The best Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel Meta decks to use in Ranked Duels. Check our Tier List for the current top meta Decks and Archetypes as of Season 17!
Best Decks Tier List: May 1st, 2023
Tier Decks
Use this table to immediately go to each section of the Tier List Explanation, with each Deck given a short summary of their focused archetype and playstyle!
Tier List Explanation Shortcuts
Deck Lists and Archetypes
Meta Deck Tier List Changes (April 14, 2023)
Tier List Update: April 14, 2023
With the release of the Tearlaments archetype in the Blessings of Nature Selection Pack, some additions are in order for the tier list.
Tier Decks
Tier List Update: March 27, 2023
This is a quick adjustment due to overwhelming popularity and usage during the most recent Duelist Cup.
Tier Decks
Tier List Addition: God Tier
Due to the sheer number of Decks accumulated in the Tier List and the power of the cards added over the past few months, we’ve decided to bring back a Tier to the ranking system: God Tier.
God Tier Explanation Represented by a crown, these are Decks that are even stronger and more common than Tier 1 Decks, due to their consistency and overall strength.They are extremely hard to Duel against regardless if they start first or second, and can win most of the time depending on the state of the game.When going up against these Decks, luck will have to be involved in order to beat them. Duels against these are wars of attrition.
Previous Tier List Category Overhaul
Here are our explanations for the Tier Lists before the addition of the God Tier.
Previous Tier List System Explanation The most frequent and meta-defining Decks used in the highest levels of Ranked Duels.Expect these Decks to appear more frequently the higher your Rank is, especially in high Platinum to Diamond. Running Decks in this tier will definitely help you climb up the ladder in no time. Decks in this tier can be as strong and consistent as the tiers above it,and on a good day, they can beat any other Deck in the hands of a skilled and/or dedicated player. However, they are missing something, like a certain mechanic or strategy, that can take them to the next level. Decks in this tier can be seen as underrated.Fan-favorite Decks can end up here, but fall short of strength and consistency compared to the higher tiers. Still, they do have the necessary tools to win against stronger Decks, and can be a menace in Duels in the hands of commited players. Rogue Decks are not necessarily bad, but they will be rare to face because the Decks in the higher tiers are too good to not consider.They do have the capacity to upset Duels, however, and players should not underestimate Decks in this tier. Do not let your guard down against Decks listed here. Decks within this tier will have a very hard time pulling off an upset, unless certain conditions align to achieve win conditions easier.Ojama Tier can be considered the bottom of the barrel. Any Deck can win on a good day and a good starting hand, but players using Decks in this tier will have an uphill battle to deal with.
Suggest a Deck Archetype!
Yu-Gi-Oh! is massive and Master Duel has a fresh meta that is still changing up to this day. With a different banlist, playable decks on the TCG/OCG may not be viable here and vice versa. Think we missed an Archetype that needs to be ranked? Leave a comment down below!
Suggest an Archetype!
Forbidden/Limited Cards
Want to know the latest updates on card statuses that could make or break a Deck? Check out the Forbidden & Limited Cards List and which cards have been given adjustments!
Forbidden & Limited Card List
Deck Tier List Explanation
Section Currently Being Edited Due To Tier List Adjustment
God Tier Deck List Explanations
Tier List Explanation Shortcuts Ishizu Tearlaments Fusion Summons from the Graveyard with Milling Effects Ishizu Tearlaments makes use of the Graveyard as a secondary resource, milling cards in there to trigger effects. Then, it can conduct Fusion Summons from there by shuffling the materials back into the Deck. This Deck has extremely good combos, and Chain Links can get crazy depending on the matchup. Exosisters Xyz Deck That Controls Through Special Summons Exosisters play around a little in Special Summons, swarming just enough to get their key boss Xyz monsters on the frield as soon as possible. The boss monsters are extremely powerful against Graveyards being used as a secondary resource, and can conduct Xyz Summons even on the opponent’s turn as an act of disruption. Ishizu Runick Ishizu Cards and Runick Engine Combine to Mill and Baniush The Runick cards like being in the Graveyard a lot, and the Ishizu Cards can be a cheat to immediately have up to 5 Quick-Play Spells to be brought back through Runick Fountain. When played right, it Decks out the opponent even faster than a standard Runick Deck. Evil★Twin Spright Link-centric Spright Variant with repeated Link Summons The Evil★Twin archetype fits well with the Spright Engine, creating a loop of Link Summoning LINK-2 monsters to control the field with their effects. The possible full field with their respective ace monsters will be very hard to deal with, between removing cards from the field and the Deck’s cards evading effects. Spright Controlling the Field Using Level 2, Rank 2 and LINK-2 Monsters Sprights is an Deck that enpowers low-leveled monsters, and can Special Summon themselves from the hand if there is a fellow Level 2 monster you control. Its combos are consistent, can play through multiple hand traps in the right conditions, and the resulting end field is extremely hard to break in the current meta. Spright Runick Defensive Quick-Play Spell Focused Spright Deck Variant This Deck combines the control strength of Sprights and its plethora of Level 2 monsters, and the Deck-banishing control of the Runick archetype. While the Deck might not be likely to attack, it wears down the opponent by removing their resources, and negating effects as much as possible in controlling the field. Runick Quick-Play Spells Decking Out Opponent Without Battling Runick Decks disrupt as much as they can through a wide variety of Quick-Play Spells. Each time one is successfully resolved, it banishes cards from the top of the opponent’s Deck, until they banish every card possible. Its Spell Cards have restrictions that skips the Battle Phase, thus focusing its win condition to Decking Out the opponent. Labrynth Advantage Through Trap Cards and Removing Cards from Field Labrynth Decks start off slow because of their reliance to Trap Cards for their win condition. A few turns of getting the Trap Cards on hand, and being able to Special Summon with ease along with recycling Normal Trap Cards that remove monsters from the field, this Deck can easily snowball for a Control Deck. Branded Despia Fusion-Centric Lockdown Branded Despia is one of the most consistent Decks in the game at the moment, with an ability to continue combos when the opponent least expects. Its Extra Deck options is extremely efficient and flexible, allowing the player to adjust and maximize at their will. It is one of the best examples of balance between offense and defense in Master Duel. Floowandereeze Normal Summon Even on The Opponent’s Turn Do not be deceived by the large number of low-level, low-stat monsters. Floowandereeze Decks are unique in that they specialize in doing Normal Summons to do their combos; so much so that their effects allow them to chain Normal Summons during the opponents turn, and debilitate the opponent’s field while they’re at it. Adamancipator Uses Excavation Effects to Gain Advantage Adamancipator Decks have cards that excel in being able to recycle themselves, making the ability to summon the stronger monsters easier. Excavation effects are quite frequent for this Deck as well, which makes planning in advance easier to prepare for. Mathmech Synchro and Xyz-focused Cyberse Deck Mathmech Decks are some of the most synergistic Cyberse monsters in the game, being able to swarm the field with monster to transition into using the Extra Deck. Players can shift playstyles depending on the situation, from being a Control Deck that stops the opponent’s moves, to being able to win the game through an OTK-capable combo.
