"[[Sky Scout]]", originally known as "Harpie's Brother", is not a Harpie card because it does not have 「ハーピィ」 in its Japanese name. It was renamed to clarify this.
"[[Sky Scout]]", originally known as "Harpie's Brother", is not a Harpie card because it does not have 「ハーピィ」 in its Japanese name. It was renamed to clarify this.
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When "Harpies" were released (some of the first monsters released that would later become an official archetype), they didn't have much support. From ''[[Rise of Destiny]]'' onward, however, "Harpies" became more balanced and powerful. Since then, ''[[Structure Deck 8: Lord of the Storm]]'' has aided the "Harpie" archetype with cards such as "[[Hysteric Party]]". Furthermore, "[[Harpie Queen]]" was released in ''[[Force of the Breaker]]''.
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When "Harpies" were released (some of the first monsters released that would later become an official archetype), they didn't have much support. From ''[[Rise of Destiny]]'' onward, however, "Harpies" became more balanced and powerful with occasional support cards released. ''[[Structure Deck 8: Lord of the Storm]]'' has aided this archetype with cards such as "[[Hysteric Party]]" and "[[Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon]]", while also featuring a lot of other Harpie-related cards in it. Afterwards, "[[Harpie Queen]]" was released in ''[[Force of the Breaker]]'', providing ways to search "[[Harpie's Hunting Ground]]".
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''[[Lord of the Tachyon Galaxy]]'' introduced the first Harpie [[Xyz Monster]], "[[Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon]]", which is capable of attacking directly as well as protecting fellow "Harpie" monsters from attacks and targeting effects as long as it has Xyz Material. Also introduced was "[[Harpie Channeler]]", which can Special Summon "Harpie" monsters straight from the Deck by discarding 1 "Harpie" card, as well as open up Rank 7 plays through its level-changing effect. Additionally, a new Spell Card was introduced called "[[Hysteric Sign]]", which can search for "[[Elegant Egotist]]" and, upon destruction, add 3 "Harpie" cards with different names from your Deck straight to your hand.
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With the release of ''[[Lord of the Tachyon Galaxy]]'', Harpies get some tremendous boost, while also solidifies the deck's focus of maintaining advantage and Xyz Summoning. "[[Harpie Channeler]]" is essentially become the main card in all Harpie-based decks, as she can Special Summon another Harpie monster from the Deck while also assists Xyz Summoning of Rank 4 or 7, while "[[Hysteric Sign]]" helps searching either "[[Elegant Egoist]]" or any Harpie cards you may need, depending on how you use it. The Xyz Monster in this archetype, "[[Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon]]" can protect your other Harpie monsters from attacks or targeting effects, along with direct-attacking ability as well.
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"[[Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation]]", released in ''[[Legendary Collection 4: Joey's World]]'', is a Spell Card that targets and destroys monsters your opponent controls up to the number of Harpie monsters you control then inflicts damage to your opponent equal to the original ATK of the monster with the highest original ATK destroyed by this effect. You need to have 3 or more "[[Harpie Lady]]" and/or "[[Harpie Lady Sisters]]" to use this card and if you do, you cannot Special Summon from your [[Main Deck]] or [[Extra Deck]], nor conduct your Battle Phase that turn. Also, "[[Harpie Dancer]]" from ''Legendary Collection 4'' can give Harpies extra Normal Summoning capabilities and combines well with "[[Harpies' Hunting Ground]]" and "[[Divine Wind of Mist Valley]]".
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''[[Legendary Collection 4: Joey's World]]'' also provides more support for this archetype (while also reprinting important Harpie-related cards as well). "[[Harpie Dancer]]"'s effect can be utilized for reaping more benefits from "[[Harpie's Hunting Ground]]", or providing more swarming capabilities when coupled with "[[Divine Wind of Mist Valley]]". They also have their ultimate Spell Card, "[[Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation]]", which can decimate your opponent's field of monsters, but disallows you to Special Summoning monsters from your Deck and skipping your Battle Phase, making it a double-edged sword with hefty drawbacks.
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==Playing style==
==Playing style==
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"Harpies" combine the ability to be rapidly summoned, to destroy the opponent's Spell and Trap Cards, to increase each others attack points and abilities, and to work together to protect each other. They do not have the ability to destroy Spell and Trap cards innately, but the Field Spell Card "[[Harpies' Hunting Ground]]" allows the controller of the summoned Harpie or harpies to destroy one Spell or Trap Card when a "Harpie Lady" card is Summoned in any way. They can be Summoned from the Graveyard in mass amounts through the effect of "Hysteric Party". Their support cards, "[[Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon]]" and "[[Harpie's Pet Dragon]]", rapidly gain in power and usefulness through effects including protecting other "Harpie" cards and card destruction as the "Harpies" swarm the field. Properly played, "Harpies" can overwhelm the opponent in moments with high attack power and powerful effects, but they are individually not too strong, so they are vulnerable to opponents who Summon strong single Monsters early to whittle down the number of "Harpies" on the field.
