Difference between revisions of "Archfiend"

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{{Infobox archetype
+
{{Redirect|Daemon|the Type|Daemon (Type)}}
| image   = ArchfiendsRoar-TF04-JP-VG.jpg
+
{{Infobox archseries
| ja_name = デーモン
+
| image       = ArchfiendEmperortheFirstLordofHorror-MADU-EN-VG-artwork.png
| romaji = Dēmon
+
| caption      = "[[Archfiend Emperor, the First Lord of Horror]]", with "[[Archfiend Soldier]]" and "[[Archfiend General]]" in front of "[[Archfiend Palabyrinth]]"
| trans   = Demon
+
| ja_name     = デーモン
| fr_name = Archdémon
+
| romaji       = Dēmon
| de_name = Erzunterweltler
+
| trans       = Daemon
| it_name = Arcidemone
+
| zh_name      = 惡魔
| ko_name = 데몬
+
| zh_pinyin    = Èmó
| ko_romanized = demon
+
| zh_jyutping  = Ok3 mo1
 +
| zh_trans    = Demon
 +
| fr_name     = Archdémon
 +
| fr_trans    = Archdemon
 +
| de_name     = Erzunterweltler
 +
| de_trans    = Archunderworlder
 +
| it_name     = Arcidemone
 +
| it_trans    = Archdemon
 +
| ko_name     = 데몬
 +
| ko_romanized = Demon
 
| ko_trans    = Demon
 
| ko_trans    = Demon
| pt_name = Demônio
+
| pt_name     = Arquidemônio
| es_name = Archidemonio
+
| pt_name2    = Archdemônio (formerly)
| sets   =  
+
| pt_trans    = Archdemon
 +
| es_name     = Archidemonio
 +
| es_trans    = Archdemon
 +
| sets         =
 
* [[Starter Deck: Yugi]]
 
* [[Starter Deck: Yugi]]
* [[Starter Deck: Pegasus]]
 
* [[Starter Deck: Yugi Evolution]]
 
 
* [[Metal Raiders]]
 
* [[Metal Raiders]]
 
* [[Spell Ruler]]
 
* [[Spell Ruler]]
* [[Pharaoh's Servant]]
+
* [[Starter Deck: Pegasus]]
 
* [[Legacy of Darkness]]
 
* [[Legacy of Darkness]]
 
* [[Dark Crisis]]
 
* [[Dark Crisis]]
 +
* [[Starter Deck: Yugi Evolution]]
 
* [[Cybernetic Revolution]]
 
* [[Cybernetic Revolution]]
 
* [[Force of the Breaker]]
 
* [[Force of the Breaker]]
 +
* [[Starter Deck: Syrus Truesdale]]
 
* [[Phantom Darkness]]
 
* [[Phantom Darkness]]
 
* [[The Duelist Genesis]]
 
* [[The Duelist Genesis]]
 
* [[Crossroads of Chaos]]
 
* [[Crossroads of Chaos]]
 +
* [[Anniversary Pack]]
 
* [[Crimson Crisis]]
 
* [[Crimson Crisis]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's World Championship 2009: Stardust Accelerator promotional cards]]
 +
* [[Duelist Pack: Yugi]]
 
* [[Ancient Prophecy]]
 
* [[Ancient Prophecy]]
 
* [[The Shining Darkness]]
 
* [[The Shining Darkness]]
 
* [[Starstrike Blast]]
 
* [[Starstrike Blast]]
 +
* [[Extreme Victory]]
 +
* [[Order of Chaos]]
 +
* [[Judgement of the Light]]
 +
* [[Primal Origin]]
 +
* [[Duelist Alliance]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's Volume 6 promotional card]]
 +
* [[Duelist Pack: Battle City]]
 +
* [[Clash of Rebellions]]
 +
* [[Dimension of Chaos]]
 +
* [[Shining Victories]]
 +
* [[The Dark Illusion]]
 +
* [[Extreme Force]]
 +
* [[Rising Rampage]]
 +
* [[Blazing Vortex]]
 +
* [[Darkwing Blast]]
 +
* [[Photon Hypernova]]
 +
* [[Phantom Nightmare]]
 +
* [[Legacy of Destruction]]
 +
| tcg          =
 +
* [[Summoned Skull Sample promotional card]]
 +
* [[Booster Pack Collectors Tins 2002]]
 +
* [[Tournament Pack: 3rd Season]]
 
* [[Dark Beginning 1]]
 
* [[Dark Beginning 1]]
 +
* [[Shonen Jump Vol. 3, Issue 1 promotional card]]
 +
* [[Dark Revelation Volume 1]]
 +
* [[Tournament Pack 6]]
 +
* [[Dark Beginning 2]]
 
* [[Dark Revelation Volume 4]]
 
* [[Dark Revelation Volume 4]]
* [[Booster Pack Tin Series Promos]]
+
* [[Retro Pack]]
* [[Collector Tin Series Promos]]
+
* [[Collectible Tins 2008 Wave 1]]
* [[Anniversary Pack]]
+
* [[Dark Legends]]
 
* [[Retro Pack 2]]
 
* [[Retro Pack 2]]
 +
* [[Duelist League Demo 2010]]
 
* [[Turbo Pack: Booster Two]]
 
* [[Turbo Pack: Booster Two]]
* [[Tournament Pack 3rd Season]]
+
* [[Duel Terminal 2]]
* [[Tournament Pack 6]]
 
 
* [[Gold Series 3]]
 
