Rulings Index and Agent Recall Map
Read this page before opening individual ruling pages. It is a compact routing map for `src/rulings/`: match the user question to the recall keywords, then open the linked page and any cross-links inside that page.
The filenames intentionally include redundant, high-signal terms so local file search, lexical retrieval, and human agents can recall the right page from partial mechanics such as "send to GY cost", "mandatory trigger", "Gozen", "unaffected", or "Damage Step".
How to use this index
- Start here when diagnosing Judge failures or adding corpus coverage.
- Search this file for card names, mechanic words, and common player phrasing before scanning the whole directory.
- Open the best matching linked page, then follow its cross-links for adjacent mechanics.
- If no page matches the class, add a new numbered ruling page and update this index in the same change.
Core rules, timing, chains, costs, and zones
| # | Page | Recall keywords |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | PSCT — Colons and Semicolons | psct, colon, semicolon, cost, target, activation, timing |
| 02 | Chain Resolution — Step by Step | chain, resolution, no, mid, chain, response, quick, effects |
| 03 | Missing the Timing | missing, timing, when, optional, trigger, then, after |
| 04 | Super Polymerization — RC-1 Notes | super, polymerization, spell, speed, 4, fusion, materials |
| 05 | Battle and the Damage Step | damage, step, battle, phase, activation, windows |
| 06 | Spell Card Subtypes | quick, play, field, continuous, equip, spell, subtypes |
| 07 | Turn Structure and Phases | turn, phase, structure, priority, open, game, state |
| 08 | SEGOC — Simultaneous Effects Go On a Chain | segoc, simultaneous, triggers, chain, order |
| 09 | Activation Negation vs. Effect Negation | activation, negation, vs, effect, negation, once, per, turn |
| 10 | Trigger Conditions — Discard as Effect vs. as Game Action | discard, trigger, cost, effect, game, action |
| 11 | Ritual Summoning | ritual, summon, tribute, minimal, overpay, levels |
| 12 | Link Summoning | link, summon, materials, arrows, zones |
| 13 | Pendulum Summoning | pendulum, summon, scales, extra, deck |
| 14 | "Properly Summoned" and Extra-Deck Direct Sends | properly, summoned, revival, extra, deck, ritual, nomi |
| 15 | Card Zone Transitions | zone, transitions, field, gy, banish, deck, hand |
| 16 | Name Matching and "All Cards With That Name" | name, matching, all, cards, with, that, name, banish |
| 17 | Continuous Application Effects | continuous, effect, application, rechecking, negation |
| 18 | Targeting, Costs, and What Ash Blossom Can Negate | targeting, cost, effect, ash, blossom, negation |
Activation legality, targeting, triggers, and field state
| # | Page | Recall keywords |
|---|---|---|
| 19 | Droll & Lock Bird and Unchained Soul Lord of Yama | droll, lock, bird, yama, add, from, deck, trigger |
| 20 | Setting Cards Directly from the Deck | set, directly, from, deck, activation, not, activated |
| 21 | Send-to-GY Costs Under Banish-Instead Effects | banish, instead, blocks, send, to, gy, cost, droll, fissure |
| 22 | Trigger Effects and Location Changes Before Activation | trigger, location, change, before, activation, window |
| 23 | Special Summon Negation and Effects That Summon | special, summon, negation, inherent, vs, effect, summon |
| 24 | ATK Effects: Past Summon Facts vs Current Game State | atk, def, current, game, state, original, atk, variable, question, mark |
| 25 | Exodia During an Effect Resolution | exodia, win, condition, during, chain, resolution |
| 26 | Infernity Archfiend Draw Timing And Empty Hand Checks | infernity, archfiend, draw, empty, hand, trigger, timing |
| 27 | Trap Monsters Flipped Face-Down | trap, monster, face, down, spell, trap, zone, monster, zone |
| 28 | Effects Act Only on Cards in the Zone They Specify | effect, required, zone, application, field, gy, hand |
| 29 | Lingering Effects Granted by Summon Material | summon, material, lingering, effects, after, summon |
| 30 | The "then" Gate: Wording Decides Whether the Follow-up Happens | then, conjunction, gate, psct, follow, up, resolution |
| 31 | Responding to Cards Placed by a Cost (Before the Effect Resolves) | respond, to, cost, sent, card, before, effect, resolves |
