Round 1 Feature Match: Gregory Cohen vs. Anthony Cortez
This Round 1 Feature Match will pit Gregory Cohen, running his Kristya Draw Deck, against Anthony Cortez, a California local running a Zombie Diva Deck. Cohen’s Deck is specifically designed to counter Decks like Zombies that are heavily dependent on Special Summons. Will that advantage be enough for Cohen to win the Match?
Anthony Cortez won the dice roll and opted to go first. He Set 2 cards to his back row and ended his turn without Summoning a monster.
Gregory Cohen opened up with “Legacy of Yata-Garasu,” “Honest,” “Dimensional Alchemist,” “Herald of Orange Light,” and 2 copies of “Jar of Greed.” He opened up by Summoning “Dimensional Alchemist” and activated its effect to remove “Asura Priest” from the top of his Deck. Then he attacked for 1800 damage and Cortez dropped to 6200 Life Points. Cohen Set 3 cards to his back row before ending his turn: 2 copies of “Jar of Greed” and “Legacy of Yata-Garasu.”
Cortez paid 800 Life Points to activate “Brain Control” next turn! He took Cohen’s “Dimensional Alchemist” and Tributed it for “Caius the Shadow Monarch.” Cohen activated “Herald of Orange Light” from his hand by discarding “Honest” to negate the effect of Caius and destroy it. Cortez ended his turn, sitting behind his 2 face-down Spell or Trap Cards.
Cohen drew to start his turn and then flipped 2 copies of “Jar of Greed” and a “Legacy of Yata-Garasu” to draw 3 cards! Then he activated “Valhalla, Hall of the Fallen”! He used its effect to Special Summon “Archlord Kristya” from his hand, but lost it to one of Cortez’s Set cards: “Bottomless Trap Hole.” Cohen Summoned “Hecatrice” next and attacked with it, dropping Cortez to 3900.
Cortez flipped his Set “Mystical Space Typhoon” on his next turn to destroy Cohen’s Valhalla. Then he Summoned “Blackwing – Gale the Whirlwind” and activated its effect to halve the ATK and DEF of “Hecatrice.” He attacked it with Gale and Cohen took the damage.
Cohen drew a card next turn and then activated “Smashing Ground” to destroy Cortez’s Gale. He Set one card to his back row before ending his turn.
Cortez Summoned “Elemental Hero Stratos” next turn! He searched for “Destiny Hero – Malicious” with the effect of Stratos and then attacked directly.
Cohen drew “Herald of Orange Light” next turn and ended his turn with no other play. Things weren’t looking good for Cohen. Cortez drew a card on his next turn, Set 1 card to his back row, and then play passed back to Cohen.
Cohen drew a card and Set a monster next turn, struggling to survive. Cortez drew a card on his next turn before Setting a Spell or Trap Card in his back row. Then he Normal Summoned “Deep Sea Diva” from his hand! He activated its effect to search his Deck for a second “Deep Sea Diva” and Special Summoned it. Next, he tuned “Deep Sea Diva” to Stratos to Synchro Summon “Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier” and used priority to bounce Cohen’s face-down “Honest” back to his hand. Then he activated the effect of “Destiny Hero – Malicious” from his Graveyard, and Cohen negated it with “Herald of Orange Light” by pitching “Honest” in order to prevent Cortez from Special Summoning a second “Destiny Hero – Malicious” from his Deck. Next, Cortez Synchro Summoned “Stardust Dragon” by tuning Brionac to “Deep Sea Diva” and attacked Cohen directly. Cohen drew “Bottomless Trap Hole” next turn and added it to the “Mystical Space Typhoon” he already had. Knowingly unable to survive his next turn, Cohen conceded.
Both players delved into their Side Decks and Cohen chose to go first in Duel 2! Cohen opened up with “Herald of Orange Light,” “Dimensional Alchemist,” “Jar of Greed,” “Tethys, Goddess of Light,” “Honest,” and “Heavy Storm.”
He Summoned “Dimensional Alchemist” and removed “Torrential Tribute” from the top of his Deck by activating its effect. Then he Set 1 card to his back row and ended his turn. Play passed to Cortez!
Cortez opened up by activating “Destiny Draw,” discarding “Destiny Hero – Malicious” to draw 2 cards. Then he Set 1 monster and ended without a back row.
Cohen activated the effect of his “Dimensional Alchemist” next turn and removed “Legacy of Yata-Garasu” from play with its effect. Then he Tributed his “Dimensional Alchemist” for Tethys and activated “Jar of Greed,” drawing “Legacy of Yata-Garasu.” He used Tethys to attack Cortez’s Set “Sangan.” Cortez searched for “Destiny Hero – Diamond Dude” with the effect of “Sangan.” Cohen ended his turn after setting the Legacy he had drawn.
During Cortez’s next Draw Phase, Cohen activated his Set “Legacy of Yata-Garasu.” He drew a card and didn’t reveal it – it wasn’t a Fairy.
