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Pokémon TCG FAQ

ShinjisLover

    • 3,046
    Posts
    16
    Years
    • Seen May 11, 2016
    Due to a multi-tude of threads about the rules of the game, and a few people asking me directly about the game, I decided to create a FAQ (Frequently-Asked Question) thread. Perhaps it'll get stickied~? If you need to add anything, or if you think I'm incorrect, please provide a link and an explanation in your post. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy this! I will probably be adding more soon.

    Basics

    [alink id=Winning]How do you win?[/alink id]
    [alink id=Prize Cards]What are Prize Cards?[/alink id]
    [alink id=The Deck]The Deck[/alink id]
    [alink id=Expansions]What are the different expansions?[/alink id]

    Trainer Cards

    [alink id=Trainer Cards]Trainer Cards[/alink id]
    [alink id=Supporter Cards]Supporter Cards[/alink id]
    [alink id=Stadium Cards]Stadium Cards[/alink id]
    [alink id=Pokémon Tools]Pokémon Tools[/alink id]

    Energy Cards

    [alink id=Special Energies]Special Energies[/alink id]
    [alink id=Energy Types]Energy Types[/alink id]


    Pokémon Cards

    [alink id=Poké-BODY]Poké-BODY[/alink id]
    [alink id=Poké-POWER]Poké-POWER[/alink id]
    [alink id=Damage counters]Damage counters[/alink id]
    [alink id=Level-Up Rule]Level-Up Rule[/alink id]
    [alink id=Attacking]Attacking[/alink id]
    [alink id=When]When is it okay to attack?[/alink id]
    [alink id=When not]When is it not okay to attack?[/alink id]

    Status Conditions

    [alink id=Status Problems]What about the ailments?[/alink id]
    [alink id=Asleep]What about when that Pokémon is Sleeping?[/alink id]
    [alink id=Paralyze]And what happens during Paralysis?[/alink id]
    [alink id=Poison]Does my Pokémon get hurt when Poisoned?[/alink id]
    [alink id=Confusion]And when Confused?[/alink id]

    Game

    [alink id=Progression]Game In-Progress[/alink id]

    [a id]Winning[/a id]How do you win?

    There are three ways to win:

    • You draw all 6 of your Prize Cards
    • Your opponent has no more cards to draw
    • Your opponent has no Active or Benched Pokémon on the field


    [a id]Prize Cards[/a id]What are Prize Cards?

    Prize cards are 6 cards that you set aside. Before setting these cards aside, you draw 7 cards for your hand after shuffling your deck. If you collect all 6 of your Prize Cards, you win the game.


    [a id]The Deck[/a id]The Deck

    The deck must contain 60 cards. You may have as many Basic, Stage 1, Stage 2, et cetera, Pokémon as you like. You may have as many Trainer Cards as you like (including Trainer and Stadium cards).


    [a id]The Expansions[/a id]What are the different expansions?

    There are 14 era releases and 91 expansions, 4 of them being unreleased expansions. Below, you will see a list of all the expansions.
    Spoiler:


    [a id]Trainer Cards[/a id]

    There are many different Trainer cards. Normal Trainer cards are cards such as the Poké Ball. Supporter cards are cards such as Mom's Kindness. Pokémon Tools are cards such as Bubble Coat. Technical Machines, which are sub-categories of Pokémon Tools, are cards such as Technical Machine TS-1. Lastly, there are Stadium cards, such as Snowpoint Temple.


    Normal Trainer cards can be used as many times as needed in one given turn unless the card states otherwise. There is also no limit to how many Trainer Cards one person has as long as it is within the range of the deck (60 cards). The rest will be discussed as you further read the FAQ.


    [a id]Supporter Cards[/a id]Supporter Cards

    Supporter cards usually interact with the deck and are limited to one played during each turn. They are normally stronger than Trainer Cards.


    [a id]Stadium Cards[/a id]Stadium Cards

    Stadium cards are cards that interact with the field instead of the deck or Pokémon. Stadium cards stay on the field when played and help both players.


    [a id]Pokémon Tools[/a id]Pokémon Tools

    Pokémon tools are cards that interact with the Pokémon. They are the equivalent of the items in Pokémon games. Only one Pokémon Tool can be equipped to a Pokémon at a time and are discarded when the Pokémon is Knocked Out or when a certain condition is met. Technical Machines are the same, only they give the Pokémon an extra attack.


