Kay Shim’s Monarch Deck is focused on Tribute Summoning the biggest monsters it can. With 9 monarchs and 2 copies of Light and Darkness Dragon in his Deck, Shim relies on starting each turn with a monster on his field. Fortunately, with Battle Fader, Dandylion, and Treeborn Frog in his Deck, keeping a monster out there is a breeze.

Monsters:
3x Caius the Shadow Monarch
3x Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch
3x Raiza the Storm Monarch
2x Light and Darkness Dragon
2x Dandylion
2x Treeborn Frog
3x Battle Fader
3x Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter
1x Gorz the Emissary of Darkness
1x Sangan
1x Debris Dragon

Spells:
3x Soul Exchange
1x Brain Control
1x Pot of Avarice
1x Heavy Storm
1x Foolish Burial
1x Mystical Space Typhoon

Traps:
1x Mirror Force
1x Torrential Tribute
1x Trap Dustshoot
2x Dust Tornado
3x Phoenix Wing Wind Blast

Shim’s Deck runs 11 monsters he wants to Tribute Summon, and several ways to Summon them. His Tribute Monster line-up includes 3 copies of Caius the Shadow Monarch, 3 copies of Thestalos the Firestorm Monarch, 3 copies of Raiza the Storm Monarch, and 2 copies of Light and Darkness Dragon that he can use to overpower his opponent. Battle Fader, Dandylion and Treeborn Frog all allow Shim to start his Main Phase 1 with a monster on the field, since Battle Fader and the Fluff Tokens from Dandylion usually get Special Summoned during his opponent’s turn, and Treeborn Frog can be Special Summoned in his Standby Phase. Shim also plays Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter, since it can send Dandylion or Treeborn Frog to his Graveyard where he can use their effects, or he can Tribute it for a Monarch after he flips it and uses its effect on his own turn. But even if Shim doesn’t have out these weak monsters he wants to Tribute, he can still find ways to bring his strongest monsters to the field.

In addition to Brain Control, Shim is using 3 copies of Soul Exchange in his Main Deck to Tribute his opponents’ monsters instead of his own. With everyone setting monsters like Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter, Gravekeeper’s Spy, and Super-Nimble Mega Hamster, Soul Exchange is better than ever. It can tear apart his opponent’s field no matter what monster is sitting on it.

Successfully using Soul Exchange to Tribute an opponent’s monster not only takes care of an opposing threat, it also gets a new threat of his own onto the field. Light and Darkness Dragon is especially strong to Summon after activating Soul Exchange, since it has the power to negate his opponent’s cards, tearing up whatever his opponent has left after losing a monster to Soul Exchange. When his opponent finally does manage to take down Light and Darkness Dragon, its other effect kicks in and Shim can Special Summon the strongest monster in his Graveyard.

Shim’s Trap Card line-up includes Mirror Force, Torrential Tribute and Phoenix Wing Wind Blast to slow down his opponent by clearing the field of monsters. Phoenix Wing Wind Blast also lets Shim discard Treeborn Frog and Dandylion from his hand so he can set up a Tribute Summon on his next turn. Foolish Burial, which he’s also using in his Deck, serves a similar purpose by sending Treeborn Frog and Dandylion from his Deck to his Graveyard.

Shim also plays 1 copy of Debris Dragon in his Deck, which he can use to revive Ryko or Dandylion, in order to quickly Synchro Summon Iron Chain Dragon or Black Rose Dragon. If he Tunes Debris Dragon with Dandylion to Summon Black Rose Dragon and activates its effect to destroy all cards on the field, Shim will still get his 2 Tokens from Dandylion after all cards on the field are destroyed. If Shim has Battle Fader or a Fluff Token on the field, he can throw it into the Synchro Summon to bring out a Level 8 Dragon like Stardust Dragon or Red Dragon Archfiend instead of Black Rose Dragon.

A lot of Duelists here today will be taken off guard by Shim’s high number of Tribute monsters. Those who can’t handle his strongest monsters will give him an easy victory. So far, he’s 3-0 in the tournament. Soon, we’ll know if that’s enough to let him coast through the tournament and make it into the Top 32.