A-7
Counterfeit or Fake Cards
Counterfeit or fake cards are illegal and are
never allowed in any Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG tournament. Photocopied cards,
sometimes called "proxies," are not allowed in tournaments and are
considered fakes. It is illegal to buy or sell fake cards.
If a player finds fake or counterfeit cards,
they should bring them to a parent or tournament official and never play
with the cards. Players should be careful when buying cards or trading
cards to ensure the cards they are getting are genuine cards made by UDE.
If any player finds a fake card, he or she should send details to the
UDE Fraud Investigation Team at fit@upperdeck.com. Visit
ude.com/fraud for more information.
You can identify a fake card in several ways:
• Real cards will have a
square hologram in the bottom-right corner of the card. The hologram has
the Eye of Anubis logo and the words "Yu-Gi-Oh!" on it. Fake
cards may be missing some of these elements.
• The corner hologram
should be so thin that you cannot feel it if you run your finger across
it. If you can feel the hologram, then the card may be fake and the
sticker may have been glued on to the card.
• If the entire card, not
just the picture, is foil or shiny, the card is fake.
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Real cards have the Konami logo on the
upper-left corner of the back and have the Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card
Game logo in the lower-right corner of the back.
• Fake cards may be printed
on paper that is thinner or thicker than real cards. Fake cards may also
be printed on paper that is shiny or feels like wax.
• Fake cards may have fuzzy
text that is not professionally printed. They may also have colors that
are different from those on real cards.
• Fake super rare or ultra
rare cards will sometimes have a dull picture or the foil may be dull.
Real cards will have a sharp picture.
• There is no such thing as
a real Chinese Yu-Gi-Oh! card. They have never been printed
except as fakes.
• People may offer cards
that are fuzzy or have bad colors, saying that they are "rare, defective
cards." Don't buy cards like this—they are probably fake.
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Advanced Constructed Deck Format—
Players bring their own decks that they have built following deck
construction rules in this policy document. Advanced Constructed Deck
Format uses the forbidden, limited and semi-limited lists from sections
A-23, A-24 and A-25.
When using a card that is not in a local
language, a local language version of the card or an accurate card
translation must be available outside of the deck to show to any
opponent. This will help ensure that both players understand exactly
what the card does.
Japanese, Chinese, and Korean cards are not
legal for tournaments. "Asian-English" cards are not legal for
tournaments. The English "God" cards are not official Yu-Gi-Oh!
TCG cards and are not legal for use in decks. They have no effect on
games and cannot be summoned to the field.
Yu-Gi-Oh!
TCG promotional cards become legal upon
release.
Currently Legal Sets:
Legend of Blue Eyes White Dragon,
Yugi and Kaiba Starter Decks, Metal
Raiders, Magic/Spell Ruler, Pharaoh's Servant, Joey and Pegasus
Starter Decks, Labyrinth of Nightmare, Legacy of Darkness, Pharaonic
Guardian, Magician's Force, Dark Crisis, Yugi and Kaiba Evolution
Decks, Invasion of Chaos, Ancient Sanctuary, Soul of the Duelist,
Dark Beginnings 1, Rise of Destiny.
Promo Cards:
TP1, TP2, TP3, TP4, TP5, MP1, DDS, EDS, SDD,
FMR, DOR, JMP, BPT, DL1, DL2, DL3, DL4, DL5, IOC-SE, PCY, TFK, TSC, WC4,
EP1, PCJ, PCY, PCK, ROD, DOD-002, DOD-003, MOV, WCS, HL1, CMC, DBT, SP1,
WC5, DL6.
Upcoming dates for card set legality:
• Flaming Eternity
becomes tournament legal on April 1, 2005
• The Lost Millennium
becomes tournament legal on July 1, 2005
• Dark Beginnings 2
(both reprinted and new cards) becomes tournament legal on release.
