Saturday, July 27, 2013

Tiny Post! More Mystical Magus!

If you haven't had enough of the Mystical Magus cards, you're in luck! The rest of the Magus Extra Booster was revealed in a magazine recently, revealing a list of reprints as well as a few new cards, mostly Battle Sister Cards!


Battle Sister, Lemonade
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 1 | 5,000 Power

[AUTO] [Soulblast 2] When this unit is placed on VG or RG, you may pay the cost. If you do, choose two cards in your damage zone, and flip them face up.










A very simple card, yet one fulfilling a lot of purpose. First, its Luck Bird type mechanic that is designed to work with the counterblast heavy Battle Sister style. Second, it is now one of three mechanics that could possibly see reprints in several clans to increase the consistency of unflipping damage. Clans like Tachikaze or Narukami, who have little use for their soul, could greatly benefit from a card like this. Woohoo!



Battle Sister, Caramel
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 2 | 8,000 Power

[AUTO] [CB1] When this unit is placed on VG or RG, you may pay the cost. If you do, place the top card of your deck into the damage zone, and at the start of the end phase of this turn, place one card from your damage into your deck, and shuffle your deck.








Fake Damage. OTT has been missing one for a while now, but with their lack of Limit Breaks, nobody really missed them. Now they have LB, and now they have a fake damage card. This will be especially important in deck like Monaka, with their need to draw the copies for their Persona Blast.



Oracle Agent, Roys
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 2 | 9,000 Power

[AUTO] (VG/RG) [CB1] When this units attack hits a VG, you may pay the cost. If you do, look at up to the top five cards of your deck, search for up to 1 Grade 3 <<Oracle Think Tank>> among them, reveal it to your opponent, and add it to your hand. Then shuffle the remaining cards into the deck.








Again, seeming to benefit Monaka or Coco, the accumulation of Grade 3's will increase the number of on-call effects you can pull off, as well as thinning the deck so you hit those juicy triggers. Yum. The ability to shuffle is also nice, just in case Monaka's effect puts some awesome cards on the bottom of the deck on accident.


Battle Sister, Parfait
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power

[CONT] (VG) (LB4) During your turn, when the number of cards in your hand is four or greater, this unit gains +3,000 Power and the skill "[AUTO](VG) When this unit's attack hits a VG, draw a card."
[ACT] (VG) [CB2 Battle Sisters] If the number of cards in your hand is three or less, draw a card.
[CONT] (VG/RG) Lord






A wonderful new Battle Sister, Parfait rings back to that Amaterasu feel with her power derived off having a big hand, and the ability to increase your hand size if you need it. It also supports the 12-Crit build of Battle Sisters, as this draw power is pretty nice, basically giving you a free Draw Trigger on-hit. Combined with the Battle Sister who unflips two damage, you could be getting tons of cards to help you recover after a difficult defense, but the 11K power guarantees you'll have some ease of guarding, too. Overall a strong B+ card.

And that is it! Combined with the Magus line-up, those are all the NEW cards in the extra booster set. We'll see a few reprints, and all the battle sister triggers will return (along with a reprinted Psychic Bird and Luck Bird) and will aid in the production of these decks. So good hunting, my Scrying Battle Babies!











Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Drawing, Discarding, and Binding, OH MY!

As per usual, shortly after the leaking of Daikaiser through Ideal808, more cards started flowing. I'm proudly here today to introduce to you several cards for three of our all-time favorite clans! From Trial Deck 12: Brave Dimensional Kaiser, I give you Dimension Police! From Extra Booster: Mystical Magus, I give you Oracle Think Tank! And from Booster Set 13: Catastrophic Outbreak, I give you NUBATAMA! It isn't Granblue, like I hoped, but these cards are all shaping up to be pretty good!

Let's start with D-Police, since we previously showed you Daikaiser, the new Break Ride. It combos excellently with all of these new "Dimensional Robo" cards:


Dimensional Robo, Kaizard
<<Dimension Police>>
Grade 2 | 9,000 Power


[AUTO] When a <<Dimension Police>> rides this unit, choose your VG and it gains +5000 Power until the end of the turn.










