Monarchs with Extra Deck in 2026, ft. Demiurge Ema [CDP]

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Replays:

Strategic Summary:

Welcome back for another Creative Deck Profile, and this time I’m revisiting the Monarch archetype to showcase some of the neat newer tech options that exist for the theme in addition to just giving Tribute Summoning some love. If you somehow aren’t familiar with the Monarch theme, the general goal is to Tribute Summon as much as possible, with the 800ATK/1000DEF ‘Squires’ serving as your primary Tribute fodder. For example, Tessera the Primal Squire can Special Summon herself from hand, give you an immediate Tribute Summon, and Special Summon any monster with 800ATK/1000DEF when sent to the GY. Not bad, not bad. As far as the main monsters you’ll want to Tribute Summon, there’s Zaborg the Mega Monarch which can destroy itself to send 8 cards of your choice from both Extra Decks to the GY, then there’s Erebus the Underworld Monarch, which can shuffle 1 card from the opponent’s hand, field, or GY back into the deck. Finally, this theme is well-supported by a range of Monarch S/T cards, from The Monarchs Revolt to tutor 1 of 3 monsters with the Monarch statline to Strike of the Monarchs to negate any face-up card.

Given that baseline, I’m going to devote the rest of the description to highlighting the neat tech cards. First up is Demiurge Ema (YGOrg Translation), a Level 8 LIGHT Fairy that can send 4 monsters with 2400+ATK/1000DEF from hand, Deck, or Field to the GY to Special Summon itself. Ideally you will send Photon Emperor to the GY with this effect, giving you a free body with a Monarch statline, in addition to an extra LIGHT Normal Summon during the turn (such as for your Mega Zaborg)! Next up is Astrazma Urania, a LIGHT Thunder that can return 1 or 2 monsters you control to the hand to Special Summon it. This is especially great in Monarchs for allowing you to re-use the same Monarch for multiple Tribute Summons, or if you need to get back a copy of The Prime Monarch to discard to recover a monster from GY with Erebus. Then you have The World’s Greatest Gallant Thief (YGOrg Translation), a new Level 10 Monster from the upcoming Beyond the Brave core set that can help you break boards by Tribute Summoning itself using monsters on the opponent’s field! Outside of that, the rest of the deck has been curated to make the most of all of your Monarch capabilities, without bogging itself down in endless brick potential. Bow to the might of the Monarchs, with all their new supporters!

Provided Decklist:

Monsters:
3 The World’s Greatest Gallant Thief
3 Demiurge Ema
2 Erebus the Underworld Monarch
2 Photon Emperor
2 Zaborg the Mega Monarch
3 Fydraulis Harmonia
1 Astrazma Urania
1 Eidos the Underworld Monarch
1 Eidos the Underworld Squire
1 Steel-Stringed Sacrifice
3 Tessera the Primal Squire
1 Edea the Heavenly Squire

Spells:
3 The Monarchs Revolt
3 Pantheism of the Monarchs
3 Tenacity of the Monarchs
1 Mystical Space Typhoon
1 Strike of the Monarchs
2 Radiant Typhoon Vision
3 The Fallen & The Virtuous
1 The Monarchs Stormforth

Traps:
1 The Prime Monarch
1 Branded Retribution

Extra Deck:
2 Albion the Branded Dragon
1 Garura, Wings of Resonant Life
1 Elder Entity N’tss
1 Black-Winged Assault Dragon
1 Enigmaster Packbit
1 PSY-Framelord Omega
1 Black-Winged Dragon
1 Ecclesia and the Dark Dragon
1 Deep Sea Prima Donna
1 Golden Cloud Beast – Malong
1 Angelechy Enlisted
1 Vallon, the Super Psy Skyblaster
1 Topologic Blaster Dragon
1 Borrelcode Dragon

Note: This is continuing the style of Creative Deck Profile articles, designed to showcase a build through replays and an attached summary. If you wish to see a CDP for an archetype, theme, or strategy you love, feel free to message me on the YGOrg Discord server in Decklists-Garage or the comments section of any of my YouTube video with your ideas for me to keep under consideration! On most YGO-related communities my username is Quincymccoy, so feel free to reach out. Current pending requested profiles include: Suship, Amazoness, Toon, Lunalight, Speedroid, Dragon Ruler, Zenet, Trirealm Rift, Raise Moon,

Coming Soon: