Take a peek at yesterday’s CotD for a late review from me. >.>

 

Stats: Iron Chain Dragon is a Level 6 Synchro Monster.  That Extra Deck is starting to look a little tight, but at least the Level combination should make getting it out as easy as or easier than a normal Tribute Summon would find it.  It is an Earth/Dragon, and odd combination, but it probably can be made to work: at the very least both options have support, and it matches the Attribute of its fellow Iron Chain Monsters. It has 2500 ATK, enough to run over most single Tribute and lower Monsters.  1300 DEF will only protect against random spent effect Monsters and the like, but then again your opponent will be the one forcing this into Defense Position by expending cards, so it isn’t something you’ll face every duel.

 

Effect(s): This card has two effects.  The first is simple: remove from play all Iron Chain Monsters in your Graveyard to have Iron Chain Dragon gain 200 ATK for each of them removed until your End Phase.  Honestly, not too thrilling, since that would just set up for generic a Return from the Different Dimension swarm.  As it is all or nothing, I’d say only use this effect if the game is riding on it one way or the other.

 

The second effect is fairly interesting: when this card inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent, you get to discard the top three cards from their deck.  That is just barely enough of a discard to matter, and is a solid effect.

 

Uses and

Combinations: It should be played in an Iron Chain deck, but not relied upon.  Periodically you’ll be able to score a winning blow with it, either by forcing them to discard that last bit of their deck or by pumping up for a finishing blow.

 

Other decks should consider it because despite all the decks wanting Monsters in their discard, they won’t want that coming from a big Monster beating on their LP.  Plus, as it would be uncontrolled (from the opponent’s point of view), it is still dangerous.  Even decks that trash themselves for advantage like Dark Armed Dragon and Lightsworn decks don’t want just anything thrown into the Graveyard.  It is half the reason I main deck Card Destruction: in addition to trashing my own unneeded cards for fresh draw, you’d mess up the opponent’s plans as a) they lost cards they wanted to use and b) their deck was just that much smaller.  Early game when they have a lot of cards left in deck they want in their Graveyard, you won’t bring out Iron Chain Dragon.  Mid-to-late-game, when your opponent has thinned all the “filler” from his or her deck, you whack them and watch three power cards go away.  The decks one expects to benefit from discarding won’t if you time things properly: Dark Armed Dragon decks want to control the amount of Dark Monsters in the Graveyard, and Lightsworn decks can be sent careening over the edge as you just set them up to deck out next turn.

 

Ratings

 

Traditional: 2/5 – It might be useful on occasion here, if a game drags on too long.

 

Advanced: 3.5/5 – It’d be an average card except it does help a specific theme, though not as much as a big on-theme Synchro would be expected to help.

 

Art: 3/5 – Although not especially fond of it, neither do I hate it.  I like how it isn’t clear if it is a willing member of the Iron Chain “gang”, or their captive.

 

Summary

Iron Chain Dragon is a Synchro that any deck can use for some deck depletion attached to a reasonably sized body.  Most games it probably won’t help, but like a whack to the back of a running man, it can send your opponent crashing to the ground, and does indeed help its theme.  Let us all be glad it doesn’t have a specific Tuner Monster.

 

-Otaku