[Top 5] Yugioh Master Duel Best Starter and Structure Decks - Which To Choose

Structure deck Store, Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel
Updated:
23 Mar 2022

What are Starter and Structure Decks?

In Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duels, the game presents us with pre-made decks that are catered to those who have started their journey in Master Duels. Though each is great for their own reasons, some of these decks have better performance than the others.

Starter Decks

Starter decks are decks given to the player at the start of the game, after they finish the tutorial. The game will prompt the player to pick between three different choices these are:

Power of Dragons - A deck that has great synergy with Dragon type units and features the very iconic card Blue-Eyes White Dragon at three copies. Has great emphasis on both Fusion and Tribute Summoning. Though their boss monster, Five-Headed Dragon, lacks protection outside of battle and is quite difficult to summon.

Synchro of Unity -  A deck that has a great focus on Synchro Summoning, a way of special summoning cards from the Extra Deck. This deck has a greatt balance between Tuner Cards and Effect Monsters to ensure consistent Synchro summoning. The boss monster is Junk Warrior, which can have its ATK stat go out of hand by gaining all the total ATK of all level 2 monsters in the field. Outside of that, this deck will have a hard time protecting this boss monster out of battle.

Link Generation - A deck that focuses on Link Summoning Monsters, which is the most recent Extra Deck summoning method introduced. Cyberse Cards comprises most of the deck which all support the Link Summon archetype. The boss monster Decode Talker has effects that increase its attack and protect itself from destruction outside of battle, making this the easiest boss monster amongst the starter deck to have.

But do not be hard pressed if you felt like you picked the wrong starter deck, you can get the other unchosen decks from quests. In terms of Strength and Consistency of the Starter decks, it would be Link Generation > Synchro of Unity > Power of Dragons. This also is the same on the difficulty of the deck  with Link Generation being the hardest one to pilot.

Structure Decks

Structure Decks are pre-made decks full of cards varying in rarity, which the player can pull from legacy packs. These pre-made decks all cost 500 Gems in the store, and have a varying number of URs, SRs, Rs, and Ns in the deck. The Structure Decks are built with an engine and an archetype to focus on making it easy to upgrade as the direction is not as vague as the Starter Decks.

The current available Structure Decks are:

Re-Contract Universe - This deck utilises XYZ summoning in tandem with Zeal Weapon Engine to XYZ summon Utopia and Rank it up to other Utopia Ray boss monsters for a very versatile playstyle. It is composed of 4 UR Cards, 9 SR Cards, 14 R Cards, and 18 N Cards.

Magicians of Pendulum - This deck focuses on Pendulum Summoning through the use of the Magician Cards as their Engine, and combines Fusion, Synchro and XYZ summoning to the mix.  Their boss monsters, Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, and Rune-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, are quite strong but lack protection. It is composed of 4 UR Cards, 12 SR Cards, 13 R Cards, and 16 N Cards. This is the deck with the most value because of the high amount of SR Cards in this deck.

Rage of Cipher - Is another deck that focuses on XYZ summoning and is the most recently released Structure Deck in the Store. The engines this deck runs are The Cipher Engine and Galaxy support all in the effort to XYZ summon Galaxy-Eyes Cipher X Dragon, and it offers a slew of innate protection for the boss monster. It is composed of 3 UR Cards, 10 SR Cards, 12 R Cards, and 20 N Cards. This deck has the least value amongst the other Structure Decks offered in the shop.

 

5. Power of Dragons


BIG STRONG DRAGON!!

Do you like enormous dragons floating across the sky, burning down all your enemies? Do you want to live out Seto Kaiba fantasy? Then the Power of the Dragons is for you!

Focusing greatly on the Monster Type: Dragons, the player will have access to target prevention with the Monster Lord of D. and targeted spell/trap card removal with Stamping Destruction. The deck has ways to special summon Dragons from the hand and GY, allowing for easy Tribute Summons and Fusion Summons to happen.

Pros of the Deck

  • Easy to use and is the most Newbie friendly of all the Starter Decks.
  • Does not need that much strategy to bring out Blue Eyes White Dragon.
  • A very nostalgic Deck.
  • It has plenty of ways to be upgraded because of its very general nature.

Cons of the Deck

  • Very weak.
  • Requires having specific hard to summon cards to protect The Boss Monsters.
  • The Boss Monster Five-Headed Dragon is very hard to summon and the pay–off isn’t really worth it.
  • Outside of the Dragon summoning gimmick, the deck has nothing to offer and is easily counterable.
 

Card List

Monsters - 21

3x Luster Dragon

2x Divine Dragon Ragnarok

2x Blue-Eyes White Dragon

1x Twin-Headed Behemoth

2x Dark-Hex-Sealed Fusion

2x Kidmodo Dragon

2x Lord of D.

2x Lancer Dragonute

2x Axe Dragonute

2x Kaiser Glider

1x Strong Wind Dragon

 

Spells - 13

2x The Flute of Summoning Dragon

3x Stamping Destruction

2x Back to Square One

2x Fusion Substitute

2x Rush Recklessly

2x Silver’s Cry

 

Traps - 6

2x Ring of Destruction

2x Threatening Roar

2x Defense Draw

 

Extra - 5

3x King Dragun

2x Five-Headed Dragon

 

4. Link Generation


I Link Summon, Decode Talker!!

