The Warden Posted August 17, 2021 Report Share Posted August 17, 2021 "In ancient times, the dinosaurs were in constant conflict with an ancient foe, the insects. A battle that waged and only ended when the tree the insects resided in unleashed a deluge of sap, imprisoning the insects in a prison of amber. Now, many moons into the future, the prison has begun to weaken as the millennia have allowed the insects to adapt to the amber. And thus, the air once more is filled with the humming of the Amber Ancients, who are ready to fight their ancient foes once again." In seriousness, this is my run with a battle-focused archetype of insects based around ancient species that have long-since gone extinct. They are tribute focused, but also don't neglect the extra deck as the Amber Ancients have adapted to the modern times, making them more dangerous than ever. Level 2 Monsters Reveal hidden contents Amber Ancient Afromyrma EARTH ** Insect / Effect This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. If you control no Level 4 or lower monsters, you can Special Summon this card (from your hand). You can only Special Summon “Amber Ancient Afromyrma” this way once per turn. You can only use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Afromyrma” per turn, and only once that turn. *If this card is sent to the GY: You can add 1 “Amber Ancient” monster from your Deck to your hand *If this card was Tributed for the Tribute Summon of an Insect monster: Add 2 “Amber Ancient” monsters from your Deck to your hand. ATK: 300 / DEF: 1800 Amber Ancient Astreptolabis EARTH ** Insect / Tuner / Effect This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. If you control no Level 4 or lower monsters, you can Special Summon this card (from your hand). You can only Special Summon “Amber Ancient Astreptolabis” this way once per turn. You can only use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Astreptolabis” per turn, and only once that turn. *If this card is sent to the GY: You can draw 1 card. *If this card was Tributed for the Tribute Summon of an Insect monster: You can draw 2 cards. ATK: 0 / DEF: 2100 Amber Ancient Ektatotricha EARTH ** Insect / Effect This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. You can only use each of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Ektatotricha” once per turn. *You can discard 1 “Amber Ancient” card; Special Summon this card from your hand or GY. *During the Main Phase of the turn this card was Summoned: You can discard 1 card; immediately after this effect resolves, Normal Summon/Set 1 “Amber Ancient” monster in addition to your Normal Summon/Set this turn. (You can only gain this effect once per turn.) ATK: 500 / DEF: 1600 Amber Ancient Nanotermes EARTH ** Insect / Tuner / Effect This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. You can discard 1 “Amber Ancient” card; Special Summon this card from your hand or GY. You can only Special Summon “Amber Ancient Nanotermes” this way once per turn. You can only use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Nanotermes” per turn, and only once that turn. *If this card is sent to the GY: You can add 1 “Amber Ancient” monster (except this card) from your GY to your hand. *If this card was Tributed for the Tribute Summon of an Insect monster: You can add 2 “Amber Ancient” monsters (except this card) from your GY to your hand. ATK: 400 / DEF: 1700 Amber Ancient Ororaphidia EARTH ** Insect / Effect This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. You can discard 1 “Amber Ancient” card; Special Summon this card from your hand or GY. You can only Special Summon “Amber Ancient Ororaphidia” this way once per turn. You can only use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Ororaphidia” per turn, and only once that turn. *If this card is sent to the GY: You can add 1 “Amber Ancient” Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. If this card was Tributed for the Tribute Summon of an Insect monster: Add 2 “Amber Ancient” cards (1 monster and 1 Spell/Trap Card) from your Deck to your hand. ATK: 100 / DEF: 2000 Design Notes: For sake of consistency in the archetype, I devised the Level 2 monsters to be numerous and self-summoning, able to create ample tribute fodder while rewarding being used as fodder with useful effects that only work within the archetype. Truth be told I am not 100% sure how to even write out the second part of their effects, but this seemed to make the most sense to me. Likewise, the renewal effects exist largely to make up for how much advantage you can blow tributing monsters off for one reason or another. Level 8 Monsters Reveal hidden contents Amber Ancient Neanaperiallus EARTH ******** Insect / Effect This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. Can be Tribute Summoned by Tributing 1 Insect monster you control. While this card is in Attack Position, exchange its ATK with its DEF. When this Attack Position card is targeted by a card effect: You can change this card to Defence Position, and if you do, it cannot change its Battle Position for the rest of this turn, also, it is unaffected by card effects until the End Phase. When this card destroys a monster by battle: You can activate this effect; during your opponent’s next Standby Phase, Special Summon the destroyed monster to your field as an Insect monster, and its effect becomes the following. *During your Main Phase: You can Tribute this card; Special Summon 1 “Amber Ancient Neanaperiallus” from your hand, Deck, or GY, and if you do, gain 1000 LP. ATK: 2200 / DEF: 2800 Design Notes: This is where the juicy stuff comes in, and where the gimmicks of the AAs become present. I