Dealing with negations

Nobody likes being told "no" - and to be frank, Yu-Gi-Oh! revolves around when and how to tell your opponent "no". Careful sequencing and management of interruptions is key to playing the game at a high level.

As such, you'll often encounter players running cards with effects that negate your cards' effects and/or activations. Knowing how to avoid them (or even when to let them resolve) can make the difference between a win and a loss more times than you'd think.

Every seasoned Fire King player knows the pain of Normal Summoning Legendary Fire King Ponix and activating its effect, only for an opponent to chain an Ash Blossom. If left to resolve, it can end our turn right there, which is pretty bad as we have to rely on handtraps to survive until the next turn.

Thankfully, we have solutions. Cards like Called by the Grave and Crossout Designator are great at dealing with any handtraps thrown our way, so running them in either Main Deck or Side Deck is recommended.

For effects that target, we also have Fire King High Avatar Kirin - we can Chain its Quick Effect to destroy our own card and make the negating effect lose its target, thus be unable to negate. Promethean Princess, Bestower of Flames's GY effect can also fulfill this role in limited circumstances.

Cards that target before negating include Effect Veiler and Infinite Impermanence - be on the lookout for these kinds of effects.

However, you need to keep in mind there are negations that do not target, like Ash Blossom & Joyous Spring. Kirin cannot save you from those, as the effect is negated regardless of where your card ends up.

No matter how you slice it, you're often vulnerable to these kinds of effects, so it's good idea to anticipate and prepare for them. For example, if you open with Arvata, sometimes Normal Summoning Arvata to make its negate online can be the right play and save you from getting interrupted.

However, you also need to acknowledge that sometimes you just don't have any way to play around this. You are at the mercy of your opening hand - bad hands are just as common as good hands, so learning how to make the most out of any hand is an essential skill.

Don't give up immediately - you'd be surprised how many decks cannot kill you even with just a Ponix on board, especially if you have some other Fire Kings in hand, and your own selection of handtraps. Persevere through games and you'll find wins where you least expect them.

In competitive tournaments you also need to learn when to surrender to save time, but that's another discussion. In fact, I would be inclined to say that as a beginner, sticking through every match will be more beneficial in the long run than immediately scooping when you brick or end on a poor board.