Deck Check: Gold Paladins - Spectral Duke Dragon

Deck Check: Gold Paladins - Spectral Duke Dragon

Spectral Duke Dragon was one of those units which defined a generation. It was the unit which most likely represented the Gold Paladin clan in a more competitive perspective (albeit being already very and sufficiently supported thus a more reliable clan to bring for tournaments because of its diversity). This was also the build which Brandon Smith (together with his buddy Bastianelli) ran with during last year's (2012) World Championships which he successfully won the title of. Until today, Duke will forever be remembered as one of those cards which dominated the meta and pioneered in the perk self-standing; a card that can never be forgotten. So in honor of this legendary card, I decided to make a deck check of it, and without further a do, here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewgEzrShTuk

With the release of TD08 Liberator of the Sanctuary, this deck gets a superb support from the breakride. With Duke going for 20k+ when it restands, it sure is going to decimate an opponent. While Duke was already dangerous back then, it now has become more detrimental and destructive, making its cost very efficient and worthwhile (forcing the opponent to use 1-2 perfect guards). This deck may have a chance at the spotlight again and ultimately add another glorious victory to Gold Paladins.

-kamiPrince39-

A.V.D.: Clash of the Paladins - Shadow against Gold

Advanced Vanguard Discussion: Clash of the Paladins - Shadow against Gold

In the land of cray, there existed a clan of noble and loyal knights called the Royal Paladins

They swore to protect their land with honor and fortitude and to lead all  the

other clans of Cray to progress. However, a number of these paladins deliberately committed treason and denied "the will of the blade" and sought power for their own. Exiled, they came to be known 

as the Shadow Paladins who embodied supreme prowess and avarice. This conflict escalated

to a full-scale war which eventually came to a compromise and gave birth to the all new

 Gold Paladins.

Among the three aforementioned clans (Royal, Gold, and Shadow), Royal Paladins proved to have been the best clan among the three. However,last November 2012, Bushiroad hit Majesty Lord Blaster (MLB,the best card of the clan) on their official ban list semi-limiting MLB to only two (2) copies per deck. This devastated the status of the clan in the professional scene in the meta which eventually lead to its demise. The throne was then open for the two left paladin decks for them to seize it and prove who reigned supreme and more dominant against the other. Either of which, both proved to be of equal rivals to the other as both decks are very much played by the majority.

Both clans are very offensive in nature bringing with them more than four critical triggers in their trigger line-up - albeit Gold paladins were more aggressive with their twelve (12) criticals in contrast to the Shadow paladins' standard eight criticals. This was due to the insufficiency of support cards printed for the Shadow Paladins, despite the fact that they have their crossride support whereas Golds didn't (yet Golds had more support than they could ever need of). This caused shadow paladins to become more passive in their pace,focusing to succeed in their crossride and focus their power in their center baseline or on their vanguard unit. Gold paladins though didn't play like this. Usually, Gold paladins would spam 3-4 units on the field during turn 2 or 3 of the game and just abuse their resources to an all-out assault.

This kind of play-style might have instigated player Brandon Smith to pick this as his choice of weapon to play in the World Championships - and he was very right about it. During the finals match of last year's World Championships, both players played gold paladins. The two players onlydiffered in the build that they were using. Smith used Spectral Duke Dragon (SDD) while Suharto used the Pellinore build. Smith won and further established the authority of Gold paladins as the more dominant paladin clan. 

Despite the fact that Gold paladins won last year's World championships, one can never take away the bulk and power that the crossride of Shadow paladins brings: Phantom Blaster Overlord with its gigantic attack of 13,000. This massive attack power provided a stalling mechanism to the pace of Shadow Paladins. This was the asset that Shadows had and Golds lacked. Unfortunately, this "was" the case until set 9 came and gave Gold paladins their very own crossride unit.This fully engraved the place of Gold paladins as the "dominant paladin clan" of the meta and has proved its superiority over the Shadow Paladins.

-KamiPrince39-

A.V.D.: Chaos Breaker Dragon

Advanced Vanguard Discussion: Chaos Breaker Dragon

With the release of the Link Joker clan in BT12 Binding Force of the Black Rings together with TD11 Star-Vader Invasion, and the innovation of the Reverse units (both of which fully utilize the new "Lock" mechanic), a new age of gameplay has come to rise for the meta. With clans getting further support of reverse units, the meta has come to define itself as a crossride type of meta, most of which are the reverse units which utilize the lock ability. BT13 Catastrophic Outbreak further expanded the number of these Reverse units available to the game and along with it was the beast incarnate who has come to be  known as Chaos breaker Dragon.

