Attention Duelists! There is about to be an “evil” of “swarms” about to take over the dueling circuit and you need to make sure your deck will be able to take down this mighty force. Known as Evilswarms!
Now to start off what are Evilswarms? Evilswarms are an exceed deck that focus on summoning rank 4 monsters! Ways they are able to do this are by cards returning the field by skipping out on your turn much like a Wind-Up Rabbit (Evilswarm Thunderbird) Summoning twice in a turn (Evilswarm Castor) Just being able to special summon themselves cause they have less monsters then you do (Evilswarm Mandragora) By Being able to throw down a Rescue Rabbit for a quick rank 4 monster by bringing out 2 Evilswarm Heliotrope’s! Now the question is what rank 4’s is this great force bringing out? For starters their boss monster which has been one of the most anticipated cards I have seen in while is Evilswarm Ophion! This might dragon weighs in a mighty 2550 attack with an effect of: While this card has Xyz Material, Level 5 or higher monsters cannot be Special Summoned. Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; add 1 "Infestation" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. By not being able to summon a level 5 or higher monster in some decks can just be a total blowout and you could be able to ride that effect to victory alone. Being able to add the Infestation spell card is also very game breaking. Infestation Pandemic will most likely be the card Ophion will be searching out. With the effect of this: All face-up "lswarm" monsters you currently control are unaffected by other Spell/Trap effects this turn. The Pandemic will be able to protect Ophion from any near danger making this mighty dragon pretty powerful and the Evilswarm player will try to be riding this card to victory. Now Evilswarm Ophion will most likely the most feared card you have in this match up as it is the heart and soul of the deck. So if you have a deck that needs to be special summoning level 5 or higher monsters, you’re going to have to make sure this card won’t be on the board for long. I’m basically going to go over some great side deck choices you can have for going against this deck!
Now for starters I’m just going to say this. SIDE OUT YOUR DARK HOLE AGAINST EVILSWARMS. Dark Hole has no real point going against this deck as the Pandemic will just stop this card from going off 99% of the time. Any spell/trap removal card (Torrential Tribute, Mirror Force, Soul Taker, etc) are not good against this deck at all! Now I’m going to start with my list of a whopping 20 cards you can side in against this match up! Some of these cards are deck specific according to what deck you are running so they aren’t the best for every deck but with 20 “Ophions” you should be able to take this deck down with ease.
Abyss Soldier – Level 4 – Aqua Atk: 1800 Def: 1300
“Once per turn: You can discard 1 WATER monster to the Graveyard to target 1 card on the field; return it to the hand.”
Pros: Great card for Mono/Undine Mermail to side in. Water monsters get effects off while discarding for Abyss Solider. Can Return Ophion back to the deck. Not only can it return Ophion but, it can also return any faceup card on the field to the hand, even your own cards such as Abyss – Sphere so you could reuse that baby! Pretty decent attack points.
Cons: Can get Bottomless Trap Hole/Torrentialed/Solemned/Effect Veilered/etc. Wastes your normal summon. With Macro Cosmos or Dimensional Fissure on the field he cannot use his effect as the card must go to the grave.
Airorca – Level 3 – Sea Serpent – Atk:1400 Def: 300
“Once per turn: You can banish 1 Fish, Sea Serpent, or Aqua-Type monster from your hand to target 1 face-up card your opponent controls; destroy that target, then banish this card until your next Standby Phase.”
Pros: Can destroy Ophion! Also can get rid of Macro Cosmos/Dimensional Fissure so you can go off! Deep Sea Diva can bring him out. He keeps coming back dodging your opponents turn so you can keep reusing him!
Cons: Low attack. Needs resources to use effect. If your opponent plays Effect Veiler on his effect you pretty much lost that duel because you wasted your normal summon and pitched a card for nothing.
Consecrated Light – Level 1 – Fairy – Atk: 0 Def: 0
“Neither player can Normal or Special Summon DARK monsters or declare an attack with a DARK monster. This card cannot be destroyed by battle with a DARK monster, and you take no Battle Damage from that battle.”
Pros: Going first and summoning this against Evilswarms can be a total blowout card. Stops your opponent in their tracks. Can come out from One For One!
Cons: Normal Summon. No attack or Defense. Horrible draw late game, it’s really only good turn one.
Genex Ally Duradark – Level 4 – Machine – Atk: 1800 Def: 200
“Once per turn, during your Main Phase, you can select 1 face-up Attack Position monster your opponent controls with the same Attribute as this card, and destroy it. This card cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.”
Pros: Dark monster and machine! Level 4. One card out to Ophion or any evilswarm!
Cons: Can get Bottomless Trap Hole/Torrentialed/Solemned/Effect Veilered/etc. Wastes your normal summon. Just see’s too easy to stop his effect from going off. Forbidden Dress or a Safe Zone can stop you from being able to target the monster you want to.
Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo – Level 4 – Rock – Atk: 1200 Def: 1300
“Neither player can Special Summon monsters. When this card is flipped face-up: Destroy all Special Summoned monsters on the field.”
Pros: Setting this can clear their swarms of XYZ’s off the board. Stops them from summoning the exceeds period unless they get over this card first.
Cons: Effect of no special summoning can shut your plays down sometimes. Low attack and Defense. Takes up normal summon.
Jowgen the Spiritualist – Level 3 – Spellcaster – Atk: 200 Def: 1300
Discard 1 random card from your hand to the Graveyard to destroy all Special Summoned monsters on the field. As long as this card remains face-up on the field, no monsters can be Special Summoned.
Pros: You can use his effect on your turn to destroy all special summoned monsters. He is a Spellcaster! This fact alone is huge for when Spellbook of Judgment Day comes out!
Cons: Those attack points are horrible, Kuriboh could attack over this thing! Uses your normal summon. If this gets Effect Veilered, it just sucks… a lot.
Neo-Spacian Grand Mole – Level 3 – Rock – Atk: 900 Def: 300
At the start of the Damage Step, if this card battles an opponent's monster: You can return both monsters to the hand (without damage calculation).
Pros: One card out to Ophion or any of their exceeds while it gives you a plus 1 cause this little mole returns back to your hand! When it gets in there, its clutch.
Cons: It has to go through so much to get his effect off. First his normal summon first be good, second his attack must be good. Evilswarms are a deck of many backrow and the odds of them not having an answer to this card are rare.
Night Assailant – Level 3 – Fiend – Atk: 200 Def: 500
“FLIP: Target 1 monster your opponent controls; destroy that target. When this card is sent from the hand to the Graveyard: Target 1 Flip Effect Monster in your Graveyard, except this card; return that target to the hand.”
Pros: This card fits perfectly in a main deck that is running Tour Guide From the Underworld! If you cannot fit it in your main or simply do not run Tour Guide you could also slide this card in your side deck. Simple Effect, when the card is flipped face up target a monster your opponent controls and destroy it. A nice way to clear an Ophion off the board. It’s also a dark monster!
Cons: You have to set it. Not the best card if you’re not running Tour Guide From the Underworld. Weak attack and defense.
Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter – Level 2 – Beast – Atk: 200 Def: 100
“FLIP: You can target 1 card on the field; destroy that target. Send the top 3 cards of your Deck to the Graveyard.”
Pros: Lets you destroy any card on the field! Macro’s, Ophions, whatever you want rid of it can be gone. Let’s you mill 3 cards which can be good if you’re running a deck that gains fuel from cards being in the grave.
Cons: You have to set it! That fact alone kinda just sucks! You got to hope your opponent takes the bait and attacks into it next turn. Flipping this on your turn can be risky as it could get Effect Veilered or Fiendish Chain, etc the list goes on.
Snowman Eater – Level 3 – Aqua – Atk: 0 Def: 0
“When this card is flipped face-up: Target 1 face-up monster on the field; destroy that target.”
Pros: This card has a booty of 1900 and an awesome effect! One card out to Ophion. Can be searched with Mermail Abysspike!
Cons: You have to set the card. No attack points. I personally love this card against this matchup cause I’m a Mono Mermail Duelist and the fact that this card can be searched from Pike is just too good!
Tsukuyomi - Level 4 - Spellcaster - Atk: 1100 Def: 1400
“Cannot be Special Summoned. During the End Phase of the turn this card is Normal Summoned or flipped face-up: Return it to the hand. When this card is Normal Summoned or flipped face-up: Target 1 face-up monster on the field; change that target to face-down Defense Position.”
Pros: Put the Ophion facedown and I’m going to keep going on special summoning my level 5 or higher monsters! It’s a dark! Its Spirit so this monster keeps going to your hand so you can keep reusing his effect!
Cons: Wastes your normal summon and isn’t the out to Ophion, just puts the dragon facedown. Ophion has 1650 you’re gonna have to summon something higher than that during your turn to destroy it otherwise the Tsukuyomi did nothing.
Prohibition –Spell Card - Continuous
“Activate by declaring 1 card name. Cards with that name, and their effects, cannot be used. Cards already on the field are not affected (including face-down cards)”
Pros: You could declare the Ophion or Infestation Pandemic whatever card hurts you most in this match up and just make them have to make awkward plays they don’t want to make!
Cons: Mystical Space Typhoon can just pop this right off. If the Ophion is already in play and you draw this card, it really has no point kinda if your main purpose was to stop Ophion from hitting the board.
Black Horn of Heaven – Trap Card – Counter Trap
“When your opponent would Special Summon a monster: Negate the Special Summon, and if you do, destroy it.”
