Welcome to the interim week where we wrap things up until the next set comes out shortly.   We haven't reviewed this card since 2005.  That's 9 years, almost a decade.  Wow, I feel old.

Phoenix Wing Wind Blast

Of all the crap rares in Flaming Eternity, this one has stood the test of time, being a perennial favorite in tournament play since the Sinister Serpent laden Chaos era.

Let's be clear about something.  It beats Raigeki Break.  Break sends monsters to the graveyard, which fuels the opponent's graveyard power.  Its a game where monsters aren't only floaters but they're also not easy to destroy.  Every deck will need some out to cards like Beelze of Diabolic Dragons and PWWB (Phoenix Wing Wind Blast) is a perfect way to get rid of him.  Clogging the opponent's Draw Phase is much better overall. 

Unlike the other discard removal cards, Karma Cut and Divine Wrath (the latter I think its a little underrated), it also bounces back Spells/Traps, if you ever wanted to.

The fact that this card has been relevant for 9 years says something.  Decks which could use the discard to fuel the graveyard or get rid of their dead cards will probably always exist.  And I'm counting on the fact that returning cards to the deck will always be one of the most powerful ways to dispose of them.

Assessments

Power – 4/5 ; Since this card can both shut down a combo in the works, make the opponent lose a card and clog the deck, it can really make the opponent lose their footing.  I vividly remember a mirror match against a Rulersworn deck where my Kuribandit was sent back to the top of the deck.  I couldn't use his effect then, and by the time I re-drew him, I needed a more defensive play anyway.  This stuff can hurt, people.

Versatility – 3/5 ; There's always going to be a situation where there's a card you'd like to return to the deck.  It gets high marks on that.  But there's not always a situation where you would want to discard a card.  Decks that run cards which could become potentially dead use it.  My Harpies use it to ditch Harpie's Pet Dragon when needed, or plus off of Hysteric Sign, for example.  But there's other times I might draw the card when I have nothing I really need to discard.  My Rulersworns use it to trigger an Eclipse Wyvern that I wouldn't want to waste a Normal Summon to Set on.

Accessibility – 2/5 ; Again, that discard makes this card less accessible.  Especially since if the opponent uses Wiretap, Seven Tools of the Bandit or Trap Stun on the card, you would have already lost your discard.  Not a huge deal if you discarded graveyard fodder, but if you discarded a card you could have used, out of desperation, then PWWB being negated would really hurt.

Card Advantage – 2/5 ; This card is what I would like to call an educated -1.  If you discard junk or use the discard to your advantage in fueling a graveyard effect, the situation might be better.  But you still have to work around the discard, since YGO lacks mana for more intricate costs.  I guess the most damning aspect of this card is that it will never be a +1.  It'll just be a -1 or a 1-for-1 that dumps stuff.

Speed – 5/5 ; As far as traps go, this is one of the fastest cards in the business.  You can chain it to practically any move except a Counter Trap and can break intricate combos.  It's chainable to removal.  You can even set it and activate it right as your opponent enters their Draw Phase.

Ratings

Traditional – 2.5/5 ; Traps aren't that great here, but it is fast, it can disrupt combos and the discard may help your graveyard power.

Advanced – 3.25/5 ; Not all decks will be able to use this, but decks that can afford the discard will love this.

Mechanic Design – 4/5 ; A simple but balanced card with a wide range of usage whether its removal or disruption.

Artwork – 4/5 ; The Ultimate and Gold Rare look quite sexy, but even the Normal Rare looks really good.

Verdict

A timeless must-have for your collection.

Phoenix Wing Wind Blast

Essentially, this is a Trap version of Raiza the Storm Monarch except for the fact that to activate this card you are required to first discard a card from your hand.

Then you target 1 card your opponent controls and place it upon the top of the (owners) Deck. This card may well be able to break even if you are returning an Xyz or Synchro monster back to the Deck, but if you are returning an effect monster or a Spell or Trap card PWWB is almost always going to be a –1. The great thing is that at least your opponent is going to be forced to draw that same card again and that can be a great way to disrupt some of your opponents plays, especially in a Topdecking war.

Sadly though, because this card Targets, so many cards are able to play around it, and because of the discard it’s cost may in may instances serve to be far too steep to pay.

PWWB even though it can target your opponent’s cards from any zone, is outclassed by Complusory Evacuation Device… And that’s certainly not as good currently as it was previously.

Regardless though, it can be used in Decks that require Graveyard Set-up and that additionally have dead cards in hand quite often.

Traditional: 1. Even with Sinister Serpent and greater Draw power I don’t see good reason to play this.

Advanced: 2.5. May come in handy, but it’s not really worth playing.

