"Code Talker" (コード・トーカー Kōdo Tōkā) is an archetype of Cyberse Link Monsters with various Attributes (primarily DARK) used by Yusaku Fujiki (Playmaker) in Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS. Most of its members are Link-3 monsters with 2300 ATK. They also all require either Cyberse or Effect Monsters to be Link Summoned, except for the non-specific "Powercode Talker".
Starting with Structure Deck: Master Link, the series received more support from the "Cynet" archetype.
Design
Appearance
The "Code Talkers" resemble warrior-like cybernetic humanoids whose armor is colored after their corresponding Attribute. They also each wield a different weapon to use in battle. Their bodies underneath the armor appear similar to the Ignis, especially Ai and Flame with their black designs.
Etymology
The archetype's name is derived from code talkers, individuals (typically of Navajo origin) who were recruited by the United States Marine Core during World War II a means of encrypting and decrypting communications by using obscure languages that were not widespread, and were difficult to translate.
Playing style
Each member of this archetype have Link Arrows that aid their effects, regardless of being in the Extra or Main Monster Zone, and are compatible with co-linked related effects. Through Link Arrows, they share "power-up" effects that can apply to either themselves or ally monsters.
The archetype typically synergizes strongly with Cyberse support, but also has some support cards of its own. The Deck typically requires a near-pure Cyberse Deck to function well, due to their summoning requirements (typically Cyberse monsters) and effects (often functioning best with Cyberse monsters). Due to the raw number of Cyberse monsters and support cards, one should more carefully choose which ones to include than with other archetypes, which are typically smaller and more straightforward. This is especially true for the Extra Deck, which is already cramped with its 15-card limit and the "Code Talkers" taking up the majority of the slots, which typically require 7 to 9 slots if running one copy of each "Code Talker" and duplicates of several ones (such as "Transcode" and the Link-2 "Code Talker").
Their vast numbers and the tendency to have 'hard' "once per turn" clauses on their effects also discourages running 3 copies of the 'best' Cyberse monsters. As is the case with most orientations of Cyberse Decks, a "Code Talker" oriented Cyberse Deck has a strong toolbox character.
With the help of "Recoded Alive", you can switch your "Code Talker" monster with ones in the Extra Deck for the first effect and with the second effect revive ones used for the first effect.
"Limit Code" is an equipping Trap that summons a "Code Talker" from the Extra Deck if there are any Cyberse Link Monsters in your GY, allowing for both a combo start or extension of combos.
Several "Cynet" Spells and Traps support the archetype directly and indirectly:
- "Optimization" has a second effect that prevents the opponent from responding to a "Code Talker's" attacks in a fashion similar to "Armades, Keeper of Boundaries". In addition, its generic Cyberse-supporting effect greatly aids the summoning of "Code Talkers", working well with monsters added through "Codec".
- "Codec" allows for several searches in the Deck per turn for more Cyberse monsters with Attributes corresponding to your summoned "Code Talkers", allowing for long consecutive Link Summoning of "Code Talkers". This way, it also encourages using different Attributes of Cyberse monsters and "Code Talkers". This includes ones that would otherwise be less likely to be used, such as "Encode Talker" whose lackluster effects are compensated by its Attribute granting "Codec" access to useful LIGHT Cyberse monsters such as "Cyberse White Hat", "Backup Secretary" and "Balancer Lord". For useful monsters for each Attribute, check 'Recommended cards' below.
- "Conflict" serves as the archetype's 'negate and destroy'-card with a small touch of "Called by the Grave", banishing negated cards and preventing other cards of the same name from activating until the end of the next turn.
Several monsters also serve the archetype.
- "Micro Coder" and "Code Radiator" can be used as materials from the hand as long as a Cyberse monster on the field is being used for the "Code Talker's" summon, then triggering other strong effects after the summon.
- "Talkback Lancer" is a useful card to revive fallen "Code Talkers", especially late-game. This is especially useful if it revives "Transcode Talker", which can revive another "Code Talker" consecutively.
The archetype has a fair amount of synergy with "Cynet Fusion" and "Cyberse Clock Dragon". Once some momentum has been built, it is simple for the Deck to control two or even three Link-3 "Code Talkers" without controlling any in the Extra Monster Zones, mainly thanks to "Transcode Talker's" effect to revive its brethren. This can potentially bring "Cyberse Clock Dragon" to ATK values of 10,000. Its required Fusion Material "Clock Wyvern" is typically already present in the Deck, being a staple for most Cyberse Decks and the easy-to-summon "Clock Spartoi" can search "Cynet Fusion" easily, rendering a single copy of it sufficient for the Fusion engine to work. This is not equally true for "Cyberse Witch" and the Ritual Monster "Cyberse Magician", as it requires dedicating more card slots in the Deck to the engine and can provide dead draws with just a single Ritual Monster or Ritual Spell.
