Raiden, Hand of the Lightsworn, does indeed lend a very valuable hand to his fellow Lightsworn friends. He is Light, Warrior, Level 4 (all good things off the bat) with a respectable 1700 attack and 1000 defense. So by milling (note you have the option, though it has to be done during your Main Phase) up to two cards from the top of your Deck, Raiden gains 200x the number of Lightsworn Monsters that were discarded by this effect. So 1900 or 2100, both still very good for Level 4, while not being absurdly powerful or anything. He also has a standard two card mill during each End Phase. But he's fun, he's a solid attacker, and can mill in two different ways. Easily as good as yesterdays card. Maybe better even.

Ratings:

Traditional: 2.75/5
Advanced: 3.75/5
Art: 4.5/5

Raiden, Hand of the Lightsworn

Continuing our look at the new Realm of Light Structure Deck, we now look at another Lightsworn Tuner; Raiden, Hand of the Lightsworn.

Statwise it is a LIGHT/Warrior which is good, with 1700 ATK which is decent and 1000 DEF which isn’t great. It is a level 4 Tuner which is very good. Though it doesn’t really work in a Lightsworn deck to get out Michael, the Arch-Lightsworn as Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner is the only level 3 non-tuner Lightsworn worth playing.

Effectwise, you can send the top 2 cards of your deck to the graveyard during your Main Phase. This is already a good effect for Lightsworns as you don’t have to wait until the end of your turn to hopefully mill the cards to get out Judgement Dragon. But there’s more to this effect if any of the cards for Lightsworns this gains 200 ATK until the end of your opponent’s turn. Granted a 200 ATK boost isn’t much but it still makes this monster a 1900 Attacker. Of course you can only use this effect once per turn. Finally like most Lightsworns you send a certain number of cards to the graveyard during your End Phase, in this case 2, which is a decent number.Overall a solid monster that is good for getting Lightsworns into the graveyard but not great for getting out Lightsworn Synchro Monsters.

Traditional: 2.5/5
Advanced: 3/5

Raiden, Hand of the Lightsworn is an exceptionally terrific support card for an archetype many consider degenerate by nature. Since Lightsworns play by sending as many cards to the grave as quickly as possible, hoping they are monsters sent, it's a good thing that Raiden sends a total of 4 cards to the grave in a single turn, making it one of the most practical normal summon of the deck that also happens to load the grave the most. (Not including Garoth as he is a combo oriented monster)

Another nice feature of Raiden is he sends 2 cards of the 4 cards to the graveyard during your main phase, so you don't have to wait around until the end phase like the other lightsworn monsters in order to reap benefits. This can sometimes allow you additional plays immediately during the turn he is summoned that otherwise wouldn't have been possible. Attack points you can gain by the discarded cards being Lightsworn monsters is just a little bit of icing on the cake, easily putting Raiden to 1900 attack if your luck prevails.

Raiden will lend his helpful services to you while he is on the field, but he also is magnificent when he is in the grave as well. You can normal summon Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner to special summon Raiden from the grave for instant level 7 synchro action. There are some great choices for you as well, in the form of Arcanite Magician, Black Rose Dragon, and the newly released Lightsworn specific boss monster, Michael, the Arch-Lightsworn. As if this isn't good enough, when you special summon Raiden using Lumina's effect, Raiden will allow you to instantly send two cards from your deck to the grave, netting you even more advantage before the synchro play. 

Raiden also plays nice with Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress as if he stays on the field a turn, you can summon Lyla to destroy a set spell or trap for a quick +1 card advantage, then synchro summon a level 8 monster, like Scrap Dragon.

With solid stats, an amazing effect, and tuner status, it's easy to see why Raiden is being proclaimed as one of, if not the best, new support card as of recent for the Lightsworn archetype. He helps the deck run more efficiently, consistently, quicker, and opens the door way to several power plays previously unheard of for the deck. If you play Lightsworn, use 3 copies of Raiden.

Ratings:

Traditional:  2.5/5 
Advanced:   4/5

Mechanic Design: 3.5 (Nothing to be considered original but a versatile, all around useful effect without being game breaking.)

Art:  3.5/5 (Lightsworns are known for their great artwork, and Raiden is no exception. However, he doesn't stand out or look as interesting as a majority of his counterparts, let alone Michael or Judgment Dragon itself)

Raiden, Hand of the Lightsworn
 
An overall quality monster for the deck.  The first effect of milling two cards during your Main Phase is viable, most importantly.  The ATK strength you gain is definitely a nice bonus but the main reason is to fuel your graveyard for big plays like Soul Charge or Judgment Dragon.  You can activate it early in your turn and at your choosing.  This is a big contrast from the standard effect (which this card has, as well) of waiting until your End Phase.  So if you dump a monster, you can revive it in the same turn rather than having to wait, giving you freedom to set up combos.  For example, if you mill Wulf, you can actually attack with it.
 
It sports good stats at a LV4, but its level makes it quite good.  With Lumina, you can Synchro into LV7 (like Michael) and with other standard LV4 monsters, you can Synchro into LV8.  It also, like I said with Minerva, gets the benefit of being a Lightsworn and a Tuner, with all of the support cards that revolve around it.  Except for the fact that this card can actually be good at pulling its own weight.  As a Warrior-type and with ROTA being laxed to two, that may work as well.
 
Recommendable for Lightsworn decks overall.
 
Traditional - 2/5
Advanced - 3.5/5