[J-Max Quickie] Crystal Beast Aquamarine Falcon

[J-Max]

[center][b]Just some quick Crystal Beast support that I cooked up. I'm a huge fan of them

[img]http://img542.imageshack.us/img542/9254/20250.jpg[/img]
This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card can only be Special Summoned from your hand when you control 3 or more face-up "Crystal Beast" monsters. This card's name is also treated as every face-up "Crystal Beast" monster that you control. Once per Turn you can remove 1 "Crystal Beast" monster from your field or Graveyard from play. Until the End Phase, the effect of this face-up card is also treated as the removed monster. This card effect can be activated twice. During your End Phase you can Special Summon the removed card to your field in face-up Attack Position.[/b][/center]

[ragnarok1945]

let's see here, I'll just skip the OCG and move directly to the effects part

nothing really imbalanced except the fact it just keeps borrowing effects from others, a little bland, that's all

Still it's not like it's OPed or anything, so I'll give this 9/10

[Daft Punk]

"This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card can only be Special Summoned from your hand when you control 3 or more face-up "Crystal Beast" monsters. This card's name is also treated as every face-up "Crystal Beast" monster that you control. [b]Once per Turn you can remove 1 "Crystal Beast" monster from your field or Graveyard from play. Until the End Phase, the effect of this face-up card is also treated as the removed monster.[/b] This card effect can be activated twice. During your End Phase you can Special Summon the removed card to your field in face-up Attack Position."

Isn't the bolded part a little redundant? Or does it gain the monster's effect too?

[J-Max]

Well the card is treated as the name of all Crystal Beasts NOT the effect. Removing a CB enables the Falcon to take on its Ability until the End Phase and can activate it twice.

[ragnarok1945]

Did you intentionally not give it any effects of its own?

[J-Max]

Yep. Well kind of yeah. This was to be the Chameleon of the CB's using their abiliities.

[ragnarok1945]

good enough for me

oh curious, did you get the pic from Jazin Kay or something?

[J-Max]

Nah, found it on Pixiv using the term "Gem" Got some other pics but am not showing them just yet

[Daft Punk]

[quote name='J-Max' timestamp='1305161870' post='5203976']
Well the card is treated as the name of all Crystal Beasts NOT the effect. Removing a CB enables the Falcon to take on its Ability until the End Phase and can activate it twice.
[/quote]

Oh, it all makes sense now.

It's decent, except the only ones worth-while to take are Amber Mammoth, Amethyst Cat, and Emerald Tortoise. Maybe Cobalt Eagle and Topaz Tiger.

Sapphire and Ruby are options, but really, other cards can use their effects better.

[ragnarok1945]

Cobalt Eagle's effect is only

"Once per turn, you can return 1 face-up "Crystal Beast" card you control to the top of its owner's Deck. If this card is destroyed while it is in a Monster Card Zone, you can place it face-up in your Spell & Trap Card Zone as a Continuous Spell Card, instead of sending it to the Graveyard."

What's so OPed about that?

[Black W Mage]

... there is so much wrong with this. like assuming Crystal Beasts have worth while ignition effects (unless the intention was that it could screw the activation requirements and use trigger effects as ignition).
Also:
"This card can only be Special Summoned from your hand when you control [b]3 or more[/b] face-up "Crystal Beast" [b]monsters[/b]"[b] [/b]
right there is another problem.

[J-Max]

[quote name='Red W Mage No. 6-2-5' timestamp='1305162926' post='5204006']
... there is so much wrong with this. like assuming Crystal Beasts have worth while ignition effects (unless the intention was that it could screw the activation requirements and use trigger effects as ignition).

Also: [b][font="Arial"][size="2"][b]This card can only be Special Summoned from your ha[font="Arial"]nd when you control [/font][/b][/size][/font][/b][color="#ff0000"][i][font="Arial"][size="2"][b][font="Arial"]3 or more[/font][/b][/size][/font][/i][/color][b][font="Arial"][size="2"][b][font="Arial"] face-up "Crystal Beast" [color="#ff0000"]monsters[/color][/font][/b][/size][/font][/b]

right there is another problem.
[/quote]
I made it 3 as it gives you plenty of options. That does include Spell & Trap CB's.

[ragnarok1945]

yeah I noticed that, so it's actually not as hard as people think it is

[Black W Mage]

[quote name='ragnarok1945' timestamp='1305163041' post='5204013']
yeah I noticed that, so it's actually not as hard as people think it is
[/quote]
... as far as monsters go, they only have 1 searcher. Out of spell and trap support, they have Beacon, Tree, and Release. Problem with Beacon, it requires you to have gotten 2 in the first place (or 2 turns of normal summoning, it can however be 1 turn with Pegasus). So this searcher requires you to have already made a setup, which defeats the purpose of searchers, which is increasing consistency of the setup. Tree requires you to have a CB in hand/monster card zone, which isn't something you can always guarantee, the card isn't even a major pumper of +s. Release is in the same way, only it requires that your monster doesn't get negated upon summon. Both of those are extreme dead draws in the later game, which definitely does not help CBs in the way of being able to keep pace with the opponent. (short version: Crystal Beasts don't have much reasonable searching to have the high costs their support typically has)