Tier 1 Deck List Explanations
Tier List Explanation Shortcuts Branded Ishizu Fusion-centric Engine Boosted By Deck-Milling Cards A usual Branded Despia Deck does love using the Graveyard as a secondary resource pool, and the Ishizu Cards provide an easy way to get cards there through their milling effects. It mixes their respective strengths in denying the opponent resources, and disrupting them as much as possible with Fusion Monsters. Ishizu Chaos Light and Dark Monsters Made Stronger With Ishizu Cards Both LIGHT and DARK monsters appreciate being in the Graveyard, especially the archetypes used in a Chaos Deck, like Lightsworns and Danger!. It is a more aggressive Ishizu Deck compared to the others, as it makes the most of using the Graveyard as a secondary resource pool. P.U.N.K. Wild Psychic-Type Synchro-Focused Deck The P.U.N.K. archetype pays Life Points to use their effects to gain advantage, and build up towards their strongest boss monster. They also use Fusion Monsters as additionnal powerhouses to this Deck, with Contnuous Spells and Traps providing additional protection to the monsters. There are quite a lot of similar Levels among monsters, giving options for Xyz plays as well. Dinomorphia Fusion Dinosaurs & Traps That Gets Stronger With Low LP Any Dinomorphia Deck player will know what its like to constantly live on the edge of defeat, as its Trap Cards often need the player to pay half its Life Points in order to activate its effects. It is a high-risk, high-reward Control Deck, which makes it unique for its ability to have control over the field, but still deal massive damage in the late game. Tri-Brigade Spright Spright Variant using Link Engine of Tri-Brigade Tri-Brigade can also make use of Sprights, both using their respective strengths to bring both aggression and control to the Duel. With the right starting cards, both respective archetypes can achieve their own full combos to completely overwhelm the opponent. It has a harder learning curve than the other Spright Variants, but one rewarded to players that take the time to learn. Invoked Shaddoll Powerful Monsters with Built-In Floodgates This Deck has three major strengths: the flexibility of the Invoked Engine, the Fusion prowess of Shaddoll, and the Extra Deck-punishing ability of Dogmatika. A good opening board from this Deck can have floodgates and powerful monsters on the field with ease. Drytron Best Ritual Archetype Drytron Decks single-handledly changed the game in being a strong Ritual-based Deck. They are unique in using ATK values instead of Levels in Ritual Summoning a monster, and that’s on top of having secondary effects activating upon being summoned. They make a case for being one of the best Ritual archetypes in the game. Tri-Brigade Zoodiac Powerful One-Card Xyz Monster Combos Tri-Brigade continues to be one of the best engines for Beast, Beast-Warrior and Winged Beast, which makes them a perfect archetype to combine with one of the best Xyz-based archetypes in the game, Zoodiac. The synergy between Beast, Beast-Warrior, and Winged Beast monsters are best exemplified through this Deck. Sky Strikers Amplified Strength Per Spell Card Cast The epitome of a Toolbox Deck, Sky Strikers may have a small amount of monsters, but they make up for it by a massive selection of staple Spell Cards, while rewarding the frequent use of Spells. They only get stronger the more Spells there are in the Graveyard, with secondary effects triggering in “Sky Striker” Spell Cards when there are 3 or more of them in the GY. Plunder Patroll Pirates Controlling the Field with Extra Deck Ships A unique control Deck that manages to Special Summon its Extra Deck monsters for free, based on the attributes of the opponent’s monsters. Their effects can become Quick Effects once they are equipped with fellow Plunder Patroll cards. Salamangreat Using Copies of Itself To Activate Effects Salamangreat Decks thrive in battle and having cards in the Graveyard. They revolve around a unique playstyle of gaining effects whenever a card is summoned using a copy of itself as material. They also have a wide variety of options in the Extra Deck to consider. Marincess WATER-based Link Monsters Deck Marincess focuses on Link Summoning as much as possible, climbing up the Link Rankings until it gets to the RANK-4 Marincess Wonder Heart. It also has a unique ability to equip Link Monsters into a monster, which can be used to great benefit by either boosting a monster’s ATK or by being able to Special Summon them as needed. Dragon Link Link-based Engine That Works on Any Dragon Deck Dragon Link Decks make use of a specific engine involving the Rokket archetype and a couple of other key cards that enable the strategy. They can be used on any Deck that are heavy with Dragon-type monsters, giving this Deck extreme versitility and flexibility. Once set up, this Deck’s field is difficult to break.