    [a id]Special Energies[/a id]Special Energies

    Special Energy cards are Energies that may have another effect besides giving out any type of Energy. There can be no more than 4 different Special Energy cards in a deck at one time. Below is a list of all Special Energy cards with links provided for clarification. For more clarification of specific Energies, keep reading.



    [a id]Energy Types[/a id]Energy Types

    There are 9 different types of Energy cards out there. They are as follows with the corresponding, game-canon Pokémon types.

    • Fighting
    • Grass
    • Water
    • Darkness
    • Colorless
    • Lightning
    • Psychic
    • Fire
    • Metal


    The most versatile is the Colorless Energy. Any Energy card can be substituted for Colorless Energy.


    [a id]Poké-BODY[/a id]Poké-BODY

    Poké-BODIES are on some Pokémon cards. These powers usually only come into effect if the Pokémon is on of your Active Pokémon. They may stop attacks, reduce attack power, give out a Special Condition, or something of the like.


    [a id]Poké-POWER[/a id]Poké-POWER

    Poké-POWERS are powers that are on some Pokémon cards. These powers usually do not work if said Pokémon is affected by a Special Condition. The Poké-POWER is a versatile power that can do many things such as allowing you to dig through your deck, draw a new card, or remove damage counters from your Pokémon.


    [a id]Damage counters[/a id]Damage counters

    A damage counter can be a coin or something of the like that tells you how much damage your Pokémon has taken. For every 1 counter on your Pokémon, 10 HP is taken away. When the amount of HP on your Pokémon is equal to the damage counters on your Pokémon x10, that Pokémon is Knocked Out and must be discarded.


    [a id]Level-Up Rule[/a id]Level-Up Rule

    The Level-Up Rule is a relatively new power on Pokémon cards which was introduced in the Mysterious Treasures expansion. This allows a GL LV. X Pokémon to be placed on the corresponding GL Pokémon and use its moves, Poké-POWERS, Poké-BODIES, and anything else from its previous Level. For an example, read Floatzel GL LV.X, which goes on top of Floatzel GL.


    [a id]Attacking[/a id]Attacking

    [a id]When[/a id]When is it okay to attack?

    There are many conditions under when it is okay to attack. If you know them, please go to [alink id=When not]When is it not okay to attack?[/alink id].

    • During your turn
    • When a Trainer Card or otherwise says so


    [a id]When not[/a id]When is it not okay to attack?


    • During your opponent's turn
    • When a card or otherwise says you can't
    • When a Pokémon is Asleep
    • When a Pokémon is Paralyzed

    [a id]Status Problems[/a id]What about the ailments?

    There are four status ailments that a Pokémon can get in the TCG. They are as follows:


    • Asleep
    • Paralyze
    • Poison
    • Confusion


    [a id]Asleep[/a id]What about when that Pokémon is Sleeping?

    When a Pokémon is sleeping, they cannot attack. Each turn, you flip a coin to determine whether or not said Pokémon would wake up. If the coin shows Heads, your Pokémon wakes up. If not, your Pokémon stays asleep. Turn your Pokémon sideways to show Sleep.

    [a id]Paralyze[/a id]And what happens during Paralysis?

    When a Pokémon is Paralyzed, it can't do anything. At the end of your turn, Paralysis goes away. Turn a Pokémon toward the right to show Paralysis.

    [a id]Poison[/a id]Does my Pokémon get hurt when Poisoned?

    Yes, it does get hurt. Each turn, the Pokémon has 10 damage counters placed onto it.

    [a id]Confusion[/a id]And when Confused?

    Just like Poisoning, your Pokémon gets hurt when it's Confused. However, unlike Poisoning, you have a chance to avoid damage. Flip a coin. If heads, the Pokémon's attack works. If tails, it does 20 damage to itself. If you try to retreat, first discard the energy required. Then flip a coin. On heads, you can retreat, but on tails, the retreat fails. Turn a Pokemon upside down to show that it is Confused.

    [a id]Progression[/a id]Game In-Progress

    [PokeCommunity.com] Pokémon TCG FAQ
     
    Last edited:
    And you are mistakened after you say you cannot attack after you evolve or devolve your pokemon.

