Most of the time,Digimon Card GameEX sets are a bit underwhelming. They usually include cards that only hardcore fans of the series will recognize with different gameplay mechanics that try to spice up the game without shifting the meta too much. EX05 Animal Colosseum is the exception.
This set revitalized the MetalGarurumon (X Antibody) deck with new trash-based effects, introduced a Leviamon card that can play tokens on your opponent’s battle area and destroy them at the same time to hinder your opponent, and a devastating card in the form of an Egyptian deity that required Bandai to restrict the card before it was even released in the English market.
10GraceNovamon
The Ultimate Light Fang And Night Crow Jogress
As one of the two Secret Rares from EX05 Animal Colosseum, GraceNovamon is bound to be a great card. The Light Fang and Night Crow deck revolves its strategy around building your dual-color stack as fast as possible by taking your top digivolution card and cycling it back to the bottom of the stack, activating many of your inherited effects.
This card is a sticky one, since most of the time your stack will consist of plenty of same-level Digimon, this GraceNovamon will prove to be a problem against any enemy.
9Leopardmon (X Antibody)
A New Form Arrives!
When first released in BT-14 Versus Royal Knights, the Leopardmon deck was a mish-mash of random green cards that had a bit of synergy, but with the release of Leopardmon (X Antibody), the deck is now fully realized.
This card can cheat out your green Digimon by reducing their cost by three, and with Leopardmon’s ability to spam the board quickly, his return-to-hand effect can remove almost any Digimon in the game. Plus, look at that cool-looking beam saber Leopardmon is holding.
8X Antibody Proto Form
A New Way To Digivolve
With many Digimon being able to stop any kind of memory gain, card effects have resorted to reducing digivolution costs instead. X Antibody Proto Form works similarly, but with a different purpose.
The card does allow the player to reduce the next digivolution cost, but only for a card with the X Antibody trait. Most of the time, X Antibody cards can digivolve for free as long as the Digimon is of the same level, but some more powerful cards, like Leopardmon X Antibody cost one memory either way. This card can circumvent that while giving you a great protection effect as an inheritable.
7Fanglongmon
The Mighty Deva Leader
Every EX side booster includes a set of cards that compile a deck that breaks the mold of what players know of how to play the Digimon Card Game. This time around, Fanglongmon joins the fight, accompanied by their army of Deva Digimon.
This card can be a menace once it hits the board. Fanglongmon can apply a blanket effect of -4,000 DP to all of your opponent’s Digimon, making Rookies unusable for the turn. Fanglongmon is also unaffected by Digimon effects, meaning only a well-timed option card or Raid Digimon can deal with it.
6MetalGarurumon (X Antibody)
The Metal Blocker Returns
This set has revitalized the MetalGarurumon X deck by giving players a brand-new line with purple splashed in. This boss Digimon can do similar things as its BT09 counterpart, but this one can apply a blanket Ice Wall effect on all of your opponent’s Digimon, potentially ending their turn once they attack even once.
Even if your opponent can get around the memory loss, they’ll still have to deal with a massive 12,000 DP blocker, that more than likely has plenty of layers of protection.
5Leviamon
The Croc That Smiles Back
This smiling crocodile is one of the most powerful anti-meta boss Digimon in the game as of EX05 and one of theSeven Great Demon Lords. Leviamon can directly counter some of the most powerful decks in the format that like to spawn multiple bodies at once, like Anubis Merva.
Leviamon is an aggressive monster that can quickly take down wide boards while gaining memory. This card is sure to stick around for a while. Let’s just make sure that Bandai doesn’t restrict any more purple cards.
4WereGarurumon (X Antibody)
Unsuspend And Defeat Your Opponent
This version of WereGarurumon (X Antibody) is able to unsuspend just like the old version, but this one does not come with built-in removal. Instead, this WereGarurumon can recycle some of the cards you have trashed while climbing up the stack, by adding a Garurumon back to your hand.
This card also has an incredible inherited effect to unsuspend by trashing one card from your hand, making the Garurumon One Turn Kill, or OTK, possible again since the last WereGarurumon restriction by Bandai.
3Garurumon (X Antibody)
Another Garurumon Bites The Dust
There is no world in which Greymon (X Antibody) is restricted to one copy per deck and this card is not. Luckily, Bandai acted quickly and this version of Garurumon (X Antibody) is now restricted. This card was able to draw two cards while filling up your trash with potential targets for WereGarurumon to cycle and to activate its powerful protection effects.
This Garurumon isn’t able to reduce digivolution costs as Greymon did, but its deep draw effect combined with an easily achievable protection effect meant this card needed a fix.
2Gabumon (X Antibody)
This Little Guy Is Just Too Powerful
Just like its Champion version, Gabumon (X Antibody) also has the same protection effect, but you may argue that this card is even more problematic due to its low cost and similar effect. Since Gabumon (X Antibody) can digivolve on top of a regular Gabumon for free, you will be able to draw your card from Digivolving, search the top four cards for two Garurumon pieces, and then trash one card from your hand.
This card gives you way too many cards in hand and coupled with the protection effect, this card is better off living on the restricted list.
1Anubismon
The Winner Of The 2023 North American National Championship
It’s almost like Bandai decided to print some of the most powerful cards in the game all in one set. Anubismon at full power is a scary sight. This anthropomorphic dog can play a Digimon from the trash for almost free. The effect doesn’t seem that powerful on its own, but combined with Mervamon from BT11, you’re able to spam the board quickly all whilst gaining more memory than you started with.
Just like the other canine Digimon found in this set, Anubismon has now been restricted to one copy per deck, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not a threat to be wary of.