Tier 2 Deck List Explanations
Tier List Explanation Shortcuts Orcust Link and Xyz Monsters Combine To Control The Field Orcust uses its ability to Link Summon to control the field, and the Xyz Monsters it can run supplements their strategy. One of its Boss Monsters even has one Xyz Monster that can use Link Monsters as materials-a rarity within the card pool. It can be very disruptive to players who may not know how to time their counters right. HERO A Flexible Fusion Deck A combined force of various HERO subarchetype cards can make for a Deck that has plenty of options to run, and its greatest strength lies in Fusion Summoning. Both traditional Fusion Monsters and Quick-Effect options with Masked HERO monsters have very powerful effects. Eldlich Control Floodgates Slow Down Game Pace Budget | Control A Deck with a simple strategy, but one that completely locks out the opponent from reaching their Deck’s full potential. Eldlitch Decks prefer going one-on-one with the opponent, being a nuisance to battle against once it has another copy of itself in the Graveyard when combined with floodgate effects like Skill Drain and Evenly Matched. Dark Magician The Original Spellcaster Archetype Boosted With Support A Dark Magician Deck has a wide variety of support cards, and can be taken into different directions being mixed with other archetypes. It relies on several “Dark Magician” and “Chaos” card synergies to keep up the tempo, and has surprising options within the Extra Deck focusing on Level 6 and Level 7 monster strategies. Buster Blader Aggressive Deck Turns Every Other Monsters Into Dragons Buster Blader Decks is the ultimate dragon-slaying fantasy, being the ultimate counter against Dragons to the point that it specializes in turning the opponent’s monsters into Dragons. Once that happens, the boss monster becomes near unstoppable with piercing battle damage. Umi Control Aggressive Deck Turns Every Other Monsters Into Dragons An all-or-nothing Deck banking on pulling off massive burn damage in a single effect, Dinosaur Bishbaalkin FTK plays around the titular monster, Phantasmal Lord Ultimitl Bishbaalkin, summoning and using as many tokens as possible to fulfill the first-turn kill combo. Endymion Lots of Spells, Spell Counters, and Pendulum Monsters Endymion Decks are currently the best and most prolific users of Spell Counters, which accumulate every time a player uses Spell Cards or activate Pendulum Monsters as Pendulum Scales. The usage of the Spell Counters can vary, from being able to disrupt the opponent, clear out certain cards or gain card or battle advantage. Virtual World Xyz and Synchro From GY and Banished Cards An archetype that benefits with cards in the Graveyard AND having Banished cards. Virtual World makes use of both Xyz and Synchro Monsters, having the potential to swarm the field with powerful monsters. Special mention goes to Virtual World Kyubi – Shenshen, having an in-built Macro Cosmos effect that banishes any card sent to the Graveyard. Vaylantz Pendulum Monsters That Moves From Between Monster Zones Vaylantz is a unique Pendulum Deck that gains advantage whenever monsters move between Pendulum Zones and Main Monster Zones. This is an all-or-nothing Deck that relies on its combo to bring out the Boss Monsters needed for its win condition. For players interested on this Deck, this has a unique note of being cautious on where cards are placed during the Duel. The Weather Continuous Spells and Traps Granting Effects to Monsters The Weather moves around its Continuous Spells and Traps between Card Zones to grand additional effects to its Main Deck Monsters, which purposefully banish themselves and return to the field on the next Standby Phase. With their effects being Quick Effects, this Deck is equal parts beatdown and control for their elusiveness from targeted or destroying effects. Scareclaw Forcing Non-Link Monsters into Defense Position While Unaffected A Scareclaw Deck revolves around its ace monster, Scareclaw Tri-Heart, through its effect of forcing all other monsters in the Main Monster Zones in Defense Position. The Main Deck monsters use this to their advantage, as each monster from the archetype provides an additional effect to the Link Monster. This Deck provides a balance of aggro and control playstyles. Beetrooper Link Climbing Into An Unstoppable Insect Monster Beetrooper Decks rely on swarming the field and slowly building up into the stronger Link Monsters that serve as the Deck’s ace. Quite a number of Main Deck Monsters have effects that Special Summon other Beetrooper monsters. Once it successfully brings out the ace in Giant Beetrooper Invincible Atlas, it’s already enjoying immunity from card destruction and targeted effects. Pendulum Magicians Z-ARC | OTK Fusion, Synchro, Xyz and Pendulum By Name and By Card A Deck that uses just about every Extra Deck monster type in the game, Pendulum Magicians uses Spellcaster-type monsters that take the name of certain monsters that embody the Extra Deck Monster card type. They can combo into various boss monsters with the help of Pendulum Summoning, either by beatdown with its myriad of Extra Deck Monsters or with an OTK strategy using effect damage. Lyrilusc Tri-Brigade “Bird Up!” Remains Best Defensive Deck Despite the low amount of Spell Cards, this Deck remains a top-tier Deck with its plethora of options, like grinding out the game or flat-out go for an OTK. They make use of Link and Xyz Monsters, and currently has one of the hardest combo of cards to clear once they are all on the field. Predaplant Plant-based Fusion Deck With Powerhouse Monsters Predaplants specialize in Fusion Summoning monsters that are not only very strong in battle, but may also provide disruptions and and field control, even using the opponent’s monsters as Tribute or Fusion Material. They also make use of a Token system witht Predator Counters, which further debilitate the opponent’s monsters depending on the effects that were activated. Dragonmaid Fusion Monsters Gives Other Monsters Effect Immunity Dragonmaids can easily snowball the game once they have their cards set up. It may be a Beatdown Deck with powerful Fusion Monsters, but it can recycle cards from the Graveyard, and effects that trigger as soon as the Battle Phase starts. True Draco Beatdown With Oppressive Control A True Draco Deck can go up against the meta with ease playing by the book, or going with an anti-meta strategy with other archetypes. It slows down the gane to the point that it can dictate the pace, and it only gets worse with the ability to run a lot of floodgates. Dinosaurs Overwhelm Enemies with Sheer Power Dinosaur Decks have underrated support, but when built right can contend with popular and meta Decks with surprising resilience and powerful monsters like Ultimate Conductor Tyranno. Dinosaurs can even be a good engine for a few Decks, and has a couple of dedicated archetypes that can be mixed and matched. Phantom Knights Graveyard-based Summon-heavy Archetype A Deck reliant on the Graveyard to activate various effects from their cards, Phantom Knights does a lot of Special Summons for easy Xyz plays. They also enjoy having some of the best Trap Card supports among archetypes, and they can even be splashed in other Decks. Prank-Kids