Many recent new developments have elevated numerous fan favorites into the ranks of the Yu-Gi-Oh! upper class. The obvious beneficiary of the new set’s rush of hot additions to the arsenal is the Machine deck, an explosive archetype that I’ll scrutinize in this article.

Limiter Removal in the Truest Sense

Machines are an archetype that simply begs to have the suffix “Chaos” slapped upon it. With such an array of Light and Dark monsters, it seems only natural to include Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning and whistle a merry tune. But things were not always this way.

Before the recent release of our newest hazy blue box set, Machine users were in a dilemma of sorts. The choice Dark monsters were limited to those that required tributes to summon. Jinzo and Blowback Dragon are definitely two of the best tribute monsters in the game, but tribute monsters do not make a great deck. They’re complements to the piece, and the piece just wasn’t there. The only good Dark Machine monsters were Cannon Soldier, with a piddling 1400 ATK and only Snatch Steal to take advantage of it, and Mechanicalchaser, which had the nasty drawback of costing over $50. The Light monster selections were even worse. You could pick Reflect Bounder, which was restricted, and then release a sigh of despair at having been forced to fill out the rest of the roster with generic 1800 ATK monsters, such as X-Head Cannon.

My apologies to those who don’t agree that Machines are well-suited to Chaos—there are plenty of you who have made Machine decks that do not feature the dreaded Envoy. However, consider the fact that every deck packs Sangan, Jinzo, Breaker the Magical Warrior, D. D. Warrior Lady, and a few copies of Magician of Faith. It’s almost impossible not to throw the Envoy in when you also consider that Cannon Soldier, Reflect Bounder, and other Machine-specific decks have a favorable type for spelunking into the cave of Chaos archetypes.

Just as fans of the Hero attribute began losing hope, a nova of good fortune hit. Machines might have simply been content to nestle in the rung right under Chaos Control, if not for the events that have transpired in the past few months. First, the new rules regarding position changes made previously-overlooked cards like Dekoichi the Battlechanted Locomotive immediately playable, and gave new synergy to decks that wanted to utilize multiple copies of Scapegoat. Then came The Lost Millennium with its boost to Machines through Ancient Gear Golem, Ancient Gear Beast, and Brain Control—we’ll get to Brain Control later, though. Throw in Dark Beginnings 2, which made Mechanicalchaser widely available, and you have the makings of a Cybernetic Revolution before the actual revolution!

And then came a set filled with excellent cards, like Cyber Dragon and Cyber Twin Dragon, that share a common characteristic: the Machine type. All fretting and lollygagging over the correct Light monsters to play with has come to an end. Three copies of Cyber Dragon and two copies of Magician of Faith, with perhaps a D. D. Warrior Lady, ends the conundrum. Dark monsters are taken care of in all possible ways, as well—how do Sangan, Breaker the Magical Warrior, Jinzo, Blowback Dragon, Tsukuyomi, Cannon Soldier, and Mechanicalchaser sound?

There’s no use ogling the power of Machines without being able to use them in a deck, so let’s get to work!

The Machine King (That’s You!) Arranges His (or Her!) Army

Monsters: 18

1 Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning

3 Cyber Dragon

2 Magician of Faith

1 Reflect Bounder

1 Jinzo

1 Blowback Dragon

1 Tsukuyomi

2 Cannon Soldier

1 Sangan

1 Breaker the Magical Warrior

1 Dekoichi the Battlechanted Locomotive

1 Mechanicalchaser

1 Sinister Serpent

1 Cyber Jar

The Machine deck has a few impressive upgrades from its previous incarnations. The weaker Light monsters were replaced by the best tribute monster to come out in ages. Cyber Dragon is a field control powerhouse with a great effect. Managing it well will undoubtedly lead to victory. The rest of the Light monsters are there to either improve the deck’s synergy or to help recover spells. A successful use of Reflect Bounder’s effect will trigger at least 1700 points of damage, which helps Limiter Removal achieve game-ending thresholds.

