Six Samurai: Complete Guide
Introduction
About the Author
Hi! I'm Emma. When I first started playing Duel Links in December 2017, the one deck type that really grabbed my attention was The Six Samurai. I really liked the idea of an archetype that focused entirely on using team work to win the duel, so I decided I’d focus my attention on trying to build the best deck lists with the cards at my disposal. Ever since then, I have achieved over 35 Six Samurai King of Games runs, I’ve achieved most of my King of Games, Giveaway Tournaments, Giveaway Tournament success, and Meta Weekly successes with Six Samurai. With the introduction out of the way, I’d like to now provide an overview of the archetype.
Overview
In December 2017, Duel Links added the popular Six Samurai archetype to the Blade of Spirits box. Blade of Spirits included The Six Samurai archetype with their boss monster, Loading... . Unfortunately, the deck didn’t perform very well because they were lacking cards that ensured fast and consistent strategies.
To further capitalize on Six Samurai’s popularity, the Secret Six Samurai support cards were eventually added to the Crusader Battlegrounds box in May 2018. While Crusader Battlegrounds did include much needed support to Six Samurai, it wasn’t enough to warrant a spot on any competitive tier list due to the nature of bricking with using (while also needing) 3 copies of Loading... .
However, the Warriors Unite box includes the highly popular Legendary Six Samurai, the third and final variant of the Six Samurai archetype, alongside their true boss monster Loading... .
The purpose of this guide is to discuss the 3 different types of Six Samurai, their spell cards, trap cards, synergy between cards, skills to play with the deck, strengths/weaknesses, potential matchups, and my general thoughts on the archetype. Without further ado, here’s the original Six Samurai monster line-up.
Card Breakdown
The Six Samurai
The original Six Samurai are a passive control deck that features a unique mechanic that allows you to choose to destroy a Six Samurai monster face-up on the field instead of the intended target, highlighting the theme of using teamwork to win a duel. These monsters include:
- Strengths:
- Destruction effect doesn’t target
- 4* level synergises with Fuma to summon Shi En
- Works well with the Holy Guard skill
- Weaknesses:
- Effect is risky in Duel Links due to 4,000 LP, so you’ll have to be sure the monster you’re attacking is worth the LP cost
- Strengths:
- Counter flip-effect monsters due to destroying the card while it’s face-down,
- Synergises with popular staples such as: Paleozoic Canadia and Floodgate Trap Hole
- Weaknesses:
- Its effect is situational, so you won’t always find use from this card
- Strengths:
- Synergises with Cunning of the Six Samurai for potentially 4+ attacks in 1 turn
- 4* level helps summon Shi En with Fuma
- Weaknesses:
- Unless you can clear the field of monsters before attacking, its effect isn’t worth using due to its relatively low 1,400 ATK points
- Strengths:
- Bypasses monsters with higher stats than its own
- Bypasses continuous traps such as Amazoness Onslaught
- Weaknesses:
- Low stats rarely justify its existence in a main deck
- Strengths:
- Great in meta’s where control decks become common
- Becomes a priority target against battle-trap reliant decks
- Weaknesses:
- Can’t attack after the effect is used
- The targeted face-down spell/trap can be flipped face-up to prevent it being destroyed
- Strengths:
- Can help you beat Amazoness decks by destroying their only copy of Onslaught
- Weaknesses:
- Effect is very situational
- Can’t attack after using his effect
In summary, most of the original Six Samurai monster cards are slow, outdated, and struggle to find a spot in a main deck due to niche and/or pointless effects. However, you’ll still find use for Zanji due to his versatile effect and synergy with summoning Shi En alongside Fuma.
Now that the original Six Samurai have been discussed, I’ll go through the Legendary Six Samurai monsters.