| 32 | Dodging Targeted Removal — Targeting Does Not Freeze a Card | targeted, removal, dodge, chain, link, resolution, target, recheck |
| 33 | "Unaffected" Is Not "Cannot Be Targeted" and Is Not "Cannot Be Equipped" | unaffected, not, cannot, target, equip, legal, target |
| 34 | Conditional Clauses vs. Activation Conditions | conditional, clause, not, activation, condition, if, when |
| 35 | A Monster's Effects Apply Only While It Is a Face-Up Monster in the Monster Zone | monster, effects, only, face, up, monster, zone |
| 36 | When "Each Time a Monster Is Sent to the GY" Damage Is Inflicted | sent, to, gy, damage, burn, cost, resolution, summon, timing |
Summons, continuous effects, and replacements
| # | Page | Recall keywords |
|---|---|---|
| 37 | Temporary Banishment and Its Return Interactions | temporary, banish, return, forget, link, overlay, control |
| 38 | Choosing Among Listed Effects: Activation-Time vs. Resolution-Time | choose, listed, effect, activation, vs, resolution, choice |
| 39 | Extra Normal Summons: Three Distinct Categories | extra, normal, summon, additional, set, double, summon |
| 40 | Forgetting: What Monsters Lose When They Stop Being Face-Up | forget, face, down, temporary, banish, retained, information |
| 41 | [The Highlander Clause: "You can only control 1 [Card Name]"](41_only_control_one_highlander_clause_same_name.md) | only, control, one, highlander, clause, same, name |
| 42 | Tribute / Destroy in Deck vs. Send to GY — What Ash Blossom Can Actually Negate | tribute, destroy, in, deck, vs, send, to, gy, ash, blossom |
| 43 | Pendulum Monsters Banished Instead of Going to the Face-up Extra Deck | pendulum, to, extra, deck, banish, instead, replacement |
| 44 | "Cannot Be Used as Material" Is a Condition, Not a Monster Effect | cannot, use, as, fusion, synchro, xyz, link, material, condition |
| 45 | Returning Activated Non-Continuous Spell/Trap Cards (Marked for the GY) | activated, spell, trap, return, to, hand, marked, for, gy |
Activation negation, copying, floodgates, and tokens
| # | Page | Recall keywords |
|---|---|---|
| 46 | Negating Activation Sends Continuous/Field Spell & Trap to the GY | negate, activation, continuous, field, spell, trap, sent, to, gy |
| 47 | Worked Examples: Negating Activation & Where the Card Goes | ghost, belle, negate, activation, where, card, goes, examples |
| 48 | Resolve As Much As Possible | resolve, as, much, as, possible, partial, resolution, targets, lost |
| 49 | Effect-Copying Cards: "This Effect Becomes That Card's Effect" | copy, effect, without, cost, transaction, rollback, trap |
| 50 | Branded Lost: When the Opponent Is (and Is Not) Locked Out | branded, lost, fusion, summon, response, lock, window |
| 51 | Momentary "When Summoned" Locks and Chain Resolution Order | when, summoned, response, lock, chain, resolution, order |
| 52 | Attribute/Type Floodgates Make Off-Attribute Summons Illegal — Gozen Match, Rivalry of Warlords, There Can Be Only One | gozen, rivalry, tcboo, attribute, type, summon, floodgate |
| 53 | Effects That Interact During Chain Resolution Without Starting a Chain — Angelica's Angelic Ring, Ryzeal Cross | no, chain, during, resolution, continuous, quick, interaction |
| 54 | Monster Tokens — What They Can't Do, and Evenly Matched | tokens, face, down, banish, evenly, matched, leaves, field |
Amounts, priority, legality, and summon history
| # | Page | Recall keywords |
|---|---|---|
| 55 | Fixed-Count vs. "Choose That Many": When the Exact Number Matters | exact, number, all, or, nothing, flexible, amount, targets |
| 56 | Using Turn-Player Priority + Forbidden Droplet to Lock a Hand Trap Out of a Window | turn, player, priority, forbidden, droplet, hand, trap, lockout |
| 57 | Summoning Conditions Are Not Card Effects (Inherent Special Summons) | summoning, condition, not, effect, inherent, special, summon |
| 58 | A Summon Trigger Is Lost If the Monster Is Destroyed Before Its Window | summon, trigger, lost, destroyed, before, activation, window |
| 59 | Paying Life Points You Cannot Afford: The "Never More Than You Have" Rule | pay, lp, cannot, afford, life, points, cost |
| 60 | Extra Deck Summon Zones (April 2020 Rules) | extra, deck, summon, zones, emz, link, arrows, 2020 |
