Subject: 21 Tips for Balance in Decks

Hi. Many of you probably remember my tip about building a deck. It 
apparently helped some people, but alone, it was a disaster. I got several 
decks with no sense of balance, and so I decided to write a follow-up on 
what a finished deck should have in terms of card balance. Here goes!

OVERALL BALANCE
1)A 40-card deck should usually use about 17-20 Monsters. This allows 
adequate room for Magic & Trap cards.
OVERALL BALANCE RELATED TO ODDS
2)DON'T FORGET MULTIPLES! Multiples of a card give you a better chance of 
drawing that card.
3)Don't go over 50 cards. If you have too many cards, the chances of drawing 
the card that you need become much lower.
MONSTER BALANCE
4)A deck with 17-20 Monsters should usually have 3 Level 5/6 Monsters and 2 
Level 7/8 Monsters. This gives you a better chance of getting what you need 
in Monsters.
5)Always remember Effect Monsters. They can help with board control, hand 
control, and draw power.
6)Flip-Effect Monsters are a good way to keep your opponent guessing.
7)The average deck should have anywhere from 4-10 Effect Monsters.
8)Don't overload your deck with low-level Effect Monsters.
9)Remember to use Effect Monsters that go with your theme.
MAGIC/TRAP CARD BALANCE
10)Don't forget the Big 6! The Big 6 are the Magic & Trap cards restricted 
to one per deck. They are VERY POWERFUL!
11)Remember the three elements of Magic & Trap cards: board control, hand 
control, and card drawing.
12)A deck should always have more Magics than Traps. Any deck should have 
20-25 Magic and Trap cards, 12-20 of them Magic and 5-12 of them Trap.
13)Don't use too many Equipment Magic!
14)Don't use any Field Magic!
COMBOS
15)Use plenty of combos.
16)Don't use combos that involve too many cards (a 3-card combo is usually 
the max)
17)Don't use combos where the cards in them are useless alone (exception: 
Fusions).
FUSIONS
18)If you are using Fusion Monsters, always include AT LEAST 2 of each 
Monster and 3 Polymerization.
19)Never use just one Fusion. Use either 0 or 2. 3 is too many.
20)Don't use Fusions where both Monsters are sucky (exception: Twin-Headed 
Thunder Dragon)
21)Never use Fusions where the Fusion is sucky (below 2000 ATK).

Hope this helps!
~Barrel Dragon (barreldragon126@hotmail.com)

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