General rulings (and featuring pendulums !)

So, with the old bsa back, there have been two nice things : we finally get to change our name to something much more cool, and also, I have been able to retrieve this post, so I didn't work for nothing ^^

As a note, even for veteran players, there are some points in this post that are relevant for them, as I've dueled you or seen your duel, some rulings are really not well known. *cough* nitro - and others -.- *cough* safe zone *cough* many *cough* setting spells *cough* :] (I'm just kidding haha) But seriously, costs and effects, nomi and semi-nomi monsters, timing and chainable (including spell speed) are tough sometimes. Don't feel bad because you read this post, it is only here to help.


So we created this section (talking about the entire ruling section) for rulings issues (no kidding :O ). (If you want to check basic rulings summary after this paragraph). But if you are to face an incongruous situation and because sometimes rulings are weird and not very clear, ask in a new topic (not in this one - so that this topic doesn't get too cloggy) in the ruling section, and me or someone else will reply and explain (explaining is the important part, if you know how something works but don't know how to explain it, don't answer on the topic, however you can of course tell the one who asked how things are supposed to happen, by PM or in the chat - again, so that topics don't get too cloggy).

SUMMARY

1-The field (all the different zones -includes pendulum)
2-The phases (how a turn and a battle goes on)
3-Monster cards (how to read them, how to use them -includes pendulum)
4-Summoning (how -includes pendulum- and when to summon, inherent/non inherent summon, nomi and semi-nomi)
5-Spell cards (all different kinds)
6-Traps cards (all different kinds)
7-Spell speed (to help understand how and when to chain)
8-Chains (one heavy yugioh ruling)
9-Costs and effects (the difference between them and why it is important)
10-Timing (when do I miss the timing, how is it that important)
11-Destroying or not destroying (and discarded or not discarded, because it matters)

1-The field

There are different spaces on the field. There is the deck zone, the graveyard, the monster zones, the spell/trap zones, the field spell zone, the pendulum zones and the extra deck. Each of them have their own purpose.

The deck zone is where the deck belongs... Your deck size must be between 40 and 60 cards, 40 being optimal to draw the right card at the right time with a higher chance. Some decks with huge draw or milling power can consistently run up to 44 cards.

The graveyard is where your cards goes when they are used/destroyed/tributed/sent to the graveyard/discarded. However, sometimes the cards won't go there if another card or itself states otherwise (going back to the deck or being removed from play - being removed from play or banished means that the cards can't be use anymore, unless you have specific cards to bring them back, they don't really go anywhere, you rather put them aside).

There are 5 monsters zones, which means that you can't control more than 5 monsters at a time. It can really come in to play, and really keep that in mind when you go for synchro plays usually, or when having card like scapegoat on the field (if you don't have at least 4 free spaces, you won't get any tokens at all).

There are 5 spell/trap zones, besides the field spell zones, which means that you can't control more than 5 spell and traps at a time. If you already have 5 cards in you spell/trap zone, you can't activate or set new ones from your hand, until you clear spaces either by destroying your own cards or by using them - if you are able to. That's why setting 5 is not always a great idea, try to always leave at least one usable space, in case you draw a spell for instance.

The field spell zone is "shared" by the two players as there can only be one face-up field spell on the field at a time. If there is already one field spell on the field when a new one is activated, the previous one gets destroyed, unless the activation of that new one is negated. If you set a field spell when you already had one activated, the first one gets destroyed. However, if your opponent sets a field spell when you have your own activated, it won't get destroyed until your opponent activates his (face up).
HOWEVER this is now only true in tcg. In ocg, the two players don't share the field spell zone, and two field spell can be face up on the field at the same time (one per player).

There are two pendulum zones. You can activate pendulum monsters as spells in your pendulum zones. You can't set pendulum monsters in the pendulum zones. More about them in the third point (monster cards) and in the paragraph right below (extra deck).

The extra deck is where your fusion, synchro and xyz monsters stays until you summon them. Also, if pendulum monsters would be sent from the field to the grave (not if they are discarded, banished or use as xyz material), they go to the extra deck, face up, instead. They are not in the game per say. There are like in their own universe, until you get to special them. They are usually powerful and resourceful. You can only have 15 cards in your extra. Never have less, just in case, even if you put monsters that you can't summon with your deck only and be careful at what you put in it, as the place is usually very tight.

