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It may surprise you to learn that Rock decks aren’t always about crushing your opponent with raw power.
Some of the best Rock monsters give protection and borderline broken disruption.
So if you want to win your duels by a landslide, let me share some of the best Rock-type monsters worth looking into.
15. Gate Blocker
Oftentimes, limiting what your opponent can do and protecting your fragile monsters is just as important as going on the offensive.
Gate Blocker is a LVL4 with 100 ATK/2000 DEF and negates the effects of your opponent’s Field Spells.
This is a big deal for a lot of decks. And Gate Blocker is an even bigger problem for any deck that uses counters, as this card stops your opponent from placing any on the Field.
Finally, this card even gives your other monsters protection too. Because when it’s on the field it’s the only card your opponent can target with effects.
14. Tackle Crusader
Sometimes monsters are far more valuable when they end up in the Graveyard, than they are on the field.
Here’s one such example:
Tackle Crusader is an LVL4 with 1500 ATK/1800 DEF. And when it lands in the Graveyard, you can either Target and change an opponent’s monster from face-up to face-down Defense Position, or return a face-up Spell/Trap your opponent controls back to their hand.
If you do the latter, your opponent can’t activate cards of the same name as the one you returned (until the end of the turn).
These effects are a little low impact.
But being able to disrupt your opponent’s front row or back row is a great option to have.
13. Prank-Kids Rocksies
This card sits a little lower on the list because it locks you into a Prank-Kids deck.
But it’s a fantastic card in a strategy that’s taking names in competitive Yu-Gi-Oh!
Prank-Kids Rocksies is a LVL4 with 1500 ATK/1500 DEF. When it’s used as Fusion or Link material for a Prank-Kids monster, you can Banish a card in your hand to Draw a card, then Special Summon any Prank-Kids monster from your hand or Deck.
Special Summoning in most decks spends your resources. But for Prank-Kids, you end up with more monsters on the field – and additional draw power.
12. El-Shaddoll Grysta
Much like ‘Prank-Kids Rocksies’ this card is a little low on the list, as it locks you into a specific deck.
But this is a great monster with built-in Summon negation.
El-Shaddoll Grysta is a LVL7 with 2450 ATK/1950 DEF and has a once per turn effect:
You can send a ‘Shaddoll’ card from your hand to the Graveyard to negate a Special Summon and destroy that monster.
It’s also worth noting that usually, Shaddoll decks like using their opponent’s monsters as material for their Fusion monsters. So your opponent will already be on the back foot when you bring this monster out.
11. Barrier Statue of the Drought
If you can keep them safe, Barrier Statue cards can be absolutely game-changing.
Barrier Statue of the Drought is a LVL4 with only 1000 ATK/1000 DEF.
But while it’s on the field, only EARTH monsters can be Special Summoned.
This card can stop combos from getting started and slow your opponent down to a crawl.
This is a weak monster in battle. But if your opponent has to waste their Main Phase just to battle this thing, it’s already done its job.
10. Gallant Granite
There are a surprising amount of decent Rock XYZ monsters. This one is no exception, and is a valuable searcher.
Gallant Granite is a LVL4 XYZ with 2300 ATK/1800 DEF, and you can detach a material to add a Rock monster to your hand from the deck.
This can search a ton of targets – and if you’ve already got everything you need in your hand, you can Special Summon a Rock monster from your hand in face-down Defense position instead.
9. Daigusto Emeral
If you need some extra draw power, this is a great monster to add to your Deck.
And if you use any Normal monsters, it’s even better.
Daigusto Emeral is a LVL4 XYZ with 1800 ATK/800 DEF and when you detach a material here, you have 2 effects to choose from.
Firstly, you can shuffle 3 monsters from your Graveyard back into your deck to draw a card. This is great especially if you have search cards available.
The second effect allows you to Special Summon a Normal monster from your Graveyard. So if you can throw something powerful in there beforehand, you can bring some tough customers onto the field for free.
8. Adamancipator Researcher
It wouldn’t be right to have a Rock list without talking about Adamancipator.
This deck was making serious waves in competitive Yu-Gi-Oh! in 2020. And although it’s not seeing tournament play right now, it’s still a solid strategy – and this is one of their most valuable cards.
Adamancipator Researcher is a LVL2 monster with 100 ATK/2100 DEF and can be Special Summoned if you control a Rock monster.
