The first core set of the year looks like it’s of galactic proportions. Hello Pojo Readers, Crunch$G here to discuss the first core set of 2023: Photon Hypernova. As the name suggests in this set, we get legacy support for the Galaxy/Photon archetype featured on the cover of the set to give Zexal their second bit of representation in this series of core booster packs. Not a lot of new archetypes introduced here, as we are about to end the Albaz lore and we are getting deeper into the Visas Starfrost lore. We got a bunch of legacy support for old archetypes like Generaiders, Gishkis, Abyss Actors, Evil Eye, and Chaos just to name a few. The only new archetype in this set is the brand new TCG exclusive, the Gold Pride. There’s a few solid new, generic cards in this set as well, so let’s go over everything and see what it has to offer.
The Starlight Rares
To begin with the standard stuff, we got the 5 Starlight Rares in Photon Hypernova that you can chase. The Albaz lore take up 3 of the 5 Starlights in this set as we got two Fusion Monsters useful for Branded Despia with Mirrorjade the Iceblade Dragon being imported into this set as the bonus Starlight, alongside a Starlight of Granguignol the Dusk Dragon to give your Blazing Cartesia a Fusion to specifically go into. The third Albaz lore Starlight is for Tri-Brigade, as they have their new boss monster, Tri-Brigade Arms Bucephalus II, in Starlight Rare. Visas Starfrost lore at least got a singular Starlight as the Kashtira boss monster, Kashtira Arise-Heart, comes in Starlight. The final Starlight goes to the TCG Exclusive Gold Pride archetype, as Gold Pride – Captain Carrie comes in the rarity.
An Ever Expanding Galaxy
Now we discuss the archetype support, starting with the Photon/Galaxy support featured on the front of the pack. Photon Emperor is a Level 8 LIGHT Warrior who can Special Summon itself from the graveyard in Defense Position if its sent to the grave from anywhere besides the field while you have a Photon or Galaxy card on your field or in your graveyard, also after this card is Normal or Special Summoned, you get to Normal Summon a LIGHT monster during your Main Phase in addition to your Normal Summon/Set that turn. Galaxy Summoner is a Level 4 LIGHT Spellcaster who if Normal or Special Summoned can let you summon a Photon or Galaxy monster that isn’t another
Galaxy Summoner from your graveyard in Defense Position, also it can let you target a LIGHT monster you control to make it Level 4 for the rest of the turn. Galactikuriboh is a Level 1 LIGHT Fiend who is always treated as a Galaxy card, when the opponent declares an attack will let you discard this card to Special Summon a Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon from your hand or Deck and change the attack target to it, then you can attach this card from your graveyard to an Xyz Monster on the field as material, also if a Photon or Galaxy monster(s) you control would be destroyed by battle or card effect, you can banish this card from the graveyard instead. 
Number C62: Neo Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon is a Rank 8 LIGHT Dragon Xyz that needs 3 Level 8 LIGHT monsters to summon or you can summon it using Number 62: Galaxy-Eyes Prime Photon Dragon you control as material, can detach a material from itself at the start of the Battle Phase to allow it to make up to 3 attacks on monsters during said Battle Phase, and if it has Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon as Xyz Material, this monster becomes unaffected by the opponent’s monster effects and it gains 100 ATK times to Levels and Ranks of all the Xyz Materials this card has attached. Galaxy Photon Dragon is a Level 4 LIGHT Dragon Xyz who needs 2 Level 4 monsters to
summon, gives your other LIGHT monsters a 500 ATK boost, can detach a material from itself to let you add a Photon or Galaxy card from Deck to hand or send it from Deck to grave, and can target a LIGHT monster that’s Special Summoned to your field to make it either Level 4 or 8 for the turn. Galaxy Hundred is a Continuous Spell that on activation can let you send a Photon or Galaxy card from your Deck to the graveyard and if you Special Summon a Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon, you can look at the opponent’s Extra Deck and either banish a monster from it or Special Summon a 
Number from it to your field. Numeron Creation is a Normal Spell that’s always treated as a Galaxy-Eyes card, and if 3 or more LIGHT Dragon monsters with 3000 or more ATK are on the field, you can Special Summon a Number Dragon Xyz from your Extra Deck and attach this card to it as material. Finally, Photon Timestop is a Normal Trap that can let you take a Photon or Galaxy Continuous Spell/Trap from your Deck and either add it to your hand or place it face-up on your side of the field, also if this set card in its owner’s control is destroyed by an opponent’s card effect while you control a Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon or any Xyz Monster that has it as material, you can make it the End Phase of the turn.
