I'm back! I'm going to be writing more about engines and combinations rather than individual cards, in order for you guys to get a little more out of these articles. This time we're going to look at a popular one from the Japanese meta. -T
Faerie Gift
Quote:
Faerie Gift
The next creature you summon this turn costs 3 less to summon. It can't cost less than 1.
Set: DM-14 Generation Gear
Type: Spell
Cost: 1
Civilization: Nature
Artist: Kou1 |
Clowd Mayfly
Quote:
Cloud Mayfly
When all cards in your Mana Zone are Nature cards, this creature gains Power +4000, "Double Breaker", and cannot be blocked by creature with Power 5000 or less.
Collector Number: 67
Rarity: Uncommon
Type: Creature
Race: Giant Insect
Power: 2000+
Cost: 4
Civilization: Nature |
(Card information courtesy of Trade Cards Online)
The Basics
Turn 2 is the optimal point to launch this play. Faerie Gift reduces Crowd Mayfly's cost to 1, and this is the first turn you can cast them both. Starting off the game on the second turn with an unblockable double-breaker isn't bad, eh? This strength is provided in mono nature decks, or nature decks utilizing rainbow cards so they still count for the effect. It also grants Mayfly 6000 power, making it very difficult to handle. Another great card to use this with is Pincer Scarab, who can become almost equally dangerous.
How This Affects The Game
This is pretty much the most threatening turn 2 you can ask for. Cards like Brutal Charge pack on the bunch, allowing you to regain your lost hand and add even more powerful creatures to your hand. Usually though, you'll find yourself adding weenies due to the remaining number of shields and amount of pressure on the opponent to deal with new threats.
Mono Nature gets a tremendous boost. In fact, according to the Japanese DM wiki it was a popular tournament deck at the time where the sets allowed in KC format take place! Other key cards in this strategy include Emerald Claw (especially helpful in the mirror match) and Ryokudou, the Principle Defender. Ryokudou is another powerhouse, but also grants you a mana and extra card in your hand. This makes him useful when your opponent has found a way to combat the behemoths early-game and you need a leg up on them. The traditional nature acceleration provides a fair transition into this point of the game, and allows the deck to continue moving while creating danger for the opponent.
How This Affects You
If you are a proud Mono-Nature user, or it's one of your favorite decks to play on the side, this might be the time to take it into the tournament scene. It's a very solid deck and capable of multiple things as well as multiple ways to deal with threats, which is exactly what you want for any deck.
If you find yourself on the receiving end of a turn 2 Mayfly, keep in mind the opponent is limited to Nature and Nature-included civilizations to make his strategy effective. Although a minor splash is conceptually possible with rainbows, in practice it tends to be more beneficial to only use rainbows or a very small amount of the other civilization (2-4 cards) for optimum performance. The strength here is within the speed as well as the power -- so if you can slow it down a bit, you can start to play against the deck as you would a traditional aggro. This means cards like Quake Staff, Spiral Gate, and Aqua Surfer are going to be incredibly helpful.
Because Nature doesn't have too much in the removal department (moreso early game), chump blockers can be helpful to fast forward the turn count. Remember that the opponent lost a card to cast Faerie Gift, so you're not losing card advantage until the second chump blocker falls. If you're able to combine the blocker with that Quake Staff, you can even make this situation into a game-winner!
You can discuss this article and others on my Duel Masters Forum, tomrogers.proboards.com, or find me on Kaijudo Portal. My username there is Thomas_Jay.
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