A grade 3 unit, Star-vader Chaos Breaker Dragon was a unit designed as field-control card and is commonly referred to as a "boss card" of the clan (game-ender card). It's a solid 11k Vanguard which is capable of reaching 16k-21k attack power in its own attacks and with it is a limit break ability which was designed to obliterate and counter the ever-growing number of players utilizing the lock mechanic with their reverse units. Lastly, it has the "Lord" ability which restricts it from being splashed into other clans.

Its first ability is an [ACT] Activate ability which locks any rear guard of the opponent for the cost of 1 counterblast and by discarding 1 "Star-vader" card from the hand. This ability isn't really that much of a surprise, considering the 'lock' ability as being the main gameplay tactic of Link Joker. In contrast to the primal Link Joker boss card though, Nebula Lord, it is in a way reasonable as to why this unit's skill costs more (with the addition of an extra cost of discarding a card from the hand, albeit minus the second counterblast) for its skill because it is more flexible in nature and is more "open" compared to Nebula Lord's which locks only one back row rear guard of the opponent, for the cost of two (2) counterblasts. Chaos Breaker's skill allows the player to freely and carefully select a unit which is more optimal for him/her to lock. And with the aid of the clan's breakride, Infinite Zero, during the turn that you would ride Chaos Breaker Dragon over it, you're already guaranteed to have locked two of the opponent's rear-guard units. But what really separates this card from Nebula Lord as a boss card for the Link Joker clan is its Limit Break. 

Its Limit Break is the skill which it is more known for, for this limit break skill completely destroys the locked unit/s of the opponent by retiring them. Whenever an opponent's unit is unlocked, for the cost of one (1) soul blast, Chaos Breaker retires that/those unit/s which were unlocked AND for each unit that was retired by this skill, the player which controls Chaos Breaker gets to draw a card. For the cost of one (1) soul-blast, a cost so irrelevant, Chaos Breaker's controller is allowed to retire the opponent's unit(s) AND get free card(s) from it. This skill is very potent for unlike the infamous Kagero clan (notable for their retiring skills), it first locks the unit, thus having the locked unit take-up a rear-guard space (rendering 1 rear guard either useless or irrelevant) and then afterwards, retire it and get rid of it permanently, taking it out of the field for game advantage.

Overall, Chaos Breaker is a very potent unit capable of stopping the more notable clans in the meta while getting so much pluses from doing so. The only problem with this though is that this Limit Break is only efficient during the turn that you breakride it, giving you the opportunity to retire 2-3 units and draw cards from this skill in the succeeding turn. Locking 1 and drawing 1 card from its skill isn't as efficient compared to if you locked 3-4 units and for the same cost, you get more. Still, a card that was made specifically created to counter decks which benefited from the lock mechanic is one hell of a card.

A.V.D.: Raging Form Dragon

Advanced Vanguard Discussion: Raging Form Dragon

Some posts ago, we talked about self-standing vanguards. These were vanguards which could stand back by themselves and be able to attack for a second time in a single turn. On this AVD, we'll discuss about a card which has a similar skill as to those who are self-standing.

BT12 Binding Force of the Black Rings gave a "new life" and new support for the Shadow Paladins, particularly giving them their sub-clan archetype "Revengers". Revengers were first introduced in TD10 Purgatory Revenger, with Blaster Dark Revenger as the cover card of the trial deck. The sub clan was further expanded with set 12 including their new boss card, "Revenger, Raging Form Dragon". This was "epic comeback" for the clan which proved to have been insufficient and inferior (in power and efficacy) since the debut of their first optimal boss card "Phantom Blaster Overlord".

So to start off, Raging Form is an 11k grade 3 unit. Its 11000 attack power enables it to reach the magic numbers of 16k-21k powerlines without being supported, and only by itself. But its second skill adds +3000 more power whenever it attacks for the cost of one (1) counterblast. This gives it then the capability to further extend its total power in its column, now ranging from 19k-24k. And just like any other boss units, it has the Lord ability which forbids it to attack if there is a unit in play which is not of the same clan as it. 

But what really highlights this horrofying dragon is its Limit Break. At four damage, you gain access to an [AUTO] Auto skill which requires you to pay a very high price: retire three (3) "Revenger" rear guards in the field. And when the cost has been paid, it's where the true demostration of its superior skill and sheer dominance is evidently seen in action; you can select another copy of itself and superior ride it as STAND during the end step of the battle which it attacked and your new and standing Raging Form Dragon gains an extra +10,000 to its attack power. And with this in the picture, the Revenger user would most likely and ultimately go for another attack and inflict more damage to the opponent. This also means that the player is able to again, perform twin-drive and check for more triggers and get some more cards. This destroys the hand advantage of the opponent, punishing him/her with attacks that would consume almost all of his/her resources until ultimately he/she is unable to guard anymore. 

