It’s Monday, April 14, 2008, and the scaled grip of Dark Armed Dragon has finally been shattered by—the Gladiator Beasts!?

After losing his first match of the weekend in Round 1, Levitin fought back to go undefeated for eleven rounds straight. In Day 2, he battled through Dark Armed Return, Tundo OTK and, finally, Mario Matheu’s Dark Armed Light and Darkness Dragon build. After taking a brutal stomping in game 1 of the finals, the New Jersey competitor pushed back to capture the second and third duels, clinching his second Shonen Jump Championship victory!

Missed it? You can check out all the action from Shonen Jump Championship Minneapolis right here on Metagame. While Dark Armed Return still seems to be the deck to beat, at least we now know that it is, in fact, beatable! This could mean some exciting things for this summer’s dueling season.  

Lightsworn monsters are strong attackers with good effects, but they come with a unique cost: most of them send cards from the top of your deck to the graveyard each turn. Sure, they get benefits and unlock dangerous tricks when they send away the right cards, but they also need to be played fast so that you don’t deck out. I’ll leave the details for our preview weeks, which start one week from today, here at Metagame. Suffice it to say the Lightsworn have some incredible special summoning tricks, some awesome solo monsters, and probably the best finisher card ever printed.

If you want to head out to your local Sneak Preview event and nab some Light of Destruction boosters weeks before the set hits store shelves, check out UDE’s official Sneak Preview page to find event listings for more than 200 Sneak Previews worldwide. If you don’t see a Sneak Preview in your area, keep checking the locator, as venues are still being added. I’ll be at either the San Diego or Anaheim Sneak Preview, so if you’re in the area, stop by and say hello!  

Then, Jerome McHale builds a Dark Armed Return deck with a twist—sans Dark Armed Dragon. This is a cool article for a few reasons. First, it’s going to show you how to get in on the Dark Return action even if you don’t own three copies of the pricey Dragon. Second, it’s a great example of how good the deck can be even without Dark Armed Dragon in the format. The result is a cool strategy that packs some important tricks you won’t find in more standard builds, plus it’s a lot easier to build than the standard Dark Armed Return. This one’s definitely a must read.

Curtis Schultz bats cleanup this Wednesday, as he swings open the doors to his Duelist Academy and takes a peek at rulings for tricky cards from Phantom Darkness. Volcanic Counter, Blue Thunder T-45, and All-Out Attacks all get the spotlight this week, as Curtis discusses some of the less obvious complications these cards can easily cause. If you’re a competitive player, then Blue Thunder should at least be on your radar, and since Blue Thunder doesn’t work like its predecessor Hydrogeddon, you should definitely give this article a read.

On Thursday, Matt Peddle is back in the Battlefields with a continued look at the move we know as the Pro Storm. Last time, Matt looked at the history of this vaunted technique: discussing where it came from and how it was first used. But is the Pro Storm just a relic of the past? Matt doesn’t think so, and he’s going to explain how it can work for you in today’s competitive environment.

Bryan Camareno is back this Friday with an article that builds on his Practical Duelist column from last week. Last week, Bryan looked at some of the ways duelists keep themselves from progressing, an all-too-common problem for many players. Now, he’s going to look at three more threats to your growth as a serious competitor. No matter how good you think you are, I really suggest you check out this article. I’ve been to a ton of Shonen Jump Championships, and I can honestly say that the biggest roadblock in the way of the average competitor is his or her own outlook. Read up so you don’t succumb to these common mistakes.

Erin Diaz made a huge impact at Shonen Jump Championship Columbus, but at the end of the day, it was Jerry Wang who claimed victory. This Saturday, Matt Peddle will dissect Jerry’s deck to show you why it worked, and why it might be the future of Dark Armed Return. What made Jerry’s strategy so successful, and how did he stay ahead of his opponents? Matt will tell all, as he takes apart yet another winning deck in this week’s installment of The Champions.

Finally, Ryan Murphy hits us with a massive follow-up to last week’s article, shifting from the Traditional format to the Advanced format and addressing the question that continues to remain at the forefront of competition: how do you beat Dark Armed Return? Ryan’s huge analysis boils down to four tactics and one killer deck that’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen. If you’re on a budget, and you’re tired of losing to Dark Armed Dragon, then you’ve just got to check out this article.

And that’s it for this week! Check back in another seven days, because we’ll be kicking off two straight weeks of card previews from Light of Destruction. See you then!

—Jason Grabher-Meyer

Contributing Editor, Metagame.com