Phoenix Wing Wind Blast

This week is Trap Week with a twofer Thrusday and a special non-trap card on Friday. To start off this week we look at Phoenix Wing Wind Blast a largely forgotten trap card that was first released back in Flaming Eternity and hasn’t been reviewed since.

Anyway Phoenix Wing Wind Blast has a simple cost and effect; you discard a card and target an opponent’s card and then return that card to the top of their deck. This is actually quite a powerful effect and it is surprising that most people don’t use it. With this card you bypass any destruction protect effects and possibly give the opponent a dead draw. What also makes this card powerful is that it doesn’t have to be a monster it can be any card the opponent controls, though more often than not you will go for a monster as it has a better chance of being a dead draw.

Of course this does draw comparisons with both Raigeki Break and Compulsory Evacuation Device. Raigeki Break as the same cost but destroys the card therefore having a better chance of removing the threat rather than postponing it. While this card and Compulsory Evacuation Device while do the same thing to an Extra Deck monster but Compulsory Evacuation Device doesn’t have cost but is currently Limited. Of course there is also Back to Square One, with has the same cost and only targets monsters but it is faster due to being a Spell Card.

Overall, a very powerful card which has probably unfairly been forgotten about. With Compulsory Evacuation Device being limited this card work as a very good alternative.

Traditional: 3.5/5
Advanced: 4/5

Hello Pojo Fans,

Trap week starts off with a classic that was the bane of every duelists existence: Phoenix Wing Wind Blast. PWWB is a flexible card despite being a -1. Locking your opponent into drawing a card they'd already drawn slows their possible moves. PWWB gets around any monster that has a protection effect. Synchro and Xyz's are open targets to this card unless they can protect against being targeted, and the opponent will need to use resources to get them back rather than drawing them next turn. This card is meant to break big play moves your opponent has or frustrate your opponent when they are trying to get something going. Traps attached to monsters (Safe Zone, CoTH) are easy targets that change the outcome to even instead of a minus for you. Discarding resources that need to be in the graveyard can off-set the cost of PWWB as well.

If you are top-decking this card isn't very useful. If the opponent has cards that can be used over and over again without any negatives (cards that gain effects when Normal or Special Summoned) this card isn't too useful against them either. Sending back spell/trap cards can be handy if you are looking to clear the field of possible issues or stall, but PWWB is really meant to gain an advantage, break even if possible, and put you ahead in terms of resources.

Phoenix Wing Wind Blast is still a card that could see play in decks, but you need to be able to pull as many positives out of the card to make it work. Discard something that can help you later, target something to break your opponents moves, and, if you can, try and make playing this card an even trade.

Traditional-2.5/5- too much removal
Advanced-3/5- playability, but for reasons above, not elite
Art-4/5- regardless of rarity, this cards artwork has always been great

Until Next Time
KingofLullaby

Hello, my dears. Your long wait has finally ended. Breathe, and relax, and allow me to take you on a journey of enlightenment. I know it has been a while.

Welcome to a Terrorking review. This time, it is of a trap card I do quite enjoy: Phoenix Wing Wind Blast. If you've ever looked at an OCG Decklist, I'm sure you've seen Raigeki Break, which makes you discard 1 card to destroy 1 card on the field. Forever I've wondered why they don't use PWWB, since it's flat out better removal. Here's why:

1. Nowadays, many, many cards resist "destruction"

2. The Extra Deck has become such an essential part of gameplay that cards like this and Compulsory Evacuation Device have become exceedingly powerful.

3. It sets your opponent back a turn and doesn't give them another card in the Graveyard to use.

I would be remiss if I did not mention that this is a chainable card, so should your opponent try to remove it, you could just chain to their removal and spin (the term for returning a card from the field to the top of the deck) a card they have, setting them back a turn. Further, do note this says "card" and not "monster," so you can discard any card to target any card on the field: which means you could disrupt your opponent's monster chain or remove a card in their backrow (Artifacts won't trigger off this, thankfully) when you're pushing for the win. As far as traps go, this is a really good card.

Advanced: 4/5
Traditional: 1/5 (FTK or bust)

Phoenix Wing Wind Blast has to be one of the most well designed cards in the game; it is incredibly powerful and versatile, but is offset by a discard cost that can prove to be quite hefty in the card advantage-driven game of Yu-Gi-Oh!

The ability to return any card your opponent controls to the top of the Deck (also known unofficially as spinning) is a very potent effect that serves a large number of purposes. If used against a Spell or Trap Card your opponent just Set face-down, or a monster that has to be Normal Summoned, it temporarily removes the threat and sets your opponent back a turn by effectively locking them out of a Draw Phase. If used in response to an opponent’s search effect, Phoenix Wing Wind Blast can shuffle any card you don’t want your opponent to have back into the Deck, forcing them to draw or search for it again. Because the card does not destroy, it helps get around any monster immune to destruction (a trend that has become quite popular lately), and can break through powerful lockdowns (such as the Stardust Spark Dragon-Vanity’s Emptiness lock).