Imagine you are floating in the endless abyss of the Cyber-net. Numbers and codes float through the air as you swim around the surrounding space. If you like powerful plays and cyber monsters, then this deck is for you!

Link Summons are the focus of the deck, linking monsters into a stronger form. This is the best of the Starter Decks in terms of performance, but the hardest one to pilot because of its complicated nature. The deck’s boss monster is Decode Talker and has an innate way of protecting itself from removal.

Pros of the Deck

  • This deck is very consistent.
  • Link Summons are very strong
  • Has a clear direction on where it can be upgraded
  • Boss Monster can be easily protected

Cons of the Deck

  • Timing of negate is very unintuitive at times
  • Very gimmicky and complicated for newcomers
  • Might brick when the hand is missing some key cards
     

Card List

Monsters - 22

2x Protron

2x Digitron

2x Suppression Collider

3x Texchanger

1x Backlinker

3x Launcher Commander

2x Bitrooper

2x Link Streamer

3x Bravedrive

2x Dual Assembwurm

 

Spells - 12

2x Share the Pain

2x Blustering Winds

2x Parallel Twister

2x Cynet Universe

2x Link Bound

2x Spool Code

 

Traps - 6

2x Cyberse Beacon

2x Cynet Cascade

2x Jelly Cannon

 

Extra Deck - 5

1x Link Spider

1x LANphorhynchus

1x Progleo

1x Decode Talker

1x Rasterliger

 

3. Magician of Pendulum


Do you feel the magic?

These monsters will tip the scales to your favor, as dragons and magicians rush to your side. Summon your monsters through Pendulum Summon and win with this deck!

The deck focuses on Pendulum Summoning Cards to the field to beatdown your opponents and create your boss monster. This deck has access to Magicians, Performapals Engine to support the Pendulum Summons this deck wants to bring out.

Pros of the Deck

  • Easier to use than the other Structure Decks
  • Has very synergistic cards
  • Has a strong field card to protect their cards
  • Has clear direction in which parts to upgrade or to focus on
  • Consistent Monster Presence

Cons of the Deck

  • The removal protection of the deck is not tied to the Boss Monster. It  is otherwise tied to a field spell.
  • If upgrading towards the direction of Odd Eyes, then it would require the player to get 3 copies of Odd-eyes, which might mean having to buy this structure deck three times.
  • The overall concept of Pendulum Summon is quite confusing, even more for newcomers..
  • Has a whole slew of different Extra Deck summons ranging from Synchro, Fusion, and XYZ, which might confuse newcomers.
  • This is clear in all the Structure Decks. All cards are one-of making it quite inconsistent.
 

Card List

Monsters - 24

1x Dragonpulse Magician

1x Dragonpit Magician

1x Tuning Magician

1x Performapal Odd-Eyes Unicorn

1x Performapal Odd-Eyes Synchron

1x Timegazer Magician

1x Odd-Eyes Mirage Dragon

1x Performapal Silver Claw

1x Performapal Pendulum Sorcerer

1x Wisdom-Eye Magician

1x Performapal Skullcrobat Joker

1x Performapal Secondonkey

1x Performapal Gold Fang

1x Harmonizing Magician

1x Performapal Odd-Eyes MInitaurus

1x Stargazer Magician

1x Performapal Odd-Eyes Light Pheonix

1x Odd-Eyes Persona Dragon

1x Oafdragon Magician

1x Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon

1x Dharma-Eye Magician

1x Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon

1x Dragoncaller Magician

1x Performapal Odd-Eyes Dissolver

 

Spells - 11

1x Pendulum Call

1x Amazing Pendulum

1x Pendulum Fusion

1x Duelist Alliance

1x Spiral Flame Strike

1x Pendulum Paradox

1x Pendulum Halt

1x Sky Iris

1x Soul Pendulum

1x Pendulum Impenetrable

1x Wavering Eyes

 

Traps - 5

1x Pendulum Back

1x Pendulum Reborn

1x Heavy Storm Duster

1x Unwavering Bond

1x Pendulum Switch

 

Extra Deck - 5

1x Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon

1x Rune-Eyes Pendulum Dragon

1x Enlightenment Paladin

1x Nirvana High Paladin

1x Timestar Magician

 

2. Re-Contract Universe


Transformers Ro- I mean, I summon Utopia!

Large warriors clad in gleaming armor descend from the sky and smite your enemies! Want to defeat your enemies with powerful warriors holding legendary weapons? Then this deck might be for you!

The deck focuses on the ability to XYZ summon XYZ Creatures from the Extra deck, which requires a specific number of cards at the same level. This deck runs the ZW and ZS engine to equip Utopia to handle specific situations that may arise during the battle. Supported by the Gogogo and Gagaga engine to help facilitate the XYZ summoning.