2-The phases

You start the duel with 5 cards in your hand. The first thing happening in the turn is you drawing.
It's the draw phase, where only drawing happens. A few cards can however be used during the draw phase, or modify it (like "instead of conducting your draw phase this turn, you can special summon this card from your graveyard").
HOWEVER now in ocg you don't get a draw phase on your first turn if you go first. You still have one on tcg.

The the standby phase is the phase following the draw phase. It's a phase where some cards specifically state they can/have to use their effect. Only traps and quick-play effects can be chained during the standby phase.

The the main phase 1 comes after the standby phase. In this phase, you can normal summon or set one monster per turn, special and flip summon as many monsters as you want/can (unless a card's effect states differently - like that motherfucking Midrash), activate traps set the previous turn, use spells, and set more spells and/or traps.

Then, there is the battle phase. Each monster you have in attack position at the start of your battle phase can attack one time (unless a card's effect states otherwise, blablabla). I won't talk here (in this post) about the damage step as it has I think 7 steps, that can each take a solid paragraph -.- Check the other posts of the ruling section. If it is not there yet, it means that I am still working on it.

There is the main phase 2 is the phase occurring after the battle phase. You can do the same things than in main phase . However, if you already normal summoned or set in m1, you can't in m2. Remember that there is no more battle phase after the main phase 2. Also, if you don't get a battle phase or don't enter it, you don't get a m2 either. It doesn't matter as you won't have less play, but some cards work only in m1 or m2 (tenken, or the case of leo, which you can only target during its owner's m2).

And  the end phase is the last phase of each turn. Some effects happens in the end phase. Only quick-play and traps can be activated/chained during the end phase, unless a card's text specifically state an effect occurring during the end phase. At the end of YOUR end phase, you have to send cards in your hand to the graveyard until you have only 6 left (but remember that if you have 7 or more cards in your hand at the end of your turn, you are playing a broken deck, unless you activated maxx c previously that turn against a broken deck, but if you haven't gamed this turn with so much cards, your deck sucks :/ ).

3-Monster cards

Monsters have different stats, as well as mentions, levels, types, attributes and now potentially scales. They can also be in different position throughout the game.

First off, monsters have two stats : atk and def. When a monster is in attack position, you care about its attack stat when it comes to the battle phase. When a monster is in defense position, you look at its defense stat. The atk is the number at the bottom left, and the def at the bottom right of the card. Only an attack position monster can attack. There are two types of battles possible :

>atk vs atk : the monster with the lower atk stat is destroyed, and its owner take battle damage equal to the difference.

>atk vs def : if the atk is higher than the def, the def monster dies, but its owner takes no battle damage. If the atk is lower than the def, the attacking player takes damage equal to the difference, but none of the monsters die. There is one card that can put a monster in face down attack position.

A monster can either be in face-up attack position, in face-up defense position or in face-down defense position. You can't change the position of a monster the turn he is summoned, the turn he attacked or the turn you already manually changed its position. Flip summons count both as a summon and as changing one monster's position.
There is only one way to have a monster in face-down attack position, and it is by using darkness approaches on a face up attack position monster. If a monster is put in face down attack position, its controller can still flip it manually, and it would be considered as a flip summon (for warning and such).

A monster has either a level or a rank, a rank being different than a level (only xyz monsters have a rank, they are the black ones in your extra deck). Now monsters can potentially have scales as well (more about that in a few paragraphs). If an effect reduce the level of a monster, keep in mind that if a monster's level would become 0 or less, it is considered as level 1 (summoning according to a level will be in the next point).

A monster can either be a normal monster, an effect monster, a tuner, a spirit monster, an union monster, a toon monster, a ritual monster, a fusion monster, a  synchro monster, an xyz monster or a pendulum monster. Different rulings apply to these different kinds of monsters. They also have their own support sometimes.

A monster has a type. For instance, it can be a zombie, a fiend, a fairy, a spellcaster... Each of these type gets different support or sometimes different options for the extra deck.

A monster also has an attribute. It can be either light, dark, fire, water, earth or wind. A few chosen also have the "divine" attribute. The same statement as for the different types goes as well for the different types, except that the support are more "generic".

At last, some monsters now have a scale. It determines the conditions you meet and will influence the pendulum summon you will perform, as I am going to state in the next point, about summons.

Also, we can see that each attribute has a recurrent theme between its archetypes, as well as the different types. Like for instance, zombie revolves a lot about spamming from the grave and/or turning the opponent's monsters into zombies.They are usually earth or dark. Wind attributes often bounce back cards instead of destroying them... There are a lot of recurring theme.

