User blog:RaijinSenshi19/Buddyfight Informative - DBT03, Star Dragon World

And so we stumble into Star Dragon World one more time.

You know, it's really getting unnerving each time we get support for this world, because despite being on the top of the list of meta picks/strong decks in the game, ever since they were released, Star Dragon World is getting a modest and decent amount of support every single time they decide to support them.

Yes, this is the world I am the most worried about in this game. Not Hero World.

Anyway, card list coming up.

Neodragons
Here we go again with the Neodragon attribute, otherwise known as the perfect Shounen protagonist deck, because the sheer idea is that your nakama is powering up your main form by the magic of friendship so you can stop Zeref from taking over the Seireitei and becoming Hokage. Or something like that.

The first monster we look at is All Alive, Gordirocs Z, a Size 3 with the Neodragon attribute and 7000 / 3 / 6000 as it's statline. Gordirocs also has a call cost of 2 gauge and gaining a topdeck soul and the natural ability of Soulguard. When he enters the field, you can call a Dragonarms from the drop zone by paying it's call cost, and all Dragonarms become Size 0 monsters as long as Gordirocs is on the field.

This card is a noobtrap. I am sorry but this card has nothing that's really worth going for it. You have better ways of stacking Dragonarms and getting them out, and the only real benefit you get from this card is the ability to go beatdown with Dragonarms. Which you dont want to do.

Gordirocs is designed to look appealing and seem like it is really good, but you do better with almost all other Size 3s in the game, and not to mention the regular Size 2s. Skip and avoid this at all costs.

And we didn't need to look further than to the other Size 3 Neodragon in the set for a better alternative than Gordirocs!

This is Meteoswarm, Zenislator, and it is a Size 3 monster with the Neodragon attribute, as stated, and it has 7000 / 2 / 5000 as it's stats. Call cost consists of 2 gauge and putting the top card of the deck into it's soul. Zenislator sports Soulguard and Move, and the ability to gain Penetrate if you have eight monsters in the drop zone, and can even gain Double Attack when it attacks, if you have a monster in it's soul!

Zenislator is one of the most powerful monsters out of the set by sporting the ability to have all those keywords at once, and it's obviously a very strong monster to have....but Zenislator actually works best in Dragon Zwei, in actuallity. Since the deck is just built up of monster cards, getting the full ability of Zenislator is laughably easy.

All in all, Zenislator is incredibly strong, not the most desirable neodragon Size 3, but a good pick, in my eyes.

And then we have Power Creep- I mean, Future Gazer, Jackknife.

This upgraded form of Jackknife is a Size 2 with the Neodragon attribute, 5000 / 2 / 4000 statline and then a call cost of 1 gauge and putting a monster from the drop into it's soul. Future Gazer, Jackknife also has natural Soulguard and Move, and an ability that gets better the more monsters you have in the drop zone. If you have four or more, Jack gains +2000 power and defense, and if you have eight or more, he gains Penetrate.

This card is basicly a better version of Star Guardian, Jackknife. The only real difference is that Star Guardians has 3 crits, but that is literally the only thing that is "better" about that Jack. Literally any deck utilizing Star Guardian, Jackknife, can use this to much better efficiency, due to that natural Move and easy-to-get 7k power. (But you should run both, in most, if not all, cases)

REALLY powerful card, and I expect it to go for well-around 10 bucks, maybe more, because Tasuku and Jackknife. Get copies of it as soon as you can.



Eliminator, Torus is a Size 0 Neodragon monster, with simple 2000 / 1 / 1000 stats as his statline. It has a call cost of 1 life, and the natural ability of Soulguard. When it enters the field, you put a monster from the drop zone into it's soul, and if you have a Size 3 Neodragon on the field, Torus gains +1 Critical.

This is designed to go well with Zodiac, but it goes well with a lot of Size 3 Neodragons, infact. But shines the most with Star Deity Dragon, Zodiac, because it will basicly be a 3 crit Size 0 that way.

Really strong card. Dont be fooled by it's appearance.



HAHAHA! Ha....haaaa....Oh boy...

Star-vader invades Buddyfight in the form of Eliminator, Dust Remnant, a Size 0 Neodragon with 3000 / 1 / 3000 stats. It can only be called to the left position, and as long as you have a monster with Zodiac in its name on the field, neither Zodiac or Remnant can be destroyed by effects or returned to the hand.

