How To Build A Yu Gi Oh! Deck That Suits You: 12 Steps - WikiHow

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Terms of Use wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Learn why people trust wikiHow How to Build a Yu Gi Oh! Deck That Suits You PDF download Download Article Explore this Article Steps Steps Other Sections Questions & Answers Tips and Warnings Things You'll Need Related Articles Reviewed by Ashton Wu

Last Updated: February 19, 2026 Approved

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This article was reviewed by Ashton Wu. Ashton Wu is a Board Game expert at Shelfside. After delving into the Yugioh tournament community while growing up, Ashton launched himself into the board gaming community in 2014 and went into reviewing board games as a career full-time in 2019. His YouTube channel Shelfside has over 50K subscribers and over 4 million views, assisted by written reviews on the Shelfside website and BoardGameGeek.com. He also consults with gaming companies to build high-quality gaming products. Ashton is a tournament commentator, board game playthrough director, and host of the Shelfside Podcast, where he talks about board games with his business partner, Daniel. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in addition to the Technology Management Certificate. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This article received 12 testimonials and 84% of readers who voted found it helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 1,074,381 times.

This guide should help you Yu-Gi-Oh! players to form the perfect deck for you someday. This article is written with the assumption that you already have some Yu-Gi-Oh! cards and have some experience in playing.

Steps

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  1. Step 1 Decide your playing style. 1 Decide your playing style. This is important, as it determines how people would look at you as a duelist. Are you a rash duelist who would rapidly summon, attack and activate cards? Or are you the deep thinker who would analyze your hand and field before making a move? Or maybe the duelist that would remove cards from play so your opponent cannot use them again? Considering these would help you choose a deck archetype.
  2. Step 2 Choose your deck type - a themed deck, or one that follows a specific theme of cards. 2 Choose your deck type - a themed deck, or one that follows a specific theme of cards. Never have a deck with too many random cards in it. If so, you will not be drawing parts of combos. Also, make sure you have around 40 cards in your deck. The most you should have is 42 even though the maximum is 60 cards.
    • The best decks focus around an archetype - a group of cards with similar names and mechanics who support each other. Decks focusing around an attribute or type aren't very good. Neither are most decks with multiple archetypes, though some mesh well.
    • There are many different archetypes, and each has many different styles of being used. For example, the main strategy of a Monarch deck is to keep tribute summoning more powerful monsters, and to activate effects while doing so, but that is only one of the archetypes. There are many more to discover.
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  3. Step 3 Choose your monsters. 3 Choose your monsters. Each deck should have around 12-18 monsters, but the number will vary depending on the deck you play. Use low-level effect monsters that support your archetype and have helpful effects in your deck. Most decks do not use normal monsters, since they do nothing on their own, but they have some good support and are included in decks built around them.
  4. Step 4 Control quantity - You should have: 4 Control quantity - You should have:
    • LV 1-4: Around 12
    • LV 5-6: Around 2
