BRAND NEW TO CARDS, SERIES OF CARDS PROBLEM PLEASE PLEASE HELP!

[Psyducks Picnic]

Hi guys! First off I'm new here so sending big hugs to everyone!

I AM TOTALLY NEW TO TCG SO PLEASE BE PATIENT WITH ME LOL! YOUR HELP IS MUCH APPRECIATED!

I have a problem regarding the TCG. I plan on buying my partner some pokemon cards for Christmas, he has very old original cards (which he hasnt used in years) and mentioned a while ago how much he would love to start playing again with an updated deck.

So my first question is, can various series of cards such as Diamond and Peal Heart Gold Soul silver etc all be used together? Can you mix up cards from various series to make a deck? Can themes be mixed?

My second question is I recently read that the latest series of cards (Black and white) had new rules. Does this mean that this series of cards can only be used on its own or can these new cards also be mixed with heart gold etc? I was just confused as to what would happen rule wise if black and white was used in a deck with another series. The reason I want to know this is so my partner has an up to date game but he can use the older gen pokemon that he loves (hes a big fan of tyranitar and I know that heart gold soul silver made a tyranitar themed deck so I want to use these together!)

My third question is how do I find a modern starter set? Are these bought in shops or are they made from what cards you buy, before introducing boosters and themes etc.

Thank you so much please note your help will make my partner very happy at Christmas! Love to you all xx

 

[donavannj]

You can use any set of cards with any other set with no problem. However, you cannot use more than four of any card with the same name, even if they are from different sets.

I'd suggest going by the rules as they apply to the Black & White set, since if you had questions on rulings with any cards, your questions would probably be answered with rules that are applied from the current rules, although the most recent rule changes are changes that mostly affect only competitive players.

Modern "starter sets" are called Trainer Kits. The most recent of these Trainer Kits is the Black & White one, though you may still be able to find the HeartGold SoulSilver one around in some shops. You can find these at big box retailers like Target and Wal-Mart most reliably.

 

[Tanaki]

I've found stores like Kmart to be a little more reliable to find the HGSS starter kits and tins and such. Stores that have slightly higher prices and less traffic tend to have older products longer, but if you can find them cheaper that's obviously always better.

Currently the cheapest competitive build that you can make is Reshiphlosion. It generally runs you less than $100 to build it if you're just going for singles and trading for the commons and such. But of course there are a ton of rogue decks that you can make for super cheap; and you'd probably do better not to build a serious deck until you've gotten some play practice in and learned how the game has changed. It used to be insanely slow but it's much faster now.

 

[donavannj]

I've found stores like Kmart to be a little more reliable to find the HGSS starter kits and tins and such. Stores that have slightly higher prices and less traffic tend to have older products longer, but if you can find them cheaper that's obviously always better.

Currently the cheapest competitive build that you can make is Reshiphlosion. It generally runs you less than $100 to build it if you're just going for singles and trading for the commons and such. But of course there are a ton of rogue decks that you can make for super cheap; and you'd probably do better not to build a serious deck until you've gotten some play practice in and learned how the game has changed. It used to be insanely slow but it's much faster now.

From the sounds of it, they only want to play casually right now. But Tanaki's advice does apply if you ever want to start going to leagues in the next couple months.