The Finale Approaches
Now we take a look at all the new cards that are a part of the Albaz lore, and while we didn’t get a new archetype this set, we got a bunch of support for all of the old archetypes that we’ve seen up to this point. Bystial Baldrake is a Level 6 DARK Dragon who can be Special Summoned from the hand by banishing a LIGHT or DARK monster from either graveyard, with this becoming a Quick Effect if the opponent controls a monster, also if your opponent Special Summons a Ritual, Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, or Link Monster(s), you can tribute another LIGHT or DARK monster you control to banish 1 of the Special Summoned monsters. The Abyss Dragon Swordsoul is a Level 8 FIRE Wyrm that cannot be Normal
Summoned or Set, must be Special Summoned by a Wyrm monster’s effect, can be Special Summoned from the hand or graveyard if a monster is banished by a card effect, but then this card is banished when it leaves the field, also upon being Special Summoned can let you target a card in the Field Zone and a monster the opponent controls or is in their graveyard and banish them. Dogmatika Alba Zoa is a Level 12 LIGHT Spellcaster Ritual that can only be Ritual Summoned with Dogmatikalamity or another Dogmatika card effect, makes your Dogmatika monsters unaffected by the activated effects of your opponent’s Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, and Link Monsters, 
and it can make the opponent apply one of two effects where they must either send a card from their hand or Extra Deck to the graveyard for every 2 cards they have in the Extra Deck, or they must return all Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, and Link Monsters they control to the Extra Deck. Granguignol the Dusk Dragon is a Level 8 LIGHT Spellcaster Fusion that needs Blazing Cartesia, the Virtuous and any LIGHT or DARK monster to Fusion Summon, upon being Fusion Summoned can let you send any Level 6 or higher LIGHT or DARK monster from your Deck or Extra Deck to the graveyard, and if a monster is Special Summoned by an opponent’s activated monster effect, you can banish this
card from the field or graveyard to Special Summon a Dogmatika monster from your Deck or a Despia monster from your Extra Deck. Rindbrumm the Striking Dragon is a Level 8 DARK Winged Beast Fusion that needs Fallen of Albaz and any Beast, Beast-Warrior, or Winged Beast to summon, has a Quick Effect when a Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, or Link Monster activates its effect to negate that effect and return a monster on the field to the hand, also during your opponent’s turn while this card is in your graveyard, you get a Quick Effect to target a Fallen of Albaz in your graveyard and either Special Summon it or this card from your graveyard and 
banish the other. Icejade Gymir Aegirine is a Level 10 WATER Aqua Synchro that needs any WATER Tuner and any non-Tuner(s) to summon, has a Quick Effect you can activate to make face-up monsters you control be unable to be destroyed or banished by the opponent’s card effects this turn, then if you used this effect in response to an opponent’s card or effect activation and the opponent has a card(s) with the same name on their field or in their graveyard, you can banish those cards, also you can Special Summon this card from the graveyard if a card(s) is banished by an opponent’s card effect. Gigantic “Champion” Sargas is a Rank 8 FIRE Machine Xyz that needs 2 Level 8 monsters to summon or can be Xyz Summoned once a turn by using a Springans Xyz you control as
material, can let you add a Springans or Therion card from Deck to hand each turn while it has material, and if a material is detached from a monster(s) on the field, you can target any card on the field to either destroy it or return it to the hand. Tri-Brigade Arms Bucephalus II is a Link-5 DARK Winged Beast that needs 3+ Beast, Beast-Warrior, or Winged Beast monsters to summon, has arrows pointing to both sides and all downwards, cannot be summoned from the Extra Deck unless you have 3 or more Tri-Brigade Spells/Traps in your graveyard, prevents the opponent from activating cards or effects when you Special Summon a 
monster(s), can be banished when a monster declares an attack to also banish all cards the opponent controls, and upon being sent to the graveyard can let you send a Beast, Beast-Warrior, or Winged Beast from your Extra Deck to the graveyard. Icejade Manefistation is a Normal Spell where if your opponent controls a monster and you have a WATER monster on your field or in your graveyard, you can take an Icejade from your Deck and either Special Summon it or send it to the graveyard, also if a face-up Icejade monster you control leaves the field by an opponent’s effect, except by being destroyed, you can banish this card from the graveyard to target a card the opponent
controls and banish it. Tally-ho! Sprignans is a Quick-Play Spell that upon activation can let you detach up to 3 materials from monsters you control to then add a Springans monster from Deck to hand and then if you detached any materials to activate this card, you can Special Summon that many Springans monsters from your hand or graveyard, also if this card is in your graveyard during your Main Phase, you can detach a material from a monster you control to add this card to your hand. Dogmatikamatrix is a Continuous Spell that upon actviation can let you add a Dogmatika Ritual Monster or Ritual Spell from Deck to hand and then if the 
opponent controls a monster, you can add a Dogmatika card from Deck to hand, also once a turn if you control a Dogmatika Ritual, you can look at either player’s Extra Deck to send a monster from it to the graveyard. Light of the Branded is a Quick-Play Spell that lets you target a Fusion Monster on the field or in either graveyard and return it to the Extra Deck to Special Summon a Fallen of Albaz from your graveyard to your field and a monster from the opponent’s graveyard to their field. Gigantic Thundercross is a Normal Trap that lets you target a number of monsters on the field and/or in the graveyards equal to the difference between your banished cards and your opponents and banish them, then the opponent can Special Summon a monster from their Deck. Finally, Branded Befallen is a Continuous Trap that once per turn when the opponent activates a card or effect that targets a Bystial monster you control and no other cards, or when the opponent activates a card or effect in response to your Bystial monster effect, you can target a LIGHT or DARK in either graveyard and banish it, and if you do, negate the activated effect.
