March 2012 Banlist

Edit: List is 200% legit, so this time there won't be any revisions.

Well, it looks like the original list I posted and then deleted turned out to be the real list after all. However, I'm still skeptical about it, due to all the shenanigans it's caused in the last few days (created a bit of disbelief due to post/delete/post process). So I'm just going to post the list and then save my analysis for later, when I make sure the list is 200% legit. But from the looks of it, it's already being confirmed as the real one due to other V-Jump scans being put alongside it.

So here we go...again!

"Seems Legit"

Banned:
Trishula
Glow Up Bulb
Spore
Trap Dustshoot

Limited:
The Agent of Mystery Earth
TG Striker

Semi-Limited:
Marshmallon
Lightlord Summoner Lumina
Emergency Teleport
Shien's Smoke Signal
Level Limit Area B
Torrential Tribute
Ultimate Offering
Reborn Tengu

Unlimited:
Call of the Haunted

Analysis to come later, once all this mess is sorted out.

Battle Pack: Epic Dawn

So Konami finally made a set that's ideal for sealed play! News article here. What I'm loving is that it's only $1.99 for a 5-card pack (contains one rare, 3 commons, and a foil card). The set contains 220 cards in total, so it seems like a fun and cheap way to get new stuff and have fun at the same time.

But what really caught my attention are some of the cards revealed for this set:

- Gem Knight Pearl
- Doomcalibur Knight
- Forbidden Lance
- Gorz, Emissary of Darkness
- Adreus, Keeper of Armageddon
- Tour Guide of the Underworld

That's right! Tour Guide gets a reprint. Pretty good, if I say so myself. But there's still more to be revealed from this set. Since it comes out in May, there's still plenty of time to see what more goods it will bring.

But for now, I'm loving that I can finally try out sealed play in YGO at last. And as a bonus, I can finally buy a cheap booster and not feel bad about it.

Dark Ascension: New Mechanics

With the Dark Ascension pre-release event coming at the end of the month, we are finally getting some spoilers for the new set. And with those spoilers also comes information from new mechanics. While the old mechanics from Innistrad (Transform, Morbid, Flashback, Curse) are returning, we are also getting two new mechanics: Undying and Fateful Hour.

So let's get to these mechanics.

Fateful Hour is an ability that will activate while your life is at 5 or less. Not only that, but it will stay active as long as those requirements are met. But keep in mind that if you gain life for some reason, and it goes to 6 or above, Fateful Hour abilities will vanish. So it's interesting to see how this new ability will affect comebacks in games once this set is out.

And the next ability is Undying:

Creatures with the undying ability will "come back to life" as long as that creature has no +1/+1 counters on it. And when it does revive, give it a +1/+1 counter. Perhaps we will see some counter shenanigans to keep abusing this mechanic. Either way, I'm sure that creatures with Undying will be quite interesting. These creatures will be quite fun to use against cards with Infect, especially since they will keep losing that counter from undying.

More from Dark Ascension to come. That's all for now.

MTG Mobile App

I'm finally back with a Magic update. Been a while since I played, but today I finally managed to find a new store where I had a few games, so being back in action got me to check up on what I have missed. And then I find this little gem...

That's right! There's going to be an official MTG app soon. And not just that, but it looks pretty neat. It's got the basics such as life meter, number of players, and deck building utilities. However, this one also has the ability to search for nearby events, find stores, and lets you read the articles from the MTG site as well. 

Those are all pretty good features to have on an app. So it makes it feel pretty much complete.

I'm most looking forward to having the online gatherer be at my fingertips. So that way, I don't have to be on my computer whenever I think up of an idea for a deck or something. Not just that, but being able to test out the decks I build on this app is something I seriously need, especially since I can test my opening hands. That way, I can tell if I gotta go back to the drawing board.

I'm just glad this app is coming out at the same time I find a place where to keep playing MTG.

Official Xyz Rulings

Just got the official rulings regarding Xyz Materials and the monsters. Here it is:

“Xyz Materials

Monsters that are used to Xyz Summon are called ‘Xyx Materials’, and are placed underneath the Xyz Monster, to show that they are attached to it. Monsters that have become Xyz Materials are not treated as cards on the field. When an Xyz Monster leaves the field, all of the Xyz Materials attached to it are sent to the Graveyard. If an Xyz Monster is flipped face-down, or becomes controlled by the opponent, the Xyz Materials are not sent to the Graveyard. They remain attached to the Xyz Monster.

