Last updated: 09.02.2022
Halloween seems to come early this year, since Konami revealed support for one of the fan-favorite archetypes in the game: “Ghostrick”. The cutesy horror-trope group, that started appearing in 2013’s Shadow Specters, rose to fame not due to its playstyle but its art design and humor. They were never competitively viable, but that does not matter since they manage to combine cool cards with an unorthodox playstyle of “peek-a-booing” out of face-down defense position, doing some mischief, and then hiding again in the safety of being face-down on the field. They are certainly different than many other archetypes in the game, but that is just all the more reason to take a look at them. By the way, shoutouts to Discord user “~Demented~King~”, who helped providing information for this article.
Disclaimer: None of the information given by me is set in stone. Having an open mind in deck building and including creative ideas is always helpful, if only to further understand the playstyle and strategy of the deck you are about to build. There are probably choices that I list which can be labled as debatable, but no platform I know of gives a broad overview over both the archetypes and all the card choices, so I aimed to do just that. I will try to keep this page (as well as the other ones, once they are made) up-to-date, so if any reader feels like I skipped some amazing tech choice or a crucial card, just drop me a note and I will add the missing information if necessary. Furthermore, I use a number of sources for ideas and information, so a list with links that I deem useful is attached to the end of the page and credit is given whenever I can point to a source to do so.
“Ghostrick” is a Dark Attribute archetype with four primary monster types, grouping the archetype as follows:
- The Level 1/Rank 1 monsters, which are all Fiend monsters.
- The Level 2/Rank 2 monsters, which are all Spellcaster monsters.
- The Level 3/Rank 3 monsters, which are all Zombie monsters.
- The Level 4/Rank 4 monsters, which are all Fairy monsters.
The “Ghostrick” strategy works around flipping monsters face-up and face-down, gaining bonuses when flipping your monsters face-up while also trying to disallow the opponent from attacking by putting certain monsters or even the entire field in face-down defense position. The deck then tries to slowly lower the opposing life points or use alternate methods of winning the game, but they often struggle to do so in modern Yugioh since they lack speed and have a glaring weakness against Link monsters. Still, let us take a look at these cute and spooky horror monsters:
Archetype:
Name: “Ghostrick Festival“
Level/Rank: Link-1
ATK/DEF: 0
Attribute/Type: Dark Spellcaster
1 non-Link "Ghostrick" monster You can also use a face-down "Ghostrick" monster you control as material to Link Summon this card. While a "Ghostrick" card is in a Field Zone, your "Ghostrick" monsters can attack directly. When an opponent's monster declares an attack: You can Tribute this card; Special Summon 1 "Ghostrick" monster from your Deck in face-down Defense Position. You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Festival" once per turn.
Before we talk about any of the Main Deck monsters the “Ghostricks” have to offer, we definitely need to take a look at one of their newest members and their only Link monster: “Ghostrick Festival”. You see, “Ghostricks” suffered from being unusable as Link material (due to being face-down for most of the time) and having rather restrictive in the win condition department for the longest time. Now, “Ghostrick Festival” does not solve all their issues, but the card is certainly a step in the right direction. To summon “Ghostrick Festival”, you need to use one “non”-Link “Ghostrick monster as material, however, “Ghostrick Festival” has an effect that allows it to use face-down “Ghostrick” monsters as material. It also allows all your “Ghostrick” monsters to attack directly while a “Ghostrick” Field Spell is in a Field Zone. Lastly, when an opposing monster declares an attack, you can tribute this card to Special Summon one “Ghostrick” monster from your deck in face-down defense position; but you can only use this effect of “Ghostrick Festival” once per turn. “Ghostrick Festival” is a solid package: Being able to use face-down defense position monsters is exactly what was needed to make this card playable in the deck, since you could now even summon it right after a Normal Summon due to the “Ghostrick” restriction of only being able to enter the field in a Set position if there is no other “Ghostrick” monster around. Allowing your monsters to attack directly certainly helps, especially since you would need a “Ghostrick” Field Spell anyway to make this effect go live, using the good parts of cards like “Ghostrick Museum” while gaining a bit more than the opponent. Also, the last effect can be used to save yourself from taking massive damage due to the 0 ATK of “Ghostrick Festival”, but there is nothing keeping you from triggering the effect during any opposing attack and simply fetch yourself a searcher like “Ghostrick Fairy” or “Ghostrick Jiangshi“.
Recommended copies: 2-3
“Ghostrick Festival” is one of those all-round playenablers like “Traptrix Sera“: Cheap, easy to access, very helpful for the board building and other plays. I would suggest making space for two to three copies of “Festival” in the Extra Deck.
Name: “Ghostrick Jackfrost“
Level/Rank: 1
ATK/DEF: 800/100
Attribute/Type: Dark Fiend
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When an opponent's monster declares a direct attack: You can change that opponent's monster to face-down Defense Position, and if you do, Special Summon this card from your hand in face-down Defense Position.
Back on track with the normal order of how cards are looked at in my “Archetype Analysis” articles, we take a look at “Ghostrick Jackfrost”. “Jackfrost” introduces us to a few common effects pretty much all the Main Deck “Ghostricks” are sporting: Effect number one is that “Jackfrost” cannot be Normal Summoned unless you control a “Ghostrick” monster, meaning that you can either Special Summon “Jackfrost” to bypass this effect or Set it face-down if you have no face-up “Ghostrick” monster available. Effect number two is that “Jackfrost” can be flipped face-down once per turn via its effect, which works well with the overall strategy of the archetype. Like I said, both of those effects can be found on every Main Deck “Ghostrick”. The unique part of “Ghostrick Jackfrost’s” effect can be triggered if an opposing monster declares a direct attack: You can flip the attacking monster face-down and Special Summon “Ghostrick Jackfrost” from your hand in face-down defense position. The direct attacking part seems weirdly specific at first, but the “Ghostrick” archetype does have thematic Field Spells that allow both players to attack directly while also having various other effects, so you should be able to trigger this effect quite often. “Jackfrost” find itself in a rather weird spot, since it does not stop Link monsters from attacking due to those not being bothered by being flipped face-down and a solution for that exists in the “Ghostrick” archetype in form of “Ghostrick Lantern“, making the addition of “Ghostrick Jackfrost” a personal decision that comes down to how much you like the card.
Recommended copies: 0-3
“Ghostrick Jackfrost” works fine in the deck, but has to compete with the next card we will look at. If you need a lot of defense via handtraps, feel free to run the card by preference. However, if you do not need that many of those effects, simply skip “Jackfrost” and go for the “Ghostrick Lantern“.
Name: “Ghostrick Lantern“
Level/Rank: 1
ATK/DEF: 800/0
Attribute/Type: Dark Fiend
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When an opponent's monster declares a direct attack, or when a "Ghostrick" monster you control is targeted for an attack: You can negate the attack, and if you do, Special Summon this card from your hand in face-down Defense Position.
A very similar card to “Ghostrick Jackfrost” comes in form of “Ghostrick Lantern”. “Lantern” has the same Level, Type and Attribute (obviously), and even sports the same ATK stat, as well as having the archetypal Normal Summon restriction and the effect of being able to flip itself face-down once per turn. It even summons itself from the hand in face-down defense position when an opposing monster declares a direct attack. The only real difference is that “Lantern” can also be Special Summoned from the hand when a “Ghostrick” monster you control is attacked, not only during direct attacks like “Ghostrick Jackfrost“, but it negates the attack instead of flipping the opposing monster face-down. Now, this last part was technically weaker than the effect of “Jackfrost” for a long time since flipping the monster face-down automatically stops the attack but potentially leaves the monster defending itself with the worse DEF stat while also forcing interaction with certain floodgates in the “Ghostrick” archetype. But then Link monsters happened: Flipping a Link monster face-down is impossible, since they cannot be put into defense position and there is no face-down attack position (anymore; we will always remember you “Darkness Approaches“), so “Jackfrost” cannot save you from being attacked by those blue bastards while “Lantern” can. At the moment, this makes “Ghostrick Lantern” a solid choice to defend yourself with while its snowy friend is a more situational pick.
Recommended copies: 0-3
“Ghostrick Lantern” stops attacks from happening while also providing more monsters on the field. The card is absolutely fine and should find itself in any “Ghostrick” deck at up to three copies, meaning add copies at your leisure. However, if I had to make a pick between “Jackfrost” and “Lantern”, I would probably prioritize “Lantern”.
Name: “Ghostrick Mary“
Level/Rank: 1
ATK/DEF: 100/1600
Attribute/Type: Dark Fiend
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When you take damage: You can discard this card; Special Summon 1 "Ghostrick" monster from your Deck in face-down Defense Position. You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Mary" once per turn.