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"Harpies" combine the ability to be rapidly summoned, to destroy the opponent's Spell and Trap Cards, increase each others attack points, enhancing their individual abilities, and to protect each other. They do not have the ability to destroy Spell and Trap cards innately, but their Field Spell Card, "[[Harpies' Hunting Ground]]" allows them to destroy one Spell or Trap Card when a "Harpie Lady" card is Summoned in any way. They can be Summoned from the Graveyard in large numbers through the effect of "Hysteric Party". Their support cards, "[[Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon]]" and "[[Harpie's Pet Dragon]]", rapidly gains power ("[[Harpie's Pet Dragon]]") or utility ("[[Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon]]") depending on how many Harpie Lady cards you control. Properly played, "Harpies" can overwhelm the opponent in moments with high attack power and powerful effects, but they are not strong individually, so they are vulnerable to opponents who can overpower them, or destroy all of them at once.
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<!-- NOTE: "Hysteric Party" works just like "Call of the Haunted" as you can use it's effect just once, then it sits useless on the field. The discarding a card is an Activation Cost required to activate the card initially, not an ignition effect. -->
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WIND Monsters have good capacity to Special Summon, and as such the Deck can be fast. Although some of the Monsters are weak, cards such as "Harpie Lady 1" and "[[Hunter Owl]]" can leave you with a field full of enormous Monsters. The tendency of WIND Monsters to destroy Spell and Trap cards ("[[Raiza the Storm Monarch]]", "Harpies' Hunting Ground" and "[[Icarus Attack]]") leaves you able to attack in relative safety. Many cards from various packs can be quite useful if made an addition to a "Harpie Lady" deck. Many WIND Monsters, such as "[[Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry]]" and "[[Twin-Headed Behemoth]]", have useful effects that can help out in tough situations. In particular, "[[Stardust Dragon]]" fits perfectly into this type of deck: it is a high level WIND Monster, and its effect allows you to negate a destructive effect, such as that of "[[Dark Hole]]" each turn as long as you can keep reviving "Stardust Dragon" with its own effect, making it a great boost to the Deck's theme of destroying and negating your opponent's Spell and Trap cards. Also, it can be used as a instant [[Beatstick]] with "[[Starlight Road]]".
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Post-''[[Lord of the Tachyon Galaxy]]'', the deck now centered around Xyz Summoning, utilizing cards like "[[Harpie Channeler]]", "[[Elegant Egotist]]", [[Summoner Monk]]", and "[[Hysteric Party]]" to Summon multiple Harpies as fast as possible, and perform multiple Xyz Summons (mainly Rank 4 and Rank 7). Some popular Xyz Monsters found in most Harpie decks including, but not limited to, "[[Ice Beast Zerofyne]]", "[[Lightning Chidori]]", "[[Number 101: Silent Honor ARK]]", "[[Castel, the Skyblaster Musketeer]]" and occasionally "[[Number 11: Big Eye]]" and "[[Mecha Phantom Beast Dracossack]]". Some players can also include cards like "[[Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite]]" and "[[Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms]]" to promote their swarming power for more Xyz Summons.
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If a player is going to use [[Synchro Monster]]s, then they must use proper tuners. "[[Vortex the Whirlwind]]" is a level 5 Synchro Monster with the effect of Special Summoning any Level 4 or lower Winged Beast monster from your Deck. "[[Mist Valley Soldier]]" can be used with a "Harpie Lady" monster to make level 8 Synchro Monsters, such as "Stardust Dragon", "[[Scrap Dragon]]", or "[[Crimson Blader]]" which can do heavy damage to decks that Normal Summon or Special Summon level 5 or higher monsters like "[[Dragon Ruler]]", "[[Mermail]]", and most Synchro-based decks; also, in an emergency, it can be used with "Icarus Attack". "[[Blackwing - Gale the Whirlwind]]" can be used with "Icarus Attack" and can cut in half an opponent's monster such as "[[Caius the Shadow Monarch]]", "Stardust Dragon", "[[Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon]]", and most powerful Synchro and Xyz monsters. More importantly, you can splash "[[Blackwing Armor Master]]", who is immune to crippling cards such as "[[Shrink]]" and "[[Honest]]", and "[[Black Rose Dragon]]", who can clear the field. "[[Dragunity Darkspear]]" can be used as either a substitute of "[[Monster Reborn]]" or used to summon the incredibly powerful "[[Dragunity Knight - Trident]]", who can eliminate the most popular archtypes in the game, such as "[[Gladiator Beast]]" and "[[Blackwings]]".
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To keep their onslaught running, they also utilize "[[Hysteric Sign]]" for searching more Harpie cards and maintain card advantages in their favor, while using "[[Harpie's Hunting Ground]]" and "[[Icarus Attack]]" as control measures to destroy any obstacles your opponent may utilize.
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"[[Cockadoodledoo]]" is a [[Tuner monster]] that can be Special Summoned as a level 3 if there are no monsters on the field, making level 7 Synchro monsters (or even "[[Star Eater]]" if you summon 2 level 4 Harpie monsters), or it can be Special Summoned as a Level 4 monster if you control no cards and your opponent controls a monster, being able to make a Level 8 Synchro Monster or a Rank 4 Xyz Monster. "Cockadoodledoo" can also be used for "Icarus Attack". "Cockadoodledoo" is a fast and flexible Winged Beast Tuner monster, but it is banished when it leaves the field.