So it is safe to say that this vanguard is a half "self-standing" vanguard while at the same time it also is a "Self-breakride" unit which gives itself +10k when its Limit Break is successfully activated. This enables a Shadow Paladin user to reach a fourth battle in a single turn. This is such a big plus for the clan and an overall new perk which is unique to itself and could further be integrated in the future cards of the future sets of Vanguard. 

-kamiprince39-

A.V.D.: Reverse ("Я")

Advanced Vanguard Discussion: Reverse "Я"

Photo owned by James Gabriel C. Garrido. Photo is not allowed to be used or be be posted elsewhere without the owner's permission.

BT12 Binding Force of the Black Rings introduced the new Link Joker clan, a clan which represented as the "avatar of void". Along with it brought an infestation that infected so much of Cray, ultimately corrupting some of the most powerful units to exist in the planet. This corrupting process or phenomenon was called "Reverse" which is indicated a reversed "R" symbol (Я).  

Reverse units are crossride units of  some normal units which were created by Link Joker, or by void itself. They are all 11k units and all of them have the black ring symbol, signifying their affiliation to the Link Joker clan.They gain a continuous +2000 power when a specific unit is found in the soul and all of them have the cost of locking your own Rear guard unit/s in order for their skills to be technically activated. 

Locking is a mechanic that was introduced by and  is fully exercised by the Link Joker clan wherein a card is flipped face-down and is to remain in that position until that player's turn ends. Locked units cannot be retired by normal means and cannot change their battle position until it is unlocked. They are also technically not treated to exist (by quantity) in the field, hence they aren't counted as Rear guards. This is a very constricting mechanic that can really cripple the gameplay of many clans especially those that rely heavily on rear guards such as Gold Paladins or Royal Paladins' Alfred. Having been locked means that those units CANNOT attack, intercept/boost, and their skills become nullified.

Back to Reverse units, now at first one may think that locking your own units would only jeopardize your game and cause you to lose. But its not really like that. Its because the units you lock would only be lost during your current turn, for at the end phase they just unlock. The only minus that you're getting is that you lose a rear guard booster or a rear guard attacker/interceptor, but other than that, it isn't really that much of a problem to deal with for the skills of most Reverse units quite powerful and game-changing. Most of the time, the units that players would choose to lock are backrow rear guards units (or the boosters) particularly that of the main powerline or the Vanguard column. Such example is seen below:

Photo owned by James Gabriel C. Garrido. Photo is not allowed to be used or be be posted elsewhere without the owner's permission.

But amidst this, Reverse units are very O.P. (Over-powered) in nature making their cost all the worthwhile. And with the meta slowly shifting to a crossride-breakride type of meta, losing a vanguard backrow booster is never a loss provided with the +10000 power bonus of the breakride, you'll most likely going to hit for 20k+ power on your main column. This huge number can enforce perfect guards from the opponent. If the opponent unfortunately doesn't have any,well it's more likely g.g. (good game;term used for ending games or winning games). Reverse units will most likely be seen in so many plays and tournaments. They will be the pinnacle of crossrides.

-kamiPrince39-

A.V.D.: Break Rides

Advanced Vanguard Discussion: Break Rides

Photo owned by James Gabriel Garrido; not to be used anywhere without the permission of the owner itself.

TD08 Liberator of the Sanctuary and TD09 Eradicator of the Empire (released last January 26 in Japan and October 4 for the English) introduced the new support cards for the Gold Paladin and Narukami clan showcasing their new units from the third season of the anime, the "Liberators" (Gold) and the "Eradicators" (Narukami). Along these new sub-clans or the archetypal updrade of the two (2) clans, is the new mechanic called as "Break Rides". A mechanic that would further push the current shape of the meta and define a new age of gameplay. A time of crossrides and breakrides

So what is a Break Ride? To start off, it's not a crossride, it's more or less like a "re-ride" of your grade 3 vanguard. Break Ride is a Limit Break ability (meaning that it can only activate when the controller has already four (4) damage) wherein when another grade 3 (of the same clan) rides over the breakride unit, it gains a "powercreep"  or an Over-powering sklill and a +10000 power boost. All breakrides so far give the riding vanguard a +10000 power. The only thing that this will differ in is in the type of clan that is being used.

