Forum:Deck Guide/Dinosaur

Dinosaur Guide
By BobaFett2

Dinosaur-Type monsters are very well supported and high powered, lacking little other than good effects. Back when beatdown strategies were popular, Dinosaur-Type monsters could hold their own, but with the popularity of Synchro Summoning, Dinosaur-Type monsters are generally weaker.

There are two Dinosaur Archetypes: "Jurrac" and "Evoldar" (a subgroup of "Evol"). "Jurrac" is a powerful stand-alone archetype that can hold its own against many meta decks if built and played correctly. "Evoldar" is not stand-alone as it requires the help of "Evoldo" monsters. The archetype is pretty weak although certain cards can function well in other decks.

Ratings
Power: 9/10 Dinosaur-Type monsters do not lack power in any way. They have high ATK or DEF and are some of the toughest monsters in the game.

Consistency: 6/10 Excepting "Jurrac" decks, Dinosaur decks are not super consistent because they require lots of tribute summoning and -1s.

Speed: 6/10 Again excepting "Jurrac" decks, Dinosaur decks are fast but not very fast.

Draw/Search Power: 10/10 "Jurrac" monsters have both draw and search power while Dinosaur-Type monsters in general have a great search card ("Fossil Dig").

Because Dinosaurs are a Type, not an Archetype, I will skip the standard section for Dinosaurs and make separate Jurrac and Evol sections.

Monsters

 * Jurrac Aeolo: "Aeolo" is a decent card. It is a Level 1 Tuner monster, so it can be Special Summoned with "One for One", and you can tribute it to Special Summon a different "Jurrac" monster from your Graveyard.
 * Jurrac Brachis: "Brachis" is a weak Level 3 Tuner monster. It can't be destroyed by battle if you control another "Jurrac" monster but that's inconsequential-you should just Synchro Summon.
 * Jurrac Dino: "Dino" is the best "Jurrac" Tuner. It is a Level 3 Tuner Monster with 1700 ATK-this means that it can be Special Summoned with "Guaiba" or "Velo". It also gives you draw power.
 * Jurrac Gallim: "Gallim" allows your opponent to choose between discarding a card or having the monster that destroyed it by battle destroyed in turn when "Gallim" is destroyed by battle. It's a decent card, although not a great one. It's also a Level 2 Tuner monster.
 * Jurrac Giganoto: "Giganoto" is great for "Jurrac" decks-it's usually at least a 2500 ATK monster (higher than most Level 7 Synchro Monsters) but it also powers up your other "Jurrac" monsters. It's easy to make as well-after "Guaiba" destroys a monster in battle, you can Special Summon "Dino" and Synchro Summon "Giganoto".
 * Jurrac Guaiba: "Guaiba" is one of the reasons that "Jurrac" decks are good. It has a decent 1700 ATK but a great effect-when it destroys your opponent's monster in battle, you can Special Summon another "Jurrac" monster with 1700 or less ATK from your deck with the condition that it can't attack that turn.
 * Jurrac Herra: "Herra" may seem good because you can Special Summon it from your hand but it isn't really necessary for "Jurrac" decks.
 * Jurrac Iguanon: "Iguanon" can get over a "Ryko" with its effect (return a set card your opponent controls to their hand when it destroys a monster in battle) if they have another monster but other than that it has little use.
 * Jurrac Meteor: "Meteor" is a high-level Synchro Monster. It requires too many monsters for it to be a practical summon, but it does clear the field and allow you to Special Summon a Tuner monster from your Graveyard (Special Summon "Aelo" and tribute it to Special Summon a different monster).
 * Jurrac Monoloph: "Monoloph" can attack all of your opponent's monsters but since it only has 1500 ATK it's not really worth using.
 * Jurrac Protops: "Protops" has a base ATK of 1700 but gains 100 per monster your opponent controls. The maximum it will reach is 2200-it has few uses except against Anti-Meta beatdown.
 * Jurrac Ptera: If "Ptera" is attacked but not destroyed while in Defense Position, the monster is returned to your opponent's hand and "Ptera" gains DEF but its low DEF means that this effect isn't very useful.
 * Jurrac Spinos: "Spinos" is a two-tribute monster with 2600 ATK. If it destroys your opponent's monster by battle, they get a token with 0 ATK and DEF in Attack Position. This isn't very good. However, it can be combined with "All-Out Attacks" to create an OTK (which is inferior to the far simple OTK that uses "Cactus Fighter" instead).
 * Jurrac Stauriko: When "Stauriko" is destroyed by battle, he gives you two tokens. They can be tributed or used for a Synchro Summon. He's worth using one or two of.
 * Jurrac Titano: "Titano" is yet another two tribute "Jurrac" monster (and he can't be Special Summoned). It has 3000 ATK, meaning that it can destroy most monsters in battle. It also can't be targeted by Effect Monster's effects or by Trap Cards. Lastly, you can Banish a "Jurrac" monster with 1700 or less ATK in your Graveyard to give him 1000 ATK. He's good for a Tribute Monster but not fast enough to do well in the meta.
 * Jurrac Tyrannus: "Tyrannus" is also a two tribute "Jurrac" monster. It has 2500 ATK but it can be boosted permanently in two ways. First, you can tribute a Dinosaur-Type monster to give him 500 ATK, and secondly, when he destroys an opponent's monster in battle, he gains 300 ATK.
 * Jurrac Velo: "Velo" is the second most important monster in "Jurrac" decks. When he is destroyed in battle, you get to Special Summon another "Jurrac" monster with 1700 or less ATK (including another "Velo").
 * Jurrac Velphito: "Velphito" is a Level 5 "Jurrac" Synchro Monster. It has no set ATK-instead, its ATK and DEF are equal to the sum of those of its components. It also can destroy any face-down Defense Position monster without flipping it face-up (getting over "Ryko").

