Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG - Deck Guide: Dracotail Branded

Dracotail centers around Spellcaster/Dragon monsters of various attributes, as well as fusion summons. Its name is a reference to "lunar nodes", the two points where the Moon's orbit crosses the Earth's orbital plane. In medieval times, the "ascending node" was known as the "head of the dragon", while the "descending node" was known as "the tail of the dragon".

The main deck Dracotail monsters all have the same effect: they allow you to play a spell or trap from your deck. Additionally, the Dracotail Dragons do something else when this effect resolves. As a result, this strategy is quite resilient to interaction.

As for Branded, it also centers around fusion summons, but it focuses on the Fallen of Albaz lore as well. In this list, it gives you more options and adds another layer of interaction. It is also a way to access the Dracotail engine.

Let's see how Dracotail Branded works!

Main Deck

Dracotail Faimena is the Dracotail handtrap and its main card. Firstly, it is a "Polymerization" for Spellcaster/Dragon fusion summons that you can activate in the opponent's turn, but it also works as starter depending on what you used as material to summon it.

This deck plays various starters. Dracotail Lukias is a searcher for Dracotail monsters and the main normal summon. As for Dracotail Mululu, its quick effect lets you fusion summon Dracotail monsters, but it also does something else when this quick effect, which all main deck Dracotail monsters have, resolves. It lets you negate the effects of a monster under your opponent's control.

Ketu Dracotail is the Dracotail ROTA, so it lets you get any Dracotail monster. Furthermore, if your opponent controls at least one monster, you may fusion summon a Spellcaster or Dragon. This means it is excellent when you're going second.

Rahu Dracotail is known as the Dracotail "Branded Fusion" because it lets you use materials from your deck. However, just like "Mululu", it only lets you summon Dracotail monsters and limits you to only fusion summoning monsters for the rest of the turn.

Branded Fusion is also a starter in this strategy. It connects to both the Branded engine and the Dracotail engine.

The Fallen & The Virtuous is exceptional, but it only recently became a part of this archetype. It works both as interaction and as a way to get to Branded Fusion.

Fallen of Albaz is the engine garnet. You'll usually play it as an interaction and to use an enemy monster as material for one of your fusions.

These are the Dracotail monsters that you should mainly use as fusion material: when the effect all main deck Dracotail monsters have resolves, Dracotail Pan lets you destroy a monster, and Dracotail Urgula lets you destroy a spell or trap on any part of the board.

Furthermore, if "Pan" is in the graveyard and one of your fusions is destroyed by an effect on an enemy card, it lets you do something else. You may play it at the bottom of your deck and summon a main deck Dracotail monster from your graveyard.

As for "Urgula", when it is in your graveyard, you can return it to the bottom of your deck from your graveyard and return a main deck Dracotail Spellcaster monster to your hand.

Dracotail Phryxul is in this list mainly so that you can target it with Branded Fusion. Furthermore, it lets you summon a Dracotail monster from your graveyard and return a monster under your control to your hand right afterward. This can be quite efficient in the grind game.

Dracotail traps are the main way to interact in this archetype. It's because of them that this list can beat Yummy, its main competitor in the meta.

Dracotail Flame lets you target a spell on the board and negate its effects until the end of the turn. Dracotail Horn lets you return an attack position monster on the board to its owner's hand. Finally, Dracotail Sting lets you banish a monster and/or spell or trap from the graveyard.

Furthermore, they all share an optional effect that lets you recycle a Dracotail card from the graveyard or banishment, return it to the deck, and draw a card when their other effects resolve.

The tech cards this list uses are meant to beat the main matchup in the format, Yummy. One card that stands out is Nibiru, the Primal Being, which you need to use to deal with Herald of the Arc Light, one of the main win conditions Yummy uses against Dracotail.

Extra Deck

Dracotail Arthalion is the main fusion in the deck. Through its bounce effect, you may both recycle resources (including handtraps) and interact with the opponent.

Dracotail Gulamel is the second most important fusion in this list. It has a nice interaction effect that destroys a card in play. However, you can only use it when you use another Dracotail card or effect.

These fusions have their own singular effects but also share an effect: when they're in the graveyard, if two or more monsters are sent to any graveyard at the same time, you can summon them back into play. However, if they leave the board afterward, they're banished.

