This was one of my favorite articles for obvious reasons. Erickson’s Machine deck featured here was the inspiration for the more combo-based variant I brought to Canadian Nationals, which spread through the dueling community like wildfire. Plus I love reminding Paul Levitin that I told him to play an aggressive Machine deck with Trap Dustshoot at Shonen Jump Mesa and he told me I was crazy. As I wrote this article, I convinced myself that Machines were in fact the best deck in the format. Canadian Nationals was really a blind leap of faith, which panned out thanks to the research I did for this column. In the final paragraph, I called out this deck to be a hit, and sure enough, it changed the metagame.

The Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game has taken many twists and turns through the last couple of months. The metagame has shifted to accommodate new cards, new decks, and new ideas. Side-decking has been very important during this time, as Demise OTK, Overdose burn, and Diamond Dude Turbo have been making waves in tournament play. Monarchs have also regained their former popularity, some with the aid of Destiny Hero - Malicious. This puts an interesting bind on competitors at Shonen Jump and National Championship tournaments.

Never before has a metagame supported this many top-tier decks. In addition to the archetypes listed above, Chain Strike burn, Gadgets, and the newest OTK sensation, Theerasak Poonsombat’s Destiny Hero beatdown (quickly taking on the nickname “T-Hero”), are all capable of winning major tournaments. Shonen Jump Championship Minneapolis glamorized Destiny Hero - Malicious and Destiny Hero - Disc Commander, with nine of the Top 16 and six of the Top 8 players using these cards.

By the time you’ve read this article, Canadian Nationals will have finished and U.S. Nationals will almost be underway. Chances are that the Top 8 of Canadian Nationals was filled with tech cards, and the U.S. National Championship is sure to be as well. Duelists are trying to get an edge over their opponents, and most hope to achieve that by adjusting their main decks enough to combat the most-played cards in the metagame.

One step ahead of the competition at Minneapolis was Jens Erickson. Erickson cruised into the Top 8 with a 7-1 record, defeating the eventual tournament winner Shane Scurry in round 5 and taking his only loss in a moot game during the final round. Unfortunately Erickson missed his Top 16 match and was unable to finish the tournament. His deck, which I’ll be reviewing today, is an excellent example of adjusting your main deck in preparation for the expected metagame. Erickson saw results with his choices, and just how far he would have gone with this masterpiece is left to speculation:

Monsters: 19

1 Blowback Dragon

3 Card Trooper

3 Cyber Dragon

3 Cyber Phoenix

1 Dark Ruler Ha Des

2 Dekoichi the Battlechanted Locomotive

1 Jinzo

1 Mobius the Frost Monarch

1 Neo-Spacian Grand Mole

1 Sangan

2 UFO Turtle

Spells: 16

1 Book of Moon

1 Brain Control

1 Confiscation

1 Future Fusion

1 Giant Trunade

1 Heavy Storm

1 Limiter Removal

1 Machine Duplication

1 Mystical Space Typhoon

1 Nobleman of Crossout

1 Overload Fusion

1 Pot of Avarice

1 Premature Burial

1 Scapegoat

1 Smashing Ground

1 Snatch Steal

Traps: 9

1 Call of the Haunted

1 Mind Crush

1 Mirror Force

1 Ring of Destruction

1 Sakuretsu Armor

1 Torrential Tribute

3 Trap Dustshoot

While the deck may look like a new-age Chimeratech OTK, it’s actually a fast-paced beatdown deck designed to take control of matches against both Monarchs and T-Hero . . . and never let either regain its footing. Future Fusion and Overload Fusion are there to increase the deck’s offensive potential. While an ideal hand like Giant Trunade, Future Fusion, Overload Fusion, and Nobleman of Crossout isn’t going to show up that often, there’s still the potential to draw an unstoppable one-turn knockout with cards that are otherwise very useful.

Starting first with the monster lineup, we see the fundamental Machine cards. Three copies of Cyber Phoenix are included to combat both Monarchs and T-Hero. Both decks capitalize on the usefulness of Brain Control and Snatch Steal. Monarchs combo up with cards like Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch and Raiza the Storm Monarch to induce favorable trades, while T-Hero uses Brain Control to set up a game-winning scenario. Summoning a Cyber Phoenix allows Erickson to remain confident that he won’t lose either the game or a lot of cards by his next turn.

