Ice Barrier
 | This article may require cleanup to meet this wiki's standards. |
"Ice Barrier" (
Playing Style
Most "Ice Barrier" monsters require another of their kind present on the field in order to activate its effect(s), which often generate field advantage. For example, many "Ice Barrier" monsters have effects to protect other "Ice Barrier" monsters: "Cryomancer of the Ice Barrier" forbids all monsters of Level 4 or higher from attacking while its owner control another "Ice Barrier", and "Defender of the Ice Barrier", which stops your opponent's monsters with ATK greater than or equal to its DEF from attacking. This condition of having two "Ice Barriers" on the field can be easily fullfiled if you control "General Grunard of the Ice Barrier", since it allows an extra Normal Summon of an "Ice Barrier" monster.
Aside from sheer attack-blocking, "Ice Barriers" can also protect themselves in other areas. "Dai-sojo of the Ice Barrier," for example, protects "Ice Barrier" monsters from Spells and Trap destruction, while "General Raiho of the Ice Barrier" penalizes an opponent for relying on the activation of multiple monster effects by negating them or taxing a discard. Likewise, "Secret Guards of the Ice Barrier" protects your monsters from being targeted by monster effects. It is difficult to maintain consistency in your Deck, however, by trying to rely on all of these forms of protection. Also, "Ice Barriers" are difficult to summon in swarms, making them all the harder to protect with their defensive monsters, all of which are tailored to defending a specific kind of effect.
"Ice Barriers" can mount swarms under the direction of their "General Gantala of the Ice Barrier" if left unimpeded. It can fetch other "Ice Barrier" monsters from the Graveyard during each of its owner's End Phase. This allows for great flexibility in strategy: not only can it revive heavy-hitters with devastating live effects, but also cards like a Defense Position "Defender of the Ice Barrier" or Tuners for still more threats.
The "Ice Barrier" engine works in a circle. The idea is to start with "Strategist of the Ice Barrier", whose main objective is to discard "General Gantala" to the Graveyard all while netting you a draw every time you discard. "Gantala" then sits in the Graveyard until revived by "Prior of the Ice Barrier". Once you have "Gantala" on the field, you can begin reviving your other "Ice Barriers" that have fallen in battle or have been discarded by "Strategist", most notably "Defender of the Ice Barrier" to Synchro and block almost all attackers or even "Samurai of the Ice Barrier" to gain an extra draw during your next turn. The main win condition of this Deck is to summon "Gantala" to generate field advantage, use powerhouses like itself and "Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier" to destroy your opponent's field and deliver the final blow using "Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier", while also hurting your opponent's field, Hand and/or Graveyard with its effect. Utilizing "Strategist" as a draw engine and "Medallion of the Ice Barrier" to grab the right card at the right time makes this deck consistent even without the use of cards like "Pot of Duality" or "Upstart Goblin". Finally, even if "Gantala" is defeated, you can use "Surface", resurrecting "Prior" and then using it to revive "Gantala".
"Medallion of the Ice Barrier" is a Staple for "Ice Barrier" Decks. It functions exactly like "E - Emergency Call" in an "Elemental HERO" Deck, down to the wording, but serves slightly different purposes: the monster can become part of a Synchro Summon, a third monster for "Magic Triangle of the Ice Barrier", a discard cost later retrieved with "Salvage," or to fulfill the requirements for the effect of "Moray of Greed."
A large hand facilitates the effects of the archetype's Synchro trump card, "Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier". It can destroy up to two cards per turn, at the cost of a discard per target. With a stocked hand, "Gungnir" can apply pressure by whittling defenses down so it and "Gantala" can push for the win.
Due to the lack of Draw Power, you can use cards like "Shard of Greed", "Maxx "C"", and the aforementioned "Strategist of the Ice Barrier".
"Eisbahn" can also be a good support to them, making all non-WATER monster change to Defense Position at the time it hits the Field; with this, you can slow down your opponent's moves and pave the way to attack with the huge ATK of "Gantala", "Grunard" or "Gungnir". "Soul Drain" can be used to stop Graveyard-reliant decks, such as "Dark World", "Sylvan", etc., from working, while this deck will remain untouched; this can give an "Ice Barrier" player even more control of the game.
Another popular strategy is the "Dewloren Lock", which relies on "Dewloren, Tiger King of the Ice Barrier" and its ability to return face-up cards to the hand. Cards like "Swords of Revealing Light" and "Fiendish Chain" can be continuously returned to the hand, which helps to maintain a continuous defense while you mount an offense with cards like "Call of the Haunted", which can revive monsters to be used for a Synchro Summon before returning the used "Call of the Haunted" to the hand (since it won't be destroyed if the monster is used as Synchro Material). Even outside of Synchro Summons, if "Call of the Haunted" is used to summon "Prior of the Ice Barrier", you can tribute "Prior" to get any other monster (usually "Gantala of the Ice Barrier") without needing to worry about it being linked to "Call of the Haunted". "Call of the Haunted" can also be used to block attacks by summoning "Cryomancer of the Ice Barrier" or "Defender of the Ice Barrier" while Dewloren's on the field; then you can Synchro Summon to get the monster of the field. If you choose, you can also return Call of the Haunted and the monster simultaneously so "Strategist of the Ice Barrier" has something to discard for its effect. Even if "Dewloren" is destroyed, the numerous methods of Graveyard revival via "Prior" and "Gantala" will ensure that "Dewloren" won't stay on the field for long. The only two surefire ways of destroying this combo are if "Dewloren" is Banished or if its initial Synchro Summon is negated.
Recommended Cards
Using a small monster lineup, keep it consistent and simple, relying on obnoxious Spell/Trap Cards to keep you in the game long enough to capitalize off of the effects of "Gantala" and "Gungnir". A really good card that you can use to instantly summon any General to the field is "Big Wave Small Wave". The cost is minimal and if you use it to summon "General Grunard", you get to score another Normal Summon of an "Ice Barrier" monster.
"Ties of the Brethren" can be used to create locks and combos with "Cryomancer" + "Dewdark" + "Secret Guards", or with "Dance Princess" + "Spellbreaker" + "Strategist".
Recommended cards
| ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Official Konami Decklists
The following Decklists may or may not contain copies of cards that exceed the maximum amount allowed by the current Forbidden & Limited List. These should not be changed, as these Decklists are copied verbatim at the time they were published.
Absolute Ice Wall
絶対氷壁 | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Ice Barrier Barian's Force
アイスバリア・バリアンズ・フォース | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Weaknesses
The best way is to stop them from swarming the field and using their defensive tactics, the latter of which works if they control two or more "Ice Barriers" monsters; "Kaiser Colosseum" (Traditional only) can prevent this. You can also negate their effects, which makes them virtually useless, so cards like "Skill Drain" and "Brotherhood of the Fire Fist - Lion Emperor" can work well. You can also prevent "Gantala" from swarming the field by using Special Summon-blocking cards, such as "Vanity's Emptiness", "Archlord Kristya", "Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo", etc.
References
- ↑ V Jump editorial department (2013, p. 94)
- ↑ V Jump editorial department (2013, p. 95)
