Spell
NormalBranded Bond
Archetype:
Branded
View:
5205
Special Summon 1 of your "Fallen of Albaz" that is banished, in your hand, or in your GY. During the End Phase, if this card is in the GY because it was sent there to activate the effect of "Fallen of Albaz" this turn: You can Set this card. You can only use each effect of "Branded Bond" once per turn.
Branded Bond — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 54 ± 8 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 49 · Deck: 57 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Extender · Secondary: Recovery/Recursion
Why it scores here
Branded Bond is a Branded-only Spell whose main value is returning Fallen of Albaz from hand, GY or banishment and, once Albaz's effect has sent it to the GY, Setting itself again. Its observed boards are strong (average power index 95.7 across 3 combos), but none of those combos records it as a starter, searched, or payoff piece, so the high index reflects the Albaz engine around it rather than proof that this card is the driver. The 1.21 average copies, the 98% co-occurrence with Albaz, and the 40-archetype spread are real but mostly show a staple Branded support card, and its ATK-free, interaction-free body earns almost nothing on material or effect axes.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 60 | Live in 400 of 400 sampled decks and co-occurs with Fallen of Albaz in 98% of them, but no combo records it as a starter or searched card, so routes are real yet unconfirmed in boards (observed). |
| Combo & Conversion | 62 | Appears in 3 of 3 recorded combos with a 95.7 average power index, yet role_in_combo is empty and the best examples are Albaz boards, so the conversion is an inference from the surrounding engine (observed/inferred). |
| Resource Economy | 45 | Text gives a GY-to-field Special Summon and a GY Set, which recycles one Albaz and one card-slot, but no netCardAdvantage is attributable to this card alone (inferred). |
| Effect & Interaction | 5 | No negation, removal, or hand-trap effect in the text (verified). |
| Material Utility | 10 | A Spell card cannot be used as Xyz/Link/Fusion material, so the body contributes nothing here (verified). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 55 | Works from hand, GY and banishment and can Set itself back from the GY, giving multi-zone use across turns, though the once-per-turn limits cap repeats (verified/inferred). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 60 | Mostly a 1-of (337 of 400 decks run one copy) with no garnet or lock text, but it is locked to the Branded archetype, which limits splashing (observed/verified). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Extender + 0.3 Recovery/Recursion. Intrinsic ≈ 49, Deck ≈ 57, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Recovers Fallen of Albaz from hand, GY or banishment, giving the Branded engine a second route to its key body
- Can Set itself from the GY after Albaz's effect, so it can be reused in a later turn
- Present in essentially every sampled Branded deck and almost always with Fallen of Albaz
Weaknesses
- Spell card with no ATK body, so it adds no material or board presence on its own
- No interaction, negation or removal effect
- Once-per-turn limits on each effect cap how often it can be reused
- Dependent on the Branded/Albaz engine, so its value drops outside that shell
Counters / choke points
- Negation or hand traps that stop the Albaz summon before the Branded Bond effect resolves (inferred)
- Graveyard or banish hate effects that deny the GY Set route (inferred)
Best use
Second Albaz recursion route and GY reuse piece. Decks: Branded (Fallen of Albaz shells), Despia and Dogmatika lists that run Albaz. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Text: Special Summons one Fallen of Albaz from banishment, hand or GY; Text: may Set itself in the End Phase if sent to GY to activate Albaz's effect this turn; Text: each effect is once per turn; Spell card, so not usable as material
- Observed: Present in 400 of 400 decks, 1.21 average copies; 98.2% co-occurrence with Fallen of Albaz; Appears in 3 of 3 combos with average power index 95.7; Usage statistics: 53.8% inclusion in one gameplay archetype
- Inferred: Recursion route is real and practical for Albaz; High combo index comes mainly from surrounding Albaz engine rather than this card
- Data gaps: No banlist token: assumed 3 copies (unlimited) Combos show no starter/searched/payoff role tags, so the card's role in boards is inferred from text Only 3 recorded combos, so combo signal is thin One guide mention only