Article - My Take on Bans and Restrictions

Whenever a new Banned/Restricted List is announced by Konami, Duelists everywhere inevitably will have something to say about it. Usually they have complaints. I am no different from these other Duelists in having something to say about the Banned/Restricted List and I am also no different in having complaints about The List. However, I have formulated my own Banned/Restricted List that I believe would solve a great many of the problems with the game and allow several decktypes to emerge on each tier of playability.

I first started to question the quality of The List around the time Torrential Tribute was released. It was absurd to have a list that restricted Raigeki, Dark Hole, Mirror Force, and Cyber Jar but left Torrential Tribute untouched. Duelists could conceivable run seven pieces of mass monster removal in a single deck! It was absurd. So I restricted myself to one Torrential Tribute. It wasn’t official, it wasn’t required, and it put me at a disadvantage to those cutthroat players who were more willing to take advantage of the situation. But it was the right thing to do.

Soon after that, I realized that even running one of each of those still left five forms of mass monster removal in a single deck, which was ridiculous. So I restricted myself again, limiting myself to one mass monster removal spell, one mass monster removal trap, and one mass monster removal effect monster. It opened up a lot of space in my deck, and when playing against other decks with a similar construction allowed for a fun, yet balanced metagame.

Then Konami implemented the Bans. This was a dark day for me, as one of the things I most appreciated about Duel Monsters over Magic (aside from game mechanics) was the fact that no card was banned. Konami thought banning certain cards outright was necessary to rebalance the metagame, squelch cookie-cutter decks, and increase originality (as well as to sell new booster packs, because, let’s face it: if Konami is releasing crap like Elemental Heroes when we already have cards like Black Luster Soldier-Envoy of the Beginning and Mirror Force, who’s going to be interested in the new sets?). Konami perceived the problem to be too many broken cards.

Konami was correct in that perception. There were too many broken cards. But to me the answer was not to ban them outright, but to limit the number of them allowed in any given deck as well as to break overpowered combos. Broken cards are a fundamental part of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters, and they make the game fun and allow for big swings in momentum throughout the course of a duel. My solution: Either-Or Restrictions. Either-Or Restrictions could also be called Group Restrictions or Cluster Restrictions, as they take a group of broken cards, cluster them together, and allow Duelists to pick one or two out of each group for their deck at the cost of not using any others from the same group. It’s a simple solution and it would break the power of cookie-cutters by putting most overly-splashable, broken cards into the same cluster. It’s a similar concept to how I restricted myself with the mass monster removal cards.

My ideas about which cards belong in which clusters are constantly evolving along with the game, so the following Restricted List model isn’t set in stone, but I think it would be a good first step. I propose to do away with the Traditional/Advanced Dual Formats entirely, replacing them with this universal list, for Japan, North America, and Europe. The only possible problem I perceive with Either-Or restrictions is an increase in difficulty regarding Deck-Checks at tournament registrations. However, Deck-Checks are already riddled with problems, so I don’t think my solution would make them much worse.

Without further ado, I present my
Ideal, Visionary Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters Restriction List:
(Note the explanations below each Group Restriction, and * by restrictions on my list that differ from the official list, followed by reasons.)

Either-Or Limited (you may use one copy of one card in each group in your deck):
Group 1: Black Luster Soldier-Envoy of the Beginning, Chaos Emperor Dragon-Envoy of the End, Magical Scientist, Sinister Serpent, Victory Dragon (j), Yata-Garasu.

Why?: With the exception of Victory Dragon, these are the most broken monsters ever released. Dealing with one of them in a deck would be possible, but this gang of Good Ol’ Boys needs to be broken-up.

Group 2: Breaker the Magical Warrior, Exiled Force, Mobius the Frost Monarch, Ring of Destruction, Tribe-Infecting Virus, Tsukuyomi.

Why?: These are some of the most annoying, most easily splashable cards in the game. The group needs to be separated. Note that Mobius is now limited. His effect is on par with, and perhaps scarier than Jinzo’s. Leaving him unrestricted is a mistake.

