Bill: Okay Tom, your stupid Yata-Garasu won’t beat me so easily now. You have only two cards in hand after drawing, and I have five cards in hand with a Jinzo on the field. You’re down to 2000 life points, so good game.

Tom: I remove a Light type and a Dark type monster to summon this big Dragon, and then I will play Monster Reborn on my Sangan. I’ll pay 1000 life points to use the big Dragon’s effect.

Bill: What’s that effect?

Tom: I send all cards on the field and in our hands to our graveyards, and you take 300 damage for every card that goes to the graveyard this way. I also use Sangan’s effect—

Bill: I’m leaving. You’re boring.

Tom: Uh, wait! I haven’t gotten the chance to summon Yata yet!


Welcome to my tenth article here on Metagame.com. This is also the tenth set to be released for the Yu-Gi-Oh! trading card game, and it brings chaos to many decks. In fact, the set’s name is Invasion of Chaos (IOC). Bill and Tom from my Legacy of Darkness set review have returned, as you can see above. It’s pretty obvious that Bill isn’t too happy about what Tom just pulled off, which is expected. Nobody likes to fall prey to a Yata lock every time that he or she duels, and “the big Dragon” that Tom played just adds to the little crow’s irritating effect. You’ll see that monster at the end of the review, as it’s the hobby secret rare for this set.

Invasion of Chaos adds a variety of new cards to the Yu-Gi-Oh! metagame. Monster types that were lacked any strength whatsoever have gained some powerful new monsters and some interesting spell and trap support. The monster types that are enhanced by Invasion of Chaos are Beasts, Beast Warriors, Winged Beasts, Dinosaurs, and Plants. Monsters that received a truly deadly boost in power are Reptiles and Insects, along with a few old faces and a few new surprises.

Ojama Yellow, Ojama Black, and Ojama Delta Hurricane: Dark Crisis featured a trap card known as Ojama Trio, as well as a single monster from that trap’s art, known as Ojama Green. Invasion of Chaos completes the trio of . . . bizarre monsters. The set also adds a spell card that makes them somewhat playable, although it would be difficult to maintain a field that had these three monsters face up. I applaud anyone who successfully pulls this off.

Chaos Necromancer: Many duelists may see this monster’s similarity to Shadow Ghoul, a rare monster from Metal Raiders. While this level 1 Spellcaster may start out small, it’s a deadly force to be feared in the mid to late game, when you might have seven, eight, or even ten monsters in your graveyard. The thought of a level 1 monster with 3000 ATK can make anyone appreciate Gravity Bind, as well as graveyard protection.

Inferno, Fenrir, Slypheed, and Gigantes: There’s not much that needs to be said about these monsters. They share the same summoning requirements as their siblings from Labyrinth of Nightmare, though their effects tend to be much more annoying. For example, Slypheed has a decent attack strength, and its ability makes the opponent rethink his or her strategy of attacking it due to its hand control ability. Inferno may appear weak, but it is one nasty burner monster to use against duelists who rely heavily on monsters like Spear Dragon and Giant Orc. Gigantes is not only 1900 ATK, but it’s also the prime candidate for a kamikaze attack, especially when it comes to wiping out an irritating spell or trap card on your opponent’s side of the field.

Chaos Sorcerer: While this Chaos monster has similarities to the monsters mentioned above, its summoning requirement is a bit different—as a Chaos monster, it requires a Light monster and a Dark monster as a sacrifice from your graveyard. While its attack value is only 2300, its ability is enough to make any opponent furious, as it can remove face-up monsters from play. This is useful for killing off an opponent’s Jinzo or Witch of the Black Forest.

Green Maju Da Eiza: Soul Release, Dark Necrofear, Chaosrider Gustaph, Chaos Sorcerer, Bazoo the Soul Eater, and many other cards similar to the ones mentioned love this monster. It’s a level 3 monster with undefined stats, but this Fiend can easily become a deadly force with the amount of graveyard removal available to you. One Soul Release may succeed in powering this monster up by 2000 ATK!

Lord Poison: There are a few useful Plant-type monsters in Invasion of Chaos, and the ability to revive them will prove especially useful in tournaments. Lord Poison is a decent monster that can be fetched by either Sangan or Witch of the Black Forest, and its ability can bring Fairy King Truesdale back to your field, easily turning almost any duel to your favor.

