Summoning condition

Sometimes, conditions exist as prerequirites for "Summoning" a monster to the field.

Summoning

A Summoning is performed when a monster is transferred from either the Main Deck, Fusion Deck, Graveyard, Removed from Play pile, or hand to the Playing Field.

There exists a number of different types of Summonings.

• Normal Summon or Set
• Tribute Summon or Tribute Set
• Flip Summon
• Special Summon
• Fusion Summon
• Ritual Summon

Flip Summons, Special Summons, Fusion Summons, and Ritual Summons may be conducted as many times as you would like per turn, provided you have the cards to do so.

Special Summons

For example, in the case of Chaos Sorcerer, its inability to be Normal Summoned or Set, and its requirement of removing 1 Light and 1 Dark monster in your Graveyard from play to Special Summon it, are the card's Summoning Conditions.

A card that includes 'This card cannot be Special Summoned except...' in it's card effect text, means that the monster can only be Special Summoned via the card effect listed. Even if it is sent to the Graveyard after having been properly Special Summoned via that effect, it cannot be Special Summoned from the Graveyard, using cards like Monster Reborn or Premature Burial. This type of monster is called by most people as NOMI. However, Level up! is unaffected by this, since it is considered to have levelled up via the LV Monster's own effect.

The only way around that is to use Level Modulation, which has the special effect text, "Ignoring the summoning conditions". However, this will only work if the monster was properly Special Summoned via it's relevant card effect first. If that card was discarded to the Graveyard via a card effect, of a card cost (Cases in point: Spirit Reaper or Lightning Vortex), then it cannot be Special Summoned with Level Modulation, because it was not properly Special Summoned first. Level up! will not work, period, because card's in the hand or Deck have their Summoning Requirement's 'reset', if the card in question was properly Special Summoned first, and then sent back to the Deck via a card effect, like Fiber Jar. Cards like Dark Paladin, Exodia Necross and XYZ-Dragon Cannon are listed in this catagory of monsters even if they were printed with the special summon-only text.

If a card has 'This card can only be Special Summoned by...' in it's card effect text, that means that, once it's fulfilled it's specific summoning requirements, and later sent to the Graveyard and/or Removed from Play, it can be Special Summoned as many times as you have reserve card effects to activate them. This type of monster is called a special summon-only monster

As a rule, cards with either effect text listed above cannot be Normal Summoned or Set

However, if a card has, 'This card cannot be Special Summoned', then that is absolute, and the card cannot be Special Summoned, either via A Hero Emerges, Monster Reborn, Premature Burial, Call of the Haunted, or similar cards. Cards like Helpoemer have a specific clause, "This card cannot be Special Summoned from the Graveyard'. Where that is the case, they can still be Special Summoned via other means, either from the hand or from the Removed from Play Zone, assuming the cards themselves have no restrictions on those actions.

The VWXYZ Series has a particularly peculiar way of Special Summoning their Fusion Monsters, by removing from play, the cards listed that are present on your side of the field.

Normal Summons

Two notable cards with Normal Summoning Conditions, are Mystic Swordsman LV4 and Mystic Swordsman LV6. Both of them cannot be Normal Summoned in face-up Attack Position, and and instead, must be Normal Summoned in face-down Defense Position. This is treated exactly the same as a Set.

Swift Gaia the Fierce Knight can be Normal Summoned without Tribute if it is the only card in your hand, however, you may still Tribute 2 monsters to Tribute Summon it like you would any other monster.

Cocoon of Evolution, instead of performing a Normal Summon, allows you to equip it to a Petit Moth as an Equip Card.

Tribute Summons

As an example, Infernal Incinerator requires you to Tribute a monster with 2000 or more ATK, as well as discard all the cards in your hand, to Tribute Summon it.

Victory Dragon requires you to Tribute 3 Dragon-Type monsters in order to Tribute Summon it.

Fusion Summons

Some Fusion Monsters require that ONLY the monsters listed on the card as Fusion-Material Monsters, may be used for the Fusion Summon. In that case, no Fusion Substitute Monsters can be used as a Substitute for one of the Fusion-Material Monsters.

Other Fusion Monsters have the text, "This card cannot be Special Summoned except by Fusion Summon". This is very similar to, "This card cannot be Special Summoned except by... <insert effect>".