Knightmare
| Knightmare | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 "Knightmare Goblin", "Gryphon", "Phoenix", "Unicorn", and "Cerberus" fighting "Beckoned by the World Chalice" while "Mekk-Knight Avram" and "World Chalice Guardragon" pursue "Knightmare Corruptor Iblee"; in the artwork of "World Legacy's Nightmare" | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Japanese |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| French |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| German |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| Italian |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| Korean |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| Portuguese |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| Spanish |
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| Manga appearances | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Lists | |||||||||||||||||||||
"Knightmare", known as "Troymare" (トロイメア, Toroimea) in the OCG, is an archetype that debuted in Flames of Destruction. The archetype is focused on Link Summons and being co-linked, and primarily consists of Fiend Link Monsters. The archetype is related to, and supported by, the "World Legacy" archetype, and is a part of the "World Legacy" storyline.
Contents
Lore
Etymology
The archetype's Japanese name "Troymare" is a portmanteau of "Troy" (referring to "Trojan Horse"), "Nightmare", and "Träumerei" (Japanese: トロイメライ Toroimerai); Träumerei ("Dreaming") is Movement No. 7 of Robert Schumann's 1838 work Kinderszenen.
The archetype's Simplified Chinese name 梦魇曲 literally means "Nightmare Song".
The archetype's English name "Knightmare" is a portmanteau of "Knight" and "Nightmare". This refers to the archetype's connections to the "Mekk-Knight" archetype.
Design
The six "Knightmare" Link Monsters, according to lore, are corrupted versions of "Mekk-Knight" monsters. They take the form of mythological creatures, their bodies comprised of a combination of a glowing translucent substance and silvery metallic armor with a gold and black design etched into them. Parts of their armoring and bodies also appear to be made out of charred or blackened junk, mostly weapons, that resemble trashed remains of the "Mekk-Knight" monsters' armors, remodelled into resembling the namesake mythologic creatures.
Each "Knightmare" has a different color theme and a different Attributes, and the ones with the four elemental Attributes have a color scheme that corresponds to that Attribute. The colors of the "Knightmare" monsters each corresponds to 1 "Mekk-Knight" monster within the 7 main "Mekk-Knight" monster lineup, with the notable exception of "Mekk-Knight Blue Sky".
All "Knightmare" monsters, except "Orcust Knightmare", also have a musical symbol somewhere on their body.
| Knightmare | "Mekk-Knight" counterpart | Creature | Symbol |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mermaid | Indigo Eclipse | Mermaid | Fermata |
| Phoenix | Red Moon | Phoenix | Coda |
| Goblin | Green Horizon | Goblin | Simile |
| Cerberus | Orange Sunset | Cerberus | Dal segno |
| Unicorn | Yellow Star | Unicorn | Sustain pedal |
| Gryphon | Purple Nightfall | Gryphon | Time signature |
The "Knightmare" non-Link Monsters all depict the advanced versions of "Lee the World Chalice Fairy", the creator of the "Knightmare" Link Monsters and the central antagonist of the "World Legacy" storyline.
| Knightmare | Origin | Creature | Symbol |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knightmare Corruptor Iblee | Crowned by the World Chalice (corrupted by Lee the World Chalice Fairy) |
Iblis / Succubus | Treble clef |
| Orcust Knightmare | Galatea, the Orcust Automaton transformed | -- | -- |
| Knightmare Incarnation Idlee | Orcust Knightmare transformed | -- | -- |
Playing style
The main goal of this archetype is to build a field with as many co-linked "Knightmare" monsters as possible, to the point of achieving a state of Extra Link. All "Knightmare" Link Monsters have two effects:
- A Trigger Effect that can be activated when they are Link Summoned. The effect has a cost of a 1 card discard, performs a beneficial action, then allows the player to draw 1 card if the monster was co-linked when it activated this effect.
