Dueling Book's Verification Policy

[DB Head Judge]

What is Verification in Yu-Gi-Oh?

Verification is the process of ensuring that a card or effect that concerns private knowledge locations (the hand, Deck, Extra Deck, or face-down banished cards) is resolved properly. This is typically a quick process that is performed by the opposite player with the sole goal of confirming the effect is resolved properly.

How does Dueling Book handle Verification?

The Dueling Book Judge Staff holds that effects which could require verification of private knowledge information (e.g. "Mind Crush" or "Nobleman of Crossout") do NOT require a user to reveal their hand, Deck, Extra Deck, or face-down banished cards, in an effort to prevent the opponent gaining permanent access to knowledge about the game they should not have. Verification is meant to be a quick process that does not provide lasting information about the game. In an online setting, it is not possible to prevent a player from screenshotting a hand or deck, or notating it in any other sort of way. The policy laid out by the Dueling Book staff is in line with the current Konami Tournament Policy surrounding verification. This policy will be upheld for ALL rated duels in all gameplay formats. This includes not only Advanced, but also Goat (April 2005), Edison (March 2010), Speed, and Rush duels.

What should I do when one of these effects resolves?

When a card or effect such as "Mind Crush" or "Nobleman of Crossout" resolves, you should ask the opponent to confirm if they have any more copies of the affected card. If a mandatory effect such as "Sangan" resolves with no legal cards to add to the hand, play should continue. (In the case of no cards being banished for an effect like "Nobleman of Crossout", or no cards being added to the hand by the effect of "Sangan", the Deck should STILL be shuffled.) If a card such as "Reinforcement of the Army" is illegally activated, you should call a judge to apply the appropriate penalty. In ANY case of verification, the proper course of action is to continue the game and trust your opponent.

What should I do if I think my opponent is cheating?

If you believe your opponent is cheating by not resolving these effects correctly, you should call a judge if you have substantial evidence within the game itself. If you do not, then you should watch the replay afterward and submit a forum report against that player if any evidence of cheating occurs within it. In the instance this occurs, action will be taken against the offending player.