Jumpin' Jack, Back in Action (Time Thief Pure, Post GFTP)

Sound the alarms, put down the hatches, hide the women and children! The goofball known as ChupiTrooper returns with yet another Time Thief list! What's gotten into him THIS time? Is he plotting some grand heist to ring in the new year? Has he finally lost it and begun to plot his revenge against those who wronged him?

 

 

 

...Nah. It's just the chemicals in my brain responding to super weird rogue strategies acting up again.

Odd and boisterous intro aside, Happy New Year, all! Congratulations on surviving the prior, taken as you will. Figure I may as well start this year off with something interesting I discovered.

Now, I'm sure my previous list, the post-Phantom Rage build of Phantom Thieves of Time can show off the unity that these history-altering vigilantes can exhibit with fellow DARK doofuses. But what about their capabilities going solo?

Well, I'd say that I and all fifteen other players of Time Thieves are in luck! By some strange miracle, Konami had the heart to grace us with another wave of support for these guys! (albeit somewhat sparse and not what we were initially expecting) Guess they really do care for these guys after all. First the indirect support line that was Phantom Rage's collection of Phantom Knights, Raidraptor, and Xyz Dragon bolstering attempts, now this. Which, I can't complain. Any friend of sweet ol' handsome Mr. Redoer's a friend of mine.

Back to the original point, it seems I've spent so much time splashing PK's with these bad boys that I never really realized how well these guys have it playing it solo. Well, maybe "solo" isn't too accurate given the presence of some certain LIGHT-Attribute helpers here, but I digress. Truth is, these guys can actually get a lot done if you focus on them and them alone! Not to say other variants of Time Thieves aren't on its level. Play whatever sings to ya, you crazy metaphorical choir conductor!

Though, full disclosure. And credit where credit is due. I've cited a majority of the decklist, combos, and ideas for this article from the two lovely lads known as BladeYGO and Rogue Theory on YouTube in their recent collaboration, Time Thief - A Timely Guide (Lore & Archetype Explained!) - Yu-Gi-Oh!. Go do yourself a big favor and check out both that video and their other content, they had me sold from this and this alone! Not to mention, they're far more talented and knowledgeable on these silly TCG matters than I'll likely ever be.

The wonderful video in question: https://youtu.be/2Rab5Am4fmk

BladeYGO's Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQfpwDdx3MNcWNYZEByt3qg

Rogue Theory's Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/megamanox1

 

With that out of the way, and without further ado, my take on pure Time Thieves awaits! Holy cow, what kinda energy crept into me while typing this? But yeah, the deck is all about Xyz material and opponent's card manipulation, bouncing out card to avoid disruptive effects, and overall just biting back hard if your opponent dares to try anything devious against you.

As always, I'll opt to go in order of archetypes, as to demonstrate each card in a set organization to go over what they do for the deck.

Time Thieves

The stars of the show. The head honchos. The big dogs---well, five head honchos and a dog, per se.

Time Thieves are back in quack-tion, at least in my humble opinion, and they're more than capable of messing with your opponent's field, deck, GY, and head in such a way that the "Virus" Traps could only dream of doing. Five Main Deck monsters and three Extra Deck monsters deep may seem kinda underwhelming, but these guys more than make up for it with what I believe to be one of the most interesting and sly methods of interaction ever since their Savage Strike Debut.

• Rounding things off as always is the mandatory three-of and equally as loyal pooch, Time Thief Regulator. Best Normal Summon in the deck, and card you want to open with, though bringing him out with a certain tribal Quick-Play Spell will do equally as well. Either way, when he's all alone on the field, he tributes himself to round up a pair of his differently-named brethren from the deck in Defense. This not only lets you set up an Xyz Summon like nothing, but also allows you to proc some of your most useful effects to get your plays started. Its second effect revives itself should an Xyz Monster you control be walked over by an opponent's monster, with the threat of being banished should it leave the field afterwards. Man's best friend, I tell you. Or um, should it be man, woman, and double machine's best friend in this case?


