Dealing with Trigger Effects

[JesusofChaos™]

In this issue we will look at the complicated issue of triggers effects and how they interact with other aspects. First of all it is best to clarify between the two types of trigger effect.

 

Mandatory Trigger Effects

Mandatory trigger effects are effects you have to activate, there is no option. For example lets look at 2 different ones:

Zaborg the Thunder Monarch:

When this card is Tribute Summoned, destroy 1 monster on the field.

 

 

In this example when Zaborg is tribute summoned it must affect its trigger effect. He must destroy one monster on the field, even if he is the only one and must destroy himself.

 

Judgment Dragon

This card cannot be Normal Summoned or Set. This card cannot be Special Summoned except by having 4 or more "Lightsworn" monsters with different names in your Graveyard. You can pay 1000 Life Points to destroy all other cards on the field. During each of your End Phases, send the top 4 cards of your Deck to the Graveyard.

 

 

Now Judgment Dragon has 2 trigger effects, lets look mat the 2nd one, at the end phase he must mill 4 cards, there is no choice even if that decks you out.

 

Optional Trigger Effects

Optional trigger effects are different. You have a choice whether to activate the effect or not. Lets look at 2 examples

Treeborn Frog

If this card is in your Graveyard during your Standby Phase and you control no Spell or Trap Cards, you can Special Summon it. This effect cannot be activated if you control a face-up "Treeborn Frog".

 

Now at the standby phase if you want to special summon it from the graveyard you can activate it’s trigger effect and do so.

 

Armageddon Knight

When this card is Summoned, you can send 1 DARK monster from your Deck to the Graveyard.

 

Now when it is summoned you have the option of sending a dark to the graveyard. You may only this when it is summoned so if you decide not to, you lose the chance

 

 

Ok now we have cleared up the difference between Mandatory and Optional we can look at how the interact with each other.

 

Example 1: Player 1 tributes his Sangan for Raiza the Storm Monarch

In this scenario, both sangan and raiza have mandatory trigger effects. However as sangan was tributed first, his effect activates first and forms chain link one, Raiza effect then chains to sangan’s to form chain link 2. The chain resolves backwards so

 

Sangan<------ Raiza.

So First of all you select a target to top deck with Raiza then search your deck.

 

Example 2: Player 1 activates monster reborn on Destiny Hero- Disk Commander whilst he has Card of Safe Return on the field.

 

Now Disk commander has a mandatory effect whilst card of safe return has an optional trigger effect. Mandatory trigger effects are always placed first on the chain. Card of safe return’s effect is then placed in chain link 2 as it is an optional trigger effect. So the chain resolves thus

 

Disk Commander <------ Card of safe return

So first of all you draw one for CoSR then draw 2 for disk commander.

 

Example 3: You play monster reborn on Hero Kid whilst you have card of safe return on the field. You choose to use both effects

 

Now here 2 optional triggers are activated at the same time. Here you get to decided what order you want the effects to resolve in. The player chooses to have Hero Kid as chain link 1 and CoSR as chain link 2 so the chain resolves thus.

 

Hero Kid <-------- CoSR

 

So first one card is drawn then as many hero kids you want are summoned from your deck.

 

Now lets see how another 2 cards interacts with trigger effects. Light and Darkness Dragon and Skill Drain.

 

Skill Drain

Pay 1000 Life Points. The effects of all face-up Effect Monsters are negated.

 

Light and Darkness Dragon

This card cannot be Special Summoned. While this card is face-up on the field its Attribute is also treated as DARK. When a Spell or Trap Card is activated, or the effect of an Effect Monster is activated, that activation is negated and this card loses 500 ATK and DEF. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, select 1 monster in your Graveyard. Then destroy all cards you control, and Special Summon that monster.

 

Now this cards may look similar but there is one key difference that separates them. LaDD negates the activation of the effect whilst skill drain stops the effect.

 

Now if we take a mandatory trigger effect such as Judgment Dragon, when its milling effect activates whilst LaDD is on the field it is negated. Now the cards thinks that its effect hasn’t activated, so it tries to activate again, which is negated by LaDD. This continues until LaDD is no longer able to negate the activation. After which you mill 4 cards.

 

This is similar to what happens if you have treeborn frog in the graveyard, you try to activate the effect continually draining LaDDs attack points and losing its effect. However with skill drain they activation is not negated only the effect so it does not create a loop.

 

Thank you for reading, I think there are some errors here so if you see any point them out and they can be fixed.

[Silencerleader]

As far as I read...no real errors.

[Guest Chaos Pudding]

Combine this with my Extremely Short Essay on the Subject of Missing the Timing.

[JesusofChaos™]

If you can provide me with examples of missed timing such as DMoC and poison draw (im too lazy) ill combine if you want. Dont worry ill give you credit aswell