Toronto Statistics, part 2 – Most Popular Cards
The wide Deck diversity at YCS Toronto meant that lots of different cards were used by the Duelists that competed. But that doesn’t mean that there weren’t any cards in common among Duelists wielding different Decks. Take a look at some of the popular cards at YCS Toronto, influenced by the new Forbidden & Limited Cards List and the release of Duelist Revolution.
Monster Reborn and Dark Hole
Two of the most popular cards in Toronto were Monster Reborn and Dark Hole, two of the original cards released in 2002 when the game started, but have spent a lot of time on the Forbidden List. Of these, 91% of the Duelists in Toronto used Monster Reborn in their Decks, and 85% of the Duelists used Dark Hole. The extraordinary ability for either of these cards to turn a Duel around makes it no surprise that they saw so much play. Duelists were eager to exploit their long-forbidden power and use it to wreak havoc on the tournament scene.
.
What Will Replace Heavy Storm?
Even with the addition of Monster Reborn and Dark Hole to their Decks, Duelists needed a replacement for the now-forbidden Heavy Storm. Heavy Storm has been in Decks since 2002’s release of Metal Raiders, since it has never been on the Forbidden List until now. Most Duelists used a second copy of Mystical Space Typhoon or copies of Trap Stun as alternatives. In Toronto, 65% of the players used 2 copies of Mystical Space Typhoon in their Main Decks, and 36% of the players used at least 1 copy of Trap Stun.
Most Duelists who used Trap Stun in their Main Decks only ran 1 or 2 copies. In fact, only 10 Duelists in the field of players used 3 copies in their Decks, while there was an almost-even split between Duelists running 1 copy and Duelists running 2 copies. Most players feared that drawing too many copies of Trap Stun would leave them defenseless, which led them to run only 1 or 2 copies. Will the trend continue this weekend?
.
The Duelist Revolution Impact
The most popular card from Duelist Revolution, appearing in 32% of the Decks, was Solemn Warning. The majority of players who included Solemn Warning in their Deck used 2 copies, while there was a close split between Duelists using 1 or 3 copies. Since running 3 copies of Solemn Warning increases a Duelist’s chance of drawing it when he doesn’t have the 2000 Life Points needed to activate it, and running 1 copy limits the chance that the Duelist will draw it early in the game when it’s most useful, it’s no surprise that so many Duelists settled on running 2 copies. Solemn Warning can be a game-changing card that shuts down your opponent’s best plays. While Trap Stun is being used by many Duelists as a replacement for Heavy Storm, it’s also possible that some Duelists are using it to counter the rising popularity of Solemn Warning.
The second most popular Duelist Revolution card at YCS Toronto was Pot of Duality. 20% of the competitors in Toronto used Pot of Duality in the YCS. In the field of players, 28 Duelists played 1 copy, 80 Duelists played 2 copies, and 63 Duelists packed their Decks with a full 3 copies. It’s still unclear whether Duelists tried to use as many copies as they could get their hands on, or as many copies as they could fit in their Deck. But now that cards from Duelist Revolution are in full circulation, we may get a better idea about Pot of Duality’s niche by the end of the weekend. The general rule in Toronto seemed to be “Play with 2 copies of Solemn Warning, but play with as many Pots of Duality as you can get.”
The format is young and Duelists are still experimenting with new cards to use in their Decks. What trends will emerge? Follow the coverage of YCS San Jose and find out!
