Pokémon Trading Card Game

Pokmon Trading Card Game 1

Pokmon Trading Card Game

Pokmon Trading Card Game

Pokmon Trading Card Game logo

Publisher(s) Japan:Media Factory (October 1996 - present)USA:Wizards of the Coast(December 1998 - July 2003)Pokmon USA, Inc./Nintendo(July 2003 - present)

Players 2

Age range targeted towards child audience, competitive play targets all ages.

Setup time 18-40 seconds

Playing time 5-120 minutes

Random chance Some (order of cards drawn, dice, coin flip)

Skill(s) required Card playingArithmeticBasic Reading Ability

The Pokmon Trading Card Game (Pokmon TCG) is a collectible card game based on the Pokmon video gameseries, first published in October 1996 by Media Factory in Japan. In the US, it was initially published by Wizards ofthe Coast, the company that produces Magic: The Gathering, in December 1998. Nintendo took over publishing inJune 2003.It is one of Nintendo's last remaining strong links to its heritage as a playing card company.

Gameplay

A game of Pokmon TCG in progress

In a game of Pokmon TCG, players take on the role ofa Pokmon trainer, using their creatures to battle.Players play Pokmon to the field and use their attacksto reduce the opponent's HP. When a Pokmon's HP isreduced to 0 it is knocked out and the player whoknocked it out takes a Prize card into their hand. Aplayer may win the game in 3 ways; by collecting all oftheir prize cards (initially 6, some cards can increasethis), if their opponent runs out of Pokmon on the fieldor if at the beginning of their opponent's turn there areno cards left to draw in the opponent's deck.Players begin by shuffling their decks and drawingseven cards. Both players check to make sure they haveat least one Basic Pokmon in their hand. If not, theymust reshuffle and redraw and the opponent may draw one additional card. Once both players have at least one basic,they both play 1 or more Basic Pokmon to their play field, 1 in the Active spot, and up to five on the "bench"(representing the 6 maximum carry limit from the video games). Players then take the top 6 cards of their remaining


deck and place them to the side as their Prize Cards and flip a coin to see who goes first. (Note: Many players usedice instead of coins, even numbers representing Heads, odd numbers representing Tails.)Play alternates between players who may take several actions during their turn including playing new BasicPokmon, evolving to higher level Pokmon, playing Trainer cards, playing energy(one per turn generally, needed touse most attacks), using non-attack Pokmon abilities and retreating their active Pokmon. At the end of their turn, aplayer may use one of their Active Pokmon's attacks, provided the prerequisite amount and types of energy areattached to that Pokmon. Game effects from that attack are activated and damage is put on the defending Pokmon(some attacks simply have game effects but do not do damage). If the damage exceeds the defending Pokmon's HP,it is knocked out (i.e. discarded along with any attached cards) and the active player takes a prize card and ends theirturn.As with almost any card game, the "Golden Rule of Card Games" applies, stating that "whenever a card's textoverrides the game rules, the card takes precedence". For example, the game rules state a player may only play oneenergy card per turn, but several Pokmon abilities allow additional energy to be played if that card is in play.

Card typesBasic Pokmon are the basis of all decks (which consist of 60 cards). Without them a player cannot play the game,since both players begin the game by placing a Basic Pokmon in the active position on the playing field. EachPokmon card depicts a Pokmon from the video games. Each player may have up to six Pokmon on the playingfield at a time: one active Pokmon and up to five on the bench (these are considered to be in reserve, but they canstill affect gameplay). Each Pokmon card has a name, a type, and an amount of Hit Points,Most Pokmon feature attacks that deal damage to the opponent's active Pokmon, or occasionally, their benchedPokmon; still others perform different functions, such as manipulating players' possession of cards. The vastmajority of these attacks require Energy, which comes in the form of Energy cards, though the occasional Pokmonmay have an attack that requires no energy (these attacks typically are weak or perform a function other thandamage).The two types of Pokmon cards are Basic Pokmon and Evolved Pokmon. Basic Pokmon are Pokmon that havenot evolved, and can be played directly onto the Bench. Each deck must have at least one Basic Pokmon to beconsidered legal. In contrast, an Evolved Pokmon cannot normally be placed directly onto the field; they must beplayed on the corresponding lower-stage Pokmon. Stage 1 Pokmon evolve from Basic Pokmon, and Stage 2Pokmon evolve from Stage 1 Pokmon. As a Pokmon evolves, it gains HP and can use Energy more effectively.Baby Pokmon cards, introduced in Neo Genesis, are a special kind of Basic Pokmon, sometimes distinguished bya Pok-Power called "Baby Evolution." Baby Pokmon have low HP, but their attacks have strange and sometimesvery powerful effects. Baby Pokmon with the kick ability can evolve into another Basic Pokmon, specified on thecard. When a Baby Pokmon evolves into what would normally be a Basic Pokmon, that Basic Pokmon counts asbeing an Evolved Pokmon for the purposes of cards that affect Basic Pokmon and Evolved cards differently.Variations of Basic, Evolved, and Baby Pokmon cards have appeared in many sets, usually indicated with a wordbefore or after the Pokmon's name. Secret Rare Pokemon cards are some of the rarest cards. These cards includePokemon EX, X, Gold Star (cards with a gold star after the name), Prime cards, Full art cards, Legend cards, andothers. Here are some about each.The Ruby and Sapphire expansion saw the introduction of EX Pokmon, high powered Pokemon that were some ofthe first secret rares. These Pokmon typically had higher hit points and greater damage output than their normalcounterparts. Additionally, some of them had multiple resistances and extreme retreat costs. However, upon defeat,the opponent would draw 2 prize card instead of 1, making the use of EX monsters a risky prospect. EX pokemonwere considered to have a different name than their regular cohorts, meaning a player could have 4 of each of aregular Pokmon and the EX version (i.e. 4 Lugia and 4 Lugia EX) in the same deck.