Quick Link and Fusion Monster Access Prank-Kids focuses on doing Fusion Summons and Link Summons as their specialty, as this Deck has a lot of one-card combos that are easy to learn, and rewarding to master. The Boss Monsters, for how easy they can be summoned, have very impressive stats and effects. Traptrix The Best Users of “Trap Hole” Trap Cards Traptrix are infamous for bringing back the “Trap Hole” archetype of Trap Cards back to competitive viability, while also being immune to its own effects. Its playstyle revolves around “Hole” Trap Cards, which include monsters having the ability to Set Trap Cards, prevent Normal “Hole” Trap Cards from being negated or even use their effects themselves without even needing to set “Hole” Trap Cards. SPYRAL Control Using Card Prediction Effects SPYRAL is an interesting Deck that revolves around getting information about the opponent’s next few draws. A number of monster’s effects rely on calling the top card of the opponent’s Deck right, and they have a number of cards to help them make the correct answer. Code Talker The Original Link Monster Deck The first Link archetype to be introduced to the card game, Code Talkers are potent for their ability to Link Climb-continuously Special Summon monsters get to Link Monsters with high Link Ratings. With signature boss monsters like Accesscode Talker and Firewall Darkfluid, this aggro deck can easily spiral out of control. Yang Zing Synchro-Based Deck with Constant Presence Yang Zings can be used as an engine for other Decks, but the archetype can work as a standalone Deck. It has a lasting presence on the field, with floating effects that enable Main Deck monsters to replace themselves by Special Summoning a different monster should they be destroyed. They are also one of the few Decks that can conduct a Synchro Summon during the opponent’s turn. Despia Pure | Predaplant | Darklords | Budget Fusion-based Deck using the Branded Engine Despia makes us of very spcific Fusion Spells that are part of the Branded Engine, and using certain monsters as material can gain consistent advantage whenever they are used as Fusion Material as compensation. They can also be used during the opponent’s turn, further pressing the opponent into acting swiftly before the advantage becomes too much. Igknights OTK Pendulum Engine Used To Deal Lethal Burn Damage The Igknights archetype got elevated into competitive status when its engine of being able to search cards is now paired with a strategy to win the game by dealing lethal burn damage. It uses a couple of Synchro and Link monsters with Cyber-Stein as a combo extender, and a trio of very powerful Fusion monsters to deal 8000 damage in a single turn. Lunalight Fusion-Based Beast-Warrior Beatdown Deck A fairly simple strategy, Lunalights focuses on Fusion Summoning their boss monsters, who are all very powerful when it comes to attacking monsters. Being able to attack multiple times in a turn is a shared effect among most of the Lunalight Fusion monsters. HERO – DPE/Sycthe Engine Combo Locks Out Special Summons A variant of a HERO Deck makes full use of the new Destiny HERO – Destroyer Phoenix Enforcer, with a very solid and consistent combo that could be splashed to other Decks if need be. This Deck prioritizes getting the titular Fusion Monster out on the field as soon as possible, and locking out the opponent from any Special Summons during their turn with Artifact Scythe. Thunder Dragons Fusion with Graveyard, Banish & Discard Effects The Thunder Dragons are Fusion-based Deck that specializes in using Graveyard, Banish and Discard effects that provides card advantage and consistent presence on the field. The Fusion Monsters can be brought out without needing Polymerization, and effects that heavily disable the opponent from going through their strategies. Evil★Twin Frequent Trigger Effects to Gain Advantage A Deck using both Evil★Twin and Live★Twin archetypes, they make use of summoning each other’s counterparts that can be activated in either player’s turn as a Quick Effect. Most of their combos start with a single card, meaning the Deck can be filled with other archetypes that can synergize, and disruptions like hand traps. Darklord Frequent Monster-revivng Effects Darklords make frequent use of the Graveyard by sending monsters there, and using various effects to Special Summon them back onto the field to trigger effects. Because of its Graveyard usage and its DARK-heavy affinity, a Darklords Deck enjoys quite a lot of draw power with supporting cards. When built right, it also has the capacity to commit to an OTK. Madolche Deck that Recycles Its Own Cards Frequently Madolche Decks are extremely hard to Deck Out as they have numerous ways of recycling cards to be used again, which includes Spells and Traps, and can be sent to the hand or Deck when destroyed by the enemy. Not only that, Madolche Decks can enjoy synergy with a plethora of archetypes which can change up the playstyle significantly. @Ignister Cyberse Deck using all Attributes and all Special Summon methods To run an @Ignister Deck means to be familiar with every single method to Special Summon a monster, all of which have different attributes. It chains Special Summons together to swarm the field with its signature monsters, all equipped with powerful effects that control the field. It all leads up to Link Summoning the only LINK-6 monster in the game at present, The Arrival Cyberse @Ignister. Therion ABC Union Fusion Powered Up With Therion Engine The ABC archetype gets to enjoy more consistency and ability to commit to its Extra Deck ace, ABC-Dragon Buster with the help of the “Therion” Engine. Probably the strongest Union archetype in the entire game, this Deck relies on getting materials in the GY to be banished in order to summon the titual Fusion monster. Libromancer Hyper-aggressive Ritual Archetype with no Ritual Spells Libromancers are a very aggressive Ritual-based Deck, with a core strategy of doing Ritual Summons one after another and gaining additional effects through using monsters on the field as material. It can support itself with their exclusive searchers, and can pivot into Extra Deck monsters-especially Xyz and Link Monsters . Crystal Beasts Control or Aggro with Monsters that Becomes Continuous Spells Crystal Beasts have a unique properity with their monsters, that when they get destroyed they can take up space in the Spell/Trap Zone as a Continuous Spell. The Deck takes this effect and uses it to their advantage, with effects that utilizes said monsters in that position. Mayakashi Zombie Archetype Specializing in Link and Synchro Summoning The Mayakashi archetype plays considerably close to their distant archetype cousin in Shiranui, with their ability to repeatedly Synchro Summoning monsters with higher levels using the same Tuner. They are further supported by Link Monsters, in which the Deck can also Link Climb. Gaia OTK Warrior and Dragon-type Fusion Deck Balancing Power and Control Gaia the Fierce Knight‘s various Fusion Monsters can have surprising firepower and control, a balance that not many Decks can have. If a Duelist is not careful playing against this monster, they could end up having a boss monster with high enough ATK to one-shot their Life Points.
