What is the best starter deck in YuGiOh Master Duel?

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Picking the best starter deck in YuGiOh Master Duel might seem like a daunting task, but your choice matters slightly less than you might think.

The three initial decks are built around significantly different playstyles, though the stakes are low here. You can obtain the other two decks you didn’t choose by completing missions in the Unlimited Missions tab, which just involve you completing a certain number of ranked duels.

You’re also able to buy new card packs with in-game items immediately after picking your starter deck, so there’s flexibility whatever you pick. If you don’t feel like agonizing over deck building and just want to coast with a pre-build deck for a while, though,

What is the best starter deck in YuGiOh Master Duel?

Which starter deck is best depends on how familiar you are with YuGiOh's more recent changes. Each of the three decks is viable in their own way, though you won't want to stick with them for long regardless of which one you pick. Think of them more as introductions to specific mechanics and guides to more advanced deck building.

Power of the Dragon deck

If you’re new to YuGiOh or dropped off years ago before the game changed, Power of the Dragon is a solid choice to ease you back into things.

Power of the Dragon contains the legendary Blue Eyes White Dragon, made famous by Yugi's arch-rival Seto Kiba in the classic anime.

It also contains a couple of decent Spell and Trap cards like Rush Recklessly and Threatening Roar.

It’s a straightforward deck free from fancy gimmicks for the most part, one that revolves around powerful monster cards alongside the usual traps and spells. You can pull off special summons via Dragon Fusion to spice things up, should you want to try something different. Synchro Summons and Link Monsters might get more attention in the meta game, but Fusion is still a good strategy for a strong offense.

If you want a hit of nostalgia as you play through your first matches in YuGiOh Master Duel, then this is the starter deck for you.

Synchro of Unity deck

Those familiar with the game’s recent developments or in search of something more involved should pick the Synchro of Unity deck.

Despite being more complicated than Power of the Dragon, Synchro of Unity is definitely more powerful if you know what you're doing.

This starter deck is built around Synchro Summons, a feature where you combine lesser Tuner monsters to summon stronger warriors with deeper abilities. It’s a significantly different approach to the game, and Master Duel also assumes you know how it works already. Synchro Summon tutorials are buried in solo mode, but it's worth the wait.

Synchro of Unity contains signature monsters from YuGiOh 5D's protagonist Yusei Fudo's deck like Junk Synchron and Junk Warrior.

It also contains the useful classic Spell card, Mystical Space Typhoon that's not as good as it has been in the past, but still has its uses in the beginning.

If you're not scared of grappling with Master Duel's more complex mechanics right from the off, pick up this starter deck.

Link Generation deck

If you really like the look of the Link Generation deck and want to dive into the newest summoning and monster types, then there's no harm in grabbing that one either. We don't recommended it quite as highly because it doesn't contain as many Spell and Trap cards that are useful in lots of different decks.

However, if you are going to dive into the real high-end strategies in YuGiOh, grabbing some Link Monsters, the strongest of which are integral to meta builds, is a good mechanic to learn the ropes of. Link Summons are easier to initially pull off than Synchro Summons because you only need the right number of tribute monsters.

Their level doesn't have to match the target summon. However, to get the most from Link Summons, you need to plan their positioning in relation to other cards and pay attention to the red arrows on your Link monsters.

There's such a vast array of cards and strategies in YuGiOh Master Duel that you will probably - and should - start tinkering with your collection immediately, so don't sweat too hard.

All of these starter decks would get crushed by a finely tuned meta deck anyway, so pick whichever one you like before moving on to collecting a more powerful strategy.

How do I get more cards in YuGiOh Master Duel?

As YouTuber Duel Links Entertainment pointed out, the real deck-choosing strategy begins after you choose a starter deck.

Master Duel gives you a generous number of gems just for completing the tutorial and logging in the first time, enough to purchase all three Special Bundles from the last tab of the in-game shop – and you should purchase at least one of them.

The bundles include 10 card packs, each with at least one Super Rare card and Ultra Rare card. You’re also guaranteed one of the card shown on the bundle preview page, such as the Solemn Judgment card. You’re limited to one of each bundle, but there’s plenty to be getting on with using even just one bundle.

You can dismantle any card you don’t need for additional materials to craft more cards. These packs also have a chance at unlocking Secret Packs you can purchase for 100 gems when you pull an SR rarity or higher, and each Secret Pack has a select set of rare, highlight cards you may obtain with each draw.

Once you've exhausted your secret bundles, you'll need to spend gems on regular packs to get new cards. These function the same as the special bundles, though unlike the limited ones, you're not guaranteed a specific card or rarity. Pull rates are also slightly less generous. However, each pack only costs 100 gems, so while you might not get the card you want, you'll still have plenty of choices to modify your deck with.

In short, there’s plenty of ways to customize your deck regardless of what your starter deck is in YuGiOh Master Duel. If you enable cross save, you won’t have to customize your decks between platforms either.

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