• Next in the line of three-ofs is the second most handsome go-getter in the deck, acting as both a play starter and extender when the situation calls. Time Thief Winder is something else, lemme tell ya. Should you Normal Summon him or activate his in-hand effect to Special Summon himself by detaching a material from an Xyz monster you control, he allows for the search of any "Time Thief" card in your deck, barring himself. Truth be told, if he's summoned period, you can activate his effect just as easily! Makes wish every Main Deck searcher was this intuitive.


• About time this deck got its dedicated Foolish-ing system, no pun intended. Popping up in Ghosts From the Past as Perpetua's past pupil, Time Thief Adjuster's the young lassie we've all been waiting for. Her first effect gives you the option whenever your other Time Thief is summoned, to summon her from your hand as a freebie. Her other's more important, however, as she lets you send a "Time Thief" card of any kind from your deck to your GY. That way, you can set up the effects of the last two Main Deck Thieves or one of their backrow when the time comes! One little thing, however. Whoever decided Adjuster needed to have the same "only one effect per turn, and only once that turn" clause as the Elemental HEROes Shadow Mist and Liquid Soldier needs like, a very light bonk on the noggin with a squeaky hammer. Just sayin'.


• Whether you're playing one or two of this next monster, he definitely puts in some work. Time Thief Bezel Ship, who looks like a projectile weapon from Touhou or Legend of Dark Witch or something, has the core role of reviving himself from the GY by detaching an Xyz material from one of your monsters, a la Winder. Unlike Winder, though, he has the same fear of leaving the field for a reason other than future Xyz material much like Regulator. But! If you should bring him out with say, a Normal Summon, the tribal Quickie, or the second-best tribal Xyz yet to come, he can tribute himself as a Quickie to attach any card from your opponent's GY to a Time Thief you control as material. In an era where Called by the Grave has been sadly Limited, this is some GY disruption worth noting. As I mentioned in my previous Time Thief list, your opponent can't use what's no longer in their GY. So chaining this effect to say, a Monster Reborn or similar revival or retrieval effect is nothing short of the bee's knees.


• Sorry OTK'ers, you won't have an easy time doing your job while Time Thief Chronocorder's on his. The reasoning for that being that he tributes himself during your opponent's Battle Phase to give you a one-time protection against battle damage. How, may you ask? Your opponent just takes the damage for you! I like to consider this Destiny HERO - Dynatag on espresso. Though you'd really only use this particular effect of his in the case of an emergency. The effect of his you really wanna go for, however, is when any Xyz Monster of yours leaves the field by a card effect (including the main man's own), he revives himself from the GY to be used as future material or the aforementioned damage reflection in a pinch. One to two will do you just fine, much like Bezel Ship.

 

• Starting the Extra Deck off right is the big man himself. The star of the show is none other than YGO's best husband with a black card border, Time Thief Redoer. The thing that might draw you to him the most is the fact that he can essentially replenish his own materials by attaching the top card of your opponent's deck to him every Standby Phase. That, and he's blessed with being brought out with any two generic Level 4 monsters. But let me tell you, this guy is far more than a splash into Traptrix or Phantom Knights. As a Quick Effect at any time in any turn, once per turn, you can detach up to three kinds of materials from him to activate corresponding effects. For a Monster, he banishes himself until the turn's conclusion in order to dodge attacks, disruptive effects, you name it. This makes him VERY hard to take out in the right hands. For a Spell, he nets you a free draw akin to Jar of Greed. And what I consider to be his best, detaching a Trap gives you a non-targeting, non-destruction removal of any face-up card your opponent has in store, simply by placing that sucker atop the deck. I cannot tell you how many times this has saved my skin. Your opponent thinks they've got Redoer on the ropes with a non-targetable or destructible bungus like Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon and the like, but a generic Rank 4 with a purple card under it can inexplicably dispatch it like it's nothing. And as you'll see further on, there will be multiple ways to put a Trap under this guy.


• Case in point, Redoer's very own prime partner comes in the form of Time Thief Perpetua. She's like the cleric and technical genius of the team, which isn't surprising given her lore and portrayal through her different iterations of the card artwork in this tribe. During either Standby Phase (remind ya of anyone?), she detaches a material in order to revive any Time Thief monster from your GY other than herself. This can be Winder for additional searching, Adjuster for more Foolish-ing, Bezel Ship during your opponent's turn to snatch their GY resources, or either of her fellow Xyz leaders should they kick the bucket prematurely. As another Quick Effect, she targets any of your Xyz monsters, emphasis on "any", to attach a Time Thief card from deck to them as material. That way you can get Redoer the Chronocorder or tribal Trap he needs at the moment, or replenish just about any other good Xyz monster you'd like to utilize more! She and Redoer are a match made in heaven. In an on-field sense, that is. Can't really confirm whether or not these two are a thing in-lore.


• I gawked when I first saw it, too. Another Extra Deck Time Thief? You'd think they'd get a tribal Link Monster (I can spitball like a dozen ideas for how it could work), but I suppose for now Time Thief Doublebarrel will fill that void just fine. I too shed an imaginary comically-sized sweat droplet when I found he couldn't attach his own materials and had to wait until the opponent used an effect to use his, but after some consideration, he can get the job done. Detaching a Monster nets him 400 extra ATK, which doesn't usually mean much but can add up and remains permanent unlike the tribal Continuous Spell. Speaking of, detaching a Spell makes him a walking non-targeting Crackdown (Jinzo - Layered, is that you?). But his best one is for detaching a Trap, which is all too familiar. Doing so is netting you a non-targeting Effect Monster negation, plain and simple (How about them apples, Dragoon?). You'll more than likely have to rely on the other Thieve's effects to make the Trap attachment to him possible, though. But I wouldn't sweat that all too much. He's more of a sidekick than a new star of the show in my eyes, but that's not to say he hasn't earned his keep. Also, I wholly agree with Mr. Rogue Theory that this guy should be localized as "Time Thief Do-Over." Rolls off the tongue FAR better than any of the localized Virtual World monsters, and just makes all the sense in context for Time Thieves in general.

 

• Barring the gadgets that make up two of the Main Deck monsters, the Time Thieves have some other nifty tools of trade to get things started. First up being Time Thief Startup, a Quick-Play that summons a Time Thief monster from your hand for free. This can de-brick your hand and get more materials on the board in a split, and also allows you to bring out Regulator for his effect without expending your Normal Summon. Alternatively in a future turn, you can banish it from your GY to attach one of each Time Thief card type to a Time Thief Xyz monster you control as material. A triple material replenish, especially to apply for all the effects of Redoer or Do-Over (Yes, I'll be referring to Doublebarrel as that for the remainder of the article), can make a heck of a difference. Especially when your deck feels all but depleted of ammo for the pair of troublemakers.


• A Continuous Spell that might not be all too important but still sees some good use, Time Thief Hack earns its stripes in two good ways. During the turn your Xyz monsters hit the field, they can't be targeted or destroyed by your opponent's card effects. As its second option, it lets you target an Xyz monster you control to give them a turn-wide power-up of 300 ATK for every material on it. And if at least one of them happens to belong to your opponent, direct attacking becomes an option for them! Imagine hopping over so many big beatsticks on your opponent's side like nothing. Just ah, beware of like, Drowning Mirror Force and stuff like that.


• For Traps, these guys have it made. Time Thief Flyback is good on-field or in the GY, for activating it lets you attach any Time Thief card from deck to your Time Thief Xyz monster as material. Typically another Flyback if Perpetua's not around to do so already. But if your opponent's silly enough to pop this card on field, they're just opening a whole nother can of worms. Either way, its effect in GY banishes itself to play Bezel Ship's game of snatching a GY card of your foe's for Redoer, Perpetua, or Do-Over's own. That way, you can really stick it to them for popping it in the first place!