Tier 3 Deck List Explanations
Tier List Explanation Shortcuts Rikka Xyz Deck That Also Tributes Enemy’s Monsters One of the few archetypes with a Kaiju-like effect of using opponent’s monsters as tributes, Rikka Decks rely on level manipulation to get their key monsters out on the field. Once they do, the Deck becomes a pseudo-Control Deck with its plethora of Spells, Traps and Monster Effect disruptions. Blue-Eyes A Classic and Still Competitive Beatdown Deck The archetype for the most iconic card in the game has gathered a lot of support, and has gained numerous ways of bringing out Blue-Eyes White Dragon with ease. It still has some heavy hitters, especially in the Extra Deck, and impressive combos to get important cards on the field. Blackwings A Competitive Synchro Deck Blackwings are known for their ability to swarm the field and chain Synchro Summons into their boss monsters like Onimaru the Divine Thunder. They also have dedicated hand traps, and options to go with Xyz Monsters. A good player can do an OTK with this Deck. Burning Abyss Control the Enemy With Graveyard Effects Burning Abyss remains consistent as ever in Master Duel, being able to contend against the best of the best. They have a variety of options in the Extra Deck, and the Main Deck is no slouch either with frequent floating effects. Expect an Extra Deck Monster out on the field already as early as Turn 1. Ancient Gear Control the Enemy With Graveyard Effects Ancient Gear monsters all share the same effect where Spells and Traps cannot be activated whenever they launch an attack. They also have quite a capacity to Special Summon certain monsters straight from the Deck, and their Extra Deck monsters are powerful in their own right. Rokket Very Flexible Dragon-based Deck Rokkets take advantage of targeted effects, especially if they come from any “Borrel” monster. They also enjoy lots of options in the Extra Deck different summoning method; the ease of summoning from the archetype is a key component for a good Rokket-based strategy called Dragon Links. Raidraptors Xyz-Based Deck That Ranks Up Into Stronger Monsters Raidraptors are known for their ability to swarm the field by summoning monsters one after another. One of their unique gimmicks is the ability to “Rank Up” an Xyz Monster intro a stronger Xyz Monster, and Raidraptors have multiple Xyz Monsters with high Ranks to gain advantage over the opponent. Six Samurais Special Summon-heavy Warrior Deck Once known as one of the best Synchro archetypes, Six Samurais are powerful in the early game for their ability to swarm the field into more powerful Extra Deck monsters, which can invole Synchro, Xyz and Link monsters. A full board from a Six Samurai Deck can make them feel like a Control Deck. Paleozoic Lots of Normal Traps That Double as Monsters Paleozoic Decks are unique in that they rely mostly on Normal Trap Cards that can be Special Summoned into Monsters after they have been activated. Disruption after disruption slows down the pace of the game, and Extra Deck options are available with Rank 2 monsters. Infinitrack Xyz Beatdown with EARTH Machine Monsters An extremely aggressive Beatdown Deck, Infinitrack relies on EARTH Machine Monsters to gain as much card advantage as possible, before destroying the enemy with monsters with very high ATK. They also have options in the Extra Deck, adding more firepower and control. Tellar Swarming with LIGHT Monsters and Xyz Summons Compromised of Constellar and Stellarknight archetypes, Tellar monsters swarm the field to generate presence and card advantage, specializing in Level 4 and Rank 4 monsters. They can also Xyz Summon higher-Ranked Xyz Monsters so long as certain requirements are fulfilled. Water Xyz Synergy Among Level 4 WATER Monsters Interestingly, there seems to be quite a number of Level 4 WATER monsters that have effects that are inherently good for generic WATER monsters, alongside card support that provide card advantage. Certain archetypes augment this like Sharks and Mermail, and make for a rather good Xyz Monster-based Deck. Frogs Versatile Swarm and Control Despite having low-Leveled and low-Ranked monsters, Frog Decks are dangerous for their ability to control the field and pace of the game once they have their key monsters out. Toadally Awesome, for example, gets a special mention for terrorizing even the top-tier Decks with its effect negeation. Galaxy-Eyes Photon | OTK Rank 8 Xyz Monster Dominance Galaxy-Eyes Decks have surprising ease in getting Level 8 mosnters out on the field, combined sheer power with flexible options with Rank 8 being a popular Rank to have for Xyz Decks in general. When set up right, Galaxy-Eyes can commit to an OTK attempt without much to stop it. A-to-Z The Best Union-Based Fusion Deck Arguably the best Union Monster archetype in the game, A-to-Z decks specialize in Contact Fusion, and turning key monsters into Equip Spells to save them for a future Fusion Summon. They also have a couple of unorthodox support that can boost their attacking prowess or extend the summoning combo, and do have the option to add some other Extra Deck Monsters, like Link and Xyz Monsters. Rose Dragon Plant-based Synchro Deck with Material Advantages An unorthodox mix of Plant-type and Dragon-type monsters, Rose Dragons specialize in Synchro Summoning, as Synchro Monsters will benefit from the materials used to summon them, granting extra effects in the process. It also has one of the best monsters that can clear the field effectively in Black Rose Dragon, and a debilitating Field Spell in Rose Garden. Witchcrafter Card Advantage through Spell Cards A rare kind of Deck that does not require an Extra Deck to properly function, Witchcrafters primarily focuses on Spell Cards to maintain card advantage and control over the field. It also has the uncanny ability to constantly refresh Spell Cards from the GY to the hand, which helps in maintaining control. Ultra Athletes Aggressive Control by Switching Out Monsters Ultra Athlete Decks (or U.A.) have a unique playstyle around their summoning mechanic, returning a different U.A. monster from the field back to the hand. This Deck provides control over the field, while also being able to swarm the field with high powered monsters, often without needing to use the Extra Deck for options. Gren Maju Punishes the opponent using Banished Cards This Deck focuses in on one particular monster, Gren Maju da Eiza. Getting as many cards banished from the game as possible, boosting Gren Maju’s ATK to an absurd level. Banished Cards from both players contribute to Gren Maju’s ATK, so banish effects are key to this Deck. D/D/D A Great Extra Deck Abuser D/D/D can be considered as a good way for entering