Anki Cascade - Sibling Card Auto-Unlocker

Anki Cascade: Sequential and Conditional Sibling Card Unlocker

Do you create notes that generate 2, 3, or more cards (e.g. Recognition, Production, Audio, Context, or Reverse)? Studying them all at the same time leads to memory interference, premature hints, and overwhelming review queues.

Anki Cascade automates a progressive learning curve: you master Card 1 first, and your sibling cards (Card 2, Card 3, etc.) are automatically un-suspended only when prerequisite conditions are met.

Practical Tutorial: How to Use and Configure Anki Cascade

Step 1: The Initial Setup (Suspension)

When you create or import notes with multiple card types, keep your follow-up cards suspended so you only study the foundational card first:

1. Open the Anki Browser (shortcut: B).
2. Search for your target cards (e.g. card:2 OR card:3 or select specific cards).
3. Select them and toggle suspend (shortcut: Ctrl+J or Cmd+J).

You are now ready: only Card 1 will appear in your daily new cards.

Step 2: Configuring Your Unlock Rules in Anki

Go to the top menu bar: Tools -> Anki Cascade: Configure Rules...

A graphical window opens where you can customize exactly which card unlocks which sibling:

• Source Card (Prerequisite): The card number you must master first (e.g. Card 1).
• Target Card (Sibling to Unlock): The suspended card that should become active (e.g. Card 2).
• Unlock Condition:
  • Interval (Days): Unlocks when the prerequisite card reaches a specific retention interval (default: 21 days for standard maturity).
  • Review Count: Unlocks after a specific number of successful reviews (e.g. 5 reviews).
• Note Type Filter (Optional): Apply the rule only to specific note types (leave blank to apply to all multi-card notes).

Example Chain:

• Rule 1: Card 1 unlocks Card 2 when Interval >= 21 days.
• Rule 2: Card 2 unlocks Card 3 when Interval >= 21 days.
• Rule 3: Card 3 unlocks Card 4 when Interval >= 14 days.

Step 3: Anti-Leech and Safety Safeguards

In the Options tab of the settings window, you can configure safety rules:

• Protect Leeches (Recommended): Prevents the add-on from un-suspending any card that has ever lapsed or is tagged as a leech. Failed cards stay suspended until you choose to handle them.
• Only Unlock Unseen Cards: Ensures the add-on only unlocks cards that have 0 prior reviews, preventing it from touching cards you already studied or manually suspended.
• Notifications: Displays a quiet, non-intrusive tooltip at the bottom of the screen when a sibling card has been unlocked after a review.

Step 4: How Cards Get Unlocked

Cards are unlocked in two ways:

1. Automatic (During Daily Reviews): While reviewing, as soon as you press Good/Easy and your card's interval hits the threshold (e.g. 21 days), Anki Cascade instantly un-suspends the next sibling in the background. It will naturally appear in your review queue according to your deck settings.
2. Manual Catch-up (One-Click): If you already have mature cards in your collection, go to Tools -> Anki Cascade: Unlock ready sibling cards. The add-on scans your existing collection and un-suspends all sibling cards whose prerequisite cards are already mature.

Use Cases for Any Subject

• Language Learning: Master Recognition (Kanji/Word -> Meaning) first. Once mature, unlock Production (Meaning -> Spelling), then Pure Audio listening cards.
• Medicine & Biology: Learn Anatomical Identification first, then unlock Clinical Pathology and Treatment cards once anatomy is solid.
• Law & Humanities: Memorize the Rule or Statute first, then unlock Case Application scenarios.
• Programming & Math: Learn Definitions and Syntax first, then unlock Proofs and Coding problems.

Compatibility

Compatible with Anki 2.1.20 through modern Anki 24+ and Anki 26+ on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Works with both standard SM-2 and modern FSRS schedulers.