Breakdown of the Battle Phase




Ok, First off. Everyone in the game knows what the Battle Phase is. It’s where you order your own Monsters to attack that of your opponent, to destroy them, or, in other cases, you attack your opponent directly to inflict Direct Damage.


The Battle Phase

The Battle Phase is the most complicated Phase in the whole game. Even though it may just seem as a “attack, destroy, deal damage”, in fact, there’s a whole lot more behind it. Let’s begin with the beginning. The Battle Phase is cut in 4 smaller parts. These are called the “steps”. For 1 single Attack, you’ll have to go through all four steps. Then, you can start a new attack.


The four Steps are as following.
• Start Step
• Battle Step
• Damage Step
• End Step



Start Step

In the Start Step, you declare going into the Battle Phase, also commonly known as just saying, I’m about to attack.



Battle Step

Then, you continue, to the Battle Step. This is where you choose a Monster which you control, and is allowed or even forced to attack [Karakuri mostly are forced to Attack if able], and you pick a target which you intend to attack. The target always has to be an opponent’s Monster. In some rare cases, however, you are prohibited from targeting an opponent’s Monster for an Attack. The best example for this, is the Hopper Lock.


The Hopper Lock is a very nasty one. The card that creates it, has to be on the field, twice, to create this. This is “Watthopper”. It’s effect prevents your opponent from targeting any other “Watt” Monster, except itself, for effects or attacks. If you have two copies of that card both face-up on the field, your opponent has to attack one, but the other draws the attack to itself, since you cannot attack another Watt except for him. The first Watthopper then does the same, causing what we call Limbo, also known as impossible play. Therefore, you can enter the Battle Phase, but you can attack no Watt Monsters.



Damage Step

The Damage Step is the worst Step, since this also is separated in more parts. However, unlike the Battle Phase being put in 4, the Damage Step has been divided in 7 so-called Sub Steps. It is beyond me why Konami has made this so unnecessarily complicated, but it is now, so I’ll do my best to explain it to you, without losing you halfway down.


Ok, so, the Damage Step. Most have nightmares about it, because they don’t know what they can use in it, and each time you use something, your opponent starts whining “No, you can’t do that in Damage Step.” Well, mostly, they’re right. It depends on what you try to use, really. But to prevent anyone taking abuse of that, let’s clear up this mess which Konami made of it.


You start with the first Sub Step. It’s called “Start of the Damage Step”. Here, Continuous Effects will be applied. This doesn’t mean they activate, but the game allows the changes that the effects do, to be done. Easier said, effects like “Steamroid” and “Jain, Lightsworn Paladin”. Both have the effect, that when they are in battle with an opponent’s monster, their ATK or DEF changes. Steamroid gains 500 if he attacks, but loses 500 when he is attacked. Jain, therefore, only gains 300 when she attacks an opponent’s Monster.


The second Sub Step, is Flipping Face-Down Monsters Face-Up. Now, if you attack a Face-Up Monster, you won’t have to go through this, and you can just skip this. For the part where you do have to flip the Monster, you simply Flip it face-up. Any Flip Effects will activate then, at that exact time.


Sub Step 3. Before Damage Calculation. I hope you’re all still with me. It’s a pain to read, I know, but it has been a pain to write as well. Well, Sub Step 3. There are some cards, again, a Roid and Lightsworn, who have their effects activated at this time. “Drillroid” and “Ehren, Lightsworn Monk” both activate in this Sub Steb. Also, effects of Monsters who have to be attacked, like “Kiseitai” and “Ancient Lamp”, activate in this particular Sub Step.


Sub Step 4. Passed the middle. During Damage Calculation. Effects can only be used here, which actually say they can be used. This entails cards like “Kuriboh” and “Injection Fairy Lily”. They state on the card specifically, that they can be used during the Damage Calculation, therefore, this is the time to use them. Cards that alter ATK and DEF, but do not specifically state “during Damage Calculation” however, cannot be used. Exception on this, is "Honest".


Sub Step 5. Battle Damage, after Damage Calculation. Stay with me, people. At this Sub Step, effects like “Spirit Reaper”, “Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer” and “Red Dragon Archfiend” will activate in this Sub Step. Not much more, aside from the fact that effects like “Jinzo”, if he was destroyed by Battle, now stops working, and “Crystal Beast” monster in fact, allow them to be put in a Spell/Trap Card Zone at this Sub Step as well.


Sub Step 6, resolve effects. Ok, finally getting a bit to the easier part. Any effect that activated as Flip Effect, or has the text “If this card was destroyed by battle [and sent to the Graveyard]”, they all resolve at this time.


Sub Step 7, finally, the last one, is End of the Damage Step , Monster(s) Destroyed by Battle are Sent to the Graveyard. This is where you send your or your opponents destroyed monster to the Graveyard, and as well, the time for effects like “Hydrogeddon” or “Jurrac Guaiba” to activate, if they were there to witness the monster going to the Graveyard.


End Step

That then, finally, concludes the Damage Step. And followed, by the End Step, is one battle done. That then has to be followed for each battle, but since most of it isn’t exactly necessary every single time, you can just go through it like you always have done, but now with this as reference t see, if you are correct in what you do, and to figure out, what happens for example, when “Drillroid” attacks “Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter”.

Hope this was as useful as it was a pain to write. If there are any questions, or tips, or things unclear, feel free to reply, or ask me about it.
Main source has been Yu-Gi-Oh! Wikia, from which I took most examples on cards.