Twisted Maple Trees

                   (If You Want A Clearer Picture In Mind)

Is Nekroz of Sophia worth playing? A hard question to answer indeed. The nifty Vanity-esque effect from hand is hard to pass off since all Nekroz Spells currently available allows you to fetch another Spell for free. It is kinda sick to able to waste opponent’s Mask Change or Shaddoll Fusion. The fact that Nekroz has the option to run a one-sided hand trap version of Archlord Krystia which is searchable through Nekroz of Brionac is downright demoralizing. However, by relying on Sophia’s effect players effectively bear the cost of constantly depleting their resources to gain temporary control. It’s a known fact that most Nekroz pilots run only six Ritual Spells in the current competitive scene. To incorporate Nekroz of Sophia into your arsenal might see that you increase the amount of Spells played which one way or another brings upon the predicament of opening or drawing into dead cards.

Assuming players utilizes Nekroz of Sophia with six Ritual Spells in their deck, indirectly they are forced to play a rush or OTK style due to the limitations with resources. No doubt the control option is available but the lack of resources will begin to creep in once the match enters midlife or late-game (not accounting for the nuts the opposition could possibly have yet. ) For what it’s worth, at the very least, Sophia is a magnificent last resort with her Trigger Effect. Who doesn’t like a clean slate really? Though, again, choosing to make this move pushes you further into a corner when you are already in deep shit. So far the cons weigh much heavier than the pros. One thing to notice is how much Sophia’s Quick Effect simplifies the game stage with one-for-one trades or an early minus later turning into a plus (stopping Exceed/Synchro  plays and running over weak monsters during your turn.) IF there is no Main Phase 2 involved. Truth be told, having an Effect Veiler or Maxx "C" would warrant a safer bet. 

What I am thankful for is this card requires tributes belonging to different types from the field and don’t come with the usual Nekroz Monster privilege of being free. Also, having additional clause of preventing Normal and Special Summons after activating it’s Trigger Effect is a good curb. Good job on Konami’s part for keeping the card design healthy. Calling the thought of dealing with Sophia that is accessible through Nekroz Kaleidomirror or Nekroz Cycle a mind-fuck is perhaps an understatement. But I admit it is regrettable as well since it would have propelled Nekroz mirror matches to a different level (skills and whatnots.) Conclusion, would I play Nekroz of Sophia? Yes, probably as a tech or at two. The answer to “is it worth playing question” though depends entirely on individual perspectives. Put on your thinking cap I suppose? Once again, thank you for spending time here and I hope you enjoyed the article!

To Where My Shoe Points

                  (Greatest Story Ever Told By Green Goblins)

Prepared Explosives is one of those cunning cards you see once in awhile. On first glance, it seems to be another new addition to Chain Burn strategies. With more strategies disregarding Life Points to obtain their winning conditions, Prepared Explosives’ effectiveness deserves some mention regardless whether it makes its debut in the competitive scene or not. Chipping away Life Points from decks like Qliphorts or Heroes is always a good thing since it allows big pushes to be feared more in accounts of surprise burns. Sort of like how Satellarknight Sham plays a role in their strategy, this card provides you with the option of added pressure towards your opponent’s decision making. 300 chips for each card they control can build up to be quite massive since Meta strategies nowadays usually comes with huge front or back rows.

With an additional effect of stealing 1000 Life Points when it is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard makes Prepared Explosives a silent scammer if you will. Robbing off opponent’s Mystical Space Typhoon, Harpie’s Feather Duster and LPs seems like a sweet deal (chain it to MST/Duster snatches 1300 LPs effortlessly.)  Sounds like a possible game ender maybe? That would be exaggerating but nonetheless an option when one chooses to utilize Prepared Explosives in such manner. But where this card truly shines as a tech side is during late-game or Sudden Death/Extra Turn stages. Players are more likely to commit onto their board to either push for damage or bluff for control (setting fake back rows) making Prepared Explosives a huge surprise when resolved successfully. Similar to how top players siding Rainbow Life to counter OTKs or simply to gain Life Point advantage, Prepared Explosives gives you the ability to further deplete opponent’s LPs. Perhaps a better example to compare Explosives to would be Gagaga Gunman.

