Infernoid

"Infernoid" (インフェルノイド, Inferunoido) is an archetype of FIRE Fiend-Type monsters that debuted in Secrets of Eternity. This is the first Special Summon Monster archetype. The name of the archetype is a combination of the words Inferno and Void, and also a play on the word's Infernal and Android.

Lore
In times immemorial, these messengers of the inferno were sealed away inside the Sacred Tree of the Naturia along with the "Qli". Their forms are said to be based on those of ancient monsters who were seized and captured.

Appearance
The revealed "Infernoid" monsters look like mechanical demons. The armor on their bodies is decorated with the thick, latticework lines that also adorn the "Qli" monsters. Each "Infernoid" has a number of canisters (as seen in "Void Seer") in their body equal to their Level, and the colors are the same as the spheres of their corresponding "Qli".

Etymology
Each of the revealed Level 7 and lower "Infernoid" monsters' names are corruptions of the names of biblical demons, such as "Lucifuge" and "Beelzebub". The revealed high-Level monsters, "Nehemoth" and "Adramelech", use non-corrupted versions. Those demons are said to be the rulers of the Qliphoth. Their Spell and Trap Cards are named after the Purgatory (in japanese) and Void (in TCG).

Additionally in the TCG - presumably to avoid references to demonic entities - each Infernoid monster is named after an ordinal number in a different language that corresponds to its own Level ("Antra", for example, means "second" in Lithuanian, while "Onuncu" is Turkish/Azerbaijani for "tenth").

Playing Style
All of the "Infernoid" monsters released thus far cannot be Normal Summoned/Set, and must be Special Summoned by banishing other "Infernoid" monsters from the hand and/or Graveyard while the combined Levels or Ranks of all Effect Monsters you control is 8 or less. The Level 4 and lower requiring 1 single monster to be banished, the ones from Level 5 to 8 requiring 2 and the Level 10 requiring 3. All of them have 0 ATK or DEF, except for "Infernoid Onuncu".

So far, the Level 4 and lower "Infernoid" monsters can only be Special Summoned from the hand and have effects that deal with individual cards on the field, by either returning them to the hand or simply destroying them. Also, during the opponent's turn, they allow the player to tribute 1 monster in order to banish any card on the opponent's Graveyard.

The Level 5, 6, 7 and 8 ones can be Special Summoned from either the hand or Graveyard and have offensive effects that activate when they battle a monster, allowing them to attack a second time in a row, disrupt the opponent's hand or banish any card on the field. Their second effect also banish an opponent's card in the Graveyard, but can be activated during either player's turn, rather than only during the opponent's turn. This second effect is very useful as it can be used to dodge effects that target the "Infernoid" monsters, as well as to frustrate your opponent when he/she activates a card that targets a card in their Graveyard.

Finally, their boss monster, "Infernoid Onuncu", can also be Special Summoned from the Graveyard and destroys all other monsters on the field upon its Special Summon. Its second effect negates the activation of any Spell/Trap Card by the cost of a monster tribute.

Due to the necessity of banishing other "Infernoid" monsters from the hand/Graveyard in order to Special Summon, cards that fill the Graveyard are required in the Deck, such as "Foolish Burial", "Reasoning", etc; for this requirement to be achieved, "Void Launch" is very useful, as it sends 2 "Infernoids" from the Deck to the Graveyard during its owner's Standby Phases; "Void Expansion" is another card that helps the Summoning process, once it Special Summons a Token during each of its owner's Standy Phases, and those Tokens can be used as fodder for the Special Summon of the "Infernoid" monsters. "Eye of the Void" and "Void Seer" are best used during the opponent's turn; the former can Special Summon an "Infernoid" monster ignoring its Summoning condition, which makes it useful for defensive strategies (against direct attacks, for example), by Summoning a monster with higher ATK or DEF than the attacking monster's ATK. The latter is like an on-theme "Forbidden" Quick-Play Spell Card can be used to protect 1 "Infernoid" from any opponent's effects during that turn; in additioin, it can prevent an "Infernoid" monster from be destroyed by a card effect, by banishing itself from the Graveyard.

Among general cards that may help the Deck, are mentioned here:


 * "Necroface": can be useful in a mid-game, as it recycles all "Infernoid" monsters that are currently banished (bear in mind that it will also recycle all the opponent's cards that were banished by their second effects);


 * "Kuribandit", "Reasoning", "Needlebug Nest", etc: can be used to fill the Graveyard with "Infernoids";


 * "A Wild Monster Appears!": can Special Summon any "Infernoid" ignoring its Summoning condition. To prevent that monster from returning to the Deck during your opponent's End Phase, you can use its effect to banish one card from their Graveyard;


 * "Burial from a Different Dimension" and "Miracle Dig": to recycle banished "Infernoid" monsters;


 * "Hate Buster": can be used to inflict a heavy damage to your opponent. The "Infernoid" monster destroyed by it can later be used as fodder to the Special Summon of another "Infernoid" or can even Special Summon itself.


 * "Blaster, Dragon Ruler of Infernos": can be used as a beatstick, by Special Summoning itself, or can be used to destroy an opposing card, by discarding itself alongside with an "Infernoid" that will be later used as fodder or that will Special Summon itself.

Weaknesses
While "Infernoids" can easily pump out monster after monster to win games, they require banishing cards from their Graveyard or hand in order to Special Summon themselves, since all revealed Infernoids are Nomi monsters. Cards such as "Necrovalley", Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer, and "Imperial Iron Wall" can prevent players from being able to banish cards to Special Summon any "Infernoid", locking them out of their best plays. If you require the ability to banish cards yourself, you can play cards such as "Macro Cosmos", "Dimensional Fissure", and "D.D. Crow" instead, to prevent your opponent from having enough cards in their Graveyard, while also being able to Special Summon "Infernoids" and still allowing you to banish cards as needed. Keep in mind, however, that some "Infernoid" players will run cards such as "Miracle Dig" and "Burial from a Different Dimension" to help keep their Graveyard "full of Infernoids", so this strategy may not always work. "Vanity's Emptiness" can also shut down "Infernoids", since the cannot be Normal Summoned or Set, and must be Special Summoned by their own effects. This forces "Infernoids" to rely on the very few monsters they can Normal Summon or Set until they can get rid of "Vanity's Emptiness", getting rid of a lot of their advantage.