Deck Profile: Mezzo

In the build-up for our up-coming set, I've been tinkering with a few old decks and a couple of old faces for a strong Deck that would be able to compete with what will arrive in Deep-Sea Assault. Eventually, I settled on probably the most notorious Deck-Type in this fair CCG - Mezzos. The quintessential Synchro Summon Archetype, once feared for it's alarming consistency and its ability to put a host of powerhouse Synchro Monsters on the field in the blink of an eye. Since the Deck has suffered slightly in being hit by the ban-list, these Fairies fell out of favour, but with a bit of rejuvenation in the Decklist, could compete at the highest level once again.

3|Nasb|Mezzo Rogue

2|Nasb|Mezzo Chiptune

1|Nasb|Mezzo Galen

2|Flfs|Ghost Lanturn

2|Anv1|Goetia Conjuror

1|Rope|Vivian, Angel of the White Passage

2|Enil|Savior Soldier

2|Clpc|Nox Exploiter

1|Dirb|Eccentric Electron

3|Nwor|Swift Storm

3|Ww3|Vowing the Will

2|Dirb|Scrap Destruction

2|Flfs|Refueling

2|Dodm|Lifeforce Shield

2|Acrd|Depraved Extortion

1|Acrd|Quick-Chance

1|Anv1|Mitosis

1|Enil|Enchanting Circle

1|Dodm|Support Recharge

2|Anv1|Hostile Negotiation

2|Acrd|Twister of Rejection

1|Clpc|Gift from Diabolus

1|Enil|Twin Double Crossers

1|Acrd|Summoner Synchron

1|Dirb|Fiend Solider

1|Anv1|Shameful Artist

1|Flfs|Rumbler Tumbler

1|Dirb|Dark Swordlord

2|Nasb|Mezzo Beat

1|Dirb|Starshot Cannon

1|Enil|Fiend Magician

1|Ww3|Interdimensional Vortexlord

1|Res1|Rainbow Tail

1|Ww3|Ghora End Dragon

1|Flfs|Volcana the Dark Flame

1|Nwor|Meteor Force Dragon

1|Anv1|Monster of the Maelstrom

What I imagine is the first thing you'll notice is the small number of Traps run in this Deck, as I'm sure people are used to the line-up reaching double figures, especially in my case. However, space has been made by cutting out the more situational Traps, allowing me more space for tech choices, consistency cards and of course, a few hand Traps. That's not to say however that these Traps are an afterthought, Hostile Negotiation is my S/T negator of choice, Diabolus is a semi-Staple monster remover, Twister is a lovely and chainable Monster bouncer and Xyz/Synchro killer, while Twin Double Crossers is a personal tech I am experimenting with, which I will cover in more detail later.

Now, I suppose I ought to talk about the focus of the Deck. Quite simply, its goal is to summon huge Synchro monsters at breakneck speeds and pound your opponent into submission. With the rise and popularity of Xyz Monsters, this kind of Deck is declining, but you'd be a fool to discount the threat Mezzo Decks possess. Using the simple 6 card Mezzo engine, you have the ability to churn out the likes of Monster of the Maelstrom at no loss of card advantage. Yup. A simple Galen discard for Chiptune, Special Summon your Chiptune, pay 1000 to grab Rogue, Normal Summon Rogue and revive Galen. Level 9 Synchro hits the field and in the grand scheme, it cost you nothing. Failing that, any combination of just 2 Mezzo's can net you a Synchro, and if you can't reach Level 9, you can usually hit 6 and drop Mezzo Beat - the Archetype's boss monster. This Level 6 Generic Synchro monster swings for 2400 and has a plethora of effects that are triggered by banishing a card from your Grave, with perhaps the sweetest being the ability to banish cards from your opponents backrow by removing a Mezzo in your Grave.

Due to the listing of cards in the Mezzo engine, it leaves a lot of room in the monster department, which I have capitalized on by adding the Goetia engine. As covered by Leo before, Goetia Conjuror can Tribute a card, including itself, to Special Summon a Fiend from your Deck (provided it is the same Level as the Tributed Monster). This means Goetia can Tribute itself to Special Summon Ghost Lanturn. Now, Lanturn brings two important things to the table. The first is clear right off the bat, it's a Tuner that can Special Summon itself, which is also nice. However, its main use is its ability to bring Light Monsters, like your Mezzo's back to your hand, ready to refuel your combo's. This is the same reason Vivian is in the Deck, though she does have a very nice Summon block effect that can come in handy.

