Introduction - L'aube D'un Nouvelle! (The Dawn Of A New Age!)
Released back in 2002's "Magic Ruler" set, Hungry Burger was one of the first ever Ritual Monsters, and ever since its release, it has never seen any serious competitive play. This was for several reasons.
First, the Ritual mechanic by itself is flawed - requiring two specific cards in your hand at the exact same time is just far too inconsistent, is far too slow to actually use in even the most casual of games, and burns too many resources - for any Ritual Monster, you are going -1 in card advantage at best when you factor in the cost of the Ritual Spell used to summon it as well as the one or more tributes to even get the monster on the field. You needed some serious benefits to justify this, which is why the only Ritual Monster that ever saw competitive play in the earliest meta was Relinquished[yugipedia.com] , which, unlike every other Ritual Monster released at the time, actually had an effect, and a very useful one at that.
As for Hungry Burger specifically, it was a Level 6 Warrior with 2000 Attack Points. For comparison, Summoned Skull[yugipedia.com] was also Level 6, had 500 more Attack, and didn't require a clunky Ritual Spell like Hamburger Recipe to bring it out. Furthermore, Jinzo[yugipedia.com] was released in the next set, as another one-tribute monster who also had more Attack and also had the incredible ability to block Traps. Both before and after Magic Ruler, Hungry Burger was hopelessly outclassed.
And yet, Hungry Burger has remained a fan-favorite monster. Maybe it's because of nostalgia, or maybe because it's just a burger with teeth, Hungry Burger has had a place in longtime fans' hearts. This is what made it all the more savory when Konami announced the Deck Build Set "Wild Survivors" where, alongside support for Dinosaurs and the introduction of the powerful Vanquish Soul set, we would get our first look at the Nouvelles, a series of modern Ritual Monsters that revolved around the classic Hungry Burger.
Section 1 - Bienvenue Au Auberge (Welcome To The Auberge)
The Nouvelles are a series of Monsters that revolve around Tributing themselves, each other, and whatever else they can get their hands on in order to reach even greater heights. Not counting Hungry Burger itself, there are seven monsters associated with the Nouvelles, six of which are Ritual Monsters. These Ritual Monsters are all DARK attribute, are either Warriors or Beast-Warriors, and have 1850 DEF, making them similar to the original Hungry Burger in that regard.
Where they differ from the Hungry Burger are their effects. Each Nouvelles Ritual Monster has two effects: one that triggers on summon, and another that revolves around their ability to Tribute, and both of these effects are hard once-per-turns. The on-summon effects are fairly standard, ranging from searching to drawing to destruction, and everything in between - using these effects are key to keeping your combos alive and going. Their second effects are where things get really interesting, as these are what make the archetype unique. For simplicity's sake, there are three different variants of this effect, with each variant being shared between two of the Nouvelles Ritual Monsters:
The first variant triggers when the Nouvelles Monster itself is targeted by a card effect or for an attack, in which case it can retaliate by Tributing itself and one attack position Monster on either field to summon a Nouvelles Ritual Monster from your hand or deck that is either 1 or 2 levels higher than its user.
The second variant triggers when any monster is targeted by a card effect or for an attack, where it can retaliate by Tributing any Nouvelles Monster and one attack position Monster on either field, once again summoning a Nouvelles Ritual Monster from your hand or deck that is either 1 or 2 levels higher.
The final variant is a bit different, as the user can target any attack position monster on the field, Tributing it to summon either a Nouvelles Ritual Monster that is 1 level higher than its user, or the Hungry Burger.Of course, you can't have a Ritual archetype without their Ritual Spells, and with that in mind, the Recipe sub-archetype is there for them. Alongside the original Hamburger Recipe, there are also two new Recipe cards that can Ritual Summon any Nouvelles Ritual Monster, meaning you don't need to worry about incompatibility.
There are plenty of other cards tailor-made to support the Nouvelles archetype, and we will get to those in a moment, but for now, we will begin breaking down all of the cards individually.
Section 2 - Rencontrez La Viande (Meet The Meat)
Buerillabaise de Nouvelles (N)
DARK | Level 1
Beast-Warrior / Ritual / Effect
You can Ritual Summon this card with a "Recipe" card. If this card is Special Summoned: You can excavate the top 5 cards of your Deck, and if you do, you can add 1 excavated "Nouvelles" card to your hand, also shuffle the rest into the Deck. When a card or effect is activated that targets this card on the field, or when this card is targeted for an attack (Quick Effect): You can Tribute this card and 1 Attack Position monster on either field, and if you do, Special Summon 1 Level 2 or 3 "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster from your hand or Deck. You can only use each effect of "Buerillabaisse de Nouvelles" once per turn.
ATK: 400 | DEF: 1850
Buerillabaise, despite seeming unassuming, is one of your best starters. It is the ideal target for Fish Recipe due to the bonus effect of Fish Recipe allowing you to search out another Recipe if the summon of Buerillabaise is successful. Once it hits the field, it lets you dig five deep into your deck to just add another Nouvelles for free, offsetting its Tribute. Unfortunately, due to the luck-based nature of Excavation, this can whiff, leaving you with nothing extra, and its Tribute effect is the weakest variant, meaning it will either be the target for your other Nouvelles climbs or it will usually just sit there as one of the world's weakest floodgates. Still, it is one of your best starters alongside generic Ritual support such as Pre-Preparation of Rites, and I recommend that you should run at least two copies of this card in your deck.
Confiras de Nouvelles (N)
DARK | Level 2
Warrior / Ritual / Effect
You can Ritual Summon this card with a "Recipe" card. If this card is Special Summoned: You can target 1 Spell/Trap on the field; destroy it. When a card or effect is activated that targets this card on the field, or when this card is targeted for an attack (Quick Effect): You can Tribute this card and 1 Attack Position monster on either field, and if you do, Special Summon 1 Level 3 or 4 "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster from your hand or Deck. You can only use each effect of "Confiras de Nouvelles" once per turn.
