Friday Stride, Christams Edition: Amnesty Messiah

I did have a good better excuse for not posting last week - 11 boxes of Aqua Force, 2 of Japanese Weiss, various pre-constructed decks and long work hours meant I actually spent most of my free time dealing with actual cards. Helpfully we're now in holiday season, so hopefully I can get at least one extra post up in the next week, but first back to the scheduled postings, and in the spirit of a holiday commemorating the birth of a Messiah, let's review one, more specifically Genesis Dragon, Amnesty Messiah

This lord is a shepherd of locked cards.

Amnesty is the third G unit in the Messiah series of cards, which form the core of the vanguard G Link Joker. All of these are forms of the same entity, who is integrating Link Joker units with the rest of Cray, and so they show of the new play-style of these cards - self-locking. Unlike the (thematically) overly aggressive Star-Vaders and Deletors, this group take a more technical approach, locking and each other as the cost for effects, and then unlocking for more bonuses. Amnesty slots in here perfectly - when he attacks he unlock any number of cards for a counterblast, and then gains 3000 power for each, with a critical if 3 or more were unlocked. Without any requirements for other G units face up, he's viable as a first stride, and is one of a very small number of such which can gain a critical.

It does, however, take a little bit of work to set up and get the best out of the skill. Whilst the Grade 3 Alter Ego Messiah can set up two locks along with a power boost, one of those is on your opponent's field, so you'd usually prefer not to unlock it where possible. He also needs a counterblast and a rear-guard to lock when you stride, which can sometimes leave him unable to activate. However, he's not the only locker available. Lady Gunner of the Neutron Star, Spawn of the Spiral Nebula and Wings of Phenomenon, Wingmatter also provide one-for-one locking, with the former two being able to activate on-demand without a counterblast cost. If you're wanting more conventional defence, that's also available, with the interceptor Lightspeed Cheetah who can lock any unit not under attack for a 10000 shield boost.

For more aggressive plays, Lady Battler of the Gravity Well is a common choice. A useful solo attacker for when boosters (or guaranteed unlocks for them) aren't available, she locks one of your cards in the main phase for a 4000 power boost. Whilst she'll need an 8k or better booster to make a 21k column, she's a free, reusable lock and makes a great stand target. The last self-locker in English is Heavymaterial Dragon, who for a counterblast and a self-lock can discard 1 card to draw 2. The filtration helps dig for key cards, and whilst it may only have 8000 power, the equivalent in Shadow Paladins without the self-lock is the even trickier to use 7000 (and without GB1, this falls to just 3000 power - on a grade 2), and if you're running it with Gravity Well, you might even find room for grade 1 vanillas - for now.

G-BT05, Moonlit Dragonfang, introduces two new Messiahs with self-lock capability: Arrestor Messiah, who on the turn he's played gains 2000 power and then after attacking locks himself to lock any back row card, and Sacrifice Messiah, who responds to a unit being locked by locking itself to counter charge and give a 3000 power boost. Both of these units allow for battle phase locking, something which combines very nicely with battle phase unlocks - since units unlock standing, a unit which attacks before being locked can make two attacks in a turn, making Amnesty's mass unlock into a mass re-stand as well.

Since on an Amnesty turn he'll be doing the majority of the unlocking, unlockers aren't of major note here, but it's worth noting a couple of cards with skills which activate when unlocked. Neon Messiah can search for Alter Ego when unlocked, pulling a non-trigger from the deck, fixing your ride if you had to go into a backup grade 3 or netting you stride fodder. Awaking Messiah can restand another unit with a 2000 power boost when unlocked (remember how Lady Battler of the Gravity Well made a good stand target? Well this is what stands it), and lastly Dark Metal Chameleon, who grants a counter charge when unlocked. The chameleon also has resist, making it useful against control decks to retain a unit for Alter Ego to lock.

So, overall, Messiahs have created a whole new, not inherently evil, Link Joker deck. Not bad for Cray's saviour, and it would seem it isn't done yet.