October 2008

 

The Buyer's Guide to Yugioh Part 1 of 5-Crzydrvr

 

Hey guys it's me again, back with another article. Before we get to the article, let's see what we have for our Card Review:

 

Gigaplant

 

Attribute:	EARTH
Types:	Plant/Gemini
Level:	Level 6
ATK/DEF:	2400/1200
Number:	53257892
Card Effect Type(s):	Summon/Ignition
This card is treated as a Normal Monster while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard. While this card is face-up on the field, you can Normal Summon it to have it be treated as an Effect Monster with this effect: ● Once per turn, you can Special Summon 1 Insect-Type or Plant-Type monster from your hand or Graveyard.

Trad: /5

ADV: /5

Crzydrvr: A beefed up version of Il Blud for Plants (and Insects). This card is better than people give it credit for, pretty much the exact same effect but higher ATK and DEF, giving it an edge Il Blud doesn't have. With the new CSOC (Crossroads of Chaos) booster coming out, people will not be looking at Plants like they used to.
 

Trad: 2.5/5 Not Bad, but there are alternatives, plus the game is all about speed here.

ADV: 4/5 Good on its own, great when Black Rose Dragon & Rose Warrior of Revenge come out in CSOC. Plants are almost as good as Zombies now, if not as good.

 

John:

 

Don't forget we are still looking for Reviewer applications. If interested then please let me know at my email, located further down the page.

 

Next topic. For all of us buying cards and trading for cards are the only way to access them. The singles are easy, just buy whatever you want. But I'm sure your parents scoff at having to pay upwards of $20 for pieces of cardboard. Therefore Boosters are a good way to go, they're relatively cheap and can yield some nice pulls, like my new Gyzarus (lucky me, huh?). But which ones should you buy? I'm going to take a look at some of the packs we commonly find in hobby stores and rate them based on the cards they have. I'll also be doing tins dating back from 2006, and Special Editions for some of the more recent Boosters (from maybe 2 years back to the latest), This 5-part series will take a look at the benefits and downfalls of packs. Part 1 will focus on the newer/duelist packs, Part 2 will be based on Structure and Starter Decks, Part 3 will be based on Collector's Tins, and Part 4 will be the Special Editions. Part 5 will finish up some older/reprint packs dating back from somewhere around Soul of the Duelist.

 

*Prices may vary

 

The Duelist Genesis (TDGS)

100 card Booster, $4.99/pack $89.99/Booster box

Feature Card: Stardust Dragon (Ultra/Ghost)

4.5 stars out of 5

The pack that brought new Synchro and Tuner monsters. Where else to find all those great cards? Probably the best Booster in a few years. The majority of cards are widely played, and the Booster itself is incredible. Probably your best bet when buying.

 

Light of Destruction (LODT)

100 cards, $4.99/pack, $69.99/box

Feature Card: Judgement Dragon (Secret)

3.5/5

To be sure, it's a good pack. Judgment Dragon is nothing to scoff at and Lightsworns get some more support as do numerous other decks. But coming right after Phantom Darkness, the pack seems to be very pedestrian.

 

Phantom Darkness (PTDN)

100 cards, $4.99/pack, $79.99/box

Feature Card: Dark Armed Dragon (Secret)

4.5/5

Before TDGS came along, this Booster was clearly the best of the Year. Bunches of support cards for many decktypes, and DARK decks became huge. If you haven't bought some then you better get to saving your allowance.

 

*To get all three packs at once the first wave of 2008 Tins have all three plus a token pack.

 

Gladiator's Assault (GLAS)

95 cards, $3.99/pack, $79.99/box

Feature Card: Gladiator Beast Heraklinos (Secret)

4/5

Gladiator Beasts became a dominant force with many of the cards found here. Heraklinos, Test Ape etc. plus some GX cards (newly introduced Evil Heros) and numerous "Cloudians", the pack is a very good one and should be part of your Wish List.

 

Tactical Evolution (TAEV)

90 cards, $3.99/pack, $69.99/box

Feature Card: Rainbow Dragon (Secret/Ghost)

3/5

Rounding out the 5 latest boosters is TAEV, a mediocre pack at best. There are some gems, and some cards that could be good for some specific decktypes, but unless you're looking for a specific card, don't go after this pack, except to build up your collection.

 

Force of the Breaker (FOTB)

69 cards, $3.99/pack, $59.99/box

Feature Card: Volcanic Doomfire (Ultra)

2.5/5

A very average booster. The set introduced Volcanic, Crystal Beasts, and Sky Scourge monsters, but none have had a major impact on the dueling scene, though the Sky Scourge monsters are decent. More E-Heros, more junk, Raiza was probably the best but has seen limited play with Caius emerging as the dominant Monarch.

 

Strike of Neos (STON)

69 cards, $3.99/pack, $59.99/box

Feature Card: Elemental Hero Air Neos (Ultra)

2/5

Introducing the Six Samurai, and some new Dark World monsters. DD Crow and Gene-Warped Warwolf originated here, but the many E-Hero support cards drop its rating and only DD Crow still sees competitive use.

 

Cyberdark Impact (CDIP)

60 cards, $3.99/pack, $59.99/box

Feature Card: Cyberdark Dragon (Ultra)

1/5

The Alien decktype and Barrier Statue cards originated here, but overall the pack sucks, no way to have positives. All the GX cards were terrible and the Holos were average at best. Don't trust buying this pack unless it's on sale for really cheap.