This is probably the most hand Trap heavy deck I've built in a long time, and this has been forced from necessity - as the TCG has evolved, so have we and we have a similar use and need for hand Traps against problem cards - Savior Soldier serves as an OTK blocker and beater, Electron stops opponents effects from getting out of hand and Nox Exploiter assists greatly in breaking up attacks and combos. As the Deck focuses on assembling combo pieces, it is important that they can be utilized safely, and the speed in which these Traps can protect you are of great significance.

As usual, there are various Staple to Semi-Staple cards which are run due to how effective they are, Scrap Destruction is fast chainable removal, Swift Storm deals with backrow quicker but less permanently to allow pushes to go through, and Extortion assists in taking down pesky self-protecting monsters. But in this Spell line-up are more than a few underused cards. Going down the list, we first have 3 copies of Vowing the Will. This is simple, the Deck lives and dies on how quickly it reaches Galen or Chiptune, and this will ensure that Chiptune reaches your hand (or Rogue, or if you need a hand Trap, Exploiter or Electron). This card aids the consistency that was lost when Galen was Limited, Chiptune was Semi'd and Ampule was banned. Next is Refueling and by association, Support Recharge - how effective is your Galen if its targets are in the Grave? These cards put Synchros and Mezzo's back into your Deck ready for another offensive push. We have Lifeforce Shield, which is a highly effective chainable protection card that replaces itself on use, and ensures that your Synchro's can carry on about their business, or make sure your opponent can't disrupt you midway through a play. Quick-Chance grants immediate access to a Level 1 Monster, which can be Electron or Lanturn for Synchro purposes, or Goetia to go into Lanturn. A useful tech card to have. There's also Mitosis, which bounces a monster to your hand to make Level 1 Tokens - this is simply for diversifying the Synchro monsters you can play but you can also combine this with cards like Twin Double Crossers. Enchanting Circle grants you the ability to take control of an opponents Monster, again this is handy for hitting different kinds of Synchro monsters. My teched Trap of choice, Twin Double Crossers is made live easily as the Deck can leave monsters about very often, which you can trade with your opponent. Even better, you could swap over a Nucleus Token and completely disrupt your opponent as they try to counter-attack.

Finally, the Extra Deck is built for variety. The deck has a lot more options than the basic engine would suggest and can adapt to so much through its Extra Deck options. The only card in multiples is Beat, as getting 2 on the field will wrap up a game for you very quickly due to its wide range of effects, not to mention the ease of which it can be Summoned.

Thanks for reading, and remember that with Mezzo's and Antennae's about, Synchro Decks are as strong as ever and more than ready to beat back any Xyz Monsters in their way.

Deck Profile: Monster Mash

Monster Mash is a concept that was made in the TCG, and has been now adopted into LCCG. The deck runs 40 cards, all of which are monsters. Most variants of this deck in the TCG are Chaos, and the LCCG version of Monster Mash, is a Chaos build as well. So now that you know about the deck and a little bit of insight on what it will be about, here is the list followed by some explanations.