“Ghostrick Mary” is the next candidate to talk about. She has almost no ATK while being somewhat better in the DEF department, but neither stats really matter once you read her effect. Aside from being Normal Summon restricted like the rest of her brethren and being able to flip herself face-down, she can be discarded from your hand when you take damage to Special Summon one “Ghostrick” monster from your deck to the field in face-down defense position. This is actually a very good effect: You might be put off by the idea of taking damage in order to make this work, but one of the Field Spells that allows players to directly attack also halves the damage either player takes (aka “Ghostrick Mansion“), so damage in small increments happens quite regularly, which gives room for “Mary” to get her effect off. There are also various useful targets in the archetype: Whether you need another monster for an Xyz Summon or want to use searchers like “Ghostrick Jiangshi“, “Mary” can provide quite a few plays with her effect.
Recommended copies: 3
“Ghostrick Mary” will rarely enter the field, but her search effect is top-notch, helping both with building a solid board as well as fetching defense options in a pinch. I would recommend playing three copies.
Name: “Ghostrick Specter“
Level/Rank: 1
ATK/DEF: 600/0
Attribute/Type: Dark Fiend
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When a "Ghostrick" monster is destroyed by an opponent's card effect, or by battle with their attacking monster, and sent to your Graveyard: You can Special Summon this card from your hand in face-down Defense Position, and if you do, draw 1 card.
This goofy looking fellow is “Ghostrick Specter”. “Specter” has the same Normal Summoning and flip face-down effect all the Main Deck “Ghostricks” have, but it also takes part in the Special Summon schenanigans “Jackfrost” and “Lantern” were involved with. However, it takes a slightly different approach: When a “Ghostrick” monster is destroyed by card effect or by a battle with an attacking monster (so you cannot ram your own “Ghostricks” into the opposing monsters to trigger this effect) you can Special Summon “Specter” from your hand to the field in face-down defense position, and if you do that, you also draw one card. “Specter” is more of a monster insurance really: You can still use it to block opposing attacks or get some leverage out of losing monster(s) you control to removal effects, but there is the chance that you hinder “Specter” in actually working properly via your Field Spells and Floodgates, making it dead in the hand. The effect is not that bad, but you have to keep in mind that it is rather situational.
Recommended copies: 0-3
“Ghostrick Specter” is yet another Special Summonable monster with added card draw, but a questionable trigger effect. This card’s usefulness really depends on the deck, which makes this card one to run by preference.
Name: “Ghostrick Doll“
Level/Rank: 2
ATK/DEF: 300/1200
Attribute/Type: Dark Spellcaster
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When this card is flipped face-up: During the End Phase, change as many face-up monsters on the field as possible to face-down Defense Position, then you can Special Summon 1 "Ghostrick" monster from your Deck in face-down Defense Position, whose Level is less than or equal to the number of monsters flipped face-down by this effect.
Moving on, we have the Level 2 Spellcaster monsters which start with “Ghostrick Doll”. “Doll” cannot be Normal Summoned unless you control a “Ghostrick” monster, also she can flip herself face-down once per turn. In addition to that, when “Ghostrick Doll” is flipped face-up, you trigger an effect that activates during the End Phase which allows you to change as many face-up monsters on the field to face-down defense position and then Special Summons one “Ghostrick” monster from your deck in face-down defense position with a Level that is less or equal to the number of monsters you flipped face-down using this effect. So basically, if you managed to flip four or more monsters face-down with this effect, you can summon any “Ghostrick” monster from your deck; however, there are various good targets that you can already get with two. This is another situational effect, since it does nothing against Link monsters, but you can flip your monsters face-up beforehand to increase the amount of monsters the effect can work with. Also, if you manage to flip “Ghostrick Doll” face-up during the opposing turn, the opponent will have a face-down board during your turn, which gives you various options to work with from running through due to your Field Spells or locking them into position via “Swords of Concealing Light” or “Ghostrick Night“.
Recommended copies: 0-3
“Ghostrick Doll” has an interesting, if inconsistent effect. She can be completely irrelevant when playing against Link-heavy decks, although you might be able to trigger her effect during the opposing turn to flip the potential Link materials face-down. “Doll” is yet another card that I would deem a preference choice.
Name: “Ghostrick Fairy“
Level/Rank: 2
ATK/DEF: 900/1000
Attribute/Type: Dark Spellcaster
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When this card is flipped face-up: You can target 1 "Ghostrick" card in your GY; Set that card (but banish it when it leaves the field), then, you can change face-up monsters your opponent controls to face-down Defense Position, up to the number of Set cards you control.
One of the newer members of the “Ghostrick” archetype is “Ghostrick Fairy”. “Fairy” comes with the usual set of effects, meaning that she cannot be Normal Summoned unless another face-up “Ghostrick” monster is available and, once per turn, she can change her battle position to face-down defense position. Her unique effect is that, when “Fairy” is flipped face-up, you can target one “Ghostrick” card in your graveyard and Set that card to the field (however, that card will be banished when it leaves the field again), and then change face-up monsters your opponent control to face-down defense position up to the number of Set cards you control. Keep in mind, neither the graveyard fetch effect nor the flipping effect ask for face-down monster card specifically, giving you the ability of recovering “Ghostrick” Spell and Trap cards, while also setting up the flipping effect by putting cards into your backrow beforehand. “Fairy” is pretty helpful due to giving you back your copies of “Ghostrick Scare” to flip cards face-down again, your destroyed copies of “Ghostrick Night” to annoy the opponent with, or even cards like “Ghostrick Shot” as further setup; all while providing another mass-flip-effect like that of “Ghostrick Doll“.
Recommended copies: 1-3
“Ghostrick Fairy” feels like a card that is required since “Ghostricks” will inevitably go into the grind game and can use the recovery well. However, whether you run one copy to search for her when needed or go for up to three since you deem her important enough to do so is up to you.
Name: “Ghostrick Nekomusume“
Level/Rank: 2
ATK/DEF: 400/900
Attribute/Type: Dark Spellcaster
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When a Level 4 or higher monster(s) is Normal or Special Summoned: Change that monster(s) to face-down Defense Position. There must be another "Ghostrick" monster on the field to activate and to resolve this effect.
Moving on, we have “Ghostrick Nekomusume”, another Level 2 Spellcaster monster. Her effect, apart from the usual “Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a “Ghostrick” monster” and “Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down defense position.” is as follows: When one or more Level 4 or higher monsters are Normal or Special Summoned, change those monsters to face-down defense position. However, there has to be another “Ghostrick” monster on the field to both activate and resolve this effect. “Nekomusume” is a tricky case, since she is a solid floodgate against a number of decks. Fusion decks cannot function correctly if their Fusion materials are flipped face-down right upon being summoned, and there are quite a lot of decks with Level 4 or higher monster that could be stopped by this effect. Also, both Synchro and Ritual decks, as well as archetypes like “Blue-Eyes” or “Dark Magician” that summon out bigger monsters are not happy about it. On the flipside, there are decks to which “Nekomusume” is completely irrelevant: Xyz Summons and Link Summons do not mind the card at all, while low-level monsters just fly under the radar. Also, “Nekomusume” needs another “Ghostrick” face-up to even work, which means that she has to stay face-up with her statline of 400/900 while also forcing one of the other monsters on the field to do the same. Fortunately, it was never easier providing another face-up “Ghostrick” monster, since “Ghostrick Festival” is a thing, but the hassle of providing all that to be blown out of the water by one removal seems questionable at best.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Nekomusume” can be a solid counter against certain decks and probably works well as a sideboard-card. However, I would advise against playing her in the Main Deck since she is just not consistent enough to make the cut.
Name: “Ghostrick Witch“
Level/Rank: 2
ATK/DEF: 1200/200
Attribute/Type: Dark Spellcaster
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. Once per turn: You can target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; change it to face-down Defense Position.
Next up is “Ghostrick Witch”. Aside from the usual Normal Summon restriction and the ability to flip herself face-down once per turn, she can simply, once per turn, target one of the opposing face-up monsters on the field and change it into face-down defense position. There is really not that much to say about “Witch”: True, she can simply “Book of Moon” one of the opposing monsters and then flip herself down afterwards. However, she does not have a Quick Effect, which means she would only work during your turn, and there are better options available in the archetype. Plus, she is yet another monster that does not offer a solution against the Link problem.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Witch” was rarely played when the archetype first came out and there was no major change to raise “Witch” into the higher echelons of playability. I would suggest skipping her entirely.
Name: “Ghostrick Yuki-Onna“
Level/Rank: 2
ATK/DEF: 1000/800
Attribute/Type: Dark Spellcaster
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: You can change the monster that destroyed it to face-down Defense Position, and if you do, it cannot change its battle position.