The Diamond & Pearl set introduced a new type of Pokmon Card, Lv.X cards. Lv.X cards would replace theprevious EX cards but you can still use both. Lv.X's are considered neither Basic Pokmon nor are they consideredEvolution Cards, but simply xtreme Pokmon Cards. They are placed on the Pokmon Card in which the namespecifies (i.e.: Lucario to Lucario Lv.X). In turn, though, Lv.X cards are not "named" cards. That means that only 4altogether including regular and Lv.X's are allowed. They can also only be placed when the Pokmon is activecards,players may use all powers and attacks on the Lvl.X card IN ADDITION to the powers and attacks printed onthe card it was attached to.Pokmon HeartGold and SoulSilver|HeartGold SoulSilver replaced "Lv.X" cards with Pokmon "Prime" but you canuse both. Prime cards function exactly like any other basic or evolution card, but are generally more powerful andfeatures a distinct composition style in regard to artwork and are secret rares. Prime cards are distinguished by aspecific silver border foil pattern in spikes.Also introduced in the HGSS series were Pokmon Legends. These cards depicted legendary Pokmon, howeverwere used as a combination of 2 cards. Initially just Ho-Oh and Lugia, subsequent set Legends depicted 2 separatePokmon on each set of cards such as Deoxys/Rayquaza and Entei/Raikou. Because of this, Legend sets depicting 2Pokmon have more than 1 Pokmon type and are worth 2 prize cards when knocked out.Pokmon Black and White once again abandoned the previous sets special card (Prime) and introduced Full artcards. These cards have identical stats and abilities as other cards in the set, but have no borders, but rather featureart along the entirety of the playing card.EX Pokmon cards were re-introduced in the Next Destinies expansion of the BW era, along with corresponding fullart Pokemon EX cards with the same effects. These cards look like lv. X cards, but more powerful. Similar toprevious Pokemon ex, when knocked out the opponent takes 2 prize cards.

Energy cards

Energy cards are attached to a Pokmon to enable it to attack. There are two types of Energy cards: Basic Energycards and Special Energy cards. There are eight different Basic Energy types: Grass, Fire, Water, Lightning, Psychic,Fighting, Darkness, and Metal. Darkness and Metal Energy could only be provided through Special Energy cardsuntil the Diamond & Pearl expansion set, where they became Basic Energy types. Basic Energy cards only provideone Energy of the specified type, while Special Energy cards have additional benefits and varying Energyprovisions. Additionally, the amount of Basic Energy cards allowed in a deck is unrestricted, while Special Energycards follow the standard rule restricting the number of cards with the same name in a deck to four.Some attacks require a certain type and amount of Energy, depending on the type of attack and the Pokmon using it.If an attack requires Basic Energy, then that type and amount of Energy must be attached to the Pokmon, whereas ifthe attack has a Colorless Energy requirement, that requirement can be met by any Energy card. Colorless Energy isneither a Basic nor a Special Energy type and can be provided through both Basic and Special Energy cards.However, the Double Colorless Energy (released as the first Special Energy in Base Set) can count as only colorlessEnergy.

Trainer cards

Trainer cards perform various functions to affect the game. Some can remove damage counters from Pokmon,remove energy from the opposing Pokmon, or revive Pokmon that have been knocked out. Before the Diamond &Pearl expansion, all cards that were not Pokmon or Energy were considered Trainer cards, though they have sincebeen subdivided into categories: Item cards that directly affect the battling Pokmon, Stadium cards representcustom arenas that add a special mechanic to gameplay and Supporters represent other characters in the Pokmonworld.Most Trainer cards are simply classed as Trainer: Item. The player follows the directions on the card and then usually discards it. They were introduced from the very beginning of the card game's history, with the Base Set.


Normal Trainer cards make up the largest number of Trainer cards by far, and can affect any part of the game,including other Trainer cards. They are often illustrated using computer-generated imagery, the most having beendone by Keiji Kinebuchi.Pokmon Tools, a subset of Trainer: Item cards, first appeared in Neo Genesis. They are the card game's equivalentto Pokmon items, objects that Pokmon can carry around and use at will. Which Pokmon can receive the PokmonTool is specified on the card, and a Pokmon may not hold more than one at a time. Some Pokmon Tools can stayon the Pokmon until it gets Knocked Out, whereas some are discarded after a certain condition is met. Like ordinaryTrainer cards and Stadium cards, Pokmon Tools are illustrated in CGI, mostly by Keiji Kinebuchi and Ryo Ueda.While Technical Machines can be considered a subdivision of Pokmon Tools, they are worded as a separatecategory. These are the most recently introduced of the current kinds of Trainer cards, starting in the Expedition set.Technical Machines, like Pokmon Tools, are attached to a Pokmon and either stay with the Pokmon until it getsKnocked Out, or are discarded after a certain condition is met. However, a Technical Machine will always have anattack as its text, and as long as the Pokmon holds the Technical Machine, it can use the attack provided on theTechnical Machine instead of its normal attack. Illustrations for Technical Machines were once the domain of "BigMama" Tagawa, but they are now exclusively done by Mitsuhiro Arita.The first Stadium cards were from the Gym Heroes set. They initially were all themed on Pokmon Gyms andwould benefit the Gym Leader. Later Stadium cards became locations within the Pokmon video games andsometimes areas completely original to the card game. Unlike other Trainer cards, Stadium cards stay on the fieldonce played, unless another Stadium card is played or something happens that requires the Stadium card to bediscarded. Stadium cards always provide the same effect to each player. Stadium cards are predominantly CGI (afew are hand-illustrated) and were once in the domain of Keiji Kinebuchi. Ryo Ueda now illustrates most of them.Supporter cards were introduced in the Expedition Base Set. Normal Trainer cards themed on Pokmon charactershave since been assigned to Supporter cards instead. They are substantially more powerful than Trainer cards, butonly one can be played per turn (as opposed to normal Trainers, which have no limit). Supporter cards tend tointeract with the deck, such as finding a card of the player's choice from the deck and putting it in play. Because theyfeature Pokmon characters, the dominant artist for Supporter cards is Ken Sugimori, who designed the characters inthe video games and anime. The illustrations for Supporter cards are always hand-drawn.With the release of the first "Black and White" based TCG expansion, all Trainer, Supporter and Stadium cards havebeen brought back together under the Trainer Card designation. Each different type of card is marked as a Trainer,then marked with a sub-type; Trainer: Item (what would have previously been a "Trainer" card), Trainer: Supporterand Trainer: Stadium. All card rules are the same, namely only being able to play 1 Trainer: Supporter per turn andthe Stadium rules for Trainer: Stadium.Ace Spec cards, another subset of Trainer: Item cards, were introduced in the Black & White-Boundaries Crossedexpansion. These cards have very powerful effects such as letting you search your deck for any card you want orgiving certain Pokmon more attack power. However, because of these effects, you can only have 1 Ace Spec cardtotal in your deck.