Cortez played “Destiny Draw” next, discarding Diamond Dude to draw 2 cards. Then he Set 2 cards in his Spell and Trap Card Zone and Summoned “Mystic Tomato” to the field before ending his turn. Cohen was up.
Cohen drew “Jar of Greed.” Then he activated “Heavy Storm” and destroyed Cortez’s Set “Bottomless Trap Hole” and “Torrential Tribute.” He attacked “Mystic Tomato” with Tethys and Cortez dropped to 7000 Life Points. Cortez dropped “Tragoedia” in Defense Position in the Damage Step. Then Cortez activated the effect of “Mystic Tomato” to Special Summon another one from his Deck. Cohen Set “Jar of Greed” and “Solemn Judgment” before ending his turn.
He flipped Jar in Cortez’s Draw Phase and picked up “Tethys” from the top of his Deck. He revealed it to draw another “Legacy of Yata-Garasu.”
Cortez started his next turn by activating “Mystical Space Typhoon” and destroying Cohen’s Set “Solemn Judgment.” Then he Summoned “Deep Sea Diva,” but lost its effect to “Herald of Orange Light” when Cohen sent Tethys and Herald from his hand to his Graveyard. “Deep Sea Diva” was destroyed.
Next turn, Cohen drew Tethys in his Draw Phase and revealed it to draw “Bottomless Trap Hole.” Then he attacked with Tethys to destroy a 1200 DEF Tragoedia. He Set 2 cards before ending his turn.
Cortez was up, and Cohen flipped Legacy again in his Draw Phase. He drew “Smashing Ground” with it, so he didn’t get to draw a card with Tethys. Cortez activated “Allure of Darkness” next and removed “Dark Armed Dragon” from the game after drawing 2 cards. Then he switched “Mystic Tomato” to Defense Position and Set a monster. Cohen was up.
He drew “Dimensional Alchemist” in his Draw Phase and revealed it to draw “Hecatrice.” Then he revealed the “Hecatrice” to draw “Creature Swap.” Cohen activated “Smashing Ground” to destroy “Mystic Tomato.” Then he Summoned “Dimensional Alchemist” and removed “Archlord Kristya” from the top of his Deck. Alchemist attacked Cortez’s face-down “Goblin Zombie.” Cortez searched for another “Goblin Zombie” and then Tethys attacked directly. Cortez dropped to 4600 Life Points while Cohen stood strong at 8000. Cohen ended his turn and play passed back to Cortez.
Cortez drew a card and then Set the card he drew as a face-down monster. He ended his turn with no other play. Things weren’t looking good for him. He couldn’t get Tethys off the field.
Cohen drew “Honest” next turn and revealed it to draw “Bottomless Trap Hole.” Then he activated the effect of “Dimensional Alchemist” to remove “Call of the Haunted” from the game and pump Alchemist up to 1800 ATK. He Summoned “Honest” next and attacked Cortez’s face-down monster with his “Dimensional Alchemist.” It was “Spirit Reaper”! Cohen couldn’t get past it. He Set “Bottomless Trap Hole” in Main Phase 2 and then activated “Creature Swap” to swap Honest for Cortez’s Defense Position “Spirit Reaper.” Cohen ended his turn.
Cortez started his next turn by Tributing “Honest” for “Caius the Shadow Monarch” to remove Tethys from the game. Cohen flipped “Bottomless Trap Hole” to remove Caius along with it.
Cohen drew “Brain Control” on his next turn. Then he switched Reaper into Attack Position, removed Valhalla from the top of his Deck with the effect of “Dimensional Alchemist,” Summoned “Honest,” and attacked directly with “Spirit Reaper.” “Spirit Reaper” discarded “Deep Sea Diva” from Cortez’s hand. Then “Honest” and “Dimensional Alchemist” attacked, dropping Cortez to 1400 Life Points. Cohen returned “Honest” to his hand in Main Phase 2 before ending his turn.
Cortez started his next turn by activating “Dark Eruption” to bring “Mystic Tomato” back to his hand. He Summoned it to the field in Attack Position and then attacked Cohen’s “Dimensional Alchemist.” But Cohen had 2 copies of “Honest” in his hand! He sent them both to the Graveyard during the Damage Step to boost his Alchemist to 4100 ATK and deal more than enough damage to end the Duel.
Cortez would be starting Duel 3. He opened up with “Reinforcement of the Army” and searched for “Elemental Hero Stratos.” He Summoned Stratos and then searched his Deck for “Destiny Hero – Diamond Dude” to add to his hand with its effect. Then he Set 1 card to his back row and ended his turn.
Cohen opened up the third Duel with “Jar of Greed,” “Hecatrice,” “Asura Priest,” Tethys, “Honest,” and “Brain Control.” Cohen pitched “Hecatrice” from his hand as his opening play to search for Valhalla. He activated it and then activated its effect to Special Summon Tethys. Cortez flipped his face-down card, “Bottomless Trap Hole” to remove Tethys from the game. Cohen Set “Jar of Greed” before ending his turn.