Bowganian: This crossbow-loving machine, in a stall deck, can easily be called one of the most annoying monsters ever. While it cannot lock down the opponent’s hand, like Yata-Garasu does, this machine can slowly peck at the opponent’s life points in every standby phase. With cards like Gravity Bind and Swords of Revealing Light, you may end up dealing 1800 to 2400 damage with this monster before it dies. It’s also a Dark monster, which helps out monsters like Chaos Sorcerer.

Chaos End: The requirements for this spell may seem steep, but removing seven cards from your graveyard is not a difficult task with the variety of cards at your disposal. Soul Release, Chaosrider Gustaph, and D. D. Warrior Lady add to this spell’s requirement, and once that requirement is met, you have a common Dark Hole, ready to go. Talk about game-changing!

Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell: Does your opponent run three field spells or three Mystical Space Typhoons? Are certain spell cards driving you nuts after using Fiber Jar? Make your opponents suffer for using those cards in high numbers with this counter trap. Similar to Spell Shield Type 8, it requires you to discard a spell in order to activate it. The cost is well worth it if the trap negates a game-changing spell card, and it’s a bargain for you if it seals off a commonly used card such as Mystical Space Typhoon.

Giga Gagagigo: The second form of Gagagigo makes an appearance in IOC. As a standard card, it's a one-tribute monster with high attack. With A Legendary Ocean in play, this is a level 4, 2650 ATK leviathan.

Stealth Bird: Burn cards have been a popular choice in sets since Magician’s Force, and Stealth Bird is a fine addition to those burn monsters. Using the face-down switch effect that first appeared in Pharaonic Guardian, Stealth Bird can deal 1000 damage to the opponent multiple times. Using this with Bowganian in a stall deck will drive your opponent insane, but it’s an effective strategy for tournaments.

Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands: This monster is a combination of Senju of the Thousand Hands and Sonic Bird, making it the most versatile card for Ritual decks. Manju’s ability makes searching out ritual cards much easier, and its Fairy type makes it perfect for an angelic theme featuring Shinato, King of a Higher Plane.

Ryu Kokki: Invasion of Chaos enlists yet another massive attacker for the army of the undead. Ryu Kokki’s defense is low enough for it to be searched out through Pyramid Turtle, and its attack strength of 2400 makes it even stronger. This Zombie's ability further adds to its deadly power, making it easier for you to kill Black Luster Soldier or Dark Magician of Chaos.

A Hero Emerges: This trap card’s art features a cameo of Zombyra the Dark, in case you’re interested in older monsters and their returns in newer sets. The effect isn’t too bad if you run a deck with about nineteen or twenty monsters. There’s a good chance the opponent will end up choosing a monster, in which then it can either add defense to your field or add a great deal of strength. It really depends on what high level monsters you're running—Sacred Cranes work well, too.

Sasuke Samurai #3: Just to make sure this is clear, Sasuke is pronounced "saw-sue-kay," not "Suzuki" like the car. Sasuke Samurai #3 is an interesting monster, as its effect works well with a deck destruction theme. This card does a great job with that, as it can single-handedly thin your opponent’s deck by seven cards. Combine this with Card Destruction, and your opponent will hate you for a long time. One other way to use this monster is to give control of it to your opponent when it’s in attack mode. Creature Swap can take care of that, leaving you to summon a weaker monster such as Spirit Reaper to attack “your opponent's” Samurai. This is a great way to replenish your hand.

Berserk Gorilla: It has been a long time since there has been a decent level 4 monster with 2000 ATK. Berserk Gorilla can be considered a classic reference to standard Beatdown, as most Beatdown duelists usually attack every turn whether or not a trap may be set. Of course, this may backfire on you if your opponent sets a good flip effect monster, like Cyber Jar, along with a devastating trap, such as Magic Cylinder. In either situation, you’ll suffer. While you can switch this monster to defense position, doing so will kill the field control that you had. There are times, though, when that may be better than falling into an opponent’s obvious trap.

Drillago: At first glance, this rare Machine is nothing more than an average attacker. At second glance, this drilling Machine can end the game in one simple attack. Drillago is one of the most underestimated Machines in Yu-Gi-Oh!, as its ability can be used against the most common deck in tournaments, Hybrid Beatdown. What makes this card so evil is that it can attack directly even if its attack strength is enhanced, meaning you could boost its stats to 6400 ATK and still sneak past your opponent’s only monster, which could be a Jinzo.