| 61 | Attributes vs Types: The Canonical Lists | attribute, vs, type, canonical, lists, dark, dragon |
| 62 | Using Your Own Monster as Material Can Switch a Floodgate ON Mid-Summon — Domain of the True Monarchs | material, removal, changes, floodgate, domain, summon, legality |
| 63 | Column-Based Negation Keys to the Activation Column, Not Where the Card Sits | infinite, impermanence, column, negation, activation, column |
Divergence, modifiers, Graveyard protection, and activation caps
| # | Page | Recall keywords |
|---|---|---|
| 64 | Only One "Special Summon Itself From the Hand" Trigger Effect Per Chain | one, hand, special, summon, trigger, per, chain, segoc |
| 65 | A Summon Trigger Survives a Control Change in Its Own Chain — and the TCG Gives It to the Summoner | control, change, summon, trigger, tcg, ocg, divergence |
| 66 | Transaction Rollback Copying a Cost-Bundled Trap (Eradicator Epidemic Virus) — Confirm With a Head Judge | transaction, rollback, eradicator, epidemic, virus, head, judge |
| 67 | When the Honest Answer Is "Ask Your Head Judge" | head, judge, required, unsettled, tcg, policy, ruling |
| 68 | Why Two "Correct" Rulings Can Disagree: Divergence Axes | ocg, tcg, goat, modern, ruling, divergence, axes |
| 69 | Control-Switch Effects: "Unaffected" Is a Legal Target, "Control Cannot Switch" Is Not | unaffected, control, switch, legal, target, cannot, change, control |
| 70 | ATK/DEF Modifier Application Order | atk, def, modifier, layers, set, gain, double, half |
| 71 | Necrovalley and Graveyard-Protection Floodgates | necrovalley, gy, protection, cost, activation, negate, effect |
| 72 | An Effect Needs a Legal Target / a Possible Application to Activate | activation, legality, needs, legal, target, possible, application |
| 73 | "Once Per Chain" Activation Caps and Pending Negation | once, per, chain, activation, cap, pending, negation |
Battle, damage, identity, replacement, and control
| # | Page | Recall keywords |
|---|---|---|
| 74 | Extra Deck Monsters Summoned From Somewhere Other Than the Extra Deck | extra, deck, monster, summoned, from, gy, banish, zone, placement |
| 75 | A Face-Down/Face-Up Flip Preserves Card Identity | face, down, flip, preserves, identity, name, material, memory |
| 76 | Spell Speed Is a Property of the Effect, Not the Card or Its Zone | spell, speed, effect, property, fast, effect, zone |
| 77 | How a "Once Per Turn" Clause Counts Bulleted / Listed Effects | once, per, turn, counts, listed, bulleted, effects |
| 78 | "Unaffected" / Protection Does Not Stop Using a Card as Cost, Tribute, or Material | unaffected, protection, allows, cost, tribute, material |
| 79 | "Attacked" vs. "Battled": Battling Requires Reaching Damage Calculation | attacked, vs, battled, damage, calculation, requirement |
| 80 | "Mandatory" Does Not Decide Chain Placement — Trigger vs. Quick Does | mandatory, trigger, not, same, chain, quick, effect, placement |
| 81 | Battle Destruction Is Determined at Damage Calculation but Performed at End of the Damage Step | battle, destruction, determined, damage, calc, performed, end, step |
| 82 | Placing a Card Face-Up Is Not "Activating" It | place, face, up, not, activate, spell, trap, field, zone |
| 83 | Destruction Replacement (Substitution) Effects | destruction, replacement, substitute, instead, effects |
| 84 | ["Treated as a [Fusion/Synchro/Xyz/Link/Ritual] Summon"](84_treated_as_fusion_synchro_xyz_link_ritual_summon.md) | treated, as, fusion, synchro, xyz, link, ritual, summon |
| 85 | LP Changes Are Not All "Damage" | lp, change, not, damage, pay, gain, lose, set, life, points |
| 86 | A Tribute Summon Is a Normal Summon | tribute, summon, is, normal, summon, normal, set |
| 87 | "When 2+ Cards Are Destroyed" Triggers Count Destructions, Not Targeting | destroyed, card, count, trigger, targeting, agnostic |
| 88 | A Time-Boxed ("Until the End Phase") Control Grant Holds Even Against an Opponent's Continuous Control-Take Equip | temporary, control, grant, beats, continuous, equip, takeback |
| 89 | Phase-Dependent Mandatory Triggers Do Not Repeat Forever | mandatory, phase, trigger, not, repeat, forever, light, darkness, dragon |
| 90 | Illegal Game State Discovered Later Is a Tournament Policy Repair | late, discovered, illegal, set, tournament, policy, head, judge |