2
As I said, this whole thing was written to help out Sean, and it's already done its purpose there. Now the idea is to generate discussion, so please discuss like crazy.
NOTE: Some of my formatting got destroyed porting this in from Word.
Worlds Analysis
By: Kenny Sisco
As we’ve always known, Worlds always mashes together the OCG and TCG formats, banning any exclusives to ensure a common card pool. This format has shown the true power of exclusives on both sides of the world, dramatically affecting the paces and decks of both the OCG and TCG formats. Without the exclusives, we realize that there will be no established tiers in the decks being built for the Worlds format. Predicting the meta will be key here, as side deck decisions will be very different based on the top tiers being selected.
We all know that formats often delve into a paper-rock-scissors form, with 3 decks constantly battling each other for the top spots, having strong match-ups against one, but not the other. Many people claim that Dino Rabbit is this format’s Rock, Wind-Ups the scissors, and Chaos Dragons the paper. It’s not going to be so clean-cut when you head into the Worlds format, and it’s going to be much more difficult to know what you’re facing intimately.
Format-Defining Cards Gone
Let’s take a look at the cards that are format-defining that will not be playable at Worlds (from a TCG perspective):
-Tour Guide from the Underworld
-Wind-Up Shark
-Adreus, Keeper of Armageddon
-Wind-Up Rabbit
-Evolzar Dolkka
-Inzektor Hopper
-Number 30: Acid Golem of Destruction
As well as some of the impactful cards that haven’t done well this format, but are still powerful:
-Photon Sabre Tiger
-Sea Lancer
-Reborn Tengu
-Orient Dragon
-Dark Smog
-Shadow of the Six Samurai – Shien
-Shooting Quasar Dragon
-Number 16: Shock Master
This hurts a lot of TCG decks and ideas. Tour Guide is a key card in a lot of decks (Dino Rabbit, Dark World, Wind-Ups). Wind-Up Shark is a necessity for Wind-Ups. Adreus is one of the best Rank 5s out there, and its banning really hurts the Rank 5 toolbox. Wind-Up Rabbit is an insane control card on its own, but is a necessity in Wind-Ups as well. Evolzar Dolkka is one of the key bosses in Dino Rabbit and arguably can be blamed for Inzektors not performing well at large events in the TCG. Inzektor Hopper helps give more options to Inzektors, opening up Photon Strike Bounzer to their Xyz toolbox as well as adding more consistency to the deck, making Centipede searches without Hornet possible. It also helps to get their engine moving when the opponent commits nothing to the field. Acid Golem has been a key player in the Rank 3 toolbox to get over large monsters and push for game-ending damage quickly. It also acts as an anti-Hope For Escape card; slowing down the Countdown deck and damaging other draw-heavy rogue decks.
Photon Sabre Tiger is one of the best floaters in the game (I could rant about this card for hours), and opens up countless options for any deck running Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning. Sea Lancer is THE card for Frog decks. Reborn Tengu…I’m not really sure why I mentioned it. It sucks at anything less than 3. Orient Dragon has proven several times to be a good answer to some tough synchros (like Stardust Dragon, which still sees play even in the “Xyz format.”). The loss of Dark Smog severely hinders the anti-meta capabilities of Dark World. Shadow of the Six really aids Sams in their current OTK abilities (though we all know that Gateway is the real culprit). Shooting Quasar Dragon has made synchro-heavy builds very fearsome, but the lack of consistent tuners has thankfully made this bad-boy below the top tiers. Shock Master is one of the best rank 4s in the game currently, allowing Gadgets to easily OTK through Gorz, Tragoedia, or backfields. It’s also handy in the Alive HERO build as well as anything else that can churn out level 4s easily.
Damaged TCG Decks
So now that I’ve done nothing but talk about obvious bullshit, let’s just compile a quick list of what is no longer viable going into the Worlds format:
-Dino Rabbit
-Wind-Ups
-Lancer Frogs
-Dark World
-Beasts
-Gadgets
-Synchrocentric
And a list of decks that take a hit, but may still be viable:
-Chaos Dragons
-Inzektors
Let’s analyze each of these individually.