    You are Allowed to do so, it's not a thing that ends your turn.

    And the Level-Up rules was introduced in Diamond and Pearl Base set.
     
    Fixed. However, the correct expansion (which clearly was what I said) is Mysterious Treasures.​
     
    Lv.X's came out in DP base set including Torterra lv.X, Empoleon lv.X, and Infernape lv.X making the Lv. X rule apply in that set. Which it was.
    But whatever the threasd is pretty much correct, so good job.
     
    This will definitely be helpful to many, but there are a few sections that need correcting. I bolded sections that need correcting/clarification.

    ShinjisLover said:

    [a id]The Deck[/a id]The Deck

    The deck must contain 60 cards. You may have as many Basic, Stage 1, Stage 2, et cetera, Pokémon as you like. You may have as many Trainer Cards as you like (including Equip cards and Field cards).
    Click to expand...

    The proper terms are Pokemon Tools, Technical Machines and Stadiums. You don't want people reading this and think that this is Yu-Gi-Oh you're talking about. Also, you should add that you cannot have more than four of a certain card in a deck. (excluding basic Energy)

    ShinjisLover said:

    [a id]Trainer Cards[/a id]Trainer Cards

    There are many different Trainer cards. Normal Trainer cards are cards such as the Poké Ball. Supporter cards are cards such as Mom's Kindness. Pokémon Tools are cards such as Bubble Coat. Technical Machines, which are sub-categories of Pokémon Tools, are cards such as Technical Machine TS-1. Lastly, there are Stadium cards, such as Snowpoint Temple.
    Click to expand...

    Actually, TM's are subcategories of Trainers, not Pokemon Tools.

    ShinjisLover said:

    [a id]Level-Up Rule[/a id]Level-Up Rule

    The Level-Up Rule is a relatively new power on Pokémon cards which was introduced in the Mysterious Treasures expansion. This allows a GL LV. X Pokémon to be placed on the corresponding GL Pokémon and use its moves, Poké-POWERS, Poké-BODIES, and anything else from its previous Level. For an example, read Floatzel GL LV.X, which goes on top of Floatzel GL.
    Click to expand...

    I think this section doesn't really explain the lv. X mechanic all too well. Also, why is it only talking about GL Pokemon? If you don't mind taking suggestions, here's what should be written here.

    Raikou Trainer said:
    The Lv. X mechanic was introduced in the Diamond and Pearl expansion. This allows you to make your Pokemon stronger while still having all attacks, Poke-Powers, and Poke-Bodies from the previous card. You may only play a Lv. X card on an Active Pokemon. A Lv. X card cannot be played on a Pokemon the same turn you evolved that Pokemon.
    Click to expand...

    Yes, I corrected the expansion that introduced lv. X cards. Technically, Diamond and Pearl is treated as an expansion, since it expands on the original game. (emphasis on expands) Also, all the sites that I go to that cover the TCG calls DP an expansion, not a base set. If I remember correctly, even the booster packs call it an expansion.

    ShinjisLover said:

    [a id]Attacking[/a id]Attacking

    [a id]When[/a id]When is it okay to attack?

    There are many conditions under when it is okay to attack. If you know them, please go to [alink id=When not]When is it not okay to attack?[/alink id].

    • During your turn
    • When a Trainer Card or otherwise says so
    Click to expand...

    The only thing you really need to know about when you can attack is if its on your turn and if you have the necessary Energy attached. To my knowledge, there are no cards that can let you attack at any other time.

    ShinjisLover said:

    [a id]When not[/a id]When is it not okay to attack?


    • During your opponent's turn
    • When a card or otherwise says you can't
    Click to expand...
    You should add if the Pokemon is Asleep or Paralyzed to that list as well.

    One last thing: You should add a section about Pokemon's names in regards to deck building, like Pokemon GL, Rocket's Pokemon, Dark Pokemon, etc. If you want me to write up that section, let me know.
     
    Once more, the FAQ has been updated. Now a picture of the game in-progress has been added.

    [Picture not by me, but by pazsaz.com]​
     
    Thanks for the post ShinjisLover, very helpful for people like myself just getting into it :)
     
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