Photo Credit: Ricarda Reicher

Today I am writing about the Dragon Ruler mirror match. The biggest question is how to approach the matchup because there are different views about it. The standard variant concentrates on utilizing Dragon’s Ravine and keeping it on the field.

CENTRAL STRATEGY

This strategy involves using Terraforming to have a higher chance of opening Ravine. In addition, the deck thinning allows for more chances to draw into Mystical Space Typhoon to keep Ravine on the field if the opponent decides to play his/her own copy. Moreover, the thinning removes the need for Card Trooper and requires only one slot for Debris Dragon fodder in Trigon Dragon. Why should you play Trooper if you can have Ravine right?

The deck also plays three copies of Raigeki Break or Phoenix Wing Wind Blast and the two strongest cards of the format: Return from a Different Dimension and Sixth Sense. If that’s not enough then you also have access to draw power with Sacred Swords of Seven Stars and Cards of Consonance.

In other words, Dragon Ruler is the new Tele-DAD. If you don’t believe me, then please go and check out the latest YCS Coverage from London and see how many Dragon Ruler decks made it to Day 2. The Top 4 consistently solely of Dragon Ruler, which shows the absolute dominance of the deck.

The question is now, how did Patrik Rieder win with his Dragon Ruler deck? It was a little bit different from the rest. Different means that he played 2-4 cards different to other builds. This is because the remaining 36-38 cards of the main Dragon Ruler deck are pretty much set in stone, just like Tele-DAD. To answer this question, I will try to explain what your game plan should be in the mirror match and how Patrik achieved it.

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