Gagaga Magician (GENF-EN001)

Card:  GENF-EN001
Card Name:  Gagaga Magician
Attribute:  Dark
Level/Rank:  4
Type:  Spellcaster/Effect
ATK:  1500
DEF:  1000

Card Text:
Once per turn, during your Main Phase: You can declare a Level from 1 to 8; this card becomes that Level until the End Phase.  You can only control 1 face-up "Gagaga Magician".  This card cannot be used as a Synchro Material Monster.

Personal Comment:

Go out and get this card...now!  If you are dueling and intend to use Xyz Monsters this card is absolutely essential.  It was made to easily bring out Xyz Monsters or meet level requirements for Ritual Monsters.  There are only a few cards out there that have the ability to change levels (one of my favorite is Fabled Raven) and be as versatile as this monster.  The restriction of only controlling 1 face-up "Gagaga Magician" won't be a problem once Gagaga Girl is released in the Order Of Chaos Booster Pack which is due out in January.  Her ability to match the level of Gagaga Magician will essentially make Xyz Summoning a snap (especially for Xyz Monsters that require 3 monsters).  So lets say you want to summon Number 83: Galaxy Queen (which requires 3 Level 1 monsters).  Play a level 1 monster, have Gagaga Magician copy that level, then have Gagaga Girl copy Gagaga Magician.  Wham!!!  3 level 1 monsters.  Just think if they ever make an Xyz Monster that requires 3 Level 8 monsters.  The summoning would be just as easy.  Now you know why you need to go out and get this card.

Personal Rating:
Artwork - 7/10
Power - 7/10 (his stats aren't as important as his effect)
Easy To Play - 7/10
Collectable - 7/10
Overall Score - 7/10

Rescue Rabbit (PHSW-EN037)

Card:  PHSW-EN037
Card Name:  Rescue Rabbit
Attribute:  Earth
Level/Rank:  4
Type:  Beast/Effect
ATK:  300
DEF:  100

Card Text:
This card cannot be Special Summoned from the Deck.  You can banish this face-up card you control; Special Summon 2 Level 4 or lower Normal Monsters with the same name from your Deck.  Destroy them during the End Phase.  The effect of "Rescue Rabbit" can only be activated once per turn.

Personal Comment:

Not only is Rescue Rabbit the best card to come out of Photon Shockwave, it might be one of the best card ever (right up there with Tour Guide From The Underworld).  Currently it is selling for more than $100 and every duelist wants it in their deck.  The difference this card makes is so significant that "having it" versus "not having it" will determine the outcome of a duel.  Even the 3 stipulations to prevent this card from being too powerful does absolutely nothing to hold it back.

1.  This card cannot be Special Summoned from the Deck.
Not a big deal.  He's going to end up in your hand or Graveyard soon enough for you to get him in play.  It's a Level 4 card so there's no need for a Tribute or anything of the sort.  This is the most basic play possible.

2.  Destroy the 2 monsters you Special Summoned at the End Phase.
The 2 monsters will be used up before the End Phase as part of another Special Summon.  Why else would you bring them into play?

3.  The effect of "Rescue Rabbit" can only be activated once per turn.
Excuse me?  It should be once per game!!!

The example of how to use Rescue Rabbit is one I'm sure everyone has heard about.  Get Rescue Rabbit on the field face-up.  Banish him and Special Summon two Alexandrite Dragon from your Deck.  Tribute the Two Alexandrite Dragon to Special Summon Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon.  Before your opponent can even blink you have on the field a Level 8 Monster with 3000 ATK and 2500 DEF that is nearly impossible to destroy.  Rescue Rabbit is one of the most game-changing and broken card to ever to be released.  If you have this card use it while you can.  I can't imagine it not being banned or limited soon.