Dino Rabbit
Losing Evolzar Dolkka really hurts this deck’s playability. The loss of Tour Guide makes it that much worse. We all know that the opening of Rabbit + Tour Guide is almost impossible to stop in the TCG. But to delve into this even further, we can actually add non-anecdotal evidence to how poorly it’ll perform by looking at the OCG. The only version of Rabbit that’s done well over there uses Sabersaurus and Verz. Verz are OCG-exclusive. Looking at the legal pool of Rank 4s, running this deck starts to look suddenly mediocre as the only good target is Laggia. Anyone that’s faced Dino Rabbit or used them knows how easy it is to bait its negation and follow-up. Not to mention Sean’s own side choice of Xing Zhen Hu to keep them from stopping the follow-up. The loss of Tour Guide also kills the recycling ability of Rabbit, which just puts the nail in the coffin. If Rescue Rabbit makes an appearance at Worlds, it’ll be a rogue variant (specifically V-HERO comes to mind, which I’ll touch on later).
Wind-Ups
The Wind-Up loop in and of itself is one of the best plays in the TCG, making Wind-Ups one of the most feared decks in the Western world. Without Tour Guide or Shark, however, the loop loses all consistency. You have to resort to the Loop-Up build, using Marauding Captain and Gilasaurus, which we’ve all seen time and time again fizzle apart. They loop and then lose all momentum. Wind-Up Shark also doubles as the best toolbox card in the archetype, and losing that option makes the deck that much less versatile, which is basically the only thing the deck has going for it. Beyond that, the loss of Wind-Up Rabbit makes the slow-roll control build of Wind-Ups just as impossible. This deck is dead in the Worlds format; nothing else to it.
Lancer Frogs
As we’ve all seen with Alan topping consistently with Frogs this entire format, they are a competitive deck to grant attention to. Unfortunately, they lose their recycling capability and a lot of re-usable effects such as Poison Draw Frog and Dupe Frog. As such, the consistency of this deck takes such a huge hit that it becomes a slow-roll monarch deck that can’t keep up with the current pace of the game.
Dark World
A lot of people will call me crazy for saying that this deck isn’t viable for Worlds, but hear me out. In the TCG, Tour Guide was showing her true potential in this deck. She was more than just a one-card Rank 3 in Dark Worlds. She was THE searcher of the deck that brought out the most ridiculous Grapha plays WHILE ALSO instantly making The Gates of Dark World live. She was single-handedly the most consistent enabler of the entire deck. Those that didn’t own Tour Guides ran Trance Archfiend to attempt to make up for the loss of consistency by adding another discard outlet. The main problem with that is that it’s damn near impossible to replace such a good card in that deck. Trance Archfiend itself also is fairly mediocre, as it doesn’t add any added consistency outside of the discard option. It doesn’t search the deck for any pieces, it makes Gates live, but at the cost of what sometimes is your only Dark World in-hand. Trance just really can’t stand up to the sheer force of Tour Guide. Outside of that, this still would have been a decent choice if Dark Smog were available as an anti-meta approach, but that is also lost. This forces the Dark World player into the turbo build just to keep up, which would struggle to keep the constant flow of advantage without the quick setup that Tour Guide offers. It would take Dark World too long to gain presence and setup consistently. In a few games, it’ll do insanely well, but there will be games where it loses to itself, which is non-conducive to the Worlds format environment.
