"No Diviner? No Nadir? No problem!" | 1st Place "Voiceless Voice" Deck Profile and Strategy Explanations by ArcKnight

Hello fellow Voiceless Disciple! It's me ArcKnight, a Voiceless Voice player since its debut in PHANTOM NIGHTMARE. Most of you have seen the several articles I wrote regarding "Voiceless Voice" and I really appreciate the great feedback you've been giving so today, I'll share another write-up featuring a more budget alternative build that could work and it's my recent 4-0 deck that won ranking yesterday.

Haven't gotten your playset of "Diviner of the Herald" or maybe you're still lacking the extra deck pieces needed for "Nadir Servant"? This is the article for you. (Silent wink)

Brief Introduction about ArcKnight

For those who are just reading my articles just now, I've been playing "Voiceless Voice" the moment they arrived in OCG back in October 2023. I immediately fell in my love with the concept as it is less prone to most hand traps. I have also topped numerous official ranking using it (with different builds) and the first "Voiceless Voice" player who topped at a major event in my country.

 I can say that I still have a lot to learn in terms of the theme although the experiences I gained after using the same deck for months helped me address my mishaps at some point. Like some of us, I am continuously figuring out strategies that could work and not all theories work. Theories can remain theories unless it give good results in actual play and today, I'll be your guinea pig xD

Arc, tell me about the concept:

Before anything else, I just want to share that this build is still pre-LEGACY OF DESTRUCTION. The reason is that LEDE box arrived later on the tournament I participated hence, I didn't have a chance to add the new support yet though I can say that the impact was very minimal.

Also, this build is tailorfit to my playstyle and OCG meta. This is also the aftermath of my key takeaways from the recent BLS II event where my original build had Diviner of the Herald. This may or may not work with everyone and it's okay. I hope that as you finish reading 'til the end, it helps you in some ways. :)

Here is the sauce that you've been asking:

Actual list:

Via Neuron

Pod 1 - Ranking Tournament OCG Philippines

Date: Jan. 27, 2024

Deck: Voiceless Voice

Players: 16 (From base 48 players)

Result: 1st Place (4-0)

R1: vs. Runick O O (Win) - Cosmic Cyclone FTW

R2: vs. HERO X O O (Win) - Skull Guardian + Pendulumgraph Dragon + Authority for maximum control

R3: vs. Branded O X O (Win) - Knowing what to negate really helps since this deck has 5373528258 extenders

Finals vs. Branded O X O (Win) - Artifact Scythe wins games

Frequently Asked Questions:

1. Why no "Diviner of the Herald"?

Answer: "Diviner of the Herald" is definitely a good engine to add in "Voiceless Voice". I had my success before with "Diviner of the Herald" and one reason is the deck is pretty new back then and people don't know who to hit with their hand traps. Fast forward, meta shifted and people are now maining a standard 12+ hand traps and for some reason, ArcKnight attracts Maxx "C".

In the usual combo, "Diviner of the Herald" sends "Trias Hierarchia" which can help facilitate the summoning of "Lo, the Prayers of the Voiceless Voice". In months of using "Voiceless Voice", there are various risks involved in the "Diviner" route:

A. When playing "Diviner of the Herald", you immediately lose your Normal Summon. An opponent may have "Ash Blossom and Joyous Spring" or other hand traps that can disrupt its effect and voila, it cannot search something useful and loses the chance of gaining level. If you don't have a way to tribute it (because it remained at level 2), you are at risk next turn. 

B. People can chain Maxx "C" when "Trias Hierarchia" attempts to special summon itself, opponent could have up to 3 additional draws if you still want to end on the basic "Skull Guardian" + "Lo" negate board. Card advantage is really huge in competitive play and one omni-negate isn't enough as an exchange for the +2-3 draws the opponent gains out of a single Maxx "C" in my opinion. Of course, the least you can do is to summon "Lo, the Prayers of the Voiceless Voice" which still gives them 2 free draws from Maxx "C".

C. Decision making could be tough at times where "Lo, the Prayers of Voiceless Voice" already exists in hand and you already have a way to ritual summon. The end result, the "Lo", or "Diviner" copy in your hand could be an empty resource that could have been a hand trap or something else.