Personal Rating:
Artwork - 9/10
Power - 10/10 (for what it can do...not for its stats)
Easy To Play - 9/10
Collectable - 10/10 (if it gets banned or limited this rating will drop)
Overall Score - 9.5/10

Vennominaga The Deity Of Poisonous Snakes (TAEV-EN013)

Card:  TAEV-EN013
Card Name:  Vennominaga The Deity Of Poisonous Snakes
Attribute:  Dark
Level/Rank:  10
Type:  Reptile/Effect
ATK:  0
DEF:  0

Card Text:
This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set.  This card cannot be Special Summoned except with its own effect or with "Rise of the Snake Deity".  This card gains 500 ATK for each Reptile-Type monster in your Graveyard.  This card cannot be targeted and is unaffected by the effects of other Monsters, Spells, and Traps.  When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard, you can remove from play 1 other Reptile-Type monster from your Graveyard to Special Summon this card.  When this card inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent, place 1 Hyper-Venom Counter on it.  When 3 Hyper-Venom Counters are on this card, you win the Duel.

Personal Comment:

This is my 50th post so I wanted to feature a card that truly is one of the best in the game and rarest to own.  With the release of Legendary Collection 2 everybody can now afford to run this card (LCGX-EN191) but having the 1st Edition (TAEV-EN013) makes it that much more special to my collection.  This post is going to be longer than most because it is one of my favorite card to duel with.

Deck Type:

Vennominaga The Deity Of Poisonous Snakes needs to be ran in a Reptile-Type deck specifically built around her.  In order to maximize the deck's potential it has to accomplish two key objectives: (1) the deck needs to be able to easily summon her and (2) it needs to get large amounts of Reptile-Type Monsters into the Graveyard quickly.  If you are successful at doing both it will be one of the most competitive decks you can bring into a duel.

Archetypes That Are Reptile specific:
- Alien
- Reptillianne
- Worm

Summoning:

To bring Vennominaga into play (initially) you need to set the Trap card "Rise of the Snake Deity" and have "Vennominon the King of Poisonous Snakes" destroyed for it to active.  This isn't a very hard summoning requirement and the fact that she can be summoned from your hand or deck makes a significant difference (no need to search your deck for this card).  The text for the Trap card "Rise of the Snake Deity" is the following...

Active only when a face-up "Vennominon the King of Poisonous Snakes" you control is destroyed.  Special Summon 1 "Vennominaga the Deity of Poisonous Snakes" from your hand or deck.

Here are two (of many) ways to accomplish this Special Summon...

- Use "Damage = Reptile" to get Vennominon onto the field.  Active "Offering To The Snake Deity" to destroy Vennominon which then activates "Rise of the Snake Deity".

- Use "Snake Rain" to get Vennominon into the Graveyard.  Special Summon Vennominon from the Graveyard with "Viper's Rebirth" which automatically destroys it during the End Phase.  Activate "Rise of the Snake Deity".

Once In Play:

Vennominaga can't be targeted and is immune to the effects of other Monsters, Spells, and Traps.  This makes it nearly impossible for your opponent to remove her from the field using other methods besides ATK brute force.  Because of this, ideally you want Vennominaga to hit the field when your Graveyard has about 6 (or more) Reptile-Type monsters to boost her ATK to 3000 (at a minimum you want her ATK to be greater than any of your opponent's monster currently in play).  That should be enough to hold off your opponent a few rounds so you can keep dumping Reptile-Type monsters in your Graveyard to keep powering her up.  Also activate the Trap card "Imperial Iron Wall" to prevent these cards from being removed from play which would weaken her ATK.  Even if your opponent is successful at destroying her in battle, her effect lets you remove a Reptile-Type monster from your Graveyard to Special Summon her back onto the field (this won't work if you still have Imperial Iron Wall activated).  But if you use this effect she will come back 500 ATK weaker than before because a Reptile-Type monster was removed from the Graveyard.