Essence:

Why Breakrides?

Its beacause of that +10000 power that really makes breakrides so broken. A vanguard can constantly hit 20k+ powerlines which is just SO painful to the opponent. This enforces Prefect guards from hs/her hand. What most people will be looking forward to do with this is repeatedly ride your Break rides and gain their skills for up to 2-4 times in a game and finally riding your main vanguard after the third or fourth breakride (depending on the number of copies that you are bringing in your deck) in order to fully utilize their full potential and capacity.

Do note that with this in our mind, self-standing vangurads can now be even more deadlier. Whenever they would restand, they would still have with them the power of vanguard and the trigger boosts that gave extra criticals. Spectral Duke Dragon on its own can be very dangerous and lethal to the meta, posing so huge of a threat that it could be the perfect counter for Link Joker. Still, with the meta being composed of crossrides, this will definitely change our perspective and is VERY relevant\to our curiosity and critical thinking analyses about the game.That is all for now.

-kamiPrince39-

A.V.D.: Blaster Spirits

Advanced Vanguard Discussion: Blaster Spirits

Photo owned by James Gabriel Garrido. Photo not to be used or be posted elsewhere without the consent of the owner.

Blaster Blade Spirit and Blaster Dark Spirit are two very unique cards which were introduced in set 9 (BT09 - Clash of Knights and Dragons). They both are in the same clan as their original versions and both have 10k in power.Blaster Blade Spirit is a Royal Paladin unit while Blaster Dark Spirit is a Shadow Paladin unit. And just as they were once grade 2 units, they still are in this version of theirs.

The skills of both Blasters are very similar in nature, differing only in the target that their skill are allowed to be applied. Their first skill is an [AUTO] skill which activates when either one of them is called to the Rear guard from the deck (or Superior called) and for the cost of ONLY one (1) counter blast, you get to retire an opponent's front row rear guard. Blade destroys a grade 2 or higher rear guard while Dark obliterates grade 2 or lower front row rear guard units. These two are best brought in a deck which revolves more on superior calling from the deck such as that of Pellinore builds. But what makes them really tough is that both of them have a huge base attack power of 10,000. This base power surpasses the 9k regularity of most grade 2 rear guards thus they are nerfed by their second skill. Whenever either one of them is attacked, then the blaster automatically dies despite if you guarded it.

What's more peculiar to this two is their third skill. A [CONT] Continuous skill which haves them two (2) treated as Gold Paladin cards. This is the very reason that these two are mixed in Gold paladin decks because they are 10k and they a skills which are more or less very strong and potent. But back to their "destroy-this-automatically-when-attacked" skill, it isn't really that big of a deal. Anyway, it could've been used to only intercept and losing it was already prepared for. Its their 10k base that makes them really big and painful.

Unfortunately though, only the Gold paladins have this kind of mini-support from other clans (Royals and Shadows). Other clans have no units such as these. It would've been better to see more of these kind of units. It is a unique perk that Bushiroad thought of, but only for Gold Paladins.

-kamiprince39-

Cardfight!! Vanguard:Brace yourselves, World Championships is coming

How is everyone doing? I hope all is well for all of you guys with regards to your Vanguard experience. Some might still be getting used to the game and I hope that each and everyone of you enjoy every moment of your learning experience (don't mind the bitter losers and the douchebag players that any of you might have played against along the way). Because that's the best part about this game; you keep on learning new things and in the process, you become stronger and better.

Anyway, Nationals for the Worldwide Qualifiers have officially begun just two (2) weeks ago with Toronto starting things off. Beast Deities (Nova Grapplers) grabbed the first victory for the Nationals, an impressive victory to the clan being that the clan itself is underhanded and that no one ever pays attention to it and looks at it in a competitive perspective. A week later, kageros (DOtE) burned the whole nationals tournament in Atlanta, Georgia and proved to take their place in the upcoming Continentals for the World Championships, winning against adversaries such as Golds and Narukamis. And in less than just 3 days away, Nationals in my country will be happening very soon. Unfortunately I can't join because I live far from the venue of the tournament and the final exams for my study is fast approaching. I would've wanted to at least spectate at the event, but unfortunately I just couldn't. 

Platina Ezel

I really expect to see a lot of Gold Paladins and Narukami The Bloods, seeing that they're the only decks that are really capable - and have a high chance of - winning the tournament with so much ease and efficiency. But with what Nova Grapplers did at Toronto, well it has become a bit of a question as to what clan will represent the Philippines for Worlds knowing that any deck can really win despite that particular deck's popularity. Novas were pretty much neglected then, but unexpectedly won as a "rouge"deck. 

