Hatching

Game Rules

General Rules General Rules/FAQ ■ General Rules/Glossary ■ Keywords ■ Timings ■ Card Types Attack Resolution ■ End of Turn Procedures Gameplay Hatching ■ Playing ■ Using ■ Digivolving ■ Passing ■ Trashing ■ Deletion ■ Revealing Digimon Instance Playing Field Hand ■ Battle Area ■ Breeding Area ■ Main Deck ■ Digi-Egg Deck ■ Trash ■ Memory ■ Security Reading Effects Global Effects ■ Targeting ■ Reading Conditions ■ Costs ■ Card Categories Prevention vs Redirection ■ Optional vs Mandatory Effect Resolution Triggered Effects ■ Rules Processing ■ Interruptive Effects Trigger ■ Pending Activation ■ Activation Related Information Other Rules Rulebooks ■ Restricted Cards ■ Block Icon Errata Cards Sorted FAQ Questions

Hatching (孵化, Fuka^?) is an action that you may perform during your Breeding Phase or by card effects.

How to Hatch

Hatching is an action that you do by taking the top card of your Digi-Egg Deck and turning it face up in your Breeding Area. If you have a Digimon in your Breeding Area already you cannot hatch.

You cannot Hatch if you choose to move a Digimon out of the Breeding Area during your Breeding Phase.

If a card effect would let you hatch a Digi-Egg, it must still follow the rule where you cannot hatch if you already have a Digimon in your Breeding Area.

Cards that go in the Digi-Egg deck and can be hatched have "Digi-Egg" at the top of their card, and have a different card back than other Digimon cards as seen in the images.

Digi-Egg cards that are hatched are treated as Digimon but not "Digimon cards".

Rulings

1. Q: Can I choose not to hatch a Digi-Egg or move a level 3+ Digimon from the breeding area to the battle area?

   A: Yes, both hatching a new Digi-Egg and moving Digimon from the breeding area to the battle area are optional.
2. Q: Can I hatch a new Digi-Egg when a Digimon is already in my breeding area?

   A: No, your breeding area must be empty.
3. Q: Can I trash the Digimon in my breeding area to hatch a new Digi-Egg card?

   A: No, you can't. Digimon and Tamers can't be trashed or returned to your hand or deck unless the game rules require it.
4. Q: Do I lose the game when my Digi-Egg deck runs out of cards?

   A: No. You won't be able to hatch new Digi-Egg cards, but you won't lose the game.
5. Q: Can I digivolve Digimon in my breeding area during my breeding phase?

   A: No, digivolving Digimon in your breeding area takes place during your main phase.
6. Q: I move a Digimon from my breeding area to my battle area. Does the Digimon's [On Play] effect activate?

   A: No, it doesn't. Moving a Digimon to the battle area doesn't count as playing it.

Other Rulings

1. Q: During my breeding phase, I hatch a level 2 Digimon from my Digi-Egg deck. I then digivolve that Digimon into a level 3 Digimon during my main phase. If I use a card's effect to move that Digimon to my battle area in the same turn, can I attack with it immediately?

   A: Yes, you can. Hatching a Digimon does not count as playing them, so it can attack.¹

Sources

• Official Q&A General Rules EN (21/05/21)
• Official General Rules Q&A JP (29/10/21)

1. Card Rulings:BT1-089