The rewards for most of the CB support aren't even worth it most of the time. Rainbow Dragon is too hard to summon and will generally get killed instantly. Hamon is too many -'s, and only provides a 4k beatstick (which can be played around most of the time). Ancient City does seem like it is worthwhile, however you cannot reap the true benefits of the card until your set up is completed, which involves having brought out 5 Crystal Beasts within the duel. Though the later effects do give nice +s, Crystal Beasts have almost nothing to translate those +s into -'s for your opponent (excluding those Dragons, which generally you don't want to get rid of backrow CBs). The best cost support is probably Rare Value, Crystal Beacon, Crystal Abundance (though it is very costly, and can be negated in many ways that similar cards like "Short Curcuit" are unaffected by) and Crystal Promise, which, for everything except Abundance, all require 2-1 CBs in the backrow, and honestly, most of the cards should require only 1, max 2.

This card certainly doesn't provide any +s until the RFP effect kicks in and brings back your Carbuncle/Pegasus, but Ancient City/Promise already does that. It in no way helps the setup or the problems CBs are facing/lack of certain necessary support, namely lack of costless support, decent searchers, monsters with effects that provide +s (CBs lack monsters that are independent and can create +s internally/externally, most importantly external), and ways to translate the +s they do from internal to external (effects the opponent, Destruction, RFP, bouncing, discard, etc.)

[ragnarok1945]

"The rewards for most of the CB support aren't even worth it most of the time"

<----All right, then care to name some scenarios where they are?

[J-Max]

Crystal Beasts are made for Swarming. I used to run a CB Deck on World Championship 2010 and had Abundance out on my 4th Turn. That's how vicious CB's can be. Summon Pegasus, SS Pegasus to S/T, play Crystal Promise, SS Pegasus from S/T. You get the idea.

Also Rainbow Ruins with 4 CB's is just plain awesome. A +1 every Turn? Yes please! Also Crystal Blessing gets 2 back into the S/T no problem.

I agree that a Hamon Build is a bit crappy though. Go all out Abundance.

[ragnarok1945]

speaking of the Rainbow ruins

how often you get to pull off the 5 slot effect?

[Black W Mage]

[quote name='ragnarok1945' timestamp='1305165376' post='5204101']
<----All right, then care to name some scenarios where they are?
[/quote]
Any time it can increase your card count (which hopefully follows into the second scenario), or subtracts your opponent's card count. Unless for some reason 1.8k can ram over most of your opponent's cards, or there is some weird field condition that screws with your opponent, or you can activate Abundance (which, will instantly kill you if it gets negated). typically increasing card count (in this deck) doesn't do much.

[J-Max]

You mean the 5th effect that allows you to Special Summon a CB from your Spell & Trap Zone? Very rarely but I always choose Ruby or Pegasus.

Back to my card anyway. Yep that last part was to take advantage of Pegasus & Ruby

[ragnarok1945]

Abundance seems good set up for OTKs

how often does it NOT work though?

[J-Max]

[quote name='ragnarok1945' timestamp='1305165895' post='5204117']
Abundance seems good set up for OTKs

how often does it NOT work though?
[/quote]
Abundance can easily be negated. One weakness of CB's is the usage of the Spell & Trap Zone. If you play Abundance make sure you have a Effect monster with the ability to Negate Traps (Like Jinzo for example) Otherwise it's bye bye Abundance...

[ragnarok1945]

oh I already knew that about CB

What monster you use (if not Jinzo) to protect abundance?

[Black W Mage]

@ Abundance: It wouldn't be a problem if the Crystal Beast monsters themselves were worth negating, or if they could actually have influence over the opponents field/hand.

Honestly, they don't have any control elements to secure their OTK (outside of City's 3rd effect), and their OTK is too costly and takes too long. Penguins OTK faster then they do!

Their inability to make a sufficient OTK should point out that their focus should be elsewhere, and with their ability to make instant swarm plays with little advantage cost (sometimes increasing advantage), control becomes a favorable direction.

In other words: CRYSTAL BEASTS SHOULD FOCUS ON CONTROL, NOT ABUNDANCE OTK.

[Cody Frost]

[quote name='Red W Mage No. 6-2-5' timestamp='1305166720' post='5204143']
In other words: CRYSTAL BEASTS SHOULD FOCUS ON CONTROL, NOT ABUNDANCE OTK.
[/quote]

Completely agree with you here. Or at least with the fact that Crystal Beast should be more "up to date" with what is going on. Their swarm effects are good, but their ATK power isn't as powerful as people think it "CAN" be. Sure, an 1800 and 1600->2000 attacker are good, but they're gonna get trampled by instant power monsters such as "Machina Gearframe", "Cyber Dragon" and such. As for the abundance, even if you run it at three it's not a guaranteed OTK with people running things like "Battle Fader" and "Swift Scarecrow". :/ And when people begin to side in "D.D. Crow" to remove your good cards? What will you do when all your "Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus"s are removed? Scoop? Thought so.

In other words, C.Beasts need 1 of two things: Powerful beaters that they can take advantage in Summoning, or cards that truly help them with Field Control.

Back at this card. Meh, pretty...eh. I don't think I'd run the risk of removing my C.Beasts from play as they have recycle capabilities anyway.