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A possible card to use in this deck is "[[Inferno Reckless Summon]]". You can first use "Elegant Egotist", "[[Swallow's Nest]]" or "Hysteric Party" to Special Summon any "Harpie Lady" whose attack is 1500 or less after applying continuous effects. Then use the effect of "Inferno Reckless Summon" to summon more "Harpies". (You ''cannot'' use "Inferno Reckless Summon" with "Harpie Lady #1" because it will gain the extra 300 ATK instantly after being summoned to the field, but, should you Special Summon a different "Harpie Lady" such as "[[Harpie Lady 2]]" you would be able to use it as the target monster for "Inferno Reckless Summon's" effect) You can use "Harpie Channeler" however to activate it since she has only 1400 ATK and is treated as "Harpie Lady" while on the field. Since many "Harpie" monsters are treated as "Harpie Lady," you can also use "[[Three of a Kind]]" to significantly clear the Field. "Hysteric Sign" can help gain hand advantage by getting an "Elegant Egotist" from your Deck or Graveyard and also can give you any 3 Harpie cards with a different name from your deck upon being sent from your hand or side of the field to the Graveyard during the End Phase giving a +3 (You can only use 1 "Hysteric Sign" effect per turn so if you choose one, you cannot use the other effect til the next turn). You can use "Harpies' Hunting Ground" to destroy your "Hysteric Sign", or discard it to use "Summoner Monk's" Effect to help get your combos out faster.
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This archetype has the ability to Xyz Summon Rank 4 monsters quickly with "Harpie Channeler", "Elegant Egotist" and "Hysteric Party". "Harpie Channeler" can act like a "[[Summoner Monk]]" for Harpies with the cost of 1 Harpie card in your hand, setting up the Graveyard for "Hysteric Party". "Harpie Channeler" can also summon out "Harpie's Pet Dragon" straight from your Deck making it easier to summon, also you can use them for an Xyz summon of a Rank 7 monster like "[[Gaia Dragon the Thunder Charger]]", "[[Number 11: Big Eye]]", "[[Mecha Phantom Beast Dracossack]]", "[[Number 74: Master of Blades]]".
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"Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon" is powerful Xyz Monster for WIND monsters that can be easily Summoned with "Harpie Channeler", "Elegant Egotist", "Hysteric Party", and even "[[Rescue Rabbit]]" if you are using "Harpie Lady". "Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon" can attack directly while it has Xyz Material attached and it can also can protect your Harpie monsters from being targeted for attacks card effects. Another powerful Xyz monster that can be easily summoned in a Harpie deck is "[[Lightning Chidori]]". Although not strong in ATK, it has the powerful effect of putting cards your opponent controls into their deck. Also, you can Xyz Summon "[[Diamond Dire Wolf]]" which can destroy any card on the field with a cost of itself or one of your Harpie monsters, which can easily be returned to the field with "Hysteric Party". Harpie Decks also have the capability of Summoning Rank 4 monsters that require 3 Level 4 monsters with ease like "[[Number 32: Shark Drake]]", "[[Number 69: Heraldry Crest]]", "[[Number 91: Thunder Spark Dragon]]", "[[Number 104: Masquerade]]", and even "[[Evilswarm Ouroboros]]" or "[[Stellarknight Delteros]]", or other generally useful generic Rank 4 monsters that requires 2 monsters like "[[Number 39: Utopia]]", "[[Gagaga Cowboy]]", "[[Maestroke the Symphony Djinn]]" and "[[Number 50: Blackship of Corn]]", "[[Queen Dragun Djinn]]" (to revive "Harpie's Pet Dragon" or "Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms"), "[[Abyss Dweller]]", "[[Steelswarm Roach]]", "[[Photon Papilloperative]]", "[[Number 85: Crazy Box]]" (Useful if under "[[Skill Drain]]"), "[[Evigishki Merrowgeist]]", "[[Lavalval Chain]]" (Useful for sending your "Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite" and "Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms" from your deck to the graveyard), "[[Daigusto Emeral]]", "[[Number 82: Heartlandraco]]", "[[Number 101: Silent Honor ARK]]", "[[Evilswarm Exciton Knight]]", "[[Number 80: Rhapsody in Berserk]]", "[[Number 103: Ragnazero]]", "[[Cairngorgon, Antiluminescent Knight]]", "[[Castel, the Skyblaster Musketeer]]", and "[[Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon]]".
