Chapter 137. Dragon Rulers vs. Spellbook at the World Championship! A Dragon Ruler Mirror Match Displays Draconic Might!
After watching the entire short video where the Rank 1000 special-win combo exploded onto the field, everyone couldn't help but marvel at how the higher world optimizes deckbuilding for specialization.
Even more, it made Duelists from every world realize the gap in deck-construction thinking.
If it were them, they would never dare to pack a deck with a jumble of multi-archetype cards.
Let alone build the entire list to revolve around a single card.
That's just absurd.
This difference is even more pronounced among Duelists from the GX World and the 5D's World that came after.
The original DM World still has some understanding of that approach.
For example, Yugi Muto's deck includes plenty of non–"Dark Magician" cards from outside the core theme.
Seeing this specialized deck contain so many different archetypes, the first reaction was, "That's normal."
But the further he watched, the more solemn Yugi's expression became.
When the Rank 1000 special victory was achieved, Yugi mentally broke.
"So many different archetypes jammed in!"
"And they can still connect non-core cards to other non-core cards!"
"Is this the unique bond between monsters?"
"Relying on those bonds, can non-core engines really work with other non-core engines?"
Yugi muttered to himself, and the more he thought, the more ridiculous it felt.
This isn't scientific.
In the 5D's World:
"So this is the power of Ancient Fairy Dragon."
"The power to manipulate Field Spells."
Luna sighed helplessly.
Her ace, Ancient Fairy Dragon, unexpectedly appeared here as nothing more than a tool dragon to rotate Field Spells.
"Every card has its own value."
"Maybe it's a key role in a top-tier meta deck."
"Maybe it's a combo piece in a fun, specialized list."
"That is the meaning of each card's existence."
"I really like that mindset and logic."
Beside her, Yusei Fudo spoke calmly.
For a Duelist who could conceive such a build to achieve the Rank 1000 special win, he felt genuine awe and respect.
People of the higher world must respect their cards deeply.
They certainly wouldn't make plays that make their monsters weep.
In the Main World:
Sei Yuki watched as Duelists from the various worlds chatted freely in the group and noted the changing expressions across the different worlds.
He couldn't help feeling a bit pleased.
As expected, showcasing specialized alternate-win strategies makes those anime-era veterans lose their composure.
But what would they know?
What the shorts showed were just the tip of the iceberg.
He still had plenty of bizarre deck constructions.
"Right, that hyper-meta deck hasn't shown its power yet."
"The Dragon Rulers that once dominated the format alongside Tearlaments."
"Even after the whole family was hit by the Forbidden & Limited List, they remained powerful."
"I think it's time for them to make an appearance."
Catching a glimpse of a short in the corner explaining the Dragon Ruler engine, Sei Yuki quickly set the next video to focus on Dragon Rulers.
But to make these anime veterans recognize the strength of Dragon Rulers, it was best to start with the theatrical World Championship showdown—Dragon Rulers vs. Spellbook—and then roll into the Dragon Ruler mirror match.
With that in mind, after a brief search, Sei Yuki found the target short.
At the same time, its title appeared across the worlds.
"Dragon Rulers vs. Spellbook at the World Championship! WS Roaring Bro's Dragon Rulers vs. Dragon Rulers—A Single Duel Made Him Famous!"
Sei Yuki: "Friends from every Duel World."
Sei Yuki: "By now, with so many shorts under your belt, you should have a clear sense of our world's meta decks."
"Including why our lists run triple Maxx 'C' and triple Droll & Lock Bird, why the going-first player no longer draws, and why 'read your line and combo off' is normal while going second often can't 'play Yu-Gi-Oh!' at all."
"Are you curious?"
"From when did our higher Duel World start developing into this?"
"Or, is there a deck that broke the old concepts of 'bricking' and 'going minus' altogether?"
"...."
Sei Yuki's words echoed alongside the title across the Duel Worlds.
Brick hands and minus trades?
There's an engine that can break those concepts?
No way.
For Yugi Muto, Yusei Fudo, Jaden Yuki, and the others, those two ideas were anything but unfamiliar.
Jaden felt it the most.
"Five-for-one" Fusion will forever be classic.
So when they heard an engine could break those two headaches, each pair of eyes revealed a hint of shock.
