PRIO Preview: A Vampiric Revamp (2024)

May 7th, 2014

Vampire Vamp adds a completely new kind of effect to the Vampires’ arsenal. You might think it’s rather weak for a Level 7 monster, but looks can be deceiving. When it comes to Vampire Vamp’s effect, having low ATK is actually an asset! When Vampire Vamp or another Vampire is Normal Summoned, you can activate Vampire Vamp’s effect. Vampire Vamp will mesmerize any opposing monster, equipping it to Vamp – but only if that monster has more ATK than Vampire Vamp. Vamp will absorb all of that monster’s ATK, and it will allow Vamp to use her second ability. When Vamp is sent to the Graveyard, you can Special Summon her back to the field as long as she had been equipped with an opposing monster!

Vampire Vamp offers a unique form of monster removal which circumvents many of the common forms of monster protection. Many monsters have built-in protection, such as Stardust Dragon or Number 101: Silent Honor ARK – and they can’t do a thing to stop Vamp!

The best way to bring Vampire Vamp to the field is with a Normal Summon, so it can activate its effect right off the bat. You can always Tribute Summon it, but Vampire Decks have access to a much better option – Vampire Sorcerer! When it’s sent to the Graveyard, you can search out a Vampire card like Vampire Vamp. Then, you’re able to banish Vampire Sorcerer from the Graveyard to Normal Summon Vamp without Tributing.

Of course, there are a lot of other methods of bringing Vamp to the field. Shadow Vampire and Vampire Duke both can Special Summon Vamp with ease, simply by Normal Summoning them. Shadow will bring Vamp out of the Deck, while Duke will let you revive Vamp out of the Graveyard. Mezuki is a mainstay in the average Zombie Deck, and it works just as well with Vampires. Have Mezuki revive Vamp, then play a second Vampire and go to town! Finally, Vamp’s DEF lands perfectly on 2000, making it a candidate for Pyramid Turtle. Turtle lets you scout your opponent’s moves in Main Phase 1, then counter with the appropriate monster from your Deck. You can get Vamp if they have a monster strong enough to use it, or any of your other Zombies like Vampire Duke or Vampire Sorcerer.

The best part about Vampire Vamp may actually be that her ATK is only 2000. Having 2000 ATK instead of something in the 2400 to 2800 range vastly increases the range of very popular monsters she can sink her teeth into. Number 101: Silent Honor ARK for example has 2100, as does Artifact Moralltach. She’s effective against 3 out of the 4 Dragon Rulers and the vast majority of Xyz Monsters seeing play at the moment.

Vampire Vamp offers a cool way to handle strong monsters by stealing them for yourself and keeping them out of your opponent’s Graveyard! Watch out for Vampire Vamp and a ton of other great stuff in Primal Origin, with Sneak Peeks starting this weekend!