 Azure Dragon

So what's the point of all of this? Well, I would strongly suggest that each one should really be motivated to watch and experience these tournaments. This is where high level gameplay is best exhibited and showcased;where the best among the bests come to gather and share their talent of playing the game and their philosophy with regards to playing a particular and the clan itself that they're running with for the Championships. I would even suggest that for a beginner, it is more advisable to watch and pay attention carefully to how these cardfighters play and demonstrate their skills of the game, that in so doing you learn new tips and tricks that is not just about harnessing your deck, but also learning the ways in approaching other clans and knowing what is their Achilles heel. Just like in real life, this game is just based in knowledge. If you know much, then it isn't really that much of a bother or an uncertainty when you play; it's really about learning. And that's the ultimate gift that this game can ever give anyone who plays it.

-kamiprince39-

A.V.D.: Self-standing Vanguards

Advanced Vanguard Discussion: Self-standing Vanguards

Photo owned by James Gabriel Garrido (not to be used or to be posted elsewhere without the owner's permission)

It is a rule that Vanguard units are to remain at rest after they've attacked. Stand Triggers can only apply its restand effect on Rear guards. This is because if vanguards were to stand back up again, they could again attack and drive check twice. If this would've been the case, everyone might’ve been playing 8-12 stands instead of bringing multiple criticals. Some cards though, surpass this limitation. These units are able to restand themselves, and could attack once more.

The very first of its kind, Dragonic Overlord was the very first self-standing vanguard. It was released in both its trial deck and in set 1. This Demonic Beast unleashed the flames of hell itself upon those who would be foolish to oppose its superior power. An 11k beater, it’s just as big as it could get hitting 16k-21k power columns that proved to be so devastating to old grade 3 units whose average base attack powers were just 10k below. And that’s just its stats, his abilities have not been mentioned yet. At the cost of 3 counterblasts, this motherfucking dragon of mass and colossal destruction gets a continuous +5000 power until the end of the player’s turn. And that’s not all, when it hits an opponent’s Rear guard, its true power is revealed: IT STANDS BACK UP. It restands and all of the effects remain in it – provided also that its attack hits. And with this at hand, it would again look forward for another attack until ultimately all of the opponent’s resources have been burned to ashes. Of course there’s a catch to this though; it loses its Twin Drive ability yet it can still drive check 1 card when it attacks again.

But neglect the capability to drive check twice or thrice, what’s so dangerous about this beast is that it can still activate its skill while it is also in Rear guard (no drive checks though). A rear guard that is almost as strong and as good as the vanguard is such a huge plus for any player.

Later sets then tried to imitate the signature skill of Dragonic Overlord most notably its crossride, DragonicOverlord “The End”. What differed between the two was that “The End” required a cost of persona blast. BT04 also released Stern Blaukluger which also has a skill similar to Overlord, that when it hits it can stand back up.  EB03 also released a vanguard similar to Overlord but with an easier condition to pull-off: Spectral Duke Dragon.

Photo owned by James Gabriel Garrido (not to be used or to be posted elsewhere without the owner's permission)

Spectral Duke Dragon is a 10k Vanguard. While “Black Dragon Knight,Vortimer” is in the soul, it gets a continuous +1000 power. But that’s not what’s scary about it. Just like Overlord, it too can stand back up on its own, for the price of 2 counterblasts and 3 Rear guards. What edge it has over Overlord is that during the end of the damage step that it attacked (regardless if its attack hit or not), its Limit Break allows it to restand itself back up, retaining all the effects of power boosts and extra criticals that it gained during its drive check. It does lose its twin drive though, yet still the ability to choose whether or not to restand yourself back is already a very destructive skill.

Not to mention also that this was also the main vanguard unit of Brandon Smith’s Gold Paladin deck which won the World Championships 2012 last year. He ran this build instead of the normal Ezel deck and showcased to the world how strong and effective this deck really is. Another testament added to how devastating and dangerous these type of vanguards are. 

-kamiPrince39-

A.V.D.: 8K Vanillas

Advanced Vanguard Discussion: 8K Vanillas

Photo owned by (c) James Gabriel Garrido 2013, not to be reposted elsewhere without the original photographer's express permission.