Multi-type cards

There are also some cards that are two card types in one card. Examples include the "Clefairy Doll" Trainer card inthe Base Set, which can be played as a Pokmon card, or special Pokmon that can, rather than battle, be attached toother Pokmon as Energy cards (Such as holon cards). Certain Unown cards are both Pokmon and Pokmon Tools.Fossil cards were first introduced in the Fossil expansion on October 8, 1999, though only Mysterious Fossil was introduced then and would be the only Fossil card until 2003, when it was joined by Root Fossil, Dome Fossil and armored fossil. Fossil cards are counted as Trainer cards while in the deck or in the player's hand, but when put into play, they also count as a Basic Pokmon. All Fossil cards in play count as the Colorless type. Certain Pokmon are required to evolve from these fossils except under special circumstances. For example, Kabuto, Omanyte, and


Aerodactyl must evolve from a Mysterious Fossil card. Older Fossil cards were illustrated by Keiji Kinebuchi; newerones are illustrated by Ryo Ueda. Beginning with the 4th Japanese Black and White set, Fossil cards are playeddifferently. Rather than evolving from the player's hand, a Player may look at a number of cards from the bottom oftheir deck and if they find the required Pokmon may play it to their bench.Pokmon with more than one type were in the Delta TCG sets. These Pokmon were two different types. They alsohad abnormal types. For example, a Pokmon that would normally be a fighting type may be a fire type in the deltaspecies. Dual type Pokemon were reintroduced in the second HGSS set, HGSS:Undaunted, in the form of PokmonLegend cards.

Pokmon typesA simplified type system was used for the trading card game. Instead of 17 types of Pokmon, only ten exist. Sevenwere in the Base Set, Darkness and Metal types appeared when Pokmon Gold and Silver introduced the Dark andSteel types and the Dragon type was finally introduced in the JP "Dragon Selection" set. The types usually followthis pattern:

TCG type Color Type(s)

Grass Green Bug, Grass,(Poison)1

Fire Red Fire

Water Blue Water, Ice

Lightning Yellow Electric

Psychic Purple Psychic, Ghost, Poison1

Fighting Brown/Orange Fighting, Rock, Ground

Darkness Black Dark

Metal Silver Steel

Colorless White Normal, Flying, 2

Dragon Gold Dragon2

1. 1 Starting with the Diamond & Pearl expansion, Poison-type Pokmon in-game are now Psychic; they werepreviously Grass.

2. 2Starting with the Black & White expansion set Dragon Selection, Dragon-type Pokmon in-game now own typeDragon; previously part of Colorless

Most Pokmon have only one type. However, EX Team Magma vs Team Aqua introduced Dual-type Pokmon,which have two different types. All existing Dual-type cards have either Darkness or Metal as their secondary type,with the exception of certain Pokmon cards with the Dual Armor Pok-Body, such as Medicham from the EXCrystal Guardians expansion, which can have multiple types when certain energy are attached.Weakness and resistance are determined by the type of the attacking Pokmon (unlike the video game series, wherethey are determined by the type of the attack used). In older sets, Pokmon that are weak to another type take twicethe base damage in an attack, while resistance decreases attack damage by 30 points. However, starting in theDiamond & Pearl expansion, Pokmon cards state how much more or less damage they take from an opponentsattack if weakness or resistance applies. If an older card is Modified-legal (meaning that there has been a reprint inthe current Modified format), use the newer card as a reference, even if the older card is being played.If a Pokmon has two types, both of those types are calculated as far as weakness and resistance are concerned. Forexample, if a Pokmon has weakness to two types, and a Pokmon that is both of those types attacks, that attack willdo four times its normal damage.


The Pokmon Platinum Base Set introduced Pokmon SP cards, a variant of trainer specific Pokmon cards fromolder sets, that reintroduced the 'double damage' weakness standard from older sets without a base number next tothe type weakness while adding an actual 'x2' to avoid confusion by newer players (ex: Infernape SP has a weaknessof 'Water x2', meaning a Water attack that deals 30 points of damage deals 60 instead). Only Pokmon SP cardswould maintain this 'double damage' standard, while remaining non-SP Pokmon would simply have normalweakness calculations. With the introduction of the HeartGold/SoulSilver Base Set in 2010, all weaknesses onPokmon cards revert back to taking twice the damage, with the same 'x2' written next to each weakness. Similarly,the second set under this block, HS Unleashed, also reintroduces the concept of dual-type Pokmon cards- in thiscase, the LEGENDS cards for the three legendary beasts of the Johto region Suicune, Raikou, and Entei. EachLEGENDS 'pair' features two of the three beasts battling together, giving each card dual-types (ex: Suicune/EnteiLEGEND being a Water/Fire Pokmon card) and subsequently dual-weaknesses under the new 'double damage'printing (ex: Raikou/Suicune LEGEND having "Fighting/Electric x2" weaknesses).

