Want to see the deck in action? Scroll to the very bottom for the Youtube video!
ARCHETYPES, ENGINES AND DECKBUILDING
This deck is a conglomerate of different potent archetypes, each with their own gameplan, recursion, one-card starters and boss monster(s). The main centerpiece is Invoked, but every archetype can play independently.
The posterchild for this deck is the INVOKED archetype with it's main character - Aleister leading the charge. The Invoked package is composed of ___ cards - x3 Aleister, x3 Magical Meltdown, x1 Invocation and x1 Terraforming. Aleister is the preferred normal summon of this deck, and the first turn board almost always includes Mechaba for his omni-negate.
AZAMINA is the new archetype debuting in Rage of the Abyss, and in this deck it is merely a way to turbo out an omni-negate, Ilia Silvia. It is a minimalistic package numbering 6 cards - x3 WANTED, x1 Diabellstar, x1 Deception and x1 Hallowed Azamina. It has two monsters in the Extra Deck - Ilia Silvia is the omni-negate and Sol Erysichthon the boardbreaker.
The FIENDSMITH package used in this deck numbers 6 cards - x3 Engraver, x1 Lacrima of the Crimson Tears, x1 Tract and x1 Lurrie. In the Extra Deck, the Fiendsmith cards are Requiem, Sequence, Agnumday, and the fusion boss monster packing an omni-negate, Desirae. This archetype is also accessible via Moon of the Closed Heaven, made with a mere 2 effect monsters.
The last archetype featured in this deck is a KASHTIRA package. It is composed of 5 cards - x2 Wraithsoth (also searchable via Terraforming), x1 Unicorn, x1 Fenrir, and x1 Birth. Kashtira is played because it gives more cards on-field/hand for Diabellstar and Deception to use as cost. It also gives free bodies on board to use for Moon of the Closed Heaven or Silhouhatte Rabbit. It also allows the duelist to somewhat establish a board when under the new Mulcharmy Fuwalos, since the engine doesn't summon from the Extra Deck or Deck.
The STAPLES featured in this deck are 14 of the best handtraps this format - x3 Fuwalos, x3 Ash Blossom, x3 Effect Veiler, x3 Impermanence, x1 Magnamhut and x1 Druiswyrm. If Fuwalos is in your hand and you're going first, simply use it as cost for Diabellstar or Deception since you cannot use it anyways when you have stuff on your field. Fuwalos also can be used as fusion material for Invocation to summon Invoked Raidjin since it's a wind. Finally, Angel Statue Azurune is included as a target to set from deck for Silhouhatte Rabbit.
The SIDING PATTERN for this deck is talking out x1 Angel Statue Azurune, x3 Fuwalos (when you know you're going 1st), and additional low-impact handtraps like Ash/Veiler. This allows the pilot to put in about 8 cards from their Side Deck to obliterate the opponent's board with boardbreakers or turnskips like Dimensional Barrier.
COMBOS AND GAMEPLAN
Invoked Azamina is a midrange toolbox deck that can summon monsters that counter the current gamestate. If you're going 1st, your board will most likely consist of the 3 omni-negates that are Mechaba, Ilia Silvera and Desirae. If you're going second, you'll use your handtraps to slow down your opponent then you either control/outgrind them to defeat with your boss monsters or OTK with high atk OTK enablers/boardbreakers like Purgatrio, Erysichthon, Chaos Angel, Augeoides and Agnumday.
Four archetypes compose this deck, so boards aren't linear and endboards vary. Several combinations of starters end up on multiple omni-negates. Here is an example combo:
WANTED: Seeker of Sinful Spoils + Magical Meltdown = Mechaba (Omninegate), Ilia Silvera (Omninegate), Desirae (Targeted multi-Omninegate), Draw 1 (WANTED recycling Deception), Aleister in hand (follow-up)
Activate WANTED during the Draw Phase to search for Diabellstar.
Activate Magical Meltdown to search Aleister from deck.
Normal summon Aleister to search for Invocation.
Link away Aleister to summon Artemis.
Summon Diabellstar from sending to GY Magical Meltdown. Activate Diabellstar's effect to set from deck Deception of the Sinful Spoils.
Activate Deception of the Sinful Spoils.