You can also excavate the top 5 cards from your deck and Special Summon any LVL4 non-Tuner Rock monster you excavated, then place the remaining cards at the bottom of the deck.
This is a great way to get monsters on the field quickly, maybe to use as material for Boss monsters (including one much higher on this list).
7. The Light – Hex Sealed Fusion.
There are a few ‘Hex Sealed Fusion’ cards out there. And you’ll want to pick one to suit your deck – but they have similar effects and are all excellent in Fusion decks.
The Light – Hex Sealed Fusion is a LVL3 with 1000 ATK/1600 DEF.
But its value comes from its effect, which allows you to use it as a substitute for any Fusion material – and the other material has to be correct.
You can also bypass using ‘Polymerization’ with this card if you’re Special Summoning a LIGHT Fusion monster.
And this restriction is what makes all the ‘Hex Sealed Fusion’ cards so different.
6. Number 106: Giant Hand
Effect negation is valuable in any deck.
And as it turns out, there’s a Rock XYZ monster that’s very good at it.
Number 106: Giant Hand is a LVL4 XYZ with 2000 ATK/2000 DEF – and by detaching 2 materials you can Target an opponent’s monster and negate its effects.
While this card is on the field, that monster also can’t change its battle position.
Giant Hand quite literally holds the targeted monster in place. So you can follow up however you please.
5. Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo
This monster has a fantastically strong effect – but it’s so impactful you’ll need to be careful too!
Fossil Dyna Pachycephalo is a LVL4 with 1200 ATK/1300 DEF and it has this devastating effect:
When it’s flipped face-up, every Special Summoned monster gets destroyed.
On top of that, while it’s on the field, neither player can Special Summon full-stop.
Needless to say, this is an effect you need to work around. But as many strong decks rely heavily on their combos and Extra Deck, this can outright win games.
4. Number 68: Sanaphond the Sky Prison
Many very powerful decks use the Graveyard as a resource.
And monsters being in there can be far more valuable than just being in the deck.
This card changes all of that.
Number 68: Sanaphond the Sky Prison is a LVL8 XYZ with 2100 ATK/2700 DEF. And its name is perfectly fitting, as it really does make the Graveyard a prison.
This monster gains 100 ATK/DEF for every monster in both Graveyards – and you can detach a material to make this card immune to destruction effects.
Plus this can also lock all Special Summoning from the Graveyards for a turn, which can stop a ton of strategies in their tracks.
3. Gigantes
A free monster for material and back row destruction?
Not bad for a LVL4 monster.
Gigantes comes with 1900 ATK/1300 DF and cannot be Normal Summoned. But it can be Special Summoned from your hand by banishing 1 EARTH monster from your Graveyard, so it can easily be used as Link, XYZ or Synchro material.
If your opponent has a scary lineup of Spells/Traps, removing them becomes more important.
And if this card is destroyed in battle you can destroy every Spell/Trap on the field.
This is basically XYZ/Synchro material and ‘Heavy Storm’ together, and well, Heavy Storm is on the ban list!
2. Adamancipator Risen – Dragite
This monster has great stats, disruption, and effect negation.
Everything you could want from a Boss monster.
Adamancipator Risen – Dragite is a LVL8 Synchro with 3000 ATK/2200 DEF and has an effect where you can excavate the top 5 cards from your deck, and you can return cards your opponent controls to their hand for every excavated Rock monster.
After that, those excavated cards go to the bottom of your deck.
This is some of the best threat removal in the game, as it doesn’t target and doesn’t destroy.
If you have a WATER monster in your Graveyard, you also have a Quick Effect to negate and destroy Spells/Traps. Nothing happens to that WATER monster either – so you can do this every turn even.
1. Nibiru, the Primal Being
There isn’t is a card more deserving of the top spot on this list than Nibiri.
The one card that strikes fear into the hearts of any combo deck user.
Nibiru, the Primal Being has a unique effect where if your opponent summons 5 or more times on their turn, you can Tribute as many face-up monsters on the field as possible, then Summon this incredibly powerful 3000 ATK/600 DEF Meteorite to your side of the field.
Your opponent gets a consolation prize, though:
They get a token with ATK/DEF matching that of all the destroyed monsters combined.
But you’d likely much rather deal with a Token that can hit hard, rather than a field of multiple monsters and nasty effects.
