Non-Effect Monsters – Yugioh Online Monthly November 2023 Coverage

The expected change of pace arrived in full force with this “neo retro” format. Strong defense and offense were both at play with a lot of hilarious interactions and play by plays.

Here’s what each player brought:

SPIRE_FAN

Best friends for life, this was the first time I played Spiral Serpent. This deck made a good example of blending old school strategies with new age support for Spiral Serpent and his Wyrm form. I was already planning on playing Spiral Serpent when this format was announced, but “my deck got leaked” by an opponent a week before the event (..they just have good taste!) I enjoyed using the cost of Twin Twisters as a benefit for Sea Stealth II. As well as being able to utilize a full Gagagigo lineup (minus Gigobyte and Jigabyte) that works well with Kairyu-Shin and his cards. We’ve already talked about all of the new ideas we’d like to bring to another round of this format, I for sure would love to see how Moray of Greed does in a deck like this. Fun games all around!

Cooldude112233445570

He’s back at it with the creative and entertaining decks. Cooldude112233445570 brought the definition of “Neo-Retro” this format has with his Dark Blade leading Metalfoes brigade lineup. With a huge array of Trap Monsters like Statue of Anguish Pattern and Stronghold the Moving Fortress, I was amazed by his use of getting out extra defensive summons to hold the lines while he sets up Wingweaver or a Pendulum Summon swarm for damaging plays. Shout outs to his Waking the Dragon -> Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon play, taking full advantage of how much Spell/Trap removal was expected at this event.

Toadyhoady

Last months champion showed up with some crazy inspirational combos. After this tournament, the other 3 contestants are preparing to use cards like Time-Tearing Morganite and Piercing the Darkness when this format comes back for another monthly. Toadyhoady brought his own wave of Metalfoes monsters with a spice of iconic monsters like Summoned Skull, Dark Magician, and Red-Eyes Black Dragon to win a handful of games. The aggressive counts of Mirror Force Cards along with (my personal favorite XYZ monster) Gagagigo the Risen make this deck one to remember as the sands of time pass.

PMurphy (Champion)

PMurphy is no stranger to building strong Bug decks, and this one arrived like a blitzing storm. With his use of Giant Ballpark, monsters like Insect Knight and Girochin Kuwagata swarmed the field with a possible OTK as the next move. With a classic lineup of 3 Mystical Space Typhoons and Solemn Judgement, PMurphy brought what is considered a peak classic styled deck with a modern powerhouse engine.

Thanks again to all of the players that entered, and congrats to PMurphy for taking home the gold. We will see you next month as we begin to arrange dates on the community discord!