Wrath of the Kashtira
Now we take a look at the featured cards from the Visas Starforst lore in this set, with the main support of the Kashtira archetype finally arriving while also receiving a few new cards for both Scareclaw and Tearlaments. Kashtira Riseheart is a Level 4 FIRE Warrior who can be Special Summoned from the hand if you control a Kashtira monster, but you can only summon Xyzs from the Extra Deck for the rest of the turn, also during the Main Phase of the turn this was Normal or Special Summoned, you can banish a Kashtira card that isn’t Riseheart from your Deck to banish the top 3 cards of the opponent’s Deck and make this card become Level 7. Scareclaw Kashtira is a Level 7 EARTH Psychic who
has a Quick Effect in the Main Phase to be Special Summoned from the hand by banishing a Scareclaw or Kashtira card from your hand or graveyard, can attack while in Defense Position while applying the DEF stat, and negates the effects of a monster your Scareclaw or Kashtira monster battles for the turn. Tearlaments Kashtira is a Level 7 WATER Psychic with a Quick Effect in the Main Phase to be Special Summoned from the hand by banishing a Tearlaments or Kashtira card from your hand or graveyard, sends the top 3 cards of either player’s Deck to the graveyard upon Normal or Special Summon, and upon being sent to the graveyard by a card 
effect will let you send the top 2 cards of your Deck to the graveyard. Kashtira Arise-Heart is a Rank 7 DARK Machine Xyz that needs 3+ Level 7 monsters to summon or it can be summoned using 1 Kashtira monster the turn you activate the effect of Kashtira Shangri-Ira, banishes any card that would be sent to the graveyard, can attach a banished card to itself as material once per chain when a card is banished, and can detach 3 materials from itself as a Quick Effect to banish a card on the field face-down. Kashtira Overlap is a Quick-Play Spell that targets a monster on the field and banishes a monster with 1500 ATK and 2100 DEF from your hand, graveyard, or either field to have the
targeted monster gain 1500 ATK, and if this card is banished while you control a Kashtira card, you can target an Effect Monster the opponent controls to negate its effects for the turn. Kashtiratheosis is a Normal Spell that can target a Kashtira monster you control to Special Summon a Kashtira monster from your Deck with a different Attribute from the targeted monster, but you can only summon Xyz Monsters from the Extra Deck for the rest of the turn, also if this card is banished you can target a Kashtira card that isn’t another Kashtiratheosis that’s banished and add it to your hand. Pressured Planet Wraitsoth is a Field Spell that upon activation can let you add a Kashtira monster from Deck to 
hand, gives all your monsters a 100 ATK/DEF boost for each different Attribute on the field, and can let you target and destroy a card on the field if a Kashtira Shangri-Ira activates its effect. Scareclaw Defanigng is a Continuous Spell that prevents the opponent from targeting or destroying your Scareclaw Link Monsters or Visas Starfrost with effects, banishes any monster destroyed in battle with a Scareclaw Link Monster or Visas Starfrost, and can banish a Scareclaw Link Monster from your field or graveyard to target a card the opponent controls and destroy it. Tearlaments Perlegia is a Field Spell that gives your Fusion Monsters and Tearlaments monsters a 500 ATK boost, if an Aqua Tearlaments monster is
sent to your graveyard by a card effect will let you send a Level 4 or lower Aqua monster from your Deck to the graveyard, but if you send a non-Tearlaments monster with this effect, you can’t activate cards or the effects of cards with the same name for the rest of the turn. Trivikarma is a Normal Trap that lets you target a Visas Starfrost in your Monster Zone and an Effect Monster the opponent controls to negate the opponent’s monster’s effect and have your monster gain ATK equal to half the opponent’s monster’s ATK or DEF (whichever is higher), also you can banish this card from the graveyard to add a Spell/Trap that mentions Visas Starfrost that isn’t another Trivikarma from Deck to hand. Finally, Kashtira Big Bang is a Normal Trap where if a Kashtira Xyz is on the field and a player controls 2 or more monsters, they must banish monsters face-down until they only control a single monster, also upon this being banished you can target a Kashtira Xyz you control and add a Kashtira monster attached to it to your hand, then you can Special Summon the monster added to your hand by this effect.
