Metagame.com - Take Your Game to the Next Level

Night’s End Sorcerer really enhances the strength of the Spellcaster deck. My ranting and raving about the revival of Spellcasters last week has further validity now, don’t you agree? Let’s think: what can we do with Night’s End Sorcerer? Its effect states that you can remove up to two cards from your opponent’s graveyard when this card is special summoned. What strikes me as amazing is the lack of serious restriction on this card. How many different ways can you special summon a Spellcaster? Magical Dimension easily pops into mind as a sneaky way to hit your opponent’s graveyard when he or she least expects it. The effect of Magical Exemplar is another great way to activate Night's End Sorcerer's effect. Send it to the graveyard with Foolish Burial, and you'll put two Spell Counters on the Exemplar: exactly what you need to then special summon Night's End from your graveyard.

I can’t talk about Spellcasters without mentioning Magician’s Circle. You can use it aggressively to preempt your opponent’s dreams of getting a free Destiny Hero - Malicious on the field or use it to lower the amount of Darks in your opponent’s graveyard to prevent any unwanted visitors from hitting the table. I find that getting rid of two cards versus Crow’s one gives this card the advantage in the graveyard manipulation department. Popular targets for taking a defensive stance with Magician’s Circle are presented in the mirror match, or when facing an attacking Breaker the Magical Warrior, Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress, or Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner.

The fact that the mini-Sorcerer is a Tuner monster really makes this card shine: a level-2 Tuner. This makes Synchro summoning for Tempest Magician very convenient. How many level-4 Spellcasters can you think of in ten seconds? Skilled Dark Magician, Gemini Elf, Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer, Breaker the Magical Warrior, Mythical Beast Cerberus, Toy Magician, and every Gravekeeper known to man for starters.

Speaking of Tempest Magician . . . this card is beastly. Can you say "win condition?" Now Spellcasters have a powerful burn finisher at their disposal. Its effect earns you one spell counter for each card you discard. The spell counters generated this way can be distributed in any way among your monsters, one counter per card you discard.

Think of the possibilities here. First, you can use its effect to re-fuel Breaker or Cerberus. You can turn Cerberus into Injection Fairy Lily for the price of four cards. Magical Marionette also gets a nice boost from Tempest Magician by giving you as many counters as you please. Magical Exemplar turns into an automated burn machine. Unlike similar monsters (think Skilled Dark Magician), Exemplar explicitly states that you get two counters for each spell you activate. That means you’re dishing out 1000 damage per spell while Tempest is on the field. If you can activate eight spells in the same turn, that’s the game. If the field is open, then attack for some damage and finish the rest with Tempest. The more Spellcasters you summon to the field, the better the effect gets. What if you have two Exemplars on the field? Each spell becomes 2000 damage to your opponent. What if you have Exemplar and another monster that soaks up counters? You can see how quickly this card can end duels.

Second, your Breaker is virtually a Harpie’s Feather Duster when it comes time to make game-winning plays. Blast Magician gets a boost too. You can dump any extra cards you don’t need to give those monsters counters. Even Dark Magician fans have another quick way to special summon their favorite card with the help of Skilled Dark Magician. Your options with spell counters are far wider now thanks to Tempest Magician.

Final Thoughts
I think that both cards present fantastic opportunities for Spellcaster decks. Night’s End Sorcerer is a sign of a growing trend: Tuner monsters that have spectacular effects. Krebons is the poster-boy of this movement, and it’s no stretch to say that Krebons and Emergency Teleport are the reason why TeleDAD exists. It looks like Tuners will be integrated into more decks than we realize, not just TeleDAD and its variants. It’s the toolbox feature I’ve wanted since Magical Scientist.

Tempest Magician is an example of a Synchro monster geared directly toward its monster type. The card is built to support Spellcasters, which I like to see in a Synchro monster. Synchros like Goyo Guardian, Stardust Dragon, and Red Dragon Archfiend are amazing monsters, but any deck can play them. Depending on the type of player you are, you’ll agree with either point. I hope that more Synchro monsters are built with their monster types in mind. It’s a good thing to enhance the strength of forgotten archetypes. Spellcasters used to fit into that category, but they’ve been given new life. I think a crafty deckbuilder can come up with a deck that takes advantage of Tempest Magician. More possibilities means change in the competitive landscape, and change is good in this game. Don’t miss the Crossroads of Chaos Sneak Preview this weekend, because the game is going to change in a big way!

Until next time, remember to stay focused and have fun!