Matter Transmutation, my take on the Alchemy Beasts (Written)

[Charlelot]

Hey everyone,

 

So, in continuation of my current endeavor to update the older decks of the GX era, here is my contribution to Amnael’s Alchemy Beast Archetype.

 

As always, let me know what you guys think.

 

 

*Latest Update* 01/20/2018

 

 

[spoiler=Monster Cards:'']

Alchemy Beast – Aretos the Tin

Level 3 WIND Rock/Effect

ATK 500 DEF 500

This card can attack your opponent directly. If you control a face-up ‘’ Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil’’: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. Once per turn, when an ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ attacks or is attacked (Quick Effect): You can target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; it’s ATK and DEF becomes 0 until the end of the turn. If this card leaves the field: You can add 1 of your banished ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ or ‘’Alchemic’’ card to your hand. You can only activate this effect of ‘’Alchemy Beast – Aretos the Tin’’ once per turn.

 

Alchemy Beast – Ekenas the Mercury

Level 3 WATER Rock/Effect

ATK 500 DEF 500

This card can attack your opponent directly. If you control a face-up ‘’ Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil’’: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. Once per turn, this card cannot be destroyed by battle or by card effect. When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: you can target 1 card your opponent controls; destroy it, then draw 1 card.

 

Alchemy Beast – Leon the Lead

Level 3 EARTH Rock/Effect

ATK 500 DEF 500

This card can attack your opponent directly. If you control a face-up ‘’ Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil’’: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; place 1 Lead Counter on it (While you control a face-up ‘’Alchemy Beast’’, monsters with Lead Counter cannot attack or be used as a Fusion, Synchro, Xyz or Link Material). At the start of your End Phase: Inflict 500 damage to your opponent for every Lead Counter on the field. You can only activate this effect of ‘’Alchemy Beast – Leon the Lead’’ once per turn.

 

Alchemy Beast – Moonface the Silver

Level 3 DARK Rock/Effect

ATK 500 DEF 500

This card can attack your opponent directly. If you control a face-up ‘’ Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil’’: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can target 1 monster your opponent controls; equip that target to this card (you can only equip 1 monster at a time to this card with this effect). You can only activate this effect of ‘’Alchemy Beast – Moonface the Silver’’ once per turn. If this card would be destroyed by battle or by a card effect, you can destroy that equipped monster instead, and if you do, any battle damage you would have taken from a battle involving this card becomes 0.

 

Alchemy Beast – Ouroboros the Bronze

Level 3 LIGHT Rock/Effect

ATK 500 DEF 500

This card can attack your opponent directly. If you control a face-up ‘’ Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil’’: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. Once per turn, when this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 of your banished ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ except ‘’Alchemy Beast – Ouroboros the Bronze’’. If this card leaves the field: You can add 1 ‘’Alchemic’’ Spell or Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. You can only activate this effect of ‘’Alchemy Beast – Ouroboros the Bronze’’ once per turn.

 

Alchemy Beast – Salamandra the Steel

Level 3 FIRE Rock/Effect

ATK 500 DEF 500

This card can attack your opponent directly. If you control a face-up ‘’ Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil’’: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can add 1 ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ from your Deck to your hand. You can only activate this effect of ‘’Alchemy Beast – Salamandra the Steel ‘’ once per turn. When this card leaves the field: You can Special Summon 1 ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monster from your Deck.

 

[spoiler=Spell Cards:'']

Alchemical Laboratory

Field Spell Card

The effects of ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monsters you control cannot be negated. When this card is activated: You can add 1 ‘’Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil ‘’ from your Deck to your hand. During your Main Phase: You can banish 1 ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ from your hand or Deck; Special Summon 1 of your banished ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monster with a different name, and if you do, you cannot Special any other monsters this turn except ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monsters. You can only activate each effect of ‘’Alchemical Laboratory’’ once per turn.

 

Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil

Continuous Spell Card

Any of your cards sent to the GY are banished instead. If this face-up card would be destroyed or banished by an opponent’s card or effect, you can banish 1 ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ from your hand or Deck instead. When an ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ you control inflicts battle damage to your opponent: you can add 1 ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only activate each effect of ‘’Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil’’ once per turn.