Servants of the Chaos Goddess
Now we take a look at some brand new Chaos cards that take a focus on Synchro Summoning, as it’s meant to support Chaos Goddess from 14 years ago. Chaos Witch is a Level 4 DARK Spellcaster who can be tributed to summon 2 Dark Beast Tokens (Fiend/DARK/Level 2/ATK 1000/DEF 500) and if this card is banished from the hand or graveyard, you can summon 2 Light Beast Tokens (Fairy/Tuner/LIGHT/Level 2/ATK 500/DEF 1000), but you can only summon LIGHT or DARK Synchro Monsters from the Extra Deck the turn you use either effect. Shell of Chaos is a Level 4 DARK Machine that cannot be Normal Summoned or Set and must be Special Summoned by a card effect, is banished if it leaves
the field, can be Special Summoned from the hand by banishing a LIGHT monster from your hand or graveyard, but you can only summon LIGHT or DARK Synchros from the Extra Deck the rest of the turn after you use this effect, and upon Special Summon can let you Special Summon a banished Core of Chaos. Core of Chaos is a Level 2 LIGHT Thunder Tuner that cannot be Normal Summoned or Set and must be Special Summoned by a card effect, is banished if it leaves the field, can be Special Summoned from the hand by banishing a DARK monster from your hand or graveyard, but you can only summon LIGHT or DARK Synchros from the 
Extra Deck the rest of the turn after you use this effect, and upon Special Summon can let you Special Summon a banished Shell of Chaos. Mental Tuner is a Level 3 LIGHT Psychic Tuner who can either banish up to 1 LIGHT and 1 DARK monster from your hand and/or graveyard to increase or decrease its Level by the number banished until the end of the turn or can target up to 2 of your banished monsters (1 LIGHT and/or 1 DARK) and return them to the graveyard to increase or decrease its Level by the number returned. Chaos Mirage Dragon is a Level 4 LIGHT Wyrm Tuner who can target a banished LIGHT or DARK monster to Special Summon it to your field with its
effects negated and you only being able to summon LIGHT or DARK Synchros from the Extra Deck for the rest of the turn, and if sent to the graveyard as Synchro Material, you can target cards the opponent controls up to the number of other materials and banish them. Chaos Archfiend is a Level 8 DARK Fiend Synchro who needs 1 LIGHT Tuner and 1+ non-Tuner DARK to summon, gains 2000 ATK if any card(s) has been banished this turn, can attack all monsters the opponent controls once each and banishes all monsters it destroys in battle, and can Special Summon a Chaos Synchro from your Extra Deck besides Chaos Archfiend if this card in its owner’s control leaves the field because of an opponent’s card. Chaos Beast is a Level 6 DARK Fiend Synchro that needs 1 LIGHT Tuner and 1+ non-Tuner DARK to summon, gains 1000 ATK if any card(s) has been banished this turn, can target and add 1 of your banished LIGHT or DARK monsters to your hand, and during your Main Phase of a turn it wasn’t sent to the graveyard, you can banish 1 LIGHT and 1 DARK monster from your hand and/or graveyard to Special Summon this card. Finally, Chaos Phantasm is a Normal Trap that targets 1 of your banished LIGHT Tuners and 1 of your banished Level 8 or lower non-Tuners and returns them to the graveyard to let you summon a LIGHT or DARK Synchro from your Extra Deck whose total Level equals that of the returned monsters’ total.
Perfect Insects
Now we take a look at brand new Weevil Underwood related Insect support based on equipping monsters and focusing on Giant Ball Park from a few years ago. Bio-Insect Armor is a Level 5 EARTH Insect who can be equipped from the hand or graveyard to an Insect monster you control if you don’t already control Bio-Insect Armor, with the monster gaining 1500 ATK and 2000 DEF during the Battle Phase and Main Phase 2 only and the equipped monster is banished when it leaves the field as well as this card. Infinite Antlion is a Level 3 EARTH Insect who once per turn when an Insect battles, you can target a card you control and a card the opponent controls and destroy them, can be Special Summoned from
the hand when an opponent’s monster declares an attack, and upon being Normal or Special Summoned can equip an Insect from your hand or graveyard to this card to give it a 500 ATK/DEF boost. Ultimate Great Insect is a Level 9 EARTH Insect Fusion who needs 1 Level 8 Insect and 1 Level 7 Insect to Fusion Summon or you can instead Special Summon this card by tributing an Insect monster with 2000 or more DEF equipped with an Equip Card, can only be Special Summoned once per turn, cannot be destroyed in battle, and has a once per turn Quick Effect in the Battle Phase if you control a Field Spell to destroy all monsters the opponent controls. Finally, Giant Ballgame is a Continuous Spell where during the Main Phase of the turn it was activated can let you revive a Level 6 or lower Insect from your graveyard, and you can reveal an Insect monster in your hand to target a face-up monster the opponent controls along with an Insect you control with less ATK than the revealed monster and swap control of both monsters on field with the monster you take becoming an Insect.