8k vanillas have always been a staple for every deck. These were the units that gave so much consistent boost for front row units (they are even good front row Rear guards). This is because of their high base attack power for just being a grade 1 unit. And (f.y.i.) the reason why people call these cards “vanillas” is because of their skill-less existence. In short, they have no skills/effect whatsoever. That is why (maybe) that they have high attack power in order to compensate for having no skills – or it could be the other way around. Either way, they’ve proven their worth in every player’s deck through the past time.

But I’ve been noticing lately that players (in Japan) are now dropping these units out from their decks and are being replaced by 7k units whose skills are worth playing. Such example is seen in the Shadow Paladins. Naturally, Shadow Paladin players would opt to bring with them 4 Charons. But in the new Revengers build, there is no more Charon to be seen. Instead, it has been replaced by Dorin, a 7k grade 1 unit which works really well with Blaster Dark Revenger. It unflips a flipped damage in the damage zone when Blaster Dark Revenger is placed in the Rear guard column directly in front of him. This makes Blaster Dark Revenger's counter blast-2 skill look like a counter blast-1 skill. This is just so effective that no one would think twice of bringing four (4) of him.

This is very understandable though. Why would anyone bring a mediocre card (8k vanilla) − who serves no purpose other than boosting  − instead of bringing a unit which is more useful for powerplays (and when the difference between the two (2) units is just 1000)? It is then worth knowing about these cards (this might also be the reason as to why the 8k vanillas didn’t get to be reprinted as newer versions during the rise of archetypehood of the meta).Whatever the reason may be, these cards are being now being left behind. Some players will just bring these just to fill up the empty space in their deck.

Is this another part of the evolution of the meta? Another step towards a higher plain of gameplay? Perhaps; who knows. But there is a clear indication of change. That these units are now disappearing and that also in the future, maybe there will be no more 10k vanillas.Still, being very consistent in nature, they still signify their essence. Albeit they are being dropped, they are still "ok" cards to bring in a deck.

-kamiprince39-

Vanguard 101: Ride chains

Ride Chains

Vortimer-SDD ride chain (Gold Paladins)
Photo owned by James Gabriel C. Garrido. This Photo is not to be used elsewhere without the owner's permission.

Grade line-ups of a deck is a very crucial aspect in playing Vanguard.  Higher grade units are brought in lesser number compared to lower grade units in order to prevent being unable to ride to the next grade (or what is informally called as being “grade screwed” or “grade locked”). However, in set 3 (BT03-Demonic Lord Invasion) a new mechanic known as Ride chain was introduced – wherein Tsukuyomi  (OTT) and Gallahad (Royal Paladins) acted  as the pioneer ride chains.   Later sets then integrated the said mechanic and transformed the build of already existing clans.

Basically a Ride chain is series of evolutionary grade line-up which is meant to be ridden on top of the former (grade). This type of riding provides accessibility to the next grade unit of the current vanguard on the field. Essentially speaking, they secure grade-ride assurance, making sure that the player doesn’t miss a ride and prevent being grade screwed. When the grade 0 is in the soul, the grade 1’s attack is 8000. When the grade 1 is in the soul, the grade 2 becomes 10000. And when the grade 2 is in soul, the grade3 becomes 11000.

As of today (September 2013), there are currently four (4) types of Ride chains: the first, being Tsukoyomi and Gallahad in set 3; the second, the being Blasters (Shadow Paladin), Blaus (Nova Grappler), Amber Dragon (Kagero), Enigman (Dimensional Police), and Giraffa (Megacolony); the third (introduced first in EB02), Riviere (Bermuda Triangle), Vortimer-SDD (Gold Paladin), Magatsu (Murakumo), Ergodiel (Angel Feather),etc; and last, the current ride chains of japan which are Artemis (Genesis), Ripple-Genovious (Aqua Force), and Schwarzschild (Link Joker).

The first type of ride chain consisted of checking the top five (5) cards of the deck for the next unit in the chain and if it is there, it is superior ridden. Additionally, they lose 2000 power if not all of the parts of the ride chain is found in the soul. This -2000 was such a pain for it isn’t really guaranteed that much of getting the next unit for the chain.

The second type was released in set 4 and consisted of having to draw the grade 1 unit in the chain and riding it on top of the grade 0 to search for the grade 2 unit of the chain. The grade 1 (when placed in Rear guard) can then search for the grade 3 of the chain by simply discarding a grade 3 from the hand.  This offered a more secure ride opportunity for players albeit was still inconsistent in the sense that the player relied to much on the grade 1 ride.