wanted to device a combat archetype that can defend as well as it could attack, which is why I came up with the gimmick of insects half-trapped in amber, and using it as natural armour. This way their full prowess is seen when in attack position, AKA, not inside amber, but of how they adapted by using the amber to shield themselves. Hence going into defence position and being invulnerable to effects. This way, it forces a scenario of "FIGHT ME" by dodging targeting effects thus making battle the option for getting rid of them. Fun fact as well, Neanaperiallus is a type of ancient parasitic wasp, hence the unusual spawning effect. Amber Ancient Plumalexius EARTH ******** Insect / Effect This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. Can be Tribute Summoned by Tributing 1 Insect monster you control. While this card is in Attack Position, exchange its ATK with its DEF. When this Attack Position card is targeted by a card effect: You can change this card to Defence Position, and if you do, it cannot change its Battle Position for the rest of this turn, also, it is unaffected by card effects until the End Phase. When this card destroys a monster by battle: You can banish that monster; Special Summon 1 “Plumalexius Larva Token” (Insect/EARTH/Level 4/ATK 1500/DEF 1500) to your opponent’s field in Attack Position. It cannot be Tributed, except for the Tribute Summon of an Insect monster, and when it is destroyed or removed from the field, you gain 1000 LP. ATK: 2000 / DEF: 3000 Design Notes: The new effect of Plumalexius is meant to somewhat coincide with Neanaperiallus', as they are both wasps. However, while Neana lays it's eggs like a parasite, Plumalexius instead uses the corpse of its foes to feed its larva. Too bad the other Amber Ancients (and hell, even Plumalexius) don't quite grasp that cannibalism is bad. Amber Ancient Prodryas EARTH ******** Insect / Effect This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. Can be Tribute Summoned by Tributing 1 Insect monster you control. While this card is in Attack Position, exchange its ATK with its DEF. When this Attack Position card is targeted by a card effect: You can change this card to Defence Position, and if you do, it cannot change its Battle Position for the rest of this turn, also, it is unaffected by card effects until the End Phase. If this card destroys a monster by battle: You can banish that monster; all monsters you control gain 500 ATK/DEF, and all monsters your opponent controls lose 1000 ATK/DEF. ATK: 1800 / DEF: 3200 Design Notes: Prodryas is a kind of ancient butterfly species, as such, it utilizes the acid scale sort of effect that is seen in Moth monsters. Link Monsters Reveal hidden contents Amber Ancient Mesojassoides EARTH DR Insect / Link / Effect 1 Insect monster This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. During the turn this card was Link Summoned, you can Normal Summon 1 “Amber Ancient” monster as an additional Normal Summon/Set. (You can only gain this effect once per turn.) ATK: 600 / LINK-1 Amber Ancient Allorapisma EARTH DL / DR Insect / Link / Effect 1+ Insect monsters This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. A monster that is Summoned to a Zone this card points to can be treated as a Tuner. If this card points to an “Amber Ancient” monster or a Tuner: You can Tribute this card; Special Summom 1 Level 2 or Level 8 “Amber Ancient” monster from your hand, Deck, or GY, but its effect is negated until the end of this turn. You can only use this effect of “Amber Ancient Allorapisma” once per turn. ATK: 1600 / LINK-2 Design Notes: Not much to say here. These two basically exist as the typical "mandatory in-archetype Link monsters" all archetypes have nowadays. These two basically exist to extend plays into the Extra Deck more than into tributing the big guys, mostly. Synchro Monsters Reveal hidden contents Amber Ancient Lutzomyia EARTH **** Insect / Synchro / Tuner / Effect 1 Tuner + 1 or more Insect non-Tuners This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. If you control a Level/Rank 8 or higher “Amber Ancient” monster, your opponent cannot target this card for attacks. You can only use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Lutzomyia” per turn, and only once that turn. *(Quick Effect): You can target 1 monster your opponent controls; banish this card until the end of this turn, also, halve the target’s ATK/DEF, and if you do, all Level/Rank 8 or higher “Amber Ancient” monsters you control gain ATK/DEF equal to the amount lost. *(Quick Effect): You can make the Level of this card 2, and if you do, immediately Synchro Summon 1 “Amber Ancient” monster from your Extra Deck using this card and 1 “Amber Ancient” monster you control. ATK: 0 / DEF: 2500 Amber Ancient Oligochlora EARTH **** Insect / Synchro / Tuner / Effect 1 Tuner + 1 or more Insect non-Tuners This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. You can only use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Oligochlora” per turn, and only once that turn. *You can discard 1 card; add 1 “Amber Ancient” card from your GY to your hand. *(Quick Effect): You can make the Level of this card 2, and if you do, immediately Synchro Summon 1 “Amber Ancient” monster from your Extra Deck using this card and 1 “Amber Ancient” monster you control. ATK: 600 / DEF: 1900 Design Notes: The purpose of the Level 4 Synchros is to provide handy support effects, while also basically working into the Level 10 Synchros during your opponent's turn. Not much else to say really. Amber Ancient Sinomeganeura EARTH ********** Insect / Synchro / Effect 1 Tuner + 1 or more Insect non-Tuners