Raise the Curtain
For more support of old anime Decks, we now look at the return of the Abyss Actor archetype with 4 brand new cards to boot. Abyss Actor – Liberty Dramatist is a Level 4 Scale 8 DARK Fiend Pendulum with a Pendulum Effect when an monster declares an attack to let you discard a card to Special Summon this card to the opponent’s field and a Monster Effect upon being Special Summoned from the Pendulum Zone to let the owner reveal 3 Abyss Scripts to let the opponent select 1 at random to Set to the field, but being destroyed in the End Phase, while the others are shuffled back into the Deck, also upon being destroyed can let you shuffle an Abyss Script from your graveyard into the Deck.
Abyss Actor – Super Producer is a Link-2 DARK Fiend who needs 2 monsters, including a Fiend, to summon, has arrows pointing Bottom Left and Bottom Right, and has a Quick Effect during the Main Phase to target a face-up card you control and destroy it to either let you place an Abyss Playhouse – Fantastic Theater from your Deck in the Field Zone or place an Abyss Actor Pendulum from your Deck to your Pendulum Zone. Abyss Actors’ Dress Rehearsal is a Normal Spell that at the start of Main Phase 1 can let you add an Abyss Actor card and an Abyss Script Spell from your Deck to your hand, but you can only Pendulum Summon Abyss Actors for the rest of the turn. Finally, Abyss Script – Dramatic Story is a Normal Spell that targets an Abyss Actor Pendulum Monster you control to Special Summon an Abyss Actor with a different name from your Deck and then place the targeted monster in the Pendulum Zone or destroy it, also if this Set card is destroyed by an opponent’s effect and you have a face-up Abyss Actor in your Extra Deck, you can return up to 2 cards on the field to the hand.
Second Wave of the Ninjas
Now we take a look at a second batch of new Ninja cards after we got some support previously in Darkwing Blast. Jioh the Gravity Ninja is a Level 8 EARTH Rock who if Normal or Special Summoned can target up to 2 face-up monsters on the field and change them to face-down Defense Position, with any opponent’s monsters changed with this effect unable to change battle positions while on the field, and if a monster on the field is flipped face-up while this card is face-up on the field, you can target a card the opponent controls and destroy it. Yaguramaru the Armored Ninja is a Level 5 DARK Machine Fusion that needs 2 Ninjas with different Types to summon, can be summoned by tributing the Fusion
Materials you control, and upon being Special Summoned or flipped face-up is able to banish a Ninja or Ninjitsu Art card from your hand, graveyard, or face-up field to target a card on the field and banish it. Tenchi Kaimei is a Field Spell that’s always treated as a Ninjitsu Art card, can target a destroy a card the opponent controls when a Ninja monster you control inflicts battle damage, and if this face-up card in its owner’s Field Zone leaves the field because of an opponent’s card effect and is in the graveyard or banished, you can target any number of Ninja monsters in your graveyard with different names and Special Summon them in face-down Defense Position. Finally, Green Ninja is a Level 2 WIND Warrior where if a monster(s) is Special Summoned to the field face-up, you can target one of those monsters to Special Summon this card from the hand and change that monster to face-down Defense Position, and if this card is sent from the hand or field to the graveyard, you can target a monster on the field to change it either to face-up Attack Position or face-down Defense Position.
Aquamirror Ritual
Now we return to more Duel Terminal archetypes to keep up the recent trend, with this time receiving support for Gishkis, one of the first Ritual archetypes in the game. Gishki Grimness is a Level 2 WATER Fish who can be used as the entire tribute to Ritual Summon a WATER Ritual Monster and upon Normal or Special Summon can let you Special Summon a Gishki monster from Deck, besides another Grimness, but you can only attack with Ritual Monsters for the rest of the turn. Evigishki Neremanas is a Level 10 WATER Spellcaster Ritual who can be Ritual Summoned with any Gishki Ritual Spell, upon being Ritual Summoned can let you target a WATER monster in your graveyard and Special
Summon it, cannot be destroyed by battle with a monster summoned from the Extra Deck, and has a once per turn Quick Effect when your opponent’s monster activates its effect to return a Gishki Ritual Monster to your hand to negate the activation and shuffle that monster into the Deck. Gishki Nekromirror is a Ritual Spell that can be used to Ritual Summon any Gishki Ritual Monster by tributing monsters from your hand or field whose combined Levels exactly equal that of the monster you want to Ritual Summon, or instead you can tribute a monster the opponent controls for the entire cost, but you lose LP equal to the ATK of the summoned mosnter if you Ritual Summon using this card, also you can target a Gishki monster in your graveyard to return it to the top of your Deck while this goes from the graveyard to the bottom of the Deck. Finally, Focused Aquamirror is a Normal Spell that adds a Gishki monster from your Deck to your hand, also during your End Phase you can banish this card from the graveyard while you control a WATER Ritual Monster to set an Aquamirror Spell/Trap directly from your Deck besides Focused Aquamirror.
