Today we open the mail bag and look at questions related to The Duelist Genesis and cards from the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG 5D’s Starter Deck.

Charge of the Light Brigade

"Is sending three cards from my deck to my graveyard a cost, or part of the effect?"

Sending three cards from the top of your deck to your graveyard is the cost paid to activate Charge of the Light Brigade. Spell and trap cards tend to use a different templating to reflect costs paid to activate them. Players often think of the templating for monster card effects and expect it to be followed on the spell and trap cards as well, and since cost text in the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG isn’t entirely consistent, it isn’t surprising that players can become confused.

The monster card equipped to Cyberdark Edge or any similar monster cannot be used to perform a Synchro summon because it is being treated as an equip card, not a monster. When you want to Synchro summon a Synchro monster, you need one Tuner monster and one or more non-Tuner monsters face up on your side of the field.

When players look at Intercept, they see that counter-trap symbol and it gives them the wrong impression. They think they can use it to take their opponent’s tribute-summoned monster and then do whatever the monster was trying to do. It seems like Solemn Judgment is the biggest culprit. Solemn Judgment’s ability to negate a summon sets it apart from Intercept.

Intercept does not negate the summon of a monster. It reacts to the tribute summon, much like Trap Hole or Torrential Tribute would. If the tribute-summoned monster has an effect that activates at the time it is summoned, the monster’s effect starts a chain and Intercept is chained to that. When the chain resolves, Intercept gives you control of your opponent’s tribute-summoned monster, but it does not give you control of the effect.

What does this mean for Jinzo? Jinzo has a continuous effect, and continuous effects do not start a chain. When Jinzo is tribute summoned, his effect is applied to prevent trap cards from being activated. Trap Cards like Solemn Judgment and Horn of Heaven can be activated because they negate Jinzo’s summon, preventing him from applying his effect. Intercept activates after the monster is successfully summoned, at which point it is too late. Jinzo’s effect is already applied and Intercept cannot be activated.

Tributing the Oyster Meister

Oyster Meister’s effect is a mandatory trigger effect that activates whenever it is sent from the field to the graveyard, for any reason other than being destroyed by battle. You can tribute it to summon a monster, use it to pay a cost, or let it get destroyed by a card effect. It’s the best kind of card Fish players could hope for.

When you tribute Oyster Meister for a tribute summon, Oyster Meister’s effect activates after the summon is determined to be a success or the summon is negated, whichever occurs. If the tribute-summoned monster has an effect that activates at the time it is summoned, its effect will be chained to Oyster Meister’s. Oyster Meister’s trigger effect is satisfied first, when it is tributed. The tribute-summoned monster’s effect is placed second on the chain. You can certainly activate Kuraz the Light Monarch or Mobius the Frost Monarch’s effect. They will be chain link 2 and Oyster Meister’s ability will be chain link 1.

What happens when we tribute Oyster Meister to pay the cost for Golden Flying Fish or Spiritual Water Art - Aoi? The act of using Oyster Meister to pay the cost triggers its effect, but its effect cannot be added onto this chain (Chain #1). It must wait until the chain finishes resolving, and then start a new chain (Chain #2) with its effect. This is true if Oyster Meister is used to pay a cost when the chain is being built or if it is sent to the graveyard when the chain resolves.

"Also, can it stop effects played from the hand or graveyard like Herald of Orange Light and Mezuki, and can it be used against cards like Megarock Dragon that are special summoned by their own effect? If so are they discarded or just not summoned?"

Gladiator Beast War Chariot is chained to the effect monster’s effect when it activates. This means that the effect monster’s effect must use the chain. Just summoning an effect monster isn’t enough to activate the War Chariot.

Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV8 has a quick effect that can be chained whenever a spell card is activated. If you want to use Gladiator Beast War Chariot, you will need to wait until the player with Horus actually decides to use this effect. Against Prime Material Dragon you will need to wait until the player controlling it decides to use its negation ability. The continuous effect of Prime Material Dragon that changes damage into life point gain cannot be stopped with Gladiator Beast War Chariot because it does not start a chain.

Gladiator Beast War Chariot does not care where the monster is when its effect activates or resolves, but it can interfere with the added effect of destroying the monster. When your opponent activates Mezuki’s effect to special summon a Zombie-type monster, you can chain Gladiator Beast War Chariot. When you special summon Gladiator Beast Gyzarus, activate its effect, and your opponent chains Herald of Orange Light’s effect, you can chain Gladiator Beast War Chariot to negate its effect and save your Gyzarus.

When the effect monster is removed from play, placed into the graveyard, or returned to the deck when its effect activates, its effect can still be negated with Gladiator Beast War Chariot. The War Chariot doesn’t care where the effect monster is or where it’s going when it activates its effect. If the monster activates its effect and it is in the removed pile or the deck when its effect is negated, it will remain in the removed pile or deck. This is something that usually comes up when dealing with D.D. Survivor or a Gladiator Beast monster.

Until next time, send all comments and questions to Curtis@Metagame.com!

—Curtis Schultz