• And now for another card that's gonna save your skin when the situation calls. One of your primary search targets with Winder, a Counter Trap that can come in unbelievable clutch is Time Thief Retrograde. Like Rogue Theory says, this thingie can be very telegraphed, but not necessarily any less hard to deal with once it's live. Case in point, if Redoer, Perpetua, or Do-Over are on the field at all, this baby lets you negate the activation of your opponent's backrow and then not destroy it, but attach it to one of those three as material. Imagine the insult to injury of negating their Trap, attaching it to Redoer or Do-Over, and then activating their effects to detach those suckers later on in the turn. Always keep at least one on standby, you never know when you'll need it.

 

Performage

For those of you unfamiliar to how a lot of Fusion/Xyz setup decks tend to function, these guys might seem a little oddly-placed. But I can assure you, these dubious magician dudes in a sea of Psychics more than earn their keep. They're conditional freebies in a way, one of which can recur itself or its ally.

• The one you've likely come to know best, either from the likes of Lightsworn or Shaddoll, happens to be Performage Trick Clown. His bouncing act upon that ball of his is quite fitting, as when he hits the GY by any means (discarding, detaching, Foolish-ing, you name it), he can target any Performage in your grave including himself to revive them at the cost of its whole stat line and 1000 of your LP. No worries, it's not too steep a price if you ask me. For another means of making my Rank 4's that doesn't require RNG this time around? Heck yeah, I'll ditch a stack for him!


• His partner in crime, being much easier to summon and not being a once-per-turn is Performage Hat Tricker. Simply if there are at least two monsters on the field, period, he's a freebie summon from hand that acts to extend your summons. As far as his effect to put a counter on him to prevent effect damage, I can't say I've been able to make too good use of that, even taking into account Trick Clown. But hey, all's good in the red-and-white-striped hood this pair hails from if you ask me.

 

PSY-Frame

Now I must have really lost it! You're telling me that in an archetype of Psychic-types, we're ACTUALLY going to run Psychic-type support cards? It sounds crazy, but yes! PSY-Frames happily make an appearance in this deck, and they're more synergistic with the second snatchers than you'd speedily suspect. They're likely the trio you'd expect, so I'll try and keep it brief.

• It's no secret that the Main Deck pairing of PSY-Frame Driver and PSY-Framegear Gamma are capable of dishing out some serious payback to your opponent if they wanna try and use their monster effects. Simply put, while you have a barren field and your opponent activates a monster effect, a single Gamma in your hand will be a good blessing. From there he summons both himself and Driver from your hand, deck, or GY to render the effect null and void, and the monster destroyed. Heh, rhymes. Call me crazy, but this is actually a significant out if your opponent tries to Ash your Regulator! That way, you get four summons off Regulator tributing himself instead of just two. At the end of turn, the pair banish themselves into the abyss, unfortunately. But if it's during your turn, you're more than able to use them to make...


• Another shockingly synergistic pal, this time with a blue border! PSY-Framelord Lambda has made good friends with Redoer, believe me. For those of you scratching your heads, lemme try and explain. Lambda allows you to use Gamma's negation effect even if monsters are on your field. Meanwhile, if a Psychic of yours happens to become banished (Redoer's gotcha there with his monster detachment!), she lets you, at End Phase, add a Gamma from your deck to hand. So it's all the more worthwhile for you to summon her using an already-expended Gamma and Driver during your turn! That, or use them for a Synchro Summon or something. Whichever works.

 

Main Deck Staples

Of course, I'd be silly to make a deck and not go over the more non-specific tools of trade included therein. So thankfully, that's what I've dedicated the next two sections for!

• You may have seen him in Link-based decks, including my own just previously, but here he makes another fine appearance. Parallel eXceed may be bricky, but provided you're able to Link up on the fly, he's a very useful extender. When you summon say, Lambda or Ahashima with an open Link point, make sure to plop this guy here so he brings out a copy of himself from deck, both at Level 4. And just like that, another Rank 4's at your feet!


• As if my inclusion of LIGHT-, WIND-, and EARTH-Attribute monsters in the Main Deck didn't seem crazy enough for me, here comes a WATER for good measure. Xyz Slidolphin isn't a face you'll see pop up too much, but he can act as either a freebie or an extra tool for one of your Xyz monsters. In hand, the former kicks in to bring him out to extend your plays. In grave, the same condition lets him tack on a third material to your up-and-coming Xyz monster for good measure. Dolphins truely are some of the wisest creatures on the planet, eh?


