Getting Better: Comeback of the Century

soulwarrior Fri, 02/10/2012 - 00:03

This is a column that helps you get better at your favorite games. Whether it's knowing the odds to draw black trains that are left in the deck in Ticket to Ride, or understanding the ramifications of picking a Rocket Courier X-99 early in a game of Ascension, if you're looking to gain an edge over your friends, this is the column for you.

Something like 5 years ago, the set Elemental Energy hit the shelves and introduced the Dark World monsters to the Yu-Gi-Oh! community. It certainly seemed like their timing was perfect - the format back then was dominated by Monarch decks that were also making great use of Spirit Reaper. The little Zombie could have a devastating effect on your opponent's game plan; all it needed to do was take a direct shot at their heart and they had to discard a random card from their hand. One card often made the difference, so one successful attack with Spirit Reaper could make or break a game!

Things worked a little differently when you got paired against a Duelist piloting a Dark World deck, though. The effects of these monsters activate as soon as they get discarded from your hand to your Graveyard by a card effect. In case of the most popular representatives, Goldd, Wu-Lord of Dark World and Sillva, Warlord of Dark World, that would result in them getting special summoned to your side of the field. With 2300 ATK each, they could be very hard to deal with and more than one opponent failed to overcome these stronger Dark World monsters, costing him the game.

If they got discarded by an opposing card effect, e.g. the above mentioned Spirit Reaper, they would not only get special summoned, they would wreak havoc! Goldd allowed you to destroy up to 2 opposing cards on the field while Sillva forced your opponent to select 2 cards in his hand and put them on the bottom of his Deck. In both cases, a Spirit Reaper still meant game; however, this time your opponent wouldn't be the one leaving the table smiling.

Players adapted and relied less on Spirit Reaper. They stopped setting so many cards so Dark World players couldn't make use of the Spell Dark World Lightning that dealt with face-down cards and also made you discard a card which is exactly what you want to do if you're running the archetype.

On top of that, other decks received new and powerful support, which in turn led to Dark World decks practically disappearing from the competitive scene. That was until October 2011; before Gates of the Underworld Structure Deck was released.

5 Cards to rule them all

The latest Structure Deck is already considered to be among the 3 most powerful Structure Decks of all time. On top of pretty much all of the existing Dark World Monsters and support cards, it features five brand new cards that give the theme a huge push and allow it to compete at the championship level. Let’s take a closer look at the new cards.

The most important and powerful card is certainly the cover card of the Structure Deck: Grapha, Dragon Lord of Dark World. He’s a level 8 monster, so to Normal Summon him, you need 2 monsters that serve as Tribute. That’s not what you’ll want to do, though, as Grapha allows you to return one Dark World monster from your side of the field to your hand to Special Summon him from your Graveyard! Naturally, being a Dark World monster, he also has an effect that activates after he made his way from your hand to the Graveyard; he then allows you to destroy a card on the field. In a best case scenario, you discard him for a card effect to strip your opponent of his defenses, Special Summon him afterwards and attack over a monster that your opponent can no longer protect!

By the way, if an opposing effect discarded Grapha, you also get to see a random card from his hand and if you got lucky and hit a Monster, you can Special Summon it to your side of the field. Basically, that’s just icing on the cake as the other 2 effects already make Grapha stand out. Did I mention he features a whopping 2700 ATK?!

Next in line is Ceruli, Guru of Dark World. He’s quite small, which ironically works in your favor. If he’s getting discarded by a card effect, you can special summon him to your opponents side of the field. After you did so, he forces you to discard a card of your choosing. That’s the perfect opportunity to discard one of the heavy hitters of the Dark World army, like Sillva, Goldd or Grapha. Not only will you get to active their secondary effects, you can also attack with them over Ceruli, who doesn’t put up much of a fight with his mere 100 ATK.

Although Ceruli gives you access to some of the strongest effects in your Dark World Deck, he doesn’t do much on his own. To utilize him in the best way possible, you’ll always need another card. Consecutively, you may have to deal with consistency issues in your deck if you’re running 2 or even 3 copies of him. If you’re missing all the cards that allow you to pull off your huge combos, you’ll fall behind quickly and have to fight an uphill battle for the rest of the duel.

Speaking of consistency issues, this has always been the biggest problem for fans of the Dark World Monsters. Fortunately, the Structure Deck addresses this very problem: Snoww, Unlight of Dark World. Thanks to his 1700 ATK, he can put up quite a fight and deal with most opposing level 4 or lower monsters. What really makes him a staple, however, is his effect that allows you to search your Deck for any Dark World card when he’s getting discarded from your hand to your Graveyard. No matter if you’re looking for Grapha or one of the support cards like Dark World Dealings, Snoww gives you access to the whole arsenal of the theme deck.