Leaves The Field
Some monsters have effects that activate when they ‘leave the field’. For example, these effects activate when the monster is sent to the Graveyard, or is banished, or is returned to the hand or Extra Deck. When a monster on the field is shuffled into the Main Deck, or becomes an Xyz Material, it is no longer a card on the field, however its effects that activate when it ‘leaves the field’ will not activate.”

At last, sweet justice! Official rulings can finally clear out all the mess regarding these cards. Not just that, but now Tour Guide and Sangan became just "meh" due to not being able to search (as it was supposed to be all along). With this, we can at least have Xyz monsters be as balanced as they should have been.

Now if only we could solve the problem with priority...

September 2011 Format List

Forbidden Cards 「禁止カード」:

Fishborg Blaster「フィッシュボーグ－ガンナー」
Mind Master「メンタルマスター」
Giant Trunade「ハリケーン」
Royal Oppression「王宮の弾圧」

Restriction Cards 「制限カード」:

Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning「カオス・ソルジャー －開闢の使者－」
Debris Dragon「デブリ・ドラゴン」
Lonefire Blossom「ローンファイア・ブロッサム」
Legendary Six Samurai - Shi En「真六武衆－シエン」
Tech Genus Hyper Librarian「ＴＧ　ハイパー・ライブラリアン」
Formula Synchron 「フォーミュラ・シンクロン」
Heavy Storm 「大嵐」
Primal Seed「原初の種」
Shien's Smoke Signal「紫炎の狼煙」
Pot of Avarice「貪欲な壺」

Semi-Restriction Cards 「準制限カード」:

Summoner Monk「召喚僧サモンプリースト」
Tragoedia「トラゴエディア」
Necro Gardna「ネクロ・ガードナー」
Dewloren, Tiger King of the Ice Barrier「氷結界の虎王ドゥローレン」
Destiny Draw「デステニー・ドロー」
Swords of Revealing Light「光の護封剣」
Mind Crush「マインドクラッシュ」
Call of the Haunted「リビングデッドの呼び声」

No longer restricted 「準制限」:

Judgment Dragon「裁きの龍」
Spirit Reaper「魂を削る死霊」
Overload Fusion「オーバーロード・フュージョン」
Mystical Space Typhoon「サイクロン」
Megamorph「巨大化」
Gravity Bind「グラヴィティ・バインド－超重力の網－」
Icarus Attack「ゴッドバードアタック」

First off, holy crap! I'm not too happy with this list. Yes, Plants got slowed down a bit. Yes, some problematic synchros got put in their place, and yes...Samurai got shot in the leg. However, there are some things in this list I find questionable.

Heavy Storm back just means once again an OTK Format is upon us. MST at 3 just seems to punish a player's defenses more. Come to think of it, this format seems like it wants to punish defensive players who aren't going all out for an OTK. Control and Anti-Meta decks are going to have a harder time surviving, especially with Oppression banned.

That's what made me rage, Oppression banned. It wasn't broken at all, especially since it was a good way to counter massive special summoning. However, since all decks were splashing it and using it to their advantage after their swarm, I can assume this was the reasoning behind it. Still, it upsets me that it got the banhammer, especially with Storm coming back.

Storm and MST at 3 just makes my Gravekeeper deck feel useless since they won't have as much control anymore.

Icarus at 3 is a surprise, and might cause Blackwings to rise once again (in the TCG, since they already are awesome in the OCG).

BLS at 1 and JD at 3, combined with Necro Gardna's semi status just gave Twilight decks the green light once again. So I guess it will be a format full of "Edward Decks" going crazy all over the place.

Fishborg Blaster makes me sad, especially since it was a key card in my Fish deck. Frog Monarchs also take a hit with this, but still have other ways to bring out their lone Formula Synchron. As for my Fish deck, it's mourning the loss of a good comrade. Good night, sweet prince...

Overall, I'm not too happy with the list. I think it's promoting more OTK formats and will banish diversity once again. More than that, control players will be punished more since backrow is in greater danger and Oppression is gone.

Decks with little to no backrow will be dominant this format, but only time will tell if this will be true.

So let the madness begin! I think it's time for me to get in touch with Magic: The Gathering once again...I am going to a game that still has skill and promotes thought. And no, I'm not quitting YGO...just probably gonna play both again.

TCG Rulings for Xyz Monsters

So Kevin Tewart posts on the judge page that Xyz material monsters are indeed considered on the field.

