Guide and Discussion: Mermail

"Mermails" are an archetype of solely WATER-type monsters debuted in Abyss Rising (ABYR). They received another wave of support in Cosmo Blazer (CBLZ) and were further supported in Lord of the Tachyon Galaxy (LTGY). They are supported by another archetype under the name "Atlantean" and are currently supported by "Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls", "Genex Undine" and "Genex Controller".

Main Deck wrote:

Monsters

Mermail Abysslinde
Water/3/Aqua
1500 ATK 1200 DEF
If this card on the field is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 "Mermail" monster from your Deck, except "Mermail Abysslinde". You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abysslinde" once per turn.

One of the primary floaters of the deck, and the reason Abyss-sphere is one of the best cards in the deck. By not being destroyed and sent to the graveyard she enables you to grab ANY Mermail monster from your deck, which enables easy Pike/Turge/Megalo summons. Her synergy with Torrential Tribute is notable, and recycling her with cards such as Turge/Salvage is another good thing about the card.

Mermail Abyssgunde
Water/3/Aqua
1400 ATK 800 DEF 
If this card is discarded to the Graveyard: You can target 1 "Mermail" monster in your Graveyard, except "Mermail Abyssgunde"; Special Summon that target. You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abyssgunde" once per turn.

Widely accepted as the best card in the deck, and for good reason because this card, when discarded for a WATER monster's card effect grants you a monster from your graveyard aka it's a Monster Reborn-like card. Because of Pike and Teus, the card is easily accessed from your deck and with Turge and Salvage, you can get the card back from the graveyard to continue your plays.



Mermail Abyssocea
Water/3/Aqua
1100 ATK 1900 DEF
You can target 1 "Mermail" monster you control; Special Summon any number of Level 4 or lower "Mermail" monsters from your Deck whose combined Levels are less than or equal to the Level of that monster, then send that monster to the Graveyard. You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abyssocea" once per turn.

Abyssocea is an enabler of Rank 3/4 Xyz plays requiring as little as the activation of Abyssteus. It enables a lot of OTK’s or game-breaking fields by turning one of your level 7s into a pair of smaller Mermails. Even in the worst case scenario, Ocea can target herself and Special a Linde, which helps set up future plays. She is commonly used alongside Aqua Spirit to perform the powerful Mechquipped + Bahamut + Trite combo.

Mermail Abysspike
Water/4/Fish
1600 ATK 800 DEF
When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can discard 1 WATER monster to the Graveyard; add 1 Level 3 WATER monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abysspike" once per turn.

Possibly the most important card in the deck, because it enables you to search out vital pieces of your deck, such as Gunde, Marksman, Genex Undine and even Linde. It's a very simple card, yet extremely effective at what it does. His level serves a very important role, as it grants you access to rank 4 plays which are HUGE right now, along with allowing the play with Turge and Gunde being possible.



Mermail Abyssturge
Water/4/Fish
1700 ATK 1100 DEF 
When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can discard 1 WATER monster to the Graveyard, then target 1 Level 3 or lower WATER monster in your Graveyard; add that target to your hand. You can only use the effect of "Mermail Abyssturge" once per turn.

This card, at one time, wasn't touched in a Mermail deck but with the advent of notable rank 4s like Bahamut Shark, Evilswarm Exciton Knight, Silent Honor ARK, and others this card has become a vital card for the Mermail deck due to the Pike - discard Gunde and search a level 3 like Marksman - grab Turge from the graveyard - discard Marksman and grab back Gunde - pop a facedown card and go into a rank 4 play. There's also the fact that even outside of the rank 4 play, recycling Gunde is still good and getting back stuff such as Infantry and Marksman is very good.



Mermail Abyssteus
Water/7/Aqua
1700 ATK 2400 DEF
You can discard 1 other WATER monster to the Graveyard; Special Summon this card from your hand. When you do: Add 1 Level 4 or lower "Mermail" monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Mermail Abyssteus" once per turn.


