Dino-Rabbit/Macro-Rabbit

Has this giant truly been dethroned? Well, yes and no. Macro Cosmos is single-handed the best card that combats the meta, in any situation. This is the single card that has caused everyone to panic at some point or another. The problem card has turned into Rescue Rabbit, which in this format has been hurt really badly. Without Sangan to search it with Tour Guide shenanigans, the card is not as consistent as it was when both cards were at 3. Solemn Warning being hit is also something that hinders this deck pretty hard. For the first time, the deck is much more reliant upon Macro Cosmos than it is on Rabbit. It just can't keep up with things coming out anymore, so those vanillas are starting to take up a good bit of your deck that you'd probably need as a defensive tact. It's very probable that Rabbit will slowly be removed from this engine, replaced with more things that benefit from Macro that aren't so slow.



Wind-Ups

This deck has been hit very hard time and time again. It has the honor of having the first limited, and now banned XYZ monster. Is it dead? No. It's going to continue to see play by those who really love it, but there are no more loops that don't require a lot of situational hands and cards that most people aren't going to continue to run. Gozen Match became a side-deck staple because of this deck. There's not much to say that hasn't already been said, but people will very likely stop siding against this deck specifically. Like with the Rabbits, this one is kind of stale compared to the former glory days. Shark is still stupidly good, but that's fine. Thunders get off Shock Master more consistently than ANY other deck and I'm not going to get into that discussion here.

---

Now, we've gone over the decks that will see a lot less play. But to be fair, we can't jump straight into the tiering system quite yet. There's still a lot we have to get through before all that, after all! Now we need to get into what's currently seeing the most play, and the major weaknesses and strengths of said decks. This will be OCG/TCG, since we have access to most everything on YGOPro. So let's get started, there's a few to go over.

---

Elemental Dragons

Now this deck is one with a lot of potential. A lot of people don't really know what they're doing when they play this deck. I've seen Macro builds, OTK builds, and more hybrids than I can count. I think that this deck will temporarily dethrone Bottomless Trap Hole as a staple. These cards benefit from being banished, discarded, or just about anything you can do with them. Those in the know, however, know that this deck consistently makes the first turn Light and Darkness Dragon. This card says "No" to just about anything. HOWEVER, there is a flaw to said card. It chains, so you can in theory -2 to get rid of their entire field, save one special summoned monster. Does that make it bad? No, this card on a first turn is generally a game loss for the opponent. This deck is very potent, but it's easily sided against (the pure build, not just the water, fire, or earth. Can't help you there as there's some thousands of variants). This deck is another prime example of why you want to side Gozen Match in everything you can. It prevents a lot of XYZ plays, and if you draw it early they may very well not have an answer for it at all. Droll & Lock Bird is another hilarious card to side against these dragons, but I don't think you need to worry about this deck all that much. The next few on this list are decks that turn this one into puddy most of the time, after all.


Firefists

This is another deck with a lot of versatility. Perhaps... A little too much so? A lot of people are slowing this deck down with the Rescue Rabbit engine, as mundane as that sounds. I've also seen people use Tour Guide just for the sake of using Tour Guide. We can clearly see the ashes of the previous format haven't quite settled, because this deck doesn't need (or really even want) these cards. Their engine, as linear as it is, is one of the most effective in the game. This deck has no particular strength, it sort of has the most linear play of any meta deck, but it generally has an answer for anything. Is it the end-all of decks? Well, no. This deck doesn't discriminate, it sort of can overpower anything, but doesn't specifically shut down anything at all. This is the all-around deck for the meta. Sure, there's a lot of funny hybrids and people are using Tenki in just about any deck, (It's only the best searcher in the game in its own deck, honestly) and it is certainly making a name for itself. This deck is easily meta, and it's a little awkward to side against, considering. Overworked is the most popular choice, as it stops the effects of Bear and Chicken from being used quite as easily. More on that in Shyam's thread, though.


Spellbooks/Prophecy

This deck wasn't so great to start. It actually confused a lot of people. It was pretty weak when it came out, and it had a lot of quirky variants made to try and do something. It really didn't. A lot of people weren't thrilled with using a deck that was mostly spells that fit the theme. And you can see why, with all the staples and what not. I actually saw a lot of these maindecking more traps than spells, early on. Everything is different now, though. This card's new win condition is Divine Judgement (Judgement Day) of the Spellbooks. Everyone's gone on about this card already, and this is the card that caused me to side Droll & Lock Bird at all. Well, this deck is kind of stupidly overpowered and I won't say anything that hasn't already been said. This is the card that most people say ruined this format (online format, at least). I'm pretty sure it has even more support coming, but we all know what's going to be limited to 1 next format.


