EARTH
6Gaiarmor Dragonshell
ATK:
2000
DEF:
1300
View:
3611
1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters You can Tribute this card, then target 3 other Synchro Monsters in your GY; return them to the Extra Deck. You can target 1 monster you control Special Summoned from the Extra Deck; equip this card from your GY to it. When an attack is declared involving the monster equipped with this card: You can draw 1 card. You can only use each effect of "Gaiarmor Dragonshell" once per turn.
Gaiarmor Dragonshell — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 54 ± 8 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 54.3 · Deck: 54.6 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Recovery/Recursion · Secondary: Utility
Why it scores here
Gaiarmor Dragonshell's value is its Extra Deck recursion: it can return up to 3 Synchro monsters from the GY to the Extra Deck, and its equip-from-GY plus draw-on-attack adds a conditional second use. Its 2000 ATK and Level 6 stats earn nothing by themselves. The score sits in the middle because the card is a single-copy staple in 123 decks across 62 archetypes, which shows portability, but it has no combo, starter, or interaction evidence, and its self-Tribute cost removes its own body.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 55 | Needs a Synchro summon with a Tuner and a non-Tuner, which it does in 123 decks across 62 archetypes, but no searcher or starter data exists in the pack (verified deck counts; inferred route). |
| Combo & Conversion | 40 | No recorded boards; the GY-to-Extra-Deck return and equip-draw are text-only conversion, with no power_index or example support (inferred). |
| Resource Economy | 50 | Self-Tribute costs the card itself to return 3 Synchros to the Extra Deck, which recycles resources but is card-neutral at best; the once-per-turn draw is conditional on an attack (verified text, inferred balance). |
| Effect & Interaction | 10 | No negation, removal, or hand-trap effect in the text; the only opponent-facing value is a conditional draw (verified text). |
| Material Utility | 55 | Level 6 Earth Dragon non-Tuner body that remains usable as Synchro material even when its effects are negated (inferred from text and stats; no as_material observations). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 55 | Two zones are used (GY recursion and field equip), and each effect is once per turn, so the card has some redundancy but no proven resistance to interaction (inferred). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 70 | Single copy in all 123 sampled decks, with no garnet or lock and no banlist token in the pack; the cost of running it is low (observed deck counts, verified text). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Recovery/Recursion + 0.3 Utility (secondary weights from the Utility default row). Intrinsic ≈ 54.3, Deck ≈ 54.6, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Returns up to 3 Synchro monsters from the GY to the Extra Deck, a reusable Extra Deck resource
- Equip-from-GY onto a monster Special Summoned from the Extra Deck gives a second zone of use
- Single copy in 123 decks across 62 archetypes, so it is portable across homes
- Low deckbuilding cost: one copy, no garnet, no lock
Weaknesses
- Self-Tribute cost removes the card's own body to activate the recursion
- Draw trigger requires an attack declaration involving the equipped monster and is once per turn
- No negation, removal, or disruption effect
- Requires a Synchro summon, which limits access to Synchro-capable decks
Counters / choke points
- Graveyard disruption would blank the GY-targeting return effect (inferred from the text; no counter evidence in the pack)
Best use
Extra Deck recursion and a conditional draw engine within Synchro-based decks. Decks: Synchron, Symphonic Warrior, Cyber Dragon. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Card text: Tribute self, return 3 other Synchro monsters from GY to Extra Deck, equip from GY to a monster Special Summoned from the Extra Deck, draw 1 on an attack declaration; each effect once per turn; Present in 123 of the sampled decks at 1 copy each, across 62 distinct archetypes; Formats: TCG, OCG, MasterDuel, DuelLinks
- Observed: Top partners are generic staples (Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring 49.6%, Harpie's Feather Duster 34.1%, Called by the Grave 33.3%); co-occurrence is not treated as power; Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon co-occurs in 32.5% of decks, consistent with a Synchro ecosystem fit; Usage statistics show Spirit Message at 100% inclusion, a single-archetype sample that is not used to raise the score
- Inferred: Primary role is Recursion: the GY-to-Extra-Deck return is the main effect; Material body value comes from a Level 6 Earth Dragon non-Tuner that stays usable when its effects are negated; Equip-draw adds conditional value only when the equipped monster attacks
- Data gaps: No combos supplied, so combo conversion is text-only inference No guides supplied No banlist token; assumed 3 copies (unlimited); legal_copies is empty No rulings supplied for the Tribute-self cost or the activation zone of the first effect No as_material or as_starter observations to confirm the material and starter roles