Beasts
Beasts get a special mention just because it’s me writing this. With the addition of Photon Sabre Tiger back in Photon Shockwave, many players have moved over to find methods to make the deck upholster the shit out of it. Photon Sabre Tiger is one of the best floaters in the game right now, searching for itself and creating so much pressure that the opponent must either answer it quickly or lose 4000 life points to two back-to-back Tigers, forcing them into a corner of having to drop a power card (Dark Hole) or lose next turn, while the person using the Tiger still has a full hand of deadly resources. Add to that fact that Tiger is a Light and a Level 3, it easily creates a Rank 3 toolbox and enables Chaos monsters. Those using this guy often team it up with Wind-Up Rabbit to open up more advantage gains through Horn of the Phantom Beast as well as the sheer control of Wind-Up Rabbit itself. In the current TCG format, this deck has shown itself formidable by Wilson Tsang at YCS Long Beach, but he was forced to side into Wind-Ups in order to keep up with the pace of the TCG format. The Worlds format would be considerably slower, opening up the possibility of this deck doing well, but the fact that those two cards are key players in the deck marks it off the list of possibilities.
Gadgets
Gadgets are the slow-roll mathematical deck that constantly maintains advantage through heavy use of floaters and removal, forcing simplified game states and winning most grind matches. They notoriously have a bad match-up against Inzektors, however, and although they have made a decent return to the smaller metas of the TCG, it’s only because Shock Master is such a powerhouse. Without Shock Master, Gadgets go back to their former glory of getting raped by Inzektors and overall being out-paced by the OTK-heavy format. Most would think Gadgets could keep up in a slower format, but the fact that Inzektors aren’t taking a heavy hit for Worlds means that Gadgets will take an easy loss to them, costing you the World Championship.
Synchrocentric
I think this goes without saying, since the only synchro-heavy deck that’s been doing well this entire format was in the OCG, and it used OCG-exclusive Lavals to do so, I think it’s safe to say this deck won’t be a contender. The only Synchro-heavy decks that have seen play TCG-side needed Quasar to become that fearsome OTK, but with the lack of tuners in this format, they just lose too many options. This is easy to recognize, since the time of plants is far behind us, but I felt like it deserved a mention just because of Quasar.
Potential Decks of the Worlds Format
Although most of the decks of the TCG format are damage beyond use, there are still plenty of decks that have shown their faces throughout the format that could easily be viable. Not to mention that Inzektors and Chaos Dragons are still possible choices since their options aren’t heavily hit. Since lists are a common theme of this analysis, let’s make another one:
-Chaos Dragons
-Inzektors
-HERO Beat
-HERO Drain
-Alive HEROs
-V-HERO
-Gravekeepers
-Heiratics
-Final Countdown
-Chain Burn
-Six Samurai
-Anti-meta Chaos Control
-Watts (Yes, Watts)
-Karakuri
-Rogue
Note that this is what I consider to be the playing field for Worlds. You can actually read this list as what I feel like the Worlds meta will consist of. The only problem is predicting how much you’ll see of each deck. There could be one of each of these decks there, making it so that you’ll be ill-prepared no matter what you do. There could be an over-abundance of one specific deck, which could mean that you win or lose depending on how well you prepared for that one match-up. Either way, this is what I think we can expect to see there, and you should prepare accordingly.
Chaos Dragons
Chaos Dragons only lose Tour Guide in the Worlds format. Luckily, Tour Guide isn’t one of the key cards keeping that deck flowing. They are a powerhouse stream of large dragons, that just need consistent milling of lights and darks to maintain a constant stream of boss monsters, playing similarly to the Twilight decks of old. Tour Guide acted simply as a good dark to put in the deck that also opened up the Rank 3 toolbox to them, making them just that much more powerful. There are other dark options that could easily replace her and still allow the deck to perform well (Spirit Reaper and Doomcalibur Knight come to mind immediately). This deck does, however, have a notoriously bad match-up against Final Countdown and struggles against Inzektors. Its main attraction in the TCG was its very strong Rabbit match-up, which is no longer a concern in the World’s format. This could make Chaos Dragons a poor choice, effectively taking their best match-up out of the picture to have them stumble through other less-known match-ups. But on the other hand, it could be a strong choice if people aren’t expecting the aggression of the deck to show its face. This is going to require some testing and intuition. Keep in mind that Gravekeepers rip this deck apart, so if you do choose this deck, be sure to side deck accordingly.
