Yu-Gi-Oh! Genesys: Building a Deck Under the 100-Point Cap

Genesys is Konami’s official alternate format, and it is a natural home for returning players. It removes the two newest monster types, uses the original field, and replaces the Forbidden and Limited List with a point budget. Konami runs it at Official Tournament Stores, and every YCS now has a Genesys Main Event alongside the Advanced one.

The rules

From Konami’s Genesys page:

• No Link Monsters or Pendulum Monsters. Every other card is allowed.
• The original field. No Extra Monster Zones and no Pendulum Zones. Your Fusion, Synchro, and Xyz Monsters go into your Main Monster Zones.
• No Forbidden and Limited List. Cards Forbidden or Limited in the Advanced Format can be used, apart from Link and Pendulum Monsters.
• The 3-copy limit still applies.
• Points. Some cards have a point value. Most cost zero. The total of your Main Deck, Extra Deck, and Side Deck together cannot go over the event’s cap.
• The standard cap is 100. Events can use any cap, even zero, and stores can set their own. Ask before you build.

What costs points

Here are some common cards and their points on Konami’s list as of October 2026. The list changes, so check the page before each event.

Notice two things. First, a card being Forbidden in Advanced does not make it expensive in Genesys, and the reverse. Pot of Greed is Forbidden in Advanced and costs 20 here. Second, strong cards that are legal at 3 in Advanced, like Ash Blossom, still cost points here. The two lists measure different things.

The cap covers your Side Deck

This is the rule that catches most players. The 100 points are shared across Main, Extra, and Side Deck together. A Side Deck full of pointed hand traps can push you over the cap even if your Main Deck is under it. Count everything.

Spending the budget

Think of points as a budget for the cards that swing Duels, not for comfort.

• Count your free power first. Most of a strong Genesys deck costs nothing. Build it, then see what the remaining points can add.
• Price each card by impact. Three copies of Ash Blossom cost 54 points, more than half the cap. Three copies of Effect Veiler cost 21. Ask which mix stops the decks you expect, not which card is best in a vacuum.
• Mind the copies. One copy of a 50-point card is half your budget for a card you open in your first five only about 12.5% of the time going first, from lesson 9’s table. That can be right, but know the price.
• Leave room for the Side Deck. If you spend all 100 in the Main Deck, your Side Deck can only hold zero-point cards.

A sample budget

Here is one way to spend 100 points on interaction, as an example of the math, not a recommendation:

• 2 Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring: 36
• 3 Infinite Impermanence: 24
• 3 Effect Veiler: 21
• 1 Called by the Grave: 20

Total: 101. One point over. Cut one Effect Veiler to land at 94, with 6 points left for a Side Deck card. The exercise is the point: every choice has a price, and the cap forces you to choose.

Why returning players like it

Without Link Monsters, many older Fusion, Synchro, and Xyz strategies come back to life, and the original field feels familiar. If your binder is full of those cards, Genesys may let you play them at a store again. Lesson 8 mentioned it as a friendly way back in. At Level 4, it is also a real competitive format, with its own Main Event at each YCS.

Building in NEURON

Konami’s Genesys page links a guide to building Genesys deck lists in NEURON, which helps you track the points as you build. Use it, and you will never be surprised by your total at registration.