SetsWith the release of Black and White: Emerging Powers on August 31, 2011, there are currently 47 differentPokmon TCG sets released in English and 49 released in Japanese. These sets have a vast range of sizes, fromFossil (the smallest at 62 cards), to Aquapolis and Skyridge (both the largest, with 182 normal cards, 182 reverse-foilcards and four box toppers - 368 cards in total). Only seven of these sets (HeartGold and SoulSilver and allsubsequent sets) are legal in the current Modified Format, under which all major tournaments are played. A rarelyplayed format is Unlimited, in which all cards released in English are legal (except oversized cards, such as large boxtopper cards, and banned cards including Ancient Mew or _______'s Pikachu).Early in the game, sets were released in seemingly random intervals, but ever since Nintendo took over theproduction of the sets, there has been a constant stream of four sets per year, released at 2.5 to 3.5 month intervals(February, May, August, October/November).The current 50 released expansions are: Base Set, Jungle, Fossil, Team Rocket, Gym Heroes, Gym Challenge, NeoGenesis, Neo Discovery, Neo Revelation, Neo Destiny, Legendary Collection, Expedition Base Set, Aquapolis,Skyridge, EX Ruby And Sapphire, EX Sandstorm, EX Dragon, EX Team Magma vs Team Aqua, EX Hidden Legends,EX FireRed And LeafGreen, EX Team Rocket Returns, EX Deoxys, EX Emerald, EX Unseen Forces, EX DeltaSpecies, EX Legend Maker, EX Holon Phantoms, EX Crystal Guardians, EX Dragon Frontiers, EX Power Keepers,Diamond & Pearl Base Set, Diamond & Pearl - Mysterious Treasures, Diamond & Pearl - Secret Wonders,Diamond & Pearl - Great Encounters, Diamond & Pearl - Majestic Dawn, Diamond & Pearl - Legends Awakened,Diamond & Pearl - Stormfront, Platinum Base Set, Platinum - Rising Rivals, Platinum - Supreme Victors, Platinum -Arceus, HeartGold and SoulSilver Base Set, HeartGold and SoulSilver - HS Unleashed, HeartGold and SoulSilver -HS Undaunted, HeartGold and Soulsilver - HS Triumphant, Call of Legends, Black and White (Base Set), Black andWhite - Emerging Powers, Black and White - Noble Victories, Black and White- Next Destinies, Black and White-Dark Explorers", "and Black and White- Dragons Exalted. The next unreleased sets are Dragon Blast/Blade andFreeze Bolt/Cold Flare.

Every few sets, new types of cards are introduced to the Pokmon Trading Card Game. Several of these include: Dark Pokmon (Team Rocket); Owners' Pokmon and Stadium cards (Gym Heroes); Darkness-type and Metal-type Pokmon, the second generation, and Pokmon Tools (Neo Genesis); Shining Pokmon (Neo Revelation); Light Pokmon (Neo Destiny); Supporter cards and Technical Machines (Expedition); Crystal-type Pokmon (Aquapolis); Pokmon-ex (EX Ruby & Sapphire); Dual-type Pokmon (EX Team Magma vs Team Aqua); Pokmon-* (EX Team Rocket Returns); Delta Species Pokmon and Holon's Pokmon (EX Delta Species); Pokmon LV.X, the separation of Trainer, Supporter and Stadium cards, and the addition of Metal and Darkness as Basic Energy types (Diamond and Pearl); Pokmon With Items (Mysterious Treasures); Trainer cards of which two can be played at once (Stormfront); owner-specific Pokmon SP (Platinum), Pokmon LEGEND (HeartGold and SoulSilver Collection),


Pokmon PRIME which replace Pokmon Lv. X ("HeartGold and SoulSilver Collection"), Full Art cards (Black andWhite), and dragon-type pokemon. These changes, along with yearly format rotations, make for a constantlyevolving game.

Play! PokmonIn addition to the collectible aspect of the card game, The Pokmon Company International (formerly known asPokmon USA) has also created Play! Pokmon, formerly known as Pokmon Organized Play (POP), which is incharge of the organization of an official League program, where players can battle others in local environments andearn player points, two-card booster packets from a promotional set, badges, stickers and other materials. These arerun by League leaders and owners. POP also runs a professor program, in which individuals age 18 or over maybecome a professor, who can sanction and run tournaments and leagues.A League Leader may assist in organizing the league, while a League Owner is the one officially in charge of theleague, reporting to the Organized Play program any results and/or problems every seven weeks. The leagues run inyearly cycles, based on a certain aspect of one of the Pokmon Game Boy or DS games: the current cycle is basedupon the Energy types.Prerelease tournaments are organized just before each set is released. Usually, they are run on the two weekendsbefore a set is released in stores to the public. At prereleases players are given booster packs from the judge and mustconstruct a 40 card deck, with only 4 prize cards, using only the cards pulled from the packs and the judges providethe energy, but not special energy cards.Many fans have come up with alternative methods of playing the Trading Card Game. Certain websites such asPokCap [1] are dedicated to providing players with a new twist to their card game with new game rules they canfollow. New methods may be based more on the video game adaptations of Pokmon or the Pokmon televisionshow.