Members
| Monster | Effect | Origin | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stat changing | Unique | ||
| Accesscode Talker | Gains 1000 ATK x the Link Rating of 1 of the materials used for this card's Link Summon. | Banish 1 Link Monster from your field or GY; destroy 1 card your opponent controls. You cannot banish monsters with the same Attribute to activate this effect in the same turn. | Storm Access |
| Code Talker | Gains 500 ATK for each monster it points to. | While this card points to a monster, it cannot be destroyed by battle or your opponent's card effects. | Code talker |
| Code Talker Inverted | N/A | When Link Summoned, Special Summon 1 Cyberse monster from your hand to your zone this card points to. | Code Talker + Invert |
| Decode Talker | Gains 500 ATK for each monster it points to. | Tribute 1 monster this card points to when your opponent activates a card or effect that targets a card(s) you control; negate the activation and destroy that card. | Decoding |
| Decode Talker Extended | This card's name becomes "Decode Talker" while on the field. Gains 500 ATK for each monster it points to. | During your Battle Phase, if a monster(s) this card points to is destroyed by battle or sent to the GY, it can make a second attack during each Battle Phase that turn. | Decode Talker + Extend |
| Decode Talker Heatsoul | Gains 500 ATK for each monster it points to. | Pay 1000 LP to draw 1 card, then banish this card from the field to Special Summon 1 Link-3 or lower Cyberse Link Monster from your Extra Deck, except "Decode Talker Heatsoul", if your LP are 2000 or less afterwards. | Decode Talker + Heat Soul |
| Encode Talker | After damage calculation when its unique effect resolves, this card or 1 monster it points to gains ATK equal to the ATK of the battled opponent's monster until the end of that turn. | If your monster this card points to battles an opponent's monster with higher ATK than it, before damage calculation, that monster is unable to be destroyed by that battle while you take no battle damage from that battle. | Encoding |
| Excode Talker | Monsters this card points to gain 500 ATK and cannot be destroyed by card effects. | When Link Summoned, choose unused Main Monster Zones equal to the number of monsters currently in the Extra Monster Zones; they cannot be used while this card is face-up on the field. | Xcode |
| Powercode Talker | Tribute 1 monster this card points to during damage calculation if it battles an opponent's monster; this card's ATK becomes double its original ATK during that damage calculation only. | Target 1 face-up monster on the field; negate its effects until the end of that turn. | PowerPoint |
| Shootingcode Talker | This card can make attacks on your opponent's monsters up to the number of monsters it currently points to +1 at the start of your Battle Phase, but loses 400 ATK when it attacks your opponent's only monster during that damage calculation only. | At the end of each Battle Phase, draw cards equal to the number of monsters this card destroyed by battle that turn. | Troubleshooting |
| Transcode Talker | While it is co-linked, this card and its co-linked monsters gain 500 ATK, and your opponent cannot target any of them with card effects. | Target 1 Link-3 or lower Cyberse Link Monster in your GY, except "Transcode Talker"; Special Summon it to your zone this card points to. You cannot Special Summon monsters the turn you activate this effect, except Cyberse monsters. | Transcoding |
Support
| Monster | Effect after being sent from a specific location to the GY as Link Material for the Link Summon of a "Code Talker" monster | Origin | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hand | Field | ||
| Code Exporter | Add 1 Level 4 or lower Cyberse monster from your GY to your hand. | Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Cyberse monster from your GY, but its effects are negated. | Export |
| Code Generator | Send 1 Cyberse monster with 1200 or less ATK from your Deck to the GY. | Add 1 Cyberse monster with 1200 or less ATK from your Deck to your hand. | Generator |
| Code Radiator | Target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; its ATK becomes 0 and its effects are negated. | Target 2 face-up monsters your opponent controls; their ATK become 0 and their effects are negated. | Radiator |
| Micro Coder | Add 1 "Cynet" Spell/Trap from your Deck to your hand. | Add 1 Level 4 Cyberse monster from your Deck to your hand. | Microcomputer |
Recommended cards
The following Monster Card listing has been sorted by Attribute to provide a structured overview of what cards can be useful with "Cynet Codec".
- DARK
- Micro Coder
- ROM Cloudia
- SIMM Tablir (with Level 4 monsters)
- EARTH
- Dotscaper
- Bitrooper (with "Dotscaper", "Latency", etc.)
- Widget Kid
- Swap Cleric
- FIRE
- Degrade Buster (with "Dotscaper" and "Balancer Lord")
- LIGHT
- Backup Secretary
- Balancer Lord
- Cyberse White Hat
- Boot Staggered
- Latency (with "ROM Cloudia")
- Cyberse Gadget
- WATER
- WIND
- Clock Wyvern
- Defcon Bird (with "Dotscaper")
- Link Infra-Flier
- Cyberse Clock Dragon (with "Cynet Fusion" and "Clock Wyvern")
- Code Talker
- Decode Talker
- Encode Talker
- Transcode Talker
- Excode Talker
- Powercode Talker
- Shootingcode Talker (OCG only)
- Talkback Lancer (OCG only)
- Linkuriboh
- Firewall Dragon (Banned)
- Honeybot / Proxy Dragon
- Clock Spartoi (with "Cynet Fusion")
- Flame Administrator
- Underclock Taker
- Elphase (OCG only)
- Pentestag
- Link Disciple
- Security Dragon
- Cynet Codec
- Cynet Optimization
- Cynet Backdoor
- Cynet Fusion (with "Clock Spartoi" and "Clock Wyvern")
- Cynet Storm
- Gold Sarcophagus (with "Balancer Lord and "Dotscaper")
- World Legacy Succession
Trivia
- This is the first archetype/series composed entirely of Cyberse monsters, as well as the first one made purely of Link Monsters.
- All of the "Code Talkers" could possibly represent the Ignis on account of the different Attributes.
- The attack names of all "Code Talkers" in the Japanese version contain a conclusive word in addition to the "code" portion of their names, with the exception of "Powercode Talker" and "Shootingcode Talker" who simply have the portion before the "code" part of their names.
- "Decode Talker" - Decode End
- "Encode Talker" - Final Encode
- "Excode Talker" - Excode Close
- "Powercode Talker" - Power Termination Smash
- "Shootingcode Talker" - Shooting Complete
- "Transcode Talker" - Transcode Finish
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