Dueling Critters AU

👩‍🔬 MISS SPROCKET

Role: Exiled Scientist / Informant

Personality: Cool, reserved, guilty about her past.

History: Former Playtime Co. employee, helped create the first emotional card system. Helps Dogday from the shadows with technology and wisdom.

Deck: Non-duelist

Theme color: Olive green and copper

Special Ability: Analyze corrupted cards, create anti-banned weapons

🤖 JUDGEBOT-000

Role: Judge of the Final Judgment Tournament

Personality: Automated, neutral, unemotional.

History: An ancient system that maintains the order of the tournament. However, upon exposure to the Forbidden Card, it begins to distort the rules of the duel.

Deck: Does not use its own, but can modify the field.

Theme Color: Chrome with red eyes

Special Ability: Nullify the effects of any card... until it collapses.

🐰 HOPPY HOPSCOTCH

Full name: Hoppy Hopscotch

Role: Trickster / unpredictable chaos

Age (apparent): 17 years

Personality: Euphoric, impulsive, chaotic, emotionally unstable. He appears to be fun, but his mood swings can be terrifying.

History: He was created as an animator, but he got caught between glitched code and fake laughs. He plays to escape the emotional pain he feels, but his duels are dangerous.

Objective: Find a laugh that doesn't hurt.

Deck: Sadistic Smiles

Strategy: Direct damage, random effects, controlled self-sabotage.

Featured Letters:

“King Giggles, the Final Jester”

“Deadly Surprise Box”

“Dementia Roulette”

Theme color: Pink and yellow

Special Ability: Modifies the actual odds of the duel

🦄 CRAFTYCORN

Full name: Craftycorn 7X

Role: Strategist / logical rival

Age (apparent): 21 years

Personality: Intelligent, analytical, sarcastic, proud. Values ​​perfection and knowledge over emotion.

History: Designed as a programming assistant within the card creation system, it broke free from its code to become a duelist.

Objective: Understand the hidden structure of forbidden cards and correct system errors.

Deck: Cyclic Artifacts

Strategy: Tactical disruption, rotating traps, time manipulation.

Featured Letters:

“Crown of Reverse Time”

“Reboot Cycle”

“Paradox Cancellation”

Theme color: Metallic white and gray

Special Ability: Can read hidden sequences on the dueling field

🐘 BUBBA BUBBAPHANT

Full name: Bubba Bubbaphant

Role: Protective Ally / Brute Force

Age (apparent): 28 years

Personality: Peaceful, protective, wise, patient. Very strong but prefers to avoid violence.

History: He was the bodyguard of the original creator of Playtime Co. After his downfall, he swore to protect the younger members. He's like a big brother to Dogday.

Objective: Prevent Dogday from getting lost like his brother.

Deck: Ocean Beasts

Strategy: Field control, tidal summons, attack reduction.

Featured Letters:

“Leviatrumpet, Titan of the Current”

“Holy Tide”

“Deep Coral Wall”

Theme color: Navy blue and turquoise

Special Ability: Magic Resistance, can purify corrupted cards

🐱 CATNAP

Full name: Catnap Noctis

Role: Antihero / Main Antagonist

Age (apparent): 23 years

Personality: Reserved, introspective, melancholic, and cold in appearance. He has a gentle side buried by trauma and guilt.

History: He was one of the first champion duelists. He discovered the Forbidden Card of the Eternal Smile, which destroyed his mind and turned him into a feared legend. Deep down, he longs to be saved.

Objective: Break the corrupt dueling system at any cost.

Deck: Shadows of Laughter

Strategy: Effect absorption, mind control, summon denial.

Featured Letters:

“Catastro-Laughter, Smiling Nightmare”

“Echo of Pain”

“Dead Smile Mask”

Theme color: Dark purple and black

Special Ability: Manipulates the rules of the duel with dark energy

🐶 DOGDAY

Full name: Dogday Lumis

Role: Protagonist / central hero

Age (apparent): 19 years

Personality: Brave, loyal, determined, sincere, with a strong sense of justice. Always seeks what's right, no matter how hard it is.

History: He was raised alongside his brother Catnap in the Playtime City orphanage. When Catnap disappeared after a cursed tournament, Dogday vowed to find him. He discovered the key lay in the "Doomsday Tournament," where the most powerful duelists gather.

Objective: Save Catnap and destroy the Forbidden Card.

Deck: Celestial Guards

Strategy: Holy Defense, Quick Summons, Full Protection.

Featured Letters:

“Luma-Z, Spirit of the Celestial Guardian”

“Alpha Solar Shield”

“Last Dawn” (decisive trap)

Theme color: Gold and sky blue

Special Ability: Resistance to Mind Control Cards

Epilogue: End of the Tournament… Beginning of the Future

The Sacred Card shatters. The Critters are freed from their past. Catnap vanishes, leaving only his deck in his brother's hands.

Dogday swears:

“We will no longer fight to win… but to truly smile.”

Part 1: “Wake Up, Dogday”

Dogday receives a letter with an old stamp:

"If you want answers, win the tournament. At the top, the truth sleeps. —C"

He enters with his reinforced deck, determined to go all the way. In the first round, he defeats a Duelist from the security squad with his perfect combination of "Sun Shield" and "Radiant Guard Alpha."

But in the stands, a black-cloaked figure watches him: Catnap, the bearer of the Forbidden Letter.

Part 2: “The Double Face of the Past”

As the rounds progress, the Critters reunite and internal duels arise:

Hoppy vs. Craftycorn: A mental battle where the smile is broken. Hoppy tries to make Crafty laugh with random combos, but Crafty defeats him with a final trap: "Shame Reflection."

Dogday vs. Bubba: An emotional duel. Bubba tries to convince him to abandon the search, fearing that discovering the truth will destroy him. But Dogday wins by summoning his legendary card: “Spirit of the Celestial Guardian, Luma-X.”
Part 3: “The Summit of Silence”

In the finale, Catnap appears as the final guest duelist. With his cape torn, his gaze blank, and a broken smile, he reveals the truth:

“Playtime Co. created me not to make people laugh… but to control. This card is my soul.”

The final duel begins:

Catnap summons “Smiling Nightmare, Catastro-Laughter”, a monster that absorbs the effects of all destroyed cards.

Dogday resists, summoning “Luma-Z Justice Dawn,” which nullifies all darkness cards.

With only 100 LP left, Dogday triggers his final trap:
“Last Dawn,” which destroys both Ultimate Cards, and reveals that… the forbidden card can only be destroyed if someone smiles sincerely at it.

Dogday smiles. A tear falls. And Catnap… for the first time in years… smiles too.

Dogday: Protagonist. A Sky Guard-type deck focused on quick summons and divine shields. He's searching for his lost brother... Catnap.

Bubba Bubbaphant: An “Ocean Beasts” deck with field control and pressure cards. The strongest player in the world, but with a kind heart.

Craftycorn: Strategist. A “Cycling Artifacts”-type deck, revolving around trap cards that recycle effects.

Hoppy Hopscotch: Chaotic Duelist. A “Sadistic Smiles”-style deck based on direct damage cards and random effects.

Catnap: Antagonist. A "Shadows of Laughter" deck. Each card is related to manipulation, mind control, and nightmares.