* [[Gold Series 3]]
* [[Sneak Preview Participation Cards]]
+
* [[Duelist Revolution Sneak Peek Participation Card]]
* [[Shonen Jump Magazine Promotional Cards]]
+
* [[Duelist Revolution]]
* [[Order of Chaos]]
+
* [[Collectible Tins 2010 Wave 1]]
| anime   =  
+
* [[Duel Terminal 3]]
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (first series anime)|Yu-Gi-Oh!]]
+
* [[Collectible Tins 2010 Wave 2]]
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (second series anime)|Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters]]
+
* [[Starstrike Blast Sneak Peek Participation Card]]
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! GX|Yu-Gi-Oh! (Duel Monsters) GX]]
+
* [[Duelist League 2 participation cards]]
 +
* [[Demo Pack]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal 5a]]
 +
* [[Turbo Pack: Booster Six]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal 5b]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! Advent Calendar]]
 +
* [[Battle Pack: Epic Dawn]]
 +
* [[Legendary Collection 3: Yugi's World Mega Pack]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal 7b]]
 +
* [[Battle Pack 2: War of the Giants]]
 +
* [[Astral Pack Three]]
 +
* [[Judgment of the Light: Deluxe Edition]]
 +
* [[Legendary Collection 4: Joey's World Mega Pack]]
 +
* [[Shadow Specters]]
 +
* [[Starter Deck: Yugi Reloaded]]
 +
* [[Weekly Shonen Jump December 2013 membership promotional card]]
 +
* [[War of the Giants Reinforcements]]
 +
* [[War of the Giants: Round 2]]
 +
* [[Jump Pack 2014 Issue 1 promotional card]]
 +
* [[Astral Pack Four]]
 +
* [[Super Starter: Space-Time Showdown]]
 +
* [[2014 Mega-Tins]]
 +
* [[2014 Mega-Tin Mega Pack]]
 +
* [[Legendary Collection 5D's Mega Pack]]
 +
* [[Demo Deck 2015]]
 +
* [[2-Player Starter Deck Yuya & Declan]]
 +
* [[Dark Legion Starter Deck]]
 +
* [[2015 Mega-Tin Mega Pack]]
 +
* [[High-Speed Riders]]
 +
* [[Yugi's Legendary Decks]]
 +
* [[Master of Pendulum Structure Deck]]
 +
* [[Premium Gold: Infinite Gold]]
 +
* [[Millennium Pack]]
 +
* [[Starter Deck: Yuya]]
 +
* [[OTS Tournament Pack 2]]
 +
* [[2016 Mega-Tin Mega Pack]]
 +
* [[Legendary Decks II]]
 +
* [[Pendulum Domination Structure Deck]]
 +
* [[Dinosmasher's Fury Structure Deck]]
 +
* [[Duelist Pack: Dimensional Guardians]]
 +
* [[Pendulum Evolution]]
 +
* [[Battles of Legend: Light's Revenge]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Lair of Darkness]]
 +
* [[2018 Mega-Tin Mega Pack]]
 +
* [[OTS Tournament Pack 9]]
 +
* [[OTS Tournament Pack 10]]
 +
* [[Ignition Assault]]
 +
* [[The Lost Art Promotion 2019 B]]
 +
* [[Speed Duel Starter Decks: Twisted Nightmares]]
 +
* [[Legendary Duelists: Season 1]]
 +
* [[2020 Tin of Lost Memories]]
 +
* [[2021 Tin of Ancient Battles]]
 +
* [[Ghosts From the Past: The 2nd Haunting‎‎]]
 +
* [[Tactical Masters]]
 +
* [[The Lost Art Promotion 2022 I]]
 +
* [[Speed Duel GX: Duelists of Shadows]]
 +
* [[OTS Tournament Pack 22]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: The Crimson King]]
 +
| ocg          =
 +
* [[Vol.1]]
 +
* [[Vol.4]]
 +
* [[Vol.5]]
 +
* [[EX Starter Box]]
 +
* [[Magic Ruler (Japanese)]]
 +
* [[Pharaoh's Servant]]
 +
* [[Revival of Black Demons Dragon]]
 +
* [[EX-R Starter Box]]
 +
* [[Booster R3]]
 +
* [[Weekly Shōnen Jump 2001, Issue 11 promotional card]]
 +
* [[Limited Edition 3: Yugi Pack]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Yugi]]
 +
* [[Asia Championship 2001 prize cards]]
 +
* [[Struggle of Chaos]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Joey]]
 +
* [[Mythological Age]]
 +
* [[Duelist Legacy Volume.1]]
 +
* [[Duelist Legacy Volume.2]]
 +
* [[Power of the Guardian]]
 +
* [[Booster Pack Collectors Tin 2003]]
 +
* [[Threat of the Dark Demon World]]
 +
* [[Duelist Legacy Volume.5]]
 +
* [[Beginner's Edition 1]]
 +
* [[Expert Edition Volume.1]]
 +
* [[Beginner's Edition 2]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Curse of Darkness]]
 +
* [[Expert Edition Volume 4]]
 +
* [[Weekly Shōnen Jump 2008, Issue 18 promotional card]]
 +
* [[Tournament Pack 2008 Vol.2]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal - Justice Strikes Back!!]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal - Demon Roar God Revival!!]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal - Dragunity of the Hurricane!!]]
 +
* [[Tournament Pack 2009 Vol.3]]
 +
* [[Monster Figure Collection promotional cards]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal - Vylon Descends!!]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal - Raid of the Inverz!!]]
 +
* [[Beginner's Edition 1 (2011)]]
 +
* [[Beginner's Edition 2 (2011)]]
 +
* [[Extra Pack Volume 4]]
 +
* [[Duel Terminal - Ouroboros, Wicked Dragon of Destruction!!]]
 +
* [[Duelist Edition Volume 1]]
 +
* [[Duelist Edition Volume 2]]
 +
* [[Duelist Edition Volume 3]]
 +
* [[Duelist Edition Volume 4]]
 +
* [[V Jump June 2013 promotional card]]
 +
* [[Half-Deck: DARK]]
 +
* [[Starter Pack Volume 1]]
 +
* [[Memories of the Duel King: Duelist Kingdom Arc]]
 +
* [[Starter Deck 2014]]
 +
* [[Memories of the Duel King: Battle City Arc]]
 +
* [[Extra Pack: Knights of Order]]
 +
* [[Starter Pack Volume 3]]
 +
* [[The Rarity Collection]]
 +
* [[Duelist Road -Piece of Memory- Side: Yami Yugi]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Devil's Gate]]
 +
* [[Duelist Entry Deck VS]]
 +
* [[Entry Pack]]
 +
* [[V Jump October 2015 promotional card]]
 +
* [[Booster SP: Highspeed Riders]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Master of Pendulum]]
 +
* [[Millennium Pack (OCG)]]
 +
* [[Starter Deck 2016]]
 +
* [[Dimension Box Limited Edition]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Pendulum Evolution]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck R: Tyranno's Rage]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Links Legend Deck Guide: Yami Yugi VS Seto Kaiba promotional cards]]
 +
* [[LINK VRAINS Pack]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck R: Curse of the Dark]]
 +
* [[Special Pack 20th Anniversary Edition Vol.1]]
 +
* [[Special Pack 20th Anniversary Edition Vol.2]]
 +
* [[Half Deck 2018: DARK]]
 +
* [[Special Pack 20th Anniversary Edition Vol.3]]
 +
* [[Tournament Pack 2018 Vol.4]]
 +
* [[Special Pack 20th Anniversary Edition Vol.4]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Masters of the Spiritual Arts]]
 +
* [[Rarity Collection Premium Gold Edition]]
 +
* [[Deck Build Pack: Tactical Masters]]
 +
* [[Photon Hypernova +1 Bonus Pack]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Pulse of the King]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Pulse of the King Rumbling of Heaven and Earth Pack]]
 +
* [[The Valuable Book EX 4 promotional cards]]
 +
| korea        =
 +
* [[Expansion Pack Vol.1]]
 +
* [[Expansion Pack Vol.2]]
 +
* [[Expansion Pack Vol.3]]
 +
* [[Tournament Pack 2010 Vol.6]]
 +
* [[Tournament Pack 2011 Vol.11]]
 +
* [[Winter Festival 2011 promotional cards]]
 +
* [[Advanced Tournament Pack 2013 Vol.2]]
 +
* [[Advanced Event Pack 2013 Vol.1]]
 +
* [[Advanced Event Pack 2013 Vol.2]]
 +
* [[Advanced Event Pack 2014 Vol.1]]
 +
* [[Precious Pack Volume 2]]
 +
* [[Structure Deck: Cyber Dragon Revolution Deluxe Edition]]
 +
* [[Premium Pack Vol.9]]
 +
* [[Advanced Event Pack 2014 Vol.4]]
 +
* [[Duelist Entry Deck VS: Dark Legion]]
 +
* [[Premium Pack Vol.14 1st Wave]]
 +
| anime       =
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (Toei anime)]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (Toei film)]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (anime)|Yu-Gi-Oh!]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! The Movie: Pyramid of Light]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! GX]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL]]
| manga   =  
+
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS]]
 +
| manga       =
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (manga)|Yu-Gi-Oh!]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (manga)|Yu-Gi-Oh!]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! (subseries)]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelist]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! Duelist]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! R]]
 
