With the exception of frogs, who have been the flagship level 2 monster for as long as Yu-Gi-Oh has existed, there aren’t many decks out there that can properly utilize level 2 monsters. However, those that can (and thus can access rank 2 XYZ monsters) have some seriously powerful choices right there at their fingertips. This ranking will help you figure out which of these is the best of the best in the realm of rank 2 XYZ cards.
10. Daigusto Phoenix
This guy is a great little way of finishing games if you’re playing a wind deck. You can detach one XYZ material from Daigusto Pheonix to have a wind monster you control attack twice that same turn. If you have a wind monster that can attack your opponent directly, then you’ll be able to sink in some serious damage. The main downside is that Daigusto’s attack stat is pretty pathetic – you’ll definitely want a stronger wind monster on your side of the field to properly use this guy.
9. Number 64: Ronin Raccoon Sandayu
Number 64 requires beast monsters to summon it, meaning you’ll have to play this guy in a beast orientated deck. However, with the introduction of Melffy’s in Return of the Duelist, making a beast deck with level 2 monsters has never been easier. You can detach an XYZ material to special summon a token – this token is pretty much a clone of the strongest monster on the field, gaining attack equal to that of the highest attack stat on the board. This is amazing for getting over your opponent’s monster – no matter how strong your opponent’s field may be, Number 64’s nifty little token will always match it.
8. Cat Shark
If you’re playing any sort of XYZ strategy in your deck, then Cat Shark is a must have for your extra deck. Here’s why: You can detach an XYZ material from this card to target any XYZ monster you control, then double its attack and defense until the end of the turn. Yu-Gi-Oh already has its fair share of XYZ monsters with ludicrous attack stats. So take a look at cards like Dark Rebellion XYZ Dragon or Number 99: Utopic Dragon and you’ll see just how broken Cat Shark can truly be.
7. Number 29: Mannequin Cat
As one of the latest rank 2 XYZ monsters to hit the scene, Number 29: Mannequin Cat is an amazing way of putting your opponent off of special summoning from the graveyard. If your opponent specials summon a monster from the graveyard, Number 29: Mannequin Cat allows you to special summon a monster of your own from your hand, deck, or graveyard, providing it has the same type or attribute. You can speed this process up by using Mannequin Cat’s other effect: By detaching an XYZ material from this card, you can special summon a monster from your opponent’s graveyard to their side of the field. While this will give them an extra monster to defend with, this’ll also ensure that you can get your strongest monsters out as fast as possible. And that’s definitely worth the price!
6. Sky Cavalry Centaurea
This guy is an amazing way of dealing with monsters from the extra deck. While it has XYZ material, this card is indestructible in battle. And if this card battles an opponent’s monster, at the end of the damage step you can detach an XYZ material to return the battled monster from the field to your opponent’s hand. This is especially potent against extra deck monsters, as they’ll be returned to the extra deck, meaning your opponent will have to summon them all over again.
5. Number 45: Crumble Logos the Prophet of Demolition
Negating monster effects is seriously important in modern Yu-Gi-Oh. If you don’t have the power to negate these powerful monster effects, then you’ll be defeated before you can say “draw for turn?”. Not only does Number 45 negate a monster permanently while this guy is on the field, but it also prevents your opponent from activating any copies of that monster effect either! If you know your opponent relies on a certain card in their deck to win, this guy can be absolutely devastating to deal with.
4. Joyous Melffys
Melffys are the latest beast archetype to hit the Yu-Gi-Oh scene, and they’re as powerful as they are adorable! Never before has a picnic of tiny little forest animals been so brutal! (At least, in terms of card effects. I hope the picnic isn’t brutal.) Joyous Melffys allows all of your Melffy monsters to attack your opponent directly, by detaching an XYZ material from this card. Melffys are incredibly good at swarming the field with a bunch of monsters. And so this effect is a great way of sinking a bunch of damage into your opponent. In fact, this card has its own in-built way of summoning a bunch of Melffys! By returning a beast-type XYZ monster you control from the field to the extra deck, you can special summon level 2 or lower beast type monsters (AKA Melffys) to your side of the field, up to the number of XYZ materials the returned monster had.
3. The Phantom Knights of Cursed Javelin
Phantom Knights are one of the coolest XYZ-oriented archetypes out there. And this guy is a prime example of their power! Here’s what it does: By detaching an XYZ material from this card, you can reduce the attack of a monster on the field to 0, as well as negating its effects entirely. This renders your opponent’s monsters completely useless, to the point where even a mere Kuriboh could bowl them over. Phantom Knights also have a bunch of rank-up magic spells at their disposal, meaning once you’ve used this guy’s ability, you can probably use him to XYZ summon even more powerful monsters.
2. Palaeozoic Opabinia
If you asked me how good a deck would be if it had literally 0 monsters in the main deck, I’d say pretty awful. Palaeozoic takes that assumption and completely turns it on its head, proving to be one of the best XYZ decks ever made. All of their monsters come in the form of trap cards. By activating these various traps, they special summon themselves as kind of pseudo-monsters, which you can then use to either attack your opponent or summon from the extra deck. Palaeozoic Opabinia grants you the ability all Yu-Gi-Oh players have dreamed of – being able to activate trap cards straight from your hand! If this card has a trap monster as an XYZ material, then you can detach an XYZ material from this card to search out any Palaeozoic trap card straight from your deck to your hand – meaning those trap cards you can activate instantly will be the best of the best.
1. Toadally Awesome
Frogs have always been a competitive archetype. In the early days of Yu-Gi-Oh’s history, they dominated the meta game by making tribute summoning ludicrously. In modern Yu-Gi-Oh, they make summoning all sorts of extra deck monsters an absolute breeze. And it’s all thanks to Toadally Awesome. Once per turn, you can detach an XYZ material from this card to special summon any Frog monster straight from your deck to your side of the field. This can set off so many different combo strings depending on which frog you summon; the world is truly your oyster with this effect at your disposal. On top of that, Toadally Awesome allows you to negate any spell, trap, or monster effect, and then steal that card to set it on your side of the field! This is close as you can get to stealing your opponent’s cards without getting kicked out of the tournament. Finally, when this froggy boy leaves your field, he doesn’t leave you defenseless. When Toadally Awesome is sent to the graveyard, you can target any water monster in your graveyard and add it to your hand. You could even pick up another frog and summon a whole new Toadally Awesome!