4-Summoning

You can only attempt to normal summon or set once per turn. (set position is face-down defense position). You can special summon as much as you want/can in one turn. Sometimes you can even special summon during the opponent's turn.
You can normal summon or set a level 4 or lower without tributes.
Level 5 and 6 monsters require one tribute to be normal summoned or set, and level 7 or higher, two (level 10 or higher monsters do NOT need three tributes -.- unless stated otherwise).

You can special or flip summon as much as you want/can.
A flip summon flips a face-down defense position monster into face-up attack position. Some monsters gains effect when summoned this way.

Ritual summon

In order to perform a ritual summon, you need to have a ritual monster in hand, as well as an appropriate ritual spell card. Then according to the ritual spell card you are using, you have to tribute monster whose total levels either match or exceed the ritual monster's level (most of the times) or match exactly the ritual monster's level (which usually happens with "generic" ritual spell cards, like the infamous advanced ritual art) from your hand and/or field. Every ritual monster has one specific ritual spell card dedicated to its summon, but they can also use some archetype generic ritual spell cards or straight up generic ritual spell cards (which there aren't so many of). Some spell cards can have additional effects on summon or from the grave, most notably the more recent ones. The djinn archetype is a generic ritual support type archetype that gives interesting effects to ritual monsters summon using them (and they can also be used from the grave).
A ritual summon is not an inherent summon.

Fusion summon

In order to perform a fusion summon, you need to have one a spell able to perform a fusion summon, the most basic one being polimerization. Each fusion monster states a number of monster required to be literally fused into them for them to be summoned. You can fuse them with any generic fusion spell card, or with more "complex" ones, that are usually archetype dependent but are much more beneficial. Although there are many monster/trap/spell effects that work alongside polimerization. You can fuse monster from your hand and/or field. There are some substitute monsters that can be used as any one of the monster listed on the fusion monster, but you usually can't use more than one substitute for one fusion monster. Some fusion monster need to be summoned with a specific type a fusion spell card, and others need the actual name of the monsters (in which case substitute monsters can't be used for their summon. However, a monster able to change its name, like Elemental HERO Prisma can be used as material for the fusion summon).
A fusion summon is not an inherent summon.

Synchro summon

In order to synchro summon a monster, you usually need one tuner and one or more non tuner monsters (the condition are stated on the synchro monster's text. Sometimes you need a set number of monster, sometimes more than one tuner, sometimes specific monsters/type of monsters). Unless stated otherwise, you can't synchro with more than one tuner. However, - unless, as usual, stated otherwise - you can use as many non tuners you want to, as long as the total level of fodder monsters (including the tuner) match the level of the synchro monster you are attempting to summon. The fodders for a synchro summon are NOT tributed.
A synchro summon is an inherent summon.

XYZ summon

In order to perform an xyz summon, you have to have many monsters, usually two or three monsters with the same level, and you overlay them to special summon the xyz monster you want. Each xyz monster specify at least a level, and sometimes even a specific type/attribute/archetype. The monsters use for an xyz summon must match these requirements. Now, xyz monsters have a rank, you can hence not overlay them to special summon another xyz monster, unless stating otherwise on the xyz monster (usually the one you want to summon). Overlaying an xyz monster with another is called a chaos xyz summon. The xyz material of an xyz monster are not considered on the field.
An xyz summon is an inherent summon.

Pendulum summon

There has been a new type of cards created by konami recently (well, that statement is going to be false at some point) : the pendulum monsters. They can either be used as regular effect monsters, in which case everything applied to effect monsters is applied to them the same way, or they can be used as spells, in order to perform pendulum summons.
Pendulum monsters have a new stat : a scale, which is the number figuring in the blue and the red prism.
You can activate pendulum monsters in the pendulum zones, as spell cards, in which case you care about their scale, and not their level anymore. A pendulum monster cannot be set in the pendulum zones, they can only be activated face-up.
When in a pendulum zone, you only care about two things for a pendulum monster : its scale and its pendulum effect.
You can have up to two pendulum monsters on your side of the field, and you cannot activate a pendulum monster over another one, they have to be destroyed first before you can play a new one in the same pendulum zone (note that there are no limit to the amount of time you can activate a pendulum card in a pendulum zone, as long as you can activate them, aka as long as a pendulum zone is empty).
After you have two different pendulum cards face-up on the field, you need to look at their respective scales.
Once per turn, if you have two pendulum cards activated on the field, you can perform a pendulum summon. During a pendulum summon, you can special summon as many monster from your hand or that are face-up on your extra deck (pendulum monster go face up on the extra deck instead of being sent from the field to the graveyard, so in that aspect you can use them as recurring monsters) which levels are somewhere between the scales of your two pendulum cards, said scales not including. For instance, if you have one pendulum card with a scale of 1 and another one with a scale of 8 both face up on your side of the field, you can summon monsters from your hand and/or face up on your extra deck which levels are either 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7. You can only perform one pendulum summon per turn.
In case that's all you are going to read about pendulums, there is an important I cannot stress enough. A pendulum monster, instead of going to the grave from the field, goes face-up on the extra deck (and thus can be used for further pendulum summons). That means if they are destroyed while on the field, if they are tributed while on the field, if they are sued as synchro material while on the field, if they were activated as pendulum spells... BUT, if they are send there because sent from the hand, the deck, or because they were used as xyz materials, they do go the grave. Also, they get banished normally.
A pendulum summon is an inherent summon.