A very simple ability, yet a powerful one. When combined with Daiyusha, it grants the extra critical automatically due to his ability. When combined with Daikaiser, it turns an 11K into a 16K, forcing your opponent to guard huge numbers against attacks for two turns in a row, sure to deplete his hand by the time you BREAK RIDE! Run four of this guy. He will be well worth the ride.


Dimensional Robo, Daidriller
<<Dimension Police>>
Grade 2 | 8,000 Power

[AUTO] (CB1) When this unit is place on VG or RG, you may pay the cost. If you do, choose another one of your "Dimensional Robo" units, and it gains +4,000 Power until the end of the turn.










Please excuse the quality of the scan. Copying the Grade 1 Dailander, Daidriller will allow you to pick up big numbers for reasonably small counterblasts. Definitely a good choice, but watch carefully, because there a large number of very good Grade 2 units. It may be best to stick with the grade 1 for this ability.

In the trial deck, we also saw a Dimensional Robo clone of "Knight of Friendship, Kay" (A Grade 1 who attacks for 10K when you have a D-Robo on the VG). Dimensional Robo, Daitiger will be a must run in this deck, where you often deplete your field and need quick replacements. We also the 10K Vanilla Grade 2, "Dimensional Robo, Daifighter"

Now, from set 13: Catastrophic Outbreak, come three new D-Robos!
Dimensional Robo, Daimagnum
<<Dimension Police>>
Grade 0 | 5,000 Power

[AUTO] Forerunner
[ACT] (RG) [Put this unit into soul] Choose one of your <<Dimension Police>> VG, and it gains +4,000 Power until the end of the turn.









I personally like Goyusha, but for those who dislike his -4 superior break-cross-ride ability, there is a new starter on the horizon. Daimagnum gives you the option to simply shove him into the soul for a quick +4K, activating Daiyusha and giving your VG a good push. Then drop a bigger booster directly behind him and go to town.


Dimensional Robo, Daishield
<<Dimension Police>>
Grade 1 | 6,000 Power


I'm personally not one for switching PG into the archetype unless they use an Especial Counterblast. But this guy looks awesome, even though I totally wanted it to be Daidefender, not Daishield.










Dimensional Robo, Daicanon
<<Dimension Police>>
Grade 1 | 6,000 Power

[ACT] (RG) [Put this unit into your soul, and choose one "Dimensional Robo" RG and put it into soul] Choose one your vanguards with "Daiyusha" in its name. That unit gains +1 Critical until the end of the turn.









It's here, people! The first unit to ever give a Critical to another unit. From here on, it is madness! Working synergistically with both Daiyusha and Great Daiyusha, this turns either of those cards into Crit +2 machines. Combined with a card like Daimariner or Daibattle, who can soulblast themselves for more power, or with Daikaiser for the PG Buster Ability, Daiyusha can be swinging in (by himself, no booster) for a Whopping 3 Criticals and 23,000 Power. This is BEFORE trigger checks. So a potential 5 damage can be dealt on turn 4, ending the game. Welcome back, D-Robos.

Moving from one absolutely broken ability to another, I give you the pretty, geometrical, deadly, MAGUS LADIES!


Hexagonal Magus
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power

[AUTO] (LB4) When an <<Oracle Think Tank>> rides this unit, check up to the top 3 cards of your deck, and place one into your hand. Then return the remaining two cards to the top of the deck in any order you wish. Then choose one of your Vanguards, and it gains +10,000 Power until the end of the turn.
[CONT] (VG) During your turn, if you have 4 or more cards in your hand, this unit gains +2,000 Power.
[CONT] (VG/RG) Lord





There it is kids, Oracle Think Tank's BREAK RIDE! Bearing some of the shortest names for an archetype, your Magus cards are all about scrying the top deck and selectively drawing cards, as we see here. Also note, with this ability to have the chance to check two triggers, and then place them in order how you wish them to work. No more of that pesky "If only my heal had gone off second!" or "Man, I wish I hadn't drawn into that crit trigger!" You can set them down so they always work correctly! Hooray! Also, this card sets up a lot of other stuff. In addition, the Amaterasu ability shows back up, albeit weaker. Its also far more clear, as the ability is now a CONT instead of an AUTO, so that whole "Drive check effect activation" scenario doesn't matter. If you have four cards, she's 13K on your turn.