Group 3: Confiscation, Delinquent Duo, The Forceful Sentry.

Why?: Hand disruption is a solid strategy, but these are too easily splashable and are too dangerous together.

Group 4: Calamity of the Wicked(j), Harpie’s Feather Duster, Heavy Storm.

Why?: One form of mass spell/trap removal is enough. It may be argued that nobody would use Heavy Storm if they could use HFD. I believe there are plenty of strategies that would involve destroying one’s own spells/traps, such as: Statue of the Wicked/Dark Coffin/Pyramid of Light, clearing out a Royal Decree/Level Limit/Gravity Bind that has outlived its usefulness, etc.

Group 5: Graceful Charity, Pot of Greed, Sixth Sense (j).

Why?: Powerful drawing should be limited.

Group 6: Cathedral of Nobles (j), Makyura the Destructor, Mirage of Nightmare, Painful Choice.

Why?: These are some annoying combo cards that should be kept separate.

Either-Or Semi-Limited (you may use one copy of up to two cards in each group in your deck):

Group 1: Dark Hole, Mirror Force, Raigeki, Torrential Tribute.

Why?: Two forms of mass monster removal are enough. The return of Imperial Order also keeps powerful spells in check.

Group 2: Cyber Jar, Fiber Jar, Morphing Jar.

Why?: Two forms of mass advantage generation and randomness are enough.

Group 3: Brain Control, Change of Heart, Snatch Steal.

Why?: Two forms of low-cost monster theft are enough. Note, Brain Control is now limited. Soul Exchange and Mind Control dodged this bullet because they have well-balancing negative effects.

Group 4: Fissure, Hammer Shot, Sakuretsu Armor, Smashing Ground, Widespread Ruin.

Why?: There is too much costless monster removal in the game. It needs to be kept in check. Note that all of these cards are now limited.

Limited (you may use one copy of each of the following cards in your deck):

Book of Moon

Butterfly Dagger-Elma

Call of the Haunted

Card Destruction

*Catapult Turtle (to hinder Scientist OTK)

Ceasefire

*Chaos Sorcerer (He may be the weakest Chaos monster, but he’s still a Chaos monster.)

*Cyber Dragon (It is the biggest ‘non-tribute’ monster without a balancing effect. It makes other monsters useless for field presence. Proto Cyber Dragon fills its shoes in Cyber Laser/Barrier themed decks.)

D.D. Assailant

D.D. Warrior Lady

Dandelion (j)

*Dark Balter the Terrible (Restriction prevents Metamorphosis abuse.)

Dark Magician of Chaos

Deck Destruction Virus (j)

*Deck Devastation Virus (this should stay at one)

Drop-Off

*Dust Tornado (It is ridiculous to restrict MST but not this. Free, easy removal.)

Exchange of the Spirit

Exodia the Forbidden One

*Fiend Skull Dragon (Restriction prevents Metamorphosis abuse.)

Imperial Order

Injection Fairy Lily

Jinzo

Last Turn

Last Will

Left Arm of the Forbidden One

Left Leg of the Forbidden One

Lightning Vortex

Mage Power

Magic Cylinder

*Magician of Faith (this should stay at one)

Marshmallon (j)

Mask of Darkness

Monster Reborn

Mystical Space Typhoon

*Nobleman of Crossout (this should stay at one)

Pot of Avarice

Premature Burial

Protector of the Sanctuary

*Reinforcement of the Army (All other forms of tutoring of this caliber are limited (Witch & Sangan)).

Right Arm of the Forbidden One

Right Leg of the Forbidden One

*Royal Decree (Imperial Order and Jinzo are limited. This should be too.

*Ryu-Senshi (Restriction prevents Metamorphosis abuse.)

Sacred Phoenix of Nephthys

Sangan

Scapegoat

*Spirit Reaper (Marshmallon is limited, this should be too. Indestructible monsters are too powerful to be unrestricted.)

