Sup, it's been awhile hasn't it. I apologise for the lack of articles, I was busy with my Pokemon Y ^^" Anyway, this article is going to feature one of the two archtypes in Oracle Think Tank, the Magus archtype.
The Magus archtype, exclusive to EB07: Mystical Magus, was first introduced in BT01. This archtype focuses more on the "Oracle" aspect of Oracle Think Tank, the "Think" being cards like Tsukuyomi and the "Tank" being cards like Koko and Battle Sister, Parfait.
I have been testplaying a Magus deck for quite some time, proxied, as I had some problems getting my hands on Pentagonal Magus (Genius Bushiroad, making the only boss of the Magus archtype a promo). It's worked quite well, downing Chaos Breaker decks and Tetra Drive decks on CFA.
Now, let's take a look at some of the main cards.
Pentagonal Magus (ペンタゴナル・メイガス)
Card Effect:
[AUTO](VC) Limit Break 4 (This ability is active if you have four or more damage):When this unit attacks a vanguard, declare the card name of an «Oracle Think Tank», and reveal the top card of your deck. If the revealed card is the card that you declared, this unit gets [Power]+5000/[Critical]+1 until end of that battle.
[ACT](VC):[Counter Blast (2)-cards with "Magus" in its card name] This unit gets [Power]+5000 until end of turn.
[CONT](VC/RC): Lord (If you have a unit without a same clan as this unit, this unit cannot attack)
As I have mentioned earlier, Pentagonal Magus is the only boss of the Magus archtype. Being a promo, it is difficult to obtain, thus, deterring people from building a Magus deck, opting for the more readily available Battle Sisters archtype.
Pentagonal's Limit Break skill is useful for pressuring your opponent to guard, and messes with their minds, especially if you know what your second trigger is. Also, her ACT skill, an S-Special Counterblast, gives her even more power. This would probably force opponents to throw down a negate, especially if you brokerode her over Hexagonal Magus.
Overall, this card is a good pressure unit, but I really would like more bosses for this archtype.
Hexagonal Magus (ヘキサゴナル・メイガス)
Card Effect:
[AUTO] Limit Break 4 (This ability is active if you have four or more damage):When a «Oracle Think Tank» rides this unit, look at three cards from the top of your deck, search for one card from among them, put it into your hand, put the rest on the top of your deck in any order, and choose your vanguard, and that unit gets [Power]+10000 until end of turn.
[CONT](VC):During your turn, if the number of cards in your hand is four or greater, this unit gets [Power]+2000.
[CONT](VC/RC): Lord (If you have a unit without a same clan as this unit, this unit cannot attack)
This card combos nicely with most Oracle Think Tank bosses, giving you a +1 and allowing you to know what triggers will appear, so that you can strategise accordingly.
However, I found out that if you keep breakriding multiple copies of her in a standard deck (4 Heal, 6 Draw and 6 Critical), you may end up decking out due to too many draws. Hence, I decided to run a balanced deck, with 4 Draw, 4 Heal, 4 Critical and 4 Stand triggers.
Another one of the good breakrides, this card is incredibly useful in any Oracle Think Tank deck... except maybe in Koko builds due to the extra soul.
Briolette Magus (ブリオレット・メイガス)
Card Effect:
[ACT](RC):[Soul Blast (1)] If you have an «Oracle Think Tank» vanguard, draw a card, and put this unit on the top of your deck.
When combined with Stellar Magus, you get a draw at the cost of a soulblast and a counterblast. Also, it is useful for setting up early game.
I find that she is not that useful late game, since you would rather drive check a trigger than a Briolette, however she is pretty useful early game, especially if you have a line of Crescent Maguses boosting. She tends to empty the soul rather quickly, when it could be used to activate Battle Sister, Lemonade's unflipping skill, allowing you to S-Special Counterblast again for Pentagonal Magus.
Stellar Magus (ステラ・メイガス)
Card Effect:
[AUTO](VC/RC):[Counter Blast (1)] When this unit attacks a vanguard, if you have an «Oracle Think Tank» vanguard, you may pay the cost. If you do, declare the card name of an «Oracle Think Tank», and reveal the top card of your deck. If the revealed card is the card that you declared, put it your hand, and if it is not, choose a card from your damage zone, and turn it face up.
This is one of the most useful cards in the Magus archtype. Stellar Magus lets you free up your Counterblasts, allowing you to S-Special counterblast, and you can purposely declare an Oracle Think Tank card that is not in your deck to unflip one card (with Magus in its name to S-Special again), and power up your lines with Pentagonal Magus' and Crescent Magus' power up skills (in the former's case, she gains a critical too).
I normally use her to set up a good column, especially with Crescent Magus as a booster. She can form 18k lines or 21k lines, depending on the front row unit.
She is a must-have in a Magus deck.
Crescent Magus (クレセント・メイガス)
Card Effect:
[AUTO](RC):When this unit boosts a «Oracle Think Tank», if you have an «Oracle Think Tank» vanguard, declare the card name of an «Oracle Think Tank», and reveal the top card of your deck. If the revealed card is the card that you declared, the boosted unit gets [Power]+3000 until end of that battle.
She is handy when it comes to checking the top card of your deck, setting off a series of skills in the process, like Pentagonal's skill and more Crescent Magus' skills. A staple in a Magus deck.
In conclusion, the Magus archtype is very strong and interesting, it can actually hold out against quite a number of meta decks, including Link Joker and Raging Form Dragon.
I guess this ends my review. Please leave your opinions/suggestions in the comments section, I'm interested to hear your take :)
~Eclipse