The Gold Pride Circuit
Finally for full-fledged waves of archetype support, we look at the brand new TCG Exclusive archetype: Gold Pride. This archetype is based around having lower LP than your opponent so you can Special Summon your monsters from your hand, as well as using their Extra Deck monsters to take care of the opponent’s cards and then swap out for specific Gold Pride monsters from the Main Deck. Gold Pride – Leon is a Level 3 WIND Warrior Tuner who can be Special Summoned from the hand if your LP are lower than the opponent’s, upon Normal or Special Summon can target a non-Warrior Gold Pride monster in your graveyard and Special Summon it in Defense Position, but you can only summon Gold Pride
monsters from the Extra Deck for the rest of the turn, also it has a Quick Effect during the opponent’s Main Phase to immediately Synchro Summon a Synchro Monster using only Gold Pride monsters you control. Gold Pride – Nytro Head is a Level 8 FIRE Pyro who can be Special Summoned from the hand if your LP are lower than the opponent’s, can Special Summon a Nytro Token (Pyro/FIRE/Level 8/ATK 0/DEF 0) to the opponent’s field during their Standby Phase with said Token not being able to be used as Link Material, and it has a Quick Effect during the opponent’s Main Phase to target a Nytro Token they control and destroy it alongside all cards in adjacent Monster and Spell & Trap Zones. Gold Pride – 
Captain Carrie is a Level 3 WATER Fiend who can be Special Summoned from the hand if your LP are lower than the opponent’s, lets you add a Gold Pride Trap from Deck to hand on Normal or Special Summon, and if this card is sent to the graveyard, you can target a Gold Pride monster you control that was summoned from the Extra Deck and banish up to 3 Gold Pride cards from your graveyard to have that monster gain 500 ATK for each card banished this way. Gold Pride – Star Leon is a Level 6 LIGHT Thunder Synchro who needs any Tuner and non-Tuner(s) to summon, has a Quick Effect during the Main Phase to target a monster the opponent controls and have this card gain ATK equal to the targeted monster’s ATK, then destroy said monster if your LP are lower than the
opponents, and during the End Phase of the turn you used this card’s effect, you return it to the Extra Deck to Special Summon a Gold Pride – Leon from your Deck or graveyard. Gold Pride – Nytro Blaster is a Link-2 DARK Pyro that needs 2 Gold Pride monsters with different Levels to summon, has Up and Down arrows, can target a monster the opponent controls and destroy it, along with cards in adjacent Monster and Spell & Trap Zones if your LP are lower than the opponent’s, and during the End Phase of the turn that effect is used it returns to the Extra Deck to summon a Gold Pride – Nytro Head from your Deck or graveyard. Gold Pride – The Crowd Goes Wild is a Normal Spell that lets you reveal a Gold Pride monster in your hand to add a Gold Pride monster with a different name from your Deck to your hand, then you can Special Summon a Gold Pride monster from your hand and lose LP equal to that monster’s original ATK. Finally, Gold Pride – Start Your Engines! is a Normal Trap where if your opponent Normal or Special Summons a monster(s), you can target 1 of them to reveal 3 Gold Pride monsters from your Deck to Special Summon 1 of them of the opponent’s choice at random and then tribute the targeted monster.
