Imagine you’re fighting a friend and you’ve managed to get rid of all the cards on their field.
Well, they played all of their cards but one trick.
But what could go wrong with a trap?
You didn’t know it, but that trap was actually Mirror Force.
The next thing you know, all of your monsters are dead and you’re almost certain to lose the fight.
The Mirror Force character can be pretty strong, I think we can all agree on that.
Since this is a whole type of card, there are a lot of Mirror Force cards.
What Are Mirror Force Traps in Yu-Gi-Oh!?
The famous trap “Mirror Force” has been a Yu-Gi-Oh! staple for a long time. Because of its strong abilities, it has sometimes been on the banned list, and it has since inspired a number of similar traps.
These cards can only be used when an opponent’s monster initiates an attack, but they have punishing effects that often kill multiple enemy units at once and stop your opponent’s attack.
Most of the Mirror Force members still hurt enemies in attack mode, which is the only mode link monsters can be in.
But since there are almost a dozen spin-offs, which ones are the best?
So, if you want to know which ones are the best, keep reading!
12. BOOT-UP ORDER – GEAR FORCE
A late player in the game Mirror Force.
This card has a unique effect: when either player’s monster makes an attack and all of the monsters they control are face-up machine monsters, they can destroy as many of their opponent’s monsters in attack position as they control machine monsters.
The cute thing about this card is that it lets the player get rid of monsters on their own turn.
However, this isn’t the best card because it locks the player into machines and depends on how many monsters the player controls.
11. Froggy Forcefield
Technically, this is just a “Force” relative, but since there isn’t an official Mirror Force archetype yet, it doesn’t mean much.
You can only use Forcefield when your opponent hits a face-up Frog monster you control (other than “Frog the Jam”).
Then it copies the original Mirror Force by destroying all monsters in the attack position of the opposite side.
Even though the normal Mirror Force is usually better, these variations can help certain themes if you’re playing under an old ban list or just want more than three copies in your deck.
“Infernity Force,” “Wall of Thorns,” and the anime-only “Wave Force” are all good options.
10. Dark Mirror Force
So, I said that the Mirror Force pattern is very strong, but Dark Mirror Force might be an exception to that.
When your opponent hits, you can use Dark Mirror Force. If you do, you can get rid of all monsters your opponent controls that are in defense position.
Only in the Superheavy Samurai deck do I think this card could work.
Aside from that, who these days puts their best monsters in defense?
But if you really want to play this card, you should use it with cards like Book of Eclipse that change the fight position of your opponent’s monsters.
9. Shining Silver Force
Before you start whining that this isn’t a Mirror Force card, you should know that it’s part of the Mirror Force family based on its original Japanese name.
Shining Silver Force can be used when your opponent does something with a card that hurts you.
You can stop that effect and destroy all of your opponent’s spell and trap cards that are face up.
This card is an interesting take on the Mirror Force strategy.
But at the same time, monsters are definitely the biggest danger in most duels.
In fact, destroying your opponent’s spells and traps that are face up rarely changes the game for either player.
8. Radiant Mirror Force
Radiant Mirror Force is just a bad form of Mirror Force.
Which is strange, because you’d think that as time went on, they’d make better versions of the original card, right?
Anyway, you can use Radiant Mirror Force if your opponent attacks you with at least three monsters in attack position and they are attacking you.
Then you can kill all of your opponent’s monsters that are in attack position.
So it’s kind of good, but this card doesn’t have anything else going for it.
For example, your opponent might be happy with only two powerful monsters on the field, which would make this card totally useless.
Because of this, you should just keep the original one in your deck.
7. Blazing Mirror Force
Blazing Mirror Force is like a burning time bomb, and it’s also a card that people should think about using.
When your opponent says they are going to attack, destroy all of their monsters in the attack position.
Then, each player takes half of the original attack that all of the monsters put together.
Blazing Mirror Force is a great way to end a fight if you’re using a nurse burn deck that tries to beat your opponent with card effects.
On the other hand, if your opponent removes this card, you should always have a backup plan like the Scrap-Iron Scarecrow.
6. Mirror Force
Ah, now we’re at the first Mirror Force.
You’ll be happy to know that it’s still pretty good.
We should all know by now what it does, right?
When your opponent announces an attack, you can use this to destroy all of their monsters in attack position.
Even though this sounds great, it isn’t perfect.
Monsters these days are full of effects that happen when they are killed. So you should probably watch out for that.
But now that Link monsters exist that can only be in attack position, Mirror Force is certainly more useful than it used to be.
5. Mirror Force Launcher
The first card on this list that helps the Mirror Force deck is the Mirror Force Launcher.
By setting off this trap every turn, you can get a Mirror Force card from your deck by getting rid of a monster.
And if a card effect destroys this set card, you can set it again along with a Mirror Force that can be used the same turn.
This is a really good card if you want more than one Mirror Force card in your deck because it is one of the few effective ways to search for Mirror Force cards.
4. Mirror Force Dragon
Now, I’ll admit that Mirror Force Dragon isn’t a common card.
But when you do, it’s a force that can’t be ignored.
Send Mirror Force to the graveyard and then use Fang of Critias to call this monster.
Since there are many ways to look for Mirror Force, like using Mirror Force Launcher, this isn’t too hard to do.
But what’s cool about Mirror Force Dragon is that it’s basically a Mirror Force that you can use again and again and also use to attack.
That’s what makes it so incredible.
Also, if you use a card like Battle Mania, you can force your opponent to fight and then destroy their field.
3. Storming Mirror Force
Storming Mirror Force can either help you win a duel or be a nightmare to deal with afterward, depending on the case.
When a player strikes you, Storming Mirror Force can be used.
If they do, you can send all of their monsters that are in attack position back to their hand.
If your opponent’s hand is pretty full, this card can be very useful because it forces them to throw away some cards at the end of your turn (since you can only have 6 cards at the end of your turn).
But if your opponent doesn’t end up with at least seven cards, you might be in trouble because they can all use them again on their next turn.
2. Quaking Mirror Force
Quaking Mirror Force would probably be at the top of this list if it weren’t for Link monsters.
But that doesn’t change the fact that it’s crazy good.
When your opponent attacks, you can use Quaking Mirror Force to turn all of their monsters that are in attack position face down.
Then, those monsters can’t change their position in fight for the rest of their time on the field, which makes them pretty much useless.
In this situation, the only real thing you can do with these monsters is use a card like Dark Hole to kill them. Or pay them homage.
This trap doesn’t work on Link monsters, which means that if you’re playing against some decks, it might not be the best choice.
1. Drowning Mirror Force
Drowning Mirror Force is different from all the other cards on this list because it should only be used as a last option.
Nevertheless, it works very well.
When your opponent makes a straight attack, you can use Drowning Mirror Force.
If they do, you can put all of your opponent’s monsters that are in attack position back into their deck.
This card fixes the problem that Storming Mirror Force has, and it also has other perks, such as not being able to be targeted or destroyed.
So you don’t have to deal with those annoying card effects that only happen when a trap is set to them.
You can also use Absolute End, which forces your opponent to hit you directly, to make Drowning Mirror Force even more powerful.
This can help you, but it can also hurt you, so be careful and have a plan.
