A strategy that makes use of two of the most oft-overrated buckets in Yugioh, being Reptiles & Rituals, seemed doomed to fail from their very conception. Reptiles have been in a state of stagnation ever since Snake Rain pigeonholed the entire strategy, it seemed, in GY combo piles like Ogdoadic. Meanwhile, while there is a stellar Ritual deck every once in a while, such as Drytron & Voiceless Voice, the card type itself only works in spite of itself; you need to bend over backwards to assemble a Ritual Monster, on top of the opportunity cost of their Ritual Spell, Ritual Monster, and required Tributes. All this is merely to tee up today’s discussion, however, as we talk about the various topping decks at YCS Providence, namely, Mitsurugi. Mitsurugi is an enigma of high-skill play patterns like Unchained, layered boards like Ryzeal, and one of the most obscene Ritual Monsters ever printed. Where we’re going, you won’t need an umbrella for the Snake Rain, however: Presenting Mitsurugi Post-ALIN.
While Charlie Futch managed to take down YCS Providence with Mitsurugi Ryzeal, I’d instead like to focus on Jim Mayorga’s pure version. Jim still managed to come third in the tournament, and given we’ve talked about Ryzeal in multiple previous articles, it’s worth talking about how Mitsurugi operates in its most simplified form.
First, Ame no Habakiri no Mitsurugi is notable as one of the most pushed card designs I’ve seen in recent memory. While in the hand, it provides a one-time free Level 4 Mitsurugi from Deck, then tributing it or another monster, triggering its effects. This means you can use just Habakiri as your starter, going through the existing Mitsurugi no Mikoto, Saji for the Ritual Spell into your full line, or getting even greedier with the brand-new Mitsurugi no Mikoto, Aramasa. Aramasa is finally a standard Stratos for the deck, and means you’ll be able to go through your first Level 4 via the Normal Summon, and the second two from the Deck by way of Mitsurugi Ritual. What the deck was missing is exactly present here, and while some of the cards in this new wave won’t be seeing play, the ones that will are worth expounding upon.
Of the 7 new cards, it’s really only worth covering Habakiri, Aramasa, and the two new 1-ofs, Mitsurugi Magatama and Mitsurugi no Miko, Wousu. As mentioned, because Habakiri can get into Saji for Spell access, it represents full combo, and because Aramasa can find Habakiri, it’s also full combo. Without new cards to find beyond these two, though, you’d have more searches than you do playable, searchable cards! Enter, Magatama & Wousu. Each of these represents a specific matchup dependent tool that you only get if you’ve already expended your hard once-per-turn effects. Between the 3 Ritual Monsters, and 3 Level 4s, there’s room exactly for one other monster in the search chain, and that’s the going-second tool of Wousu.
Wousu is a riff on the Floowandereeze and the Unexplored Winds effect we’ve seen before, being the deck’s sole hardlock to Reptiles following its Summon. That being said, the fact this is a Level 8 non-Ritual helps the deck a ton, and being a board breaking tool allows the midrange gameplan of Mitsurugi to combat the combo menace of Maliss. That being said, this card is extremely telegraphed, and because you have more important first searches in a metagame including Droll & Lock Bird, I find it unlikely that this card remains in the deck longterm. That is less true for Mitsurugi Magatama, a third great Spell for the Deck, which is a prime candidate for your Saji if you’ve already found the Ritual Spell. Magatama is either a Quick-Play Ritual Summon, or a DPE pop, both modes of which come up. This means you can flex both your floating and board wipe effects via Ame no Murakumo no Mitsurugi, which gets way better if used reactively.
You might notice that I’ve yet to mention the new Ritual Spell, Mitsurugi Mirror, which mentions the names of your three Ritual Monsters, turning on the incredible Pre-Preparation of Rites. The problem is that this is less a Mitsurugi card, and more one that goes with this package, ala Edge Imp Chain with Frightfur Patchwork. It is undoubtedly a strong card, and another piece in the puzzle that is ‘How many 1-card Habakiri lines can I play’, but given its usefulness is largely defined by what it does by existing in deck, rather than its actual effect, I deign to cover it as part of the strategy’s core line. This version of the deck plays all three names, but there are lists forgoing Futsu no Mitama no Mitsurugi entirely, as the extra use of the Tribute effect of your Mitsurugi rituals isn’t worth how middling the card is at the end of the day. In a similar vein, while I do think Mirror is here to stay due to the strength of both Pre-Prep and Habakiri, the likelihood that both Magatama & Wousu are cut eventually as the list smooths out is high.
Normal lines for the deck begin by activating Habakiri, often for Saji, who finds a copy of Mitsurugi Ritual. From there, you can either Ritual Summon from Deck using the Habakiri as Tribute, for low-impact hands that aim to play through Nibiru but not an Infinite Impermanence-style effect, or Summon the Habakiri sending the two level 4 names not yet activated that turn. In either case, you’ll be able to go through a Rank 4 Xyz Monster/Link-2, and end on 2 of your Level 8 Ritual Monsters, or a Rank 8.
The fact that you have two very different lines, in terms of where exactly the opponent needs to negate your plays, means that Mitsurugi will have decision points that make or break a duel. Habakiri being Once Per Duel, one of its very few downsides, hampers your grind game, making it all the more important you get it right the first time, and navigate whatever non-engine pieces your opponent has access to.
Speaking of non-engine tools, Mayorga’s list is pioneering the use of all 3 different Mulcharmies in the Main Deck, alongside not just an expansive Triple Tactics package, but also 2 copies of Pot of Extravagance. This appears to be a thought borrowed from the days of old when Pot of Desires was Unlimited, yet people only played 2 copies anyway, and Konami Semi-Limited it (to the number of copies already commonly played). The actual ratios at play here reflect a style of deck design that aims to make maximum use of hard once-per-turn effects in hands of 3:2 non-engine to engine, meaning your goal is to open, for example, 2 mulcharmies, an Impulse, and 2 Mitsurugi names. I don’t love the 3:2:2 split on the charmies, however, and wonder if playing 3:3 of the two best (Fuwalos and Meowls) might be prudent in the upcoming format.
The use of Extravagance also meant that the Extra Deck has some truly odd ratios, to reduce the likelihood of cutting yourself off from exactly Hope Harbinger, TY-PHON, I:P Masquerena, and S:P Little Knight. Notable one-ofs include cards like Reptilliane Echidna, which can find your starters, and the underutilized Ragnaraika Selene Snapper, a fantastic way to break backrow boards, even while hardlocked to Reptile by way of Wousu! I would love to see what the Extra Deck would look like without the need for wonky Extravagance ratios, but that likely stems from the strategy’s need for Ritual material without the perfect Habakiri opener.
The Side Deck, meanwhile, has…Gordian Slicer? This new release from ALIN was written-off almost immediately compared to its contemporaries like Raigeki, but here it gets played as a 2-of over even the second Lightning Storm. This makes some amount of sense, given Mitsurugi can afford the hefty Extra Deck payment, but I would wonder if targeting protection from opposing duelists could cause it to lose what little favor it has.
With that, the TCG is officially in a 2.5 deck format, with one of them being a TCG-Exclusive! How have you felt playing this format, given it’s so different from the expected OCG distribution? Have you enjoyed Mitsurugi’s play pattern? Let me know in the comments below!