This here. This sucker right here. Zodiac becomes even more of a problem with this, as effects just cant destroy Zodiac anymore, or this little guy here. So...yeah, you basicly have a 3/2/3 that cant be destroyed by effects, because of Zodiac and Remnant's combo itself.

Remnant is good. Like, really freaking good.



Now this here is an amazing-looking dragon! Look how menacing it is! Such a thing has to be powerful, right!?

Eh... Retainer of the Demonic Dragon, Orthmatter is a Size 0 Neodragon with 2000 / 1 / 2000 statline. It has a Counter ability to discard itself from hand and pay 1 life when a Dragon is battling, to give that Dragon +2000 power and defense and the ability to Counterattack during that battle.

It's a monster-spell version of Dragoenergy for all Dragons basicly. It's not really that impressive but it is the Dragoenergy for Dragon Zwei. And, I guess the ability is good in Star Dragon World too, knocking your life down to Dragon Force levels and all that. Orthmatter just isn't all that impressive, to me.

Zenislator also shows up with his own Impact Monster form: Zenislator, "Rain the Vertex!", a Size 3 with the Neodragon attribute, with 9000 / 2 / 7000 as the statline, a call cost of 3 gauge and needs to be put on top of a Size 3 monster on your field. He sports the natural ability of Soulguard and Double Attack, and each time he attacks, if you have six or more monsters in the drop zone with Dragon in their attribute, you get to destroy a monster on the opponent's field.

REALLY strong impact monster, with the option to destroy monsters up to four times, incredible synergy with Dragon Zwei, and just all around a destructive card in the right decks. Zenislator decks will be a budget thing, I think. They certainly have power to make it work.

Oh hello Punisher, did not think I needed to ever see you again...

Jackknife, "Galactical Punisher!" is the new upgraded Impact Monster form bestowed upon Jack, and it is a Size 2 Neodragon, with 10000 / 3 / 5000 as it's stats, and it has a call cost of 3 gauge while needing to be called on top of a Neodragon on your field. When it enters the field, you get to add a card from your drop zone into it's soul. It has Soulguard and Penetrate, and while attacking alone, the damage from this card cant be reduced.

So I can not express how much I hate the Punisher-style of cards in this game. The idea of the opponent managing to win, just because they have this one card that you cant respond to in any shape or form, while they take out a huge chunk of, even the remaining parts of your life points, that really stinks. This card is basicly the same way, you just stack up on a lot of crit-boosting Dragonarms and smack your opponent in the face with your massive dragon-sword.

By itself, Galactical Punisher is a really good card. With support....it's almost unfair.

Dragonarms
Dragonarms is the source of most of your dragon's additional abilities, but a good deck does not relly on just gaining abilities from the Dragonarms, but also having good abilities to use together with them.

And here I get a chance to harp even more on Galactical Punisher.

Jackarms, J Galaxion is a Size 3 Dragonarms with 6000 / 2 / 5000 as it's statlinem, but that is irrelevant, as it is a Dragonarms, but eh. It's abilities are all tied to Jackknife monsters, except the Crossnize ability. While in the soul of a Jackknife, that monster gain +1 crit, and while in the soul of a Jackknife impact monster, that monster's attack can not be nullified if it attacks alone.

Yeah, make Galactical Punisher unstoppable! While boosting it's damage output! BRILLIANT!

J Galaxion would have been just a mediocre Dragonarms if it just had the crit boosting, but naaaaaah, we need to push the Jackknife decks even harder. For some reason.

I dont like this card. The cheese it creates is just frustrating, not to mention it encourages the mindless "Attack the face" decks, that does nothing but attack the center. And I mean nothing but that.



The next little tool we have is called Dragonarms, Roadworker.

This little Size 1 Dragonarms monster sports mediocre 4000 / 1/ 3000 stats, Crossnize, and the Counter ability to pay 1 gauge while in the soul of a Neodragon to destroy a Size 1 or lower monster on the opponent's field, once per turn.

A Dragonic Thunder every single turn, as long as it stays in the soul of a monster?

Yeah, this is insanely good. No questions asked.