Archetype Assists
We end the archetype discussion with all the 1 or 2 cards meant to support specific archetypes of the past, with this set including small bits of legacy support for Evil Eye, Generaider, Vaylantz, Plunder Patroll, and Labrynth. Basiltrice, Familiar of the Evil Eye is a Level 3 DARK Fiend who can be Special Summoned from the hand or graveyard if you control an Evil Eye card, but it’s banished when it leaves the field, also it has a Quick Effect during the opponent’s turn to Link Summon an Evil Eye using your Evil Eye monsters you control, also letting you treat Evil Eye Equip Spells as monsters. Evil Eyes Unleashed is a Normal Spell that lets you send an Evil Eye monster and Evil Eye Spell/Trap from your
Deck to the graveyard to add an Evil Eye Equip Spell from your Deck to your hand, but you lose 500 LP each time you use the effect of a non-Evil Eye monster for the rest of the turn, also if you Link Summon an Evil Eye monster you can banish this card from the graveyard to equip an Evil Eye Link Monster you control with an Evil Eye Equip Spell from your graveyard. Vala, Seidhr of the Generaider Bosses is a Level 9 FIRE Fairy you can only control 1 of, can let you send another Generaider card from your hand to the graveyard to Special Summon this card from the hand or graveyard, but its banished when it leaves the field, and upon Special Summon 
lets you Special Summon a Generaider monster from your hand or graveyard besdies another Vala. Laevatein, Generaider Boss of Shadows is a Rank 9 FIRE Fairy Xyz that needs 2+ Level 9 monsters to summon, you can only control 1 of, makes monsters the opponent controls lose 1000 ATK and DEF, and has a Quick Effect to tribute itself in order to Special Summon a non-Fairy Generaider Xyz from your Extra Deck, then you can attach cards from any field and/or graveyard to that monster up to the number of materials this card had when tributed. Arktos XII – Chronochasm Vaylantz is a Level 12 Scale 12 EARTH Fairy Pendulum Fusion that needs 2 Level 5 or higher Vaylantz monsters to summon, has a Pendulum Effect to either Special Summon this card
to your Main Monster Zone in the same column or move a monster to an adjacent (horizontal) Main Monster Zone, and a Monster Effect where it must be Special Summoned by tributing the Fusion Materials you control, has a Quick Effect to switch locations of 2 monsters you control or 2 monsters the opponent controls, and it can destroy a card on the field if a monster moves to another Monster Zone on the field. Plunder Patrollship Jord is a Level 8 Scale 1 EARTH Fiend Synchro Pendulum that needs any Tuner and non-Tuner(s) to summon, has a Pendulum Effect to declare an Attribute and return this card to the Extra Deck to Special Summon a 
Plunder Patroll Token (Fiend/Level 4/ATK 0/DEF 0) to both player’s fields in Defense Position with the declared Attribute, and it has a Monster Effect if the opponent Special Summons a monster to let you add a Plunder Patroll card from your Deck to your hand and then if this is equipped with a Plunder Patroll card, you can Special Summon a Plunder Patroll monster from the Deck, also you can target a Plunder Patroll card in your graveyard to add it to your hand and then place this card in the Pendulum Zone. Finally, Big Welcome Labrynth is a Normal Trap that lets you Special Summon a Labrynth monster from your hand, Deck, or graveyard, and then you return a monster you control to the hand, also you can banish this card from the graveyard to target a Fiend monster you control, or a monster the opponent controls if you control a Level 8 or higher Fiend, to return the target to the hand.
Generic Goodies
Finally, we end the set off with all the cards with a generic purpose in mind for multiple different strategies to use. Gravekeeper’s Inscriptiton is a Normal Spell that at the start of Main Phase 1 can be activated to, until the end of the opponent’s turn, either prevent players from activating effects in the graveyard, banishing cards from the graveyard, or Special Summoning monsters from the graveyard. Beargram, Shelled Emperor of the Forest Crown is a Level 9 EARTH Insect who cannot be Normal Summoned or Set and must be Special Summoned from your hand or graveyard by banishing 3 Insects and/or Plants from your hand and/or graveyard, prevents the opponent from activating cards or
effects in response to your Spell/Trap Card activations, and during your Main Phase can destroy all face-up monsters on the field that aren’t Insect or Plant monsters, but this card cannot attack directly for the rest of the turn. Choju of the Trillion Hands is a Level 6 LIGHT Fairy who upon being summoned lets you add a Ritual Monster and Ritual Spell from your Deck to your hand. Fairyant the Circular Sorcerer is a Level 3 WIND Insect Tuner who can be Special Summoned from the hand if an Insect or Plant monster is in either graveyard, and it can be treated as a non-Tuner for the Synchro Summon of an Insect or Plant monster. Dimensional 
Allotrope Varis is a Level 1 LIGHT Psychic Tuner who cannot be destroyed in battle by a monster with the same Type and Attribute as this card and it can let you declare a Type and Attribute to change this card’s Type and Attribute to whatever you declared until the end of the opponent’s turn. Sneaky “C” is a Level 7 EARTH Insect who can be Special Summoned from the hand in face-down Defense Position if the opponent Special Summons a monster, then it’s flipped face-up in Defense Position at the end of the turn and upon being flipped face-up during the End Phase can destroy all Special Summoned monsters on the field. Circle of the Fairies is a Level 7 WIND Plant Synchro
