Notes & Combos

S39: The Fiendsmith Goodstuff edition ("FS GS")

Initially I was climbing with White Forest, but was getting hit with so much Droll + Fuwalos that I decided to build a counterpick list instead. This is basically a variant of Fiendsmith Control, a deck that has fallen in favor as people shift en masse to the Millennium engine. After swapping to this brew, I maintained a smooth ~70% win-rate and 10-win streak to M1.

While seemingly just a slop of 5 engines squished together — Kashtira, Fiendsmith, Millennium, Azamina, Bystial — the deck still has a surprising number of synergies. I leaned heavier towards the Millennium package because it's actually the best starter in this deck, threatening full Fiendsmith with very low commitment. Additionally, they provide strong offensive pressure going 2nd, especially when paired with Doomed Dragon + the Kashtiras. I think this makes it better than versions with Cyberse Gadget, Steam the Cloak, or Musketeers, as it also frees up crucial ED slots.

Notes on play style & tech choices:

The average end-board this deck produces seems super weak, as it's usually S:P + Caesar or 3-material Apollousa off of one Millennium card, backed by hand-traps. But your other engines in-hand will dictate the ceiling: added disruptions by Kashtira + Azamina, or more gas to make Desirae / I:P on top. If I used Ash Blossom on turn 1 to stop Maxx C, I often made M7 to add Ash back, which was especially helpful against Tenpai (~60% of my matchups from M5-M1!!)

Talents proved super helpful in this lower-ceiling build, for both going 1st and 2nd. You can very often break half-boards with just your big beater monsters + TTT. Retaliating "C" plays multiple key roles here: it's the deck's main NS, an insane place for Wedju Temple, and forces sub-optimal plays vs. decks like SE or WF. Sanaphond was just extra insurance against Tenpai — only came up a few times but proved its worth to stop OTKs when it did.

Overall, I was happy with how this list performed. In future iterations, I'll probably swap the Sanaphond for either Lyna or Goddess, as both performed decently well in testing. Also, the Azamina package is probably the most cuttable — while I appreciated the extra layers + recursion it offers, Diabellstar + Deception are the most vulnerable & weakest starters in this deck if not paired with any Kash card. Might also trade out the Bystials for any number of Ogre / Nib / Droll depending on how the meta shakes up.