This takes the cake. I mean, really? This turns the game into a completely different one now. The rulings are going to be a whole mess.

Not just that, if Xyz materials are considered to be on the field, would Dimensional Fissure/Macro Cosmos/Banisher of the Radiance prevent said materials from being used? Because if we go by that logic, the materials are still on the field. Would that render all Xyz monsters useless?

Can you target Xyz materials with cards like Raigeki Break or Icarus Attack, since they are considered to still be on the field?

Can Caius remove a material now?

Not just that, but Reborn Tengu and Sangan just went to a whole new category of monster. Tengu now can search when detached and Sangan gets to search when detached. Not happy about this.

And what about Plaguespreader Zombie or Bolt Hedgehog? Will the little guys be removed if brought back by their own effects and then used as Xyz materials?

I rarely complain about this game, since I tend to enjoy it as much as I can. But in my 8 years in Yugioh, I have never seen something as outrageous as this!

While most people may be happy about the positives these rulings might give for Sangan and Tengu, it raises way too many questions and will probably mess the game up due to conflicting mechanics and rulings in other scenarios.

So the bad outweighs the good.

So many questions, so little answers...

Let chaos begin!

Tumblr

Well, as a little experiment I decided to also post another version of my blog on Tumblr. A fellow blogger asked us on the pojo forums about using Tumblr as a medium and while I'm unsure about the results it might bring as compared to sites like blogger, I'm happy to announce I will be experimenting with Tumblr.

What does this mean for the regular blog? No change at all. All content from the original blog will be found on the Tumblr page and vice versa.

Blogger audience, my Tumblr is found at Gizerdeckbox.tumblr.com but I won't be going anywhere. This is still the main site.

Let's see how this little experiment works out and hopefully, it will bring good results.

Facebook Page

Hey readers! Got a new facebook page for the blog, so feel free to check it out and follow me on the site. Also, the site will have some exclusive content that probably didn't make it on the blog, like random videos, dueling shenanigans, and photos.

Here's the link just in case:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Gizers-Deckbox/145092238904594

Be back soon with more posts.

Duality Reprint!

First news of my morning and it's starting to look great. It seems Konami decided to put a Super Rare version of it in the following 2011 Collector Tins. Here's the source, just in case.

At last, we don't have to pay a ridiculous sum of cash for a piece of cardboard when we can just get it cheaper. This is certainly a dream come true to many players out there, while a nightmare to others (don't really care on that one, I'm a budget player). It's a great way to make sure everyone gets to have equal shots at making their deck, so there' nothing negative about this little bit of news.

At last, I can go back and playing my Anti-Meta decks!

Word Changes in the TCG

Found this article on the Konami site that indicates a wording change for some aspects of the game.

Source: http://www.konami.com/yugioh/articles/?p=2915

1. "Remove from play" will now be known as "Banish."

2. "Removed from the field" will change to "leaves the field."

3. "During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent" now becomes "piercing battle damage."

4. "Selected as an attack target" will now be known as "targeted for an attack."

5. Hero monsters will now be referred to as HERO monsters.

Now then, with all these new changes...there are good and bad points.

1. I have no problem with banish, but remove from play seemed simpler to newer players. So changing it was a bit unexpected.

2. Leaving the field is something I have no problem with, since it clears up a few misunderstandings with some plays. I'm all for it.

3. Piercing damage at last! Finally!

4. Again, no problem with this. Helps resolve targeting issues and what not.

5. They should have done this from the start...

All in all, there are mixed reactions to the word changes. But for now, I can hope this wording change can truly help resolve key issues in rulings.

Gold Series 4

So the first gold rares have been revealed. This is shaping up to be a pretty good set already!

Gold Rares so far:
-Doomcaliber Knight
-Obelisk the Tormenter (great for Europe)
-Gravekeeper's Spy
-Royal Oppression
-Tytannial
-Five Headed Dragon

I'm just wondering what the commons are going to be as well, considering that they always give support to a few archetypes in their lot of commons.

Turbo Pack 5

This would normally be the space where the weekly tournament report is done, but after weeks of being inactive, I sucked at today's tourney. Looks like my anti-meta gadgets just weren't doing it today...not at my A-Game. But enough about that, on to the important stuff...