After the letdown in form of “Ghostrick Witch”, we continue with subpar effects in form of “Ghostrick Yuki-Onna”. She has the same two effects every Main Deck “Ghostrick” monster has, meaning a Normal Summon restriction and an effect to change herself into face-down defense position, but her unique effect reads as follows: When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the graveyard, you can change the position of the monster that destroyed “Ghostrick Yuki-Onna” into face-down defense position, and if you do that that monster cannot change its battle position anymore. The “cannot change its battle position” line of effect would be a solid thing to work with in “Ghostrick”, but certainly not like this. “Yuki-Onna” needs to be destroyed by battle, which is already pretty limiting and situational, she then needs to hit the graveyard, which makes the effect potentially worthless against certain decks that tend to banish monsters (“Macro Cosmos” comes to mind), and if all those stars happen to be aligned, you cannot actually activate this effect if the opponent was smart enough to run “Yuki-Onna” over with a Link monster. Sadly, she is just a pretty bad card.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Yuki-Onna” is ladened with an outdated and fairly weak effect and should therefore be skipped entirely.
Name: “Ghostrick Ghoul“
Level/Rank: 3
ATK/DEF: 1100/1200
Attribute/Type: Dark Zombie
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. Once per turn, during your Main Phase 1: You can target 1 "Ghostrick" monster you control; its ATK becomes equal to the combined original ATK of all "Ghostrick" monsters currently on the field, until the end of your opponent's next turn, but if it does, only that monster can attack this turn.
The first Level 3 Zombie monster we are going to talk about is “Ghostrick Ghoul”. “Ghoul” obviously continues the trend of not being Normal Summonable unless you control a face-up “Ghostrick” monster, and is as able to flip itself face-down as the rest of the troupe. Its other effect is actually pretty unique though, since it supports a beatdown option in this control-oriented archetype: Once per turn, during your Main Phase 1, you can target one “Ghostrick” monster you control, make its ATK become the ATK total (using the original ATK) of all “Ghostrick” monsters on the field until the end of the opponent’s next turn but only that monster can attack for the turn you activated this effect. If you have seen how big the ATK stats of “Ghostrick” monsters normally get, you can imagine that there is the need for quite a few monsters on the field to make the entire thing worth it. Furthermore, if you flip the boosted monster face-down for whatever reason, it will lose any of the bonuses you have given to it. “Ghostricks” can attack directly with various options, however, I am not sure if producing one beatstick with 3000-ish ATK is the way to go if the card in question cannot provide anything else for the strategy.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Ghoul” is a gimmick. You can certainly build a “Ghostrick”-beatdown deck and have fun with it, but since it cannot do anything besides attacking I would rather skip him and work on more functional win options.
Name: “Ghostrick Jiangshi“
Level/Rank: 3
ATK/DEF: 400/1800
Attribute/Type: Dark Zombie
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When this card is flipped face-up: You can add from your Deck to your hand, 1 "Ghostrick" monster whose Level is less than or equal to the number of "Ghostrick" monsters you control. You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Jiangshi" once per turn.
More Zombie, but with an eastern touch, comes with “Ghostrick Jiangshi”. This Level 3 “Ghostrick” monster cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a “Ghostrick” monster already, and can, once per turn, change its battle position to face-down defense position; so business as usual. However, the unique effect of “Ghostrick Jiangshi” states that when it is flipped face-up, you can add one “Ghostrick” monster from your deck to your hand whose level is equal or lower than the number of “Ghostrick” monsters you control; but this effect of “Ghostrick Jiangshi” can only be used once per turn. You might be thinking that we already have ways to Special Summon monsters from the deck like “Ghostrick Mary” or “Ghostrick Doll“, so “Jiangshi” seems weaker, right? Well, not quite: The fact that “Jiangshi” can only add to the hand is actually more beneficial to its role, since it can always search for cards like “Ghostrick Lantern” or “Ghostrick Jackfrost” when flipped face-up, since it revealed number of “Ghostrick” monsters would be at least one due to having a face-up “Jiangshi”. It triggers when attacked, when using “Ghostrick Scare“, you can simply gain plus one card by flipping it face-up during your turn and then just use its effect to turn it face-down again. Despite it having seriously stiff arms, it does solid work searching your deck for helpful monsters and keeping the strategy alive.
Recommended copies: 2-3
“Ghostrick Jiangshi” is one of the main searchers of the “Ghostrick” archetype and should find itself at two to three copies, no matter what the deck actually aims for.
Name: “Ghostrick Mummy“
Level/Rank: 3
ATK/DEF: 1500/0
Attribute/Type: Dark Zombie
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. While this card is face-up on the field, you can Normal Summon 1 "Ghostrick" monster in addition to your Normal Summon/Set. (You can only gain this effect once per turn.) You cannot Special Summon any monsters, except DARK monsters.
Staying with the undead of various cultures, we have “Ghostrick Mummy” next. “Mummy” also cannot be Normal Summoned without a “Ghostrick” monster being present and can also flip itself face-down like the rest of the archetype. However, it does provide a rather decent 1500 ATK points and while being face-up on the field allows the player to Normal Summon one “Ghostrick” monster in addition to the Normal Summon you are allowed per turn, but you can only gain that effect once. Lastly, you cannot Special Summon any monsters, except Dark monsters. The Special Summon restriction at the end is also never going to matter, since the monsters you are using are all Dark Attribute monsters anyway. However, there is still an issue with “Mummy, mainly the fact that the additional Normal Summon is hardly going to matter. With “Ghostrick Shot” being a way to work around to awkward summon restriction all the “Ghostricks” come with and a Link monster that can easily get something on the field in the moment of danger, there is really not that much reason to set more monsters on the field. Also, and probably more imporantly, “Mummy” needs to be face-up to even work, which can be tricky during your first turn and matters little going forward since you are going to get into a higher count of monsters eventually if the opponent is not going to blast them constantly. “Mummy” provides a commodity that various other decks would like to have, but “Ghostricks” do not really need anymore.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Mummy” might provide another summon for cards like “Ghostrick Siren“, but that is not really what the archetype requires. As such, I would play the card at zero copies.
Name: “Ghostrick Skeleton“
Level/Rank: 3
ATK/DEF: 1200/1100
Attribute/Type: Dark Zombie
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When this card is flipped face-up: Banish cards from the top of your opponent's Deck face-down, up to the number of "Ghostrick" monsters you control. You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Skeleton" once per turn.
Another Level 3 monster, and actually another win option, comes with “Ghostrick Skeleton”. “Skeleton” shares the same Normal Summon restrictions and flipping face-down effect as the other Main Deck monsters in the archetype, but decided to do something completely different as its own effect: When “Skeleton” is flipped face-up, you banish cards from the top of the opponent’s deck face-down up to the number of “Ghostrick” monsters you control; also, you can only use this effect of “Ghostrick Skeleton” once per turn. So, “Skeleton” gives “Ghostricks” the option of winning via mill instead of going for the opposing life points. Simply flip every monster on your side face-up before flipping “Skeleton”, and watch the opposing deck dwindle. Depending on your build, this is not the worst options to take: “Pot of Desires” and other draw options are highly popular, and a lot of decks either setup their graveyards or search cards, which all take from the resource you are going to attack in a “Ghostrick” Mill-build. Furthermore, there are not only various cards that allow you to turtle for the strategy, but also one very useful Field Spell in form of “Ghostrick Parade” that gives you the maximum amount of searches and therefore more spamming.
Recommended copies: 0 (3 in a “Ghostrick Mill” build)
Whether to play “Ghostrick Skeleton” really depends on the strategy you want to go for: It adds nothing to a build that wants to win via direct attacks, but is the main win condition if you want to mill, so fit the card accordingly.
Name: “Ghostrick Stein“
Level/Rank: 3
ATK/DEF: 1600/0
Attribute/Type: Dark Zombie
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can add 1 "Ghostrick" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Stein" once per turn.
Yet another horror trope the “Ghostricks” wanted to feature comes with “Ghostrick Stein”. This Level 3 monster with 1600 ATK, a sizeable amount for the “Ghostrick” archetype, has the same two effect as every “Ghostrick” Main Deck monster, meaning a Normal Summon restriction and a flip-down-effect. However, “Stein” also comes with its own unique effect: When “Stein” inflicts battle damage to the opponent, you can add one “Ghostrick” Spell/Trap from your deck to the hand; but you can only use this effect of “Ghostrick Stein” once per turn. Now, searching backrow is certainly nice, but the need to inflict battle damage in order to do so has some problems attached. First off, you need to run through or fight a monster with less ATK than 1600, which is possible with the direct attacking cards of the “Ghostrick” archetype, but certainly more work than necessary. Furthermore, searching this late into the turn means that every move that had to with board-building already happened, making this search somewhat less relevant. And finally, “Stein” does not add anything else to the archetype, meaning that the card works in a similar way to “Ghostrick Ghoul“, making it more of a gimmick card than a real contender for the deck.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Stein” does provide searches, but his effect to do so is too restrictive to really matter. I would therefore run zero copies of the card.