Pentagonal Magus
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power

[AUTO] (VG) (LB4) When this unit attacks, declare the name of an <<Oracle Think Tank>> unit, then reveal the top card of your deck. If you declared the correct unit, this unit gains +5000 Power and +1 Critical. Then return the revealed card to the top of the deck.
[ACT] (VG) [CB2 <<Oracle Think Tank>> with "Magus" in their name] This unit gains +5,000 Power until the end of the turn.
[CONT] (VG/RG) Lord






And theeere's the combo. With Hexagonal you'll know the top card of your deck, and then Pentagonal can declare it. If its a Crit Trigger, you'll get to reveal it, gain +5/Crit off Hexagonal's Ability, then Drive Check it, and gain +5/Crit again off the Trigger Check. The only downside is that Hexagonal's ability happens BEFORE the Guard Step, so they'll know if you have the extra crit or not, and can still guard your for 2 Triggers without any surprises.


Crescent Magus
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 1 | 6,000 Power

[AUTO] (RG) When this unit boosts an <<Oracle Think Tank>> you may declare the name of an <<Oracle Think Tank>> unit, and reveal the top card of your deck, then place it back on top of your deck. If you called it correctly, the boosted unit gains +3,000 Power until the end of that battle.








And we keep C-C-C-Comboing! Thats right! A FREE ability, and since it triggers at the same time as Pent Magus, you can boost Pent Magus, use her skill to check the top card, and then Pent's ability to declare that card and gain +5 and a Crit. Also note, this baby works when boosting RG units, so you can slap spare Hex or Pent magi in front of her to hit 20K rows with consistency.


Stellar Magus
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 2 | 9,000 Power

[AUTO] (VG/RG) [CB1] When this unit attacks a VG, you may pay the cost. If you do, declare the name of an <<Oracle Think Tank>> unit, and reveal the top card of your deck. If you declared it correctly, put that card into your hand. If you did not declare it correctly, unflip one of your damage and return the unit to the top of the deck.







And rounding out the combo is Stellar Magus. She essentially checks for free, since if you declare it wrong, it goes back and you unflip a damage. However, feel free to declare cards that you really want, like Pentagonal Magus if you are in need of a Break Ride, or Tetra Magus for some Kanzen Guarding! Or Silent Tom, because who doesn't want a Silent Tom in hand? You'll get the card, and you still have plenty of ways to check your topdeck before it matters.

Maguses also got a new PG (Tetra Magus) and new Bedivere/Kay Clones (Cuore Magus/Rebis Magus). But don't worry, because we didn't forget about Battle Sisters!


Battle Sister, Monaka
<<Oracle Think Tank>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power

[ACT] (VG) (LB4) [CB1 and discard one "Battle Sister Monaka" from your hand] Look at 5 cards from the top of your deck, search for up to 2 of them and add them to your hand, then place the rest on the bottom of your deck in any order. 
[ACT] [CB2 cards with "Battle Sister" in their name] This unit gains +5,000 Power until the end of the turn.
[CONT] Lord






Now, this card is rather interesting. It can combo well with other "Battle Sisters" by tutoring for cards you need, but this card also has a home in Tsukuyomi Decks. The ability to make your stack bigger is very powerful, and since it is a persona blast ACT, you can find copies of Monaka in that 5 card search, pick one, and do it again and again. This will allow you to potentially send 9 cards to the bottom of your deck, and put 4 in hand. If combine that with Tsukuyomi, potentially netting all the cards you need to fix the ride chain (Inaba and Tsukuyomi parts) then you can potentially create a very powerful card stack, as you'll now have a minimum of 21 cards stacked in your deck, maximum 24. That's half your deck, that you can have memorized. Combine them with those new Maguses (who don't require you to have a Magus VG or even to declare a Magus card) and you can use your stack for all kinds of ridiculous fun.  I'm on board for a Monaka/Tsukuyomi train! I would DEFINITELY ride that!