 

Alchemical Process – Material Transmutation

Quick-Play Spell Card

Switch every ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ you control to defense position, and if you do, until the end of the turn, ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle or by card effects. During your Main Phase, except on the turn this card was sent to the GY: you can banish this card from your GY. If this card is banished: you can banish up to 3 ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ from your GY, and if you do, you can add 1 ‘’Alchemic Kettle – Chaos Distil’’ from your Deck or GY to your hand. You can only activate this effect of ‘’Alchemical Process – Material Transmutation’’ once per turn.

 

[spoiler=Trap Cards:'']

Alchemical Magnum Opus

Continuous Trap Card

You do not take any battle damage from battles involving your ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monsters. When an ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ you own is banished: You can Special Summon 1 ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ from your Deck. You can only activate this effect of ‘’Alchemical Magnum Opus’’ once per turn. When an opponent’s monster declares a direct attack: You can banish this face-up card and a ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ from your Deck or GY; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.

 

Alchemical Mirage – Transcendental Gate

Continuous Trap Card

Once per turn, when an opponent’s monster declares an attack while you control a face-up ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monster: You can banish 1 ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ or 1 ‘’Alchemic’’ Spell or Trap Card from your hand or Deck; negate the attack, then place a Lead Counter on the attacking monster (While you control a face-up ‘’Alchemy Beast’’, monsters with Lead Counter cannot attack or be used as a Fusion, Synchro, Xyz or Link Material). If you control a face-up ‘’Alchemy Beast’’, when your opponent activate a card or effect that would target a card you control: You can banish this face-up card; negate that activation and destroy it.

 

Alchemical Exchange – Metaphysical Toll

Continuous Trap Card

Once per turn, when you Normal or Special Summon an ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monster: You can shuffle 1 of your banished ‘’Alchemy Beast’’ monster into the Deck, then draw 1 card. If you control a face-up ‘’Alchemy Beast’’, when your opponent Special Summon a monster: You can banish this face-up card; banish that monster and if you do, your opponent cannot Special Summon monsters with the same name until the end of the turn. You can only activate this effect of ‘’Alchemical Exchange – Metaphysical Toll’’ once per turn.

[Dova]

I always liked the concept of Alchemy Beasts; glad to see you dealing with them! I also like that you have bypassed the annoying need for a specific Spell for each monster. On another note, I feel your cardmaking remains at a very high point, so I'll also take into commenting on your OCG so I can have more to talk about, and to help improve you as a cardmaker.

 

Aretos is pretty cool, as the 0 ATK/DEF prevents your opponent from getting rid of your monsters, while allowing you to leave your opponent's field alone while attacking directly. It's a shame its leaving the field effect won't trigger if it's used as a Material for a Summon, because WHEN means it leaving the field has to be the last thing that happened, but for Link/Synchro Summoning the last thing that happens is the monster being Summoned. RIP, but it's not like this archetype has an extra deck anyway. Nowadays in YGO, we use (Quick Effect) instead of during either player's turn. Said text appears before the colon ("Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can...") and speaking of the colon, we capitalize after the colon but NOT after the semicolon. Ekenas is purely good and helpful. Effect ties in nicely with Chaos Distill. Leon also hints at you properly taking advantage of the attacking directly theme, and rather than trying to enable it, you're using it to prevent your opponent from doing anything about it. Good stuff. Last effect should probably activate (have a colon), and be phrased like "At the start of your End Phase: inflict 500 damage to your opponent for every Lead Counter on the field." as effects automatically activate and resolve by default while the monster is face-up on the field. Moonface has more disruption, so hooray, but the last effect shouldn't activate. This will apply for another few cards, but for a protection effect if destroyed by battle or card effect, this normally happens as a chain resolves, such as after a Raigeki. An effect activating would begin a new chain, and since we can't have that mid-chain...yeah. This is where we would only use commas. None of the monsters deal with targeting protection, but that's fine, as their win condition can ignore monsters for the most part anyway. Ouroboros has the same leaving the field problem as Aretos, but again, it isn't that much of a problem. Just something I think might've been nice in MR4. But yeah, actual Summoning and speed! Just when I was getting worried. Salamandra is great for searching and Summoning, and really one of the more enginey cards of the archetype. But really, because of the way you've designed them, it doesn't feel particularly out of place or powerful. Nice work.

