By now, you’ve probably gotten your hands one or both of the Wave 1 2013 Collectible Tins. If you have, you might be asking yourself “Okay, where should I use these spiffy new cards?” Well we’re here to help get the ideas flowing, and we’re starting off with one of the tin cover monsters: Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls!

Caring for your new Dragon Ruler

Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls is perfect for any WATER Deck looking for more muscle, more Rank 7 Xyz plays, or more control over the Graveyard. Tidal shares 3 of its 4 effects with the rest of the Dragon Rulers: It can Special Summon itself from the hand or Graveyard, if it’s banished you get to add a matching-Attribute Dragon from your Deck to your hand, and it returns to the hand at the end of your opponent’s turn if you Special Summoned it. And, like all Dragon Rulers, Tidal has a unique 4th effect: You can discard Tidal and another WATER monster to send any monster from your Deck to the Graveyard. Remember, you can only use one effect of one Tidal each turn, and only once that turn.

What strategies can best take advantage of Tidal? Mermails are a great fit, as we saw this past weekend! Mermail Abyssmegalo, Mermail Abyssteus, and Mermail Abyssleed are Level 7, so having Tidal on hand is great for making some Rank 7 monsters like Mermail Abyssgaios. Tidal is also great at triggering the effects of Atlantean monsters or Mermail Abyssgunde, while also putting a monster from your Deck in the Graveyard. And finally, by banishing excess WATER monsters, you can manage your Graveyard perfectly to Summon Moulinglacia the Elemental Lord!

Frog Decks can naturally make use of Tidal’s effects. Since Tidal’s able to put your Frogs into the Graveyard, you can instantly set up Treeborn Frog or Ronintoadin. Mobius the Frost Monarch and Sea Lancer are both common sights in Frog Decks, and as WATER monsters they serve as extra ways to Special Summon Tidal from your Graveyard. Or, if you’re so inclined, you could take your Frog Deck down a tastier path with Slushy! Tidal gives you a way to put your spare copies of Slushy in the Graveyard. In this version of the Deck, you’d use Poseidra, the Atlantean Dragon since it can be easily Summoned with Slushy or its own effect. Since Poseidra is Level 7, it pairs up perfectly with Tidal for some Rank 7 Xyz Monsters!

Finally, while they may be best known for their Synchro Monsters, Tidal helps breathe new life into the Ice Barrier monsters! Some of the best Ice Barrier monsters are have high Levels, like General Gantala of the Ice Barrier and General Raiho of the Ice Barrier. Ice Barrier Decks have some great tricks like Magic Triangle of the Ice Barrier and Strategist of the Ice Barrier to get those monsters into play, but often they’re left with no way to use them. Tidal helps fix those problems by discarding them, and also sending another monster from the Deck to the Graveyard. From there, you’re free to use Prior of the Ice Barrier or Call of the Haunted to revive whatever you need. Like the other Decks we’ve looked at, Ice Barriers can use Tidal for some Rank 7 Xyz Monsters thanks to General Gantala and Medium of the Ice Barrier!

As you can see, Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls can make a splash in any just about any WATER Deck! Give it a try in your own Deck, and you’ll see why it has the title of Dragon Ruler!