Editing Lswarm

{{lowercase name}}
{{cleanup}}
{{Infobox archseries
| image        = VerzCrest-DuelTerminal.jpg
| caption      = The "lswarm" crest.
| name         = lswarm
| ja_name      = ヴェルズ
| romaji       = Veruzu
| trans        = Verz
| fr_name      = Colonie
| fr_trans     = Colony
| de_name      = lschar
| it_name      = Branco
| it_trans     = Herd
| ko_name      = 벨즈
| ko_romanized = Beljeu
| ko_trans     = Velz
| pt_name      = Hordeum
| pt_trans     = Horde
| es_name      = Horda
| es_trans     = Horde
| sets         =
* [[Hidden Arsenal 5: Steelswarm Invasion]]
* [[Hidden Arsenal 6: Omega Xyz]]
* [[Hidden Arsenal 7: Knight of Stars]]
* [[Legacy of the Valiant]]
| tcg          =
* [[Generation Force]]
* [[Collectible Tins 2012 Wave 2.5]]
* [[Duel Terminal 5b]]
* [[Duel Terminal 6a]]
* [[Lord of the Tachyon Galaxy]]
* [[Duelist Saga]]
* [[Battles of Legend: Light's Revenge]]
* [[Extreme Force]]
* [[Egyptian God Deck: Obelisk the Tormentor]]
| ocg          =
* [[Duel Terminal - Raid of the Inverz!!]]
* [[Duel Terminal - Judgment of Omega!!]]
* [[Duel Terminal Overlay Guide promotional card]]
* [[Duel Terminal - Sacred Star Knights!!]]
* [[Duel Terminal - Ouroboros, Wicked Dragon of Destruction!!]]
* [[Duel Terminal Chronicle 2 - Chapter of Chaos]]
* [[Duel Terminal Chronicle 4 - Chapter of Opposites]]
* [[Duelist Set: Version Dark Returner]]
* [[Duelist Set DX: Double Union]]
* [[20th Anniversary Pack 2nd Wave]]
* [[LINK VRAINS Pack]]
* [[Tournament Pack 2024 Vol.2]]
| korea        = [[X-Saber: Special Edition]]
| anime        =
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL]]
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS]]
| manga        = [[Yu-Gi-Oh! D Team ZEXAL]]
}}
"'''lswarm'''", known as "'''Verz'''" (ヴェルズ ''Veruzu'') in the ''[[OCG]]'', is a ''[[Duel Terminal]]'' [[archetype]] of primarily [[DARK]] [[Monster Card|monster]]s which was introduced in ''[[Duel Terminal - Sacred Star Knights!!]]''. They are used by [[Dark Mask of Laughter]] in the [[Yu-Gi-Oh! D Team ZEXAL]] manga. Despite being released prior to "lswarm", the "[[Steelswarm]]" archetype is an "lswarm" sub-archetype, thus all "Steelswarm" monsters are supported by "lswarm" support cards.
All "lswarm" monsters that are not "Steelswarm" monsters contain the word "'''Evilswarm'''" in their names, and "Evilswarm" is often used to refer to the archetype with "Steelswarm" excluded.
The most significant feature of the non-"Steelswarm" "lswarm", except "[[Evilswarm Kerykeion]]" and "Evilswarm Exciton Knight", is that their [[ATK]]/[[DEF]] end with ''50'', and all known "lswarm", except "[[Evilswarm Golem]]", "[[Evilswarm Coppelia]]" and "Steelswarm Origin" are [[Level]] or [[Rank]] 4.
==Members==
Each non-"Steelswarm" "lswarm" is based on a member of a previous ''[[Duel Terminal]]'' archetype, corrupted by the "lswarm" virus that was released from "Steelswarm Cell", shown in "[[Infestation Infection]]". There is an "lswarm" [[counterpart]] for each ''Duel Terminal'' archetype except "[[Vylon]]".
