Yu-Gi-Oh!TCG: October 2025 Emergency Banlist

It has only been around a month since the last banlist update, but KONAMI, without any warning, once again updated their Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG Forbidden & Limited List. It's safe to say none of us were expecting this.

The new banlist is already affecting the game, as it went into effect on October 27th, 2025. It mostly addressed the sudden increase of strategies abusing "FTK" floodgates.

Forbidden

Archnemeses Protos

Archnemeses Protos was unbanned for a hot minute, but it is once again banned. This time, it was because it started seeing play in some Vanquish Soul and Ryzeal lists (Ryzeal could access it through Infernal Flame Banshee).

Once the meta started leaning towards board breakers, this strategy gained a lot of traction, as it punished opponents that removed handtraps from their decks with an FTK.

Artifact Mjollnir

Artifact Mjollnir became quite popular in the meta after K9 cards came along, as well as a real headache for the other players.

"Mjolnir Lock" was an FTK as powerful as "Scythe Lock" in its peak, only it wasn't so generic. This ban is well-deserved.

Barrier Statue of the Drought & Barrier Statue of the Inferno

Barrier Statue of the Drought and Barrier Statue of the Inferno are finally joining the also banned Barrier Statue of the Stormwinds. Though they weren't as popular as they could be, we could use them in decks like Odion/Apophis and Fire King.

The bad news is that the other Barrier Statue cards, Barrier Statue of the Torrent, Barrier Statue of the Heavens, and Barrier Statue of the Abyss, are still unbanned. Clearly, KONAMI should have preemptively banned them too.

Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo

Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo is known for seeing play in Stun lists. However, this time it started seeing play in Mitsurugi, one of the main decks in the format.

Usually, when a previously and historically anti-meta card starts seeing play in the best strategies in the game, it's a sign danger is on the horizon. We're all delighted KONAMI banned this one before it was too late.

Evilswarm Ouroboros

Evilswarm Ouroboros is the only extra deck card in this banlist. It earned this ban thanks to Ryzeal Onomat, which would abuse its effect to apply a hand loop combo on opponents.

Though it wasn't as dangerous as the floodgates in this list, it still played a pivotal part in an extremely unbalanced interaction. So, this ban is also quite welcome.

Dimensional Barrier

Dimensional Barrier has been a problematic card for many years, to the point many didn't believe it would ever be banned. That's because KONAMI ignored it multiple times in the past. It led many players to believe it was "untouchable".

Fortunately, it was destined for a ban. This decision should definitely improve the game, both right away and in the long term.

Review

Though this was an emergency banlist update, it was quite surprising, as it banned all the floodgates in the format. It was a very straightforward update, with just bans and nothing else. It should also impact the competitive scene immediately, as it will push out from the game several interactions that threatened the overall health of the game.

The new format will still feature the same foundation as the previous one, but, without floodgates, we'll have more space to play, and the game will be more fluid. Matches will flow better, and duelists will interact with each other a lot more.

Overall, this could be considered one of the best banlist updates ever released: straight to the point, precise, and only focused on removing truly problematic cards. It also didn't compromise the diversity of the format or treat anything unfairly.

What do you think? Tell us your thoughts in our comment section below.

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Thank you for reading, and see you next time!