Trap
NormalScareclaw Alternative
Archetype:
Scareclaw
View:
3564
Tribute 3 "Scareclaw" monsters; for the rest of this turn, your opponent can only Special Summon monsters in Defense Position. During your turn: You can banish this card from your GY; inflict 100 damage to your opponent for each Defense Position monster on the field. You can only use this effect of "Scareclaw Alternative" once per turn.
Scareclaw Alternative — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 48 ± 6 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 47.3 · Deck: 49.2 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Floodgate/Control · Secondary: Boss/End-board
Why it scores here
The card's value comes from two effects: a turn-long lock that stops the opponent from Special Summoning anything except in Defense Position, and a once-per-turn GY-banish that deals 100 damage per Defense Position monster on the field. Both require a board of Scareclaw monsters, and the first costs a 3-monster Tribute, so it converts only in a Scareclaw shell. Its high deck count (62 of 62 decks running it alongside Scareclaw monsters) confirms it is reliably included, not that it is intrinsically powerful, so the score stays near the middle. No combo evidence exists, so the combo axis rests on text inference only.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 40 | Live only with Scareclaw monsters on board to Tribute, and the GY effect needs it in the graveyard; it is in 62 sampled decks, but there is no starter or searched data (observed + inferred). |
| Combo & Conversion | 40 | The lock plus the damage effect can close a game from a Scareclaw board, but there are no recorded boards and guides describe it only as part of an OTK plan (inferred from guides). |
| Resource Economy | 45 | The GY-banish damage is a repeatable finisher rather than card advantage, and the 3-monster Tribute is a heavy cost with no refund (verified from text). |
| Effect & Interaction | 55 | The Special Summon restriction is a real floodgate for the turn, but it is turn-limited and opposing Defense-Position summons are still possible (verified from text). |
| Material Utility | 5 | It is a Trap card, so it cannot be used as material or as a Level/Attribute source (verified from frame type). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 50 | The GY damage effect is hard to answer with common hand traps, but the lock dies to any interaction on the activation turn (inferred from text). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 45 | One copy per deck is the norm and it is dead without Scareclaw monsters, so it is a mild restriction that cannot be splashed (observed from 62 decks + verified from text). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Floodgate/Control + 0.3 Boss/End-board. Intrinsic ≈ 47.3, Deck ≈ 49.2, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: Self-locking restriction (-3). Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Strong lock against Special Summon-based plays for the rest of the turn when it is live
- Once-per-turn GY-banish damage scales with Defense-Position monsters, a flexible finisher
- Recurs usefulness from the graveyard, where opposing hand traps rarely reach it
Weaknesses
- Requires 3 Scareclaw monsters to Tribute before the lock is usable
- Damage effect needs Defense-Position monsters on the field to matter
- No recorded combo evidence to confirm it converts in real boards
- Heavy restriction on deck-building since it only works in Scareclaw
Counters / choke points
- Opponent's Special Summon-based interaction in their own turn is not blocked by the lock
- Negation of the Tribute-cost activation before it resolves (inferred from text)
- Board wipes or removal of Defense-Position monsters reduce the GY damage (inferred from text)
Best use
Floodgate lock and GY damage finisher in a Scareclaw shell. Decks: Scareclaw, Visas Starfrost, Kashtira. Suggested copies: 1.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Tribute 3 Scareclaw monsters is the cost of the lock effect; Lock: opponent can only Special Summon in Defense Position for the rest of the turn; GY banish, 100 damage per Defense Position monster on the field, once per turn; Frame type is Trap, so no material use
- Observed: Appears in 62 of 62 sampled decks, 1 copy average, 100% alongside Scareclaw Acro/Astra/Belone/Tri-Heart; No combo boards recorded
- Inferred: Real role is a Scareclaw-only floodgate with a damage finisher; Lock is weakest on the opponent's turn or against decks that do not rely on Special Summon
- Data gaps: no combos supplied - combo conversion is text-only inference no banlist token - assumed 3 copies (unlimited) no usage statistics (StatisticsCard) - archetype inclusion % inferred from deck sample only no rulings supplied for the Tribute-cost and once-per-turn interactions