Monday always marks the start off a new week, and this week we get two new Yu-Gi-Oh! sets with some really great new cards! Any Monday preceding such an event must surely be a glorious one, making this Monday slightly more bearable than others.
New Duelist Packs Hit Stores This Week!
Yes, they’re almost here! Duelist Pack—Aster Phoenix and Duelist Pack—Jaden Yuki 2 will start arriving in stores across North America as early as this Wednesday, and should make a welcome addition to the play pool. While the last two Duelist Packs sold out in a lot of areas on fan value alone, these new sets have some really great stuff for competitive duelists too. Though Destiny Hero - Malicious and Destiny Draw seem to be the most eagerly-awaited cards from Aster’s Pack, Jaden’s Card Trooper may very well prove to be the hottest ultra rare since Chimeratech Overdragon. Its quirky effect makes it one part Bazoo the Soul-Eater, one part Cyber Phoenix, and in many ways it’s better than both. Expect it to top the list of must-have cards over the next few weeks.
The same booster pack format used for the original Duelist Packs makes a return as well, with each booster having five cards instead of nine. They cost less as a result, which means you can buy more packs and perhaps have an easier time digging out all those choice super rares and ultra rares. Good news for impulse buyers who just like cracking boosters (like me), and even better news for serious collectors or duelists.
Last time around, Duelist Packs sold out in a lot of areas, so I’d suggest calling your local hobby store and seeing if you can pre-order some in advance. Even if you don’t feel a need to reserve your cards, calling around can help you determine when the new cards will be available: most stores will be able to tell you when they anticipate receiving new stock, so you can be sure to get your cards as soon as possible. To find hobby stores in your area, just hit up Upper Deck Entertainment’s Hobby League locator right here.
Shonen Jump Championship Collinsville
With the surprising events of Shonen Jump Championship Orlando now behind us we’re ready to cast our eyes towards the final SJC of the current format. In less than three weeks, the best of the best will come together to throw down in Collinsville.
The competitive field at Orlando was dominated by Gadgets and Chimeratech Overdragon, but Monarchs and Creature Swap saw Top 8 qualifications as well. Just below them was a field swarming with Dark World, Zombies, Macro Cosmos, and Warriors, so it’ll be interesting to see what the field looks like in Collinsville. While duelists will certainly be side decking for Chimeratech Overdragon and Gadgets, the choice of what to main deck is a difficult one yet again. Was Chimeratech just a one-hit wonder? Will Gadgets see more play after their 3rd and 4th place finishes? Hundreds of duelists will flock to the Gateway Center Convention Complex in Collinsville to find out, and Metagame.com will be right there on the tournament floor to keep you posted on all the action!
Want to head out and compete yourself? Check out the event listing over at Upper Deck Entertainment’s official Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG site, then hit up the website for the Premier Tournament Organizer, Pastimes Events. They’ve got plenty of information on start times, side events, directions, and even local hotel info to help you plan your trip. Their website is a great resource, so check it out if you think you might make the trip and play.
Though the Top 16 qualifications for Day 2 at Shonen Jump Championship events do not start until March, there will be three copies of Crush Card Virus at stake in Collinsville’s main event. Who’ll be taking one home? We’ll find out in just under three weeks.
This Week on Metagame.com
We’ve got one more week of regularly scheduled content between now and the kickoff of our Strike of Neos preview coverage, and Mike’s with us today to extol the virtues of the mighty System Down. Side decked by multiple Top 8 competitors in Orlando, it seems to be the clear winner in the race for silver bullets to combat the Gadgets. What makes it so good, and what carried it to Day 2 in the hands of two different duelists? Mike is going to examine the situation to answer those questions and show you why it might be right for your deck.
On Tuesday, Jerome McHale combines two of the game’s most unique cards to create an even more unique deck. Satellite Cannon meets Ojamagic in a strategy packed with cool discard effects, creating a barrier of Ojama-powered protection while you power up your massive space laser of death. Sounds like fun, doesn’t it? You can see the deck list with full commentary and play notes tomorrow.
Wednesday, The Apotheosis fixes up a deck that seeks to take Hydrogeddon to new heights. Everybody’s favorite Dinosaur-type has seen a resurgence as of late, and Wednesday’s Apotheosis deck combines it with Robbin’ Goblin. The goal? Use a mix of swarming offense, damaging defense, and piercing attackers to make Robbin’ Goblin stick. It’s Hydrogeddon in a whole new light, and you can check it out in two days.
Curtis Schultz is back with even more promo action on Thursday, when he discusses two of the most intriguing (and powerful) cards from the McDonald’s promo set. White-Horned Dragon is far and away the chase card of the series, and Curtis takes a look at important rulings on both it and the new equip spell Mist Body.
A lot of players at Shonen Jump Championship Orlando ran continuous traps, and stuff like Skull Lair and Ultimate Offering caused a surprising number of timing confusions throughout both days of competition. Julia Hedberg uses her Solid Ground column this Friday to explore just how different types of continuous traps work. If you intend on playing with any continuous traps ever, you should definitely read this.
On Saturday, Matt Peddle will take a look at the deck Mike Gonzalez ran at Shonen Jump Championship Austin. Consistency was the key to Gonzalez’s strategy, and an insight into ongoing metagame trends at the time led him to a very respectable finish. Matt will draw it all together by showing you what you can learn from Gonzalez’s example.
That’s it for this week, but head back in another seven days and we’ll be starting up the first preview season of the new year! We’ll have two weeks of Strike of Neos previews, looking at the best cards from what is truly a great set.