Link summon Moon of the Closed Heaven using Diabellstar + Artemis.
Activate Invocation summoning Mechaba by banishing Aleister + Artemis in the GY. (This is your 5th summon so you can negate Nibiru).
Activate Invocation's effect in the GY to add Aleister to your hand from Banishment and shuffling Invocation into the deck.
Link summon Requiem using Moon of the Closed Heaven.
Tribute Requiem to summon from deck Lacrima the Crimson Tears.
Activate Crimson Tears' on-summon effect to send to the GY Fiendsmith Engraver.
Summon Engraver from the GY by shuffling back Moon of the Closed Heaven.
Link summon Sequence using Engraver + Crimson Tears.
Activate Sequence's effect to fusion summon Desirae by shuffling back Engraver + Crimson Tears + Requiem in the GY.
Activate Deception of the Sinful Spoils' effect by tributing Sequence to search for The Hallowed Azamina. (If you have a dead handtrap like Fuwalos or a Kashtira in hand you can also tribute those.)
Activate Sequence's effect in the GY to equip itself to Desirae.
Activate The Hallowed Azamina to fusion summon Ilia Silvia sending to the GY Deception of the Sinful Spoils.
Banish WANTED in the GY to place Deception on the bottom of your deck and draw 1 card.
With two cards, you get TRIPLE omninegates, which is a feat that is mostly unmatched in today's meta decks. Your hand should also have 5 cards (3 cards unused in combo, 1 card drawn from WANTED, 1 Aleister) at the end of the combo, and many of those cards may be handtraps since you have 14 handtraps! Of course, fields vary due to the cards you topdeck in your starting hand. Your endboard can also include Kashtira Unicorn/Fenrir and Silhouhatte Rabbit with a set Azurune.
GOING SECOND, the Invoked Azamina strategy features a ton of handtraps and gas to weaken your opponent's gamestate or potentially end their turn on a suboptimal board so you can start comboing yourself with your various 1 card starters from the 4 archetypes. As you combo up, you can methodically remove your opponent's field using Chaos Angel's targeted banish, Engraver's targeted send, Augoeides' pop, Erysichthon's send, and the powerful high attack of all your monsters!
GENERAL TIPS
Always try to insulate your plays with Ilia Silvia or Mechaba. The ability of Invoked Azamina to field these omninegates super early into the combos makes this strategy super safe to play! This will render your opponent's Bystials and Nibiru near useless in their hand!
Try to bait out your opponent's handtraps (like Ash or Imperm) by using your other 1-card starters before you start getting into the Invoked part of your strategy. This makes cards like Kashtira Unicorn and Fiendsmith Engraver perfect bait!
The siding pattern for this deck is talking out x1 Angel Statue Azurune, x3 Fuwalos (when you know you're going 1st), and additional low-impact handtraps like Ash/Veiler. This allows the duelist to side in 8+ cards!
If you get a Fuwalos thrown at you, you can still play this deck without giving your opponent a gajillion draws! You can summon 2 monsters and pass on Silhouhatte Rabbit for x2 interruptions. Also if you have access to the Kashtira cards, you can establish a couple interruptions without giving your opponent any free draws.
Invocation can also use your opponent's GY monsters as fusion material by banishing them! This means the fusion spell can function as a pseudo boardbreaker, banishing key GY monster cards that your opponent owns like Promethean Princess and Engraver.
Magical Meltdown renders your fusion effects like Invocation, Fiendsmith Sequence and The Hallowed Azamina UN-NEGATABLE! Your opponent also cannot activate any effects during your fusion monster's summon window! Try to set-up Magical Meltdown first so you don't have to worry about many interruptions and handtraps while fusion summoning.
- Want to see the deck in action? Scroll to the very bottom for the Youtube video!
CONCLUDING COMMENTARY
It's 2024, nearly 7 years after Aleister's debut in Fusion Enforcers and "normal summon Aleister" is still around a proper legitimate strategy! Thanks to Konami's continued release of splashable engines with a solid reward that don't require a normal summon, Invoked has been constantly evolving and improving over the years. This time, Aleister gets to hang out with his new Azamina buddies! 3 omninegates plus handtraps is nothing to scoff at, and any competitive strategy would have to respect a board like that.
GLHF Duelists!
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