Shadowcraft Archetype

[SpasmicUnitato]

So, I've been introduced to Shadowverse by some people recently, and I loved the concept of one of the characters play styles so I asked why there wasn't a Yu-Gi-Oh themed deck, then I ended up making an archetype based off it. I'm not the best at cardmaking, but I hope I didn't just ruin this archetype.

 

First of all, the one spell card that is the needed card in the deck;

 

[spoiler='Gathering Shadows']

Gathering Shadows - Continious Spell

"This card cannot be targeted or destroyed by card effects. There can only be 1 "Gathering Shadows" on your side field. Whenever a "Shadowcraft" monster you control is destroyed; place 1 Shadow Counter on this card."

 

 

The deck needs this card to run, and without it, they can kiss their victory away. While it isn't the best having to rely on one card, it was really the only way to make this work.

 

Anyways, off to the regular cards!

 

[spoiler='Monsters']

Shadowcraft Spectre - DARK

Zombie / Effect

1600 / 1200

"When this card would be destroyed by battle: destroy the attacking monster, and if you do; destroy this card. "Gathering Shadows" must be face-up on the field to activate and resolve this effect. If you have no "Gathering Shadows" on the field: you can discard this card; add 1 "Gathering Shadows" from your Deck to your hand."

 

Shadowctaft Spartoi Sergeant - DARK

Zombie / Effect

1500 / 1800

"When you Summon this card and you have "Gathering Shadows" on the field; you can place 1 Shadow Counter on "Gathering Shadows". If you have no "Gathering Shadows" on the field: you can discard this card; add 1 "Gathering Shadows" from your Deck to your hand."

 

Shadowcraft Undead King - DARK

Zombie / Effect

2900 / 3000

"You can discard 1 "Shadowcraft" card from your hand: target 1 "Shadowcraft" monster from your Graveyard with a different name than the one you discarded; Special Summon that target in Defense Position. If this card is destroyed by battle; Special Summon 2 "Zombie Tokens" (Zombie/DARK/Level 1/ATK 1000/DEF 1000). If you have no "Gathering Shadows" on the field: you can discard this card; add 1 "Gathering Shadows" from your Deck to your hand."

 

 

[spoiler='Spells']

Call of the Void - Normal Spell Card

"(This card is always treated as a "Shadowcraft" card)

You can only activate this card if "Gathering Shadows" is on the field. You can remove 3 Shadow Counters from the field; destroy one monster on the field, then you can remove 1 Shadow Counter; Special Summon 1 "Zombie Token" (Zombie/DARK/Level 1/ATK 1000/DEF 1000) in Attack Position."

 

 

[spoiler='Traps']

Lets Play! - Normal Trap Card

"You must control "Gathering Souls" to activate this card. Remove 2 Shadow Counters from "Gathering Souls": During your opponents Battle Phase, target 1 monster they control, that target gains 500 ATK; Other monsters your opponent control cannot attack during the Battle Phase the turn you acticate this effect."

 

 

EDIT[1]: Added Shadowcraft Spartoi Sergeant and Shadowcraft Undead King, fixed Lets Play! card grammar.

[SpasmicUnitato]

Bump 

 

Added:

-Shadowcraft Spartoi Sergent

-Shadowcraft Undead King

 

Fixed:

-"Lets Play!" Card Grammar.

[CelticSoldier221]

I'm not a big authourity, and probably have no right to comment on this, but I will. Mainly I'd just like to ask, what is the objective of this deck? How does it win? Maybe I'm being stupid and it's obvious, which is likely, but I'm interested, because it looks like an interesting archetype.

(P.S. The artwork is very good!)

[DiplomatfromPluto]

I'm not a big authourity, and probably have no right to comment on this, but I will. Mainly I'd just like to ask, what is the objective of this deck? How does it win? Maybe I'm being stupid and it's obvious, which is likely, but I'm interested, because it looks like an interesting archetype.

(P.S. The artwork is very good!)

No one on the site is necessarily "authority", some just have more experience in playing or making the cars than others. And you have every right to comment on the cards because they were put on the site. You can comment as long as you can make a comment on how the cards might work in a game, how good they'd be together or mixed with real cards, whether they could be made more powerful or if they need limitations, or making grammar fixes if it might affect the card's functionality, etc. 

Asking about the objective of a deck is a great way to figure out how well the cards work. I see a few things that these cards have in common. First, you can discard them to add that "Gathering Shadows" (GS) which helps if you don't have the card. Spectre has an effect to destroy a monster and itself (not only getting rid of a monster but further benefiting you by the effect of GS. Sergeant can add another counter just by summoning it. 

 

Undead King has good ATK for level 7 but its effects seem like they could use some work. You need 2 tributes to summon it since none of the other cards help with special summoning. Then if you want to use the first effect, you need to discard another shadowcraft card to ss one from the grave. With these as the only monsters right now, it's a bit restricting what cars you can summon back. If you tributed 2 spectres, you'd have to discard a sergeant to get one back and vice versa. If you tributed one of each of the 2 monsters, you'd have to have one other in the hand. The zombie tokens don't do anything. They seem like a way to recover if your most powerful monster is destroyed, but there isn't any way to use them with your other cards. 

 

Call of the Void doesn't say where the monster as to be, meaning you could destroy one of your own to add another counter, but I think you'll usually want to destroy the opponents monsters since the only active way for the archetype to get rid of a monster (spectre's effect is nice, but it requires the opponent to attack it). Using "then" was a good choice since it means you can destroy a monster even if you only have 3 counters. Again though, I don't think that zombie token has much use for the cards as they are. 