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! R]]
| vg      =
+
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's (manga)|Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! D Team ZEXAL]]
 +
* [[Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V (manga)|Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V]]
 
}}
 
}}
 +
"'''Archfiend'''", known as "'''Daemon'''" (デーモン ''Dēmon'') in the ''[[OCG]]'', is one of the very first [[archetype]]s. Members appear in a myriad of sets due to the string required for inclusion being a simple word in Japanese. While many [[Duelist]]s use "Archfiend" cards in the anime and manga as a result, only [[Titan]] and [[Raizo Akuma]] runs a dedicated "Archfiend" Deck. The majority of the [[Monster Card|monsters]] in this archetype are [[DARK]] [[Fiend]] monsters, but there are many monsters of other [[Attribute]]s and Types. There are cards, such as [[Falling Down]], which supports any "Archfiend" cards. There are a sub-archetype, "[[Red Dragon Archfiend (archetype)|Red Dragon Archfiend]]", and a sub-series, [[Skull Archfiend]].
 +
== History/Naming ==
 +
The first monster to receive the "Archfiend" designation is "[[Summoned Skull]]". It has appeared in the first manga chapter featuring ''Duel Monsters'', [[Yu-Gi-Oh! - Duel 009|Duel 009]], as well as the [[Yu-Gi-Oh!_Duel_Monsters_(video_game)|first ''Duel Monsters'' video game]]. Two more monsters, "[[Wicked Mirror]]" and "[[Air Marmot of Nefariousness]]", also debuted in this video game.
  
{{DecksAZ}}
+
"[[Wicked Mirror]]" and "[[Air Marmot of Nefariousness]]" are the first Archfiend monsters to appear in the ''OCG'', appearing in the [[Vol.1|very first set]]. Both have been renamed as demonstrated in video games.
 
 
"'''Archfiend''', known as "'''Demon'''" (デーモン ''Dēmon'') in the ''[[OCG]]'', is an [[archetype]] of [[Monster Card|monster]]s that appear in a myriad of sets due to the way they are classified. They are used by a variety of [[Duelist]]s in the anime series for the same reason, although one, [[Titan]], runs a dedicated "Archfiend" Deck.
 
 
 
==Naming==
 
According to the [http://replay.waybackmachine.org/20090226221410/http://entertainment.upperdeck.com/yugioh/en/gameplay/faqs/archfiend/default.aspx Upper Deck Entertainment] website, ''"'''Archfiends''' are a special category of card. Most "Archfiend" cards can be easily identified by their name. Any card with "Archfiend" in the card name is an "Archfiend."''
 
 
 
This category was officially introduced with the release of ''[[Dark Crisis]]'', as a way to standardize the English translation of ''OCG'' card names containing "Demon" 「デーモン」. To avoid confusion, "Demon" is often spelled "Dæmon" or "Daemon" by fans to show that the card is an Archfiend. Some non-Archfiend cards have "Demon" spelled differently<ref>The Japanese name of "[[Regenerating Rose]]", 「スプリット・{{Ruby|D|デモン}}・ローズ」 translates to "Split Demon Rose", but "Demon" is spelled 「デモン」, so it is not an Archfiend.</ref>, and some monsters have Japanese names with "Demon" as a possible translation.
 
  
==Theme==
+
The introduction of the "Archfiend" archetype in ''[[Dark Crisis]]'' caused a translation issue, since [[archetype condition]]s were not yet created and the cards in the set specified support for all monsters with 「デーモン」 ("Daemon") in their Japanese names. This was decided to be translated into English as "Archfiend", and from this point onward, all cards with 「デーモン」 in their Japanese names would have "Archfiend" in their English names. However, several cards in older sets predating the concept of archetypes had already been released and translated whose Japanese names contained 「デーモン」, but whose English names did not contain any specific string:
The first official members of this archetype (not counting existing cards retroactively identified as Archfiends) are chess-themed, including "[[Terrorking Archfiend|Terrorking]]", "[[Infernalqueen Archfiend|Infernalqueen]]", "[[Desrook Archfiend|Desrook]]", "[[Imprisoned Queen Archfiend|Imprisoned Queen]]", "[[Darkbishop Archfiend|Darkbishop]]", "[[Shadowknight Archfiend|Shadowknight]]" and "[[Vilepawn Archfiend]]", all of whom are named after chess pieces and feature a chessboard pattern as their background. The support card, "[[Checkmate]]", is named after the [[wikipedia:Checkmate|Checkmate]], the final winning move in Chess.
+
* [[A Deal with Dark Ruler]] (''A Deal with a Daemon'')
 +
* [[Axe of Despair]] (''Daemon's Axe'')
 +
* [[Black Skull Dragon]] (''Black Daemons Dragon'')
 +
* [[Beast of Talwar]] (''Talwar Daemon'')
 +
* [[Fiend Skull Dragon]] (''Death Daemon Dragon'')
 +
* [[Lesser Fiend]] (''Lesser Daemon'')
 +
* [[Shadow Tamer]] (''Daemon Tamer'')
 +
* [[Summoned Skull]] (''Summoned Daemon'')
 +
* [[Toon Summoned Skull]] (''Toon Daemon'')
  
Since then, other Archfiends have been released which lack the chess motifs. In general, they possess demonic and gruesome features, some even going so far as to have demonic physiques with bones and sinew reminiscent of their original representative, "[[Summoned Skull]]".
+
In two cases, cards whose English names did not contain "Archfiend" were renamed to contain "Archfiend". In both cases, the former names appeared in video games only as they remained OCG-exclusive at the time Archfiend support came out.
 +
* [[Archfiend Marmot of Nefariousness]] (Air Marmot of Nefariousness)
 +
** First ''TCG'' release was on 2005 June 1st, with the new name.
 +
** Last appearance mentioning the former name was from [[Air_Marmot_of_Nefariousness_(DBT)|''Destiny Board Traveler'']].
 +
** Change reflected on subsequent video game appearances starting from [[Archfiend Marmot of Nefariousness (World Championship 2006)|''World Championship 2006'']].
 +
* [[Archfiend Mirror]] (Wicked Mirror)
 +
** Still ''OCG''-exclusive to this date. Also has never appeared in another set.
 +
** Still called "Wicked Mirror" in [[Wicked Mirror (World Championship 2006)|''World Championship 2006'']], excluding it from the archetype.
 +
** Name change applied since [[Archfiend_Mirror_(Tag_Force_1)|''Tag Force 1'']], released on the same year.
  