The Structure Deck also features a brand new Field Spell that helps you find answers for pretty much any given scenario. The Gates of Dark World lets you banish a Fiend in your Graveyard (all the Dark World Monsters are Fiends) to discard another Fiend and then draw a fresh card from the top of your Deck. That means you’ll get to trigger all the effects of the Dark World Monsters while you’re digging through your Deck. Additionally, it provides all Fiends with a welcome push of 300 additional ATK and DEF, turning Grapha into a 3000 ATK beatstick and your 4 star Monsters into fighting machines that will run over pretty much any 4 star or lower Monster your opponent can throw in their way!

The last new card is the Trap Dark Scheme. After activation, your opponent either discards a card or both players discard 2 cards and then draw 2 new cards. So that means it will either result in both players losing a card or you falling 1 card behind, but receiving the opportunity to trigger 2 Dark World effects. There are better cards out there to accomplish this, so you will probably not want to run it in your deck.

Superstar comebacks

The brand new cards are certainly reason enough to buy several copies of the Structure Deck, but Konami was kind enough to pack even more goodies! Thanks to the reprints in Gates of the Underworld, you can now easily get your hands on sought after cards like Tragoedia, Battle Fader, Allure of Darkness and Dark Bribe. All of them are not exclusive to the Dark World archetype; they also work well in other decks.

By purchasing 3 copies of the Structure Deck, focusing on the most playable cards and cutting some of the situational cards, you can build quite a competitive deck that can help you do well at local events. Additionally, you'll only need to fit in some harder to get cards and you’ll have a top contender for a Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series win! Claudio Kirchmair, one of Europe's most successful Duelists, ran this version at the Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series Brighton a month ago, barely missing the tops:

13 Monsters:
3 Grapha, Dragon Lord of Dark World
3 Snoww, Unlight of Dark World
3 Broww, Huntsman of Dark World
3 Tour Guide From the Underworld
1 Beeige, Vanguard of Dark World

18 Spell Cards:

3 The Gates of Dark World
3 Dark World Dealings
3 Dragged Down into the Grave
3 Upstart Goblin
1 Heavy Storm
1 Dark Hole
1 Monster Reborn
1 Card Destruction
1 Allure of Darkness
1 Foolish Burial

9 Trap Cards:

3 Reckless Greed
2 Mind Crush
1 Trap Dustshoot
1 Torrential Tribute
1 Deck Devastation Virus
1 Solemn Judgement

Side Deck:

2 Spirit Reaper
1 Dark Armed Dragon
1 Morphing Jar
3 Mystical Space Typhoon
1 Light-Imprisoning Mirror
1 Dark Smog
2 Magic Drain
2 Gozen Match
2 Dimensional Prison

Extra Deck:

2 Wind Up Zenmaines
2 Leviar the Sea Dragon
1 Number 20: Giga-Brilliant
1 Number 17: Leviathan Dragon
1 Steelswarm Roach
1 Number 39: Utopia
1 Ally of Justice Catastor
1 Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier
1 Black Rose Dragon
1 Stardust Dragon
1 Scrap Dragon
1 Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier
1 Chimera Fortress Dragon

First thing you should notice is the low number of Monster Cards in this Deck. It can afford to do so as it features a ton of cards that make you draw into additional cards (Upstart Goblin, Dragged Down into the Grave, Reckless Greed, Dark World Dealings, Allure of Darkness, Card Destruction), so you'll find the most important ones easily. This helps you set up your big plays with ease, which basically translates to: You'll always have Grapha on the field together with something else.

Another key card is Tour Guide From the Underworld which gives you access to a number of Rank 3 Xyz Monsters. If you have a couple of banished Monsters, use Leviair the Sea Dragon to bring one of them back, if you need some extra muscle, Special Summon Number 17: Leviathan Dragon and start the beatdown and if you need to buy some time and go for a more controlish approach, use Wind-Up Zenmaines.
Oftentimes, you won't bring out another Tour Guide From the Underworld, but rather Broww, Huntsman of Dark World. You can then either use Broww to bring back Grapha or you proceed with an Xyz Summon. So Tour Guide serves double duty as both a way to bring back Grapha as well as giving you access to your Extra Deck.

It's quite an interesting approach to the Dark World Deck, but the gamble of running fewer Monsters often pays out. Special Summoning Grapha, Dragon Lord of Dark World over and over again can really give your opponent a headache and help you win games with ease, so try it out for yourself!

About the Author

Oliver 'soulwarrior' Gehrmann is a TCG player, writer and entrepreneur. You can find some of his work at TCG.Konami-Europe.net, WoWTCG.com, eTCG.de and DailyMetagame.com. Learn more about his company at nexTab.de.

Search form