Mecha Phantom Beast

This one is odd. It's one of the better control decks, with a little bit of aggression. These guys have the flaw in using tokens, and being kind of against most of the stuff that has already been released for WIND in the past. This deck has been done well, but I've also seen some just awkward decks using Windrose, Shrine of Mist Valley, and Galaxy Queen's Light mixed in with the good. This is going to be a decent deck, but this isn't what Konami is hard-selling (They want you to buy Firefists). Their inconsistencies do actually come from their strength. Game mechanics alone make some of the monster effects simply not work the way they're supposed to. And that's a shame, really. I could see them getting more support, but at the current rate I feel like these guys are simply outclassed. There's really no numbers that I can punch for this one, so I'll leave this as a floater.


Burning Knucklers

I'm going to call this one the next era of Crystal Beasts. As in, their easier to get out resources completely outclass the resources you'd need to get out their ultimate boss. At least with They're pretty awkward, and a lot of people are playing them. This deck would be much more viable if the people playing them had any sense of patience. With the level the game is at now, a lot of people are heavily trying to rush these guys out. Their boss monster gets stronger through negating destruction. Detaching materials through other means... Well it's a step back in this fast-paced format. Restrained Barbaric Soldier is amazing for this format, but with people trying not to preserve the effect against things like Firefists, or against Mermails, their pace is completely outclassed. This is one of those decks that can't be played by everybody, and that's why this deck might not see much play later on. Take it a little slower with these guys, and you'll notice that this deck is a lot more competitive than people are giving it credit for. If you're running Oni-Gami Combo, you're missing out on how effective these guys really are.

Blackwings

Kalut is at 3. Naturally people are going to play these. Whirlwind and Gale are still at 1 guys. These are very important cards. This archetype is massive, and that alone can be scary for the people who try and run awkward combos that fit what they're used to. (See: Rabbit Glads). Now this deck is also splashed into just about everything, and will until at least the end of this month. People who haven't heard of these guys are trying them out. They have some awesome combos you can pull off, but I really don't see these guys topping too much. All of them, except a situational boss monster, are DARK attribute. DARK monsters have generally always been something people sided against, and one of their shortcomings comes from that. These guys can get REALLY powerful, and can weaken the opponent's monsters or inflict piercing damage. Unfortunately, in a format with 3 MST and Heavy Storm, Black Whirlwind is generally the target of choice. This alone will make a lot of people worried they can't do anything. As with all decks, you CAN do something, it's just that people won't play these all too much after awhile. Which is a shame, I love bird archetypes.


Lightsworn

All right, this deck falls into a lot of the same things as Blackwings. They got a card unlimited, and they also have the advantage of the new set being titled Judgment of the Light. Combine this with the most overpowered effect monster in the game and you have a lot of people drooling. Unfortunately this deck mills itself into inconsistency. When you mill all three Judgement Dragon on turn one, that can be a bit of a disaster, especially when your opponent sided Soul Release and gets them all out of reach. Now these guys do have some pretty good support, and they don't have a limited to 1 card that stays face-up for all that long. Their key cards are still greatly limited, though. You won't see me running Wulf until Charge is at 3. I don't see that happening without JD getting hit. JD getting hit kills the deck. You see what I mean. There's a lot of problems that come with this deck, but that's what makes it so fun to play. You have other options. Gragonith and Celestia have won many a game in these decks. Combo'd with Lightrays, Timelord, and other various options, this deck could make a comeback, but I'm not so sure. I'll leave this one as a floater, as well. Even though I love them.


Mermail/Atlantean + Evilswarm

Might as well finish off with a high note. These are the obvious meta choices. I'll start with the Mermails... This deck can nuke the field on turn one, if needed. Mermails have some of the greatest boss monsters in the game. With people actually using their XYZ now, they're actually even more of a threat. This supposed Synchro Revival is coming at a bad time with these guys around. You're going to be looking at what's topping, and you'll see two decks. Mermail/Atlantean and Evilswarm. The issue with Mermails is they have so many options while most of which cause negative effects. Due to intentional wording and simple game mechanics, their key pieces can get their effects off when detached as an XYZ material, given that they're using WATER monsters. They can also synchro. Fortunately though... Brionac was banned just in time. A field nuke for even more plusses is an insane idea in itself.

Evilswarm is currently the most infamous deck in the game. They can negate any forms of non-battle destruction three times. They can return the card you've been working all duel to get out to your hand. They have a Rank 4 non-generic Big-Eye. They negate high level special summons which doesn't even hurt them at all. These guys are powerhouses that are causing a lot of trouble. These guys are making people scoop first turn. And these guys are hard to overcome. Their attacks are annoying and have the 50's, so they get over the key cards. With Thunder King AND Solemn Warning getting the banlist treatment, it's basic economics. These two decks are the ones built to dominate. That's why I had to include them together. They have weaknesses, but they're difficult to overcome regardless. Ophion can pull the infestation cards that keep it alive. They're also quickplay. With both decks stopping the major key points of other decks, we can reasonably assume that these guys are going to be the ridiculously overpriced decks that everyone is going to top with. In correlation, this means we're going to see a lot of netdecking. It's not realistic to see these decreasing in play. They'll likely get hit by the banlist. I don't think Konami is going to outright kill a deck like they did with plants (and still have failed to do with Wind-Ups), so except to see these guys for a few formats to come.