Welcome again to DeathJester’s Dojo. This week I will be discussing Deck Style Relationships. If you enjoyed the material from my last article, I promise that you won’t be disappointed with this read. 

Aggro vs. Control vs. Aggro/Control vs. Combo 

As I discussed last week there are four styles of decks: Aggro, Control, Aggro/Control, and Combo. Each style has its own specific characteristics and specific strategies. (You can refer back to my last article by clicking here, Insert Hyperlink). Also, each style shares a “relationship” with the other. What I mean by “relationship” is their match-up win percentage. In theory, each style naturally has a certain win percentage against the other styles. Look at these win percentage comparisons: 

• Aggro > Control: 50%
• Control > Aggro: 50%
• Aggro/Control > Aggro: 60%
• Aggro/Control > Control: 60%
• Aggro > Aggro/Control: 40%
• Control > Aggro/Control: 40%
• Combo > Aggro: 70%
• Combo > Control: 80%
• Combo > Aggro/Control: 70%
• Aggro > Combo: 30%
• Control > Combo: 20%
• Aggro/Control > Combo: 30%

This comparison represents the win percentages between each style. These percentages are made only by comparing the inherent characteristics of each deck style. Clearly there are a variety of factors that influence these numbers like: Metagame, Individual Skill, Opponent’s Skill, Deck Build, and Luck. I will discuss these later on in the article. At the most BASIC level, this is what wins against what. I believe that’s simple enough to understand right? I bet you can look at these comparisons and say “Oh, of course that makes sense.” If this does not make sense to you these key points will explain this better: 

• The reason why Aggro wins against Control only half of the time is because this match-up can go either way. Aggro relies on break-neck speed and fast victories. The premise behind Aggro is to defeat your opponent before he/she will have enough momentum to stop you. Control decks are naturally slow and an Aggro deck’s speed can exploit that vulnerability quite easily. Aggro’s weakness is in its late-game strategy, or lack there of. If the Control deck can force Aggro into the late-game than Aggro will lose, period. This happens because an Aggro deck does not have enough resources in the late-game to deal with a Control deck’s massive momentum that was built up the entire time Control was thwarting Aggro’s assaults. Aggro’s resources are used up much too quickly. An Aggro deck CAN be equipped with a late-game strategy, but you will risk losing some strength in your explosive beginnings that ensure your victory early.
• Control only wins 50% of the time because Aggro decks are too fast. Control relies on keeping the opponent at bay until enough resources are built up to claim a decisive victory through an abundance of ‘answers’ or ‘card advantage’. Control aims to deal with most or all threats to keep the opponent from gaining any ground on them.
• Control will not fight back unless it has the resources required to do so. Once Control acquires the needed resources, the deck can then drop its win condition on the field and annihilate the opponent without resistance. This strategy has its flaws, speed. While dealing with your opponent’s threats you sacrifice the ability to defeat your opponent quickly; hence the term ‘slow’ describes a true Control deck.
• The win percentage between Aggro vs. Control is 50/50. You could also relate this fact to subjects other than TCGs. You could relate this to Dark vs. Light, Good vs. Evil, Yin vs. Yang; each can defeat the other but can also lose to the other. Think about it.
• Aggro/Control wins 60% of the time against Aggro and Control decks. This deck style is a fusion between the two styles which gives it the characteristics of both. If you think about it carefully it makes perfect sense. What wins against Aggro? Control. What wins against Control? Aggro. The dual nature of Aggro/Control allows it to react effectively against both styles.
• An Aggro/Control deck against a Control deck will need to rely more on the Aggro side of the deck to defeat the Control deck while still being able to regulate the Control deck’s actions. A Control deck can defeat Aggro/Control be not only stopping the deck’s threats, but its answers as well. This is difficult.
• An Aggro/Control deck against an Aggro deck will need to rely more on the Control side of the deck to stave the Aggro deck’s assaults enough to preserve the ability to launch a series of attacks against the Aggro deck. An Aggro deck can defeat an Aggro/Control deck by sticking to the offensive plan to overwhelm the Control element, but the Aggro deck must be able to deal with the opponent’s threats as well. This is also difficult.
• Combo decks are much different. They win about 70%-80% of the time because of their elaborate card combinations. These card combinations can function aggressively or reactively. You could say that a Combo is like an Aggro/Control deck, but not really. Combo decks don’t care about the match-up anyway. They just put their combo in play and win. That’s all they do.
• Combo decks win by pulling off their combos. This is simple enough to understand. These combinations can be performed on the first turn (FTK), over time (OTK), or continuously throughout the game (Infinite Loop).
• An Aggro deck has a higher chance of defeating a Combo Deck over Control because of its ability to win quickly. The break-neck speed common of Aggro decks may be too much for a Combo deck to handle while trying to pull off a combination. This depends highly on the type of Combo deck.
• A Control Deck has a lower chance of defeating a Combo over Aggro simply because of speed. A Control may be able to deal with the combination with greater success but some Combo decks are faster than others. Again, this depends HIGHLY on the type of Combo deck.
• The win percentages involving Combo decks vary between each type of Combo deck, those percentages are very general.
• Remember that these statistics are based on the natural characteristics of each style. They are, by no means, set in stone. They are influenced by 5 factors.

