There's our buddy Nemean Lion right up there, and he has been showing up in quite a few Gold Paladin lists lately! In fact, the top two Gold Paladin lists from the latest WCQ in Anaheim, both used FOUR copies of the card in their list. Obviously, maxing out the card worked in their favor, giving them the top spots over 500+ other cardfighters in the event. So, if the special intercepting unit worked so well for them in their Gold Paladin decks, will it work for you in your clan of choice?
The Grade 2 unit is unique in that it allows you to be aggressive without sacrificing your defenses for the following turn. Whereas calling g0 and g1 units to the field reduces the amount of cards in your hand you may use to defend against opponent's attacks, the g2 unit has the ability to intercept, which means it can be used as a 5k shield even when it is on the field! The Special Intercepting unit takes this concept to the next level, gaining an addition 5k shield (for a total of 10k shield) when used to intercept an attack! This gives it shield equal to that of g0 units, which are traditionally the beefiest shields in the game.
What's the downside? Well, Special Intercepters are burdened with only 8000 power. However, this downside is easy mitigated by placing a 7k or 8k booster behind it, allowing it to reach the 15k or 16k magic number against 10k and 11k vanguards, respectively. This means a Special Intercepter can still force 10k shield out of your opponent's hand, while acting as a 10k shield for you!
If the Special Intercepter is so good, why doesn't every clan play it? Well, it may sound like a great unit on paper, but in an actual cardfight, the flaws of the unit begin to show. Since the Special Intercepter only has 8k power, the opponent need only to match that power to destroy it. This means even an unboosted g1 vanilla can threaten to remove your Special Intercepter from the board! Let's continue with that scenario, and say you choose to defend your Special Intercepter from their g1 vanilla unit with a 5k shield from your hand. Later, should you chose to use the Special Intercepter to defend your Vanguard, you actually broke even. How so?
Well, let's use some logic. In Vanguard, you use shields to prevent yourself from taking damage. Your opponent only threatens to damage you when they are attacking your Vanguard. If they choose to attack rearguards, you will not take a damage. What this translates to is that the opponent attacking a rearguard is equivalent to you guarding your Vanguard.
Now, let's go back to the previous example and put it in context. Your opponent uses one of their attacks against your rearguard Special Intercepter, and you chose to defend that attack with one 5k shield from your hand. This translates to using 1 5k shield to prevent a damage. Now, later in the turn, you use the Special Intercepter to guard the Vanguard for 10k. Since you previously used a card to defend that particular Special Intercepter, this actually translates to using two cards to guard the Vanguard for 10k shield, which is equivalent to using ANY two g1 or g2 units. This means that advantage the Special Intercepter gives is mitigated!
This logic is the reason why most players choose not to utilize Special Intercepters in their decks, as it gives normally weak units a chance to pressure you for guard. So then, why consider the Special Intercepter at all? The answer lies hidden in the example given above. The opponent is attacking your Special Intercepter with a column that consists of nothing but an 8k vanilla g1. This means your opponent went out of their way to create a weak column simply to play around your board. On your following turn, feel free to kill their g1 unit, denying them the use of one of their best boosters and forcing them to commit 2 fresh cards from their hand in order to reestablish a good column that can pressure your Vanguard!
However, not all opponents will create such a weak column unless they are desperate and lack beaters to make a better column. Most players will go ahead and create normal 15-16k columns anyways, and use that to threaten to kill your Special Intercepter. If that's the case, go ahead and let it die, because it did its job! Normally, a 15-16k attack on your Vanguard will force 10k shield out of your hand, so if that attack is directed at your Special Intercepter instead, it is equivalent to using 10k shield to defend your Vanguard anyways.
And remember, if your opponent doesn't do any of this and ignores your Special Intercepter to swing straight at your Vanguard, you can gain the bonus boost to help you defend!
So, now that you know the pros and cons of the Special Intercepter, should you play it in your deck? The answer is tricky, and for the most part, it does come down to preference. Some clans have better g2 units worth using, while others don't really have anything better to use. Then, there are special exceptions.
I mentioned Nemean Lion and it's popularity in the Gold Paladin deck at the beginning of this article. Nemean Lion isn't being playing because there's nothing better to run (as you know from our previous article, Gold Paladin has a TON of options), but because it can be called for FREE by Garmore, Viviane, Spring Breeze Messenger, and even the Vortimer chain. Calling a Special Intercepter for free completely negates the downsides of the unit, and grants you only the benefits. This makes Nemean Lion a great choice in Gold Paladin decks.
In fact, there are only two other English-meta decks capable of calling a Special Intercepter from the deck. The first is Royal Paladin, with King of Knights Alfred's skill, which requires a counterblast 3 (not as good as the Great Silver Wolf!). The second is Spike Brothers, with their Dudley Emperor's Limit Break. Panzer Gale is indeed a fair choice in the deck, since it allows you to swap weaker 5k shield units from your hand for a stronger 10k shield unit from your deck. While this may not be a truly "free" exchange like it is in Royal or Gold Paladin decks, it is a swap that is in your favor, adding an extra line of defense to a deck that is typically lacking in guard power towards the late-game. Dudley Emperor even allows you to also call a 7k-8k booster behind it, allowing you to always have a good offensive column with your Special Intercepter.
In fact, there are only two other English-meta decks capable of calling a Special Intercepter from the deck. The first is Royal Paladin, with King of Knights Alfred's skill, which requires a counterblast 3 (not as good as the Great Silver Wolf!). The second is Spike Brothers, with their Dudley Emperor's Limit Break. Panzer Gale is indeed a fair choice in the deck, since it allows you to swap weaker 5k shield units from your hand for a stronger 10k shield unit from your deck. While this may not be a truly "free" exchange like it is in Royal or Gold Paladin decks, it is a swap that is in your favor, adding an extra line of defense to a deck that is typically lacking in guard power towards the late-game. Dudley Emperor even allows you to also call a 7k-8k booster behind it, allowing you to always have a good offensive column with your Special Intercepter.
Well, there it is. The ins-and-outs of the Special Intercepting unit. Hopefully, now you can make a more educated decision on whether or not to include it in your deck, or at least have a new perspective on the unit.
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