Introduction to Exodia the Forbidden One
Overview
Common Skills
- Master Skill (Exodia the Forbidden One)
- Immunity: Destruction Effects
- Immunity: Position Change
- ATK Support
The legendary Loading... makes it's Cross Duel debut as the first obtainable Guardian Monster - a new type of card that doesn't fully abide by the standard Cross Duel rules. Guardian Monsters have their own special zone, cannot be affected by cards that target specific lanes and can be used to intercept attacks from Monsters moving along any of your three incoming lanes. You must first reduce the ATK or DEF of an opponents Guardian Monster to 0 before being able to inflict any damage to their LP.
The benefits provided just from being a Guardian Monster grant Loading... two different playstyles. The first, and perhaps most competitively relevant one, is simply using Exodia as a powerful utility monster in your Deck - acting as a giant wall to protect your LP. Most decks using this tactic are running Exodia with the ATK Support skill, providing every other Monster out on your field with a 200 ATK boost when it's summoned, and is mainly seeing play in builds focused around Cohesion and Superspeed .
The second is a more fun, high risk - high reward approach using Master Skill (Exodia the Forbidden One) , and is the one you will see more often in Ranked Duels. This aims to replicate the devastating instant win condition Exodia has in the TCG by granting you a Counter at the end of every Battle Phase if you drew a Normal Monster that turn. Once you hit 5 counters you win the duel. Simple, right? Exodia will also gain a 500 ATK boost every turn if using the Master Skill instead of the Special Skill. However, this Skill does severely limit our deckbuilding potential.
Synergistic Cards & Weaknesses
Master Skill (Exodia the Forbidden One) artificially limits our deck to mainly running Normal Monsters, the more slots we dedicate to Effect Monsters and Spell/Traps the less consistent our win condition will be.
Despite being untargetable by Skills and effects that specify specific lanes, Exodia can still be affected by Destruction and Bounce effects such as Master Skill (Blue-Eyes White Dragon) and Master Skill (Firewall Dragon) , making Loading... a necessity more so than it already is in most decks.
Spell cards like Loading... , Loading... and Loading... or even the Intimidate Skill also pose a threat in making your Exodia much easier to deal with. Your opponents can even bypass Exodia altogether with Loading... although that's only seeing play in Loading... decks.
Sample Starter Deck
Strategy Notes
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Summon Loading... in Attack Position on your first turn. Since you need to reach 5 Counters to win the Duel, and Turn 1 doesn't count towards this, you need to reach Turn 6 at minimum to achieve victory.
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Be patient. Using Exodia with Master Skill (Exodia the Forbidden One) makes you a natural target for other players in the duel, so do not Summon as many monsters as possible turn 1. React to your opponents plays with well-timed high ATK and high DEF monsters just as you usually would.
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There is a chance your opponents decide to not engage with you at all, and will fight between themselves since most duels end naturally around Turn 5/6 anyways. In these situations you will want to go on the aggressive with high ATK monsters such as Loading... or Loading... , in an attempt to force your opponents' focus away from each other long enough to stall out the duel.
Future Upgrades
If you're serious about playing Loading... , you will want to have access to all 3 skill slots as soon as possible. Immunity: Destruction Effects should be an instant pick, protecting you from Loading... and Loading... , two of the most prominent Ace Monsters you'll face in Ranked Duels.
Because of this you can now replace Loading... with another Normal Monster of your choice, or keep the slot free for a Spell card tech such as Loading... or Loading... , which may prove vital to stalling out a turn to achieve victory.
The third slot will be meta dependant. Immunity: Position Change will turn off Loading... , Loading... and Intimidate whereas Immunity: ATK/DEF Reduction will counter Loading... . Until more Ace Monsters release with bounce effects, Immunity: Bounce/Teleport can be safely ignored due to Loading... 's high cost to summon.
Card wise you want to be aiming for a good mix of the most well-rounded Monsters, but also those that excel in high ATK and high DEF stats.
What do you think of Exodia the Forbidden One? Any tips we missed out? Let us know in the comments below!