Tournament PlayPlayers in a tournament are split into three age categories: Junior (born in 2001 or later), Senior (born in 1998-2001),and Master (born in 1997 or earlier). These tournaments play a number of rounds, where players will play a standardgame against each other and wins and losses will be recorded. In most tournaments, there are a number ofSwiss-style rounds where players are paired up against others of similar win/loss ratios, usually from their own agegroup (this does not always occur in smaller events, though). Afterwards, there will either be a cut of the toprecord-holders (approximately the top 1/8 of participants) where players will play best two out of three matches, andthe loser gets eliminated (standard tournament bracket style), with an eventual winner.POP runs a season for these tournaments, which allows players to earn larger prizes and play in a more competitiveenvironment in comparison to League. These range from City and State Championships, all the way up to thePokmon World Championships, the single invite-only event of the year. Players can earn invites to the WorldChampionships by winning or ranking high at National Championships, having a good Premier Rating (based on theElo rating system, which allows players to win or lose points at any Battle Roads or higher-level event), or byqualifying in the Last Chance Qualifier. The World Championships is a two-day tournament, with one eventualwinner in each age group; the winner of the Masters Division age group is generally noticed as the best player in theworld for that season.Some of these methods are only used in the USA, as PUI and POP are based in the USA, but they are represented bylocal distributors who provide the Organized Play program to their own country.


Decks in Competitive PlayOver the different generations, and tournament formats, there have been several main stars when it comes to decks.During the first and second generations, the Haymaker deck consisting of Hitmonchan, Electabuzz, Magmar, andsometimes Scyther. Ideally, it would start with one of those three Pokmon, then one would play Trainer and Energycards to get the upper hand. In the current format "TyRam", "Zekrom/Eelektrik", "Celebi/Mewtwo/Tornadus","Durant", "Thunderdome" and "Chandelure" are a few decks currently being used in competitive play, each withvarying strategies, advantages and disadvantages. Information of up to date and recent decks can be found on mostPokemon websites, such as heytrainer.org [2], thedeckout.com [3] or sixprizes.com [4].Competitive play features card rotation, in which certain cards become unusable in competitive play. This is done byseries, and forces players to mix up their strategies. This has the biggest impact of removing trainer cards, which arejust as big of a focus as pokemon in competitive play. A notable example being the Gust of Wind card, whichswapped the active pokemon of the opponent with a pokemon on their bench of the user's choice. This card waswildly popular, but once it was removed players had to modify their decks. A card was later released with the sameeffect only titled Pokemon catcher, and this card is seen in nearly all competitive decks today.

Major tournaments under Wizards of the Coast

Tropical Mega Battle

On August 2627, 2000, forty-two Pokmon trainers from around the world met at the Hilton Hawaiian Village inHonolulu for the Tropical Mega Battle, an international communication event for the Pokmon Trading CardGame. The Tropical Mega Battle brought together children aged 14 and under from the United States, Japan, France,Italy, Canada, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, for two days in Honolulu, Hawaii.Children participating in the Tropical Mega Battle received invitations through Qualifier tournaments, DCI rankings,and other events in their respective countries.

Events throughout the weekend included competitions facilitated by translators for groups of childrenrepresenting two different languages in each group; a group photo and an opening ceremony featuring remarksfrom Hawaiian government officials; and a harbor cruise awards ceremony for the winners of the WorldCommunication Match. Jason Klaczynski, 14-year-old Orland Park, Ill., resident, was honored as the MasterTrainer of the Tropical Mega Battle after winning the final round of the World Communication Match againstfellow Pokmon trainer Toshiya Tanabe of Sapporo, Japan.

Super Trainer Showdown

The Super Trainer Showdowns were large Pokmon TCG tournaments held in the United States by Wizardsof the Coast between 2000 and 2001. The tournaments were open to the public. Each tournament consisted ofthree age groups; 10 and under, 11 to 14 years old, and 15 years old and over. Each Super Trainer Showdownwas preceded by a series of Qualifier Tournaments held in cities around the United States and abroad in whichplayers in the 11-to-14 and 10-and-under age groups could win trips for themselves and a parent or guardian tothe Super Trainer Showdown event. To date, there have been four Super Trainer Showdowns.

The first Super Trainer Showdown was held in Long Beach, California inside of the cruise liner, the Queen Mary onJuly 22, 2000. The format was unlimited, meaning that all Pokmon cards released in the United States were legalfor deck construction. The winners were Joseph Viray, Jack Savage, Wesley Hsu, Dan Bigman and AndrewMarshall.[5]

The second Super Trainer Showdown was held at the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus, NJ on November 18, 2000. There were over 700 players in all three age divisions competing for the title. The tournament was eight rounds of Swiss style pairings followed by a cut to a top-eight single-elimination playoff. All games were best-of-one. The format was titled 15/3 in that you were allowed to construct 60-card decks using only fifteen


Trainer cards and only three of any one card, save basic Energy Cards. Jonathan Brooks, Rudy Rodriguez, WesleyHsu, and Tom Hanley were the event champions.The third Super Trainer Showdown was held again in the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus, New Jersey.It was held on June 2324, 2001 and more than 1,600 players attended the event. The format for this event was titledModified and allowed players to construct 60-card decks using a maximum of four of any card other than basicenergy from the sets Team Rocket, Gym Heroes, Gym Challenge, and Neo Genesis. The card Sneasel from theNeo Genesis set was banned from play. The event ran for 2 days, with 3 champions name each day. Paul Lamancusa,Jonathan Brooks, Josh Goldstein, Phil Mondiello, Tom Liesegang, Jeremy Borchardt, Wesley Hsu, and Tom Hanleywere the winners.The fourth and final Super Trainer Showdown was held at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego,California on December 12, 2001. The format was again "Modified", however the newest set Neo Discovery wasalso legal for the tournament. The card Sneasel was again disallowed from play. This year's champions includedMichael Perucca, Eric Brooks, David Bui, Seena Ghaziaskar, Robert Frac, Wesley Hsu, and Matthew Moss.

Competitive play outside of the United StatesAlthough TPCI tries to keep Organized Play as equal as possible all over the Earth, there are some notabledifferences in how POP is run outside of the USA.

Pokmon Card Laboratory (PCL)

The Pokmon Card Laboratory (PCL), located in Japan, is the designer of new cards and the ultimate authority onany matter relating to the Pokmon Trading Card Game. It can declare rulings on any in-game circumstance, issueerrata, change card text after publishing, and change the basic game rules, although the latter three rarely occur. PCLruns Organized Play in Japan.

