Evilswarm (June 2021 - LIOV Format)

Modern twist to Evilswarm that I've been tweaking.  There are other variants that can work with a different hand trap arsenal (room for 9), or even cutting down to 6 and adding 3 Allure of Darkness or Triple Tactics Talent since the deck can have some minor consistency issues in the opening hand, and can have a tough time against hand traps.

Your win condition is most often going to be Ophion shutting down Level 5 specials vs. the wide range of decks which focus on just that.  (EX. Dogmatika Invoked/any Invoked variant, Dinos, Adimancipator/Eldlich Synchro variants, etc.)

Against decks like Zoodiac and other meta R4NK spam decks, you're typically praying for TCBOO, or other floodgate locks since Ophion falls flat in most cases.  You may want to protect these with Key Beetle, if possible.  You could consider teching in Safe Zone if you want that 2014 JOTL Dragon Ruler format feel, if you want to swap to a heavier floodgate variant.  Safe Zone has some fun interactions, and can even potentially take your opponent's monsters with it if it's destroyed blindly.

Utopia Double OTK Combo, or stealing a monster with Bahamut, attacking, and then overlaying Zeus can also help to close out these games. Hitting your opponent's Normal Summon with Imperm/Ash can very often leave a board hanging with an <2k ATK monster, leaving them open to a huge 10k ATK anime swing from the OG Utopia to close the game. Bagooska and Origin can help to slow down and simplify these games states as well, with support from your plethora of hand traps and incredibly strong/versatile backrow options.  

Simply making an Origin, and running something over for a free Kerykeion into R4NK/Ophion play can be a great option too, and activating Exciton under Origin can be absolutely devastating in the right situation.  Torrential is a very viable tech option for this reason, depending on the meta.

In my opinion, going Infection vs Pandemic with Ophion search is often the way to go, just because a nearly guaranteed Kerykeion safety net for the next turn can be huge if your board is broken.  Obviously if you know you're facing a S/T heavy deck, Pandemic will likely be the better option if Ophion is worth protecting.

Crackdown is an insanely strong trap in this deck as well.  Stealing something like Aleister can completely shut down the Invoked engine for the turn, and provides you with R4NK/Link fodder next turn.  Ideally you want to keep whatever you steal as XYZ material when possible, but you can just as easily link them off for Unicorn, Phoenix, or even Apollousa when the situation calls for them.  If TCBOO is effective vs the deck you're facing, consider swapping Crackdown out for side deck options in Games 2&3.  Other Floodgates (EEV, Anti-Spell Fragrance, etc.) are good choices if they're viable, or something like Evenly Matched when going 2nd.  If TCBOO isn't viable, keep Crackdown and replace with a more viable floodgate/tech options.

I'm not a huge fan of Allure unless you run Dark hand traps such as Dimensional Shifter or D.D. Crow.  It may be worth it if you run 3 of either, plus main deck Mandragora?  But I would rather try to fit in Triple Tactics Talent if you want extra draw power, just due to it's versatility and how hard hand traps can hurt because the deck can be so reliant on Rabbit/Dai/RotA as starters.  Dai and RotA can both double as Ash bait, when needed.  

Iron Dragon Tiamaton is another super interesting tech option for a Dark "hand trap", and if you summon Ophion straight to your EMZ, you can slow a lot a decks down substantially if you're able to land Tiamaton to lock out the other EMZ.  This card also has FANTASTIC synergy with Origin, providing a super soft domain lock by blocking Origin's up arrow if summoned beneath it in the same column, only allowing your opponent to SS from the extra into the opposite EMZ.   It will also give Origin protection if you summon beneath it in the same column, even if there is no monster on your opponent's side above it.  This variant is super fun, and I recommend it as well.  Keep in mind, this is very good Game 1, but your opponent will often be prepared for Tiamaton later in the match.