Branded fusions do various things in this strategy. Albion the Branded Dragon and Lubellion the Searing Dragon let you summon the other fusions, while Albion the Sanctifire Dragon lets you access Fallen of Albaz in the opponent's turn. Afterward, you can set up Branded plays.

Here are two fusions you should send to the graveyard when you play your Branded cards: Rindbrumm the Striking Dragon and Titaniklad the Ash Dragon, which let you summon Fallen of Albaz. Rindbrumm lets you summon it from the graveyard, and Titaniklad lets you summon it from the deck.

The Dragon that Devours the Dogma is an excellent target for Fallen of Albaz, that is, you should summon it through Fallen's effect. This is particularly efficient against Yummy, as you can use two materials on the opponent's board to summon it.

Mirrorjade the Iceblade Dragon is the Branded boss monster. It has an excellent quick effect that lets you both put another resource in the graveyard and banish a monster in play, which is great in the current format.

Secreterion Dragon is extremely important in the Dracotail mirror match. In other matchups, it's a great way to recycle resources.

Mysterion the Dragon Crown is exceptional because it is quite strong against decks that only focus on one type of monster, like Yummy.

Filia Regis is essential because it is a win condition in the Mitsurugi matchup, which is usually quite difficult.

Khaos Starsource Dragon is also strong in the mirror match. Furthermore, it can be an out against Retaliating "C".

The idea behind Dracotail is to build a board with Dracotail Arthalion and Dracotail Gulamel in the monster zone and Dracotail Flame, Dracotail Horn, and Dracotail Sting in the backrow. In your hand, you should have Dracotail Faimena.

If you can access the Branded engine, you can put Mirrorjade the Iceblade Dragon or Albion the Sanctifire Dragon in play. You can also keep Fallen of Albaz in the graveyard so that you can summon it on the opponent's turn.

Standard Combo

I'll leave the standard combo down below. First, you should open with Branded Fusion and Dracotail Pan:

> Then, activate Branded Fusion to summon Albion the Sanctifire Dragon using Fallen of Albaz and Dracotail Phryxul straight from your deck as material.

> Next, activate Dracotail Phryxul's effect to play Ketu Dracotail from your deck.

> Activate Ketu Dracotail to get Dracotail Lukias from your deck and add it to your hand. Next, normal summon this card and use its effect to get Dracotail Faimena from your deck and add it to your hand.

> Activate Dracotail Faimena's effect to send it to the graveyard and fusion summon Dracotail Arthalion using Dracotail Lukias and Dracotail Pan as material.

> Set up the chain in the following way: Dracotail Arthalion as CL1 targeting Dracotail Faimena in your graveyard so that you can return it to your hand. Dracotail Lukias as CL2 so that you can play Rahu Dracotail. Finally, Dracotail Pan as CL3 so that you can play Dracotail Flame.

> After this chain resolves, activate Rahu Dracotail to summon Dracotail Gulamel using Dracotail Faimena in your hand and Dracotail Urgula in your deck as material.

> Next, set up the chain in the following way: Dracotail Urgula as CL1 so that you can play Dracotail Horn. Then, Dracotail Faimena as CL2 so that you can play Dracotail Sting.

> Now, activate Dracotail Urgula's effect from your graveyard so that you can return it to the bottom of your deck and return Dracotail Faimena from your graveyard to your hand.

> Next, end your turn.

Your board will end up this way:

Dracotail isn't that powerful, but if you play your combo in full, you'll get a very strong board. Considering that your interactions are also quite versatile, you'll be quite safe when you go first.

When you go second, this deck will also be quite strong, particularly thanks to Dracotail Faimena, which lets you interact with the opponent on turn 0. Furthermore, Ketu Dracotail, Dracotail Mululu, and Dracotail Pan (when you use them as fusion materials) are also quite interesting.

Your main matchups are Yummy variants and the mirror.

Against another Dracotail list, the details matter a lot. You're often stronger if you go second, considering your engine is strong enough to break boards and this archetype itself isn't that powerful.

Against Yummy variants, you'll have the advantage, as your interactions are very efficient against them. But there is a catch: the Mitsurugi variant can be an issue because this engine does a lot in each turn and is well-positioned against Dracotail.

Please note that decks that use the K9 engine might not be as popular as before, but they are very efficient against Dracotail. K9-17 "Ripper" is just very strong against your main monster interaction, Dracotail Faimena.

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