The Woes And Wailings of Dragoon Rulings and the Fundamentals of TCGs
Posted: Sun Sep 06, 2020 6:41 pm
“If there is a discrepancy between the basic rules and a card’s effect, the card effect takes precedence. For example, a monster can only attack once per turn, but with a card effect, it is possible to attack twice.”
-Yugioh Official Rulebook, Page 50
This is probably the most important quote to take away from the Yugioh Rulebook. In my opinion, this concept is the core appeal of TCGs in general. Players are given a specific set of rules, and the cards they play essentially ‘break’ those rules. This concept of controlled freedom is exactly what TCG players enjoy so much.
That being said, Yugioh has been inconsistent with the application of this in the past few years. To be fair, Yugioh is a japanese game originally. I am no translator, but I imagine there are some concepts that are just downright difficult to translate, let alone manage and balance a 20 year old trading card game.
So I was playing on DuelingNexus, and I found myself unable to activate Red-Eyes Fusion. I was playing Gaia the Fierce Knight/Dragoon turbo. I was not playing Red-Eyes, as I thought Cursed Dragon would be able to do the job. I was mistaken. I went to Duelingbook to vent/complain, until the Lovely Users of Duelingbook (I love you all, bless your hearts) directed me to the official rulings regarding Red-Eyes Fusion and Dragoon.
https://yugipedia.com/wiki/Card_Rulings ... rk_Dragoon
This ruling, although rather straightforward, leaves me with one question:
“WHY?”
WHY can I not use Cursed Dragon as material when using Red-Eyes Fusion? Nowhere on Red-Eyes Fusion does it say I HAVE to use Red-Eyes. For quick reference, here are Dragoon’s Fusion Materials:
"Dark Magician" + "Red-Eyes Black Dragon" or 1 Dragon Effect Monster
And here is what Red-Eyes Fusion states:
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster that lists a "Red-Eyes" monster as material from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand, Deck, or field as Fusion Materials, and if you do, its name becomes "Red-Eyes Black Dragon".
Is there perhaps a mistranslation? I would totally understand that, as this is a card game translated from Japanese to English, and translation issues have been an issue before. Rainbow Dragon and the entire Inherent Summon rulings are just two examples. However, the best explanation I could find so far is the Official Ruling in question, and that Konami has a final say on such rulings, and does not owe us an explanation.
Readers, let us return to the quote from the very beginning. Is this not a blatant contradiction in policy? It’s a ruling that contradicts the very fundamentals of any card game. Now perhaps there is an explanation. If so, I want it.I think it’s silly to just blindly accept a ruling just because those in power said so. I want to see the data, I want to understand the logic. I am entitled to an explanation!
-Yugioh Official Rulebook, Page 50
This is probably the most important quote to take away from the Yugioh Rulebook. In my opinion, this concept is the core appeal of TCGs in general. Players are given a specific set of rules, and the cards they play essentially ‘break’ those rules. This concept of controlled freedom is exactly what TCG players enjoy so much.
That being said, Yugioh has been inconsistent with the application of this in the past few years. To be fair, Yugioh is a japanese game originally. I am no translator, but I imagine there are some concepts that are just downright difficult to translate, let alone manage and balance a 20 year old trading card game.
So I was playing on DuelingNexus, and I found myself unable to activate Red-Eyes Fusion. I was playing Gaia the Fierce Knight/Dragoon turbo. I was not playing Red-Eyes, as I thought Cursed Dragon would be able to do the job. I was mistaken. I went to Duelingbook to vent/complain, until the Lovely Users of Duelingbook (I love you all, bless your hearts) directed me to the official rulings regarding Red-Eyes Fusion and Dragoon.
https://yugipedia.com/wiki/Card_Rulings ... rk_Dragoon
This ruling, although rather straightforward, leaves me with one question:
“WHY?”
WHY can I not use Cursed Dragon as material when using Red-Eyes Fusion? Nowhere on Red-Eyes Fusion does it say I HAVE to use Red-Eyes. For quick reference, here are Dragoon’s Fusion Materials:
"Dark Magician" + "Red-Eyes Black Dragon" or 1 Dragon Effect Monster
And here is what Red-Eyes Fusion states:
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster that lists a "Red-Eyes" monster as material from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand, Deck, or field as Fusion Materials, and if you do, its name becomes "Red-Eyes Black Dragon".
Is there perhaps a mistranslation? I would totally understand that, as this is a card game translated from Japanese to English, and translation issues have been an issue before. Rainbow Dragon and the entire Inherent Summon rulings are just two examples. However, the best explanation I could find so far is the Official Ruling in question, and that Konami has a final say on such rulings, and does not owe us an explanation.
Readers, let us return to the quote from the very beginning. Is this not a blatant contradiction in policy? It’s a ruling that contradicts the very fundamentals of any card game. Now perhaps there is an explanation. If so, I want it.I think it’s silly to just blindly accept a ruling just because those in power said so. I want to see the data, I want to understand the logic. I am entitled to an explanation!