• Cybernetic Revolution
becomes tournament legal on September 1, 2005
A-8
Tournament Match Structure
In each round of a tournament, a player will
be required to play one match against an opponent. Most matches are best
two out of three games, which means the first player to win two games is
the winner of the match. Games continue until one player wins two games.
If two players have drawn a game and each player then wins a game, they
will need to play additional games until one player wins two games in
the match.
In some tournaments, players may only be
required to play one game to determine the winner of a match. In this
case, the first player to win a single game is declared the winner of
the match. This one-game structure is only used on rare occasions where
time is very limited, such as at the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG Tournament
Mall Tour.
When reporting match results, only the final
winner of each match is recorded, not who won the individual games
within the match. There are no draw matches in UDE tournaments, so there
will always be a match winner.
A-9 Time Limits - We will be running 30 minute
rounds in the Bakersfield City Championshopo
A-10 End of Match Procedure
When time is called at the end of a round, the
current turn of each match still in progress is completed, and then play
stops and the match winner is calculated using the following process:
• A player wins the match
if he or she has more game wins than the opponent.
• If both players have an
equal number of game wins, then the player with the most life points in
the current game is the winner. If the life points are tied, continue
playing until the players have a difference in life points.
• If both players have an
equal number of game wins and are between games, then the next game
should start and the match winner will be determined by the first change
in life points.
Example:
Time is called at the end of a
match. Players are still in the middle of game one. Robert is at 2000
life points, and Kelly is at 3000 life points. Robert finishes the turn
and manages to reduce Kelly’s life points to 1000. Robert wins the game
based on life points and wins the match because time was called during
game one. Example: In a different match, time is called during
game two. David has already won game one. The current turn is completed,
and neither player can win the game this turn. This game is considered
unfinished, and David wins the match because he won game one.
Example:
In a different match, time is called during game two. Abby won game one.
Mark finishes his turn and manages to win game two. Abby and Mark are
now tied, each having won a game. They start game three. Game three
lasts until the first life point change. Eventually, Abby summons a
Goblin Attack Force and attacks Mark, reducing his life points to 5700.
Abby is now ahead on life points, so she is the winner of the game and
subsequently the match.
Example:
In a different match, time is called during game three. Michelle and
Danny have each won a game in the match. Michelle finishes her turn and
manages to tie their life points at 4000 each. They continue playing
until the next life point change. Danny plays Poison of the Old Man and
gains 1200 life points. He is now ahead on life points, so he is the
winner of the game and subsequently the match.
A-11
Side Decks
When playing in Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG tournaments, each player is allowed
to bring a side deck to the tournament in addition to his or her regular
deck. The side deck is only used for games after the first game of a
match. Even if game one was not played because of a tournament penalty,
players may still use their side decks for game two. At the beginning of
a match, each player must revert his or her deck to its original state,
undoing all changes that were made with the side deck during the
previous match.
Before the start of each match, place your side deck face down on the
table. Your opponent may count to ensure that your side deck contains
fifteen cards. Players may not look at their side decks during a game
unless a card effect specifically instructs them to do so.
When a player registers for a
Constructed-format tournament, he or she may choose to register a side
deck of exactly fifteen cards or not register a side deck at all.
Side decks must always be fifteen cards, no
more, no less. If a player uses his or her side deck between games, he
or she must exchange cards on a one-for-one basis so that the side deck
always contains fifteen cards. A player has three minutes between games
to use his or her side deck, shuffle, and present his or her deck to the
opponent.
Deck construction rules apply to the deck and
side deck combined. For example, if a player has Raigeki in his or her
deck, he or she can't have it in the side deck because it's a limited
card, meaning that only one total copy of the card is allowed between
the deck and side deck.
A-12 Shuffling
Facedown Cards
A player is not allowed to shuffle his or her
facedown cards unless a game effect specifically instructs or allows him
or her to do so. This includes both facedown monsters and facedown spell
or trap cards. Players may shuffle their hands unless a card effect
specifically prohibits it.
