Nathan Lawder normally spends his time judging a YCS, but time he’s here as a bounty Duelist! He’s using one of the new Decks to arise with Raging Tempest and Fusion Enforcers, a hybrid of Windwitches, Invoked, and Artifacts.

Here’s the list:

Main Deck: 41 Cards
Monsters: 17
Spells: 15
Traps: 9
Extra Deck: 15 Cards
Side Deck: 15 Cards

(check back later for the full list)

The standard Windwitch combo is to Special Summon Ice Bell with its effect, use it to Special Summon Glass Bell, and use that to get Snow Bell and Special Summon it as well. You use Ice Bell and Glass Bell to Synchro Summon Winter Bell, then use Snow Bell and Winter Bell to play Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon. If everything goes according to plan, you get a Crystal Wing that can’t be destroyed by card effects (thanks to Snow Bell), plus at least 1300 damage thanks to the combined effects of Ice Bell and Winter Bell. All by simply playing Ice Bell from your hand, and it doesn’t even need to use your Normal Summon.

And yet, we didn’t see Windwitches really anywhere at YCS Seattle, when Raging Tempest first came out. While Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon is very strong, it usually can’t win a Duel on its own. That’s where the Invoked come in. Lawder primarily backs up Crystal Wing with Invoked Raidjin or Invoked Mechaba, both of which have disruptive effects to make Crystal Wing that much more troublesome for his opponent. “I’m running 8 Aleisters, so I should be able to open Crystal and Raidjin turn one.” By eight Aleister, he means he’s using 3 Aleister, 3 Magical Meltdown, and 2 Terraforming, giving him a very strong chance to start the Duel with Aleister in hand. “Basically, they need to have a Kaiju.”

Since the Windwitches are all WIND, while his Artifacts and Ghost Ogre are LIGHT, he can easily use Invocation to play his key Fusions. Like most Invoked Decks, Lawder still uses one of each of the other Invoked Fusion Monsters, in case he’s able to play them using Invocation and his opponent’s Graveyard.

The Artifacts aren’t there just to be Fusion Materials for Mechaba, of course. The Artifact engine has been getting steadily more popular lately, since Artifact Sanctum into Artifact Scythe can totally shut down the standard Zoodiac combo. Lawder is also using Moralltach for more removal, and Lancea in the Side Deck to help against Decks like Infernoids.

Magical Meltdown is a big part of the strategy. Not only does it search out Aleister the Invoker, it prevents Lawder’s opponents from responding to his Fusion Monsters’ Summons, or his spells that Fusion Summon – that means no Torrential Tribute or Solemn Warning can stop him. To make things even better, Lawder can use cards like Twin Twisters in response to a Fusion Summon, and his opponent can’t respond to them! Typically, he’ll Fusion Summon Invoked Raidjin and use its Quick Effect in response to its own Summon, so his opponent can’t respond. That’s how he’s been taking care of Zoodiac Drident all day.

Wonder Wand is a card we haven’t seen for a while, but it’s a strong card in this Deck. Once you’ve Normal Summoned Aleister the Invoker and searched out Invocation, you don’t really want or need Aleister on the field anymore. Since Invocation can get its Fusion Materials from the Graveyard, Lawder can use Wonder Wand to send Aleister to the Graveyard for two new cards before he Fusion Summons.

“It’s essentially rinse, recycle, repeat,” Lawder says of his strategy. With the combined effects of Aleister the Invoker and Invocation, he can play out a steady stream of Fusion Monsters. With Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon added into the mix, it’s offers a lot of control over the Duel. Plus, there’s even a one-turn-win combo built into the Deck’s standard play, if Lawder’s opponent has no monsters! First he plays the Windwitch combo, ending with Crystal Wing and dealing 1300 damage with Ice Bell and Winter Bell. Then he plays out Aleister, getting Invocation, and Fusion Summoning Invoked Raidjin. Raidjin attacks directly, then uses its effect on itself. Crystal Wing negates that, shooting up to 5200 ATK! This combo is so deadly because it involves the same sequence of moves Lawder would be making anyway (Playing out Crystal Wing and Raidjin), but could instantly win the Duel if he gets the chance. In fact, he just used this combo to win his previous Match.

This strategy is a combination of several new strategies, making its debut here at YCS Atlanta. We’ve already seen several other Duelists using similar Decks – maybe this could be the key to taking down the Zoodiacs? We’ll find out, as YCS Atlanta continues.