Ah, look at that field of columns with total powers of 20000 or 21000 each, all waiting to force out a minimum of 2 cards from your opponent for each attack because their Vanguard is defending with a Power of 10000 or 11000. But wait, BT05: Awakening of Twin Blades has appeared, and with it, a trio of units that shall change the way we play the game! With the new expansion set come the hybrid unit, Majesty Lord Blaster, and the Crossride units, Dragonic Overlord the End and Phantom Blaster Overlord. These units have made it possible to guard what were once large attacks with as little as 1 card with a Shield value of 10000 due to their potential to have a defensive Power of 12000 and 13000, respectively, given the right conditions. On top of that, they have very dangerous abilities in the forms of either a Critical boost or a second Twin Drive. Because of these, these units will be showing up left and right in the competitive scene. However, not to fret! These units may seem dangerous on paper, but in reality, they are not difficult to stand up against, and whether you play with the same units or not, there are ways to easily deal with the decks that contain them.
With defensive powers of 12000 and 13000, the “magic numbers” (Defensive power of the opposing Vanguard + 5000 x n where n is any positive whole number) we have been aspiring to make before the release of BT05: Awakening of Twin Blades can be nullified with 1 less card. Columns of a total Power less than 17000 can be shoved away with a card with a mere Shield value of 5000, making certain units undesirable to keep on the field. With that said, how do we properly combat Crossrides? Aside from a select few combinations, it is almost impossible for most decks to establish rear guard columns with a total Power of 22000 or 23000 before triggers to force out a minimum of 15000 Shield from the opponent. With that said, we should now aim for ways to achieve the smaller but still effective goal of forcing out at least 10000 Shield per attack when dealing with these behemoths or find alternative ways to keep them at bay. How should we go about with this?
1. Vanillas are your best friend. Forever and always.
Every clan (except Nubatama and Etranger, which are probably bound to be nowhere near the level of completion of all of the others) has a Grade 1 unit with 8000 Power and a Grade 2 unit with 10000 Power. These units lack skills (hence the term Vanilla) but in return, boast a high Power for their respective Grades. Because of their good strong base Power, they are usually considered Staples. As such, you probably have several of these in your deck already. Put these two in the same column and what do you get? A column that can attack for 18000 Power, demanding 10000 Shield for defending against it before triggers are applied. Power columns of this magnitude may seem small compared to what you're used to, but this will suffice for turns to come.
This can be taken further by using units that can gain a Power boost under certain conditions (units that require a Counter-Blast for a boost are usually undesired unless you are low on units that utilize Counter-Blasts). With the power boosts, such units can be at an offensive Power of 11000-13000 before being boosted. This gives you more leeway to make those columns of 18000 or higher power to be able to force out those Shields in most optimal way as possible.
The 20000/21000 columns that were mentioned earlier are still a pretty effective way to deal with these units of a higher base Power. Yes, they will force out 1 less card for defense overall, but they will still put in work. Do not shy away from making such columns. They will still be effective in your path to victory against the hybrid and Crossride units. These columns will also put in work in other parts of your approach in combating against decks with the potential to dish out these units as their Vanguards. Yes, it may seem like a waste because you will lack the ability to intercept as such columns are usually made with Grade 3 units as the attacking base unit and your attacks are being disregarded at the cost of 1 less card for your opponent, but sometimes you just can't make the optimal columns you want if you are lacking Grade 2 units.
2. Isolating the Enemy Vanguard
If you are unable to make large enough columns or you are getting fed up with your attacks being easily shoved away, going after your opponent's rear guards may prove to shift tides in your favor. Without rear guards to back it up, the opponent will have to either be forced to dedicate more resources onto the field or have less attacks than desired. Your opponent may also be inclined to use up more cards to defend certain rear guards than if you were to target his larger Vanguard. There can only be so many units that can be used as rear guards, and ridding your opponent of them can easily turn the tables your way if you are able to maintain your own field set-up.
Majesty Lord Blaster in particular may be something that can be stopped early on. Targeting a rear guard Blaster Blade or Blaster Dark may set your opponent back a few turns until they can acquire both pieces on the field again to activate Majesty Lord Blaster's CONT skill. Dealing with a Majesty Lord Blaster at 10000 defensive Power is definitely going to be more comfortable than one at 12000, so don't hesitate to take out those Blaster units on those rear guard circles!
3. Hit him when he's weak!
This applies particularly to the Crossrides but can also apply to Majesty Lord Blaster if the conditions of his CONT skill of Power +2000/Critical +1 were not met. Because of the way Crossrides work, you will be given a chance to take advantage of the base unit's(the one that is required to be in the Soul in order for the Crossride unit to gain his Power +2000 permanent boost) lower defensive power, so make use of that chance to hit that Dragonic Overlord, Phantom Blaster Dragon, or Majesty Lord Blaster if his CONT skill is not active where it hurts!
It is also a bit painful for the opponent if they are forced to ride Dragonic Overlord the End or Phantom Blaster Overlord before they can ride Dragonic Overlord or Phantom Blaster Dragon, respectively, so be sure to take full advantage of that lack of Power boost if that is the case. The Kagero clan, the clan that Dragonic Overlord the End belongs to, does not have a surefire way to instantly place Dragonic Overlord in the Soul if Dragonic Overlord the End is already the Vanguard, so those columns meant for forcing out huge amounts of shield from Vanguards with a defensive Power of 11000 will be valid for at least a few turns (Your opponent may choose to ride Dragonic Overlord over Dragonic Overlord the End in hopes to Crossride on his following turn. Of course, this would you give you some time for some sweet, sweet Power abuse.).
An early game rush may not be a bad idea as well to widen the damage gap, but do be careful when doing this. Do not over-zealously call Trigger units with a Shield value of 10000 to your rear guard circles unless perhaps your opponent is stuck at Grade 0 or 1.
The bottom line is remember to keep calm and play your game as you usually would while implementing the above guidelines when necessary. No need to stress over a difference of 1000-2000!
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