It was almost unbelievable.
Sei Yuki: "Of course, I know Duelists from each world remain skeptical."
Sei Yuki: "That's fine. First let's watch how this deck performs in a mirror match at our World Championship."
Sei Yuki: "After that, I think you'll understand."
"Because this was some years ago."
"The staple hand traps of the time were fewer."
"We basically had only Maxx 'C', Droll & Lock Bird, Effect Veiler, Swift Scarecrow, and the like."
"There was no Pendulum and no Link Summoning yet."
"So the powerful Xyz endpoints this deck could make were limited."
"Also, the player going first still drew a card."
"Now that you know that, let's jump to today's topic."
With the preface out of the way, the short began to play.
Duel info popped up.
WS Roaring Bro vs. Joker.
Both players at 8000 LP.
WS Roaring Bro won the die roll and would go first.
WS Roaring Bro: "My first turn. Draw."
WS Roaring Bro: "I Set 2 cards and end my turn."
Joker: "My turn. Draw."
Joker: "Turn end."
WS Roaring Bro: "My turn. Draw."
WS Roaring Bro: "I also end my turn."
It felt like the calm before the storm.
On the World Championship stage, both players opened by yielding to each other.
Neither showed what deck they were on.
That only made the veterans from the six worlds more curious.
What kind of mirror is this?
They just keep passing back and forth.
They aren't worried about getting OTK'd in one turn?
Joker: "My turn. Draw."
Joker: "If you won't move, then I will."
Joker: "I activate the effect of Reactan, Dragon Ruler of Pebbles, discarding it together with Burner, Dragon Ruler of Sparks from my hand."
"Then I Special Summon Redox, Dragon Ruler of Boulders from my Deck."
"I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Super Rejuvenation."
"During the End Phase of this turn, for the number of Dragon-Type monsters I discarded from my hand and Dragon-Type monsters Tributed from my hand or field this turn, I draw that many cards."
"I discarded 2, so I'll draw 2 cards."
"Turn end."
WS Roaring Bro: "My turn. Draw."
WS Roaring Bro: "I use Lightning, Dragon Ruler of Drafts, discarding it together with Burner, Dragon Ruler of Sparks to the Graveyard."
WS Roaring Bro: "I Special Summon Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms from my Deck."
"From my hand, Redox, Dragon Ruler of Boulders banishes Lightning and Burner from my Graveyard to Special Summon itself."
"When Burner was banished, its effect adds Blaster, Dragon Ruler of Infernos from my Deck to my hand."
"Blaster now activates as well—I discard it together with the Burner in my hand to Special Summon a big FIRE Dragon from my Deck."
"Overlay Redox and Tempest to construct the Xyz Network."
"Using two Level 7 monsters, I Xyz Summon—Number 11: Big Eye."
"I activate Big Eye's effect. I detach 1 material to target a monster on your field and take control of it."
"During the turn this effect is activated, this card cannot attack."
Joker: "I activate Effect Veiler from my hand."
Joker: "During your Main Phase, I send it from my hand to the Graveyard to target your Big Eye; its effects are negated until the end of this turn."
WS Roaring Bro: "I Set 1 card."
WS Roaring Bro: "Turn end."
The Dragon Ruler engine revealed itself with the full family build.
After a few straightforward back-and-forth exchanges, the six worlds had their eyes glued to the screen.
Just that one simple sequence showcased the Dragon Ruler engine's flow, its strengths, and its power from multiple angles.
Because of that sequence, every veteran's expression shifted slightly.
A hint of gravity surfaced.
Yugi Muto: "This engine is frightening. It seems both the big dragons and the babies enable extensions."
Yusei Fudo: "Indeed. Even being banished triggers search effects. I think that's exactly today's theme."
Yuma Tsukumo: "Dragon Rulers, huh? Pulling out two free Level 7s for an easy Xyz is already great. If they were Level 8s, I can't imagine what would happen."
Playmaker: "I'm getting more curious about Dragon Rulers. If they were already like this in the pre-Link, pre-Pendulum era, what happens after those mechanics arrive?"
The group chat erupted.
Earlier they wondered if both players had bricked in the calm before the storm.
Now it was clear.
Both were deliberately holding still.
And once the engine started humming, the duel would immediately descend into a war of counters.
