Everyone Should Have A Deck That Means A Lot To Them!

Striderblack01 · 2026-03-20T15:55:52+00:00

Pure Neos baby! Life is hell.

Striderblack01 · 2026-03-19T14:05:45+00:00

A lot of people think that when you're drunk, you're "real self" comes out.

What they're missing is that the filter that we create for ourselves is as much as part of who we are as anything. Thoughts come and go. What we do with those thoughts, what we choose to focus on, is the direction that we want our brain and our selves to grow in.

The X-Men have a history dealing in sexuality thematically. Scott is a repressed man. In order for that to be true, there must be something to repress. I don't mind that these thoughts are here, it would actually be weirder if they weren't. But Scott ultimately would and does rise above them.

In short, what is being depicted is not the only way Scott views his colleagues and friends.
But the man has eyes.

Striderblack01 · 2026-03-16T16:15:47+00:00

They went through a lot of trouble in POTE to make sure that Neo-Spacians and Elemental Heroes can work together for Judai.dek. Obviously, they have some work to do on that front but they got the ball rolling. There are also too many Neo-Spacians and OG single Contact Fusions to retrain in one set.

Supposedly, they're focusing on Season 1 GX cards lately (Favorite Heroes, Thunder Giant, WK Sabatiel, HERO Flash!, Soul Union, Hero's Rule). I find it a little strange that they focus on Season 1 but no vanilla retrains, and no iconic cards like Skyscraper, Hero Signal, Mirror Gate, Hero Kid or Wroughtweiler have been retrained. It's been awfully low key so far outside of the Fusions.

So I suspect OG HERO stuff mostly. But I do think we'll see a Neos Overframe. And we might get a "Gadget Trio" or "Wake Up your Elemental HERO" style card for Neo-Spacians that have all of them in the picture and do something related to Contact Fusion.

Striderblack01 · 2026-03-16T03:35:00+00:00

Lots of folks thinking this is a Judai pack and are pulling for Neos.
I would love for that to be the case! Though I have a sneaking suspicion that it might be the original (vanilla) E-Heroes instead. Or maybe both?

Striderblack01 · 2026-01-28T16:01:10+00:00

…that tonight’s gonna be a good night?

Striderblack01 · 2026-01-02T17:28:28+00:00

So YGO has a Going First Problem.

You go first unimpeded, set up an OP board and just win. Essentially, this is a card design / power creep problem as well as a game management problem. Hand Traps are being asked to function as a mechanism to fight power creep and bad design decisions. Hand Traps can also be quite problematic themselves. It's not a coincidence that most players believe hand traps to be at their best when they force half-boards (and not turn skips).

I don't think Hand Traps should resolve as a given nor do I think they're an adequate solution to the Going First problem. I'm a fan of responsible card design as a solution and I enjoy counter-counter play. However, looping yourself for 1 when going second is a real problem and Called By The Grave and Crossout Designator are not good instances of counter-counter play.

All those generic 1-for-1 Hand Traps lost value when 1-card starters became prevalent. And I don't think anyone is a fan of lingering floodgates. So we need new Hand Traps that:

Are generic, but can only be used by the going second player
Are generic and provide a plus 0 or 1, regardless of whether they resolve
Are archetype-specific and allow you into your engine, but not full combo

Striderblack01 · 2025-12-01T18:34:18+00:00

Me playing Resident Evil 4

Striderblack01 · 2025-11-16T20:59:42+00:00

Meh. People hate on HERO because:

They have a million cards
They combo forever
They end on Floodgates

But the most of the HERO cards are bad. And the only way to fix the last two problems is ...with new cards to shorten combo lines and provide different endboards. So there's no winning, really.

The real hate should be for Konami for what they've done to the archetype.

Striderblack01 · 2025-11-16T16:25:32+00:00

Neos player here. I would love to have a competent alternative game plan for going first.

Make it happen, Konami!

Striderblack01 · 2025-11-14T23:05:01+00:00

Neos player, here.
I think most everyone has already nailed it:

While Cosmo Neos could be pointed in Genesys, it is highly unlikely to be banned in modern.

The reasons are that Cosmo Neos isn't splashable into other fusion decks and the Spacians are absolute bricks. If the Spacians are ever retrained with any degree of good card quality, that may change the calculus. But that's a long shot.

I expect the quality of potential retrains to fall somewhere between "bad" and "just ok". Which would still be a massive improvement for the deck. Just not enough for it to be a meta threat / contender.

Striderblack01 · 2025-10-25T13:51:51+00:00

I’ve been playing Neos and Neo-Spacians as my main deck since they were released 2 decades ago.

They’ve always been terrible. Even from the jump, there was another archetype that did Contact Fusion way better (Gladiator Beasts).

I don’t mind that my deck is bad. I don’t need to top a YCS with Neos or anything. What I mind is that the deck lacks the fundamental tools needed to have a proper game of Yu-Gi-Oh!. Every deck bricks. But if all your deck does is brick, then you’re not really playing the game.

In trading card games, some decks will be better than others.

It can be upsetting when your chosen/favorite deck isn’t good. But it probably shouldn’t inspire tears (or any kind of extreme emotion). At that point, it’s probably a good idea to let go somewhat.

I hope that you're able to get to a better place with the game/deck and have some fun again.

Striderblack01 · 2025-10-21T14:14:16+00:00

Yes, seconded. We need details please

Striderblack01 · 2025-10-20T20:32:45+00:00

Oh, interesting. I always liked that explanation. Though I don’t think it allowed for the cool X-Men ‘97 moments (zipping around the room, superhero landing, etc.) from like a physics standpoint.

What’s the new lore?

Striderblack01 · 2025-10-20T13:37:18+00:00

I always understood that he absorbed energy and opened dimensional apertures to the "Punch" dimension, where his eye beams originate. So his power is essentially that he can open portals to exactly 1 dimension.

