Short answer: None of them!

One of the great things about Genesys is that there are no new or altered gameplay rules you have to think about in the middle of a Duel. The main Genesys rules are for Deck construction, and you have all the time you want to build your Deck at home. The only changes to the gameplay are the field layout changes. Judging from our internal testing, the biggest “hurdle” (if you could call it that) is remembering that the Extra Monster Zones don’t exist, so you can only control 5 monsters instead of 6.

Coming from the other direction, if you’re just now getting into the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG and learning how to Duel (or haven’t played in a few years and are coming back!), first and foremost, welcome! (Or welcome back!) Second, all the rules you learn while getting into Genesys will still apply if you want to try out Advanced Format tournaments. The only additional rules you’ll need to learn are how Pendulum and Link Monsters work, and the extra Zones added to the field layout to accommodate them.

Here are answers to a few questions we’ve seen this week.

Q. Can I use Ritual/Fusion/Synchro/Xyz Pendulum hybrid monsters?
A. No. There was an error where the Ritual/Pendulum hybrid monsters were shown on the Deck-builder site, but this has since been corrected.

Q. Can I use cards that Summon monsters to the Extra Monster Zone?
A. You can put them in your Deck, but you won’t be able to use the effects that Summon to the Extra Monster Zone since it doesn’t exist. For example, you can put Runick Freezing Curses in your Deck, but when you activate it, you can only use the 1^st effect (to negate an opponent’s Effect Monster’s effects), not the 2^nd effect (that Summons to the Extra Monster Zone). You also cannot use card effects that force a player to Link Summon, like Link into the VRAINS! or Tri-Brigade Revolt.

Q. Can I use cards that reference the Pendulum Zones or face-up Extra Deck?
A. You can put them in your Deck, but since there are no Pendulum Monsters or Pendulum Zones, you won’t be able to use effects that require Pendulum Monsters (which won’t exist), place cards in Pendulum Zones (which aren’t there), do something to cards in Pendulum Zones (which aren’t there), grant Pendulum Summons (since there are no Pendulum Scales), or add/remove cards from the face-up Extra Deck (there won’t be any).

Q. Can I activate Last Turn if my opponent isn’t allowed to Special Summon?
A. A great question, since effects that instruct a player to perform a Special Summon after their resolution have changed in form and function since 2003. This card hasn’t seen print in 20 years, but based off the impressive volume of rules Q&A this card generated back in the day, if we rewrote it today, this card would probably say something like “Immediately after this effect resolves, your opponent Special Summons…”Effects that Special Summon cannot be activated if the player that must perform the Summon is not allowed to. So no, you can’t.

…and that’s it for now! We’ll be at the Genesys events at YCS Anaheim and YCS Pittsburgh to observe and see if there are any other commonly occurring situations that should be addressed.