Ritual Buster

Ritual Buster — Power Evaluation

Final Score: 60 ± 5 · Confidence: Medium

• Intrinsic: 60 · Deck: 60 · Meta: provisional
• Primary role: Floodgate/Control · Secondary: Negation/Interaction

Why it scores here

Ritual Buster is a conditional floodgate that locks opponent spell and trap activation for a full turn cycle, making it a strong disruption tool within Ritual-focused archetypes. The card scores as a specialized control piece because its entire value derives from denying opponent interaction—not from generating card advantage, building combos, or providing material utility. It appears in 118 decks across 24 archetypes with 70% co-deck frequency alongside Preparation of Rites, confirming solid accessibility within its narrow home. However, the rigid activation condition (requiring a Ritual Summon), pure negative card economy, and zero combo presence keep the score moderate rather than high.

Axis scores

Calculation

Weight profile: Primary role: Floodgate/Control. Intrinsic ≈ 60, Deck ≈ 60, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck (deck known, meta unknown)

Strengths

• Strong, comprehensive spell and trap floodgate effect that locks opponent for a full turn cycle
• High accessibility within Ritual-focused archetype homes (118 decks, 24 archetypes, 70% co-deck with Preparation of Rites)
• Flexible copy count (plays well at 1 or 3 copies in most decks) with low garnet burden
• Solid natural synergy with Ritual support cards across multiple archetypes (Impcantation, Megalith, Nekroz, Dogmatika, Tri-Brigade)

Weaknesses

• Requires a Ritual Summon to activate; completely inaccessible in non-Ritual decks
• Pure negative card advantage with no refuel or recursion mechanism
• Does not contribute to board building or combo generation; zero recorded combo appearances
• Single-turn disruption vulnerable to spell and trap removal and dependent on prior ritual summon timing
• Offers no material utility when blanked or in the graveyard

Counters / choke points

• Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring can negate the Ritual Summon, preventing this card from ever activating
• Spell and trap removal (Twin Twisters, Mystical Space Typhoon, Cosmic Cyclone) destroys it before activation
• Effect negation (Infinite Impermanence, Effect Veiler) stops the floodgate effect upon activation
• Non-ritual decks cannot leverage the card at all due to its strict activation condition

Best use

First-turn disruption floodgate in Ritual-focused control strategies. Decks: Megalith, Impcantation, Nekroz, Dogmatika, Tri-Brigade.

Evidence & gaps

• Verified: Card text: 'Activate only when a Ritual Monster is Ritual Summoned. Your opponent cannot activate any Spell or Trap Cards or use their effects until your next Standby Phase.'; Card type: Trap Card (Normal); Appears in 118 decks across 24 distinct archetypes; Primary homes: Megalith (22 decks, 18.6%), Impcantation (20 decks, 16.9%), Nekroz (13 decks, 11%), Dogmatika (13 decks, 11%), Tri-Brigade (12 decks, 10.2%); Top partner Preparation of Rites appears in 70.3% of decks running Ritual Buster; Copy distribution heavily concentrated at 1 or 3 copies (57 + 53 of 118 decks)
• Observed: Ritual Buster appears in 118 total decks in the sample, showing high deck prevalence within specific archetypes; All 24 archetype homes are Ritual-focused, indicating specialized rather than generic splashability; No appearances in recorded combo boards (combo data.appearances = 0); Not ranked as a top card across any format (top-card data.top-card status = false)
• Inferred: Primary role is Floodgate/Control based on the spell and trap lock effect lasting until next Standby Phase; Accessibility is high within Ritual decks but zero in non-Ritual homes due to rigid activation condition; Combo conversion is minimal because the card is a standalone disruption tool, not a combo enabler or piece; Generic utility is ritual-specific since all 24 archetypes are ritual-based, not broadly splashable; Resource economy is negative because it costs one card with no advantage generation or refuel mechanism
• Data gaps: No combos supplied — combo conversion is text-only inference (expected for a floodgate piece) No guides supplied — human context on card role and matchup value unavailable No banlist token — assumed 3 copies legal (unlimited) in all formats No usage statistics (StatisticsCard) — archetype inclusion % inferred from 118-deck sample only, not from larger historical database No detailed format breakdown (TCG vs OCG vs MasterDuel vs DuelLinks inclusion percentages)