The last YCS of the current format is upon us!

In just ten days the new Advanced Format will come into effect, curbing two of the most popular decks in competition – Fire Fists and Mermails.  But this weekend, those two decks will clash once more, as Fire confronts Water once again.  Alpay Engin won YCS Berlin with Mermails, while America’s own Joe Bogli played Fire Fists to a win at YCS Atlanta, setting the stage for competition this weekend.

But those were just two of the Yu-Gi-Oh! Championship Series tournaments we’ve seen this year!  YCS Sydney was captured by Karakuris, while Harpies won YCS Sao Paulo just two weeks ago.  Bujins are on the rise; a new Pure Geargia build is taking impressive Regional Qualifier finishes; and decks like Heraldic Beasts, Spirits, and Noble Knights are taking repeated Top 8’s.  This format may be drawing to a close, but some of the biggest names in Dueling are here this weekend with innovative new strategies we’ve never seen before.  Check out our Round 1 Feature Matches for some examples.

For duelfans tracking Regional and YCS results for the past three months, questions abound!  Two different builds of Bujins have seen success this season, largely thanks to the new Bujingi Hare from Legacy of the Valiant: some Bujin Duelists are playing a full lineup of traps, while others are running Royal Decree.  Those Decree builds can answer multiple backrow threats with one flip of a Continuous Trap, while also cutting off most cards Side Decked for the Bujin matchup: think Mistake, DNA Surgery, Light-Imprisoning Mirror and more.  If competitors here today are Side Decking for Bujins, then the Decree build’s the better call; if not, then the trap-heavy builds may prove superior.

Meanwhile, Geargia Duelists are going in one of two ways: while the deck’s historically been played with Karakuri Tuners and Genex Ally Birdman  to make big plays with the Karakuri Shogun Synchro Monsters, new builds are relying solely on new, powerful Rank 4’s like Number 101: Silent Honor ARK and Evilswarm Exciton Knight.  Combined with the on-theme power of Gear Gigant X and Geargiagear, Geargias can now stand on their own mechanical feet.  The Tuner build’s more explosive and can win earlier, but it risks dead hands with mismatched cards.  The Pure Geargia build is more consistent, but takes longer to win; it may be favorable in a longer tournament like this one.

The field is wide open, and one last burst of inspiration and innovation is all that’s needed to take home the Championship this weekend!  Welcome, to the last YCS of the January 1^st 2014 era.

Welcome, to YCS Chicago!