The limiting of the Arise-Heart Xyz monster that would often close out any combo - which saw Shangri-Ira utilising its effect to remove monsters from the game to clinical effect - even before considering the ban of the generic Rank 7 Xyz monster Number 89: Diablosis the Mind Hacker, reduced the options available to the deck alongside a considerable knock to its strength. Kashtira’s untouchable status has weakened somewhat in the months since due to the deck being targeted by Konami through the Yu-Gi-Oh! banlist. By banishing your opponent’s cards facedown it was far harder to bring them back into the matchup - creating devastating scenarios for those forced to face up against this deck, even before considering their ability to control the board through effect negation via cards like Shangri-Ira. With good reason, too.Īs we noted when previewing the best cards in the Photon Hypernova booster set, the flurry of support this deck has received elevated it to a near-untouchable state in the meta. Despite Rikka’s eventual victory, Kashtira accounted for the highest percentage of decks in the top 64 of the event - 30% - and was the most prominent deck in each of the following rounds before its eventual defeat. | Image credit: Konamiĭespite coming second in the recent European Championships, Kashtira still ultimately remains the Yu-Gi-Oh! deck to beat at the moment. The popular kid’s choice, but can it go all the way? Kashtira is among the most popular decks in competitive Yu-Gi-Oh! at the moment. While the deck can be overshadowed in conversation for the best Yu-Gi-Oh! decks of the format, the European Championships showed just why Rikka remains a force to be reckoned with - and one not to be overlooked. With a smaller core engine integrated into other decks such as this, however, weaknesses in the Rikka strategy can be overcome, turning any player of the deck into a formidable opponent when coupled with the ease at which the deck can remove pesky monsters using the likes of Rikka Konkon. While the Rikka monsters have the potential to flood the field with an array of powerful Link monsters, and through the likes of Princess have their own negation abilities, they are vulnerable to counters. Indeed, a big contributing factor to the deck’s continued dominance is its control. The integration of Therion into the deck is where it stands out - something Jessica explained in her deck video as being a counter to the broad state of the meta that can control the game and prevent interruptions (which this assists in thanks to their negation effects). Indeed, the Rikka and Sunavalon aspects of the deck remained nearly identical between the two lists, in part thanks to the deck’s relative underdog status throughout the past year compared to more attention-grabbing power decks like Despia and Kashtira helping it avoid negative impacts from the banlists. The deck has evolved in the year between the two victories, beyond the integration of another archetype into the deck - but not by much. Not only was Jessica Robinson’s Rikka Sunavalon Therion deck the winner of the tournament’s 2023 incarnation, it was also the second year in a row that a British competitor and a Rikka deck had come out on top during the event, following last year's success for Marcus Patel with his unbeaten Rikka Sunavalon deck. …starting with the deck that just came out on top in a field of thousands at the recent European Championships. While the knowledge of which deck will ultimately come out on top is nearly impossible to predict, we can still speculate on the best decks in Yu-Gi-Oh! as we head towards the prestigious competition…Ī long-time favourite, and a Rikka-mended choice for Championship glory Rikka decks have won the last two European Championships running. The meta is in a healthy state, with a lot of variety in the decks able to compete at the highest level. That being said, at this stage, updated banlists and the state of play begin to give us some indication of what decks to expect competing for the top spot in August. We just learned that Jessica Robinson walked away from the Yu-Gi-Oh! European Championships as its first female champion, with the recent American Championships one of the last major events standing between now and the fated weekend crowning our first World Champion since 2019. With less than a month to go until the Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championships descend on the Japanese capital and their home in the halls of Tokyo Big Sight, the question remains of which player and deck will come out on top in the prestigious event.
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