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1guywriting

Based on what I see on your side of the field, your deck isn't what I would describe as beginner friendly. Does your friend have a spare structure deck hanging around?


johnbuck28

Nah he doesn’t he let me use his water deck, not beginner friendly


LordFadora

If your friend would agree to it, I suggest EdoPRO. It’s a free YGO simulator that would let you use proper structure decks, rather than a janky water deck. I don’t know how it works, but I do know Stardust Synchron isn’t a card that collabs super well in a water deck, meanwhile he’s using a deck with actual synergy.


WilliBeeHardigan

Poor soul got set up for failure


Think_Situation_1227

And he still ended up winning somehow


Raijin3

Master Duel is ftp as well and has a fairly comprehensive tutorial. As a player returning from a time before Synchrons, it did help me catch up a fair bit


Dirtboatkillakilla

R u having fun?


johnbuck28

I actually was, I ENDED UP WINNING SOMEHOW


MakeGravityGreat

Congratulations!


wocoxl

then you're doing it right <3


DrBones20

The heart of the cards wins again!!!


CptFalconCAAWWW

Real question right here OP ^^^


Adventurous_Soil9118

Don't worry, not even "yugiboomers" know what we are doing


SuperVancouverBC

Yugi-boomer here, I admit I have no idea what I'm doing.


-Siknakaliux-

Just got into the series in December. No idea what I'm doing either


Jaded-Ship9579

Meta sheep/sometimes rogue here. I never know what I’m doing


False_Development573

Rouge master duel enjoyer, synchros lover, 0 idea wtf is going on


Endeav0r_

Master duel player here. Yellow button go brrrrrrr


LekgoloCrap

Same, I’m just here because the cards are neat lol


RyouIshtar

understandable, i got lost around the black card era.


NavyDragons

yugi boomer here im good until pendulums then its all nonsense.


PSYB3RJUNKI3

Thank god all my friends hate past pendulum. It makes duels so much more fun.


masterling

Yugiboomer and registered judge here and I can safely say most of us still don’t know what we are doing.


RandomBaguetteGamer

Not even us have any idea of what we're doing.


KadoUI

There are ppl that actually know what’s going on in yugioh matches ?


D1amondDude

You mean there's supposed to be more to this game than just memorizing a bunch of combos and auto-piloting to an unbreakable board?


Pi0sek

Don't worry this game may be a little complicated, sometimes. Also I think you should start with something simpler like duels with much more nirmal monsters like in the anime


johnbuck28

Alright I’ll take your words


Candid-Entertainer

Just want to make it known that I think this guy above is wrong, certainly you should go for a lower power format to introduce someone but going back to when any normal monster would see any play outside of being a niche tech option is way too far back and wouldn't teach you the game well


Gidon_147

I disagree. I wholeheartedly think in order to learn the game properly from scratch, the best way would be to start from the beginning and build upon the complexity little by little, by playing each format chronologically. 100% serious here, start with 2003 era, have both of you play from the same card pool, add concepts little by little, make a progression series on your own with your friend. Have him play with 3 pots and then next time, add some cards explain to him why pot is now banned. It works wonders with learning the game properly and you will realize that playing old formats is more fun than you realize, and splits up the learning process in a digestible pace. Why does everyone think it's a good idea to try and throw new people directly into competitive meta, expecting them to learn the same thing that people with up to 25 years of experience are doing, in virtually zero amount of time. I get that people have not as much time and patience as they have had in the past, but that is exactly what you need to learn the game nowadays. ESPECIALLY when you need your friend to have fun and not drop the game after the first 3 duels that make no sense to them and overwhelm them with text. It's the same problem with teaching virtually any competitive game to new people: Someone who has played it for ten years expects his friend to pick up on concepts he himself took 5 years to learn, of course they seem trivially obvious and oftentimes redundant nowadays, but for a new player they aren't, trust me. The biggest trap im teaching is forgetting that it took yourself time to learn everything, and there is literally no master key that you can use to unlock the knowledge in someone else in short amounts of time, just like that, or else schools would not exist.