Turbo Pack 5

Ultimate Rare:
Colossal Fighter

Ultra Rare:
Dark Hole

Super Rare:
Gladiator Beast Laquari
Snowman Eater
Six Samurai United
Spell-Shattering Arrow

Rare:
Puppet Plant
Wulf, Lightsworn Beast
Cyber Eltanin
Torrential Tribute
Escape from the Dark Dimension
Zoma the Spirit

Common:
Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands
Abyssal Kingshark
Spirit of the Six Samurai
Black Salvo
Darkness Neosphere
Miracle Fusion
Shield Crush
Seven Tools of the Bandit
Royal Command

After seeing this list, I can definitely say I'm looking forward to tourneys now. The commons and rares have really good cards mixed between them, as well as some really good reprints. 7-Tools, Miracle Fusion, Black Salvo, Wulf, Abyssal Kingshark, Six Samurai United, Dark Hole, Puppet Plant, Torrential Tribute, and Colossal Fighter are all cards people will keep an eye out for. However, it's hard to pick a favorite here, since this pack feels like a breath of fresh air when compared to TU04.

Good card selection, good reprints, good balance. Excellent pack.

New Ruling Change

After checking a ver various sources, it seems there will be indeed be a ruling change effective March 19th concerning ignition effects. While it has already been announced for the OCG, it is currently unknown if this issue will be addressed in the TCG at the same time or at a later date.

Notice as to a change in the way Ignition Monsters work
Thank you Yu-Gi-Oh! Patrons for playing the game.

For those who play the Yu-Gi-Oh! Official Card Game, we always wish to improve the game so that our customers can enjoy an exciting Duel at any time. Though we commonly change the rules of each card we make for the concerns of Game Balannce, at this time, we would like to announce we are changing the way monsters' Ignition Effects work.

Date of the Ruling Change being applied
Saturday, March 19, 2011

This ruling goes into effect on Saturday, March 19th, 2011, which is the same date as the release of our Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal Official Card Game "Starter Deck".

- The Point of the Rule's Change:
Before:
Monsters with Ignition Effects could activate their effects at the same time they were Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned.

After:
Monsters with Ignition Effects cannot activate their effects at the same time they were Normal Summoned, Flip Summoned, or Special Summoned.

A monster's Ignition Effect basically becomes an effect that can be activated during the Main Phase so long as there is nothing else going on at the same time. So now, if another effect or action is resolving, you cannot activate an Ignition Effect until the timing of that specific effect has ended.

You can continue to use the old ruling of using Ignition Effects when you Normal, Flip, or Special Summon until March 18th, 2011 ends. Afterward, it is forbidden to do so from March 19th, 2011 onwards.

This will indeed have an impact on the game as we know it, since some of the big power cards are indeed ignition effect monsters.

Here is a brief list of notable monsters affected by this ruling...

Card Trooper
Dark Armed Dragon
Dark Grepher
Demise, King of Armageddon
Dimensional Alchemist
Dragunity Knight - Gae Dearg
Master Hyperion
Mind Master
Superancient Deepsea King Coelacanth
Tragoedia
Worm King
Worm Queen
Worm Zero
Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon
Judgment Dragon
Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner
Chaos Sorcerer
Lonefire Blossom
XX-Saber Faultroll
XX-Saber Gottoms
Scrap Golem
Scrap Dragon
Scrap Twin Dragon
Ally of Justice Decisive Armor
Ancient Fairy Dragon
Armory Arm
Dark End Dragon
Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier
Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier
Junk Archer
Karakuri Shogun mdl 00 Burei
Blackwing - Gale the Whirlwind
Blackwing - Sirocco the Dawn
Infernity Mirage
Hundred-Eyes Dragon
Infernity Doom Dragon
Hand of the Six Samurai
Legendary Six Samurai - Mizuho
Gravekeeper's Descendant
Elemental Hero Prisma
Test Tiger

And those who aren't...

Black Rose Dragon
Green, Red, and Yellow Gadgets
Blackwing - Blizzard the Far North
Stardust Dragon
Monarchs

Xyz Monsters and Xyz Summoning

As stated before, the Xyz Monsters reside in the extra deck, much like Synchros and Fusions. However, these new monsters have a unique new mechanism as well.

Xyz Monsters have Ranks instead of levels, and the rank is stated in the left side of the card. Their rank normally (for now) states the levels the monsters must be in order to summon. In order to perform an Xyz Summon, you must have 2 monsters of equal level (which indicates their rank) and place them together in the same monster zone below the newly summoned Xyz Monster.

Those monsters are now Xyz Material Monsters and used accordingly with the new monster's abilities. When a material must be removed, it is sent to the graveyard.

