Addition, Subtraction

Some players were asking "What is Plus and Minus that the other players are talking about?". Today, I'll explain what + (plus), - (minus) means.

Plus is an event when a player gains a card/s on the field and/or hand.

Minus is an event when a player loses a card/s on the field and/or hand.

Examples:

Elemental HERO Stratos is Normal Summoned on your side of the field. You activated its effect that adds 1 HERO monster from your deck to your hand. You gained a card to your hand, thus have a +1.

Your opponent summoned successfully a monster then you activated a facedown Book of Moon as a response. You lost a card therefore you have a -1.

You activated Upstart Goblin, drawing 1 card and giving 1000LP to your opponent. You gain a card (+1) but then you also lost Upstart Goblin (-1), giving you a +0.


Plus and Minus also work in Card Advantage (The amount of cards on a player's hand and field compared to the amount of card on another player's hand and field).

If  you have more cards on your field and hand than your opponent's, then you have a +x (where x = to the number of cards you have more than your opponent). If you have less, then you have a -x (where x = to the number of cards you have less than your opponent).

Examples:

Your opponent normal summoned Marauding Captain then activated its effect to Special Summon another level 4 or lower monster. You responded with Torrential Tribute, destroying the monsters. You have a -1 (given that you did not have a destroyed monster on your side of the field) because you lost your trap but your opponent  have -2 because he/she lost 2 monsters. Since your opponent lost more cards than you by 1, you have a +1 Card Advantage.

Your opponent has 1 faceup monster on his/her side of the field. You activated Lightning Vortex, discarding 1 card as a cost, to destroy the monster. You have a -2 (Lightning Vortex and the discarded card) while your opponent has -1 (the destroyed faceup monster). Since you lost more cards than your opponent, you have -1 Card Advantage.

Your opponent has 1 faceup monster on his/her side of the field. You activated Fissure to destroy your opponent's faceup monster. Both you and your opponent lost a card (-1 to both players). Since either you or your opponent have lost more cards, you have a +0 Card Advantage. This play is also known as "One for One" (not to be confused with the card One for One.) where you lose a card to let your opponent lose a card.


Card Advantage is plays a vital role in dueling because it enables you to perform combo without worrying at your opponent stopping it. The more Card Advantage you have, the higher the chance that you successfully land a combo and win the duel.

That's all for the first post. Hope you guys/gals enjoyed it.