The Back-Up Tactics

Earlier in Rise Of The Duelist in 2020, a very controversial card by the name of Triple Tactics Talent sparked multiple heated debates about its usage upon its release. This Spell card allows you to activate one of three powerful effects, but only if your opponent already activated a monster effect prior. To wait for your opponent to make a move before you can progress is a very risky strategy, but pays off greatly with Triple Tactics Talent. This card was explored by one of our writers in the past, in this article here, so please read it for a greater understanding of this card.

Why am I mentioning this card now?

In Photon Hypernova, an extremely similar card has debuted. Going by a similar name with similar art, Triple Tactic Tasking provides an additional variable to the age-old question, "is Triple Tactics Talent good?" Let us take a look.

Triple Tactic Tasking 

Triple Tactic Tasking 
Normal Spell

• If your opponent has activated a monster effect this turn: Set 1 Normal Spell/Trap directly from your Deck, except "Triple Tactic Tasking" (it cannot be activated this turn), or, if your opponent controls a monster, you can add that card to your hand instead.
• You can only activate 1 "Triple Tactic Tasking" per turn.

This card is extremely similar to Triple Tactics Talent, which had since off-and-on usage in the metagame. The requirements are now less strict, only requiring your opponent to have activated a monster effect, as opposed to having activated it in the Main Phase. This is a very big difference as experienced players would usually hold their quick effects until the Standby or Battle Phase, making Triple Tactics Talent redundant in specific cases. Now, you can punish monster effects thrown at any phase, especially a Standby Phase Dimension Shifter or a Battle Phase Spright Pixies.

After your opponent satisfies the condition, you get the option to directly tutor a normal spell/trap straight from the deck! These options greatly range from simple stun cards like Infinite Impermanence and Dimensional Barrier to strong playstarters like Terraforming and Instant Fusion. The ability to directly access almost every spell or trap in your deck for a seemingly easy condition could make this a very strong card... right?

Tasking the Formats

Although this card looks very strong on paper, the additional condition of "if your opponent controls a monster" causes this card to be less successful then expected. With this additional condition, the purpose of this card has now been split into two: either this card tutors an additional layer of defense going first, like setting Appointer of the Red Lotus or Dimensional Barrier, or to fetch extenders like Mind Control and Evenly Matched going second. In the current OCG format (since this card is not yet released in the TCG), players are more inclined to place it in the side deck, along with the mentioned cards, so Triple Tactic Tasking can fulfill one of the above two purposes better.

Take a look at one such example of this side decking pattern.

Source: https://twitter.com/ygoaki/status/1588106309248827392/photo/2

However, one could argue that if the format's environment allows for the card's condition to be triggered more easily, such as more handtraps in the format, then this card's usage would be better. And that is especially true of the current OCG format! Tearlament Kashtira, the latest best deck in the format, often naturally carries 13 - 16 handtraps in the Main Deck. By baiting the opponent to drop a monster effect, you could easily recoup your losses with this card.

Take a look at such a strategy.

You can immediately notice that this player has resorted to playing multiple 1-ofs of powerful cards like Ultimate Slayer and Evenly Matched in the Main Deck, as he believes that his current metagame allows him to easily activate both Triple Tactics. These are just one of the many ways to experiment with the card, but for now, the general consensus believes that Triple Tactic Tasking belongs in the side deck.

So how good is Triple Tactic Tasking?

It is undeniable that this card is very similar to Triple Tactics Talent - they are almost the same card after all. However, this card promises an easier way to activate, and does not wield the game changing effects that Talent has. This card is only as good as the cards in your deck! But in the end, this card is practical if your opponent allows it to be good. Against specific decks such as Labrynth and Runick, this could potentially end up as a dead card in your hand, so you must identify your local environment in order to determine if this card is worth playing. It is also worth noting that both this card and Triple Tactics are being played together.

If you still have not read this article regarding Triple Tactics Talent, I highly suggest you to. You can easily substitute the arguments for Talent with Tasking in order to fully realize its potential and downsides.