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GeneralZorpa on Yugioh
The Amazing Quintet
September 9, 2008

5 Good Cards Are Better Than None
 
Well, I thought it would be a good time to tell y'all what cards I see coming to the forefront of tournament play. I am going to take a break from the Getting Back iNto the Game Series, mostly cuz the newest one is taking me 3 days to write. Well, anyway these are five cards that I see that will become popular due to action form the banlist or release of new cards in the new set or structure deck.
 
These cards are Charge of the Light Brigade, Honest, Jain Lightsworn Paladin, Reinforcements of the Army and Caius the Shadow Monarch. Charge was just released in the TDGS booster set, and it may be the most useful card ever designed. Honest has always been great, but due to the victory of Gladiators over Teleport Dark Armed at the last SJC, it is important to cover their achilles heel, the ATK boost. Jain is also a card that has seen potential due to her ability to be searched out by Reinforcements as well as Charge, having up to 2100 ATK and as a bonus, milling 2 cards from the deck. Reinforcements of course is a must have for an Warrior-heavy deck and was just released from the banlist. Caius will see greater play simply because he removes threats rather than destroying, getting around the dreaded Stardust Dragon.
 
Give Them Nothing, And Take From Them, Everything!
 
There is a reason that Charge of the Light Brigade is the most expensive card from TDGS. I don't know what UDE was thinking, but if they were afraid of making a beast that they couldn't control, they could not do any better than Charge of the Light Brigade.
 
Charge searches for any level 4 Lightsworn monster from your deck and then mills 3 cards from the top of your deck. Obviously this card is great in Lightsworn, thinning your deck by 4 cards as well as a powerful mill of three cards to hit Wulf, LIghtsworn Beast as well as fill the graveyard for Judgment Dragon. But what most people don't see is it's potential in a wider range of decks.
 
Lightsworn are singularly great cards. Jain, Garoth, Ryko, Lyla and Ehren are all playable outside of their intended deck. And guess what? They are all searchable by Charge as well as some of them being searchable by Reinforcements of the Army. And also guess what? The decks that they go in don't really mind a little milling of the deck in order to get things done.
 
Lightsworn Zombies is a deck that I personally think has great potential, due to the recent power of Zombie cards as well as the sheer ATK power of the Lightsworn to power over Laquari as well as Stratos. Then as a bonus, they mill key ZOmbies to the graveyard, such as Mezuki, Zombie Master and Ryu Kokki. The Lightsworn also provide added draw power due to Solar Recharge as well as a certain degree of searchability due to Charge. This makes the Zombie deck a little faster if not a little more unstable due to the uncontrolled mills.
 
Lightsworn Samurai is just as good as the Lightsworn Zombie concept. Samurai have already been used with a reverse toolbox before, so Charge milling 3 cards is not exactly a sacrifice for them. The Warrior Returning Alive, Double  Edged Sword Technique, Grandmaster of the Six Samurai as well as Enishi, Shien's Councilor all require Samurai in the graveyard in order for them to perform to their peak capacity. Charge allows you, along with 3 copies of Reinforcements, to search for almost ANY card from your entire decks besides Grandmaster and Enishi. That means that you get the right Samurai or Lightsworn whenever you need it. The reverse toolbox strategy of The Warrior Returning Alive also allows you to get any Samurai as well as Jain, Ehren and Garoth.
 
Basically, this card can make or break games, so anyone who wants to trade me some can contact me!
 
I Mean Honestly!
 
Honest has got to be THE card that Gladiators fear above all else. It is not like Prohibition or Royal Oppression, as it cannot simply be blown away by spell and trap removal. The only answer that they have to it is (I believe) Gladiator Beast War Chariot. The even better thing is that you can play multiple Honest for multiplied damage, so if they negate one Honest, you can always play more when you need to.
 
Honest is also searchable, both by Shining Angel and Nova Summoner as well as Sangan. His 1100 ATK as well as 1900 DEF are not shabby either, I have won games with my summoned Honest. That 1900 DEF is pretty high too, so Stratos and Zombie Master are sitting dumb. Not to mention the fact that Elemental Hero Neos Alius as well as Card Trooper and the newly famous Gladiator Beast Andal just bounce off.
 