Inherent and non inherent summons

Inherent summons can't be chained to. Or rather, there is nothing "telling" you they are about to happen. You can chain appropriate cards after they are effectively summoned, but you can't chain anything to the attempt of their summon (or if you can, it means that you have an effect which will negate the summon). While that seems harder to counter, many cards can only prevent inherent summons, by negating them, such as black horn of heaven.

Non inherent summons are usually performed thanks to another card's effect or sometimes when some conditions are fulfilled. They have to activate first, and you can chain cards to their activation, like maxx c and others, or cards that negate activation (which you can't do against inherent summons).

Nomi and semi-nomi monsters

Nomi monsters state that they can be special summon only by one way, specifically describe in their own text, and not by any other way (they do state "and not by any other way". Hence, you can't for instance reborn/soul charge/call of the haunted... them. Dark armed dragon for instance is a nomi monster.

Semi-nomi monsters also have a specific way of being summoned. However, they only state "this card has to first be special summon [this way]". Thus, if you summoned them once correctly before they hit the grave (and the summon isn't negated - in order for a summon to be negated, the card that negates the summon has to specifically state "negate the summon"), you can special summon them via reborn/soul charge/call of the haunted... for instance. BUT, if you milled them for instance, or didn't summon them properly, or if their summon got negated you can't reborn them afterward. BLS is one example of a semi-nomi monster. All the extra deck monsters are semi-nomi. Hence, if you summoned stardust dragon via starlight road (which means you didn't summon him properly, since you didn't synchro summoned it, you can't reborn it, even with its own effect).

5-Spell cards

There are different kinds of spell cards : normal spell cards, continuous spell cards, field spell cards, equip spell cards and quick-play spell cards (and now pendulum cards while in the pendulum zone). They all share the same ability of being able to be activated from the hand as long as you have room in your spell/trap zone, but only during your turn, and during the main pahse 1 or the main phase 2 (quick-plays are abit different than the other spells). They are the green cards.

Normal spell cards are the green cards without any icon. You can set them, activate them the same turn you set them or another turn after you set them. When you activate them, you follow their effects, then send them to the graveyard. Destroying them doesn't negate their effect.

Continuous spell cards are the ones with the infinite symbol. You can set them, activate them the same turn you set them or another turn after you set them. After their activation, instead of being sent to the graveyard, they stay on the field. Some of them, as swords of revealing light have are limited in the time. In this case, it is specified on the text of the card. If you want to negate them, you have to negate them on the activation, afterward you can only destroy them but no longer negate them. They need to stay face-up on the field until resolution, or they cannot resolve properly. Thus destroying them actually negates them.

Field spell cards are the one with the cardinal cross symbol. You can set them, activate them the same turn you set them or another turn after you set them, but only in the field spell zone. There can only be one face-up field spell on the field at a time. If there is already one field spell on the field when a new one is activated, the previous one gets destroyed, unless the activation of the new one is negated. If you set a field spell when you already had one activated, the first one gets destroyed. However, if your opponent sets a field spell when you have your own activated, it won't get destroyed until your opponent activates his. They need to stay face-up on the field until resolution, or they cannot resolve properly. Thus destroying them actually negates them.
HOWERVER this is now onl true for the tcg. In the ocg both player can have one field spell each at the same time. The other points still stand.

Again, about continuous spells and field spells, not only do they remain on the field, but they have to remain on the field in order to resolve. So if you chain MST to one of these two, you negate their effect. But MST can't negate per say. So if you chain MST to a normal spell or whatever that doesn't need to stay on the field, MST will not negate crap.