the meta that has heavily leaned towards a constant stream of Special Summons. It familiarizes players with every single Extra Deck summoning method in the game, and when set up right the board is hard to clear out due to multiple negate effects. Infernoble Knight Synchro-based Deck that using Monsters as Equip Cards Closely related to the “Noble Knights” archetype which predominantly use Xyz Monsters, Infernoble Knights instead use Synchro Monsters as their Extra Deck monster type of choice. They still retain the focus of using Equip Spells for protection and for offense. The Winged Dragon of Ra Egyptian God Card Using 3 Versions of Itself Among the three Egyptian God Cards, The Winged Dragon of Ra received the most support, and it puts those to very good use. The Deck cycles around the three versions of Ra: its classic appearance, Sphere Mode, and the Immortal Phoenix version. The Deck revolves around the effects of these three cards, and getting them out as soon as possible to disrupt and control the field. Zefra Pendulum Summons Providing Flexibility While a Zefra Deck specializes in Pendulum Summoning, it makes use of other Summoning styles as befitting archetypes that are referenced in representative cards, like Rituals with Nekroz and Synchros with Yang Zing. The wide variety of archetypes this Deck can support gives a sense of unpredictability on what kind of Zefra Deck this can be. Ghostrick Different Levels, Different Ranks, Different Effects Ghostrick Decks often have monsters ranging from Levels 1 to 4, and the corresponding Xyz Monster. They also often use Flip effects, and using effects that force monsters into the face-down Defense Position. This Deck draws out the game, gaining strength and advantage little by little, but it can also commit to stalls, mills and burn effects.
Rogue Tier Deck List Explanations
Tier List Explanation Shortcuts Slifer Arcana Knights Warrior Deck that Swarms the Field for Extra Deck Monsters The Arcana Knights are known for their ability to swarm the field with as many monsters as possible, with up to 3 monsters in King’s Knight, Queen’s Knight and Jack’s Knight in a single combo. If the plethora of Extra Deck Monsters is not enough, it also has one of the Egyptian God Cards in Slifer the Sky Dragon as another option. Treasure Panda Exodia Exodia Deck Using Unique Special Summon Interaction Treasure Panda has a very unqie effect that lets him Special Summon Normal Monsters, and four out of the 5 pieces of Exodia just happen to be Normal Monsters. This is an all-or-nothing FTK turbo Draw Deck to get all five Exodia Cards in hand, and can catch players by surprise if they do not have any counters immediately on hand. Dinosaur Bishbaalkin FTK Aggressive Deck Turns Every Other Monsters Into Dragons An all-or-nothing Deck banking on pulling off massive burn damage in a single effect, Dinosaur Bishbaalkin FTK plays around the titular monster, Phantasmal Lord Ultimitl Bishbaalkin, summoning and using as many tokens as possible to fulfill the first-turn kill combo. Nekroz One of the best Ritual-based Decks in the Yu-Gi-Oh!’s history Nekroz was once the most feared Ritual-based archetype in the game, being very efficient in resource control when Ritual Summoning. It can suppress the opponent from using their Extra Deck, provides consistent card advantage, and have very flexible Ritual Spell Cards. Melffy Low-level Monsters with Lots of Disruptions A Melffy Deck is contained with a lot of disruptive cards, and its Xyz Monsters will be even more disruptive the more Xyz Materials it gets attached with. However, the variety of Trap Cards and disruptions can only protect the monsters so much, and grinding Decks like Melffy Decks will have trouble setting up against a more aggressive Deck. Toon A Strong Gimmicky Deck for the Unprepared By all accounts, a Toon Deck does have good cards and some ample protection with an upgraded version of the titular Spell Card. Unfortunately, Toon World itself is the weak point for this Deck; as soon as this card, or any card bearing its name, leaves the field, all Toon monsters are automatically destroyed. Infernity A Deck That Rewards Going Handless Infernity has a unique playstyle where it rewards a player for having no cards in their hand, even having cards that enables this strategy. The Deck’s monsters gain effects once the player goes handless, and it even encourages using every single card on hand as soon as possible to maintain it. Black Luster Soldier A Slow but Powerful Ritual Archetype There have been attempts made to give support to the original Ritual Monster, including Chaos variants and even a Link Monster version, but the Deck can feel disjointed, needing specific monsters as Ritual Tribute fodder to grant a Black Luster Soldier Ritual monster stronger effects. There is also yet to be a dedicated searcher for its specific Ritual Spell Cards. Gimmick Puppet Taking Advantage of Opponent’s Boss Monsters Gimmick Puppets focuses on Rank 8 Xyz Monsters that can adapt to pressure. Most of their effects take advantage of when the opponent already has strong monsters on the field, either by destroying them through Gimmick Puppet effects, or by stealing victories through an Instant Win condition that was fulfilled. Utopia An OTK XYZ Archetype Utopia is a very strong Xyz-based Deck in its own right, having multiple ways to bring out the higher-Ranked Xyz monsters. There is a way to do frequent OTK’s with Utopia using “Double or Nothing”, but with a lot of hand traps that could negate the strategy, it might be a little too risky to go for it and just stick to overwhelming presence on the field intead. Railway Train Easy Level 10 and Rank 10 Monsters Level 10 and Rank 10 monsters should prove to have amazing firepower befitting their stats. Railway Train Decks are mostly primed to finish the opponent and the Duel as quick as possible through brute force, even pushing for OTK attempts. Cyber Dragons Branded | Pure | Cyberdark Good Aggro, Amazing Boss Monster A solid aggro deck with powerful beatsticks, optional Fusion Monsters with powerful attack effects, easy combos and one of the best Xyz Boss Monsters in Cyber Dragon Infinity. On a good day it can beat meta decks, but combos can become one-dimensional and easy to read. Red-Eyes A Slow Archetype with Flexible Deck Build Paths Red-Eyes has always had the potential to contend against the best, with different ways to take the archetype with Warriors, Archfiends and even with Dark Magician in a card in the Forbidden List. However, it still suffers from a bit of an identity crisis, and Master Duel having Dark Dragoon banned was a big blow for their tier viability. Fluffals Fusion Archetype to Bring Out