There are a lot of things about Phantom Darkness which have me excited (not the least of which are the incredible names they’ve given the cards), and I have the distinct pleasure to discuss two cards which will undoubtedly be used in Dark remove-from-play turbo decks in the future. The card drawing and special summoning abilities of this deck are phenomenal. The two cards I’ll be discussing today are:

The Beginning of the End
Normal Spell
Activate only if there are 7 or more Dark monsters in your Graveyard. Remove from play 5 Dark monsters from your Graveyard to draw 3 cards.

Doomsday Horror
Dark – Level 4
Fiend – Effect
? ATK / ? DEF
The attack and defense of this card each equal the number of Dark monsters removed from play multiplied by 300. When Doomsday Horror is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, send all Dark monsters removed from play to their owners’ graveyards.

To begin with, any spell that includes the words "draw three cards" deserves a second glance, especially when the conditional requirement of that spell requires no discarding or additional costs. While getting seven Darks into your graveyard may seem difficult, remember that almost the entire Phantom Darkness set grants you ways to fill the graveyard with Dark monsters (as if they weren’t good enough already). A dedicated deck may wish to run the Destiny Hero monsters that just seem good enough on their own. Destiny Draw and Destiny Heroes Malicious, Disk Commander, and Fear Monger will allow for quick Dark monsters and fast thinning of the deck, especially in conjunction with The Beginning of the End. Also remember the cards that are almost always useful and become ridiculous with something like this: Card Trooper, Foolish Burial, Morphing Jar, and Card Destruction transcend their normal deck-thinning power and become engine-building powerhouses.

Yet the card-drawing power is only half the power of this card. While (as any conservative player such as myself will argue) card drawing wins games and improves consistency, removing five monsters from the game could create ridiculous synergies with trump cards. Yet again, Return from the Different Dimension and Dimension Fusion may be returning by storm. Turns may yet again (to, once again, the conservative players’ dismay) include a drawn The Beginning of the End, an opponent drawing three cards, and then the activation of Heavy Storm with a follow-up Dimension Fusion for game. Also, I’d like to give special attention to this card’s synergy with D.D. Scout Plane and Necroface (which just becomes sick in this deck).

To me, Doomsday Horror isn’t a card that wants to be used for its first effect. While, on rare occasion, you’ll see a remove-from-play deck featuring this monster as an end-game deal closer, it’ll mostly be used as a utility card to allow for more uses of the ever-amazing The Beginning of the End. You can draw three cards, set Doomsday Horror and refuel your graveyard for another Beginning. With three copies of Beginning and three copies of Destiny Draw, you should draw your entire deck after activating just one (starting a chain which leads to more chains until you’ve drawn every card you need to finish the game).

I might suggest trying this deck with Dark World monsters. The most obvious benefit is their attribute: Dark. Yet running them will allow for synergy between the two decks’ utility cards: Card Destruction, Morphing Jar, and even Dark World Dealings become ridiculous drawing engines next to the Destiny Hero cards and The Beginnings. What I’m seeking here is a win condition for a deck which is otherwise going to draw itself into a pit. Last time I checked, Dark World has the ability to special summon monsters as fast as it can draw cards. If you start a cycle of draw power, you’ll simultaneously start a cycle of special summons. Should such endeavors fail, the deck will be sporting trump cards to save you (specifically, Return and Dimension Fusion). One of my favorite pieces of tech in a Dark World deck is Card of Safe Return, which would obviously give this strategy even more draw power.

As my colleague has already revealed, Escape from the Dark Dimension will also make the removed-from-play pile . . . well . . . playable. You’ll be turning cards you’ve already burned through into more cards. Also, this creates a balanced matchup against most decks you’ll be up against. You’ll have your trump-card victories against any remove-from-play deck, offering quick and overwhelming wins your opponents will be unlikely to stop. Against a Light and Darkness Dragon deck, you should be able to outdraw them before they can put a wrench in your gears. Almost anything else (other than burn or a one-turn KO deck) won’t be able to keep up with the card-drawing and special summoning ability of a deck such as this.

The strategy will need a stabilizer though: after hours of thought, I can’t quite make it consistently overpowering. Frankly, if it gets moving, it’s nearly an unstoppable force. If the stream of card drawing begins, it isn’t going to be stopped. However, like an eight-ton stone wheel, it’s difficult to find the opening hand that allows you to start the rolling process. I’ll leave you with this stone wheel I was unable to shape, and allow your innovation to fill the gaps.

These exciting new possibilities will hopefully evolve the game. In my opinion, The Beginning of the End may be one of the most exciting cards released in a while. It’ll help both conservative and aggressive players in a way that most cards can’t. Phantom Darkness is going to change the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG, so don’t be the one stuck behind everyone else.

 -Ryan Murphy