Name: “Ghostrick Warwolf“
Level/Rank: 3
ATK/DEF: 1400/1500
Attribute/Type: Dark Zombie
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When this card is flipped face-up: Inflict 100 damage to your opponent for each Set card on the field. You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Warwolf" once per turn.
Yet another alternate winning option comes in form of “Ghostrick Warwolf”. Obviously, it has the same Normal Summoning restriction and flipping face-down effects as the rest of the Main Deck monsters in the archetype. But “Warwolf” also comes with the following effect: When “Warwolf” is flipped face-up, inflict 100 damage to your opponent for every Set card on the field; also, you can only use this effect of “Ghostrick Warwolf” once per turn. “Warwolf” is therefore the burn option of the deck, but unfortunately leaves a lot to be desired. 100 damage is tiny, and even if there is a sizeable amount of Set cards on the board the damage will not reach crazy amounts. Even with every flip of “Warwolf” inflicting 1000 damage, you would still need a sizeable amount of turns, while the cards always has to compete with “Ghostrick Skeleton“, which not only works against a resources that will deplete itself rather quickly but also does not need to rely on the opposing board. Splashing other burn cards into the mix like “Secret Barrel” or “Des Koala” is certainly possible, but this is fast reaching gimmick territories again.
Recommended copies: 0
More gimmicks, less consistency. “Ghostrick Warwolf” might give the deck another way to inflict damage alongside direct attacks, but is not really worth the deck space due to being that slow. Run zero.
Name: “Ghostrick Yeti“
Level/Rank: 3
ATK/DEF: 300/2000
Attribute/Type: Dark Zombie
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. When this card is flipped face-up: You can target 1 "Ghostrick" monster on the field; this turn, it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects.
The last Level 3 monster to talk about is “Ghostrick Yeti”. You already know the drill, only Normal Summonable with another “Ghostrick” on the field and able to change itself to face-down defense position once per turn. The unique effect is as always the potentially more interesting part: When “Ghostrick Yeti” is flipped face-up, you can target one “Ghostrick” monster on the field, which then cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects for the rest of the turn you activated this effect. That is … pretty mediocre, especially since “Yeti” could potentially target itself but is a terrible attacker with its 300 ATK points. Flipping your “Ghostrick” monsters during the opposing turn is technically possible, but first off not worth the effort for “Yeti’s” effect and secondly not easy enough to make some consistent loop out of. In fact, none of the “Ghostrick” cards is important enough to stay on the field indefinitely if you have enough options ready, giving “Yeti” no niche to fill.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Yeti” is a pretty bad card and should be run at zero copies.
Name: “Ghostrick Siren“
Level/Rank: 4
ATK/DEF: 800/1500
Attribute/Type: Dark Fairy
Cannot be Normal Summoned, unless you control a "Ghostrick" monster. Once per turn, during your Main Phase: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position. If this card is Normal Summoned or flipped face-up: Send the top 2 cards of your Deck to the GY, then if either card was a "Ghostrick" card, you can apply 1 of these effects. - Add 1 "Ghostrick" Spell/Trap from your Deck to your hand. - Change 1 Effect Monster your opponent controls to face-down Defense Position.
The last Main Deck monster in the “Ghostrick” archetype is somewhat odd, since it is the only Level 4 monster that the “Ghostricks” currently have. Nevertheless, here is “Ghostrick Siren”. Unsurprisingly, “Siren” cannot be Normal Summoned unless you control a “Ghostrick” monster and comes with an effect that allows her to flip face-down once per turn. Furthermore, when “Siren” is Normal Summoned or flipped face-up, send the top two cards of your deck to the graveyard, then if there was a “Ghostrick” card among the cards you have sent, you can activate one of the following effect: Either search your deck for a “Ghostrick” Spell/Trap card and add it to your hand, or change the battle position of one effect monster the opponent controls to face-down defense position. So, there is quite a lot going on here: The self-mill effect can work as graveyard setup for “Ghostrick Shot“, “Ghostrick Renovation“, or to fetch cards via “Ghostrick Fairy“, while the search and the disruption effect are pretty much self-explanatory. The problem is that she is not really necessary at the moment: The only Rank 4 monster the “Ghostricks” have, “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief“, can summon herself by simply putting herself on top of another “Ghostrick” Xyz monster, so “Siren” will probably only see use as Link material. She still has a failure chance in her effect, since you might be milling two non-“Ghostrick” cards and therefore cannot gain anything else out of the activation. And even then, you still have “Ghostrick” backrow searching in “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief“, while the second effect was already declared underpowered when I talked about “Ghostrick Witch“, since “Book of Moon” does the same, but better.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Siren” might be cute, but unless there is desperate need for a Level 4 monster with her effect set in the near future, I would deem her a zero-copy-card.
Name: “Ghostrick Dullahan“
Level/Rank: 1
ATK/DEF: 1000/0
Attribute/Type: Dark Fiend
2 Level 1 monsters This card gains 200 ATK for each "Ghostrick" card you control. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card, then target 1 face-up monster on the field; halve its ATK, until the end of this turn. If this card is sent to the Graveyard: You can target 1 other "Ghostrick" card in your Graveyard; add that target to your hand.
This brings us to the Xyz department of the “Ghostrick” archetype, starting with “Ghostrick Dullahan”. “Dullahan” needs two generic Level 1 monster as material to be summoned and comes with the following effects: First of all, “Dullahan” gain 200 ATK for each “Ghostrick” card you control, which means that it might start with 1000 ATK, but can get to higher statlines rather quickly. Furthermore, once per turn, during either player’s turn, you can detach one Xyz material from “Dullahan”, then target one face-up monster on the field and halve the ATK of that monster until the end of the turn. Lastly, if “Dullahan” is sent to the graveyard, you can target one other “Ghostrick” card in your graveyard and add it to your hand. “Dullahan” is quite useful actually, since you not only have an option to handle high ATK values on the opposing field with this card, but also can save some of your monsters or life points by lowering the value significantly. It also happens to be solid springboard for “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief” and can be used with various other cards like the second effect of “Ghostrick Socuteboss” or being overlayed by cards like “Downerd Magician“. “Dullahan” is a proper trooper, despite its low Rank, and can provide further plays by using the Level 1 monster that are not that important on the field in the first place.
Recommended copies: 1-2
“Ghostrick Dullahan” is a good card, both for its own effects and the interaction in its archetype. I would suggest running one to two copies of it, since it does manage to pull its weight.
Name: “Ghostrick Socuteboss“
Level/Rank: 2
ATK/DEF: 1400/1200
Attribute/Type: Dark Spellcaster
2 Level 2 monsters While you control another "Ghostrick" monster, your opponent cannot target this card for attacks. Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card, then target 1 face-up monster on the field, with ATK less than or equal to the combined ATK of all "Ghostrick" monsters on the field; destroy it, and if you do, that Monster Card Zone cannot be used as long as you control a "Ghostrick" monster.
Next up is “Ghostrick Socuteboss”, the Rank 2 option in the deck. “Socuteboss” can be summoned with two generic Level 2 monsters, and while you control another “Ghostrick” monster, your opponent cannot target “Socuteboss” as an attack target. Furthermore, once per turn, you can detach one Xyz material from “Socuteboss”, then target one face-up monster on the field with less or equal ATK to the combined ATK stat of all “Ghostrick” monsters on the field, destroy that target, and if you do that Monster Card Zone the destroyed monster was in cannot be used as long as you control a “Ghostrick” monster. “Socuteboss” is sadly not as useful as “Ghostrick Dullahan“: The protection effect is nice, but flawed since you normally flip your monsters face-down again, which turns her protection off. Furthermore, the destruction effect might seem a bit “Ojama”-like, and while it can be useful, it suffers from the same “no face-up “Ghostrick” monster available” fact that the protection effect is ladened with. She, however, still works as a “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief” starter.
Recommended copies: 0-1
“Ghostrick Socuteboss” is sadly not as powerful as the other “Ghostrick” Xyz options. If you want to run her for the destruction effect, I would suggest going with one, but I feel like you can also simply skip her if the Extra Deck space is tight.
