Damage Step

The Damage Step (Japanese: ダメージステップ Damējisuteppu) is a step during the Battle Phase during which battle is performed. It occurs immediately after the Battle Step ends, if an attack is still occurring.

Only certain types of cards and effects can be activated during the Damage Step. 

Start of the Damage Step

 * The turn player declares they are entering the Damage Step.


 * As soon as the Damage Step is entered, immediately apply the Continuous Effects of any monsters that apply "during the Damage Step (only)", such as those of "Steamroid" and "Crystal Beast Topaz Tiger".


 * Next, the Trigger Effects of monsters that activate "at the start of the Damage Step" activate now (if triggered appropriately), such as those of "Neo-Spacian Grand Mole" and the "Mystic Swordsman" monsters.
 * The effects of some cards such as "Nanobreaker" and "Disciple of the Forbidden Spell" that state "without (applying) damage calculation" also activate at this point. However, other such cards that state "without (applying) damage calculation" may instead activate later, "before damage calculation" instead (as seen in the errata history of "Drillroid"). As such, it is important to check if there is a newer version of that card's text on the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG - Card Database that clarifies the activation timing for cards that state "without (applying) damage calculation". If there isn't, TCG rulings may explain the activation timing, if there were any issued for that card.


 * If a face-down monster is being attacked, it is not flipped face-up yet.
 * The effects of "Sasuke Samurai" and "Reverse Buster" activate "at the start of the Damage Step," and require the attacked face-down monster to remain face-down by the time their effects resolve, which supports this point.
 * If a face-down battling monster is destroyed by a card effect now, its Flip effect is not activated, and damage calculation is not performed.

Before damage calculation

 * If a monster is being attacked and it is face-down by this point, flip it face-up.
 * If the attacked monster has a Flip effect, that effect will NOT activate at this time. However, its effect will be guaranteed to activate later in the Damage Step, even if the monster itself leaves the Monster Zone before then.
 * The same applies for monsters with other Trigger Effects that normally activate when they are flipped face-up, as supported by the Zombie World Structure Deck reprint of "Royal Keeper".


 * If a monster is flipped face-up and it has a Continuous Effect, then you generally apply the Continuous Effect immediately, such as the effects of monsters like "Star Boy" and "Jinzo".
 * Continuous Effects that would prevent the flipped monster from being targeted for attacks, such as the effect of "Command Knight", do not apply at this time, since the monster has already been targeted as an attack target. If the monster survives the Damage Step, its effect will prevent itself from being targeted by any future attacks.
 * Continuous Effects that would prevent the flipped monster from being attacked, such as the effect of "Solar Flare Dragon", do not apply at this time, since the Battle Step is already over. If the monster survives the Damage Step, its effect will protect itself from any future attacks.
 * If the flipped monster has a Continuous Effect that destroys itself under certain conditions that are currently met (such as "Giant Kozaky", "Zombie Mammoth", etc.), the monster is not destroyed yet and the Damage Step proceeds normally, until after damage calculation.
 * The same applies if "Rivalry of Warlords" or "Gozen Match" is active and the flipped monster has the wrong Type/Attribute, or if there is an active 'Unclassified Effect' (belonging either to the flipped monster or another face-up monster) that states "You can only control 1 '...' " or "There can only be 1 '...' monster on the field" and the flipped monster has a name that conflicts with another face-up card on the field (as defined by that 'Unclassified Effect'); the appropriate actions are determined and performed after damage calculation.


 * Regardless of whether or not the attacked monster was initially face-down, if the attacked monster is changed to face-down Defense Position at this point or later in the Damage Step (up until damage calculation is completed), such as by the effect of "Gemini Counter", it will be immediately flipped face-up again.


 * The Trigger Effects of monsters that activate "before damage calculation", such as the effects of "Drillroid" and "Ehren, Lightsworn Monk", will activate now.


 * This is the typical point at which ATK/DEF modifiers are used. Multiple Chains can be formed.


 * After both players have agreed that they have finished activating cards and effects in this part of the Damage Step, damage calculation is entered.
 * However, if a monster was attacked and left the Monster Zone by a card effect during this Damage Step (up to this point), damage calculation is not conducted, but the rest of the Damage Step proceeds normally (allowing for appropriate Trigger Effects to activate normally, such as those of Flip monsters, "Nightmare Penguin", "Amazoness Sage", etc.).