Pros of the Deck

  • The Deck is very consistent in its plays.
  • The Boss Monster Utopia is a good card that can easily negate attacks.
  • The cards can consistently combo off
  • Can easily recur and revive XYZ monsters from the GY
  • Has a clear destination on how to upgrade this Structure Deck
  • Has 3 Boss Monsters in the Deck
  • Most Value amongst the Structure Deck

Cons of the Deck

  • The combos can be very convoluted and may confuse for first-timers
  • Some better Utopia decks require two or more Utopias in the deck, which might require the player to buy a second or third copy of the structure deck.
  • Protection is tied to spell cards rather than the Boss Cards in the Deck
  • This is clear in all the Structure Decks. All cards are one-of making it quite inconsistent.

 

Card List

Monsters - 21

1x DZW - Chimera Clad

1x ZS - Vanish Sage

1x ZW - Phoenix Bow

1x ZS - Ouroboros Sage

1x Gagaga Magician

1x Gogogo Golem

1x Gogogo Giant

1x ZW - Unicorn Spear

1x ZW - Ultimate Shield

1x ZW - Sleipnir Mail

1x ZW - Asura Strike

1x Zubababancho Gagagacoat

1x Dodododwarf Gogogoglove

1x ZS - Armed Sage

1x ZS - Ascended Sage

1x ZW - Sylphid Wing

1x Astraltopia

1x ZW - Lightning Blade

1x ZW - Tornado Bringer

1x ZW - Eagle Claw

1x ZW - Pegasus Twin Saber

 

Spells - 13

1x Pot of Avarice

1x Utopia Buster

1x Shining Draw

1x Rank-Up-Magic Zexal Force

1x Zexal Construction

1x Zexal Entrust

1x Zexal Catapult

1x Reverse Breaker

1x Rising Sun Slash

1x Zexal Field

1x XYZ Change Tactics

1x Double or Nothing!

1x Light Wing Shield

 

Traps - 6

1x XYZ Reborn

1x Halfway to Forever

1x Zexal Alliance

1x Numbers Protection

1x The Door of Destiny

1x The Deal of Destiny

 

Extra Deck - 5

1x Number 39:Utopia

1x ZW - Leo Arms

1x Ultimate Dragonic Utopia Ray

1x ZW - Dragonic Halberd

1x Ultimate Leo Utopia Ray

 

1. Rage of Cipher


Look into their eyes...

With the light of The Galaxy shining on their eyes, the dragons come forth. Another XYZ structure deck graces the shop, but this time the boss monsters are a different caliber.

This deck focuses on XYZ summoning Galaxy-Eyes Cipher Dragon and ranking it up to an enhanced form for all situations. The boss monsters have protection, removal or outright stealing of your opponent’s monster. If you like these, then this deck might be for you!

Pros of the Deck

  • Boss Monsters can have their materials replenished and can keep on using their abilities to mess with your opponents.
  • Support cards in the deck allow for Level Manipulation and Special Summoning of high-level cards to facilitate the XYZ Summon of their boss monsters.
  • The Boss Monsters have innate protection.
  • Has 3 Boss Monsters on the deck.
  • One of the Boss Monsters has an overall blanket of protection for Light monsters, which is basically all the monsters on the deck.

Cons of the Deck

  • Some of the support cards require your opponent to make specific plays, which may appear inconsistent.
  • Some of the Cipher Cards block off Special Summoning except for other Cipher Cards, which might brick some combos and might take some getting used to
  • This is clear in all the Structure Decks, all of the cards are one-of making it quite inconsistent.
  • Least value of all the Structure Decks.

 

Card List

Monsters -  21

1x Cipher Etranger

1x Cipher Soldier

1x Galaxy Mirror Sage

1x Honest

1x Galaxy Wizard

1x Radius, the Half-Moons Dragon

1x Galaxy Dragon

1x Heliosphere Dragon

2x Cipher Wing

1x Cipher Twin Raptor

1x Cipher Mirror Knight

1x Storm Cipher

1x Galaxy Cleric

1x Starliege Seyfert

1x Cipher Biplane

1x Parsec, the Interstellar Dragon

1x Schwarzschild Limit Dragon

1x Swordsman of Revealing Light

1x Nebula Dragon

1x Galactic Spiral Dragon

 

Spells - 13

1x Draconnection

1x Galaxy Queen’s Light

1x Galactic Charity

1x Galaxy Cyclone

1x XYZ Unit

1x Dragon Shield

1x Galaxy Wave

1x Constellar Belt

1x Cipher Interference

1x Double Exposure

1x Shrink

1x Galaxy Storm

1x Rank-Up-Magic Cipher Ascension

 

Traps - 6

1x XYZ Reborn

1x Dimension Slice

1x Double Cipher

1x Cipher Bit

1x Cipher Spectrum

1x Back to the Front

 

Extra Deck - 5

2x Galaxy-Eyes Cipher Dragon

1x Galaxy-Eyes Cipher Blade Dragon

1x Neo Galaxy-Eyes Cipher Dragon

1x Galaxy-Eyes Cipher X Dragon

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