ATK: 800 | DEF: 1850
Confiras is probably the weakest of the Nouvelles Ritual Monsters. It's not bad, the ability to just pop a piece of backrow on summon is useful, but it doesn't help with consistency like Buerillabaise or some of the other Nouvelles. It also shares Buerillabaise's weakness in that it has the weakest version of its Tribute effect, requiring specifically itself to be targeted. Still, it's got use in the fact that, due to how Meat Recipe is worded, it is searchable with Pre-Preparation of Rites, just like Buerillabaise. I can't recommend running more than one copy of this card, but it does have its uses, including being climbable into from Buerillabaise if all of your copies of Poeltis are tied up elsewhere. Speaking of...
Poeltis de Nouvelles (R)
DARK | Level 3
Beast-Warrior / Ritual / Effect
You can Ritual Summon this card with a "Recipe" card. If this card is Special Summoned: You can draw 1 card. When a card or effect is activated that targets a monster on the field, or when a monster is targeted for an attack (Quick Effect): You can Tribute 1 "Nouvelles" monster you control and 1 Attack Position monster on either field, and if you do, Special Summon 1 Level 4 or 5 "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster from your hand or Deck. You can only use each effect of "Poeltis de Nouvelles" once per turn.
ATK: 1200 | DEF: 1850
Now things are starting to get spicy. Poeltis is one of the best Nouvelles cards you can have on the field at any given time. It's the lowest-level Nouvelles Ritual that has the second variant of their Tribute effect, which works when any monster on the field is targeted by either effect or for battle. This means that any stray targeting effect like Infinite Impermenance[yugipedia.com] or Kashtira Fenrir[yugipedia.com] will proc the effect of Poeltis. And if you don't want to wait for your opponent to make a play, you can just go into Battle Phase, attempt to crash Buerillabaise or Confiras into something, then trigger Poeltis and trade up your Buerillabaise into something stronger while simultaneously getting rid of something on your opponent's field. Furthermore, on summon, you just get a free draw, which is just nice on anything. This is genuinely an incredible card that you always want on your field, since it forces your opponent to play so incredibly carefully that any misstep could result in a complete field wipe. Run two copies of this card, since it is searchable with most Nouvelles searches, and you have the ability to summon it from the deck using Buerillabaise or Confiras.
Foie Glasya de Nouvelles (R)
DARK | Level 4
Warrior / Ritual / Effect
You can Ritual Summon this card with a "Recipe" card. If this card is Special Summoned: You can target up to 3 cards in any GY(s); shuffle them into the Deck. When a card or effect is activated that targets a monster on the field, or when a monster is targeted for an attack (Quick Effect): You can Tribute 1 "Nouvelles" monster you control and 1 Attack Position monster on either field, and if you do, Special Summon 1 Level 5 or 6 "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster from your hand or Deck. You can only use each effect of "Foie Glasya de Nouvelles" once per turn.
ATK: 1600 | DEF: 1850
That's right: the Nouvelles have a shuffler. Unfortunately, unlike Mudora[yugipedia.com] and Keldo[yugipedia.com] , Foie Glasya's shuffling of three cards from the Graveyard only happens on its summon and only as a Spell Speed 1 effect, meaning you can't use it in response to something like a Bystial or a Tearlament effect. It is still good disruption for stuff your opponent might try to do in the future, like a Spell Speed 1 self-banish effect, in addition to the value you can get from shuffling your spent Nouvelles Monsters back into your deck. It also has the same Tribute effect as Poeltis, meaning it still forces your opponent to play incredibly safe, and is the only Nouvelles that can go straight into Baelgrill without mandating that you Tribute an opponent's monster. Still, Poeltis' draw-1 effect just does so much more than a slow shuffle, meaning that, although you should run this card, you probably only want one copy.
Section 2.1
Balameuniere de Nouvelles (SR)
DARK | Level 5
Beast-Warrior / Ritual / Effect
You can Ritual Summon this card with a "Recipe" card. If this card is Special Summoned: You can add 1 "Nouvelles" or "Recipe" card from your Deck to your hand. You can target 1 Attack Position monster your opponent controls; Tribute it, and if you do, Special Summon 1 Level 6 "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster from your hand or Deck. This is a Quick Effect if this card was Special Summoned by the effect of a "Nouvelles" monster. You can only use each effect of "Balameuniere de Nouvelles" once per turn.
ATK: 2000 | DEF: 1850
Balameuniere, when summoned properly, is possibly the single best Nouvelles card out of all of them, for reasons that will become apparent. First, unlike the previous members on this list, you can just target and Tribute any attack position monster your opponent controls. This does make you susceptible to monsters that are immune to targeting now, but it also doesn't require you to Tribute any of your own monsters now, making this just a straight form of non-destruction removal that also gets you another body on your side of the field. Furthermore, if you summoned this monster with the effect of either Poeltis or Foie Glasya, this becomes a Quick Effect, meaning you can use it on your opponent's turn in response to something like their Normal Summon. This does mean that you almost always want to try to bring this out through their summoning method and not with a straight Ritual Summon, but if you just need its on-summon effect or even just a body on the board, it's not the worst Ritual Summon you could make. Speaking of it's on-summon effect: a free search of any Nouvelles or Recipe card. No tricks, no costs, no gimmicks, you just get a free archetypal card for bringing it out. Balameuniere is one of the cornerstones of the Nouvelles strategy, and I would strongly recommend running two or even three copies because of its strength.
Baelgrill de Nouvelles (UR)
DARK | Level 6
Warrior / Ritual / Effect
You can Ritual Summon this card with a "Recipe" card. If this card is Special Summoned: You can negate the effects of all face-up cards your opponent currently controls (until the end of this turn), then, if this card was Special Summoned by the effect of a "Nouvelles" monster, you can Tribute as many monsters your opponent controls as possible. (Quick Effect): You can target 1 Attack Position monster your opponent controls; Tribute it, and if you do, Special Summon 1 "Hungry Burger" from your hand or Deck. You can only use each effect of "Baelgrill de Nouvelles" once per turn.
