Trap
ContinuousRed Zone
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4972
When your opponent activates a card or effect while you control "Red Dragon Archfiend" or a Synchro Monster that mentions it: You can target 1 card on the field; destroy it. You can target 1 of your banished DARK Dragon Synchro Monsters; Special Summon it. You can only use each effect of "Red Zone" once per turn.
Red Zone — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 55 ± 7 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 53 · Deck: 57 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Removal · Secondary: Recovery/Recursion
Why it scores here
Red Zone converts one opponent activation into a targeted destruction and a Special Summon of a banished DARK Dragon Synchro, and as a Continuous Trap it can repeat each effect once per turn. Its value depends on Red Dragon Archfiend or a Synchro that mentions it being face-up, so it does not function as a standalone card. Its 400/400 deck presence confirms that it is a consistent fit in its homes, but that frequency is not evidence of raw power (guardrail 3), and the absence of combo data keeps the conversion score low.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 45 | Set as a Continuous Trap with no searcher or starter route in the evidence, and it is live only while its enabling monsters are on the field (inferred; deck inclusion is observed). |
| Combo & Conversion | 35 | No combo boards were supplied, and the card is not named in the CORE section's co-card list, so conversion beyond its own effect is inference only (inferred). |
| Resource Economy | 62 | One destruction plus a Special Summon from banishment, and the trap stays on the field for repeated once-per-turn use, which gives a repeated but conditional +1 (verified from text; repetition inferred). |
| Effect & Interaction | 62 | Targeted destruction triggered by any opponent activation while the condition holds; it is reactive and restricted to one board condition (verified from text). |
| Material Utility | 5 | Trap card with no body, so it cannot be material; the Special Summon target is a Synchro, not this card (verified from text). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 50 | Persists on the field across turns with two effects, but it is vulnerable to backrow removal and to losing its enabling monsters (inferred). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 60 | Single-copy usage in 395 of 400 decks with no garnet or lock, but it requires a Red Dragon Archfiend or Synchro line (observed copy counts; restriction inferred). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Removal + 0.3 Recovery/Recursion. Intrinsic ≈ 53, Deck ≈ 57, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Two once-per-turn effects on a persistent Continuous Trap give repeated value after one set
- Targeted destruction plus recursion of a banished DARK Dragon Synchro is a net-positive exchange when the condition holds
- Single-copy, no-garnet slot that appears in 400 of 400 sampled decks
Weaknesses
- Conditional on Red Dragon Archfiend or a mentioning Synchro being on the field
- Reactive only: it needs the opponent to activate something
- No combo or starter data, so its board impact is unmeasured
- Backrow removal or loss of the enabling monsters removes its function
Counters / choke points
- Opponent avoids activating cards or effects while the enabling monsters are face-up (inferred)
- Backrow removal or destruction of Red Dragon Archfiend or the enabling Synchros (inferred)
Best use
Removal with recursion for Red Dragon Archfiend and Synchro lines. Decks: Archfiend, Resonator, Bystial/Byssted, Crimson Dragon. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Text: destroys 1 targeted card when an opponent activates while Red Dragon Archfiend or a mentioning Synchro is controlled; Text: Special Summons 1 banished DARK Dragon Synchro; Text: each effect is once per turn; Legal in TCG, OCG and MasterDuel
- Observed: Present in 400 of 400 sampled decks, mainly at 1 copy; Top partners include Crimson Gaia and Red Dragon Archfiend at 96% or higher; Inclusion in StatisticsCard rows: 100% for Crimson Dragon and Resonator (gameplay 4), 62.8% for Resonator (gameplay 7), 50% for Archfiend
- Inferred: Repeatable value depends on the trap surviving on the field between turns; Its strength comes from its enabling line rather than from the card alone
- Data gaps: no combos supplied; combo conversion is text-only inference no banlist token; assumed 3 copies (unlimited) deck sample is selected by CardId, so 400 of 400 inclusion is biased upward no searcher or tutor data for the Continuous Trap