This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. While this card is in Attack Position, exchange its ATK with its DEF. When this Attack Position card is targeted by a card effect: You can change this card to Defence Position, and if you do, it cannot change its Battle Position for the rest of this turn, also, it is unaffected by card effects until the End Phase. If this card destroys a monster by battle, and if your opponent has a Spell/Trap Card in the same column as the destroyed monster: Destroy it. If there is no card to destroy: Destroy all Spell/Trap Cards your opponent controls instead. ATK: 2300 / DEF: 3300 Design Notes: And here is where some of the archetype's power comes from. They still maintain the gimmicks inherent to the Level 8 monsters, but their power has grown more. Fun thing is that this effect used to be on one of the Level 8s, but I considered it too powerful for a Main Deck monster, hence why it's now this card's effect instead. Amber Ancient Electrotettix EARTH ********** Insect / Synchro / Effect 1 Tuner + 1 or more Insect non-Tuners This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. While this card is in Attack Position, exchange its ATK with its DEF. When this Attack Position card is targeted by a card effect: You can change this card to Defence Position, and if you do, it cannot change its Battle Position for the rest of this turn, also, it is unaffected by card effects until the End Phase. Negate the effects of monsters destroyed by battle with Insect monsters you control. When this card or an “Electrotettix Swarm Token” you control destroys a monster by battle: You can Special Summon 1 “Electrotettix Swarm Token” (Insect/EARTH/Level 10/ATK 3000/ DEF 3000) to your field. It is destroyed during the end of this turn, also, it cannot be Tributed for a Tribute Summon or be used as a material to Summon a monster from the Extra Deck. ATK: 2200 / DEF: 3400 Design Notes: This new effect of Electrotettix is meant to represent the swarming nature of locusts when they've found something tasty to devour. Xyz Monsters Reveal hidden contents Amber Ancient Kachinus EARTH R** Insect / Xyz / Effect 2 Level 2 Insect monsters This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. You can only use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Kachinus” per turn, and only once that turn. *(Quick Effect): You can detach 1 material from this card, then, target 1 monster on the field; Special Summon 1 “Kachinus Token” to your field, which is treated as an EARTH Insect monster with the same Level, ATK, and DEF as the target. It is destroyed during the End Phase, and it cannot be used as a material for the Summon of a monster from the Extra Deck, except “Amber Ancient” monsters. *During your Main Phase: You can target 1 Level 8 “Amber Ancient” monster you control; Special Summon 1 Rank 8 “Amber Ancient” Xyz Monster from your Extra Deck, by using this card and the target as material. (This is treated as an Xyz Summon. Transfer this card’s materials to the Summoned monster.) ATK: 700 / DEF: 1400 Amber Ancient Baltimartyria EARTH R** Insect / Xyz / Effect 2 Level 2 Insect monsters This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. You can only use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Baltimartyria” per turn, and only once that turn. *When your opponent activates a Spell/Trap Card or effect (Quick Effect): You can detach 1 material from this card; negate the activation of that card or effect, and if you do, Set that card face-down. It cannot be flipped face-up, also, while that card remains Set by this effect, negate the activated effects of cards with the same original name. *During your Main Phase: You can target 1 Level 8 “Amber Ancient” monster you control; Special Summon 1 Rank 8 “Amber Ancient” Xyz Monster from your Extra Deck, by using this card and the target as material. (This is treated as an Xyz Summon. Transfer this card’s materials to the Summoned monster.) ATK: 800 / DEF: 1300 Design Notes: The gimmick of the Rank 2s is a little more tit for tat, as they exist to buff monsters, but also benefit as they claim the monsters their target destroys as material. It's a sort of ways to help deny your opponent monsters in their GY as well denying destruction effect. And Much like the Level 4 Synchros they also ladder up to the bigger Xyz. Amber Ancient Denaeaspis EARTH R******** Insect / Xyz / Effect 2 Level 8 Insect monsters This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. When this Attack Position card is targeted by a card effect: You can change this card to Defence Position, and if you do, it cannot change its Battle Position for the rest of this turn, also, it is unaffected by card effects until the End Phase. This card gains 200 ATK/DEF for each material it has. During the Damage Step, when this card you control battles another monster (Quick Effect): You can detach 1 material from this card; the opposing monster loses ATK/DEF equal to this card’s ATK/DEF. If this card has no material, at the end of the Battle Phase: Return this card to the Extra Deck, and if you do, you can Special Summon 1 Level 2 or Level 8 “Amber Ancient” monster from your GY with its effect negated, also, destroy it during the End Phase. ATK: 2500 / DEF: 2500 Design Notes: Admittedly, I made this archetype a while ago, but the effect hoovering up monsters with the same name is new. In a ways, it's intended as a double-edged sword cause as long as you can keep the materials, they're out of your opponent's hands. Sort of a keep away effect I wanted to experiment with. This new effect is to be a reflection of the new name as Denaeaspsis is a tortoise beetle, so turtling up by