Introduction
The HERO deck is a combo-heavy archetype that has great potential as a contender for one of the top rogue decks currently available in Master Duel. In this guide, I will provide an in-depth analysis of the deck, how best to build and pilot it, what tech cards to use, some combos, along with a sample deck list that I have been using since the new DPE engine was released.
Pros: As the only deck that can summon DPE without Anaconda or Fusion Destiny, Heroes can end with some of the strongest boards going first with a combination of strong boss monsters like DPE, Plasma, Dark Law, and Absolute Zero. Likewise, going second, Heroes are very capable of breaking most board with a combination of Super Poly, Trinity, and Honest Neos.
Cons: Since the deck has no innate negates, it really loses hard to board wipes like <component id="44"/>, <component id="45"/>, <component id="46"/>/<component id="47"/>, and Kaijus.
HERO Core Cards
Main Deck
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<component id="7"/> <component id="48"/> (2-3): Stratos, along with Vyon (who I will mention more in depth in the Vision Hero section) are the two main normal summons in the deck. Stratos has two very powerful effects; first, the ability to destroy a number of spell and/or trap cards on the field, up to the number of hero monsters you control (not including Stratos), and second, searching any hero monster and adding it to your hand. This makes Stratos a great board breaker going second, or a great combo starter going first. Stratos is usually used to search for Faris (if you have another hero to discard), Honest Neos (if you are trying to push for lethal damage), or one of the Destiny Heroes to use in extender / fusion plays. Finally, Stratos' effects are not once per turn, so if you get one out with A Hero Lives (to search), you can normal summon a second one to either search again or pop a card on the field.
<component id="8"/> <component id="49"/> (2): Shadow Mist is another great card to use as a combo extender (by being sent to the graveyard), or a way to search out Mask Change (if special summoned via Liquid Soldier or A Hero Lives), which is one of the best spell cards in the deck. Typically, you want to use Shadow Mist as discard fodder for your Faris or Liquid Soldier effects, which easily activates its graveyard effect to put another hero in your hand.
<component id="9"/> <component id="50"/> (1): Liquid is a great one-of card for a few reasons. First, he is the main fusion target for a fusion play with polymerization into sunrise because his effect will activate that lets you draw two cards, then discard one, which is a great way to put your destiny heroes, or Shadow Mist into the graveyard. Second, he is used to make two of the more powerful boss monsters of the deck, Absolute Zero and Acid, which when combined results in a full board wipe. Finally, he is used rarely as the 3rd go-to normal summon for the deck, if you already have something like a Shadow Mist, Stratos or Vyon in the graveyard to special summon.
<component id="10"/> Elemental HERO Honest Neos (1): Honest Neos serves three purposes in the deck. First, he is used as a finisher, as when you discard him from your hand, any hero you control gains 2500 attack until the end of the turn. Second, if you choose to run the Super Polymerization package, having Neos in the graveyard is another way to get out The Shining via Miracle Fusion, to push for even more damage. Finally, he is one of the three targets you can send from your hand or deck via Fusion Destiny to make DPE.
<component id="11"/> <component id="51"/> (0-1): I personally have never used Solid Soldier, as I think he is lackluster compared to the other options we have, but he is still worth a spot to talk about. His effects are very specific in nature, meaning often, he would end up being a brick in hand. When normal summoned you can special summon one level 4 or lower hero from your hand. On the one hand, if you have a Stratos, Vyon, or Shadow Mist this is great, since it allows for an additional search, or to add mask change to hand, then you have two monsters on the field to go into link plays with, but on the other hand, if you don’t have a level 4 or lower in your hand, he is an extremely weak vanilla earth summon, an element we have no fusion monsters for in the extra deck. His second effect is if he is sent from the monster zone to the graveyard by spell effect (namely, Polymerization), you can target any hero in your graveyard, except Solid Soldier, and special summon it in defense position. Like his first effect, this can be used as a combo extender. Bottom line, Solid isn’t a BAD card, per se, but considering he shares UR materials with the other normal summons of the deck, Stratos and Vyon, which are strictly better than Solid, in my opinion skip him and don’t waste your materials.
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<component id="12"/> <component id="52"/> (1-2): Ah, Increase. This card always causes debate between hero players. The argument is whether to run one or two. Increase serves one purpose; after you special summon Faris, you place Increase in the back row, then use his effect to sacrifice a hero, special summon himself from the backrow, then special summon Vyon from your deck. He also be placed from the graveyard to the backrow if you take battle or effect damage. Personally, as Increase is one of the few garnets in the deck, I run two, so drawing one isn’t the end of the world, but if you want to fit other tech cards in, while keeping the deck as slim as possible, you can try cutting down to one.
<component id="13"/> <component id="53"/> (3): The bread and butter of the vision hero engine. Faris can special summon himself by discarding a hero from your hand (combos very well with malicious, denier and shadow mist), then upon entering the battlefield, allows you to search Increase from your deck to put in the backrow. Furthermore, Faris is great banish target for Vyon. KEEP IN MIND, if you use Faris’s search effect, you are locked out of any potential Anaconda play for the rest of the turn, as it locks you in to only special summoning hero monsters.
<component id="14"/> <component id="54"/> (2): The other go-to normal summon besides Stratos, and your search target with Increase. Vyon is used to send Shadow Mist, or a destiny hero to the graveyard, then allows you to banish one hero from your graveyard to add Polymerization to your hand.
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