The next monster is named Dragonarms, Debrisweeper, and yes, this is also a Dragonarms, Size 1, 3000 / 2 / 1000 statline, with Crossnize. It's abilities involve making the opponent unable to call things from the drop zone, or it sends a card from the opponent's drop zone to the bottom of their deck when you attack with the Neodragon Debrisweeper is in the soul of.

So....this is a situational side-board card, and against the right matchup, it can be quite destructive, but to me...it's quite situational. Sure, Executioners and to some extend Black Dragons might be doing stuff with the drop zone, but otherwise, nothing.

Might be useful later on, who knows...



Then we have Jackarms, J Holder, a Size 1 Dragonarms, 3000 / 1 / 3000 statline, Crossnize, and when it is put in the soul of a Jackknife monster, you can pay 1 life to add another card from the soul of Jackknife and add it to your hand.

So one of the combos here is to return the base Jackknife monster to use it over again after your Impact Monster is destroyed, or you can even add back Star Guardian, Jackknife "SD" shoudl that be more fitting.

But this combo is situational, and I honestly dont think it is consistent enough to actually varrant usage. Correct me if I am wrong, but J Holder looks like a waste, even with the potential it has.



Then we have a reprint of Dragonarms, Talnada.

Talnada is a Size 1 Dragonarms with a 3000 / 2 / 2000 statline. Crossnize, of course, and each time it it put into the soul of a neodragon, either from the field or drop zone, you gain 1 gauge.

It's an alright and good reprint. Dont really have much to say about it. Talnada is just good, fuel some combos and all that, because Neodragons need their gauge more than anything.

We did it. We finally did it. We got an Impact stopper. In...one of the most, if not the most, competitive worlds in the game... Okay...

This is Dragoneraser, Hind Lance, a Size 0 monster with the Dragonarms attribute, and 2000 / 1 / 2000 as the statline. Crossnize, of course, and also an ability that isexclusive to Zodiac. While it is in the soul of a Zodiac monster, during the opponent's Final Phase, they cant use cards from their hand, nor can they activate Act abilities.

Hind Lance is one of the strongest cards Zodiac can run, as it stops some of the strongest comeback mechanics for a lot of the decks in the game. This card alone is the reason why you cant relly on Impact Monsters to win you games all the time.

And in that aspect, it is one of the most meta-defining cards we got here, as it forces people to not blindly focus on Impact Monsters.

I love this thing so much.



Lastly, we have Dragoneraser, Comatter, who is a Size 0 monster with the Dragonarms attribute, 3000 / 1 / 1000 statline, the staple Crossnize ability, and the ability to grant a Size 3 Neodragon the ability of Penetrate while in the soul of said Neodragon.

This is an alright card, I guess. Penetrate being given to monsters is a good thing, and making it more focused on Size 3s....works. I just feel like it's just alright, and not more.

Whatever, it's at least usable.

Spells and Items
Didn't get a lot of spells this time, so lumping the items in here as well.

The first spell we will look at is called Number of Staff, and it has the Summon attribute. You put three Dragonarms from your drop zone into it's soul as the call cost, and then Set it on your field. Once per turn, you can pay 1 gauge to call a Dragonarms from the soul of this card by paying the call cost of said Dragonarms. When the soul reaches 0, the spell is put in the drop zone, and you can only have one copy of it Set on your field at once.

It's....not that impressive in my opinion. Especially with all the Set spell destruction floating about in the game right now. Feel free to correct me again, but...this is just not that impressive to me.



Arms Commander fares a bit better, however.

It is a spell with the Draw attribute and you can only cast it if you have 6 life or less. The cast cost is simply putting three Dragonarms back into your deck and shuffle, then you draw two cards, but you can only activate one copy of this card per turn.

This is an alright card when you get into the late game, especially because it is free of gauge and life costs. I am not sure how effective it is, but on-paper, it should be solid enough to run at least acouple copies of it.



Then we have Jackknife Linker, because your never-ending love for your Buddy is rewarding you further.

This spell sports the Defense attribute and can only be cast during anattack phase, if you have a Jackknife monster on the field. The cast cost is 2 gauge to use the Counter ability, which makes it so that during that attack phase...you cant lose. Each time your life would become 0, it turns to 1 instead. You can only cast this spell once per fight.