==Naming changes==
+
To resolve this issue, [[Upper Deck Entertainment]] invented the idea of Archfiend monsters (rather than "Archfiend" monsters) as a separate category, similar to existing [[ability|abilities]]. Due to the circumstances, they were not printed on the card but rather could only be looked up via UDE's website, which stated: ''"'''Archfiends''' are a special category of card. Most "Archfiend" cards can be easily identified by their name. Any card with "Archfiend" in the card name is an "Archfiend." In addition, several older cards are also considered to be "Archfiends." These cards include:'' followed by the above list.<ref>{{citeweb|url = http://replay.waybackmachine.org/20090226221410/http://entertainment.upperdeck.com/yugioh/en/gameplay/faqs/archfiend/default.aspx|title = What is an "Archfiend"?|publisher = Upper Deck Entertainment|date = February 26, 2009|access-date = February 26, 2009}}</ref>
Since some Japanese cards with names containing "Demon" 「デーモン」 had already been released in the English ''TCG'', they were retroactively classified as "Archfiends", although their official names were left unchanged. These include:
+
As a result, all "Archfiend" support in the original printing of ''Dark Crisis'' referred to Archfiend cards as if they were a category (rather than "Archfiend" cards as an archetype). For example, this can be seen in the original card texts of "[[Card Errata:Falling Down|Falling Down]]" and "[[Card Errata:Archfiend's Roar|Archfiend's Roar]]".
 +
The introduction of [[archetype condition]]s 7 years later would remove the need for any special category, and later prints of the above list of cards in the ''TCG'' would all receive one stating that they belonged to the "Archfiend" archetype regardless of their printed name. This began with "Axe of Despair" in ''[[Battle Pack 2: War of the Giants]]'', and finished with the release of ''[[Legendary Collection 4: Joey's World Mega Pack]]''.
 +
"A Deal with Dark Ruler" was not included on UDE's original list of Archfiend cards that do not have "Archfiend" in their English names, as all Archfiend support at the time referred to either monsters or cards that could be continuously controlled, making it mechanically irrelevant. However, later cards like "[[Archfiend Heiress]]" would refer to adding any "Archfiend" card from the Deck to the hand, making it mechanically significant, and it was given the archetype condition along with the other cards.
 +
In order for a card to be an "Archfiend" card, it must have the exact string 「デーモン」 ("Daemon") in its Japanese name. Other spellings like "Demon" (or any other Japanese word that might be translatable as "demon") do not qualify. For example, the Japanese name of "[[Regenerating Rose]]", 「スプリット・{{Ruby|D|デモン}}・ローズ」, translates directly to "Split Demon Rose" with "Demon" spelled 「デモン」, so it is not an "Archfiend" card.
 +
===Themes===
 +
The first members introduced after "Archfiend" became an archetype are chess-themed, all of which are named after chess pieces, and feature a chessboard pattern as the background of their artwork.
 +
{| class="wikitable"
 +
! Chess Archfiend !! Origin
 +
|-
 +
| [[Terrorking Archfiend|Terrorking]]<br />[[Masterking Archfiend|Masterking]] || [[wikipedia:King (chess)|King]]
 +
|-
 +
| [[Infernalqueen Archfiend|Infernalqueen]]<br />[[Imprisoned Queen Archfiend|Imprisoned Queen]] || [[wikipedia:Queen (chess)|Queen]]
 +
|-
 +
| [[Desrook Archfiend|Desrook]] || [[wikipedia:Rook (chess)|Rook]]
 +
|-
 +
| [[Darkbishop Archfiend|Darkbishop]] || [[wikipedia:Bishop (chess)|Bishop]]
 +
|-
 +
| [[Shadowknight Archfiend|Shadowknight]] || [[wikipedia:Knight (chess)|Knight]]
 +
|-
 +
| [[Vilepawn Archfiend|Vilepawn]] || [[wikipedia:Pawn (chess)|Pawn]]
 +
|-
 +
| [[Checkmate]] || [[wikipedia:Checkmate|Checkmate]]
 +
|-
 +
|}
 +
Since then, other "Archfiends" have been released which lack the chess motifs. In general, they possess demonic and gruesome features, some even going so far as to have physiques featuring bones and sinew reminiscent of their original representative, "[[Summoned Skull]]".
 +
Since "Archfiends" have seen many years of release, the archetype has varying appearance themes which change over time. The original unorganized "Archfiends" were generally bony and "horror" themed ("Summoned Skull", "[[Axe of Despair]]", "[[Lesser Fiend]]", etc.). At this point, they were not related other than sharing a word in their Japanese names.
 +
The first archetype-oriented "Archfiends" appeared in ''[[Dark Crisis]]'' and were chess-themed, each featuring a dice roll-conditional negation of effects that target them ("[[Terrorking Archfiend]]", "[[Vilepawn Archfiend]]", etc.). These "Archfiends" all had appearances that very closely resembled contortions or variations on "Summoned Skull". This series was the longest-lasting period for the "Archfiends", and provided them with most of their Spell/Trap support, including their first [[Field Spell Card|Field Spell]], "[[Pandemonium]]". It ended with the release of "[[Imprisoned Queen Archfiend]]".
 +
The next wave of "Archfiends" appeared in the 5D's period, and had a sports theme ("[[Archfiend Interceptor]]", "[[Lancer Archfiend]]", "[[Mad Archfiend]]"). For the first time since "[[Black Skull Dragon]]" and "[[Fiend Skull Dragon]]" it featured a Dragon member: "[[Red Dragon Archfiend]]". This series had no general effect theme or visual appearance (though skulls featured prominently in several of their artworks), but represented a move away from the "bone and sinew" style of the chess "Archfiends".
 +
The most recent series of "Archfiends" began in the ''TCG'' in ''[[Starstrike Blast]]'', beginning with the North American release of "[[Archfiend Empress]]". These Archfiends bore little resemblance to the original chess Archfiends, having generally purple color schemes, a metallic appearance, and an imperial theme, similar to the "[[Fabled]]" monsters. ''[[Judgement of the Light]]'' introduced the archetype's second Field Spell, "[[Archfiend Palabyrinth]]", and the 3000 ATK "[[Archfiend Emperor, the First Lord of Horror]]". This support continued in the North American release of ''[[Shadow Specters]]'' with the release of "[[Archfiend Giant]]" and continued with the global release of "[[Archfiend Eccentrick]]" in ''[[Clash of Rebellions]]'', alongside "[[Red-Eyes Archfiend of Lightning]]", the first "Archfiend" Gemini monster, and "[[Archfiend Black Skull Dragon]]", the retrained version of their first ever Fusion.
  
