Hello, Cardfighters! While I may not be the illustrious caretaker of this blog (whom I can still trounce in any game of Vanguard), //Ha ha, very funny, Wayword. We are on par and you know it - Daltorus// I’m still a man of intrigue and mysticism. I, dear fellows, am The Wayword Writer, Loremaster on all things Vanguard (well, according to myself and the little voices I keep hearing). And boy, do I have a treat for you. As most of you know (or at least those that pay any attention to the Japanese news releases), a brand new clan has been brought into the mix: the mysterious beings of time and space known as Gear Chronicle.
Now, as with anything else in this game, theories and stories have been crafted about this clan and their origins, and while I’m at no liberty to make an official release, I can certainly make a few well-constructed statements of my own.
So strap in and start playing the Dr. Who music, ‘cause it’s time to bend some time and rip space a new one. This is…GEAR CHRONICLE: ORIGINS
Part 1: Design
Now, in order to asses the origins of a clan, one must also analyze their gameplay and design. While very few Gear Chronicle cards have been released, there’s still a bit one can extrapolate from how the cards have been rendered. Most of the creatures and people seem to wield a combination of futuristic technology combine with medieval weaponry.
Now, this would almost immediately make them appear as if they were just some hackneyed combination of the Royal Paladins and Nova Grapplers, until one looks at the species of a select few cards. The main boss card, Chrono Jet Dragon, is not just a typical reptilian, but a Gear Dragon. This brings in an element of mysticism and likely alludes to some form of magic within the clan (if dragons exist, then one must be able to control or converse with them in order to gain their trust, no?). Not only that, but while some technological advancements stretch to outright laser weaponry (as seen with Twin Maser Dragon and Mystery Flare Dragon), there are others that are firmly rooted in steampunk-era melee combat (as seen with Dadashig). This means that the technology we’ve seen is likely magi-tech, advanced machinery and weaponry enhanced by magic spells, artifacts or a true combination of magic and science.
This means that the clan is heavily advanced in its culture, even though (according to the show), the clan has been missing for who knows how long. Still, this means that there’s certainly one theory that can be dismissed, which I will address later. For now, however, there’s still more to be addressed.
Part 2: Abilities
The main mechanic with Gear Chronicle (at least from what can be said about Chrono Jet) is the ability to return cards on your opponents field to the bottom of the deck (and maybe even the top, too). Think of it as sending units back in time.
Something else that’s interesting is the ability of two cards (both Steam Breath Dragon and Gunner Gear Dracokid) is that they can search the deck, not just the top five cards, for a Grade 3 (though Steam Breath is restricted to Chrono Jet cards). This puts even more emphasis on the time travel aspect that’s already heavily prevalent in the clan. And heck, even the main Stride unit has this motif hidden in it as well! While the extra turn by some seems completely broken (even though it’s still freaking hard to pull off), if it does activate, one can see it as gaining and extra turn. A few more plays. Turning back time. This constant focus on time and either conquering it or manipulating it assists in making conclusions about the clan itself, and if you’ve got some spare intuition, you might see where I’m going. However, there’s still a sneaking little spider that I’ve got to squash, so bear with me.
Alt. Theory: Link Joker Reborn
With the ending of season 4 bringing about the supposed end to the war against Link Joker with the splitting of the seed by good old Blaster Blade, one would easily assume that Gear Chronicle is just Link Joker reborn. However, there are still a few flaws in this theory. For one, the geographic locations of both Dark Zone and Stargate. Now, I know that this isn’t that big of a deal, but it’s still an issue that needs to be addressed. As seen in people and animals, things tend to gravitate towards what they’re more accustomed to rather than what is foreign. If Link Joker was ever reborn, they would likely stay somewhere in Star Gate, where all the technology is, instead of transferring to the magic-heavy Dark Zone (which, I’d like to mention, is halfway across Cray). Not only that, but even with the inclusion of technology in Gear Chronicle, they’re still leagues behind the clans in Star Gate. Now, I know that most people are going to say. “Oh, but what about Deletors? Gear Chronicle only showed up after Link Joker was defeated!” And here’s what I have to say. For one, Deletors can be considered as the original Link Joker; aliens bent on rending and razing everything into immeasurable piles of dust and ruin. They, along with the Star-vaders (who, I’d like to mention, are cybernetically enhanced soldiers of the Deletors) are inherently malevolent and seek nothing but destruction and assimilation (like of the Cybermen and Daleks ever teamed up). In contrast, Gear Chronicle is a clan that seeks knowledge, spanning all manner of times and dimensions to gain what they so desire, only dropping into Cray because a rift happen to open. So what does this mean? Well, here’s what I think.
Conclusion
Like with the Bluish Flame Liberators, I think that Gear Chronicle was taken from another time with the assistance of Zenon in order to maintain balance on Cray. Learning of the dire needs of the planet, the soldiers of Gear Chronicle obliged, knowing that they could easily gain new information about its inhabitants and the humans that commanded them, as well. With these studies being conducted, it’s obvious to know that all the other nations would be suspicious. However, Gear Chronicle knows something. They see a threat on the horizon, as a result of jumping rampantly through space and time, and have come to assist Cray before they fall to whatever lies over the horizon. But hey, that’s just my spin on things. Got anything better?
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