by in
Overview
In the game of Yugioh! there are a few standard ways you can win a duel. You can reduce your opponent’s Life Points to 0 with monster attacks and/or effect damage, force your opponent to “deck out,” and you can even win if your opponent runs out of time (if a turn timer is imposed). But, there are several cards and combinations of cards that can win players’ the duel, or even a whole match! Many of these can be hard to pull off, but it can be worth the risk! Let’s take a look at the different alternative win conditions in Yugioh!
Exodia the Forbidden One
Starting off strong: Exodia the Forbidden one! This card, or set of cards, rather, has been in the game since 1999 (OCG). Its effect is simple, yet unforgettable: “If you have “Right Leg of the Forbidden One”, “Left Leg of the Forbidden One”, “Right Arm of the Forbidden One” and “Left Arm of the Forbidden One” in addition to this card in your hand, you win the Duel.” This card, and its win condition, is legendary! Yugi used Exodia against Kaiba and obliterated him in the anime. Since then, Exodia has remained one of the most iconic cards, and alternative win conditions in the game.
Destiny Board
Perhaps just as infamous as Exodia, Destiny Board is another classic alternative win condition. This is almost like the Spell/Trap version of Exodia. Instead of gathering five specific monsters in your hand, this condition requires you to have the Trap Card Destiny Board and all of the Spirit Message Spell Cards face up in your Spell and Trap Zones. But, you can’t activate the Spells yourself, they have to be activated via the effect of Destiny Board. In the OCG, these cards together spell out DEATH, while in the TCG, they form the word FINAL. It is a more long-term strategy. This “archetype” even gained extra support in the form of Dark Sanctuary, Dark Spirit’s Mastery, and Sentence of Doom. Just imagine the kind of power Bakura would have had with these cards!
Final Countdown
Speaking of FINAL… Final Countdown is next in this countdown! This is a very simple and straightforward alternative win condition. “Pay 2000 Life Points. After 20 turns have passed after you activate this card (counting the turn you activate this card as the 1st turn), you win the Duel.” So, at the cost of 2000 LP and stalling for 20 turns, you can win the duel! This card is currently limited to 1. In modern Yugioh!, duels rarely last longer than 5 or 6 turns, so pulling this off today can be a little tricky. But, back when this card was released in 2003, this was a viable card for some strategies.
Vennominaga
The next card on our list is Vennominaga the Deity of Poisonous Snakes. This serpentine goddess is a venomous killer! Technically part of the Venom archetype, this monster is one of the most difficult to summon in the game, but if you do, it could win you the game. The win condition is simple enough: When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Place 1 Hyper-Venom Counter on it. When the 3rd Hyper-Venom Counter is placed on this card, you win the Duel.” It’s the summoning of this card that makes it so difficult to win. This card can only be Special Summoned by the effect of the Trap Card Rise of the Snake Deity, a card that itself has an activation requirement that can also be hard to meet. However, even if you don’t win via Vennominaga’s effect, if you can summon her, she gains crazy attack points for each Reptile in your GY, and she is unaffected by other card effects.
Number 88
While on the topic of counters, next we have Number 88 Gimmick Puppet of Leo. This Rank 8 Xyz Monster is a beast with 3200 ATK and 2300 DEF. This lion can win you the duel, too, if you can collect enough Destiny Counters: “3 Level 8 monsters Once per turn, if you have no cards in your Spell & Trap Card Zone: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card, and if you do, place 1 Destiny Counter on this card. You cannot conduct your Battle Phase the turn you activate this effect. When 3 Destiny Counters are on this card, you win the Duel.” This card required 3 Lv. 8 monsters a s material and doesn’t have much protection on its own, and it can be hard to pull off its victory condition, but it still makes the list! Alternatively, we also have Leo’s upgraded version: Number C88: Number C88 Gimmick Puppet Disaster Leo.
Angel of Mischief
Following up, another Xyz Monster, Ghostrick Angel of Mischief! This time, instead of accumulating counters, you have to accumulate Xyz Materials. To use this alternative win condition, you have to have an Angel of Mischief with 10 materials attached to it. Once you do, you win! This is often achieved with using other Ghostick Xyz Monsters as material for Angel, attaching their materials to Angel as materials. Not an easy feat to pull off!
Sumo Games
Similar to, yet very different from, Angel of Mischief, we have Musical Sumo Dice Games. This Rank 6 Xyz Monster rolls dice and whoever gets caught up in its game becomes attached to it as Material! If this dancing fool gathers enough partners, you can win the duel!
Jackpot 7
Next up, a Spell Card: Jackpot 7! This win condition requires help from your opponent: “When this card is activated: Shuffle this card from the field into the Deck. When this card in your possession is sent to your Graveyard by an opponent’s card effect: Banish this card. If 3 of your “Jackpot 7″ are currently banished, and were all banished by this effect, you win the Duel.” If your opponent hazards your Spell and Trap Zone and manages to destroy all of your Jackpots, you win!
Winners!
Another similar card is F.A. Winners. This card is like Jackpot 7 in that it wins you the game when you have three specific banned cards banned by this card’s effect, but it’s easier to control. “If you control a “F.A.” monster, this card cannot be destroyed by your opponent’s card effects. When your “F.A.” monster whose Level is at least 5 higher than its original Level battles an opponent’s monster and inflicts battle damage to them: You can banish 1 card from your hand, field, or GY. You can only use this effect of “F.A. Winners” once per turn. If 3 of your “F.A.” Field Spells with different names are currently banished, and were all banished by the effect of “F.A. Winners”, you win the Duel.”
Flying Elephant
Another card that requires help from your opponent to win is the strange Flying Elephant. This odd little fellow’s effect is: “Once per opponent’s turn, if this card would be destroyed by their card effect, it is not destroyed. Once per turn, during their End Phase, if that effect was applied this turn: Apply the following effect. ● During your next turn, if this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent by a direct attack, you win the Duel.” This card really imposes no threat to your opponent, and it easily dealt with, either by using multiple destruction effects, any non-destruction removal, or by simply attacking over it. Not a great option, but still, it is technically an alternitive victory condition.
The Legendary Defender
We already covered Exodia, but, here is one of his variants: Exodia the Legendary Defender (not to be confused with the strange True Exodia).It is very unlikely that anyone will actually be winning with this card’s effect, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a cool card! The effect of this card is very specific: “Cannot be Special Summoned. You can Tribute 5 monsters to Tribute Summon (but not Set) this card. This card’s ATK/DEF become the combined original ATK/DEF of the Tributed monsters. If this card Summoned this way destroys a DARK Fiend monster owned by your opponent, you win the Duel at the end of the Damage Step.” What makes this card so cool, though, is its reference to the manga. Exodia faced off against Zorc Necrophades, an evil fiend.
Numerounius
This massive Xyz Monster, Number iC1000 Numerounius Numerounia, is part of the unique Numeron archetype, a strange group on its own. This monster gives your opponent two options: 1 Attack it and die or 2 don’t attack it and still die. Wild!
Holactie
Holactie the Creator of Light is a manga reference card that literally combines all of the 3 Legendary Egyptian God cards. A beautifully illustrated card by Kazuki Takahashi, this card can only be summoned by tributing all three Egyptian God cards you control. Not an easy feat to pull off.
Victory Dragon
Victory Dragon is not only an alternative victory condition to win a duel, but to win an entire match! That’s right. If you can pull off this victory condition, you win the entire match! Though this card is banned in the OCG and TCG, it is still legal in the Genesys format. It’s effect is rather straightforward: “This card cannot be Special Summoned. To Tribute Summon this card, you must Tribute 3 Dragon-Type monsters. If this card attacks your opponent directly and reduces their Life Points to 0, you win the Match.”
Phantasm Spiral
This next one is a Trap Card that requires several pieces to be in play to pull off. Phantasm Spiral Assault! This one has been a fan favorite over the years. “Target 1 “Phantasm Spiral Dragon” you control; when it destroys 3 Effect Monsters your opponent controls, by battle, while equipped with 3 or more “Phantasm Spiral” Equip Spell Cards with different names, you win the Duel. If “Umi” is on the field, you can activate this card from your hand. If a Normal Monster(s) you control would be destroyed by battle or card effect, you can banish this card from your Graveyard instead.”
Last Turn
Finally, the iconic, and forever banned card, Last Turn. As the name and artwork imply, this card is embodies the last-one-standing effect. Essentially, both players choose a monster and pit those monsters against each other, and whoever is left standing wins. “This card can only be activated during your opponent’s turn when your Life Points are 1000 or less. Select 1 monster on your side of the field and send all other cards on the field and in their respective owners’ hands to their respective Graveyards. After that, your opponent selects and Special Summons 1 monster from their Deck in face-up Attack Position and attacks your selected monster. (Any Battle Damage from this battle is treated as 0.) The player whose monster remains alone on the field at the End Phase of this turn wins the Duel. Any other case results in a DRAW.”
This is not an exhaustive list, but does highlight some of the most popular alternative win conditions in the game of Yugioh!
