In the weeks leading up to the 50th Shonen Jump Championship in Costa Mesa, all eyes were on Dark Armed Return decks and the infinite-draw loops with Cyber Valley, Dimension Fusion, and Spell Economics. Like most Shonen Jump Championships of late, there was one really dominant deck type and many anti-meta and One-Turn KO (OTK) decks. Players first wondered about how strong Dark Armed Dragon (DAD)-based builds could be, thinking OTK decks surely must be able to achieve their win condition before Dark Armed Return could fuel its graveyard with three Dark monsters.
Again, as with most Shonen Jump Championships, Lazaro Bellido made Day 2 with arguably the most consistent and strongest deck. It wouldn’t be the first time he’s done so, as Lazaro cracked the metagame with his powerful Monarch builds in Boston and Columbus in years past, and it was his Zombie build that would eventually go on to rule a format. It came as no surprise when Lazaro showed up to Costa Mesa and won with this build of Dark Armed Return:
What sets Lazaro’s build apart from the rest is the way it generates versatility without giving up that explosive power. Three copies of Dark Armed Dragon still emphasize that the deck is attempting to explode once the graveyard has been properly set. What makes Lazaro’s build so special is the speed and consistency with which Lazaro can achieve a winning position.
The turbo part comes from playing three copies of Allure of Darkness and Destiny Draw. Both cards speed up the deck while dumping Dark monsters to be used later on. Allure fuels the removed-from-play pile, allowing for quick use of Dimension Fusion, Escape from the Dark Dimension, and Return from the Different Dimension. Destiny Draw, on the other hand, puts monsters into your graveyard, which is just perfect for Dark Armed Dragon. The reason these cards are so good is the ease with which they can be played. It’s not uncommon to play a pair of draw cards on your first turn, allowing Lazaro to see a quarter of his deck before his opponent can even make a play.
Destiny Hero - Disk Commander only adds to the draw power, turning Monster Reborn or Premature Burial into speed cards for the deck. Lazaro can do this freely too when trying to build up a way to win the game, as Dark Magician of Chaos is often involved and can return those cards back to his hand. Destiny Hero - Fear Monger can also turn into more cards from the top of his deck, or if necessary, bring out a big Destiny Hero - Dasher.
The single tech cards that Lazaro chose to play like Dasher and Controller were a big part of his success. Enemy Controller gives you the versatility of being able to make game by stealing an opposing monster or switching one to attack mode. At the same time it provides defensive tactics, allowing you to either switch an opposing monster to defense mode or steal it for the turn, both of which frequently result in your opponent being unable to finish his or her devastating turn.
Destiny Hero - Dasher is another cool piece of equipment that can do more than meets the eye. Dasher is not only a great target for either Allure of Darkness or Destiny Draw, but it does a lot in terms of consistently getting exactly three Darks in the graveyard. The special summon ability allows you to flood the field fast, and in many instances get monsters into the graveyard as well. Special summoning something like Armageddon Knight and using your normal summon for Snipe Hunter can turn a blank field with one Dark in the graveyard into 2900 ATK and three Darks in the grave. Two Dark Armed Dragon cards later, and that’s game over.
is another tech card that Lazaro abused on his way to his first Championship win. Stopping your opponent from grabbing game-winning cards with Monster Reborn, Premature Burial, Dark Magician of Chaos, Magical Stone Excavation, or Destiny Hero - Fear Monger can both prevent you from losing and give you an out to a win. Now that your opponent has wasted his or her best cards for a trade with your Crow, your cards are ready to be played uncontested.
Raigeki Break and Dust Tornado are the final two pieces of tech that Lazaro’s deck utilized, cards that others passed by. Both help to break the opponent down while advancing your own position. Raigeki Break can target anything, meaning that destroying a spell or trap in the end phase is just as possible as stopping your opponent‘s Dark Armed Dragon from wreaking havoc. Having the opportunity to dump a Dark monster for Dark Armed (or something big to be revived with Monster Reborn or Premature Burial) is more than a bonus, and can be the deciding factor in winning games. In fact, I’ve heard multiple stories about summoning an Armageddon Knight and flipping Raigeki Break on your own Knight, putting three Darks in your graveyard and then going off with Dark Armed Dragon and Dimension Fusion.
is cool because it can blast away cards that would contribute to a win, such as Return, Escape, and Premature. At the same time, you can set a trap card to be used at the earliest possible opportunity. Flip Dust Tornado to destroy the opponent’s Torrential Tribute, then set Return from the Different Dimension and win next turn? It happens more often than you might think.
Much like the Chaos format, the era we’re in now seems to be all about tech cards. The players who are most prepared for the archetypes Shonen Jumps may throw at them and those who are ready to take on all sorts of play styles are the duelists who will be most successful. Lazaro Bellido is one of the best at this, and so it comes as no surprise that he won the first Shonen Jump Championship of the new format. Look for other players who imitate his style of play and deck choices to be successful at upcoming Shonen Jump Championships.
—Matt Peddle