DARK
4Chow Sai the Ghost Stopper
ATK:
1900
DEF:
800
View:
2046
Neither player can activate the effects of Spell/Trap Cards in the GY. If this card is sent from the field to your GY: You can target 1 Spell/Trap in your opponent's GY; banish it.
Chow Sai the Ghost Stopper — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 45 ± 8 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 47 · Deck: 44 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Floodgate / Control · Secondary: Removal
Why it scores here
Chow Sai's score comes from a narrow Floodgate role: a Level 4 DARK Spellcaster whose ongoing ban on Spell/Trap GY effects and GY-sent banish of an opposing Spell/Trap are one-for-one, situational interaction with no searcher, combo, or refuel. Its 1900 ATK and 800 DEF earn nothing, and the 23-deck spread across 11 archetypes confirms only that it is a cheap generic 1-of, not that it is strong. With no combo or guide evidence, combo conversion is text-only inference and is scored low.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 40 | Runs as a single copy in all 23 sampled decks with no searcher or tutor evidence, so it is reachable only as a drawn body (observed in decks; no searcher route supplied, inferred). |
| Combo & Conversion | 15 | Zero combo boards and zero starter or payoff appearances; the card's text only banishes one opposing GY Spell/Trap and builds no board (verified from text, combo data total combos 0). |
| Resource Economy | 20 | The GY-sent banish trades the card for one opposing Spell/Trap with no draw, search, or refuel, so it is effectively 1-for-1 at best (verified from text). |
| Effect & Interaction | 40 | The GY Spell/Trap effect lock and banish are narrow, GY-focused disruption that hits only Spell/Trap effects, so the interaction is soft and situational (verified from text, inferred for matchup value). |
| Material Utility | 40 | A generic Level 4 DARK body with no tuner or archetype tag can serve as Level 4 material, but its material value is not evidenced in any combo (inferred from stats, not observed). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 40 | The field-based lock and send-trigger both need the card on the field or in the GY, and negation removes the lock, so it is single-threat and single-zone (inferred from text). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 55 | It is a 1-copy slot with no garnet or lock on itself, but its GY Spell/Trap lock also restricts the player's own GY Spell/Trap effects, a mild self-restriction (verified from text and deck data). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Floodgate / Control + 0.3 Removal. Intrinsic ≈ 47, Deck ≈ 44, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: Self-restriction on own GY Spell/Trap effects (-2). Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Cheap, generic 1-of that fits 11 archetypes across three gameplay types
- Hits GY Spell/Trap effects and banishes an opposing Spell/Trap, a clean one-for-one with no cost to the field
- Level 4 DARK Spellcaster body gives basic material flexibility
Weaknesses
- No searcher, combo, or refuel, so it is never a starter or source of card advantage
- Interaction is narrow and only hits Spell/Trap effects in the GY
- Lock restricts the controller's own GY Spell/Trap effects as well
- Negation or a field-based answer shuts off the on-field lock
Counters / choke points
- Negation of the on-field effect (inferred from text)
- Opponent playing no GY-based Spell/Trap effects, which leaves the lock with no targets (inferred)
Best use
Graveyard Spell/Trap hate body (Floodgate with GY banish). Decks: Branded, Dark Magician, Umi Control. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Card text: neither player can activate Spell/Trap GY effects; on field-to-GY send, may banish 1 opposing GY Spell/Trap; Level 4 DARK Spellcaster, 1900 ATK / 800 DEF, no archetype, no link rating; Appears as a single copy in all 23 sampled decks (deck data copies distribution); Zero combo boards recorded (combo data total combos 0)
- Observed: Deck spread: Branded 6, Dark Magician 3, plus 9 other archetypes at 1-2 decks each; gameplay types 4, 6, 7; Top partners Ghost Ogre & Snow Rabbit and Effect Veiler each appear in 52.2% of its decks (frequency only, does not add power); usage statistics lists one row: Umi Control at 100% inclusion, typical 1 copy (single-row sample, no power inference)
- Inferred: Floodgate lock is one-for-one interaction that does not build a board; Level 4 DARK body converts to generic material only, with no combo evidence of material use; Lock applies to the controller's own GY Spell/Trap effects, a mild self-restriction
- Data gaps: no combos supplied: combo conversion is text-only inference no guides supplied no searcher, tutor, or material-route evidence usage statistics has a single archetype row (Umi Control), a very small sample no banlist token: assumed 3 copies (unlimited) no rulings supplied for the GY Spell/Trap lock interaction