Pokmon in the UK

Pokmon TCG retail distribution in the UK is currently run by Esdevium Games Ltd, and Organized Play by D & AGames from 2007 until 2009. In August 2009, control of OP was given to long time UK Judge and TournamentOrganizer Ian Fotheringham. The UK has one of the largest player bases outside the United States and Japan. Itsplayers have performed admirably over the past few years at the World Championships, including a 4th Place forFares Sekkoum in the 10-division (2006), a Top 16 place for Jake Arnold in the 10-division (2004) a 7th Place forSami Sekkoum in the 15+ (2005), a Top 16 finish for Yacine Sekkoum in the 15+ (2006) and a Top 16 10th placefinish for Faisal Khan ("Freddy-K") in the 15+ (2005).Held in May 2008, the UK Pokmon TCG National Championships was held in London, a much more popularchoice of venue location for the majority of players who were mainly based in the South East of England. In 2006around 70 players were invited to play in each age group, with approximately 55 players per division in 2007. Theprizes have included Nintendo DS consoles, televisions and invites to represent the UK in the World Championships.The 2008 UK Nationals was the first event of its kind in the country to be open to all players and required noqualification for entry. The 2009 UK Nationals was held at Kempton park on the 16th May 2009 with a high 180attendance. Sami Sekkoum won Masters again, and newcomer Samuel McLewee took 2nd in the seniors at his firstNationals. Also new for the 2008/09 Season was the UK Battle Royale events. However it is unlikely these willreturn for the 2009/10 season.Smaller City Championships, and for the first time in 2006 UK Pokmon Regional championships, are held betweenNovember and April. These were held in Hull, London, Bournemouth, Manchester and Glasgow.


Banned cardsA few cards were banned from both general play and Modified Format under Wizards of the Coast.Sneasel

The first card that was banned was Sneasel from the set Neo Genesis. Decks with Sneasel were winning almostevery major tournament, making all other decks uncompetitive. Sneasel's ability to use the new DarknessEnergy cards (which increase the power of all Dark-type attacks by 10), no weakness, a free retreat cost,quickly powered-up attacks, and the ability to do enormous damage made it an outstanding card. In short,Sneasel was faster and more powerful than any other card in the game at the time. It was banned beginningwith the 2001 Super Trainer Showdown. WotC produced giant Sneasel cards for the event with "Banned at theSTS" printed on them. Sneasel was reprinted in HS Undaunted, featuring changes to weakness and resistance.It is no longer illegal.

The banned Slowking card

SlowkingThe only other banned card printed in a normal set was also from NeoGenesis. Slowking from Neo Genesis had a Pokmon Power that allowed itsuser to flip a coin whenever the opponent played a Trainer card, and if thatcoin was heads, the Trainer card would return to the user's deck withoutaffecting the game. In the Japanese version of the game, this Power could onlybe used while Slowking was active. When the card was translated to English,however, it was translated incorrectly. The English version of the card notonly allowed its owner to use the Power while Slowking was benched, but thepower was cumulative, meaning players could flip a coin for each Slowkingthey had in play every time their opponent played a Trainer card, and if evenone were heads, that card would have no effect. While the Japanese version ofthe card was barely playable (Slowking is not a good attacker, and is easily KO'ed when active), the Englishversion was too powerful because a player could place one or more Slowking on the bench, prevent theopponent from playing any Trainer cards, and still play a stronger Pokmon as the active Pokmon. Slowkingdominated the 2002 World Championship (the only World Championship not run by PUI) and, as a result,WotC announced that the card was no longer legal for any format as of January 1, 2003.

_________'s Pikachu_________'s Pikachu (commonly known as "Birthday Pikachu") was Promo Card number 24 printed byWotC. The effect of its attack, Birthday Surprise, says, "...if it is your birthday, flip a coin. If heads, this attackdoes 30 damage plus 50 more damage...". WotC banned this card quickly after its release, because there wasno quick, easy way to check that it was actually someone's birthday whenever he or she attacked with the card.Disproving liars who wanted to do a lot of damage for a few energy turned out to require much more effortthan it was worth. The Japanese version of the card has red text in the margin stating its illegality. It is one ofthe few Japanese cards with this message that was produced in English, most likely because of its immensepopularity with collectors.

Ancient MewAncient Mew was a banned card because of its alternate background. It has no real attacks or Pokmon Powersthat would make it broken, as it has a mere 30 HP and does 40 damage. The card's "ancient" runic writing,which confused players and lack of an easy translation method contributed to its banning. Despite the fact thatit is a foreign card, it is not considered a foreign card in the Unlimited 2009-2010 Pokmon modified format.

The bans that WotC placed were removed when Pokmon Organized Play took over the game. Their only limitationis that cards must have the normal English or Japanese card back to be playable. In addition, the cards printed in thepromotional World Championship Decks are not allowed in any competitive events. These cards are supposed to be


printed as promotional items and are not meant to help people collect the large numbers of rare and valuable cardsthat were played in these decks.