ATK: 2400 | DEF: 1850
While Balameuniere is the best Nouvelles when brought out properly, this monster is the strongest. Baelgrill is the Nouvelles' true boss monster, and the tippy-top of the chain when it comes to their Ritual Summons, Hungry Burger notwithstanding. When Baelgrill hits the field, he comes packed with a free Dark Ruler No More-style[yugipedia.com] effect, but with a twist - while it's not unreactable like DRNM, it does negate the effects of everything, including face-up Spells and Traps. If that wasn't enough, if it was summoned by either Foie Glasya or Balameuniere, it gains a bonus: every monster your opponent controls is Tributed. Yup, a DRNM plus a non-destruction Raigeki[yugipedia.com] . And if your opponent still wants to make a play, Baelgrill's tribute effect - which, unlike Balameuniere, is always a Quick Effect - will tribute one Attack position monster your opponent has to bring out the Hungry Burger itself. Although Baelgrill doesn't do anything in terms of consistency like Balameuniere or Poeltis, he is the deathblow to many boards that your opponent can build, especially if you bring him out during your opponent's turn while they're in the process of actually playing through their combos. Using two copies of this card is the most ideal ratio.
Hungry Burger (N)
DARK | Level 6
Warrior / Ritual / Effect
This monster can only be Ritual Summoned with the Ritual Spell Card, "Hamburger Recipe". You must also Tribute monsters whose total Level Stars equal 6 or more from the field or your hand.
ATK: 2000 | DEF: 1850
Ok, time to be the bearer of bad news. I know everyone wanted to play this deck because they wanted to play the funny burger, but if you're playing this optimally, you don't really want to run that many of this guy. It doesn't do anything, it's weaker than the guy that brings it out, it's basically a body for any other plays you may want to do. It does have a good use with Chef's Special Recipe, which I'll get to in a bit, but it's a Garnet, through and through. Run exactly 1 copy - you want it in your deck, but you never want to see it.
Poissonniere de Nouvelles (UR)
DARK | Level 1
Fairy / Pendulum / Effect
[<- 8 | 8 ->] If you control a Ritual Monster: You can target 1 monster on the field; Special Summon this card, then change that monster's battle position. You can only use this effect of "Poissonniere de Nouvelles" once per turn.
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If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can activate 1 of these effects;
● Add 1 Level 1 Ritual Monster or 1 "Recipe" card from your Deck to your hand.
● Banish any number of "Recipe" cards from your GY and Special Summon 1 "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster from your hand with a Level equal to the number banished.
You can only use this effect of "Poissonniere de Nouvelles" once per turn. If this card on the field is Tributed and added to the Extra Deck face-up: You can place this card in your Pendulum Zone.
ATK: 700 | DEF: 1700
Now, if you recall earlier, I said there were 7 Nouvelles Monsters, not counting the Burger. Well, here's the one outlier to everything - a Pendulum, Fairy, non-Tributing human. And yet, she is one of the most important. First, her summon gets you either a Recipe or a Buerillabaise - can't go wrong with a free search on summon. But that's not all, because if you decide to use her as material to bring out Buerillabaise - or any Nouvelles, for that matter - she can go from the Extra Deck straight to a Pendulum Zone, where the play extensions begin. While she's scaled, she can target something, Special Summon herself back to the field, and change that monster's battle position. This can be used to either set up a play by changing an opponent's monster to Attack Position, or to trigger your own Nouvelles Monster's effects, while also getting another Nouvelles body back on the field for plays with Poeltis or Foie Glasya. All of these effects, except for scaling herself upon being Tributed, are once per turn, but a lot of the time, that's all you really need. Run her at two to three copies - she might be the newest Nouvelles, but she hasn't let this deck down yet.
Section 3 - Recettes Pour Réussir (Recipes For Success)
Recette de Poisson (Fish Recipe) (R)
Ritual Spell
This card can be used to Ritual Summon any "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster. You must also Tribute monsters from your hand or field whose total Levels equal or exceed the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. Then, if you Ritual Summoned "Buerillabaisse de Nouvelles", you can apply the following effect.
● Add 1 "Recipe" Ritual Spell from your Deck or GY to your hand, except "Recette de Poisson (Fish Recipe)".
This is where it all begins: "Activate Fish Recipe, response? If not, tribute this, Ritual Summon Buerillabaise, add Meat Recipe." You will drill that phrase into your head. This will be a way of life for the aspiring Nouvelles chef. You live and die by the Fish Recipe and by Buerillabaise. It starts and extends your combos with its summon and its search. As I mentioned before, because Fish Recipe specifically mentions Buerillabaise, even though it's a generic Ritual Spell, it is searchable by Pre-Preparation of Rites, meaning that one Pre-Prep plus any one Tribute means you get your first body on the field. Run it at three copies. Any less is suicide.
Recette de Viande (Meat Recipe) (R)
Ritual Spell
This card can be used to Ritual Summon any "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster. You must also Tribute monsters from your hand or field whose total Levels equal or exceed the Level of the Ritual Monster you Ritual Summon. Then, if you Ritual Summoned "Confiras de Nouvelles", you can apply the following effect.
● Change all Defense Position monsters your opponent currently controls to Attack Position.
This card is the reason you have one copy of Confiras in your deck. Meat Recipe, like Fish Recipe, is generic for all Nouvelles monsters, but has specific synergy with one of them, this one being Confiras. Although the bonus effect of changing all of your opponent's monsters to Attack Position is a bit weak and would be useless in most other decks, this ability allows you to counter an opponent that plays defensively, turning every one of your opponent's monsters into a valid target for your Nouvelles plays. Even if you don't use it for this ability, the ability to add this off of Fish Recipe means you get at least one of the materials for another Ritual Summon if needed. You can run any number of this, depending on your deck's layout, but I usually only run 1 because of the ease of searching it from the deck.
Hamburger Recipe (N)
Ritual Spell
This card is used to Ritual Summon "Hungry Burger". You must also Tribute monsters whose total Level Stars equal 6 or more from the field or your hand.
Oh, boy.
Don't run this card. It doesn't summon any of the Nouvelles Ritual Monsters and is exclusively for Hungry Burger, and you don't even want Hungry Burger in your hand anyway. I guess it's searchable with Pre-Preparation of Rites, but why would you add this and Hungry Burger when you could add Buerillabaise and Fish Recipe? This card's junk. Leave the summoning of Hungry Burger to your Baelgrill.