Swords of Revealing Light

Thousand-Eyes Restrict

Time Seal

Twin-Headed Behemoth

United We Stand

Witch of the Black Forest

Semi-Limited (you may use up to two copies of each of the following cards in your deck):

*Abyss Soldier (With Sinister Serpent available, this is too good to be unrestricted.)

Apprentice Magician

Creature Swap

Emergency Provisions

*Enemy Controller (Blocks attacks, steals resources, and should be kept in check.)

Gravity Bind

*Level Limit - Area B (Limiting this to one puts the final nails into the coffins of too many decktypes.)

*Limiter Removal (Machines need a little boost. Plus, it is easily worked around by a prepared opponent.)

Manticore of Darkness

*Morphing Jar #2 (Too annoying to be unrestricted.)

*Night Assailant (The Night Assailant Loop is too cool to kill. Just keep it from being too silly.)

*Reckless Greed (This card only becomes unbalanced when used in threes.)

Reflect Bounder

Off the List (these formerly-restricted cards are now unrestricted):

*Excavation of Magical Stones (j) (Hefty discard cost = balanced card.)

*Good Goblin Housekeeping (This thing is only good if used in threes. Leave the poor goblin alone!)

*Metamorphosis (The Morph Deck is a cool idea, and by limiting certain fusion monsters, I believe it can be kept under control. Limiting Scapegoat, TER, and Tsukuyomi does enough to hinder Goat Control without limiting Metamorphosis as well.)

*Treeborn Frog (This thing’s own effect prevents the abuse of multiples. Restriction is unnecessary.)

*Upstart Goblin (If people are that desperate for card-drawing, let them run this. It’s a worse version of Jar of Greed anyway, and that’s never been restricted. At least Jar of Greed can chain to destruction for a +1.)

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Review - Robbin' Goblin: The King of Hand Control.

Robbin’ Goblin is a hand control card that I have used since its release. Yet I never see it receive the respect it deserves as a card that can wipe an opponent’s hand clean. Robbin’ Goblin is mocked because it’s a trap (“Too slow! Jinzo!”), and permanent (“MST/Dust Tornado fodder!”). I don’t believe traps are particularly slow. If waiting until your opponent’s next draw phase is too difficult for you, you are too impatient. Jinzo is a threat to traps, true, but he’s wide open to all kinds of spell- and monster-based removal (some permanent, like the D.D. Folks), as his controller won’t be able to protect him with traps. And as soon as Jinzo’s taking a dirt nap, the Goblin can go right back to robbin’.

For some odd reason, Don Zaloog and Spirit Reaper (and for a while after it’s release, White Magical Hat) have received all kinds of praise for their ability to nibble away at the opponent’s hand while doing what monsters were made to do: LP damage. Yet all of these monsters have relatively horrible stats. Wouldn’t it be nice if Mobius the Frost Monarch also had a hand nibbling effect? If only there was a card that could give it to him!

Even when Robbin’ Goblin is unable to perform its intended task of pilfering the opponent’s hand, it can serve other purposes as well. It makes an excellent bluff, perhaps scaring an opponent out of attacking until he can draw some removal. Even when it’s destroyed by a Space Typhoon or Dust Tornado while face-up, it contributes a 1-for-1, and a very important one, as the opponent has used a valuable removal card that won’t become a problem later in the duel. If a Robbin’ Goblin can stick around for a couple of turns in an Aggro Deck, the advantage it can generate is astonishing. An army of buff Don Zaloog clones, each with their own effects in tow, can strip an opponent’s options to nothing, cause early topdecking, and win games. Let’s see the one-shot wonders, Delinquent Duo and Confiscation, do that!

Rating: 4/5

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Review - Magic Jammer: Why it's Good.

This is the first in what I like to call my "Card of the Indeterminate Period of Time." I won't call it "Card of the Day" or "Card of the Week" because I have no idea how regularly I'll write these, and I may even do several at once.

