You don’t want to get hit by a Virus in Yu-Gi-Oh! Most Virus cards have powerful effects that not only hit you once, but they linger for a few turns, keeping you from recovering. These cards are so strong that they can win games outright. But they also have risks you need to be aware of. Curious? Well in this list I’ll be showing you the best Virus-themed cards in the game.
7. Tribe-Infecting Virus
To start our list we have a card that won’t do much against a competitive deck (it might even help them!) But it can crush more casual ones, and gives a taste of what Virus cards can do. Tribe-Infecting Virus is a LVL4 Monster with 1600 ATK/1000 DEF. And it has an effect where you can discard a card, declare a monster type, and destroy every face-up monster of that type. This sounds pretty good. But nowadays, many decks use the Graveyard as a resource, and actually like their monsters being there. Some monsters also have effects when they get destroyed. And well, Tribe-Infecting Virus will trigger all of those. This card can be great – but it can also hand your opponent the win. If you’re going to use this card, do so with caution.
6. Crush Card Virus
This iconic card featured in Seto Kaiba’s deck in the TV anime. And while not being as good as other cards on this list, it can still be a force to be reckoned with. Card Crush Virus requires a DARK monster with 1000 or less ATK as a tribute. And when you activate this card, your opponent takes no damage until the end of the next turn. But this allows you to look at your opponent’s hand and every card they control – and then every monster with over 1500ATK gets destroyed. The problem is, your opponent can then destroy up to 3 monsters with more than 1500ATK in their decks. And this is something they may actually want. Gaining information about your opponent’s cards is incredibly powerful. But with this card, that power comes at a cost.
5. Electric Virus
If you know you’ll be dealing with Dragon or Machine decks, this is a clever way to use those deck’s biggest monsters against them. Electric Virus is a LVL3 with 1000 ATK/1000 DEF. But you probably won’t be using it to battle. You’ll more than likely want this card for its effect where you can discard it to the Graveyard to Target a Dragon or Machine monster, and take control of it until the End Phase. Stealing your opponent’s cards is one of the most satisfying feelings in Yu-Gi-Oh! And if you can use their monsters as material for your own boss monsters, you can change the tide of a duel instantly.
4. Full Force Virus
Plenty of decks use low power monsters as stepping stones for their bigger, scarier boss monsters. And if you want to deal with those stepping stones, this is a great way to do so. Full Force Virus requires a DARK monster with less than 2000 DEF as a tribute, and allows you to look at your opponent’s hand and every monster they control. You can also look at every card they draw for 3 turns and destroy any monsters with 1500 DEF or less. For a lot of decks, no weak monsters mean no strong monsters either. Just make sure you’re prepared for Graveyard effects!
3. Deck Devastation Virus
This card almost goes hand in hand with Full Force Virus, and has effects that are just as dangerous. Deck Devastation Virus requires tributing a DARK monster with 2000 or more ATK, and allows you to look at your opponent’s hand, and everything they draw and control for 3 turns. But the big difference is monsters with 1500 ATK or lower get destroyed (instead of DEF). Much like Full Force Virus, this hits a lot of monsters. And if you can’t decide which one to use… why not try both?
2. Grinning Grave Virus
The cost to play this next card is tributing a DARK monster with 3000 or less ATK. Is the effect good enough to throw such a powerful monster away? Oh, absolutely! Grinning Grave Virus forces your opponent to destroy 1 card in their hand or deck for every 500 ATK that your tributed monster has. For example, a 3000 ATK monster would be equivalent to 6 cards. For the next 3 turns, you can look at every card your opponent draws and destroy every monster. Monsters that end up in the Graveyard because of this can’t use their effects right away either – which makes this card much more dangerous than Tribe-Infecting Virus! If you use this at the right time, you can stop your opponent from being able to put up any defenses. And doing that is the sort of effect that wins games.
1. Eradicator Epidemic Virus
Some decks live and die by their Spell & Trap cards. And if you don’t have a response to them, you risk getting completely overwhelmed by effects. Eradicator Epidemic Virus is a brutal answer to any Spell/Trap heavy deck. For the cost of DARK monster with 2500 or more ATK, you can declare either Spell or Trap, then look at your opponent’s hand, all Spell/Traps they control, and every card they draw for 3 turns. Any card matching the type you declared gets destroyed. The ability to see exactly what your opponent is up to is incredibly strong on its own. But locking your opponent out of Spells or Traps and removing the mind games that come with face down cards is why Eradicator Epidemic Virus comfortably takes the top spot for this ranking.