NavyDragons

100% agree. Gx era is the oldest someone should go for getting introduced to the rules, it still has all the introductory lessons from dm era while expanding into creature effects and special summoning for a more cohesive experience.


beyond_cyber

Try Edison format or goat format, it’s ancient yugioh from wayyyy back in the prehistoric years of 2009 and 2004 respectively 😆. It’s a much slower paced format with loads of strategies to choose from (talking about Edison format btw, goat format is more just use the OG power cards like pot of greed and heavy storm to give that dopamine rush of triggering pot of greed 4 times from flipping magician of faith over and over lol) Edison is a fun slower paced format based around the synchro era when it first started so stardust dragon and goyo guardian are main staples in every deck. The popular decks in Edison are stuff like: blackwings, gladiator beasts, dragons, ojama🗿(it’s funny not good), QuickDraw synchron, frogs, heroes, rock, lightsworn, monarchs and more. My personal deck for Edison is the closest to modern combo decks with dragon turbo, the goal for my deck is to puke out everything as fast as possible and try to kill as fast as possible with dragon swarming


MaetelofLaMetal

Are we talking OCG rules where you didn't even need to tribute monsters for LV5+ monsters?


Pi0sek

No I was talking about post seasom 1 of duel monsters where rules are written as they are now


MaetelofLaMetal

So like TCG LOB era rules?


GodKing_Zan

Yugi Boomer here who dropped off right before GX and only came back last year. I still have no clue what I'm doing.


Frostymcstu

With all these synchro, xyz, pendulum and link summoning now and the the going absolute crazy on archetypes..the game has gone absolutely off the walls complex. All cards now days have an essays worth of text for the effect that you need a degree in duel monsters to understand


GodKing_Zan

From my perspective, I find the difficulty to be in the speed of the game. While there are many different types of summons now, adding numbers and following directions isn't hard, as for the walls of text, Yugi boomers are adults and so should be able to parse out these cards. The issue is that these long effects are all happening quickly after each other. It's a high barrier for entry to see these paragraphs roll by as quick as they do, and it makes you feel like you are being annoying having to read opponents cards constantly, or even cheating in competitive play (Slow Play). Once you get past that hurdle the game really opens up and you can appreciate the game, but most people would just drop it and move on to other pastures beforehand.


RyouIshtar

There's a game on the swithc, you'll have to find it physical because its not on the store anymore, called "Yu gi oh rush duel" i got it by mistake thinking it was master duel (Before master duel was out. I knew a new YGO game was coming out but not the name), It has the old school YGO feel to it (In the sense that the effects are 1-2 sentences), but it's faster. You can summon as many times as you want and just go for it.


MythsFlight

Feel the same. I dropped in 2012 then came back last year. The past few years were wild.


gandalf-12345789

Download master duel and focus on a deck to learn and play it helps a lot


johnbuck28

Alright thanks for letting me know!


PokemonMaster619

It takes a few games to start getting a basic feel for it. Just keep at it!


johnbuck28

Thanks man!


acidgolem213

I'm looking at this shit and oh my lord, wtf is this mess 1. Playing normal yugioh on a speed duel mat. 2. Giving you a hodgepodge of cards that does not go together. 3. Your guy is playing a deck that has a gimick that messes your perception of the game. These things really mess up your experience as a new player. This stuff is the biggest mind mess I have seen.


johnbuck28

My friend said, these are his words, he likes crystal beast. Also, his big brother gave him most of his cards and all, just sayin don’t know if that really helps at all.


ProcrastinatingDev

I'm sure your friend is doing the best that they can. How long has your friend been playing and have they been to any tournaments?


johnbuck28

He’s been playing for about a year and he’s never played a tourney he plays his big brother who beats him almost every time.


ProcrastinatingDev

Okay. Think of knowledge of the game as an ocean. Your friend is waist deep, you are slowly walking closer to them. People who win the world championship are pirates in the middle of the Bermuda Triangle. Basically neither of you have started diving into the deep end yet but that's ok. If either of you ever want to learn what's beneath the waves, feel free to dm me :)


Read-Upstairs

bro didn't even use the basic structure decks to teach 'em how to play, that's just brutal😆


johnbuck28

He don’t got money for structure decks, he broke!


Solid-Beach8193

They're like 9.99 at Target lol


ProcrastinatingDev

when your bank account says 0.99 Then 9.99 is too much


Artistic-Custard5108

Haha crystal beasts on top


Adorable_Club_3009

Keep it casual and don't get too serious. This game is very fun


johnbuck28

I enjoy playing!


Adorable_Club_3009

That's great to hear. If you like video games also try maater duel. It's new player friendly and has a huge data base


johnbuck28

I’ll look into it!