The third type  (and the more famous type of ride chain amongst current ride chains i.m.o), which was released first in EB02 has the grade 0 search for either the grade 3 or grade 2 unit of the chain (by checking the top 7 cards of the deck) when the grade 1 unit is ridden on top of it. Despite the increase in the number of cards checked on top, this was still too hard pull off for the player had to have the grade 1 and either the grade 2 or grade 3 unit of the chain in his/her hand, so that the player will just only be looking for the third and last piece of the ride chain when the seven (7) top cards are checked. This was the fastest build though.

The last type of ride chain is more or less similar to the third type (which was introduced in set 10). What it differs in, is that when you miss to ride your grade 2 (or when you ride a grade 2 unit other than that of your chain), you have the chance to check again the top seven (7) cards of your deck and if the grade 2 unit of the chain is there, superior ride it. This was the most aggressive type of ride chain to have ever existed. This ensured the players that their grade 3 vanguards would be 11k.

The problem with ride chains though is that you will (more or less) rely on this skill. This then becomes a major weakness to you and it becomes your only way to win games. That when you don’t successfully accomplish your ride chain, your vanguard becomes a sitting duck. On a personal preference, I would highly advise no to go with this. Non-ride chain decks are more versatile and more flexible in nature, not a one-trick pony like most ride chain decks are. 

-kamiprince39-

A.V.D.: The Drive Quartets (Bermuda Triangle)

Advanced Vanguard Discussion - Bermuda Triangle: The Drive Quartets

Photo owned by Cardfight!! Vanguard Bushiroad. All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

The release of EB02 Banquet of Divas gave way for the debut of the Bermuda Triangle clan. It introduced the Riviere ride chain for the clan and several other Bermuda triangle cards. The clan then later received more support when EB06 – Dazzling Divas was released (just last July 26, 2013), including their Breakride support PRISM Image Vert , making them the very first clan to introduce the Breakride mechanic in the English format. But set aside all the general discussion of the deck, and let’s discuss about a perk (as how I like to call it) of the clan that isn’t really utilized that much by most players: The Drive Quartets

“The Drive Quartets” is a sub-archetype of the Bermuda Triangle clan. Unlike most sub-archetypes though, they are not normal units.  Instead, they are a of group triggers of their clan whom each has a similar skill to other. What each of them basically does is that each of them gains +3000 power when a specific drive quartet unit is present as your Rear guard.

Shuplu gains +3000 power if Bubblin is in Rear guard; 

Flows gets the +3000 if Shuplu is present in the Rear guard













Bubblin gets +3000 power if one of your Rear guards is Ressac














Ressac gains +3000 if Flows is one of your Rear guards.











 It’s just cyclic in shape. Its presumable then that if all four (4) of them are present in your Rear guard circles, then each of them is a 7k unit.

So what is the essence of this? We’ll thats because of the fact that they ARE triggers. Remember that after triggers have been used from drive checks, they just become your guards in hand. They prove not that much of use anymore, even their 5k boost is not that good. Also, there are those times which you just keep on drawing triggers, and you just have no other units to call for your offense because their 5000 power is just that good enough.

But, with these ladies though, you are able to get a +1 from your predicament. Instead of them just being guards in your hand, you can now use them as alternative boosters or as offensive units.  Albeit 7000 as an attack is not really that good, its the idea of them being flexible that gives them their quiddity. They can both be used as guards, and at the same time be reserved units for later game-pushes.

What‘s more to this is that they are the ONLY ones (clan) that have this kind of perk. No other clan has this. A unique mechanic that could later be harnessed and be utilized further in the future of the game. 

-kamiprince39-

Vanguard 101: Crossrides

Crossrides

"Swallow everything in your darkness, Abyssal Despair!!"
(Photo owned by James Gabriel C. Garrido. This Photo is not to be used or be posted elsewhere without the owner's permission.)

Grade 3 11k base attack vanguards have proven their supremacy and dominance over those which are inferior to them throughout the game. These  units can reach 16k-21k – or the so called magic numbers – power line, alone in their column without even being boosted (yet).  Despite the mediocrity in the skills of some, their high base attack power provides resiliency and fortitude for the player using them.

When Set 5 (BT05 - Awakening of TwinBlades) was released last February 2013, it introduced new grade 3 11k vanguards, two (2) of which were the very overhyped and long-awaited units to be first released in their English format, namely: Dragonic Overlord “The End” <Kagero> and Phantom Blaster Overlord <Shadow Paladin>. These new units came to be known as “Crossrides”, with the two being the very first of their kind. Succeeding sets then provided other clans their very own crossrides (and it would seem that Bushiroad is advertising this gimmick to form a metagame composed of crossrides). BT09 Clash of the Knights and Dragons then gave more crossride support for Aqua Force, Narukami, Gold Paladin, and Oracle Think Tank. Later sets (which are still in Japanese and have not been released in English yet) of BT12 – Binding Force of the Black Rings and BT13 – Catastrophic Outbreak brought more crossride support to already pre-existing clans.