Media ReleaseBurger Kings world wide sold BK Meals with Pokmon toys that are a total of 12 cards and accessories combined.Announced on June 10, 2008, the toys were released at participating Burger Kings on July 7, 2008.[6]

In 2011, McDonald's released a set of eight toys (not all were released outside of North America) and twelve cards,featuring Pokmon from the Pokmon Black and White era of the TCG.As an interesting point, a misprint in 2002 by WotC caused the English translated Mew to halt in production, severalwere produced but it was banned as a precaution. This was later remedied and the misprinted card was branded as acollectible. It had only participated in one minor tournament.[7]

Pokmon TCG Online

Pokmon TCG OnlinePlatform(s) Microsoft Windows, OS X

Releasedate(s) April 2011

Genre(s) Trading Card Game

Mode(s) Single-player and Multi-player

Pokmon Trainer Challenge is a downloadable game based on the Pokmon Trading Card Game. The gameinitially offers three starting decks, and features more content after release. After April 6, players can buy cards fromthe Black and White series, which will have a code to be digitally represented.[8] Players can also create a customavatar.[9] There are now booster pack codes, special items, and booster packs.GamesRadar praised the game, stating "Everything looks to be faithfully recreated, including the card mat, prize cardlayout, and even coins."[9]

References[1] http:/ / sites. google. com/ site/ pokecap[2] http:/ / www. heytrainer. org[3] http:/ / www. thedeckout. com[4] http:/ / www. sixprizes. com[5] Kane, Gordon (November 2000). "The Scene on the Queen". Pojo's Unofficial Pokmon News & Price Guide Monthly 2 (1): 6066[6] http:/ / www. pokemon. com/ #news_/ XML/ news_275. xml[7][7] Beckett Pokmon Unofficial Collector[8] Matthew Kato (February 15, 2011). "Online Battles Start With Pokmon Trainer Challenge - News - www.GameInformer.com" (http:/ /

www. gameinformer. com/ b/ news/ archive/ 2011/ 02/ 15/ pok-233-mon-trainer-challenge. aspx). . Retrieved 2011-02-15.[9] Mark Raby (Feb 16, 2011). "Pokmon trading cards getting free browser-based game, Pokemon Black / White DS News" (http:/ / www.

gamesradar. com/ ds/ pokemon-black-white/ news/ pokmon-trading-cards-getting-free-browser-based-game/ a-2011021614310309043/g-201004091000657031). GamesRadar. . Retrieved 2011-02-22.


External links

Official Pokmon TCG site Official Pokmon TCG website (http:/ / www. pokemon. com/ us/ trading-cards/ ) TCG Online website (http:/ / www. pokemontcg. com/ ) Official Pokmon website (http:/ / www. pokemon. com/ )

Pokmon TCG fansites PokBeach (http:/ / pokebeach. com/ ) Pokmon TCG news, card scans, card translations, and forum for trading,

discussion, and organized play events. PokGym (http:/ / pokegym. net/ ) A website with Pokmon TCG news, scans and event gallery, information,

trading community and a forum for discussion of the Pokmon TCG. Pokepedia (http:/ / pokepedia. net/ ) A Pokmon TCG database with a decklist builder, trader base, and event

mapper. SixPrizes (http:/ / sixprizes. com/ ) A Pokemon TCG strategy blog and forum. Bulbapedia (http:/ / bulbapedia. bulbagarden. net/ wiki/ Trading_Card_Game) Pokmon Trading Card Game on

Bulbapedia, a Pokmon Wiki WikiHow (http:/ / www. wikihow. com/ Know-if-Pokemon-Cards-Are-Fake) A WikiHow page on spotting fake

Pokemon Cards.