Now that we've looked through OTT, let's stare down the barrel of an altogether new beast, the Clan that was never meant to be Clan, NUBATAMA!


Stealth Beast Kuroko
<<Nubatama>>
Grade 0 | 5,000 Power

[AUTO] Forerunner
[AUTO] (RG) [Soulblast 1] When an attack hits a VG during the battle in which this unit boosted a <<Nubatama>>, you may pay the cost. If you do, choose up to two units in your opponent's bind zone, and send them to the drop zone.








One of the first Forerunner RG that is designed to STAY ON FIELD. Nice. This ability can be used over and over, and will combo well with the cards in this clan, which, as you can see, are going to also utilize BIND.


Storm Stealth Rogue, Fuuki
<<Nubatama>>
Grade 1 | 7,000 Power

[ACT] (RG) [CB1 and Put this unit into soul] If there are more than 3 cards in your opponent's hand, you may pay the cost. If you do, select one card at random from your opponent's hand and send it to the bind zone FACE DOWN. During the end phase of this turn, the opponent will put that card back into their hand. 








I capitalized the "Face Down" part of this clan, because the cards specify. It changes the mind games if you can see what card you bind, and some of the cards in this do specify face-up. So its important to take note. Also note that this card gives you soul fodder and Bind-fodder for Kuroko's skill.


Stealth Beast, Tamahagane
<<Nubatama>>
Grade 2 | 9,000 Power

[AUTO] When this unit is placed on VG or RG, choose one of your opponent's grade 1 RG, send it to the bind zone FACE UP, and at the end phase of this turn, the opponent will put that card back into their hand.








Besides being a fucktastically awesome BEAR NINJA, this guy gives a lot of interrupt for opponents. Cards that need more or less RG can be aided with this skill, as well as cards like Reijy or Gancelot's Break Ride can be disrupted by removing a RG so it can't be selected during the ride phase when their abilities trigger. It also sets you up to potentially snipe a backrow (albeit indirectly) by using Kuroko's skill to send it to the drop zone.


Ashura Stealth Dragon, Kujikiri Kongou
<<Nubatama>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power

[AUTO] (LB4) When a <<Nubatama>> rides this unit, choose one of your VG, and that unit gains +10,000 Power until the end of the turn. Then, your opponent chooses one card in his/her hand and discards it. Then you choose one card at random from your opponent's hand and send it to the bind zone. During the end phase of this turn, the card sent to the bind zone is placed in the opponent's hand.
[AUTO] (VG) When this unit attacks, if the number of cards in the opponent's hand is less than 3, this unit gains +2,000 Power.
[CONT] (VG/RG) Lord



Okay, so some potential power here. A late game hand destruction is pretty brutal, since it can leave you with a minimum of 2 cards in hand, and your PG might be sent to the bind zone by the random binding. At least there is no crit here, so you can play against it pretty normally. The problem is the set-up for Kuroko, who will likely be behind the VG and pushing in to kill those cards in the bind zone before you can recover them.


Ashura Stealth Dragon, Kabuki Kongou
<<Nubatama>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power

[AUTO] (VG) (LB4) [CB1] When this unit attacks, you may pay the cost. If you do, bind all of your opponent's RG, and if the number of units bound by this effect is 3 or more, this unit gains +10,000 Power. At the start of the end phase, return all cards bound by this effect to the opponent's hand.
[ACT] [CB1] This unit gains +2,000 Power until the end of the turn.
[CONT] Lord





A pretty mighty card, all things considered. An ability like Lawkeeper with added power is nice. If it works for Kagero it can work for Nubatama as well. The bonus here is that with the ability to  bind from hand, you'll almost guarantee a hit, so give Kuroko the spot behind this vanguard, and swing with 26,000. Then kill all the cards in the bind zone that you can, so your opponent has to keep replacing from hand.


