Why is Sky Striker Mobilize – Engage Banned?

Sky Striker Mobilize – Engage! was released in 2018 as a part of Dark Saviors, but was finally banned in the January 2020 ban list. The card was banned as it was a key card for the Sky Striker archetype. This does bring up the question “Why is Sky Striker Mobilize – Engage Banned?”

Why does Sky Striker Mobilize – Engage do?

Sky Striker Mobilize – Engage! is a normal spell. If you have no monsters in your Main Monster Zone then you can add one “Sky Striker” from your Deck to your hand except for this card. However, if you have three or more spells in your graveyard then you can draw one more additional card. This card is essentially a Pot of Greed for the archetype. The secondary effect is really easy to complete for most decks.

Sky Strikers were too good for too long

If you click this link you will see all of the performances that it had in various tournaments. The deck had quite a bit of good performances over the years and was firmly tier one for a while. However, Konami doesn’t care for decks to be a tier-one for long periods of time. Only the new sets make money, and if the cards are not being reprinted or given more support then it is not making any more money.

The deck already was hit on previous ban lists. Sky Striker Ace – Kagari was limited but became unlimited in January 2020. Despite this, Sky Striker Mecha – Hornet Drones, Sky Striker Mecha – Widow Anchor, and Sky Striker Mecha Modules – Multirole all stayed limited at the time. Konami made it known they wanted to hit this deck hard. It was a great deck! Sky Striker Mobilize – Engage was the best card as it consistently gave you a plus one.

Can Sky Striker Mobilize – Engage be unbanned?

Yes. Sky Strikers will eventually become power creeped out, and while this card is good it is generic. If Sky Strikers are not great anymore then this card is not great. However, this card is a plus one which is really good in most cases. The card won’t be unbanned immediately, but it is only going to be a temporary occupant of the forbidden list.

If you are interested in archetype specific cards that are banned may I recommend this article on Brilliant Fusion?