Card Trooper and Cyber Dragon are seen in almost every popular aggressive deck, and in a Machine beatdown, you’d have to be crazy not to include three copies of each. Both monsters help contribute to the OTK potential a great deal. Cyber Dragon is the card that single-handedly altered the environment to a more OTK-friendly one because of its special summoning ability. Its function is no different here, although with Limiter Removal, Future Fusion, and Overload Fusion in the main deck, Cyber Dragon can help win the game that much faster.

Card Trooper is simply amazing here for the same reasons it’s amazing in almost any deck. The ability to summon and swing for 1900 ATK or defend and refresh the hand with a draw is incredible. Throw in the possible combos with Giant Trunade and Premature Burial/Call of the Haunted, and suddenly even the cards Trooper drops to the graveyard become beneficial. As if that wasn’t enough, Erickson plays one copy of Machine Duplication to special summon some additional copies of Card Trooper, while Limiter Removal can boost its ATK up to 3800. When combined with Cyber Dragon, that’s 8000 points worth of ATK on the field.

Dekoichi the Battlechanted Locomotive is a big card for Machine decks as well. Packing a solid 1400 ATK and the Machine type, Dekoichi is an excellent first turn play. Its card-draw ability increases the chance of drawing game-winning hands, and its Machine type allows it to be pumped by Limiter Removal or used with Future Fusion and Overload Fusion. Dekoichi is also one of the few cards that can be tributed for Jinzo or Blowback Dragon while still replacing itself. Perhaps its most useful ability is that, after it’s been flipped, it swings in freely for 1400 damage. Your opponents are rarely going to stop this monster’s attacks because of their fear of using Sakuretsu Armor on your already replaced Dekoichi. Little do they know that Sakuretsu Armor isn’t going to do much down the line anyway.

Dark Ruler Ha Des and Neo-Spacian Grand Mole are two excellent examples of teching cards for expected matchups. Both can shut down effect monsters that must be set before using their effects. Ha Des can also destroy attack-position Monarchs in battle, something for which the Monarch deck isn’t usually prepared. Blowback Dragon is another card that can destroy face-down monsters before they’re able to use their effects, and it’s a Machine to boot.

Many of the spells in this deck are obvious choices. Book of Moon is a solid card that can save Card Trooper or Dekoichi the Battlechanted Locomotive from being taken with Brain Control, or it can put a stop to anything trying to destroy Cyber Phoenix. Giant Trunade works wonders with Premature Burial or Call of the Haunted when used with Card Trooper, Cyber Phoenix, Jinzo, or Sangan. It can also set up one of the many game-winning scenarios involving Machine Duplication, Limiter Removal, and/or Premature Burial.

The real prize of this deck is the main-decked Trap Dustshoot and Mind Crush cards. Trap Dustshoot is an excellent tech card for today’s metagame, and between the Monarchs tearing up rogue decks and T-Hero’s rise in popularity, it’s something every deck should be looking to play. Both Monarchs and T-Hero decks are very dependant on monster and spell combos to go off, and removing the monster from that equation nullifies the spell card. That slows the deck down by three or four turns. Mind Crush works nicely with Trap Dustshoot, and works wonders against Big City and Gadgets.

When combined with Cyber Phoenix, Trap Dustshoot can easily switch up roles to protect the Phoenix. Since the Brain Control/Monarch combo won’t be working anyway, Dustshoot is free to clear pesky copies of Gravekeeper’s Spy from the opponent’s hand. Against OTK decks like Demise or Diamond Dude Turbo, Dustshoot can break apart game-winning combos and turn seemingly guaranteed wins for the opponent into wins for you instead.

Erickson’s Machine deck is brilliant. The ability to play aggressively while combating both T-Hero and Monarchs without dipping into the side deck is truly astonishing. With so many things to look out for in today’s metagame, look for a teched-out beatdown deck to find a lot of success at your National tournament!

­—Matt Peddle