Deck Profile: Omar Navarro’s Magic Planter Deck
Omar Navarro is running what might be one of the most original Decks of the tournament. On 1 hand he’s playing all the monsters you’d expect to see in a Stun Deck – strong Level 4 monsters with high ATK and simple effects like “Thunder King Rai-Oh” and “Breaker the Magical Warrior,” mixed with “Banisher of the Radiance” and “Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo.” But in this Deck it’s the Spell and Trap Cards that make the difference!
Monsters: 18
3 “Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer”
3 “Breaker the Magical Warrior”
3 “Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo”
3 “Doomcaliber Knight”
3 “Thunder King Rai-Oh”
3 “Banisher of the Radiance”
Spells: 8
2 “Allure of Darkness”
3 “Lightning Vortex”
3 “Magic Planter”
Traps: 16
1 “Mirror Force”
1 “Torrential Tribute”
3 “Dimensional Prison”
3 “Grave of the Super Ancient Organism”
3 “Royal Oppression”
2 “Bottomless Trap Hole”
2 “Dark Bribe”
1 “Solemn Judgment”
Oh yes, that is 16 Trap Cards! Navarro’s planning to disrupt high-level monsters and big Special Summons as much as possible, and to do that he’s gone to great lengths: he’s running 3 “Royal Oppression,” plus 3 “Graves of the Super Ancient Organism”! While Oppression is a familiar Trap that negates Special Summons, the Grave is an underrated Trap from Raging Battle that stops Level 6 or higher monsters from attacking or activating their effects. With Synchro Summons, Special Summons, and anything over Level 5 out of commission, Navarro’s Level 4 monsters are free to run the field and quickly chip away at his opponent’s Life Points.
But all those Continuous Traps played in 3’s could stack up, and controlling 1 Oppression or Grave is just as good as 2 or 3. Extra copies of those cards aren’t useful: one of the problems that Decks like these sometimes run into. Navarro’s solution? Yet another innovative pick from Raging Battle: “Magic Planter.” The Planter is a Spell Card that lets you send a Continuous Trap you control to the Graveyard to draw 2 more cards. It lets Navarro trade extra Continuous Traps he doesn’t need for more draws, getting him to important attackers and monster removal. It’s hands-down the coolest part of the Deck.
Speaking of monster removal, Navarro is playing a lot of it (and for good reason). A pair of “Bottomless Trap Holes” work with 3 “Dimensional Prisons” and 3 “Lightning Vortexes” to ensure that Navarro’s Level 4 attackers have a clear path to his opponent’s Life Points. By eliminating monsters through effects instead of by battle he can force his opponents to play at a faster pace, making them commit more and more cards to the field and then getting them off the table. Navarro doesn’t have any big combos aside from the “Magic Planter” trick. He doesn’t need to sit around and wait for cards to come together, and there aren’t any huge plays to make. By forcing opponents to play cards earlier than they normally would, Navarro actually makes it harder for them to put together the combos opponents need to succeed. He’s disrupting their strategy on two very different fronts, hammering damage home every step of the way.
Aggressive pacing and the ability to stop his opponent’s best monsters, whether they’re Lightsworn, Blackwings, or Zombies, defines Navarro’s plan. With what could be strong match-ups against all of the most popular Decks in this format, he might really be on to something.
