More Dark Magician

Hey there duelists! Coach Muramasa is back again. As promised, here is the other half of our look into the Dark Magician. Slip on your bathing suits, because we're diving into the spellcaster's pool. Last time, we looked at the Dark Magician, and some of his intimidating forms. Now, let's see if we can find some cards that will help him blast your opponent away to the shadow realm.

 First up is the teacher's pet, or Dark Magician Girl. This Level 6 Spellcaster-type has 2000 ATK and 1700 DEF. With her special ability, she gets stronger for each Dark Magician or Magician of Black Chaos is in either graveyard. She draws strength from her master, and also lends some to him at times as well. Like the Dark Magician, she can be on the frontlines in a Spellcaster-type deck. (5/10)

 Skilled Dark Magician is a Level 4 with 1900 ATK and 1700 DEF. His special ability allows him to Special Summon a Dark Magician in exchange for tributing him with 3 Spell Counters. He gathers a Spell Counter each time a Spell Card is activated. If you have to draw him on your opening hand and at least three Spell Cards, you can have a Dark Magician in your first turn. Keep in mind that when you Special Summon the DM, you can pull him from your deck, hand or graveyard. This card can lead to a variety of monster recycle decks. If you use him, go ahead and slip three of him in your deck. (9/10)

 Magician of Black Chaos is one of the oldest Ritual Monsters. By using the Spell "Black Magic Ritual", you can sacrifice monsters from your hand and field whose levels total 8 or more, and Special Summon this card from your hand. This card doesn't have any special abilities, just really decent ATK power. (4/10)

 Dark Eradicator Warlock is the Dark Magician with a special ability. Each time a Normal Spell Card is activated, your opponent gets slammed with 1000 points of Effect Damage. Between this and the 2500 ATK chunks taken out of their Life Points, you could have the duel won on your second or third turn. (9/10)

Next up is Magician's Valkyria. This monster acts as a Spellcaster-type shield for your other heavy hitters. Your opponent can only target her if there are other Spellcaster-type monsters on your field. You'll want to power her up or protect her with something, otherwise she's just a one trick pony. (5/10)

 Now, let's move on to Spells for a Dark Magician deck. Thousand Knives is a good card for taking out something stronger than the DM. If he is in play when you activate this card, you can stick it to a monster your opponent controls. Use this on that Blue-Eyes White Dragon that a Kaiba wannabe might be tempted to use against you. (7/10)

 Everyone who has ever watched the original Yu-Gi-Oh! knows of the DM's signature attack. Dark Magic Attack is a Spell that allows you to wipe out your opponent's Spells and Traps if you control a face-up Dark Magician. Use this to take out those annoying stall traps, like Gravity Bind or Swords of Revealing Light. I really like the art on that card. (9/10)

 Magicians Unite allows you to combine the might of your Magicians' force and let one of them have 3000 ATK during that turn. The catch is, only that single Spellcaster-type may attack that turn. Use this on a monster that has the ability to deal direct damage or piercing damage. (6/10)

Mage Power is an Equip Spell Card that grants a 500 ATK and 500 DEF boost to a monster for each Spell or Trap Card you have on the field. This gives you a maximum boost of 3000 ATK and 3000 DEF. Stick this on DM, and the duel could easily be over. Just make sure you clear your opponent's Spells and Traps first. The last thing you want to happen is for a nasty Mirror Force or something worse to pop up and ruin your duel. (9/10)

 Now let's look at a couple of Trap Cards. Magic Cylinder is a good trap to block a lethal attack, and give your opponent the damage instead. Use this to crush them if they attack with a 3000+ ATK monster. (7/10)

The final card of the day is Pitch-Black Power Stone. This card is good if your Spellcaster-type deck uses a lot of Spell Counters. You get 3 Spell Counters that you may move to other cards once per turn. Slip three of these in your deck and use them with Skilled Dark Magician, and you'll get DM in play in no time. (6/10)

That does it for another lap around the Dark Magician pool. I hope you consider this card for your Spellcaster-type deck, or even an all around deck. Coach Muramasa signing off for now. Hit the showers!

Dark Magician

Hello again duelists! Coach is here to talk about one of the oldest and greatest monsters of all time. He was Yugi's ace, and my personal favorite Spellcaster-type monster. I'm talking about that mystical menace, the Dark Magician! This Level 7 monster has 2500 ATK and 2100 DEF. While he doesn't have any special abilities, he has a variety of cards that support him as the ace in a deck. Today, we're gonna take a look at some of the Dark Magician's various forms achieved through Fusion and other Special Summoning methods.