....Whew~! That was a LOT of cards. But we're all done with the previews from this month's KeroKero Ace! Nubatama, D-Robos, Oracle Think Tank...all pretty awesome cards. I'd definitely ride that Monaka/Tsukuyomi combo! Until next time, see ya!


Monday, July 15, 2013

Boss Cards, Ahoy!

A little late on the info, but here's a quick peek for my viewers at boss cards for Pale Moon and Dark Irregulars. I'll also be (against my will) detailing Link Jokers' revealed ride chain, also from BT-12. But I love spreading NEW information, so I've also included Dimension Police's new Break Ride!



Silver Thorn Dragon Queen, Luquier "REVERSE"
<<Pale Moon>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power

[ACT] (VG) (LB4) [CB1 and LOCK one of your <<Pale Moon>> RG] Choose a <<Pale Moon>> in your soul and call it to RG. This unit gains +5000 Power until the end of the turn.
(Locked cards are turned face down, and cannot do anything. Turn them face up at the end of its owner's turn)
[CONT] (VG) If "Silver Thorn Dragon Tamer, Luquier" is in the soul, this unit gains +2000 Power.
[CONT] (VG/RG) Lord





Personally, I felt kind of underwhelmed for a Crossride Unit. Sure the 13K is something Pale Moon has needed for a long time. 10K VG has just been killing them defensively. But, this ability is particularly damaging to Pale Moon's own playstyle. Locking a RG space prevents what Pale Moon can bounce around, and +5000 still only gets their rows to 22,000 most of the time. If the effect was +6,000, it would be a lot more playable in today's meta of Crossrides, because right now it's only useful if you call out a 10K RG in front of Dark Metal Bicorn.

Sorry Bushiroad, but you missed the goal by 1,000 on this one.



Demon Marquis, Amon "REVERSE"
<<Dark Irregular>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power
[ACT] (VG) (LB4) [LOCK one of your <<Dark Irregular>> RG] Until the end of the turn, this unit gains +1,000 Power for each <<Dark Irregular>> in the soul, and if the number of <<Dark Irregular>> in soul is 6 or more, this unit gains +1 Critical. This ability cannot be used for the rest of the turn.
(Locked cards are turned face down, and cannot do anything. Turn them face up at the end of its owner's turn)
[CONT] (VG) If "Demon World Marquis, Amon" is in the soul, this unit gains +2000 Power.
[CONT] (VG/RG) Lord




This is far more playable. Locking a RG is super acceptable in Dark Irregulars, and with the Amon ability installed, you can easily just lock your own RG. A 13K Amon with a Critcal every turn? This I can imagine supporting some great plays in DI. Good job, Bushi!

Unfortunately, now we need to talk about <<Link Joker>>. Featured on a previous episode of Cardfight!!Vanguard, Link Joker revealed its Ride Chain, "Schwarzchild Dragon."


Micro-Hole Dracokid
<<Link Joker>>
Grade 0 | 4,000 Power

[AUTO] When a unit named "Gravity Ball Dragon" rides this unit, you may look at the top 7 cards of your deck, and choose either "Gravity Collapse Dragon" or "Schwarzchild Dragon" from among them, reveal it to your opponent, and add it to your hand. Shuffle the remaining cards into your deck.
[AUTO] Forerunner (When a <<Link Joker>> other than "Gravity Ball Dragon" rides this unit, you may move it to RG)








Gravity Ball Dragon
<<Link Joker>>
Grade 1 | 7,000 Power

[CONT] (VG) If "Micro-Hole Dracokid" is in the soul, this unit gains +1,000 Power.
[AUTO] When a Grade 2 <<Link Joker>> NOT named "Gravity Collapse Dragon" rides this unit, you may search the top 7 cards of your deck for a card named "Gravity Collapse Dragon," reveal it your opponent, and ride it. Then shuffle the remaining cards back into your deck.









