Performapal

Performapal
Yuya Sakaki with various "Performapal" monsters and "Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon"
Japanese	ＥＭ（エンタメイト） ＥＭ (base) エンタメイト (ruby) Entameito (romanized) Entermate (translated)
English	Enter-Mate / Entermate (manga)
French	Potartiste
German	Künstlerkumpel
Italian	Artistamico
Korean	E（엔터）M（메이트） EM (base) 엔터메이트 (ruby) Enteomeiteu (romanized) Entermate (translated)
Portuguese	Camarartista
Spanish	Artistamigo
Sets Duelist Alliance V Jump promotional cards V Jump Edition Pendulum Victory Pack The New Challengers Secrets of Eternity Special Summon Evolution Crossed Souls Clash of Rebellions Structure Deck: Master of Pendulum Dimension of Chaos Breakers of Shadow Starter Deck 2016 Shining Victories The Dark Illusion Collectors Pack: Duelist of Flash Version
Anime appearances
Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Manga appearances
Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V The Strongest Duelist Yuya!!
Lists	Members Support

"Performapal", known as "Entermate" (ＥＭ（エンタメイト） Entameito) in the OCG and the English One-Shot Chapter and as "Enter-Mate" in the English ARC-V manga, is an archetype used by Yuya Sakaki in the Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V anime and manga.

Design

Appearance

The archetype is primarily designed around circus animals, donning apparel such as top hats and polka dot bow ties. Yuya uses the archetype's diversity in appearance to traverse around the Duel Fields, using "Whip Snake" to scale high buildings and "Skeeter Skimmer" to travel across water. Many of the members of this archetype have a colored star on their bodies, as well as some of them having nearly the same background with stars and circles but different colors.

Etymology

Both the English and Japanese names are simple portmanteaus: "Performapal" is a portmanteau of "performance" and "pal", while "Entermate" is a portmanteau of "entertainment" and "mate".

The "Performapal" archetype members tend to have their names formed of portmanteaus, usually of a description of what purpose they serve or what they are based off of, plus what animal/circus entertainer they are. For example, the Japanese name for "Performapal Hip Hippo" is "Discover Hippo", which reflects how it is Yuya's main mode of transportation during Action Duels to find Action Cards. Another example is "Sword Fish", which is based off a sword-shaped fish.