Enraged Battle Ox: Kaiba’s Battle Ox returns in IOC, and it has returned with a devastating effect. This monster gives all of your Beast-related monsters the Mad Sword Beast ability. This can be especially cruel with the new Beasts in this set, such as Berserk Gorilla. The monster also has the Mad Sword Beast effect itself, since it’s a Beast Warrior. For ultimate damage, this monster easily beats out Spear Dragon.

Dark Driceratops: Dark Driceratops has an attack strength that can easily rival Jinzo, but unlike Jinzo’s trap negation, this massive dinosaur has a built in Mad Sword Beast effect, making people (once again) regret playing Scapegoat and Spirit Reaper. This dinosaur can easily finish a close duel off.

Curse of Darkness: This card is, without a doubt, one of the cruelest and most frustrating continuous traps to be released since Imperial Order. While this card doesn’t negate spell cards, it punishes players who use them by taking 1/8 of their initial life points away. Even if an opponent wanted to destroy Curse of Darkness, he or she would still have to take damage to do so with the spells commonly used in tournaments. This card is the icing on the cake for Burn decks.

D. D. Scout Plane: This Machine-type monster adds a new twist on the removal abilities of many monsters. Normally, cards in the “removed from play” pile aren't supposed to be used, but Invasion of Chaos messes around with the pile quite a bit. D. D. Scout Plane does so through its ability, giving you some sort of defense if it's removed from play through effects like Nobleman of Crossout. My favorite use for this monster is through Strike Ninja, which will be discussed later in this article.

Chaosrider Gustaph: A variation of the effect of Bazoo the Soul Eater was given to this Warrior, Chaosrider Gustaph. However, instead of removing monsters, the user of this card removes spells from his or her graveyard in order to boost Gustaph’s attack strength. While you lose Bazoo's extra 500 ATK and you have to remove an extra card, Gustaph is without a doubt a better Bazoo. Unlike monsters, which guard your life points and help win duels, spells are usually only needed for temporary support (although, because of Fiber Jar, it wouldn’t be wise to remove Pot of Greed or Raigeki from your graveyard).

D. D. Designator: The Different Dimension monsters have gained attention in Invasion of Chaos, with D. D. Warrior Lady gaining special attention through D. D. Designator’s art. This spell card has a unique hand control ability. It’s unwise name a card at random unless you're afraid of a certain card that you know will kill your chances of winning. This spell is best used after your opponent uses the effect of a Witch of the Black Forest, giving you the chance to declare the card that was just fetched—usually one of your opponent's best monsters. D. D. Designator is also a great follow-up for The Forceful Sentry, allowing you to kill an extra card in your opponent’s hand. If you hate Yata-Garasu, this is one of the greatest weapons against the old crow.

Reload: This quick-play spell is known as the mulligan card in Yu-Gi-Oh!. Mulligan is a general term in card games that is used when a player doesn’t like his or her starting hand and chooses to send it back and draw a new one. In Yu-Gi-Oh!, however, you cannot mulligan. Reload allows the player to, in a way, mulligan at any time during the duel. It’s especially good when you set the cards you need from your first hand, play Reload, and then draw out the remaining cards you were looking for through your second hand. Of course, it can also be used if you draw a horrible starting hand.

Orca Mega-Fortress of Darkness- This monster is great with A Legendary Ocean. Combine this monster with Ultimate Offering, and you’ll be unloading rounds of torpedo fish and cannonball spear shellfish each turn. Combine that with Salvage and your opponent will probably surrender. This monster is one of the greatest terrors of the Yu-Gi-Oh! ocean, or as referenced on cards like Terrorking Salmon, “The sea of darkness.”

Strike Ninja: One of Rob’s favorite monsters has finally been released in IOC. Strike Ninja is a Warrior with decent stats and an interesting effect. Strike Ninja’s “disappearance” effect can be used to counter practically any move your opponent makes. Did your opponent target Strike Ninja with Ring of Destruction? Make the Ninja disappear, and Ring of Destruction is wasted. Did your opponent target Strike Ninja with Exiled Force? Disappear, and Exiled Force basically commits suicide. Do you like high-level monsters but find them hard to summon? Combine Strike Ninja with D. D. Scout Plane to provide your high level Blue-Eyes White Dragon with some mechanical sacrifices. The possibilities with this ninja are endless.

Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning: The ritual monster Black Luster Soldier is a fun card to run, but it's rather lackluster compared to ritual monsters such as Dark Master - Zorc, and Shinato, King of a Higher Plane. The Effect version of Black Luster Soldier is cruel and unusual punishment for your opponent. If your opponent is running irritating monsters that refuse to stay dead, such as Vampire Lord, you can use the Soldier’s first effect to remove those monsters from the game. If you want to murder your opponent in one final attack, use the Soldier’s second effect to either wipe out the opponent’s monsters through battle or land a direct attack into your opponent after destroying the last monster he or she has on the field. Summoning Great Maju Garzett after using the Soldier's first effect would be even better.

Dark Magician of Chaos: While the Magician of Black Chaos is not out in America yet, we have the Effect version of it to keep us happy until then. At this point, why bother with the ritual version when we have this Spellcaster? Dark Magician of Chaos is fairer to the opponent as it’s harder to summon, but it's also incredibly powerful. The ability to gain one spell from your graveyard gives you the chance to finish off the opponent in one turn with Monster Reborn or Premature Burial. Dark Magician of Chaos's removal effect is also useful because many monsters, like Sangan or Sinister Serpent, rely on the graveyard to be revived or to be activated.

Manticore of Darkness: In my Labyrinth of Nightmare set review, I noted that Card of Safe Return can create a one-turn kill with a card in Invasion of Chaos. Manticore of Darkness is that card. By having one Manticore of Darkness on the field or in your hand, and one that was just put into the graveyard that turn, you can draw until you deck out while Card of Safe Return is out. This allows you to draw Exodia immediately, or it can burn the opponent to death with the combination of Fire Princess and Solemn Wishes. Aside from that combo, Manticore is a powerful Beast Warrior that is hard to kill off permanently. Try combining this monster with Beastly defenders (or even some Harpie Ladies) along with Backup Soldier. Your opponent will never destroy Manticore with so many Beasts or Winged Beasts in your hand!

Levia-Dragon - Daedalus: Sea serpents had little to no support before Invasion of Chaos. Levia-Dragon - Daedalus supplies serpents with support single handedly. With the cost of sacrificing Umi, which can also be A Legendary Ocean, Daedalus destroys everything except for itself, giving you a nearly secure direct attack. There is only one word that can truly describe Daedalus, and that is powerful.

Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End: Referring back to the little script at the beginning of this article, Chaos Emperor Dragon would be “big Dragon”. This Chaos monster’s effect is devastating no matter when you use it. Without the effect, it’s a 3000 ATK monster that can easily be special summoned. With the effect, it’s the greatest aide for Yata-Garasu when combined with Witch of the Black Forest or Sangan. This is one of the cheapest combos in the game, now known as a "Chaos lock." Despite this monster’s sheer power, many duelists generally prefer Black Luster Soldier over Chaos Emperor Dragon since this ability can only end a duel in mid to late game and can turn against you if your opponent topdecks strong cards.

Invader of Darkness: This Fiend-type monster is the retail secret rare in Invasion of Chaos. For the most part, this Demon is a powerhouse with a 2900 ATK. Its effect, however, is highly underrated. Many duelists believe that the effect will rarely be of any use, but those duelists fail to realize that Mystical Space Typhoon (usually two or three copies) is found in almost every deck you’ll play against at a tournament. The only problem is if your opponent plays Snatch Steal on this monster, which will negate your Mystical Space Typhoons. Invader of Darkness can be true muscle for a Fiend deck, and it's great to use alongside Dark Necrofear.

Invasion of Chaos revolutionizes Yu-Gi-Oh! with a variety of new monsters, as well as support for older monsters. This set gives duelists a chance to break free from cookie-cutter Control decks or generic Beatdown decks. Duelists now have the opportunity to smash their opponents to pieces with massive Beasts or wipe their opponents away with new Water support. Even though it's fairly new, Invasion of Chaos should be noted as one of the greatest sets in Yu-Gi-Oh!

Also, I now have a new email address if you have questions on cards or combos. Drop me a line at mrosenberg@metagame.com. Please note that I’ll try to answer as many emails as I can, but I won’t be able to respond to everyone if my inbox is very full.