Welcome to Day 2 of YCS Pittsburgh! We’ve got a great Match lined up to start the day! Grant Williams, from Pottstown, PA, was tearing up the competition yesterday using his Dinomist Deck! The Dinomist strategy uses steam-powered dino-robots, making it automatically cool. All Dinomists are Pendulum Monsters, with Pendulum effects that can protect other Dinomists from destruction or targeting effects. His opponent, North Carolina Duelist Jacob Banuelos, is one of our VIP Duelists. Banuelos is using an Infernoid Zoodiac Deck. He qualified as a VIP at Landslide Gaming in Maryland – check here for more information about VIP Qualifiers!

Duel 1

Banuelos won the dice roll and chose to play first. He began with Lonefire Blossom, getting another Lonefire, and then another, finally summoning Predaplant Ophrys Scorpio. He discarded Fairy Tail – Snow to Special Summon Predaplant Darlingtonia Cobra, which added Instant Fusion to his hand. He Xyz Summoned M-X-Saber Invoker, and it Special Summoned Zoodiac Ratpier. Ratpier was used to play Zoodiac Hammerkong, and he Special Summoned another Ratpier. He used Hammerkong to play Broadbull, had that get Lunalight Black Sheep, and that got Fusion Substitute. He used Broadbull to play Zoodiac Chakanine, and had it Special Summon Hammerkong. Fusion Substitute combined his Zoodiacs into Elder Entity Norden, which revived Snow. Snow and Norden were used to play Daigusto Emeral, which shuffled back Ratpier and 2 Xyz Monsters so Banuelos could draw a card. The Ratpier was used to play Tigermortar, and he Special Summoned another Ratpier. Fusion Substitute’s Graveyard effect put back Norden and let him draw a card. He played Instant Fusion this time for Sea Monster of Theseus, and he Synchro Summoned XX-Saber Gottoms! Its effect Tributed Invoker and itself, robbing Williams of Solemn Warning and Dinomist Plesios from his starting hand! Banuelos played another Fusion Substitute, combining Tigermortar and Emeral into Norden, which brought back Ratpier. He Xyz Summoned a second Broadbull, and added Zoodiac Whiptail to his hand. Fusion Substitute returned Norden to the Extra Deck to let him draw a card. Broadbull was upgraded into an Attack Position Zoodiac Drident, and Banuelos Set a card to finish. He had Drident, Emeral, his face-down card, and a full hand including Whiptail, while Williams was already down two cards from his hand!

Williams had a hand of Dinomist Charge, Forbidden Chalice, Dinomists Howling, and drew Maxx “C” for his turn. Banuelos flipped Void Feast, and Williams Chained Maxx “C” to draw Horn of Heaven. Feast Special Summoned Infernoid Sjette and 2 Infernoid Decatron, which sent Infernoid Devyaty and Infernoid Onuncu to the Graveyard. Williams played Dinomist Charge, and the “Onuncu” Decatron Tributed itself to banish it. Williams Set the rest of his hand.

Banuelos turned Drident to Defense Position. He attacked with Sjette and Decatron, then Set a monster and a back row card. Williams used Dinomists Howling in the End Phase, Drident used its effect on Howling, Williams flipped Forbidden Chalice, and Banuelos used Sjette to Tribute Drident and keep it from being affected by Chalice! Chalice failed to resolve, and Drident’s effect destroyed Howling (and Williams’s hopes and dreams).

Williams drew Solemn Strike, and had no way to fight back! That opening Gottoms combined with Void Feast was just too brutal!

Duel 2

Williams played first this time, with Magical Abductor, Lost Wind, Dinomist Rex, Dinomist Rush, and Dinomist Spinos. He played Abductor first, then Rex, into his Pendulum Zones. He Pendulum Summoned Spinos, and Set his Trap Cards.

Banuelos Special Summoned Speedroid Terrortop, added Speedroid Taketomborg to his hand, and Special Summoned it as well. He Normal Summoned Infernoid Decatron, and had it copy Infernoid Patrulea. He used its effect, and Williams Chained the targeted Dinomist Rush. Banuelos Chained Cosmic Cyclone to banish Williams’s Lost Wind. Dinomist Rush Special Summoned Dinomist Ptera. Banuelos used his Speedroids to Xyz Summon M-X-Saber Invoker, then Special Summoned Infernoid Harmadik. He had it destroy Spinos with its effect, then used Invoker to Special Summon Ratpier. Ratpier was used to play Hammerkong, then Decatron and Harmadik were used to play PSY-Framelord Omega. Hammerkong Special Summoned a new Ratpier, then became Broadbull, which got Black Sheep, which got Fusion Substitute. Broadbull became Chakanine and revived Hammerkong. Fusion Substitute combined the Zoodiacs into Norden, which revived Ratpier. Ratpier and Norden were used to play Emeral, which recycled Black Sheep and two Zoodiac Xyz Monsters to draw a card. Fusion Substitute put back Norden to draw another card. Chakanine was used to play Drident, and it used its effect on Ptera, but it was unaffected since it had been Summoned by Dinomist Rush (after all these plays it must have been easy to forget). Instant Fusion brought out Sea Monster of Theseus, which combined with Ratpier to play XX-Saber Gottoms! PSY-Framelord Omega destroyed Ptera in battle, then Emeral and Gottoms attacked directly. Banuelos played Void Vanishment to get Void Feast to his hand, and Set one to his back row.

Williams drew Dinomist Ankylos, and lost it to Omega. First, he Pendulum Summoned Spinos and Ptera. He tried to use Magical Abductor’s effect, but lost Abductor to Drident. Ptera destroyed Drident in battle, and its effect put Dinomists Howling in Williams’s hand. Spinos destroyed Emeral in battle, and Williams Set Howling to finish. Banuelos flipped Void Feast to Special Summon 2 Decatron and Sjette, and used the Decatron effects to send Devyaty and Onuncu to the Graveyard.

Banuelos’s Omega returned to the field. Gottoms attacked Spinos, and Williams flipped Dinomists Howling. Banuelos Tributed his Decatron to destroy it, and Spinos went down in battle. Omega attacked, and Sjette finished Williams off!

Jacob Banuelos goes all out with PSY-Framelord Omega, XX-Saber Gottoms, and more! He’s moving on with a great shot at the Top 32, thanks to his Infernoid Zoodiac Deck! Grant Williams has two losses now – he’ll have to win his next round and hope to make the top cut with some great tiebreakers. Even if he doesn’t make the Top 32, he’s had a very impressive showing with Dinomists!