Name: “Ghostrick Alucard“
Level/Rank: 3
ATK/DEF: 1800/1600
Attribute/Type: Dark Zombie
2 Level 3 monsters Monsters your opponent controls cannot target face-up "Ghostrick" monsters, or any face-down Defense Position monsters, for attacks, except this one. You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card, then target 1 Set card your opponent controls; destroy that target. You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Alucard" once per turn. If this card is sent to the Graveyard: You can target 1 other "Ghostrick" card in your Graveyard; add that target to your hand.
For Rank 3, we have “Ghostrick Alucard”. “Alucard” need two generic Level 3 monsters as material to be summoned, and comes with the reverse effect of “Ghostrick Socuteboss” in that “Alucard” disallows the opponent from picking face-down defense position monsters or “Ghostrick” monsters as attack targets when he is around. Furthermore, you can detach one Xyz material from “Alucard”, then target one Set card your opponent controls and destroy it; but this effect of “Ghostrick Alucard” can only be used once per turn. Lastly, if “Alucard” is sent to the graveyard, you can target one other “Ghostrick” card in your graveyard and add that target to your hand. This guy manages to be quite interesting again: Pulling the aggro can be helpful due to making the attacks of your opponent even more complicated and manages to protect more squishy members of the archetype. Also, the destruction effect is nice to have, and makes use of the fact that you will try to turn cards face-down the entire time. Also, “Alucard” is another good starter into “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief“, which is certainly helpful.
Recommended copies: 1-2
“Ghostrick Alucard” is another good Xyz monster for the “Ghostrick” archetype and should be run at one to two copies.
Name: “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief“
Level/Rank: 4
ATK/DEF: 2000/1500
Attribute/Type: Dark Fairy
2 Level 4 monsters You can also Xyz Summon this card by using a "Ghostrick" Xyz Monster you control as material, except "Ghostrick Angel of Mischief". (Transfer its materials to this card.) When the number of materials on this card becomes 10, you win the Duel. Once per turn: You can detach 1 material from this card; add 1 "Ghostrick" Spell/Trap from your Deck to your hand. Once per turn: You can attach 1 "Ghostrick" card from your hand to this card as material.
I mentioned her often enough already, so let us cut to the chase and take a look at “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief”. She is a Rank 4 Xyz Monster that can use two generic Level 4 monster as material, but will honestly never do since she can also be Xyz Summoned by using a “Ghostrick” Xyz monster you control as the Xyz material, and the materials on that Xyz monster are transferred to “Angel of Mischief” aswell. This is actually important, since “Angel of Mischief” comes with yet another alternate win condition: When the number of Xyz materials on “Angel of Mischief” becomes ten, you win the duel. Furthermore, you can, once per turn, detach one Xyz material from “Angel of Mischief” to add one “Ghostrick” Spell/Trap card from your deck to the hand. And lastly, once per turn, you can attach one “Ghostrick” card from your hand to “Angel of Mischief” as an Xyz material. So, let us start with the easy part: “Angel of Mischief” is able to search “Ghostrick” backrow, and since you can place her on any “Ghostrick” Xyz monster she is a versatile and easy-to-summon consistency tool. Well, and then she has the instant win-effect. If you think that you can pull this off easily, think again: Even if you summon her without using any material of the Xyz monster under her, she still only has three materials. You can add one from your hand, and there is “Ghostrick” support that tries to fix that issue like the graveyard effect of “Ghostrick Shot“, but you are still miles away from pulling this stunt off and the opponent will be acutely aware of what your gameplan is, which makes “Angel of Mischief” the prime target for any form of removal. The point is, “Angel of Mischief” is a good card, but for her search effect not the alternate win condition; which by the way only has a soft “once per turn”-clause, so you could potentially summon two and therefore use the search twice.
Recommended copies: 2-3
“Ghostrick Angel of Mischief” is a worthy boss monster for the “Ghostrick” archetype: Good stats, easy to summon, and provides more searching power. That is also the reason why she should see play at two to three copies. Only try to go for the ten Xyz materials in casual games or if you are feeling particularly lucky.
Name: “Ghostrick Mansion“
Type: Field Spell
Monsters cannot attack face-down Defense Position monsters, but can attack directly if all monsters their opponent controls are face-down Defense Position. All effect damage, and battle damage inflicted by monsters other than "Ghostrick" monsters, is halved.
Moving into the Spell/Trap section, we do have quite a few Field Spells to talk about. Let us start with “Ghostrick Mansion”: Its effect states that monsters cannot attack face-down defense position monsters, but they can instead attack directly if the opponent only controls face-down defense position monsters. Furthermore, all effect damage and battle damage inflicted by non”-Ghostrick” monsters is halved. The “Ghostrick” Field actually all work in a similar way, having floodgate effects that the “Ghostricks” are not as restricted by as the opposing deck. “Ghostrick Mansion” is somewhat boring, but works fine since it keeps your board safe, lowers the opposing damage output and puts the opponent into a position where you can use “Ghostrick Jackfrost“, “Ghostrick Lantern“, and various other options to hinder the advance.
Recommended copies: 0-3
“Ghostrick Mansion” activates “Ghostrick Festival” and keeps you alive for long enough to give you a fighting chance at winning. However, whether “Ghostrick Mansion” is the optimal card to work is depends on the deck, so run the card by preference.
Name: “Ghostrick Museum“
Type: Field Spell
Monsters you control, except "Ghostrick" monsters, cannot attack. Monsters cannot attack face-down Defense Position monsters, but can attack directly if all monsters their opponent controls are face-down Defense Position. At the end of the Damage Step, change any monster that inflicted battle damage to a player during this battle to face-down Defense Position.
Field Spell number two is “Ghostrick Museum”. This card says that monster you control cannot attack, except for “Ghostrick” monster. Also, monsters cannot attack face-down defense position monsters, but they can attack directly if all monsters the opponent controls are face-down defense position monsters. Lastly, at the end of the Damage Step, change any monster that inflicted battle damage to a player during this battle to face-down defense position. This card to me seems to be the most vanilla of the “Ghostrick” Field Spells, since it has the most lax restrictions but does not offer as much. However, that does not mean that it is useless: If you want to make use of the direct attacking-effect of “Ghostrick Festival“, this is the Field Spell to play, since you do not really care about your cards going into face-down defense position, but the opponent probably will. Granted, unlike “Ghostrick Mansion” this card is not as helpful against Link monsters, but it might prove helpful nonetheless.
Recommended copies: 0-3
“Ghostrick Museum” is another floodgate-y Field Spell. You will probably run one or multiple of them, but whether “Ghostrick Museum” is part of those cards and at what copy count is up to preference and the build in question.
Name: “Ghostrick Parade“
Type: Field Spell
Monsters cannot attack face-down Defense Position monsters, but can attack directly if all monsters their opponent controls are face-down Defense Position. Your opponent takes no damage. When an opponent's monster declares a direct attack: You can add 1 "Ghostrick" card from your Deck to your hand.
The third Field Spell that “Ghostricks” have to offer is “Ghostrick Parade”. It states that monsters cannot attack face-down defense position monsters, but that they can instead attack directly if the opponent only controls face-down defense position monsters. Furthermore, “Ghostrick Parade” prevents any damage that would be inflicted to your opponent, but when an opposing monster declares a direct attack, you can add one “Ghostrick” card from your deck to the hand. Now, since this card disallows you from damaging your opponent, it is not suited for any build that tries to win via direct attack. However, this card is the perfect fit for a mill-build, using “Ghostrick Skeleton” as your main win condition, since you do not care about damaging the opponent anyway while gaining options against the aggressor whenever your opponent attacks you.
Recommended copies: 0 (2-3 in a “Ghostrick Mill” build)
“Ghostrick Parade” has no business being in any build that tries to do damage to the opponent, but the added searching power makes it a perfect fit for a mill-build, in which I would recommend two to three copies.
Name: “Ghostrick Shot“
Type: Normal Spell
Special Summon 1 "Ghostrick" monster from your hand or GY, then you can change 1 face-down "Ghostrick" monster you control to face-up Attack Position. You can banish this card from your GY, then target 1 "Ghostrick" Xyz Monster you control; attach 1 "Ghostrick" card from your GY to that monster as material. You can only use each effect of "Ghostrick Shot" once per turn.