Performapal	Entermate (Japanese translation)	Portmanteau	Reference
Bit Bite Turtle	Big Bite Turtle	Bit/Big + Bite + Turtle
Bot-Eyes Lizard	Bot-Eyes Lizard	Bots + Eyes + Lizard	Eyes made of mechanic parts, possibly a pun on "Odd-Eyes" - what this card transform into.
Bowhopper	Gunhopper	Crossbow + Grasshopper	Crossbow-shaped grasshopper propelling a cricket.
Camelump	Cameldown	Camel + Lump/Down	Lowers the opponent monsters' DEF.
Cheermole	Cheermole	Cheerleading + Mole	Dressed as a cheerleader and boosts difference between original and current ATK.
Corn	Corn	Corn	Combos with "Enter-Mate Uni", with which it forms the word "Unicorn".
Drummerilla	Drumming Kong	Drum + Gorilla	Drums as pecs.
Elephammer	Hammer Mammo	Elephant/Mammoth + Hammer	Hammer on end of trunk.
Extra Shooter	Extra Shooter	Extra + Shooter
Fire Mufferlion	Fire Mufflio	Fire + Muffler + Lion	Muffler made of fire.
Fireflux	Fireflux	Firefly + Lux
Friendonkey	Friendonkey	Friend + Donkey	Ability to Special Summon other "Performapals" with the pack on its side.
Gongcat	Gongcat	Gong + Cat
Guitartle	Guiturtle	Guitar + Turtle	Body is a guitar
Helpprincess	Helpprincess	Help + Princess	Is holding a telephone to provide long-distance assistance.
Hermit Crab Landlord	Landlord Hermit Crab	Hermit Crab + Landlord
Hip Hippo	Discover Hippo	Hip/Discovery + Hippopotamus	Is hip to the whereabouts of Action Cards/Discovers Action Cards.
Kaleidoscorp	Kaleido Scorpion	Kaleidoscope + Scorpion	Effect is visualized as a light show
King Bear	King Bear	Monarch (synonym of King) + Bear
Life Swordsman	Life Swordsman	Life + Swordsman
Lizardraw	Lizardraw	Lizard + Draw	Ability to draw cards.
Longphone Bull	Longphone Bull	Longhorn + Phone + Bull	Has a phone on his head, which he can use to call his friends for help. The term "long" could be considered him calling his friends who are far away. In this case, the deck.
Momoncarpet	Momoncarpet	Momonga + Carpet	Body is a carpet-like
Monkeyboard	Monkeyboard	Monkey + Keyboard	Teeth are a keyboard.
Odd-Eyes Light Phoenix	Odd-Eyes Light Phoenix	Odd-Eyes + Light + Phoenix
Odd-Eyes Unicorn	Odd-Eyes Unicorn	Odd-Eyes + Unicorn	Has heterochromia iridium, similar to the Dragon-Type "Odd-Eyes" monsters
Parrotrio	Parakhorus	Parrot/Parakeet + Trio/Chorus
Partnaga	Partnaga	Partner + Nāga	Ability to power up/protect other monsters.
Pendulum Sorcerer	Pendulum Magician	Pendulum + Sorcerer/Magician	Hold Yuya's pendant-like item.
Radish Horse	Radish Horse	Radish + Horse
Rain Goat	Raingoat	Raincoat + Goat	Ability to reduce Effect damage/protect "Performapal" and "Odd-Eyes" cards. Wearing a raincoat.
Salutiger	Warrior Tiger	Salute/Warrior + Tiger	Saluting humanoid tiger wearing a military-like uniform.
Secondonkey	Secondonkey	Second + Donkey	Second donkey "Performapal"/Ability to be Special Summoned after another "Performapal".
Silver Claw	Silver Claw	Silver + Claw	Huge metallic claws on its front paws.
Skeeter Skimmer	Amenboat	Slang for Mosquito + Skimboarding	Body is mainly comprised of a boat; used for aquatic transportation.
Skullcrobat Joker	Skullcrobat Joker	Skull + Acrobat + Jester (synonym of Joker)
Sleight Hand Magician	Sleight Hand Magician	Sleight of hand + Magician
Spikeagle	Spike Eagle	Spike + Eagle	Ability to give monsters Piercing Battle Damage.
Splashmammoth	Mammoth Splash	Splash + Mammoth
Springoose	Springoose	Spring + Goose	Lower torso is a spring.
Stamp Turtle	Plusturtle	Stamp/Plus + Turtle	Holding a stamp in its hand.
Swincobra	Swing Cobra	Swing + Cobra
Sword Fish	Sword Fish	Sword + Fish	Shaped like a sword.
Teeter Totter Hopper	Seesawhopper	Seesaw (synonym of Teeter Totter) + Grasshopper	Is shaped like a seesaw. Its ability to bring back cards and itself. Hence the notion of going up (field/hand) and down (graveyard). As a child you feel like you can escape others when you are high up (not destroyed in battle), but you must eventually come down (only once).
Thunderhino	Thunderhino	Thunder + Rhinoceros
Trampolynx	Trampolynx	Trampoline + Lynx	Trampoline for a torso. Ability to "bounce" monsters to the hand.
Trumpanda	La Panda	Trumpet/La musical note + Panda	Refers to its musical design.
Trump Girl	Trump Girl	Trump + Girl
Trump Witch	Trump Witch	Trump + Witch	Reference to it giving Yuya the ability to Fusion Summon. Trump could also be translated as "tramp", referring to its patched clothing.
Turn Toad	Turn Toad	Turn + Toad	Swaps monsters' ATK and DEF; body markings resembling a face can be seen on its bottom.
Uni	Uni	Uni	Combos with "Enter-Mate Corn", with which it forms the word "Unicorn".
Whip Snake	Whip Viper	Whip + Snake	Hypnotizes monsters with its effect. Can be used as a whip in an Action Duel.

