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Doomkaiser Dragon
Card# CSOC-EN043
Doomkaiser Dragon's effect isn't just for Zombie World duelists: remember that its effect can swipe copies of Plaguespreader Zombie, too!
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Dark Crisis contains several themes that a duelist can base his or her entire deck around. First, Dark Crisis brings us the Archfiends, most notably represented by the "chess piece" monsters: Vilepawn, Desrook, Darkbishop, Shadowknight, Infernalqueen, and Terrorking. The Archfiend Soldier serves as an enforcer for the team, while Skull Archfiend of the Lightning brings back the Summoned Skull in a new, more powerful form. The Guardians also arrive in this set, with equip-spell cards associated with each individual Guardian: Elma and Butterfly Dagger, Kay'Est and Rod of Silence, Baou and Wicked-Breaking Flamberge, Ceal and Shooting Star Bow, Grarl and Gravity Axe, and Tryce with Twin Swords of Flashing Light. Fairy-type monsters, most commonly associated with the character Ishizu, band together with their own weapon, the Cestus of Dagla. There is also a collection of monsters known by many as the "anime monsters": Dark Flare Knight, Different Dimension Dragon, Shinato, Mirage Knight, Berserk Dragon, and the infamous Exodia Necross. Finally, the Dark Scorpions round out their roster with Gorg the Strong, Meanae the Thorn, and Chick the Yellow.
With time and effort, a player may be able to figure out how each of these themes fits into a Constructed deck, but how do they factor into Limited play? How do these themes fit into a format without the "staples" that almost all Constructed decks run? My first look into Dark Crisis is going to focus in on this aspect of the set's themes--how they can be used in Limited play.
Our discussion will begin with the Archfiends. The "chess piece" Archfiends, along with Skull Archfiend of the Lightning, have an effect that gives them the chance to negate a targeting effect controlled by the opponent. A roll of a die determines the outcome, but fortunately the effect can be used as a last resort, allowing you to activate other cards' effects to protect the Archfiends as well. The obvious downside to these Archfiends is the life point payment you have to make for each one during each of your standby phases. Considering that you start with only 4000 life points in Limited play, these life point payments can turn into a very quick drain. The Archfiend theme is supported by several other monster, spell, and trap cards, including Pandemonium Watchbear, Falling Down, Checkmate, Archfiend's Oath, Pandemonium, Battle-Scarred, Archfiend's Roar, and Dice Re-Roll.
First, let's look at the Archfiend monsters themselves:
Vilepawn Archfiend: Two face-up Vilepawns on your side of the field mean that your opponent will have limited options for attacks. Each Vilepawn will cost you 500 life points during your standby phase to maintain, though, so you need to keep that in mind. Each Vilepawn has a 1:6 chance of negating an effect that targets it.
Desrook Archfiend: Desrook can act as a defender, but there are other monsters with higher defense in the set, and you don't want to have to keep paying life points just for a defender. If you draft a Terrorking Archfiend, you should draft Desrook as well, because if your Terrorking is destroyed, it can be special summoned by discarding Desrook from your hand. Desrook can also be returned to your deck by the effect of the trap card Ray of Hope, a neat little trick that works against deck destruction strategies and lets you redraw Desrook so that you have it in your hand to get back your Terrorking. Desrook has a 1:6 chance of negating an effect that targets it, and it costs you 500 life points each turn.
Shadowknight Archfiend: When you draft, you are going to see other players grabbing these early. Shadowknight's attack looks good, but don't be deceived! Having to pay 900 life points during each of your standby phases is a hefty cost, amounting to almost one quarter of your life points each turn. If you plan on using Shadowknight, your deck should either be very aggressive or have a plan to tribute it at some point. Final Attack Orders helps this strategy. Shadowknight also works well with the equip card Rod of the Mind's Eye, since a direct attack from Shadowknight will usually result in 1000 points of battle damage anyways, thanks to the effect that halves the damage that it does to an opponent.
Darkbishop Archfiend: In addition to the negation effect rolls that each of your other Archfiends gets to make on its own, Darkbishop has a 1:2 chance of negating an effect that targets any of your Archfiend monsters. While that effect is nice, a payment of 500 life points during each of your standby phases is a little steep for a monster that does little else, and the stats of Darkbishop mean that it will need to be protected. You can get away with skipping over this one.
Infernalqueen Archfiend: The Queen is the most versatile of the chess pieces, so it is only fitting that it would also be the most versatile of the "chess piece" Archfiends. Infernalqueen's effect boosts the attack value of any Archfiend you control, including itself, by 1000 points during each player's standby phase. This boost only lasts until the end phase, so during each following standby phase, you get to reevaluate the field situation and decide which of your Archfiends would benefit the most from the bonus that turn.
The payment for Infernalqueen is 500 life points during each of your standby phases, which isn't much compared to what the card offers. Its effect can be used to make Infernalqueen a 1900 ATK during your opponent's turn, and then during your own turn, you can pass the increase to another Archfiend, such as Shadowknight, giving it a high enough attack to surpass the defense of the stronger defense monsters in Dark Crisis. Infernalqueen also has a 1:3 chance of negating an effect that targets it.
Infernalqueen is rare, so you might not be fortunate enough to pull one in your draft packs. If you do, though, it could be to your advantage to combine it with any other Archfiend monsters you can draft.
Terrorking Archfiend: Terrorking is definitely the powerhouse of the "chess piece" Archfiends. Not only is it a level 4 monster with 2000 ATK, but it also negates the effect of any monster it destroys in battle. The life point payment is 800, though, almost as much as the payment for Shadowknight. Terrorking has a 1:3 chance of negating an effect that targets it.
Terrorking is super rare, so the odds of seeing it in your draft packs aren't that good. If you do manage to pull one, I recommend that you draft it and build your deck around using it. I will explain this strategy in more detail in my future article about examples of Archfiend draft decks.
Skull Archfiend of Lightning: The Summoned Skull has returned, only this time it comes packing a 1:2 chance of negating an effect that targets it. The Skull Archfiend is the only Archfiend in the set that requires any tributes, but the payoff comes from its offensive stats. The Skull Archfiend's 2500 ATK will take out most monsters in the set, and it will only ask 500 life points from you during each of your standby phases--not much for the power it offers.
You're also looking at an ultra rare, which is not easy to come by when working with very limited number of packs. You can bet that anyone who gets one in the draft is likely to keep it. I would recommend you do the same and then try to combine the Skull Archfiend of Lightning with Final Attack Orders.
Archfiend Soldier: Archfiend Soldier is solid from beginning to end. A non-effect monster with 1900 ATK and 1500 DEF is about as good as you could hope for in a draft, as well as being something you will likely see in many Constructed decks. It's a rare, so you have some chance of seeing one, but not enough to plan around it. If you do, though, I recommend taking it.
One thing to keep in mind is the 2000 and 2100 DEF monsters in Dark Crisis. They can surprise you when you think your Archfiend Soldier is in the clear. A nice Gravity Axe will help the Archfiend Soldier overcome this quite easily.
By now, you should have some idea of which Archfiend monsters you would use in a draft. Next week, we'll look at the Archfiend support cards and come up with some draft deck ideas using the Archfiends with their support cards in tow.
So until next time . . . what kind of Valentine do you think the Terrorking would give the Infernalqueen?
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