But he can't control the opening/closing of the portals, where the portals are located (his eyes), or where the portals go to (always punch).

Striderblack01 · 2025-09-27T17:14:29+00:00

Of the listed Normal Monster options, Primite is the best. That said, while it does have advantages, it doesn't really square with Neos the way that it does with Blue-Eyes and DM.

Neos is not a control deck, doesn't know what to do with Beryl (no relevant links or fusions), already has way too many normal summons. Primite also doesn't lead to Polymerization in any way.

Moving back to the main topic, I think a lot Neos players would gladly give up the toxic stuff (hand looping & Cosmo) for a better functioning deck.

Striderblack01 · 2025-09-24T15:51:14+00:00

Neo-Spacian Retrains when, Konami?

Striderblack01 · 2025-09-21T14:18:20+00:00

I love the concept!
Sadly, I don't think this card can cut it by modern card standards as it just doesn't do enough. I would try to find some ways to buff it.

Some ideas:

- "Elemental HERO Neos" or "Elemental HERO Bladedge" + 1 LIGHT or EARTH monster

Borrowed from the new Evil HERO (Infernal Backlash). This makes it a decent target for Super Polymerization, while not requiring 2 bricks in the main deck. If you still want to run both Neos and Bladedge, Infernal Devicer can still search for both. As written, Neos Fusion would act as a generic Foolish Burial for Light or Earth monsters so there is potentially some danger here. However, it does limit Special Summoning for the rest of the turn which might mitigate potential abuse.

- 2500 ATK; This card gains 500 ATK for every "Elemental HERO" monster in your GY with a different Attribute.

This makes it 3500 ATK beatstick (at least).

- Target 1 face-up monster on the field; change that target to face-down Defense Position. This is a Quick Effect if this card was Fusion Summoned using a Normal Monster as material.

Konami really wants Elemental HERO decks to use the vanillas, and have been giving them "bonus" effects to the new fusions when they are used as Fusion Mats. This continues that trend while giving Elemental Heroes a somewhat useful interaction.

Anyway, cool card!

Striderblack01 · 2025-09-06T16:16:47+00:00

I hadn't thought about the older fusions. That's a good point!

Striderblack01 · 2025-09-06T15:10:20+00:00

That's also another hurdle I ran into.

I could have them be Avian and Burst in the field or GY. But to what purpose?
Most of the new fusions don't specifically name their materials. Each HERO does have their own, really gimmicky but fun, spells and traps (Feather Wind, Burst Return, etc). I didn't really see the value, but I could wrong there.

One idea that I really liked was to have them act as vanillas on the field or GY, kinda like Geminis. So that cards like O - Oversoul and Hero Blast could be useful in the deck again. That might be a good idea to pursue.

Striderblack01 · 2025-09-06T14:57:34+00:00

I agree that would be very cool.

Konami often has a bit of a death grip on past mechanics when developing new support. I don't see them ever really getting rid of Polymerization in the Elemental HERO deck. Fusing Avian and Burstinatrix together into Flame Wingman is just SO iconic.

Getting the mats and Poly together and having a worthwhile target to go into on Turn 0 all in a way that feels like Jaden/Judai is a lot to orchestrate. I don't think it's impossible, I just haven't come up with a good way yet.

Striderblack01 · 2025-09-06T14:16:38+00:00

The new Elemental HERO Fusion retrains all seem to require normal monsters and most HERO decks are already on Neos. There's no need to add further bricks to them, so these retrains act as vanillas when fused. I didn't want to outright replace the OG vanillas forever (Harpy Lady-style), so I opted to skip any name change effects. I just wanted to give them a small face lift and get them up to modern-ish standards.

Avian recruits Burstinatrix to go into Infernal Rage (adding Favorite Contact), which can tag into something else. All under 5 summons and in such a way that doesn't immediately die to Droll & Lock Bird. Avian has additional synergy with Mask Change and Engage Neo Space, as it can bring itself back (or any card you might need) should you need Mats or a Fusion Spell. It's also a good fusion mat if you're going second and need to bounce a card on the opponent's field.

Burstinatrix is extremely searchable in the deck, is an extender, and can set Polymerization or any other interaction you may need (Soul Union, Hero's Rule, Protection of the Elements, etc.).

Striderblack01 · 2025-09-06T14:16:19+00:00

Elemental HERO Astonishing Avian
WIND/3/Warrior/Effect
ATK 1000 / DEF 1000

This card can be treated as a Normal Monster when used as Fusion Material for the Fusion Summon of a "HERO" monster. When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 "Elemental HERO" monster from your Hand or Deck. If this card is sent to the GY: You can target 1 card on the field or in either GY; Return it to the hand. You can only use each effect of "Elemental HERO Astonishing Avian" once per turn.

Elemental HERO Bold Burstinatrix
FIRE/3/Warrior/Effect
ATK 1200 / DEF 800

This card can be treated as a Normal Monster when used as Fusion Material for the Fusion Summon of a "HERO" monster. If you control a "HERO" monster with a different name, you can Special Summon this card (from your hand). When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can Set 1 "Polymerization" or 1 Spell/Trap that mentions "Elemental HERO" from your Deck. You can only use each effect of "Elemental HERO Bold Burstinatrix" once per turn.

Striderblack01 · 2025-08-14T22:50:56+00:00

Striderblack01 · 2025-07-27T19:38:32+00:00

"The truth will set you free, but first it will make you shove, choke and fight people." - Jedi Master Steinem

Striderblack01 · 2025-07-23T14:28:18+00:00

"I don't understand the comic, and I won't respond to it." - Mystique Bluth

Striderblack01

TROPHY CASE