Cortez Summoned “Deep Sea Diva” next turn and used its effect to recruit another one from the Deck. Then he tuned “Deep Sea Diva” to “Elemental Hero Stratos” to Synchro Summon “Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier.” He discarded “Destiny Hero – Malicious” to bounce Cohen’s face-down “Jar of Greed,” but Cohen Chained it to draw Kristya. Then Cortez Synchro Summoned “Stardust Dragon” with his remaining 2 monsters, attacked directly, and ended his turn.
Cohen drew Tethys during his next Draw Phase. He activated the effect of Valhalla and Special Summoned “Archlord Kristya” from his hand. “Archlord Kristya” attacked “Stardust Dragon” and Cortez dropped to 7700 Life Points. Cohen ended his turn with Kristya and Valhalla in play, with no Set back row.
Cortez drew a card next turn and then Set a monster before ending, seemingly desperate for a way out. Cohen drew “Call of the Haunted” next turn and Summoned “Asura Priest.” “Asura Priest” attacked Cortez’s face-down “Mezuki” and then Kristya attacked directly. Cohen Set “Call of the Haunted” in Main Phase 2 and then ended his turn.
Cortez drew a card next turn before Normal Summoning “Destiny Hero – Diamond Dude.” He revealed “Spirit Reaper” from the top of the Deck with Diamond Dude’s effect and ended his turn with an Attack Position “Destiny Hero – Diamond Dude” and nothing else on the field.
Cohen drew “Mirror Force” on his next turn and then activated “Brain Control” to take control of “Destiny Hero – Diamond Dude.” Then he Summoned “Asura Priest.” He still had “Archlord Kristya” on the field too! The combined attack of all 3 monsters was more than enough to take out Cortez’s remaining 3900 Life Points.
Gregory Cohen wins his first round with his “Archlord Kristya” Fairy Deck and advances in the tournament undefeated!
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Post-Event Analysis!
See what our panel of experts had to say about this Duel after the event was over.
Michael Kohanim (2009 World Championship Competitor)
When Anthony Cortez Tributed for Caius and targeted Cohen’s face-down “Jar of Greed” / “Legacy of Yata-Garasu” with its effect, Cohen activated “Herald of Orange Light” to negate the effect of Caius. Instead, Cohen should have chained the card Cortez targeted to draw an extra card. With “Honest” in his hand and the potential to draw several more cards next turn, taking down Caius would be a breeze. “Legacy of Yata-Garasu” isn’t just a way to draw cards while Tethys is on the field – it’s also an awesome way to lure opponents into wasting their destruction effects on cards you can chain. Cohen should have taken advantage of the situation when it came up.
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Matt Peddle (2009 Canadian National Championship Runner-Up; Five-Time Top 8 National Finalist)
When playing a deck that has a specific way to win, it’s important to make sure your opponent can’t stop it. Cohen’s deck needs “Archlord Kristya” to survive in order to win most games. The turning point in the first Duel came when his Kristya was destroyed by “Bottomless Trap Hole.” Cohen could have waited before playing his Kristya, offering up “Hecatrice” as bait to “Bottomless Trap Hole” and allowing Cohen more time to draw into cards like “Mystical Space Typhoon” and “Heavy Storm” to clear a path for Kristya.
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Michael McTavish (Top 8 Finalist – 2009 Canadian National Championship)
A truly creative, well built deck by Cohen led him to victory in this match. While Cohen was victorious, his one loss came in Duel 1 because of a very small mistake. While it’s usually a good idea to use “Valhalla, Hall of the Fallen” as soon as possible to get “Archlord Kristya” on the field, the fact that Cohen already had 3 Fairies in the Graveyard meant that a fourth would be a simple task of summoning Hecatrice and waiting for it to be destroyed.
Not only that, Cortez had two Spells or Traps Set to the field just waiting to eliminate Kristya. If Cortez were to activate “Bottomless Trap Hole” before the fourth Fairy reached the Graveyard, then that would just provide the added bonus of a safe Kristya Summon when the requirement WAS finally met. If not, then he could still Special Summon Kristya with its own effect, grab a Fairy from his Graveyard, and eliminate the “Bottomless Trap Hole.” Then, he could use his Valhalla – which Cortez still wouldn’t know about – to take advantage of the duel!
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P.J. Tierney (Duelist from across The Pond)
The end of the first Duel showed why “Deep Sea Diva” is such a useful card in a Deck that Special Summons lots of monsters, like Zombies. When it’s Normal Summoned, you get 2 Tuners for the price of 1, and can turn a field of small monsters into a field of big Synchros in an instant.
In Duel 2, Cohen could have waited a little bit longer to activate that “Jar of Greed.” By flipping it in Cohen’s Draw Phase, he was left with only a Set “Solemn Judgment” in his back row. If he had waited, Cortez may have targeted the Jar with “Mystical Space Typhoon” instead of Solemn. Cohen would have then chained his Jar, eating up that MST and saving his Solemn at the same time.