Article Sources and Contributors 13

Article Sources and ContributorsPokmon Trading Card Game Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=537193834 Contributors: 041744, 1dragon, 2001:708:30:1210:8C07:BC3A:962F:2614,28421u2232nfenfcenc, 677dragon, A Man In Black, Acebulf, AeonicOmega, Afkatk, Agent Smith (The Matrix), Ajsh, Alansohn, AlienXguy, Alphagg, Amelush, Andrewpmk, Andros 1337,Angela-Samshi, Angusmclellan, Annajohnston, Anticipation of a New Lover's Arrival, The, Antonio Lopez, Apostrophe, ArrEmmDee, Atethnekos, Baa, Banana Concoction, Bando26, Banedon,Barkjon, Baron1234, Barry 081595, Bassbonerocks, Benzband, Bese, Bibliomaniac15, Bihco, BilliamBilliam, Billy Bishop, Bkonrad, Blackspotw, Blake, Blastoise-shellshocker, BlazerKnight,Blotwell, Blue devil, Bobblewik, Bobo192, Bodnotbod, Boobiesss, Bosoxx091, Bovineboy2008, Brandon5485, Breawycker public, Brenont, Brian8710, Brucechris1, Bstewart89,Butseriouslyfolks, CambridgeBayWeather, Canthusus, Captain Carrot, Casega, CastformRED, Chairman Kaga, Chase me ladies, I'm the Cavalry, Chester Markel, Chimchar monferno, Chris thespeller, Chunho, Cipher, Clarince63, Clay, Cleverbud, Cmdrjameson, CoastTOcoast533, Colonies Chris, Corvus cornix, CrashWire, Craw-daddy, Crazytree933, Croberts1, Crocketmeow,CultureDrone, CyberTech-100, DARTH SIDIOUS 2, DBJ1999, Dajackstah, DarkJake, Darkcat1, Datakid, De Nam, DeadEyeArrow, Deltabeignet, Demi, DerHexer, Diannaa, Discospinster,Dispenser, Doktor Wilhelm, Doug, Dragon's Light, Drpickem, Duct tape tricorn, DynamicUno, Eagles247, Ebec19, Eequor, Ehccheehcche, El Monterrey, Eliashc, Elronxenu, Emokidinlove,Emurphy42, Enigmaman, Epbr123, Eric42, Erik the Appreciator, Et88888127, Eternal dragon, Ethuasia, Excirial, Explicit, Face, Faradayplank, Fastily, Fastilysock, Fastsailboy, Flibbert,FlyingToaster, Fordan, FriedMilk, Fyyer, GUTTERTAHAH, Garygoh884, GatesDA, Gavyn Sykes, Gear it up!, Gherson2, GinoLombardi21, Glacialfox, Golradaer, GooTuM, Gopher9990,GorillaWarfare, Graham87, Gurch, Handsdown.1, Happy Mask Man, Harry, Hasek is the best, Headbomb, Hede2000, Hello32020, Herkelthebrave, HighwayCello, Hiiil69, Hjfgfyg, Hobartimus,Holiday56, Hoo man, Horselover Frost, Husond, Hws210p, Hydromaniac, Hyenaste, IAmTheCoinMan, Immewnity, ImperatorExercitus, InShaneee, Inferno, Lord of Penguins, Infrogmation,InverseHypercube, Iohannes Animosus, Iokerapid, Iridescent, Iuio, J.delanoy, JA272416, JDspeeder1, Jacklemook, Jacko1397, Jarble, Jason One, Jazama, Jelly Soup, Jgross68, Jlao04, Joelr31,John of Reading, Jon Harald Sby, Jonnywoof, JoshuaArgent, Jrcla2, Jschnur, Jshadow1310, Jwilso72, Jynx, Jypsy27, KNHaw, KPH2293, KdogDS, Keilana, Keith D, KelvSYC, Kempley05,Keno, King Zeke, King of Hearts, Kirara753, Klemen Kocjancic, Kopl324, Kowloonese, KrakatoaKatie, Krupal.Joshi, LAX, Lalala1087, Lampbane, Latitude0116, Lightdarkness, Lighted Match,LilHelpa, Lilphil212, Lilsd619, Lkc159, Lost2012, Lowellian, Lradrama, LtPowers, Luigi, LuigiManiac, Luna Santin, MER-C, MR.CRO95, Magog the Ogre, Maniwar, MarlinMr, Master ThiefGarrett, Mateussf, Mathman1550, Mbertsch, Mboverload, McYel, Meaghan, Melicans, Mike 7, Mike Peel, Mike Selinker, Mindbleed, Minna Sora no Shita, Minun, Mishmow, MisterFreeman,Misza13, Mogism, Monkeycat, Moroboshi, Mossy695, Mrknowitalldude, MsDivagin, Munci, Myanw, Nanotone, Neilc, NerdyScienceDude, NessBird, Newblackwhite, Nextels, Niceguyedc,Ninetales1234, Ninja Wizard, Nintendude123, Ninty, Nnaann529, NoseNuggets, Nsd12, O.j.galvan, Occono, Oda Mari, Ohnoitsjamie, Oli Filth, Omicronpersei8, Oskart, Ost316, Otolemurcrassicaudatus, PK2, PL290, PM800, PancakesMan, PazPage, Penguinwithcheese, Penubag, Pg 6475, PhilKnight, Phred, Pinethicket, Plau, Pojosama, Pokeman101, Pokemon creater,Pokymon99, Ppk01, PrestonH, Proofreader77, RJaguar3, RPoplar, Red Director, Red157, RekishiEJ, Rhonin the wizard, Rich Farmbrough, Richiekim, Riotrocket8676, Roadrunner3000,Robatash, Robbiebrack, Robert W. Wright, Robinspw, Ron Ritzman, Ron Stoppable, Ronhjones, Roux, Rowsdower45, Rrburke, Rror, Ryan Roos, Ryulong, ST47, Saberwyn, Sadarac152,Salvidrim, Samowen828, Samwb123, Sandshrew9, Scepia, Schmloof, Scratchlax, Sdphost, Secfan fucker, Sesu Prime, Setitup, Shadow Caster Legion, Shakkaku, Slordak, Slowking Man,Smsarmad, Smsshafi, Smurrayinchester, Snotplinkoid, Snowolf, Snuppy, SoCalSuperEagle, Solar Police, Sotakeit, Sotomura, Spareus157, Sparkdogvbdapdnw, Spinach Dip, Spug, Ssbb1,Steve2011, Steven Weston, StryyderG, Stugwilson, SubStandardDeviation, Suffusion of Yellow, SujinYH, Sukecchi, Sunlighthot, Sycogeek12, T.z0n3, TCGplayer, THEN WHO WAS PHONE?,Tabletop, Taueres, Tawker, Technical Wiz, Temporarily Insane, Tezero, Th1rt3en, ThaddeusB, That Guy, From That Show!, The Random Editor, The Thing That Should Not Be, The sunderking, TheKoG, Thecheesykid, Thegunguys, Themasta2005, Thingg, Think outside the box, Tide rolls, Tone.itdown1901, Toxicroak, Trijnstel, TrogdorPolitiks, Tsunamishadow, Tud123,Twobunfunrun, Tyjvi, Typhlosion, Typhoonchaser, Ultraflame, Ultraviolet scissor flame, Uncke Herb, Uncle Dick, Urutapu, Urzatron, Vanished user 99034jfoiasjq2oirhsf3, Veemonkamiya,Versus22, Viennese Waltz, Vikrant A Phadkay, Vipinhari, Vivio Testarossa, Vpa57, Vrenator, WadeSimMiser, Waspinator 1998, Welsh, WhisperToMe, Wiki alf, Wiki helper guy, Wikialexdx,WikidSmaht, Wikipelli, WindFish, Wolf52525, Wysprgr2005, XJuliacooloX, Yamamoto Ichiro, Yellow1996, Yoyomikey24, Zip gup, Zzuuzz, 1224 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and ContributorsImage:Arena Pokmon Trading Card Game (italian).jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Arena_Pokmon_Trading_Card_Game_(italian).jpg License: CreativeCommons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0 Contributors: Taueres (Sergio Santoro)Image:Slowking neo genesis card.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Slowking_neo_genesis_card.jpg License: unknown Contributors: Diannaa, Eeekster, Skier Dude,Solar Police

LicenseCreative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported//creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

''Pokmon Trading Card Game''Gameplay Card types Energy cards Trainer cards Multi-type cards

Pokmon types

Sets Play! Pokmon Tournament Play Decks in Competitive Play Major tournaments under Wizards of the Coast Tropical Mega BattleSuper Trainer Showdown

Competitive play outside of the United States Pokmon Card Laboratory (PCL) Pokmon in the UK

Banned cards Media Release Pokmon TCG Online References External links Official Pokmon TCG site Pokmon TCG fansites

License

Documents

Pokémon Trading Card Game