    • LV 7s and higher: Never more than 2, depending on the deck. Some decks can and need to be all high-level monsters. These decks are usually able to summon their monsters some other way than tributing. For example, decks like Malefics and Infernoids can special summon all of their high level monsters. For many other decks, especially ones that rely on the extra deck, it is not recommended to include any high level monsters that you can't special summon.
  5. Step 5 Choose your spells. 5 Choose your spells. Most decks will have around 12-15 spells. Around 1/3 of these spells should be for monster support/combos. The rest would be attributed to favorites and staples. Add them into your list once you've decided. Make sure you have good spells for S/T destruction, monster protection, and monster destruction.
  6. Step 6 Choose your traps. 6 Choose your traps. You should have around 4-8 of these. Some decks will require more, and some less. Among these traps, 3-5 should be support for your deck type, and the rest should be staples like Mirror Force, Solemn Warning, and Bottomless Trap Hole. Think about your deck's weaknesses. For example, if your deck has weak monsters, use attack protection like Mirror Force and Dimensional Prison. If you play an aggro deck and are weak to traps, run stuff like Trap Stun.
    • If you're running a high monster count, such as in Dragon Rulers or Mermails, 3-6 traps should be enough. Some decks run no traps, and do fine. A good choice for a deck that relies solely on monsters would be Royal Decree.
  7. Step 7 Fill out your Extra Deck. 7 Fill out your Extra Deck. Most decks can use Xyz monsters. If your deck includes at least 3 easily summoned monsters of a certain level, you can add a couple of Xyz monsters of that Rank. Synchro and Fusion monsters are more specialized - Synchro monsters can be added if you have at least one tuner, and Fusion monsters are only used in specialized decks built around them.
  8. Step 8 Lay out your cards and make sure that they work together well. 8 Lay out your cards and make sure that they work together well. It's no use if you have cards that do not work together well. List the cards that you need to improve your deck and make it your business to buy those cards. Watch the cards your common opponents play. Also add some generic cards in your side deck that you can use later on, in between duels. Try looking up your deck type online to get tips or ideas from other people's decks.
  9. Step 9 Buy cards. 9 Buy cards. Now that you have planned out the deck you want, you can go out and get the cards you will need for it. Structure decks and Starter decks are good ways to start off. They are pre-built, and contain cards that fit together and good support, but could take some improvement. Booster packs have a variety of random cards, which won't necessarily work with your deck, but you could get some really good cards. You can also trade with friends and people at your local card shops, or buy singles online. If you are looking for a specific card, it will always be easier and cheaper to buy it individually rather than go hunting in booster packs for it.
  10. Step 10 Start playing with your deck. 10 Start playing with your deck. Play against friends and local players to learn the strengths and weaknesses of your deck. After a few games, you will have a better idea of how your deck runs, and may need to take out some cards that don't work for you. No deck is perfect, so you will always be modifying and improving your deck.
  11. Step 11 Refrain from using cards that are forbidden. 11 Refrain from using cards that are forbidden. An example is Pot of Greed. This card is known to be too strong for normal competitive play, which would make your deck sort of 'cheating'. This card can also cause fights with other duelists.
    • Remember to never use forbidden cards in tournaments. You could use them when dueling with a friend but he/she might not accept the offer.
  12. Step 12 Update your deck! 12 Update your deck! Wait for the newest booster packs to release and if the new cards suit your needs, buy a couple of packs to test your luck. Also, research older cards that will be good in your deck.
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Community Q&A