* [[A Deal with Dark Ruler]]<ref>Even though this card is technically an "Archfiend", there is no situation where it is important for it to be listed as an "Archfiend", so UDE does not list it as one.</ref>
+
==Playing style==
* [[Axe of Despair]]
+
Building a Deck around the "Chess Archfiends" is tricky since they require your [[Life Points]] as payment and paying is not optional. As a result, your Life Points will be drained very quickly, especially since you must worry about further Life Point drain through battle damage from your opponent. Most "Archfiends" do not have enough attack power to hold their ground. Their most useful ability is negating an opponent's effect that targets them by a roll of the dice. However, this is not a reliable defense, and only two of the cards have a 50% chance of negation (although one of them, "[[Darkbishop Archfiend]]", works for any of your Archfiends, including the ones that have their own protection). Most have a ~17% chance, and a couple have a ~33% chance.
* [[B. Skull Dragon]]
+
If trying to go for a "Chess Archfiend" Deck for novelty's sake, then it is advantageous to make it a general [[Fiend]]-themed Deck, adding Fiend support cards like "[[Goblin King]]".
* [[Beast of Talwar]]
+
The more modern "Archfiends" such as "[[Archfiend Emperor, the First Lord of Horror]]" and "[[Annihilator Archfiend]]" tend to go for a destruction strategy to pave the way to attack the opponent directly with their high-Level high-ATK Monsters. Three "Archfiend" [[Equip Spell Card]]s exist with different effects: the oldest, "[[Axe of Despair]]", boosts ATK and can return to the hand; "[[Falling Down]]" is an in-theme "[[Snatch Steal]]"; and the newest, "[[Archfiend's Staff of Despair]]", is an enfeebling version of "Axe of Despair". The "Archfiends" are also lucky enough to have two [[Field Spell Card]]s: "[[Pandemonium]]", which although designed for the older "Archfiends" can still be used with the modern ones to recover losses when "Archfiends" are destroyed by an effect, and "[[Archfiend Palabyrinth]]", which boosts Fiends' ATKs as well as carrying a Special Summon from Deck effect granting access to fast Xyz Summons.
* [[Fiend Skull Dragon]]
+
"[[Summoned Skull]]'s" [[series]] is covered more on its own page, [[Skull Archfiend]].
* [[Lesser Fiend]]
+
Being Fiend and DARK gives the members a myriad of support such as "[[Fiend Griefing]]", "[[Stygian Street Patrol]]", "[[Allure of Darkness]]", the "[[Virus]]" cards, and many others.
* [[Shadow Tamer]]
+
===Recommended cards===
 +
{{Decklist|Recommended cards
 +
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
 +
|normal monsters =
 
* [[Summoned Skull]]
 
* [[Summoned Skull]]
* [[Toon Summoned Skull]]
+
|effect monsters =
 
+
* [[Annihilator Archfiend]]
==Deck==
+
* [[Archfiend Cavalry]]
Building a Deck around the "Chess Archfiends" is tricky since they require your [[Life Points]] as payment and paying is not optional. As a result, your Life Points will be drained very quickly, especially since you must worry about further Life Point drain through battle damage from your opponent. Most "Archfiends" do not have enough attack power to hold their ground. Their most useful ability is negating an opponent's effect that targets them by a roll of the dice. However, this is not a reliable defense, and only two of the cards have a 50% chance of negation (although one of them, "[[Darkbishop Archfiend]]", works for any of your Archfiends, including the ones that have their own protection), whereas most have a 16.5% chance, and a couple have a 33% chance.
+
* [[Archfiend Commander]]
 
+
* [[Archfiend Emperor, the First Lord of Horror]]
A Deck built around these cards is difficult to play and does not ensure victory. "Archfiend" Decks must rely on heavy support. Try to activate "[[Pandemonium]]" as soon as possible and add "[[Terraforming]]" and/or "[[Archfiend General]]". To help an "Archfiend" Deck run smoothly, it is often advisable to use "[[Dark Necrofear]]" or "[[Plaguespreader Zombie]]" to get a quick defense if you're in a tight spot. It is highly advisable to make good use of "Archfiends" that don't sap your Life Points but still offer good attack or defense, like "[[Archfiend Soldier]]" and "[[Archfiend of Gilfer]]". Another route to go is to simply stop caring about your Life Points, throw in a few more suicidal cards to help, like "[[Bark of Dark Ruler]]", and hope you kill your opponent before your Deck kills you. If you're a fan of the game chess and are going for a "Chess Archfiend" Deck for novelty's sake, then you should really make it geared more towards a general fiend-themed Deck, adding "[[Goblin King]]" and other fiend support cards. This way, when the heat is high, you can turn to a plan B.
+
* [[Archfiend Empress]]
 
+
* [[Archfiend General]]
Take advantage of the high ATK of most archfiends, namely "[[Shadowknight Archfiend]]", "[[Archfiend Soldier]]" and "[[Terrorking Archfiend]]". Archfiends are one of the few archetypes with an abundance of high ATK non-tributers in the game; "[[Stygian Street Patrol]]" is an excellent card and can help avoid the Summoning problems usually related to Terrorking Archfiend. "[[Summoned Skull]]" and its [[retrained]] [[Skull Archfiend of Lightning|counterpart]] can provide late-game power, as well as receive a considerable boost when used in conjunction with "[[Axe of Despair]]" or "[[United We Stand]]". If you can weather the [[Life Point]] payments, you may be able to destroy your opponent under a barrage of massive attacks. Piercing cards such as "[[Big Bang Shot]]" and "[[Fairy Meteor Crush]]" can further the punishment, while the Archfiend's own innate immunities can provide some defense.
+
* [[Archfiend Giant]]
 
+
* [[Archfiend Heiress]]
* "[[Life Absorbing Machine]]" is very helpful because it causes you to regain half of the Life Points paid in the last turn. Having multiple copies may be excess, but having two copies will result in no loss after the initial payment. Three copies, while zone clogging, will actually gain Life Points. However, once "Pandemonium" is on the field, all three would become dead weight unless you choose to pay Life Points.
+
* [[Berserk Archfiend]]
** If you are using [[Continuous Trap Cards]] that will become useless after activating "[[Pandemonium]]", you ought to consider using "[[Darkness Neosphere]]". Aside from being able to easily satisfy its strict summoning condition with this type of Deck, "Darkness Neosphere" will allow you to return Trap Cards like "Life Absorbing Machine" or "[[Battle-Scarred]]" to your hand. This would prevent your [[Spell & Trap Card Zone]] from getting clogged with useless traps while also allowing you to trade those cards for (hopefully) better ones with "[[Reload]]" or "[[Magical Mallet]]".
+
* [[Mist Archfiend]]
* [[Solemn Wishes]] gives a steady stream of life points.
 
* [[Solomon's Lawbook]] skips the [[Standby Phase]] therefore avoiding the [[maintenance cost]].
 
* [[Supremacy Berry]] can give a quick boost to your life if you're running low.
 
* [[Cyber Archfiend]] is a great addition to an Archfiend Deck because, in addition to having a high DEF and potential for increased Drawing, when "[[Pandemonium]]" is active on the [[Playing Field|Field]] "Cyber Archfiend's" self-destruction ability allows you to search your Deck for a level 3 or lower Archfiend monster.
 
* [[Destruct Potion]] can be used to gain Life Points, avoid the maintenance cost of the destroyed monster, and search for another Archfiend with Pandemonium's effect.
 
* [[Mist Archfiend]] is another option, providing a 2400, no tribute monster that dies at turn's end. This will allow the player to search for level 4 archfiends easily as well.
 
"[[Megamorph]]" can be a useful and sometimes game  card.  You will most likely have less Life Points due to the [[maintenance cost]]s and this will give the Archfiends much needed power. This will give "Summoned Skull" or "Skull Archfiend of Lightning" 5000 ATK points, enough to match the infamous "[[Five-Headed Dragon]]", and even greater attack powers can be reached with "[[Infernalqueen Archfiend]]", "[[Imprisoned Queen Archfiend]]", and/or "Axe of Despair" can overpower it.
 