The final part of Vennominaga's effect is so powerful that very few cards in the Yugioh dueling world can match its might (besides Exodia The Forbidden One).  The ability to automatically win a duel gives you a chance at victory no matter what kind of deck your opponent is using.  On top of that, this is a lot easier than gathering the 5 pieces of Exodia.  When you inflict Battle Damage to your opponent, place 1 Hyper-Venom Counter on Vennominaga.  When she has 3 Hyper-Venom Counters you win the duel.  Done!

Cards Essential For A Vennominaga Deck:

- Rise Of The Snake Deity
- Viper's Rebirth
- Snake Rain
- Damage = Reptile
- Offering To The Snake Deity
- Snake Deity's Command
- Snake Whistle
- Venom Shot
- Card Destruction
- Imperial Iron Wall

Personal Rating:
Artwork - 10/10
Power - 10/10
Easy To Play - 7/10
Collectable - 10/10
Overall Score - 9.25/10

Number 20: Giga-Brilliant (PHSW-EN042)

Card:  PHSW-EN042
Card Name:  Number 20: Giga-Brilliant
Attribute:  Light
Level/Rank:  3
Type:  Insect/Xyz/Effect
ATK:  1800
DEF:  1800

Card Text:
2 Level 3 monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; all face-up monsters you currently control gain 300 ATK.

Personal Comment:

Another great Xyz Monster from the Photon Shockwave release, Number 20: Giga-Brilliant is a support card that can give you that slight edge in winning a duel.  The summoning requirement is simple and it can be ran in virtually any deck (I don't know of any deck that doesn't have Level 3 Monsters).  The question is which is a better card...Number 20: Giga Brilliant or Number 17: Leviathan Dragon?

Attribute:
Giga-Brilliant - Light
Leviathan Dragon - Water
Winner - Giga-Brilliant.  This is the first Light Xyz Monster and can be played in more decks.

Level:
Giga-Brilliant - 3
Leviathan Dragon - 3
Winner - Push

Summoning Requirement:
Giga-Brilliant - 2 Level 3 monsters
Leviathan Dragon - 2 Level 3 monsters
Winner - Push

Stats:
Giga-Brilliant - 1800 ATK, 1800 DEF
Leviathan Dragon - 2000 ATK, 0 DEF
Winner - Leviathan Dragon.  The extra ATK will help it stay on the field longer.

Effect (these are lingering effects so the ATK increase are cumalative):
Giga-Brilliant - Once per turn: you can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; all face-up monsters you currently control gain 300 ATK.
Leviathan Dragon - Once per turn: you can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; this card gains 500 ATK.  If this card has no Xyz Materials, it cannot attack your opponent directly.
Winner - Push (this all depends on the situation during the duel)

So which card is better?  There's no correct answer (that's not the answer some are looking for but it's the honest truth).  Which card you play depends on what you want to accomplish.  If you're swarming the field with monsters, using Giga-Brilliant to boost all your monster's ATK by 300 (600 if you can detach the second Xyz Material) is absolutely brutal for an opponent to deal with.  However, the additional 500 ATK (1000 if you can detach the second Xyz Material) that Leviathan Dragon brings into play can take out most beat stick monsters your opponent might throw at you.  So whichever card you decide to run, have the other one in your side deck so you can adjust accordingly.  Don't run them both since summoning one will make it tougher to summon the other.  Both are great cards...that much I can say with certainty.

Personal Rating:
Artwork - 8/10
Power - 7/10
Easy To Play - 8/10
Collectable - 6/10
Overall Score - 7.25/10

Yugioh Deck - Lost Sanctuary

I've been asked by several readers to help them build a competitive Lost Sanctuary deck at minimal cost.  So here's what I came up with for the Main Deck.  Of course you should have more cards in your Side Deck to adjust accordingly to your opponent but this Main Deck is a pretty solid foundation to go up against anybody.

- I tried to stick to the Lost Sanctuary Structure Deck as closely as possible.
- 40 card minimum/maximum (add more if you want but I try to stick with 40).
- Archlord Kristya is pretty cheap if you get the Collector Tin version.
- Advanced Format.
- Total cost is about $25 if you start with the Lost Sanctuary Starter Deck and add the additional cards.

Monster Card - Master Hyperion (x3)

Monster Card - The Agent of Miracles - Jupiter (x3)

Monster Card - The Agent of Mystery - Earth (x3)

Monster Card - The Agent of Force - Mars (x2)

Monster Card - The Agent of Judgment - Saturn (x2)

Monster Card - The Agent of Wisdom - Mercury (x2)

Monster Card - Achlord Kristya (x1)

Monster Card - Athena (x1)

Monster Card - Hecatrice (x1)

Monster Card - Honest (x1)

Monster Card - Shining Angel (x1)

Monster Card - Splendid Venus (x1)

Monster Card - Tethys, Goddess of Light (x1)

Monster Card - Zeradias, Herald of Heaven (x1)

Spell Card - The Sanctuary In The Sky (x2)

Spell Card - Burial from a Different Dimension (x1)

Spell Card - Dark Hole (x1)

Spell Card - Heavy Storm (x1)

Spell Card - Monster Reborn (x1)

Spell Card - Smashing Ground (x1)

Spell Card - Solidarity (x1)

Spell Card - The Fountain in the Sky (x1)

Spell Card - Valhalla, Hall of the Fallen (x1)

Trap Card - Beckoning Light (x1)

Trap Card - Divine Punishment (x1)

Trap Card - Miraculous Descent (x1)

Trap Card - Mirror Force (x1)

Trap Card - Return from the Different Dimension (x1)

Trap Card - Solemn Judgment (x1)

Trap Card - Torrential Tribute (x1)

Dark Armed Dragon (PTDN-EN019)

Card:  PTDN-EN019
Card Name:  Dark Armed Dragon
Attribute:  Dark
Level/Rank:  7
Type:  Dragon/Effect
ATK:  2800
DEF:  1000

Card Text:
This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set.  This card cannot be Special Summoned except by having exactly 3 DARK monsters in your Graveyard.  You can remove from play 1 DARK monster from your Graveyard to destroy 1 card on the field.

Personal Comment:

Dark Armed Dragon has been a destructive force the moment he was released and one of the most sought after in the Yugioh card game.  For many duelists, Dark Armed Dragon is the weapon of choice for two specific reasons...easy to summon and the effect is one of the best available.  For all the damage this card dishes out, it is a relatively easy monster to play.  The summoning requirement of "exactly 3 DARK monsters in your Graveyard" will be more manageable if you have cards like Plaguespreader Zombie or Prometheus, King Of The Shadows that can manipulate the number of Dark Monsters in your Graveyard.  It only becomes difficult if you draw Dark Armed Dragon late in the game when the Graveyard might be full of Dark Monsters.  In such a situation, having a monster like Rainbow Dark Dragon in your hand will greatly increase your chance of winning and flushing out your Graveyard for a reset.  Once summoned, you can remove from play 1 Dark Monster (which you have 3 in your Graveyard) to activate his effect.  Why is this effect more useful than most?  It is because you can activate the effect multiple times during the same turn.  That is the epitome of destruction.  In addition, you can select ANY card on the field to destroy.  Your opponent's monster, trap, spell, or even one of your own card are all at your disposal.  This kind of flexibility lets you dictate the pace of the game on both sides of the field and allows a possible direct attack to their life points.  A definite Top 10 monster on anybody's list.  It is on mine.

Rulings For This Card:
- This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set.
- This card cannot be Special Summoned from the Graveyard.
- Removing from play 1 DARK monster is a cost to activate the effect which destroys a card on the field.
- The effect targets 1 card on the field.
- You can activate the effect which destroys a card on the field multiple times during the same turn.

Personal Rating:
Artwork - 9/10
Power - 9/10
Easy To Play - 8/10
Collectable - 9/10
Overall Score - 8.75/10