Magic Ruler (MRL) is famous for the number of complaints people shout about it. Comments such as, "This set just sucks," and "There’s nothing good in this set," are constantly heard about MRL. However, many fail to realize that the set contains many cards that have seen common play in various tournaments across the country. If we were to erase the existence of Magic Ruler, the World Championships of 2003 would have been much different, as 4–5 cards from every Control deck are found in this set. Obviously, Magic Ruler’s forte is its spell cards, as traps are severely lacking. The spells in this set make up for its lack of traps, as duelists can find many uses for them in a tournament deck. A few of the monsters are notable as well.
Giant Germ: The 500 damage is nothing to call home about, and the attack power of Giant Germ doesn’t say much either. The fact that this irritation can swarm the field by being destroyed in battle makes it useful for numerous decks, including Control, high-level decks, cost down decks, and specifically Fiend decks. At times, the attack can prove useful if your opponent only has a Sangan on the field. Dealing 2500 damage with weenie monsters is impressive.
Nimble Momonga: This monster is similar to Giant Germ, except it can be more useful if you had to choose between the two. Giant Germ should without a doubt be chosen over this squirrel if you’re running a Fiend/Necrofear deck, but in other decks this monster’s utility is much higher. Not only can you recover a good amount of life, you can also create a better wall against the opponent’s attackers, as they go into defense. Of course, their defense is only 100, so they die pretty easily. Let’s just hope your opponent doesn’t summon an Airknight Parshath . . .
Cyber Jar: This little rock happens to be one of the best flip effect monsters in the game, and it proved itself to be one of the best monsters in Magic Ruler. Not only does it nuke the entire field of monsters, it also allows you to build up your hand and your field with new monsters. Of course, you could always get very unlucky and summon nothing, while your opponent grins at you with five brand-new monsters. However, the odds of that happening are low, and they don’t affect the usefulness of this monster.
Malevolent Nuzzler: This was by far the best common equip spell of its time. Stim Pack from Metal Raiders was only a temporary increase, while the Nuzzler makes sure the increase in attack power stays. If you desperately need the attack boost, you can always use its effect when destroyed, too. It’s still a useful equipment spell.
Chain Energy: This spell card happens to be a massive pain—to both the opponent and the controller. The 500 damage may not seem like much, but it adds up since it’s so easy to take damage through this card.
Toll: This card is a little less annoying to the opponent than Chain Energy, but it’s easier for its controller to use. Many Burner decks rely on strictly burn damage, without declaring a single attack. The problem is keeping this card protected from the massive amount of spell and trap removal out there. Of course, that’s what counter traps, like Magic Jammer, are for.
Labyrinth Wall: Sure, it might only be a level 5 monster with no attack power, and it may seem easy to destroy. However, Labyrinth Wall was the original massive defender in America, with Millennium Shield being released a few months later. A 3000 defense is nothing to laugh at, since few monsters can actually destroy it without an effect. It’s a decent stall if you really need it.
Shining Angel: Like Metal Raiders with the power boosters, Magic Ruler has a line of deck searching monsters, one for each type. Only three are worth mentioning, though, since it’s rare you’ll ever really want to use a Fire, Water, or Wind searcher. Sure, they have uses for some monsters, such as Harpie Lady, but that’s about it. Anyway, Shining Angel can search out Light monsters with 1500 ATK or less. It might not seem like there are many choices here, but Dark Crisis proved that wrong, with the release of D. D. Warrior Lady. If a monster can special summon a D. D. Warrior Lady from your deck to the field, I’d say that monster is very much worth mentioning.
Giant Rat: This enormous vermin is the deck searcher for Earth weenies. Of course, those weenies either help you create a swarm of monsters or a seemingly weak monster with a nasty effect. Nimble Momonga loves this Rat, and you will, too, in sticky situations. Mudora also loves this searcher, as would the user if he or she could special summon a monster that can potentially reach 3000 ATK upon hitting the field. Other Effect monsters can be brought out via Giant Rat, which is what makes him #2 of the Magic Ruler searchers.
