Well, it's been a while since the last of the essays. Well, as a partial update for this page (been getting rid of a LOT of stuff in our house), I've decided to take a look at the current (and soon-to-be) gaming environment of Yu-Gi-Oh!

I got some inquiries (about ten) about if I was writing another essay about what to look for in the Magic Ruler set. This was before MRL was released. However, since I didn't have a list of what was going to be released, I couldn't write what was going to be in it. I could have simply done the Japanese versions of Magic Ruler and Pharaoh's Servant, but there were conflicting reports on EXACTLY what was going to be released in the set. In the end, I couldn't write it. However, it turned out that MRL followed the same pattern -- two Japanese sets into one (yes, the English Magic Ruler set has the FULL sets of Japanese Magic Ruler and Pharaoh's Servant).

Well, in my opinion, here are a few of the cards that you should be hunting down for your decks. I'm not going to make a Top 10; rather, I'll be stating some interesting cards that you should get ahold of.

Cyber Jar (j. Cyber Pod)
Probably the best card in Magic Ruler, if not the game. You get a Dark Hole AND more Monsters on the Field AND more cards in your hand. What's not to love? Belongs in EVERY deck, except Exodia. Don't bother trying to hunt down more than one; this card is going to get restricted to one REALLY quickly.

Snatch Steal (j. Theft)
Change of Heart's little brother has finally been released. A must if you're running high-level Monsters. Most people don't use it permanently gain control of a Monster -- rather, it's to Tribute for other purposes, so that your opponent won't be gaining Life Points. Another card that will be restruicted to one very soon.

Axe of Despair (j. Demon's Axe)
One of the best Equipment cards in the game.

Black Pendant
Tired of your opponent constantly destroying your Set cards? This is one of the ultimate "ruse" cards. It's effect will go off if it's destroyed while Equipped, or even when Set.

Relinquished (j. Sacrifice)
I don't have any favorite cards in Yugioh, but I DO have a soft spot for Sacrifice. It's nifty in that it absorbs Monsters. And makes your opponent thing twice when attacking it, as your opponent will also take Battle Damage.

Confiscation (j. Confiscate)
Delinquent Duo (j. Mischievous Demon Twins)
The Forceful Sentry (j. Steadfast Guard)
The basis for discard decks. See below for more about what decks you could be playing in the current environment. Each will be restricted rather soon.

Mystical Space Typhoon (j. Cyclone)
The replacement for De-Spell and Remove Trap, but it's an ULTRA RARE?!?!?!?!?! It was a common in the original Japanese Magic Ruler. And, no, it CAN'T negate cards. Anyway, what you do is use it when your opponent SETS a Magic/Trap card to destroy it before it's used.

Painful Choice
A card that's difficult to use, but when played correctly, can be an invaluable addition to your deck. It's one of the only cards in the game that will let you choose ANY cards in your deck to put into your hand. Just choose cards that will work in every situation.

Giant Rat, etc.
The "new" set of Witches of the Black Forest allow you to get good Monsters out quickly. This is invaluable for Exodia decks, which need to get Cannon Soldiers and Witches/Sangans out fast.

The New Field Cards
Hands down, better than the original Field cards AND Equipment cards put together! It makes it a little easier to make type decks. This helps F/S IMMENSELY, as a majority are Dark Types.

Overall, there isn't very much that is REALLY good in Magic Ruler. The picks of the litter are Cyber Jar, Snatch Steal and Axe of Despair. The rest you can probably live without.

The Current Decks

I haven't commented on the decks that have been played in a while. Since the one from the Legend of Blue Eyes, there hasn't been much a need for different decks, because the card pool didn't get anything groundbreaking.

HOWEVER, with LOB, MRD and MRL, some nice, viable decks have been released. Here are a some good ones -- some you've seen before, and some you're DEFINITELY going to have to plan for.

F/S Beatdown
The Witches were added to the deck in Metal Raiders, along with the staples cards of Mirror Force, Heavy Storm, and negation cards, plus Dark Elf. This deck also gets Snatch Steal from MRL, along with Delinquent Duo (don't use the other discard cards in this deck). F/S still remains a force to be reckoned with. Eventually, this deck will evolve into "Basic Beatdown", and drop the F/S theme.

Exodia
Exodia did alright in Metal Raiders. It had some nice stalling and removal cards. Then MRL came out, and ruined things for Exodia decks. I'm talking about the three main discarding cards in the set. Until those get restricted, I would advice against playing Exodia. Even then, Exodia should wait until the English Pharaoh's Servant release to get Reserves, which will allow you to put Exodia parts back in your hand from your Graveyard.

Fusion
Fusion is a strictly average deck right now. What was unexpected was the release of Goddess of the Third Eye in the Tournament Packs (well, if you can GET them, that is). Black Skull Dragon is the heavy hitter, followed up by the Dragon Champion and Thousand Dragon. However, the latter two are Secret Rares, and you may end up substituting lackluster common Fusion cards. On the other hand, Skull Knight isn't that bad to swap in. All Fusion decks need to use Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon for speed.

Discard
Discard is a very naughty deck to play in Yugioh. Since the decks and hands are so small, discard can destroy a person's theme before they even get started. It started with Robbin' Goblin + White Magical Hat in Metal Raiders, and follows up in this set. The good news, however, is that Electric Snake is in the set, and may prove to be slightly useful until more cards are released.

Toons
Toon decks are alright. What really hurts them is not being able to attack the turn they are summoned. They also have a high Life Point upkeep. The good thing is that Toons are Special Summons, even though they still require Tribute. But forget the Manga Ryu-Ran, unless you can't get ahold of anything else.

Ritual
Ritual decks aren't that great right now. The only notable card is Relinquished, and the rest are lackluster. Plus, you will need Senju and Sonic Bird to play Ritual decks well.

Maha Vailo
Not so much a great archetype. It mainly depends on the Equipment cards that you have, along with Maha Vailo. Use Axe of Despair, along with Malevolent Nuzzler, and you have a VERY nasty woman being thrown at you. (Yes, Maha Vailo IS a woman.)

Gate Guardian
AVOID MAKING THIS DECK LIKE THE PLAGUE! You will die a miserable, terrible, horrible, bloody, grisly death. Wait until Pharaoh's Servant, where a PASSABLE Gate Guardian deck can be played.

Those are the decks that are worth mentioning at the current time. Now it's up to you to decide what to play.