Card of the Day - 10/27/2014 - "Chrono Jet Dragon"

Chrono Jet Dragon
Grade 3 / 11000 Power / Twin Drive!!
Dark Zone / Gear Chronicle / Gear Dragon
[AUTO](VC): Generation Break 2 (This ability is active if you have 2 or more face-up G-Units in your Generation Zone or (VC)) When this unit attacks a vanguard, until end of that battle, this unit gets [Power]+5000 and your opponent cannot call grade 1 or greater units from hand to (GC).
[AUTO](VC): [Counterblast (1)] During your turn, when your G-Unit Strides, you may pay the cost. If you do, choose one of your opponent's rear-guards, and put that unit on the bottom of your opponent's deck.

I seriously can't stop laughing. My sides are starting to hurt. Today, we see the first Gear Chronicle card that has been revealed. It also happens to be the main boss unit of G-TD01. Chrono Jet Dragon is definitely a card, almost to the point that I could easily see it being a RRR in a main set. For no cost, at Generation Break 2, Chrono Jet gains +5000 power and Glory Maelstrom skill. For those of you who haven't noticed, "Glory Skill" has been Bushiroad's latest way of giving cards strong skills, as opposed to season 3's "Everything can restand" strategy. However, we now have an incredibly power TRIAL DECK card with "Glory Skill," along with a pseudo-retire skill. This definitely means that the quality of Trial Decks is going up, but I'm not sure what it says about the power level of cards. Generation Break 2 is hardly a condition for a skill, only forcing you to wait about 5 turns into the game to use the skill. Combined with the fact that you can get easy CB1 "retires" on the latter two of these turns just for discarding a grade 3 (or more if you don't have a grade 3) to Stride, I imagine that this card will be the defining boss for early Gear Chronicle decks, similar to Great Silver Wolf, Garmore being used in a large number of early Gold Paladin decks.

Unfortunately, due to this being the only Gear Chronicle card we've seen, I can't say a whole lot about how it'll end up interacting with other cards, but if cheap pseudo-retires are one of Gear Chronicle's ways of sending the opponent "back in time," they'll probably be a force comparable to Kagero in terms of control.

Card of the Day - 10/24/2014 - "Knight of Inspiration, Mylius"

Knight of Inspiration, Mylius
Grade 0 / 5000 Power / Boost
United Sanctuary / Royal Paladin / Human
[AUTO]: Forerunner (When a card of the same clan rides this unit, you may call this unit to (RC))
[ACT](RC): Generation Break 1 (This ability is active if you have one or more face-up G-Units in your Generation Zone or (VC)) [Counterblast (1) & Put this unit into your soul] Search your deck for up to one grade 2 card, call it to (RC), and shuffle your deck.

Yay for new keywords, right? This guy... definitely seems interesting, considering he's the FVG provided in G-TD02. His skill allows you to search for any grade 2 unit, but requires a G-Unit face-up SOMEWHERE. This means that the earliest you could activate this is the same timing as Legion (both players being at grade 3), but you'll need to have already used or be using a G-Unit's Stride. However, this does allow for some interesting uses.

Majesty Lord Blaster now has an alternative to Wingal Brave. While Wingal Brave still allows you to have incredible ride consistency, this FVG allows you to use Majesty Lord Blaster's second skill for +10000 power more consistently. The G-Units are already a huge buff to any outdated deck (including Majesty Lord Blaster), so you'll probably have them to activate the Generation Break regardless. Even alongside Wingal Brave, this guy could function as an extra grade 0 that allows you to swap him for either Blaster Blade OR Blaster Dark depending on which one you need, essentially giving you 5-6 copies of each rather than only 4 (in terms of trying to draw into them, at least). This is much more consistent than the previous method of relying on a Blaster Blade/Dark boosted by Wingal Brave hitting to search for your other piece.

You could also turn this guy into a Blaster Blade Spirit for a Counterblast 2 retire if you wanted to. This would be no more expensive than Blaster Blade or Berserk Dragon already are, and would trade a 5000 power boost for a 10000 power attacker.

Now we just have to wait and see what cool grade 2 units we get in G-TD02 and G-BT01!

Card of the Day - 10/23/2014 - "Paisley Magus"

Paisley Magus
Grade 0 / 4000 Power / Boost
United Sanctuary / Oracle Think Tank / Human
[AUTO]: When this unit is placed on (RC), if you have a vanguard with "Magus" in its card name, look at the top card of your deck, and put that card on the top or the bottom of your deck.

While I can't really call this card bad, it's... not really something that was too needed. The skill, while similar to that of CEO Amaterasu and Battle Sister, Cocoa, isn't really useful here. First, it requires a Magus vanguard (a whopping three Magus grade 3's currently exist), and second, it's a critical trigger. There should be no reason for you to be calling a critical trigger to rear-guard in an Oracle Think Tank deck unless it's Psychic Bird.

