Monster Rancher Battle Card
Database, Gallery, Rules & Guide

The author/translator (CT) has personally tested most of these interactions via the Monster Rancher Battle Card Episode II game on PlayStation. Interactions that are unlikely to be encountered in a normal game (difficult requirements or game losing) are labeled as Trivia.

Regarding cards that do not exist in the PlayStation game, the author/translator has to make some assumptions based on the Japanese card text and how similar cards work.

If you’d like to report an error, post on the MRBC channel on Monster Rancher Discord Server (with a video if it can be tested in-game). Also, feel free to ask around if you still have unanswered questions.

Damage Calculation

Commence your Attack Step.

First, you may need to declare which opponent’s monster to attack.

• For moves that only damage one monster (single target), declare now.
• For distributable damage (like “Shotgun”), declare after ENV check.
• For moves that damage multiple monsters (AoE), you don’t need to declare. Note: In the original translation, you are still considered targeting them.

Next, check if the move is valid and whether it will do damage.

• Check for wordings like ‘Can’t damage’ or ‘Can only damage’ X attribute. The move will always deal 0 damage to an unaffected monster.
• If a Taunt is in effect, check if you must or must not damage a specific monster.

Now, calculate the Final Damage.

• Start from the move’s base damage.
• Apply additive bonus (such as “Critical” or Ghost’s “Hit Card”).
• Apply multiplier bonus (such as ‘Double damage’ against X attribute).

If applicable, Environment (ENV) check.

• Apply any ‘Final Damage’ modifier (like “Excited” or “Spark”).
• If an ENV that prohibits X damage (“Nice Fight” or “Lock Tight”) is in play, check if the move is valid to use.

Finally, pay the GUTS cost and spread the pain.

• For distributable damage, you now decide how to split the damage.
• For AoE damage, you will damage all applicable monsters.
• Self-inflicted damage (like Hare’s “Headbutt”) will be dealt after the defense resolution. Unlike AoE that also affects your monsters, this self-inflicted damage is not affected by modifiers.

Proceed to the opponent’s Defense Step.

• Pay attention to the order of defense cards being played. This is because each defense card is resolved individually.
• Moves that have been reduced to 0 damage can still be defended. This is exploitable in combination with defense cards that double or triple your own attack.
• A monster that is not affected/targeted by an AoE move (due to it being Ground/Air only) cannot respond with a Defense Card.
• When dealing with moves that deal no/double damage against X attribute, if the attribute changes while resolving defense, consider if these conditions now apply.

Examples:

Combining Pixie’s “Shotgun” (3 damage, distributable) with Critical (+2 damage) will result in 5 final damage. Since damage distribution is done after ENV check:

• Under “Nice Fight” (Final Damage ≤ 3 cannot be used), this combo is valid. You may split the damage however you like, including dealing 3 damage or less to all opponent’s monsters.
• Under “Lock Tight” (Final Damage ≥ 4 cannot be used), this combo is invalid, even if you meant to deal 3 damage or less to all the opponent's monsters.

“Nice Fight” (Final Damage ≤ 3 cannot be used) is in play, and the opponent's Mew just used “Doll”. You combo Gali's Flame Wall (2 damage AOE) with Critical (+2 damage) and Will Power (x2 damage) for 8 damage to Mew’s allies.

• Even though Mew will take 0 damage, the combo is valid because the Final Damage is greater than 3, and it is applicable.

Phoenix uses “Fire River” (Ground-only AoE) on 2 Ground monsters and 1 Air monster. The Ground monsters would be able to respond with defense cards, even if they would take 0 damage (e.g. Mew using “Doll”). The Air monster however, would not be affected and cannot use defense cards against it.

Ghost uses “In the Hat” to reduce a POW move to 0. Golem may follow up with “Protect” and “Jump In” to take 0 damage and triple its next POW move.

General Mechanics

Rounding Golden Rule

If a card forces a damage value, life points, or guts cost to be cut in half, the rounding is done in favor of the player who did not play the card (i.e. the opponent).

Examples:

• Naga’s “Counter” (against 5 damage: 2 damage to the attacker, 3 damage to self).
• Jell’s “Sponge” (against 1 damage, after halving will still result in 1 damage).
• Plant’s “Leaf Zero” (if used at 1 LP, halve own LP to 0 = KO).

Damage Reduction and What-Not

Attacks like Naga’s “Belly Blow” specify that its damage is not reduced by BLK moves. These mechanics are not considered as reducing damage, and thus work against the attack:

• Reflecting damage (Gali’s “Deflect”, Naga’s “Counter”, and Zilla’s “Bounce”).
• Redirecting damage (Golem’s “Protect”, Monol’s “Shield”, and Mocchi’s “Hide”).
• Setting a monster’s life to 1 (Any Monster’s “Grit”).

Taunts

Not official, just termed for ease of reference. Taunts are moves that prevent or require damaging moves to be used against specific monsters.

• SPE moves do no damage, so they are unaffected.
• The check is done during the Attack Step (before resolving defense). This means the move will not be invalidated due to the opponent’s defense cards.
• Redirected damage bypasses taunts. This means a monster under “Enchant” or “In Your Face” will take damage from Mocchi’s “Hide”.

Taunt Examples:

Suezo’s “Provoke” and Mocchi’s “Nyah Nyah” require the opponent to damage them.

• AoE and Distributable Damage are allowed if the taunter would also be damaged.
• This skill grants “Provoking” status on Suezo/Mocchi. If the taunter is KO’d, the opponent is free to attack other monsters.

Pixie’s “Enchant” prevents the opponent from damaging it.