A card that was TCG-exclusive for a while. He is basically THE deck, in many ways. For starters, by discarding 1 WATER monster he enables you to grab an Abysspike from your deck to your hand, which means you can get things going with ease. At first, he's the card that started the change from Genex builds to 'pure' Mermail but with the hits the deck's received form the banlist, the deck has now gone back to using Genex Undine.



Mermail Abyssmegalo
Water/7/Sea Serpent
2400 ATK 1900 DEF
You can discard 2 other WATER monsters to the Graveyard; Special Summon this card from your hand. When you do: You can add 1 "Abyss-" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. You can Tribute 1 other face-up Attack Position WATER monster; this card can make a second attack during each Battle Phase this turn.
 
Megalo is, of course, the original boss of the Mermail deck. With a reasonable but easy-to-fulfill Special Summon requirement, the ability to search some really strong support cards, and an effect that amasses gigantic, game-ending damage, Abyssmegalo is certainly the quintessential boss monster.



 Genex Undine                                                                        Genex Controller
         Water/3/Aqua                                                                       Dark/3/Machine
       1200 ATK 600 DEF                                                               1400 ATK 1200 DEF
 
When this card is Normal Summoned: You can send 1 WATER monster from your Deck to the Graveyard; add 1 "Genex Controller" from your Deck to your hand.


Basically the reason Mermail are still one of, if not the best deck in the game right now. Allows you to toolbox every relevant car din your deck to add a Controller to your hand, and depending on the monster you sent, some spectacular happens can happen. It's the most consistent way of getting Tidal into play, and you can search Meglao with Dragoons or pop an opponent's card via Marksman/Infantry. Very, very important card for this deck right now.



Atlantean Marksman
Water/3/Sea Serpent
1400 ATK 0 DEF
When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower "Atlantean" Sea Serpent-Type monster from your Deck, except "Atlantean Marksman". When this card is sent to the Graveyard to activate a WATER monster's effect: Target 1 Set card your opponent controls; destroy that target.

Marksmen assists in clearing backrows that could become disruptive, and by doubling up on his own damage when he brings out another Atlantean monster. Marksman is a commonly searched card off of Abysspike.



Atlantean Heavy Infantry
Water/2/Sea Serpent
0 ATK 1600 DEF
During your Main Phase, you can Normal Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Sea Serpent-Type monster in addition to your Normal Summon/Set. (You can only gain this effect once per turn.) When this card is sent to the Graveyard to activate a WATER monster's effect: Target 1 face-up card your opponent controls; destroy that target.
 

His effect to destroy any face-up card is essential for answering problem cards such as Evilswarm Ophion, Vanity’s Emptiness, Kaiser Colosseum.



Atlantean Dragoons
Water/4/Sea Serpent
1800 ATK 0 DEF
All Level 3 or lower Sea Serpent-Type monsters you control can attack your opponent directly. When this card is sent to the Graveyard to activate a WATER monster's effect: Add 1 Sea Serpent-Type monster from your Deck to your hand, except "Atlantean Dragoons".
 
Although he sits at 1 on the F/L list, Dragoons is still a very important card to Mermails. Drawing him is great but not drawing him also opens up the opportunity to summon him with Marksman for game-winning damage and Undine allows you to easily trigger him from the deck. The direct attack effect doesn’t come up but his searching effect is so ludicrously powerful that who cares what else he does?



Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls
Water/7/Dragon
2600 ATK 2000 DEF
If this card is in your hand or Graveyard: You can banish a total of 2 WATER and/or Dragon-Type monsters from your hand and/or Graveyard, except this card; Special Summon this card. During your opponent's End Phase, if this card was Special Summoned: Return it to the hand. You can discard this card and 1 WATER monster to the Graveyard; send 1 monster from your Deck to the Graveyard. If this card is banished: You can add 1 WATER Dragon-Type monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use 1 "Tidal, Dragon Ruler of Waterfalls" effect per turn, and only once that turn.

The entire reason you play Mermail in the first place - one of the best cards in the game right now by simply being a 2600 ATK recurring beater that with it's effect you can trigger Atlanteans and Gunde. It's a WATER monster itself and by being a free WATER to discard it has A LOT of synergy within every part of the deck. Being a level 7, it enables you rank 7 plays with Teus and Megalo.