Gravity Collapse Dragon
<<Link Joker>>
Grade 2 | 9,000 Power

[CONT] (VG) If "Gravity Ball Dragon" is in the soul, this unit gains +1,000 Power.
[AUTO] When this unit rides "Gravity Ball Dragon," if "Micro-Hole Dracokid" is in the soul, choose up to one of your opponent's RG, and LOCK it.
(Locked cards are turned face down, and cannot do anything. Turn them face up at the end of its owner's turn)







Schwarzchild Dragon
<<Link Joker>>
Grade 3 | 10,000 Power

[ACT] (VG) (LB4) [CB3 and choose a card named "Schwarzchild Dragon" from your hand, and discard it] Choose up to three of your opponent's RG, LOCK them, and this unit gains +10,000 Power and +1 Critical.
(Locked cards are turned face down, and cannot do anything. Turn them face up at the end of its owner's turn)
[AUTO] (VG) [CB1] When this unit is placed on VG, you may pay the cost. If you do, look at up to 5 cards from the top of your deck, search for a card named "Schwarzchild Dragon" from among them, reveal it to your opponent, and add it to your hand. Shuffle the remaining cards into the deck.
[CONT] (VG) If you have a unit named "Gravity Collapse Dragon" in soul, this unit gains +1,000 Power.

This ride chain isn't nearly as broken, but its still pretty bad. A near guaranteed ride chain thanks to the new Ride Chain mechanic we've seen lately will guarantee you are at 11K power, and the extra search for a copy to persona blast is pretty helpful. Thankfully the skill requires a CB3 to keep it pretty low in use, although this is the kind of ability I'd rather see as on-hit than as an ACT. Still, its a fun card, but I hate Link Joker. I can easily see several turns of use of out this card, especially if LJ gets a damage unflipper.

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for! Now, usually I've very wary of fake cards, like what happened with Luquier REVERSE. Sometimes convincing fakes get through, and nobody catches them. I am also wary of this card, as it sounds almost too good to be ture, but it was Spoiled by Ideal808 earlier today, and I at least trust an official card-selling website. It is also possible that they might've been given a sneak peek in order to promote card sales.

So, without further ado, the new Dimension Police BREAK RIDE! Rise, SUPER DIMENSIONAL ROBO, DAIKAISER!


Super Dimensional Robo, Daikaiser
<<Dimension Police>>
Grade 3 | 11,000 Power

[AUTO] (LB4) [CB1] When a Grade 3 <<Dimension Police>> rides this unit, you may pay the cost. If you do, choose your vanguard, and that unit gains +10,000 Power and +1 Critical. It also gains the skill "[AUTO] (VG) When this unit drive checks a Grade 3 <<Dimension Police>>, choose one of your opponent's guardians, retire it, and any skill with "Cannot be Hit" from the retired unit is negated" until the end of the turn.
[AUTO] (VG)When this unit is boosted by a <<Dimension Police>> unit, this unit gains +2,000 Power until the end of that battle.
[CONT] (VG/RG) Lord




Now, this is a VERY iffy skill. The 10K and Plus Crit were pretty much guaranteed to us. It IS Dimension Police. The "Perfect Guard Buster," as it is being nicknamed, is just an added plus. But it requires the checking of a Grade 3 to effectively work, which is rare. This is good news, however, because players cwho still want to run the Great Daiyusha Crossride can freely play 4 Daikaiser, 3 Daiyusha, and 3 Great Daiyusha, giving them 10 Grade 3, which will help secure the crossride and help this ability succeed. More often than not not, however, an opponent will NOT PG this attack, trying to guard from hand. This ability doesn't ONLY stop PG, however. It still removes cards from the Guard Circle, so a 20K shield instantly becomes only 10K shield. More often than not, THAT is what this ability will trigger. Also, get your Commander Laurels out of storage, because if you manage to hit with an ability like this, STAND THAT VANGUARD, and do it again!