Trap
NormalHalf Counter
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2938
During damage calculation, if a monster you control is being attacked: Target that monster you control; that target gains ATK equal to half the original ATK of the attacking monster, until the End Phase.
Half Counter — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 41 ± 8 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 42 · Deck: 41 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Utility · Secondary: Negation/Interaction
Why it scores here
Half Counter is a set trap that only protects one of your own monsters during an attack by giving it a boost. It does not remove, negate, draw, or build a board, so it converts very little into winning value on its own. Its score comes from being a single, generic, low-cost slot that fits into four different archetypes; the 4 sampled decks show it as a 1-copy tech-style card alongside staples like Raigeki and Mirror Force, not as a core engine piece.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 40 | Set trap that must be drawn and then needs your monster to be attacked; no searcher or combo evidence supports reliable access (text + deck sample, inference). |
| Combo & Conversion | 15 | Text describes a single defensive boost with no board-building or follow-up; combo data is empty (text-only inference). |
| Resource Economy | 20 | No draw, search, or recursion; it only preserves an existing monster, so there is no card advantage (verified from text). |
| Effect & Interaction | 35 | Soft, situational interaction that only punishes attacks on your own monster; it cannot negate or remove anything (verified from text, inference on impact). |
| Material Utility | 5 | A trap card that is never a material body, so this axis is near zero (verified from card type). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 30 | Set trap that is easy to clear with negation, and only useful when a monster of yours is being attacked (inference from text). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 80 | Single generic slot with no garnet, lock, or self-restriction, and it is legal in all four formats (verified from formats and deck sample). |
Calculation
Weight profile: Utility / no clear role (default) weights; secondary Negation/Interaction not blended because the card does not negate, so the default profile is used. Intrinsic ≈ 42, Deck ≈ 41, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Single-copy, generic trap that fits into any deck with no garnet or lock cost
- Protects a monster from being lost to a battle-based attack in several spots
- Legal in all four listed formats, with 4 sampled decks across 4 archetypes
Weaknesses
- Does not remove, negate, draw, or build a board, so it converts little into winning value
- Only works when your own monster is attacked, so it is inactive on the opponent's turn or during non-battle plays
- Set trap that is easy to clear with negation, and it needs to be drawn to matter
Counters / choke points
- Negation traps and effects that prevent the attack or destroy the trap
- Monster removal or cards that stop attacks before damage calculation
Best use
Utility / battle-protection tech trap, 1 copy as a generic defensive slot. Decks: Amazoness, Rokket, Dark Magician, Code Talker. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Card text: protects a monster you control during damage calculation by giving it ATK equal to half the attacker's original ATK until the End Phase; Card type is a trap, so it cannot be a material body; Legal in TCG, OCG, MasterDuel, and DuelLinks; Used as 1 copy in 3 decks and 2 copies in 1 deck across 4 archetypes
- Observed: Appears in 4 of 4 sampled decks, mostly as a single copy; Co-occurs with Raigeki, Monster Reborn, Lightning Storm, and Mirror Force in 75% of its decks
- Inferred: Practical value comes from protecting a monster during attacks, not from building a board; Decks run it as a generic defensive slot rather than as a core engine piece
- Data gaps: no combos supplied, so combo conversion and starter/material frequency are text-only inference no guides supplied no usage statistics (StatisticsCard), so archetype inclusion % is inferred from the 4-deck sample only no banlist token; assumed 3 copies (unlimited)