 First up is Dark Sage. This Spellcaster-type is a Level 9 monster with 2800 ATK and 3200 DEF. To call forth this heavy hitter, you have to tribute a Dark Magician that has been successfully affected by Time Wizard. Also, when this happens, you can pull a Spell Card of your choice from your deck. That will come in handy if you need to pull that one card to turn things around for you, or to ensure a win if you already have the advantage. (6/10)

 

 Next up is Dark Magician Knight, who pulls a change-up and goes from being a Spellcaster to a Warrior. His stats are the same as Dark Magician, but he gains a special ability that allows him to destroy any one card on the field at the time. Wipe out that face down Mirror Force, or even a continuous Spell Card or Trap Card like Gravity Bind. You could just as well take out a high ATK or DEF monster is that's what's standing in the way of you winning or losing the duel. This card sees a lot more play than Dark Sage, and is easier to summon. All you have to do is play Knight's Title in order to summon him. (8/10)

Here we have Dark Paladin with 2900 ATK and 2400 DEF. By Fusing Dark Magician and Buster Blader, you get a powerful Spellcaster-type that can negate your opponent's Spell Cards by discarding a card of your own. This card also has an ability that grants it an extra 500 ATK for each Dragon-type either player has in the graveyard. This card is a good choice for taking on Dragon-type decks. (8/10)

Last, and certainly not least, is Dark Flare Knight. Dark Magician switches to a Warrior-type again by Fusing with Flame Swordsman. While this is a step backward being a Level 6 monster with 2200 ATK and 800 DEF, its special ability will make up for it. No matter what you are fighting, you will not take any damage from a battle that involves this card. On top of that, if this card is destroyed, you get to Special Summon a Mirage Knight from your hand or your deck. As long as you don't have your monster's ability negated, you can use this card to block a heavy hit from your opponent. (5/10)

That's all for now folks. We dipped our feet in the Dark Magician's pool. Next time, we'll look at some cards that support this master spellcaster. Until then, it's time to duel, somewhere...

Dueling Styles

What's shakin' duelists? Today we're gonna take a look at the different ways to duel. In my personal dueling circle, there are a total of five of us. We each are really good at dueling, but we have our own approaches. We duel one another at least twice a week, and have done so over the last seven years. Sometimes we duel one on one, other times two on two. We've even done three on one duels, and the occasional five duelist free for all. No matter what setup we use, we always have a good time. There are never any hard feelings, and it inspires us to become better duelists. Here is a summary of our dueling styles.

First up, is me, Muramasa the Coach. I prefer using a deck that favors Synchro Summoning. I have at least three Fusion and three Xyz monsters in my Extra Deck. The other nine spots are always Synchro Monsters. I keep at least one Ritual Monster in my deck at any given time. My deck favors Dragon-type monsters most of the time. When I play by non-tournament rules, I like to use a lot of the forbidden cards. When I play by tournament rules, I use cards that fill my monster zones as quickly as possible to allow for a Synchro Summon in the first or second turn. I get called the Coach a lot, because I volunteer some of my free time teaching newcomers to the game, and giving my circle suggestions and advice on how to improve their own decks.

Next, there is my best friend, Sentinel the Guardian. He likes to use a more defensive strategy. His deck has a lot of high DEF monsters, and he prefers to counterattack rather than attack. Sentinel loves to Tribute Summon, and then Special Summon the monsters used as tribute back from the graveyard. He also is a big fan of Ritual Monsters, and keeps a fair number of them in his deck. He does a bit of Fusion Summoning, Synchro Summoning, and Xyz Summoning, but only keeps one or two of each in his Extra Deck. He updates his Spells and Traps quite often, and a fair amount of his dueling might comes from that. Sentinel is a good partner, because he always has your back in a duel, no matter how crazy a duel it is.

The third member of our duelist circle is Venus the Heartbreaker. We call her that because every guy she duels outside of our circle falls in love with her dueling skill. I mean, she's quite lovely as well, but with us, it's more about the skills. Venus loves to Xyz Summon more than anything, and is a big fan of cards that allow for piercing damage. Her deck is centered about Fairy-type monsters and all of those that have "cute, cuddly art on them". She makes for a good partner because of her choice of Quick-Play Spell Cards and Counter Trap Cards.

Next is Chaos, the Destructor. He is our most hardcore duelist, because when he's done, most of the cards used in the duel end up in the graveyard. He likes to duel fast and loose, and won't hesitate to send cards to the graveyard to get the one or two he needs for the win. Chaos keeps the field clear a lot of the time, using Spells and Traps that either wipe it clean, or send a card or two to be banished from the game. His deck is fairly balanced between Warrior-types, Machine-types, and Spellcaster-types. His Extra Deck is half Fusion and half Synchro, with an Xyz Monster thrown in once in a while.

Last, and certainly not least, is Serenity the Enlightened. She is the younger sister of Venus, and a real tough cookie in the dueling arena. The monsters in her deck are only Effect Monsters. The same holds true for her Extra Deck. Serenity's Spells and Traps cover the weaknesses that her Effect Monsters can't take care of. When we duel by non-tournament rules, she loves to use Exodia the Forbidden One for a quick win. Although she is a bit younger than we are, she holds her own in a five duelist free for all. She either comes in first or second a lot of the time.

So there you have it, duelists. I've given you a peek into my dueling world. We've shared a lot of memories over the years, and still look forward to each and every duel we are gonna have. In the future, I'll share with you some specific strategies and combos the five of us use. Until next time, keep on duelin'!

