Pokemon Trading Card Game Basics

You and your opponent take the role of competing Pokémon Trainers. Each turn, that player can boost his or her Pokémon’s attack power by adding Energy cards to that Pokémon, play special Trainer cards, and even evolve his or her Pokémon into stronger forms! Your goal is to Knock Out your opponent’s Pokémon by attacking with your Pokémon.

What Do You Need to Play?

You and your opponent will each need a 60-card deck. You will also need some counters to keep track of damages on the different Pokémon in play and a coin for “flipping”. You may also use the playmat included to help learn the game setup, but it is optional.

Why Are There So Many Different Cards?

One of the things that makes the Pokémon game different from other card games is that it is a trading card game. This means that there are lots of different cards that you can collect and trade with your friends. Also, you are not limited to just playing the preconstructed decks you buy—you can use all of the different cards you have to create totally new decks! A lot of the fun of a trading card game comes from making different decks that use different strategies.

How Do You Make a New Deck?

To make a new deck, first notice that all of the cards other than the Trainers have different Energy types on them. Your deck should probably include one or two of the basic Energy types, and you can choose to add some Colourless Pokémon if you like. If you just choose one Energy type, you will always have the right kind of Energy for your Pokémon but not enough variety. If you have several Energy types, you will have more Pokémon to choose from, but you will run the risk of sometimes not drawing the right type of Energy for your Pokémon. So try to get the balance right and be sure your deck has enough Energy cards (most decks need 20 to 25).

Once you choose your Energy types, pick Pokémon and Trainer cards that work well together. Do you want to build up big Pokémon to crush your opponent? Then put in a lot of Evolution cards and some Trainer cards, like Poké Ball, that help you find those Evolution cards.

It is a game rule that you must have at least 1 Basic Pokémon in your deck. A “Basic Pokémon” is considered a Pokémon with “Basic” as the Pokémon’s Evolution Stage.

After you make your deck, play it as often as you can against as many other decks as you can. See what works and what does not, and then make changes. If you keep working at it, you will have a deck that will show everyone you are the greatest Pokémon Master of all time!