Here's a look at another Xyz Monster

Since it's Rank 3 it lets us know it needs 2 Level 3 monsters for it's summoning condition.

There are still some unknown details concerning these new monsters, along with unknown ruling issues that will be notified once released.

But for now, this is all we know of these new monsters.

New Banlist...

Forbidden:

Goyo Guardian

Cold Wave

Mass Driver

Limited:

Honest

Dandylion

Blackwing - Kalut the Moon Shadow

Book of Moon

Gateway of the Six

Semi-Limited

Card Trooper

Archlord Kristya

Spirit Reaper

Debris Dragon

Royal Tribute

Overload Fusion

Megamorph

Solemn Warning

Icarus Attack

Unlimited:

Chaos Sorcerer

Demise, King of Armageddon

Snipe Hunter

Dewloren, Tiger King of the Ice Barrier

Gold Sarcophagus

Skill Drain

Ultimate Offering

Now that the new list is up, we can begin to prepare for the format ahead...

Here's a few things I observed.

1. Goyo Guardian was quite unexpected, since it wasn't doing much of an impact itself. But could this ban be a preventive one with the new Exceed Monsters coming out? If so, they just killed my favorite synchro!

2. Gravekeepers got affected by the limit to Book and semi limit to Tribute and Warning, so it's time to see how they can keep up.

3. Book of Moon at 1 really hurts a whole ton of decks. It will be the biggest impact of the entire list by far.

4. Gateway to 1 was expected, but Kalut and Honest to 1 really took me by surprise.

5. Dandylion went back to it's rightful place.

This upcoming format will surely be an interesting one, as we enter the new Exceed era during the summer...

New Exceed Monsters

It seems we can now have our first look at Exceed Monsters. The card will be black, with stars on the left side of the card instead of the right. But instead of levels, these monsters will now have ranks. Also, they will have a place in the Extra Deck.

Here's a look at the first one...

More info soon...Perhaps tomorrow once I get my marketing exam over with.

STOR Special Edition

So it's going to feature both Light and Darkness Dragon along with Hand of the Six Samurai. Quite interesting.

It's good to see a reprint of LADD any day to make it a little cheaper, but the Hand reprint seems like it was just too obvious, given the new Samurai support.

Either way, it will be nice to have reprints of either card.

Vortex the Whirlwind

So the Sneak Peek Promo for Storm of Ragnarok has been revealed. And I gotta say, it's very interesting.

Ya vi la promo para el proximo set Storm of Ragnarok y tengo que decir, es muy interesante.

Vortex the Whirlwind

Winged-Beast/Wind/Synchro/6

1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Winged Beast-Type monsters

When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Winged Beast-Type monsterfrom your Deck.

Vortex makes for an ideal card to use in both Blackwings and Dragunity decks alike. Blackwings now have an extra synchro they can access via Blizzard + Kalut or Shura + Vayu, while Dragunities have Legionnaire + Phalanx. It also has compatibility with Icarus Attack, which is something both Dragunities and Blackwings alike can exploit under a tight situation.

Vortex es una carta ideal para uso en Blackwings y Dragunity por igual. Blackwings pueden sacarlo por medio de Blizzard con Kalut o por Shura y Vayu, mientras los Dragunity tienen Legionnaire con Phalanx. Tambien es compatible con Icarus Attack, algo que los Blackwing y Dragunity usan a menudo.

Whether you like it or not, Vortex will be a card these 2 decks will be likely to use from now on due to the great synergy it holds. Blackwings will ram it into something (like Monarchs) and then search and attack with Shura, while Dragunities can search Tribus and dump their essential tuners like Phalanx.

Aunque a uno le guste o no, Vortez sera una carta usada por ambos decks. Blackwings lo usaran para estrellarse contra un Monarca para buscar a Shura pa un proximo ataque mientras Dragunity lo usaran para buscar a Tribus y botar a Phalanx del deck.

Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL

So there's yet another new series after 5D's. While this series was fairly enjoyable, I was hoping it to be the last one (before they run out of concepts). But it seems we will have yet another series during the Spring season in 2011.

The story states that it's set in a near future, but I wonder what timeline that will be from.

I don't want to be quick to judge, because it may end up being a good series (remember everyone criticizing card games on motorcycles as being ridiculous?) or it may flop. But for now, only time will tell.

And it seems this has also been my first anime-related post, so perhaps more of these to come.