Notes & Combos

• Submitted before new pack release

First off, I want to express my deep disappointment (actually, intense rage) at Konami's decision to omit World Legacy from the recently released "Yugioh Card Game The Chronicles" video. "Thank you for playing for 25 years"? Well, as a World Legacy OTP, I didn't feel appreciated at all. >:((((( No new WL support, not even a still image of Astram watching over Lib and Imduk? Disgusting. It better be because they're working on a full anime.

So, this was one of the worst climbs I've undertaken in this game. Absolutely horrible meta.

• Yes, Small World Legacy (or any variant of a go-1st pure World Legacy deck) is pretty much dead. 0 interaction with the 1000000 hand and GY effects everywhere, and 1-2 columns of monster negation simply won't cut it in the face of all this gas. I suppose pure Mekks might fare better with WL Whispers to negate all the spell extension, but I have no idea how that would work.
  • To be clear, a WL archetype mixed with an actually competent modern engine like SHS will still be able to set up a good board going 1st. The wombo combo Crusadia lists that Raseruuu and Crusaddy play (in #crusadia channel) are perfectly capable of a strong board vs the meta. I just mean that relying solely on the WL engine for all the answers going first cannot cut it in this environment.
• That said, WL Secret IS still devastating when allowed to develop; the key is a simplified gamestate. So, after a ton of trial-and-error (banging my head against the wall), I reverted to a blind-second build that seeks to disrupt plays early so that I can play into a weaker board.
• Why handtraps over board breakers, per Crusadia/Mekk tradition? Just imagine facing Baronne + B.Savage + Regulus + Nat Beast with 1 Evenly Matched in hand. I find this meta absolutely horrendous because the 1st-turn boards are absurdly greedy, degenerate even. Every duel going 2nd is already a huge gamble on opening the correct outs; if you choose to deal with the full board only AFTER it's been established, you then add another layer of gambling to open the correct NUMBER of outs in addition to your barebones engine. So, essentially a specific 4- or 5-card hand for each situation. KekL

Dingirsu -> Zeus was the undisputed MVP for my climb. After repeatedly falling on my face, I decided to try slotting Galatea back in for the 1-card Zeus with Girsu. This play exceeded all of my expectations such that I feel dumb for not treating it as a core line in my deck before. Turn Girsu's token into Link Spider if necessary -> go into Galatea > Dingirsu > attack > Zeus. Solved soooooooo many boards that I'd struggled to break before, NOT LEAST LABRYNTH.

• Going into Zeus with Purple+Indigo/Purple provides an extra material for Dingirsu to protect himself. If using the Girsu line, it's imperative to bait out negates before committing to the Zeus play. Otherwise, pivot into Lib or something else.
• With Girsu -> Zeus, a WL card is sent to GY on turn 2, so the spent Zeus can be linked off with, say, a Crusadia on turn 4 for Lib to immediately resume the usual combo line. It's a nice little synergistic interaction.
• The potency of this line suggests that Mekk-Knight Crusadia might appreciate the Zoodiac engine. I won't be trying it as I want to stick with pure World Legacy as far as possible, but feel free to test!

Tech notes:

• WL has no way of dealing with hand or GY effects going 1st or 2nd, so 2 Belle and 1 Crow have been invaluable. Be judicious in your use of disruption; save these for the most important plays as they will make all the difference against Branded, Lab, etc. In fact, if I don't have Ash/Belle/Reboot vs Lab, I'm pretty much cooked. I actually rate Belle more than Imperm in quite a few matchups right now, but have her at 2x because of HOPT lol.
• Pot of Prosperity means less OTK-ing, but honestly, it's nigh on impossible to reach the classic Equimax OTK gamestate right now. Being able to dig deep for Girsu/TTT wins games.
• Red Reboot, obviously, is a game-winner combined with Zeus, especially against my bogey matchup, Lab. It just does so much against almost every deck right now. Undroppable.
• The 2nd TTT is actually my "40th slot," one that I have used on DRNM, a 2nd Reboot, and Nibiru at various points. Perhaps it's just my playstyle, but I think TTT is well clear for its versatility and power. Steal a monster to combine with Girsu for Galatea? Kekw
• 2x Blue Sky sticks out like a sore thumb, I know, but I really like Green Horizon in this gameplan. Since I'm aiming to control the game in a simplified gamestate, Green's limited recursion has been quite nifty for sustaining my card economy and helping me keep up with degenerate combo plussing. I did sometimes feel like I missed that 3rd Blue Sky since Green is not a starter (and it taking the 3rd Blue Sky's slot reduces the probability of opening Girsu for the all-important Zeus play), so perhaps try restoring the 3rd Blue Sky in place of that 2nd TTT in the 40th slot. That's my first instinct looking at this list again.

Just to reiterate, the climb was pure agony and I do not think this is necessarily the best approach for Mekk-Crusadia this season. It's just what I ended up using.

Final, quick note on the fabled 60-card World Legacy deck that I'd been working on for months: it's dead. I have finally sobered up and accepted that the individual WL cards cannot even begin to tie the laces of "meta" cards like Maxx C and Ash in terms of card quality. Expanding to 60 gave me a lot of joy in experiencing the diversity of WL names and generally more dynamic, unpredictable gameplay, but ultimately meant that the best cards were diluted to the detriment of my win-rate. I am very sad about this.