The card is a very powerful one indeed, but its discard cost means that only a few Decks in the history of the game have been able to utilize its full potential. Decks that can use Phoenix Wing Wind Blast tend to run cards that either benefit from being in the Graveyard or have cards that are not always helpful in the hand. Examples of Decks that have been able to utilize Phoenix Wing Wind Blast include TeleDAD, Zombie, Dragon Ruler, and Mermail.

The amount of Decks that can use Phoenix Wing Wind Blast is a pretty small number in the grand spectrum of things. However, in those Decks, the options that it grants you are all but limitless.

Traditional: 3/5
Advanced: 4/5

Greetings, Pojo! You may know me from around the web, and I’ve recently been asked to join Pojo’s COTD staff! Hopefully I can shed some insight on the amazing, the wacky and the overall crazy cards new to our game every day!

First up this week is a mouthful of a card, Phoenix Wing Wind Blast, commonly known as PWWB in many players’ minds. Despite it seeing little play around its release, Wing Blast has snuck up into many strategies starting with Tele-Dad back in the day and recently used in many competitive strategies. I’d like to see this card used more in Mermail decks, but without triplicates of Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls and Mermail Abyssgunde, pitching a card from your hand is more painful than it used to be.

Wing Blast is very similar to Raigeki break, both amazing cards in the right situations were nearly mirrored effects. Both can hit any type of card on the field, and with a single discard, you can remove a problem from the field. Wing Blast is a lot more effective in setting your opponent back a turn while Raigeki Break hits a threat outright, but both have seen reasonable amounts of play for good reason: spot removal that’s not limited to simply monsters or spells or traps is quite useful! If your opponent invests two cards into an Xyz or Synchro Summon, then your discarding cost won’t be as brutal on your card economy.

While bouncing a Traptrix Myrmeleo or Mermail Abyssteus is pretty underwhelming, Phoenix Wing Wind Blast is an answer to the mighty Shadoll Winda found in Duelist Alliance. Winda’s stun ability can cripple many decks like Evilswarm Ophion has done, and Wing Blast circumvents Winda’s protection ability against destruction. Outside or silencing that big fusion, though, I don’t see too much potential for Wing Blast in the current meta - we have plenty of reactionary traps that suffice without pitching cards from your hand. I could see Wing Blast being useful in Lightsworn Rulers, but outside of that deck it’s just another card that’ll sit in my binder and bide time for another day.

Traditional: 1
Advanced: 2.5

After being gone for a long time, It's good to be back. I must first thank the Pojo the Mighty for allowing me to return. It's Trap week on Pojo and somewhere Admiral Ackbar is losing his mind. First up is Phoenix Wing Wind Blast. It's one of those cards that is popular, but finds itself on and off the "I'm a staple" list. It's a simple Normal Trap card. Discard one card, target one card your opponent controls and it goes right back to the top of the deck. A very good card in a number a ways, as you can force your opponent to be down one card on the field, and force them to re-draw the same card. Or if it's something like an XYZ or Synchro monster, even better, as it make take some time before your opponent can get it out again. The discarding may work in your favor as you can use cards like White Stone of Legend, Dandylion and lots of others that can pay off just for being in the grave. Wing Blast can be chained to cards that like destroying back rows, so you can make your opponent pay for trying to destroy it. Beware of Wiretap and Seven Tools, as you still have to discard regardless. This is a great card and I'm surprised it doesn't see more play than what it does.

Traditional: 2.5/5
Advanced: 3.5/5

Phoenix Wing Wind Blast is an excellent trap that has a lot of versatility going for it, and at the same time there is a cost. Sending a card back to the top of the opponents deck will set them back a resource since they already controlled it prior to placing. However, discarding a card in addition to using a resource is still going to set yourself back one resource overall. If you can mitigate this by sending cards that need to go to the grave anyway to activate effects, or send cards that are dead in the hand but live in the grave, well than you can break even and disrupt your opponent pretty heavily. It's also always nice when a card doesn't destroy so it can bypass effects that are immune to destruction running rampant right now in the meta. 

It's a tech choice that really comes down to the type of deck you are running and whether you have fodder you don't mind sending to the grave in order to foil your opponents plot. If you have resources to spare or cards that work just as well if not better in the grave, then use this card.

Ratings 

Traditional – 1.5/5 ; There are better things to use here
Advanced – 3.0/5 ; Solid card with a solid effect, but it does have a cost to pay and respect 
Mechanic Design – 4/5 ; Useful but it rewards skilled play and can hurt if used improperly 

Artwork – 4/5 ; Great artwork keeping with the ancient Egyptian design that started it all