Perform damage calculation

 * In general, cards/effects that modify the ATK/DEF of a monster(s) can no longer be activated at this point or for the rest of the current Damage Step. More detail is given in the Cards and effects that can be activated section on this page.


 * Cards/effects that activate/apply "during damage calculation" do so at this point (before the actual damage calculation is performed).


 * Players compare the relevant ATK/DEF values and take the appropriate amount of damage; if two monsters are involved in the battle, then it is determined at this time which monster(s) will be destroyed by the battle or not.
 * Note that if a monster has been determined to be destroyed by battle, it is not sent to the Graveyard yet.
 * If there is a Continuous Effect that can be used to prevent a monster from being destroyed by this battle (such as that of "Vicious Claw"), the relevant player must choose (at this point) whether or not they will use it. If such an effect is chosen to be used, the effect does not apply at this time: it will apply at the end of the Damage Step, when monsters that are destroyed by battle are normally sent to the Graveyard (if the monster is still on the field by that point).

After damage calculation

 * Monsters that have been considered to be destroyed by battle are still not sent to the Graveyard yet.


 * The following rules apply to monsters that are considered to be destroyed by battle, until they are sent to the Graveyard (or another appropriate location):
 * They cannot be targeted by cards or effects, change their battle positions, or have their ATK/DEF changed.
 * Their Continuous Effects are no longer applied.
 * They cannot be returned to the hand by card effects,  unless a card effect specifies that it can return destroyed monsters (such as "Last Minute Cancel"). Even then, the destroyed monster will not be returned yet, at this point in the Damage Step.
 * Their effects can still be negated.
 * Before those monsters would be sent to the Graveyard (or another appropriate location) as a result of being destroyed by battle, it is possible for them to be destroyed, sent to the Graveyard, or banished by card effects before that can occur.
 * If a monster ends up leaving the field before it can be sent to the Graveyard (or another appropriate location) as a result of battle, cards and effects that would activate when/if that monster is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard cannot be activated.
 * They cannot be used as a cost to activate a card or an optional effect.
 * However, they can be used as a cost to activate a mandatory effect, such as "Doomcaliber Knight".


 * If a monster with a Continuous Effect that destroys itself under certain conditions ("Giant Kozaky", "Zombie Mammoth", etc.) survives damage calculation without being considered to be "destroyed by battle", that Continuous Effect will immediately apply at this point and destroy that monster if those conditions are still met.


 * If a monster was flipped face-up during the Damage Step and "Rivalry of Warlords"/"Gozen Match" is still active, if that monster has a Attribute/Type that conflicts with another monster already face-up on the field, the flipped monster will immediately be sent to the Graveyard at this point.


 * If a monster was flipped face-up during the Damage Step and its name conflicts with another monster that is already face-up on the field, as defined by an 'Unclassified Effect' that states "You can only control 1 '...' " or "There can only be 1 '...' monster on the field" (belonging either to the flipped monster or another face-up monster), the flipped monster will immediately be destroyed at this point, unless it was already considered to be "destroyed by battle".
 * Monsters destroyed this way are not considered to be destroyed by a card effect.


 * Any cards and effects with the following activation conditions now activate in a Chain if they do not have further specified activation timing (such as "at the end of the Damage Step"):
 * "If/When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent", "If/When you inflict battle damage to your opponent with this effect", "If/When you take battle damage", etc.
 * "after damage calculation"
 * "If/When this card is flipped face-up"
 * Flip effects

End of the Damage Step

 * Monsters that have been destroyed by battle are now normally sent to the Graveyard, unless they are Pendulum Monsters (they return to the Extra Deck instead) or if a card effect states otherwise.
 * If an effect that prevents a monster's destruction by battle was chosen earlier in the Damage Step to be applied, it applies at this point.


 * Cards and effects with the following activation conditions now activate at this point if triggered appropriately:
 * "If/When this card is destroyed by battle", "If/When a monster you control is destroyed by battle", "If/When this card destroys a monster by battle", etc.
 * "at the end of the Damage Step"
 * If a card with PSCT specifies a possible activation condition that can occur at this point, such as a monster being destroyed in general and sent to the Graveyard, it can activate at this point unless it says "(except during the Damage Step)". An example of this is "Chthonian Blast", in the context of the text of "Seismic Shockwave". If it does not have PSCT, the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG - Card Database may have newer text for that card. Otherwise, TCG rulings may explain the activation legality, if there were any issued for that card.


