Yu-Gi-Oh! has been full of surprises lately, and yesterday was no exception: the new Strike of Neos Sneak Preview promo was revealed on 4Kids’ official Yu-Gi-Oh! website, finally answering all the questions that have been stirred up since the promo’s announcement. Here’s what you’ve been waiting for! Take a gander at the pieced-together effect text of this incredible new monster:
Grandmaster of the Six Samurai
Warrior / Effect Earth Level 5 2100 ATK / 800 DEF
You can only have 1 "Grandmaster of the Six Samurai" monster on your side of the field. While you control a face-up "Six Samurai" monster, you can Special Summon this card from your hand. When this card is destroyed by your opponent's card effect, add 1 "Six Samurai" monster from your Graveyard to your hand.
Yes, you read that right: it’s basically better than Cyber Dragon, and it’s only for Six Samurai decks!
When it was announced in Shonen Jump Magazine that the promo would be a Six Samurai monster, there was a mix of positive reactions and initial wariness. The Samurais never saw much play in Japan, because while each monster in the group has an awesome effect, they need to be accompanied by a second Six Samurai in order to use them. The “one normal summon per turn” rule made this a tall order to fill, but thanks to the folks at Upper Deck Entertainment, Six Samurai decks are going to be a whole different beast here in the Western world.
Grandmaster of the Six Samurai isn’t just an awesome card, either: it’s also an important milestone for the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG. One of only two cards to debut in North America before appearing in Japan (the other being Beast of Talwar), it represents a joint effort between Upper Deck Entertainment and Konami on the card design level. It was created with American and European metagames in mind, and that’s evident from what it accomplishes. Players have asked for more cards that help them run specialized decks, and Grandmaster is a magnificent reason to play Six Samurais. In addition, Grandmaster’s recursive effect is just one way that you can deal with all the monster removal in today’s American and European metagames.
Getting a copy of this awesome new promo is easy—all you have to do is show up to your local Strike of Neos Sneak Preview and register for a Preview event! You’ll get a super rare Grandmaster just for signing up, in addition to your Strike of Neos boosters. You might want to get there early since supplies of Grandmaster are limited, and when you get yours, think long and hard before trading it off: the sheer power of Grandmaster is going to make him a hot commodity!
Interested in heading out to a Sneak Preview? Hit up the official page right here to find an event in your area, and for additional information on what you can expect. Attending means that you get boosters of Strike of Neos weeks before their release in stores, a copy of Grandmaster, and a chance to pick up a Strike of Neos t-shirt.
Now that the Sneak Preview promo has finally been revealed, we here at Metagame.com are ready to start exploring its competitive potential. Head on back tomorrow, because Jerome McHale is going to give you a detailed breakdown of what makes Grandmaster of the Six Samurai so amazing!