The only upside I can really see this card having is Pentagonal Magus's [Counterblast (2)-cards with "Magus" in its card name] cost. Currently, the Magus archetype only has two triggers, Lozenge Magus and Sphere Magus. Both of these are heal triggers, meaning you could only have 4 Magus triggers in a deck. This at least gives you another trigger that can be used with Pentagonal Magus's Counterblast.

On the other hand, if we end up getting significant Magus support in G-BT01, and if it ends up requiring Magus Counterblasts, then this trigger will be a godsend, along with any other Magus triggers we would probably get in that scenario. In fact, getting a new Oracle Think Tank trigger is a godsend anyhow, seeing as the last printed ones were in EB07, dating back to the time of Link Joker's first appearance.

Card of the Day - 10/22/2014 - "Amon's Leader, Astaroth"

Amon's Leader, Astaroth
Grade 3 / 11000 Power / Twin Drive!!
Dark Zone / Dark Irregulars / Demon
[ACT](VC): Legion 21000 "Demon World Marquis, Amon" (If your opponent's vanguard is grade 3 or greater, this unit may return four cards from your drop zone into your deck once, search your deck for the specified card, and Legion.)
[CONT](VC): If this unit is in Legion, this unit gets [Critical]+1 for every ten cards in your soul.
[AUTO](VC): When your opponent's rear-guard is put into the drop zone due to an effect from one of your cards, if you have another unit in your middle column with "Amon" in its card name, Soul Charge (3). This ability cannot be used for the rest of that turn.

Well then, Bushiroad. You continue to amaze me with new ways to make old units good again. All I can say about this is... 41000 power with 3 critical unboosted...?

Demon World Marquis, Amon is originally a RRR and SP card in BT03. It was more recently reprinted as an SP-only in BT12. During his day, he was actually quite a force to be reckoned with, being able to quite easily swing over the 20000 (and even 21000) magical number. With only 5 cards in soul, 23000 was achievable, and with only 7, 25000 power. His second skill was just icing on the cake, allowing you to retire one of your opponent's rear-guards in order to fill your soul a bit more. However, now his 10000 power base matters not, as Astaroth's 11000 power is used defensively, but his +1000 power per card in soul still comes into play during attacks. This allows you to swing for 21000, plus 1000 for every card in soul, plus a boost. With 10 cards in soul, you'll be attacking for 31000 with double critical, not counting your booster. At 20 cards, 41000 with triple critical. This large of a soul might seem unlikely, but there is one card in particular that makes it quite feasible.

Dimension Creeper allows you to remove it from your soul in order to Soul Charge 2. Simply by calling this to rear-guard and using Amon's second skill to move him to soul, you can retire one of your opponent's rear-guards, and Soul Charge 5. This immediately places you at 8 cards in soul assuming you have your grade 0, 1, and 2 still in soul. Doing this one more time, possibly re-riding, and calling Hell's Draw and Hell's Deal allows you to hit 20 soul within a matter of turns. Given, the triple crit is almost never necessary, but hey, it's a thing you can do.

Another card worth mentioning is Doreen the Thruster. Her skill gives her +3000 power every time a card is put into your soul during the main phase. By performing the aforementioned combo with Dimension Creeper, you would get +3000 from Creeper moving to soul, +9000 for the Soul Charge 3 skill, then +6000 for Dimension Creeper's 2 soul charges. This would give you a 24000 power booster for your giant Vanguard column that has multiple criticals every turn that you perform this combo!

Card of the Day - 10/21/2014 - "Margal"

Margal
Grade 0 / 4000 Power / Boost / Draw Trigger
United Sanctuary / Royal Paladin / High Beast
[ACT](RC): [Put this unit into your soul] Choose one of your <<Royal Paladin>>, and that unit gets [Power]+3000 until end of turn.

You know, I'm actually kinda glad this got reprinted. If Lien was deserving of a reprint in BT17, then this was definitely deserving of a reprint. This is a pretty standard trigger clone, and as such, most clans have one. Royal Paladin's was originally released in BT02, so it has been long out of print in both the Japanese and English formats. This gives a very nice way of obtaining this card once again, since it'll come as a 4-of in G-TD02. OH YEAH AND HE COMES AS A RRR FOIL APPARENTLY.

You may be wondering why Margal getting reprinted is so important. Well, apart from any future G-BT01 bosses we might see, the main reason is this: Seeker, Thing Saver Dragon. Thing Saver requires a hefty Soul Blast 3 to use his skill, which normally limits you to once per game unless you re-ride or ride Thing Saver on top of a previously Legioned grade 3. Since re-riding isn't exactly optimal in a Persona Ride deck, and you might not always draw into your other grade 3 first, you need a backup plan to consistently achieve the double restand. Aside from Barcgal shenanigans, Margal is your most efficient way of doing this. You only lose a 5000 shield card that has little to no boosting value, you gain 3000 power in one of your columns, and Margal couldn't have been discarded for Thing Saver's skill anyhow (it requires you to discard "Seeker" units). This is an effective way to gain access to one of the plays that has been defining Japanese tournament play as of BT16's release.