So what are CROSSRIDES?

The very first attribute that crossrides have (that other grade 3 units don’t) is that they can have an active and continuous base attack power of 13,000, provided that a specific unit is found to be in the soul.  They are 11k vanguards that gain 2000 more attack power when the required certain unit is in the soul (e.g. “Phantom Blaster Overlord” can only achieve his +2000 power when “Phantom Blaster Dragon” is in the soul). This is the only prerequisite that these units need in order for them to achieve such power. Basically, without the required unit in the soul, they are just 11k vanguards but are still very bulky and are still very resilient ion nature.

 Having that huge base power of 13,000 is very hard for an opponent (whose not playing a crossride) to deal against. This skill enables the vanguard to surpass the ‘so-called magic numbers’ and extend up to 18k-23k power columns (without even being boosted yet), and force the opponent to guard with more units from his/her hand or from his/her front row rear-guards, ultimately draining and wasting all of his/her resources . And when there is a depletion of “resources” (units other than the Vanguard), there will be two (2) predicaments that any player will likely and unfortunately be facing: 1) Fewer number of units can used to guard against the opponent’s attacks, 2) Lesser number of units can be called to rear guards. No one ever wants to have themselves in either of these situations.

Why did crossrides exist?

To be honest I really don’t know, except the fact that they were the last and ultimate units of the main antagonist and the ‘second’ protagonist to be featured in the animated show of the card game. It would seem to be as an advertising strategy by Bushiroad to sell “very strong cards in the game” which would presumably make huge sales and has now lead to form the shape of the current metagame. Now, the meta is just composed of crossrides (especially in Japan wherein BT12 released several new crossride support to already pre-existing clans such as Palemoon and Dark Irregulars).

With the current sets bringing more Crossride units, the meta of the game is surely to be seen with more powerplays and the level of competition has been revved up to a higher level. Players will now have to adapt to this kind of play and will be forced to run crossride decks in order to cope up with the meta. In so far as the meta is to be concerned with these crossrides, it is predicted that this mechanic will surely prove to be a stepping stone to the future mechanics of the game, another seed which will soon give rise to new kinds of plays and power.

-kamiPrince39-

Vanguard 101: Limit Break

Whenever you are already down to five damage, it seems that hope is already lost and that there’s only a very thin chance of you turning the tide of the game and eventually winning it.  This is a predicament that any player would never want to be in. Fortunately, there came the mechanic of Limit Break. 

Photo owned by James Gabriel C. Garrido. This Photo is not to be used or be posted elsewhere without the owner's permission.

What is “Limit Break”?

The mechanic of Limit Break was first introduced when TD05 (Slash of Silver Wolf) and TD06 (Resonance of ThunderDragon) were released, together with BT06 Breaker of Limits. The two trial decks, which consisted of (and the debut of) the Gold Paladin clan (TD05) and the Narukami clan (TD06), were the very first clans to ever have the Limit Break mechanic and too, were the very first ones to use it in competitive play. Later sets then followed and gave Limit Break units to already existing clans and further expanded the meta of the game.

Limit Break is a mechanic of the game that enables a player to fully utilize the damage predicament of a player. It is a strong and dangerous ability which turns “good” vanguard units into devastating and destructive forces. What it does is that when a player is at four damage, an ability or skill becomes active. Usually these Limit Break skills are very broken or overpowered. Because of which, Limit Break grants the player a chance of still winning a game despite of the near loss situation that that player is maybe in. Cards like Blonde Ezel or Dragonic Kaiser Vermillion are such examples of units that are very dangerous when at Limit Break.

Of course there’s also a downside to this. Some units such as Spectral Duke Dragon are only strong and dangerous when their Limit Break is active. Otherwise, they are just vanguard units that remain there activating no skill whatsoever until only the player is at four damage. Waiting to be damaged doesn’t really sound as rational as it should be, knowing that you have to win as fast as you can and grab every opportunity that you are able to, to break your opponent badly.

But majority of these units (which have Limit Break) are in overall effective and dangerous. These cards can guarantee victory provided that they are also used properly and at their full potential. Limit Break has proven to be one of the factors that could affect how a deck totally works, and in a bigger view, how players win by them. So break past your limits and surpass thy boundary!

-kamiprince39-