• Foolish Burial sees play as more or less an emergency button if you've no other way to, say, bin Bezel Ship or Chronocorder. Or get Trick Clown out, for that matter. A one-of you can play without shame, since after some consideration I'm not too sure whether Upstart would have a fitting home here.


• Until these poor thieves get some tribal consistency to fetch out their searchers at the beginning of games, Pot of Prosperity will have to do the job of grabbing your essential pieces to start things right. With the banish of 3 or 6 cards of your choice from the Extra Deck, likely your spare copies of Redoer, Perpetua, and some of the more situational Xyz and Links you've got, you look at the same number of cards from the top of your deck and snatch one to use immediately. It may take away some Extra Deck slots and ability to dome your opponent for lethal, not to speak of how expensive the dumb sucker is, but it'll get the job done. If this card's out of your price range, there's no shame in running Pot of Desires in its place.


• This is more of an optional pick of mine I like to run for some more unusual removal, but you're cool to replace this with something you'd rather in its place. Xyz Import is a heck of a card, lemme tell ya. Blessed with the symbol of Quick-Play Spell, on either turn it allows you to target a monster your opponent controls with equal or less ATK than an Xyz Monster of your choice, then yoinks that son of a gun to them as material. Not only does this let you get rid of monsters and interrupt plays in ways other decks otherwise can't, but imagine the craziness that'd ensue when a non-Time Thief can utilize the second half of Hack's power-up effect.


• It's an Xyz deck, so you know this pretty purple boy's gonna make an appearance. The Phantom Knights of Shade Brigandine is its name, and thanks to me you likely know this card by heart. Brings itself out as a Level 4 Normal Monster that's perfect for your Rank 4 summons. Best case scenario, to make either Redoer or Duo-ver. Speaking of, what looks and sounds better for Doublebarrel? Do-Over or Duo-ver? Pfft, I dunno.

 

Extra Deck Staples

It wouldn't be Time Thieves if they didn't have a toolbox of friends to call upon when the situation calls, now would it? As with Live and Evil Twins, these suckers are blessed to have several randos behind their back for the long haul.

• Prime example being Tornado Dragon! He's a walking MST that gets two bits of ammo that can each be fired off once per turn. That's not to say you can't reload them using Perpetua, however! I swear, that lady's a cleric for this archetype in more ways than you'd first imagine.


• Abyss Dweller is in the exact same camp, and he's beyond useful if you can spare the materials. As soon as possible during your opponent's turn, you'll want to give this bad boy a whirl as detaching a material from him shuts off your opponent's GY effects for all of their turn. And given the prevalence of decks using the GY as a second hand, I bet they won't be too prepared for a deck that uses the GY as their personal armory, now will they?


• Here to act as an emergency button coming in shocking clutch is another fun Rank 4, Number 41: Bagooska the Terribly Tired Tapir. At the cost of one of his materials during your turn, he forces all non-Link monsters on the field into defense, and negates their activated effects so long as they remain in that position. This affects your stuff as well, but if you can whip out a good Link monster to play around that, I doubt you'll have too much trouble.


• Now THIS is a card you'll want to bring out a lot. Bujinki Ahashima is a total blessing for Xyz decks as a whole, not just for her own tribe. Bringing her out with, say, the two monsters summoned off Regulator lets you bring out two L4's, one from your hand and the other from your GY, to immediately use them for an Xyz summon. This is a great way to get L4's out of your hand after you've already Normal Summoned or reuse the ones in your GY. Don't sleep on it, I urge you. Especially if you have your Xyz monster detach a material in its zone.


• Think he's in this deck because he's chasing after those who stole his time? Ahahahaaaaaaa, poor jokes aside, Number 60: Dugares the Timeless makes use as either Prosperity ammo or in a powerful situational clutch. Detaching both his materials nets you a super strong effect with a drawback on your following turn. Whether you're using him to draw, revive, or power up, he's got his moments. Though more often than not, you're definitely using the former two effects. Fingers crossed he gets a reprint someday.