I also realize that I just talked more about Thing Saver than I did Margal on Margal's Card of the Day. Oh well, dragons always win anyway.

Deck Profile - [Link Joker] Star-vader, "Omega" Glendios

So this is the deck I ran at the Atlanta Regional Qualifier yesterday. It's a purely beatdown focused Glendios build that uses the massive columns and 8 "PG"s in the deck to create a huge gap in the amount of shield you force out of your opponent compared to what your opponent forces out of you.

Grade 3: 14
3x Star-vader, "Omega" Glendios
4x Star-vader, "Яeverse" Cradle
1x Eradicator, Vowing Sword Dragon "Яeverse"
1x Silver Thorn Dragon Queen, Luquier "Яeverse"
1x Cleanup Celestial, Ramiel "Яeverse"
1x Deadliest Beast Deity, Ethics Buster "Яeverse"
1x Dauntless Dominate Dragon "Яeverse"
1x Covert Demonic Dragon, Hyakki Vogue "Яeverse"
1x Blue Storm Karma Dragon, Maelstrom "Яeverse"

Grade 2: 7
4x Star-vader, Magnet Hollow
3x Star-vader, Colony Maker

Grade 1: 12
4x Barrier Star-vader, Promethium
4x Taboo Star-vader, Rubidium
4x Star-vader, Ruin Magician

Grade 0: 17
1x Star-vader, Worldline Dragon
4x Star-vader, Meteor Liger
3x Star-vader, Weiss Soldat
3x Star-vader, Jeiratail
2x Star-vader, Scounting Ferris
4x Recollection Star-vader, Tellurium

Other Options

Engraving Star-vader, Praseodymium is a must-have for any deck that prefers to focus on Glendios's Limit Break 4 "Omega Lock" skill. He allows you to unflip one damage for each different "Яeverse" unit on your field, helping to mitigate the cost of Glendios and Ruin Magician.

Star-vader, Infinite Zero Dragon can be used to give you two free locks in order to set up an "Omega Locked" field much easier, or even as a means to speed up a deck aiming at the "World's End" Limit Break 5 win condition.

Star-vader, Cold Death Dragon allows you to place the top card of your opponent's deck locked onto one of their rear-guard circles. This is a must-have for the win condition builds, as your opponent can otherwise easily stop you by not calling a full field. This also helps get quicker locks in "Omega Lock" based builds.

Card of the Day - 10/20/2014 - "Dragonic Overlord "The X""

Dragonic Overlord "The X"
Grade 3 / 11000 Power / Twin Drive
Dragon Empire / Kagero / Flame Dragon
[ACT](VC): Legion 22000 "Dragonic Overlord "The End"" (If your opponent's vanguard is grade 3 or greater, this unit may return four cards from your drop zone into your deck once, search your deck for the specified card, and Legion.)
[AUTO](VC): When this unit performs Legion, search your deck for up to one card with the same name as a card on your (VC), reveal it to your opponent, put it into your hand, and shuffle your deck.
[AUTO](VC): [Counterblast (1), and choose a card from your hand named "Dragonic Overlord "The X", and discard it] At the end of the battle that this unit attacked, if the attack did not hit during that battle, you may pay the cost. If you do, choose two of your opponent's rear-guards, and retire them.

Uhhhh. Huhhhh. Well, this was not quite what I expected. Regardless, it's what we got. First, we'll start by looking back at The X's Legion Mate, "The End."

For those of you that don't know about "The End," he was the first crossride of Dragonic Overlord, back before Overlord became a Break Ride. His main skill is a Persona Blast. When his attack hits (rear-guard or vanguard), you can Counterblast 2 and discard a copy of himself to restand. This gives you two more drive checks at the cost of only discarding one card. He also made very easy 19k and 21k columns, allowing you to swing at a rear-guard to plus even when your opponent is at higher damage. He was so much of a threat in Japan that he even got restricted to 2 copies for a pretty long while.

"The X" allows you to easily search out a second "The End" or a second "The X," most likely whichever you don't already have in your hand. This creates a predicament for your opponent where they either guard your first attack to lose their guardians and two rear-guards, or take your first attack, allowing you to restand and attack again (in which case they either take another damage or lose 2 rear-guards anyway). This brings Overlord back as one of the biggest on-hit pressure units in the game. I can't say for sure what this says about where the game is headed with G-BT01, but I can say for sure that it'll be... interesting.

Other than that, I expect it to mainly see play alongside the rest of the generic Kagero lineup, including large amounts of vanillas for consistent defense early game, Gattling Claw Dragon for killing starters, Bellicosity Dragon for on-hit unflips, etc.