Best Card Name Ever!

Hey! Did you know that there are actual deck strategies focused on Batteryman cards?

You’ve probably seen Batteryman C and Batteryman AA before. You may be familiar with their unique support card, Battery Charger too: it’s a Monster Reborn for Batteryman monsters that costs 500 LP to activate. But you’re probably unaware of the fact that a few recent releases have made this deck shockingly playable. No pun intended.

Both Batteryman C and Batteryman AA have effects that can raise the ATK of other monsters: Batteryman C will raise the ATK or DEF of every Machine you control by 500, while Batteryman AA will pump up all your AAs by 1000 ATK or 1000 DEF. What’s cool is that both of these monsters are eligible for special summoning via Inferno Reckless Summon, the combo-heavy spell card from Chazz Duelist Packs. Bring out three C’s and you’ve got three 1500 ATK monsters, plus a bonus of 1500 ATK for any other Machines you have. Three AA’s on the other hand, generate a whopping 9000 ATK.

Think about that for a sec. Marauding Captain + Batteryman AA + Inferno Reckless Summon = game over. Ouch.

Any deck that operates with that combo as its goal is going to want to keep its Batteryman cards on the field as long as possible: if it loses any that it can’t retrieve with Battery Charger, every monster on the field becomes weaker. But what happens in the late game when you’re virtually out of field presence? How can the deck survive in such a situation?

Say Hello To My Little Friend

That’s where today’s Enemy of Justice preview card comes in handy! Today we’re looking at Super-Electromagnetic Voltech Dragon, a huge level 5 Light Thunder-type that’s specially designed to power up the Batteryman theme. With 2400 ATK and 1000 DEF, it’s got rock solid stats for a single-tribute monster, but its effect is what makes it a potential gem. Here’s what it does:

If you Tributed 1 of the following monsters to Tribute Summon this monster, it gains the appropriate effect:

-Batteryman AA: Increase the ATK of this card by 1000 points.

-Batteryman C: During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points.

-Batteryman D: Negate the effect of a Spell or Trap Card that targets this 1 card.

Batteryman D will also debut in Enemy of Justice. It’s a good defensive card that will often be easy to keep on the field and tribute. Batteryman D is an important part of the Dragon’s toolbox, because it allows you the freedom to ignore Sakuretsu Armor, Book of Moon, and Enemy Controller. It can even fend off the dreaded Snatch Steal, which has become the number one bane of all tribute monsters. That said, Batteryman D isn’t as important to the theme as its other copper-topped brethren, so you probably won’t use this effect as much as the other two.

Batteryman C is going to be a Batteryman deck’s second most important monster, so you’re going to get to use Voltech Dragon’s second effect quite a bit. The popularity of Spirit Reaper hasn’t slowed down as much as many thought it would, and a lot of duelists have called for more cards that counter the conservative trend of setting monsters. The ability to dish out piercing damage is exactly what those duelists want, and Voltech Dragon’s ability to double as a Saber Beetle makes it a major threat in today’s environment.

Batteryman AA is the most important monster of the theme’s lineup, but it’s the fastest one to go south, too. While one Batteryman C can buff up a ton of Machines, and a lone Batteryman D can stave off an army of attackers, a single AA is virtually useless on its own. That makes it a small loss to tribute in the late game, however, and a 3400 ATK monster is pretty incredible. Somehow I always wind up getting the preview card for “the really huge tribute monster”—I got to look at Infernal Incinerator back in Elemental Energy too. While Incinerator is enormous, it’s got nothing on a Super-Electromagnetic Voltech Dragon that’s been charged with Batteryman AA. Hands down, single tribute monsters just don’t get any bigger than this guy. Voltech Dragon can outclass even Jinzo and Mobius the Frost Monarch by 1000 ATK.

Even if you’ve got a completely cleared field, remember that Battery Charger is going to be able to bring back a Batteryman any time you need a tribute. In addition, it can summon a Batteryman of your choice, so once you hit the mid-game you can usually pick and choose which effect you want your Voltech Dragon to have. Remember too that the ease with which one can summon this level 5 monster can be a boon when you’re looking for something to convert into Dark Balter the Terrible with Metamorphosis.

Recharging A Dead Strategy

The Batteryman theme has an explosive early game. While its ATK is a three card combo, remember that Marauding Captain is searchable via Reinforcement of the Army, and each Batteryman can be searched or special summoned from the deck with relative ease. It’s really a lot more powerful than it can first appear. Historically, that early strength transitions to a terribly disappointing late game: all those stackable effects just don’t mean anything if you don’t have enough of them going simultaneously. The introduction of Super-Electromagnetic Voltech Dragon changes all that by taking advantage of the natural patterns the deck creates and profiting off of what used to be its major weakness. It adds a new use for Battery Charger, which is really one of the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG’s best support cards designed for a dedicated theme, and its versatility makes it a good fit for any situation or matchup.

If you’re looking for a new deck to try out, or if you’re one of the six people who have actually built a Batteryman deck, this is the card you’ve been waiting for. Give it a shot, and you’ll be surprised at just how powerful it can be.

That’s it for previews this weekend, but head back on Monday, when we’ll have another straight week of brand new cards! Sneak Preview events are only seven days away, so stick with us while we count down to the Sneak Preview of Enemy of Justice!

-Jason Grabher-Meyer