 

Laboratory is a great card, especially in tandem with the rest of the support. It doesn't replace Chaos Distill, and instead supports it, and deals with a lot of stuff that said card doesn't. As for Chaos Distill itself, I mean..one-sided Macro Cosmos certainly doesn't come without its benefits, especially as the rest of the archetype doesn't need it. Very helpful, true, but it's not entirely dead without it. Also, both cards provide more speed, to add to the flavour of the set as a whole. Fun stuff. Again with Chaos' protection, it doesn't activate, since it is in response to the resolution of an effect. Just commas instead of a colon. However, one problem I do note is, outside of the field spell, the archetype doesn't reliably get Chaos. It is a vital part of the archetype, and while I did just say "they don't need it", all I'm saying is that if you make a few of your cards able to search it, and you just happen to completely brick in regards to searching it, all hope is not lost. But for now, chances are you won't actually draw it. Transumation is a fun card, not much else to say there. Just wish you had some cards that banished your Alchemy Beasts from your GY just in case they end up there. Like a card that banishes from your hand or GY to activate it, for example.

 

And of course you have that in your Trap lineup. No complaints here; good original cards that cover a wide variety of situations without going overboard or being too generic.

 

One of your better sets; I only have nitpicks and OCG complains to say really. Nicely done!

 

 

[Charlelot]

I always liked the concept of Alchemy Beasts; glad to see you dealing with them! I also like that you have bypassed the annoying need for a specific Spell for each monster. On another note, I feel your cardmaking remains at a very high point, so I'll also take into commenting on your OCG so I can have more to talk about, and to help improve you as a cardmaker.

 

Aretos is pretty cool, as the 0 ATK/DEF prevents your opponent from getting rid of your monsters, while allowing you to leave your opponent's field alone while attacking directly. It's a shame its leaving the field effect won't trigger if it's used as a Material for a Summon, because WHEN means it leaving the field has to be the last thing that happened, but for Link/Synchro Summoning the last thing that happens is the monster being Summoned. RIP, but it's not like this archetype has an extra deck anyway. Nowadays in YGO, we use (Quick Effect) instead of during either player's turn. Said text appears before the colon ("Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can...") and speaking of the colon, we capitalize after the colon but NOT after the semicolon. Ekenas is purely good and helpful. Effect ties in nicely with Chaos Distill. Leon also hints at you properly taking advantage of the attacking directly theme, and rather than trying to enable it, you're using it to prevent your opponent from doing anything about it. Good stuff. Last effect should probably activate (have a colon), and be phrased like "At the start of your End Phase: inflict 500 damage to your opponent for every Lead Counter on the field." as effects automatically activate and resolve by default while the monster is face-up on the field. Moonface has more disruption, so hooray, but the last effect shouldn't activate. This will apply for another few cards, but for a protection effect if destroyed by battle or card effect, this normally happens as a chain resolves, such as after a Raigeki. An effect activating would begin a new chain, and since we can't have that mid-chain...yeah. This is where we would only use commas. None of the monsters deal with targeting protection, but that's fine, as their win condition can ignore monsters for the most part anyway. Ouroboros has the same leaving the field problem as Aretos, but again, it isn't that much of a problem. Just something I think might've been nice in MR4. But yeah, actual Summoning and speed! Just when I was getting worried. Salamandra is great for searching and Summoning, and really one of the more enginey cards of the archetype. But really, because of the way you've designed them, it doesn't feel particularly out of place or powerful. Nice work.

 

Laboratory is a great card, especially in tandem with the rest of the support. It doesn't replace Chaos Distill, and instead supports it, and deals with a lot of stuff that said card doesn't. As for Chaos Distill itself, I mean..one-sided Macro Cosmos certainly doesn't come without its benefits, especially as the rest of the archetype doesn't need it. Very helpful, true, but it's not entirely dead without it. Also, both cards provide more speed, to add to the flavour of the set as a whole. Fun stuff. Again with Chaos' protection, it doesn't activate, since it is in response to the resolution of an effect. Just commas instead of a colon. However, one problem I do note is, outside of the field spell, the archetype doesn't reliably get Chaos. It is a vital part of the archetype, and while I did just say "they don't need it", all I'm saying is that if you make a few of your cards able to search it, and you just happen to completely brick in regards to searching it, all hope is not lost. But for now, chances are you won't actually draw it. Transumation is a fun card, not much else to say there. Just wish you had some cards that banished your Alchemy Beasts from your GY just in case they end up there. Like a card that banishes from your hand or GY to activate it, for example.