The best part of Honest of course is the surprise. You can play it or withhold it for any battle, making it a mystery as to whether or not you have it. I have even bluffed Honest just by acting confident and having a weak LIGHT monster in ATK. The fact is that Honest is devastating as well as surprising to your opponents lifepoints, strategy and is a major aid in winning games.
 
Honest of course is famous for being included in Lightsworn decks, but like Charge of the Light Brigade, can be used in ANY deck using LIGHT monsters. Elemental Heroes have also made use of it, using Prisma, Captain Gold and Neos Alius to beat down an opponent, backed by a hidden Honest. Honest also works in the Lightsworn Samurai, as two of their key cards (Enishi and Zanji) as well as all of their Lightsworn stuff can use Honest to defend them.
 
This Day We Fight!
 
Reinforcements of the Army has been almost a staple card for years ever since it's initial release. The ability to search for any level 4 Warrior regardless of ATK is amazing. It was first used to search for power cards like Zombyra the Dark and Don Zaloog, and is used in much the same capacity today. It can search out Elemental Hero Stratos as well as a plethora of other monsters.
 
I really don't need to go into detail about why Reinforcements is good. Most people do, I am simply highlighting the fact that it has been UNRESTRICTED. Yeah, you can play 3 Reinforcements, meaning that Warriors are more powerful than ever. Every power deck for the last year has used Reinforcements and Warriors (Samurai, T-Hero, Lightsworn, Gladiators), meaning that they are able to adapt quickly to any situation. Exiled Force, Silent Swordsman Lv. 2, Elemental Hero Wildheart as well as high ATK monsters can deal with most things that get in your way.
 
Reinforcements being unrestricted also means that true Warrior decks are able to be played. This is huge, as they are very versatile and a good pick for tournament play. Jutte Fighter is a Warrior for all of you Synchro fanatics, and pairs nicely with a level 4 monster for Goyo Guardian.
 
A little known fact is that Spell Striker, a great little card is also a Warrior. You can search it for Reinforcements, then remove from play Reinforcements in order to Special Summon it and sacrifice it for a monarch. This lends some serious unpredictability to the monarch deck, or any other deck using tributes. You can also declare attacks directly with the little Warrior, so that extra 600 damage is that much easier to get to.
 
Let The Shadows Take You
 
Caius has always been the best Monarch. It is as versatile as Raiza and as powerful as Zaborg. The fact that it is a DARK is just gravy, so that all of that DARK support like Allure of Darkness, also recently unrestricted. Add to that a 2400 ATK body and the ability to dominate the field and you have one sweet package.
 
Caius also gets around the all important Marshmallon, Spirit Reaper or Necro Gardna. It's effect also removes facedown monsters, so Gravekeeper's Spy, Ryko and Mask of Darkness are all at risk for removal as well as 1000 damage. It is easier than ever to get Caius out, thanks to Fires of Doomsday, Soul Exchange and Spell Striker, so summoning him is of little consequence.
 
However, he does fail from the fact that he is easily preyed upon by Bottomless Trap Hole. So long as you don't pick it as a target, you should be fine. But there are times when that is the only target. This is where you risk losing everything. Thankfully, very few people play Pulling the rug, so you can be fairly certain that if you target a monster you will get it's effect. You can also draw out opposing Solemn Judgments early, that way you reduce their lifepoints by half, allowing for a relatively easy win.
 
 He is also great for pairing with both Brain Control and Soul Exchange. You get rid of an opposing monster as well as destroying another card. This is the essence of a monarch deck. You summon monsters until your opponent cannot respond and then you beat them down with floater monsters as well as 2400 beatsticks. It doesn't take very many 2400 attacks to get your opponents lifepoints down to 0.
 
Well that is it for me today. You can reach me to trade, ask advice, ask questions or whatever at raptor1k@hotmail.com so do so.  I love email, mostly because I love talking about the game.
 
Thanx for Reading!
GZ