A classic list in recent Trinity history that has kinda fallen off of the radar due to the number of adjustments affecting the Rank 4 and Synchro 8 slots. That said; however, the deck's still all kinds of fun to pilot and use to navigate gamestates that most other decks would have issues with. You play an answer to every situation in the Extra Deck with this build and if it's missing, it can probably just be teched in over something else! Pros:
- Easy Starts: Buzzsaw Shark or a combination of any two cards that summon themselves out gets you rolling. Your opening play should always consist of making a Rank 4 either disrupt or defend going first.
- Interaction: Since the deck's lines all just primarily feature ways to turbo Rank 4s, a good chunk of the deck's dedicated to simple interaction in the form of staples and handtraps.
- 7 Colored Fish?: It's a Normal Monster- which helps with getting around the summon limit in a lot of instances! Due to this status, it's also synergistic with some alternative choices in deck building that we'll cover by the end.
Cons:
- Rank 4 Chunkiness: If you fail to open Buzzsaw Shark (or it gets disrupted) or fail to find an extender in addition to a normal summon, you'll be behind by quite a bit. While this isn't a super common occurrence, it can set you back in a duel pretty far. Fortunately, the toolbox options in the Extra Deck help with comebacks.
- Specific Extenders: To improve the ability to turbo out Rank 4s more consistently by turn 1, some cards like Ice Knight, Goblindberg, Kagetokage, and ZS Armed Sage were added and while they absolutely do their job perfectly, a good portion of the deck tends to conflict with some of their effects. It's important to keep these in mind when determining the starter for each line, especially if you happen to have Silent Sea Nettle or Silent Angler in hand!
- Prone to Disruption: Most decks will want to interact with you by your second summon, before the Xyz touches down. Sometimes they'll interact with you on the Xyz Summon itself. Either way, when this happens and you don't have follow-up in the form of an extender, it can be quite rough. It's one of the caveats of playing a pseudo-traditional Xyz strategy in a format with capped summons.
Now with that out of the way, let's get into some of the demo setups you'll be wanting to aim for.
OPENERS The hand quality and/or number of extenders in the hand will always make the permuations of the gamestates more or less challenging to emulate; though, this much was obvious. That being said, in the 1st turns of the duel, you ideally just want to have a conga line of Xyzs rolling out. This can be enabled by the following:
- Defensive Line: Having Hope: Leading with Number 37: Hope Woven Dragon Spider Shark isn't the worst thing you can do, especially if it's made using Buzzsaw Shark. Being able to threaten a 1k drop across the board on top of resurrecting your one card starter makes it exert some pressure while also doubling as a decent attacker. It shines best alongside others or backrow.
- Exosister Avatar: The introduction of Exosisters left much to be desired for their status in Trinity; however, their Xyz Monsters are great if you have the space. With Traptrix Rafflesia gone and this list not featuring Bagooska, if you're aiming to prevent a specific aspect of your opponent's gameplan, then turboing Mikailis is up your alley. Pick up the Exosister Arment and set it. During your opponent's turn you can either tag into Usophiel who prevents GY effects (and if she survives, is just a compulse) or Jibrine who is more of a supportive card to help you push for early lethal if your opponent's off to a slow start. If you happen to open Arment, simply make Jibrine instead and open up the option of tagging into Mikailis for her Quick Effect banish! Kaspitell's also great, but is more specific to certain match-ups.
- Post-Siding Negation Snowball: The other two options are really solid and should cover most of your average experiences with the deck; however, post-siding, if you notice that your opponent's list is extremely reliant on Monster Effects to resolve to get their engines rolling, you can opt to side in The Iris Swordsoul, Giant Hand, Ice Barrier, and the Ice-Bound God. These cards all serve as very easy ways to prevent those effects from going off while also generating a lot of pressure and recurring advantage in some way (besides Giant Hand). Paleozoic Marrella and Swordsoul Emergence help get to each of these side strategies faster.
As you can tell, the openers and lines can be pretty linear. Most of the advanced tactics comes from summon management using the non-Effect Monsters and choosing the right Xyz for the job. Rarely will your opponent be generous enough to give you a second or third chance at answering their board. MIDGAME & CLOSERS There's only a few real setups to aim for if you find yourself in the midgame grind or aim to end the game outright.
- Drill Driver Vespenato: This card's basically another copy of Number 37; however, it's also a piercer! Its utility usually comes up whenever you unfortunately cannot find Whitefish Salvage nor Avarice.
- Valiant Shark Lancer: This card when paired with Abyss Dweller or Number 37 can easily close out games pretty quickly. Unfortunately, due to its Rank being 5, the setups for it are mostly specific to Buzzsaw Shark, Lantern Shark, and Penguin Squire. However, if achieved successfully, you have now earned yourself a Quick-Effect monster pop. Usually an opponent should aim to take out your Dweller or Number 37 because it turns of Valiant from being a Quick-Effect and removes both forms of pressure at once. When this happens, you'll be able to stack your deck with any sacky option of your choice. I recommend White Mirror, Whitefish Salvage, Pot of Avarice, Instant Fusion, and Monster Reborn.
- Graydle Dragon: This isn't super consistent to pull off but can be a bit easier if you side in the Ice Barrier engine to find Squire more often. When Graydle Dragon resolves in this deck, you should almost always be using it to clear two cards. Don't settle for just one, Tornado Dragon or Light Dragon @Ignister can do that instead. Graydle Dragon also being able to float is massive as well- although the monster will just be a generic material more than anything else.
Games should usually resolve themselves by midgame. The grind game in this deck isn't the best per se.
While simple in nature, the deck's playstyle favors decision-making and proper risk assessment for problem solving. There's no Numeron Dragon OTK for you to get out of situations easily. Things will have to take patience and proper identification of win conditions to achieve consistent victories with this deck. Here's a handful of ideas just to throw your way should you aim to adjust this baseline into something more focused elsewhere: Tenyi Core, Piercing the Darkness, Dogmatika, Dinosaur, Traptrix Myrmeleo, Super Team Buddy Force Unite!!, Performage Core, Sea Monster of Theseus w/ a Synchro 9, Legacy of the Duelist, Number 101 & C101, ZEXAL, and a whole roster of Rank 4s to slot in instead like Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon! Thanks for reading, and I hope this has convinced you to give the deck a try! It's a lot of fun to innovate on and revisit a modern classic like this in today's Trinity. I hope you have a fin-tastic time trying it out!