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"Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite" is another level 4 monster that fits perfectly in Harpie decks. Zephyros can special summon itself by returning one of your cards to your hand, although you take 400 damage and you can only use his effect once per duel. Zephyros can help reuse cards like "Hysteric Sign", "[[Hysteric Party]]", or even "[[Fiendish Chain]]". You can also return your "[[Harpies' Hunting Ground]]" to keep it from being destroyed by it's own effect, or use it for "[[Summoner Monk]]" or "Harpie Channeler". You can also Special Summon him straight from your deck through "Summoner Monk" for Rank 4 plays, including "[[Number 66: Master Key Beetle]]", which can protect "Harpies' Hunting Ground" from being destroyed by its own effect, or can be used as a tribute fodder for "[[Eradicator Epidemic Virus]]"
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"[[Ice Beast Zerofyne]]" is a powerful Xyz Monster that requires 2 Level 4 Winged Beast monsters, also has the ability to negate all face-up cards your opponent controls and gain 300 ATK for each other face-up card on the field until your next Standby Phase by detaching 1 Xyz Material From this card, giving more monster negation power to Harpies while destroying Spell/Trap cards.
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Other good cards you can add to a Harpie Deck are "[[Effect Veiler]]", "Fiendish Chain", and "[[Breakthrough Skill]]". These cards can help patch up the deck's weakness of being generally vulnerable to monster effects.
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Other cards that will work well with Harpies are "[[Windrose the Elemental Lord]]" and "[[Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms]]". These monsters are powerful sweepers in their own right, and their effects help them fit into a Harpie Deck quite easily. "Windrose the Elemental Lord" will destroy all of an opponent's Spell and Trap cards when Summoned, but if he leaves the field, you will have to skip the battle phase of your next turn (not the turn that it is Summoned). "Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms" can be Special Summoned from the hand or Graveyard by banishing two monsters that are Dragon-Type and/or WIND from your Graveyard. This can be used to adjust the number of monsters in your grave so that you may summon "Windrose the Elemental Lord", who needs exactly 5 WIND monsters in your graveyard. "Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms" has another useful effect that fits perfectly into any good Harpie deck. It can be discarded along with another WIND monster to add a dragon from your deck to your hand. The ideal target being "Harpie's Pet Dragon". "Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms" can also be used with "Harpie Channeler" for Rank 7 Summons. You can also combine "Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms" with "[[Sacred Sword of Seven Stars]]" to add more draw power and consistency. However "Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms" and "Sacred Sword of Seven Stars" are [[Limited]] in the January 2014 list, making the combo inconsistant.
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Another good card to use with Harpies is "[[Kagetokage]]". Kagetokage is a Level 4 monster that can be Special Summoned from the hand with its effect when the player Normal Summons a Level 4 monster. Since almost all Harpie monsters are Level 4, you can splash this card in Harpies Decks, giving Harpies more swarm power, more Xyz range and more DARK targets for "[[Dark Simorgh]]". You can also splash "[[King of the Feral Imps]]", since he only requires 2 Level 4 monsters to help search out "Kagetokage" from your Deck, and also another DARK target for "Dark Simorgh" and "[[Deck Devastation Virus]]".
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"Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation" is a powerful Spell Card for Harpies that can destroy a number of the opponents monsters up to the number of the player's "Harpie Lady" and/or "[[Harpie Lady Sisters]]" monsters, and inflicts damage equal to the highest original ATK among them, giving powerful monster destruction to Harpies. However, 3 or more "Harpie Ladies" and/or "Harpie Lady Sisters" are required to activate this card, and after it is activated the player cannot Special Summon from the Main Deck or conduct their Battle Phase. Since "Harpie Queen" and "Harpie Channeler" are treated as "Harpie Lady" on the field, they can be used for the Harpie Lady requirement. Also, since "Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation" is a Harpie card, it can be added from your Deck to your hand with "Hysteric Sign".
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"[[Harpie Dancer]]" is a Harpie monster that returns any WIND monster you control to the hand to Normal Summon an extra WIND monster. "Harpie Dancer" can be used with "Harpies' Hunting Ground" to destroy an extra Spell/Trap card and avoid "[[Bottomless Trap Hole]]". "Harpie Dancer" combines extremely well with "[[Divine Wind of Mist Valley]]" to increase swarm power in Harpie Decks and bring out big Xyz Monsters (either Rank 4 or 7 if you bring out "Harpie Channeler" and use her effect to get "Harpie's Pet Dragon"). However, "Divine Wind of Mist Valley" is Limited in the January 2014 list, making Divine Wind less playable in Harpie decks.
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"[[Magical Hats]]" is a good Trap Card that works well with "Hysteric Sign", but can only be used during the opponent's Battle Phase and you must control a monster to use it. You can also use it with cards like "Elegant Egotist" (since you can retrieve it with "Hysteric Sign"), "Breakthrough Skill", and even "[[Skill Prisoner]]" (which can protect your monsters from "Effect Veiler" and other monster effects that target).
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Cards like "[[Cardcar D]]", "[[Upstart Goblin]]", "[[Reckless Greed]]", and "[[Pot of Duality]]" can be good for Harpies, because the Deck sometimes has consistency issues; however, "Pot of Duality" prevents Special Summoning that turn, which is not good for Harpies. "[[Traptrix Myrmeleo]]" can help search for "Bottomless Trap Hole" (and other [[Hole]] [[Normal Trap Card]]s), and it can be good for making Rank 4 monsters.