Equip spells are the ones with the cross symbol. You can set them, activate them the same turn you set them or another turn after you set them. However, you need to target a monster (even an opponent's monster) in order to activate them. When the monster it is equipped to leaves the field or is flipped face down, the equip spell gets destroyed (but is not considered as destroyed while being equip to a monster, as the monster leaves the field first, since the monster first die, and at this point, the equip spell card isn't equipped to anything, and thus can't exist face-up on the field anymore. This one point can be relevant for some dragunities effects for instance).

Quick-plays are the one with the lightning symbol. You can activate them during any phase. You can activate them from the hand. You can set them, however, you can't activate them the same turn you set them. You can activate them during your opponent's turn. Once they are activated, they go to the grave.

6-Trap cards

The trap cards are the purple ones. There are three kinds of trap cards, all of which can't be activated from the hand (unless specifically stated otherwise on the card). They have to be set first, and can't be activated the turn they are set (>makyura is op, why banned). They can after that be activated during any phase and during any player's turn.

Normal traps don't have icons. Activates them and send them to the grave afterward, unless stated otherwise.

Continuous trap cards are the one with the infinite symbol. After activation, they stay on the field, until they get destroyed, by their own effect or by another card's effect. They need to stay face-up on the field until resolution in order to properly resolves. After they are successfully activated, you can destroy them, but no longer negate them.

Counter trap cards are the one with the circle arrow symbol. You can only chain counter traps to counter traps and they can be chained to any effects (as long as the requirements are good).

7-Spell speed

Monster's effect and spell cards have a spell speed 1.

Trap cards, quick-play spells and quick-play monster's effect (like the negating effect of shooting quasar dragon - quick monster's eff can also be used during the opponent's turn, as long as the requirements are filled) have a spell speed 2. Spell speed 2 effects can be activated during any phase, during any player's turn. A monster effect is considered a quick-play effect if the effect can be used during the opponent's turn, or if the effect can negate something (as you need to be spell speed 2 in order to be chained, and you need to be able to be chained in order to negate. Also, only spell speed 2 and higher can be activated during the opponent's turn). So quick-play monster effects are quick-play because they need to in order to function, but a monster will -almost- never state that its effect is a quick-play effect.

Counter traps have a spell speed 3.

You cannot chain a lower spell speed to higher one. That's why only counter traps can be chained to counter traps.

8-Chains

First off, read the spell speed section. It's the previous one, as well as the shortest one.

So, if you can chain, do it wisely. The first card activated in the chain is stated as chain link 1. The card chained to it as chain link 2. If there is a next one, it will be chain link 3, and so on. Each time a card is activated in a chain, you have to pay its cost immediately on activation (read the next section), if there are any. The costs are hence paid in the order of activation. However, once neither player want to chain anymore cards, the chain resolves backwards. Which means that the last chain link happens first, and chain link 1 happens the last.

Also, as you play, you will notice that there are mandatory effects, and optional effects. All the mandatory effects that occur when the conditions are met, are all chained before any potential optional effect can be chained. The player controlling the cards with the mandatory effects chooses the chain order.
For instance, catastor is a mandatory effect, while grand mole is an optional effect. So if one attack into the other, catastor will immediately activates before grand mole can even say a word, and will thus be chain link 1, and then the player controlling grand mole can choose whether or not he wants to activate grand mole's effect. If he does want to activate it, grand mole will be chain link 2, and will thus resolves first. That's why grand mole "beats" catastor (and also because when catastor would resolve, there is no longer a proper target on the field, as grand mole is also bounced to the hand. If grand mole only bounced the opponent's monster, catastor would first get bounced back, and grand mole would then be destroyed).

I might post some examples of chains mistake or chains resolution in a further post, responding this topic. Keep in mind that you don't have to chain a card. You can wait until the current chain is over and start a new one in the same phase/step, or in a further phase/step.

There is no limit to how many chains there can be per phase/step, accept during the damage calculation step, where there can only be one only chain.

9-Costs and effects

The cards' text state their effect. But sometimes they also state a cost. You pay the costs during a chain (read the previous section, about chains). A cost is always followed either by a ";" or by the word "to", to clearly set the cost and the effect appart. It is really important, as only the effects or cards resolve backwards and that if an effect or activation is negated, the cost is still paid (since the cost is paid during the chain, hence before any effect, even negation effects).

Also for instance some monsters get their effects only if they are discarded as a cost (mermails) or by an effect (dark worlds). If a mermail is dicarded by the effect of a water monster, it won't get its effect. If a dark world monster is discarded as a cost, it won't get its effect either.

