From the ashes of 2009’s Japanese Trading Card Game Battle Spirits rises 2023’sBattle Spirits Saga, which keeps the base of all its predecessor’s gameplay systems but uses the freedom rebooting provides to reacquaint itself with the Western audiences it once failed to attract.
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Of the three types of cards that Battle Spirits Saga bases its gameplay on, the spirit type is by far the most important in the game: though magic and nexus cards can’t be destroyed through combat, spirits are your primary way of dealing damage to an opponent’s life reserve. The best spirits are ones that have longevity, giving you brutal effects over a greater span of time.
10Infernal King Curse Dragon
Infernal King Curse Dragon’s primary effect targets players who try to play wide rather than tall. If your opponent has a plethora of spirits on the field with one core each, the Curse Dragon can punish their hubris by removing the cores and destroying those spirits when it’s summoned.
Even further, this card gets rewarded with a core per spirit defeated this way. This effect can be incredibly punishing even to players who are midway through setting up a major threat as if they put the minimum number of cores on a spirit, the Infernal King Curse Dragon can destroy it without consequence.
9Mechabeast Fortress Naumanngard
If you’re thinking of playing a defensive game, Mechabeast Fortress Naumanngard is the best you can get when it comes to protective effects. On top of its ludicrous 10,000 BP at level two, it can also give you a refresh step after your attack step once per turn.
This effectively means that you can spend the attack power of every spirit on your field and then immediately refresh them for defending when your opponent’s attack turn comes around. Though your spirits may not be the hardest hitters, you’ll be difficult to stop once you amass a decent-sized army.
8Supernova Dragon Siegwurm Nova
Supernova Dragon Siegwurm Nova is extremely close to being overturned in the budding meta that has formed for Battle Spirits Saga: with three main effects that are all powerful in their own right, this version of Siegwurm is the set-up deck’s dream.
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With awaken, Siegwurm gets added survivability in the face of core removal, and if it’s ascended when summoned, Siegwurm tops off your life pool to boot. The most terrifying thing is that whenever this card attacks, it gets to destroy a number of spirits with a combined BP total of 10,000 on top of attacking with the force of 12,000 BP.
7Beldegor Of The Dark World Seven
Beldegor of The Dark World Seven isn’t intrinsically powerful like some of the other spirits available in the game, having only around 4,000 BP without magic or nexus cards to back it up. What makes this card powerful is the immortal tag, which allows you to sacrifice spirits that cost four or five to summon Beldegor back from the trash.
This can lead to strategies that involve purposefully destroying Beldegor, allowing your opponent to exhaust a low-cost spirit, and then bringing Beldegor back to use its effect and destroy that spirit. Once the field is clear, you can go after your opponent’s life pool without fear.
6Nebula Dragon Andromeda
Nebula Dragon Andromeda gives even Siegwurm Nova a run for its money when it comes to destructive potential– its BP sits at an incredible 10,000, and when summoned it can destroy one spirit under 3,000 BP or a nexus.
Though it can’t destroy tons of cards at once like Siegwurm, it can destroy nexuses– if an opponent is particularly hard to beat thanks topowerful nexus effects, you can squash their advantage and summon a great spirit in one go. With confront, you can also guarantee that they’ll eventually have to put their best players on the line.
5Dualgun Mechlord Dirm Dyna
If you want to punish your opponent’s over-reliance on nexus cards, Dualgun Mechlord Dirm Dyna can burn a soul core to make a white card unblockable for every nexus on the field. This includes yours, so the moment that five nexus cards find their way onto the table, you may have your path to a one-touch knockout.
What’s fantastic is that even if you summon this card too early, Dirm Dyna can be saved from destruction effects at the cost of a core; this makes it a card that pierces through lines of intense defense like a hot knife through butter.
4Archangel Michaela
If you’re looking to use thepowerful effects that magic cards offer, Archangel Michaela is the centerpiece that your deck needs to truly shine. When summoned, she allows you to look at a number of cards off the top of your deck equal to the number of yellow spirits and nexuses you control– you keep the magic cards and return the rest to the deck, giving you a solid card advantage.
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If you let this card hold onto your soul core, you can become even more powerful, able to use magic cards without paying the cost at all. Some magic cards can completely turn a game around, making this a card you absolutely need if you’re planning to focus on magic.
3Divine Mars Dragon Ares Dragoon
Though not the outrightbest red card available, Divine Mars Dragon Ares Dragoon is a solid mid-level spirit that fills a niche most high-level cards would struggle without– sure, you’re not going to end a game in a few turns with just the Divine Mars Dragon, but its ability to refresh cards that have the awaken keyword makes it a field-general, ensuring your hardest hitters also become your best blockers too.
Otherwise, this card is fairly decent. To get its maximum value, it generally shouldn’t be doing much fighting: this card thrives on supporting spirits that are more effective in battle, simply giving you guaranteed options in otherwise difficult situations.
2White Hole Dragon
White Hole Dragon is a kamikaze card, born to threaten opponents who attack too freely with their strongest spirits. Alone, this Star Dragon doesn’t even pose a threat with its effect; if it gets destroyed, it can take a card with equal or less BP down with it.
But combine this with the variety of nexus and magic cards that boost BP, and you’ve got a machine that can dismantle even the most powerful of spirits. The only way an enemy has to ensure you’re able to’t use this effect is to play effects of their own that prevent blocking.
1Raging Dino Dyrano Rex
Raging Dino Dyrano Rex is a spirit grinder, mainly spending its time removing spirits so that priority units can get their chance to damage life directly. Since it can destroy spirits with less than 4,000 BP instantly, opponents must be careful to keep their spirits at higher levels.
The problem for an opponent is that even if they pump their spirits full of cores, it’s still more than possible for Raging Dino to challenge spirits directly with its meaty BP values. All around, this is a great spirit to compliment fodder.
