DARK
8Buster Dragon
Archetype:
Destruction Sword
ATK:
1200
DEF:
2800
View:
8330
1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters All monsters your opponent controls become Dragon-Type. Once per turn, if you do not control a "Buster Blader" monster: You can target 1 "Buster Blader" in your Graveyard; Special Summon it. Once per turn, during your opponent's turn: You can target 1 "Buster Blader" monster you control; equip it with 1 "Destruction Sword" monster from your Graveyard (this is a Quick Effect).
Buster Dragon — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 53 ± 8 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 53 · Deck: 53 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Recovery/Recursion · Secondary: Boss/End-board
Why it scores here
Buster Dragon is a Level 8 Synchro whose value is recursion: once per turn it Special Summons a Buster Blader from the Graveyard when none is on the field, and once per opponent turn it equips a Destruction Sword from the Graveyard to a Buster Blader as a Quick Effect. Its field effect (turning opponent monsters into Dragons) is a minor interaction and earns little. The 400-deck sample is selected by card presence, so the 100% deck count and the high partner percentages reflect the Buster Blader and Destruction Sword homes rather than standalone strength. The score rests on accessibility, recursion and a cheap single-slot body, and no combo evidence was supplied to confirm conversion.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 60 | Needs a Tuner plus non-Tuner monsters to Synchro summon, and the revival needs a Buster Blader in the Graveyard; both are common in the Buster Blader and Destruction Sword homes (verified text, observed partners at 74% and 90%). |
| Combo & Conversion | 40 | No combo boards were supplied, so any conversion beyond the revival is text-only inference (inferred). |
| Resource Economy | 60 | The Graveyard Special Summon and the Graveyard equip each recur once per turn, giving repeated free value without a card spent (verified text, inferred advantage). |
| Effect & Interaction | 25 | The field effect converts opponent monsters to Dragon-Type, which is situational at best and not a negation or removal (verified text). |
| Material Utility | 40 | A Level 8 DARK Dragon Synchro with a Tuner requirement; its material fit beyond Dragon-type Synchro lines is unknown (inferred). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 55 | Recursion from the Graveyard survives removal of the field body and works on both players' turns, but both effects depend on Buster Blader in the Graveyard (verified text, inferred). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 70 | Single Extra Deck slot with 355 of 400 decks running one copy and an average of 1.12 copies, with no garnet or self-lock (observed, verified copies distribution). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Recovery/Recursion + 0.3 Boss/End-board. Intrinsic ≈ 53, Deck ≈ 53, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Recurring once-per-turn Graveyard revival of Buster Blader keeps the line alive after the body is removed
- Quick Effect equip during the opponent's turn gives flexibility at low cost
- Single-copy Extra Deck slot is cheap to run
Weaknesses
- No combo evidence, so conversion into a full board is unproven
- Interaction is limited to a situational Dragon-type conversion
- Both effects depend on Buster Blader in the Graveyard and a Synchro summon first
- Material fit beyond Dragon Synchro lines is unknown
Counters / choke points
- Graveyard hate that removes Buster Blader before the revival is used
- Monster-effect negation during the once-per-turn Special Summon
Best use
Recursion engine and Extra Deck body for the Buster Blader core. Decks: Buster Blader, Destruction Sword. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Synchro requirement is one Tuner plus one or more non-Tuner monsters; Graveyard Special Summon of Buster Blader, once per turn, when you control none; Quick Effect equip of a Destruction Sword from the Graveyard to Buster Blader, once per turn on the opponent's turn; Field effect converts opponent monsters to Dragon-Type; Copies distribution: 355 decks at 1 copy, 41 at 2, 4 at 3; average 1.12
- Observed: Partners: Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring 90.2%, Buster Blader 74.2%, Destruction Sword Memories 71.5%; Archetype usage: Buster Blader 100% (gameplay 4), Destruction Sword 100%, Buster Blader 60% (gameplay 7); Gameplay type 7 in 84% of sample decks; Guides name the card as a core piece of the Buster Blader Extra Deck
- Inferred: The revival and equip are the card's main value, as a recursion line on top of the Buster Blader body; Interaction is low because the field effect is not a negation or removal
- Data gaps: no combos supplied, so combo conversion is text-only inference no banlist token; assumed 3 copies (unlimited) deck sample is selected by card presence, so the 400/400 inclusion figure is not a measure of inclusion no rulings available for the once-per-turn interactions with negation