1|Acrd|Vainglorious Kimiara

3|Enil|Savior Soldier

3|Ww3|Deep Chaos Dragon

3|Anv1|Goetia Conjuror

2|Flfs|Ghost Lanturn

3|Dirb|Eccentric Electron

3|Clpc|Nox Exploiter

2|Clpc|Nox Deceiver

3|Anv1|Keeper of the Arsenal

3|Dirb|Lazer Bow

3|Nwor|Reaper- Doomcore

3|Dirb|Ancient Arthropod

2|Acrd|Chaos Dragon

2|Res1|Luminous Knight

2|Anv1|Preacher of Justice

1|Clpc|Flash Serpent

1|Anv1|Red Moon Rabisu

1|Ww3|Chaos End Dragon

2|Ww3|RT-67 Gadgetron

2|Anv1|Shameful Artist

1|Res1|Rainbow Tail

1|Anv1|Monster of the Maelstrom

2|Nasb|Mezzo Beat

1|Dirb|Fiend Solider

2|Flfs|Dragon of Life - Dawn

1|Dirb|Dark Swordlord

2|Flfs|Rumbler Tumbler

Side Deck

3|Anv1|Isis's Last Wish

2|Anv1|Mirror Wall

2|Dodm|Underworld Seal

2|Ww3|Eccentric Proton

2|Nasb|Interdimensional Treaty

2|Dirb|Scrap Destruction

2|Nasb|Splitting Cut

40 Monsters, 0 Spell/Trap Cards, 15 Extra Deck Cards, 15 Side Deck Cards

You play 7 “boss monsters” in the main deck, being your Vainglorious Kimiara and Deep Chaos Dragon, plus your hand trap Savior Soldier. Vainglorious Kimiara is a great card, as it can tutor the type, effect and attribute of a monster you removed from play. This can be very deadly late game if you have a Deep Chaos Dragon or Chaos Dragon, as you can start hitting their hand (Deep Chaos Dragon) or bouncing their field presence (Chaos Dragon). Deep Chaos Dragon is a very easy monster to get out in this deck, as your graveyard is usually full with LIGHT and DARK monsters. Both effects are very deadly as well. If you banish a LIGHT monster, you get to see a card in your opponent’s hand, with a chance at it being discarded. If you banish a DARK, you get a LIGHT monster that you banished earlier. The card is extremely good and is the main focus of the deck. Savior Soldier, being a hand trap, can provide some field presence in a time of need if your deck’s combos are going slowly.

Next you play the Goetia Conjurer and Ghost Lanturn engine. Goetia works like Keeper of the Arsenal in a way, but only targets Fiend-Type monsters. The tuner you could search for would be Ghost Lanturn if it tributes itself, which can be very useful. Nox Deceiver is also a card it can target, which can set a monster your opponent controls and than most likely, run it over. The engine is great as it can quickly search out tuners for Synchros, and outs to cards if they are needed.

Then there are the hand traps of the deck: Eccentric Electron and Nox Exploiter. We all know and love Electron, for its ability to negate monster effects, which is really important against some decks that abuse the effects of their monsters. Nox Exploiter works like Book of Moon, as it sets a monster face-down. This can be very effect against decks the synchro/xyz a lot, as it can stop there plays and leave them with an awkward field.

Keeper of the Arsenal is another important card to the deck. With its ability to turn cards into mini-Lonefire Blosssoms, it provides big problems for the opposing duellist. Lazer Bow is another amazing card that monster mash boasts. With its ability to go off 100% of the time, Synchros become a much easier feat to achieve in this deck. It can also be used with Keeper of the Arsenal to bring out another level 4 monster if you wanted to get an RT-67 Gadgetron.

Ancient Arthropod is the decks ‘niche’ card. Since you run no Spell cards in this deck, its effect always live. The discarding cards can be very pesky for your opponent as you might begin to make the discard the outs to your cards. Also, when you remove Red Moon Rabisu with Deep Chaos Dragon, he comes back during your next Standby Phase which can be pretty useful for the decks plays. Chaos Dragon also brings a Brionac like effect which bounces your opponent’s stuff and gets your cards like Reaper – Doomcore to the graveyard.

That is the main board. The Extra Deck is pretty standard. There is nothing really out of this world or different, only generic Synchros and Xyzs that you will see in most decks in this game.

In the side deck, you side into your spell and traps. Splitting Cut and Eccentric Proton counter the Fairy match-up, mainly their Space Clash Wave. Interdimensional Treaty and Scrap Destruction cover cards like Black Raven of the Grave that shut down your deck’s plays.  Underworld Seal shuts off your opponent’s graveyard, while keeping yours intact for your next turn. Mirror Wall negates traps for decks that abuse Transcending Curse cards and Isis’s Last Wish gives you a way to deal with big monsters if you are having trouble with them.

Another tip I need to stress is side out Ancient Arthropod. While he is a great ‘niche’ card, once you side in Spell Cards he becomes useless. This might sound redundant, but I feel like I need to mention it because it is important that you don’t run conflicting cards, unless the can co-exist (for example Royal Oppression in X-Sabers as you could flip it after you went off. It could be easily removed in case you needed to make other big plays. In this case, the spell cannot be removed from the graveyard to make Ancient Arthropod live again).

The deck is a lot of fun to play and use competitively. If you were to join a tournament with this deck, your side deck will be very important, because cards like Black Raven of the Grave can really hurt you. Don’t be afraid to side in Spell or Trap cards to counter those cards. I would recommend this deck to all of you to try out for yourselves.

