Introduction:

The first steps to resolving that came recently with Battles of Legend: Hero’s Revenge where Gimmick Puppet Chimera Doll made its appearance in the TCG. Link summoned out of two Machines, this card gave the theme both a way to get a Gimmick Puppet to the hand, then a second portion of that same effect to get a Gimmick Special Summoned out of the hand. This gives the deck an effective starter to begin duels, as well as multiple link arrows to work with during your turn. Chimera was only the beginning, as most of you probably inferred from the title, because the Gimmicks just received a massive boost to both consistency and their grind game – so let’s take a look at how this theme can shine in its own niche moving forward.

You may be thinking to yourself: “That combo seems rather inconsistent/lucky/dependant on getting out a R8/etc”. Before the last couple months you would have been right. But nowadays, the combination of the new support from LD5 and Chimera Doll makes this a much more consistent dream. Plus, you can always throw in a couple extra Xyz support cards to really get this Machine humming – let’s check out today’s build.

Decklist:

Monsters: 18
||| Gearspring Spirit
|| Gimmick Puppet Bisque Doll
||| Gimmick Puppet Dreary Doll
||| Gimmick Puppet Humpty Dumpty
||| Gimmick Puppet Magent Doll
| Gimmick Puppet Shadow Feeler
||| Gimmick Puppet Terror Baby

Spells: 16
||| Allure of Darkness
|| Glorious Numbers
|| Junk Puppet
| Perform Puppet
||| Rank-Up-Magic Numeron Force
| Sky Striker Mecha – Eagle Booster
| Sky Striker Mecha – Hornet Drones
||| Sky Striker Mobilize – Engage!

Traps: 6
|| Barrage Blast
|| Puppet Parade
|| Xyz Reborn

Extra:
| Gimmick Puppet Gigantes Doll
| Number 15: Gimmick Puppet Giant Grinder
|| Number 40: Gimmick Puppet of Strings
|| Number C40: Gimmick Puppet of Dark Strings
| Black Luster Solider – Soldier of Chaos
| Double Headed Anger Knuckle
||| Gimmick Puppet Chimera Doll
| Qliphort Genius
| Sky Striker Ace – Hayate
| Sky Striker Ace – Kagari
| Sky Striker Ace – Kaina

Strategy:

The last piece I want to highlight about Gimmick Puppet is that they are a combo theme that is surprisingly resilient to disruption. Unlike some of my other recent articles, it isn’t because they can keep going if disrupted. Rather, they have ways to ignore the disruption itself. The GY effects of Terror Baby and Gimmick Puppet Bisque Doll make your Gimmicks untargetable and Gimmick activations unable to be chained to for the turn. This lets you go ham ignoring Veiler, Hieratic Seal, Ash, Ogre and more. Plus, the field-wide negation offered by Numeron Force is nothing to scoff at if you do go for a big play. Remember, that negation lasts for the rest of the duel! It really is a big play for you to take advantage of.

What NOT to Run:

The other piece of the above decklist that I highly recommend is a suite of cards NOT to run in this deck. I’m calling this out in particular here, just because there are so many bad options that many duelists online have been trying ever since LD5 support was confirmed. To be clear, there are a lot of things old Gimmick Puppet needed that new Gimmick Puppet no longer needs to rely upon!

You should be aware by now, but I am going to be extra blunt just to be make sure that you understand: This strategy is no longer just another Rank 8 Xyz Spam archetype. In the past, that is probably a fair statement. But with the sheer power of their new link and new support, they really seem to have edged out Raidraptor as the premiere Rank-Up archetype, so focus on that positive niche to make your impact with this theme! With that in mind, let’s dive into tech options for modern Gimmick Puppet.

Alternative Techs:

Let’s turn to talking about some other ways you can enhance the Gimmicky playstyle that this theme brings to a duel!

Conclusion:

Gimmick Puppets can pull your opponents strings the entire duel, going for an surprise power move packing some serious punch out of nowhere. The release of LD5 and BLHR really brought this theme back into the modern game, giving it the power and grind game it needed to pull itself back up onto its own two feet. So hopefully you give this deck a shot – personally I think it is the most promising of the LD5 themes this time around, even though some others may be a tad more splashable. Also, for the rarity nerds out there, did you notice that you can get almost all of these cards in blinged out gold rarity? Bling or not, hope you all enjoyed this article, thanks for reading, and see you next time!

Reminder, I also take suggestions for future CDS articles! I really want to see some input from you! Fun fact, this article was specifically requested by a reader through Discord! If you wish to see a CDS article about the archetype, theme, or strategy you love, feel free to private message me on the YGOrg Discord server, the YGOrganization Forums, or just post a comment in response to this article on our Facebook page with your ideas to keep under consideration. On most YGO-related communities my username is Quincymccoy, so feel free to reach out.