Section 4 - Apéritifs Ludiques (Playmaking Appetizers)
Nouvelles Restaurant "At Table" (UR)
Field Spell
When this card is activated: You can add 1 "Recipe" card from your Deck or GY to your hand. Once per turn: You can place 1 Ritual Monster from your hand on the bottom of the Deck; draw 1 card. Once per turn, during your End Phase: You can target 2 cards in your GY, including a "Recipe" card; place them on the bottom of your Deck in any order, then draw 1 card. You can only activate 1 "Nouvelles Restaurant "At Table"" per turn.
If you want card advantage, this generates quite a good amount. On its activation, you can add any Recipe card to your hand, which is good for getting a Spell you needed or a Trap after you've finished all of your plays. It also has two other effects, both of which are good. First, once per turn, you can mulligan a Ritual Monster in your hand to get a free draw. This allows you to cycle a potentially dead card and get an actually useful one. Did you draw your one copy of Hungry Burger earlier? Nouvelles Restaurant gets it out of your hand and gets you something objectively better. Also, at the End Phase, you can cycle one Recipe and one of any other card from your Graveyard into your deck, and get one last draw for the turn - perfect for that one last chance at drawing an Ash Blossom[yugipedia.com] for your opponent's turn. It's an excellent extender for all of your plays, but at the same time, it's grabbable by both Balameuniere and Buerillabaise, meaning you have plenty of ways to access it during your basic plays. Running one or two copies is best for this card - I prefer two, since you can loop a Restaurant from your GY to your Deck with the second Restaurant, creating a small resource loop.
Voici la Carte (Today's Menu) (SR)
Normal Spell
Reveal 2 "Nouvelles" monsters with different names from your Deck, your opponent chooses 1 for you to add to your hand, and you shuffle the other into your Deck, then you can add 1 of these cards from your Deck or GY to your hand based on the Monster Type added to your hand by this effect.
● Beast-Warrior: "Recette de Poisson (Fish Recipe)"
● Warrior: "Recette de Viande (Meat Recipe)"
You can only activate 1 "Voici la Carte (Today's Menu)" per turn.
Thematically-speaking, this is one of my favorite cards in the entire archetype. For it's usefulness, this is also one of my favorite cards in the entire archetype. Today's Menu gets you both a Nouvelles Monster and a Recipe Spell, setting you up for your plays with a pure +1 in card advantage (or, at worst, going card neutral if you get Poissonniere, as she doesn't have an associated Recipe to add alongside her). The downside? It's not really your choice. See, this card is set up like ordering from a menu - you give your opponent a couple of options, and they decide which of them is the most appetizing. Of course, it's not like you have to give them what they want - you could have some materials in your hand already, but just need the tribute fodder. If you don't care about their bad reviews, just offer them whatever you want, take the extra card advantage, and give them what you actually feel like making. For the most satisfying results, run this card at three copies - regardless of what your opponent orders, you're the one benefiting in the end.
Chef's Special Recipe (SR)
Counter Trap
When a Spell/Trap Card, or monster effect, is activated while you control a "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster: Negate the activation, then you can destroy that card if you control a monster that was Special Summoned by the effect of a "Nouvelles" monster. If you Special Summon "Hungry Burger": You can banish this card from your GY; Tribute as many monsters your opponent controls as possible. You can only use each effect of "Chef's Special Recipe" once per turn.
An archetypal Counter Trap with no cost? Can't go wrong with it. And if you notice its name, it's a Recipe, meaning you can search it with Balameuniere and Restaurant. If you're playing through your plays like normal, you might run into a situation where you're searching for stuff and you realize you already have everything you need. In that case, add this for your endboard. Stopping your opponent's Dark Ruler No More, Evenly Matched[yugipedia.com] , or any of their other big playmakers is never not a bad thing to have. It's also incredibly modal, giving you the option as to whether or not to destroy the negated card - if you still want a monster on your opponent's field to use for your own plays, you can do that. And of course, it has one last effect where, if you bring out your Hungry Burger, you can banish it to nuke all of your opponent's monsters. You never really want to start with this card in your hand, so I recommend running it at only one copy, but you'll often find yourself with this card on your board when your plays are said and done.
Recette de Personnel (Staff Recipe) (N)
Continuous Trap
You can target 1 Ritual Monster you control; Special Summon 1 "Nouvelles Token" (Fiend/DARK/Level 1/ATK 50/DEF 50). This Token's Level becomes the same as that monster's. You can send this face-up card from your Spell & Trap Zone to the GY; Ritual Summon 1 "Nouvelles" Ritual Monster from your hand by Tributing monsters from your hand or field whose total Levels exactly equal the Level of that Ritual Monster. You can only use each effect of "Recette de Personnel (Staff Recipe)" once per turn.
Well, this card's not bad, but it's kinda slow. It does let you trigger your own Nouvelles Monsters, but you really want to be doing it during your own turn to jumpstart your plays, which Poissonniere does much better. Sure, you get a free Token, but even the Ritual Summon you can perform with this card is restrictive, requiring exact levels. You could possibly fit one copy, but I would avoid this card.
Concours de Cuisine (Culinary Confrontation) (SR)
Quick-Play Spell
Choose 1 "Nouvelles" Pendulum Monster and 1 "Patissciel" Pendulum Monster from your hand, Deck, and/or Extra Deck, and Special Summon both monsters, 1 to each field, also this turn, you cannot use monsters as material for a Fusion, Synchro, Xyz, or Link Summon, except "Nouvelles" and "Patissciel" monsters. During your Main Phase: You can banish this card from your GY, then target 1 face-up monster on the field; it gains 200 ATK for each "Recipe" card in the GYs. You can only use each effect of "Concours de Cuisine (Culinary Confrontation)" once per turn.
If Poissonniere was a great extender, Culinary Confrontation is even better. Giving your opponent a Monster might seem counter-productive, except now you have a free thing to Tribute for all of your Nouvelles plays, in addition to getting Poissonniere on the field for free. As a side-effect, it also blocks your opponent from using Infinite Impermanence, as they now control a card, at least until you Tribute it for your plays. Furthermore, this card has a Graveyard effect that targets, meaning, you guessed it, more extension for your Nouvelles Tributes - the Attack boost is just icing on the cake. You may be wondering what a "Patissciel" Monster is, and we'll get to her in a second. But for now, just know that running this card at three copies will just make all of your plays go much smoother
Section 5 - Les Spécialités De Ce Soir (Tonight's Specialties)
We've gone through all of the Nouvelles, Recipe, and their adjacent cards, so now we shall be going over some viable non-Nouvelles pieces. I'm not going to be covering obvious staples like Ash Blossom, Nibiru[yugipedia.com] , and the Roach[yugipedia.com] - those are good in every deck, and I would recommend running these cards as you or the meta desires. Here, I want to focus more on either generic Ritual support, interesting combo pieces, and other generic cards that aren't quite staple status, but still work wonders.