Strong Monsters Fluffals can be in contention as part of good Fusion-based Decks to run, having very powerful Boss monsters that can be hard to deal with. The Main Deck monsters have ways of searching and recycling “Polymerization” shortly after being used in a Fusion Summon. Junk A Beat Down Deck Focusing on Synchro Summons A Junk Deck usually has quite a lot of options to consider with their Synchro Monsters, most of which having abilities to aid them in battle. They can also be used as an engine for other archetypes, such as Stardust Synchro Monsters. Cubic Unique Burn/Beatdown Deck A Cubic Deck is rather inflexible with tech cards, but when played right it can deal a lot of Effect Damage, on top of being able to summon some really powerful Extra Deck monsters. One such monster halves the Life Points of the opponent just by simply declaring an attack. Gravekeepers The Original Anti-Meta Deck A Gravekeeper Deck can surprise players in their ability to keep up with the meta their way, despite being one of the original “Anti-Meta” strategies. Their Deck revolves around Necrovalley, an extremely powerful Field Spell that locks cards in the Graveyard that prevents cards that are in there from moving out, while Gravekeeper monsters can bypass this restriction. Monarchs Tribute Effects to Keep Tempo Monarchs embody the old days where Tribute Summoning was just as tedious as Special Summoning. Because of the Deck’s nature to often not run Extra Decks, the archetype can be slow, and you do need constant fodder to properly do Tribute Summoning, but its presence as soon as one is Tribute Summoned still hits hard in Master Duel. Exodia Card Draw Reliant Deck Exodia decks always have this win condition: getting all five pieces of Exodia in hand. Getting to that win condition always has a hint of luck, and getting to draw all five of them by any means necessary. There are a lot of cards that can stop this strategy alone, so players have to be careful. Noble Knights Xyz Deck that Specializes in Equip Spells One of the more unique Warrior-type archetypes, Noble Knights empowers its monsters with a variety of Equip Spell Cards. Their effects can range from increased attack to recycle effects when destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, all while providing various forms of protection while equipped to a Noble Knight monster. Numeron Pure | Egyptian God OTK with Ridiculous ATK Numbers In terms of strength to relative Rank, none are as surprising as the Numeron Xyz monsters. A specific combo is enough to get four Xyz Monsters on the field, and attacking consecutively can end up with a monster with 16000 ATK. An added danger is the option to bring out the only monster in the game that can have 100,000 ATK. Aroma Life Point-based Advantages A Plant-based archetype, this Deck takes advantage of gaining Life Points to maintain control over the field. Unless the opponent clears out the Spells and Traps for this Deck, which is its bread and butter, Aroma Decks can spiral out of control and beecome untouchable the longer the Duel goes on. Phantasm Spiral Umi-supported Control with Instant Win Condition Phantasm Spiral Decks are a unique case where its key monster is a Normal Monster. It introduces various disruptions that make it hard to use Effect Monsters, and the Deck gets even stronger with the introduction of the flexible Umi field spell. The Deck also has an Instant Win mechanic that they can cheese on their opponents. Solfachord Pendulum-focused Deck With Odd/Even Number Effects Solfachord Pendulum Summons are hard to negate because of the Pendulum Effects shared among most of the monsters in this archetype. Additional effects trigger depending on the Pendulum Scales set, and there are effects that help increase or decrease said Pendulum Scales. The Deck also enjoys having an open interpretation to the Extra Deck, letting the player choose what cards can be used as support. Vampire Zombies that Mill, Steal and Play with Life Points A Zombie archetype that perfectly encapsulates the theme of being vampires, a Vampire Deck focuses on resource manipulation, such as milling the opponent’s Deck, spending and gaining Life Points, and even taking control of the opponent’s monsters. Evil Eye A Deck Revolving Around a Single Equip Spell The Deck’s strength revolves around the titluar Equip Spell, Evil Eye of Selene. Once equipped to Evil Eye monsters, their effects become Quick Effects and enjoy a couple of boosts as well. There are also other cards that are also considered Evil Eye of Selene, just in case the crucial card was blocked out. Agent Fairy-type Deck using Old Cards Being Given New Life A couple of cards in the Agent Deck have been in Yu-Gi-Oh for a very long time, and with a few tinkers with fellow Fairy-type monsters and archetypes, can give access to Synchro Summons and Link Summons to bring out a powerful board as quickly as possible. Cupid Pitch Turbo Improved an Engine into a Deck with Multiple Options A Deck that improved on a very popular engine using Crystron Halqifibrax and Mecha Phantom Beast Auroradon, the Cupid Pitch Turbo Deck is all about unlocking the Extra Deck to bring out multiple Synchro and Link monsters with very powerful effects. If the combo lasts long enough, the player could have a field full of boss monsters. Harpies Hyperaggressive Winged Beast Deck Harpies are one of the original archetypes in the history of Yu-Gi-Oh!, and has evolved into a very aggressive archetype. They can swarm the field unexpectedly, and has mutiple disruptions that can come from the most unlikelest of sources. They also have some form of synergy with other Winged Beast monsters. Defense OTK Forcing the Opponent To Attack Your High DEF Monsters The Defense OTK can be best described as a counter-punch, baiting the opponent to attack one of your monsters with high DEF, by increasing your monster’s DEF, and reducing the opponent’s monster’s ATK. If done right, the opponent will most likely hit themselves for lethal damage. Subterror Krawlers Using Powerful Flip Effects to Control the Duel Two Flip Effect-centric archetypes come together to build a Control Deck that can be quite tricky to beat. Their ability to constantly flip their monsters face-down to refresh their Flip Effects can be hard to deal with, especially once they have the key cards needed and ways to keep retrieving them. Altergeist Link-Based Control Deck Using Traps to Pressure the Opponent Altergeist Decks can be lacking in terms of raw stats and power, but the Deck is extremely powerful in controlling the Duel. Its myriad of Link Monsters and Traps make it hard for the opponent to maneuver, but can take a while for a full filed to be properly set up.
