By Froylan Carreno
A plethora of things have unfolded since the new ban list was enforced one week ago. Prices for particular cards have increased or decreased, certain decks are now becoming the new "meta", and duelists in general are starting to get used to the new changes. Duelists online and duelists in real life are all interacting with each other trying to figure out exactly how the meta will shape up to be in the next few months. Me, personally, I see a great meta compared to last one, where only the decks that were worth more than 1000$ could hope to compete in the meta. It was an unfortunate time in the game's history, but this format might just make up for it.
I have been online on Ebay and Dueling Network, just trying to discover any obvious changes in prices or in the meta. Since Dragon Rulers and Mermails topped YCS Toronto last week, almost every card in each respective deck has increased in price. In particular, the cards "Aqua Spirit" and "Dragon Ravine." "The monster card "Aqua Spirit" went from being a 50 cents card to a solid 5$ card almost overnight -- a feat almost unheard of, but not unbelievable since similar situations have happened before. The reason for it's spike in price is likely because it has only been released in older card sets that are extremely hard to find for down-to-earth prices. Also, it is a key part in a powerful combo within the Mermail deck, that allows you to essentially set up a field of monsters that can survive some of the most powerful Spell Cards, such as Dark Hole and Soul Taker. It also works well in conjunction with "Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls," which when it's banished to summon "Aqua Spirit," "Tidal's" effect kicks in to let you search another "Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls." I have personally tested the deck and I can see why it managed to earn 2nd place at an official tournament.
Another card that was previously under the radar is "Dragon Ravine," which has also gone up in price greatly since YCS Toronto. "Dragon Ravine" sees play in the Dragon Ruler deck, and helps it have much more consistency. "Dragon Ravine" sends a card from your hand to Graveyard (usually a Dragon Ruler) to send another Dragon-Type monster from your deck to the Graveyard (usually another Dragon Ruler). A "Dragon Ruler" monster card does not care if it's in the grave, since it can always revive itself by banishing 2 monsters with it's Type, and if you banished a "Dragon Ruler" monster, you can search yet another "Dragon Ruler" monster. This all helps in thinning the deck and putting "Dragon Ruler" monsters in the Graveyard, which all set up explosive plays with Xyz monsters, and gives you a higher chance of drawing useful Spell Cards. Overall, I didn't even have to test the deck to see how powerful it was. I won almost every duel with no hassle or problem. But at times it would be hard to start my explosive plays if I could not draw any of my power cards, such as "Gold Sarcophagus" and "Sacred Sword of Seven Stars."
On DN, rogue decks that did not top Toronto are still seeing play, but to a much lesser extent. Most people have realized that Mermails and Dragon Rulers are the easy way to win, and have resorted to using those decks, especially since they can use them for free online. In real life, most of my duelist friends have not swapped their decks for another because of the ban list or because of Toronto. Most just adapted to the list, or some have not even updated their decks to fit the ban list. The main reason for not switching to a top-tier deck however, is because of the ridiculous cost of making such a deck. Some of the best and most needed cards could run you up to 100$ (just one card). And at this point in the meta, it does not seem the wiser to upgrade to a meta deck, for the simple fact that many decks can now have an actual chance of winning a duel. Chances are next week everyone will know what decks to watch out for, what decks were wrecked by the ban list, and what to expect within the coming weeks.
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