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"[[Soul Charge]]" is a card somewhat similar to "Hysteric Party" in this deck, But unlike Hysteric Party, this card can special summon any monster(s) in your graveyard like "Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms", "Harpie's Pet Dragon", "Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite", "Summoner Monk", and even Tuners, "Traptrix Myrmeleo" and "Kagetokage" (if you run them), but it cost you 1000 life points for each monster summoned by this effect.
==Weaknesses==
==Weaknesses==
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Despite the many powerful combos that "Harpies" are capable of, there are still weaknesses within this archetype that can be capitalized on. For instance, all "Harpie" monsters, except "Cyber Harpie Lady", "Harpie Queen", "Harpie's Pet Dragon" and "Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon" are generally low in original ATK. Without an ATK boost, they may easily be destroyed by powerful monsters and are vunerable to cards such as "[[King Tiger Wanghu]]" and "[[Deck Devastation Virus]]". You can add "Harpie Lady 1", "[[Bladefly]]", and/or "[[Rising Air Current]]" to avoid these problems. Harpie monsters can also have problems with big monsters with attacks of 2500 or more. This problem can be solved by Xyz Summoning a monster with either a high attack or a powerful effect, Also you can use "Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation" to destroy those powerful monsters if you have 3 Harpie Ladies and/or Harpie Lady Sisters. Also, you can Xyz Summon "Number 91: Thunder Spark Dragon" and use its effect to destroy all other face-up monsters on the field to take care of powerful monsters, or Xyz Summon "Evilswarm Exciton Knight" to destroy all other cards on the field.
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Despite the many powerful combos that "Harpies" are capable of, there are still weaknesses within this archetype that can be capitalized on. For instance, most "Harpie" monsters, except "Cyber Harpie Lady", "Harpie Queen", "Harpie's Pet Dragon" and "Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon" are generally low in original ATK, making them unsuitable in battle against most high-ATK monsters.
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Cards that restrict the Special Summoning of monsters, such as "[[Archlord Kristya]]", "[[Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo]]", "[[Jowgen the Spiritualist]]" and the "[[Vanity]]" cards can also cause problems to this archetype. [[El Shaddoll Winda]] that limits special summons can ruin this archetype and it can be very hard to get rid of it since it cannot be destroyed by card effects and it has 2200 atk. You can use monster removal cards like "Icarus Attack" and "[[Spiritual Wind Art - Miyabi]]" (helps get rid of El Shaddoll Winda) to help with those problems. Also, you can use "Breakthrough Skill" and "Fiendish Chain" to negate their effects. Finally, "[[Poisonous Winds]]" is very useful against this Deck, though it can easily be destroyed by "Harpies' Hunting Ground".
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Harpies use effects to swarm the field and power-up each other, so cards that negate monster effects like "[[Effect Veiler]]", "[[Breakthrough Skill]]", "[[Fiendish Chain]]", "[[Forbidden Chalice]]", "[[Mermail Abyssgaios]]", "[[Divine Wrath]]", etc. can hurt them and slow them down greatly; "[[Skill Drain]]" and "[[Destiny HERO - Plasma]]" can put Harpies in a very difficult situation. Spell/Trap cards that remove cards from the field like "[[Mystical Space Typhoon]]", "[[Dust Tornado]]", "[[Icarus Attack]]", "[[Spiritual Wind Art - Miyabi]]", "[[Mind Drain]]" (stops "Effect Veiler"), [[Skill Prisoner]] (same as "Mind Drain"), etc. can help get rid of those cards. However, the effects of "Harpie Lady 1", "Harpie Lady 2", "Harpie Lady 3" and "Cyber Harpie Lady" that treat their names as "Harpie Lady" is a [[condition]], and as such cannot be [[negate]]d.
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Since this archetype have emphasis on rapid Special Summoning, anti-Special Summoning cards like "[[Vanity's Emptiness]]" and "[[Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo]]" can be hazardous against this Deck. "[[El Shaddoll Winda]]" can also pose problems as well (albeit "[[Hysteric Party]]" can somewhat bypass this).
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"[[Maxx "C"]]" can cause problems since Harpies Special Summon a lot with Chainable effects, causing your opponent to draw 1 card for each of your Special Summons. Also, since Harpies mainly Xyz Summon, "[[Flying "C"]]" can shut down the Deck; this can easily be solved by using "Mind Drain".
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Most Harpie-based decks relies on either "[[Summoner Monk]]" and/or "[[Harpie Channeler]]" to Summon more monsters from the Deck, and without those cards, this deck cannot survive for long, nor accumulating speed for offense, which means effect negations such as "[[Effect Veiler]]" or "[[Breakthrough Skill]]", or disruption cards like "[[Book of Moon]]" and "[[Solemn Warning]]" is very effective against them during early game stage. Since they mostly focused on Xyz Summons, "[[Flying "C"]]" can shut down the Deck's aggressive stance, and "[[Thunder King Rai-Oh]]" can blocks the effects of "[[Hysteric Sign]]", slowing them down.