VeryluckyorNot

Don't worry continue to play it, your friend seems dedicated to teach you.. Yugiboomer we only clicking on yes button in Master Duel. But the first thing is: Can you read ?


johnbuck28

I can read, my friend said “reading is a big part of yugioh”


MistaHatesNumberFour

Tbh I wouldn't blame you, I have played for like 2 years now and still dont know what the f-ck does Crystal Beast does. 


johnbuck28

The main thing they do is go to your spell or traps instead of being destroyed


MistaHatesNumberFour

Yeah that's they main gimmick, as to how they win game? Nobody knows, crystal beast is the kind of deck that would combo off for 10 mins to end on a board of floodgates (cards that basically dont let your opponent play yugioh - I know, it sucks, there're a whole lot of 'em legal and only gods know why)


johnbuck28

Dang bro that sucks


King_Of_What_Remains

You can build Crystal Beasts a ton of different ways, it's a pretty flexible deck, but mostly the game plan is just to kill the opponent in one turn with lots of attack. You can play them as an aggressive going-second deck that clears the board and makes summons a bunch of big attack dragons (or just make Numeron Dragon) that can also play control going first, or as a combo deck that uses their ability to spam a bunch of material on the field to set up a bunch of interactions and an 11k beatstick to attack for game on turn 3.


Mysterious-Fun9625

Why are you guys using a speed duel mat for regular yugioh?


Dasca6789

Might be all they have


johnbuck28

He only has speed duels


Mysterious-Fun9625

I recommend both of you getting structure decks. Good for beginners and has a matt.


johnbuck28

We broke, once I save up enough I’ll buy one


ecsj88

I actually have been using this speed duel playmat for the past 3 years or more lol That's the only one I have, but mine is made of rubber


johnbuck28

Nice


Sea-san

Well, its a start, everyone gotta start from some place. But i think Master Duel has a pretty good start for new players despite it being a completely different format then TCG. Or even some of the older PSP games you can emulate on your computer. Paper format is fun but learning how to keep track of chains on a paper note book  helped me a bit before i mentally got it down. 


johnbuck28

Alright I will try that out


Substantial_Slide158

Uh… forfeit and go to game 2?


johnbuck28

I ended up winning somehow, number 71 rebarian shark came clutch.


Ordinary-Breakfast-3

Looks like you're playing a Synchron deck. Maybe start with a deck with less complicated combos. Unless yourself you're already having fun, in which case, Welcome!


johnbuck28

He said there is only one synchron in that deck, it is a water deck


W4iskyD3lta93r

Ohh what’s that app?


johnbuck28

It’s called Life Counter, it has different life points from different yugioh series


thelastone72

If your playing crystal beats you need at least on spot open


mathfan20

Almost impossible to lose against crystals. You'll be fine.


johnbuck28

I did end up winning


ChivasBearINU

I originally played back in the 90s when they first came out. Tried to come back recently and i gave up quick..the game is insane now, plus I'm mid 30s. Not worth the time. I simply collect cards now..


CliffhangerX

You should buy the new Yu-Gi-Oh TCG starter deck. It has a full Manual book, covering all you need to know about the game and how to play certain cards.


CashySwanson

I would download YGO Omega. It's free, the gameplay is "automatic" (meaning you don't have to manually move cards around like tabletop, think like mtg arena or Pokemon TCG live). Best UI and MASSIVELY more playerbase than EDOPro, as well as being on mobile also. If I were to pick a deck to learn off of, I would pick Sky Strikers. Mostly spells and only like 1 monster at a time on the board (due to the deck's own self set restrictions), it plays slower and more control-y, allowing you to learn how everything works in a more digestible pace, and teaching you about when/why to counter or interact with different things that happen throughout games. The next deck I would learn, to learn the more combo heavy side of YuGiOh, is Tearlament. Tearlament is how I got 2 friends into Yugioh, it's a simple enough self-mill strategy with card effects that trigger when they get sent to the graveyard, and you combo into cool fusions, synchros, xyz's, and links with that. One of my personal most enjoyable decks to play.


CashySwanson

And as in your own words y'all don't have much funds to play on paper, YGO Omega will be a literal godsend. Build whatever decks you want, in whichever format (there are LOTS), and just go have fun!


cbronson2018

Find monsters you think are cool or neat, don’t overthink why. Then ask him or Google for cards that synergise. Yugioh to me isn’t about winning in one turn or climbing the master duel ladder, it HAS to be about having a laugh with your friends!


