Forum:Deck Guide/Malefic

By Lappyzard

=Malefic= Malefic monsters are a series of DARK Attribute monsters that are evil counterparts to famous Dragon monsters (not necessarily Dragon-Types) used by Paradox in the Bonds Beyond Time movie. Malefic monsters are summoned by removing their "good" counterpart from the Deck/Extra Deck. Only one "Malefic" monster can be face-up at a time, in order to limit their power. They also cannot exist without the presence of a Field Spell, much like the Earthbound Immortals.

Strengths
The obvious strength of Malefic decks is the ability to drop big monsters at little to no cost. This gives Malefic decks a lot of power and the ability to control the field easily. The weakest monster of the set, outside of Malefic Parallel Gear, weighs in at a whopping 2400 ATK. Since all Malefics can be Special Summoned, it's easy to maintain one on the field at all times, giving the player a lot of control over the duel.

Weaknesses
Malefics require a Field Spell in order to stay alive, making them extremely vulnerable to effects that destroy field spells. They also can only control one monster at a time, making it difficult to make progress against a solid defense. Malefics have to be Special Summoned, so cards like Royal Oppression and Archlord Kristya are crippling to the deck.

Meta Ranking
Speed: 7/10 Malefics can summon monsters easily and have access to a number of Draw Engines, giving them a good bit of speed.

Power: 10/10 Malefics range in ATK power from 2400 all the way to 5000, making them one of the strongest decks available.

Consistency: 7/10 Because Malefics need a Field Spell to survive, they are completely dependent on having one present. Fortunately, there are a number of search and Draw effects to get to these Field Spells.

Search/Draw Power: 8/10 Malefics have access to a number of Search and Draw effects, giving them a good deal of strength in this area.

Overall: 8/10 Malefics are not prevalent in the metagame, but they have a had a reasonable amount of success due to their overwhelming power and anti-meta capabilities.

Meet the Archetype
Monsters:
 * Malefic Truth Dragon The biggest monster of the Archetype, Malefic Truth Dragon weighs in at an overwhelming 5000 ATK and comes with the ability to revive itself any time a Malefic is destroyed at the cost of half your Life Points. Powerful, but it takes a heavy toll on your Life Points.
 * Malefic Paradox Dragon The only Synchro Monster of the Archetype, this is also the only Malefic that specifically demands "Malefic World", making its use more limited than most Malefic monsters.
 * Malefic Cyber End Dragon Weighing in at 4000 ATK and with its counterpart residing in the Extra Deck, this is one of the most popular Malefic monsters.
 * Malefic Rainbow Dragon Also standing at 4000 strong, this card is often overlooked in favor of Cyber End, due to the possibility of Dead Drawing Rainbow Dragon.
 * Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon Sitting at "only" 3000 ATK, this card is overlooked for the same reasons as Malefic Rainbow. However, it and its counterpart can be used with Trade-In, making it somewhat more viable.
 * Malefic Stardust Dragon The other popular choice along with Cyber End, its coutnerpart also resides in the Extra Deck, it is useable with Trade-In, and finally it also protects the field spell, and therefore itself.
 * Malefic Red-Eyes B. Dragon Coming in at only 2400 ATK, being unuseable with Trade-In, and with the high possibility of dead drawing its counterpart, this card is almost never used.
 * Malefic Parallel Gear The tuner of the set, it circumvents the "one at a time" condition of the Malefics by letting you use a Malefic in your hand as the other Material. However, it can't be used normally, limiting its use as a Tuner.

Spells:
 * Malefic World The Field Spell of the set, this card guarantees the ability to draw a Malefic when needed and also allows the use of Malefic Paradox Dragon.

Traps:
 * Malefic Claw Stream Lets you destroy a monster if you have a face-up Malefic. Unnecessary and outclassed.

Other Card Choices
Monsters:
 * The counterparts of the Malefic Monsters you intend to use.
 * Beast King Barbaros Used in Skill Drain variants, this card will hit the field at 3000 ATK.
 * Fusilier Dragon, the Dual-Mode Beast Used for the same reasons as Barbaros, and is also useable with the Virus traps. If Skill Drain is not present, you can use a Virus on a Set Fusilier.
 * Gravekeeper's Commandant It can be used to search Necrovalley, and unlike Terraforming can also be used as a monster.
 * Mystic Tomato In Malefic Synchro, this can be used to search out Parallel Gear.

Spells:
 * Allure of Darkness All Malefics are DARK, allowing this card to be used as Draw Power.
 * Book of Moon In Skill Drain variants, this card is useful for summoning multiple Malefics. Even if the Malefic on the field is having its effect negated, the one in the hand will still prevent you from summoning it. By flipping the monster face-down and face-up again, you can circumvent this condition.
 * Foolish Burial In builds that utilize Malefic Truth Dragon, this card is used to dump it into the Graveyard quickly.
 * Forbidden Chalice This card can be used as a pseudo-Skill Drain. More effective when used with Barbaros and Fusilier.
 * Necrovalley For an anti-meta touch, this card is used more commonly than Malefic World as the deck's main field spell.
 * Terraforming Used to search Malefic World.
 * Trade-In Useable with Malefic Stardust and both versions of Blue-Eyes, this card can be added as an optional draw engine.

Traps:
 * Deck Devastation Virus Useable with all Malefics and Fusilier Dragon, this card is great for shutting your opponent down and making use of a Malefic that's about to die.
 * Eradicator Epidemic Virus Used for the same reasons as DDV.
 * Skill Drain A popular choice, this card allows Malefics to survive without the presence of a Field Spell. It also allows multiple Malefics to be present.
 * Proof of Powerlessness All Malefics fit the bill, and if used on your opponent's turn it can be a great disruption card.

Malefic Drain
The Malefic Drain deck uses Skill Drain, allowing for other monsters and incorporating more control tactics. This deck can optionally use the Blue-Eyes/Trade-In engine, but I didn't list it.

Malefic Synchro
The Malefic Synchro version focuses on Malefic Paradox Dragon. Because Malefic Blue-Eyes and Malefic Stardust are the only options, this version uses the Blue-Eyes/Trade-In draw engine.