 

Let's Play is an interesting battle trap, but I question how good it is when all the cards seem to rely on your monsters being destroyed. 

 

The more cards in an archetype, the more versatility it has. Adding extra deck monsters is also a common way to help an archetype. However, it's hard to tell what kind of cards would help this one.

DARK is probably the most supported attribute and zombies have a lot of support, especially revolving around the graveyard. Try to figure out what this deck's goal is and how the cards would work together to achieve it. For example, you could give the cards ways to place and use counters, that way, you could get rid of GS and instead of discarding the monsters to search GS, they could have counter-based effects. Right now, GS seems more like a hindrance than a help because it does nothing but place counters, which are under-utilized by the cards. I don't know what you're worried about "ruining" but these cards have a lot of potential for how they could work in the game. 

 

If you do make extra deck monsters, make sure to add the levels/ranks of the monsters in the text below each respective card, since they're needed for sychros/xyz and someone might not be able to see the card images. 

[Guest BGMCANN0N]

One thing I see here that is a little off to me on 1 card:

 

Shadowcraft Spectre - DARK

Zombie / Effect

1600 / 1200

"When this card would be destroyed by battle: destroy the attacking monster, and if you do; destroy this card. "Gathering Shadows" must be face-up on the field to activate and resolve this effect. If you have no "Gathering Shadows" on the field: you can discard this card; add 1 "Gathering Shadows" from your Deck to your hand."

 So did you intend that if Spectre were to attack while Gathering Shadows is on the field... He would destroy himself without destroying the other monster?

[fearen]

-Gathering Shadows

This card Cannot be targeted or destroyed by card effects. You can only control 1 "Gathering Shadows" on your side field. If a "Shadowcraft" monster you control is destroyed by battle or by card effect: place 1 Shadow Counter on this card.

 

Okay, on to the review. I don't actually think that it's bad for a deck to rely on a card if it's reasonably accessible, which this one obviously is. As for the card itself, I really don't like this first sentence. Making that so powerful means that you can't make the rest of the card stronger without it being un-interactive and un-fun. I would make it "Cannot be destroyed by card effects." and leave it at that. The second sentence could be removed by making it a field spell card, and that would give you the option of searching for it with Terraforming. For the last sentence, if you get rid of the can't be targeted clause, then you could make it a bit stronger. Maybe "If a "Shadowcraft" monster is sent from your hand or your side of the field to the Graveyard: place 1 Shadow Counter on this card."

 

-Shadowcraft Spectre

When this card is destroyed by battle with an opponents monster: destroy that attacking monster. (this is if you want damage calc to happen) "If this card battles an opponents monster: destroy both that monster and this card." (if you don't want damage calc)"Gathering Shadows" must be face-up on the field to activate and resolve this effect. If you don't control a "Gathering Shadows" on the field: You can discard this card; add 1 "Gathering Shadows" from your Deck to your hand.

 

So for this one if you were going for the no damage calc thing then it's pretty neat, if not then I think you should make it a bit more powerful. For the search effect, I wouldn't add the condition that you don't control a Gathering Shadows, and since the effect is on every monster, I'd make it so that it can get it from the grave as well. (Otherwise after 3 uses, none of them have the effect anymore unless you have a way to return it to the deck.) I'd make it "You can discard this card; add 1 "Gathering Shadows" from your Deck or Graveyard to your hand." This also fits with the spoopyness of the archetype.

 

-Shadowcraft Spartoi Agent

"If this card is Normal or Special Summoned; you can place 1 Shadow Counter on a "Gathering Shadows" you control." Is how I would word it. And I would apply the change that I suggested to the first monster.

 

-Shadowcraft Undead King

You can discard 1 "Shadowcraft" card from your hand, then target 1 "Shadowcraft" monster in your Graveyard with a different name than the one you discarded; Special Summon that target in face-up Defense Position. If this card is destroyed by battle; Special Summon 2 "Zombie Tokens" (Zombie/DARK/Level 1/ATK 1000/DEF 1000).

 

I would remove the "with a different name" thing, and have it work the same as Zombie Master or Lumina. The with a different name thing just complicates things and doesn't change the powerlevel much.

 

-Call of the Void

(This card is always treated as a "Shadowcraft" card.)

You can only activate this card if you control a face-up "Gathering Shadows" is on the field. You can remove 3 Shadow Counters from your side of the field; destroy one monster on the field, then you can remove 1 Shadow Counter from your side of the field; Special Summon 1 "Zombie Token" (Zombie/DARK/Level 1/ATK 1000/DEF 1000) in Attack Position.

I like a way to spend Shadow Counters that's not a single use. I would make this a continuous spell with this text. "Once per turn: You can remove 3 Shadow Counters from your side of the field and target 1 monster on the field; destroy it. Once per turn: You can remove 1 Shadow Counter from your side of the field; Special Summon 1 "Zombie Token" (Zombie/DARK/Level 1/ ATK 1000/ DEF 1000) in Attack Position."

 

-Let's Play

You must control "Gathering Shadows" to activate this card. Remove 2 Shadow Counters from a "Gathering Souls" you control and target 1 monster your opponent controls; during the Battle Phase this turn, that monster gains 500 ATK, and other monsters your opponent controls cannot attack.

 

I would give this one the same (This card is always treated as a "Shadowcraft" card.) clause that Call of the Void has, and I would make it a continuous trap as well while increasing the attack boost. Here is the text I would give the continuous version. "Once per turn: You can remove 2 Shadow Counters from your side of the field and target 1 monster your opponent controls; this turn, that monster gains 800 attack, and if it does, other monsters your opponent controls cannot attack for the rest of this turn."