DARK
4
11Shade the Obscure
Archetype:
| supports_archetypes Power Patron
ATK:
1000
DEF:
1000
View:
1075
[ Pendulum Effect ] You cannot Pendulum Summon, except Pendulum Monsters (this effect cannot be negated). If a monster(s) with 1000 ATK or less is Special Summoned (except during the Damage Step): You can return this card to the hand. You can only use this effect of "Shade the Obscure" once per turn. [ Monster Effect ] If you have a card in your Pendulum Zone and this card is in your hand: You can Special Summon this card. You can pay 1000 LP; destroy 1 Pendulum Monster Card in your hand or face-up field, then you can add 1 Pendulum Monster from your Deck to your face-up Extra Deck. You can only use each effect of "Shade the Obscure" once per turn.
Shade the Obscure — Power Evaluation
Final Score: 55 ± 8 · Confidence: Medium
- Intrinsic: 56 · Deck: 58 · Meta: provisional
- Primary role: Extender · Secondary: Searcher/Tutor, Recovery/Recursion
Why it scores here
Shade the Obscure scores on its ability to be Special Summoned from hand whenever a Pendulum Zone card is present, and to convert a 1000 LP payment plus one destroyed Pendulum monster into a Pendulum monster added to the Extra Deck. Its 1000 ATK and Level 4 body earn nothing directly; the score rests on access and the Pendulum engine it feeds. The 400/400 deck inclusion and Power Patron/Artmage pairings confirm it is a real, practical piece, but that frequency only moves accessibility and deck fit, not intrinsic power. The absence of combo records keeps combo conversion and synergy near the middle, which caps confidence at Medium.
Axis scores
| Axis | Score | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Accessibility | 80 | Hand Special Summon needs only a Pendulum Zone card, and all 400 sampled decks run it at 1 to 3 copies, so it is reliably live (observed). |
| Combo & Conversion | 45 | Text shows a hand-to-field route and an Extra Deck search for 1000 LP, but no recorded boards exist to confirm what it builds (inferred). |
| Resource Economy | 45 | The Extra Deck search is +1 card, but it requires destroying one Pendulum monster and paying 1000 LP, so the trade is roughly even (verified). |
| Effect & Interaction | 30 | No negation or removal of opposing cards; its only interaction is returning itself when a monster of 1000 ATK or less is Special Summoned, which is minor (verified). |
| Material Utility | 40 | A Level 4 DARK Fairy body is usable as material, but it is generic and gives little beyond level and attribute, and the body is not a standout (inferred). |
| Resilience & Flexibility | 55 | It can return itself to hand in response to a low-ATK summon and can work from hand or the Pendulum Zone, though each effect is limited to once per turn (verified). |
| Deck-Building Efficiency | 65 | Typical use is 1 to 3 copies with no garnet or lock, but it needs a Pendulum-based deck to function, which costs a dedicated slot plan (observed). |
Calculation
Weight profile: 0.7 Extender + 0.3 Searcher/Tutor. Intrinsic ≈ 56, Deck ≈ 58, Meta = provisional. Modifiers: self-locking restriction (-2). Final formula: 0.40*Intrinsic + 0.60*Deck
Strengths
- Hand Special Summon with a live Pendulum Zone is a repeatable, low-cost access route.
- The Extra Deck search adds a Pendulum monster to the Extra Deck for each use, which feeds the Pendulum engine.
- Returns itself to hand in response to a low-ATK summon, so it is hard to clear from the field.
- Runs at 1 to 3 copies with no garnet, so it is cheap to include in its home decks.
Weaknesses
- The 1000 LP cost plus destroying a Pendulum monster makes the search a real trade, not free value.
- The card does nothing to the opponent's board and has no negation or removal.
- Its value depends on Pendulum decks, so it is weak outside them.
- Its Level 4 1000 ATK body is generic and adds little as material.
Counters / choke points
- Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring is listed as a frequent partner in the deck evidence, so it is evidence of coexistence rather than a counter, and the evidence gives no interaction data for this card.
- Any effect that stops Pendulum Zone cards or Pendulum monsters would shut off both of its routes (inferred).
Best use
Pendulum-zone access and Extra Deck Pendulum search in Pendulum-based decks. Decks: Power Patron, Artmage, DoomZ, Elfnote, Dominus.
Evidence & gaps
- Verified: Card text: hand Special Summon with a Pendulum Zone card; return to hand on a 1000-ATK-or-less Special Summon (once per turn); pay 1000 LP to destroy a Pendulum monster and add a Pendulum monster to the Extra Deck (once per turn).; The card is in 400 of 400 sampled decks as a main deck card, at 1.94 average copies.
- Observed: Inclusion across 40 distinct archetypes, led by Power Patron (~33% combined) and Artmage (~28% combined).; Top partners are Pendulum and Power Patron support cards at 86 to 97% co-occurrence.; StatisticsCard inclusion is 100% in Deskbots, Amorphage and Supreme King, and 50% in Artmage.
- Inferred: Hand Special Summon is the main access route and is live whenever a Pendulum Zone card is present.; The Extra Deck search is a searcher-style effect that trades a destroyed Pendulum monster for an Extra Deck Pendulum monster.; The Level 4 DARK body is a generic material with limited value beyond its level and attribute.
- Data gaps: no combos supplied, so combo conversion and combo centrality are text-only inference no guides supplied no banlist token, so 3 copies (unlimited) is assumed deck sample shows 400/400 main-deck inclusion, which may reflect how the sample was selected rather than a broad meta read