One of the biggest stories to come out of YCS Atlanta was the resurgence of Hieratics.  While Fire Fists, Mermails, and Geargia were expected to do well, Hieratic Decks had slowly crept up in Regional Qualifiers, exploding into the Top 32 in our last North American YCS.

Hieratics made strong finishes in previous formats, but older versions of the Deck had access to 3 copies of Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon to create all-in OTK plays that were pretty hit-or-miss.  The new builds combine the fast Xyz and Synchro Summoning powers of Hieratics, and the unique support cards Hieratics have, with the renewable attack power Special Summoning fodder from the 4 Dragon Rulers.  Here’s a breakdown of how that all adds up to a win.

Most Hieratic Duelists are running three copies each of these three Hieratics.

–Hieratic Dragon of Tefnuit starts your plays, since you can Special Summon it from your hand when your opponent controls a monster and you don’t.

–Hieratic Dragon of Eset can kick off the action too, since you can Normal Summon it with reduced stats.

-You can Special Summon Hieratic Dragon of Su by Tributing a “Hieratic” monster.  You can also Tribute a “Hieratic” from your field or hand to destroy an opposing Spell or Trap.

The Hieratic Dragons are cool because they all Tribute each other, and they all share an effect that Special Summons a Dragon-Type Normal Monster from your hand, Deck, or Graveyard when each is Tributed.  The monsters you Special Summon hit the field with 0 ATK and 0 DEF, but they still retain their Levels and Tuner status for Xyz and Synchro Summons.  There are three popular Normal Dragons to play with them.

–Flamvell Guard’s a Level 1 Tuner: you’ll use it for Level 6 Synchro Summons with Eset; Level 7 Synchros with Tefnuit and Su; or Level 8’s with Dragon Rulers.  It works with Blaster, Dragon Ruler of Infernos’ effect, too, since it’s a Fire monster.

–Labradorite Dragon’s a Dark Level 6 Tuner: pair it with Eset to make Star Eater, or overlay it with Tefnuit or Su for a Rank 6 Xyz.

–Luster Dragon’s a Wind Level 6 non-Tuner: you’ll generally use it for Rank 6’s like Labradorite Dragon, but you can make Trident Dragion by Tuning it to Debris Dragon, and it combos with Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms.

With the Hieratic Dragons and their Normal backup, you can Summon powerful monsters like these…

Hieratic Dragon King of Atum is key here, because it gets whatever Dragon you want to see from your deck, usually to set up Synchro Summons.  It’s the first of many cards that bring your Dragon Rulers into the game.  You can overlay it with Gaia Dragon, the Thunder Charger to play around its own effect, which would keep it from attacking otherwise.

Got two Level 6’s on the field but don’t need Atum?  Photon Strike Bounzer can shut down your opponent’s effects, or Constellar Ptolemy M7 can recycle cards from your graveyard, or bounce opposing cards off the table.  The powerful Rank 6 options in this strategy help you troubleshoot the field to create wins.

A single Level 6 Hieratic Dragon plus Flamvell Guard will unleash Black Rose Dragon to wipe your opponent’s field: it’s one of a couple different mass removal tricks the Hieratic Dragon Ruler strategy wields – more on those later.  Stardust Dragon protects your field, while Scrap Dragon destroys key cards and combos with some of your best cards.

While Hieratic Dragon King of Atum helps you get your Dragon Rulers into the Duel, it’s really just the beginning!  Since your Hieratic Dragons can Special Summon your Normal Monster Dragons from your Graveyard just as easily as from your Deck, Dragon Shrine lets you yard one of those Normal Monsters, followed by a Dragon Ruler of your choice.  That loads up your options and keeps your draws strong, since you won’t have to draw those Normal Monsters.

Hieratic Seal from the Ashes is awesome, too: it won’t add Dragon Rulers to your Graveyard, but it loads you up with Dragons to banish for your Dragon Rulers’ Special Summons.  It even Special Summons a Hieratic for free if it’s destroyed… either by your opponent, or by your own Black Rose Dragon or Scrap Dragon.

Hieratic Seal from the Ashes isn’t the only unique support card Hieratics have, either.

If the field-clearing power of Black Rose Dragon wasn’t enough, A Wingbeat of Giant Dragon lets you bounce an easy-to-Summon Hieratic Dragon of Tefnuit or a Dragon Ruler back to your hand and replicate the effect of Heavy Storm.  Clearing the table of all Trap Cards is awesome in a Deck that can put 8000 ATK worth of monsters on the field in a single turn.  Hieratics can also play in the opposite direction, too, fielding Skill Drain to shut down decks like Fire Fists and Geargia while you leave a single high-ATK monster on the field to clean up.  Most of your monsters’ abilities trigger in the Graveyard anyways, so Skill Drain does far more damage to your opponent than it will to you.

Finally, Call of the Haunted helps you put together those big combos, getting you that Tuner you need for a Synchro Summon; the extra Level 6 monster for an Xyz Summon; or just the extra big monster you need to win the Duel a turn early.  Since this deck plays monsters to the Graveyard so quickly and precisely with Dragon Shrine and Hieratic Seal from the Ashes, Call’s extremely powerful.

The Hieratic Deck mixes big, explosive combo plays that offer lots of different options, with the raw power of the Dragon Rulers.  The longer a game goes, the better this deck’s chances of winning, which is a point in its favor when matched up with slower Decks like Fire Fists and Geargia. It hasn’t been the most successful Deck in competition lately, but you absolutely need to take it into account when you prepare for major events!