WATER
3Mermail Shadow Squad
Archetype:
Atlantean
ATK:
0
DEF:
1900
View:
3054
(This card is always treated as an "Atlantean" card.) You can discard 1 card to the GY; WATER monsters you currently control become Level 7 until the end of this turn. If this card is sent to the GY to activate a WATER monster's effect: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower "Atlantean" or "Mermail" monster from your Deck, except "Mermail Shadow Squad", also you cannot Special Summon from the Extra Deck for the rest of this turn, except WATER monsters. You can only use each effect of "Mermail Shadow Squad" once per turn.
Mermail Shadow Squad — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 61 ± 8 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 56 · Deck: 64 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Combo enabler · Secondary: Extender, Searcher/Tutor
Why it scores here
Mermail Shadow Squad is a Level 3 WATER body whose value is the GY-triggered line: it discards to set up Level 7 WATER monsters, and when sent to the GY to pay for a WATER effect it adds one Level 4 or lower Atlantean/Mermail from the Deck to the field. It is played in 400 of 400 sampled decks, almost always at 3 copies, and it is partnered with the core Atlantean/Mermail engine in nearly every list. The score is held down by thin combo evidence (2 boards, avg power index 22.5, no recorded starter or material role) and by having no interaction at all, so its high deck count and 3-copy playset count for accessibility and deck cost, not for raw power.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 68 | Three-copy playset in 383 of 400 decks with a live hand-discard cost, but it cannot search itself and the combo data records no starter role (verified/observed). |
| Combo & Conversion | 45 | Only 2 recorded boards, both Mermail Atlantean with Neptabyss, with power index 21-24 and a single starter; it adds one deck-summoned body, not a full board (observed/inferred). |
| Resource Economy | 55 | Discarding a card to use it and then summoning a Level 4 or lower Deck monster is roughly a 1-for-1 body exchange with mild upside; no searches or net advantage were recorded (verified text/inferred). |
| Effect & Interaction | 5 | No negation, removal or hand-trap effect in the text, so this axis is near zero (verified). |
| Material Utility | 45 | A Level 3 WATER Sea Serpent is an ordinary material, but no recorded boards used it as material and its effects are GY-focused (verified text/observed). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 45 | Two once-per-turn effects that work from hand and GY give some redundancy across turns, but it is not multi-zone and the combo sample is too small to show resistance to interaction (verified text/inferred). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 78 | Clean generic-enough text, no garnet or locking clause, 3 copies in nearly every list, and it stays within the Atlantean/Mermail shell (verified/observed). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Combo enabler + 0.3 Extender (Searcher and Extender weight profiles were blended into the secondary role). Intrinsic ≈ 56, Deck ≈ 64, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Included in 400 of 400 sampled decks, almost always at 3 copies
- Connected to the core Atlantean/Mermail engine (Neptabyss, Abysstrite, Poseidra) in nearly every deck
- Its GY effect adds a Level 4 or lower Atlantean/Mermail from the Deck to the field
- Its discard effect and its GY effect each work once per turn, so there is some repeatability
Weaknesses
- No interaction, negation or removal
- Combo evidence is thin: 2 boards, avg power index 22.5, no recorded starter or material role
- Its power depends on the Atlantean/Mermail shell and on WATER monsters, so it has little value outside that shell
- Its GY effect requires being sent to the GY to pay for another WATER monster's effect, so it needs that setup first
Counters / choke points
- Not measured: no recorded interaction data for this card was supplied
- The Level 7 and GY-summon lines can be shut down by ordinary negation of the activating WATER monster's effect
Best use
Level 7 enabler for WATER monsters and a GY-triggered Deck summon for Level 4 or lower Atlantean/Mermail monsters. Decks: Atlantean, Mermail, Mermail Atlantean, Deep Sea. Suggested copies: 3.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Effect text: discard 1 card to make WATER monsters Level 7 until end of turn; Effect text: once per turn for each effect, GY-triggered Deck summon of a Level 4 or lower Atlantean/Mermail, with an Extra Deck summon restriction; Level 3, WATER, Sea Serpent, DEF 1900, Atlantean archetype; Played in 400 of 400 decks; 3 copies in 383 decks
- Observed: Partners at 91-100% co-occurrence with the core Atlantean/Mermail engine; Usage statistics: 73-100% inclusion across 8 archetype homes; Two recorded boards (Mermail Atlantean with Neptabyss), avg power index 22.5
- Inferred: The card works as a hand-discard enabler and a GY-triggered extender; Its value is mainly the Deck-to-field body rather than power of its own
- Data gaps: No banlist token; assumed 3 copies (unlimited) Only 2 recorded combos, so combo conversion is weakly grounded No combo role data (as_starter, as_material and as_searched all 0) No interaction data, so effect and counter analysis is limited No top-card ranking; not a top-played card