Playing style

"Performapal" monsters possess varied effects giving the archetype a lot of versatility. Many of the weaker monsters possess strong effects that work well when used together. Monsters like "Cheermole" and "Sword Fish" can manipulate ATK and DEF permanently in large increments and continue to do so if they can remain on the field while others like "Fire Mufflerlion" and "Spikeagle" grant bonuses for attacking by providing a second attack for one of your monsters and piercing damage respectively.

As the first Pendulum Monster archetype, "Performapal" features a large number of Pendulum Monsters designed to make the most out of the Pendulum Zones. "Silver Claw" is a powerful beater in the Monster Card Zone that boosts all "Performapal" monsters' ATK when in the Pendulum Zone. "Pendulum Sorcerer" boosts all "Performapal" monster's ATK by 1000 during a turn when the player Pendulum Summons. "Skullcrobat Joker" and "Odd-Eyes Unicorn" offers the highest Pendulum Scale of the archetype (8), with the effect of "Skullcrobat Joker" allowing to add a "Performapal" monster, a "Magician" Pendulum Monster, or an "Odd-Eyes" monster from the Deck to the hand with its effect, while "Odd-Eyes Unicorn" gives a boost in ATK to a selected target with its Pendulum Effect and helps recover LP with its normal effect.

"Performapals" can lack pushing power on their own, especially when used as a Rank 4 Monster engine, and can used alongside the "Dracoslayer", "Magician", and other Pendulum archetypes to even out Special Summoning, with "Lizardraw" and "Guitartle" as the draw combo "Monkeyboard" and "Skullcrobat Joker" can search for "Partnaga" for ATK and "Turn Toad" can weaken opposing monsters "Wavering Eyes" or "Pendulum Sorcerer" can clear the Pendulum Scales for the next round of effects the following turn.

The archetype is also highly capable at searching and drawing its members out of the Deck through multiple cards. Of these, "Pendulum Sorcerer" is the most potent as it can search for two "Performapal" monsters every turn, and due to its ability to target itself with its destruction effect, can send itself to the Extra Deck to be Pendulum Summoned later. Combining it with effects like "Supply Squad" and "Lizardraw" allow you to gain card advantage quickly, and using "Friendonkey" is an easy way to initially Special Summon it from the hand. "Secondonkey" provides the archetype with another avenue to search out its cards, sending a "Performapal" monster from your Deck to your Graveyard for later revival via "Friendonkey", or if both your Pendulum Zones are occupied, letting you add the searched "Performapal" monster to your hand instead.

On its own, the archetype is capable of quickly swarming the field and gain large ATK boosts through their Pendulum Monsters' effects. "Performapal Pendulum Sorcerer" and "Partnaga" can greatly boost the ATK of one or all "Performapal" monsters until the end of the turn. As such, it's relatively easy to come into the Battle Phase with at least 1 monster with over 2500 ATK.

The strongest monster in the "Performapal" archetype is "Elephammer" at 2600 ATK, which can be Normal Summoned without tribute if the player controls two or more other "Performapals", and bounces all of the opponent's Spell and Trap Cards when it attacks. Together with the swarm capabilities afforded by Pendulum Summons, "Elephammer" can make a good finisher for the archetype.

With the release of Structure Deck: Master of Pendulum and Shining Victories, the "Performapal" archetype has become more intimately entwined with the "Odd-Eyes" and "Magician" archetypes through cards like "Performapal Skullcrobat Joker", "Sky Iris", and "Performapal Odd-Eyes Unicorn", which gives the Deck more efficient use of outside cards that were previously just splashable–especially "Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon".

Weaknesses

"Performapal" decks suffer from two big weaknesses that tend to undermine their core strategies: First, the monsters feature inconsistent Pendulum Scales (fully ranging from 1-8) together with a variety of monster Levels– ironically making it difficult for this Pendulum Summon-centered archetype to Pendulum Summon. Also, though many of the Level 2 and 3 "Performapals" possess strong effects, the only "Performapal" monster with a Scale of 1 is "Performapal Monkeyboard", making it difficult to retrieve those Level 2 Pendulum Monsters from the Extra Deck without relying on Pendulum Monsters from outside the archetype.

