[Leaderboard] Tinkerer vs lightdiversion

[Nathanael D. Striker]

Rules:
All Leaderboard rules apply.
First to 3 votes or most votes by June 30th, 11:59PM PDT wins.
All voters must elaborate on their votes.
Both contestants and myself have the right to refuse votes, but must explain why we don't accept it.
Written cards are allowed. (Must be in written format, cards with blank pictures are not acceptable)
Create a Level 4 or lower monster that represents some sort of animal with an effect that represents a characteristic of that animal. ATK/DEF cannot exceed 2500 combined.

Rewards:
The winner gets a rep from the loser.
All voters get a rep for voting.

Card A
Crystal Beast Onyx Cobra
Reptile-Type/DARK/effect/Level 4/ATK 1500/DEF 800
Destroy any monster that battles this card at the end of Damage Step. If this face-up card in your Monster Zone is destroyed, you can place this card face-up in your Spell/Trap Zone as a Continuous Spell Card instead of sending it to the Graveyard. If this card is face-up in your Spell/Trap Zone as a Continuous Spell Card: You can Special Summon this card. You can only use this effect of "Crystal Beast Onyx Cobra" Once per turn.

Card B
Scarab, the Star-Shover
LIGHT *
Insect/Effect
Twice per turn during either player's turn, you can target 2 monsters on the field; the first target loses 1 level/rank and the second target gains 1 level/rank. If a card(s) is sent from the field to your Graveyard, you can shuffle them into your Deck. This card gains 300 ATK and DEF for each card returned by this effect.
0/600

[Flash Flyer - Sakura]

Card A is another Crystal Beast support that can blow stuff up and revive itself, assuming you have space when it happens (and obviously if you had sent it to the S/T zone).

 

To be honest, while I'm a bit iffy on this card being able to blow up any monsters that it fights, the saving point is that it has to wait until after damage is calculated, so it's not like some other cards that kill without applying damage calculation, which would've warranted a no vote here (and likely a card C vote, but let's wait until both cards get graded before any judgment is passed, k?).

 

Although this card is capable of SSing itself from the S/T zone, so you could essentially suicide this into an opponent's monster and revive it later for another use.

It is useful for getting rid of problematic monsters that have battle immunity (or clearing the field, assuming you don't mind losing a bit of LP), however, so there's something.

 

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Card B can trigger during either player's turn and certainly screw up a bunch of Synchro/Xyz Decks; or conversely help them should you be running things.

(Or get a Level around certain effects that restrict particular ones from doing things)

 

My main gripe is that it can be triggered during either player's turn and more than once; also consider the fact that this is still a Reckless Summoning target.

If it were restricted to the controller's turn, then perhaps it'd be more tolerable. The soft "twice per turn" thing is a problem though, although it depends on what's on the field and if a monster's Level/Rank can be decreased further (it can go past 12, as Greed Quasar has proven).

 

Last effect is nice if you want to recycle certain cards, especially ones that cannot be revived or retrieved from the Graveyard, and it'll certainly find some use.

 

On to flavor notes, I did a quick reading of scarab beetles and to be honest, not sure if the effects presented here are representative of their traits.

 

 

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In conclusion, I'm giving my vote to card A for remaining on the theme for the most part, and for not being abusable.

Card B would work in the meta, considering that Xyz/Synchro are still common; although twice per turn during any turn isn't really fair.

[Nathanael D. Striker]

1-0 Card A

[Northern Sage]

Cobra is potentially an infinitely recurring rammer, but has a bit of risk attached to it, with you still taking damage and all the usual battle phase things still happening. Thematically, it's mainly poison, which seems rather well thought out here.

Scarab can be grabbed by One for One, can get up to some ridiculous level manipulation and can recycle any monster sent from the field to the Graveyard, with a stat boost each time. Maybe the second effect could be connected to dung beetles, a type of scarab beetle, and their rolling up feces? A bit too ridiculous still.

Vote for A as well.

[Nathanael D. Striker]

2-0 Card A

[Nathanael D. Striker]

Less than 4 hours to vote.

[Nathanael D. Striker]

Okay, lightdiversion wins 2-0.