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-

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-

Vanguard 101: Perfect Guards

Greetings fellow card fighters. Today we will be discussing about a type of card which is essential in playing better at this game. We will be discussing all about PERFECT GUARDS.

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

So what are Perfect Guards basically? Well, Perfect Guards or PG’s (as their title implies,) provide “PERFECT” or absolute DEFENSE or SHIELD. They are indicated by the Zero (0) numeral value on their shield icon (and are now distinctively distinguished by the gold shield which started post set 8 until the current sets) and all are RR in rarity. All Perfect guards so far are Grade 1 normal units with their normal boost ability and have 6000 base attack power. All PG’s also have the same cost (discard 1 card from your hand with the same clan as this unit) and only up four (4) copies of cards which have “sentinel” ability can only be brought in a deck.

(FUN FACT: “Perfect Guards” aren't officially called as it is by Bushiroad. They are formally known by the company to be “Sentinels” (the name of their ability indicated on their skill). In the animated series, they are called “Null Guards”. The former was only coined by players yet is now formally recognized in the Japanese animated series as the universal title (maybe due to its already tolerant popularity).

So what is the essence of these cards?

Well let us explain. When you guard against an opponent’s attack, it takes up so much units in your hand to be used as guards just to ensure that your opponent’s attack doesn't hit. Each turn you are losing more and more cards, while you only get to draw 2-3 cards per turn with your normal draws and drive check. This causes hand-card disadvantage and hand-card disadvantage is a huge factor in the game which can bring you to your own demise. Even with having abundant hand cards, players still need to play conservatively.

With Perfect Guards though, instead of losing 3-4 cards in guarding against an attack, you only lose 2 cards: the Perfect Guard itself and the card discarded for its cost. And what’s best about it is that it IS assured that the attack will not hit, unlike normal guarding which wastes so much and yet there’s still a chance for the attack to pass through if the attacking vanguard hits triggers and surpasses the total shield of the opponent. PG’s then offer two advantage points: 1.) Ensured protection, and 2.) Conserved hand-card advantage.

Perfect Guards, albeit useful and efficient, also impose a disadvantage factor to the player running it in his/her deck. 

Photo owned by Cardfight!! Vanguard Bushiroad (via ideal808.com). All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

In some decks, such as that of Blade Wing Reijys (Dark Irregulars) whose primary focus is to soul charge units to bulk up the soul and win games with their skills which are heavily based on soul quantity, PG’s provide only obstruction in the strategy of the deck. These builds carry only (if not all, then maybe most) cards which help in bulking up the soul to finish games quickly. PG’s which only provide absolute protection and have no assistance whatsoever in soul-feeding, will only slow down the pace of these decks and thus could even cause the loss for the player. This is the reason that some decks only bring 3 copies or none at all.

Also, if Perfect Guards are bought singly or online, these cards cost so much! These cards are very darn expensive due to their scarcity and very-hard to find nature in packs. This results in the inaccessibility of a player to it which is negatively appreciated.

Still, Perfect Guards are considered to be one of the very essential cards in playing the game. Despite their big price tags, they still provide convenience and efficiency especially during late games and there are only a small number of cards left to be played. Perfect guards are then still recommended. 

-kamiprince39-