who needs any Tuner and non-Tuner(s) to summon, lets you Normal Summon an Insect or Plant during your Main Phase in addition to your Normal Summon/Set, and when a monster is destroyed in a battle involving your Insect or Plant monster and sent to the graveyard, you can target 1 of those destroyed monsters to deal damage to the opponent equal to half that monster’s ATK and then you gain LP equal to the damage dealt. Dyna Mondo is a Link-2 EARTH Cyberse that needs any 2 monsters, including a Ritual Monster, to summon, has Up and Down arrows, upon being Special Summoned lets you target a card on the field and a Ritual 
Monster in your graveyard to return both to the Deck, and has a Quick Effect during the opponent’s turn to tribute this card to target a Ritual Monster in your graveyard and either add it to your hand or Special Summon it. Triple Tactics Thrust is a Normal Spell where if your opponent activated a monster effect this turn, you can Set a Normal Spell/Trap directly from your Deck besides Triple Tactics Thrust, but it cannot be activated this turn if its set, or if your opponent controls a monster you can instead add it to your hand. Weighbridge is a Normal Trap where if your opponent controls at least 2 more monsters than you do, you can make them send monsters they control to the
graveyard until they only control 1. Minairuka is a Level 4 WATER Fish who can be Special Summoned from the hand as a Quick Effect if a WATER monster’s effect is activated, also you can banish a Fish, Sea Serpent, or Aqua monster you control to target a face-up card on the field and negate its effects until the end of the opponent’s turn. Orphebull the Harmonious Bullfighter Bard is a Level 8 LIGHT Beast-Warrior who cannot be Normal Summoned or Set and must be Special Summoned from your hand by banishing 2 LIGHT and 2 DARK monsters from your hand and/or graveyard, gains 1000 ATK for each monster banished from the hand to summon it and can attack monsters the opponent controls 
up to the number of cards banished from the graveyard to summon it, and it banishes any opponent’s monster it destroys in battle. Diabolantis the Menancing Mantis is a Level 8 DARK Insect Synchro that needs any Tuner and non-Tuner(s) to summon, upon Synchro Summon lets you send an Insect and/or Plant monster(s) from Deck to grave up to the number of non-Tuners used to Synchro Summon this card, and if you control this Synchro Summoned card you can target an Insect or Plant you control and treat it as a Tuner for the turn. Xyz Align is a Quick-Play Spell that lets you declare a Level from 1 to 12 and target 2 face-up monsters on the field, including 1 monster you control, to have those
monsters become the declared Level until the end of the turn, but for the rest of the turn after this resolves you can only Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck with the same Type as the targeted monster(s). Made to Order Mermaid Outfit Outfitter is a Normal Spell that lets you target a card in the opponent’s graveyard and banish it, then you can add a card with the same name as the banished card from your Deck to your hand. Qardan the Clear Sighted is a Level 4 EARTH Fairy who upon Normal Summon lets you Set a Continuous Trap from your hand or graveyard, and it can be activated that turn, also upon being sent to the graveyard can let you activate the effect to prevent face-up Traps you 
control from being destroyed by the opponent’s card effects until the end of the next turn. Pharaonic Advent is a Level 8 DARK Spellcaster that gains 300 ATK for each Continuous Trap on the field and in the graveyards, can be Special Summoned from the hand by tributing a monster, and it can let you tribute a Fairy, Fiend, or Reptile monster to add a Continuous Trap from your Deck to your hand, but you can’t Special Summon for the rest of the turn. Apophis the Swamp Deity is a Continuous Trap that can be Special Summoned during the Main Phase as a Normal Monster (Reptile/EARTH/Level 6/ATK 2000/DEF 2400) (it’s still treated as a Trap) and then you can negate the effects of face-up cards the opponent controls up to the number of other Continuous Traps you control until the end of the turn. Finally, Humongous Hive Hegemon – Zexstagger is a Level 8 WIND Insect who gains 300 ATK for each Insect on the field besides itself, can be Special Summoned from the hand if an Insect monster(s) is Special Summoned, and during the End Phase it can let both players Special Summon an Insect from their hand or graveyard with its effects negated.
In Conclusion
Overall, it is a pretty strong set, though it is pretty top heavy. Kashtira is the main selling point to the set, and its all pretty high rarity with you needing 3 Secrets and 2 Ultras from this set along with Fenrir and Unicorn from Darkwing Blast. Triple Tactics Thrust is a pretty good card to go alongside Triple Tactics Talent, since having access to any Normal Spell/Trap in the game can be pretty good. Some of the archetypes got good legacy support. Photon/Galaxy got a nice boost and this set helps give some more rogue options like Springans/Therion, Gishki, Generaiders, Labrynths, and Ninjas with the import of Green Ninja. Gravekeeper’s Inscription was a nice import, but it’s hurt since its release right when Tearlaments took a massive hit and representation of the Deck is highly likely to go down. Gold Pride has potential, especially with P.U.N.K., but the jury is still out until Cyberstorm Access where we get the 2nd wave of support. The Starlight Rares are fine, though choices like Captain Carrie and the Tri-Brigade Link-5 are questionable over cards like Triple Tactics Thrust. Branded at least got a nice boost with 2 new Fusions that are pretty good and the addition of Bystial Baldrake for a 4th Bystial name. It’s a good set, and contender for the best core set of the year. I’m pretty sure Cyberstorm Access won’t top it, so it’d be up to Duelist Nexus and whatever comes after to do better. Overall, a strong set.
Thanks for reading,
Crunch$G