This card is a simplified version of Gagaga Gunman’s effect and Rainbow Life’s main objective. Albeit it isn’t as versatile as Rainbow Life or Threatening Roar when it comes to tactics and functions but it is an easier card to use during said stages of the match. Whether or not it could be as good as theory says depends entirely of timing. However, taking in account of turn limitations during Sudden Death, pressure can be a big contributor in deciding the victor. Any extra damage is always welcomed. Somehow I like the idea of screwing with people’s mind during Sudden Death stages. Commit and risk getting burned for nothing, don’t commit opponent rushes for colossal amount of damage. Do you think it’s worth siding? Leave your opinions below and thank you for reading!

Talking Reptiles

Why did Heavy Storm got banned in the OCG? One word, Qliphorts. It sounds ridiculous however it does not change the fact that Storm can easily become one of Qliphorts’ nuts or simply put winning condition. The scenario can be a traditional Storm-OTK or more complex plays like blowing your own Saqlifice and searching whatever outs necessary at that particular moment which inevitably leads back to an One-Turn-Kill. How Qliphorts can easily break-even with Qliphort Scout or Saqlifice after Storm hits the field is probably another reason why Heavy Storm got the hammer. Whether it is grind or going in for the kill, Qliphorts profits more from Storm. Ultimately, Heavy Storm is a combo enabler for Qliphorts (Pendulum Scales going into Extra Deck instead of Graveyard, very comical indeed.)

Going further into this topic of discussion, why wasn’t Giant Trunade brought back instead of Harpie’s Feather Duster? Bringing back Trunade doesn’t help in any way and perhaps could hurt the competitive scene even more thanks to the popularity of continuous Spell and Trap cards these days. Taking Qliphorts as an example again, activate Scout and then Trunade it back for another activation gives the controller two “free” cards that can lead to a number of different scenarios. Of course, assuming there is no response to Scout’s activation. Recycling cards like Fire Formation-Tenki or Call of the Haunted for more pluses can be quite cancerous as well or the mere use of Trunade to disable whatever floodgate cards you have activated, combo off, and set them back, is just sick. In a way, Giant Trunade doesn’t provide any balance for the game.

That is why Harpie’s Feather Duster is a necessary evil. Yes, it is one-sided but at the very least it gives off that fear factor which Heavy Storm has so gladly held all these ages. The mere existence of Duster puts off the idea of degenerate plays like what we saw with Dino Rabbits or Verz. Power moves of similar pattern are still particularly common that is why players should be thankful for Duster. When you are not at the receiving end that is. It will take awhile before most attune themselves with the psychological block Harpie’s Feather Duster instills and that’s where we differentiate amateurs and pros I suppose (agree to disagree?) So in the end why did Konami brought back Duster? The answer is simple, there is no other option. At least until they design another Spell card with functions and impacts akin to Storm and Duster (sounds like a waste of time?)

Personally, I voted for Cold Wave instead of Giant Trunade or Harpie’s Feather Duster. But applying the same logic as Trunade, I don’t see how Cold Wave can balance the scales. It’s basically do-or-die with Wave or Trunade. One easy example would be a combo deck getting slammed by Maxx “C”. Now would you really want to be put under such circumstances? Having said that, there are “cute” plays with Cold Wave that could possibly balance off the board. For example, Evilswarm Exciton Knight. But such tactics are rather situational and if you need to pull it practically means you are already behind so it ends up being a do-or-die scenario (and Effect Veiler completely breaks you.) The additional clause of not being able to play Spells after activating Cold Wave is suicidal not to mention. What the hell are Shaddoll, Heroes, or Nekroz suppose to do after Cold Waving? Here’s my two cents. Thank you for taking the time to read! Please comment if you have anything to add. Thank you again!

Taming Monkeys

Experience and instincts, to be honest, they are bastard stepparents you wish you never had. Here's the problem with experience, you only get it after you need it. It doesn't help you right now and it only teaches you enough to help you the next time. I'm talking about the kind of experience that comes from having hot hands then go on tilt and finally you tip over the fucking toilet flushing down three stacks of high society moments earlier was lining up in front of you. The kind that tells you if your girlfriend pushes you to “unnecessary” directions, decisions there is probably a good reason but you're too dumb to comprehend at that moment.

And then there's instincts. It's like catching a glimpse at that big right hook swinging from your blind spot. You see it coming, at the same time, you can't do jackshit about it and the next thing you know you're smacked face down onto that cold rough asphalt. You know, the kind that makes you queasy like De La Hoya walking back into Pacquiao. Like that time you didn't study for your “future defining” finals and you think the answer is A but your instincts tells you it's B and you're left hanging dry eventually you close your eyes, breathe, tap into your inner psyche, and you visualize a clear C in your mind. Yeah, we all know how that ends.