"[[Pandemonium]]" is a must in an Archfiend Deck: as well as negating any costs to your Life Points to keep Archfiends in play, when an Archfiend monster is destroyed by a card effect you can add an Archfiend of a lower Level from your Deck to your hand. You can search and protect "[[Pandemonium]]" with "[[Archfiend General]]" and "[[Pandemonium Watchbear]]" respectively, as well as "[[Field Barrier]]". Since "Pandemonium" is so important in an Archfiend Deck, increasing your drawing potential could be useful. Draw increasing cards like "[[Card Destruction]]" and "[[Magical Mallet]]" may be worth considering in an Archfiend Deck. "[[Falling Down]]" is another staple: if you control an Archfiend, you can clear the field and attack directly. In the same vein, "[[Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu]]" can benefit from Pandemonium to help heavily weather down the opposition. Other cards to help stifle or downright negate the Archfiends' weaknesses are "[[My Body as a Shield]]" to protect the Archfiends from their weakness to cards that affect multiple monsters, or "[[Dark Ruler Ha Des]]" to negate opponent monsters' effects. "[[Dice Re-Roll]]" is useful but not required because the Archfiends' dice effects are not reliable. It is also perfectly possible to heavily increase the threat level of even the low-level Archfiends by using "[[Solidarity]]", as most Archfiend Decks do not require monsters of any other Types.
 
 
 
* If you have "[[Vilepawn Archfiend]]", "[[Shadowknight Archfiend]]", "[[Darkbishop Archfiend]]", and "[[Infernalqueen Archfiend]]" in your deck, you might want to think about including the trap "[[Elemental Burst]]" since the requirements of having a "[[FIRE]]", "[[WATER]]", "[[EARTH]]", and "[[WIND]]" monster to activate it's effect will be fulfilled, which will allow you to clear your opponent's field of both Monster and Spell and Traps for a direct assault on your opponent with one of your more major Archfiend monsters. 
 
 
 
* "[[Thought Ruler Archfiend]]", "[[Red Dragon Archfiend]]", and "[[Chaos King Archfiend]]", all of which are intended to be unrelated to the usual Archfiends, are good [[Synchro Monsters]]: "Thought Ruler" can pay Life Points to negate the effect of Spells and Trap that target it and replenish your Life Points when it destroys a monster in battle, "Red Dragon" can destroy all defense position monsters your opponent controls, and "Chaos King" can allow your other monsters to destroy high-ATK but low-DEF monsters with ease.
 
* One potential strategy is to use "[[Foolish Burial]]s" and "[[Armageddon Knight]]s" to put at least two "[[Imprisoned Queen Archfiend]]s" in the Graveyard to give "[[Terrorking Archfiend]]" 4000 ATK, then remove an "[[Evil Hero Infernal Gainer]]" from play so "Terrorking Archfiend" can attack twice, then play "[[Checkmate]]" to allow it to attack [[Direct attack|directly]] for a [[One Turn Kill|OTK]].
 
 
 
Archfiends are Beatdown Decks that don't rely on Special Summoning, so cards like "[[Vanity's Fiend]]" and "[[Barrier Statue of the Abyss]]" are great compliments to fend-off Synchros and higher-level monsters. On the other hand, it is very possible to go to the opposite and abuse Special Summoning, both from the Graveyard and the Deck, with cards such as "[[Archfiend's Roar]]", "[[Stygian Street Patrol]]", and "[[Call of the Haunted]]", along with Synchro Summoning higher level Archfiends or fiends to weather down the opponent, such as "[[Thought Ruler Archfiend]]", "[[Chaos King Archfiend]]", or even "[[Stygian Sergeants]]", and very strong monsters that fit with the general Archfiend theme such as "[[Darkness Neosphere]]". As an added bonus, the Synchro Archfiends do not require Life Point payment and in case of destruction, "[[Pandemonium]]" allows to search the Deck for virtually any other Archfiend to take to the hand.
 
 
 
Or you can use the resonators and power tool dragon to search for falling down.
 
 
 
== Recommended cards ==
 
* [[Dark Armed Dragon]] (for general removal)
 
* [[Vanity's Fiend]] (to get an edge against Synchro decks because Archfiends don't focus on special summoning)
 
* [[Dark Ruler Ha Des]] (get around effects that activate in the graveyard)
 
* [[Dark Necrofear]]
 
* [[Solidarity]] (to give all of your Archfiends a boost in attack power)
 
* [[Stygian Street Patrol]] (to aid in summoning Terrorking Archfiend)
 
* [[Prime Material Dragon]] (to get around mass removal cards and reverse burn damage)
 
* [[Allure of Darkness]]
 
* [[Evil Hero Infernal Gainer]]
 
* [[Trade In]] (to get Imprisoned Queen in the graveyard and also to draw more cards)
 
* [[Snipe Hunter]] (gets a boost from Imprisoned Queen and can be used to destroy cards your opponent controls)
 
* [[Starlight Road]] (to get around mass removal)
 
* [[Sangan]] (Searches almost all archfiend monsters and is very helpful at some points)
 
 
 
===Monsters===
 
Dice Roll Archfiends (named after chess pieces)
 
* [[Vilepawn Archfiend]]
 
* [[Darkbishop Archfiend]]
 
* [[Desrook Archfiend]]
 
* [[Infernalqueen Archfiend]]
 
 
* [[Terrorking Archfiend]]
 
* [[Terrorking Archfiend]]
* [[Shadowknight Archfiend]]
+
* [[Skilled Red Magician]]
* [[Skull Archfiend of Lightning]]
+
* [[Barrier Statue of the Abyss]]
* [[Imprisoned Queen Archfiend]] (chess piece, no die roll)
+
* [[Dark Spirit of Banishment]]
 
+
* [[Dark Spirit of Malice]]
Pandemonium Support
+
* [[Diabolica the Draconique General]]
* [[Pandemonium Watchbear]] (protect Pandemonium from being destroyed)
+
* [[Fiendish Rhino Warrior]]
* [[Archfiend General]] (searches for Pandemonium)
+
* [[Farfa, Malebranche of the Burning Abyss]]
 
+
* [[Scarm, Malebranche of the Burning Abyss]]
Archfiend Effect Monsters (no dice rolls)
+
* [[Stygian Street Patrol]]
* [[Shadow Tamer]]
+
* [[Tour Guide From the Underworld]]
* [[Archfiend Interceptor]]
+
* [[Zalamander Catalyzer]]
* [[Mad Archfiend]]
+
|tuner monsters =
* [[Lancer Archfiend]]
+
* [[Weiss, Lightsworn Archfiend]]
* [[Archfiend of Gilfer]]
+
* [[Mental Tuner]] (with [[Emergency Teleport]])
* [[Lesser Fiend]]  
+
|pendulum monsters =
* [[Mist Archfiend]]
+
* [[Archfiend Eccentrick]]
* [[Archfiend Empress]]
+
|synchro monsters =
 
+
* [[Chaos Archfiend]]
Archfiend Effect Monsters (no dice rolls, good with Infernity Deck)
+
**[[Chaos Angel]]
* [[Cyber Archfiend]]
+
* [[Chaos King Archfiend]]
* [[Infernity Archfiend]]
+
* [[Infernity Doom Archfiend]]
 