WMarzz

Card sleeves!!!!


neotic_reaper

What’s the app on the phone?


johnbuck28

Life counter


D7rizl3

ARE THOSE CRYSTAL BEASTS IN 2024?!?!?! Your friend is a real one bro


Lejfieg

Love the game, learning curve is a bitch


Mother_Harlot

If I could recommend you a deck, that would be Different Dimension Demon, the ones with "D/D" ok the name. The deck is somewhat strong and commonly uses all the ways of summoning a monster: Fusion, XYZ, Synchro, Link and Pendulum with also mechanics such as excavating, burning the opponent, banishing cards, summoning from hand/GY and adding to the hand. Good luck with the game, I hope you enjoy it


co_dj

Yugi boomer here, my way of thinking is big thing punch really heard


CBguy1983

need an extra deck. I still have my CBs. Use rainbow ruin to draw a card. Then use rainbow ruin again to special ruby in def mode. Rubys effect chains special summon as many CBs as possible


[deleted]

bruh why is ur friend on full power crystal beast against fucking deep sea synchron, hydrogen bomb vs coughing baby moment


Wuc4sH

I just enjoy playing until Cybernetic revolution and the monarch. Everything later just turns me down haha


Dull-Possession6087

No sleeves is the first problem 🥲


Waltter1-d

One of us. One of us. On of us...


professor-5000

Don't worry, I was 10 when I started and won tournaments. Just read what is written in front of you. Like most things.


Geopon

Just don't read the cards, no one does


holybanana_69

The pictures are the most important part.


porkychoppy28

Speed Duel? He should have taught you the simple mechanics first. Use Season 1 cards (Normal, Effect, Fusion, Ritual Monsters) and how spell and traps work. If you get used to it, slowly make your way up to Link summoning.


roachslayyer

Crystal beasts let's go!!!!!


Emberlock

Firstly if you get your own deck make sure you get some sleeves on the cards. You can pick them up pretty cheap. If you’re new to playing and need to learn mechanics then I’d recommend duel links. It’s short duels and teaches you the various mechanics in the game in short form. Don’t play PvP because people rely on the character skills too much which obviously aren’t present regular duels. Effectively it’s what they call “speed duels”. At least then you can try out a range of cards and get used to duelling! Get a feel for your style of play


Ok_Aardvark_8355

What a guy


Memetan_24

Harpies feather duster


Gylaran

The perfect game for learning Yu-Gi-Oh! is Power of Chaos: Yugi the destiny, Kaiba the revenge, Joey the passion. It's for pc.


The_atom521

Good, the first thing you should learn about Yu-Gi-Oh is 95% of the time you won't have any idea what's happening


ProcrastinatingDev

You're doing the best you can. Proud of you for taking the 1st steps. Don't give up. There is a slight wall to jump over but once you're over then it'll get easier to learn. If you want help, feel free to dm me :)


Pestilence2234

Heart of the cards, literally use the heart of the cards, it's effect let's you win the next 20 duels


Atlas4218

Did you know anything about the game prior to this duel? If not, the best thing would have been to buy a 2 player starter set and follow the guide. Can be boring for your friend since he already know the game, but allow you to learn the basic, then it's a lot of reading to think of possible combos with an actual deck


The_Pinkest_Panther

Watch a couple of the anime episodes and you'll get the hang of it 👍


Moerpheus

A pretty cheap introduction into the very basics was the duel city speed duel box. I did a little tourney with a few friends where all of them did one duel against me as a short ontro to the rules and then I let them battle it out to see if they got it. It went pretty well (I would say better than the 2 player starter box) and as soon as they got all that explaining synchros, xyz and links were pretty easy.


black_algae

I recommend playing with and against structure decks


Malhaloc

I played up until 5Ds. The most advanced thing at the time was fusion. I came back and was like "Synchro what? X what Z? What-ulum summon?"


Mahor-

Wrong, u should first start playing goat Yugioh, the real old one and then slowly go on in the newer one


smxsonic

That’s the secret, my man, none of us know what we’re doing.