Pre-Preparation of Rites (SR)
Normal Spell
Add 1 Ritual Spell from your Deck to your hand, and add 1 Ritual Monster from your Deck or GY to your hand whose name is listed on that Ritual Spell. You can only activate 1 "Pre-Preparation of Rites" per turn.
I've mentioned Pre-Prep a few times already, but I want to re-iterate: this card is just great for this deck. I appreciate the design of generic Ritual Spells that also just happen to mention one card's name specifically, allowing Pre-Preparation to search it out. Basically, you run this card, you get one Ritual Summon that you might not have had before. Running it at three copies is recommended.
Impcantation Candoll (R)
LIGHT | Level 4
Pyro / Effect
You can reveal 1 Ritual Spell in your hand; Special Summon both this card from your hand and 1 "Impcantation" monster from your Deck, except "Impcantation Candoll". If this card is Special Summoned from the Deck: You can add 1 Ritual Spell from your Deck to your hand. You can only use 1 "Impcantation Candoll" effect per turn, and only once that turn. You cannot Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck.
ATK: 0 | DEF: 0
Impcantation Talismandra (R)
DARK | Level 6
Plant / Effect
You can reveal 1 Ritual Monster in your hand; Special Summon both this card from your hand and 1 "Impcantation" monster from your Deck, except "Impcantation Talismandra". If this card is Special Summoned from the Deck: You can add 1 Ritual Monster from your Deck to your hand. You can only use 1 "Impcantation Talismandra" effect per turn, and only once that turn. You cannot Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck.
ATK: 0 | DEF: 0
I put these two together because they fill the same role, and they fill it together: you get more bodies on the field for more Ritual Summons and Nouvelles plays, while simultaneously getting more materials for those Ritual Summons. Drawing just one of them with their respective support piece means you get so much advantage - Candoll plus a Ritual Spell grabs you a Ritual Monster to summon with it, while Talismandra plus a Ritual Monster nets you a Ritual Spell you might not have had. You really never hate seeing an Impcantation in your opening hand, since you know you're gonna be able to make some very explosive plays. Run two of each, so you don't clog up your deck - trust me, four Impcantations are plenty if you want to see them consistently. On a related note, Impcantation Bookstone[yugipedia.com] and Impcantation Penciplume[yugipedia.com] are also options, except instead of gathering materials from the Deck, they gather them from your Graveyard. They work, although this deck has plenty of recursion available as it is already, and you're better off using the slots that Bookstone and Penciplume take up for more staples.
Diviner of the Herald (UR)
LIGHT | Level 2
Fairy / Tuner / Effect
If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can send 1 Fairy monster from your Deck or Extra Deck to the GY, and if you do, increase this card's Level by that monster's Level, until the end of this turn. If this card is Tributed: You can Special Summon 1 Level 2 or lower Fairy monster from your hand or Deck, except "Diviner of the Herald". You can only use each effect of "Diviner of the Herald" once per turn.
ATK: 500 | DEF: 300
If you add this card, this is your best choice for your Normal Summon, even better than Poissonniere. Its summon lets you pitch a Fairy from Deck or Extra Deck to Graveyard (see Herald of the Arc Light in the next section), which also increases its level, making it perfect for Ritual plays. Speaking of those plays, if you tribute Diviner of the Herald, you can Special Summon a weak Fairy from your Deck, which includes Poissonniere. With one card, as long as you already have a Ritual Summon available, you get all the materials required for another. Its an incredible starter for any Nouvelles deck, especially ones that run Poissonniere due to their (unintended?) synergy. If you run it, run three.
Gozen Match (SR)
Continuous Trap
Each player can only control 1 Attribute of monster. Send all other face-up monsters they control to the GY.
All of the named Nouvelles monsters are DARK, meaning that you can play under your own Gozen Match floodgate if you can set it up. Now, the synergy here is incredibly obvious, and doesn't seem too crazy, considering any mono-Attribute archetype can play under Gozen... except you also have a card that can force a monster onto your opponent's field - Culinary Confrontation. If your opponent is playing a non-DARK archetype like Traptrix, or an archetype that uses multiple different attributes like Kashtira, you can stop them from playing the game completely, locking their board before they even get a chance to start by giving them Patissciel Couverture. This isn't viable for every matchup - stuff like Labrynth and Dark World won't care whatsoever - and you do lock yourself out of Diviner of the Herald, your Impcantation Engine, and even a good chunk of your Extra Deck bosses from turn 2 onward if you do this, but you can flip this up after you've done all of your plays involving Diviner and Impcantation with no real issue. And besides, if your opponent is just unable to play, a lock on a few of your non-essential pieces is well worth the interaction. As of this article, it is Limited to 1, meaning that's your only choice if you want to run it in your deck. Still, with the interactions it has with your cards, it's definitely worth it.
Section 6 - Portions Supplémentaires (Extra Portions)
The Extra Deck with this strategy is very flexible - only a few cards are flat-out necessary. There's plenty of extra space you can fill with generic cards like the Knightmares. I'll be going over necessary or often-used cards here.
Patissciel Couverture (SR)
DARK | Level 5
Fairy / Fusion / Pendulum / Effect
[<- 1 | 1 ->] If you have no card in your other Pendulum Zone: You can place 1 face-up Pendulum Monster from your Extra Deck in your Pendulum Zone. You can only use this effect of "Patissciel Couverture" once per turn.
----------
2 Pendulum Monsters
If this card in the Monster Zone is destroyed: You can place this card in your Pendulum Zone.
ATK: 1700 | DEF: 700
This is the other card required for your Culinary Confrontation to be live, and the card that will be given to your opponent. Ultimately, this card's use is in its uselessness - fortunately for you, this card does absolutely nothing when Summoned to your opponent's side of the field, making it the perfect fodder. If you don't get the chance to Tribute it and it gets destroyed somehow, you can put it in a free Pendulum Scale and use it to scale any Poissonniere that somehow got stuck in your face-up Extra Deck. You really only need one copy, but two works fine in case you get the chance to use a second Culinary Confrontation.
Herald of the Arc Light (SR)
LIGHT | Level 4
Fairy / Synchro / Effect
1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters
Any monster sent from the hand or Main Deck to the GY is banished instead. When a Spell/Trap Card, or monster effect, is activated (Quick Effect): You can Tribute this card; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy that card. If this card is sent to the GY: You can add 1 Ritual Monster or 1 Ritual Spell from your Deck to your hand.
ATK: 600 | DEF: 1000
Let's be real, you're never actually Summoning this, unless you use a non-level-modified Diviner of the Herald and a Confiras. And it would be a waste, too. I mean, yeah, the Quick Effect omni-negate is nice, but that's not what this card is here for. What you're meant to do is send this card straight to the Graveyard with Diviner of the Herald. This boosts Diviner's level to 6, allowing her to be used as the sole material for any Nouvelles Ritual Monster, as well as activating this card's real effect: adding a Ritual Monster or Ritual Spell from Deck to hand. As seen with all of the other generic Ritual searches going on in this deck, this is very good, and as a result, the space it uses in your Extra Deck is more than worth it. It's actually worth two spaces, in case you get Diviner off a second time.
Nephthys, the Sacred Flame (UR)
FIRE
Winged Beast / Link / Effect
2+ monsters, including a Ritual Monster
While this card is in the Extra Monster Zone, monsters your opponent controls cannot target "Nephthys" monsters in the Main Monster Zones for attacks. This card gains effects based on the number of Ritual Monsters used for its Link Summon.
● 1+: Cannot be destroyed by battle.
● 2+: Cannot be destroyed by card effects, also it gains 1200 ATK.
● 3: Neither player can target this card with card effects, also it gains another 1200 ATK.
ATK: 2400 | LINK-3
The absurd swarming capabilities of the Nouvelles Ritual Monsters allow them to make Nephthys, the Sacred Flame a viable game-ender, being indestructible, untargetable, and incredibly beefy with 4800 Attack if you use three Ritual Monsters to bring it out. You may not be bringing this card out every game, but if you just need a little extra push to get over something that your Nouvelles monsters can't beat over or Tribute, this card doesn't lose to very many things. You really only need one, but if you're worried about losing it before it hits the field to something like Kashtira, two or even three copies doesn't hurt.
Elder Entity N'tss (UR)
LIGHT | Level 4
Fairy / Fusion / Effect
1 Synchro Monster + 1 Xyz Monster
Must be Special Summoned (from your Extra Deck) by sending the above cards you control to the GY. (You do not use "Polymerization".) Once per turn: You can Special Summon 1 Level 4 monster from your hand. If this card is sent to the GY: You can target 1 card on the field; destroy it. You can only Special Summon "Elder Entity N'tss(s)" once per turn.
ATK: 2500 | DEF: 1200
Just like Herald of the Arc Light, you're not bringing this card out through your own power. This is another target for Diviner of the Herald, as she can also pitch this card to increase her level to 6. Unlike Herald, however, this card doesn't search. Instead, it targets and destroys any one card on the field. Even discounting the fact that targeting a monster once again triggers your Nouvelles effects, the ability to pop anything, backrow included, essentially for free, is something that's too good to pass up. If you have all the resources you need, the free pop with this card is worth it. Run it at one or two copies - doesn't matter.
Dyna Mondo (SR)
EARTH
Cyberse / Link / Effect
2 monsters, including a Ritual Monster
If this card is Special Summoned: You can target 1 card on the field and 1 Ritual Monster in your GY; shuffle both into the Deck. During your opponent's turn (Quick Effect): You can Tribute this card, then target 1 Ritual Monster in your GY; either add it to your hand or Special Summon it. You can only use each effect of "Dyna Mondo" once per turn.
ATK: 2200 | LINK-2
A rather new addition to Master Duel, Dyna Mondo does provide some extra support in a pinch. First, you get a piece of non-destruction removal on its summon, allowing you to deal with a floodgate or a defensive wall on your opponent's field, while simultaneously recycling a Ritual back into your deck. Furthermore, during your opponent's turn, you can tribute Mondo to bring back a Nouvelles Ritual from your GY, both triggering their on-summon effects and also getting a Nouvelles back on the field to keep your opponent from playing too haphazardly. While Mondo may not be the strongest in terms of offense, especially when compared to Nephthys, and the Nouvelles are certainly no stranger to non-destruction removal themselves, it is a good piece of Extra Deck Ritual support for a deck that doesn't use the Extra Deck as much, and it slots in quite nicely. One to two copies should suffice.
Section 7 - Forces Et Faiblesses (Strengths And Weaknesses)
If this style of deck has tickled your fancy, or if you're not quite sold on it yet, let's break down what these tasty-sounding creatures can do.
Getting Around Destruction And Targeting - The most valuable asset of the entire Nouvelles archetype is the fact that their removal is almost entirely based around Tributes - effects that would trigger upon destruction, monsters that are immune to destruction, they all fall to pieces when faced with the Nouvelles effects. Furthermore, Buerillabaise, Confiras, Poeltis, and Foie Glasya's removal effects do not target. This gets around plenty of dangerous and otherwise immune threats, such as Guardian Chimera[yugipedia.com] , Borrelend Dragon[yugipedia.com] , and the occasional Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon.[yugipedia.com]
Swarming the Field - Even if you can't get rid of everything the opponent has, you can set up quite a few bodies on the field across both yours and your opponent's turns. They will need to expend lots of resources in order to get rid of everything, resources that you can continue to sap away as you continue bridging and laddering into stronger and stronger Nouvelles.
Incredibly Slippery - If any of your Nouvelles are in danger of being removed - or, God forbid, banished - by a targeting effect, like with Kashtira Fenrir, you can easily slip them out of danger as long as there is something you can tribute alongside it. They might go to the Graveyard, but it's much easier to bring it back from there than it is from the Banished pile, and you'll still get a new body on the board to replace it.
Plenty of Card Advantage - With all the drawing and the searching that this archetype revolves around, it's common to end your turn with a full hand of five cards along with a stacked board. With a basic play, you naturally can get up to three draws during your moves in addition to all of your archetypal searches. And of course, with every draw comes the chance at getting those sweet handtraps and interruption you can drop on your opponent during their turn.
Natural Chain Blocking - Courtesy of Poissonniere de Nouvelles, her ability to scale herself from the Extra Deck if Tributed can naturally block certain searches from being stopped by Ash Blossom - specifically, Buerillabaise's excavation, Poeltis' draw, and Balameuniere's search can all be done as Chain Link 1, while Poissonniere is done as Chain Link 2 if she was Tributed as part of any of their summons to prevent the opponent from responding to any of those with Ash Blossom.This all sounds incredible, but as it is with most archetypes, there are issues, and I won't pretend that these cards don't have any.
Trouble Closing Out Games - While OTKing is possible, it does require a bit of set-up and for you to go into all of your highest level Nouvelles over the course of a turn. Without the aid of Nephthys, the strongest you'll reasonably go in terms of a single monster's attack is about 3000, with a Baelgrill buffed by Culinary Confrontation. That doesn't happen often, meaning that if you've burned all of your Tributes, your opponent will likely still have Life Points remaining at the end of your turn.
Defensive Walls - I'll be real, if something like Bagooska[yugipedia.com] or Scareclaw Tri-Heart[yugipedia.com] hits the field and you don't have enough materials to immediately get Nephthys on the board to beat over it, you might as well scoop right there. The deck does have ways to get rid of Defense-position threats, but if all of those are swatted off, you'll have lots of trouble even with the initial building of your board.
Floodgates - This is an issue for plenty of decks, but Nouvelles don't have too many ways to clear them outside of N'tss or adding a Harpie's Feather Duster[yugipedia.com] . Skill Drain[yugipedia.com] completely shuts this deck down, and Rivalry of Warlords[yugipedia.com] and TCBOO[yugipedia.com] make it much more difficult to make plays. However, I did mention this before, but Gozen Match is a solid floodgate that this deck can run for itself, since you can use the few LIGHT Attribute monsters you have during your initial plays, leaving only DARK Attributes on the field, then flip Gozen Match up during your opponent's Draw Phase. Bonus points if you combine it with Culinary Confrontation.
Bricking - I've been beating around the bush with this issue. Although you have lots of consistency tools and searching, sometimes you just draw a completely unusable hand or, at best, a single move. That's the risk you take with a Ritual Deck. This used to be a lot worse before the release of Poissonniere de Nouvelles and Culinary Confrontation, which greatly enhanced the playability and pushed the deck away from being reactionary, but even with everything going for it, sometimes a dud hand still happens.
Section 8 - Plateau Combiné (Combo Platter)
If you've decided to play this deck, welcome. I'll teach you a few basic combos, and you can learn to extend them yourself from there. For all of the starting hand images shown with each combo example, assume I'm using only the cards mentioned in the combo. Yes, there is clearly a "Today's Menu" and an Impcantation in the second image's example. Yes, you can do crazy stuff with those extra two cards. No, that is not what the example is showing - I'm keeping these example ones simple. Starting with a combo that doesn't require any out-of-engine cards like Diviner or the Impcantations...
Culinary Confrontation | Buerillabaise de Nouvelles OR Fish Recipe | Poeltis de Nouvelles |
any Lvl3+ monster
Activate Culinary Confrontation
Resolve: Special Summon Poissonniere to your field, Special Summon Patissciel to opponent's field
On Resolution: Activate Poissonniere
Resolve: Search Fish Recipe OR Buerillabaise, whichever you do not have in opening hand Activate Fish Recipe
Resolve: Tribute Poissonniere, Ritual Summon Buerillabaise, add Meat Recipe
On Resolution: CL1 Buerillabaise, CL2 Poissonniere
Resolve: Scale Poissonniere; Excavate, add one Nouvelles card, if any Activate Meat Recipe
Resolve: Tribute monster in hand, Ritual Summon Poeltis
On Resolution: Activate Poeltis
Resolve: Draw 1 Activate Poissonniere CL1, target Buerillabaise, activate Poeltis CL2
Resolve: Tribute Buerillabaise + opponent's Patissciel, Special Summon Balameuniere; Special Summon Poissonniere from Pendulum Zone
On Resolution: Activate Balameuniere
Resolve: Add Nouvelles Restaurant Activate Nouvelles Restaurant
Resolve: Add Chef's Special Recipe IF you have something you want to shuffle back with Nouvelles Restaurant, activate and resolve Nouvelles Restaurant
Set Chef's Special Recipe (and any other cards you have that you would like set, like Infinite Impermenance)
At End Phase: Activate Nouvelles Restaurant, target 1 Recipe + 1 other card
Resolve: Send to bottom of deck, draw 1Endboard: Poeltis de Nouvelles, Balameuniere de Nouvelles, Poissonniere de Nouvelles, Nouvelles Restaurant, Chef's Special Recipe
Now, a four-card combo might sound like bad card economy, and in a lot of situations, it can be, but this leaves you with a board that has an omni-negate, a trigger interrupt, a Quick Effect interrupt, and whatever else you may have drawn from your uses of Restaurant and Poeltis. This board can further build up into a shuffler, a second Quick Effect Interrupt, and even a full board-wipe depending on what moves your opponent makes. Not to mention that plenty of the "required" cards for this combo are searchable with other generic cards (Buerillabaise and Fish Recipe are both accounted for with a single Pre-Preparation of Rites, for example). I needed to explain this to both show you what you're looking for in an endboard as well as create the foundation for how you can both expand your combos and for how you can reach this kind of board even if you're missing a piece. Let's try a combo that looks like this:
Culinary Confrontation | Diviner of the Herald | Buerillabaise de Nouvelles OR Fish Recipe
Normal Summon Diviner of the Herald
On Summon: Activate Diviner
Resolve: Send Herald of the Arc Light to GY
On Resolution: Activate Herald
Resolve: Add Poeltis de Nouvelles to hand Activate Culinary Confrontation
Resolve: Special Summon Poissonniere to your field, Special Summon Patissciel to opponent's field
On Resolution: Activate Poissonniere
Resolve: Search Fish Recipe OR Buerillabaise, whichever you do not have in opening hand Activate Fish Recipe
Resolve: Tribute Poissonniere, Ritual Summon Buerillabaise, add Meat Recipe
On Resolution: CL1 Buerillabaise, CL2 Poissonniere
Resolve: Scale Poissonniere; Excavate, add one Nouvelles card, if any Activate Meat Recipe
Resolve: Tribute Diviner, Ritual Summon Poeltis
On Resolution: Activate Diviner CL1, Poeltis CL2
Resolve: Draw 1; Special Summon Poissonniere from Deck Activate Poissonniere CL1, target Buerillabaise, activate Poeltis CL2
Resolve: Tribute Buerillabaise + Poissonniere in your Monster Zone, Special Summon Balameuniere; Special Summon Poissonniere from Pendulum Zone
On Resolution: Balameuniere CL1, Poissonniere in Extra Deck CL2
Resolve: Scale Poissonniere; Add Nouvelles Restaurant Activate Nouvelles Restaurant
Resolve: Add Chef's Special Recipe IF you have something you want to shuffle back with Nouvelles Restaurant, activate and resolve Nouvelles Restaurant
Set Chef's Special Recipe (and any other cards you have that you would like set, like Infinite Impermenance)
At End Phase: Activate Nouvelles Restaurant, target 1 Recipe + 1 other card
Resolve: Send to bottom of deck, draw 1Endboard: Poeltis de Nouvelles, Balameuniere de Nouvelles, Poissonniere de Nouvelles, Nouvelles Restaurant, Chef's Special Recipe, Poissonniere de Nouvelles (scaled)
You can tell this is kinda identical to the previous board, except done with less materials, and the opponent still has their Patissciel on their field - this is intentional, if the opponent makes any plays without immediately switching it to defense, we can use that to tribute to bring out Baelgrill to trigger his DRNM+Field Wipe. If you're worried that the opponent will use it for their own plays, however, you can still bring out Baelgrill during your turn, it just means you'll need the opponent to make a play in order to bring out another one and perform the board nuke.
The Impcantations work in much the same way, bringing out lots of extra materials to summon with. It's not really possible to make a truly consistent Impcantation Combo in the same way you can with Diviner, but that's only because of the nature of their summoning methods being incredibly flexible - it's a bit more advanced, but at the same time, you can be a lot more flashy with Impcantation-based combos. This also extends to combining Impcantation and Diviner combos - perform it right, and you can have upwards of three to four interrupts, an omni-negate, and various other interactions waiting for your opponent.
Section 9 - Trucs Et Astuces Savoureux (Tasty Tips And Tricks)
And now, a couple of interactions and extra tips you can use to push your Nouvelles gameplay to the next level.
If your opponent has two Attack Position monsters on their field, and you have Poeltis/Foie Glasya and a Balameuniere on your field, you can use Balameuniere to target one of their monsters, then trigger Poeltis to tribute the second one - two removals at once!
Be careful if using your own Infinite Impermanence to actually negate an effect - if you remove the targeted monster from the field with one of your Nouvelles before Imperm resolves, the targeted monster's effect will still go off.
Because of its ability to search for a Recipe upon resolution, Ash Blossom can stop Fish Recipe - grab an extra one if you get the chance.
If you have an Impcantation on the field, you cannot use Culinary Confrontation, thanks to the lock on the Extra Deck that the Impcantation monsters have. If you have both an Impcantation and a Culinary Confrontation in your hand, use Culinary Confrontation first.
Try to keep a Main Monster Zone open if you can - Balameuniere and Baelgrill require an open spot to use their Tribute effects. If you need one opened up, you can Tribute two of your own monsters with a lower-level Nouvelles Tribute effect as a last resort.
Know your rulings when it comes to bringing Nouvelles monsters back from the GY - because this deck Special Summons them without a Ritual Summon a lot of the time, it means that they weren't properly Ritual Summoned, and as such, it's not possible to summon them directly from the GY with cards like Dyna Mondo and Monster Reborn[yugipedia.com] . While this isn't as big of an issue with Buerillabaise and any that you bring out with a Ritual Spell, since they were properly Ritual Summoned, it means that you should keep track of which ones were "cheated" onto the field or were sent directly from the hand/deck to the GY - those ones will be the highest priority for Foie Glasya and Nouvelles Restaurant to shuffle back into the deck.
If you're not having trouble making your plays and you draw into Culinary Confrontation in the middle of your combos, try setting it instead of activating it immediately - because it's a Quick-Play Spell, you can activate it during your opponent's turn. That way, if they're setting their cards into Defense Position, you can summon an Attack Position monster to their field, creating an opening for you to start making plays against their cards.
Section 10 - Finale (...Finale)
This has been a guide on how to play Nouvelles, also known as the Hungry Burger deck.
I hope I have converted you to the Gospel of Nouvelles, and that the next deck you build will include these little guys and all of their support.
If you enjoyed this guide (or hated my butchered Google Translated French titles), leave a like or a comment below. I'll be reading them. If there's any cool support I missed or any interactions I've forgotten, let me know as well - maybe I'll add them here.
I hope to catch you all in Ranked, cooking and plating your way up to Master.
EDIT 1 (11/6): According to some leaks from Dkayed, it looks like, crazily enough, Konami is releasing the Nouvelles support from "Age Of Overlord" with their initial release. I wasn't holding my breath for this to happen, because their new cards are less than a month old in the TCG at the time of this edit, but this is big if true, and genuinely makes me so happy. Just removed the little disclaimers from each card's section that stated they wouldn't be here immediately.
EDIT 2 (11/9): Nouvelles have officially dropped with all their support. Updated the images in the combo guide using actual Master Duel screenshots rather than ones from Dueling Nexus. Also updated the card pictures of Poissonniere and Culinary Confrontation, since they were using OCG proxies. Finally, listed the Rarity next to each card's name, so you can expect how much dust you need to use.
EDIT 3 (11/17): Updated Poissonniere and Culinary Confrontation's card texts - my draft was using the unofficial translation from their pre-TCG releases. Also fixed typos in Poissonniere's name - apparently she has 2 "n"s?
Source: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3043074961
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