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Harpies rely heavily on their normal summon outside of "Hysteric Party" and even "Soul Charge" to do plays. Cards that chains upon their summon like "[[Torrential Tribute]]", "[[Compulsory Evacuation Device]]", "[[Book of Moon]]", "[[Trap Hole]]", "[[Bottomless Trap Hole]]" (On Harpie monsters with 1500 or more atk) or even "[[Solemn Warning]]" and "[[Horn of Heaven]]" can hurt this deck alot or even cause them to lose the game. Cards like "[[Trap Stun]]", "[[Wiretap]]", "[[Seven Tools of the Bandit]]" or even "[[Royal Decree]]" can help against these type of problems. Also, "[[Forbidden Lance]]" or "[[Forbidden Dress]]" can help your strategy go through.
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{{Decklist|Recommended Cards
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{{Decklist|Mainstream Harpies
|color=
|color=
|color2=
|color2=
|monsters =
|monsters =
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
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* [[Birdface]]
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* [[Cyber Harpie Lady]]
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* [[Cyber Harpie Lady ]]
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* [[Harpie Lady 1]]
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* [[Harpie Lady 1]] / [[Harpie Lady 3]]
* [[Harpie Channeler]]
* [[Harpie Channeler]]
* [[Harpie Dancer]]
* [[Harpie Dancer]]
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* [[Harpie Lady Sisters]]
* [[Harpie Queen]]
* [[Harpie Queen]]
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* [[Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon]]
* [[Harpie's Pet Dragon]]
* [[Harpie's Pet Dragon]]
* [[Rescue Rabbit]]
* [[Rescue Rabbit]]
** [[Harpie Lady]]
** [[Harpie Lady]]
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** [[Sky Scout]]
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* [[Alector, Sovereign of Birds]]
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* [[Battlestorm]]
* [[Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite]]
* [[Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite]]
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* [[Dragunity Darkspear]]
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* [[Garuda the Wind Spirit]]
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* [[Flying Kamakiri 1]]
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* [[Kujakujaku]]
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* [[Garuda the Wind Spirit]] / [[Silpheed]]
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* [[Genex Ally Birdman]]
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* [[Mist Valley Soldier]]
* [[Summoner Monk]]
* [[Summoner Monk]]
* [[Windrose the Elemental Lord]]
* [[Windrose the Elemental Lord]]
* [[Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms]]
* [[Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms]]
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* [[Cockadoodledoo]]
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* [[Hunter Owl]]
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|xyz monsters =
|xyz monsters =
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* [[Evilswarm Exciton Knight]]
* [[Evilswarm Exciton Knight]]
* [[Castel, the Skyblaster Musketeer]]
* [[Castel, the Skyblaster Musketeer]]
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* [[Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon]](OCG)
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* [[Daigusto Emeral]]
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* [[Daigusto Emeral]] (Works well with normal "[[Harpie Lady]]")
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* [[Lavalval Chain]]
* [[Diamond Dire Wolf]]
* [[Diamond Dire Wolf]]
* [[Maestroke the Symphony Djinn]]
* [[Maestroke the Symphony Djinn]]
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Line 120:
* [[Abyss Dweller]]
* [[Abyss Dweller]]
* [[Photon Papilloperative]]
* [[Photon Papilloperative]]
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* [[Steelswarm Roach]]
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* [[Evigishki Merrowgeist]]
* [[Queen Dragun Djinn]]
* [[Queen Dragun Djinn]]
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* [[King of the Feral Imps]] (If using [[Kagetokage]])
* [[Ice Beast Zerofyne]]
* [[Ice Beast Zerofyne]]
* [[Lightning Chidori]]
* [[Lightning Chidori]]
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* [[Evilswarm Ouroboros]]
* [[Stellarknight Delteros]]
* [[Stellarknight Delteros]]
* [[Gaia Dragon, the Thunder Charger]]
* [[Gaia Dragon, the Thunder Charger]]
* [[Mecha Phantom Beast Dracossack]]
* [[Mecha Phantom Beast Dracossack]]
* [[Number 11: Big Eye]]
* [[Number 11: Big Eye]]
−
