The Heroes' Code

Published on May 7th, 2018 by

Introduction & History

Masked Heroes is an archetype that was released on April 2nd with the 11th Main Box - Valiant Souls. The deck found an already established core in the Destiny HERO archetype. The deck rose to top tier status very quickly due to the formidable stats and effects of Loading... . The numerous effects of Anki as well as his synergy with meta tech cards are what make heroes so explosive and dominant. Anki's 2800 attack stat gives him the ability to easily run over top tier boss monsters such as Loading... and Loading... .

About the Author

Hello, I’m Negative1. I’m presently a Cyber Angel expert in the DLM discord and Masked Heroes are one of my favorite new decks. I wrote this guide with some help from Jonesy9027 on the introduction, tech tier list, and matchups sections and I hope you all find it helpful! :D

Decklist Breakdown

Fusion Variant vs Dark City Variant

Fusion Variant (FV) with Restart vs Dark City Variant (DCV) with Destiny Calling
Many people are curious as to which version of the deck is better. While the Dark City Variant (DCV) has more representation, I believe the Fusion Variant (FV) is the stronger deck for the following reasons:

FV is capable of milling through the deck much faster. With Loading... , Loading... , and Loading... , you are able to thin your deck to the point where you are almost guaranteed to draw into Loading... and other important cards.
DCV has no inherent method of sending Loading... to the grave except through Mask Change or Destiny Draw, and therefore is reliant on hard drawing Mask Change. This slower engine does not compliment the deck’s playstyle; Heroes is not a control deck.
FV runs a few monsters that can cause bricks, but with Restart the deck is much more capable of opening well. DCV does not run any monsters that cause bricks, but as a result, the deck is less explosive.
DCV has an overall worse matchup spread. The field spell Loading... affects Destiny Heroes on both sides of the field meaning it isn’t a bonus in the mirror. Against Sylvans, you may struggle to activate the skill because they will often OTK you before you get the chance to use it. Against Archfiends, 2600 is useful against defense position boss monsters, but this benefit will only last for so long before they pop the field spell with Loading... ’s effect.

Conclusion: The Fusion Variant is better.

Monster Cards

Note: The monsters we use and optimal counts will vary significantly based on the current meta. The current guide was written for May 2018. We will go in depth on how to use these cards in the match up sections.

Loading... [Optimal Count 2] Malicious can lead to bricks and therefore decreases the overall consistency of the deck, but the trade-off in consistency is more than made up for in power and speed. Keep in mind that Malicious can only special summon another Malicious from the deck. If you draw your second Malicious then you will want to get him out of your hand with Loading... , Destiny Draw, or Destiny HERO - Dangerous’ effect.
Loading... [Optimal Count 1-2] Note: Either run Decider or Drilldark, but not both
When normal or special summoned, Decider asks you if you would like to add a HERO from your grave to your hand in the end phase. If you won’t have a HERO in your graveyard, do not activate Decider’s effect. If using Decider’s effect will prevent you from activating Destiny HERO - Celestial’s effect on your following turn, do not activate Decider’s effect. If you have Dangerous on your field and will have him on the field at the end of your turn, activating Decider’s effect is a safe option.
Loading... [Optimal Count 1-2] Note: Either run Decider or Drilldark, but not both
Drilldark is useful when going first against Spellbooks as he will allow you to swarm the field even if you do not have access to Vyon. Drilldark is also capable of summoning Malicious from hand when he would otherwise be dead until you draw Vyon/Poly, so an early Drilldark can lead to a decent board presence if you lack Vyon.
Loading... [Optimal Count 3] Celestial is most effective when in the graveyard. Whether you use Celestial to summon Dangerous or if you Mask Change him for Masked HERO Anki, having Celestial in the grave is important so that you can use his +2 effect on your following turn. It’s important to remember that Celestial has a secondary effect. His ability to destroy a face-up Spell Card and deal 500 damage to your opponent's Life Points will become extremely useful if Field Spell centered decks return to the Top Tiers.
Loading... [Optimal count 3] Vyon is one of the best cards to open with while playing Masked Heroes. We will discuss the best way to utilize him later in the guide.
Loading... [Optimal count 1] Dreamer is the best defensive tool Masked Heroes has. It prevents destruction by battle and any causes battle damage to be zero. Dreamer can also open up possibilities for aggressive plays as you can attack with a Destiny HERO to bring Dreamer onto the field and then Mask Change Dreamer for an Anki. Keep in mind that Dreamer only protects Destiny Heroes, not Vision or Masked Heroes.

Note Running 0 Dreamer is slightly more consistent but has a weaker mirror match. A wise man once said that a deck that can’t win a mirror match is a bad deck.