Decks to Expect: Dragon Rulers
Were you expecting someone else?
Just because the “baby” Dragon Rulers are Forbidden doesn’t mean focused Dragon Ruler strategies impossible. The impact of losing the “babies” is that the number of Summons available to a Dragon Ruler Duelists is remarkably lower than it was just weeks ago. It takes far longer than it used to in order to get to a point in the Duel where multiple Dragon Ruler Summons are possible in a single turn, and even longer than that if you want them to be completely free like they were previously. Furthermore, the total number of Dragon Ruler Summons you can perform in a single Duel is also far lower and you usually have to actually draw the Dragon Rulers themselves – you can’t just pull them from the Deck at will.
With all of that said, the Dragon Rulers are still individually excellent cards that are pretty easy to Summon, have lots of ATK, are Level 7, and do other stuff too. Many Duelists are tackling the speed and fuel issues by playing cards like Mecha Phantom Beast Tetherwolf that share an Attribute with one of the Dragon Rulers and are Level 7 or at least do a good imitation of being Level 7. Tetherwolf is a Level 4 WIND monster that Summons a Mecha Phantom Beast Token when you Normal Summon it. While that Token is around, its Level jumps up to 7 so it can be paired with a Dragon Ruler for a Rank 7 Xyz Summon.
Similarly, some Duelists are using Fog King, a Level 7 WATER monster you can Normal Summon without Tribute that prevents Tributes from happening while it’s on the field. Its original ATK and DEF are 0, which also makes it a prime target for revival with Debris Dragon or Masked Chameleon, the former generally being the choice for its WIND-Dragon nature. Reviving Fog King with Debris Dragon allows you to Synchro Summon Star Eater, giving you a huge Extra Deck play that can cut straight to your opponent’s Life Points without being bothered by cards like Mirror Force.
Speaking of Trap Cards, you’ll probably be seeing a lot more of them in Dragon Ruler Decks than you used to. While there’s a certain school of thought that says “If I don’t run Traps, their Mystical Space Typhoons are useless!” it’s not often that a Dragon Ruler Duelist goes completely without playing cards that a timely Mystical Space Typhoon will ruin. Cards like Dragon Ravine or Vanity’s Emptiness are bound to show up, and if they’re the only cards for Typhoon to hit, they’ll always be the cards that get hit by Typhoon! Instead, lots of Dragon Ruler Duelists are opting to play destructive Trap Cards they can Chain, like Raigeki Break or Phoenix Wing Wind Blast, along with cards that advance their plans like Threatening Roar (which is almost like skipping your opponent’s turn) and Dragoncarnation (a Trap that can retrieve banished Dragon Rulers).
There are a lot different ideas going around on how to build a new age Dragon Ruler Deck, and we’re sure to see a bunch of them throughout the course of the weekend!