• AoE and Distributable Damage are allowed if they do not damage the taunter.
• This skill grants “Enchant” status on Pixie.

Zilla’s “In Your Face” prevents the opponent from damaging the user’s allies. AOE and Distributable Damage are allowed if they do not damage the taunter’s allies.

• This skill grants “In Your Face” status on Zilla’s allies. Thus, even after the opponent KO’s Zilla, they still can’t attack Zilla’s allies while this skill is active.

Redirections

Also not an official term. Redirections are moves that make a monster in your team take damage for another. These are Golem’s “Protect”, Mocchi’s “Hide”, and Monol’s “Shield”.

Effects inflicted on damage like ‘Can’t Attack’ or ‘Guts Loss’ may still apply.

When dealing with attacks that deal no/double damage against a certain attribute:

• The original target monster’s attribute is always checked. The resulting damage is what would be redirected to the new target monster. (Currently, there is no scenario where doubled damage vs X attribute on the original target monster can be undone.)
• The new target monster’s attribute will be checked only if it actually changes while resolving the defense, possibly subjecting to no/double damage.

Examples:

1) Monol uses “Shield” against Phoenix’s “Fire River” (3 damage Ground-only AoE). In a team of Monol (Air) and 2 Ground monsters, Monol will take 3+3 = 6 damage. Note that Monol is not affected by the initial damage due to its attribute, but it still takes damage for its allies.

• If you follow this up with Zilla’s “Blowhole”, Monol (Air) will not be affected. Thus, it will still take damage.

2) The opponent uses a ‘Double Damage VS Air’ move on Mocchi (Ground), resulting in 3 damage. If Mocchi “Hide” to Pixie, Pixie will take 3 damage (her Air attribute is not checked).

3) The opponent used a ‘No Damage VS Air’ attack on Mocchi (Ground). If Mocchi redirects to Centaur (Ground), and Zilla responds with “Blowhole” (changing Centaur’s attribute to Air), the attack condition will be rechecked, resulting in 0 damage to Centaur.

Trivias:

• An attack’s damage can theoretically be doubled twice, against both the original and new target. But this requires an opponent that’s playing to lose.
• With two mad players, an attack that will originally do no damage can be made to deal damage on the redirected monster.

Life Points Loss / Reduction

“Powder” and “Arid Land” causes Life Points loss/reduction. This is not considered damage, and thus does not interact with:

• Damage nullification from Mew’s “Doll” (the user’s Life Points will be reduced).
• ‘Ends if damaged’ effects like Durahan’s “Silent Stance” (effect persists).

Status That Persist Through KO and Revival

When a monster is KO’d, it actually retains any status applied to it (both positive and negative) for the normal duration. If a monster is subsequently revived, that status will remain until it expires normally.

This can be useful for retaining:

• Damage buffs (e.g. Golem under “Recharge” and KO’d due to Arid Land).
• Attribute change (e.g. Henger’s “Transform”).
• Worm’s “Cocoon” (use “Emerge” next turn).

These moves retain its effect even if the user remains KO’d due to:

• Status granted not on the user (Zillas “In Your Face”).
• Affecting the Breeder (Durahan’s “Meditate” and Mew “Singing Cat”).

Trivias:

Status retained if your monster is revived on the same turn you KO it:

• Can’t attack and ‘Exhausted’ (already attacked) status.
• Taunts (like Pixie’s “Enchant”).
• Mew’s “Doll”.

Inconclusive result:

• ‘Can use as many skills’ effects from “Last Man”, Naga’s “Instant Kill”, and other similar skills (no visible status, difficult to set up).
• Other skills not mentioned.

Hand/Deck/Discard Manipulation

When a card requires you to discard from hand, take cards from your discard pile, return cards into your deck, or manipulate cards in other ways, you generally need to have sufficient cards to play them.

An exception is when drawing (such as with “Powder” and Hare’s “Computing”). Drawing with insufficient cards will lead to an immediate loss.

Examples:

If “Last Trump” is the only card in your hand, you cannot use it since you cannot meet its requirement of returning a card into your deck to draw a card.

• Trivia: However, if your last two cards are “Joy’s Support” and “Last Trump”, this combo is allowed (inconsistent behavior). Also, the game still shuffles a card into your deck (presumably “Joy’s Support” in this case).

Trivia: “Wild Rush” can be used with less than 5 cards in your deck. You simply convert all those cards into Guts.

Clarification on Specific Card(s)

Cool Judge (ENV)

• Does not have a persisting effect. It is simply used to replace another ENV card.
• Its ‘when played’ effect of drawing a card is not blocked by “Pray”.

Bad Weather (ENV) & Warp (ENV)

• As long as these Environment cards are in play, further attribute changes cannot occur.

Ensnare

• SPE cards used by a monster, including Any Monster cards, are not allowed.
• Breeder SPE (and ENV) cards are allowed (they are used by the Breeder).

Mew’s Doll

• Until your next turn, the user will take 0 damage from any attack, including your own.
• Not a taunt. The opponent can attack Mew for 0 damage.
  Trivia: If an attack only affects a monster under Mew’s “Doll” status, its Final Damage is considered 0, validating/invalidating it under “Lock Tight” and “Nice Fight” respectively.
• The user will lose Life Points from not-damage effects like “Powder” and “Arid Land”.

Credits:

• CT for the addendum write-up.
• MonsterFenrick for hosting on LegendCup, layouting, and asking a bunch of questions!
• Lexi for Japanese text clarifications.
• Moosebones for the Rounding Rule and Ghost + Golem combo example.
• thegoldenquill for mentioning Zilla’s “In Your Face” persist through KO.

Source Document