Hello again my fellow Duelists! Once again it’s been a while, but I’ve been busy with school, life, and visiting Wizards of the Coast! I recently went out there with a few other members of the community to discuss the game and its future. Expect great things in the upcoming days ahead! But now I’m back again and ready to provide you all with some reviews! We’re taking a look at the top ten cards from 2013 and today’s card is definitely high on the scale. With an ability that simply wins you games, let’s take a look at number three on the list: Squillace Scourge

Name: Squillace Scourge
Civilization: Water/Darkness
Type: Creature
Race: Leviathan/Chimera
Level: 9
Power: 8000
Flavor Text: N/A
Rarity: Super Rare
Set Number: S8/S10 l 7CLA
Abilities:
(This card enters your mana zone tapped.)
Double Breaker (This creature breaks 2 shields.)
Mindcrush- When this creature enters the battle zone, each player discards his or her hand.
Tempest of Tentacles- When this creature enters the battle zone, your opponent can’t attack or block with creatures until the start of your next turn.

When Squillace Scourge first came out, a lot of people in my area thought it wasn’t the greatest card since it would discard both players’ hands. Since that day, they’ve been mistaken and the card has taken off in infamy since its initial release on May 25, 2013. As a fun side note, people were (and still are) mispronouncing the card’s name. Most people say “Squill-es Scourge” when it’s actually pronounced “Squill-at-chay Scourge” based off one of the directors Frank Squillace.

An 8000 body with Double Breaker should be expected for a level 9 creature. As a matter of fact, I think it’s a little underpowered in that regard. I suppose they had to find some way to balance out this card in the long run though since its effects are ridiculous. Mindcrush for one forces both players to discard their hands. With the recent emergence of Reverberate, players have been getting an insane amount of cards in their hands by turn six or so. Being able to punish those greedy players is always a plus, especially if you play this guy with no cards of your own to discard!

The second ability “Tempest of Tentacles” can allow you to freely swing in with no major repercussions. Your opponent won’t be able to block your creatures and they won’t be able to attack you at all during their next turn. There’s no way around this effect either in the current game environment, so when the tempest hits, there’s no stopping it!

There are a few situational combos you can do with this card involving King Coral or even Heretic Prince Var-rakka. If you have Coral out and then you summon Squillace, you have the option to choose which effect you want to activate and resolve first, Coral’s or Squillace’s. If you use Coral’s effect, all of the level 4 and less creatures in the battle zone get bounced back to the owner’s hands. Afterward, both players have to discard their hands, so it essentially gets rid of all of your opponent’s smaller creatures/blockers/etc. With Var-rakka you can create an infinite loop that is very difficult to break out of unless you draw one of a few outs you need during your turn. Essentially you’ll be able to play Squillace Scourge turn after turn forcing your opponent to continuously have no hand and being unable to attack or block as long as you can keep this combo going. I haven’t seen this combo pulled off in a competitive environment, but it doesn’t mean that it still can’t happen.

Overall, this card has been the bane of many duelists’ existences. The card renders all blockers obsolete, even the untargetable Eternal Haven! In most cases when this card hits the battle zone, it usually spells game over for the opposing player. This card will continue to see play for a very long time for its devastating abilities and that’s why it’s number three on our list.

Constructed: 4.50/5.00 (This card will win you games but it does require some set up to make it truly effective, not to mention that it is a level 9 creature, so it may take a little while to get out.)
Limited: 3.00/5.00 (Clash meta introduced us to mult-civilization cards and slowed the game down a bit. It makes it a little bit easier to get this card out but more often than not, the rush strategy will prevail. If you can manage to play this guy, you’re guaranteed to get some hits in and possibly win the game.)

I hope you enjoyed today’s review. Make sure to check back for the top two on our countdown as we reveal the most powerful cards of 2013!  Until next time my fellow Kaijudo Duel Masters, keep calm and game on!