The 5 Influencing Factors 

As mentioned before, there are five influencing factors that affect the win percentages between deck styles: Metagame, Individual Skill, Opponent’s Skill, Deck Build, and Luck. Succeeding with a specific deck style requires careful analysis of each of these factors as well as the style’s natural strengths and weaknesses. 

·        Metagame - Your metagame is a major factor that influences your win percentage. For example, your particular metagame may be chock full with Aggro decks, so playing an Aggro deck may not be the best bet. Playing a Control deck will better your chances of winning. Also, when you talk metagame you must make sure you know what metagame you are concerning yourself with. Patterns that are present in your area’s metagame may not be present in another area. At the same time, you have to consider the National metagame and what is common at national events like Shonen Jump Championships or Nationals. Precise metagame analysis can make or break your tournament success and your YGO career.

·        Individual Skill - Yes, there is skill involved in YGO (Contrary to popular belief). Your individual ability to correctly analyze situations is crucial to the success of your chosen style of play. You must know how to play your cards, why you play them, and how to use them.

·        Opponent’s Skill - Let’s be realistic, if your opponent is REALLY good then your chances of winning are probably much lower than usual. If they know their style of play better than you know yours then kiss your victory goodbye.

·        The great Chinese strategist Sun Tzu said: “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle” – Sun Tzu, The Art of War

·        Deck Build - Your deck build is important. Your cards in your deck need to effectively execute your deck’s strategies and have adequate synergy with every other card in your deck. Your deck should be correctly proportioned to fit your deck style’s needs. If your deck does not function well then you will not play well. Don’t put cards in your deck because everyone else says you should or the last Top 8 SJC deck lists say you should place certain cards in your deck. Draw your own conclusions about each and every card in the game.

·        Luck - Of course, luck is the only intangible object in this equation. You can’t ‘give’ yourself luck and you can’t manipulate luck in your favor. I like to look at good or bad luck as a state of mind rather than some mystical “divine” force that influences the very nature of your draws. You can manipulate your state of mind, but not your luck. Think about it that way. 

Drawing Conclusions 

Now that you have an understanding of deck styles and the relationship between each of them, you are well on your way to deck building through simplicity rather than complexity. I find it much easier to think of deck building in this way rather than any of the complex theories you may have heard of in the past. I’m not saying they don’t work, but I find it much less time-consuming to get back to basics instead of memorizing a complex theory.   

Always remember that any of these ‘5 Influencing Factors’ can tip the percentages in your style’s favor. Proper manipulation of all 5 leads not to guaranteed success, but improved success. There are no guarantees in life and there aren’t any in YGO. So I say, just relax, take the simple approach to this monster we call ‘deck building’, and play the game.  

Until next time everyone, remember to relax, play your cards right, and most importantly…have fun! 

Want to talk theory? Have any comments? Perhaps you need a deck fix? Email me at deathjester86@gmail.com