Deck Analysis

Hello Duelists!

The Coach is back again. Today I'd like to talk about deck building. I've been in the game for quite a while, and I've helped build a lot of decks over the years. I've had a 91% success rate of dueling, and continue to build decks for fun, just to keep up with what's out there now. If you have a deck you'd like me to look at and give some advice to, I'd be more than happy to help out. I'll also post a deck on here from time to time, and give you a chance to give suggestions as well. Keep on dueling!

Welcome to the Coach's Blog

Hello from the Coach

Greetings to all the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG fans out there. I am Muramasa, a 17-year veteran of the YTCG. I've been in the game since the beginning, and I've enjoyed every minute of it. I've given advice to almost 100 players of the game. Most are family and close personal friends. I now wish to help out people near and far online. If you have a question about the game, or need your deck tuned up a bit, I'm here for you. I'll also be posting tips and suggestions about the cards of the past, the present and the future. So let me again say welcome, and I look forward to working with each and every one of you. So, let's rev it up!

Jinzo

Hello dueling fans! Coach here to talk about an old but popular card. I'm talking about Jinzo, one of the most intimidating monsters from back in the day. This Level 6 monsters has 2400 ATK and 1500 DEF. That's about right for a level 6 monster these days. His special ability to negate the effects of all Trap Cards really messed up a lot of duelists back then, myself included. Think of it as dueling with one hand tied behind your back. A lot of us do that now, depending on what we are up against.

Back then, when Jinzo popped up, you were almost certain that the duel was over. With popular cards such as Stardust Dragon, Jinzo would be that much more dangerous. In the old days, I used to use Man-Eater Bug to take out Jinzo. Sure, he's very weak in comparison, but his Flip Effect to destroy any one monster always got the job done.

Since then, other "Jinzo" cards have been created, each with their own use in a deck. Let's take a look at them. First up is Jinzo #7. Technically, this card existed before Jinzo, but I felt it deserved a mention. He is much weaker than his Level 6 counterpart, but his ability to deal direct damage still comes in handy. Weighing in with 500 ATK and 400 DEF, he seems pretty useless at first.

If you give him a couple of Equip Spell Cards, he can take some pretty healthy chunks out of an opponent's Life Points. Consider United We Stand or Axe of Despair. Both give really good boosts to ATK, and both could be used at the same time. Axe of Despair gives a 1000 ATK boost, and if it is sent to the graveyard, you can tribute a monster to put it on top of your deck and draw it on your next turn. Consider that option only if you have a monster to spare. Otherwise, let the card stay in the graveyard, or use a Spell Card to get it back in your hand. United We Stand gives your monster an 800 ATK and DEF boost times the number of monsters you have in play. This effect relies on you to have a group of monsters in play to boost the one this card is equipped to. Use some high DEF monsters if you want to protect yourself while letting Jinzo #7 build up power for a powerful attack.

Another member of the Jinzo clan is Jinzo - Returner. Like Jinzo #7, this card can also attack directly. You could use the combo we discussed before, and give him a major power boost to take your opponent down pretty quickly. His second ability allows him to Special Summon a Jinzo from the graveyard. The catch is it is destroyed at the end of the turn it is Special Summoned. This would be a good play for the win.

The last card in the Jinzo family to take a look at it Jinzo - Lord. This Level 8 monster has 2600 ATK and 1600 DEF. You can only Special Summon Jinzo - Lord, and for that to happen, you have to send a Jinzo you control to the graveyard. Not only does this card negate all face-up Trap Cards, it can destroy them and inflict 300 points of effect damage to your opponent for each card destroyed. That is a maximum of 3000 points of damage, and then it can attack on top of that. This is the heavy hitter of the Jinzo family.

There you have it duelists. I've broken down the Jinzo clan for you. Try making a nice Darkness Deck or a Machine Deck and give them a run at least once. Next time, we'll look at another monster family. Take care and keep on duelin'!

Card Spotlight: Colossal Fighter

Hello duelists! The Coach is back for your next dose of duel fuel. Today, I thought we'd take a look at a member of the warrior community. I'm talking about none other than the titan of terror, Colossal Fighter. This Level 8 master of disaster weighs in with a whopping 2800 ATK points. His DEF could be better, but you're not gonna see this guy in DEF mode that often with his special ability.

Gaining 100 ATK a pop from each Wariror-type in either Graveyard, his power can stack up pretty fast. Consider having at least 2 or 3 of this guy in your Extra Deck in order to make good use of his second special ability. When he is sent to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon any Warrior-type from either Graveyard, including another Colossal Fighter. This effect would also be good for pulling any Fusion or Synchro monster back into play that might be your ace. Consider slipping this gem into an deck running Elemental Heroes, X-Sabers, or Six Samurais. In a future post, I'll share some tips on creating the Ultimate Warrior Deck. On that note, it's time to hit the showers. Until next time, this is Coach Muramasa saying keep on duelin'!