The Story of a Great Come Backl (a.k.a. Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning)

You saw it coming. Hot off the Forbidden List, today we're going to be talking about the most hyped card of the September 2011 format so far - "Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning"!

An infamous monster, "Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning" first debuted all the way back in Invasion of Chaos, and what an invasion it was. Along with its equally infamous partner, "Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End", this card was known as one of the pioneers of the annual Forbidden and Limited List, hitting Forbidden status in September 2005, where it would remain till the end of the game...

... That is, so we thought, until September 2011 rolled around. Whether you guessed it from an eyebrow-raising Gold Series 4 reprint, or were shocked beyond belief, prepare for the beginning of a metagame centralized around this Envoy.

Firstly, let's take a look at why this card is held in such high regard: "Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning" is a LIGHT monster, bolstering a massive 3000 ATK and 2500 DEF. Being at the forefront of the Chaos standard, this monster is Special Summoned by banishing 1 LIGHT and 1 DARK monster in your Graveyard, making throwing this 3000 ATK beatstick onto the board a simple feat.

But it doesn't end there! The first of "Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning"'s two devastating effects, similar to the more widely familiar "Chaos Sorcerer", is the power to banish any monster on the field, once per turn! Unlike "Chaos Sorcerer", this card can banish a monster that's face-up OR face-down, preventing "Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter" or "XX-Saber Emmersblade" from escaping its fury. Its second effect allows it to strike twice each time it destroys a monster, making each attack from this behemoth a dangerous one!

Let's look at how this card is shaping the current game. With the addition of "Tour Guide From the Underworld" to the TCG, this card becomes easier than ever to summon in virtually any Deck. By splashing 3 "Tour Guides" and a "Sangan" into a Deck that runs the popular "Effect Veiler", this card is set-up just by drawing into 1 card.

"Lightsworn" Decks have once again risen up, with the Unlimiting of boss monster "Judgment Dragon", and Semi-Limiting of "Necro Gardna" - "Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning" now grants this destructive archetype a minimum of 4 3000 ATKers that can easily be brought to the field. YCS favorite archetype "Agents" have also changed their strategy to accommodate this beast, now opting to run "T.G." or "Tour Guide" builds to boost their DARK count, while Plants join the sea of Decks adapting to utilize this card.

The myraid of various tricks that can be performed with this card including the ability to tear through monsters with "Honest", followed by a painful boosted direct attack makes the summoning of "Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning" one of the most dreaded things to face down this format. If you can't counter this card, you sure as hell better be running it!

This article uses material from the "Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning" article on the Yu-Gi-Oh! Wikia at Wikia and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.

Archlord Kristya - One Fairy To Rule Them All

Special Summons! By now, they are the key to success of many Decks. With the advent of Synchro Monsters, many Decks focus exclusively on their ability to Synchro Summon - if something locks them out of their Synchro Summons, or Special Summons in general, then they are often beaten right away. When that something is a Level 8 monster with 2800 ATK and the ability to come back right after you get rid of it, they are toast. Ladies and gentlemen, we proudly present "Archlord Kristya", the card you definitely don't want to see on your opponent's side of the field.

"Archlord Kristya" has not one, not two, not even three noteworthy effects - it has a grand total of four. First of all, you can Special Summon it by having exactly four Fairies in your Graveyard. This makes its Summon fairly easy - many Fairies like "Honest", "Hecatrice", and "Herald of Orange Light" can dump themselves into the Graveyard with ease. Of course, "Kristya" doesn't have to be Special Summoned by this effect - you can use "Valhalla, Hall of the Fallen" or "Call of the Haunted" to Special Summon it, or even Tribute Summon it. You will want to use its effect, though, because if it is Special Summoned by its own effect, you can return one of those Fairies to your hand! One obvious choice would be the aforementioned "Honest", which allows this card to power over anything, including on-field Synchros. That 4000 ATK "Colossal Fighter" isn't so powerful now, is it?

Third is the most powerful effect of this card, the one most dreaded by duelists - "Neither player can Special Summon monsters". It is a "Royal Oppression" with 2800 ATK! Sorry, but it looks like the monsters that you would be using to take out this huge threat - "Judgment Dragon", "Dark Armed Dragon", "Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier", and others - are just going to be useless. And not much that is Normal Summoned can deal with it either. Finally, whenever it would go from the field to the Graveyard, it returns to the top of your Deck instead. Meaning that even if your opponent uses "Mirror Force" or "Smashing Ground" to deal with "Archlord Kristya", it will be back next turn - and this time your opponent will have even less ways to stop it.

So, the question is, where do you put this powerful card? Well, it can fit into a couple decks, one being a Fairy deck, and the other being Lightsworns. It seems counterintuitive, as "Lightsworns" rely on Special Summons with "Wulf", "Lumina", and "Judgment Dragon". The trick here is to Summon "Kristya" after you make those special summons, ensuring your opponent cannot counter with their own. It is a strategy that has been in use for a while - Tele-DAD and Synchro Cat decks often Main or Side Decked "Royal Oppression" in their heyday. With Lightsworns, it is even better, because that "Royal Oppression" now has 2800 ATK and recycles itself. And with many Fairies being used in "Lightsworns", such as "Celestia", "Honest", and the TCG-exclusive "Shire, Lightsworn Spirit", it is easy to Summon. Otherwise, you can build a Deck based around "Archlord Kristya" itself - using cards like "Nova Summoner" and "Shining Angel" to thin the Deck and fill the Graveyard for "Kristya's" summon.

So, how do you get rid of "Archlord Kristya"? There's really only one good answer - remove it from play. Use "Bottomless Trap Hole" to get it as soon as it enters the field, or "Caius the Shadow Monarch" to remove it while it's on the field. Alternatively, you can negate the Special Summon with cards like "Black Horn of Heaven", "Royal Oppression", or "Solemn Judgment". This prevents it from hitting the field, so it won't be able to recycle itself. You can even use "D.D. Crow" to control the number of Fairies in your opponent's Graveyard, preventing it from special summoning itself. You will want to have at least one of these options in your Main Deck or Side Deck, because "Archlord Kristya" can tear through most Decks out there, and stopping it will be a priority.

This article uses material from the "Archlord Kristya" article on the Yu-Gi-Oh! Wikia at Wikia and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.