position.

When this card is Normal Summoned: You can target 1 Level 4 or lower "Gishki" monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon it in face-up Defense Position.

Just realized this piece of awesome was coming out in Photon Shockwave as one of the imports. All I can say is, I'm glad I can have my Gishki deck already when HA05 comes out instead of having to wait. Beast is that one card that makes the deck just virtually awesome.

I would go to the sneak just to get Beast and nothing more...

Evolzar Dolkka

2 Level 4 Dinosaur-Type monsters
When an Effect Monster's effect activates: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; negate the activation and destroy it.

Well then, as if we didn't need another reason to make Rescue Rabbit broke, enter Dolkka. Granted, it's got an amazing effect. Being able to stop monster effects is no laughing matter, especially since there's no "once per turn" clause on the effect. Combined with Laggia, you got yourself one heck of a controlled field. Being able to compensate for Laggia's only weakness has turned this into a very dangerous card, so make sure to eliminate it with a counter trap if you can, especially since Laggia can't respond to counters.

On a more fun note, Jurracs are going to be a much better deck with Dolkka and Laggia available. Well, that is, if they can be afforded (I assume they will cost a lot). Jurracs perhaps might be able to be a stronger deck in the competitive scene (perhaps at a local level, at least) and are going to be a more welcome alternative than decks focused on Rabbit. However, the hefty price will still affect it.

Either way, Evolzar Dolkka has turned into quite the force and has already made an impact before release. Only time will tell if it will live up to the hype or just show up every now and then. I'm just glad it's restricted to only dinosaurs, otherwise this would be a very big reason to just rage.

Rakish Heir

With chances of me going to Friday Night Magic after years of hiatus, and the likely chance of me buying the Vampire Intro Pack today as well, I'm going to talk about one of my favorite vampires from Innistrad. Out of all the vampires in this set, Rakish Heir stood out the most.

It's a continuous buff for all vampires, even itself. So the more vampires you strike your opponent with, the bigger they get as long as you control Rakish Heir. If you have multiple copies in play, it even gets a lot more fun. Combined with Bloodcrazed Neonate and Stormkirk Noble, their attack buffs will be even more insane.

Thanks to this card alone, a deck with red vampires and black removal seems to be the way to go for me.  The others may buff themselves, but this one is what sold me on the idea.

D-Boyz

Fiend/Level 1/DARK
100/1000
FLIP: You can Special Summon any number of "D-Boyz" from your Deck in face-up Attack Position, then you take 1000 damage for each monster Special Summoned by this effect.

I cannot even begin to describe what's wrong with this card. This has got to be the most stereotypical card I have seen by far, but I digress. This card isn't too impressive, but it makes up for it by either setting up a Rank 1 Xyz summon or by just bringing out 2 chum blockers.

Other than that, this is one card I want to have on my binder due to the hilarious art. The thought of rapping fiends from the hood will put a smile on my face any day. But as for a deck, they might as well make my opponent laugh too.

If you're going for a deck dedicated to Rank 1 monsters, you might want to check it out. Otherwise, it's just another card to pass up on.