Gravekeeper's



The Gravekeeper's are a series of monsters based on ancient Egyptians who guarded the Pharaoh's tomb. The Gravekeeper's Deck usually activates "Necrovalley" and gains power from it, while using loopholes to avoid being affected by its drawbacks. This Deck tends to prevent the opponent from affecting cards placed in the Graveyard, as well as keeping field control with its ability to swarm. They were introduced in Pharaonic Guardian as one of the first true Archetypes. The Gravekeeper's have powerful effects for level four monsters, but more importantly, when the Gravekeeper's have "Necrovalley" on the field (which is ideal and very likely) most of the monsters will have 1700-2100 attack.

The Gravekeeper's Chief and Assailant were present in the anime. He duels against Jaden Yuki, giving the duelist a hard time, but eventually Jaden manages to beat him. After the defeat, he gave Jaden one half of the Shadow Charm pendant, telling him that another person (Atticus Rhodes) has the other half.



A themed Deck that revolves around monsters that have "Gravekeeper's" in their card name. All "Gravekeeper's" are DARK monsters, except Gravekeeper's Commandant who is EARTH.

The key card to the Gravekeeper's Deck is "Necrovalley, a Field Spell Card that increases ATK and DEF of Gravekeeper's monsters by 500. "Necrovalley" also stops spells, traps, and monsters effects from affecting cards in the Graveyard, like "Monster Reborn", "Magician of Faith" and "Call of the Haunted" and prevents either player from removing from play from their Graveyards with cards like "Soul Release" or Dark Counterparts. However, "Necrovalley" does not prevent effects that activate in the Graveyard, so cards like "Mystic Tomato" and "Pyramid Turtle" still activate.

Because of the effects of "Necrovalley", this Deck tends to be somewhat anti-meta, countering Lightsworns, Zombies, and to a certain extent Gladiator Beasts, therefore making it desirable to use anti-meta style cards. Because the most of the "Gravekeeper's" monsters are DARK they can also use "Allure of Darkness", and other DARK attribute supports.

Although "Necrovalley" stops most Graveyard related effects, "Gravekeeper's" have their own support that are unaffected by Necrovalley", namely "Rite of Spirit" and "Gravekeeper's Stele".

The newest addition to the "Gravekeeper's" family is the "Gravekeeper's Recruiter". This monster acts like a "Gravekeeper's" exclusive "Witch of the Black Forest", allowing the player to add a "Gravekeeper's" monster with 1500 or less defense from the Deck to the hand. The multiple combinations possible with this creature to generate advantage and thin the Deck adds much needed consistency to the "Gravekeeper's" archetype.

Monsters

 * Gravekeeper's Commandant
 * Gravekeeper's Descendant
 * Gravekeeper's Spy
 * Gravekeeper's Assailant
 * Gravekeeper's Recruiter
 * Blackwing - Gale the Whirlwind
 * Spirit Reaper

Spells

 * Pot of Duality
 * Allure of Darkness
 * Necrovalley
 * Gravekeeper's Stele
 * Royal Tribute
 * Book of Moon

Traps

 * Dimensional Prison
 * Starlight Road
 * Bottomless Trap Hole
 * Seven Tools of the Bandit
 * Compulsory Evacuation Device
 * Royal Oppression
 * Solemn Warning

Extra Deck

 * Ancient Fairy Dragon
 * Blackwing Armor Master
 * Black Rose Dragon
 * Arcanite Magician

Side Deck

 * Malefic Stardust Dragon
 * Malefic Cyber End Dragon

Monsters

 * Gravekeeper's Descendant
 * Gravekeeper's Spy
 * Gravekeeper's Chief
 * Gravekeeper's Curse
 * Gravekeeper's Cannonholder
 * Lava Golem

Spells

 * Dark Room of Nightmare
 * Cursed Bill
 * Magical Dimension
 * Gravekeeper's Servant
 * Wave-Motion Cannon
 * Dark Snake Syndrome Optional

Traps

 * Rite of Spirit
 * Coffin Seller
 * Skull Invitation
 * Judgment of Anubis
 * Magic Cylinder
 * Nightmare Wheel

Strengths and weaknesses
The use of "Necrovalley" in this Archetype prevents the opponent from using the Graveyard as a resource. A very large number of opposing strategies, therefore, will be at a severe disadvantage while this card is on the field (Zombies, X-Sabers, Dragons, Blackwings etc).

They also have excellent search capabilities, as exemplified by "Gravekeeper's Spy" and "Gravekeeper's Recruiter". "Recruiter" is especially useful in this respect, creating fantastic combinations with "Gravekeeper's Descendant".

Their intense reliance upon "Necrovalley" makes them very vulnerable to opponents who enjoy using Spell and Trap destroying effects, so cards to protect it (such as "Malefic Stardust Dragon") and traps that can help the player maintain a field and hand advantage over a stronger opponent are highly recommended. A good way to counteract Necrovalley is to play Closed Forest, which prevents the activation of other field spells.

"Consecrated Light" is another weakness of this deck because it is almost entirely made up of DARK monsters. The only good thing is that it still allows you to Set DARK monsters. Luckily, it is only found in the Side Deck of most Decks and cards like "Cyber Dragon" and "Fissure" can be sided to eliminate it. Also, "Gravekeeper's Commandant" can destroy it by battle and you can flip "Gravekeeper's Descendant" and activate its effect.

"Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror" can also be very troublesome for Gravekeeper's Decks as it stops the effects of all Gravekeeper's monsters other than "Gravekeeper's Commandant" (which does not activate on the field) from being used. "Last Day of Witch" and other anti-Spellcaster cards can also cause problems for Gravekeeper's, since all of them are Spellcaster-Type.

Keep in mind that cards in the Graveyard that have an ability that Special Summons them to the field will not be negated by "Necrovalley". Cards that Special Summon them, like "Monster Reborn", will be negated, but cards that Special Summon themselves, such as "Treeborn Frog", can still activate.

Optional support

 * Malefic Stardust Dragon -- A strong alternative to "Field Barrier" to protect "Necrovalley". It can be Special Summoned easily, protects "Necrovalley", and has a good attack stat. While it may not have a place in a Gravekeeper's Deck, it surely belongs in the side.
 * Allure of Darkness -- Adding draw power to any Deck is helpful. All of the "Gravekeeper's" monsters are DARK, excluding "Gravekeeper's Commandant", making this Spell Card useful for speed.
 * Royal Tribute -- One of the most key cards in a Gravekeeper's Deck, this allows one to keep the field under control by eliminating opponent's monsters before they are summoned.
 * Necrovalley -- The most important piece of support in Gravekeeper's Decks. Not only does it add 500 much needed attack and defense to all Gravekeeper's, it also serves to disrupt many common strategies in today's metagame.
 * Royal Oppression -- Serves excellently in an almost continuously Special Summon reliant metagame, and only conflicts with main phase usage of "Gravekeeper's Spy"