Here we go:

Many players disparage good ol’ Magic Jammer because of its discard cost. I can’t count the number of times I’ve read, “Any card with a discard cost is t3h suxx0rz,” or, “Now that Sinister Serpent is banned, I won’t touch any card with a discard cost.”

Yet people fail to realize that Magic Jammer isn’t always a simple 1-for-2. In a recent duel, my opponent activated Lightning Vortex while I had three monsters on the field (no I wasn’t overextending, as I still had four cards in my hand). I Magic Jammed the Vortex. Now, most could consider this a 2-for-2, as my opponent played a card with a discard, and I negated it with a card with a discard. Basic math tells us that a 2-for-2 is a 1-for-1. Yet, I don’t believe it was a 2-for-2, but a 5-for-2. I saved three of my field monster resources and ruined two of my opponent’s hand resources.

Let’s look at two hypothetical modifications of my previous example. If my opponent had played Dark Hold instead of Lightning Vortex, I would still have made a 4-for-2 (i.e. a 2-for-1). If I had played Magic Drain instead of Magic Jammer, by discarding another card, my opponent could have turned it around and made a 4-for-3 against me.

The moral of this story: Don’t be afraid of discard costs, just know when and when not to activate them. It is possible to create solid advantages with Magic Jammer when negating mass-destruction effects.

Rating: 3.5/5

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Introduction

Well, here I am. I never thought I’d be writing a blog. However, a friend of mine convinced me that my ideas about Duel Monsters are worth sharing. Since I disdain the middle-school mentality of most bulletin boards, I decided to go out on my own (as usual) and post some articles on a blog.

I’ve been playing Duel Monsters since it debuted in America. Like everyone then, I nearly fainted when I pulled a BEWD out of one of the four booster packs I allowed myself (believing that I could enjoy the game without sinking a lot of money into it). Little did I know that a Japanese card game would become such a long-lasting fascination, or that my pack pulls weren’t actually all that great.

Some may question my credibility, as I don’t play in tournaments. The closest local tournament is 30 miles away and held on Sundays. When I was in college, I had homework, and now that I’m part of the working world, I just don’t have time to compulsively participate, as is required to really get anywhere in the tournament scene. Plus, I REALLY hate the Kaiba-esque attitudes adopted by so many tournament players and the ridiculous overpopulation of identical decks which are basically the Restricted List put into sleeves and stacked together. I hold myself apart from that, observing all aspects of the game, from cookie-cutter tournaments to casual duels with God Cards. I am a Duel Monsters Scholar. I study the game for the love of it, not for the glory, and my intention with my articles is to share ideas, examine cards, and hopefully improve the state of the game just a little bit.

My interest in Duel Monsters began when I was at home during Spring Break one year. I was channel surfing and came across the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime. I was shocked: here we had characters playing a game that closely resembled Magic: the Gathering, only without the casting costs. Now, I have had a long love/hate relationship with Magic. I was introduced to that game when Fallen Empires was the latest set. I found the basic concept to be really interesting: duels between people who have constructed different decks from a common pool of cards. However, I took great umbrage with some of the rules of Magic. Casting costs in particular made my blood boil. The inability to summon a single goblin due to being “mana screwed” was something that happened to me far too often. I even went so far as to construct my Magic deck with no cards possessing a casting cost greater than 2, but it still didn’t help. I saw Duel Monsters as a natural progression from Magic; moving from slow, convoluted, and aggravating to fast, simple, and fun. (No offence to the Magic fans out there, but that’s the way I see it.) After seeing the anime for the first time, I immediately hopped onto Google to see if Duel Monsters really existed. I discovered that it had been around in Japan since 1996 and was to be released in America by the end of the month. Joyfully, I read the online rules at Upperdeck’s site and was thoroughly impressed.

My interest in the game has lead me to amass a large collection of cards (in most cases three copies of everything playable) so I can assemble any given deck at any given time. I read almost every article posted on Pojo, Metagame, Edo, and DM Comet. I have gained a great understanding of the game from my research and practice. Hopefully I will be able to add to the pool of knowledge present in these great websites.

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