+
* [[Dark Highlander]]
Normal Archfiend Monsters
+
* [[Groza, Tyrant of Thunder]]
* [[Archfiend Marmot of Nefariousness]]
+
* [[Hundred Eyes Dragon]]
* [[Archfiend Soldier]]
+
* [[Phantasmal Lord Ultimitl Bishbaalkin]]
* [[Beast of Talwar]]
+
* [[Scarlight Red Dragon Archfiend]]
* [[Summoned Skull]]
+
*[[Thought Ruler Archfiend]]  
 
+
|xyz monsters =
Non-Archfiend Monsters
+
* [[Archfiend's Ascent]]
* [[Plaguespreader Zombie]]
+
* [[D/D/D Wave King Caesar]]
* [[Dark Grepher]]
+
* [[D/D/D Wave High King Caesar]]
 
+
* [[Number 1: Infection Buzzking]]
===Spells===
+
* [[Number 22: Zombiestein]]
Chess Piece Archfiend Support
+
* [[Number 66: Master Key Beetle]]
* [[Checkmate]]
+
|link monsters =
* [[Archfiend's Oath]]
+
* [[Masterking Archfiend]]
* [[Pandemonium]]  
+
* [[Muckraker From the Underworld]]
 
+
* [[Beat Cop from the Underworld]]
Base Archfiend Support
+
* [[Wee Witch's Apprentice]]
* [[Axe of Despair]]
+
|spells =
 +
* [[Archfiend Palabyrinth]]
 +
* [[Archfiend's Staff of Despair]]
 
* [[Falling Down]]
 
* [[Falling Down]]
 
+
* [[Pandemonium]]
Miscellaneous
+
* [[Allure of Darkness]]
* [[Foolish Burial]]
+
* [[Dark Spirit's Mastery]]
* [[Field Barrier]]
+
* [[Dimension Dice]]
* [[Supremacy Berry]]
+
* [[Emergency Teleport]] (with [[Mental Tuner]])
* [[Magical Mallet]]
+
* [[Evil Eye Reemergence]]
* [[Card Destruction]]
+
* [[Evil Mind]]
* [[Soul Exchange]]
+
* [[Recurring Nightmare]]
* [[Axe of Fools]]
+
* [[Terraforming]]/[[Set Rotation]]
* [[Megamorph]]
+
* [[The Beginning of the End]]
 
+
* [[The Monarchs Stormforth]]
===Traps===
+
|traps =
 +
* [[Archfiend's Ghastly Glitch]]
 
* [[Archfiend's Roar]]
 
* [[Archfiend's Roar]]
* [[Altar for Tribute]]
+
* [[Call of the Archfiend]]
* [[Frozen Soul]]
+
* [[Simul Archfiends]]
* [[Nightmare Archfiends]]
+
* [[Eradicator Epidemic Virus]]
* [[Sakuretsu Armor ]]
+
* [[Fiend Griefing]]
* [[Battle-Scarred]]
+
* [[Unending Nightmare]] (with Masterking Archfiend)
* [[Hate Buster]]
+
}}
* [[Dice Re-Roll]]
 
* [[Destruct Potion]]
 
* [[Elemental Burst]]
 
 
 
===Extra Deck===
 
* [[Red Dragon Archfiend]]
 
* [[Stygian Sergeants]]
 
* [[Chaos King Archfiend]]
 
* [[Scrap Archfiend]]
 
* [[Thought Ruler Archfiend]]
 
* [[Dark Highlander]]
 
* [[Red Nova Dragon]]
 
* [[Overmind Archfiend]]
 
 
 
==Notes==
 
<references/>
 
  
{{Archetype navbox}}
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==Weaknesses==
 +
* The effects of "Archfiends" apply mostly on the field or in the Graveyard; as such cards such as "[[Skill Drain]]" and "[[Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror]]" can hinder the strategy.
 +
* As most of the members are high Level, "[[Gravity Bind]]" can prevent a game winning attack from happening.
 +
* "[[Vampire Hunter]]" and "[[Exile of the Wicked]]" can destroy "Archfiends" without needing to beat their high ATK.
 +
* The deck is also typically slow, requiring Normal Summons of an Archfiend to begin swarming. Cards that can negate the Summon such as "[[Solemn Judgment]]" and "[[Chaos Trap Hole]]" can take away a whole turn.
 +
* The deck often requires paying a lot of Life Points, so can have difficulty against [[stall]] and [[burn]] strategies.
 +
==See also==
 +
*[[Card Rulings:Archfiend]]
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==References==
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<references />
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{{Archseries navbox}}
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{{Archseries navbox (anime)}}
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{{Archseries navbox (manga)}}
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{{Archseries navbox (D Team)}}
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{{Archseries navbox (Duel Links)}}
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{{Archfiend}}
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[[Category:TCG and OCG archetypes]]

Latest revision as of 14:00, 21 February 2024

Archfiend
"Archfiend Emperor, the First Lord of Horror", with "Archfiend Soldier" and "Archfiend General" in front of "Archfiend Palabyrinth"
Japanese
  • デーモン
  • Dēmon (romanized)
  • Daemon (translated)
French
  • Archdémon
  • Archdemon (translated)
German
  • Erzunterweltler
  • Archunderworlder (translated)
Italian
  • Arcidemone
  • Archdemon (translated)
Korean
  • 데몬
  • Demon (romanized)
  • Demon (translated)
Portuguese
  • Arquidemônio
  • Archdemon (translated)
  • Archdemônio (formerly)
Spanish
  • Archidemonio
  • Archdemon (translated)
Sets
TCG
OCG
Korean
Anime appearances
Manga appearances
Lists

"Archfiend", known as "Daemon" (デーモン Dēmon) in the OCG, is one of the very first archetypes. Members appear in a myriad of sets due to the string required for inclusion being a simple word in Japanese. While many Duelists use "Archfiend" cards in the anime and manga as a result, only Titan and Raizo Akuma runs a dedicated "Archfiend" Deck. The majority of the monsters in this archetype are DARK Fiend monsters, but there are many monsters of other Attributes and Types. There are cards, such as Falling Down, which supports any "Archfiend" cards. There are a sub-archetype, "Red Dragon Archfiend", and a sub-series, Skull Archfiend.

History/Naming[edit]

The first monster to receive the "Archfiend" designation is "Summoned Skull". It has appeared in the first manga chapter featuring Duel Monsters, Duel 009, as well as the first Duel Monsters video game. Two more monsters, "Wicked Mirror" and "Air Marmot of Nefariousness", also debuted in this video game.

"Wicked Mirror" and "Air Marmot of Nefariousness" are the first Archfiend monsters to appear in the OCG, appearing in the very first set. Both have been renamed as demonstrated in video games.

The introduction of the "Archfiend" archetype in Dark Crisis caused a translation issue, since archetype conditions were not yet created and the cards in the set specified support for all monsters with 「デーモン」 ("Daemon") in their Japanese names. This was decided to be translated into English as "Archfiend", and from this point onward, all cards with 「デーモン」 in their Japanese names would have "Archfiend" in their English names. However, several cards in older sets predating the concept of archetypes had already been released and translated whose Japanese names contained 「デーモン」, but whose English names did not contain any specific string:

In two cases, cards whose English names did not contain "Archfiend" were renamed to contain "Archfiend". In both cases, the former names appeared in video games only as they remained OCG-exclusive at the time Archfiend support came out.

