With the release of the Lightsworn monsters, we are given the chance to blend night and day: we can use the power of the Dark monsters we already had with the Light monsters’ ability to quickly accumulate a large graveyard. Of course, this opens us to all sorts of new options: this deck has been named Twilight (catchy, isn’t it), and it’ll definitely have an impact on the game.

We’ll be giving Twilight some new power by moving it into the Traditional format, but you’ll be able to recognize the skeleton of the deck by playing with it and thus easily make the transition to Advanced play. You’ll be happy to note that the deck doesn’t run Judgment Dragon, nor should it when moved to the Advanced format, as the deck is fastest when running just Dark Armed Dragon (though you can create potent decks without using either of the two). This deck is going to be focused on mass amounts of drawing and achieving a one-turn KO as consistently as possible.

The Monsters

The monster lineup is absolutely essential, as we are blending two concepts that benefit each other greatly. The three copies of Wulf, Lightsworn Beast are going to be special summoned from the deck first, most often to be tributed for our Celestia, Lightsworn Angel. Of course, don’t overlook the fact that Wulf carries a hefty ATK of 2100 and will often participate in our OTK.

It may not seem as if we have many Darks and Lights, and that playing three Chaos monsters is a bit foolhardy, but remember that we plan on sifting through almost our entire deck on the first turn. If you have a Chaos monster, you’ll almost always be able to play it. The two Destiny Hero - Dogma cards may seem like a strange choice, considering that the arguably much more powerful Destiny Hero - Plasma would usually be chosen here. However, this isn’t the case: if you’re in the rare situation where you would want to play either of the monsters, it means you have two or more copies of Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner on the field. Her 1000 ATK doesn’t contribute much in terms of achieving the desired OTK, and there’s a possibility that, in trying to draw multiple cards with Card of Safe Return (we’ll be running three), you’ve accumulated too large a field. In this situation, you’ll want to retrieve a Dasher to the field and tribute the three Lumina cards to play a very large monster that will have more of an immediate, aggressive effect.

The Spells

I don’t know how to say this in any other way: Painful Choice is absolutely ridiculous in this deck. You can special summon three copies of Wulf (or even just two, since your opponent will probably give you one of them), and throw a Light and a Dark in the graveyard for your Chaos monsters. Also, note the incredible power of Card of Safe Return in this strategy. Let’s just have fun for a moment and fantasize about opening with three copies of Card of Safe Return and Painful Choice . . . ah, the nearly impossible situation in which you special summon two monsters and draw six fresh cards from a 34-card deck. (Have you snapped out of it yet? Good, because we’re continuing.) Normally, you’ll only have access to one Card of Safe Return, but remember that you’ll be special summoning a lot. Since you’re drawing so many cards, you can expect to keep a strong chain of summons going on the way to your combo cards.

A more normal situation would be starting the game with Card of Safe Return and Foolish Burial, which will allow you to draw a card and score a Wulf. Then, you’ll be free to tribute summon Celestia, put the top four cards of your deck into your graveyard (Lights and Darks, Dasher, Wulf . . .), and destroy two of your opponent’s cards.

Also, remember that Card of Safe Return doesn’t just draw you cards: it covers your attacks. While most players will have to be wary of Mirror Force or Torrential Tribute, you’ll be operating on much the same mindset as Zombie decks. If you’ve drawn a card for every monster you’ve summoned, you don’t have to care!

In terms of side decking, Cold Wave is perhaps the most perfect card. If you lose a game and will be going first, you can side deck three of them to lock down almost any opponent. You plan on winning the game the first chance you get to attack anyway, so an opponent with no back row means a helpless target.

Also, remember that if your attacks are not backed by Card of Safe Return, they’re dangerous. Other than that, the deck comes down to discarding the right monsters, making a few key choices during your special summoning, and enough luck to open the game with one playable drawing card. If you draw one, you’ll most likely be able to play the rest. Good luck, and have fun with this powerhouse.

—Ryan Murphy