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  • Question How do I test the consistency of a deck? Supernova92 Supernova92 Community Answer Shuffle the deck and draw a 5-card practice hand. See if you can play with that hand. Do this a few times and it should give you a good idea. The best way is to playtest with it. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 20 Helpful 231
  • Question What if I want only a dragon style deck? Community Answer Community Answer If you want a deck with only dragon cards in it, then you need to find cards that go with dragon cards, such as dragon tactics and stamping destruction. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 43 Helpful 193
  • Question What will happen if my deck is weak and there is only one strong card? Community Answer Community Answer You will probably lose to a lot of people who have stronger monsters. It will put you more on the defensive rather than the offensive. Try to find some good trap cards that can destroy your opponents' monsters. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 31 Helpful 161
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Reader Videos

Tips

  • Some cards are good against certain decks, but useless against others. Keep these cards in your Side Deck so they won't be dead draws. Thanks Helpful 7 Not Helpful 0
  • Duel as often as possible. You will learn more about the game, your deck, and yourself. Practice really does make perfect. Thanks Helpful 7 Not Helpful 1
  • Good decks don't make a good duelist. Good skills AND good decks make a good duelist. Practice and practice some more. Thanks Helpful 6 Not Helpful 2
Show More Tips

Tips from our Readers

The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
  • Choose cards you genuinely enjoy using rather than just the most powerful ones. Playing for fun is key in this game, so don't be afraid to include old favorites in your deck, even if they aren't optimal competitively. The excitement of pulling off a combo with cards you like makes it all worthwhile.
  • While risky, avoid just stacking by thoroughly shuffling your deck when starting duels to avoid accusations of cheating. However, do intentionally keep key combo pieces together when first placing cards in your deck. This slightly raises the odds of drawing them together later on.
  • Playtest extensively with friends using a wide variety of decks, not just your main one. This reveals strengths, weaknesses, and potential combos you may not have initially considered that could require deck adjustments later on. Refining decks takes time and experimentation.
  • When first starting out building decks, get structure decks that feature themes you like as a foundation. Then, supplement those with extra support cards from booster packs to shore up weaknesses. This helps build more coherent decks centered on your preferred play style.
  • Research popular deck builds online from expert duelists to discover new card combos and strategies you may not have considered. But don't be afraid to modify those published versions as needed to better suit your own preferences and play style once you try them out.
  • Ensure your balance of monster, spell, and trap cards is optimized, not just thrown together. As a general rule of thumb for most decks, have about 5 monster cards for every 2 spells and trap cards. Too many or too few of one card type reduces consistency.
Submit a Tip All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published Name Please provide your name and last initial Submit Thanks for submitting a tip for review! Advertisement

Warnings

  • Be careful of purchasing cards, especially online. You may end up with fake cards, which won't do much good in duels or tournaments. When buying cards try to find out if the seller is reputable or inspect the cards/packaging. Thanks Helpful 18 Not Helpful 2
  • Never resort to cheating. Don't steal cards, stealing is never the way to go. If you steal, people will eventually find out that their cards were stolen. Also people will never take you as a good duelist if you steal so don't do it. Thanks Helpful 22 Not Helpful 6
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About This Article

Ashton Wu Reviewed by: Ashton Wu Game Expert This article was reviewed by Ashton Wu. Ashton Wu is a Board Game expert at Shelfside. After delving into the Yugioh tournament community while growing up, Ashton launched himself into the board gaming community in 2014 and went into reviewing board games as a career full-time in 2019. His YouTube channel Shelfside has over 50K subscribers and over 4 million views, assisted by written reviews on the Shelfside website and BoardGameGeek.com. He also consults with gaming companies to build high-quality gaming products. Ashton is a tournament commentator, board game playthrough director, and host of the Shelfside Podcast, where he talks about board games with his business partner, Daniel. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in addition to the Technology Management Certificate. This article has been viewed 1,074,381 times. 846 votes - 84% Co-authors: 85 Updated: February 19, 2026 Views: 1,074,381 Categories: Yu Gi Oh! In other languages Spanish Italian Russian French Indonesian German Dutch
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Reader Success Stories

  • Naroku Gameing

    Naroku Gameing

    May 5, 2016

    "I loved that the article said have one attribute. That helped me a lot but I have two dragon and magic. I like..." more
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Did this article help you?

Yes No Advertisement Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Ashton Wu Reviewed by: Ashton Wu Game Expert Co-authors: 85 Updated: February 19, 2026 Views: 1,074,381 84% of readers found this article helpful. 846 votes - 84% Click a star to add your vote Naroku Gameing

Naroku Gameing

May 5, 2016

"I loved that the article said have one attribute. That helped me a lot but I have two dragon and magic. I like..." more Cameron Richardson

Cameron Richardson

Dec 8, 2022

"Because of this article, I was able to find a deck that fit my style of dueling (which I was surprised to learn was..." more Anonymous

Anonymous

Nov 27, 2016

"I'm a duelist and have Slifer the Sky Dragon, but I often lose. I learned to build half of my deck on..." more Anna Pugh

Anna Pugh

Jan 1, 2017

"This information was extremely helpful. When I had my new and improved deck (by following this page), my dueling..." more Harrison Brinton

Harrison Brinton

Jun 11, 2019

"I used this to build a summoner deck. It was so good I finally beat the best kid at my school, who has a dark..." more Share yours! More success stories Hide success stories

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