A-13 Shuffling
Graveyard
A player is not allowed to shuffle or alter
the order of his or her graveyard in any way. A player’s graveyard is
public information except in specific cases when a card effect, such as
Question, prohibits a player from viewing his or her opponent’s
graveyard.
A-14 Search
Effects
If a game effect instructs a player to search
for a card in his or her deck or retrieve a card from the graveyard, and
there are specific parameters on which card he or she may select (based
on level stars, card type, ATK/DEF, and so on), that player is usually
required to reveal the searched-for card to his or her opponent. The
player must then shuffle his or her deck. Whenever a player reveals a
card, he or she must show the entire card face to the opponent.
Example:
Shallow Grave is activated. Each player must show his or her
opponent the card that is chosen before it resolves, and then those
cards are special summoned to the monster card zone in facedown defense
position.
Example:
When a player uses Different Dimension Capsule, he or she does
not have to reveal the card to the opponent, since Different
Dimension Capsule does not require the player to select a card based
on any parameters, it just reads, "select a card from your deck."
A-15
Fusion Monster Deck Rules
When playing in Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG tournaments, each player is allowed
to bring a Fusion monster deck to the tournament in addition to his or
her regular deck. The fusion monster deck is limited to 20 different
cards, although the player may have up to 3 copies of each of those 20
cards.
Before the start of the match, place your Fusion deck face down on the
playfield. Please keep fusion monsters of the same name together in the
fusion deck to assist in deck-checking.
A-16 Game
Loops
In the event that a game enters a loop, the player controlling the loop
demonstrates it once. He or she then chooses a number, and unless his or
her opponent wants to stop the loop at any time to play something in the
middle, the loop goes through the number of cycles chosen.
Example:
Kevin has Butterfly Dagger–Elma, Gearfried the Iron Knight,
and Royal Magical Library in play. He demonstrates the loop once,
equipping Butterfly Dagger–Elma on Gearfried the Iron Knight,
causing Butterfly Dagger–Elma to be sent to the graveyard and
then sent to his hand. He also adds a spell counter on Royal Magical
Library because he has played a spell card. He states that he wants
to perform this loop 600 times and will draw his whole library, unless
his opponent does anything. Robert has no effects to stop the loop, so
Kevin is able to draw his whole deck.
A-24 Advanced Format Yu-Gi-Oh! Limited Card
List
Powerful cards are restricted to one copy of
each per deck and side deck combined. This list is updated several times
a year and is only used for advanced format tournaments. The most
updated list can be found at ude.com/policy.
The forbidden list as of April 1, 2005 is:
Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning
Mirror Force
Breaker the Magical Warrior Morphing Jar
Call of The Haunted Mystical Space Typhoon
Card Destruction Pot of Greed
Ceasefire Premature Burial
Cyber Jar Protector of the Sanctuary
D. D. Warrior Lady Reckless Greed
Dark Magician of Chaos Reflect Bounder
Deck Devastation Virus Right Arm of the
Forbidden One
Delinquent Duo Right Leg of the Forbidden One
Exiled Force Ring of Destruction
Exodia the Forbidden One Sacred Phoenix of
Nephthys
Graceful Charity Sangan
Heavy Storm Sinister Serpent
Injection Fairy Lily Snatch Steal
Jinzo Swords of Revealing Light
Left Arm of the Forbidden One Torrential
Tribute
Left Leg of the Forbidden One Tribe-Infecting
Virus
Lightning Vortex Twin-Headed Behemoth
Mage Power United We Stand
Magic Cylinder
A-25 Advanced Format Yu-Gi-Oh! Semi-Limited
Card List
Strong cards are restricted to two
copies of each per deck and side deck combined. This list is updated
several times a year and is only used for advanced format tournaments.
The most updated list can be found at ude.com/policy.
The semi-limited list as of April 1, 2005, is: