Brandon's Top 10 List-Top 10 Cards Needed for an Effective
Deck

Based on what cards I've played with and against for
the last 2 years, people play with the same cards in
their decks, and here's the top 10 list of the best
cards needed to make every deck great.

10)Jinzo- I'm not a big fan of tribute monsters, but
this is the best one out there!  For one tribute, you
get a 2400 Attack monster, comparing to other one
tribute mosters, is only weaker than Dark Ruler Ha Des
and Summoned Skull, and it has the bonus of negating
all traps on the field!  This card's effect can hurt
you too, but whenever this card comes out, your
opponent's plan of activating a trap to stop you in
your tracks is out of the question.  If you only want
one tribute monster in your deck, here's your answer,
but if you want two, Vampire Lord is the 2nd best.

9)Witch of the Black Forest- The card's opposite,
Sangan, is not in all decks, because it can only
search out monsters with 1500 or less attack, but
Witch is used to search out monsters with 1500 or less
Defense, so powerful tribute monsters can be searched
out, such as Vampire Lord, Jinzo, and Summoned Skull,
and that's why this card is needed in every deck. 
Also, since you get a card to your hand, you hand 
size increases, and hand advantage is a big plus in Yu-gi-oh!  
One of the best basic monsters ever!

8)Monster Reborn- Easily a card needed in every deck. 
You get a monster from any graveyard under your
control without having a drawback, such as the 800
life points with Premature Burial.  The drawback is
that since the card is special summoned, a card
summoned in defense mode is not summoned in face down
defense, so a flip effect could not be used.  Almost
all the time, though, it's used to special summon a
powerful attack monster or a monster with a great
effect to attack your opponent, or to bring back a
weaker monster to use the monster's effect again, such
as Witch of the Black Forest.  Great card.

7)Dark Hole- The weaker version of Raigeki, but is
still very powerful indeed.  Most people use this card
like a Raigeki, because it's best used whenever you
don't have any monsters.  Also, if you're opponent
apparently has the monster advantage over your one
monster, losing your monster for a wide open attack is
well worth it.  Thankfully, every deck has one thanks
to the starter decks. 

6)Harpie's Feather Duster- If only the actual Harpie
cards were as powerful as this card......Anyway, this
is known as the Raigeki of magic and trap cards. 
Every deck now requires magic and trap destruction for
it to be good, and this card obviously is the king of
magic and trap destruction.  Like I've said countless
times, this is needed in every deck!

5)Change of Heart- Easily one of the game changers,
because you take control of your opponent's monster
for one turn.  Even though it's only for one turn, it
is still insanly useful for many ways.  It can open a
wide open attack for your monsters, allows you to use
the controled monster's flip effect instead of your
opponent, and gives you a monster to tribute with. 
Also, this card has one of the coolest pictures ever, 
especially the ultra-rare version!

4)Sinister Serpent- Easily one of Yu-gi-oh's most
underrated cards, particularly because of it's weak
stats, and because of that, the card's not worth that
much money, so getting one is easy.  With the ability
to return to your hand during your standby phase if
it's in your graveyard, you can do so many countless
things with it.  First off, and most obvious, you are 
guaranteed one blocker a turn if you have nothing else 
to defend with.  Second, if you are forced to discard a 
card, you'll want to discard him, because you'll get him 
back next turn.  This works well against hand disruption 
cards, works well with Dark Paladin (basically one Magic 
Jammer a turn), discard it to Graceful Charity, and the 
list goes on!  If you haven't put him in your deck yet, 
do so now, because this card fits into any deck! 

3)Yata-Garasu- If a card is so powerful that a new way
to winning is named after the monster, then the card
has to be one of the best there is!  It's not the best
in all decks, but with Witch and Sangan to search it
out, you can pretty much get it whenever you need it. 
Even with it having a very low 200 attack, it can win
the game on it's own whenever your opponent has no
hand, and with it returning to your hand after end of
turn, you opponent's monsters and most magic cannot
stop it.  Thank goodness you cannot special summon it,
or this card would be even stronger!!

2)Raigeki- A card that destroys your opponent's
monsters, without a drawback, and no flip effect can
happen.  I really do not need to say much more about
this card, except if you can get one, GET IT!

1) Pot of Greed- With every card that was released
from the Blue Eyes White Dragon set, the only cards
that are still used today are Raigeki, Dark Hole,
Monster Reborn, Swords of Revealing Light, and Pot of
Greed.  Most people would say that Raigeki would be
the best out of the list, but I believe that Pot of
Greed is the best card out of this list and out of all
existing cards!  Card advantage is just so important
in today's gameplay in Yu-gi-oh (thanks to
yata-garasu), and if you don't have more cards in your
hand, you will have no chance to comeback or prevent
yourself from getting yata-locked!  Since the starting
hand is 5 cards, the most you can have in a hand is 6,
and with no limit on Magic and Traps per turn, the
average hand size a person will have will more than
likely be about 3 cards, and with the excessive hand
control cards out there (Don Zaloog, Delinquit Duo,
etc.), having no hand is very common.  With two extra
cards, you can also make more moves that could change
the game.  So that's why I believe Pot of Greed is the
best card in Yu-gi-oh!


Honorable Mentions (no particular order): Snatch
Steal, Vampire Lord, Sangan, Mystical Space Typhoon,
Imperial Order, Mirror Force, Fiber Jar, Delinquit
Duo, D.D. Warrior Lady, Painful Choice)


If you have any questions or comments about this list,
e-mail me at

sweetbran2003@yahoo.com

Brandon