Main Cards (Evol)

 * Evoldar Cerato: "Cerato" is a powerful beatstick with 2100 ATK. When Special Summoned by an "Evoldo" monster it becomes a 2100 ATK point monster. In addition to that, it allows you to add "Evoldo" monsters from your Deck to your hand if Special Summoned this way. It's pretty great.
 * Evoldar Diplodocus: "Diplodocus" gives you a free "MST" if Special Summoned by an "Evoldo" monster.
 * Evoldar Ulcanodon: When Special Summoned by an "Evoldo" monster, you also get to Special Summon another "Evoldar" monster. You can follow up with a Xyz Summon.
 * Evolkaiser Ragia: The boss monster for "Evol", made up of two "Evoldar" monsters. It gives you a one-time "Solemn Judgment" effect and it has 2400 ATK. It can also be made in "Jurrac" decks.
 * Evoldo Gephiros: When "Gephiros" is destroyed by battle, you can Special Summon an "Evoldar" monster in your Graveyard, activating its effect.
 * Evoldo Odokeris: When "Odokeris" is Normal Summoned, you get to Special Summon an "Evoldar" monster from your hand. This isn't as good as "Gephiros" (at least in some respects) but it's still effective.
 * Evoldo Vestro: When "Vestro" is flipped, you get to Special Summon an "Evoldar" monster from your Deck. This is by far the best "Evoldo" monster since it Special Summons from your deck. It also happens to have 1900 DEF, preventing most Level 4 or lower monsters from destroying it in battle.

Other Cards

 * Big Evolution Pill: At the cost of one monster, you can Normal Summon or Set Dinosaur-Type monsters without Tributing. If you summon two Level 7 or higher Dinosaur-Type monsters this way, you are saving on the cost of tributing (since "Big Evolution Pill" basically turns a single monster into a double tribute for three turns).
 * Fossil Dig: A fantastic card that adds a Level 6 or lower Dinosaur-Type monster from your Deck to your hand. This would be one of the best search cards if there were better Dinosaur-Type monsters.
 * Fossil Excavation: "Fossil Excavation" is like a very underpowered "Call of the Haunted". Not only do you have to discard a card from your hand, but you can only Special Summon a Dinosaur-Type monster and its effect is negated.
 * Hunting Instinct: It Special Summons a Dinosaur-Type monster from your hand in response to your opponent's summon. However, it isn't chainable or necessary.
 * Jurassic World: "Jurassic World" is not a very good Field Spell. Dinosaur-Type monsters don't need the power up-a "Solidarity" and "Mausoleum of the Emperor" would serve them better.
 * Mausoleum of the Emperor: "Mausoleum of the Emperor" allows you to summon tribute monsters without tributes at the cost of a lot of Life Points. Due to "Solemn Warning" and "Solemn Judgment" being staples in today's meta, this card isn't so useful, but in a deck that doesn't use them it can be very good.
 * Raise Body Heat: A terrible Equip Spell Card that gives Dinosaur-Type monsters 300 ATK and DEF.
 * Seismic Shockwave: An odd card-it can be activated in response to the destruction of one of your Dinosaur-Type monsters. It then locks three of your opponent's Spell and Trap Card Zones for 3 turns, at the end of which you can return a Dinosaur-Type monster from your Graveyard to your hand. It may or may not be worth using.
 * Solidarity: Gives your Dinosaur-Type monsters 800 ATK but prevents you from using non Dinosaur-Type monsters (unless they Banish themselves).
 * Survival Instinct: This clears your Graveyard of Dinosaur-Type monsters and gives you 400 Life Points per. It's generally a terrible card unless your deck is focused on "Ultimate Tyranno".
 * Tail Swipe: If you control a high level Dinosaur-Type monster, you can use "Tail Swipe" to return a Synchro Monster to your opponent's Extra Deck. It can also return low level monsters and cards like "Ryko" and "Gravekeeper's Spy" before they can be flipped.
 * Ultra Evolution Pill: "Ultra Evolution Pill" is basically a "Big Evolution Pill" that only works for one summon. However, you have to tribute a Reptile-Type monster to use it, making it not very useful.

Dinosaur Beatdown
The standard Dinosaur Beatdown attempts to get out Tribute Monsters quickly in order to overpower your opponent. It isn't very consistent because Tribute Monsters are often dead draws but it can be moderately powerful on a good hand.

Water Dragon
"Water Dragon" is a card used by Bastion Misawa in Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. The only way to summon it is with "Bonding - H2O" which requires you to have "Oxygeddon" and two "Hydrogeddon" on your side of the field.

Jurrac Synchro
Jurrac Synchro Decks are quite powerful-powerful enough to compete with meta decks. They can swarm the field and make powerful Synchro Monsters quickly and efficiently.

Jurrac Beatdown
Instead of focusing on Synchro Summoning, Jurrac Beatdown decks focus on the beatdown side of "Jurracs". Their high base ATK and their ability to swarm makes them tough opponents.

Jurrac Xyz
"Jurracs" can also Xyz Summon Level 4 Xyz Monsters easily using "Jurrac Guaiba's" effect.

Evol Xyz
"Evol" is one of the first dedicated Xyz Summoning archetypes. They use "Evoldo" monsters to Special Summon "Evoldar" monsters, giving them their effects, which in turn can help them search, destroy cards, or Special Summon more "Evoldar" monsters.