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Gravekeeper Deck Fix by Sean

From: seanslcars@comcast.net
Date: Sat, 07 May 2005 01:00:41 +0000

Hey everyone Sean’s here with my first edition of my new informal deck garage. Here’s a Gravekeeper deck that was submitted to me and my thoughts on it. Enjoy, and feel free to send in your own designs to be fixed!
Sean,
I saw your new posting on Pojo.com.
I am looking to improve my Gravekeepers Deck. I kind of follow a Pharonic Guardian type theme, and pack appropriate cards that support the theme as well.
Questions: I know that since I'm not packing a Jinzo or Tribe that it's not a first tier deck, but is this OK for tier 2 or 3? What can I do to improve it while staying closely within theme?
Any advice is appreciated!
Thanks,
*sender info here*
Tribute Monsters (4)
2 Gravekeeper's Chief
1 Guardian Sphinx
1 Mystical Knight of Jackal
NonTribute Monsters (16)
1 Cat of Ill Omen
3 Gravekeeper's Assailant
1 Gravekeeper's Cannon Holder
2 Gravekeeper's Curse
2 Gravekeeper's Guard
2 Gravekeeper's Spear Soldier
2 Gravekeeper's Spy
1 Gravekeeper's Vassal
1 Gravekeeper's Watcher
1 Swarm of Locusts
1 Swarm of Scarabs
Traps (7)
1 Curse of Anubis
1 Judgement of Anubis
1 Ordeal of a Traveler
2 Rite of Spirit
1 Waboku
1 Wall of Revealing Light
Spells (14)
1 Book of Moon1 Book of Taiyou
1 Giant Trunade
1 Heavy Storm
1 My Body as a Shield
1 Mystical Space Typhoon
3 Necrovalley
1 Pot of Greed
1 Reload
1 Royal Tribute
1 Swords of Revealing Light
1 Terraforming
Total Cards: 41
Ok before I begin editing a quick mention about format. When you send a deck in to be fixed, please follow these simple guidelines. Organize into 4 categories, IN ORDER please: Monsters Level 5+, Monsters Level 4-, Spells, Traps. Also, please don’t type like "Blade Knight x2" or "2 Blade Knight". ""Blade Knight Blade Knight" is unbelievably easier and more helpful when editing. I realize it’s more typing but that’s why we have the cut-and-paste feature. It’s just so much for efficient for me. Thanks.
So here is how this deck list would look following those guidelines Monsters Level 5+: 4 Gravekeeper’s Chief Gravekeeper’s Chief Guardian Sphinx Mystical Knight of Jackal Monsters Level 4-: 17 A cat of ill omen Gravekeeper’s Assailant Gravekeeper’s Assailant Gravekeeper’s Assailant Gravekeeper’s Cannonholder Gravekeeper’s Curse Gravekeeper’s Curse Gravekeeper’s Guard Gravekeeper’s Guard Gravekeeper’s Spear Soldier Gravekeeper’s Spear Soldier Gravekeeper’s Spy Gravekeeper’s Spy Gravekeeper’s Vassal Gravekeeper’s Watcher Swarm of Locusts Swarm of Scarabs
Spells: 14
Book of Moon
Book of Taiyou
Giant Trunade
Heavy Storm
My Body as a Shield
Mystical Space Typhoon
Necrovalley
Necrovalley
Necrovalley
Pot of Greed
Reload
Royal Tribute
Swords of Revealing Light
Terraforming
Traps: 7
Curse of ANubis
Judgment of Anubis
Ordeal of a Traveler
Rite of Spirit
Rite of Spirit
Waboku
Wall of Revealing Light
Total: 42
You actually have 17 Monsters Level 4-. Just a little note.
I’ll start with a general analysis of Gravekeeper’s.
Strengths: By now you all should know that in my opinion versatility is the most important attribute for a yugioh deck. This is strictly a matter of opinion. It’s just what you prefer. Some prefer draw power, others field control, others ATK points, I place the greatest emphasis on versatility. A good deck should be able to react to any situation. Gravekeeper’s place relatively high on the versatility charts. They will have relatively few ATK points, but Necrovalley takes care of that. A healthy dose of control means your opponent will almost always have something to worry about.
Weakness: The whole deck really hinges on Necrovalley. Even with three of them and Terraforming, that’s only one per every 10 cards. If you get one in your first hand and lose it, that means you will have to wait an average of 14 turns for a new one. Furthermore, if someone sides in Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell you could be in serious trouble. Guard Necrovalley with your life.
OK onto more detailed explanations as we look at tweaking.
Monsters Level 5+:
We all know the old rule of two. There should be two tribute monsters. Nowhere is this more true than in the Gravekeeper’s deck. Thou shalt have TWO tribute monsters. TWO shall be the number thou shalt have, and the number of the having shall be TWO Three shalt thou NOT have, neither have thou one, excepting that thou then add another, for TWO. Once TWO, being the SECOND number be reached, thou shalt have the correct number of tribute monsters. All hail Monty Python. But seriously, this is one deck that really should follow that rule. The ideal 1-2 setup is Jinzo-Gravekeeper’s Chief. Now, since you said you don’t have Jinzo, I’ll leave it out. Gravekeeper’s Chief will get the 1 spot. For the 2 spot, you could use either the other Chief or Guardian Sphinx. That one’s really just a matter of choice. I would use the Sphinx, but the Chief could work just as well. Kick the Mystical Knight of Jackal, it’s powerful but really doesn’t belong in this deck. So for Monsters Level 5+ my recommended changes are:
-Gravekeeper’s Chief
-Mystical Knight of Jackal
Monsters Level 4-:
OK we got some reorganization to do. It’s cool how you’ve tried to include all the Gravekeepers, but some of them just don’t make the cut. Variety for the sake of variety is not going to win you any tournaments. First is A cat of Ill Omen. Yes, his effect is good, and his identification with Necrovalley instantly makes him a candidate, but you’re never really going to have a real pressing need for a particular trap, so he can go. Now we’ve got a couple of the Gravekeeper’s that are just a bit too weak. First up is Gravekeeper’s Curse. The stats are minuscule, and the burn effect just doesn’t have the punch to make him playable. The other Gravekeepers have more potential than him. He should be reserved for casual play. Vassal and Watcher shouldnt be reserved for casual play, they should be burned. Throw them away and never think of them again. OK maybe not that extreme. Both have pathetic stats, Vassal’s effect is relatively pointless, and Watcher’s effect is way too situational trash them both. The Swarm cards provide powerful control support. Keep them. Now for additions. I’ve added one Spear Soldier, as the high 1500 ATK (2000 with Necrovalley) is major, and the trample damage further enhances it. Run three. Likewise, increase the number of Spy’s to three. Good stats and card advantage should not be passed up. Cyber Jar will help you get them out, and Sangan is essential here, as nearly every monster in your deck has 1500 or less ATK. So for Monsters Level 4- we have:
-A cat of Ill Omen
-Gravekeeper’s Curse
-Gravekeeper’s Curse
-Gravekeeper’s Watcher
-Gravekeeper’s Vassal
+Gravekeeper’s Spear Soldier
+Gravekeeper’s Spy
+Cyber Jar
+Sangan
Spells: These will be essential because they should provide crazy support to Gravekeeper’s. Especially Necrovalley. It’s good you got three and Terraforming; that’s the ideal setup. A little tweaking to the others is going to help though. First of all, Book of Taiyou can go. Gravekeeper’s Assailant has the position-changing aspect covered. Book of Moon is good enough it can stay in addition to the Assailants, but kick Taiyou. Giant Trunade should be an easy candidate for removal, as you can’t really use it to clear the way for a final kill because 9 times out of 10 you will have necrovalley as an essential piece of the final kill, and trunade will return that too. My body as a Shield really isn’t that essential because with all the recursion losing your monsters really isn’t that big a deal usually. You don’t need to guard the Gravekeepers because they come back. Reload is good, but swap it for Graceful Charity and you will gain a card instead of losing one. As for additions, as I just said Graceful Charity. Delinquent Duo and Lightning Vortex are missing staples that should exist in nearly every deck. Don’t be ashamed to use staples. You only need one Nobleman of Crossout rather than the usual two because the Gravekeepers should be providing constant pressure. Finally Premature Burial is recursion, which Gravekeepers love. Yes I’m aware it can’t come in under Necrovalley, but when you don’t have Necrovalley out you may need solid support, and Premature Burial will provide that. So for modifications to Spells we have:
-Book of Taiyou
-Giant Trunade
-My Body as a Shield
-Reload
+Graceful Charity
+Delinquent Duo
+Lightning Vortex
+Nobleman of Corssout
+Premature Burial
Traps: And finally we come to Traps. The main point of your traps should be to support the cards you have in your deck. Ordeal of a Traveler is very hit or miss, and the effect isn’t as deadly as it could be. It really shouldn’t be here. Waboku and Wall of Revealing Light aren’t really necessary because with the solid defense of Gravekeeper’s Spy and Guard and of course Swords of Revealing Light, you’ve got enough Defense. The Anubis combo is fun, but Curse of Anubis falls under the same heading and should also be removed. For additions, first of all, EVERY Gravekeeper deck should feature three Rite of Spirits. You only have two here. Add a third. Call of the Haunted is recursion, which Gravekeepers love. Yes I’m aware it can’t come in under Necrovalley, but when you don’t have Necrovalley out you may need solid support, and Call of the Haunted will provide that. Yes that is the exact same text from Premature Burial. It’s the exact same principle. Also, Torrential Tribute will provide some removal and field control, and Ring can often by your knockout punch. So for Trap modifications we have:
-Ordeal of a Traveler
-Waboku
-Wall of Revealing Light
-Curse of Anubis
+Rite of Spirit
+Call of the Haunted
+Torrential Tribute
+Ring of Destruction
So your deck would end up looking like this:
Monsters Level 5+: 2
Gravekeeper’s Chief
Guardian Sphinx
Monsters Level 4-: 16
Gravekeeper’s Assailant
Gravekeeper’s Assailant
Gravekeeper’s Assailant
Gravekeeper’s Cannonholder
Gravekeeper’s Guard
Gravekeeper’s Guard
Gravekeeper’s Spear Soldier
Gravekeeper’s Spear Soldier
Gravekeeper’s Spear Soldier
Gravekeeper’s Spy
Gravekeeper’s Spy
Gravekeeper’s Spy
Swarm of Locusts
Swarm of Scarabs
Cyber Jar
Sangan
Spells: 15
Book of Moon
Heavy Storm
Mystical Space Typhoon
Necrovalley
Necrovalley
Necrovalley
Pot of Greed
Graceful Charity
Royal Tribute
Swords of Revealing Light
Terraforming
Delinquent Duo
Lightning Vortex
Nobleman of Crossout
Premature Burial

Traps: 7
Torrential Tribute
Judgment of Anubis
Rite of Spirit
Rite of Spirit
Rite of Spirit
Call of the Haunted
Ring of Destruction
And like I said, get Jinzo in the 2 spot for tribute monsters ASAP. Like NOW. Anyway hope this helps, and good luck!
Comments? Questions? My email is seanslcars@comcast.net and my AIM screenname is NazGul0010. Don’t forget to check out my website at www.seanzhomepage.freeservers.com I’m not one of those people that says "No hatemail please". I love reading that stuff. Until next time-SetoKaibafan13