The Dark lineup features the usual staples, but also includes Blowback Dragon as a fifth tribute monster. Blowback Dragon is one of the most underrated cards in the game today, and it works great, both in conjunction with Tsukuyomi and by itself! We’ll rely on Cannon Soldier to clear out excess Scapegoats, since it promotes great synergy with Cyber Dragon and can end the game on damage alone. Dekoichi and Mechanicalchaser are also in the deck as good Dark Machine monsters.

Cyber Jar can blow the game open in both good and bad ways, but the extra resource manipulation is definitely needed. You’ll benefit a whole lot more from the extra cards than your opponent will, mainly because this deck can win in a single blinding flash of quick-play spells.

Cybernetic Spell Ruler Revolution

Spells: 18

1 Pot of Greed

1 Delinquent Duo

1 Graceful Charity

1 Premature Burial

1 Snatch Steal

1 Mystical Space Typhoon

1 Heavy Storm

2 Nobleman of Crossout

2 Enemy Controller

2 Scapegoat

1 Metamorphosis

1 Brain Control

3 Limiter Removal

A combination of great defense and strong offense usually leads to victory. This build will lean heavily on Scapegoat, since it provides the gateway to unfettered use of Enemy Controller and Metamorphosis, while simultaneously giving a great boost to Cannon Soldier! Imagine dealing 1700 damage with Reflect Bounder, then using Cannon Soldier for 2500 more damage and ending the game with a single Limiter Removal!

With this kind of deck, such combinations are not entirely far-fetched. Between your spell or trap removal and your Enemy Controllers, nothing is safe! Brain Control is another key to your arsenal, because it provides synergy with Cyber Dragon, your other tribute monsters, and Cannon Soldier! You can force your opponent to lose cards by triggering defensive traps on the monster you just took—then you can launch it back at your opponent for another 500 damage. All of this adds up in a hurry. However, keep in mind that your spells will not be able to deal the coup de grace until your traps do the work. Take a look.

The Machine Deck Trap Lineup

Traps: 7

3 Dust Tornado

1 Call of the Haunted

1 Mirror Force

1 Magic Cylinder

1 Ceasefire

This simple but effective trap lineup will aid the means to victory. Dust Tornado during the end phase will clear any nasty surprises your opponent may have waiting. Magic Cylinder and Ceasefire are great in the opening and early game, since every bit of damage you can deal right away will mean less damage that you’ll have to stack on with Limiter Removal.

Matching it up with the Metagame

Do you see how the lovely parts of this deck all come together to make a great Machine sundae? The synergy in this deck is tremendous, with every spell card’s utility extending to the monster lineup, and vice versa. Let’s prove it with a simple mathematical equation: 2100 ATK x 4 + Enemy Controller = Game!

This deck has the strong opening game that’s necessary to carve out a niche. Whether it’s Sangan, Dekoichi, or a face-up Mechanicalchaser backed up by fluffy Sheep tokens, this deck will concede very little ground. As the game begins to develop, the damage will begin to pile up. Here’s an example.

Your opponent summons D. D. Assailant and attacks into Scapegoat, hitting a Sheep token. During the end phase, you hit Scapegoat with Dust Tornado. On your turn, summon Cannon Soldier, then use Brain Control on D. D. Assailant. Finally, play Limiter Removal on Cannon Soldier and attack for 4500. Sacrifice everything for 2500 more damage. Your opponent will have only 1000 life points left!

The deck has numerous tricks of this type. Like all strong builds, it also has the offensive firepower to stand up to Chaos Control, and can mix the pace to press the attack quickly or lean back with the Cyber Dragons and watch the opponent overextend.

I hope constructing this Machine deck is as much fun for you as it was for me! Here’s hoping that this new challenger will have what it takes to join the fray and nestle itself up in the top tier.