 

Power of the Duelist (POTD)

60 cards, $3.99/pack, $59.99/box

Feature Card: Elemental Hero Neos (Common)

1.5/5

Another crappy pack, full of GX cards, leaves very little room for the good cards. D-Heros are probably the lone bright spot, but half of the available ones are useless save for Fear Monger and Dasher, which are seen every now and then.

 

Enemy of Justice (EOJ)

60 cards, $3.99/pack, $59.99/box

Feature Card: Elemental Hero Shining Phoenix Enforcer (Ultra)

1.5/5

Not much positives, unless you're trying to rip of a newbie with an E-Hero Shining Phoenix Enforcer and a HERO Flash for his 2 DADs, a Judgment Dragon, and his Heraklinos (not recommended by the way; please don't rip newbies). Best to avoid.

 

Shadow of Infinity (SOI)

60 cards, $3.99/pack, $69.99/box

Feature Card: Raviel, Lord of Phantasms (Ultra)

2/5

Bunches of Cyber support, plus the debut of the 3 Sacred Beasts (basically usable rip-offs of the God Cards). The cards have some interest, but overall the pack still isn't worth buying.

 

Elemental Energy (EEN)

60 cards, $3.99/pack, $59.99/box

Feature Card: Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman (Ultra)

1.5/5

The pack debuts both the Dark World decktype and the "Water Dragon" cards. Not much in the way of cards, the pack gives no reason to buy it unless you're an E-Hero user. Even then the support is of no use.

 

Cybernetic Revolution (CRV)

60 cards, $3.99/pack, $69.99/box

Feature Card: Cyber End Dragon (Ultra)

2/5

If you're building some machine decks, then CRV is perfect for you. Filled with such necessities such as Power Bond & Cyber Dragon, plus some big cards for Fusions like Miracle Fusion. Sadly, most of the mentioned cards are seldom used nowadays.

 

The Lost Millennium (TLM)

60 cards, $3.99/pack, $69.99/box

Feature Card: Ancient Gear Golem (Ultra)

1.5/5

Introduced the E-Hero, Ancient Gear decktypes. The set as a whole wasn't too exciting, but gems like Brain Control partially made up for it. Only buy in anticipation of Geartown, or if you need some more Brain Controls.

 

Crossroads of Chaos (CSOC)

100 cards, $4.99/pack, $89.99/box (all preorder)

Feature Card: Black Rose Dragon (Ultra/Ghost)

4/5

We continue the Synchro side of our game with CSOC, an encore to TDGS that at least satisfies our need for cards. More Synchros and Tuners, the pack as a whole is stupendous for Synchro users, plus all new cards like Iron Chain and Morphtronic.

 

Duelist Pack Jaden Yuki (DP1)

30 cards, $2.99/pack, $49.99/box

Feature Card: Elemental Hero Steam Healer (Ultra)

1/5

Duelist Packs are generally no-gos, they cost too much for too little and they only have a select few cards in each pack (1 "Card" is a tip card. Don't you just hate those?). Unless you like E-Heros please don't waste your money on this pack.

 

Duelist Pack Chazz Princeton (DP2)

30 cards, $2.99/pack, $49.99/box

Feature Card: Armed Dragon LV 10 (Ultra)

1.5/5

As far as DPs go, it's pretty nice. The Armed Dragons are worth getting if only for trading and many of the cards can help you in enlarging your collection of trade bait.

 

Duelist Pack Jaden Yuki (DP3)

30 cards, $2.99/pack, $49.99/box

Feature Card: Elemental Hero Dark Neos (Super)

1/5

The gem of the pack is Card Trooper. The whole reason people bought the pack was to pull Card Trooper. So unless you're trying to pull Card Trooper, then don't waste your time. Sadly, CT sees little use nowadays except in local tournaments.

 

Duelist Pack Zane Trusdale (DP4)

30 cards, $2.99/pack, $49.99/box

Feature Card: Infernal Dragon (Ultra)

2/5

Machine decks have Power Bond, Cyber Dragon, Limiter Removal, and Chimeratech Overdragon, all of which are found in this pack. It's perfect for Machine decks based on Cyber Dragon, but other than that it has junk save for some staples like MST and Call of the Haunted.

 

Duelist Pack Aster Phoenix (DP5)

30 cards, $2.99/pack, $49.99/box

Feature Card: Destiny Hero - Malicious

1.5/5

Standard DP. It has some cards you'd like (Malicious, Destiny Draw) but they are found as Ultras and the rest of the set don't justify paying $3-$4 on.

 

Duelist Pack Jaden Yuki 3 (DP06)

25 cards, $3.49/pack, $49.99/box

Feature Card: Evil Hero Malicious Fiend

2/5

Probably the best Jaden DP to date, it debuts some pretty wicked (literally) Evil Heros, plus a new E-Hero in Captain Gold and Neos Alius. If you play Big City/Little City then this pack has some nice stuff for you.

 

Duelist Pack Jesse Anderson (DP07)

25 cards, $3.49/pack, $49.99/box

Feature Card: Phantom Skyblaster

1/5

Now we have Jesse's DP, containing really nothing other than Crystal Beasts. The pack has all you want for a Crystal Beast deck, but nothing for anything else. Useful as trade bait/toss-ins only.

 

That's all for now! If you need me for anything Yugioh, or are wanting to try out for our Review Crew, then drop me a line at crzydrvr1995@gmail.com. Look for my next article on the Structures and Starters all beginners should start off with!