being a pain to take down in battle felt fitting. I considered keeping the material hoovering effect, but that would make it really hard to take down and thus a little more limited. Amber Ancient Dominickus EARTH R******** Insect / Xyz / Effect 2 Level 8 Insect monsters This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. While this card is in Attack Position, exchange its ATK with its DEF. When this Attack Position card is targeted by a card effect: You can change this card to Defence Position, and if you do, it cannot change its Battle Position for the rest of this turn, also, it is unaffected by card effects until the End Phase. This card cannot declare an attack unless you detach 1 material from this card. If this card destroys a monster by battle, you can attach it to this card as material instead of sending it to the GY. A material that would be detached or removed from this card and sent to your opponent’s GY is banished instead. If this card has no material, at the end of the Battle Phase: Return this card to the Extra Deck, and if you do, you can Special Summon 1 Level 2 or Level 8 “Amber Ancient” monster from your GY with its effect negated, also, destroy it during the End Phase. ATK: 500 / DEF: 4500 Design Notes: Time for most honestly, I made this guy a big bugger because of the name. Dominickus? Sounds like dominate, and that's what this monster does. Now he is sorta lazy, but Dominickus loves to eat, be it its fellows or his opponents. So long as he can keep toppling monsters he'll never be short of fuel. Fusion Monster Reveal hidden contents Amber Ancient Rhyniognatha EARTH ************ Insect / Fusion / Effect 1 Level 8 “Amber Ancient” monster + 1 Level 10 “Amber Ancient” Synchro monster + 1 Rank 8 “Amber Ancient” Xyz monster You can also Special Summon this card (from your Extra Deck) by banishing the above cards you control. (In which case you do not use “Polymerization”.) This card’s Type is also treated as Rock. While this card is in Attack Position, exchange its ATK with its DEF. Unaffected by the effects of other cards. During your opponent’s turn, when they activate a Spell/Trap Card or monster effect: You can banish 1 “Amber Ancient” card from your GY; negate that card or effect, and if you do, banish it. ATK: 1200 / DEF: 4800 Design Notes: I ran out of steam, that's the long and short of it. I honestly had trouble trying to conceive of what kind of effect a giant dragonfly would have, and all I could come up with was the sound of its droning wings drowning out effects. I may figure out a new effect, but this is what I came up with. Really, this card is more of a winmoar than anything else. Spell/Trap Cards Reveal hidden contents Amber Ancient Discover Normal Spell You can use 1 of the following effects of “Amber Ancient Discover” per turn, and only once that turn. *Add 1 “Amber Ancient” card (except “Amber Ancient Discover”) from your Deck to your hand. *Discard 1 card; add 2 “Amber Ancient” monsters from your Deck to your hand. Design Notes: RotA is RotA is RotA is RotA. Can never have enough RotA. Amber Ancient Recover Normal Spell You can only activate 1 “Amber Ancient Recover” per turn. Add 2 “Amber Ancient” monsters from your GY to your hand, then, you can banish this card from your GY to immediately Normal Summon 1 “Amber Ancient” monster from your hand. Design Notes: This card honestly exists more for the extra NS than the recovery, but it's still nice nonetheless since you can very easily piss away a lot of resources. Amber Ancient Restore Quick-Play Spell You can only activate 1 “Amber Ancient Restore” per turn. Apply the following effects in order, if possible. *Special Summon 1 Level 2 “Amber Ancient” monster from your GY. *Normal Summon 1 “Amber Ancient” monster from your hand as an additional Normal Summon. Amber Ancient History Quick-Play Spell Target any number of “Amber Ancient” monsters you control; they gain 300 ATK/DEF, also, you can add 1 “Amber Ancient History” from your GY to your hand. You can only activate 1 “Amber Ancient History” per turn. Design Notes: Despite the effect, this is my attempt at being clever. This card is less about a stat boost, and more dodging effects by allowing the big ones to switch to defence by targetting them yourself, which they allow. This way they can dodge non-targetting removal such as Raigeki or Lightning Storm. The recycling effect is to basically ensure you can keep the Amber Ancient equivalent of Forbidden Lance in circulation. Amber Ancient Memory Continuous Spell You can only control 1 “Amber Ancient Memory”. When you perform 1 of the following types of Summon (Tribute Summon, Synchro Summon, Xyz Summon) to Summon an “Amber Ancient” monster, apply the appropriate effect. *Tribute Summon: That monster gains 1000 ATK/DEF. *Synchro Summon: If the Summoned monster attacks or is attacked this turn, your opponent cannot activate cards or effects until the end of the Damage Step. *Xyz Summon: Draw 1 card. You can only apply each effect of “Amber Ancient Memory” once per turn. Amber Ancient Hollow Field Spell “Amber Ancient” monsters gain 300 ATK/DEF. Once per turn, when you Tribute Summon an “Amber Ancient” monster, or Special Summon an “Amber Ancient” monster from the Extra Deck: You can add 1 “Amber Ancient” Spell/Trap Card (except “Amber Ancient Colony”) from your GY to your hand. If an “Amber Ancient” monster(s) would leave the field by a card effect, you can send this card to the GY instead. Design Notes: This was typically just for the S/T recovery than anything else, as well as a one-off protection sort of thing. Amber Ancient Ambush Normal Trap Reveal 1 Level 8 “Amber Ancient” monster in your hand OR select 