Link Summon

A Link Summon is the act of Special Summoning a Link Monster from the Extra Deck.

How to Link Summon
During their Main Phase, the turn player can Link Summon a Link Monster from their Extra Deck by sending face-up monsters from their field to the Graveyard as Link Materials that are listed on it as materials, provided that the number of Link Materials used exactly equals the Link Rating of the Link Monster. If a Link Monster is sent as a Link Material, it can either be treated as a single Link Material or a number of Link Materials equal to its Link Rating (as long as the number of Link Materials sent still satisfies the minimum specified on the Link Monster). After that, the player Summons the Link Monster from the Extra Deck in an unoccupied Main Monster Zone that a Link Monster points to or an Extra Monster Zone in face-up Attack Position.

In the anime
In the anime, using monsters to perform a Link Summon is known as Setting the Link Arrows.

When a Link Summon is performed, the Duelist shoots forward a burst of energy which creates an Arrowhead portal in the sky, which the Duelist and their monsters fly through. The Link Materials then transform into red and white streaks of energy that enter the appropriate Link Arrows, causing them to turn red. The Link Arrows are then said to have its circuit combined. The portal then glows white and energy converges to form the monster and the Link Arrows around it. The monster and the Duelist then emerge from the Arrowhead portal. If a Link Monster is being used for a Link Summon, then copies of that monster will appear equal to the Link Rating of the monster and enter the appropriate Link Arrows.

The color of the area that a Duelist enters to Link Summon differs, depending on the monster's Type, Attribute or Link Rating.

Unlike previous summoning methods in the anime, the Duelist states the summoning conditions of the Link Monster before calling out the monsters he/she is using to summon it.