Mystic Tomato: While Shining Angel and Giant Rat may be good deck searchers, the best of the Magic Ruler searchers is the extremely versatile Mystic Tomato. This plant can bring out almost any Effect Dark monster imaginable. Imagine instantly summoning a Witch of the Black Forest, Sangan, or Giant Germ to the field. Tomato provides massive field advantage and deck thinning. Tomato was made most popular for its ability to search out the warrior Don Zaloog, for the use of destroying an opponent’s hand. It’s also popular for searching out Dark Jeroid, in the event that you can reduce the attack power of an opponent’s Jinzo or Vampire Lord.
The New Fields: New field spells were released with Magic Ruler. These fields are Umiiruka, Molten Destruction, Gaia Power, Mystic Plasma Zone, Luminous Spark, and Rising Air Current. The defense decrease is hardly an issue since the attack boost makes a simple Harpie Lady, Giant Germ, or direct attacker (like Mystic Lamp) a powerful force to be reckoned with.
Sonic Bird: Ritual monsters and spells made their debut with Magic Ruler, although the usefulness of most of those ritual monsters could be questioned. After all, who really wants to kill their field and hand for a 1900 ATK Hungry Burger? However, Sonic Bird made the summoning of a ritual monster much easier, as its ability is able to thin your deck of a ritual spell. While rituals (aside from Relinquished) seemed in dire need of actual power, more ritual monsters were released in the future, including powerhouses such as Black Luster Soldier and Shinat King of a Higher Plane.
Senju of the Thousand Hands: Similar to Sonic Bird in almost every aspect, Senju is able to search out a ritual monster. Some ritual monsters were easy to add to your hand already, through Witch of the Black Forest or Sangan. Senju of the Thousand Hands speeds up this process. Of course, it’s advised that you use more Sonic Birds than Senjus if your ritual monster has 1500 or less ATK/DEF, but that’s all up to you.
Upstart Goblin: The most common reaction I see on duelists’ faces when people play this card is "Huh?" If the deck wasn’t designed to use Upstart Goblin, I can see why. This spell is designed to thin your deck, but the effect of giving your opponent extra life is a major turn-off. However, in combination with Bad Reaction to Simocchi, you would love this card. That is why Upstart Goblin is restricted to one per deck. It’s useful for Exodia decks as well.
Hiro’s Shadow Scout: Normally, card drawing is a good thing, which is why you are probably thinking "What?! Why would I give my opponent cards?" However, in what the opponent gains, he or she can lose just as much. Spell cards dominate most decks out there, with a range of 10–20 spells each. Hiro’s effect is most likely going to force the opponent to discard at least one spell. Hiro is great for a Deck Destruction deck, too, especially if you can’t afford three Needle Worms.
Electric Snake: The only significant use for this card is to counter the hand destruction cards in this set. The Snake is something that should never see play in a main deck, but it’s a saint in a side deck.
Maha Vailo: At the time of this magician’s release, I could not find a more used magician at the time, besides Magician of Faith. Maha Vailo starts out as a basic monster with average stats. However, with the numerous equip spells released in Magic Ruler, it can become a massive terror to the opponent. Things weren’t fixed in the future with the debut of even deadlier equip spells. It took a well-timed Heavy Storm to take care of the Maha Vailo problem.
Black Pendant: This equipment spell remains useful even in today’s tournament Burners. The 500 ATK increase is nice, but it’s not what makes Black Pendant so useful. It can make your opponent think twice about destroying it, since the damage may eventually cause the opponent’s loss. There are numerous combos available with Black Pendant if you can find them.
Toon World and the Toon monsters: The Toon monsters in the Yu-Gi-Oh! TV show are incredibly deadly. They’re unharmed by normal monster attacks and smack the competition away easily. Then they were released in real life, and suddenly, you realized something was missing. Sure, they are special summons and they can attack directly, but is it really worth the high life point costs? Mystical Space Typhoon came out in this set, too, which basically gave Toons another slap across the face. Perhaps if some support for Toons is released in the future, they’ll become more playable. Otherwise, they look absolutely gorgeous in your binder.
Painful Choice: Pot of Greed and Graceful Charity are great for adding to your hand, but Painful Choice is the ultimate deck thinner. You are able to choose five cards, and they could be anything. You keep one of those cards that the opponent chooses, and the rest are discarded. It was great for desperate situations, and it made Exodia decks deadly once again . . . after the release of Pharaoh’s Servant, with the debut of a special backup trap card . . .
