Looking for advice

Hi All :) I recently got a code to play the TCGO and its given me a massive Pokemon buzz again!! However I much prefer having the physical cards as opposed to a digital version so I want to start collecting again and would also possibly would like to start playing too. Ive had a look at some of the XY elite starter kits as a starting point for my collection but I was wondering if anyone had any recommendations? Or any tips for building a collection? Its been about 20 years since I last got Pokemon cards so I'm completely out of the loop on all the different generations!!! And also I wondered if anyone had any advice for finding people to play against? (I don't have any friends into Pokemon :( ) Any help would be greatly appreciated :)

You mean the Elite Trainer boxes? I have seen them and they look pretty cool. I would say those are more aimed towards people who play (I just prefer to collect), but yeah actually I guess if I were to own one it would be a nice item to have in my collection. The Pokemon 20th logo one looks lovely ♥

My Fates Collide booster packs have just arrived in the post today eeee I am super excited to open them!

As for finding people to play you can access events on the official Pokemon website, use the event locator to find events near you. Also do you have a local comic/collectible store near you? Sometimes the ones near me host game nights and they can be really fun :D

Many thanks for your reply :) Yeah those are the ones, I thought they looked like really nice sets and it would give me a decent amount of cards and everything I needed if I decided to play. We have a couple of shops where I live however I think they only do Yu-Gi-Oh and Magic but i will double check. And I will check out the event finder on the website too thanks :)

Oooooooh its been so long since i opened a booster pack I can't wait to get some ^^ I hope you get some good cards in yours!!

Polo1211 said:

Many thanks for your reply :) Yeah those are the ones, I thought they looked like really nice sets and it would give me a decent amount of cards and everything I needed if I decided to play. We have a couple of shops where I live however I think they only do Yu-Gi-Oh and Magic but i will double check. And I will check out the event finder on the website too thanks :)

Oooooooh its been so long since i opened a booster pack I can't wait to get some ^^ I hope you get some good cards in yours!!

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The event finder will be your friend in finding leagues, but there may still be cases where it simply doesn't know about a league near you because they never bothered to register with the site or didn't maintain their registration status with the database.

Polo1211 said:

Many thanks for your reply :) Yeah those are the ones, I thought they looked like really nice sets and it would give me a decent amount of cards and everything I needed if I decided to play. We have a couple of shops where I live however I think they only do Yu-Gi-Oh and Magic but i will double check. And I will check out the event finder on the website too thanks :)

Oooooooh its been so long since i opened a booster pack I can't wait to get some ^^ I hope you get some good cards in yours!!

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No problem hope you find some nice people to game with!

Yeah I did get some pretties, I got Audino EX and I got Reverse Hol Mew :)

lynds said:

No problem hope you find some nice people to game with!

Yeah I did get some pretties, I got Audino EX and I got Reverse Hol Mew :)

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Ahhh awesome :) think I'm going to hit the shops tomorrow to see what I can find!

donavannj said:

The event finder will be your friend in finding leagues, but there may still be cases where it simply doesn't know about a league near you because they never bothered to register with the site or didn't maintain their registration status with the database.

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I've had a look on the website and there are some leagues I can get to, going to get in touch with them to find out a bit more, thanks for your help :) I can't wait to get started!

Update: Got myself the new XY trainer kit with Pikachu Libre and Suicune to start my collection and so I can teach my step-son to play as he likes Pokémon too. Also got myself 4 different XY booster sets and it was great opening them again :) going to build up my collection over the next couple of months and then start building some decks to start playing.

Polo1211 said:

I've had a look on the website and there are some leagues I can get to, going to get in touch with them to find out a bit more, thanks for your help :) I can't wait to get started!

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Generally, the more active leagues tend to keep their information up to date. That's not always the case, though, as I've found out in my area.

Polo1211 said:

Update: Got myself the new XY trainer kit with Pikachu Libre and Suicune to start my collection and so I can teach my step-son to play as he likes Pokémon too. Also got myself 4 different XY booster sets and it was great opening them again :) going to build up my collection over the next couple of months and then start building some decks to start playing.

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Fantastic start there, man! Good luck to the both of you and have fun! Do try to use the other players in your league as a resource, as one can learn from almost any player. Just be sure to double check what the other players say against what the rules and a Professor (what Pokemon calls its official tournament judges) say. Or even against what PokeGym's Card Compendium says.