* [[Number 32: Shark Drake]]
−
* [[Number 39: Utopia]]
* [[Number 50: Blackship of Corn]]
* [[Number 50: Blackship of Corn]]
−
* [[Number 66: Master Key Beetle]] (can be summoned through [[Summoner Monk]] and [[Blackwing - Zephyros the Elite]] or [[Kagetokage]])
−
* [[Number 69: Heraldry Crest]]
* [[Number 74: Master of Blades]]
* [[Number 74: Master of Blades]]
* [[Number 80: Rhapsody in Berserk]]
* [[Number 80: Rhapsody in Berserk]]
* [[Number 82: Heartlandraco]]
* [[Number 82: Heartlandraco]]
−
* [[Number 85: Crazy Box]] (Useful under [[Skill Drain]])
+
* [[Number 85: Crazy Box]]
−
* [[Number 91: Thunder Spark Dragon]]
* [[Number 101: Silent Honor ARK]]
* [[Number 101: Silent Honor ARK]]
* [[Number 103: Ragnazero]]
* [[Number 103: Ragnazero]]
−
* [[Number 104: Masquerade]]
+
−
|synchro monsters =
−
* [[Dragunity Knight - Trident]]
−
* [[Scrap Dragon]]
−
* [[Stardust Dragon]]
−
* [[Vortex the Whirlwind]]
−
* [[Crimson Blader]]
−
* [[Star Eater]]
−
* [[Black Rose Dragon]]
−
* [[Ancient Fairy Dragon]]
|spells =
|spells =
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
Line 204:
Line 140:
* [[Hysteric Sign]]
* [[Hysteric Sign]]
* [[Elegant Egotist]]
* [[Elegant Egotist]]
−
* [[Phalanx Pike]]
* [[Quill Pen of Gulldos]]
* [[Quill Pen of Gulldos]]
−
* [[Symbol of Heritage]]
+
−
* [[Swallow's Nest]]
−
* [[Sacred Sword of Seven Stars]] (if using [[Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms]] or [[Dark Simorgh]])
−
* [[Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation]]
−
* [[Inferno Reckless Summon]]
|traps =
|traps =
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
−
* [[Generation Shift]] / [[Next to be Lost]]
* [[Hysteric Party]]
* [[Hysteric Party]]
* [[Icarus Attack]]
* [[Icarus Attack]]
* [[Phoenix Wing Wind Blast]]
* [[Phoenix Wing Wind Blast]]
−
* [[Spiritual Wind Art - Miyabi]]
−
* [[Starlight Road]]
−
* [[Three of a Kind]]
−
* [[Treaty on Uniform Nomenclature]]
−
* [[Eradicator Epidemic Virus]] (use with [[Evilswarm Ouroboros]], [[Number 11: Big Eye]], [[Number 66: Master Key Beetle]], [[Dark Simorgh]] or [[Number 85: Crazy Box]])
−
* [[Deck Devastation Virus]] (use with above targets, [[King of the Feral Imps]], [[Queen Dragun Djinn]], etc.)
* [[Skill Prisoner]]
* [[Skill Prisoner]]
* [[Magical Hats]]
* [[Magical Hats]]
}}
}}
−
{{Decklist|Blackwinged Harpies
−
|color=
−
|color2=
−
|monsters =
−
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
−
* [[Harpie Channeler]]
−
* [[Harpie Dancer]]
−
* [[Harpie Queen]]
−
* [[Battlestorm]]
−
* [[Blackwing - Blizzard the Far North]]
−
* [[Blackwing - Bora the Spear]]
−
* [[Blackwing - Gale the Whirlwind]]
−
* [[Blackwing - Sirocco the Dawn]]
−
* [[Dark Simorgh]]
−
|xyz monsters =
−
* [[Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon]]
−
* [[Ice Beast Zerofyne]]
−
* [[Lightning Chidori]]
−
|synchro monsters =
−
* [[Blackwing Armed Wing]]
−
* [[Blackwing Armor Master]]
−
* [[Black-Winged Dragon]]
−
* [[Stardust Dragon]]
−
|spells =
−
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
−
* [[Hysteric Sign]]
−
* [[Allure of Darkness]]
−
* [[Black Whirlwind]]
−
* [[Cards for Black Feathers]]
−
* [[Swallow's Nest]]
−
* [[Magic Planter]]
−
|traps =
−
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
−
* [[Hysteric Party]]
−
* [[Anti-Spell Fragrance]]
−
* [[Delta Crow - Anti Reverse]]
−
* [[Escape from the Dark Dimension]]
−
* [[Icarus Attack]]
−
* [[Imperial Custom]]
−
}}
−
−
{{Decklist|Valley of Harpies
−
|color=
−
|color2=
−
|monsters =
−
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
−
* [[Harpie Lady 1]] / [[Cyber Harpie Lady]]
−
* [[Harpie Channeler]]
−
* [[Harpie Dancer]]
−
* [[Harpie Queen]]
−
* [[Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon]]
−
* [[Dragunity Darkspear]]
−
* [[Genex Ally Birdman]]
−
* [[Genex Blastfan]]
−
* [[Mist Valley Falcon]]
−
* [[Mist Valley Shaman]]
−
* [[Mist Valley Soldier]]
−
* [[Raiza the Storm Monarch]]
−
* [[Reborn Tengu]]
−
* [[Garuda the Wind Spirit]] / [[Silpheed]]
−
* [[Tempest, Dragon Ruler of Storms]]
−
* [[Windrose the Elemental Lord]]
−
|xyz monsters =
−
* [[Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon]]
−
* [[Ice Beast Zerofyne]]
−
* [[Lightning Chidori]]
−
* [[Mecha Phantom Beast Dracossack]]
−
* [[Number 11: Big Eye]]
−
* [[Number 74: Master of Blades]]
−
|synchro monsters =
−
* [[Ancient Fairy Dragon]]
−
* [[Ancient Faerie Dragon]]
−
* [[Mist Valley Thunder Lord]]
−
* [[Mist Wurm]]
−
|spells =
−
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
−
* [[Hysteric Sign]]
−
* [[Divine Wind of Mist Valley]]
−
* [[Swallow's Nest]]
−
* [[Terraforming]]
−
|traps =
−
<!--This is not an exact Decklist. Please do not add multiples or staples.-->
"Sky Scout", originally known as "Harpie's Brother", is not a Harpie card because it does not have 「ハーピィ」 in its Japanese name. It was renamed to clarify this.