 * Once there are no effects left to activate or resolve, the Damage Step ends, and the Battle Step is automatically entered.
 * At the time both players agree to enter the Battle Step, effects that apply "until the end of the Damage Step" now expire and no longer apply.

Cards and effects that can be activated
During the Damage Step, only certain cards and effects may be activated. Note that some cards and effects may specify that they cannot be activated during the Damage Step, which supersedes any reason that would otherwise allow them to be activated.

The following cards/effects can be activated during the Damage Step:


 * Counter Trap Cards


 * Mandatory effects
 * Mandatory effects that specifically note they cannot activate during the Damage Step will not activate, such as that of "Vivid Knight".


 * Quick Effects of monsters that negate the activation of a card(s), or negate the activation of an effect(s).


 * Spell/Trap Cards and Quick/Quick-like Effects that directly alter the ATK/DEF of a monster(s) (by increasing or decreasing ATK/DEF, changing ATK/DEF to a certain amount, switching ATK/DEF values, etc.) can be activated during the Damage Step, but only up until damage calculation. During damage calculation or afterwards in the Damage Step, they cannot be activated.
 * These cards and effects do not have to affect a battling monster; they can be used during the Damage Step to affect the ATK/DEF of a monster(s) that is not currently battling.
 * Optional Spell/Trap Cards and Quick/Quick-like Effects that can indirectly change the ATK/DEF of a monster, such as "Reverse Trap" or "Skill Drain", cannot be activated during the Damage Step for that reason alone.
 * As such, "Curse of Anubis" cannot be activated either, since its DEF-altering effect is applied separately from its effect that changes battle positions.
 * Trap Cards that equip themselves to monsters and have Continuous Effects that directly alter the ATK/DEF of the equipped monster, such as "Horn of the Phantom Beast", can be activated during the Damage Step for that reason alone.
 * Cards like "Half or Nothing", which might not alter ATK/DEF at resolution, cannot be activated during the Damage Step for that reason alone.
 * Cards such as "Powerful Rebirth" and "Reverse of Neos", which Special Summon a monster and exclusively modify the ATK/DEF of that Summoned monster, cannot be activated during the Damage Step for that reason alone.
 * If a Set Continuous Trap Card has an optional Quick-like Effect that directly alters the ATK/DEF of a monster(s) (such as "Attack of the Cornered Rat"), that Trap Card can be activated during the Damage Step until damage calculation, but only if that Quick-like Effect is activated and resolved in the same Chain Link as the activation of the Trap Card itself.
 * Continuous Trap Cards with Continuous Effects that directly alter the ATK/DEF of a monster(s), such as "Fire Formation - Kaiyo", can be activated during the Damage Step until damage calculation.
 * Such Trap Cards can be activated even if their relevant Continuous Effect would not affect any monsters, such as activating "Dark Contract with the Witch" during your own turn or while you control no Fiend-Type monsters, or activating "Unpossessed" when a monster other than a "Familiar-Possessed" monster is attacking.
 * Such Trap Cards can be activated even if their relevant Continuous Effect only applies an ATK/DEF change under particular conditions and those conditions are not currently met (such as activating "Chosen of Zefra" while there are fewer than 3 "Zefra" monsters face-up in your Extra Deck), unless that condition could never be met during the Damage Step (such as "Swift Samurai Storm!").
 * Even if a Continuous Trap Card can be activated during the Damage Step due to having a Continuous Effect that alters ATK/DEF, if it also has a Quick-like Effect that can be activated in the same Chain Link as the activation of the Trap Card itself (such as "Dark Contract with the Witch"), that Quick-like Effect cannot be activated at the same time as the Trap Card's activation during the Damage Step, unless it has another valid reason allowing it to be activated during the Damage Step.
 * Unique exceptions are "Evil Blast", "Scrap Sheen" (only has relevant rulings in the TCG), "Zero Force",  and the Quick-like Effect of "Rocket Hand", which have rulings stating that they cannot be activated during the Damage Step.
 * Unlike Quick/Quick-like Effects, having the effect of directly altering the ATK/DEF of a monster(s) does not permit optional Trigger/Trigger-like Effects to be activated during the Damage Step, with examples being "Morpho Butterspy" and "Performapal Turn Toad".


