Phantom Hand

Phantom Hand — Power Evaluation

Final Score: 33 ± 7 · Confidence: Medium

• Intrinsic: 35 · Deck: 38 · Meta: provisional
• Primary role: Utility · Secondary: Combo Enabler

Why it scores here

Phantom Hand earns a modest score because its core utility—temporarily banishing the controller's hand to create the zero-hand condition required by Infernity effects—is narrowly archetype-specific and contingent on already controlling a face-up Infernity monster with an active Continuous Trap in the backrow. The card has zero opponent interaction and zero material value as a Trap, so its score is driven almost entirely by how well it enables the Infernity engine's combo lines. High ATK, rarity, or popularity played no role in this score; the slow Continuous Trap timing and deep archetype lock keep the number modest despite the card's functional importance within dedicated Infernity builds.

Axis scores

Calculation

Weight profile: Utility / no clear role (default). Intrinsic ≈ 35, Deck ≈ 38, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: Archetype restriction (-2); Continuous Trap vulnerability (-2). Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck

Strengths

• Cleanly creates zero-hand state for Infernity without permanently discarding hand cards—banished cards return next Standby Phase
• Once live, activates once per turn at zero card cost, providing a repeatable enabler for the archetype engine
• Consistent multi-copy inclusion (avg 2.22, max 3) in dedicated Infernity decks confirms meaningful archetype importance

Weaknesses

• Continuous Trap timing: must set and survive a full turn before first use—inherently slow in a fast game
• Requires a face-up Infernity monster to activate; completely bricked if the field is empty
• Provides zero opponent interaction—no disruption, negation, or removal
• Deep archetype lock renders it nearly unplayable outside Infernity or niche zero-hand strategies

Counters / choke points

• Spell/trap removal (MST, Twin Twisters, Cosmic Cyclone) before the trap can activate
• Monster removal clearing all face-up Infernity monsters before Phantom Hand can be used
• Effect negation (Skill Drain, Imperial Order) preventing the banish from resolving

Best use

Zero-hand condition enabler that temporarily banishes the controller's hand to satisfy Infernity effect requirements once per turn. Decks: Infernity. Suggested copies: 2.

Evidence & gaps

• Verified: Continuous Trap card type; Once-per-turn restriction on the effect; Requires controlling a face-up Infernity monster to activate; Banished hand cards return face-down at the next Standby Phase; Legal in TCG, OCG, MasterDuel, and DuelLinks
• Observed: Run in 9 decks at avg 2.22 copies (max 3, distribution: 1-copy x3, 2-copy x1, 3-copy x5); 44.4% Infernity and 22.2% Exodia in the deck sample; 77.8% co-occurrence with Infernity Guardian and Infernity Randomizer
• Inferred: Enables zero-hand state required by core Infernity combo effects such as Archfiend, Launcher, and Necromancer; Combo value is indirect—it enables other Infernity effects rather than converting directly into a board state; Must survive a full turn in the backrow before it produces any value
• Data gaps: no combos supplied — combo conversion is text-only inference no guides supplied — human context on Infernity role unknown no banlist token — assumed 3 copies (unlimited) no usage statistics (StatisticsCard) — archetype inclusion % inferred from 9-deck sample only Exodia pairing rationale unknown — no guide or combo data to explain the interaction