Inzektors
Inzektors take one hit with the World’s format: Inzektor Hopper. TCG-side, we have proven that Hopper helps to add to the consistency of the deck while also opening up Rank 6 options with Ladybug. It also becomes the magic number of 2500 ATK while equipped with Sword, making it powerful enough to push over most of the big monsters in the TCG. The problem comes, however, with the format change to Worlds. We can easily see that Inzektors have become the best deck in the OCG this format without Inzektor Hopper, and Hopper was really only useful in countering the TCG meta. The TCG meta evolved quickly to squelch the Inzektor threat, with the fast move toward Dino Rabbit at the turn of the format. Evolzar Dolkka can arguably blamed for the failure of Inzektors TCG-side, but in smaller tournaments (such as locals or regionals), we can still see the power of good players behind Inzektors. Looking at the OCG, we can also see how impactful they are when easy answers for them aren’t out there like we have in the TCG. Let’s also not forget that Inzektors are the reason we moved to triple Effect Veiler in the main deck. This deck is very familiar to every qualified player entering Worlds coming from the OCG-side. It’s quite likely that a number of them are going to be choosing that deck, and we’ve all seen the terror that is the mirror match of Inzektors. Though I think Inzektors are much more powerful in the Worlds format than in the TCG currently, I still question whether they’re the right call. They’re undoubtedly the most anticipated deck, which also means that everyone’s main and side decks will be designed specifically to counter them. This could destroy you in Swiss, unless you find a way to stop the threat of the side deck. Let’s also note that Inzektors are a combo deck, so they are prone to some awful opening hands. A skilled player can play out of them, but it becomes a risk.
HERO Beat
HERO Beat has been a very good Tier 2 deck this entire format. My friend Omar piloted it to the Top 32 in the Central American WCQ (going undefeated in Swiss, losing to Gravekeepers in the top). It has also had at least one person top with it at every major YCS this format. The deck is consistent in its constant searching and removal, while having quick and easy access to boss monsters while disrupting you. Super Polymerization is one of the most feared cards in that deck for a reason, and Miracle Fusion is the best top-deck in that deck by far. They also have the added versatility of being able to side nearly any card they need, preparing them for any anticipated match-up. Their only really bad match-up is against Gravekeepers, since Necrovalley shuts down a lot of their options. The sheer versatility of this deck has made it a contender both in the TCG and in the OCG throughout this entire format, and it doesn’t take a single hit moving into the Worlds format. The key to being successful with this deck is the side deck, and preparing properly for the meta that it’s being used in. Without proper preparation, it’ll fall apart. Also, the deck itself has one glaring weakness: It can fall apart on its own in the grind matches. We’ve all seen HERO players top-deck into Gemini Spark without access to Neos Alius when they desperately needed an out to an aggressive field. It’s an excellent deck, but not without its flaws. I’d also like to briefly note that most of the cards that people side to counter Chaos Dragons also act as good side cards against this deck, allowing people to essentially prepare for two decks simultaneously (Soul Taker, Macro Cosmos). Let’s also note that the mirror match is very luck-based, often making Super Polymerization an easy game-winner for whoever draws it first.
HERO Drain
Take everything from the HERO Beat section and throw them in here. The only difference is this deck sacrifices a little consistency in favor of main decking 3 Skill Drain and Beast King Barbaros. This version is intended to be the more anti-meta flavor of the deck and can easily stomp on decks that depend on monster effects (read: Inzektors). A 3000 attack Barbaros can also give Dragons a run for their money, as they struggle to get over monsters that are actually bigger than they are. This deck still suffers from the same weaknesses as HERO Beat, however, with the added consistency problems. It’s not always enough to negate effects when their monsters still have decent attack.