To resolve this issue, Upper Deck Entertainment invented the idea of Archfiend monsters (rather than "Archfiend" monsters) as a separate category, similar to existing abilities. Due to the circumstances, they were not printed on the card but rather could only be looked up via UDE's website, which stated: "Archfiends are a special category of card. Most "Archfiend" cards can be easily identified by their name. Any card with "Archfiend" in the card name is an "Archfiend." In addition, several older cards are also considered to be "Archfiends." These cards include: followed by the above list.[1] As a result, all "Archfiend" support in the original printing of Dark Crisis referred to Archfiend cards as if they were a category (rather than "Archfiend" cards as an archetype). For example, this can be seen in the original card texts of "Falling Down" and "Archfiend's Roar". The introduction of archetype conditions 7 years later would remove the need for any special category, and later prints of the above list of cards in the TCG would all receive one stating that they belonged to the "Archfiend" archetype regardless of their printed name. This began with "Axe of Despair" in Battle Pack 2: War of the Giants, and finished with the release of Legendary Collection 4: Joey's World Mega Pack. "A Deal with Dark Ruler" was not included on UDE's original list of Archfiend cards that do not have "Archfiend" in their English names, as all Archfiend support at the time referred to either monsters or cards that could be continuously controlled, making it mechanically irrelevant. However, later cards like "Archfiend Heiress" would refer to adding any "Archfiend" card from the Deck to the hand, making it mechanically significant, and it was given the archetype condition along with the other cards. In order for a card to be an "Archfiend" card, it must have the exact string 「デーモン」 ("Daemon") in its Japanese name. Other spellings like "Demon" (or any other Japanese word that might be translatable as "demon") do not qualify. For example, the Japanese name of "Regenerating Rose", 「スプリット・デモン・ローズ」, translates directly to "Split Demon Rose" with "Demon" spelled 「デモン」, so it is not an "Archfiend" card.

Themes[edit]

The first members introduced after "Archfiend" became an archetype are chess-themed, all of which are named after chess pieces, and feature a chessboard pattern as the background of their artwork.

Chess Archfiend Origin
Terrorking
Masterking
King
Infernalqueen
Imprisoned Queen
Queen
Desrook Rook
Darkbishop Bishop
Shadowknight Knight
Vilepawn Pawn
Checkmate Checkmate

Since then, other "Archfiends" have been released which lack the chess motifs. In general, they possess demonic and gruesome features, some even going so far as to have physiques featuring bones and sinew reminiscent of their original representative, "Summoned Skull". Since "Archfiends" have seen many years of release, the archetype has varying appearance themes which change over time. The original unorganized "Archfiends" were generally bony and "horror" themed ("Summoned Skull", "Axe of Despair", "Lesser Fiend", etc.). At this point, they were not related other than sharing a word in their Japanese names. The first archetype-oriented "Archfiends" appeared in Dark Crisis and were chess-themed, each featuring a dice roll-conditional negation of effects that target them ("Terrorking Archfiend", "Vilepawn Archfiend", etc.). These "Archfiends" all had appearances that very closely resembled contortions or variations on "Summoned Skull". This series was the longest-lasting period for the "Archfiends", and provided them with most of their Spell/Trap support, including their first Field Spell, "Pandemonium". It ended with the release of "Imprisoned Queen Archfiend". The next wave of "Archfiends" appeared in the 5D's period, and had a sports theme ("Archfiend Interceptor", "Lancer Archfiend", "Mad Archfiend"). For the first time since "Black Skull Dragon" and "Fiend Skull Dragon" it featured a Dragon member: "Red Dragon Archfiend". This series had no general effect theme or visual appearance (though skulls featured prominently in several of their artworks), but represented a move away from the "bone and sinew" style of the chess "Archfiends". The most recent series of "Archfiends" began in the TCG in Starstrike Blast, beginning with the North American release of "Archfiend Empress". These Archfiends bore little resemblance to the original chess Archfiends, having generally purple color schemes, a metallic appearance, and an imperial theme, similar to the "Fabled" monsters. Judgement of the Light introduced the archetype's second Field Spell, "Archfiend Palabyrinth", and the 3000 ATK "Archfiend Emperor, the First Lord of Horror". This support continued in the North American release of Shadow Specters with the release of "Archfiend Giant" and continued with the global release of "Archfiend Eccentrick" in Clash of Rebellions, alongside "Red-Eyes Archfiend of Lightning", the first "Archfiend" Gemini monster, and "Archfiend Black Skull Dragon", the retrained version of their first ever Fusion.

Playing style[edit]

Building a Deck around the "Chess Archfiends" is tricky since they require your Life Points as payment and paying is not optional. As a result, your Life Points will be drained very quickly, especially since you must worry about further Life Point drain through battle damage from your opponent. Most "Archfiends" do not have enough attack power to hold their ground. Their most useful ability is negating an opponent's effect that targets them by a roll of the dice. However, this is not a reliable defense, and only two of the cards have a 50% chance of negation (although one of them, "Darkbishop Archfiend", works for any of your Archfiends, including the ones that have their own protection). Most have a ~17% chance, and a couple have a ~33% chance. If trying to go for a "Chess Archfiend" Deck for novelty's sake, then it is advantageous to make it a general Fiend-themed Deck, adding Fiend support cards like "Goblin King". The more modern "Archfiends" such as "Archfiend Emperor, the First Lord of Horror" and "Annihilator Archfiend" tend to go for a destruction strategy to pave the way to attack the opponent directly with their high-Level high-ATK Monsters. Three "Archfiend" Equip Spell Cards exist with different effects: the oldest, "Axe of Despair", boosts ATK and can return to the hand; "Falling Down" is an in-theme "Snatch Steal"; and the newest, "Archfiend's Staff of Despair", is an enfeebling version of "Axe of Despair". The "Archfiends" are also lucky enough to have two Field Spell Cards: "Pandemonium", which although designed for the older "Archfiends" can still be used with the modern ones to recover losses when "Archfiends" are destroyed by an effect, and "Archfiend Palabyrinth", which boosts Fiends' ATKs as well as carrying a Special Summon from Deck effect granting access to fast Xyz Summons. "Summoned Skull's" series is covered more on its own page, Skull Archfiend. Being Fiend and DARK gives the members a myriad of support such as "Fiend Griefing", "Stygian Street Patrol", "Allure of Darkness", the "Virus" cards, and many others.

Recommended cards[edit]

Recommended cards

Weaknesses[edit]

  • The effects of "Archfiends" apply mostly on the field or in the Graveyard; as such cards such as "Skill Drain" and "Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror" can hinder the strategy.
  • As most of the members are high Level, "Gravity Bind" can prevent a game winning attack from happening.
  • "Vampire Hunter" and "Exile of the Wicked" can destroy "Archfiends" without needing to beat their high ATK.
  • The deck is also typically slow, requiring Normal Summons of an Archfiend to begin swarming. Cards that can negate the Summon such as "Solemn Judgment" and "Chaos Trap Hole" can take away a whole turn.
  • The deck often requires paying a lot of Life Points, so can have difficulty against stall and burn strategies.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. "What is an "Archfiend"?". Upper Deck Entertainment. February 26, 2009. Retrieved February 26, 2009.