Deck Profile: Antennae

The first deck I'm going to cover is one of the strongest decks in the LCCG at the moment. Antennae's were first introduced in Flaming Forest by former member Bringerofcake. Since those days, the Spellcaster/Machine mix Archetype has received a few nice support cards that have helped to elevate them to the top.

After quite a long time of adding, chopping and eventually fine-tuning, I've come across my preferred and what I believe is the optimal version of the Deck.

3|Anv1|Keeper of the Arsenal

3|Flfs|Antennae Preservationalist

3|Flfs|Antennae Radar

2|Flfs|Antennae Fiddler

2|Acrd|Antennae Inventor

3|Acrd|Antennae Receiver

2|Enil|Spell Search

2|Enil|Junk Salvage

2|Nwor|Swift Storm

2|Acrd|Depraved Extortion

2|Nasb|Mass Manufacture

3|Anv1|Hostile Negotiation

3|Nwor|Antennae Tune-Up

3|Acrd|Emergency Broadcast

2|Rope|Soul Spark Attack

2|Anv1|Isis's Last Wish

1|Clpc|Gift from Diabolus

1|Ww3|Axe-Arm Mantis

1|Ww3|RT-67 Gadgetron

1|Rope|Deepsea Atlanthal Guide

2|Flfs|Rumbler Tumbler

1|Anv1|Shameful Artist

1|Dirb|Starshot Cannon

1|Nasb|Mezzo Beat

2|Flfs|Antennae Repairman

1|Res1|Rainbow Tail

1|Dirb|Ceathmas

1|Ww3|Ghora End Dragon

1|Nwor|Meteor Force Dragon

1|Anv1|Monster of the Maelstrom

Probably the first thing you'll notice is the low monster count, however Antennae Tune-Up can help bring Antennae's to the field at a moments notice, Keeper of the Arsenal can turn other monsters into a mini Lonefire Blossom, and Antennae Inventor can bring a Machine Antennae from your Deck to your hand. Add into that Spell Search, which can bring a Spellcaster (like Inventor) from your Deck or Grave to your hand, and you have quite a few ways to bring some consistency into the Deck.

Of your monsters, Preservationalist is your main combo starter, and when paired with Inventor, can make some big Synchro plays, such as dropping Level 9's to the field low investment. It should be noted though, that so long as Preservationalist hits the field safely, he can link up with any other Antennae (bar a copy of himself). If you have at least 2 different Antennae's in your hand, you can usually link them up - such as Fiddler + Radar for a Level 5 + S/T popped; Inventor + Radar for a search + S/T popped; Pres + Radar for Level 5 + S/T popped; Pres + Inventor for a search, which could be a Radar for a big Lv 9 play with the ability to hit a backrow too!

A lot of support comes from your S/T's, the likes of Antennae Receiver, Mass Manufacture, E-Broadcast and Tune-Up are invaluable for a host of Synchro plays and control options. Mass Manufacture is great for linking up with Radar and Preservationalist, and can even turn a lone Preservationalist into formidable Level 6 Synchro monster. You can even use the Factory Tokens for Soul Spark Attack or turn lv 2 Tokens into Tuners with Antennae Fiddler.

Junk Salvage is huge here, as it helps to replenish your options - All of your Antennae's (with the exception of Preservationalist) have -1000 ATK, so you can easily stock your hand full of Antennae's ready to Synchro all over again. Another use is to keep filling your hand with Antennae's as fodder for Antennae Repairman to keep swarming the field.

Radar is a fantastic card here, the ability to Special Summon itself and hit an opponents backrow is a great thing to have, but it really comes to life with Emergency Broadcast. By getting out Radar and using it's effect, then following up with E-Broadcast, you could decimate your opponent by up to 4 cards with a 1 card investment.

You may notice the addition of Xyz's in the Extra Deck and be confused, due to the Synchro-heavy nature of the deck, and in a sense you're right, but the potential is there for their use, and dropping Gadgetron along with a Synchro + backrow can seal a game. As for Synchros themselves, Antennae's get to make use of Ceathmas, which has inbuilt protection and the ability to retrieve Machines from the yard. As well as him, Antennae Repairman is the Archetype's boss Synchro, and has more than enough potential to flood the field with Synch's, meaning he should never be underestimated.

This is a deck I've really enjoyed playing for a long time, and with a flexible take on swarm, control and searching, it has everything you need to win out against even the toughest decks.