DARKS-Force Nightchaser
Archetype:
S-Force
ATK:
800
LINK-1
View:
3277
Link Arrow:
Bottom
1 non-Link "S-Force" monster Each of your opponent's monsters in the same column as one of your "S-Force" monsters cannot target the monsters in its same column for attacks. During the Main Phase (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "S-Force" monster you control; shuffle it into the Deck, then you can Special Summon 1 of your banished "S-Force" monsters. You can only use this effect of "S-Force Nightchaser" once per turn.
S-Force Nightchaser — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 57 ± 6 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 53.9 · Deck: 59.4 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Recovery/Recursion · Secondary: Utility
Why it scores here
S-Force Nightchaser scores as a mid-tier recursion piece. Its quick effect converts a spent S-Force monster back into the deck in exchange for re-summoning a banished S-Force monster, so it recycles bodies rather than adding card advantage, and the summon itself requires a non-Link S-Force monster. Its strongest evidence is deck presence: it appears in all 263 sampled decks, alongside a near-universal S-Force core (98%+ co-occurrence with the main engine pieces), which earns the accessibility and deck-efficiency points. The column attack restriction is a soft, defensive effect and earns little. The 800 ATK and the Link-1 rating earn nothing on their own.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 70 | Present in 263 of 263 sampled decks with 1.7 copies on average and 100% inclusion in one S-Force archetype, but no starter or searched stats exist to confirm a live opening-hand route (observed deck frequency, with the route itself inferred). |
| Combo & Conversion | 45 | No recorded boards exist, so conversion rests on the text: a swap of one S-Force body for a banished one, with no measured follow-up (inferred). |
| Resource Economy | 55 | The effect is a one-for-one exchange that revives from the banished zone and creates no net card advantage, which gives moderate recursion value (verified from card text). |
| Effect & Interaction | 35 | The only interaction is a column-based attack restriction that protects same-column S-Force monsters, which is soft and situational (verified from card text). |
| Material Utility | 45 | A Link-1 DARK Cyberse with a Bottom arrow is a usable but not clean Link material, and its material value holds even when the effect is negated (inferred from frame and arrow data). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 40 | A once-per-turn quick effect is easy to shut down and depends on an S-Force monster already being on the field (verified from card text). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 65 | Average 1.7 copies with no garnet or lock cost, and the S-Force core it depends on is already deep in these decks (observed from deck data). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Recovery/Recursion + 0.3 Utility. Intrinsic ≈ 53.9, Deck ≈ 59.4, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: none. Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Live in nearly every sampled S-Force deck (263 of 263) at about 1.7 copies
- Recycles spent S-Force bodies back into play from the banished zone
- Low deckbuilding cost, with no garnet or lock burden
Weaknesses
- Zero recorded combo boards, so its real conversion is unverified
- Net card advantage is zero, with no draw, search, or refuel
- Soft interaction: the column effect only protects same-column S-Force monsters
- Once-per-turn quick effect that is easy to turn off
Counters / choke points
- Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring (74% of the sampled decks run it; it can respond to the quick effect)
Best use
Recursion/recovery body in S-Force lines; reuses banished S-Force monsters. Decks: S-Force (archetype 857), S-Force (archetype 506).
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Quick effect: shuffle one S-Force monster into the Deck, then Special Summon one banished S-Force monster; once per turn; Column attack restriction on opponent monsters in the same column; Link-1, DARK, Cyberse, 800 ATK, Bottom link arrow; Summon requires one non-Link S-Force monster
- Observed: 263 of 263 sampled decks run the card, 1.7 copies on average; S-Force Retroactive, Bridgehead and Gravitino co-occur in 98%+ of decks; 100% inclusion in archetype 506 and 50% in archetype 857 (usage statistics)
- Inferred: Accessibility is live but dependent on an S-Force engine already being on the field; Material value survives negation; The recursion gives real value only with a spent S-Force body and a banished target
- Data gaps: no combos supplied — combo conversion is text-only inference no guides supplied no banlist token — assumed 3 copies (unlimited)