Alive HEROs
This deck has yet to actually make its impact state-side, as it’s a risky HERO build that only recently popped up in the OCG. The deck moves away from its slow-roll control style into a fast-paced Xyz machine, using A Hero Lives. This makes them extremely explosive and more OTK-oriented while also making them more vulnerable due to the life point loss. What makes this deck truly fearsome is that it combines explosiveness with the versatility of HEROs in general. The deck still has access to all of the fusions and Super Polymerization while also having the ability to side deck accordingly for nearly any match-up. It’s the high-risk, high-reward deck of the Worlds format, and will undoubtedly see play. But the vulnerability of being at low life for most of the game can prove to be the downfall to the unlucky. This deck should definitely not be ignored, and should be heavily tested before deciding what to take with you to the tournament.
V-HERO
This is a less-known HERO variant that has only seen a small amount of representation, with most of its players going X-3 at YCSs TCG-side with it. It’s applicably named V-HERO after the person who invented it: Victor. The deck uses Rescue Rabbit with Kabazauls and Elemental HERO Sparkman to give the deck access to Laggia while also enabling Rank 4 plays into Blade Armor Ninja and the rest of the Hero engine. The deck also uses Fusion Gate, which is a power card in and of itself, since it allows its fusion targets to dodge Solemn Warning entirely. This variant can also run high amounts of hand traps, since Fusion Gate can easily make use of dead ones. I’m not advocating that this is the deck to take or the deck to even expect, since it’s been under the radar for pretty much the whole format (and has yet to show its performance), but being what seems to be a slower format in the Worlds tournament, this deck may stand a chance and is at least worth a look. If you’re just hoping to prepare properly for the deck, it shares weaknesses with the other HERO decks with the added inconsistency of low-attack normal monsters, making the grind match more difficult for them if they can’t draw into Fusion Gate.
Gravekeepers
This deck is getting a lot of hype for the Worlds format, due to Necrovalley itself. Gravekeepers are undoubtedly a very powerful control build that main-decks a lot of counters to the expected meta. Behind a skilled player, this deck can make quick work of Chaos Dragons, Inzektors (if they don’t open multiple Hornet), and HEROs. The primary downside to Gravekeepers, though, is that every single game is a grind game. They have no boss monsters to speak of, and focus heavily on controlling the tempo of the game. Once they lose control, they fall apart. They also run very trap-heavy builds, making them susceptiple to Decree and Jinzo. I’d also like to note that skilled players that sit behind Gravekeepers (including Tyler Tabman) have stated that Gravekeepers have really no bad match-ups so-to-speak, but they only go 50-60% back-and-forth in every match-up. They’re universally good, but don’t consistently beat many decks out there. This makes them probably the most consistent deck out there, but could also mean that they’ll lose to a lucky duelist. In a 5-round tournament, that may be a less-appealing factor. This deck’s primary appeal comes in Necrovalley and Royal Tribute, though, both of which can single-handedly win games. Common side cards against them are Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror and Royal Decree, both of which make this deck fall apart at the seams.
Heiratics
Heiratics have made a huge splash in the OCG with their easy OTK using Gustav Max. We haven’t had access to Gustav yet in the TCG, and he’s also illegal for use at Worlds, so we’re basically looking at the TCG version of this deck in the Worlds format. This deck has been piloted to some success, with its explosive combos, common use of hand traps (making it strong against Inzektors), and OTK combos outside of Gustav Max. The reason it hasn’t done better TCG-side, however, is that it’s insanely vulnerable after it goes off. Players will often Veiler the first Atum, forcing the player into a Gaia Dragon -> Attack -> Pass play while they wait for combo pieces again. Other players will Maxx “C” into the attempt to go off, allowing them to dig for anti-OTK answers such as Battle Fader, Tragoedia, or Gorz, giving them the opportunity to follow-up against the Heiratic player and watch them crumble and put their combo pieces back together, often costing the Heiratic player the game. Other times, the Heiratic player will go off but not be able to OTK, allowing the opponent to follow-up with a Dark Hole, essentially stopping the Heiratic player in his/her tracks, allowing the opponent to counter attack and take the game. Heiratics are the glass cannons of the format. They’re extremely powerful if not disrupted, but very fragile. Royal Tribute is also an instant-scoop in most cases.