===Main Deck===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
! Evilswarm
! Counterpart
! Name origin
|-
| [[Evilswarm Azzathoth|Azzathoth]]
| [[Worm Zero]]
| [[wikipedia:Azathoth|Azathoth]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Castor|Castor]]
| [[Constellar Meteor|Constellar Castor]]<ref group=Notes name="Note1">"Castor" and "Pollux" are separate monsters and are brothers in the Duel Terminal storyline. The former was infected by the "lswarm" virus, not the latter. The original form of "Castor" is depicted in "Constellar Meteor".</ref><!--- Do NOT change this monster to Pollux, as Castor and Pollux are separate monsters. Castor and Pollux are brothers in the Duel Terminal storyline; the former was the one who got infected by the "lswarm" virus, not the latter. Castor's original form is depicted in Constellar Meteor.--->
| [[wikipedia:Castor (star)|Castor]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Coppelia|Coppelia]]
| [[Locomotion R-Genex]] (+ [[Genex Controller]] and [[Genex Spare]])
| [[wikipedia:Coppélia|Coppélia]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Hraesvelg|Hraesvelg]]
| [[Daigusto Falcos]]
| [[Wikipedia:Hræsvelgr|Hræsvelgr]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Golem|Golem]]
| [[Ally of Justice Catastor]]
| [[wikipedia:Golem|Golem]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Heliotrope|Heliotrope]]
| [[Gem-Knight Emerald]]
| [[wikipedia:Heliotrope (mineral)|Heliotrope]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Ketos|Ketos]]
| [[Gishki Shadow]]
| [[wikipedia:Ceto|Ceto]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Mandragora|Mandragora]]
| [[Naturia Cosmobeet]]
| [[wikipedia:Mandragora (demon)|Mandragora]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm O'lantern|O'lantern]]
| [[Laval Cannon]]
| [[wikipedia:Jack-o'-lantern|Jack-o'-lantern]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Salamandra|Salamandra]]
| [[Jurrac Titano]]
| [[wikipedia:Salamander (legendary creature)|Salamander]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Thunderbird|Thunderbird]]
| [[Mist Valley Apex Avian]]
| [[wikipedia:Thunderbird (mythology)|Thunderbird]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Zahak|Zahak]]
| [[Dragunity Aklys]]
| [[wikipedia:Zahhak|Zahhak]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Obliviwisp|Obliviwisp]]
| [[Neo Flamvell Origin]]
| [[wikipedia:Will-o'-the-wisp|Will-o'-the-wisp]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Kerykeion|Kerykeion]]
| [[Constellar Rasalhague]]
| [[wikipedia:Caduceus|Kerykeion]]
|}
===Extra Deck===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center"
! Evilswarm
! Counterpart
! Name origin
|-
| [[Evilswarm Nightmare|Nightmare]]
| [[XX-Saber Boggart Knight]]
| [[wikipedia:Mare (folklore)|Mare]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Thanatos|Thanatos]]
| [[Fabled Ragin]] (+ [[The Fabled Unicore]])
| [[wikipedia:Thanatos|Thanatos]]
|-
|-
| [[Evilswarm Bahamut|Bahamut]]
| [[Brionac, Dragon of the Ice Barrier]]
| [[wikipedia:Bahamut|Bahamut]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Ophion|Ophion]]
| [[Gungnir, Dragon of the Ice Barrier]]
| [[wikipedia:Ophion|Ophion]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Ouroboros|Ouroboros]]
| [[Trishula, Dragon of the Ice Barrier]]
| [[wikipedia:Ouroboros|Ouroboros]]
|-
| [[Evilswarm Exciton Knight|Exciton Knight]]
| [[Steelswarm Roach]]
| [[wikipedia:Exciton|Exciton]]
|}
== Story ==
{{See also|Duel Terminal Master Guide card storylines}}
<blockquote>''A crisis has struck the ''[[Duel Terminal]]'' world. Nearly all living things across the planet have been corrupted, their bodies warped, and their minds slowly seized by a desire to destroy that is so strong, it becomes impossible to interact with others. The elders of the planet linked it to ancient lore of an identical plague, and so dubbed the infection, and the infected, the "Evilswarm".''</blockquote>
"Inverz" could be seen as a shortened version of "Insect Verz" or "Insectoid Verz", meaning the "Verz" virus might have come long before the "Steelswarm" did, and the "Steelswarms" are a heavily-infected species of creature. Even the "lswarm" symbol can be seen as an outline of "Steelswarm" symbol (best seen on the horse of "[[Evilswarm Thanatos]]").
Another possible theory is that the "lswarm" virus is a defense mechanism the "Steelswarm" implement upon extinction that works to reconstruct their race. This can be seen by the goal of the "lswarm" controlled "[[Gishki Noellia]]" being to resurrect "[[Steelswarm Hercules]]", the overlord of the "Steelswarm".
It is also possible that with the destruction of the "Steelswarm" at the hands of the "[[Vylon]]", the virus then could have corrupted or even copied the other ''Duel Terminal'' archetypes.
In addition, "Ver" is French for "Worm". This may signify that their role is similar to the "[[Worm]]s" in the previous ''Duel Terminal'' story as the first, horror movie-like antagonist ("Worms" being aliens, "lswarm" being the zombie virus), followed by a holy/unholy antagonist that at first appeared to be an ally ("[[Fabled]]" and "Vylon"). More parallels can be drawn, for example Las Plagas the parasitic-organism featured in both [[wikipedia:Resident Evil 4|Resident Evil 4]] and [[wikipedia:Resident Evil 5|5]] were buried underground by a Spanish Castellan, while the "lswarms", the carriers of the "Evilswarm Virus", were sealed underground after losing against the "Vylon", also both of them can equally corrupt their hosts while making them stronger.
