I observed 3 more undefeated Duelists in round 3! Here’s a look at what’s been happening.

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First we have Santiago Lizcano and his Rescue Rabbit Dinosaur Deck battling against Jeffery McKinney and his Synchro-heavy Deck.

In Duel 1, Lizcano Summoned Rescue Rabbit and Xyz Summon Evolzar Laggia on his first turn. He also Set 4 cards to his back row: Starlight Road, Solemn Judgment, and 2 copies of Solemn Warning. It was a killer opening, and even though McKinney managed to get Lizcano down to 200 Life Points, he couldn’t finish him off. A field protected by Starlight Road is tough to get through, especially when the Starlight Road is protecting cards like Solemn Judgment and Solemn Warning.

In Duel 2, McKinney Xyz Summoned a bunch of monsters thanks to Tour Guide From the Underworld and Mind Control. It’s no surprise that Xyz Monsters are quickly becoming the future of Dueling!

In Duel 3, Lizcano activated a copy of Dimensional Fissures that he moved from his Side Deck to his Main Deck between Duels, and won the Match because of it. Once Lizcano activated Dimensional Fissure, McKinney was stuck. None of his monsters could make it to the Graveyard, and McKinney’s Dandylion, Glow-Up Bulb, Reborn Tengus, and more were all banished. Dimensional Fissure is a great counter to Plant/Synchro Decks, since Plants are so reliant on their Graveyard. Decks that aren’t reliant on the Graveyard, like Lizcano’s Rabbit Deck, are especially equipped to use Dimensional Fissure effectively.

Santiago Lizcano defeats Jeffery McKinney 2-1 with his Dino-Rabbit Deck!

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Second we have Alistar Albans and his Synchro-heavy Deck facing off against Joshua Turley’s X-Saber Deck.

In Duel 1, Albans Summoned Thunder King Rai-Oh first turn. Turley’s hand of 3 XX-Saber Faultrolls, XX-Saber Darksoul, Monster Reborn, and Solemn Warning just couldn’t handle it. Thunder King Rai-Oh is an incredible card in general, but it’s even better against X-Sabers. It shuts down the vital Deck searches that are normally granted by XX-Saber Darksoul, and negates important Special Summons of monsters like XX-Saber Hyunlei and XX-Saber Faultroll.

In Duel 2, Albans used Dark Hole to clear the field before Summoning Thunder King Rai-Oh. Desperate to negate it, Turley flipped Solemn Warning; but Albans Special Summoned Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning and used it to finish the Duel!

Thanks to Thunder King Rai-Oh, Alistar Albans manages to take a 2-1 victory over Joshua Turley’s X-Sabers.

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Next we have Rafael Mendoza and his T.G. Agents Deck facing off against Oscar Zelaya and his Tour Guide Agents.

In Duel 1, Zelaya Summoned Chaos Sorcerer and Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning in the course of the Duel, and used them to dominate Mendoza. Mendoza didn’t draw any Agents, and quickly fell to Zelaya’s Chaos Monsters. Chaos monsters are powerful, and if a Duelist doesn’t deal with them quickly, they’re likely to end a Duel.

In Duel 2, Zelaya lost Tragoedia, Magical Android, and Sangan to the effect of Mendoza’s Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo. This mass-destruction allowed Mendoza to take the lead and secure the victory. When you commit a lot of monsters to the field at once, you risk losing them to the effects of cards like Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo.

In Duel 3, Mendoza managed to destroy Sangan with Thunder King Rai-Oh and prevent its effect, but lost anyway when he forgot to use Solemn Warning to negate the Summon of Master Hyperion. “I was afraid of Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning,” Mendoza told me. “And I was so into the Duel, I didn’t realize I would’ve lost anyway if he had Black Luster.”

Oscar Zelaya defeats Rafael Mendoza and advances with a 3-0 record!

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Finally we have Louis McNichols and his Lightsworn Deck Dueling against Karl Arbeiter and his Karakuris.

In Duel 1, McNichols Synchro Summoned Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier by Tuning Plaguespreader Zombie, Lumina, Lightsworn Summoner, and Lyla, Lightsworn Sorceress together. He nailed Gorz the Emissary of Darkness from Arbeiter’s hand, seemingly creating a turning point in the Duel. But turns later, Arbeiter used Trishula against McNichols, banishing an Honest from McNichols’s hand, an Emissary of Darkness Token from the field, and a Lumina from the Graveyard. McNichols couldn’t recover from Arbeiter’s devastating Trishula, and Arbeiter managed to win the first Duel! Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier is a tough card to beat, since its effect kicks in as soon as its Summon is successful. A handy Thunder King Rai-Oh or Solemn Warning, which can negate Trishula’s Summon, is usually the best weapon to use against it.

In Duel 2, Arbeiter swarmed the field to get Karakuri Strategist mdl 248 “Nishipachi”, Karakuri Shogun mdl 00 “Burei”, and Karakuri Steel Shogun mdl 00X “Bureido” all on the field in one turn, early in the Duel. He used the Strategist’s effect to switch McNichols’s Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning to Defense Position, then attacked over it with Burei. McNichols didn’t have any cards that could defeat Arbeiter’s stacked field. When Arbeiter used Pot of Avarice and added Rai-Oh to his field on his next turn, McNichols conceded.

Karakuri Decks are explosive, and can frequently swarm the field with lots of monsters at once. Cyber Dragon and Chimeratech Fortress Dragon are great cards to use against Karakuris when they don’t finish you off in one turn – if McNichols had a Cyber Dragon to Special Summon after Arbeiter ended his field-swarming turn, he would’ve been able to fuse it with Arbeiter’s 3 monsters to Summon a 4000 ATK Chimeratech Fortress Dragon. A well-timed Trap Card like Solemn Warning can also stop a Karakuri Deck in its tracks.

Karl Arbeiter defeats Louis McNichols with his Karakuris!

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Lizcano, Albans, Zelaya, and Arbeiter are moving on undefeated!