A List for the Ages

As I am sure most, if not all of you know by now, the new TCG ban list was released today, and man did it drop some bombs.  Lets first take a look at what actually changed.

Newly Forbidden:

Super Polymerization

Newly Limited:

Artifact Moralltach

Dark Strike Fighter

Snatch Steal

Newly Semi-Limited:

Honest

Goyo Guardian

Dark Hole

Newly Unlimited:

Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind

Mermail Abyssgunde

Reborn Tengu

Reasoning

The Transmigration Prophecy

While the last few of our lists have actually been pretty respectable, in comparison to Konami’s past blunders, this list was an atomic bomb.  Do not get me wrong, I am not here to rant and rave about how terrible this new list is or say that I am about to quit YuGiOh for three months.  None of that bullshit.  There are definitely things that I like about the list, but there are absolutely things I think Konami has dropped the ball on.

Super Polymerization to 0: This probably should have happened the last time, so I can respect them doing it now.  If it were not for the last line of text on the card, it would be fair, however, not being allowed to respond whatsoever to this thing is completely unreasonable.  Especially given that Shaddolls have El Shaddoll Fusion as well now, we definitely do not need to have Super Polymerization still around.

Artifact Moralltach to 1: While I am not sure this is completely warranted, I think that there were people that were tired of seeing Artifacts splashed into decks as an engine.  Moralltach is a great card, but I just see this as Konami’s way of killing splashing Artifacts into something and seeing if it sticks.

Dark Strike Fighter to 1: It is reasonable to have figured this card to return now that the Legendary 5DS Collection has been released and the reprint is officially out in the TCG.  This move does not strike me as particularly unreal, given that they have completely neutered Dark Strike Fighter from its previous self.  Not being able to attack and being only once per turn will obviously prevent Dark Strike Fighter, from releasing its past havoc on the new format.

Snatch Steal to 1: In my mind, this change will have the biggest affect on the new format.  The single game mechanic that is the most “unfair”, in my opinion, is to be able to take your opponent’s creatures and use them against them.  While Snatch Steal can be a pretty skillful card, in that you can have it and choose not to use it until the best opportunity presents itself, rather than just taking whatever becomes available first, it can be a very sacky card in that it can be topdecked for game.  This becomes more apparent when both players have fewer cards, thereby meaning fewer options or outs to your play.  By using Snatch Steal in this type of situation, even just on a beater, you are drastically reducing their chances in winning the game as they now have to either have an out in the few cards that they do have, or draw the out quickly.  Especially given these situations happen later into games, often the opponent is quite low on life points by this time as well.  I can already tell that at the beginning of the format, those who know how to play their Snatch Steal better than others, (holding for an optimal situation where you in turn gain the most advantage or field presence) will have a substantial advantage over their opponents.  This is probably my second least favourite thing about the latest list.

Honest to 2: Without question, this should not have happened.  I have no idea what was for lunch the day Konami decided to make the list, but somebody spiked the punch.  Honest already steals games at one; just imagine how annoying this stupid card is going to be at two.  Honest allows bad players to beat good players by outdrawing their way to the top.  No question, the worst part about this list.

Goyo Guardian to 2: This change will likely not have much of an affect.  The decks that are able to play Goyo, will probably not even think about playing two, due to lack of extra deck space.  The simple fact is that Goyo just is not a problem right now.  Synchros are not nearly as prevalent as they once were and Goyo is just not seeing significant play.

Dark Hole to 2: Again, this change is unlikely to have a drastic affect on the current format.  It sounds crazy to say, but pretty much every time you see Dark Hole or Raigeki being used these days it is barely getting an advantage, and more often losing it.  Pretty much every tier deck gets a plethora of effects every time their monsters are sent to the graveyard, except Qliphorts, and even Qliphorts, still have Saqlifice and are able to reuse the monsters from their extra deck anyways. 

Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind to 3: Blackwings are literally irrelevant in the land of tier two and three decks and while multiple Gales is definitely better than having only one, it is not causing anyone any sleepless nights anymore.

Mermail Abyssgunde to 3: I was really surprised they put Abyssgunde back to three, but really pleased at the same time.  Mermails has been one of my favourite decks out of decks post-ABYR (seems like so long ago now), and with three Abyssgunde it has a legitimate shot at being a real deck once again.  Not saying it will be tier by any stretch of the imagination, but three Gunde absolutely bolsters the deck’s firepower.

Reborn Tengu to 3: Another change that I have wanted to see happen for a while, but has never gotten done.  Reborn Tengu was a great card when it was around back in 2011.  There had never been a card that regenerated itself upon any kind of destruction/tributing/etc.  This meant insane synchro plays and fascinating combos and Pot of Avarice allowed you to do it all over again.  Well now Reborn Tengu is back to three and interestingly, almost all the members of the band are back together for Tenguplants.  The only guy missing is Trishula, maybe Konami is dropping a hint for the next list?

Reasoning to 3: I really doubt that this will have a drastic affect on the format as it stands, and has been limited far too long.

The Transmigration Prophecy to 3: I absolutely love this card.  It is a fantastic way to deal with nifty new graveyard affects that cannot miss timing.  While it may not seem like a lot, having Transmigration Prophecy at three makes it a much more viable side deck option than only having one available, as it is that much more likely that you will draw into it.  Good change.

What does this all mean for the new format and what will the best deck be at the beginning? 

Firstly, it means that there are some pretty drastic changes going into the format.  Artifact Shaddolls are probably not going to exist anymore, sorry Bo Tang. L  As mentioned previously Snatch Steal is a card that always has to be kept in mind if you are summoning powerful monsters and your opponent’s life points are not zero at the end of your turn, you could be in trouble.  Virtually nothing changed amongst the biggest decks, Burning Abyss and Qliphorts, meaning that they are probably still the best decks.  If siding the Transmigration Prophecy becomes a thing, it could have an affect on Burning Abyss decks, but other than that neither of these two decks got remotely touched.  Not only that, but in the latest set, Secrets of Eternity, additional cards to power-up both archetypes are being released.

In short, I believe that Burning Abyss and Qliphorts will be the best decks immediately, however, there are interesting times ahead, given some of the drastic changes to the ban list.  Let us not forget that Nekroz are going to be coming out shortly as well, and will undoubtedly be a virtually instantaneous tier one deck.