LIGHT
Number 104: Masquerade
ATK:
2700
DEF:
1200
View:
7626
3 Level 4 monsters During either player's Battle Phase, when an opponent's monster effect is activated: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; negate the activation, and if you do, inflict 800 damage to your opponent. Once per turn: You can send the top card of your opponent's Deck to the Graveyard.
54± 6/ 100
Power Score
Intrinsic
58
Deck
55
Number 104: Masquerade — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 54 ± 6 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 58 · Deck: 55 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Negation/Interaction · Secondary: Material body
Why it scores here
Masquerade is a generic Rank 4 negation staple that slots into 67 distinct archetypes with 100% deck inclusion, primarily for its hard negation of monster effects during Battle Phase plus 800 burn damage. However, the Battle Phase restriction severely limits its utility against modern combo-heavy formats where attacks are rare, and the card functions as material in combos rather than as a combo driver. Its solid 2700 ATK generic body and wide portability keep it valuable, but meta dependence and limited proactive impact prevent it from scoring higher.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 60 | Appears in 400/400 recent decks across 67 distinct archetypes (100% deck inclusion) and requires 3 Level 4 monsters, which modern decks generate reliably via Exosister, K9, Vanquish Soul, and Ryzeal archetypes. (observed) |
| Combo & Conversion | 15 | Appears in 100% of 20 recorded combos (power index avg 77.2) but only 5% as material; no examples show it as a starter or driving combo progression, making it a pure conversion sink rather than a combo builder. (verified) |
| Resource Economy | 25 | Each negation costs 1 Xyz Material detachment with no refuel mechanism, and the once-per-turn milling of opponent's deck provides no card advantage to the controller, resulting in negative card economy over time. (verified) |
| Effect & Interaction | 60 | Provides hard negation of any monster effect plus 800 burn damage, but the restriction to Battle Phase only makes it dead against combo decks that don't attack, and guidance mentions it only in staple sections where it functions as a meta-dependent tech piece. (verified) |
| Material Utility | 70 | Clean generic Rank 4 XYZ body with solid 2700 ATK, LIGHT attribute, and Spellcaster race; remains useful even when blanked or after material depletion, providing reliable material conversion utility. (verified) |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 45 | Limited to 3 material uses before becoming a vanilla body, no recursion or floating effect to sustain value, and the Battle Phase lock renders it completely useless against non-attacking opponents, severely restricting multi-turn resilience. (verified) |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 80 | Splashable as a 1-of XYZ into any Level 4-spam archetype (67 distinct homes, 100% inclusion rate); requires minimal deck-building investment beyond the 3 Level 4 requirement already present in those shells. (observed) |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Negation/Interaction + 0.3 Material body. Intrinsic ≈ 58, Deck ≈ 55, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: High splashability (2); Battle Phase restriction (-4). Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Hard negation source with burn damage provides reliable interaction within Battle Phase window.
- Solid 2700 ATK generic Rank 4 body functions as clean material conversion with no archetype lock.
- Extremely high splashability across 67 distinct archetypes indicates minimal deck-building friction.
- Appears in 100% of recent decks (400/400) confirming practical accessibility and meta viability in Level 4-spam shells.
Weaknesses
- Battle Phase restriction renders the card completely non-functional against non-attacking opponents, making it meta-dependent and dead in combo-heavy formats.
- Negation effect consumes Xyz Materials with no refuel mechanism, depleting the card after 3 uses.
- No floating effect or recursion; once destroyed, provides no additional value or search activation.
- Milling effect timing lacks clarity in card text; activation condition and window are ambiguous.
- Appears exclusively as material in recorded combos (5% of appearances), indicating it is incorporated into plays rather than driving them.
Counters / choke points
- Decks that do not attack (pure combo/control) avoid the negation window entirely.
- Non-monster effect activation (Spell/Trap cards, field effects) bypasses the negation requirement.
- Removing Xyz Materials before summon prevents the card from being made.
- Negate the Summon of the Xyz itself via Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring or similar.
Best use
Battle Phase interaction / Opponent deck milling as a 1-of tech staple in Level 4-spam shells.. Decks: Exosister, K9, Vanquish Soul, Ryzeal, Mitsurugi, Mathmech, Heraldic, Tellarknight. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Card text: 3 Level 4 monsters → negates monster effect during Battle Phase, inflicts 800 damage, and can mill opponent deck once per turn.; Appears in 400/400 recent decks (100% inclusion), all as 1 copy per deck.; Appears in 20/20 recorded combos (100% appearance rate).; Rank 4 XYZ Spellcaster, LIGHT attribute, 2700 ATK / 1200 DEF.; Usage statistics confirm 100% inclusion in Heraldic, Mathmech, Tellarknight, Seventh Emperors, Advanced Crystal Beast, Ryzeal (2197), Chronomaly, Chaos Chimera OTK, Performage archetypes.
- Observed: Card appears as material in 5% of recorded combos; no appearances as starter, searched piece, or payoff piece.; Combo power index when present averages 77.2 (high-power combos) but card functions as conversion material, not driver.; Top 15 deck partners are all staple interaction/hand trap cards (Ash Blossom, Droll & Lock, Maxx C, Divine Arsenal AA-ZEUS, etc.), confirming meta staple positioning.; Appears in 67 distinct archetypes (far higher than most cards), indicating universal Level 4-spam accessibility.; Guides list it in 'Staple' sections of 6 guides (Dogmatika, Exosister, Vanquish Soul K9, Ryzeal Magistus, Chaos Chimera OTK, Galaxy Tachyon), confirming it is played for interaction, not combo synergy.
- Inferred: Battle Phase restriction severely limits format applicability against combo-heavy metas that rarely attack.; High deck inclusion (100%) and archetype spread (67 homes) despite 0% combo-driving role indicate it is a generic staple filled on principle rather than power synergy.; Milling once per turn can synergize with GY-based strategies (Lightsworn, Dogmatika) but no examples confirm this in the evidence.; 2700 ATK remains valuable even when the negation effect is fully exhausted, providing minimal fallback value.
- Data gaps: No banlist status provided; assumed legal 3 copies in all formats (TCG, OCG, Master Duel, Duel Links). Milling effect activation timing and window are not specified in card text (no stated 'during whose turn' or condition). No recorded examples of Masquerade as a payoff piece, starter, or searched target in combos; all combo roles are material conversion. No explicit ruling data on interaction with held Xyz Materials after milling multiple times per turn. Guides mention the card only in passing 'Staple' sections; no detailed combo or synergy breakdowns provided.