Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon

Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon — Power Evaluation

Final Score: 45 ± 5 · Confidence: Medium

• Intrinsic: 46 · Deck: 46 · Meta: provisional
• Primary role: Boss / End-board · Secondary: Material body

Why it scores here

Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon is a Level 9 finisher whose primary value comes from its Dragon material synergy and ATK-scaling effect in Dragon-focused decks. The card generates no intrinsic card advantage and requires Red-Eyes B. Dragon to summon, limiting accessibility outside its primary archetype. While the 2400 base ATK and +300-per-Dragon scaling provide solid board presence, the lack of disruptive effects, multi-zone flexibility, and absence of combo integration keeps it a niche tech piece rather than a format staple.

Axis scores

Calculation

Weight profile: Primary role: Boss / End-board. Intrinsic ≈ 46, Deck ≈ 46, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: Mild garnet/accessibility penalty (-1). Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck (decks present, no combos or meta)

Strengths

• Strong Dragon material utility for multi-archetype homes (Dragon Link, Bystial, Rokket, Dragonmaid, Kashtira)
• Clean primary role in Red-Eyes archetype (25.5% of deck evidence, tight partner synergy with Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon at 73%)
• No self-locking or timing restrictions; straightforward card text
• Passive ATK scaling leverages natural GY management in Dragon decks
• High base ATK (2400) provides solid board defense

Weaknesses

• Zero active disruption: no negation, removal, or hand traps
• Requires Red-Eyes B. Dragon in hand plus field space; medium accessibility outside primary archetype
• Generates no card advantage or refuel effects
• Single-zone dependency; vulnerable to common removal (Kaiju, bounce)
• Mostly 1 copy per deck (182/196 run exactly 1); low confidence in redundancy or consistency
• No GY recursion or multi-turn play; fragile if board is cleared

Counters / choke points

• Kaiju summons (Gameciel, Dogoran) bypass 2400 ATK and remove the card entirely
• Bounce effects (Swordsoul Strategist Longyuan, Evenly Matched) clear without providing material value
• Skill Drain negates ATK scaling (though 2400 body remains)
• Quick removal before ATK scaling resolves (rare but possible with quick-effect chains)

Best use

Boss/End-board finisher with Dragon material synergy. Decks: Red-Eyes (primary home; 25.5% of deck evidence), Dragon Link (6.1%), Dragonmaid (11.7%), Bystial/Byssted (5.6%), Rokket (5.6%).

Evidence & gaps

• Verified: Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon requires tributing Red-Eyes B. Dragon from hand to summon (card text); Card has 2400 ATK / 2000 DEF, gains +300 ATK per Dragon in GY (card text); No once-per-turn clause on ATK scaling effect (card text); Card is DARK Dragon-type Effect Monster, Level 9 (card text); Card appears in 196 decks across 42 distinct archetypes (deck data); Primary archetype is Red-Eyes with 50 decks (25.5%) (deck data)
• Observed: Co-appears with Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon in 143/196 decks (73%); Co-appears with Red-Eyes Black Dragon in 139/196 decks (70.9%); Runs at average 1.08 copies per deck; 182/196 decks run exactly 1 copy (deck distribution); Appears in 23 Dragonmaid decks (11.7%), 12 Dragon Link decks (6.1%), 11 Bystial decks (5.6%), 11 Rokket decks (5.6%); Runs primarily in main deck (196 main, 0 side); never side-decked
• Inferred: Primary role is Boss/End-board finisher based on Level 9 stats, ATK scaling, and no combo engine (card text + role patterns); Secondary role is Material body given Dragon type and observed co-synergy with Dragon Link, Bystial, Rokket (card type + top partners analysis); Accessibility is medium outside Red-Eyes due to mandatory Red-Eyes B. Dragon requirement limiting splashability (card text + 42-archetype presence suggests technique limitation, not universal adoption); Combo conversion is payoff-based (end-board piece) rather than starter/extender, requiring deck to manage GY independently (card text + role); Resource economy is neutral-to-negative due to tribute cost and no intrinsic advantage generation (card text)
• Data gaps: No combos supplied — card role verified via deck evidence, but combo integration is inference-only No guides supplied — no human strategy context on optimal lines or tech placement No banlist token — assumed 3 copies legal (standard for unrestricted cards) No usage statistics (StatisticsCard) — archetype inclusion % sourced from deck sample only; larger historical sample would refine confidence No top card rankings — card is not in competitive Top Card data; cannot cross-validate meta relevance No counter/siding data — cannot verify how frequently it's sided or what answers are common