Joker: "Redox returns to my hand at your End Phase."
Joker: "My turn. Draw."
"Reactan discards itself together with the Redox in my hand to the Graveyard."
"I Special Summon a second Redox from my Deck."
"I activate the Spell, Sacred Sword of Seven Stars."
"From among my hand and face-up monsters, I banish 1 Level 7 monster to draw 2 cards."
"I banish the Redox on my field to draw 2."
"From my hand I send Blaster, Dragon Ruler of Infernos and Stream, Dragon Ruler of Droplets to the Graveyard."
"I Special Summon Burner, Dragon Ruler of Sparks from my Deck."
"From the Graveyard, Redox banishes Blaster and Reactan to Special Summon itself."
"Overlay Redox and Burner to construct the Xyz Network."
"Confirm Rank 7."
"Xyz Summon—Number 11: Big Eye."
WS Roaring Bro: "I activate the Quick-Play Spell, Book of Eclipse."
WS Roaring Bro: "I flip all monsters on the field face-down."
"Yours and mine—everything goes face-down."
Joker: "From my Graveyard, Stream banishes Tempest and a second Reactan to jump back."
"When Tempest was banished, it adds a card from my Deck—Dragunity Brandistock."
"I Normal Summon the Level 1 Tuner, Dragunity Brandistock, then tune it with the Level 7 Stream to Synchro Summon."
"Level 7 plus Level 1 equals Level 8."
"Come forth—Crimson Blader."
"Battle Phase."
WS Roaring Bro: "I activate my Trap—Threatening Roar."
WS Roaring Bro: "You cannot declare attacks this turn."
Joker: "Then I'll go straight to Main Phase 2."
Joker: "I Set 2 cards, and activate a second copy of Super Rejuvenation."
"I activated two Baby Dragon effects this turn, so I'll draw 4 cards."
"At the end of my turn…"
"Your Book of Eclipse resolves and flips my Big Eye face-up, so I draw 1 more."
We've got a problem.
A big problem.
It's starting to make no sense.
These effects between big and baby Dragon Rulers, and their combos with other cards, are getting wild.
Especially with Super Rejuvenation drawing a clean plus four in one gulp.
Those resources are skyrocketing.
It's more "greedy" than Pot of Greed itself.
Isn't that a bit too ridiculous?
And Dragon Rulers aren't a single card.
It's multiple pieces that keep chaining into each other.
Searching Dragunity and then Synchro-climbing right away made all the old-guard Duelists feel their brains were about to overload.
In the DM World:
That exchange completely explained why the preface claimed this engine broke the concepts of bricking and going minus.
"I get it. High-Level monsters in hand are no longer dead."
"In fact, holding a big Dragon Ruler is the starting point."
"And because Dragon Rulers generate value whether in the Graveyard or banished, they keep feeding the Duelist with resources and searches."
"This engine really does overturn the old ideas of bricking and going minus."
At his side, Solomon Muto stroked his white beard and carefully summarized his understanding of Dragon Rulers.
Those words made the other Duelists stir.
That really is the logic.
Take Blue-Eyes White Dragon—draw three copies and you hemorrhage on the spot and want to scoop right there.
But draw any three big Dragon Rulers, and you're already thinking about how to use their effects to profit.
In the VRAINS World:
Playmaker and company cared not only about Dragon Rulers.
They were also focused on the crisp play lines and precise decisions in this championship duel.
It's the higher world's World Championship, after all.
The prestige is maxed out.
And both players are on the same deck.
Barring surprises, the constructions are about eighty percent similar.
Under those conditions, luck, skill, and attention to technical details become crucial.
With two top-tier decks, it comes down to piloting and duel understanding.
"Ai, who do you think has the better chance?"
"That so-called Roaring Bro?"
"Or the other guy?"
Ai half-squinted at Playmaker.
"Fifty-fifty."
"Besides, we don't understand Dragon Rulers well enough yet."
"They're both top players."
"Hard to say."
Playmaker waved his hand with a faint smile.
Ai fell silent.
True enough.
A Dragon Ruler mirror, with both sides loaded with resources from the very start, makes it hard to tell who will win.
Or, as the saying goes:
When two disciples share the same master, neither can crack the other's technique.
....
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