This brings us to the only Spell card in the “Ghostrick” archetype that is not a Field Spell. “Ghostrick Shot” is a Normal Spell that Special Summons a “Ghostrick” monster from your hand or your graveyard, then you can change the position of one face-down “Ghostrick” monster you control to face-up attack position. Furthermore, you can banish “Ghostrick Shot” from your graveyard, then target one “Ghostrick” Xyz monster that you control, and attach one “Ghostrick” card from your graveyard to it as Xyz material. You can only use each effect of “Ghostrick Shot” once per turn. So, after ages of “Ghostricks” being forced to Set one “Ghostrick” monster and pass, they did not only get a Link monster to work around that issue, but also a “Ghostrick” version of a card combining “Double Summon“/”Monster Reborn“/”Book of Taiyou” to make further plays happen. And depending on the cards in your hand, you might be able to make something good happen: Normal Summon “Ghostrick Jiangshi“, play “Ghostrick Shot”, Special Summon another “Ghostrick” monster, flip “Jiangshi” face-up, then search for a Level 1 or Level 2 “Ghostrick” monster due to the effect of “Jiangshi“, which could include cards like “Ghostrick Mary” for more searching or “Ghostrick Lantern” to keep an attacker at bay. This is only one option, the same can be done with “Ghostrick Siren“, “Ghostrick Fairy“, “Ghostrick Doll” during the second turn, and many more options that setup your field nicely. The secondary effect of “Ghostrick Shot” is also helpful, since it not only fuels the effects of your Xyz monsters for longer, but also gives any madman trying to make “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief’s” alternate win condition working an effect to work with.
Recommended copies: 3
“Ghostrick Shot” is fantastic support, not only working around the Normal Summon restriction-issue, but also providing lots of other useful effects and setting up plays. This feels like a card that should be played at three copies.
Name: “Ghostrick Break“
Type: Normal Trap
When exactly 1 face-up "Ghostrick" monster you control (and no other cards) is destroyed by battle or an opponent's card effect and sent to your GY: Target 2 "Ghostrick" monsters in your GY with different names from the destroyed monster; Special Summon them in face-down Defense Position.
The first of many Trap cards in “Ghostricks” is “Ghostrick Break”. This Normal Trap can be activated when exactly one face-up “Ghostrick” monster you control (and no other cards) is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, in which case you can target two “Ghostrick” monsters in your graveyard with different names than the destroyed monster, and Special Summon them in face-down defense position. This card is pretty awful: It only triggers when one “Ghostrick” monster is destroyed, meaning any effect that destroys more than one, or does not destroy at all but instead banishes or bounces does not trigger the card. The destroyed monster needs to hit the graveyard, meaning that “Dimensional Fissure” or “Macro Cosmos” simply turn this card off. Also, you need to have two other “Ghostrick” monsters ready in the graveyard, which might need some setup to even be available. And in the end, you only gain two monsters, which in my opinion is not worth the effort and inconsistency the card adds to the deck.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Break” is a rather bricky and inconsistent summoning option, which is why I would run the card at zero copies.
Name: “Ghostrick Go-Round“
Type: Continuous Trap
Once per turn, during the Battle Phase: You can activate 1 of these effects. - Target 1 "Ghostrick" monster you control; change that target to face-down Defense Position, and if you do, change 1 face-down Defense Position monster your opponent controls to face-up Attack Position. - Target 1 face-down Defense Position monster you control; change that target to face-up Attack Position, and if it is a "Ghostrick" monster, change 1 face-up monster your opponent controls to face-down Defense Position.
Another adorable card comes with “Ghostrick-Go-Round”. This Continuous Trap card can, once per turn, during the Battle Phase, activate one of the following effects: Either target one “Ghostrick” monster you control, change that target to face-down defense position, and if you do, also change one face-down defense position monster your opponent controls to face-up attack position; or target one face-down defense position monster you control, change that target to face-up attack position, and if the flipped monster is a “Ghostrick” monster, also change one of the opposing face-up monsters your opponent controls to face-down defense position. The idea behind this card is pretty clear: Allow one of your monsters like “Ghostrick Dullahan” to run something over that the opponent put in defense position before, or flip one of your monsters face-up, triggering potential effects and then get rid of one of the opposing monsters during the Battle Phase by flipping it face-down. Unfortunately, there are already better options available in the archetype that do not require the waiting time for a Trap card and can also be used outside the Battle Phase, which makes “Ghostrick-Go-Round” kind off unnecessary.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick-Go-Round” is too slow and does too little to really matter. If you want similar effects, “Ghostrick Scare” is almost always better; therefore, I would run zero copies of this card.
Name: “Ghostrick Night“
Type: Continuous Trap
While a "Ghostrick" monster is on the field, your opponent cannot Flip Summon. When this card in your possession is destroyed by your opponent's card and sent to your Graveyard: Your opponent cannot declare attacks for the rest of this turn.
If you asked yourself for the entire time how the deck is supposed to keep the opposing monsters in check when they can simply be flipped face-up again, then look no further, because I have the answer right here. “Ghostrick Night” is a Continuous Trap card that disallows the opponent from Flip Summoning monster while a “Ghostrick” monster is on the field. Furthermore, when “Ghostrick Night” in your possession is destroyed by your opponent’s card and sent to the graveyard, they cannot declare attacks for the rest of the turn. This is the lockdown option in “Ghostrick”; and you cannot comprehend how annoying this card can be if you have never played against it. The fact that you cannot flip your monsters face-up again means that you only waste resources on filling the board with useless cardboard, and as long as you do not opt to destroy “Ghostrick Night” or go into Link Summons in some way, you are going to stall yourself more and more. And you cannot even attack the turn you get rid of the card, meaning that, in the worst-case-scenario, you destroy “Ghostrick Night” with some backrow removal only to find the “Ghostrick” player adding it back to their hand for the next turn. This is one of the cards that “Cosmic Cyclone” exists for, and it is definitely one that can keep the “Ghostricks” alive for a long time.
Recommended copies: 1-3
“Ghostrick Night” is a fantastic card if you want to turtle. True, it cannot do anything against Link monsters, but if you have options like “Ghostrick Doll” or “Ghostrick Scare” available, this card will keep pretty much everything else in check. I would recommend running this card, but the ratios are up to preference again.
Name: “Ghostrick or Treat“
Type: Normal Trap
If you control a "Ghostrick" Field Spell or a "Ghostrick" Link Monster: You can target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; your opponent can pay 2000 LP to make this card's effect "Set this card instead of sending it to the GY after activation", otherwise, for the rest of this turn, that face-up monster cannot attack, its effects are negated, also it is changed to face-down Defense Position during the End Phase. You can only activate 1 "Ghostrick or Treat" per turn.
The newest Trap the “Ghostricks” received is “Ghostrick or Treat”, to keep the puns strong and the opposing monsters under control. This Normal Trap can be activated if you control either a “Ghostrick” Link monster or a “Ghostrick” Field Spell, in which case you target one face-up monster your opponent controls, make that monster unable to attack and negate its effects until the end of the turn, and also flip it in face-down defense position during the End Phase. Also, the opponent can pay 2000 life points to make the effect of “Ghostrick or Treat” become “Set this card face-down instead of sending it to the graveyard”. Also, you can only activate one copy of “Ghostrick or Treat” per turn. “Ghostrick or Treat” is modern support that fits the “Ghostrick” archetype, since it sacrifices parts of usefulness in order to become flavorful. The fact that the opponent can decide to pay 2000 life points to basically annul this card is something that a lot of players will make use of since getting your plays through is worth way more than a quarter of your life points. But the card is still nice, do not get me wrong: Since it is a “Ghostrick” Trap card, it is searchable by both in-archetypal cards like “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief” and more generic options like “Trap Trick“, it does actually have an effect on Link monsters which is nice, and the 2000 life point effect might even cause the opponent to become too negate-happy and pay enough to defeat them via direct attacks during the next turn. It is nowhere near crazy, but having more solid options is certainly not a bad thing for the “Ghostrick” archetype.
Recommended copies: 2-3
“Ghostrick or Treat” is another disruption/stall option, and one that actually does work against the nemesis of “Ghostrick”, namely Link monsters. I would play two to three copies, since I think that the card is good enough for those ratios.
Name: “Ghostrick Renovation“
Type: Normal Trap
Target 1 "Ghostrick" Field Spell in your Field Zone; return it to the hand, then you can activate 1 Field Spell from your hand or Deck. You can banish this card from your GY, then target 1 "Ghostrick" Xyz Monster you control; Special Summon from your Extra Deck, 1 "Ghostrick" Xyz Monster with a different name, by using that target as material. (This is treated as an Xyz Summon. Transfer its materials to the Summoned monster.) You can only use this effect of "Ghostrick Renovation" once per turn.