Spells



Soul Charge
Spell/Normal

Target any number of monsters in your Graveyard; Special Summon them, and if you do, you lose 1000 Life Points for each monster Special Summoned by this effect. You cannot conduct your Battle Phase the turn you activate this card. You can only activate 1 "Soul Charge" per turn.

Practically one of most powerful cards in the game right now, and Mermail is one of the best decks to play it in since... we make it live naturally. Making boards like Dweller + Angineer, Angineer + Abyssgaios, Dweller + Abyssgaios + Angineer, Bahamut Shark + Trite + Angineer, and whatever your mind can think of.




Salvage
Spell/Normal
 
Target 2 WATER monsters with 1500 or less ATK in your Graveyard; add those targets to your hand.
 
Refills your discards, simple as that. Turns what could’ve been a dead late-game Megalo in hand into a completely game-breaking one that will discard exactly the two monsters that you want to discard. A way to get Gunde back, which is very vital.



Allure of Darkness
Spell/Normal
Draw 2 cards, then banish 1 DARK monster from your hand, or, if you don't have any in your hand, send all cards in your hand to the Graveyard.

Genex Controller is a DARK monster, he's easily searched via Undine which is searched with Pike which is searched with everything else. A much appreciated consistency boost. You run Genex, you run this.

Traps



Abyss-Sphere
Trap/Continuous
Special Summon 1 "Mermail" monster from your Deck. Its effects are negated. You cannot activate any Spell Cards. When this card leaves the field, destroy that monster. Destroy this card during your opponent's next End Phase after activation.
 

Abyss-Sphere is your go-to search with Abyssmegalo, and its interactions with Linde form the deck’s primary line of defense. In addition Sphere can quite simply summon a big guy during your Battle Phase to push the last bit of needed damage or put a level 4/7 on the board to complete an Xyz. Just be careful of the fact that if you do that, your Spells are locked out until your opponent’s End Phase, since the Sphere then stays on the field regardless of what happens to the monster (not that this deck plays a huge number of Spells in the first place).



Abyss-Squall
Trap/Normal
Target 3 "Mermail" monsters in your Graveyard; Special Summon those targets in face-up Defense Position. Their effects are negated and they cannot declare an attack. Destroy them during the End Phase.
 
Abyss-Squall summons 3 Mermails from your grave, and in initial Mono builds it was practically a backup win condition, netting free Xyz and extra Lindes. Tidal made this card less reliable, because sometimes you must banish your Level 7's to satisfy Tidal's summoning cost. On top of that, this card can be dead early game and can hinder you then. However, that does not make this card any less powerful, and is still very much an option.

Extra Deck wrote:

Bahamut Shark
Water/Rank 4/Sea-Serpent
2600 ATK 2100 DEF
2 Level 4 WATER monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; Special Summon 1 Rank 3 or lower WATER Xyz Monster from your Extra Deck. This card cannot attack for the rest of this turn.

One of the better extra deck cards in the deck that enables you to summon cards like Trite and Levia very easily.

The 2 main targets for Bahamut Shark that you'll be summoning. Trite is obvious, whereas Levia is a newish card that's being looked at because of the popularity of Ice Hand and Fire Hand.

Lavalval Chain
Fire/Rank 4/Sea Serpent
1800 ATK 1000 DEF
2 Level 4 monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card to activate 1 of these effects;
● Send 1 card from your Deck to the Graveyard.
● Choose 1 monster from your Deck and place it on top of your Deck.

One of the best extra deck cards in the deck because it allows you to get your best card (Tidal) into play or stack Abyssteus.

Abyss Dweller
Water/Rank 4/Sea Serpent
1700 ATK 1400 DEF
2 Level 4 monsters
While this card has an Xyz Material attached that was originally WATER, all WATER monsters you control gain 500 ATK. Once per turn, during either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; any card effects that activate in your opponent's Graveyard cannot be activated this turn.

Possibly one of the best rank 4s ever created, and for good reason due to the graveyard being like a second hand for s lot decks. With this deck being full of water monsters, he's even better especially when you're able to make a board like Dweller + Gaios.