1 Level 8 “Amber Ancient” monster in your GY; Tribute Summon it to your field using monsters you control as Tributes. At the start of your opponent’s Battle Phase: You can banish this card from your GY; all monsters your opponent controls get changed to Attack Position, and they all must declare an attack this turn (if possible). Design Notes: The FIGHT ME archetype needed a FIGHT ME card, and this is it. Amber Ancient Prison Normal Trap Can only be activated while you control an “Amber Ancient” monster: Your opponent cannot Special Summon monsters from their GY during this turn. When an “Amber Ancient” monster you control destroys a Special Summoned monster by battle: You can take this card from your GY and Set it to your field. You can only use this effect of “Amber Ancient Prison” once per duel. Amber Ancient Power Continuous Trap You can only control 1 face-up “Amber Ancient Power”. “Amber Ancient” monsters on the field gain ATK/DEF equal to their Level/Rank x100. When an “Amber Ancient” monster you controls battles a monster, ignore any effect that would prevent that opposing monster from being destroyed by battle. During the Standby Phase: You can change all Defence Position “Amber Ancient” monsters you control to Attack Position. Design Notes: Basically intended to allow even more FIGHT ME shenanigans, while also bypassing one of the bigger issues being battle immunity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darj Posted August 17, 2021 Report Share Posted August 17, 2021 I like this set and how it can play with Tribute, Synchro, Xyz and Link Summons. Reminds me of D/D/Ds. I would say Fusions too but their Fusion is more like an ABC type ED boss that rewards you for playing all ED types. When I first read the concept and that they are focused on Tribute Summoned I was expecting something close to Flundereeze, but they are nothing like them at all and I would say they barely rely on Tribute Summons. I see a mix of cards on the set when it comes to power as some a clearly great like the ROTA, others are fine, and others looks average to me like Plumalexius, which is at best a 1-of and has a subpar effect, although to be fair it has an above ATK-DEF for a Level 8. But they got enough good cards to be functional and a potential top tier level. To me the card that stands out the most and that I find mildly concerning is Nanotermes, it gives me flashbacks of Jet Synchron and wouldn't be surprised if it got into the banlist in TCG if Halqifibrax is not put in the before. Not only it has a "discard to SS it from GY" effect similar to Jet Synchron, it also gets to float, although it should have a target in the GY first. Anyway, as I read through the cards they gave me a vibe reminiscent of Krawlers: they benefit from effect removal and push the opponent into destroying them by battle. Also both are EARTH Insect Archetypes and some of the AAs are Level 2 like most main deck Krawlers. Although I dare say these do right what Krawlers attempted to do, as they seem more effective at shrugging effect removal, and got bigger stats fit better for battles. However, as I kept reading I noticed they were a bit too passive and did not have many disruptive or removal tools without relying on battle, which could give the opponent some openings to establish a board and/or break through your monsters. But then I read the Spell/Traps and things started to look much better: History looks amazing because as you state, it allows you to trigger their defensive effects at will, making them less opponent-reliant, plus it cycles itself for re-uses, which IMO is a nasty perk. Then there is Prison, you mention it's redundant but I see it as one of their best cards, because it's one of the few disruptive effects they have and it alone offers the entire archetype a favorable match-up vs. decks that rely on Summons from the GY. This is big because sometimes the meta relies a lot on GY revival, and that's where this archetype could come in to storm the party. In short, although they are able to make most ED Summons, doing so may not be the optimal way to play them, but they got enough power cards to do big plays and IMO reach meta levels. I would have to brainstorm some combos but at first glance, with Nanotermes you already have Halqifibrax shenanigans, the Level 2s look swarmy enough for major Link ladder plays while floating to rack up card advantage, and a handful of Level 8s to threat with beaters. I guess they would play more like Salamangreats than Goukis, assuming they can consistently grab History and Prison for sturdier boards. Most of the Synchros and Xyzs are passive and need to attack to apply their offensive effects so IDK if I would build the deck for playing them, and if I do, it would be mainly to rush into their ABC-like Fusion because it's among the few disruptive cards they have, plus that 4800 ATK-DEF is nothing to scoff at. Want to add that Neanaperiallus is my favorite card of the set, I find the effect creative and I like it a lot. Part of me wishes more of the AAs did stuff like this, or rather this effect was among their main gimmicks. Also I expected they would play well with Stormforth but as Level 8s that need Insects to be Tribute Summoned with 1 monster, they can't consistently play it. Not that they need it, though. EDIT: Forgot to address the card texts. Yeah, the Level 2s could be written differently. I would split the 2nd effects into 3 and taking tips from Prediction Princess Tarotrei, I would go for ssomething like this, using Afromyrma as example: *If you control no Level 4 or lower monsters, you can Special Summon this card (from your hand). You can only use this effect of "Amber Ancient Afromyrma" once per turn. You can only use 1 of the following effects of "Amber Ancient Afromyrma" per turn, and only once that turn. *If this card is sent to the GY: You can add 1 “Amber Ancient” monster from your Deck to your hand *If this card was Tributed for the Tribute Summon of an Insect monster; add 2 “Amber Ancient” monsters from your Deck to your hand instead. I spot other card texts that could be adjusted, but I don't want to proofread all of them at the moment, besides IDK if you care that much for text fixes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Warden Posted August 18, 2021 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2021 On 8/17/2021 at 10:11 PM, Darj said: I like this set and how it can play with Tribute, Synchro, Xyz and Link Summons. Reminds me of D/D/Ds. I would say Fusions too but their Fusion is more like an ABC type ED boss that rewards you for playing all ED types. When I first read the concept and that they are focused on Tribute Summoned I was expecting something close to Flundereeze, but they are nothing like them at all and I would say they barely rely on Tribute Summons. I see a mix of cards on the set when it comes to power as some a clearly great like the ROTA, others are fine, and others looks average to me like Plumalexius, which is at best a 1-of and has a subpar effect, although to be fair it has an above ATK-DEF for a Level 8.(1) But they got enough good cards to be functional and a potential top tier level. To me the card that stands out the most and that I find mildly concerning is Nanotermes, it gives me flashbacks of Jet Synchron and wouldn't be surprised if it got into the banlist in TCG if Halqifibrax is not put in the before. Not only it has a "discard to SS it from GY" effect similar to Jet Synchron, it also gets to float, although it should have a target in the GY first.(2) Anyway, as I read through the cards they gave me a vibe reminiscent of Krawlers: they benefit from effect removal and push the opponent into destroying them by battle. Also both are EARTH Insect Archetypes and some of the AAs are Level 2 like most main deck Krawlers. Although I dare say these do right what Krawlers attempted to do, as they seem more effective at shrugging effect removal, and got bigger stats fit better for battles.However, as I kept reading I noticed they were a bit too passive and did not have many disruptive or removal tools without relying on battle, which could give the opponent some openings to establish a board and/or break through your monsters.(3) But then I read the Spell/Traps and things started to look much better: History looks amazing because as you state, it allows you to trigger their defensive effects at will, making them less opponent-reliant, plus it cycles itself for re-uses, which IMO is a nasty perk.(4) Then there is Prison, you mention it's redundant but I see it as one of their best cards, because it's one of the few disruptive effects they have and it alone offers the entire archetype a favorable match-up vs. decks that rely on Summons from the GY. This is big because sometimes the meta relies a lot on GY revival, and that's where this archetype could come in to storm the party. In short, although they are able to make most ED Summons, doing so may not be the optimal way to play them, but they got enough power cards to do big plays and IMO reach meta levels. I would have to brainstorm some combos but at first glance, with Nanotermes you already have Halqifibrax shenanigans, the Level 2s look swarmy enough for major Link ladder plays while floating to rack up card advantage (5), and a handful of Level 8s to threat with beaters. I guess they would play more like Salamangreats than Goukis, assuming they can consistently grab History and Prison (6) for sturdier boards. Most of the Synchros and Xyzs are passive and need to attack to apply their offensive effects so IDK if I would build the deck for playing them, and if I do, it would be mainly to rush into their ABC-like Fusion because it's among the few disruptive cards they have, plus that 4800 ATK-DEF is nothing to scoff at.(7) Want to add that Neanaperiallus is my favorite card of the set, I find the effect creative and I like it a lot. Part of me wishes more of the AAs did stuff like this, or rather this effect was among their main gimmicks.(8) Also I expected they would play well with Stormforth but as Level 8s that need Insects to be Tribute Summoned with 1 monster, they can't consistently play it. Not that they need it, though.(9) EDIT: Forgot to address the card texts. Yeah, the Level 2s could be written differently. I would split the 2nd effects into 3 and taking tips from Prediction Princess Tarotrei, I would go for ssomething like this, using Afromyrma as example: *If you control no Level 4 or lower monsters, you can Special Summon this card (from your hand). You can only use this effect of "Amber Ancient Afromyrma" once per turn. You can only use 1 of the following effects of "Amber Ancient Afromyrma" per turn, and only once that turn. *If this card is sent to the GY: You can add 1 “Amber Ancient” monster from your Deck to your hand *If this card was Tributed for the Tribute Summon of an Insect monster; add 2 “Amber Ancient” monsters from your Deck to your hand instead. I spot other card texts that could be adjusted, but I don't want to proofread all of them at the moment, besides IDK if you care that much for text fixes.