Should I? Can I?

[PinkPirate]

I know less than nothing about the TCG but am interested in learning.
First: I am dirt poor. What are some good but cheap cards to start my deck with?
Second: Is this gonna be like Halo and be one of those things that if you didnt begin when it first started you are scewed cause everyone else is impossibly good and overly skilled?
Third: How do you play...? lol. This should have been the first question.

 

[donavannj]

I know less than nothing about the TCG but am interested in learning.
First: I am dirt poor. What are some good but cheap cards to start my deck with?
Second: Is this gonna be like Halo and be one of those things that if you didnt begin when it first started you are scewed cause everyone else is impossibly good and overly skilled?
Third: How do you play...? lol. This should have been the first question.

Theme decks are a good place to start. They have a couple good trainers sometimes, some decent ones, a bunch of energy, and some decent and sometimes good Pokemon. Pick a type/type-combo you like and buy a theme deck of that typing from any HeartGoldSoulSilver set, any Black and White set, and Call of Legends. That is, if you want to go to tournaments, of course.

It'll be expensive to get into and be truly good, but it's cheaper than other TCGs and easier to play/learn than other TCGs.

I'll link you to some tutorials later.

 

[Raikou Trainer]

Here's a link to the tutorials on the official Pokemon TCG site. It's a bit outdated since it doesn't include anything related to the Black & White set and rules changes, but should give you a good idea of how to play.

Maybe after you play through the tutorial you can try the Trainer Challenge that's on the same site. You'll need to sign up for a Trainer Club account, which is free, in order to play.

As for buying cards, I'd highly recommend getting the HS Trainer Kit, which includes two 30 card decks, as well as a HGSS booster pack, and are designed for learning the game. It also contains two copies each of Pokemon Collector and Pokemon Communication, which are cards that a majority of decks will use. If you can still find them, the kit only costs about $13. For comparison, Collectors go for about $4-5 a piece, and Communications go for about $2 a piece.

 

[donavannj]

As for buying cards, I'd highly recommend getting the HS Trainer Kit, which includes two 30 card decks, as well as a HGSS booster pack, and are designed for learning the game. It also contains two copies each of Pokemon Collector and Pokemon Communication, which are cards that a majority of decks will use. If you can still find them, the kit only costs about $13. For comparison, Collectors go for about $4-5 a piece, and Communications go for about $2 a piece.

Completely forgot about the Trainer Kit. I second Raikou Trainer's suggestion. These are way better at teaching how to play than theme decks are.

And don't forget to check out the tutorials he linked.

 

[Elkoid]

Don't worry at all about jumping into the TCG late; only the most recent sets are allowed in tournaments right now. Everything else was rotated out of play because they're trying to revert the game back to when it was less ridiculous. :P