==Playing style==
The non-"Steelswarm" "lswarm"s is a sub-archetype that focuses on Summoning Rank 4 "Evilswarm" [[Xyz Monsters]] using "[[Evilswarm Castor]]", "[[Evilswarm Mandragora]]" and "Kerykeion" to swarm Level 4 "Evilswarms". The "Evilswarm" Xyz Monsters are very powerful: they add field control to the Deck with "[[Evilswarm Ophion]]", which prevents the Special Summon of any Level 5 or higher monsters, shutting down many popular Decks such as "[[Agent]]s" and "[[Chaos]] [[Dragons]]", "[[Evilswarm Nightmare]]", which disrupts Special Summoned monsters, and "[[Evilswarm Bahamut]]", which can permanently take control of your opponent's monster for a cost. "[[Evilswarm Ouroboros]]" can be used to gain hand and field advantage and by banishing a monster from the opponent's Graveyard (disrupting cards like "[[Grapha, Dragon Lord of Dark World]]" or "[[Steelswarm Scout]]"/"[[Treeborn Frog]]").

"lswarm" Decks can also potentially utilise "[[Chaos Zone]]" effectively, as "[[Evilswarm Salamandra]]" and "[[Evilswarm Thunderbird]]" provide large amounts of counters (repeatably) and are useful in their own right. An "lswarm" Deck using "Chaos Zone" can also benefit greatly from "[[Creeping Darkness]]", as it adds the core type of monster, Level 4 DARK, as well as 2 "Chaos Counters", making the re-Summoning of the monsters used for the cost relatively easy. "[[Allure of Darkness]]" can also be very useful in this type of Deck, with its negative effect partially offset. The latest "lswarm" monster, "Evilswarm Kerykeion", works particularly well in a "Chaos Zone"/"Xyz" Deck by recycling a monster as well as adding an extra Summon and a "Chaos Counter". Some might say that 3 copies can replace some or even all copies of "Evilswarm Castor", "Evilswarm Salamandra" and "Creeping Darkness".

"[[Dark Armed Dragon]]" is a relatively easy card to Summon in an "lswarm" Deck, with its high level of Graveyard manipulation through Xyz costs and "Evilswarm Salamandra"/"Creeping Darkness"/"Evilswarm Kerykeion" and large proportion of DARK monsters.
Whether or not to use the higher Level cards like "[[Evilswarm Golem]]" or "[[Evilswarm Coppelia]]" is a matter of personal preference, as they are powerful cards but are not useful for Xyz Summoning. Also, "Golem" is low in ATK, making it almost useless against another "DARK" Deck. However, it may be a good idea to place "Golem" in a Side Deck in a tournament to deal with Decks like "[[Naturia]]" or a particularly strong non-DARK key card, such as "[[Master Hyperion]]".

A recent development is a version of the basic non-"Steelswarm" "lswarm" Deck using "[[Evilswarm Heliotrope]]", "Evilswarm Castor", "Evilswarm Kerykeion", "Evilswarm Mandragora" and "[[Rescue Rabbit]]" as the only monsters in the Main Deck. The rest of this Deck is given over to protection cards such as "[[Forbidden Lance]]", "[[Dark Illusion]]" and "Infestation Pandemic"; This type of Deck uses "Evilswarm Ophion's" effect to block opponents' Summoning their strongest cards while keeping it on the field through the strong control elements in the Deck, eventually using up its "[[Xyz Material]]"s on the turn a replacement is Summoned. In a way, this type of Deck could be compared to "[[Dino Rabbit]]" decks, given its propensity for high-ATK Level 4 monsters and continuous use of disruptive effects.
===Weaknesses===
* First, as all "Evilswarms" are [[DARK]]-Attribute, the "[[Koa'ki Meiru]]" series and cards like "[[Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror]]" or "[[Consecrated Light]]" can potentially disrupt these monsters.
* The effectiveness of an "Evilswarm" Deck is heavily dependent on the current metagame; "[[Evilswarm Ophion]]" can easily shut down Fusion, Synchro, Ritual, and some Pendulum-focused Decks, but is often useless against most Xyz, Link, and Tribute Summoning-based Decks.
* Cards like "[[Skill Drain]]", "[[Angel O7]]" and even "[[Forbidden Chalice]]" can negate their effects on the [[Field]].
* One of the most devastating fields to watch out for is "[[Mystical Fairy Elfuria]]" backed by tons of Spells and Traps or other protection. If they continue to reveal anything other than a Level 4 monster in hand, they can potentially shut down your deck's entire arsenal.
