Over the last two weeks, I discussed an alternative method of Limited play, using Starter Decks and sealed boosters to construct decks to play in a tournament. This week, I will begin discussing another form of tournament play—Set Constructed. The idea in this format is to construct a deck from only cards within a specific set. This form of play lets you explore various themes within a specific set. Given my love of Burn decks, I have chosen Burn as the first Invasion of Chaos Set Constructed deck.

Invasion of Chaos contains a variety of burn cards. I have mentioned their uses in draft, but it's much easier to bring the theme together in a Constructed deck, where the pieces are more readily available. Bowganian, Stealth Bird, Curse of Darkness, Tower of Babel and the notorious Chaos Emperor Dragon are among the most powerful and will be the backbone of this deck.

Bowganian and Stealth Bird do not stand up well in battle, so protecting them will be essential. D. D. Borderline and Zero Gravity will facilitate this by offering their fair share of disruption. Chaos Emperor Dragon requires the inclusion of Light monsters, the only cards in the deck that do not actively support the Burn damage theme. The pickings for Light monsters in Invasion of Chaos are slim, so we will have to use the best of what's available. Chaos Emperor Dragon also requires that one of the Light monsters be in the graveyard, so effort has been placed into this as well, just in case your opponent refuses to cooperate by killing the Light monsters you have in play.

Let's jump right to the decklist:

Invasion of Chaos Burn Deck
40 Cards

Monsters
3 Balloon Lizard
3 Bowganian
1 Chaos Emperor Dragon
2 Freed the Brave Wanderer
2 Sacred Crane
3 Stealth Bird

Spells
3 D. D. Borderline
2 Recycle
3 Smashing Ground
2 Stumbling
2 Thunder Crash

Traps
2 Compulsory Evacuation Device
2 Curse of Darkness
2 Destruction Ring
2 Energy Drain
2 Spatial Collapse
2 Tower of Babel
2 Zero Gravity


The Monsters

Burn decks need to deal damage as often and consistently as possible. Bowganian and Stealth Bird will do this turn by turn. Each needs to survive its first turn, but after that, the damage deal from the two combined will quickly add up.

Balloon Lizard runs double-duty as both a burn card and a defensive monster. Once you have generated enough counters on your Balloon Lizard, you will want to go on the offensive with it and try to get one of your opponent’s cards to destroy it. Zero Gravity can assist in this if your opponent is going defensive to prevent the sacrificial attack.

Stumbling won't be a problem for any of these monsters, as you will most likely not be attacking with them anyways, and it can actually assist Balloon Lizard by quickly putting it into face-up defense position when you summon it.

Freed the Brave Wanderer and Sacred Crane are two of the best Light monsters for this deck. Either can function as an attacker, and Freed the Brave Wanderer can potentially remove a threat from the field. Ojama Black and Ojama Yellow can also be used as an alternative for the purposes of chump blocking and placing a Light monster in your graveyard for Chaos Emperor Dragon.


The Spells

D. D. Borderline is the ultimate stall card from Invasion of Chaos. It is difficult to get rid off once it's brought into play, and it will be a source of great frustration for any Beatdown decks. Recycle is in the deck to clear the graveyard of spell cards so that D. D. Borderline can remain in effect. Recycle gives you the flexibility to use cards like Smashing Ground, but its effect doesn’t activate until your standby phase—something to keep in mind before playing those spell cards.

Thunder Crash serves a duel purpose: it can end the duel with its damage, or it can assist in getting Light and Dark monsters into your graveyard. Try to save this until you get your Chaos Emperor Dragon in hand, as it will leave you open to attacks.


The Traps

You will note that the deck is more trap-intensive than spell-intensive. Curse of Darkness and Tower of Babel are partly to blame for this, but for the most part, Invasion of Chaos doesn't offer many spell cards that support this deck's strategy. Curse of Darkness and Tower of Babel may not ever deal their damage if your opponent tries to play around them, but this suppression of your opponent’s spell cards is also a benefit.

Zero Gravity, Compulsory Evacuation Device, and Energy Drain can work offensively or defensively depending on the situation. Zero Gravity has multiple uses in terms of disorienting attackers and placing them into vulnerable (more often than not) defense position. Compulsory Evacuation Device works well against special summon monsters like Chaos Sorcerer.

Destruction Ring serves as a quick 1000-point damage shot, and it can be used to get a Light monster into your graveyard. (I just have it in for those poor guys, don’t I?)

Spatial Collapse is the oddity. I use this card to limit my opponent’s options. The obvious flaw to this card is that it will count as one of your five cards on its own. Try not to activate Spatial Collapse until your opponent has around four or five cards on his or her side of the field, at which point he or she would be limited to working with what was already in play. It works best outside of Limited play when your opponents are using monster tokens, or when you force monster tokens upon them with Ojama Trio (one of my favorite things to do).


Some alternatives to try out in this Burn deck:

The Blazing Inferno: If you are feeling more aggressive, you can use Blazing Inpachis and Infernos to deal combat damage. Inferno is low on offensive power, so you will need to use Zero Gravity to put your opponent's high-ATK, low-DEF monsters into defense position, and Energy Drain to boost Inferno’s ATK power. Inferno has a 1900 DEF, so don’t be afraid to defend with it if necessary. (You can actually pull off a naughty combo with this and Continuous Destruction Punch in regular Constructed play. Mix in defense-boosting effects and even a Staunch Defender for more laughs.)

The Insect Swarm: Insect monsters have a built burn theme with Anti-Aircraft Flower. Pinch Hopper and Multiplication of Ants will assist in generating Insects to use as tributes. You can also use Neo Bug and Insect Princess for offense if desired. Prickle Fairy will work well as the defense for this deck, but it is very vulnerable to Smashing Ground.


Next week . . . bestial rage is unleashed in Set Constructed!


Please send all comments, suggestions, and Menchi recipes to curtis@metagame.com.