Second, while "Performapals" are outstanding in manipulating ATK and granting special combat tricks to Pendulum Monsters during the battle phase, they suffer a debilitating lack of power under most circumstances. Outside of your own battle phase, "Performapals" lose most of the ATK bonuses they gain and are left stranded with their very low original ATK (with the exemption of "Performapal Elephammer's" outstanding 2600 ATK, most barely scrape over 1800 for ATK or DEF). Combined with the issue of getting support monsters out consistently, dedicated "Performapal" decks will often be left with a field with a few low ATK monsters if you don't have protection such as "Last Minute Cancel" on hand. On top of all of this, "Performapal" cards in general (Monster, Spell, and Trap) have a near-random assortment of effects which make building a deck around them convoluted or predictable.

Also, as "Performapal" decks greatly rely on their capacity to Pendulum Summon and their Spell and Trap Cards to maintain advantage, "Anti-Spell Fragrance" is especially debilitating to the deck, preventing any Pendulum Scales from being placed and forcing at least one turn of waiting before any Spell Cards can be activated.

Recommended cards

Recommended cards

Main Deck Monster Cards Effect Monsters Performapal Bowhopper Performapal Elephammer Performapal Friendonkey Performapal Helpprincess Performapal Salutiger Performapal Secondonkey Performapal Sword Fish Performapal Thunderhino Performapal Whip Snake Performapal Raingoat Dragon Dowser Frontline Observer Odd-Eyes Dragon Odd-Eyes Saber Dragon Tuner monsters Tuning Magician Pendulum Monsters Performapal Bit Bite Turtle Performapal Camelump Performapal Drummerilla Performapal Fire Mufflerlion Performapal Fireflux Performapal Landlord Hermit Crab Performapal Lizardraw Performapal Monkeyboard Performapal Odd-Eyes Unicorn Performapal Partnaga Performapal Pendulum Sorcerer Performapal Silver Claw Performapal Skullcrobat Joker Performapal Splashmammoth Performapal Trump Witch Performapal Trump Girl Performapal Trumpanda Archfiend Eccentrick Dharma-Eye Magician Dragonpit Magician Dragonpulse Magician Guiding Ariadne Luster Pendulum, the Dracoslayer Master Pendulum, the Dracoslayer Nobledragon Magician Oafdragon Magician Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon Rector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord Vector Pendulum, the Dracoverlord Wisdom-Eye Magician Xiangke Magician Xiangsheng Magician Ritual Monsters Amorphactor Psycho, the Vain Dracoverlord Odd-Eyes Gravity Dragon Spell Cards Performapal Recasting Barrier Bubble Illusion Balloons Performance Band Hurricane Sky Iris Draco Face-Off Draw Muscle Fire Formation - Tenki (Searcher for "Salutiger") Fusion Conscription Fusion Substitute Odd-Eyes Advent Odd-Eyes Fusion Pendulum Call Pendulum Shift Pendulum Impenetrable Pendulum Storm Pot of Riches Supply Squad Wavering Eyes Trap Cards Command Performance Last Minute Cancel Performapal Call Performapal Pinch Helper Performapal Revival Defense Draw Fusion Reserve Echo Oscillation Horn of the Phantom Beast Wall of Disruption Pendulum Back Pendulum Reborn Solemn Strike Extra Deck Fusion Monsters Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon Dinoster Power, the Mighty Dracoslayer Odd-Eyes Vortex Dragon Rune-Eyes Pendulum Dragon Synchro Monsters Clear Wing Synchro Dragon Enlightenment Paladin Ignister Prominence, the Blasting Dracoslayer Odd-Eyes Meteorburst Dragon Xyz Monsters Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon Majester Paladin, the Ascending Dracoslayer Number 103: Ragnazero Odd-Eyes Absolute Dragon Odd-Eyes Rebellion Dragon Performage Trapeze Magician

Official Decks

The following Decklists may or may not contain copies of cards that exceed the maximum amount allowed by the current Forbidden & Limited List. These should not be changed, as these Decklists are copied verbatim at the time they were published.