When "Harpies" were released (some of the first monsters released that would later become an official archetype), they didn't have much support. From Rise of Destiny onward, however, "Harpies" became more balanced and powerful with occasional support cards released. Structure Deck 8: Lord of the Storm has aided this archetype with cards such as "Hysteric Party" and "Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon", while also featuring a lot of other Harpie-related cards in it. Afterwards, "Harpie Queen" was released in Force of the Breaker, providing ways to search "Harpie's Hunting Ground".
With the release of Lord of the Tachyon Galaxy, Harpies get some tremendous boost, while also solidifies the deck's focus of maintaining advantage and Xyz Summoning. "Harpie Channeler" is essentially become the main card in all Harpie-based decks, as she can Special Summon another Harpie monster from the Deck while also assists Xyz Summoning of Rank 4 or 7, while "Hysteric Sign" helps searching either "Elegant Egoist" or any Harpie cards you may need, depending on how you use it. The Xyz Monster in this archetype, "Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon" can protect your other Harpie monsters from attacks or targeting effects, along with direct-attacking ability as well.
Legendary Collection 4: Joey's World also provides more support for this archetype (while also reprinting important Harpie-related cards as well). "Harpie Dancer"'s effect can be utilized for reaping more benefits from "Harpie's Hunting Ground", or providing more swarming capabilities when coupled with "Divine Wind of Mist Valley". They also have their ultimate Spell Card, "Harpie Lady Phoenix Formation", which can decimate your opponent's field of monsters, but disallows you to Special Summoning monsters from your Deck and skipping your Battle Phase, making it a double-edged sword with hefty drawbacks.
"Harpie Lady 1", "Harpie Lady 2", "Harpie Lady 3" and "Cyber Harpie Lady" have the phrase This card's name is treated as "Harpie Lady" in their effect text. Since this text does not specify a place the card has to be in order to be called "Harpie Lady", their name is treated as "Harpie Lady" everywhere, including while in the player's Deck. Due to this, a player can only have a total combination of any 3 of these cards and/or the Normal Monster "Harpie Lady" in their Main Deck and their Side Deck combined (such as 1 "Harpie Lady", 1 "Cyber Harpie Lady", and 1 "Harpie Lady 2").
Media appearances
In the anime, the "Harpies" are the signature cards of Mai Valentine. She often begins with one "Harpie" card and uses support cards to accessorize and multiply it. Joey Wheeler also used some "Harpie" cards as a reminder of his promise to save Mai from her Penalty Game.
Most "Harpies" in the international release of the game, including all language prints except Japanese, and in the anime have been edited to appear to wear bodysuits while in the Japanese versions they wear much more revealing clothing. "Cyber Harpie Lady" and "Harpie Lady Sisters" have had the spikes extruding from their armor removed due to the suggestiveness. However, some earlier printings of a few of the "Harpie" cards outside of Japan (specifically the original "Harpie Lady" and "Harpie Girl") were printed without being censored.
Playing style
"Harpies" combine the ability to be rapidly summoned, to destroy the opponent's Spell and Trap Cards, increase each others attack points, enhancing their individual abilities, and to protect each other. They do not have the ability to destroy Spell and Trap cards innately, but their Field Spell Card, "Harpies' Hunting Ground" allows them to destroy one Spell or Trap Card when a "Harpie Lady" card is Summoned in any way. They can be Summoned from the Graveyard in large numbers through the effect of "Hysteric Party". Their support cards, "Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon" and "Harpie's Pet Dragon", rapidly gains power ("Harpie's Pet Dragon") or utility ("Harpie's Pet Baby Dragon") depending on how many Harpie Lady cards you control. Properly played, "Harpies" can overwhelm the opponent in moments with high attack power and powerful effects, but they are not strong individually, so they are vulnerable to opponents who can overpower them, or destroy all of them at once.
To keep their onslaught running, they also utilize "Hysteric Sign" for searching more Harpie cards and maintain card advantages in their favor, while using "Harpie's Hunting Ground" and "Icarus Attack" as control measures to destroy any obstacles your opponent may utilize.
Weaknesses
Despite the many powerful combos that "Harpies" are capable of, there are still weaknesses within this archetype that can be capitalized on. For instance, most "Harpie" monsters, except "Cyber Harpie Lady", "Harpie Queen", "Harpie's Pet Dragon" and "Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon" are generally low in original ATK, making them unsuitable in battle against most high-ATK monsters.
Most Harpie-based decks relies on either "Summoner Monk" and/or "Harpie Channeler" to Summon more monsters from the Deck, and without those cards, this deck cannot survive for long, nor accumulating speed for offense, which means effect negations such as "Effect Veiler" or "Breakthrough Skill", or disruption cards like "Book of Moon" and "Solemn Warning" is very effective against them during early game stage. Since they mostly focused on Xyz Summons, "Flying "C"" can shut down the Deck's aggressive stance, and "Thunder King Rai-Oh" can blocks the effects of "Hysteric Sign", slowing them down.