But it does not stop you from taking damage during Final Phase. This card is terrible, every little bit of it. Sure it can cheese out some defense for the turn, but the fact that your monsters can then just be dealt with, and final phase is still a threat...and you payed 2 gauge for this?

Dont run this card.



And then we get another reprint in the form of Core Recycle.

This spell has the Charge attribute, and the effect lets you take a Dragonarms from your deck and put it into your gauge or your drop zone, and then you shuffle the deck. you can only cast one Core Recycle per turn.

Pretty good drop zone fuel, and gauge fodder at the same time. It wasn't that needed for us english players, but for japan...yeah, pretty much one of the better reprints they got.

The time has come. You and your Buddy has deepened your bonds to the point where the ancient forces cant ignore either of you anymore. The soul of Balle Soleil is bestowed upon you, signaling that it's time....to release the Dragon Force!

Dragon Force (Shounen Version) is a Weapon attributed item with 6000 / 1 stats. To equip it, you need to fullfil the Release Condition!, which requires you to be at 6 or less life, and have a Jackknife monster on your field. When the conditions are filled, you can pay 2 gauge to fully release this overwhelming power. The Dragon Force is made out of the finest and clearest of ice, made out of mythical water carried over mountains and oceans inside of the Holy Grail itself (yes it took multiple trips to gather all the water), making the ice have magical capabilities that makes it impossible to break, scrape or hurt in any shape or form, while maintaining the youth of the chosen Shounen. This item draws out power from the stars in the heavens above, letting you strike up to four times with this item's destructive Quadruple Attack! (We captured Shooting Star Dragon and used it's DNA to modify this ability into the item)

The second part of the Dragon Force trio is not as destructive as it's dragon version. On it's own, that is. You see, Star Dragon World has a couple ways to increase the crits of your items. How about having an 8000 / 3 Dragon Force by combining with Dragoner's Beat and Dragonarms, Logisticker? Sounds fair, right?



Star Magnum, Dragnapulse is next. This is a 5000 / 2 statlined item with the Star and Weapon attributes. Equip cost is 1 gauge and 1 life, and each time Dragnapulse deals damage, you get an additional gauge. But also, after it attacks, you can discard a card from your hand to draw a new one, each time it attacks.

Dragnapulse is a really powerful item, with the ability to filter a card every single time it attacks, it just fuels the drop zone and helps you draw into your combo cards easily. I honestly see this as a key partner for most Dragon Force based decks, if you dont want to run any Double Attacking items, that is.



Next up, we have Leg Blade, Expel, a Star / Weapon attributed item with 4000 / 2 statline, and an equip cost of 1 life. It has a Counter ability to send a soul from a card on your field to the drop zone to either destroy a Size 1 or less monster, or a spell, on the opponent's field. but this ability can only be used once per turn.

This is a rather powerful ability, and if you can ramp enough with it, or use cards like Number of Staff with it, you can really make the opponent hurt. It has potential, it's a good and alright card if you can fit it into a deck.

Not something to use in every deck, mind you.



The next item is Star Hand, Fieldleader, another Star / Weapon attributed card, with 3000 / 2 statline, and an equip cost of 1 gauge. When you equip this item, you may take a card from your drop zone and put it into the soul of a monster on your field.

Not worth it. There are far better items and ways to get cards into the soul of your monsters in this world. This item is pretty, but that is all it has going for it.



And last, but not least, we have Single Star, Barrier Barret!

Barrier Barret is a Star / Weapon attributed item with 2000 / 1 statline and an equip cost of 1 gauge. You can attack with Barrier Barret, even if you have a monster in the center, and it has the Counter ability to send itself from the field to the drop zone, to nullify the Penetrate of all cards on the field for this turn.

Really solid item to run in a Size 3 centered deck like Zodiac, letting you have a full field without needing to worry about giving your monsters Move so your item can attack and all that jazz, not to mention nullifying Penetrate is huge as well. I just keep hearing good things about this item, and I am sure we will see this item used a lot in the near future.

Final Thoughts
D-BT03 brought us a lot of powerful cards, and Star Dragon World is without a doubt not losing in quality this time either.

With their new toys, I am sure we will both have a lot of fun and frustration due to these little neonlight-covered dragons in the coming months.