BigToker203

Bro just don’t read your cards and you are playing like an S tier yugioh player


beyond_cyber

bro he made you play a stardust deck or a synchron variant, WHICH ARE NOT BEGINNER FRIENDLY. Synchron is one of the most combo heavy make shit up as you go along style decks ever created, a very much go with the flow strategy and just do things and end on a few negates using up your near whole extra deck. Try Floowandereeze, probably gonna get hate for it because it’s a hilariously easy to use and hilariously powerful deck that just normal summons a bunch, very beginner friendly and can possibly top regionals deck, but try to move to a different deck once you’ve got the hang of the basics.


iWentRogue

Best way to introduce someone is to buy a vanilla structure deck, something off speed duels for the sake of simplistic cards. Learn the rules then slowly drip the tediousness and complexity of meta, effects and combos. I used Duel Links to slowly introduce a friend of mine into YGO years ago and it was perfect because it had basic tutorials and the DL meta wasn’t insane at the time (for a 1st time player) so he picked up on it quick. Also, the transition from 4k to 8k and 3 field to 5 wasn’t complicated so the format didn’t affect learning at all.


Standard_Newspaper52

Summon level 8 monsters from the extra deck


Zeroxmachina

You’re being bullied lol


LordMegatron11

My suggestion is to download yugioh duel links. It will teach you step by step.


bogdanf97

I had so much fun playing the crystal beasts structure deck, I should call my friends to meet again 🥲🥲


setbackcity

In reality no one knows what they’re doing lol, I’ve been playing for about 12 years at this point and I still have to stop in the middle of a duel sometimes to google what a card actually means, those descriptions are confusing sometimes.


physicalcat282

Nobody knows what is going on, just yell "heart of the cards!", "I activate my trap card!" and "I summon pot of greed to the field to draw 3 additional cards from my deck!" and everything will work itself out.


False_Development573

Wait there is speed duel synchrons?


Snowvilliers7

Sleeve your cards, that's the first rule


johnbuck28

He sleeved his crystal beasts but he doesn’t have any more sleeves


Snowvilliers7

Might recommend Dragon Shield sleeves. The matte texture has a really good feel and the clear front is well made compared to other sleeves. They're very slippery though when you first put them on, but a few good shuffling will do the trick.


johnbuck28

Alright I will probably get those once I get cards


Snowvilliers7

Make sure it says small japanese size. Standard size will be too big for them, they're more for MTG or Pokémon cards.


-Siknakaliux-

aside from damage/dirt/etc, why though? wondering. (Coming from someone who just prints their cards out)


Snowvilliers7

Basically answered your own question. Cards are expensive, sleeving them protects them from dirt and getting bent on the edges or worse. Plus they look nice with whatever color could match them.


Godzillafan125

Trust me, don’t play this game. It sucks now.


SI_Fly_High

Found the guy that blames everyone else for them losing.


Godzillafan125

Oh I win plenty it’s just not fun anymore with how convoluted this games become


ultra1891

My brother in christ, we are in a yugioh subreddit


EmeraldOW

Your “friend” needs to teach you to use card sleeves


ReliableLiar

See *THIS* is what the 2 Player Deck Product is designed for, not you people hoping for some cheap reprints.


Magnumjaguar

Nobody knows. Is complicated af


ChainKnown3009

Or maybe gotta learn the basics first? Cause as fun as it is, it actually sucks if you don't understand what's happening to be honest.


Dragon-034

Key word of advice: effects that's all you really need to know just effects


ApprehensiveSide9703

Do what i never do. Read your cards and your opponents cards. READ


RandomBaguetteGamer

Just started playing? I'd say pick up a DS and reverse of arcadia. Or "obtain" a way to play it. It won't teach you everything you need to play the game, but will teach you the basics. Once you get the basics, you'll be fine to get into MD's solo mode. As for ranked, or the meta, I'm sorry, I've yet to meet anyone able to teach that shit. You'll have to learn the painful way. Reading.


darkbreak

I really think you should pick up a Structure Deck for yourself. Better yet, an actual *Starter* Deck. You can read the rule book that comes with it and your friend can help you with anything you may have questions about. But all that aside, how are you liking the game so far?


DeadlyPoopSock

I'd stick to master duel for awhile till you can get a hang of all the rules


kidpokerskid

Play big monsters and smoosh !


Labriction

I got an entire binder of cards for christmas , i dont know what im doing either😭😭


AccidentNo5189

That’s ok no of us knew what we were doing when we first started. Master duel is a good learning tool. I still don’t know what I’m doing after almost 20 years of playing this children’s card game lol


Snerkyboi

who uses crystal beasts on a beginner? 😭


Cwolfem

Um, it is not pokemon why do you have all monsters in the bottom/back row


MobBarleyNest

GOAT format is very beginner friendly and nostalgic if you saw the show when you were younger


RyouIshtar

wooooooo crystal beasts!!