Ojama Tier Deck List Explanations
Tier List Explanation Shortcuts Ojama Fusion-based Deck Restricting Monster Zones Ojamas are infamous for having low-stat monsters focusing on certain Normal Monsters as key cards in the Deck. Their strength lies in their Fusion Monsters, which suppresses the opponent by denying the opponent from using multiple Monster Zones. Suicide Deck Losing The Game On Purpose For Time Efficiency It’s what it exactly says on the title-this is a Deck that is meant to make you lose the game in record time. This Deck is mostly seen during events, to accumulate points garnered faster than winning games.
Deck Tier List Criteria
Ranking Criteria Consistency This is the Deck’s ability to consistently commit with its gameplan in a Duel, regardless of circumstance. This also includes your starting hand, and the plays that can be made with it. Skill Cap This determines a Deck being easy to learn and master for all Duelists to be used at full capacity. The higher the skill cap, the harder the combos that can be learned with the Deck opening more options. B01 Advantage As of the moment, Master Duel is currently following a Best-of-1 format, meaning there are no Side Decks to consider. This checks the Deck’s winrate when the Deck can win on its own, without having to swap out cards. Meta Advantages This criteria checks how well the Deck fares against the current meta, and what they have that can counter staple cards seen in multiple Decks. This rating will most likely change during updates on the Forbidden/Limited Card list.
Poll: WCS Qualifiers
Master Duel will be holding its first ever Regional Qualifiers for the 2023 World Championship on August 5-6, 2023. Players from around the world will have a chance to represent their region’s server in the highest caliber of competition possible!
The road to greatness starts with a Deck players will want to use to rise to the top. We’d like to know what Decks will you be running once the WCS Qualifiers begin this May 16th!
Related Guides
Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel Deck Archetypes
Yu-Gi-Oh Master Duel Decks
Deck Tier List: Best Decks for Season 16
List of All Covered Decks
Aggro Decks
List of All Aggro Decks D/D/D Aggro Code Talker / Prank Kids Zoodiac Blue-Eyes Virtual World SPYRAL Control Toon Kingdom Red-Eyes Blue-Eyes Zoodiac Code Talker Prank-Kids Zoodiac Tri-Brigade Pure Tri-Brigade Ancient Gear Dragonmaid Tri-Brigade Lyrilusc (Bird Up) Dinosaur Raidraptor HERO Dragon Link Despia Magikey Adamancipator Black Luster Soldier Pendulum Magician Stardust Dragon Tenyi Swordsoul Cyberdark @Ignister Cyber Dragon The Winged Dragon of Ra Despian Predaplant Despia Darklord Odd-Eyes Performapal Numeron FTK Six Samurai ABC Trickstar Windwitch Blackwings Fluffal Cupid Pitch Turbo Lunalight Vampire Ultra Athletes Thunder Dragon Z-ARC Pendulum Magician Adventurer Rose Dragon Tenyi Adventurer P.U.N.K. Suship Pure D/D/D Numeron Egyptian Gods Galaxy Eyes OTK Borrelend Dragon Link Vaylantz Beetrooper Icejade Ra Therion ABC Libromancer Mathmech Spright Evil☆Twin Spright Tri-Brigade Ishizu Chaos Slifer Arcana Knights Gaia OTK
Control Decks
List of All Control Decks Invoked Shaddoll Eldlich Control Drytron Fairy True Draco Dark Magician Traptrix Phantom Knights Madolche Relinquished P.U.N.K. DPE Scythe Evil★Twin Paleozoic Frog Salamangreat Gravekeepers Monarch Tellarknight Agent Exosisters Darklord Plunder Patrol Rikka Floowandereeze Adventurer Phantom Knights Dinomoprhia Tri-Brigade Gladiator Beast Adventurer Witchcrafter Dark Magician Gravekeeper Branded Tri-Brigade Branded Despia Zombie Vampire Blue-Eyes Jet Dragon Spellbook Branded Cyber Dragon Branded Zombies Pure Scareclaw Dinomorphia Runick Labrynth Harpies Buster Blader Umi Control Endymion Nekroz Spright Spright Runick Ishizu Runick Branded Ishizu Crystal Beasts Orcust Altergeist Witchcrafter Subterror Krawler Mayakashi Ishizu Tearlaments Evilswarm Melffy Spright
Burn Decks
List of All Burn Decks Red-Eyes Burn Timelord Burn Chain Burn D.D. Dynamite Igknight OTK Cubic Dinosaur Bishbaalkin FTK
Alt-Win Decks
List of All Alternate Win Decks Crooked Cook Exodia Flower Cardian Exodia Treasure Panda Exodia Suicide Defense OTK
All Budget Decks
List of All Budget Deck Guides Budget Shark Xyz Budget Eldlich Budget Hippo Turbo Budget Despia Budget F.A. Metalfoes Budget Blue-Eyes White Dragon Budget Chain Burn Budget Majespecter Budget Yosenju Budget Flower Cardian Budget True Draco Budget Amorphage Budget Ishizu Tearlaments
Best Cards for Decks
Lists of Best Cards for Deck Building Best Staple Cards Best Searchers Best Hand Traps Best Board Wipes Best Negates Best Fusion Monsters Best Synchro Monsters Best Xyz Monsters Best Link Monsters Best Structure Decks
