With the release of Burst Protocol on our doorstep and the format about to shift, players are also anticipating the next Forbidden and Limited list. Seeing which decks rise and fall from the changes can be a fun experience to watch unfold. Cards that get completely banned from the game are usually the most exciting to anticipate. So, let's discuss some of the legal cards in Yu-Gi-Oh! that are worthy of being completely removed from the game.

Moulinglacia the Elemental Lord

Moulinglacia is a card used in the Mermail Atlantian Deck. It's both searchable and easily summonable in the deck to get off its powerful effect to rip 2 cards from your opponent's hand. It's used alongside of Mermail Abyssleed and Deep Sea Minstrel in the same turn-1 combo to reduce your opponent's hand to shambles, resulting in essentially an FTK. While Mermail Atlantean may not be the best deck at the moment, it's consistent enough to warrant the ban of Moulinglacia since it leads to many non-games in Yu-Gi-Oh! Last year we saw Evilswarm Ouroboros banned in the October Forbidden and Limited list due to its abusable hand-rip effect. Might we see Moulinglacia share the same fate?

Anti-Spell Fragrance

Anti-Spell Fragrance is a Trap card with a powerful floodgate effect that can completely change the dynamic of a duel. Forcing your opponent to set and wait a turn before activating Spells certainly slows down the pace of the game and can work synergistically with many Trap-based decks. However, a pattern that has emerged has been using Anti-Spell Fragrance post side-decking to gain the upper hand when going first. By doing your normal combo then flipping up Anti-Spell in your opponent's draw phase, the odds can become heavily stacked in your favor given the modern power level of decks. While Konami TCG did well to limit this card on the Forbidden and Limited list so you're far less likely to see it in your opening hand, I still feel that it could feasibly go to 0 on the list given its ability to become an auto win card.

Albion the Sanctifire Dragon

Now, I'll be the first to say that I don't want Albion the Sanctifire Dragon to be banned. It's a wicked card with a great effect that fits well with the Branded strategy, but we need to discuss the issues surrounding it. Albion the Sanctifire Dragon has been the key offender in locking players out of the game since it was released in Cyberstorm Access. Whether it was through Gimmick Puppet Nightmare, Ido the Supreme Magical Force, or Ra's Disciple, players have found a variety of ways to lock their opponent out of the game with Sanctifire's effect. Gimmick Puppet was subsequently banned but the root of the problem remains even today. I'm not sure if we'll see Sanctifire banned but with the new Branded support coming with Burst Protocol, we may see this issue creep up yet again. We've also seen a similar offense with cards like Imperial Princess Quinquery and Spell Canceller. Being on the receiving end of these harsh floodgates is obviously no fun and can feel extremely oppressive.

Barrier Statues

The barrier statues are another example of cards that have not aged well for the modern game. While their stats are not that impressive, dealing with them and a variety of other interactions can be difficult. We actually saw 2 of the 6 barrier statues banned on the most recent emergency ban list last year making a total of 3 statues banned. It stands to reason that the remaining statues should follow suit.

Droll & Lock Bird

Droll & Lock Bird is a very divisive card in Yu-Gi-Oh! Until recently, I had no issues with the card and even saw it as balanced. Since a player must successfully add a card to their hand for Droll to be used, many times said players can search for the most important card of their combo first, then likely have everything they need to make a play before Droll cuts them off from the deck. There's also risk-reward involved. If you search for your important combo piece first to play around Droll, you run the risk of being hit by Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring. Likewise, if you want to bait out an Ash by searching for something you don't need first, you may fall victim to an opponent's Droll. This kind of decision-making is what makes Yu-Gi-Oh! interesting and why I like Droll's effect.

But the problem is that Droll does not have any restrictions on which turn its effect can be used. Meaning if Player 1 goes first and makes their board then drops Droll on their opponent on turn two and still have other disruptions to back it up, it can feel very unfair. The player going second is already at a disadvantage to begin with. Adding to that disadvantage with cards like Droll can be a death sentence and may end the game on the spot.

What can be done for cards like Droll & Lock Bird that can be too beneficial for the player going first? Well, changing the wording on droll to include the qualifier "You can only use this effect ff you control no cards." or something along those lines would be ideal but we don't get those types of erratas in Yu-Gi-Oh! Instead, what is more likely is a retrain of Droll & Lock Bird. A new card that has a similar effect but is more balanced with the above reasons in mind. We already saw Konami retrain Maxx "C" into the Mulcharmy cards. The same could be done for Droll, although that may take some time. Once we get a card like that, I think we can say goodbye to our bird friend.

Thanks for reading!