Final Countdown
A lot of players are speculating that this is the best deck to play for Worlds. Others are speculating that its success can only be attributed to the surprise factor of it. Final Countdown has a lot of things going for it, especially its strong match-up against Chaos Dragons. The only problem is how it wins. I like to call this deck the “shark” of the format, as the Countdown player’s goal is to let game 1 drag on as long as possible, so that they can go into time in game 3. They will take as long as allowed to even show up to the table before taking a game loss. They will also take as long as possible to shuffle each player’s deck, side deck in between games, and make decisions during the game. As a Countdown player, if you go into time and aren’t playing against Burn, you are going to win. It’s that easy. Chaos Dragons have such a weak match-up against it that the TCG players have even opted to scoop game 1 as soon as they see that it’s Countdown, allowing them to immediately get the Decrees in for game 2 and trying to win games 2 and 3, as game 1 is nigh-impossible and just wastes time. Final Countdown’s match-ups against all of the other listed decks at the beginning of this section are also pretty strong, save for 2: Samurais and Chain Burn. Final Countdown loses to Shi En, as it’ll force the Countdown player to use 2 stall cards per turn, beating them in the resource game. And Countdown can’t beat Burn. Period. This is a morally-risky deck to take, as judges can force you into playing faster, making it easy for the opponent to quickly move through the games and keep you from going to time, allowing their side deck to counter you properly. Those that aren’t prepared for this deck will suffer for it, though, that much is guaranteed.
Chain Burn
This deck should probably fall under “Rogue,” but it’s been piloted to some success, so I feel it deserves a mention. This deck essentially plays solitaire. The goal is to draw into your burn cards quickly and keep a Scarecrow in reserve to stay alive while you dig to said burn cards. The key player is easily Ojama Trio, keeping the opponent from putting lethal damage on the board while also setting up your best burn cards. The problem with this deck is how it’s easily countered. If it catches opponents unprepared, it’ll win every time (unless it’s Samurais, in which case you just shake their hand for running Shi En and walk away). But catching an opponent off-guard at Worlds is unlikely, especially with all of the attention that Final Countdown has been getting. The two decks lose to the same cards, and Chain Burn has a bigger weakness: running less stall cards. This means that aggressive decks can simply play the “Race to the Finish” game with you and win. With Chaos Dragons and Heiratics as options in this meta, Chain Burn’s success will be very dependent on luck.
Six Samurai
This deck, thankfully, is a shadow of its former self. With Gateway at 1, this deck takes a hefty consistency hit, but as we’ve seen with the Central American WCQ: It’s still competitive. With the release of the structure deck recently, this deck has seen a huge boost in play once again, and has still proven to be a decent contender. Samurais can churn out Shi En like crazy, making us all thankful that Shi En is Limited now. Add to the fact that they have access to every Naturia synchro, and these guys are still formidable. There is the case, however, that this deck has a weak match-up to Inzektors and Chaos Dragons. The Samurai player has to expend a lot of resources to get past the large ATK monsters that Dragons churn out, and Inzektors just rip their setups to shreds. The Samurai player can, of course, side deck to make those matches a little easier, but it doesn’t correct the inherent weakness. The primary draw to this deck comes in how it demolishes rogue decks, rips Countdown to pieces, doesn’t give a damn about Gravekeepers, and can still toolbox Synchro monsters better than any other deck right now. We will undoubtedly see the Central American champion running these again (as he always does), but outside of that, I’m not sure if this is the right call for Worlds, due strictly to the popularity of Inzektors in the OCG.