Banisher of the Light: A high-defense Fairy is one thing. A high-defense Fairy that removes things from the game is another thing. The banisher cannot merely be thrown into some random deck, as it will end up hurting you more than helping. However, in the right decks, where you are not afraid to sacrifice some of your spells and monsters, you can cripple your opponent’s strategies easily. Sangan, Giant Germ, Tomato, and all monsters like those will not get their effects if removed from play. Imagine the devastation with this and Card Destruction . . .
Messenger of Peace: In the realm of Yu-Gi-Oh!, there were few actual stall cards, with the exception of some high-defense monsters. So Konami graced us with Messenger of Peace. The cost per standby phase might as well not be there since it’s so minor, and you’ll rarely enter a situation in which you can’t afford to pay the 100 life points. With the ability to stop most commonly used attackers, Messenger of Peace is still regarded as a Burner deck’s key to burning the opponent’s life to 0, an Exodia deck’s key to summoning Exodia, a Deck Destruction deck’s . . . well, you get the idea.
Relinquished: The best ritual monster in MRL is Relinquished. In fact, it’s the only good ritual monster in the set. Its ability is unique, as it relies on the opponent using powerful monsters for Relinquished to have high power. However, its effect not only acts as monster removal, but also as a stall at times. If you absorb a face-down monster with Relinquished, your opponent may be hesitant to attack it, as the damage you take would also be inflicted to him or her. It’s a fantastic ritual monster, and it’s also quite easy to summon, with a low level of sacrifices needed, and it can be searched out via Witch and Sangan.
Snatch Steal: Magic Ruler presented some of the best spells in the game. This spell happens to be one of them. Snatch Steal is one of the most commonly used spells in tournaments, as its effect can easily turn a one-sided game to your victory. It certainly earned its spot on the limited list.
Axe of Despair: This card is pure beatdown power. Its second effect is rarely used since it’s rarely needed. It’s a 1000 ATK power boost to any creature, giving even a White Magical Hat destructive attack power and a destructive effect.
Megamorph: At first, the card looks like a blessing. Doubling a monster’s attack power can either be decent, like 1000 from a Sangan, or incredible, like 2500 from a Summoned Skull. However, after attacking with the juiced-up monster, it will most likely become incredibly weak. This leaves Megamorph as a finishing card or a last resort. Most people tend to prefer the Axe of Despair.
The Forceful Sentry: One of the ultimate hand-killing spells of MRL, the Sentry can easily disrupt any key strategy the opponent is playing. In a way, returning a card to the owner’s deck can prove more useful than simply discarding it. After all, if you discarded a powerful monster or spell, your opponent could always retrieve it through Magician of Faith or Monster Reborn. This also adds to the size of the opponent’s deck, decreasing the chances of him or her drawing anything good. This easily makes the list for one of the best MRL cards.
Confiscation: One of the three hand-killing spells of MRL, confiscation has seen a lot of play since the release of Yata-Garasu. The life point payment is relatively minor if it can disrupt an opponent’s key strategy. Of course, some people prefer to use The Forceful Sentry over this since it’s free.
Delinquent Duo: The other ultimate hand killing spell of MRL. Confiscation and The Forceful Sentry both have good uses, and they allow you to see the opponent’s hand. However, at times, it’s better to go for quantity. For a mere life point payment, you can cut down the opponent’s hand by at least one third of its original size. Even if you cannot pick out the cards yourself, you can always combo this with the previously mentioned hand killers. If your opponent has some threatening cards left in hand after you use the other spells, just use the Duo and kill your opponent’s hopes further.
Mystical Space Typhoon: This is the mighty MST. It’s one of the most commonly used cards in Yu-Gi-Oh!, and almost every tournament duelist runs 2–3 in his or her deck. Its effect is so basic, yet it’s so useful at the same time. The effect of MST easily makes it the best card out of Magic Ruler.
As shown, Magic Ruler provides a long list of dominating spell cards. The next time someone says this set has nothing good in it, remember to remind that person about all of the MRL cards in his or her tournament deck.