(10) Expand (1) You'd be right about Plumalexius, as its effect was the one that got transferred to Baltimartyria. I figured though that given its higher than average stats, a weaker effect would offset it more since it seemed unfair to give a Harpie's Feather Duster effect to a level 8 monster. Hmm... y'know, I have an idea. Maybe I could have Plumalexius create a token on your opponent's field in attack position when it destroys a monster by battle; like a 1500/1500 stat token for you to pummel with your next Amber Ancient. That way you could set up Baltimartyria and other AAs. (2) Honestly, I totally didn't consider Halq at all in regards to Nanotermes, since they can very easily summon him out. I may revise Nanotermes so it has to discard an Amber Ancient monster/card for the summoning effect instead. Granted, that wouldn't stop laddering unless I made it so if you use the effect, you can only SS Insects from the ED this turn. (3) It feels sad when nowadays battle is considered passive. The idea for them was to battle all the way and FIGHT ME, so I didn't want to rely heavily on destruction and negation effects. Perhaps it's too much of trying to play to a theme to have ancient monsters destroy other monsters in the most antiquated way possible: The Battle Phase. (4) I made sure History had to recycle a different copy of itself to avoid shenanigans with one copy. Since it only goes to the GY after the effect resolves. It felt like a fun way of ensuring your opponent can't wreck house during either turn with a cheeky effect like Evenly Matched, while as well letting you avoid stuff like an Accesscode Talker field wipe for game. (5) I may need to revise how the Level 2s play since I'm not sure I want them to be able to Link ladder that hard. (6) They should be able too, as the Ororaphidia and Discover can search History/Prison from the deck, while Oligochlora and Hollow can recover them from the grave. (7) It may be worth revising the ED monsters; at least the Xyz because I guess Dominickus just being huge just doesn't cut the mustard anymore huh? The synchros I may keep as-is, but I think I may wanna look at the Xyz again. Also, again, it feels sad that negation is what makes Meganeuropsis so appealing when I barely even spent time thinking about its effect. (8) I'm actually incredibly proud of Neanaperiallus' effect too when I designed it. The parasite route would be interesting, but not all Amber Ancients are parasitic species. (9) I mean, I could redesign one of the other cards in the list to become a Stormforth-like effect, such as treating an opponent's monster as an Insect and that it can also be used as a tribute. Could also revise one of the lesser Synchro/Xyz monsters to do that, actually. Would help out doing the Rank 8 ladder with the Rank 2s. (10) I do, and that text redesign is exactly what I was looking for for the Level 2s. 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Darj Posted August 18, 2021 Report Share Posted August 18, 2021 (1) A Token-generating effect to make more likely for other AAs to trigger their effects sounds great, yeah. Dinos do something like that with their Field Spell, for example. (2) I wouldn't nerf Nanotermes that hard, personally. Perhaps I'm clouded by powercreep and wrong for this, but I actually like the potential they have of going ham with Halqi combos, really curious to see what they could be capable of. Besides, there are already Link-and-float decks that are, or were, good like Salamangreats and Goukis but are not making any impact anymore so AAs could get away with having combo potential like this. Anyway, requiring Nanotermes to discard an AA card sounds good to me, limiting it to being playable in mostly AA decks, but a Summon lock on Insect monsters... well, it would take away a lot of the fun, and IDK if there are generic Insect options that can lead to establishing or breaking a board. (3) I feel you here. The Battle Phase and the pace of the game are simply not like what they used to be. Nowadays cards associated with the Battle Phase got to be devastating to be relevant, like Evenly Matched and the Zeus Xyzs. (4) I didn't miss that you need a copy of History in the GY to begin the loop, but I figured they shouldn't have many issues with searching or drawing a 2nd one after playing the first. (9) Sounds like a step into a good directiion. Also disrupion based on Insect Type change would be on theme with the Insect type as a whole. Some Level 6s could go well for practical Stormforth plays, but you may not want to bring a new Level into the mix. Also, as said before, they don't really need Stormforth and thinking about it, in a way it is refreshing to see an archetype with Level 5+ monsters that doesn't play well with it. (10) Forgot to ask something about their ”treated as Rock" effect. The way you wrote it makes it so it only applies on the field, but it you intended to apply in all areas, you could go for a clause in parentheses such as: (This card is also always treated as a Rock monster.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Warden Posted August 18, 2021 Author Report Share Posted August 18, 2021 On 8/18/2021 at 6:39 AM, Darj said: (1) A Token-generating effect to make more likely for other AAs to trigger their effects sounds great, yeah. Dinos do something like that with their Field Spell, for example. (2) I wouldn't nerf Nanotermes that hard, personally. Perhaps I'm clouded by powercreep and wrong for this, but I actually like the potential they have of going ham with Halqi combos, really curious to see what they could be capable of. Besides, there are already Link-and-float decks that are, or were, good like Salamangreats and Goukis but are not making any impact anymore so AAs could get away with having combo potential like this. Anyway, requiring Nanotermes to discard an AA card sounds good to me, limiting it to being playable in mostly