- A Continuous Effect that either benefit co-linked monsters, or burden those that are not.
| Knightmare | Link Arrows | Attribute | Trigger Effect upon being Link Summoned | Continuous Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mermaid |
|
WATER 
|
Special Summons a "Knightmare" monster from the Main Deck. | All monsters lose 1000 ATK/DEF, unless they are co-linked. |
| Phoenix |
|
FIRE 
|
Destroys an opponent's Spell/Trap Card. | Friendly co-linked monsters cannot be destroyed by battle. |
| Goblin |
|
WIND 
|
Allows 1 additional Normal Summon to a zone it points to this turn. | Friendly co-linked monsters cannot be targeted by card effects. |
| Cerberus |
|
EARTH 
|
Destroys an opponent's Special Summoned monster in their Main Monster Zone. | Friendly co-linked monsters cannot be destroyed by card effects. |
| Unicorn |
|
DARK 
|
Shuffles a card on the field into the Deck. | In its controller's Draw Phase, they draws cards equal to the number of different co-linked "Knightmare" monsters on the field for their normal draw. |
| Gryphon |
|
LIGHT 
|
Sets a Spell/Trap Card in its controller's Graveyard to their field. | All Special Summoned monsters cannot activate their effects, unless they are linked. |
Since they do not require Link Materials of specific Type(s) or Attribute(s), any engine capable of swarming the field with monsters with different names may help Link Summon them. Monsters that are already used in Link-oriented strategies, such as "Cyberse Gadget", "Stack Reviver", "Bitrooper", and the "Gouki" archetypes can be helpful. A full "Knightmare" board of co-linked and even Extra Linked monsters is very formidable and very tough to break, due to the protection and the floodgating continuous effects provided by "Knightmare" Link Monsters. "Knightmare" Main Deck monsters provide further deepens this lockdown; "Knightmare Corruptor Iblee" is an extender that can Special Summon itself to the opponent's field and preventing the opponent from Special Summoning except by Link Summoning, preventing them from destroying the "Knightmare" board by Special Summoning a "Kaiju" monster, for example. Aside from the specific archetypal playstyle, the generic summoning requirements for "Knightmare" monsters lets some of them be used as generic situational tools in many decks.
Recommended cards
Official Decklist
Konami's "Knightmare" Deck Recipe
|
|---|
Weaknesses
- Due to the need of Special Summoning many monsters to the field in order to achieve an Extra Link, or at least having 3 or 4 "Knightmare" monsters co-linked to each other, the Deck may have disadvantage with cards like "Summon Limit", "Nibiru, the Primal Being", "Vanity's Fiend", etc.
- Also, the "Knightmare" player must control many monsters at once for the strategy to work at its full potential, which may render the Deck vulnerable to mass-removal cards, especially "Evenly Matched", that ignores all blanket protections provided by the "Knightmare" co-linked monsters, as it neither targets nor destroys.
- Even if "Knightmare Corruptor Iblee" is on the opponent's field, preventing a "Kaiju" monster from disrupting the string of co-linked monsters, "The Winged Dragon of Ra - Sphere Mode" can make a much more huge impact, by removing 3 of them at once.
- With "Knightmare Goblin" and "Knightmare Mermaid" being Forbidden, performing Co-Linked and Extra Link states have become rather difficult to accomplish. With Master Rules (April 1, 2020 revision) being in effect, the Extra Link does not affect your opponent as much, unless they utilize Pendulum or Link-focused strategies.
Trivia
- The "Knightmare" Link Monsters wear armors which bear similarities with a "Mekk-Knight" of the same color:
- "Knightmare Mermaid" has a ring attached to its tail which is the same as the ring on the body of "Mekk-Knight Indigo Eclipse".
- "Knightmare Goblin" has waist plate which is similar to the waist armor of "Mekk-Knight Green Horizon".
- "Knightmare Gryphon" has a spiky armor attached on its shoulders which is similar to the spike from the helmet of "Mekk-Knight Purple Nightfall".
- "Knightmare Unicorn" has wing-like armor in the similar fashion to "Mekk-Knight Yellow Star".
- "Knightmare Phoenix" has a helmet which is similar to "Mekk-Knight Red Moon".
- "Knightmare Cerebeus" has a jewel in the center which is similar to "Mekk-Knight Orange Sunset".