 * Optional Trigger and Trigger-like Effects—if that effect activates in response to the card itself being moved to a different location (including leaving the field),   being flipped face-up (including Flip effects), or having its battle position changed —can be activated during the Damage Step.
 * In general, other optional Trigger and Trigger-like Effects that have activation conditions that can be met both during and outside the Damage Step cannot be activated. These effects can be easily identified with cards that have PSCT, as they will state "(except during the Damage Step)" in their activation conditions. Otherwise, these effects are associated with activation conditions that involve actions regarding other cards, such as "When/If a ... is destroyed", "When/If a ... is added from ... to your hand", "When/If a ... monster is Special Summoned", etc. of cards like "Revival Rose", "Ambulanceroid", and "Cyber Dinosaur".
 * This includes Trigger Effects of monsters that can activate in response to actions involving itself and/or other cards (but not just itself or other cards), such as "Madolche Chickolates"; they cannot be activated during the Damage Step.
 * If optional Trigger and Trigger-like Effects with these activation conditions have PSCT, but do not state "(except during the Damage Step)" (such as those of "Vampire Grace", "Mermail Abyssdine", "Superheavy Samurai Kabuto", etc.), then they can be activated during the Damage Step.
 * Cards with these Trigger/Trigger-like Effect activation conditions that lack PSCT, but have TCG rulings stating they can be activated during the Damage Step, include but are not necessarily limited to: "Verdant Sanctuary".
 * OCG/TCG ruling differences:
 * In the TCG, the Trigger Effects of "Shark Stickers", "Statue of Anguish Pattern" (Trigger-like Effect), "Superheavy Samurai Kabuto", "U.A. Blockbacker", "Vampire Grace", and "Wind-Up Shark" (all of which have PSCT) that can activate when another monster is Summoned do not state "(except during the Damage Step)", so those effects can be activated during the Damage Step. In the OCG, none of their effects can be activated during the Damage Step.
 * In the TCG, the Trigger-like Effect of "Attack the Moon!" (which has PSCT) that can activate when a Rock-Type monster's battle position changes does not state "(except during the Damage Step)", so that effect can be activated during the Damage Step. In the OCG, it cannot be activated during the Damage Step.


 * Any effect that specifically mentions an activation timing that is unique to the Damage Step.
 * This is indicated by phrases in the text such as "During damage calculation", "At the end of the Damage Step", "If/When you take battle damage", etc.
 * This includes cards and effects that activate in response to damage (without specifying battle damage), like "Blackfeather Darkrage Dragon", "Attack and Receive", and "Numinous Healer".
 * If a Set Continuous Trap Card has an optional Trigger-like or optional Quick-like Effect with an activation timing at least partially specific to the Damage Step (such as "Yang Zing Creation" and "Damage = Reptile"), that Trap Card can be activated during the Damage Step if that Trigger-like/Quick-like Effect is also activated in the same Chain Link as the activation of the Trap Card itself.
 * In contrast, if a Set Continuous Trap Card has a mandatory Trigger-like Effect with an activation timing at least partially specific to the Damage Step, the Trap Card itself cannot be activated, even if its controller intended on activating that Trigger-like Effect in the same Chain Link as the activation of the Trap Card itself.


 * Cards that cannot be labelled as any of the above cards, but have rulings stating that they and/or their effect(s) are allowed to be activated during the Damage Step: "Desrook Archfiend", "Null and Void", "Skull Meister", "Spell Reactor・RE",, "Tethys, Goddess of Light" , "Trap Reactor・Y FI" , and "T.G. Blade Blaster" ("Desrook Archfiend" applicable for both the OCG and TCG, the remaining applicable for the TCG only).

As a final clarification, if a card that falls under one of the above categories cannot be activated during the Damage Step (because of a certain characteristic it has), that does not necessarily preclude it from being activated; if it also falls under another category (with no reasons in that category preventing its activation during the Damage Step), then it can be activated.

An example would be "Rope of Life", which is similar to "Reverse of Neos" and "Powerful Rebirth" in that they all Special Summon a monster and exclusively increase the ATK/DEF of that Summoned monster. Cards with such effects cannot be activated during the Damage Step for that reason alone, but since "Rope of Life" also has an activation timing that is unique to the Damage Step ("When a monster(s) is destroyed by battle and sent to your Graveyard:"), it can be activated during the Damage Step.