Yu-Gi-Oh!: Kaiba's 10 Most Used Monsters | ScreenRant
Prideful and stubborn, Kaiba was an infamous Yu-Gi-Oh villain-turned-antihero, and we're here to remember 10 cards that he favored above all others.
In the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime, Seto Kaiba served as an occasional antagonist, mainly during the first season, and then as a full-on antihero. The archrival to Yugi Muto, Kaiba was prideful, selfish, and borderline cruel. He hated weakness, was not one for subtlety, and valued power above all other things.
This attitude was reflected in his gameplay. Running a highly offensive strategy, Kaiba had several high-attack monsters and ran a swarm and virus deck that could easily overwhelm and cripple his opponents. A consumed duelist, he was famous for putting careful thought into his strategies and for having in his possession some of the fiercest looking monsters in the game.
10 La Jinn The Mystical Genie Of The Lamp
Although not one of Kaiba's favorite cards, La Jinn is used in three pivotal fights of his duelist career. First, he used it against Yugi during the Duelist Kingdom arc, in a battle that Kaiba ultimately—albeit controversially—won. He then uses La Jinn against Gozaburo while in the virtual world. Lastly, he uses it in his duel against Joey to determine who would win third place in Battle City.
Kaiba often paired La Jinn with the magic card Ancient Lamp, which allowed the Genie to be special-summoned. Considering La Jinn's high attack of 1900, this magic card is a powerful tool.
9 Luster Dragon #2
Kaiba's deck was full of some pretty menacing dragons, such as this one. First used in his duel against Leichter while in Noah's virtual world, Luster Dragon #2 soon became a regular in Kaiba's deck. It appeared again during Seto's duel against Zigfried von Schroeder, where it was quickly taken out of the game by the pink-haired villain.
A powerful level 6 card, it has 2400 ATK points, and a respectable 1400 DEF, making it an ideal fit for Kaiba's offensive deck.
8 Vorse Raider
One of Kaiba's most savage-looking monsters, the Vorse Raider made his debut during the Battle City arc. Seto first uses the card in his four-part duel against Lumis and Umbra where he fights alongside Yugi. The Raider makes several more appearances in Battle City, including in Kaiba's duel against Ishizu during the Battle City quarterfinals.
This ferocious beast has quite a reputation, and his card description even states how cruel and vicious he is. With a 1900 ATK and a 1200 DEF, the Raider earns his four stars and a place in the world's second-best duelist.
7 Kaiser Sea Horse
First introduced during Kaiba's duel against Noah where it actually served as Kaiba's Deck Master, the Kaiser Sea Horse soon earned a privileged place in Seto's deck. The Kaiser's ability as a Deck Master allowed the summoning or effect activation of a Light Monster, with one less tribute.
An effect card even outside the virtual world. the Kaiser serves as two tributes when sacrificed to summon a Light Monster. This made it an incredibly valuable card to have, especially with Battle City's tribute rules. With a very decent 1700 ATK and 1650 DEF, it's easy to see why Kaiba liked it so much.
6 Battle Ox
One of the first Kaiba cards audiences saw, the young millionaire uses the Battle Ox in his first-ever battle against Joey, during the Duelist Kingdom arc. As a matter of fact, the Ox is the first monster Kaiba summons for the duel, shocking Joey from the get-go. The battle ends in a crushing defeat for Joey and cements Kaiba's opinion of him as a "third-rate duelist with a fourth-rate deck."
The Ox has a very ancient relationship with the young duelist. It is shown that Kaiba's previous incarnation, Priest Seto, often used the Battle Ox, confirming the bond between the two.
5 Saggi The Dark Clown
Kaiba seems to have a soft spot for Saggi the Dark Clown; in flashbacks to his childhood in the orphanage, he is shown to already be in possession of the clown, granting it a spot in his deck long after he acquired rarer, more powerful monsters.
Saggi is a rather weak monster, with only 600 ATK. However, Kaiba, ever the strategist, made up for the clown's weakness by pairing it with an extremely powerful trap, Crush Card Virus. When Saggi was inevitably destroyed by the enemy, Kaiba would activate the virus, which crippled the opposer's deck by destroying all monsters with an attack higher than 1500. Kaiba pulled this trick several times, most notoriously during his controversial duel with Yugi in the Duelist Kingdom, as well as against Ishizu in the Battle City quarter-finals.
4 Lord Of D
In a deck full of dragons, a card like Lord of D is a duelist's best friend. An effect monster, Lord of D prevents dragons from being targeted by card effects. Furthermore, when paired with the magic card The Flute of Summoning Dragon, both players can Special Summon up to two dragon monsters from their hands.
Kaiba used this strategy numerous times, often using it to call two of his three Blue-Eyes White Dragons—the third one was usually already in the field. All of these perks make Lord of D a very valuable asset for any deck, even if his average 1200 ATK and 1100 DEF might seem like a liability.
3 X-Head Cannon/Y-Dragon Head/Z-Metal Tank
A group of the so-called A-to-Z monsters, these three, like the rest that fit into the category, are designed to fuse without the need of a Fusion Card. Instead, they use Contact Fusion, a method which was first seen in the anime with one of Yugi's monsters, Valkyrion the Magna Warrior. Fusing these three cards results in the powerful XYZ-Dragon Cannon.
Contact Fusion monsters are quite valuable, as they can attack in the same turn in which they were summoned, unlike those that need Polymerization. This is probably the reason why these three monsters became a staple of Kaiba's deck after their first introduction during Kaiba's epic duel against Yugi in the Battle City semi-finals.
2 Obelisk The Tormentor
Kaiba's Egyptian God card, which he obtained from Ishizu at the beginning of the Battle City arc, Obelisk was one of the fiercest monsters in the game. With a perfect 4000 ATK and DEF, Obelisk, like his two Egyptian God siblings, also possessed special abilities that made him a dangerous threat. When sacrificing two monsters to Obelisk, the opponent is not only damaged, but his monsters are completely destroyed, as well.
Kaiba made full use of his Egyptian God during Battle City, enjoying the rampage he caused with the overpowered card. Eventually, Kaiba lost Obelisk to Yugi in the semi-finals.
1 Blue-Eyes White Dragon
The crown jewel of Kaiba's deck, Blue-Eyes is a truly terrifying monster. Ferocious, brutal, and intimidating, the dragon was the perfect in-game representation of its prideful owner. Absurdly powerful with 3000 ATK and 2500 DEF, the dragon makes more appearances in Kaiba's deck than any of his other monsters. His trademark card by far, Kaiba had not one, but three Blue-Eyes White Dragons in his deck. He often fused them using Polymerization, forming the seemingly invincible Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon.
Priest Seto also had a deep connection to the dragon, just like Yugi and Dark Magician. Even with Obelisk in his deck, Kaiba never let go of his precious Blue-Eyes. After he lost the Egyptian God, the dragon once again became the centerpiece of his already powerful deck.