Hearing his words, the Armorer burst out laughing.
"So Mr. Revolver came here specifically to make a name for himself."
He clearly didn't believe anyone would risk their neck "just because they couldn't stand it," for the sake of a bunch of unknown souls. He leaned toward the idea that this was some underworld newbie looking for a fast track to fame.
A rookie who might have some talent—but whose ego had outgrown his skills.
"Nice idea, but you picked the wrong place." The Armorer narrowed his eyes. "This isn't where you chase clout. Wrong place, wrong opponent. You may have just made the biggest—and last—mistake of your life."
Kira was unfazed. He simply smiled. "Then please… enlighten me."
"Good. Interesting."
The Armorer waved, signaling his men to step back and open a circle around them.
"Come then!"
He unfurled his Duel Disk, drew a Deck from the inside of his suit jacket, and slotted it in.
"Here, you'll witness… the cruelty of the world's dark side!"
"I look forward to it," Kira said.
"Duel!" x2
[Kira, LP 4000]
[The Armorer, LP 4000]
"Normal Summon 'Machina Sniper' in Attack Position!"
A steel soldier materialized, shouldering a long sniper rifle. As it landed, its parts gave off a crisp metallic scrape.
[Machina Sniper, ATK 1800]
"Machina, huh." Interest flickered across Kira's face. "What a coincidence."
Machina wasn't exactly rare these days; Machine themes had a loyal following among modern duelists.
Given this man's moniker—"Armorer"—it was no surprise he ran Machines. And among Machines, Machina was popular; even non-Machina Machine players often splashed the package.
The real-card "Machina Sniper," while it's on the field, prevents both players from attacking "Machina" monsters other than itself. In the manga, though, it was a vanilla with no effect.
The Armorer casually drew another card.
"I set one and end my turn."
His every move oozed confidence.
"My turn. Draw."
Kira eyed the Machina on his opponent's field and smiled meaningfully.
"I'll start with this. 'Machina Fortress' in my hand can Special Summon itself from my hand or GY by sending Machine monsters from my hand whose total Levels are 8 or more to the GY!"
He flashed a card, then slid it swiftly into the GY.
"I send the Level 8 'Machina Cannon' from my hand to the GY to Special Summon Machina Fortress!"
"What!?" The Armorer was taken aback.
The same archetype as me?
"Machina Cannon" hit the GY—and it was as if a mobile steel citadel crashed down. Tank treads rolled, each link gleaming coldly, like a war-beast roaring. Unknown alloys formed an impregnable hull; arcs of electricity danced inside the long railgun, hissing faintly.
[Machina Fortress, ATK 2500]
"Machina Fortress—attack 'Machina Sniper'!"
The steel dragon awoke. The railgun unleashed a thick blue beam. Air shattered, and the mech soldier's iron body was pierced as if made of paper. Screeching metal tore from within; circuits and steel melted under the blast, erupting into a fireball and thick smoke.
[The Armorer, LP 4000 → 3300]
The Armorer's face didn't change. "What a surprise. Mr. Revolver—you're a Machina user like me?"
"I am. But my Machina might be a little different from yours."
Kira chuckled.
"Battle Phase over. I set one and end."
A little different?
The Armorer smirked.
The dueling world was vast. For most Decks, even with all he'd seen in the Dark Web, he wouldn't claim to have seen it all.
But Machina—the Deck he'd steeped in for years, as familiar as his own hands—he considered thoroughly understood. He knew every line and tactic.
Using Machina like me—what could you possibly do that I haven't seen?
Already confident, his guard dropped further when he saw the familiar archetype.
"My turn. Draw."
He glanced at the draw and smiled.
"I don't know what's special about your Machina—but first, let me show you mine. Machina's strongest firepower!"
He slapped down the freshly drawn card.
"Normal Summon 'Commander Covington'!"
A red-armored mech soldier appeared, standing ramrod straight and even throwing a salute—like a mechanical GI.
[Commander Covington, ATK 1000]
"Next, I activate the Spell 'Ties of the Brethren'!" the Armorer declared. "I pay 1000 Life Points, choose a Level 4 or lower monster on my field, and Special Summon two monsters from my Deck with the same Type and Level as the chosen monster. Those monsters can't attack or be Tributed!" (Original effect)
[The Armorer, LP 3300 → 2300]
Yugi and the professor who ran Machina both used this card in the source. It was later printed for the real game, but with big changes.
In the TCG/OCG, Ties of the Brethren costs 2000 LP (which fits the 8000-LP environment better), and its restrictions differ a lot.
The printed version restricts the Summons to monsters of the same Attribute (not just Type/Level), and they must be different names—restrictions the original didn't have.
And the printed card also locks you from Special Summoning for the rest of the turn—again, not in the original. Conversely, the original's "the Summoned monsters can't attack or be Tributed" clause isn't on the printed version.
"I choose 'Commander Covington.' From my Deck, I Special Summon two Level 4 Machines…"
He searched two cards…
"'Machina Soldier' and 'Machina Defender'—come out!"
[Machina Defender, ATK 1200]
[Machina Soldier, ATK 1600]
"Then I flip my Set card: Continuous Trap 'Call of the Haunted'! I revive a monster from my GY in Attack Position!"
A pillar of golden light shot from his GY.
"Special Summon the fallen 'Machina Sniper'!"
[Machina Sniper, ATK 1800]
"Now—behold Machina's ultimate power!"
The Armorer raised his hand and shouted.
"I combine the Machina on my field—Soldier, Sniper, Defender—under Commander Covington's command! Transform and unite!
Appear, ultimate combined Machina—
—Machina Force! Fusion Assemble!!!"