Introduction

It's been quite a while since we took a look at Starstrike Blast! We've barely scratched the surface of this set. There's certainly still plenty of gems to check out so let's dive deep into this relic of the 5Ds era! Nearly over a decade after its release, it's quite famous for hosting cards that aged well, a trait that the other 5Ds sets share.
Check the complete setlist here!
You can also check out Part 1 if you haven't done so!

Revenge of the Synchrons

The Searcher

These two are a classic example of cards aging well as the game progressed in the later years.
The real strength of Tuning was fully unlocked when the release of Crystron Halqifibrax was released in the TCG. Tuning allowed you to add Jet Synchron. Jet was a strong tuner monster that was both summonable by the Link-2 and enabled a one card Halqifibrax. The card being a machine was also highly important for Mecha Phantom Beast Auroradon. It provided easy access to MPB and enabled a whole bunch of crazy plays with Mecha Phantom Beast O-Lion.
Tuning gave extra consistency and its effect to send the top card of the Deck to the GY could be potent as it provided free plusses in decks like Synchro Eldlich. The ability tot get their S/Ts to the GY for free was just icing on the top.
The spell is in an odd spot at the moment as the recent banlist removed Jet Synchron from the game. However, in a vacuum, it's still a potent spell that can give good results!

Formula One

Formula Synchron aged quite well a decade after its release, seeing huge amounts of play in various different decks. Originally it's been a mainstay in heavy Synchro based strategies, but it managed to branch out much more when Fibrax hit the fray.

The Synchro Tuner slotted itself into many Halq combo lines. Board variety included Borreload Savage Dragon and Herald of the Arc Light with some free cards to boot, True King of Calamities with three draws, or Librarian laddering into Savage with four draws. The variety was simply out of this world and had very little opportunity cost.

Making room for extra board space while keeping a tuner is also a great selling point for certain decks. An example would be ones that are currently using Deskbot 001 with Auroradon. The free draw is appreciated and the board is free for plays from the likes of 001 and Coltwing.
Lastly, Formula's utility in being able to Synchro Summon during the opponent's turn leads to a lot of nifty shenanigans. The card's been topping a good amount very recently in some of the tournaments just before this month's banlist too. All in all, two powerful cards from Starstrike Blast that continue to get better over time!

DDG(G)WP

Starstrike Blast isn't a stranger to housing cards that don't see much initial play. It's one of the defining features of the set, and this potentially turn ending trap is no exception.
Different Dimension Ground has an extremely simple yet powerful effect. DDG makes it so monsters that would be sent to the GY are banished instead. This card packs a wallop against a good majority of decks. It saw a decent amount of competitive play and for a good reason.
The floodgate effect is both versatile and powerful, as it denies your opponent's resources from ever hitting the GY. It also turns off a lot of floating effects and can ruin your opponent's entire strategy completely!
Some decks normally don't mind the GY as much, but still hate the effect getting rid of their resources as they attempt to play out their turn.
DDG flexed its might in early 2013-2014, harassing decks like Burning Abyss and Shaddoll. These two heavily relied on GY effects to float. It went a bit dormant until its triumphant return in 2017, giving both Infernoid and Zoodiac a difficult time playing the game.
Different Dimension Ground has been a great side card when TOSS rolled around, absolutely crushing nearly every deck in the format when it resolved. Thunder Dragon made use of it to great effect! Post-Feb 2020, it was also a good option against SPYRAL in the side.
As of right now, the card remains a powerful one-time-use floodgate that can slot itself into many different side decks.

The Other Notables

Dragunity Knight - Gae Dearg is an underrated classic that only got better over time! It's one of the core pieces of the Dragunity strategy, especially with the eventual release of the Reloaded Structure Deck to the TCG. The deck is more than capable of reusing Dearg multiple times to search and cycle their key pieces accordingly, as well as climb into bigger threats such as Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon.
Dearg usually fetches the Mist Valley Baby Roc, Zephyros, Couse/Phalanx, or even Samsara Dragon if you're feeling wild. Early Guardragon plays before the release of Omni Dragon Brotaur also tried messing with Agarpain summoning this knight out of the Extra Deck for some cool searching.
Psi-Blocker was a popular tech in Pendulum decks in 2016 due to its unique traits. In its initial stint, it was especially nice in the mirror match. The card came back two years later in the early experimental builds of Magicians.
2018 Blocker later focused on locking cards such as Dragonic Diagram, SPYRAL Super Agent, and Droll & Lock Bird. Denying Diagram slowed Dracos a lot, and keeping Agent away was big vs the spies. Droll was a defensive call that stopped it from ending your turn if you could go into Psi-Blocker early.
Mirror of the Ice Barrier saw on and off play quite a while after it came out. Its role was small, but it hammered the opponent if they used Nekroz of Trishula during Nekroz format. Mirror cleaved two cards out of their hand, two on their field, and two on their GY. Trish was rampant throughout 2015, and this quick play shined! It saw some small play in 2016 too, doing well against ABC, Omega, Farfa, and Dark Law messing with the hand.

Conclusion

To sum it up, Starstrike Blast is an interesting anomaly in the Synchro Era. The set housed a lot of cards that got much better over time. Which one of these odd techs was your favorite?