 

And of course you have that in your Trap lineup. No complaints here; good original cards that cover a wide variety of situations without going overboard or being too generic.

 

One of your better sets; I only have nitpicks and OCG complains to say really. Nicely done!

 

Hey there,

 

Thanks a lot for the pointers for on the various card texts. English isn’t actually my first language, so this new set of grammatical rules can get quite confusing. That being said, I’ve got a few questions and comment to get through. First and foremost: How exactly would I go about correcting Aretos and Ouroboros’ effects so that they still activate when used for a Summon?

 

Banishing Alchemy Beasts from the GY: Yeah, I kinda knew that would come up. Originally, I was thinking that Fairy Tail – Snow could correct this little defect, but that was before I remembered that having Snow in the GY could prove to be tricky in this deck. Since I also remembered that Pot of Aquisitiveness is also a thing, I was really considering changing the second effect of Alchemical Process – Material Transmutation to allow me to banish Alchemy Beasts that would end up in the GY. Stay tuned for that.

 

Concerning Chaos Distil: That I another problem I expected when I first wrote about that card. I didn’t want the archetype to be completely dependent on Chaos Distil like it is in the anime. So I gave Ouroboros an effect that would allow the player to search it from the deck and I gave Aretos the ability to recover it if it was ever banished. That being said, you are right, it is a weakness. I’ll be sure to revisit the idea of making the task of getting Chaos Distil to the hand easier.

 

Once again, thanks a lot for the help. 

[Dova]

Thanks a lot for the pointers for on the various card texts. English isn’t actually my first language, so this new set of grammatical rules can get quite confusing. That being said, I’ve got a few questions and comment to get through. First and foremost: How exactly would I go about correcting Aretos and Ouroboros’ effects so that they still activate when used for a Summon?

 

Well, firstly, congrats on doing so much with English as your second language. I honestly couldn't tell; most people make way more mistakes in regards to card grammar than you do.

 

As for how to fix it: This is where If vs When comes into play. Both are used on trigger effects; effects that activate if a certain condition is met. The only difference is that When can "miss timing"  for want of a better term. When only works if its trigger was the last thing to occur, whereas If works in virtually all scenarios. for example, if I played Dark World Dealings, which allows me to draw then discard a card, both When and If effects would activate on a monster who's effect reads like so "When/If this card is discarded:..." However, if we take Uni-Zombie, which has an effect that discards a card then modifies a monster's Level by 1, since the last thing that occurred was that monster's Level changing, not the discard, so If would still activate, but not When. This also applies to a card like Twin Twisters, which discards a card at activation, then destroys 2 Spell/Trap Cards on the field. Hopefully that wasn't too confusing!

[Charlelot]

Well, firstly, congrats on doing so much with English as your second language. I honestly couldn't tell; most people make way more mistakes in regards to card grammar than you do.

 

As for how to fix it: This is where If vs When comes into play. Both are used on trigger effects; effects that activate if a certain condition is met. The only difference is that When can "miss timing"  for want of a better term. When only works if its trigger was the last thing to occur, whereas If works in virtually all scenarios. for example, if I played Dark World Dealings, which allows me to draw then discard a card, both When and If effects would activate on a monster who's effect reads like so "When/If this card is discarded:..." However, if we take Uni-Zombie, which has an effect that discards a card then modifies a monster's Level by 1, since the last thing that occurred was that monster's Level changing, not the discard, so If would still activate, but not When. This also applies to a card like Twin Twisters, which discards a card at activation, then destroys 2 Spell/Trap Cards on the field. Hopefully that wasn't too confusing!

 

Thanks a lot, that was clear as day. I'll get to work on making the necessary changes.