* Decks that do not rely on high-level monsters and can bring out monsters that can easily dispatch "Evilswarm" monsters are also a weakness to the Deck, such as "[[Constellar]]s", who can easily bring out a turn-one "[[Constellar Pleiades]]" or "[[Starliege Paladynamo]]" and easily eliminate any of your monsters with ease.
* A common Side-Deck card is "[[Genex Ally Duradark]]", because of its ability to easily destroy any monster in the "Evilswarm" archetype, provided they are in Attack Position.
* As most "Evilswarms" are different types a common Side Deck card against them is "[[Rivalry of Warlords]]"; this prevents players from going into an Xyz Monster that has a different Type than the monster(s) they control.
=== Recommended cards ===
{{Decklist|
|normal monsters =
* [[Evilswarm Heliotrope]]
* [[Mystery Shell Dragon]]
|effect monsters =
* [[Evilswarm Castor]]
* [[Evilswarm Kerykeion]]
* [[Evilswarm Mandragora]]
* [[Evilswarm Thunderbird]]
* [[Armageddon Knight]]
* [[Dark Armed Dragon]]
* [[Dark Grepher]]
* [[Rescue Rabbit]]
* [[Kagetokage]]
* [[Luna the Dark Spirit]]
* [[Dark Honest]]
* [[Summoner Monk]]
* [[Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite]]
* [[Raider's Wing]]
|xyz monsters =
* [[Evilswarm Bahamut]]
* [[Evilswarm Exciton Knight]]
* [[Evilswarm Nightmare]]
* [[Evilswarm Ouroboros]]
* [[Evilswarm Ophion]]
* [[Evilswarm Thanatos]]
* [[Steelswarm Roach]]
* [[King of the Feral Imps]]
* [[Raider's Knight]]
** [[Arc Rebellion Xyz Dragon]]
|link monsters =
* [[Steelswarm Origin]]
* [[Isolde, Two Tales of the Noble Knights]]
* [[Wee Witch's Apprentice]]
* [[Bujinki Ahashima]]
| spells =
* [[Infestation Pandemic]]
* [[Allure of Darkness]]
* [[Burial from a Different Dimension]]
* [[D.D.R. - Different Dimension Reincarnation]]
* [[Divine Sword - Phoenix Blade]]
* [[Living Fossil]]
* [[Moon Mirror Shield]]
* [[Reinforcement of the Army]]
* [[Creeping Darkness]]
| traps =
* [[Infestation Infection]]
* [[Infestation Terminus]]
* [[Deck Devastation Virus]]
* [[Escape from the Dark Dimension]]
* [[Xyz Reborn]]
* [[Dark Illusion]]
}}

===[http://www.yugioh-card.com/japan/topics/images/ygdeck1211_4.pdf "lswarm" Deck recipes sample]===
{{Decklist|lswarm Returner Deck<br />ヴェルズ・リターナーデッキ
<!-- This is a Decklist made by Yugioh-card(jp). Do not remove any multiples or staples.-->
|normal monsters =
* [[Evilswarm Heliotrope]] x3
* [[Sabersaurus]] x3
|effect monsters =
* [[Evilswarm Ketos]] x3
* [[Evilswarm Kerykeion]] x2
* [[Dark Armed Dragon]]
* [[Sangan]]
* [[Tour Guide From the Underworld]] x2
* [[Photon Thrasher]] x2
* [[Rescue Rabbit]] x2
* [[Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning]]
|tuner monsters =
* [[Effect Veiler]] x2
|xyz monsters =
* [[Evilswarm Ouroboros]]
* [[Evilswarm Ophion]] x2
* [[Evolzar Laggia]]
* [[Daigusto Emeral]]
* [[Lavalval Chain]]
* [[Leviair the Sea Dragon]]
* [[Number 17: Leviathan Dragon]]
| spells =
* [[Infestation Pandemic]] x2
* [[Allure of Darkness]]
* [[Dark Hole]]
* [[Pot of Duality]] x2
* [[Monster Reborn]]
* [[Mystical Space Typhoon]] x2
* [[Heavy Storm]]
* [[Reinforcement of the Army]]
| traps =
* [[Infestation Terminus]]
* [[Infestation Infection]]
* [[Compulsory Evacuation Device]] x2
* [[Bottomless Trap Hole]] x2
* [[Solemn Judgment]]
}}

==Trivia==
* "[[Evilswarm Exciton Knight]]" and "[[Steelswarm Origin]]" are the only non-DARK members (being [[LIGHT]] instead).
==Notes==
<references group="Notes" />
{{Archseries navbox|lswarm}}
{{Archseries navbox (anime)|lswarm}}
{{Archseries navbox (D Team)|lswarm}}
{{Archseries navbox (Duel Links)|lswarm}}
{{Duel Terminal}}
[[Category:TCG and OCG archetypes]]