AA decks, but a Summon lock on Insect monsters... well, it would take away a lot of the fun, and IDK if there are generic Insect options that can lead to establishing or breaking a board. (3) I feel you here. The Battle Phase and the pace of the game are simply not like what they used to be. Nowadays cards associated with the Battle Phase got to be devastating to be relevant, like Evenly Matched and the Zeus Xyzs. (4) I didn't miss that you need a copy of History in the GY to begin the loop, but I figured they shouldn't have many issues with searching or drawing a 2nd one after playing the first. (9) Sounds like a step into a good directiion. Also disrupion based on Insect Type change would be on theme with the Insect type as a whole. Some Level 6s could go well for practical Stormforth plays, but you may not want to bring a new Level into the mix. Also, as said before, they don't really need Stormforth and thinking about it, in a way it is refreshing to see an archetype with Level 5+ monsters that doesn't play well with it. (10) Forgot to ask something about their ”treated as Rock" effect. The way you wrote it makes it so it only applies on the field, but it you intended to apply in all areas, you could go for a clause in parentheses such as: (This card is also always treated as a Rock monster.) Expand (2) I think I'll just make so Nanotermes and Ektatotricha need to discard an AA card for their summon. Would be handy in regards to milling an extra copy of History. (3) I mean, Zeus is still plenty devastating when done right. (9) I could include a little disruption with the Xyz, as in hindsight, yeah, they are super passive and don't actually do much really. Also I didn't think much about Stormforth, but I concur, they don't need it. The whole point was the crap out many of the tiny ones and then tribute them off, constantly profitting and trying to keep the train going with other effects, like Iberoraphidia. (10) Yeah, it's an on-field thing mostly. Really, I'm thinking ditching that part cause the whole being treated as a rock thing related to the whole amber stuff, given how rock-like it is and how it's sometimes treated as a precious stone. It's flavour more than function. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Warden Posted August 19, 2021 Author Report Share Posted August 19, 2021 Change Log: Level 2 Amber Ancients Text updated for clarity. Level 8 Amber Ancients Plumalexius given a new effect. Prodryas has been given an updated cost to its effect. Plumalexius & Prodryas have exchanged their ATK/DEF stats to reflect their new effects. Amber Ancient Links Iberoraphidia has been renamed to Mesojassoides (due to species overlay with Ororaphidia, in an attempt at diversity. Yes I know Neanaperiallus and Plumalexius are both wasps, but one's parasitic and the other isn't, so, y'know, different enough). Amber Ancient Synchros Both Level 4s have been given an effect that makes it so your opponent cannot attack them if you control a high Level/Rank Amber Ancient monster. Lutzomyia's first effect has been changed to give it an ability more befitting of a blood-sucking insect. Baltimartyria has been renamed to Sinomeganeura. Sinomeganeura's ATK/DEF have been changed by -100/+100. Electrotettix's effect has been changed to relate more to the fact that it is a locust. It has retained the Ha Des-like effect. Electrotettix's ATK/DEF have been changed by +200/-200. Amber Ancient Xyz Both Rank 2s have been given an effect that makes it so your opponent cannot attack them if you control a high Level/Rank Amber Ancient monster. Kachinus has been given a new, token-generating effect. Zigrasimecia has been renamed to Baltimartyria. Baltimartyria's material requirements are now 2 Insects, instead of 2+ Insects. Baltimartyria has been given a new effect to help lockdown some of the trickier S/Ts your opponent may use. Brevivulva has been renamed to Denaeaspis. Denaeaspis' material requirements are now 2 Insects, instead of 2+ Insects. Denaeaspis has had its effect updated for it to be a bit more proactive in battle. Dominickus' material requirements are now 2 Insects, instead of 2+ Insects. Dominickus' tribute to attack effect has been removed. Dominickus' attachment effect has been updated so if a material belonging to your opponent gets detached, it gets banished instead of sent to the GY. Denaeaspis & Dominickus have both been given the effect that if they have no materials at the end of the Battle Phase, they bounce to the ED and revive a Level 8 Amber Ancient from your GY with limited life. Amber Ancient Fusions Meganeuropsis has been renamed to Rhyniognatha, which is the oldest known species of insect that researchers are divided on what it was (flying insect or a centipede, hence why this is a better idea for a fusion for a flying centipede). Removed a piece of text to clarify that the banished materials all have to be on the field, and aren't "banished to the GY". Rhyniognatha's negation has been changed to your opponent's turn, as constant negation whenever is unfair. And I mean, you're going to just negatenegatenegate more in your opponent's turn anyways. Amber Ancient Spells/Traps Memory has been changed so it's more immediately rewarding to the player. Restore has been improved so it applies both effects in order, since, otherwise, it actually sucks if you can only use 1 of the effects. Power has been changed to be more in-line with the Amber Ancient design philosphy, and has been changed so you can get your Amber Ancient monsters back into battle ready shape during the Standby Phase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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