D. Drawing "Trias Hierarchia" is sad when going second and I can attest to this. This is a card that is much better if it stays in your deck. There are also moments that when you go second, your hand is filled with a lot of going first starters but you end up remembering you only have one normal summon. :)

2. Why "Pot of Extravagance" over "Nadir Servant"?

Answer: I hate "Droll & Lock Bird" to its core. I mean, who doesn't? XD

"Nadir Servant" usual combo is to send "Garura, Wings of Resonant Life" to add "Dogmatika Maximus" from deck or graveyard to your hand. Since the turn player chooses to activate the first trigger effect happening which is Garura to draw 1 card, it puts you at the risk of the opponent chaining "Droll & Lock Bird". Not only that you lose the chance to plus even more with "Dogmatika Maximus", you are also stuck possibly without any strong end board unless you push your hand advantage just to land on Skull Guardian which isn't practical in my testing. Opponent could have copies of Garura themselves or worse, you are facing mirror match and they have NTSS and Arc Light as well to send since both players send 2 cards from their Extra Deck.

In addition, "Dogmatika Maximus" can also fall in the hands of Maxx "C" which could guarantee the opponent with 1-2 draws if you still push for "Skull Guardian" negate assuming you haven't used your normal summon and you are normal summoning "Lo, Prayers of the Voiceless Voice" in that scenario.

On the other hand, "Pot of Extravagance" does many things aside from the obvious +1. First, It lets you temp-check "Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring" and "Droll & Lock Bird". Majority of the time, the opponent would ensure that they limit the card advantage that you will achieve thus, negating "Pot of Extravagance" right away or else, you could draw 2 cards that can potentially hinder their hand trap as well.

If "Droll & Lock Bird" is chained after drawing 2 cards, it depends if you draw both "Skull Guardian, Protector of the Voiceless Voice", "Lo, Prayers of the Voiceless Voice + a way to ritual summon like Saffira or Prayers. If you do, you might still be able to land on an omni-negate end board while the opponent has already minus -1 with droll. If you don't draw your combo pieces, you may at least draw hand traps that could save you next turn.

When playing "Voiceless Voice", it has been my mindset to have "Droll & Lock Bird" in mind. Since I no longer play "Diviner of the Herald", Maxx "C" isn't that much of a threat now, only Droll at times. When deciding your plays, ensure that you can still land safely on some interruption in case Droll gets in the way. It's a tough decision and the opponent may not have any hand traps at all. Better be safe than sorry right?

3. 3 "Skull Guardian"? 1 "Saffira" 1 "Pendulumgraph"??? Why?

I ran "Skull Guardian, Protector of the Voiceless Voice" at three copies simply because it searches the phone book. It allows you to search any "Voiceless Voice" monster or Dragon/Warrior ritual. I also use it to bait an ash negate at times if I already have "Lo, the Prayers of Voiceless Voice" in hand or GY (if I used it as a ritual material). Your top priority in this build is ensuring you get "Skull Guardian" + "Lo" + A card that can help you ritual summon as much as possible and I feel adding the third "Skull Guardian" can compensate the lack of other consistency engines.

"Odd-Eyes Pendulumgraph Dragon" on the other side of the fence adds that extra GAS/Interruption when needed. Not drawing your sides is tough against certain match-ups and but you can always rely on your strong searchable end board. Pendulumgraph is searchable by "Skull Guardian, Protector of the Voiceless Voice" and "Saffira, Dragon Queen of the Voiceless Voice" just to note. It adds that extra Spell negate because there are times the one omni-negate of "Skull Guardian" is easy to bait.

4. Where are the floodgates? Why did you use the "Artifact" engine and "Solemn Strike"?

Answer: This is more of a meta call for me. Our local ranking is mostly rogue and I experienced getting locked by own my "Summon Limit" and "Anti-Spell Fragrance". It's a bummer if you lose because of your own cards so I'd rather play cards that can solution the threat right away rather than delay the agony. Since "Artifact Scythe" is forbidden in TCG, "Dimensional Barrier" is a good alternative or "Different Dimension Ground" if you will.

During testing yesterday, it worked really fine. The only conflict is when I draw "Artifact Scythe". Other than that, these traps can help end games assuming you have your standard Voiceless Voice set-up.

The rest of the ratios are self-explanatory. Feel free to comment if you have additional questions. :)

Summary:

I'm glad that I have this platform to share my insights and I will continue to do so if it requires. My recipe isn't 100% perfect and It may change from time to time. Diviner and Nadir engines definitely share their advantages and I won't completely close my doors in using them (Since I own them to begin with). I am definitely adding the new support from LEGACY OF DESTRUCTION soon so watch out for that.

I hope that this article inspires you in a way that there's still hope despite of not owning these engines. Remember, despite playing a deck like "Voiceless Voice", action still speaks louder than words.

I now rest my case since my fingers hurt while typing this article on my phone xD! Have a good one! 

~ArcKnight

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