Article # 30 - Devilish Angels

My article for today, and 30th article in all, will be featuring 2 new and powerful high-level cards from the latest Japanese set release, a few other Angel-type Monsters, and a Field Magic card, as well, all from the same Japanese set; 308 - Sanctuary of the Sky. Let’s begin my 30th article with a look at the Great Angel - Zeraht.

 

Great Angel - Zeraht

Light/Angel - Level 8 - 2800/2300

Effect: This card cannot be Normal Summoned. You can only Special Summon this Monster when a {Sanctuary of the Sky} is on the Field, and by sacrificing one face-up {Warrior of Zera} on your Field. You may discard one Light-type Monster from your hand to destroy all of your opponent’s Monsters on the Field. This Effect can only be used if you have a {Sanctuary of the Sky} in play.

Great Angel - Zeraht was an Ultra/Parallel/Ultimate Rare from the Japanese 308 set. It will be released in English in the set after Invasion of Chaos.

Great Angel - Zeraht can be a very powerful Angel-type Monster, but its Effect and Summoning requirements are usually hard to utilize to your advantage.

Zeraht cannot be Normal Summoned, so that’s somewhat of a drawback to it. Also, you can only Special Summon it by sacrificing a face-up Warrior of Zera while a Sanctuary of the Sky is in play. That’s going to be hard to do a majority of the time, what with all the Monster and M/T removal out there nowadays. And note that Zeraht cannot be Special Summoned from the Graveyard, even if it had been successfully Special Summoned by its Effect before-hand. Only means only. That’s another drawback about this Monster card.

If you can manage to get it out with some protection for your Sanctuary of the Sky, though, your opponent could be in for a whole mass of trouble. With a simple discard of a Light-type Monster from your Hand (Making Zeraht best in Angel and/or Light-type based Decks) you can get a Thunderbolt-like Effect out of Zeraht, destroying all of your opponent’s Monsters. Now that’s certainly useful, and especially with Zeraht having a powerful ATK strength of 2800. But note that Effect, as well. It can only be used if Sanctuary of the Sky is in play, on your side of the Field.

To Special Summon Zeraht in the first place by sacrificing a Warrior of Zera (Which is a Level 4, Effect-less 1600/1600 Earth/Warrior-type Monster from 308), Sanctuary of the Sky must be on the Field, but it doesn’t matter which side of the Field that it’s on. (Yours or your opponent’s) But to use Zeraht’s Effect, there must be a Sanctuary of the Sky in play on your side of the Field.

Great Angel - Zeraht is certainly a very interesting Monster card, yet very hard to utilize in most situations. It shouldn’t be labeled as a “bad” card, though, in my opinion, because if you can get it out with the right protection and in the right Deck, Zeraht could do you a lot of good, and it can be a very effective Monster card. Too bad it doesn’t have a lower DEF strength so that it could be searched by the Witch. Unfortunately, that’s another drawback about Zeraht, that it cannot be searched.

Overall, I’d say Zeraht is a very fun Monster card that requires a lot of skill to utilize correctly in any Deck it’s used in. I’d give the Great Angel - Zeraht an overall rating of 6.5 / 10.

For the next card of today’s article, we take a look at Sanctuary of the Sky..

Sanctuary of the Sky

Field Magic

Effect: Battle damage done to the controller of any Angel sub-type Monsters due to those Angel-type Monsters being in Battle is reduced to zero. 

Sanctuary of the Sky was a Rare card from the Japanese 308 set. Coming in English in the set after Invasion of Chaos, as well.

Sanctuary of the Sky’s a nice Field Magic card for Angel-types. The drawback about it being that it doesn’t give Angels any ATK-boosts. It does, however, prevent any battle damage being done to your Angel Monsters, which is always nice protection to have for your LP.

Note that just battle damage is reduced to zero. That doesn’t stop your Monsters from being vulnerable to destruction. If your Angel-type Monster got attacked by a higher-ATK Monster of your opponent’s while SotS is in play, the battle damage would be reduced to zero, but the Monster would still be destroyed.

Sanctuary of the Sky is a key card for many Angel Decks, these days, and especially for Angel Decks using any of the Angels from the 308 set, which become more powerful and more usable with Sanctuary of the Sky in play.

A drawback about SotS, like all Field/Continuous Magic Cards, is that it’s extremely susceptible to M/T destruction. That’s why it could be nice to include some protection along with it, like Magic Drain and/or Judgment of Anubis.

