Today we’ll be looking at a deck that takes some inspiration from Adam Corn’s build at the 2008 United States National Championship. There, he ran a heavily anti-meta deck built to beat Gladiator Beasts. It was predicted by many top players that almost half the participants at the event would be running Gladiator Beasts, and they all attempted to take advantage of that in some way. Whether it was main-decked copies of Threatening Roar in a Lightsworn deck or side-decked copies of Mind Control in a Gladiator Beast deck, players were simply unprepared if they weren’t ready to deal with the popular deck.

Corn was able to make it to the Top 8 using Prime Material Dragon in Monarchs. While Soul Exchange and Monarchs are perhaps Gladiator Beast’s worst enemy, the Dragon was an amazing tech card that only a few players saw coming. It’s just incredibly difficult to destroy once it hits the field. We’ll be exploring this concept with some more focus on the theme, and a little less exploitation of trap cards. While Corn attempted to use Mask of Darkness for repeated uses of amazing traps, we’ll be focusing on a more traditional approach.

Monsters

Notice that the largest change we’ve made is the implementation of an "Apprentice engine." While Apprentice Magician hasn’t seen serious competitive play in quite a while (resulting from the growing speed of the formats and the Forbidden status of Magician of Faith), Gladiator Beasts have a difficult time stopping it. What’s a Gladiator Beast Murmillo to do against Old Vindictive Magician?

Gladiator Beasts find themselves in a deadlock against this deck. However, we still don’t have the control necessary to defeat Dark Armed Dragon and Lightsworn. The D.D. Crow will help against all three of the top-tier decks, and a well-timed activation can win you the game. We’ll still have to use spell- and trap-based tech to defeat Lightsworn and Dark Armed Dragon.

Spells

Other than that, we have two spells that clear the back row, three spells to take opponents’ monsters, and the remaining spells to either draw cards or force your opponent to discard. The spell lineup is extremely selective, as the deck relies much less on utility within cards as it does synergy between them.

The Traps

The deck plays in a manner similar to the Soul Control archetype played in the past. You’ll be trying to slow and control the game, instead of quickly playing your hand and swarming the field. Your best matchup is going to be Gladiator Beasts, though you may find a very strange situation of neither player making a move for several turns. Both decks are reactionary and prefer to punish overextensions. If both players are waiting for the right moment, it might never come. Practicing in such a situation may help you make difficult plays. Of course, you have the flip-effect monsters that will allow you to be aggressive, even in a standstill situation.

Any deck that slows the pace of the game is worth considering. If you have difficulty playing your Gladiator Beast deck, this would be a great place to start. The two decks are similar in theory, and you’d benefit greatly from attempting to learn this one first. Soul Control and Gladiator Beasts are both reactionary (and, in essence, control) deck types, but Soul Control is easier to use.

If you find yourself being beaten in mirror matches using Gladiator Beasts, give this a try and consider how quickly you make your key moves. When considering a Gyzarus play, it often helps to remember the days when Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning was legal. Normally, the player with the discipline to hold onto his or her copy longer won the game. The same is true now. Nothing is more crippling to a Gladiator Beast deck than a Gyzarus destroying all the monsters retrieved from playing . . . a Gyzarus! This deck will help teach you that discipline.

—Ryan Murphy