Anti-Meta Chaos Control
Anti-meta decks always pop up in every format. This specific deck takes advantage of Thunder King Rai-Oh and Doomcaliber Knight to stun the opponent and setup for Chaos boss monsters. The deck itself focuses entirely on properly predicting the meta, and with its access to Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer as a main deck choice, it may perform well at Worlds. The main question is whether or not it has the speed to keep up. Every anti-meta deck has the glaring weakness of being slower than the rest. It is intended to slow the opposing decks down to play at its own speed, but if it fails to do that, it falls apart. It also falls apart to Rogue decks, as it is designed specifically to counter the decks dominating the meta. In an unpredictable meta such as this, it may be more likely to run into a match-up that it is ill-prepared for, causing an easy loss. I feel, however, that this deck is worth testing at the very least, to see if it can keep up at all against the expected decks. If it can’t even keep up with Inzektors or Chaos Dragons, then it’s not worth playing.
Watts
These guys get a mention for one reason only: They performed well at a single event in Europe. Watts are an under-the-radar deck, as most people are unfamiliar with them. As such, it makes it easy to force your opponent into misplaying against them. The Watthopper Lock is the only thing the deck has going for it (and I suppose Wattgiraffe deserves a special mention for allowing main phase 2 unhindered setups), which is nigh-unbeatable when it is in place. The only answers then become Torrential Tribute and Dark Hole, as you have to be able to destroy them without targeting them. The other Watt monsters act as pseudo-protection from Smashing Ground just by having defense points, and smart play makes it possible to dodge Mirror Force and Dimensional Prison. Add to the fact that the deck runs Dark Bribe and The Huge Revolution is Over (simply because it’s more reliable than Starlight Road), and suddenly that lock is a game-ender. The problem is getting the lock out. If the opponent can keep you from getting the two Hoppers out, then they will win. Thunder King spells doom for Wattcobra, and Inzektors wipe the deck out pre-lock. But if you can get a Dragonfly down with a Hopper in-hand, you can easily lock on turn 2. Wattgiraffe gets a second mention simply because it’s such an amazing card. A common misconception, though, is that Giraffe stops Gorz/Trag in their tracks, which is not entirely true. Giraffe is a trigger effect that activates at the same time as Gorz/Trag, so they can form a chain with Giraffe. Giraffe, however, does stop Gorz/Trag on other attacks. Giraffe also stops Gorz from summoning a token, as that happens in a separate chain. This deck requires a strong pilot and a little luck to get to the lock as soon as possible, but as shown in Europe can still be formidable, especially in a small tournament environment such as this.
Karakuri
Karakuri are being talked about a lot right now for Worlds, since their two worst match-ups have been effectively eliminated from this tournament: Wind-Ups and Dino Rabbit. Karakuri have explosive capabilities, access to Naturia synchros, searchers galore, and the ability to generate advantage and push over bigger monsters like crazy. Jeff Jones piloted them to top 8 success last format because of this. The primary issue behind Karakuri in this format is also the popularity of Inzektors. Karakuri don’t consistently OTK, they just consistently put a lot of pressure on the opponent. If they don’t OTK, they often leave a lot of fuel out there for Hornet to go crazy. Karakuri also have a large weakness to Effect Veiler. Using Veiler on a Burei or Bureido can leave a Karakuri player left as a sitting duck, leaving them open to be demolished by the opponent on the next turn. But with a proper trap line-up and effect preparation, they can be a prevalent force, and they definitely deserve some attention.
Rogue
Rogue decks are always prevalent in every tournament. They’re almost impossible to prepare for, but convincing a champion-level player to use one is almost just as impossible. Rogue decks usually suffer from consistency issues and have glaring weaknesses. They rely entirely on catching the opponent off-guard and feeding off of their ignorance against the deck. Luckily, this is Sean we’re talking about, and he’s seen nearly everything out there. I don’t think running a Rogue deck in this format is a good idea, but who knows what crazy shit people think up?
Tech Choices
I really want to go off on a long list of cards that I think will perform well as tech in this format, but after beginning to write them all out, they’re pretty obvious. I just want to briefly note that Vanity’s Emptiness in an anti-meta chaos build has potential. Beyond that, nothing fancy. This is where your skill shines brighter!