The point is victory loves preparation (Amat Victoria Curam.) That's where you can relate all this with Yugioh. You probably heard it a million times before about how play-testing is half the battle won and all that other whatnots. The truth is, play-testing is important because that is where you can comfortably fail with the least of consequences (or cost.) When you scrubbed a tournament  and try to comfort yourself by saying "It's alright at least i gained new experiences." is probably the worst kind of self-pity and justification you can feed yourself. Hey, K'yde i still don't see your point here! It's simple, experience and instincts they don't help you with today, only with tomorrow.

There is no other way around it. That's where play-testing comes into the equation. Learn everything you can about your enemy (the Meta) and yourself (your deck of choice) during testing stages. Since experiences and instincts only help you with decision-making tomorrow choose to fail today when the cost is low compared to tomorrow when the cost is higher. Albeit there is always the caveat where luck plays a part, however, through experiences and instincts you learn how to deal with it. Or at rare times feel the storm coming before it hits. Remember that time when you wanted to make "IMBA PLAY-A" but your guts can't shut up about "IMBA PLAY-B"? How do you decide? The only rational, logical answer comes from personal experience whether or not to trust your instincts or go with the textbook best play. Either way, you only gains all these insights through experiences.

If you are a competitive player, this is not even a choice. Ask any business-minded people and they’ll tell you investing early is key. Not when the bubble burst. In short, failing early teaches you how to use your brain and when to trust your heart. If you’re gonna suck during play-testing not when you are making a run for a title. Thank you for reading! I'm still unsure what to write about for my next post and if you have any requests please leave them down on the comments section. Will see if i am capable of tackling your topic of choice. Thank you again!

To Be A Noob

Hi, my  name is K’yde. How are you? It’s been awhile since I wrote anything. To keep it short, 2014 hasn’t been a pretty year for Yugioh in Malaysia. Apart from all the new updates on the game mechanics, plenty of major tournaments were scratched off from our tournament schedule. Namely World Championship Qualifiers and Top Store. So it was sorta a semi-competitive year for me (went back to music and such.) Anyway, I am back playing Dueling Network with a new account and as usual that place is infested with people who are a waste of time. We all know that feeling when it happens so let’s start of 2015 with some laughs. Here is Digital Mortal’s guide on being a noob on Dueling Network.  

PLAY CANCER DECKS

Or “creative/innovative/different” decks. Probably the most important rule of being a noob, or troll. It’s kinda like a trademark I should say and the more cancerous it is the better. Underlining self-justification for this action, simple, if you win it’s all about skills and has nothing to do with luck. When you lose, it’s because your opponent was piloting a Meta deck and probably opened broken. Nothing funny unfortunately.

ARGUE LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT

Always argue no matter what the case (whether you are right or wrong.) The more trivial the argument the better. For example, Compulsory Evacuation Device or Phoenix Wing Wind Blast does not affect Extra Deck Monsters since they cannot be returned to hand. Yes, you get the picture. Be as creative as you can in this department. Moving on;

SWEAR AND BELITTLE YOUR VICTIMS

This point comes hand-in-hand with arguing. Make sure you call your opponent names and use derogatory terms as much as you can. Adopting a cancerous attitude is probably the best way to practice this point. You know, live it to be it, change how you think change your life, or whatever floats your boat.

QUIT WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH

One of the best way to annoy people who are looking to play-test or want to play actual Yugioh. Whenever you find yourself in a tough spot, fight-or-flight mode, always and I mean ALWAYS opt for flight. Whenever your opponent goes into divine performance, run.

CHEAT, CHEAT, CHEAT, AND CHEAT

You know, summon Phantom Skyblaster and go into Number 16: Shock Master (competitive Yugioh sucks I can’t believe no one thought about this!) or activate some draw spell but disregard the cost or how it works (be sure to draw additional.) You get the picture. There are plenty more of  Game Shark cheats. Readers please contribute/brainstorm by commenting below. Thank you!

PRETEND YOU ARE RETARDED

Join games that specifically says NO NOOBS, PLAY-TESTING (INSERT DECK NAME), and so on. This is the best way to put all the above points into practical use.

What’s the upside of being a noob on Dueling Network? It’s like having one-sided sex. You have all the fun and leave your “opposition” with a bad aftertaste. Please make sure to troll to the max, waste as much time as you can, and be as retarded as your brain premits. There goes today’s post peeps. Make sure you try it out and share your experience here. Not being able to play Advance using OCG List is definitely a drag. Thank you for reading and happy noobing!