Overall, Sanctuary of the Sky is a pretty good Field Magic card, and in Angel Decks, which are basically the only Decks it’d be seen in, I’d rate it a 7.8 / 10.

For the third card of today’s article, we have the Agent of Knowledge - Mercury..

Agent of Knowledge - Mercury

Light/Angel - Level 4 - 0/1700

Effect: During your opponent’s End Phase, if you have zero cards in hand, you may Draw one card during your next Standby Phase.

Common from 308 set.

The Agent of Knowledge can be a pretty useful Monster card for some extra draw power when you need it. Like in a situation where your opponent might have just got to your hand with a bunch of Hand Disruptors or Monsters like Don Zaloog.

Although its ATK isn’t anything (literally), it can provide a semi-feasible DEF strength, whilst providing you with cards when you need them most; when you have 0 cards in hand.

Mercury’s not so good of a Monster card to use in anything but Angel-type Decks, but it can sometimes be good for Side-Decking. It can be searched by Critter or Shining Angel, so that gives it a little speed, as well.

1700 DEF won’t be able to hold out for long, but for the time that it does, it could benefit you greatly in some situations.

Note that it’s during the opponent’s End Phase. How many cards you have during your next turn after your Draw Phase doesn’t affect how the Effect works. Just so long as it’s face-up on the Field, if you have 0 cards in hand during your opponent’s End Phase, you’ll be drawing a card during your next Standby Phase, no matter what.

I’d give the Agent of Knowledge - Mercury an overall rating of 6 / 10. Moving on, we have the Agent of Creation - Venus..

Agent of Creation - Venus

Light/Angel - Level 3 - 1600/0

Effect: For every 500 LP you pay, you may Special Summon one Holy Shine Ball from your Hand or Deck to the Field.

Common from 308 set.

The Agent of Creation can be a pretty good Monster card to use in some Decks. Its stats aren’t too impressive, but 1600 ATK isn’t too bad, and with 0 DEF, it can be searched by the Witch. Being Level 3 can be beneficial in some situations, as well.

For every 500 LP you pay, you can Special Summon a Holy Shine Ball from your Deck or Hand.. That Effect can prove to be pretty useful in many situations. It could put up a nice DEF for you, stall, get them out for some easy Monsters to get rid of for Sacrifice for a high-level Monster, etc.

It may not seem like much, since Holy Shine Ball is just a Light/Angel - Level 2 - 500/500 Monster card, but it’s really a pretty nice Effect for the Agent of Creation. Thin your Deck out by up to 3 cards, and get an extra (up to) 3 Monster cards out onto the Field.

Overall, Agent of Creation - Venus is a pretty effective Monster card, and Angel Decks aren’t the only Decks it can fit well in. I’d give it an overall rating of 6.7 / 10. For the next card of today’s article, we have the Agent of Power - Mars..

Agent of Power - Mars

Light/Angel - Level 3 - 0/0

Effect: This card cannot be affected by any effects of Magic cards. If you have {Sanctuary of the Sky} in play, and your LP exceeds your opponent’s, the ATK and DEF strengths of this Monster are both raised by the difference in LP.

Super Rare from 308 set.

The Agent of Power is certainly an interesting Angel-type. It can pretty much work well in Burners and Angel-based Decks.

As is obvious by looking at its stats, they’re nothing to be too proud of, but it can be searched by the Witch, Critter, and Shining Angel. Mars is unaffected by any Magic card Effects, so when Mars is out on the Field, the only things you have to worry about getting to your Agent of Power would be Traps or Monsters.

Mars has the capability to gain stats of enormous proportions. Just get Sanctuary of the Sky out on the Field, and if your LP exceeds our opponent’s, say 8000 to 5000, your lead, your Level 3 Monster will have stats of 3000/3000. Not too shabby.

Luckily for it, though, Sanctuary of the Sky doesn’t need to be in play for its Effect of being unaffected by Magic to be active. But SotS can be easily destroyed, so it’s not likely that if you get something good from its stat-gaining Effect, that it will last too long. The SotS must be yours, though. If your opponent has one on the Field, that won’t count towards enabling Mars to use its Effect.

I’d give the Agent of Power - Mars an overall rating of 6.5 / 10. For the 6th card of today’s article, let’s take a look at the Agent of Judgment - Saturn.

Agent of Judgment - Saturn

Light/Angel - Level 6 - 2400/0

Effect: If your LP is higher than your opponent’s, you may sacrifice this card from the Field to activate the following Effect:

Deal damage to your opponent equal to the value by which your LP exceeds theirs.

This Effect cannot be used unless you have {Sanctuary of the Sky} in play. If you activate this Effect, you must skip your Battle Phase for that turn.

Ultra/Parallel Rare from 308 set.

The Agent of Judgment can be a pretty powerful Angel Monster, for some Burners, as well as Angel-based Decks. It has a strong ATK strength for just one sacrifice, and with its 0 DEF, it can be searched by the Witch.

Saturn has a powerful Effect that can be used only when you have Sanctuary of the Sky in play, and when your LP exceeds your opponent’s. The SotS must be yours. If your opponent has one on the Field, that won’t count towards enabling Saturn to use its Effect. Here’s an example of how its Effect works.

LP: You - 5800, Opponent - 2900

Your Field: Sanctuary of the Sky, Saturn

Opponent’s Field: 2 set Monsters, 1 set M/T card

Your turn, Main Phase 1, choose to activate Saturn’s Effect by sacrificing it from the Field. Your LP exceeds your opponent’s by 2900, therefore 2900 LP damage is done to the opponent. You win.

Note that if you use the Effect, you won’t be getting a Battle Phase for that turn. Therefore, if you have already entered your Battle Phase for the turn, you couldn’t choose to activate its Effect afterwards.

With 2400 ATK and a what-could-be-devastating Effect, Saturn’s overall a pretty good Monster card. I’d give the Agent of Judgment - Saturn an overall rating of 7 / 10. The need for Sanctuary of the Sky is a bit of a drawback for each of these Angels.

For the 7th and final card of today’s review, we have the Devil Mazera.

Devil Mazera

Dark/Demon - Level 8 - 2800/2300

Effect: This Monster cannot be Normal Summoned. You can only Special Summon this Monster by sacrificing one face-up {Warrior of Zera} on your Field while {Demon’s Lair - Pandemonium} is on the Field.

When this Monster is successfully Special Summoned, your opponent must randomly discard 3 cards from their hand. This Effect cannot be used unless {Demon’s Lair - Pandemonium} is on your side of the Field.

Secret Rare from 308 set.

Devil Mazera looks very intriguing at first, but it’s a pretty hard card to utilize to your advantage. If you’re able to, though, it’s going to be a Monster card that you like a lot.

Like the Great Angel - Zeraht, Devil Mazera cannot be Special Summoned by anything other than its Effect of sacrificing a Warrior of Zera when Demon’s Lair - Pandemonium (English card = Pandemonium, from DCR) is on the Field. No revival or anything with Mazera. And for its Effect to work, the Demon’s Lair must be on your side of the Field, but to Special Summon it, the Demon’s Lair can be on either side of the Field.

Devil Mazera has some good stats, at 2800/2300, but since it can’t be searched, it’s a bit of a drawback in terms of speed. It’s not exactly easy to get out and utilize in the first place, so the lack of speed can really hurt it sometimes.

If you can set off its Effect, though, then your opponent is in for quite a bit of trouble. 3, yes, THREE random discards from your opponent’s Hand when you successfully Special Summon Devil Mazera. And after that, you still have a 2800 ATK Monster out on the Field. Now that’s power, though power that is very hard to utilize. It’s not too often you’ll have a Demon’s Lair in play, with Warrior of Zera on the Field and Devil Mazera in hand.

Overall, it’s a very fun card to play, and if able to be utilized correctly and effectively, Devil Mazera can be a very powerful Monster. I’d give Devil Mazera an overall rating of 6.7 / 10.

The following picture is in order of the Monsters in this article, (top to bottom, left to right) and Sanctuary of the Sky is pictured there in the middle.

Now time for a little poll.. Just make your vote here as to what type of Monsters you’d like me to review next. There may also be a few more polls in the future so that you all can decide what you’d most like to see an article on.

What Type of cards to Review Next? Water / Sea Serpents Magicians Insects Dinosaurs Toons [Current Results]

And that’ll do it for my biggest article yet, Article # 30 - Devilish Angels. E-mail me with any questions and/or comments at dm7fgd32@hotmail.com

Until next time...

~DM7~