• Following Dugares in the ways of Prosperity fodder is Number 101: Silent Honor ARK. You've likely seen this guy in the odd Duel Devastator box and didn't think blink twice. Well, I can't exactly say I blame you, but should he still be in your Extra Deck and you need to slurp up a Special Summoned attack position monster on your opponent's side a la Relinquished, this boisterous boat's got you covered. Or um, is it a starship? Could go either way, really.


• Trust me, you can make this bad boy turn 2 if you know what you're doing. And boy howdy is it worth it! Speaking of Dragoon-proof, in again careens Infinitrack Fortress Megaclops. The second most valuable splashable boss for Xyz decks, your opponent can only dream of stopping this guy with effects or attacks from monsters that don't have black borders. And furthermore, he can revive an Xyz from your GY by snatching a card your opponent controls for its pal to use as material! It's so generic, useful, and downright terrifying, you'd swear it was printed in Duel Overload.


• Meanwhile, if you're in need of a swift offensive finisher to your games, you're always more than welcome to run the Utopia Double package. Herein lies Number 31: Utopia Double, who searches Double or Nothing! from deck to go into either Number 31: Utopia or Number S31: Utopia the Lightning. A good way to finish off things if you've no other option.

So yeah, there's the deck! To think a pure build of these guys can be just as competent as if you're splashing another big archetype into, which you're more than cool to do. Still though, I'll keep in mind some play notes for when you try this out yourself.

Handy Play Notes

• The starting combo that Rogue Theory laid out and I've confirmed as useful is as follows. First, bring out Regulator and tribute him for Winder and Adjuster. Chain block one of them effectively depending on whether you truly need a Retrograde or L4 right away to search with Winder, or to bin Bezel Ship or Chronocorder with Adjuster. From there, use both of them to make Bujinki Ahashima, who'll use either a Bezel Ship, Chronocorder, or other L4 like Slidolphin or Trick Clown and a L4 from grave to make Redoer. From there, it's all a matter of reviving Bezel Ship and/or Chronocorder by any means necessary to make Perpetua, and either Do-Over or Abyss Dweller if you've got materials in reserve. Set the backrow cards you need to complete your task, and it's off to the races.


• During your opponent's turn, use Perpetua's primary Standby Phase effect to revive Bezel Ship from GY to get him up and running to snatch a card from your opponent when the time calls. And if necessary, use her second effect to attach a Flyback to Redoer so when he bounces himself and an opponent's card out later, you can snatch another card from your opponent by banishing Flyback. During your turn, use the aforementioned primary Perpetua effect to bring back Winder to replenish your hand or Adjuster if you're in need of extra Bezel Ships, Chronocorders, or Flybacks in GY.


• If you're looking to use Gamma during your opponent's turn, realize that it may be the only time you get to proc him since he and Driver go "See ya, chief" if they're still on the field come the End Phase. That's why it's worthwhile, if you're lucky enough to use them on your own turn, to Link them off into Lambda so Redoer's banishment can also net you a second Gamma to use the Driver in GY again.


• Still not too certain what the use in running Xyz Import is? Let's say, for example, your opponent has a setup monster that just so happens to be at or below the ATK of Redoer or Do-Over. Import's got you there by not only letting you remove them from your opponent's control and utility, but also to use as ammo for their future effects. And this can be any Xyz monster, not just the head honchos!

 

And at long last, there's the pure Time Thieves in full. They've had quite a visit to other archetypes, but with the recent wave of support and confirmation that Duel Terminal is where they've resided this whole time, I'd say they're right at home where they belong.

As always, thanks again to BladeYGO and Rogue Theory for providing me with the inspiration and research that went into this, though I doubt I'll ever be at their awesome level. And thanks to you for reading! Hopefully you got some good insight as to what these guys are capable of. Or at the very least, a chuckle at my attempt to deliver such. Either way, hope you have a great rest of your day, and time piloting these thieves!

Resident closeted weirdo ChupiTrooper, signing off.