Pros: Evilswarms are an exceed based deck and Black Horn of Heaven can negate all those summons! This card is perfect if you’re running somewhat of a control deck. This card is a counter trap getting around the Infestation Pandemic as to cards like bottomless wouldn’t as they could just simply chain it but because of the counter trap being spell speed 3 they couldn’t! I really like this card in decks such as Gadgets, Brotherhood, Heros, etc!
Cons: Doesn’t do anything if the exceed monster is already in play. Really only good for those before plays to stop it from happening. Not a recovery card from what your opponent just played. This card is kind of a bad late game draw for this reason.
Breakthrough Skill – Trap Card – Normal
“Target 1 face-up Effect Monster your opponent controls; negate the effects of that opponent's face-up monster, until the end of this turn. During your turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target 1 face-up Effect Monster your opponent controls; negate that target's effects until the end of this turn.”
Pros: Say your opponent goes and summon Ophion, you chain this card to his effect. During your turn then you can use Breakthrough Skills effect in the graveyard to negate the effect of stopping you from summoning level 5 or higher monsters. That is pretty good! This card can also stop Recuse Rabbit’s effect if played on the summon of the bunny.
Cons: The Breakthough Skill must go to the graveyard to use its 2nd effect. If they go an chain an Infestation Pandemic when you play this card when they try to use Ophion’s effect, it just blows making the breakthrough a pretty pointless card.
Chaos Trap Hole – Trap Card – Counter Trap
“Pay 2000 Life Points. Negate the Summon of a LIGHT or DARK monster and remove it from play.”
Pros: Is that 1 Solemn Warning just not cutting it for you? Well this card against Evilswarms pretty much just lets you runs extra copies of Solemn Warning! The monster is also banished which isn’t horrible either. By this card being a counter trap really helps. Evilswarms also tend to play Thunder King Rai-Oh which this card also negates!
Cons: Only good before your opponent summons the monster, not afterword’s. Bad late game draw as your life points could be too low to use this card too.
Nordic Relic Laevateinn – Trap Card – Normal
“Select 1 face-up monster on the field that destroyed a monster by battle this turn. Destroy the selected monster. Cards and effects cannot be activated in response to this card.”
Pros: This card is just pro period. If your opponent takes the bait attacks your monster, you can flip this card over after they destroyed and and boom! Bye Bye Ophion. You could also do suicide with your monsters then play this card! Seems good to me! Nothing can also be chained to this card.
Con: A monster has to get destroyed by battle for this effect to go.
Rivalry of Warlords – Trap Card – Continuous
“Each player can only control 1 Type of monster. Send all other face-up monsters they control to the Graveyard.”
Pros: The Evilswarm Deck is all different types of monsters! From plants, to rocks, to dragons, to warriors! Everything is different. If you can flip this card early and the Evilswarm Player doesn’t have an out to it, you can simply control the game state from there.
Cons: Not all decks can play this, which really is the biggest downside, it can end up hurting you a lot too. Also If the plays already went off, this card isn’t too amazing but, if my deck could side deck this card that wouldn’t stop me at all from siding it in.
LASTLY.
Dust Tornado/ Royal Decree/Trap Stun
Now I’m going to assume you already know what all these cards do. Reasoning I put all these cards together is because they are all spell/trap hate!
Pros: The Evilswarm decks consist of an average deck of about 12 traps! That’s a lot of trap cards. Having some ways to stop these traps is never bad and by stopping the backrow it will allow your plays to go off. Evilswarms are also a deck that can side and even main Macro Cosmo’s so if your deck gets shut down by a card as simple as that, make sure your gonna be having a couple outs in your deck for that.
Cons: Royal Decree can lose out to MST. Trap Stun only lasts for the turn. Decree and Trap Stun only hit trap cards so Book of Moon, Forbidden Dress etc . can still be played. Dust Tornado can only hit one card although it can hit any backrow card and it destroys it.
I Hope by reading this article you learned a little something about the Evilswarm match up. This deck is something that defiantly will be getting some play at locals, regionals, YCS’s, and even the WCQ. YCS New Jersey is going to be a great test for this deck to see what it has. You’re going to have to be ready for this deck. You can never be too prepared. The more knowledge you know, the more powerful you are.
For any of you guys who would like to know who I am, I been playing completive Yugioh since 2008. I started in the good old tele dad formant when I was just 12! Right now I am 17, a junior in highschool. I attended last year nationals and 6 YCS’s total. I have a couple regional tops to my name! I play in the Pennsylvania area as that’s where I’m from. Just thought I would give a general background of who I am! I would like to give a special thanks to ARG for posting this up. This is my first article I have ever written for you guys and if the feedback is good I plan on many more to come! If you have any questions please leave them in the comments below. Until next time guys, Play Hard or Go Home!
- Jarret Zimmerman
Latest posts by Jarret Zimmerman (see all)
- 20 Ways to Stop the Evilest of Swarms - May 6, 2013
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