Also, if an effect is already negated, even before you had a chance to attempt to use it, you can still activate it (and it will start a chain), but it will resolves without effect. Unless a card also prevent the activation.
Also, a card cannot be activated, and pay its potential cost, if the effect cannot resolve because there are no correct targets/fodders for the effect to potentially happen. For instance, you cannot activate reinforcement of the army (and if it had a cost, you wouldn't be able to pay it, even if you wanted to) if you no longer have any correct target left in your deck.

Targeting is LIKE A COST. So for instance, if my opponent wants to compulse a monster i just summoned, if i chain safe zone or forbidden dress, it won't do me any good. As forbidden dress or safe zone have to FINISH RESOLVING to prevent my monster from being targeted because it's the effect of the card, but my monster is ALREADY targeted (as a cost~ish), so when the effects will resolve, my monster will get bounced back. And worst, if my opponent activates safe zone or dress, i can chain compulsory evacuation device, since the costs are paid before the effects go resolve, my monster will also get bounced back in this case. Safe zone and dress are preventive measures when it come to targetting your monsters, but you can chain to them because of the costs and effects rulings.
(However, if you attack and your opponent chain mirror force, if you chain safe zone or dress, your monster will not get destroyed, as destroying is part of the EFFECT of mirror force.)

And at last, a cost has to happen (need to be paid), while an effect can be altered if the game mechanics don't allow the effect to resolve exactly as described in the card's text, but the activation conditions have been met, and the card has been already activated.
For instance some cards will bounce other cards back to the hand either as a cost or as an effect. But extra deck monsters cannot exist in the hand. So if an effect would bounce an extra deck monster to the hand, it will go to the extra deck instead. But if a card need to bounce a card back to the hand as a cost, that card cannot target an extra deck monster as the fodder, as the cost wouldn't be paid, as the extra deck monster cannot reach the hand.

10-Timing

Some cards state "if" in their text, others state "when". What you have to know is that "if" never misses timing, so if the requirements are good and the effect is not negated, an "if" effect will always go through. For instance, sangan states "if", so as long as it is sent from the field to the graveyard, you get to search a card (provided you have proper target in your deck in sangan's case).

"When" effects can (and not do) miss timing. What does that even mean ? It means that the requirement of the "when" effect has to be the last thing to happen in the previous chain (or previously) for it to be able to resolve. However, "when" effects can miss timing only if they are optional ("when...you can..."). Mandatory effects never miss timing, even if they are "when" effects.

>For instance, ryko first destroys, then mills. It's all part of the same chain/effect. If the monster destroyed stated "when this card is destroyed... you can...", it won't get its effect against ryko, as the last thing happening before his effect could have had the chance to resolve is not it getting destroyed, but ryko milling (that's one of the reason why ryko is good). It missed his timing, so it doesn't get its effect.

>Another example is when naturia cliff when using as a synchro fodder. His effect states "when send to the graveyard... you can...". But if you synchro summon using cliff, the last thing happening is not cliff being sent to the grave, but your synchro monster hitting the field. Cliff missed his timing, hence no effects.

11-Destroying or not destroying

Lots of cards get their effect when they are destroyed. Hence, it is important to know when a card is destroyed.

Tributing, does not destroy.

Foddering for a synchro summon does not destroy.

Specifically "sending to the graveyard" according to the text of a card does not destroy.

Being destroyed by battle does destroy (duh).

Being specifically "destroyed" by a card effect according to its text does destroy (duh).

And as a last point, destroying does send to the grave.

(As a side note, being send from the hand to the graveyard, isn't being discarded. It is in English, but not in yugioh terms.)

"Postface"

So I think I have been quite exhaustive, and pretty thorough. I don't think I have forgotten any general rulings, except basic game mechanics (and not rulings) and the different steps of the battle phase which I skipped on purpose. I hope I helped and that every time you might have a ruling issue you will come back to this post :3

Also, if you noticed any mistakes I made or if you feel like I forgot something important, tell me and I'll edit the post !

Anyway it has been a lot of work, so I really hope you enjoyed it, and any feedback would be cherished ^^ And now I can finally post this monster that I put quite some efforts and work into haha

I would like to thank my mom, Sarah, Fenosoa, my dreams and the way I have been raised (so my mom two times, love you mommy), without all of which I would have never got to this point. Please excuse me I am being a bit emotional, but this is quite the accomplishment, and I only dreamed about it, I never thought the day would come where it actually happened. Thank you everyone !

Welp, cya all in further posts, in the ruling section or not :]