[eluser]OverZealous[/eluser] @housecor
I wouldn't replace the $validation array. Most likely this will lead to unexpected results, because of the manipulation that happens on that array. Also, DMZ only uses the first validation array for the object. That array is cached for the session, and is used to set up all further objects.
One way to handle sometimes-required objects is to add a custom _required method to your object. This method can then decide whether a field is required or not. (This may cause issues if you have other rules, and those other rules fail if the field is empty.)
It is a small problem if you need fields that are only sometimes required, because DMZ skips running the rest of the validation if the field is not required. I might look at adding a special rule, 'is_required', that allows an object to determine whether a field is required based on context. That might be awhile, though.
