Do you have to use link monsters?

Since we entered MR5, Links aren’t mandatory anymore, but some Link monsters are incredibly powerful and will most likely be played in a lot of meta strategies. Pendulums, however, aren’t mandatory to play. You can play Pendulums if you want, but they aren’t meta at the moment.

Can you pendulum summon without link monsters?

Because of the restriction on Levels and Ranks, no monsters can be Pendulum Summoned if the cards in the Pendulum Zones have Pendulum Scales that are differ by one or less (i.e. 4 and 4, 3 and 4, or 4 and 3). However, this has no impact on the usage of Pendulum Effects.

Can Link monsters be tributed?

If there is a Link Monster on the field, you can Xyz Summon a monster in one of your zones it points to. When an Xyz Monster tells you to “detach” a material, take one of the stacked Xyz Material cards beneath your Xyz Monster and put it in the Graveyard.

Can you pendulum summon XYZ monsters?

In that case, according to the Perfect Rulebook: “A face-up Xyz/Pendulum Monster in the Extra Deck cannot be Xyz Summoned. If the Level written in the card can be Pendulum Summoned, it can be Pendulum Summoned from the Extra Deck.”

Can you pendulum summon from the graveyard?

A Pendulum Monster is sent to the Graveyard like normal if it is sent from any location other than the field (including if it has its activation as a Spell Card or Summon negated).

What do you need to know about Link Monsters?

All Link Monsters have Material Requirements, much like Synchro Monsters, for example Decode Talker says “+2 Effect Monsters”. This means you must use at least 2 monsters and they must be Effect Monsters, so no Normal Monsters are allowed, but you can use monsters like Sangan and other Link Monsters as Link Material.

What happens if you dont Link summon a link monster?

If a Link Monster is not Link Summoned first, it cannot be Special Summoned from the Graveyard or while banished (unless it specifies another way to properly Special Summon it). Link Monsters have a Link Rating in place of a Level or Rank. A Link Monster’s Link Rating determines the total number of Link Materials required to Link Summon it.

Can a link monster be placed in defense position?

Link Monsters can only exist in face-up Attack Position (they do not have a DEF value) and cannot be placed in or changed to Defense Position (either manually or through a card effect); this is because rotating the card into Defense Position would change the directions its Link Arrows point to.

What happens when a link monster is banished?

If a Link Monster would be moved to the hand or Main Deck, it is returned to the Extra Deck instead. If a card like “Transmigration Break” or “Degenerate Circuit” is applying, the Link Monster would be banished rather than returning to the Extra Deck.