“Ghostrick Renovation” is next in line, and it does provide some oddball support. The first effect allows you to target one “Ghostrick” Field Spell in your Field Zone, return it to the hand, then you can activate one Field Spell from your hand or your deck. Furthermore, you can banish “Ghostrick Renovation” from your graveyard to target one “Ghostrick” Xyz monster that you control, and Special Summon one “Ghostrick” Xyz monster from your Extra Deck with a different name than the targeted Xyz monster, using that Xyz monster as material and transferring the previous materials to the new monster; also, this last effect of “Ghostrick Renovation” can only be used once per turn. “Ghostrick Renovation” is not really a searcher since you already need to have a Field Spell available, but it allows you to dodge backrow removal that could destroyed said Field Spell and the “search” effect does not mention that the new card needs to be a “Ghostrick” Field Spell, which allows you to search for “Mystic Mine” or whatever else you might fancy. The second effect is interesting, as it allows you to freely switch between the “Ghostrick” Xyz monsters on the field and can be used to even put something different onto “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief“, which is normally not possible. However, as a matter of fact this is not a card that you want to see in most “Ghostrick” decks, since you normally do not have non-“Ghostrick” Field Spells in the deck, nor a need for “Foolish Burial Goods” to kickstart the graveyard effect of “Renovation”.
Recommended copies: 0
“Ghostrick Renovation” might be helpful in a strategy that tries to get “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief” to ten materials as fast as possible, but any normal build does not need to weird Field Spell switching, while the second effect alone does not suffice to make “Renovation” a playable choice. Run zero.
Name: “Ghostrick Scare“
Type: Normal Trap
Target any number of face-down Defense Position monsters you control; change them to face-up Defense Position, count the number of "Ghostrick" monsters among them, and if you do, change up to that many face-up monsters your opponent controls to face-down Defense Position (min. 1).
The original “Ghostrick” field flipper comes with “Ghostrick Scare”, and this is actually a card that has stories to tell. The fact that Konami seems to be rather hesitant to print good Flip card support made this card a playable option for some time in “Krawlers”, since there are little to no good alternatives if you want to flip multiple monsters face-up. Let us go over the effect: “Ghostrick Scare” targets any number of face-down defense position monster your control, which are then changed to face-up attack position, then you count the number of “Ghostrick” monsters among the flipped monsters and change up to that many monsters, but at least one, your opponent controls into face-down defense position. “Ghostrick Scare” does a lot of good for the “Ghostricks”: Flipping your monsters face-up means that you trigger effects like that of “Ghostrick Jiangshi“, giving you further resources to work with. Flipping that many monsters face-down on the opposing side means that you can stop a major attack, certain Extra Decks summons, various effects with just one Trap, that you can not only easily recycle via “Ghostrick Fairy“, but that also happens to interact with various other cards I have mentioned, like “Trap Trick” for further searching or “Ghostrick Night” to stop the opponent for an even longer period of time.
Recommended copies: 3
“Ghostrick Scare” is of paramount importance for the defense of any “Ghostrick” deck, and does even provide effect triggers on top of that. I would go with three copies of this card.
Name: “Ghostrick Vanish“
Type: Normal Trap
Reveal 1 "Ghostrick" monster in your hand; this turn, "Ghostrick" cards you control, and face-down Defense Position monsters you control, cannot be targeted by, or be destroyed by, card effects.
The last Trap card, and card in general actually, is “Ghostrick Vanish”. This Normal Trap asks you to reveal one “Ghostrick” monster in your hand as cost; for that, during the turn you activated “Ghostrick Vanish”, any “Ghostrick” cards you control and face-down defense position monsters you control cannot be targeted by, or destroyed by card effects. Revealing a “Ghostrick” monster is hardly a problem, since you should have enough searching power to fetch yourself one of the Level 1 “Ghostricks” that stay in the hand anyway. I am not sure that the card is necessary in the Main Deck, since it can be kind of cloggy, but “Ghostrick Vanish” sure is a good Side Deck card to have.
Recommended copies: 0 (Up to 3 in the Side Deck)
“Ghostrick Vanish” provides card effect protection for your entire board, which is nice but not always necessary. I would decide against running the card, but putting a few copies in a Side Deck sure does not seem like a bad idea.
Recommended Engines:
“Ghostricks” are not particularly xenophobic, but they do have a high number of cards that only interact with the archetype as well as using an unconventional strategy that not that many archetypes can even make use of. There is potentially space for Flip archetypes to be included into a “Ghostrick” build, but I would honestly always prefer running a pure version, since that seems to work best.
Further useful cards:
Main Deck monsters:
“King of the Sky Prison“:
This card provides a lot of helpful effects for the “Ghostricks”. Preventing the destruction of any of your Set cards means that you can run this card instead of “Ghostrick Vanish” and still be in the plus due to the other effects “King of the Sky Prison” provides. Then, if a Set Spell/Trap card is activated, of which you should have a few, “King of the Sky Prison” Special Summons itself, and if it was revealed during the time the Special Summon triggered, you can even search your deck for a Spell/Trap card and Set it to your field, but that card is banished during the End Phase of the next turn. This means that you have access to a 3000 ATK beatstick (as long as no “Ghostrick” Field Spell is around), protection for your field and generic backrow searching that simply Special Summons itself when you do things that you would also do in any other scenario. Let us just hope that the card is not going to be extremely expensive.
“Nibiru, the Primal Being“:
Since “Ghostricks” are pretty good searching-wise, but do need to have some way of getting rid of opposing (Link) monsters, why not put “Nibiru” in your Main Deck? The “Ghostrick” cards should be able to fetch all the necessary stuff even if one card in hand is a non-“Ghostrick” card, it does safe you from a lot of trouble if you can trigger it, and the “Primal Being Token” it produces can be flipped face-down without any issues, making it more controllable than the dark blue menace.
“Tour Guide from the Underworld“:
The monster spam option during times when “Ghostricks” did not have any tools to make summoning faster. “Tour Guide from the Underworld” can still be used to turbo out “Ghostrick Alucard“, and therefore also “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief“, so if you feel like you need access to that play more often, maybe this is the solution.
Spell cards:
“Book of Lunar Eclipse“:
“Book of Lunar Eclipse” is for “Book of Moon” what “Twin Twisters” is for “Mystical Space Typhoon“. Discarding one card from your hand and then flipping two monsters face-down is not necessarily something that you need all the time, but it still works nicely in the deck.
“Book of Moon“:
The original card to flip things face-down on reaction. “Book of Moon” was limited for the longest time, since it is a versatile tool to run despite having not that much card text, and it is a natural fit in “Ghostricks”. It certainly is not necessary in every “Ghostrick” build, but it provides yet another way to get things face-down, meaning you can get your monsters that got negated back into a safer face-down position as well as stopping the opposing attacks and/or lock monsters via “Ghostrick Night“.
“Swords of Concealing Light“:
The less optimal Spell version of “Ghostrick Night“. It was seen quite often in “Ghostrick” builds in the past, and while I do not necessarily see the reason to still run the card over other options, it does provide position changing to face-down defense position and locks the monsters in that state.
“Terraforming“:
Since “Ghostricks” work with Field Spells, I might aswell list the Field Spell searchers here. You might not need “Terraforming” due to either running enough Field Spells to have one available if you need it or having enough searches to get it anyway, but the option still exists.
Trap cards:
“Dogmatika Punishment“:
A removal option that works kinda well in the deck. It is searchable via “Trap Trick“, giving that little bit of extra consistency. It goes destroy cards, which is something the “Ghostrick” archetype is normally lacking. And it can trigger the last effects of cards like “Ghostrick Dullahan” or “Ghostrick Alucard“. Lastly, it allows you to fit one copy of “Elder Entity N’tss” in your Extra Deck if you have the space and need that extra bit of removal.
“Drowning Mirror Force“:
Since both you and your opponent are going to constantly attack directly anyways, why not make something out of that fact? “Drowning Mirror Force” is without a doubt one of the “Mirror Force“-variants that hurts the most, since your resources disappear into the deck; and since you can trigger it often enough, just let some monster run through and enjoy the spectacle.
“Gozen Match“:
Every “Ghostrick” monster is Dark Attribute, so you have no drawback playing “Gozen Match”, while the opponent might struggle to get a board assembled.
“Lost Wind“:
“Lost Wind” is both a good and budget-friendly effect negation option for any deck that does not have a problem playing Trap cards. It does keep the opposing plays in check, it is searchable via “Trap Trick“, and it is even playable a second time.
“Metaverse“:
The Trap card Field Spell searcher. The card is by no means a staple for “Ghostricks”, but it can be funny to drop a “Ghostrick Mansion” during the opponent’s turn, and it gives that little bit of extra consistency if you need it regarding your Field Spells. I would like to add though that “Metaverse” is really only an option if you have no Field Spell available, since “Ghostrick Renovation” is clearly superior in every way as soon as any “Ghostrick” Field Spell is around.
“Needle Ceiling“:
This is basically the board wipe that I have only ever seen being played in “Ghostrick”. Since you place the opposing monsters into a state of uselessness, it is highly likely that the opponent is going to play more monsters to keep the game going, and flip whatever you turned face-down into face-up attack position again. Cue “Needle Ceiling”: Four monsters is what is needed to basically imitate the effect of “Raigeki” on reaction to the opponent’s action. Not the best card ever printed, but it does take opponents by surprise and is searchable via “Trap Trick“.
“Trap Trick“:
Since the “Ghostrick” strategy features a good amount of Trap card usage, why not fit a tool that gives you easier access to the various options on offer. “Trap Trick” allows you to search Traps out of your deck, making the card a proxy for basically any Normal Trap in the deck, if you are willing to play at least two copies of said Trap(s). A good card overall.
Extra Deck monsters:
“Downerd Magician“:
This might seem like a weird option, but if you have some Extra Deck space “Downerd Magician” could still be worth it. Like “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief“, you can place “Downerd Magician” on “Ghostrick Dullahan“, “Ghostrick Socuteboss“, and “Ghostrick Alucard“. She does provide little on the effect side, but with at least 2300 ATK she might be big enough to keep you from taking damage, while her piercing damage can finish off weakened opponents. The biggest argument against “Downerd Magician” is certainly that she can only be summoned during Main Phase 2 if you use the overlay option, which means that you cannot simply weaken a monster with “Ghostrick Dullahan’s” effect and then overlay into “Downerd Magician” for sizeable damage.
“Linkuriboh“:
Not only is “Linkuriboh” helpful in the defense department of “Ghostricks”, you can also get it back from the graveyard by using one of the various Level 1 monsters the archetype has to offer.
Playstyle/Combos:
“Ghostricks”, as you might have noticed when going through the archetypal cards, is a Control-based archetype. The monsters all come with relatively low stats, but due to the Field Spells and “Ghostrick Festival” can attack to slowly bring the opposing life points to zero. They also have alternate ways of winning the game, with burn, mill, and an alternate win condition in form of “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief” being the most prominent options. Now, the major challenge in every game that you are going to play is getting enough options onto the board to keep the flow of the game at a low speed. “Ghostricks” cannot do fast games, so what you want to do instead is force the opponent to slow down and take control of the board by flipping monsters face-down. “Ghostrick Doll” and “Ghostrick Scare” are two solid options to get the opposing board into a face-down state, while “Ghostrick Night” (if you play the card) can keep them in that position.
“Ghostricks” are a first turn deck. They do need to have their setup ready at the time the opponent starts playing, similar to other Control decks like for example “Traptrix”. The high amount of Trap cards does only work going first, and losing your monsters to opposing negates is going to cripple you for the rest of the game. Starting with either a combination of two monsters using “Ghostrick Shot” or simply setting up “Ghostrick Festival” for the opposing turn is the normal start in most games. There are a few issues there already, since certain cards in the archetype require you to have a face-up “Ghostrick” monster, which is only ever going to be a good choice when playing “Ghostrick Festival“. However, “Ghostrick Festival” can only leave the field and tag out against something else from the deck if the opponent enters the Battle Phase, meaning that any removal effect during the Main Phase might prove to be deadly. And it cannot even be protected by “King of the Sky Prison“, while “Ghostrick Vanish” is rather bricky and will often leave you wishing for some other card.
I would argue that that is actually the main appeal to playing “Ghostricks” from a card effect-standpoint: Using your resources correctly, hindering the opposing plays that actually matter, making the most out of the cards you are given. “Ghostricks” are a major challenge not only because of the opponent you might play against, but also because you need to put some thought into using your cards and thinking ahead far enough to not run out of steam too soon. When “Ghostricks” work, they can turn the game speed into “walking through molasses”-levels of slow, since there is nothing happening anymore except for the “Ghostrick” player doing their thing. If things go wrong, you might be blown out of the water in one turn due to your opponent breaking whatever board you assembled to stop them. If that sounds appealing to you, “Ghostricks” might be your thing; if you rather see fancy combos and fast-moving gameplay, god will you be bored by this archetype.
Weaknesses/Counters:
I want to make very clear that the most glaring weakness of “Ghostricks” comes in form of a Extra Deck monster type. Two words: Link Monsters.
Link monsters are the bane of the existence of the “Ghostrick” archetype. Granted, the archetype was not top-tier material before Link came out, but they at least managed to flip whatever the opponent put on the board face-down. That all changed with Link monsters. Since the dark blue cards have no defense value, they cannot be put into defense. Since there is no face-down attack position, you cannot flip them at all. This inevitably means that any opponent could simply fill the board with Link monsters, if they have that option, and completely counter a large portion of your deck’s control and removal options, since you cannot keep them in check with flipping them face-down. The list of cards that lose their functionality that way is pretty long: “Ghostrick Jackfrost” cannot stop Link monsters, “Ghostrick Doll” cannot change their battle position hence less summoning for you, not flipping via “Ghostrick Witch“, or “Ghostrick Nekomusume” (which does not function anyway since Link monsters do not have levels), or “Ghostrick Siren“, “Ghostrick Scare” only works with your board, “Book of Moon” as well as “Book of Lunar Eclipse” are useless, etc. The choice therefore comes down to ignoring Link monsters completely in your build and basically having no out when the matchup occurs, or having some cards specifically for Links that you probably would not play in “Ghostricks” if they were not such an issue. There are options to consider, like maining “Raigeki” or similar board clear-options, clearing the field with “Nibiru, the Primal Being” before the Link monsters become dangerous, running “Mirror Force“-variants to at least catch them when they attack, or put effect negation into the deck in the hope that the effects of the Link monsters were the deciding factor, not the fact that they can still kick you face unimpeded.
“Ghostricks” also happen to be weak against any card that can stop their battle position-changing. Whether it is something unpopular such as “Light of Intervention” or actual threats like “Dark Simorgh“, the deck needs to flip monsters face-up and face-down again to work. Stopping either of those steps therefore counters the “Ghostricks”. Obviously, since you want to change the position of the opposing monsters aswell, those cards can be twice as bad since they can also stop you from keeping the opposing board under control. Also, since the “Ghostrick” monsters are all Dark Attribute, you might find yourself countered “Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror” or similar anti-Dark cards. “Skill Drain“, “Effect Veiler“, or various other options that negate the effects of monsters can also be problematic, since using monster effects is a rather big part of the “Ghostrick” strategy, and potentially leaves you with less defense or, in the worst case scenario, without a win condition if the opponent manages to keep “Ghostrick Skeleton” effect-less in the Mill-build. Certain decks and/or archetypes that work with clearing the board on a regular basis can also be tricky for the “Ghostricks” to handle: Being blown apart by “Fire Kings” or “Neos”-builds over and over again might deplete the “Ghostrick” resources much more than those of the opponent, leaving you with little to defend yourself; unless you run “Ghostrick Vanish” to keep your board alive. “Ghostricks” also dislike backrow removal, since major parts of their strategy require Spells and Traps. Particularly bad are options like “Cosmic Cyclone“, which even works around the graveyard effects and disallows cards like “Ghostrick Alucard” or “Ghostrick Fairy” from getting them back.
Sample Decklist (October 2021):
This is what a “Ghostrick” deck could potentially look like. I am gotta be honest, I am not entirely happy with the build so far, since it had some fairly bricky hands with no “Ghostrick” monsters. However, it gives a solid idea where the entire thing should go: Control options to keep the opponent in check, then using the direct attack options like “Ghostrick Festival” or the “Ghostrick” Field Spells to attack directly, which is actually going to do some solid damage when using the “Ghostrick” Xyz Monsters.
Monster (18):
2x “Nibiru, the Primal Being“
3x “Lord of the Heavenly Prison“
3x “Ghostrick Jiangshi“
2x “Ghostrick Fairy“
1x “Ghostrick Doll“
1x “Ghostrick Jackfrost“
3x “Ghostrick Lantern“
3x “Ghostrick Mary“
Spell/Trap (22):
3x “Ghostrick Shot“
2x “Ghostrick Museum“
2x “Ghostrick Mansion“
2x “Drowning Mirror Force“
2x “Lost Wind“
2x “Trap Trick“
2x “Dogmatika Punishment“
3x “Ghostrick Scare“
2x “Ghostrick or Treat“
2x “Ghostrick Night“
Extra Deck (15):
1x “Elder Entity N’tss“
1x “Downerd Magician“
2x “Ghostrick Angel of Mischief“
1x “Ghostrick Alucard“
1x “Number 45: Crumble Logos the Prophet of Demolition“
1x “Ghostrick Socuteboss“
2x “Ghostrick Dullahan“
1x “Knightmare Phoenix“
1x “Knightmare Cerberus“
1x “Linkuriboh“
3x “Ghostrick Festival“
Cubic Creativity 